RCB hope to make up for twin losses

“We have put the Chennai match behind. We have to forget the last match and move on to the next game. In this type (T20) of game, you win some and lose some,” RCB’s leading spin offie Muthaiah Muralitharan told reporters late Saturday.

Recalling that the previous match against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) Thursday was a close one on a good wicket, the Sri Lankan legendary bowler said though RCB scored well (205 runs), they lost the match in the last two overs when 43 runs were scored by CSK batters Albie Morkel and Dwayne Bravo.

“Unfortunately we lost the game in the last two overs as they (CSK) played very well. Our calculations went wrong. We thought we will pull it off but didn’t happen that way. It was a learning experience,” Muralitharan admitted before joining his team for practice in the nets at the adjacent national cricket academy’s grounds under flood lights for their third encounter on home turf.

Asserting that no team was going to win all the matches (16) and are bound to lose some at the league level, Muralitharan said which ever team will have the momentum, will qualify for a slot in top four matches.

After winning their first league match against Delhi Daredevils by 20 run April 7 here, the hosts lost to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 42 runs here April 10 and to CSK by five wickets at Chennai April 11.

Asked if the team has any special plan to beat Royals to reverse the fortunes, Muralitharan said they would give their best shot to get back to winning with the advantage of playing on the home pitch and in front of supporting fans.

“We have a set team with experienced and some young players. Don’t forget we were twice runners-up. Even in Champions Trophy. We have to go and perform to our potential to win as many matches as we can to make it to the qualifiers,” Muralitharan asserted.

Led by local lad Rahul Dravid, Royals will also look for an outright win after they lost two away games back-to-back against Mumbai Indians (MI) by 27 runs in Mumbai April 11 and against KKR by five wickets at Kolkata Friday after registering two consecutive wins at Jaipur over Kings XI Punjab by 31 runs April 6 and KKR by 22 runs April 8.

Nobody is unbeatable in IPL: Gilchrist

“They (KKR) are very tough opponents. We are very mindful of that. But I don't see any team who are unbeatable. Everyone on a given day can beat any other team,” said Gilchrist on the eve of their match against the Knight Riders to be played at the Eden Gardens Sunday.


“KKR have got big names. Every player can do a terrific job and so often in a T20 (match) it's the individual performance that can set a game up. They are all dangerous,” he said.

The Australian wicket keeper-batsman also expressed satisfaction over his team’s performance. “Our record is very similar to that of a lot of teams. Some have one and two, two-one or two-two win-loss record. We are really pleased with the way we are doing.”

“As far as our team environment is concerned, we are a terrific bunch of guys. We don't feel we have any super megastar who brings in any big ego. I'm not insinuating that anyone else has that. We are a very relaxed and enthusiastic group,” he said.

Gilchrist hoped that batsman Paul Valthaty will regain his form soon. The dasher last year had won the best individual performance award for his knock of 120 not out off 63 while chasing a score of 189 runs against Chennai Super Kings.


“Everyone has been in these situations in their career. We are just trying to keep backing him. We are just trying to encourage him, to keep relaxed. He is just got to trust in his abilities so that he does not lose his talent,” said he.


Gilchrist was also all praise for Punjab pacer Harmeet Singh.

England cricket stars batting for good causes

England wicket keeper Matt Prior and the team's wicket-keeping coach Bruce French would embark upon the 100 mile South Downs way on bicycles to raise money for Chestnut Tree House this week, which is a local charity.

The charity is also one of the recipients of Prior's Sussex benefit year, and his decision to give that extra effort has earned him plaudits among the cricket fraternity, The Mirror reports.

Next Sunday, the England coach Andy Flower will be doing his small piece alongside team psychologist Mark Bawden by running the London Marathon in support of three charities, each with a special connection to him.

Even England's legendary cricketer Sir Ian Botham is not staying behind, as he will be hitting the streets again in the name of beating blood cancer and raising money for Leukemia and Lymphoma Research.

Botham has been doing this for over 25 years and has raised both money and awareness beyond all measure for a disease that kills far fewer now than when he started.

ICC Executive Board to meet in Dubai

The major topics on the agenda are:

Independent Governance Review - Woolf Report

In April 2011, the ICC had adopted a new strategic plan which identified the need for an independent governance review as one of its key strategic initiatives to ‘build a bigger, better global game’.

In August 2011, after confirming the scope for the review, the ICC Board appointed Lord Woolf of Barnes and PricewaterhouseCoopers to conduct the review.

Following extensive engagement with a wide range of stakeholders, Lord Woolf and PwC presented at the last ICC Board meeting their 60 page report which contains 65 recommendations. The Board had agreed to study the report at this April meeting.

The report highlights four fundamental issues:

1. Ensuring good governance – an effective Board that provides strong leadership.

2. Ethical standards – essential for ICC to embed the highest ethical standards with Members expected to adopt similar standards.

3. The reform of Members’ rights – particularly removing the obligation to play Test cricket.

4. Increasing the resources of the ICC – a self-funded ICC that distributes surplus revenue on a needs basis in its role to promote and develop international cricket across all Members.

The recommendations are summarised into five main areas:

· Role of the ICC

· The ICC Board

· Ethics

· Membership, Board structure and Committees

· Funding

ICC Vice-President (2012-2014) nomination

The ICC has received the joint nomination of Mustafa Kamal from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as the next ICC Vice-President and who will succeed Mr Alan Isaac as the ICC President in 2014.

Following a Board resolution to change the constitution to split the role of ICC President and Chairman of the Board, this nomination is yet to be considered by the Board.

The Board will also receive an update on progress made to replace Haroon Lorgat who vacates the position of Chief Executive at the end of the Annual Conference in June 2012. The executive recruitment firm, Egon Zehnder International, is presently conducting a search for a suitable candidate.

Twenty20 strategy and other CEC recommendations for Board consideration

Following constructive discussions at the March meeting of the Chief Executive’s Committee (CEC), the ICC Board will also discuss and contribute towards enhancing the strategy for Twenty20 cricket in developing the game and managing volume.

The CEC has recommended that the ICC World T20 should remain a joint men’s and women’s event and should be increased to 16 men’s teams from 2014 onwards.

In addition, CEC also recommended that -

· the maximum number of T20s allowed in the year in which the ICC World Twenty20 is played should be increased by three (twelve to fifteen per Full Member);

· Associate and Affiliate Members should consider submitting a proposal to stage an ICC WT20 event in a key developing market;

· the current ranking systems be retained in their current form and are fit for the purposes of qualification to ICC events and promotion/relegation;

· a preliminary/high level independent evaluation of participation in multi-sport events be undertaken and that the invitation to take part in the Commonwealth Games to be held on the Gold Coast in Australia in April 2018 be explored;

· a framework for the recognition of various types of disability cricket be developed.

Schedule of ICC events 2015 to 2023

The ICC has already commenced with planning for the new rights cycle post 2015 and a key prerequisite of this is to determine the ICC events that will be staged. The Board will consider the events to be hosted in this new rights cycle.

Other agenda items include update reports on the implementation of Anti-Corruption Codes at domestic level; the ICC World Test Championship and the promotion of all three formats of international cricket; the ICC Development Programme Strategy, which was supported by the CEC at its last meeting; and approval of the ICC’s audited Annual Financial Statements for the year ended 31 December 2011.

The ICC Board consists of the president or chairman from each of the 10 Full Members plus three Associate Member representatives. Also present at ICC Board meetings is the ICC President, who chairs proceedings, the ICC Chief Executive and the ICC Vice-President, as well as by invitation, the ICC Principal Advisor.

Sharad Pawar ICC President

Alan Isaac ICC Vice-President

Haroon Lorgat ICC Chief Executive

Zaka Ashraf Pakistan

Dr Willie Basson South Africa

Peter Chingoka Zimbabwe

Giles Clarke England and Wales

Wally Edwards Australia

Dr Julian Hunte West Indies

Mustafa Kamal Bangladesh

Imran Khwaja Associate Member Representative

Nuski Mohamed Sri Lanka (alternate for Upali Dharmadasa)

Chris Moller New Zealand
Keith Oliver Associate Member Representative

Neil Speight Associate Member Representative

Narayanaswami Srinivasan India

We got players to beat any team: Dravid

“We believe that we got players who can beat any team on a given day. We have a team, which can win us matches as we have shown in the first two games when we had beaten stronger teams like Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Kings XI Punjab,” Dravid told reporters late Saturday on the eve of a crucial league match with RCB on his home ground.

Admitting that the Royals could not sustain the winning momentum in the two home-away games, Dravid said though the team lost in the previous two matches against Mumbai Indians in Mumbai by 27 runs April 11 and against KKR by five wickets in Kolkata late Friday, they were quite close games.

“It is not that we have been completely outclassed. We know we are a tough team to play at home. We haven’t had a great record away. We want to keep improving and do better in every game we will play though we have quite a young squad,” Dravid said.

Asserting Royals had lot of potential to surprise other teams however strong, Dravid said it was exciting to work with a lot of young players and be as much competitive in the tournament to start winning home-away games too.

“I think we were quite competitive in the last two games though they were close and would have gone either way. Hopefully, we will start winning away games hereafter,” Dravid noted.

Observing that it was honour to play in Bangalore and on the ground he grew up playing cricket, Dravid said it would be exciting to play in front of the home crowd against a host team.

“I am luck to play in Bangalore. It is great to play here as I had grown up playing here. Though am playing for another team, am sure I will continue to get the same support from the home crowd as I had over the years when I played for the country, the legendary batsman, who retired from Tests last month, recalled.

Asked if he was following in the footsteps of the legendary Aussie Shane Warne, who captained Royals in the first four IPL series till last year, to enable the team win the trophy for the second time after bagging it for the first time in the opening series in 2008,

Dravid said to lead the team was not a rocket science as he believed in keeping things as simple as possible.

“We give our boys freedom to play and express their views. That's what I noticed with Warnie last year. This is a bit of the same this year. We don't over-complicate things by holding long meetings and practice sessions. What we do is to play with intensity and have a lot of fun at the same time. I have been pleased with the boys’ performance,” he pointed out.

On the pitch conditions, the Royals skipper said the Chinnaswamy stadium had a good wicket with a fair sprinkling of grass albeit a few cracks on it.

“As (Lakshmipathy) Balaji of KKR got four wickets here (against RCB April 10), the track has something for seamers though spinners like (Muthaiah) Muralitharan and (Daniel) Vettori were able to take wickets as they are quality bowlers.

Pune defeat CSK in a thriller

The much-hyped encounter between two of India's best captains had every ingredient in it to be billed as one of the best games in this season of the cash rich league.

Chasing 156 for victory, Sourav Ganguly's Pune Warriors reached the winning runs by losing only three wickets and in just 19.2 overs.

Needing 10 to win from the last over of the game, Smith hit back to back boundary and a six to give the side their third victory in four matches they have played this season.

Smith scored 44 runs from 22 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and three sixes in the match.

New Zealand's opener J Ryder proved once again that why he can be so dangerous in T20 format as he hit a match winning knock of 73 runs from 56 deliveries.

Ryder hit seven boundaries and a six in the match.

R Uthappa (10) and S Ganguly (16) were run out at crucial junctures of the game, making the Pune Warriors score card stand at 65 runs for the loss of two wickets at the end of 8.2 overs.

M Samuels (8) failed to perform with his willow on Saturday.

Smith and Ryder added 66 runs in the fourth wicket partnership that helped the home side clinch a crucial win against the two-time IPL champions.


Earlier, CSK had scored scored 155 runs for the loss of five wickets in their quota of 20 overs.

R Jadeja (44), MS Dhoni (26), F du Plessis (43) made some handsome contributions with the willows.

R Sharma remained the top of the Pune bowlers as he picked up two wickets by giving away only 16 runs.

J Ryder of Pune Warriors was named the 'Man of the Match' at the end of the game.

Chanderpaul moves to fifth in Test rankings

His rise comes on the heels of his unbeaten 103 in the opening Test against Australia at the Kensington Oval.


It was his 25th Test century, surpassing legendary captain Sir Vivian Richards (24) and moving to within one of the incomparable Sir Garry Sobers.

Chanderpaul is now also just 188 runs away from becoming the second West Indies batsman to reach 10,000 Test runs, behind the outstanding Brian Lara, who finished with 11,953 runs.

Meanwhile, the left-handed Darren Bravo, who scored 51 in the first innings and 32 in the second, has remained 21st in the rankings despite reaching a career-best ratings points of 695.

At the top, Australia captain Michael Clarke fell two places to allow South African AB de Villiers to take sole possession of the number one spot.

In the bowling rankings, captain and medium pacer Darren Sammy has jumped four places to 22nd, to become the highest ranked West Indies bowler after taking three wickets in consistent spells in the last Test.

South African speedster Dale Steyn leads an unchanged top five.