In a letter dated August 8, 2019, the Russian Federal Tax Service amended the rules for non-resident holding companies to be considered as the beneficial owner of Russia-sourced income.

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar says he cannot fathom why Mahendra Singh Dhoni has "dragged it for so long" as the right time for the maverick ex-India skipper to call it quits was after last year's ODI World Cup. Akhtar said he hopes the 38-year-old Dhoni gets a resounding farewell despite his resolute silence on what the future holds. "This guy has served to the best of his ability. He should leave cricket with dignity. I don't know why he dragged it for so long. He should have retired after the World Cup," Akhtar told PTI from Islamabad.

"If I would have been in his place, I would have hung up my boots. I could have played shorter formats for three-four years but I left [after the 2011 WC] as I wasn't into the game 100 per cent. So why drag?" he asked. Dhoni, who has not played a competitive game since the World Cup semi-final in July, was preparing to make a much-anticipated comeback with the IPL, which is now unlikely to take place due to the COVID-19 pandemic. If he had done well in the IPL, there was a possibility of him playing the T20 World Cup in October-November. Akhtar believes Dhoni is now in a limbo but deserves a grand send-off despite the anti- climactic turn of events.

Shoaib Akhtar

"As a country, you should let him go with a lot of respect and dignity. Give him a nice send off. He has won you the World Cup and done wonders for India. He is a wonderful human being at the same time. But right now, he seems to be stuck," he said. Akhtar said Dhoni should have ideally retired after last year's 50-over World Cup. "When he could not finish the game in the semi-final [v New Zealand], I felt he should have retired. Only he can answer why he didn't. He should have played a farewell series after that World Cup probably and then said goodbye in a manner befitting his great stature." Talking about the Indian team's inability to win a global event since the 2013 Champions Trophy, Akhtar said Virat Kohli's said: "Winning tournaments is one thing but staying at top is another. India is still the top-ranked Test team and among the top teams in the limited-overs format. We can't rate their performance only in ICC events.

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Former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth said that current skipper Virat Kohli can be compared to Kapil Dev. Srikkanth was part of the squad that Kapil led to victory in the 1983 World Cup and feels that Kohli's self-believe is reminiscent of the former all-rounder.

"I played with Kapil Dev and played under him. I can compare Virat Kohli with Kapil Dev. I see a tremendous amount of self-belief in him," Srikkanth said on Star Sports Cricket Connected where he was chatting with former batsman VVS Laxman and former England skipper Nasser Hussain.

Laxman said that he was afraid that Kohli's famous intensity might burn out in time but that has shown little signs of happening. "I admire Virat Kohli's intensity. One thing I was worried about was whether he will burn out quickly. But not even for one session or one over does he let his intensity drop and that is really commendable,"

Laxman said on the TV show. Kohli averages above 50 in all forms of international cricket. In Tests, he has scored 7240 runs at an average of 53.62 and in ODIs, he has scored 11,867 runs at an average of nearly 60.

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Always eager to share his vast knowledge and experience, cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has interacted with 12,000 doctors on sports injuries. In his over two decade long illustrious career, Tendulkar suffered many health issues, the most prominent being the tennis elbow injury.

The veteran of 200 Tests and 463 ODIs, got to know through one Dr Sudhir Warrier, an orthopaedic surgeon, that several young doctors across the country were utilising the lockdown time to effectively gain knowledge on sports injuries through live webinars. A session on sports injuries was held on Saturday and Tendulkar, knowing that his experiences will help these doctors, volunteered to be a part of it.

Tendulkar, accordingly, interacted with around 12,000 doctors, who attended the session. It is reliably leanrt that the 46-year-old legend said he was grateful to the medical fraternity for their service. During the session, the young orthopaedic doctors got to know how the requirements and treatment outcomes of athletes are different from regular patients, sources said. Dr Warrier moderated the session with Dr Nitin Patel, physiotherapist, who has worked with Indian cricket team and IPL franchise Mumbai Indians.

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Former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara on Sunday said someone must answer to the questions which are still unanswered in regards to the Sri Lanka Easter bombing last year.

"A year on we all share the pain of the families grieving lives lost, we stand with you and for you. We remember. So many questions still unanswered, but answer them someone must," Sangakkara tweeted as people across the world celebrated Easter on Sunday.

Sri Lanka celebrated a quiet Easter Sunday amid the coronavirus lockdown, while remembering the victims of the terror attacks that killed at least 270 people on the resurrection day last year. People largely stayed indoors and offered prayers from home with the Archbishop of Colombo, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, leading an Easter mass from a TV studio because of the pandemic.

The attacks wounded over 500 and deepened communal tensions in Sri Lanka. The bombings, carried out by local Islamist extremists with suspected foreign ties, was claimed by the Islamic State. Police said that they have killed or arrested all suspects in various counter-terror operations carried out in the days after the mayhem.

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South Africa pacer Dale Steyn has revealed his favourite bowling spells. Steyn was doing an #AskDale session on Twitter and a fan asked him about his best spells in international cricket. The Proteas pacer replied: Nagpur (7 against India) and Wanderers (6 against Pakistan). Steyn picked up a seven-wicket haul against India at Nagpur in 2010 in the first Test of the two-match series.

His exploits helped South Africa defeat India by an innings and 6 runs. Steyn achieved the feat in the first innings after Proteas put up a mammoth score of 558/6. Steyn picked up the wickets of Murali Vijay, Sachin Tendulkar, S Badrinath, Wriddhiman Saha, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, and Amit Mishra to finish with figures of 7-51. In the Test match against Pakistan at Johannesburg, Steyn finished with figures of 6-8 in the first innings to bundle out the opponents for just 49. Steyn picked up the wickets of Mohammad Hafeez, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saeed Ajmal, and Rahat Ali.

In the second innings against Pakistan, Steyn took five wickets and South Africa won by 211 runs. Steyn announced his retirement last year from red-ball cricket, which he termed as the ultimate form of the game. Explaining his decision, Steyn said that it was in the best interest of prolonging his career. He continues to remain available for South Africa in both One-Day International and T20 cricket. The fast bowler represented South Africa in 93 Tests and took 439 wickets at an average of 22.95. Steyn became the leading wicket-taker for his nation in the longest format after he went past Shaun Pollock in 2019.

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Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag has stated the real inspiration behind his swashbuckling batting technique was 'Angad' -- a character in mythological epic 'Ramayan'.

Sehwag, who was known for his great hand-eye coordination with minimal footwork, on Sunday shared a picture of 'Angad' on Twitter and said: "So here is where I took my batting inspiration from. Pair hilana mushkil hi nahi, namumkin hai. #Angad Ji Rocks."

So here is where i took my batting inspiration from :)

Pair hilana mushkil hi nahi , namumkin hai . #Angad ji Rocks pic.twitter.com/iUBrDyRQUF

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) April 12, 2020

According to mythology, it is believed that Angad -- who was part of vanar sena which helped Lord Ram in rescuing his wife Sita from Lanka -- was sent as an emissary to the court of Ravan in order to avoid war.

However, Ravan declined the offer and then to break his ego, Angad challenged that if anyone present in the court would be able to lift his feet from the ground then Lord Ram would accept defeat and leave Lanka.

But it is believed that none of the warriors present in Ravan's court was able to lift Angad's feet.

Sehwag, who played 251 ODIs and 104 Tests for India, scored 8,273 and 8,586 runs respectively. In fact, he is the only Indian cricketer to hit two triple centuries in Test cricket.

The swashbuckling opener also played 19 T20Is for India in which he amassed a total of 394 runs.

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Working out, washing utensils, watching movies and playing Ludo online -� these are some of the few activities which ace Indian batter Smriti Mandhana is indulging during the lockdown period in place as the country battles the coronavirus outbreak.

In a one-minute 38 second video shared by the BCCI, Mandhana has revealed her day to day activities in order to make sure how she makes the most of the lockdown period currently in place in the entire country.

WATCH📽ï¸Â: Lockdown Diaries with Smriti Mandhana 👊

Workouts, troubling her brother, Ludo & a lot more. @mandhana_smriti reveals how she is keeping herself engaged indoors🏠🏋ï¸Â‍♀ï¸ÂðŸ‘Œ

Full Video 👉 https://t.co/e7EyhdNh3h

— BCCI (@BCCI) April 13, 2020

She is working out as per the training schedule given by Team India trainer. "Staying fit is very important, so I am working out. I keep in touch with the trainer and receive the feedback. He keeps sending us (all Indian players) all the workouts that we need to follow."

"The other thing I like is spending time with my family. We love playing cards. I help my mother with cooking. I guess washing utensils has become a part of my daily routine. However, my favourite pass time is to trouble my brother," said the left-handed Indian batswoman.

"The third thing which is love is watching movies. I am a big movie buff. So, I make sure I watch two-three movies a week, not many because I don't want to get addicted. I want to spend time with my family.

"The best thing which I love doing the most at home is sleeping. I make sure I sleep for at least 10 hours to keep myself happy the entire day," she added.

The star Indian batswoman also urged people to stay indoors during the lockdown. "Stay home, stay safe and keep yourself physically and mentally fit."

India has been in lockdown since March 25, a step taken in order to stop the spread of coronavirus which has so far claimed more than 300 lives in the country. However, with an upstage in number of infected people, the lockdown is likely to be extended further after Tuesday.

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As all-rounder, Ravindra Jadeja shared a video to show-off his swashbuckling swordsmanship, former England skipper Michael Vaughan left a cheeky comment on the Instagram post.

Jadeja had shared a video on Instagram on Sunday to show off his trademark swordsmanship. However, taking the note of the grass in Jadeja's lawn, Vaughan replied: "Your grass needs a mow rockstar".

On Sunday, the left-handed Jadeja was displaying various moves with the sword in the video posted on Instagram.

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

A “SWORD” MAY LOOSE IT’S SHINE,BUT WOULD NEVER DISOBEY IT’S MASTER. #rajputboy

A post shared by Ravindra Jadeja (@royalnavghan) onApr 12, 2020 at 6:45am PDT

The cricketer is very-well trained in swordsmanship and he has also made it popular by swinging his bat like a sword in cricket matches whenever he crosses the mark of 50 or 100.

Last week, Australian batsman David Warner had also shared a throwback video from the last year's Indian Premier League (IPL) in which he was swinging his bat like a sword.

The SunRisers Hyderabad skipper was swinging the bat like a sword for a commercial and he immediately broke into laughter once the director said cut.

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

Throwback to this time last year to a commercial we were doing for @sunrisershyd Do you think I’ve got @royalnavghan covered for the sword?? 😂😂

A post shared by David Warner (@davidwarner31) onApr 7, 2020 at 11:21pm PDT

Warner had also asked the fans to give their opinion on as to how he did as compared to Jadeja.

With the country battling COVID-19, all sporting activities have been either postponed or stand cancelled. The upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) has also been suspended till April 15.

Jadeja is part of the IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings and he would have been in action if the tournament had started as planned on March 29.

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Former Australia batsman and Sri Lanka's 1996 World Cup-winning coach, Dav Whatmore is set to become the Baroda Ranji Trophy team's first overseas coach.

Whatmore, 66, who coached Kerala for the last three seasons, will replace Sanath Kumar as head coach of the team. He will also be the Baroda Cricket Association's cricket director for next two seasons.

"We have almost finalised Whatmore and will give him a letter of intent in a couple of days. Chandrakant Pandit and Sulakshan Kulkarni were also in the fray, but Pandit became coach of Madhya Pradesh, so we decided to go with Whatmore," BCA secretary Ajit Lele told mid-day on Monday.

Ajit, the son of former BCCI secretary Jaywant Lele, also revealed that Whatmore will be the most expensive first-class coach in India. "He will become the most expensive coach of a first-class team in our country and also the first foreign coach of a Baroda Ranji Trophy team. He has huge experience of handling national teams like Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh so we gave him priority," Lele remarked.

Whatmore's manager Kaustuv Lahiri, who also manages South Africans Lance Klusener (head coach of Afghanistan) and Russell Domingo (Bangladesh's head coach) confirmed the development. Baroda, who were Ranji Trophy champions in the 2000-01 season, managed to win just two games for 14 points in eight matches last season.

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With the fate of the IPL hanging in balance, the future of former skipper M.S. Dhoni has been the talk of the town since the cash-rich league was set to be the platform to decide if Dhoni will make a return to the Indian team for the World T20 in Australia. And former opener Aakash Chopra feels it is highly unlikely Dhoni will play for India again.

"MS Dhoni has not told anyone anything. He has a different story. What almost everyone thinks is that he might return to the Indian team if he performs well in the IPL. But I personally feel he played his final match for India at Manchester against New Zealand," he said in a YouTube video with former Pakistan skipper Ramiz Raja.

"Since then, he has not made himself available to the team. He has not been dropped. I feel he has made up his mind that he is no longer going to play for India."

But the former opener feels there can be a change in stance if either BCCI President Sourav Ganguly or the team management calls for his services.

"Unless, of course, Sourav Ganguly, Virat Kohli or Ravi Shastri pick up the phone and tell Dhoni to help the team out in the T20 World Cup. If they tell Dhoni that they want him to play the World Cup, then there is a chance he could return," he said.

"Otherwise, in my opinion, Dhoni has made up his mind that 'I am not going to play, I don't need a farewell match. I came quietly, I will leave quietly'. He doesn't need grandstanding. He is not that kind of player."

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South African swashbuckler AB de Villiers says he doesn't want to create any "false hopes" of a much-awaited comeback at the T20 World Cup this year, which, he feels, could be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The outbreak of COVID-19 has forced the cancellation or postponement of many events but the T20 World Cup remains on schedule in Australia later this year for now. "I can't see six months into the future. If the tournament is postponed to next year a whole lot of things will change. At the moment I feel available, but at the same time I don't know how my body will see it and if I will be healthy at that time," De Villiers told Afrikaans-language Sunday newspaper 'Rapport'.

"...I might get to a point where I have to tell 'Bouch' (coach Mark Boucher) I was interested, I would like to play a role but I'm not going to be able to play myself. I'm afraid of such a commitment and creating false hope," he added. De Villiers said he does not feel entitled to walk into the South African team as has been alleged in the past. "If I am 100 per cent as good as I want to be, then I will be available. But if I am not I won't open myself up to that because I am not the type of person who does things at 80 per cent. Then I have to do trials and show 'Bouchie' I'm still good enough. "They should choose me because I'm really better than the guy next to me. I've never been the type of person who felt I should get just what I wanted."

The T20 World Cup in Australia in October and November could be a perfect stage for de Villiers coming back but he was mindful of avoiding a repeat of the debacle that unfolded during last year's 50-over World Cup in England after reports emerged that he casually expressed offer to come back and was rejected. "I am uncertain about giving a definite answer because I have been very hurt and burned in the past. Then people will again think I have turned my back on our country. I can't just walk into the team. "...I have to work for my place and deserve it. It was very hurtful for me last year when people thought I assumed there was a place for me. I feel available and I will give it a go with everything I have, but I don't want special treatment."

If de Villiers can make a comeback, the credit would go to South Africa coach Mark Boucher, who convinced him to rethink his retirement decision, taken in 2018. "I could write a book on 'Bouchie's impact just on my life, never mind cricket. I rediscovered that when I played under him at the Spartans (in the Mzansi Super League) in December. He was born to be an instructor. When he talks there's respect." "'Bouch' asked me why don't I give it another go," de Villiers said. "I've always said to him, 'I've never not wanted to be there. I've always wanted to be there. It's just, my life has changed'." De Villiers played in 176 of Boucher's 461 matches for South Africa across the formats.

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With people finding various ways to spend time during quarantine amid the Coronavirus pandemic, a Brazilian model challenged her cricket coach boyfriend to teach her how to bat during the 21-day isolation period.

And they are doing it. According to a report in dailymail.co.uk, Coco Cuhna suggested her boyfriend Gio Colucci that it might be fun to see if he could show her how to bat. "I was joking...he took it very seriously," Coco said.

"I thought Oh my gosh, what have I got myself in for!" Coco revealed she is spending 25 minutes a day learning how to pull, cut and drive from Gio, who is a director at The Cricket Academy in Cape Town, South Africa and has coached the likes of England batsman Tom Wesley, Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman and Ben Curran, brother of England duo Tom and Sam.

"I had never had any contact with cricket before, I never even knew about it before I moved to South Africa," said the Brazilian model. However, after a fortnight, Coco is now enjoying the drill.

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Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria might be currently serving a life ban for his involvement in fixing, but he has once again taken the attack to the Pakistan Cricket Board saying that he wasnt supported enough by the PCB.

In a YouTube video, former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq had spoken about how Brian Lara had taken Kaneria to the cleaners even though the Pakistan captain had placed fielders on the boundary and thereby shown his true class.

But taking to Twitter, Kaneria wrote: "I have taken @BrianLara's wicket 5 times in my career. He was a good cricketer. If PCB had supported me, I would have broken many big records."

Describing the episode, Inzamam had said: "Kaneria bowled a googly and Lara hit the ball back towards the bowler, coming out of his crease. Danish said ‘well played Brian', which prompted Lara to say ‘okay sir'. The next three balls were all dispatched over the boundary.

"I was the captain of the side so I went over to Danish and told him to tease Lara a bit more. I felt he was angry so we might make him throw away his wicket. I placed the fielders on the boundary in anticipation of big shots but he still managed to outfox us by hitting Danish to all parts of the ground."

Kaneria had earlier asked Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh to help the hindus in Pakistan as they fight the coronavirus outbreak.

"I request @YUVSTRONG12 and @harbhajan_singh to make a video for the minorities living in Pakistan as well. They need your help in this moment of #coronacrisis," Kaneria had said in a tweet.

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Former Indian cricketer Joginder Sharma, who is now serving as a Deputy Superintendent of Police in Hisar district of Haryana, is currently making sure people stay indoors and adhere to the guidelines of the government during the ongoing lockdown in place amid the coronavirus outbreak.

And for discharging his duties, he has to be available 24/7. As he comes in contact with many people, the former Indian cricketer said that he doesn't even go home to avoid any risk after his duty hours end. However, on Sunday, he finally got a chance to meet his family in Rohtak, 110 kilometres from Hisar.

"Finally, after a long, I got time to spend with my family...Motivating kids to be strong and stay happy at home…," Joginder tweeted along with a video of him playing cricket with his children.

Finally After a long,I got time to spend with my family...Motivating kids to be strong n stay happy at home.. pic.twitter.com/Ie3xXfhCic

— Joginder Sharma (@jogisharma83) April 12, 2020

Joginder recently gave an interview wherein he divulged the details of his routine as a DSP.

"My day starts around six in the morning. Today I started at 9am and am returning home now (8pm). But I need to be ready for emergency calls, so effectively I am available for duty 24 hours, and I can't say no," Joginder said.

"The area that I need to oversee is mostly in the rural belt of Hisar. Right now, it involves guarding various check-posts and instructing not just truck and bus drivers but also common people about the virus. The basic message is: do not get out of the house unless you need to. If someone is outside without any purpose, we can sanction them under various legal acts," he added.

The former medium pacer had a short international career of four ODIs and four T20Is but was immortalised when he took the wicket of Misbah-ul-Haq in the 2007 World T20 final against Pakistan in South Africa.

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Former Pakistan first-class cricketer Zafar Sarfraz has died of COVID-19. According to a report in geo.tv, Zafar succumbed to the novel coronavirus at the Lady Reading Hospital late Monday. The 50-year old is the first professional cricket player from Pakistan to succumb to the coronavirus, after testing positive last Tuesday. He had been on a ventilator for the past three days, hospital officials added.

Zafar, a left-handed batter and slow left-arm orthodox bowler, played first-class cricket from 1988 to 1994 and List A cricket from 1990 to 1992. He made 616 runs from 15 first-class games for Peshawar and also had 96 runs from six one-day games before retiring in 1994 and moving on to coach both the senior and the Under-19 Peshawar teams in the mid-2000s.

Zafar was the brother of late Pakistan international cricketer Akhtar Sarfraz, who went on to play four ODIs between December 1997 and October 1998, scoring 66 runs in four innings.

Last month, great Pakistani squash player Azam Khan had also died of novel coronavirus at the age of 95. Azam, who won four consecutive British Open titles between 1959-62, had tested positive for COVID-19 in March end and breathed his last in London's Ealing Hospital.

Over 5,000 confirmed coronavirus cases have been reported so far in Pakistan, including 96 deaths.

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As all sporting action across the world has come to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, Australian bowlers are pondering as to how Indian skipper Virat Kohli might play in front of no spectators. India and Australia are scheduled to play a four-match Test series later this year, and it is being speculated that the series might end up taking place without any crowds due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Australian spinner Nathan Lyon on Tuesday said that it would be interesting to see how Kohli goes about it if he does not get a chance to get the audience behind him. "He is probably good enough to adapt to any scenario. But I was talking to Mitch Starc the other day and we actually said that if we are playing with no crowd, it'll be quite amazing to see Virat trying to rev up the empty seats," cricket.com.au quoted Lyon as saying.

"It is going to be a little bit different, but Virat is a superstar. He will be able to adapt to any climate that we are able to play in," he added. During the 2018-19 series, India managed to defeat Australia in Australia for the first time in a Test series. Australia, at that time were without the services of David Warner and Steve Smith. However, the series later this year promises to be a mouth-watering prospect. "I am excited about the prospect of India coming out to Australia, it's up there with the biggest series alongside the Ashes. They are an absolute powerhouse of the cricket world, and to have those guys out here is going to be fantastic. Playing in front of crowds or no crowds is out of our control, we have got to follow the advice of all the amazing medical people around the world," Lyon said.

"I have not thought about no crowds or massive crowds, it is just about the opportunity of playing against India again. They had the wood over us last time they came over here but we are a much stronger Australian cricket side at the moment, and I am just unbelievably excited about playing them here at home," he added. Lyon was slated to represent Hampshire in County Championship this year, however, his stint was called off last week due to COVID-19. He is Australia's third-highest wicket-taker in the longest format of the game as he has total of 390 wickets in Test cricket. Lyon was last seen in action in the Big Bash League for Sydney Sixers.

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Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin on Tuesday revealed the misconception he had about cricket while growing up.

The International Cricket Council had posted a tweet, asking everyone to reveal the misconception they had about cricket growing up.

To this Ashwin replied: "That all cricketers had aerated drinks to regain lost energy and keep good health".

Ashwin was last seen in action during India's two-match Test series against New Zealand in February this year.

The off-spinner played just one match in the series and went on to take three wickets in it.

India ended up losing the series 0-2, but the side is still at the top of the World Test Championship standings.

All sporting action across the world has come to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Ashwin would have been in action for Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) if the tournament had started on March 29.

However, the tournament was postponed until April 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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Disappointed with Kapil Dev's response, Pakistan's Shahid Afridi has backed his former teammate Shoaib Akhtar's proposal for an ODI series against India to help raise funds for the less privileged in their fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Afridi told reporters in Kohat that he was surprised by the comments of Indian great Kapil and former IPL chairman, Rajeev Shukla, who outrightly dismissed Akhtar's suggestion. "The entire world is fighting against coronavirus and we need unity in our region to defeat this common enemy. Such negative comments don't help at all," Afridi said. "I don't see anything wrong with Shoaib Akhtar's suggestion for Pakistan and India to play cricket. "Kapil's reaction has surprised me. I expected better from him and feel one should not talk like this in these crisis times." Afridi said that he was also surprised at some of the "negative comments" Indian stars Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh's support for his charity foundation attracted.

"Sport is supposed to bring people together and build bridges. It is pretty disappointing." Afridi also urged Prime Minister Imran Khan to order the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to restore departmental cricket in the country to save the livelihood of hundreds of domestic players. "I myself played for the departments and witnessed how departments really salvaged domestic cricket in Pakistan and helped it thrive decade after decade.

"Departments take good care of the players and spend lots of money on the development of domestic cricket, so how can departmental cricket hurt Pakistan cricket," questioned Afridi. He also questioned the PCB and the Pakistan team management for making a fitness of players a big issue. "They are always talking about hard training and fitness tests. I have never seen fitness tests taken with such frequency and the result is that many players are getting injured and many of them are also unhappy with the situation."

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Former Australia captain Allan Border has given a thumbs down to the concept of Australia hosting the ICC WorldT20 in empty stadiums in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Currently, the Australian government has sealed its border for six months till September 30 to deal with the global health crisis which has claimed 61 lives and infected 6400 in the country. With the flagship event starting October 18, there are speculations that Cricket Australia might be forced to conduct matches in empty stadiums, something that is not acceptable to the World Cup winning former skipper.

"I just can't imagine playing at empty stadiums ... it defies belief," he told Fox Sports News. In fact, Border said that he doesn't see the World T20 happening if spectators are not allowed inside the stadiums as the purpose of the sport is lost. "Having teams, support staff and everyone else associated with the game wandering around the country, playing games of cricket, but you can't let people into the grounds. I just can't see it happening," Border said.

For him, it's an either-or situation for Cricket Australia. "It's either you play it and everyone just gets on with the job and we're past this pandemic or it just has to be cancelled and you try to fit it in somewhere else," said the 64-year-old Border.

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India cricketer Hardik Pandya is not just an entertainer on the cricket field but off it too.

On Tuesday, a video of Hardik Pandya surfaced on Instagram where he is seen entertaining his social media followers alongside fiancee Natasa Stankovic.

In the video that went viral, Hardik Pandya asks Natasa Stankovic, "Baby, main kya hoon tera? [who am I to you]." The Serbian model-actor hesitates for a bit before replying: "Jigar ka tukda [a piece of my heart]" after which both burst out laughing at her accent. Take a look at the video below.

 

 

 

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@hardikpandya93 blood💥💯#hardikpandya #nature #nature #naturalhairstyles #naturephotography #photo #photographer #photography #photooftheday #photoshoot #photographylovers #photoshop

A post shared by hardikpandya_93 🔵 (@hardikpandya_93_blood) onApr 12, 2020 at 7:15pm PDT

Hardik Pandya and Natasa Stankovic's dating rumours began in early 2019. Hardik Pandya shocked the world when he announced that he proposed to Natasa Stankovic on New Year's Day 2020 confirming that they were engaged.

Natasa Stankovic has appeared in many reality shows, most notable ones being, Bigg Boss 8 and Nach Baliye 9.  

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The current lockdown has seen people restricted indoors and many are picking up new hobbies. Energetic India opener Shikhar Dhawan on Tuesday revealed he is trying his hand at playing a flute and honing his overall musical skills.

"Playing a musical instrument, the vibrations you can feel inside your body. Music gives you peace and everybody should try to learn how to play a musical instrument now especially because we have so much time to spend at home due to the lockdown," Dhawan said while chatting with India middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer on Instagram Live.

The dashing southpaw also played the flute on Iyer's request.

Dhawan picked Dale Steyn as the most difficult bowler he has faced along with off-spinners on turning wickets.

Asked to pick his most special knock, Dhawan chose the match-winning hundred against Australia in the 2019 World Cup.

"Mardo walli feeling aayi (it was a big daddy innings)," Dhawan said.

Dhawan had slammed 117 off 109 balls against the defending champions at The Oval on June 10 as India won by 36 runs. That turned out to be the final tie he played as he was ruled out with a thumb fracture for the remainder of he competition.

India crashed out in the semi-finals, losing to New Zealand.

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Former Indian captain and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Sourav Ganguly on Wednesday recalled the historic Test victory against Australia at Eden Gardens in Kolkata in 2001.

A user had shared the celebratory moments from the 2001 Test. On that post, Ganguly commented, "What a win." In that Test, India clinched a 171-run win over Australia and became the third team in the history of Test cricket to win a match after being forced to follow-on.

Australia had made 445 in their first innings, courtesy Steve Waugh's brilliant hundred. However, it was Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh who stole the show at Kolkata with his spectacular seven wickets, including the first hat-trick in India's Test history.

In its first innings, India folded for 171 runs and were asked to follow-on by Australia. The Sourav Ganguly-led side played cautiously in the second innings and lost three wickets for 115 runs. India lost Ganguly in the 67th over of the innings, with the side getting reduced to 232/4.

Rahul Dravid joined VVS Laxman in the middle. The next 104 overs were a nightmare for the Aussies as the Indian duo stitched a 376-run stand to revive the innings and helped the team stage a dramatic comeback in the match.

Dravid scored 180 runs, while Laxman slammed 281, his highest score in Test cricket. India gave a target of 384 runs to Australia. However, the Waugh-led side were not able to achieve the target and bowled out for 212, handing India a massive win.

Harbhajan was again the pick of the Indian bowlers as he scalped six wickets. The Eden Gardens Test is best remembered for India's miraculous revival in the second innings and Laxman's knock of 281 runs, which was one of the most marvellous innings played in the modern era. Laxman's stunning innings also halted Australia's record of 16 successive Test wins.

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New Zealand pacer Matt Henry will not be playing for England's county Kent Cricket due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and disruption to the 2020 county cricket season.

"Kent Cricket can confirm that New Zealand International Matt Henry will no longer be joining the Club for the first seven County Championship matches of 2020," the club said in a statement.

Henry was due to join Kent - for whom he starred in 2018 - for seven County Championship games at the start of the season, but with all professional cricket cancelled in the UK until May 28 at the earliest, it became clear that he would be unable to play for the club.

The Kiwi player becomes the fourth player - after Nathan Lyon, Cheteshwar Pujara and Michael Neser - to miss out on a stint in county cricket due to the virus.

Paul Downton, Kent's director of cricket, said: "Once the decision was announced by the ECB that there would be no cricket until at least the end of May it became inevitable the Matt would not be returning to Kent this season."

"The club continues to enjoy a good relationship with Matt. He has many friends here and the overwhelmingly positive feedback we received when we announced that he would return in 2020 is a measure of Matt himself: he's a fantastic person on and off the cricket field," he added.

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With the coronavirus outbreak bringing the world to a standstill, sporting events across the globe have either been cancelled or suspended and that has seen sporting heroes spending time with fans on social media. And Australia opener David Warner has now opened a TikTok account and has asked fans to help him.

Taking to Instagram, Warner wrote: "Ok, I have zero idea what's going on but have been told to do tik tok by my 5 year old @davidbullwarner31 and I have zero followers I need some help please and they love @tonesandi."

 

 

 

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Ok I have zero idea what’s going on but have been told to do tik tok by my 5yr old 🤷🏼‍♂ï¸ÂðŸ¤·ðŸ¼‍♂ï¸Â @davidbullwarner31 and I have zero followers 😂😂 I need some help please and they love @tonesandi

A post shared by David Warner (@davidwarner31) onApr 14, 2020 at 2:51am PDT

Warner had earlier shaved his head in support of those working on the frontline for COVID-19. "Been nominated to shave my head in support of those working on the frontline #Covid-19 here is a time lapse. I think my debut was the last time I recall I've done this. Like it or not??" Warner said in an Instagram post with a video of the dashing left-hander trimming his hair in time-lapse mode.

The Australia opener has been constantly interacting with fans on social media and he took to Instagram to show fans a shoot from last year during the IPL where he is wielding the bat like a sword just as Ravindra Jadeja does after scoring a fifty.

Taking to Instagram, he posted the video and wrote: "Throwback to this time last year to a commercial we were doing for @sunrisershyd Do you think I've got @royalnavghan covered for the sword?"

Warner's teammate and former Australia skipper Steve Smith had said that he was hoping that the IPL is played out at some stage this year rather than getting cancelled due to the pandemic.

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Indian cricket team head coach Ravi Shastri on Wednesday urged people to beat coronavirus by staying at home and by maintaining social distancing. He termed the virus 'mother of all World Cups' and asked people to combat this disease together and win the World Cup of humanity.

Taking to Twitter, Shastri shared a video post where he cited cricket examples to aware people about the seriousness of the COVID-19 pandemic. "As I would know, sports teaches you life lessons that can be applied to just about anything you want to pursue in rest of your life. Today the COVID-19 has put us in a situation where we got our backs to the wall. To combat this coronavirus is like chasing a World Cup where you give your everything in trying to win it. What's staring you at the face is no ordinary World Cup. This is the mother of all World Cups where not just eleven are playing but 1.4 billion are in the playing arena and competing. Guys we can win this. For that, we have to observe the basics. You have got your Prime Minister leading from the front ahead of the curve like other countries have farmed out," Shastri said.

Stay Home, Stay Safe! 🙏#Lockdown2 #COVID19 #StayHome #IndiaFightsCorona pic.twitter.com/JQTZVib2in

— Ravi Shastri (@RaviShastriOfc) April 15, 2020

"You have to obey the orders that come from the top: be it centre, state or the frontline workers who are risking their lives. Two orders that stand out: staying home and maintaining social distancing. It is not easy but to win the game you got to go through the pain to break the chain and see the gain. Come on, guys! let's do it together. Let us get out there in a bruit force of 1.4 billion and beat this corona and get your hands on the World Cup of humanity. Let's do it," he added.

With 1,076 new COVID-19 cases reported in the last 24 hours, India's tally of coronavirus cases has risen to 11,439, said the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Wednesday.

Out of the total tally, 9,756 cases are active while 1,306 patients have been cured/discharged and migrated. With 38 new deaths reported in the last 24 hours, the death toll rises to 377.

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England batsman Jos Buttler was effusive in his praise for Rohit Sharma, describing the India opener as an awesome player, who can "effortlessly" take down any opposition by scoring big hundreds. "Rohit Sharma I think is an awesome player," Buttler said during an Instagram live session on Rajasthan Royals page.

"Effortless. Quite a lot of Indian players have that awesome style. "He has been fantastic for a long time and I just like the way he bats and the effortless nature in which he takes people down." Rohit is currently regarded as one of the greatest ODI players, ranked only behind India skipper Virat Kohli at the top of the ICC rankings. The Mumbaikar is the only batsman to have scored three double hundreds in the format. The 32-year-old had equalled Sachin Tendulkar's record for most centuries in World Cup matches when he scored five hundreds at the 2019 World Cup to end up as the highest-scorer with 648 runs.

"One of the things I have seen with Rohit is that if he gets in, he scores big runs and really affects the game. He must have scored 4-5 hundreds in the World Cup last year," said Buttler, who had shared the dressing room with Rohit at Mumbai Indians in the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Buttler feels the Indian players now have become better in negotiating short balls. "I think a few years ago people used to attack Indian players with the short ball but Rohit smashes them. Then you go fuller and he smashes them right down the ground."

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Pakistan Cricket Board has suffered massive revenue losses but it doesn't need India to "survive" and keep its finances flowing, PCB chairman Ehsan Mani said on Tuesday.

Terming the BCCI as "unreliable", Mani said Pakistan cricket is vibrant and strong enough despite not playing any bilateral series with India for long. "We have suffered losses but they (India) are not in our thinking or planning. It is like a Pie in the Sky situation. We have to live without them and we don't need them to survive," he said in a podcast released by the PCB's media department.

"I am clear if India doesn't want to play we have to plan without them. Once or twice they have made promises to play against us but pulled out at the last moment," the former ICC head added. India had avoided playing Pakistan in a full bilateral series since the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008.

Mani said resumption of bilateral cricketing ties with India in the foreseeable future is uncertain. "Right now we play against them (India) in ICC events and Asia Cup and that is okay because we are interested in playing cricket. "We want to keep politics and sports apart," he said.

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With most people struggling with the Coronavirus pandemic-caused lockdown, staying upbeat is becoming a challenge.

Former Mumbai club cricketer and coach Kishore Harkisandas Kuvavala, 73, who is also a laughter therapist, is trying to make a difference albeit in the virtual space.

For the last 18 days, every evening at 6.30, Babulnath-resident Kuvavala goes live goes live from his Facebook account in an attempt to make people laugh and relieve some stress.

'Stress, a bigger threat'

He claims around 350 to 400 people join him live everyday for his fitness and laughter sessions. "Most people are worried about Coronavirus even if they are confined 24x7 to their homes. They are only watching and hearing about the pandemic during the day through various mediums. Corona will not be the biggest killer, but stress will surely have a huge impact on everybody.

There is nothing else left for people to talk about except Corona, it seems these days. So, I am trying to ease a bit of tension that's surrounding us today. Laughter is the best medicine. I have been championing this cause for over two decades now. I feel it can make a lot of difference to people especially in these times," a fit Kuvavala tells mid-day.

Kuvavala has always believed in leading an active life. He played competitive cricket on Mumbai's local circuit till he was 50. Kuvavala owes a lot to cricket. He got the Bank of Baroda job for his cricketing credentials. "I led the bank team too," he says with pride.

He played the famous Dr HD Kanga Cricket League in the 'A' Division for Young Maharashtra Cricket Club. He was also a Managing Committee member of the Mumbai Cricket Association in 1988-89 before taking up coaching.

Fitness first

Kuvavala decided to work towards spreading awareness on the importance of fitness after giving up the sport. In 1995, he began his journey as a laughter therapist, starting with lessons at Priyadarshini Park. Before the lockdown, Kuvavala and his group of 30 to 35 people would gather each morning at Chowpatty on Marine Drive for their dose of laughter. "Do we ever laugh at ourselves? When we do that, we laugh from the heart. There is an expression and feel involved in it. It is the best form of exercise. It fills you up with positivity," explains Kuvavala, who is often invited by top hospitals for laughter sessions. He also conducts laughter therapy activities for corporates. "I do that for a fee, though," he clarifies. "People nowadays have forgotten to laugh," he remarks.

With anxiety and sadness around due to the pandemic, all that Kuvavala wants to ensure is that people do not stop smiling.

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Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar responded to Sunil Gavaskar after the former India skipper said that it was more likely to snow in Lahore than a bilateral series to take place between India and Pakistan any time soon. Akhtar pointed out in a tweet that there was indeed snowfall in Lahore last year. "Well Sunny bhai, we did have a snowfall in Lahore last year.. So nothing is impossible," said Shoaib in his tweet which included an image of Gavaskar with his quote and an image of snow in Lahore.

Akhtar was the first to suggest that India and Pakistan should play a bilateral series to raise funds in the fight against coronavirus for both countries. Gavaskar however said in a Youtube chat with former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja that any possibility of such a series happening is next to nothing. "There are more chances of snowfall in Lahore than bilateral series between India and Pakistan," said Gavaskar in a Youtube chat with former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja.

"Both teams will keep on meeting in World Cups and ICC tournaments, but a series between them seems unlikely right now." Earlier, Akhtar's suggestion got backing from his former teammate Shahid Afridi. But India's 1983 World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev said that the match wasn't needed because India doesn't need funds.

"The entire world is fighting against coronavirus and we need unity in our region to defeat this common enemy. Such negative comments don't help at all. I don't see anything wrong with Shoaib Akhtar's suggestion for Pakistan and India to play cricket. "Kapil's reaction has surprised me. I expected better from him and feel one should not talk like this in these crisis times. Sport is supposed to bring people together and build bridges. It is pretty disappointing," Afridi had said.

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Indian women's cricket team has qualified for the International Cricket Council (ICC) Women's ODI World Cup 2021, the cricket governing body announced on Wednesday. "The ICC Women's Championship Technical Committee (TC) has decided that teams will share points in all three series in the ICC Women's Championship that did not take place during the competition window," the ICC said in a statement.

The series between India and Pakistan could not be played because of a 'Force Majeure' event after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) demonstrated that it was unable to obtain the necessary government clearances to allow India to participate in the bilateral series against Pakistan that forms part of the ICC Women's Championship.

Also, the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of two series. South Africa was to host Australia and Sri Lanka was to host New Zealand in the last round of matches. New Zealand, the hosts of the World Cup 2021, and four highest-placed team on the ICC Women's Championship points table, has qualified for the premier tournament.

Australia topped the table with 37 points followed by England (29), South Africa (25) and India (23). Pakistan (19), New Zealand (17), West Indies (13) and Sri Lanka (5) completed the table. The ICC Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifier is scheduled to be played from 3-19 July in Sri Lanka, this is subject to review due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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India women’s cricketer Smriti Mandhana posted this picture to her two million Instagram followers, enjoying lunch with her parents during the Coronavirus lockdown. “Nothing compares to Maa ke hath ka khana and Papa ki kahaniya sunna [food cooked by mom and listening to dad’s stories],” she captioned the post that went on to receive nearly four lakh ‘likes’ within a few hours.

See the full post below.

 

 

 

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Nothing compares to Maa ke hath ka khana and Papa ki kahaniya sunna😇🥰

A post shared by Smriti Mandhana (@smriti_mandhana) onApr 14, 2020 at 9:48am PDT

Smriti Mandhana is part of the Indian women's cricket team and is one of the most instrumental batswomen in the team. Smriti Mandhana won the  International Woman Cricketer of the Year in 2019. In the same year, Mandhana also became the third-fastest women's player to score 2,000 runs in ODIs. At age 22, she was also the youngest women's T20I captain for India eves. She has 4 centuries and 17 fifties in women's ODIs.

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Asserting that sledging cannot help teams win matches, former India batsman Krishnamachari Srikkanth has rubbished Michael Clarke's claims that the Australian team were being nice to Virat Kohli's men during the 2018/19 Test series Down Under. "You do not win matches just by sledging. Aussie's loss is a loss, his (Clarke) statement was ridiculous I would say," Srikkanth said while speaking on Star Sports 'Cricket Connected' show. "If you ask Nasser Hussain or Sir Vivian Richards who are experienced players, you can never score runs or get wickets through sledging.

"You need to play good cricket and showcase determination; you need to bowl well to get wickets and bat well to achieve targets. Sledging cannot help in any way according to my opinion," he added. Clarke had also said current Australian players were too scared to "sledge" Kohli and in order to protect their million dollars IPL deals, they "sucked up" to the India captain which resulted in their cricket becoming "soft".

However, former India batsman VVS Laxman feels players can't win an IPL contract by just being nice to a particular player. "Just by being nice to someone doesn't get you a place in IPL. Any franchise will look at the player's calibre and value add to the team, which gives them desired results by winning matches/tournaments," Laxman said while speaking on the same show.

"These are the kind of players who get IPL contracts. So just being nice to someone will not earn you a spot in the IPL," he added.

Kohli's men had become the first-ever Indian team to register a Test series win in Australia in 2018-19. It was the first time since 1947, that India were able to register a Test series victory in Down Under as they defeated the Tim Paine-led side 2-1 in the four-match rubber.

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Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ehsan Mani has asserted that the PCB will not agree to cancelling the Asia Cup, scheduled in the UAE in September, to make room for the Indian Premier League, which has been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The IPL was to be held from March 29 to May 24 but has been postponed indefinitely because of a extended lockdown to combat the deadly virus in India. "I have read and heard about these speculations but right now just remember that having or not having the Asia Cup is not a decision between Pakistan and India it involves other countries as well," asserted Mani here on Tuesday.

Pakistan were to host the event but it was shifted to Dubai and Abu Dhabi after India expressed reluctance to come here owing to security concerns and the strained diplomatic ties between the two countries. "...it is important to have the Asia Cup if cricket activities resume by then because development of Asian cricket depends on funding from the tournament. It is important for many countries who are members of the Asian Cricket Council," he added in a podcast released by the PCB.

However, he also conceded that holding the Asia Cup this year is a big challenge because right now "we don't know if it can be held or not." "But if the conditions change and we can have the Asia Cup, it must be held as earnings from it are distributed as development funds to member countries for next two years," he said.
He said reports about the Asia Cup being hosted by Bangladesh or UAE were mere speculation at this stage.

Speaking about another big event, Mani warned that if the T20 World Cup, to be held in Australia in October-November, is postponed, the financial fallout will be big for many countries. "The financial impact will be felt by many countries if the ICC can't distribute their shares from the tournament. Many countries including Pakistan will feel the pinch," he admitted.

Mani confirmed that Pakistan was to receive around USD 7 to 8 million in June and January. "Pakistan is fortunate it has good financial controls in place and in short term, it will be better off than most countries if the lockdowns continue because of the coronavirus pandemic," he claimed. "We are to get 7 to 8 Million dollars from the ICC in June but we know they might not come so we have planned accordingly," he added.

On whether Pakistan's forthcoming tours to Holland, Ireland and England between late June and August will gohead, Mani said the PCB was prepared for disruptions.
But he ruled out resumption of international cricket in empty stadiums. "Empty stadiums also offer their big challenges as teams have to travel by air and stay in hotels so the risks start there. The logistical arrangements have to be manageable," he explained. Mani said Pakistan was prepared to show goodwill and flexibility and support the hosts of these tours.

"We wouldn't mind if two series are held at the same time like one team playing Tests and another white-ball cricket. In these difficult times we need to support each other," he said. Mani also revealed that Pakistan had shown interest in hosting several ICC tournaments to be held between 2023 and 2031, including the ICC Youth Cup and World Cups.

"Unfortunately the last time the cycle of ICC events were bid for the big three, India, Australia and England distributed all the main events among themselves. This time I can say there are more countries interested in hosting the events," he said.

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Fast bowler Ishant Sharma said that he can't pick between his seven-wicket haul at Lord's in 2014 and the fifer he took in India's maiden pink ball Test against Bangladesh in November 2019.

"Both of them are equally memorable," Ishant said in a video tweeted by his Indian Premier League side Delhi Capitals. "Taking seven wickets at Lord's is obviously something I can't forget. And taking those five wickets with the pink ball also I can't forget because after 12 years I had taken a five-wicket haul."

Ishant's 7/74 was crucial in India recording a historic win at Lord's over England in 2014. It was the first time in 28 years that India had won a Test at the famous stadium.

Ishant's career went through many troughs after that before he resurfaced and became an integral part of the fierce pace battery that Virat Kohli's team now possesses alongwith Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.

In the pink ball Test against Bangladesh at the Eden Gardens, Ishant blew the opposition away in the first innings and ended up with figures of 5/22. It was his first fifer at home since 2007.

Ishant last played for India at Wellington in their first Test against New Zealand before his ankle injury resurfaced. He was expected to play for Delhi Capitals in the 2020 edition of the IPL but it has been postponed indefinitely due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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Indian pacer Mohammed Shami on Wednesday hailed Rishabh Pant saying that the wicket-keeper batsman has an amazing talent.

Shami joined former cricketer Irfan Pathan on an Instagram live session where both discussed a range of topics.

"Rishabh's talent is amazing and it is not like he is my friend that is why I am saying. It is just about confidence, the day he got that confidence, he will be very dangerous," Shami said during the session.

Shami also praised KL Rahul saying that the batsman is in his 'best form' and playing well in every position he is batting on while Pathan termed Rahul's form as 'unbelievable'.

"He smashes a lot. His current form is I think his career's best form. Wherever he is coming to bat, he is playing well. Hope his career continue to proceed like this," Shami said.

"His (Rahul) current form is unbelievable," Pathan said.

Shami also lauded Hardik Pandya calling him the "best all-rounder".

"If anyone wants to become an all-rounder, be like Hardik Pandya. He is the best all-rounder," Shami said.

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Former cricketer Mohammad Kaif on Wednesday said KL Rahul should only be used as a backup wicket-keeper so that workload on the player can be managed.

"People think that Rahul may become our main keeper in the future. But I feel that Rahul should be used as a backup wicketkeeper, if the main keeper is injured or he is not with the team then Rahul should be there because if you rely on him as the main keeper then chances of injuries will grow as the workload will increase on him," Kaif told ANI.

Kaif also feels that MS Dhoni should feature in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup and ruling the former captain out from the tournament will be 'unfair'.

"See people may have eyes on Dhoni that how he is going to play in the IPL (Indian Premier League) and then there will be talks of the T20 World Cup but my view is different from others. I do not judge Dhoni based on his IPL form. He is a great batsman and he is fit now, he wants to play IPL, do captaincy and is showing his availability. He has a winning mentality and knows how to win games under pressure," Kaif said.

"So, I think ruling him out will be unfair. See a lot of cricket is still left in Dhoni and when a player plays for this long, there are ups and downs in his career. It happens with every cricketer not just Dhoni," he added.

The ICC T20 World Cup 2020 is scheduled to be played between October 18 and November 15 at seven venues across Australia.

As the country continues to fight against the coronavirus crisis, Kaif urged people to adhere to the guidelines laid by the government and stay home.

"My message for the society is to be at home and follow what the government is saying then only we can beat this virus. At this stage, this is something very important for one and all to be at home," he said.

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India's limited-overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma has become brand ambassador of 'CricKingdom', a cricket academy based here which will also facilitate coaching through its online platform after the global COVID-19 pandemic subsides.

CricKingdom's online platform "will connect student, coaches, academies and facilities into an integrated ecosystem'. It will help in booking of coaches, ground/nets along with management of academies. "CricKingdom seeks to merge the time-tested theories that has produced legends in the game along with modern scientific training methodologies," Rohit was quoted as saying in the press release.

"The vision is far-sighted and it seeks to make every aspect professional and structured," said Rohit, who is also being proposed to be a Director. The academy also has Mumbai medium pacer Dhawal Kulkarni as one of its mentors. There are at least 20 coaches associated with this venture and most of them have worked at the grassroots and junior level. Notable names include Pradeep Ingale, Parag Madkaikar, Subhash Ranjane and Prathamesh Salunkhe. The coaching on offer is for four categories -- from 5-8 years, 8-13 years, 13 years and above and club and elite level cricketers.

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The great Michael Holding has picked South African Dale Steyn among his top-four fast bowlers across generations and his list includes fellow West Indians Malcolm Marshall and Andy Roberts besides Australian Denis Lillee. In a Sky Sports podcast, the 66-year-old said he would pay to watch Steyn, who retired from Tests last year.

"I have experience with those three guys (Marshall, Roberts and Lillee, but just watching, you can't go Dale Steyn outside of photography. He has been one of the great fast bowlers in an era. You'd pay to see it," said Holding, who picked 249 wickets in 60 Tests at 23.68. Steyn picked 439 Test wickets at a stellar average of 22.95 and has one of the smoothest actions in the game. Talking about Lillee, Holding said he was a complete package. "Lillee had it all: rhythm, aggression control. He was extremely fast when he started, but he had to completely reshape his action after a back injury and find different ways to get hitters out after losing a lot of rhythm.

"When you see that someone can adapt in that way, you have to rate him highly, as many players are not as effective when they miss a beat," said Holding, who was nicknamed 'Whispering Death' for his smooth and silent run-up. On fellow West Indians Marshall and Roberts, Holding said: "Malcolm started with a good rhythm, but as time went on he learned a lot about fast bowling. He could evaluate opposition hitters so quickly and so easily.

"In those days you didn't have many tapes or computers, it was all in his head. He understood how to deal with hitters." On Roberts, he added: "Andy was someone I learned a lot from. He hardly ever spoke, he used to walk around the field with a sullen face and people thought he looked aggressive and must be a miserable guy. But that wasn't Andy. "He was my roommate for most of my career and we used to talk about cricket almost every night. A lot of times, we would order food, we would stay in our room and talk about cricket. You would never believe how much this guy knows."

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Former cricketer Mohammad Kaif on Wednesday backed MS Dhoni to play in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup, saying that the wicket-keeper batsman has 'a lot of cricket' left in him and ruling him out will be 'unfair'.

"See, people may have eyes on Dhoni that how he is going to play in the IPL (Indian Premier League) and then there will be talks of the T20 World Cup but my view is different from others. I do not judge Dhoni based on his IPL form. He is a great batsman and he is fit now. He wants to play IPL, do captaincy and is showing his availability. He has a winning mentality and knows how to win games under pressure," Kaif told ANI.

"So, I think ruling him out will be unfair. See a lot of cricket is still left in Dhoni and when a player plays for this long, there are ups and downs in his career. It happens with every cricketer, not just Dhoni," he added.

Dhoni last played competitive cricket during the 2019 World Cup. India was knocked out of the tournament after suffering a semi-final defeat at the hands of New Zealand. Dhoni was run out in the 49th over after scoring 50 runs. After his dismissal, India failed to chase the 240-run target.

Despite Dhoni failing to take India over the line, Kaif termed him a 'champion player'.

"The semifinal of World Cup which we lost, everyone was expecting Dhoni to win it but it did not happen. So, from there on, people thought that Dhoni should not be there. But for me, Dhoni is a champion player. People should look at Dhoni's record in the last 10 to 15 years. See, the current form is important but at the same time his form was not that bad that you rule him out," Kaif said.

The ICC T20 World Cup 2020 is scheduled to be played between October 18 and November 15 at seven venues across Australia.

As the nationwide lockdown as been extended to May 3 due to the coronavirus, the IPL has been postponed indefinitely. "IPL 2020 season has been postponed indefinitely," sources within BCCI told ANI on Wednesday.

Kaif feels that postponing the league is the right decision as life is more important than sports at the moment.

"In the present scenario, life is more important than sports. I think the decision of BCCI is right. When the situation improves, we will think of sports. Sporting events all over the world have either been postponed or cancelled. In our country, cases are rising. So, as of now, the situation is not under control. So I think it's the right decision because at this stage first priority is to beat coronavirus and save the people," he said.

When asked about his views on the window for IPL, Kaif said: "I feel when things are sorted out and there is the possibility of games to be played, then they (BCCI) will look for options."

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Dinesh Karthik understands the reason for his exclusion from India's ODI team after an underwhelming 2019 World Cup but what he can't comprehend is the T20 snub as that is one format where he is still confident of making significant contributions. Karthik, who has played 26 Tests, 94 ODIs and 32 T20s over a 15-year-career, is used to making comebacks but to make another one will be tougher than ever for the 34-year-old. And he knows that. "My record in T20s has been good. A big tournament like the World Cup did not go exactly as per the plan. I could understand the one day bit (being dropped from ODIs) but even now I would like think that I stand a good chance in returning to the T20 side.

"I have done well even in the recent domestic games that I have played. I have no reason to doubt myself (that I can't make another comeback)," Karthik told PTI in an exclusive interview.

Out of the three formats, he averages best in T20s " 33.25 with a strike rate of 143.52. Does getting dropped hurts? "It does hurt, no doubt about that. I have always had this burning desire to play for my country and it hasn't diminished one bit." It was a rollercoaster ride for Karthik leading up to the World Cup as he was dropped for the home ODI series against Australia, India's last before the showpiece event.

However, the selectors picked him in the squad over Rishabh Pant for his "better" wicket-keeping skills. Eventually, Pant too became part of the World Cup side after Shikhar Dhawan fractured his thumb in the middle of the tournament. Karthik failed to make an impact in two innings he got in the World Cup including the semifinal which India lost to New Zealand. In fact, Indian team management drew heavy flak from all quarters for fielding three specialist keepers (MS Dhoni, Rishabh Pant and Karthik) in playing XI while ignoring specialist batsman Kedar Jadhav.

He was assigned the role of a finisher in the T20 side and his most significant knock came in the 2018 Nidahas Trophy final where he hit a last-ball six to win India the title. Though he has slipped considerably in the pecking order, Karthik remains hopeful of another comeback. KL Rahul is currently being tried as a wicketkeeper-batsman in limited overs cricket at the expense of Pant. Sanju Samson too is in the mix but which route the new selection panel takes remains to be seen.
The KKR captain, who was preparing hard for the IPL before the lockdown was announced, seems to be comfortable in his own skin.

"That is how the sport has always been for me. Full of ups and downs. It has taught me a lot of things. It (being out of the team) is not something new to me so I am comfortable in the space that I am in. "There is a T20 World Cup round the corner and I know if I do well, I stand a good chance of making the team. I know it gets tougher every time. The team is getting stronger all the time and it is great to watch. But it is my duty to get better as a player and the rest will take care of itself," the Tamil Nadu veteran said.

The IPL, which has been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, would have been an ideal platform for Karthik to make his case for his umpteenth comeback. But considering the circumstances, the game has taken a backseat. "With everything that has been happening, I am not able to think too much about the IPL. I have moved into a state where I have accepted that it is not going to happen for now. Before the lockdown, I was practising really hard for the IPL, just like I did it every other tournament.

"There is still a lot of hope (of playing for India again), it is always there. In fact, the entire world is living on hope right," said Karthik, who is keep himself fit with regular workout sessions at home. On how he is dealing with the lockdown, he added: "If at all, anybody is well acclimatised for a situation like this, it is the sportspersons. We tend to move around the world, stay in hotel rooms all alone, so to a large extent we are used to it.

"The whole world is doing it (staying at home) at the moment, fighting for one cause. Hopefully, we can eradicate this virus."

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The International Cricket Council (ICC) is 'exploring all options available' to them to complete the World Test Championship amid the coronavirus pandemic. "We are continuing planning for ICC events as they are but given the rapidly evolving situation as a prudent and responsible measure we are also undertaking a comprehensive business contingency planning exercise," a source within ICC told ANI. "This includes exploring all options available to us based on a range of scenarios connected to the pandemic," the source added.

The source further added that as of now, no decision has been taken. The coronavirus pandemic has taken a huge toll on sports all across the globe and cricket also had to bear the brunt of the deadly virus as several series have been postponed owing to COVID-19. In the ongoing World Test Championship, a total of 71 Test matches will be played across 27 series over two years. The championship began on August 1 last year when Australia faced England in Ashes.

The top two teams will then contest in the ICC World Test Championship final in June 2021 in the UK. Currently, India hold the top spot on the World Test Championship table with 360 points followed by Australia and New Zealand with 296 and 180 points respectively.

The second ICC World Test Championship will run from July 2021 to June 2023.

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Cricketer-turned-politician Gautam Gambhir has called upon all countrymen to stand united and adhere to the guidelines of the government amid the ongoing lockdown in place in order to win the battle against coronavirus pandemic. "We can only win this war if we stand together and the most important thing is to follow the guidelines," Gambhir said while speaking on Star Sports 'Cricket Connected' show. "If we have been asked to stay at home and not leave our house at any circumstance then it's really important for us to follow this, as it is for the betterment of our nation," he added while requesting people to stay indoors and maintain social distancing.

"Since we were talking about donations, according to me there's no limit, if a person gives one rupee with the right emotion, it's a very big contribution," the former Indian opener further said while calling on people to make a contribution in fight towards COVID-19 which has so far claimed more than 400 lives in the country. Gambhir, who is also a BJP MP from East Delhi, has donated Rs one crore to the Delhi Government for procurement of medical equipment and treatment of COVID-19 patients in the national capital.

Besides that, he has pledged to donate his two years' salary towards Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund) and has already released Rs one crore out of his MP Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) Fund towards the relief efforts amid the coronavirus outbreak. Speaking about how he spends time at home during the lockdown, the 38-year-old said: "I have been given a responsibility during this lockdown to maintain the plants and the lawn in our garden."

"But the interesting part is that I've been watering the lawn for three days, but there's still no grass growing. Just as (VVS) Laxman does not listen to me, so also does this grass not listen to me," he added.

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Indian opener Shikhar Dhawan is making most of the forced break by spending quality time with his family at home with the ongoing lockdown in place due to the coronavirus pandemic.

From washing clothes to playing and training with his kids at home, Dhawan has been keeping himself busy with all kinds of different activities.

On Thursday, he posted another video of him dancing with his son Zoravar on a popular Bollywood song "Daddy Cool".

"Life is so much fun with this mastikhor insaan! Sachi bolu toh daddy aur beta dono hi cool! Love this little one," the left-handed opener captioned the video on Instagram.

Recently, he had revealed he is trying his hand at playing a flute and honing his overall musical skills.

"Playing a musical instrument, the vibrations you can feel inside your body. Music gives you peace and everybody should try to learn how to play a musical instrument now especially because we have so much time to spend at home due to the lockdown," Dhawan had said while chatting with India middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer on Instagram Live.

Before that, the southpaw alongwith his wife Ayesha, had recreated popular Bollywood number "Dhal gaya din, ho gayi sham" from the movie �Hamjoli'.

The 34-year-old had earlier posted a hilarious video in which he was seen washing the clothes of the house and in the background the Bollywood film song- 'Jab se hui hai shaadi, aansu baha hoon ...' was playing.

In normal circumstances, Dhawan would have been currently involved in the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) which now stands "indefinitely suspended" due to COVID-19 pandemic.

The entire sporting calendar has come to a grinding halt with the coronavirus outbreak which has claimed more than 1.4 lakhs lives across the world thus far.

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YouTube is becoming more than just a great ally during the Coronavirus-caused lockdown. On Friday, ace cricket statistician Mohandas Menon stumbled upon something that could force a change in the record books if dug deeper.

Menon happened to watch a Pathe Films news clip of the 1936-37 Ashes Test in Brisbane, where Gubby Allen’s Englishmen were in early trouble against Don Bradman’s Australia on a sticky wicket.

Arthur Fagg, who came in at the fall of TS Worthington’s wicket, is seen being caught by a short midwicket fielder. However, in the scorecard of that Test, Fagg is mentioned as caught behind by Bert Oldfield off Ernest McCormick for four.

Worthington departed, caught by Oldfield off the first ball in the Test.

Arthur Fagg

“While watching the 1936/37 #Ashes series - the 1st Test at Brisbane (4 Dec 1936), I find that England’s Arthur Fagg in the first innings was caught by a fielder at short mid-wicket and not by wicketkeeper Bert Oldfield. But all sources since then, ie in the last 83-and-a-half years have recorded it in the scorebooks as ‘caught Oldfield’. Time to change this error,” wrote Menon on his Facebook page. When this writer asked Menon what made him compare the footage to the scorecard, he replied: “Usually, when I watch old film clippings, I keep the scorecard ready so I can match the unknown players who are batting, bowling or fielding.”

There is a small possibility that the producers of the newsreel may have got the batsman wrong and the scorecard is right, but with Australians being no slouches when it comes to digging up archives (one Aussie recently found coloured footage of Bradman’s last competitive game at the Sydney Cricket Ground in February 1949 in his garage), this case is worth digging up. If the footage is right, will there be a change in Oldfield’s 130 Test dismissals?

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Team India boasts of a fast-bowling attack that skipper Virat Kohli says he is proud to lead. And the man who has been an integral part of the transformation of a young attack into world beaters is Mohammed Shami. Having started off under former skipper MS Dhoni, Shami is now the leader of the pack under Kohli. While bowlers tend to get slower as a Test match progresses, Shami is someone who gets better with each passing session and has time and again shown that he can be a match-winner in the second innings for Team India. So what is his area of focus when he has that ball in hand?

"I try to ensure that my pace doesn't fall below the 140kmph mark, but my focus is on the seam and swing. I have always tried to make sure that these two things remain perfect. I can bring pace with my physical strength and you can always work on it by doing strength training. But I have always given priority to swing and seam and never for a minute let them take a backseat," he smiles.

"As you keep playing, you learn a lot of things. It is all about following one process after the other. So, when you have learnt one trick and mastered it, you then move to the next one and work on that. In the beginning, I didn't have much idea about reverse swing. But slowly I came to understand what the process of reverse swing is all about and how it can be an integral part of a pace bowler's armoury," he explained.

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The International Cricket Council (ICC) is not in a hurry to take a decision whether the T20 World Cup should be postponed in the wake of COVID-19 or staged as scheduled, saying it is "exploring all options" as part of its comprehensive contingency planning for all its events. The T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in Australia from October 18 to November 15 but with all sporting events either postponed or cancelled due to the global health crisis, the fate of the tournament remains uncertain.

With Australia sealing its borders and putting restrictions on travel to contain the dreaded disease, there have been speculations that the T20 World Cup could be postponed to next year or held inside closed doors. "We are continuing with our planning for ICC events as they are, but given the rapidly evolving situation as a prudent and responsible measure we are also undertaking a comprehensive contingency planning exercise," an ICC spokesperson was quoted as saying by SkySport. "This includes exploring all options available to us based on a range of scenarios connected to the pandemic."

The T20 World Cup is still six months away and ICC said it will take a decision after consulting all stakeholders, including the Australian government. "We will continue to take advice from experts and authorities, including the Australian government and will take decisions at the appropriate time," the spokesperson said. "We will utilise all the data available to us to ensure we can take well-informed, responsible decisions that are in the best interests of our sport."

Former captain Allan Border and star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell have already given a thumbs down to the prospect of the tournament happening without spectators, while former batsman Simon Katich and wicket-keeper batsman Alex Carey feel delaying the event remains an option.

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Binge watching has become the most common activity in the Coronavirus-forced lockdown. Mumbai's India all-rounder Shivam Dube is no different than the rest but his choice is rather unusual.

Dube, 26, who was drafted in the Indian team in place of injured Hardik Pandya (India v Bangladesh T20I series in November 2019), has been watching India's World Cup title campaigns spearheaded by MS Dhoni, for motivation.

India lifted the inaugural World T20 trophy in 2007 and the 50-over World Cup in 2011. "To keep my mindset healthy, I am watching India's two World Cup titles. They inspire me and provide me a pathway for what I can do for my country in the future. It keeps me motivated," Dube told Sunday mid-day on Saturday.

All-rounder Shivam Dube (right) with father Rajesh, mother Madhuri and sister Pooja at their Andheri East residence on Saturday

"I watched the 2011 ODI World Cup final many times because I am confident India can do it again [in 2023]. I also watched the T20 World Cup games several times. I think India are the best team in any format. I am sure we can win these two World Cups again," said Dube, who has featured in 13 T20Is and one ODI. Dube is working hard on his fitness at his Andheri East home. He was part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore team in the last IPL, where he scored 40 runs in four games. He was looking forward to playing the IPL again but it has been indefinitely suspended.

"I am missing everything of the IPL. It's difficult but we don't have a choice. We have to stay home and fight the virus," remarked Dube. But there are positives: "I am with my family after a long time, so I am helping my mother, father and sister as much as I can with household chores. I sometimes help my mother with cooking and cleaning. This also helps in bonding."

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Educating about the importance of face mask, Indian cricketers- both men and women- on Saturday came together in a video, making an appeal to fellow countrymen to use a home mask and join the 'team mask force'. Wearing a facial mask for anyone stepping out was made compulsory in Delhi on April 8. Several other states had also made wearing maks compulsory as coronavirus in the country continues to rage. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shared a video in which cricketers were urging people to wear a homemade mask.

The video features the likes of former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar, Indian captain Virat Kohli, Virender Sehwag, Mithali Raj, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Harmanpreet Kaur, and Rahul Dravid. At the end of the video, Tendulkar also reminded everyone to wash hands at least for 20 seconds and practice social distancing.

#TeamIndia is now #TeamMaskForce!

Join #IndiaFightsCorona and download @mygovindia's @SetuAarogya mobile application 📱@PMOIndia @narendramodi 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/M06okJhegt

— BCCI (@BCCI) April 18, 2020

Meanwhile, according to the Union Health Ministry, a total of 14,378 people have tested positive for the infection so far in the country and 480 deaths have been reported from across the country due to the coronavirus till now.

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Bollywood actor Athiya Shetty seems to have found the perfect day to make her relationship with India cricketer KL Rahul official on social media as he turned 28 on Saturday. She shared the picture with her 2.3 million Instagram followers along with a white heart emoji and wrote: "Happy birthday, my person. @rahulkl." To which, Rahul replied with three heart emojis.

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

happy birthday, my person ðŸ¤Â @rahulkl

A post shared by Athiya Shetty (@athiyashetty) onApr 18, 2020 at 12:59am PDT

Rahul's friend Hardik Pandya commented: "Hay," while tennis star Sania Mirza wrote: "Awee" along with two heart emojis.

Rumours about them seeing each other began last year after the cricketer posted an adorable picture, recreating a scene of Athiya's dad Suneil Shetty's film, Hera Pheri and captioned it: "Hello, Devi Prasad?"

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

Hello, devi prasad....?

A post shared by KL Rahul👑 (@rahulkl) onDec 27, 2019 at 10:15pm PST

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