Clarke replaces Ponting as Test captain

Michael Clarke is Australia's 43rd Test captain after succeeding the injured Ricky Ponting for Monday's fifth Ashes Test in Sydney. Clarke, who has been the deputy since 2008, takes the coveted job at a time when the team is at its nadir and the 29-year-old is in a severe batting rut. 

Ponting's broken left pinky not only means he may never add to his 152 Tests, but it accelerates the transition to Clarke during a summer in which his performances have indicated he is not ready for the role. He now has no choice after his appointment - and the elevation of Brad Haddin to vice-captain - was approved in a unanimous decision by Cricket Australia's board on Thursday afternoon. 

"Obviously I'm honoured, it's for this Test match and hopefully we can get Punter right as soon as possible and get him back into whichever team," Clarke said at the SCG. "The sooner we can get him back into the one dayers, the better for us." 

Clarke is in charge of a 12-man squad as it attempts to draw the series with England, who retained the Ashes with their innings victory in Melbourne on Wednesday. Usman Khawaja has been included to make his debut at No. 3 while Doug Bollinger was recalled to replace Ryan Harris, who suffered a stress fracture in his left ankle at the MCG. 

But the major focus is on how Clarke will deal with his switch from energetic lieutenant to the man who has to juggle his own game with all the extra commitments required to run a team. He has led Australia in 18 ODIs and another 18 Twenty20s and has usually enjoyed giving the captaincy back to Ponting. 

In his dream Clarke would have taken the job in peak form, but he has experienced a poor campaign against England with 148 runs at 21.14 and only one half-century. Even that came with criticism after he tweeted an apology for not walking when he was dismissed late on the penultimate day in Adelaide. 

"I make no bones about it, my form has not been good enough throughout this series," he said. "I've had a couple of innings where I've felt really good but I need to get out here and make sure I get some runs on the board, and that's my focus right now. I've had the chance to captain Australia in the Twenty20 form and a handful of one-dayers as well, and I don't think it's hurt my performance. Hopefully that's the same this week." 

Clarke is a modern cricketer and his metrosexual tendencies and A-list activities have created lingering questions over his suitability for the leadership. His on-field moves will now be analysed intently as he hopes for a way out of such a dire period for Australia. 

Ponting's fractured finger deteriorated during the fourth Test that finished with him failing to win the Ashes for a record third time. If the urn was still up for grabs he would have pushed to play but gave into medical advice. 

"I'm devastated to tell you the truth, it was the news I was dreading," Ponting said after landing in Sydney. "During the game I didn't think I'd done too much more to it." When asked if he was considering retirement he said: "I'm not thinking about it at all." 

Ponting, who scored only 113 runs in the first four games, could face surgery on his finger, but is expected to be fit to guide Australia in their push to win a fourth consecutive World Cup. He had an x-ray on the final day of the Melbourne defeat and it showed the fracture had moved during the match. 

"What I need right at the moment is just as much time as I possibly can to let it heal and make sure that I'm 100% right for the start of the World Cup," he said. "That's really how the decision was made, so I've just got to do everything in my power over the next little bit to look after it as well as I can." 

He will see a specialist again over the next day to decide on the best way forward. "Hopefully he will commence training in the later part of the Australian summer," Alex Kountouris, the team's physiotherapist, said. "He is expected to be fully fit for the World Cup." 

Ponting's Test future is less clear as Australia's next five-day engagement is currently scheduled for Sri Lanka in August, although there is a talk of a series against Bangladesh after the World Cup. He is already 36 and Australia have realised during their poor Ashes performance that they have to start rebuilding through young players.

Ganguly hopeful about India's chances at 2011 World Cup

Siliguri (West Bengal), Dec.24 (ANI): Former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly said he is hopeful the recently announced Indian squad would win the forthcoming World Cup.

Interacting with mediapersons here on Thursday, Ganguly said that seeing the performance of Indian players at home ground, a victory in the World Cup could be expected.

"I am very hopeful. India is a very strong One Day International (ODI) team and they are playing it at home. If they can handle the pressure of the people at home, they'll be at the side who can win the World Cup," said Ganguly.

He further remarked that the team's performance in the first test against South Africa was disappointing but he was optimistic of the second test in Durban.

"Nobody wants to lose, am sure none of us, none of the players, or the team, or the supporters would be happy with the loss. But it can happen. You can win some game, you can lose some game, and am sure they will bounce back in the next tour... obviously toss will be important," said Ganguly.

Australia names Dovey as new team manager

Cricket Australia (CA) has appointed Rugby Football Union England Team Operations Manager Gavin Dovey, an expatriate Australian, to be new team manager of the Australian cricket team from April 2011.

Dovey will replace long-serving Australian team manager Steve ("Brute") Bernard, who will be retiring from the role after the ICC Cricket World Cup early next year.
Bernard and Dovey will conduct a handover during the Australia tour to Bangladesh which is scheduled immediately after the CWC.

Announcing the appointment on Monday, CA General Manager Cricket Michael Brown said he was excited to have recruited an appointee of Dovey's background and sports management expertise to fill the role, which is critical to the smooth operation of the team and its support group.
"Not surprisingly, we had a large field of strong candidates when we sought a replacement for Steve but Gavin was the stand-out candidate," Brown said.

"Steve Bernard has been an outstanding Australian team manager, is one of the most popular identities in world cricket and we knew his would be big shoes to fill.

Canberra-educated, Dovey worked for the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority before moving to a role managing anti-doping with the RFU, which in turn preceded his promotion into his current role.
He said he was looking forward to returning to Australia to take up a position he expected to be challenging but fulfilling.

"The RFU has been great to me and I will always be grateful for the opportunities they offered me - I have learned a lot. I now look forward to taking up the challenge of replacing Steve and of doing my part to help support the sporting team that the whole nation follows".

Cabs to drive fans in England 'World Cup' crazy

The International Cricket Council and Gullivers Sports Travel are gearing up cricket fans in England for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, which starts on 19 February.


Hailed as 'The Cup That Counts', the England cricket team go into the tournament with high expectations after winning the ICC World Twenty20 2010 in the West Indies while also beginning its Ashes retention campaign in a positive manner Down Under.

Gullivers, which is the official UK travel agent for the event, is urging fans to get behind the England team and support its mission to bring back the ICC Cricket World Cup from the Asian sub-continent.
It is also offering packages to supporters of all the 13 other teams, with thousands of people from the UK expected to travel to the event.

To drive the point home, more than 150 ICC Cricket World Cup 2011-branded black cabs are hitting the cities of London, Manchester and Birmingham, calling on fans to make sure they book official packages with appointed provider, Gullivers Sports Travel.

Gullivers has been working with the ICC since 1995 and its range of ICC Cricket World Cup travel 2011 packages starts at just GBP 169 per person and guarantee official match tickets. Gullivers can also arrange tailor-made holidays, combining the cricket with some of the region's many tourist highlights, including visiting tea plantations in Kerala, a houseboat stay, elephant spotting in Periyar National Park and the beautiful beaches of Sri Lanka.

Sachin Tendulkar Scoring his 50th Test Century

2011 Cricket World Cup Logo

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Some of the leading personalities present in the 2011 cricket world cup logo were- Balwinder Singh, Dilip Vengsarkar, Michael Bevan, Arvinda d e Silva and of course the ICC president Sharad Pawar with his committee members. Sharad Pawar specially mentioned in the logo 2011 cricket world cup ceremony that the prices of the tickets will be nominal this time as they are not focusing to earn profits out of it. Cricket fans will surely be happy this time as they can easily buy the tickets of their favourite team match at affordable prices. For the ease of cricket fans the availability of the tickets can be checked online with the schedule of all the cricket matches.

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Eight uncapped players in Kenya squad

Kenya have named eight uncapped players in their 30-man provisional squad for the 2011 World Cup - Duncan Allan, Runish Gudhka, Irfan Karim, Karan Kaul, Peter Kituku, Lucas Oluoch, Kennedy Owino and Vinit Shikotra. The squad, which will be pruned to 15 by January 19, also features two of their most experienced players, Steve Tikolo and Thomas Odoyo, who first played for Kenya in the 1996 World Cup, also in the subcontinent.

Kenya have had a disappointing year in ODIs, winning three and losing eight. However, they've had some success of late, winning a three-match series against Afghanistan 2-1 in Nairobi, and sweeping UAE 4-0 in a limited-overs rubber, also at home.

A player strike, led by Tikolo among others, had rocked Kenya cricket earlier in the year and the former captain had walked out on the team and indicated he would not play international cricket again. But he made himself available for the 2011 World Cup and, at 39, remains a key member of the side. 

In their most recent ODI assignment, Kenya were led by allrounder Jimmy Kamande. His team will play West Indies and Netherlands in the lead-up to the World Cup. 

"I am very pleased with the squad we have been able to name, we have a good blend of experienced players and some very exciting youngsters who have emerged over the last 12 months," Kenya coach Eldine Baptiste said. "There is still time for any one of these 30 players to force his way into the final 15-man squad that will travel to the World Cup. 

"Maybe a year ago we would have struggled to find 30 names that were worthy of consideration for a world event but what is really encouraging is how many young players have come through our A team and Under-19 squad in the last year and there are quite a few more who were unlucky not to make this list." 

Preliminary squad: Ragheb Aga, Duncan Allan, Runish Gudhka, Jimmy Kamande, Irfan Karim, Karan Kaul, Irfan Karim, Peter Kituku, Alfred Luseno, Tanmay Mishra, James Ngoche, Shem Ngoche, Alex Obanda, David Obuya, Collins Obuya, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Nelson Odhiambo, Thomas Odoyo, Lucas Oluoch, Peter Ongondo, Joseph Onyango, Lameck Onyango, Elijah Otieno, Morris Ouma, Kennedy Owino, Rakep Patel, Vinit Shikotra, Steve Tikolo, Hiren Varaiya, Seren Waters, Dominic Wesonga.

India need a settled side to win World Cup - Kapil

Kapil Dev has said MS Dhoni's team has the ability to win the World Cup in 2011 but will have to ensure that it finds a settled combination and keep its bowlers free of injuries. In an exclusive interview with ESPNcricinfo, Kapil, who was captain when India won the World Cup in 1983, said too many changes taking place before the World Cup could harm the team's thinking. 

"They have maturity, ruthlessness, they have talent and ability," he said of the team, but added, "too many injuries are taking place." Their key focus, he said, should be on improving fielding and running between wickets. 

One reason for the bowlers' frequent injuries was, he felt, that their training was not suited for their skill. Kapil said he spent time through his 15-year career working on his legs. "The gym is good enough for batsmen and other kinds of bowlers. But for the fast bowler, someone who has to bowl day in and day out , around 10 to 20 overs, you need strong legs.

"These boys should spend a lot of time on running, like a marathon. Your body should be tuned to that." Injuries to fast bowlers, Kapil said, happen "when you have more muscle on top and your legs cannot support them."

Kapil, India's most successful fast bowler with 434 Test wickets, said he focussed on his running during the off-season - then pointed out that nowadays there is barely an off season for cricketers. It was the BCCI's responsibility, he said, to prevent cricketers from burning out - cricketers themselves were unlikely to take that call due to the financial benefits of a career in the game. "The boys walk into the team and they perform well in the first year. Then they play all kinds of cricket. They have Test cricket, they have Twenty20, they have one-day cricket … the pressure is so much, and the young boys don't want to lose the money because they have struggled so much, almost 6-7 years to come to this level. 

"They don't want to miss a penny wherever they get a chance, so they don't want to miss matches... If you tell a fast bowler 'you take rest and don't make money', I think mentally no sportsman will be ready for that. So it's up to the administration to see how much cricket our boys play."

The recent increase in an Indian cricketer's workload has come from the IPL. Kapil, who was associated with the rival, unauthorised Indian Cricket League, said cricketers need to have more control over the IPL. "Definitely, without any doubt [there is a need for cricketers to have more control]. And not just be there on the board, but cricketers have to take the front seat." That, he said, was how he saw his role in the ICL. 

He said he did not regret being a part of the ICL. "No, I think it was absolutely correct because the ICL has given the cricketers a push. If the IPL has come today, it's a compliment to the ICL, so it's not something wrong." 

One of the biggest advantages of the new leagues was the financial benefits they gave to players. "Earlier there were only 10-12 cricketers in India who used to make money; today 300-500 cricketers can make a living out of cricket. I am happy something new began and those types of leagues are going to come up in the country." 

In the aftermath of the spot-fixing controversy, Kapil said one way of preventing the rise of the player-bookie nexus was to ensure younger players were mentored and advised by their seniors. "You need good people to handle them (young players) and keep talking to them... They need more advice about becoming true cricketers, basically from senior cricketers who take pride to play for the country."

Dominant England bring Ashes triumph nearer

• Australia 98 is their second lowest total at the MCG. They went past their 83 against India in 1981, which was previously their lowest at the MCG. This was however the lowest score in England-Australia Tests at the ground.
• This is Australia's fourth score below 120 since 1990 in home Tests.
• All ten batsmen were dismissed caught in Australia's innings. This was the 48th occasion that all batsmen have been dismissed by this mode.
• Matt Prior took six catches in the innings, one behind the record of seven which is shared by four keepers.
• James Anderson's remarkable improvement in Australia continued with another four wicket haul. He now has 16 wickets in the series so far at an average of just over 26. In contrast, in the previous series in Australia, he picked up just five wickets at an average of 82.6.
• Andrew Strauss became the 52nd batsman to reach the 6000 run mark in Tests.
• Strauss and Alastair Cook put on their 10th century stand for the opening wicket in Tests, which puts them joint fourth in the list of opening pairs with most century stands.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/the-ashes-2010-11/content/current/story/494052.html

Shoaib Malik, Kamran Akmal given World Cup deadline

Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal have until December 30 to provide the PCB with the necessary documents to clear their names for World Cup selection.

"The PCB has asked them to submit the documents about their assets and bank accounts by December 30 to be considered in the list of probables for the World Cup," Subhan Ahmad, the board's COO, told APP. 

The ICC had extended Pakistan's deadline for the submission of its preliminary 30-member squad for the tournament to January 5, after receiving a request from the board. Kamran and Malik have not played for Pakistan since their controversial tour of England in August and were left out of the tour to the United Arab Emirates. They have also been denied permission to play league cricket in Bangladesh. The PCB has remained fairly tight-lipped about the reasons for their exclusion. 

Kamran and Malik had both questioned the board's decision to not clear them for the New Zealand tour. Kamran had written to the ICC asking if he was under investigation and got a clean chit from them. The ICC had sent him and Salman Butt notices during Pakistan's tour of England in August, seeking information about events related to the 2010 World Twenty20 held in May. 

Legspinner Danish Kaneria, who has not figured in Pakistan's one-day plans in recent times, was also earlier given until the end of the year to submit his replies to the board's integrity committee's queries, in order to gain clearance to play for the country. 

http://www.espncricinfo.com/pakistan/content/story/493964.html

ICC releases documentary on 'Road to the World Cup'

With less than two months to go until the start of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, the ICC has announced the release of a documentary, 'The Road to the World Cup'.
The programme charts the fascinating story of how teams from across the globe attempted to qualify for cricket's flagship event.

Capturing the success of the Pepsi ICC Development Programme in bringing the sport to all corners of the globe, the documentary narrates the story of how the four ICC Associate and Affiliate Member qualifying places in the 2011 event were decided. This includes colourful, and never before seen, footage of four qualifying tournaments across the world.

Covering tournaments in venues as diverse as Jersey, Dar-es-Salaam, Buenos Aires and Johannesburg, this fascinating tale presents a unique insight into the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League (WCL) qualifying structure that provided ICC Members with a pathway to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.

With interviews and footage of the four ICC Associate Members - Canada, Ireland, Kenya and Netherlands - that successfully made the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, the documentary is a must watch for all international cricket fans in the lead up to next year's showpiece.

The footage also memorably charts the thrilling success of the Afghanistan cricket team through multiple divisions of the Pepsi ICC WCL, highlighting their title successes in Jersey, Tanzania and Argentina, before they come agonisingly close to sealing ICC Cricket World Cup qualification in South Africa.

Tendulkar is ICC Cricket World Cup Ambassador

The ICC has announced that Sachin Tendulkar will star in a special ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 marketing campaign.

The campaign, which will be launched next month, will see Tendulkar, who was announced in November as an ambassador for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, feature in a series of advertisements to raise the profile of cricket's flagship event.

In his role as tournament ambassador, he will be called upon to promote and support a variety of ICC initiatives for the tournament, which is the third biggest sporting event in the world and will take place in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka from 19 February to 2 April next year.

"When I got to know that the ICC wanted me to be the event ambassador for the 2011 World Cup, I was really excited and I didn't know how to react," said Tendulkar.

"I grew up watching various World Cup matches and when you actually get approached by the ICC and they want you to play a special role in this event it is absolutely flattering. I am truly honoured and I am looking forward to this event."

ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said that he was delighted to have Tendulkar involved in promoting the ICC Cricket World Cup.

"Sachin is perhaps the top player in the world today. He is revered not just in India but across the globe. The World Cup is the World Cup - it is the flagship event, the cup that counts, and if you match the player, Sachin Tendulkar, with the event, then you have a fantastic fit," said Lorgat.

World Cup Trophy

The Prudential Cups trophy were awarded to the winners of the World Cup from 1975-1983 when Prudential plc was the primary sponsors. The trophies' designs changed when the sponsors changed until the 1999 World Cup. So the first three world cups had a similar trophy while 1987, 1992 and 1996 had different trophies because of different sponsors until the International Cricket Council decided to award its own trophy.

The ICC Cricket World Cup trophy is the prize presented to the winners of the tournament.

The current trophy was created for the 1999 event and is the first permanent prize in the tournament's history. A team of craftsmen from Garrard & Co, the British Crown jewelers, designed and produced the trophy within two months in London.

 

The trophy itself is 60 centimetres high, made from silver and gold and features a golden globe held up by three silver columns. The columns, shaped as stumps and balls, represent the three fundamental aspects of cricket - batting, bowling and fielding - while the globe characterizes a cricket ball. It is designed in platonic dimensions, so that it can be instantly recognized from any angle. The trophy weighs approximately 11 kilograms and has the names of the previous winners inscribed on its base. There is still room for another ten teams to have their name inscribed.

 

The actual trophy is always kept by the ICC in its offices in Dubai but a replica, which is identical in all aspects apart from the inscription of the previous champions, is awarded to the winning team and remains in their possession.

Tendulkar, Sehwag in ICC shortlist for greatest ODI team

DUBAI: Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar, along with Virender Sehwag, on Wednesday found a place in the list of players nominated for an ICC online poll to pick the all-time greatest team as part of one-day cricket's 40th anniversary celebrations.

The retired Sourav Ganguly is also part of the list of openers, from which only two would make the final dream team.

The shortlist for Dream Team:

Opening batsmen (2) - Saeed Anwar, Sourav Ganguly, Gordon Greenidge, Matthew Hayden, Sanath Jayasuriya, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Glenn Turner.

Middle-order batsmen (3) - Michael Bevan, Martin Crowe, Aravinda de Silva, Inzamam-ul Haq, Brian Lara, Javed Miandad, Ricky Ponting, Viv Richards.

All-rounder (1) - Ian Botham, Kapil Dev, Andrew Flintoff, Richard Hadlee, Jacques Kallis, Imran Khan, Lance Klusener, Shaun Pollock.

Wicketkeeper (1) - Mark Boucher, MS Dhoni, Andy Flower Adam Gilchrist, Romesh Kaluwitharana, Moin Khan, Alec Stewart, Kumar Sangakkara.

Fast bowlers (3) - Wasim Akram, Allan Donald, Joel Garner, Michael Holding, Dennis Lillee, Glenn McGrath, Chaminda Vaas, Waqar Younis.

Spinners (1) - Shahid Afridi, Carl Hooper, Anil Kumble, Muttiah Muralitharan, Saqlain Mushtaq, Harbhajan Singh, Shane Warne, Daniel Vettori.

India’s 30-member squad for World Cup 2011 announced

The Indian selectors have announced the 30-member squad for the 2011 World Cup. What has been the most surprising exclusion is that of Irfan Pathan, while Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have been selected.

The probables:

Openers: Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Ajinkya Rahane, M Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan

Middle-order: Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Saurabh Tiwary, Rohit Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Cheteshwar Pujara

All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan

Wicketkeepers: MS Dhoni, Parthiv Patel, Dinesh Karthik, Wriddhiman Saha

Spinners: Harbhajan Singh, R Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Piyush Chawla, Pragyan Ojha

Medium-pacers: Zaheer Khan, S Sreesanth, Ashish Nehra, Ishant Sharma, Munaf Patel, Vinay Kumar, Praveen Kumar.

Tendulkar becomes first batsman to score 50 Test centuries

Indian batting maestro Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar on Sunday became the first batsman to score a monumental 50 centuries in the 133-year history of Test cricket. No other batsman has scored more than 39 Test centuries.

Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar went where no cricketer ever had before - and no else may ever venture - when he scored his 50th Test ton on Sunday. It's a staggering achievement that reopens the debate about whether he's the greatest batsman ever, surpassing even the legendary Sir Don Bradman, who was famously reminded of himself while watching the Indian genius in action.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011

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