We are raring to go: Rohit
Jaipur: It may have got tricky for Mumbai Indians after one defeat and a washout, but skipper Rohit Sharma is still very optimistic about his side’s prospects in the Champions league Twenty20. Needing a win to keep their hopes alive after collecting just two points, Mumbai will take on Highveld lions in their third group ‘A’ league match at Sawai Man Singh Stadium here on Friday. “In this format you get only four games and with one lost and other washed out we know the position we are in. We understand what needs to be done. We are raring to go and have to win both of our remaining matches. But we don’t want to take pressure and want to do what needs to be done,” Rohit said.
‘no problem playing with seniors’
Karachi: With Shoaib Malik and Abdul Razzaq expected to make a comeback to Pakistan’s T20 and ODI sides, national Twenty20 skipper Mohammad Hafeez has made it clear that he does not have any problem playing along side the senior cricketers. “I have always said that I would respect the selectors and the team that they give me. As a captain, it is up to me to get the best out of the players that I am given. And the fact that we have moved from nine to the second spot in the Twenty20 world rankings is evidence from the fact,” Hafeez told reporters in lahore. Both Malik and Razzaq had recently met the caretaker chairman of the PCB, Najam Sethi and are believed to have complained that they had not been given fair chances by Hafeez and Misbah-ul-Haq, who is one-day and Test skipper.
Pak selectors face tough task
Karachi: Pakistan national selectors will have a tough job at hands when they sit on Friday to pick the national cricket squad for the upcoming “home” series against South Africa in UAE, commencing on October 14. Cricket fans, former players and experts have been extremely critical of the team management including the head coach Dav Whatmore, Test and ODI captain Misbah-ul-Haq and Twenty20 skipper Mohammad Hafeez, besides the selectors after Pakistan lost a One-day and a Test match to lowly ranked Zimbabwe in Harare recently. “For the national selectors it is a dicey situation because they don’t want to take too many risks against the world’s top Test team, South Africa even though conditions in UAE is expected to favour Pakistan,” a well informed source said.
UPCA AGM today
Kanpur: The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association scheduled here on Friday is expected to be a stormy affair with some members likely to oppose the changes proposed to be made in the selection panels and functioning of the body. According to sources, Mayank Bajpai, who was appointed as a General Manager last year, would be given greater say in the functioning of the UPCA besides a hike in salary and perks while another GM and former Ranji player Rohit Talwar could be moved from his post and given charge of UPCA Cricket Academy. Such moves are likely to be met with strong opposition by some members in the meeting, they said.
Pietersen fighting fit for Ashes
london: Kevin Pietersen believes he is over his chronic right knee injury and is fully fit for the first time in eight months as England prepare for the return Ashes series in Australia. “It was tough but I’ve done some incredible rehab in the last three weeks and it feels like I have a different knee, I’m feeling so good on it,’ he said onTalkSport. “For the first time since February I am totally pain-free and I am continuing to do the right things. It was probably the best decision I made for my career not to have surgery because if I had done I would be out till next February. I’ve felt like a different person.
We’re flattered by 3-0 win: Jimmy
london: James Anderson believes the 3-0 scoreline from this summer’s Ashes series “flattered” England and he expects this winter’s return leg to be closer as Australia rallies behind its cricket team. Since the end of the series Darren lehmann, the Australia coach, has put a politician’s gloss on events by portraying his side as unlucky not to have won the series despite the one-sided result. He followed it up this week by describing England as “dour”, but Anderson makes no apologies. “All four games were tight and could have gone either way. Three-nil probably flatters us a bit if we are being brutally honest. But at the same time we fought out of holes and that is what you need in a series like this one. It might not be pretty but it is huge for us and we really want to win. “We would take any win at all. We would take a 1-0 if we have to. I imagine it will be close. I think the 3-0 this summer was a closer series than 3-0 suggests. We are going to have to be prepared for them coming hard at us. We have to be prepared for the media going after us and probably the whole country. PNS/DT/Agencies