India ‘A’ lose to Australia ‘A’
Darwin: Sanju Samson’s valiant 81-run knock was overshadowed by Kane Richardson’s five-wicket haul as India ‘A’ on Sunday lost by 28 runs to Australia ‘A’ in the first one-day of a quadrangular series, which also features South Africa ‘A’ and a local National Performance Squad (NPS). Chasing 253 for a win in 50 overs, the Indians were bowled out for 224 in 46.2 overs with Samson’s knock being the standout effort in an otherwise disappointing batting performance. Opting to bowl after winning the toss, the Indian bowlers did well to keep a check on the Aussie scoring rate in the first half but the hosts broke free riding Alex Doolan’s 101-ball 96, which was laced with nine fours and a six. Doolan and Mitchell Marsh combined for a 117-run partnership that helped Australia ‘A’ recover from the regular fall of wickets. Brief Scores: Aus A: 252/7 (Alex Doolan 96, Mitch Marsh 63, Dhawal Kulkarni 3/41). India A: 224 all out in 46.2 overs (Sanju Samson 81, Kane Richardson 5/31).
Kaif to captain Andhra Pradesh
Kanpur: Ending his 16-year-long association with Uttar Pradesh, Mohammed Kaif has decided to lead Andhra Pradesh in the upcoming Ranji season after striking a two-year deal with the state association (ACA). The Allahabad-born player has accumulated 9277 runs, taken 143 catches and picked 20 wickets in his first-class career. “It’s end of the road for me at Uttar Pradesh. Now we should give a chance to young players from the state. When players like Suresh Raina, Praveen Kumar and Piyush Chawla joined the UP team, we helped them learn the ropes of international cricket. “Now it’s time that we help youngsters from other states (Andhra Pradesh) move to the next level,” Kaif said. “ACA secretary Ganga Raju and senior official SSK Prasad have been in constant touch with me for over months regarding mentoring their state and many junior sides. They wanted me to hone talent in the state and finally I have agreed for a two-year deal,” said Kaif.
‘Batting has helped my bowling’
london: India’s top bowler in the ongoing Test series against England with 11 wickets to his credit, pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar says his good form with the bat has been a major factor in helping him perform well with the ball. Bhuvneshwar, who struck two half-centuries in the drawn opening Test in Nottingham, picked up six wickets in the ongoing second Test here to be the pick of the Indian bowlers. “If you think like a batsman, you have an upper-hand over the man you’re bowling to. All the runs that I have scored here have played a huge role in the way I have bowled. Having batted there for long hours, I know where the batsman will find it difficult to play the ball,” Bhuvneshwar told ‘bcci.Tv’.”I can anticipate what is going on in his mind and plan the next ball accordingly. The runs also give you confidence, which gets transformed into courage of conviction when you come on to bowl,” he said.
Brits haunted at hotel rooms
london: In a bizarre development, several England cricketers have requested a change of rooms, saying their five-star london hotel is haunted. According to Daily Mail on Sunday, the players’ wives and girlfriends have refused to stay at the famous langham Hotel during london Test matches this summer after complaints of mysterious goings-on at night. “During the Sri lanka Test I had to move rooms,” Stuart Broad was quoted as saying by the British daily. “It was so hot in the room I just couldn’t sleep. All of a sudden the taps in the bathroom came on for no reason. I turned the lights on and the taps turned themselves off. Then when I turned the lights off again the taps came on. It was very weird. “It really freaked me out. I ended up asking to move rooms. Bealey (Broad’s girlfriend) was pretty spooked, too, and I know Moeen Ali’s other half won’t stay there because she’s so frightened of the ghosts,” the fast bowler added
‘Take captaincy away from Cook’
london: Michael Vaughan has slammed England captain Alastair Cook’s “poor tactics” in the ongoing lord’s Test against India and called for the ECB to consider taking the captaincy away from him. Vaughan, in his article for the ‘Daily Telegraph’, said “We have reached the stage with Cook when he cannot be enjoying cricket. You don’t when you are not playing well and the team is struggling.” “It is easy for the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) to say it is going to stick by him but it has to ask what is best for the team and for Cook. The ECB has a responsibility to Cook the person to do the right thing and if that means taking the captaincy away then so be it,” Vaughan wrote.
Zim beat Afghan by 8 wickets
Bulawayo: Zimbabwe opener Sikandar Raza made sure his first one-day international century was a memorable one as he smashed seven sixes in his 141 to power the home team to an eight-wicket win and a 2-0 series lead over Afghanistan on Sunday. Raza was part of a record 224-run opening partnership with Hamilton Masakadza as Zimbabwe chased down Afghanistan’s total of 256-7 with ease for a 2-0 lead in the four-match series.