Rayudu showed one should never lose hope: Ajay Jadeja :
Former India ODI captain Ajay Jadeja feels that Ambati Rayudu's international debut will be an inspiration for all those "eternal hopefuls" who want to don the national colours.
"If I can remember, Rayudu started playing first-class cricket when I was playing for India. It took him 10 long years to finally make his senior international debut. This shows that in every aspect of life, one should never lose hope," Jadeja told PTI on the sidelines of a prize distribution ceremony of TERI.
"I don't think many people would have thought that Rayudu will manage to play for India although his talent was unquestionable. He played in ICL which was an unsanctioned league and then changed states.
"Once you have gone through all these, there is a tendency of selectors not to pick you. What went in Rayudu's favour was his experience at first-class level and a solid game that he possesses," 42-year-old Jadeja, who played 196 ODIs and 15 Tests for India, said.
Jadeja is also hopeful that Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara will also prove his mettle in the shorter format.
"It's not for me or you to judge whether Pujara is in the scheme of things for the 2015 World Cup but he certainly has the game and the temperament. But most important thing is what selectors think about Pujara. He has shown at the domestic level that he can play the shorter version also. I don't see any reason why Pujara won't be successful in ODIs," he said.
Talking about Shikhar Dhawan, Jadeja felt that the Delhi opener will only get better with time.
"Great players are those who improve and get better with passage of time. Shikhar has started off brilliantly and he will only improve as he works on his flaws. Even Sachin Tendulkar had flaws and he has continuously worked on them," Jadeja said.
On whether playing too many horizontal bat shots can cause him trouble, Jadeja said, "If he is a puller, it's good but if he is a compulsive puller, it's not good. Anything done out of choice is good but not out of compulsion."
Asked whether the likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli have changed the definition of a finisher in ODI cricket, Jadeja, who himself was a fine finisher in his time, explained, "The basic grammar of finishing the game is still the same."
"Earlier, the game's pace was dictated by the 22 players but now it is about the rules which govern the game. You have two new balls, lesser number of fielders in the circle, mandatory Powerplay by 35th over. These things certainly have become a factor."
Reece Young quits first-class cricket :
Reece Young, the wicketkeeper who played five Tests for New Zealand, has announced his retirement from first-class cricket. Young, 33, said he quit to spend more time with his family and focus on a career outside of cricket.Young made his Test debut against Pakistan in Hamilton in 2011 and played the last of his five Tests against Australia in Hobart in 2011-12. He scored 169 runs with a highest score of 57 and took eight catches. He had earlier toured Sri Lanka in 2009 and kept wicket in place of Brendon McCullum in the second innings of the first Test in Galle.
Mathews' return to bolster Sri Lanka :
Sri Lanka Angelo Mathews will return to lead the hosts, who are already 2-0 up in the series. Dinesh Chandimal, the replacement captain, did a good job in the first two games, bagging the Man of the Match award in the last match. Mathews' return would mean an added edge to the bowling as the action moves to Pallekele. The pitch at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium is known to assist fast bowlers and with the likes of Malinga, Perera and Mathews in the XI, the hosts will no doubt prove to be a dangerous unit. South Africa While Mathews comes back to add more firepower to Sri Lanka, South Africa will probably have to do without Hashim Amla, the opener for the rest of the tour. Already without Dale Steyn, the bowling has looked ordinary and Amla's absence from the batting line-up would mean a fragile side, at least on paper.
Court stays CIC proceedings against BCCI :
The Madras High Court has stayed the Central Information Commission's (CIC) proceedings on whether the Indian board is a public authority. The stay was granted by Justice KK Sasidharan while making an interim judgment on a BCCI petition challenging the CIC proceedings.During the appeal for a stay, the board's counsel argued that the CIC had issued the notice on July 10 though two earlier orders, passed in 2008 and 2011, had clearly held that BCCI was not a "public authority" under section 2(h) of the RTI Act and therefore was under no obligation to provide any information.
Fourth IND-ZIM ODI postponed due to elections :
The fourth ODI of the ongoing series between India and Zimbabwe has been postponed by a day due to general elections in the African country.
The match will now be played at the Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo, on August 1 instead of July 31.
"The fourth ODI of the ongoing series between India and Zimbabwe has been postponed by a day on account of Elections in Zimbabwe," a BCCI release said.
Misbah and Afridi to play in Caribbean Premier League :
Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistan captain, will replace Australia's Luke Pomersbach in the St Lucia Zouks side for the inaugural Caribbean Premier League season. Pomersbach has been forced to pull out of the tournament, which begins next week, on compassionate leave. Misbah will enter the competition fresh from a Man-of-the-Series performance in the one-day series against West Indies, which ended on Wednesday.Shahid Afridi's return to form has made him a popular choice for T20 cricket once again with the St Lucia team in the upcoming Caribbean Premier League (CPL) offering a late contract to flamboyant Pakistan all-rounder.
Afridi confirmed from St Lucia that he had been made an offer to play in the CPL that begins from July 30 although he was not in the list of overseas signings.
"I am going through the contract and will see how it goes but I would love to play in such a big tournament because it is the first time they are having a professional T20 league with foreign participation in the West Indies," he said.
The St Lucia team offered the contract to Afridi on the recommendation of captain Darren Sammy.
Six teams are taking part in the CPL with Pakistan's T20 captain Mohammad Hafeez, opener Ahmed Shahzad and Shoaib Malik already signed up to play for different regional teams in the league.
Afridi, who made a comeback to the national team for the tour of West Indies, returned to form in the series won by Pakistan as he finished with 10 wickets and also played two good innings including a blistering 76 in the first match.
The former captain said he was happy to finally show some form for his team and if he played in the Caribbean league it would prepare him for the forthcoming tour to Zimbabwe.
"These days I have decided to focus a lot on my batting as I realize now my fans and supporters expect a lot from me when I go out to bat," he said.
"In the past few years because of team requirements I had focused a lot on improving my bowling but I am now paying a lot of attention to my batting and spending lot of time in the nets," he said.
Afridi said it felt good to be part of a winning team after Pakistan clinched the five match one-day series 3-1.
