Muralitharan says Lyon not ‘good enough’ to hassle Lankan batsmen

Sydney: Legendary spin bowler Muttiah Muralitharan has said Australia’s Nathan Lyon doesn’t possess enough skills to hassle Sri Lankan batsmen, and added that had Mahela Jayawardene’s men attacked the off spinner during the Hobart Test the outcome of the match could have been different.

Murali believes Rangana Herath can win Sri Lanka the second Test match in Melbourne considering the fact that Australian batsmen have never been comfortable against slow left arm spinners.



Murali is also confident the tourists will break their duck on Australian soil after nine losses and two draws in 11 matches, News.com.au reports. The spin great said if Sri Lanka bats first and scores big, then Herath could help them win if the wicket starts turning.

Orthodox spinner Herath took 5-95 in the second innings as the Bellerive wicket broke up in Hobart after going wicket less in the first dig.

On the other hand, Muralitharan said Lyon`s finger spin held no such fear for the Lankans. Muralitharan also said Australia would struggle to bowl out Sri Lanka twice in Melbourne, a city where the tourists have always enjoyed great crowd support from a large ex-pat community.

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Sachin Tendulkar: Man who became god

New Delhi: It did not take much for the cricket pundits to spot a genius in Sachin Tendulkar after he made his international debut in a Test match in Karachi Nov 15, 1989. He was 16 then. More than two decades later, he has gone on to become one of the greatest batsman the world will ever see.

Twenty-three years, one month, and eight days from his debut, the five-feet-five-inch cricketing genius has called time on a glittering one-day career. With 18,426 runs from 463 matches at an average of 44.83, Tendulkar has most batting records under his belt in the 50-over format as also in Tests.

He holds the record for the maximum number of appearances and is the highest run-getter and century-maker in both versions. He has turned out in six World Cups at a stretch, playing a key role in winning the title in 2011 and finishing runners-up in 2003.

The `Little Master`, as he is often called, is the only man to hit 100 centuries - 51 in Tests and 49 in ODIs - and also the first man to score a double-century in the 50-over format.

However, it was not all smooth sailing for the champion batsman in his initial ODIs. It took him all of five years and 78 matches to score his maiden hundred.

But experts never lost faith in him. Another Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar commented that once he gets his first one, there will be no stopping him. Finally the big day came Sep 9, 1994, when Tendulkar struck a blazing 110 against Australia in Colombo.

The jinx broken, Tendulkar celebrated with two more three-figure knocks in the next two months. From then on, there was no looking back.

The memories of Tendulkar tearing into one of the greatest spinners of all-time, Shane Warne, at Sharjah, will forever be etched in the minds of cricket fans. In that tournament, he hit two back-to-back centuries (143; 134) against Australia -- the first helped India qualify for the final based on a better Net Run Rate and the second, in the finals -- which was played on Tendulkar`s 25th birthday, helped India beat Australia to win the title.

After the tournament, Warne claimed that he had "nightmares" at the thought of bowling to Tendulkar after being dominated by him.

An abiding image of Tendulkar would be the hundred he scored in the 1999 World Cup match at Bristol. Ramesh Tendulkar, a novelist and professor, who had deeply inculcated in his son the virtues of modesty and humility, died when India were in the midst of the Cup campaign.

Tendulkar flew home to attend his father`s last rites, and returned to the tournament, beating the Kenyan bowlers to pulp scoring 140 off 101 balls, and dedicated his innings to his father. On completing the hundred, Tendulkar looked at the sky, praying for his father, and has done likewise after reaching every milestone of his glittering career since then.

With the left-handed Sourav Ganguly, Tendulkar formed the greatest opening partnership in limited overs cricket, and the pair holds the world record for the most number of runs - 6609 in 136 matches that includes 21 century and 23 half-century stands. In 40 other matches, batting together but not as openers, the duo partnered another 1668 runs, taking their total aggregate partnership to 8277.

"These were the moments of my career I always cherish. My batting with Sachin in one-day internationals at the top was a huge learning experience," Ganguly once said.

But the greatest adulation for the Mumbaikar came from the legendary Don Bradman - considered the greatest batsman of all times. Sir Don once asked his wife to take a look at the Indian as he felt Tendulkar played like him.

It was Tendulkar`s technique, compactness, and shot production that endeared him most to the Aussie, according to Roland Perry, who authored the book `Don`s Best`.

But in a revelation that even the `god of cricket` has his human frailties, it took Tendulkar 370 days to get over an agonising century-less period after the 99th international hundred he got March 12, 2011 facing South Africa in Nagpur during the World Cup.

In recognition for the laurels he brought to the country, Tendulkar was nominated to the Rajya Sabha as an eminent personality by then president Pratibha Patil in April this year - the first sports personality to get the honour.

Mentored in his early cricketing days by his elder brother Ajit, Sachin later honed his skills under celebrated coach Ramakant Achrekar.

Tendulkar`s talent stood out since his school days, and partnered by his friend Vinod Kambli the duo made the cricketing circles sit up and take notice after an unbroken 664-run stand in a Lord Harris Shield international school game in 1988.

The rest as they say is history.

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India vs Pakistan 2012: Bangalore T20I - Preview

 SCORECARD

Bangalore: Five years after their bilateral cricket ties snapped due to the Mumbai terror attack, India and Pakistan are set to slug it out in what promises to be a high-voltage limited-over series starting with the first Twenty20 international here on Tuesday.

The two-match T20 and three-match ODI series has been squeezed in between India`s ongoing full series against the England cricket team, which has taken a break to go home for Christmas and New Year holidays.

India and Pakistan, which last played a bilateral series in 2007, squared off in multi-national events several times after 2008 but for the first time, a Pakistani cricket team will be hosted for a series after the attacks.

The Indian team is going through some testing times as they renew rivalry with Pakistan since the side has been struggling for success.

India did well in the T20s against England after being humiliated in Tests but bowling remains a persistent headache for them in all the formats.

The likes of Alex Hales, Michael Lumb and Eoin Morgan put the Indian attack on sword during the short T20 series and the Pakistan batsmen would be looking to exploit this weakness of the hosts.


Except for a spirited show put up by Ashok Dinda, none of the Indian bowlers made an impact on the English batsmen. Parvinder Awana, Ravichandran Ashwin and Piyush Chawla have all struggled to get wickets

This may prompt skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni to give a chance to either Abhimanyu Mithun or Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Surprisingly, Yuvraj Singh was the most successful bowler with six wickets and he also batted stupendously for India.

India would want the Chandigarh boy to continue with his good touch against a very tricky opponent.

Flamboyant Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and skipper Dhoni himself have had some runs under their belts and they would like to continue in the same vein against Pakistan.

It will be interesting to see if Dhoni gives a chance to Ambati Rayudu, considering his past performances in this format of the game.

But it will be a tough test for Indian batsmen against Pakistan`s formidable pace attack, led by Umar Gul and Sohail Tanvir.


Not only the pacers but Pakistan have an extremely good spin attack in the form of Saeed Ajmal, Shahid Afridi and captain Mohammad Hafeez to choke the strong Indian batting.

Afridi`s dwindling form has been a worry for the Pakistani captain which at times muzzles the team`s batting prospects. However, Hafeez has tremendous confidence in his all round abilities.

Pakistan have landed in India after making wholesale changes to their bowling. They have made six changes to the squad that went to Sri Lanka for the T20 World Cup.

Fast bowler Junaid Khan, who was dropped from World T20 squad, has been included for his ability to do well in the death overs.

Ahmed Shehzad, Umar Amin and M Irfan have also made a comeback while Asad Ali and Zulfiqar Babar are the other inclusions.

India and Pakistan met last time in the 2012 T20 World Cup which the former won by eight wickets

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Compliments and surprise as Tendulkar quits ODIsCompliments and surprise as Tendulkar quits ODIs

Mumbai: The cricket fraternity on Sunday paid glowing tributes to Sachin Tendulkar on his retirement from one-day internationals, saying that the record-breaking batsman`s feats cannot be surpassed.

Tributes started pouring in soon after the 39-year-old cricketer announced his decision to quit ODIs on Sunday.

"I felt that he might have played the series against Pakistan. But it is his decision and I think it is the right," said Tendulkar`s long-time opening partner in ODIs, Sourav Ganguly.

"There was a doubt on whether he would play ODI cricket or not. But I am not surprised by his decision. He has done what he thought was right.

"I don`t think there was any pressure of selectors on him. It is his own decision. No one can drop him," Ganguly added.

Former captain Kris Srikkanth said he was surprised by Tendulkar`s decision.

"I am surprised by his move but he is leaving ODI cricket on a high. I am sure he will want to leave on a high in Test cricket also. He will be looking forward to a good Test series against Australia.

"He has always done well against Pakistan. But he always raises his bar on a good wicket against a strong attack. Be it in the 1992 World Cup against Pakistan or 2003, he did well against Pakistan in the 2011 World Cup also," Srikkanth said.

"It is easy for us to say that he could have retired after the 2011 World Cup. He has got 100 centuries so he went to the Asia Cup. It is one thing that only few have achieved. His records cannot be surpassed," he added.

Another former India skipper Dilip Vengsarkar said Tendulkar should have continued with ODI cricket.

"Actually I am surprised. If he is continuing with international cricket (Test) then he should have continued with ODI also. We play almost 25 ODIs in a season. It is very important to keep playing international cricket."

"In ODIs, he opens the innings and plays the full innings almost so he gets used to international bowling. I am surprised he opted out of ODIs. He should have continued playing ODI.

"As long as he is playing Test match cricket or international cricket, he should have continued playing in ODIs," Vengsarkar said.

Tendulkar, considered the most complete batsman in modern cricket and one who was considered next only to the legendary Sir Donald Bradman, retires from the ODI format at the top of the run-getters` list with 18,426 runs in 463 matches.

"Masters.463 matches, 23 yrs, 18426 runs !!!! These numbers no body else will be able to come close to. Salute salute salute to Sachin," tweeted teammate Harbhajan Singh.

"Sachin tendulkar a grt batsman.Grt human being.A grt frnd.Grt man 2 look up 2.Proud indian.Real son of india.I salute u nd luv u," Harbhajan wrote on his twitter handle.

According to Kirti Azad, Tendulkar has "obliged" Indian cricket by calling it quits.

"I think he has obliged Indian cricket by retiring. The god has ultimately decided. Everybody is talking that he should retire. I suppose if I am playing cricket whether I am playing good or bad, the call has to be taken by the selectors," Azad said.

"The selectors didn`t take a call. I think he was also tired of the selectors not taking a call on him. I am very happy that he has ultimately taken a decision at the right time," he added.

Another former player Bapu Nadkarni said Tendulkar`s decision should be respected.

"His retirement was expected for some time now and he must be thinking that he is good enough for the five day scene, that is why he hasn`t retired from Tests.

"He is the best man to decide when to retire from other formats because he knows his body well. All this time people were asking when is he retiring? Now that he has announced his retirement from ODIs, people are asking why has he retired? I don`t understand the Indian people," he said.

Tendulkar goes out after amassing 18,426 runs in 463 one-dayers at an average of 44.83. The diminutive right-hander has an astonishing 49 hundreds in the format, including a double hundred -- the first in this form of the game.

Former Pakistan captain and noted commentator Ramiz Raja said he can understand Tendulkar`s decision to call it quits.

"When you have played 23 years of international cricket, a time comes when ODIs don`t excite you anymore as you have achieved everything that you possibly could have. Sachin has also won the World Cup, therefore his decision is understandable."

"However, herein lies the biggest challenge as he has now retired from ODIs. This will mean that he will be at the most playing 30 days of international cricket.

"Earlier he used to play both ODIs and Tests which meant that he played close 70-75 days minimum every year. It will be a very big challenge to come for those 25-30 days and be in good rhythm to perform at his best. But I am delighted to find the manner in which he is trying to work hard to get back into form in Test cricket which shows his hunger and passion to do well in Tests," Raja added.

South African batsman Hashim Amla also paid tribute to Tendulkar.

Former Sri Lanka captain Arjuna Ranatunga said Tendulkar has enough cricket left in him to prolong his Test career.

"He has figured greatly with runs in the longer version of cricket. I think he has played a little bit more in the longer version but when he feels that he is good enough to play in the Test side, I know, he feels he is good enough to play in the longer version in order to achieve the milestone of 200 Tests," said Ranatunga.

Ranatunga supported Tendulkar's decision to retire from the ODI cricket and said he has done a lot of good to the world cricket.

"I think he has taken the right decision. He is such a cricketer, who has the expertise to decide as he knows what to do and what not to do. Retiring from one day cricket, I am sure he might have taken the right decision as lot of people will come out and say a lot of things. But, it is left to the individual to decide. I am sure he has done the right thing. Sachin is a great player considering what he has done to the world of cricket," he added.

Former India opener, W V Raman also paid rich tributes to Tendulkar and said an era in cricket has come to an end.

"Obviously an era has come to an end as he has chosen to make a quite exit from one day scene. It is not a surprise in a way because he has minimized his appearances in the last couple of years. Obvious his enjoyment factor would have diminished, in his case.

"Sachin who has played for 23 years in one day matches needs a challenging format to keep him going. One day format is more of fitness and not technical skills. I am sure he will be quite relaxed and take on the challenges in Test format," said Raman.

Raman said the batting maestro will be remembered for his "challenging and superb" innings in limited overs format.

"He will be remembered every day for his challenging and superb knocks in 50-50 matches. I am sure this will enable him to concentrate and do extremely well in Test cricket.I am sure he will go out of his way and will be relaxed and concentrate on his getting in to the runs spree act," he added.


Star England batsman Kevin Pietersen also paid tribute to Tendulkar for an incredible ODI career.

"Statistics NEVER lie! They tell a very true story.. Well done Sachin! What an incredible ODI career..," Pietersen tweeted.

Another England player Ravi Bopara feels that another Tendulkar will not emerge in his lifetime.

"Well done to @sachin_rt on his amazing ODI career. Inspiration to millions if not billions. We will never see another Sachin in our lifetime."

Agriculture Minister and former ICC and BCCI chief, Sharad Pawar hailed Tendulkar as the greatest batsman of all time.

"Greatest batsman of all time & my good friend Sachin Tendulkar retires from One day cricket . Thank you for making India so proud," Pawar tweeted.

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South Africa beats NZ by 8 wickets in opening T20

southafrica

Durban: An experimental South Africa team romped to an eight-wicket win over New Zealand in their opening Twenty20 game after the Black Caps slumped to their third-lowest T20 score in a dismal start to their tour.

South Africa needed just 12.1 overs on Friday to reach 87-2 and overhaul New Zealand`s 86 all out.

Left badly exposed by the absence of experienced players themselves -- including former captain Ross Taylor -- New Zealand needed 23 from debutant Colin Munro to help it past its record low in 20-over games, 80 all out against Pakistan in 2010.

Seamer Rory Kleinvedlt (3-18) and left-arm spinner Robin Peterson (2-8) did the bowling damage for the Proteas while stand-in captain Faf du Plessis led South Africa home in his first game in charge, hitting the winning runs and finishing 38 not out.

Wicketkeeper batsman Quinton de Kock was 28 not out on his international debut.

"No complaints, it was a fantastic game for us. Very happy," Du Plessis said. "It`s the standard we`ve set, but the standard we have to keep for the remainder of the series."

Desperate to perform well under new skipper Brendon McCullum and put aside the controversy over the exit of Taylor as captain, New Zealand`s relatively experienced top order all failed and left the four debutants it fielded in the series-opener with little chance to revive the innings.

McCullum was one of the failures as he fell for six to a relentless South African seam attack. The visitors were 36-6 at one stage before the South African-born Munro and then tailender Doug Bracewell (21 not out) gave them some small respectability.

Rob Nicol (3), Peter Fulton (9), McCullum and James Franklin (0) all went cheaply at the start of the innings as South African seamers Kleinveldt, Dale Steyn (2-13), Chris Morris (2-19) and Ryan McLaren (1-27) cashed in on regular mistimed attacking shots by the Black Caps batsmen.

Peterson then helped mop up the tail with his 2-8 off four overs -- the most economical bowling from a South African in T20 internationals.

"We came here to play some aggressive cricket," New Zealand captain McCullum said, "but first things first we do have to do some fundamentals right to earn the right to be aggressive ... We got a couple of things we didn`t get right."

Munro, who made his New Zealand debut back in the city of his birth, Durban, hit four fours in a brief counterattack. Bracewell struck three boundaries in a 21-run partnership with Ronnie Hira for the ninth wicket -- the highest stand of the innings.

New Zealand was still bowled out with 10 balls remaining of its 20 overs.

Debutant fast bowler Mitchell McClenaghan removed Richard Levi for a duck in the first over of South Africa`s reply for a rare high spot for the tourists.

But Henry Davids -- also on debut -- hit a six and three fours in his 20 from 13 balls to kick start the Proteas` chase and new leader Du Plessis continued his belligerent form from the victorious tour of Australia to take South Africa home.

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