Shoaib Akhtar may have been allowed to play in the Indian Premier
League but former players say the maverick pacer will find it tough to
make an impact in the twenty20 league as months of absence from the
cricket field has robbed him of match fitness.
The beleaguered pacer, whose 5-year ban was suspended on Sunday for a
month by the appellate tribunal of the Pakistan Cricket Board, has
bowled just 18 overs and played one competitive match since
mid-December last year.
He has not played since February 13 this year when he led the Federal
Areas team against Punjab in the Pentangular Cup tournament in Lahore
and didn’t get a wicket.
His last appearance for Pakistan was the third Test in Bangalore against India in early December last year.

Since then, he was dropped for the one-day series at home against
Zimbabwe and was subsequently banned for indiscipline when Bangladesh
toured last month for five one-day games.
In this background and given his fitness record, experts believe the
fast bowler could be in for a real test when eventually he does play
for the Kolkata Knight Riders team on May 8.
“I am happy he has had his ban suspended and this allows him to play in
the IPL. But as a former Test pacer I know how difficult it is getting
back into rhythm and match form if you haven’t played for six months,”
former player Sarfraz Nawaz said.

Congratulations to Spain on winning Euro 2008 after a long haul of
44 years. The turning point in the match was when Torres made a
historic goal that took team Spain all the way to Victory. I think they
won because they went on the offensive and kept on attacking.

For the uninitiated, Spain beat Germany 1-0 in the Euro 2008 final
in Vienna. It was for the second time they won European championship.
It was indeed a deserving victory. The team showed great football and
needless to say, played so much better than Germany.

Australia have warned India of a hostile series
Down Under but vice-captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said they will not shy
away from maintaining that aggressive tempo which unnerved the World
Champions during their visit here for the ODI series.

“It will be interesting. They are famous for aggressive cricket and
their temperament on the field. We are quite ready for it. We showed
them it during the home series as well,” Dhoni said.

“I think its not about the mind games that you play. I believe in
playing good cricket on the ground and giving your 100 per cent and
playing good aggressive cricket. And it is not about what you are
saying or using media as one of the strategies to put pressure on the
opponent”, the wicket keeper batsman told NDTV.

Dhoni said adapting to the Australian conditions as quickly as
possible will be the key to India’s performance in the high profile
series.

“It is about playing good cricket and more about adaptability… You
have to adopt quickly to the condition and you have to play according
to the situation,” he said.

“We faced a lot of swing music when we went to England. Every
country specialises in something and Australia is famous for bouncy
tracks like England is for swing and India for spin bowling. So when
you go to any country, the challenges that you face is different. You
have to play well over a period of time and adapt quickly,” he said.

On the personal front, Dhoni said it will be an exciting experience
for him because he will be touring the country for the first time.

“I have played in most of the countries and now I am going to
Australia. I think New Zealand is the only country left. It is very
exciting because the cricket played there is very different.

“On my first tour I would love to do well. It is a new challenge for
me and new responsibility for me and I am looking forward to it,” he
added.

IPL Twenty 20 has grown form a mere concept to the catchphrase of
21st century. Featuring world-class players, dynamic franchisee owners,
over-enthusiastic aficionados, beautiful cheerleaders, huge stakes and
of course a lot of controversy, IPL has ventured into what was beyond
the imagination of cricket moguls.
The game has evolved dramatically from the dillydallied test cricket to
the fast-paced extravaganza, which takes spectators on a thrilling
rollercoaster ride. The good news- Cricket fans are just loving it!
IPL ticket sales have evidently taken off in a big way. Twenty 20 merchandise fell short of supply…whew!
IPL has definitely set the whole world on fire.
Although, since its inception, IPL is under constant clouds of
criticism but this has not let its mania plunge even a tad. The
supporters of traditional cricket format maintain that IPL is nothing
more than a money-spinning entertainment sport. However the supporting
clan rejects the claims stating that IPL promoted local talents.
What I think is unique about IPL is its concept. Take the players’
apparels, new rules and needless to say, the Bollywood’s Midas touch,
IPL has come of age at once.
And with all the glamour, all the razzmatazz, and all the quality
players from all different countries in one spot, the whole IPL event
looks like a sort of hybrid world cup.
But who will win? I take a chance on Kings XI

The 2008 FIA Formula One World Championship is the harbinger of a new era of Indian motorsport: the first full season for the Force India Formula One Team and a representation of the new young fast paced lobal Indians and F1 fans from across the world.

The team’s journey started in October 2007 when Dr. Vijay Mallya, together with the Mol family, established a joint-venture company called Orange India Holdings (OIH) to purchase the Spyker Formula One Team from Spyker Cars N.V.

Although Force India’s Formula One challenge will start with the 2008 season at the Melbourne Grand Prix, the team is based on solid foundations. The team is built from the ashes of Jordan Grand Prix, which was established by Irishman Eddie Jordan in 1991, which later became Midland F1 Racing in 2005 and the Spyker Formula One Team in 2006.

Though the first 2 races has brought a hardship for the Indian team, hopes are still high.

It’s again a great day for the Indian cricket fans. Virender
Sehwag has made Indian Cricket team proud once again with his
magic touch on the cricket ground. 

India opener Virender Sehwag scored 319 on the fourth day of the first test against South Africa on Saturday.

The 29-year-old improved his own Indian record for the highest test
score of 309, but failed to break the world record of 400 not out held
by West Indies batsman Brian Lara.

Sehwag added 10 runs to his overnight total before edging a rising
delivery from paceman Makhaya Ntini to Neil McKenzie at first slip in
the fourth over of the day.

Sehwag joined Australian Don Bradman and Lara as the other batsmen who have scored two test triple hundreds.

Great going Sehwag, Keep it up…

Very few Indian fans might have dreamed the Perth win after the nightmare in Sydney.

But it has been the fighting spirit typified by VVS Laxman and Irfan Pathan that India has rallied around at the WACA. That’s contributed to the world’s most populous nation now being regarded as Australia’s biggest rival.

Ravi Shastri, who had played 80 Tests & 150 ODIs for India said, “Australia will be shaken by this performance by India. It’s up to India to maintain this same intensity. They have done extremely well on this tour. They got caught out in Melbourne, they were very good in Sydney and they’ve been up exceptional at Perth.”

Teamwork was on the 2007 England tour as well. After the weathergods were kind to India at Lords, it was India all the way at Trent Bridge winning by seven wickets and then almost making it 2-0 at the Oval.

It was Laxman once again who’s 376 run stand with Rahul Dravid inspired India to come back after having been forced to follow on and
halt a rampant Australia in their tracks at Eden Gardens in 2001.

The pair stepped on the gas in Adelaide three years later, another triple century stand in 40 years in Australia to script a historic test win, the first Indian victory on Australian soil in over 20 years.

History as we now know, was repeated about four years later down under and could just help begin the path to a glorious future.

“We used to never win Test matches abroad. Slowly, we’re winning one Test, and then one series. Hopefully, one day will when India will be going for the 16th win and Australia will be happy to hold us and stop us from that 17th win,” said Ajay Jadeja who played 15 Tests and 196 ODIs for India.

India’s best turn around ever was arguably complete with this win in the world T20 finals. About six months earlier, the Indian team had been written off after a first round exit in the World Cup. The speed of the turn around comparable only to the pace of the game.

If there’s any criticism of the Indian team, it’s that they often let the advantage slip like they did against the Proteas in 06-07 after winning the first Test. That’s one problem they’ll have to fix but if India can win at Perth, then, we know, anything is possible.