'They still didn't get 20 wickets' - Sehwag

Virender Sehwag has reiterated his stand that Bangladesh are not good enough to take 20 wickets against India.

It was another grim press conference where he initially refused to entertain any questions on his statement on Bangladesh's bowling, but eventually Sehwag decided to answer. "Next question," was his reply when the topic was first raised by a journalist. Finally he answered, albeit in monosyllables, when the issue was repeatedly brought up.

Asked whether he felt Bangladesh could now take 20 Indian wickets, Sehwag's answer came pat: "No. They can't. They still didn't get 20 wickets."

Bangladesh took eight second-innings wickets, an 18 overall, before India declared their second innings. The next question was whether the declaration was done so that Bangladesh did not take 20 wickets. "I had to declare because I wanted to win the game," Sehwag said before he let out a smile.

Sehwag was also asked his thoughts on Bangladesh's performance and he said, "They didn't bat well. They bowled well in the first innings because the conditions helped them. We batted well in the second innings and scored over 400 runs."

The talk moved to India's performance and about Ishant Sharma's bowling before it returned once again to the same issue. "You don't have a good record against Bangladesh. You said you wanted to score some runs this time. Are you satisfied with your batting in this Test?"

"Yes, I am," was Sehwag's short answer.

"He batted well," was his response when asked about Mushfiqur Rahim's innings today. Just before he came to the press conference, Sehwag was booed as he walked up to talk to Ravi Shastri in the post-match ceremony. "You are very popular here, aren't you," Shastri asked.

"Yes, Indian cricketers are popular here in Bangladesh," replied Sehwag.

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Sehwag back in top 5 of Test rankings

Virender Sehwag today stormed into the top five of the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen by virtue of his superlative double-century against Sri Lanka in the third Test in Mumbai.

Sehwag's 293, which turned out to be the cornerstone of his side's victory that ultimately gave India the number-one position in the ICC Test Championship table for the first time, has rocketed him 14 places to the fifth position which he shares with Pakistan captain Mohammad Yousuf.

Sehwag's Delhi teammate Gautam Gambhir leads the batting table with Sri Lanka duo of Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara second and third.

It is the first time since October 2006 that Sehwag has returned to the top five.
From the Mumbai Test alone, the 31-year-old Delhi dasher has gained 91 points which makes him one of the six batsmen above the 800-point mark.

It has been an outstanding and memorable series for Sehwag who not only scored 491 runs in four innings but also gained 16 places in the batting table after starting the series in 21st position.

Also moving in the right direction are the India pair of Rahul Dravid (16th) -- up by two places -- and VVS Laxman (19th), who improved his position by a rung.

Australia vice-captain Michael Clarke, who scored 71 and 61 not out, has also climbed one position to fourth spot but captain Ricky Ponting has dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since October 2002.

India maestro Sachin Tendulkar has also conceded two spots and now sits in 18th position after scoring 53 in his only outing on his home ground.

India fast bowler Zaheer Khan, who took match figures of 6-142 in the Mumbai Test, has also gained a valuable place which has now put him inside the top 10 bowlers' chart.

The list is still headed by South Africa fast bowler Dale Steyn with Australia's Mitchell Johnson second and Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka third.

Meanwhile, Australia needs to beat the West Indies in the third and final Test starting in Perth from 16 December if it wants to end 2009 in third position.

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Sehwag misses out on third triple century

MUMBAI, Dec 4 (Reuters) - India's Virender Sehwag fell seven runs short of a record breaking third test triple century in the final match of the series against Sri Lanka on Friday.

Sehwag resumed on his overnight score of 284 but was caught and bowled by master spinner Muttiah Muralitharan for 293 in the fourth over of the third morning, silencing a packed Brabourne Stadium.

The opener is India's only triple centurion and is the third batsman to have achieved the feat twice, along with Australia's Don Bradman and West Indian Brian Lara.

India were 458 for two in reply to Sri Lanka's first-innings 393 when Sehwag was dismissed.

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Sehwag assault leaves Lanka dazed

Virender Sehwag hit a swashbuckling double century as India seized control at the end of day two of the final Test against Sri Lanka in Mumbai.

Sri Lanka, needing victory to draw the series, steadily lost ground as Virender Sehwag hammered a pedestrian-looking attack around the park, scoring an undefeated 284 - his sixth double century and the game's third highest individual score in one day's play.

He dominated sizeable partnerships with fellow opener Murali Vijay (87) and Rahul Dravid (62 not out) as India closed on 443 for one, 50 runs ahead of Sri Lanka's total of 393 and in position for a huge first innings lead.

The visitors had begun the day badly, losing batsman Angelo Mathews for 99 and being bowled out within 27 minutes of play resuming in the morning.

Mathews required 14 runs for his maiden Test century and raced into the nineties by edging Sreesanth for a boundary, the ball falling just short of VVS Laxman at second slip.

He had moved closer to the mark with more fluent drive for four and was within two runs of the three-figure mark when he pulled Sreesanth to deep square leg and turned for a second run when Mahendra Singh Dhoni collected a precise throw from Sachin Tendulkar and dislodged the bails.

Replays showed the toe end of Mathews' bat was just over the line, but in the air when the bails were removed and he returned to the pavilion.

The other overnight batsman Muttiah Muralitharan was undefeated on four, while Chanaka Welegedara was the last man to be dismissed - leg before to Pragyan Ojha, the left-arm spinner finishing with three for 101 from 23.4 overs.

Sri Lanka's total - achieved with considerable labour - was expected to test the home side, but Sehwag and Vijay quickly rendered the advantage ineffective with an almost effortless display.

Vijay, playing in only his second Test in the absence of regular opener Gautam Gambhir, had calmed nerves with a sensible, yet punishing approach.

He reached his maiden Test fifty by stepping out and hitting Muralitharan for a towering six over long on and continued to accumulate runs easily, leaving Kumar Sangakkara struggling for the breakthrough.

The opening duo had added 221 for the first wicket when Rangana Herath, who had grassed Vijay on 67, eventually found success, trapping the batsman in front as the opener attempted a sweep.

There was no respite for Sri Lanka, however, as Dravid continued from where Vijay left off.

He hit Muralitharan for consecutive boundaries on either side of the wicket early in his innings and provided admirable support for Sehwag as India steadily closed in on Sri Lanka's total.

Sehwag ferociously launched into attack once he had adjusted to the conditions.

He cut and drove with power and precision and was particularly harsh on the spinners, ensuring they never found their groove.

He reached his century off 101 deliveries by sweeping Muralitharan for four, but his second 100 was achieved in even more blistering fashion, coming off just 67 deliveries.

Sehwag, hampered with a back injury suffered just before the tea interval, hit Kulasekara for three consecutive boundaries to reach 196, went to 198 with two runs through the covers and reached his sixth double century with another boundary in the over.

Sri Lanka's already deficient attack suffered another blow as left-arm paceman Welegedara pulled up short with an injury while running in for a fresh spell in the final session.

Sehwag reached the 250-run mark with a reverse-swept boundary off Muralitharan, passing the milestone off 207 deliveries and went on to reach his highest score in a day, smashing 40 boundaries and seven sixes in his 239-delivery innings.

It took India less than three sessions to overhaul Sri Lanka's total, scoring more than 400 runs in a day for the second time in as many Tests.

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Sehwag, Gambhir uncertain, Karthik called in as cover

Mohali: Wicket-keeper batsman Dinesh Karthik was today called in to cover for openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, who sustained injuries during India's third cricket one-dayer against Australia in New Delhi.

"Dinesh Karthik will be joining the Indian team in Mohali," BCCI secretary N Srinivas said in a statement.

India won the match by six wickets but Sehwag and Gambhir picked up injuries and whether they play in the fourth one-dayer here tomorrow would be decided in the morning.

"Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir sustained injuries during the third match of the Hero Honda Cup 2009, played at Delhi on October 31. A final decision on their availability for the fourth match, to be played at Mohali on November 2 will be taken on the morning of the game," the statement read.

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India wait on Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir

When this seven-match ODI series is finished, it's likely that what lingers in the memory the longest is not MS Dhoni's century in Nagpur, or the consistency of Michael Hussey and Ricky Ponting, but how the teams lost key players to injury after every contest and had to make do with thinning resources and last-minute reinforcements. Not one of the first three fixtures was contested by two full-strength elevens and both India and Australia are further depleted ahead of the fourth game at the PCA Stadium in Mohali.

India's latest setbacks occurred at the Feroz Shah Kotla, where Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag picked up injuries, making them doubtful starters for the Mohali game. Gambhir was struck on the neck by a full-blooded pull from Ponting while fielding at short leg and a yorker from Peter Siddle crashed into Sehwag's foot. Only on the morning of the game will it be known whether either batsman will be fit to play.

Australia, meanwhile, had a third player from their original tour party flying home because of injury. James Hopes picked up a hamstring strain in the first one-dayer, remained with the squad longer than fellow casualties Brett Lee and Tim Paine, but hadn't recovered quickly enough for him to be able to play the remaining ODIs. Clint McKay, the Victoria seamer, was the latest addition to the Australian squad after Moises Henriques and Graham Manou. Mitchell Johnson seems to be pulling through the series despite a sore ankle. Other national hopefuls might be watching tomorrow's match thinking they might be next to receive a call from Andrew Hilditch.

The schedule isn't kind to the injured either. The teams left the Kotla only at midnight after Saturday's game. Their arrival in Chandigarh was delayed and by the time they reached, there were fewer than 24 hours to go before Dhoni and Ponting are scheduled to toss. Provided both of them remain injury-free of course.

The added incentive to tomorrow's contest is that if India win, they will claim the No. 1 ranking in one-day internationals. If Australia prevail, they will stretch their current one-point lead to three.

Watch out for ...
Ricky Ponting: The Delhi pitch was tough for batting, the squad was inexperienced and depleted by injury, and in the interest of team balance Australia decided not to play specialist opener Shaun Marsh. They needed someone to partner Shane Watson at the top and Ponting took on the responsibility. It was only the second time he was opening in his 327-ODI career and he fought the conditions and batted with restraint to score his second half-century of the series. "I'm obviously the most experienced player in our side and to put one of the other guys up to open the innings I thought would have been more of a challenge for them than it would be for me," Ponting said. He is likely to open again.

The Yuvraj-Dhoni partnership: Their 148-run partnership won India the Delhi game on a pitch that was difficult for shot-playing. The PCA Stadium surface is likely to be much flatter and faster and, if Yuvraj and Dhoni should spend considerable time in each other's company, they could render Australia helpless once again. Yuvraj will also be playing in front of his home crowd, something he said he was looking forward to very much while collecting his Man-of-the-Match award at the Kotla.

Team news
India will decide on Sehwag and Gambhir's participation only on Monday morning and have brought in wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik as cover. Virat Kohli, who played in Vadodara but was dropped thereafter, is the other batsman in the squad. They might have wanted to rest Sachin Tendulkar, whom Yuvraj referred to in jest as the "grandfather" of the dressing room, because of the one-day gap between matches but that is now unlikely. The bowling attack is settling down nicely and doesn't need changing.

India(probabale): 1 Virender Sehwag/Dinesh Karthik, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 Gautam Gambhir/Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 MS Dhoni (capt/wk), 6 Suresh Raina, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Ashish Nehra.

Ponting said that Australia fielded the XI they did in Delhi in order to maintain team balance - playing Marsh would mean one less bowler - and they could be unchanged, with the captain opening the innings again.

Australia: (probable): 1 Shane Watson, 2 Ricky Ponting (capt), 3 Michael Hussey, 4 Cameron White, 5 Adam Voges, 6 Moises Henriques, 7 Graham Manou (wk), 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Nathan Hauritz, 10 Peter Siddle, 11 Doug Bollinger.

Pitch and conditions
The pitch at the PCA Stadium, like most of those in India, would ordinarily be a win-toss-and-bat surface. However, with the onset of winter, the significant difference between day and night temperatures will result in heavy dew in the evenings. Nathan Hauritz struggled during his spell in Delhi, and Adam Voges bowled only one over because he couldn't grip the ball. If the pitch looks like it will stay good for batting for 100 overs, the captain winning the toss could be tempted to bowl first to give his bowlers the benefit of a dry ball.

Stats and trivia
India have won five out of eight ODIs they've played at the PCA Stadium. However, they lost their last two matches there, against Pakistan in 2007, and against Australia in the 2006 Champions Trophy. Australia have played four ODIs in Mohali and won three.
No Indian batsman has scored a hundred in an ODI in Mohali. Tendulkar's 99 against Pakistan in 2007 is the highest. Tendulkar is the highest scorer at the venue, with 241 runs at an average of 60.25.
Harbhajan Singh, another local lad, has taken seven wickets at 24.71 apiece in four matches in Mohali. He has an economy-rate of 4.91 there.
Quotes
"If it looks like everyone's fit and ready for the next game there's probably every chance that I'll open again."
Ponting is prepared to lead from the front again.

"Plan? We are in fact tired of planning celebrations for him. Every week, the guy goes on to make some record or other. How many times can you celebrate?"
Yuvraj's reply when asked if the team had plans to celebrate should Tendulkar score the 47 he needs to reach 17,000 ODI runs in Mohali.

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Sehwag set to return for ODIs

Virender Sehwag is set to return, while off-colour Yusuf Pathan is likely to be axed the first two one-dayers against Australia.

The selectors will pick the Indian squad for the first two one-dayers against Australia on Thursday.

Sehwag has been out of international cricket owing to a shoulder injury that required surgery and the opener missed both the Twenty20 World Cup in England and Champions Trophy in South Africa.

The right-hander, however, is set to make a comeback to the national team on Thursday when Krishnamachari Srikkanth and his colleagues in the Senior Selection Committee select the team for the first two of the seven ODIs against Australia.

Baroda all-rounder Yusuf Pathan, meanwhile, is almost certain to be dropped, especially with Yuvraj Singh likely to return from a finger injury that kept him out of the Champions Trophy.

The BCCI is yet to receive the details of his fitness test at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore but subject to his clearing the procedure, Yuvraj will be back to the squad, according to sources.

The selectors will also debate on whether to persist with Rahul Dravid, who made a come back to the 50-overs format after a two-year hibernation.

According to sources, selectors may drop Ishant Sharma as well, bringing in Uttar Pradesh pacer Sudeep Tyagi in his place.

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Sehwag onslaught keeps Daredevils alive

Virender Sehwag and Dinesh Karthik blazed half-centuries as the Delhi Daredevils powered to a 50-run win over Wayamba XI in the Airtel CL T20.

The Delhi Daredevils needed victory in Delhi to stay in the competition, and Sehwag set the tone with a superb 66 from 42 deliveries at the top of the order.

Karthik slammed Ajantha Mendis for three consecutive sixes en route to a similarly destructive 61 from 41 deliveries in a formidable 170 for five.

Fast bowler Dirk Nannes then claimed four wickets, and Glenn McGrath rolled back the years to pick up two as the Daredevils cruised to victory.

New South Wales Blues and the Sussex Sharks had struggled to put bat to ball on the same surface a few hours earlier, but Sehwag showed little discomfort as he drove fast bowler Isuru Udana for a straight four for his first runs.

Tillakaratne Dilshan opened alongside Sehwag, but the International Cricket Council's Twenty20 player made only 10 - and captain Gautam Gambhir also departed cheaply, undone by one that stayed low.

Sehwag, however, dominated a third-wicket stand with Karthik - the opener racing to his half-century off 32 deliveries before being run out.

Karthik found good support in Owais Shah - and the wicketkeeper-batsman ruined Mendis' figures by slamming 23 off his last over.

Nannes, who shared the new ball with fellow left-armer Ashish Nehra, then secured the early breakthroughs - bowling Mahela Udawatte and Michael Vandort in his first two overs.

McGrath, a replacement for the injured Paul Collingwood, then took two wickets in his second over to leave Sri Lanka's Wayamba in deep trouble on 36 for five in the eighth over.

Mahela Jayawardene fought a lone battle and had made 53 when Nannes returned to claim his scalp, on the way to figures of four for 24.

Teams:
Delhi Daredevils: G Gambhir*, V Sehwag, TM Dilshan, KD Karthik†, MK Tiwary, OA Shah, R Bhatia, A Mishra, DP Nannes, A Nehra, GD McGrath.

Wayamba: MG Vandort, ML Udawatte, J Mubarak*, DPMD Jayawardene, HGJM Kulatunga, KS Lokuarachchi, MF Maharoof, RSSS de Zoysa†, BAW Mendis, I Udana, UWMBCA Welegedara.

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"I am concerned with Sehwag's allegations"

DDCA supremo Arun Jaitely told espnstar.com’s Rajarshi Gupta that he is concerned with Virender Sehwag’s protests.

The explosive Indian opener and Delhi skipper had kicked off a storm last week when he threatened to quit the Delhi Ranji team, citing interferences in the selection of the state players and alleged corruption in the DDCA.

Delhi heavyweights and India regulars Gautam Gambhir, Ashish Nehra and Ishant Sharma joined their captain and sang in his tone soon after and the DDCA was left scurrying for cover.

Concerned officials went into a huddle and groped for answers as the media swooped in on what looked like rocking the very foundation of cricket in the national capital.
Sehwag, who was away in Bangalore to recuperate from an injury exuded confidence in more of his senior mates joining forces and that was what happened when six days ago, seven players mysteriously went missing from the Delhi Ranji camp at the Kotla.
DDCA vice-president Chetan Chauhan had then told espnstar.com that all the ‘absent' players had the Board's permission and that had nothing to do with the ‘revolt.'
Given the way the entire episode had shaped up, few would have wanted to believe him though he gave this website a detailed account of where each player was.

Not surprisingly therefore, Gautam Gambhir was seen around the Kotla a day back, with Sehwag scheduled to meet the DDCA boss.

However, after a closed-door meeting with Jaitely, some ruffled feathers seemed to have smoothened out.

The politician-cum-cricket administrator assured Sehwag of steps to clean up the system as far as interference in selection is concerned.

"We will not tolerate any interference in selection and will take steps to ensure that the selection process is fair and transparent."

Jaitely was forthright of his assessment of the entire situation.
"When a player of Sehwag's stature raises such questions, it obviously is a matter of concern but you see, there is always room for improvement."
Jaitely was a figure of almost unbelievable calm and poise.

Flanked by DDCA secretary Sunil Dev and Chauhan and other officials, the former Union Law Minister sipped on his evening cuppa as he settled down to congratulate his team on a job well done.

The wagging tongues have been set to rest, for some time at least.

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Dhoni: Sehwag shaping well for CT

Virender Sehwag, recuperating from a shoulder surgery, was shaping well for the Champions Trophy, according to MS Dhoni.

However, the Indian captain added that the dashing opener may not be ready for the tri-series in Sri Lanka in early September.

"He is improving everyday. He is putting in a lot of effort to get ready for Champions Trophy ," Dhoni said on Thursday.

"Tri-series is too soon"
On Sehwag's chances of playing in the tri-series in Sri Lanka starting on September 8, Dhoni hinted the batsman may have to sit out of the event.
"It's (tri-series) too soon, with just a few days to go," he said.
Sehwag had injured his shoulder during the semifinal of the second edition of the Indian Premier League in South Africa and he underwent a surgery for the the Grade II lesion at a Nottingham hospital in June.

Since then, Sehwag has been following a rehabilitation programme, which makes him doubtful not only for the September 8-14 tri-series in Sri Lanka but also cast a cloud of doubt over his availability for the Champions Trophy in South Africa starting on September 22.

Dhoni said apart from Sehwag, there were no other injury issues and the players looked in perfect shape for a hectic schedule ahead.

"We just had a mid-term fitness test and we'll have a camp before the tri-series to get back into the groove and get ready for the long season ahead," Dhoni said.

"Kolkata is very close to my heart"

Dhoni said Kolkata was close to his heart since he played a lot of cricket here early in his career.

"Right from my under-13, under-16 and under-19 days when I was playing for Bihar, now Jharkhand, a number of times we played at Eden Gardens.

"Apart from that, I used to play P Sen Trophy for Shyam Bazar Club and I remember a good innings against East Bengal. I played a number of Ranji matches against Bengal at Eden," he recalled.

"When I was working with Railways in Kharagpur, I spent quite a good time here. I understand Bengali and can speak a bit.

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