Gautam Gambhir shrugs aside rumours of a rift with MS Dhoni

Former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir has clarified his stand about his rumoured rift with former Indian skipper MS Dhoni. Known for his outspoken and bold attitude, Gambhir doesn’t hesitate to speak his heart. 


Earlier, the left-hander had questioned Dhoni’s on-field tactics which led to speculations that ties between the two were uneasy. However, he has put these rumours to bed by saying that he has immense respect for his former teammate. 


Even on some occasions, both have compiled brilliant partnerships to give the team some memorable wins in the past. Gambhir recently cleared the air by saying that he had nothing personal against the former skipper and would be the first to stand beside him when he needed any help.


"I have immense respect for Dhoni. I have said on air, I’ll say it on your channel, I can say it in front of everyone that if ever he needs any kind of help, I hope such a situation never arises, but if ever he needs any kind of help, I’ll be the first one standing besides him because of his contribution to Indian Cricket, and what he is as a human being”, Gambhir said on Jatin Sapru’s YouTube show.


“We can have differences of opinions, everyone has his own way of analysing a particular game. Everyone has their own opinions. I have been the vice-captain for a long time when he was (MS Dhoni) captain," the cricketer-turned-politician added further. 


“Though we enjoyed a healthy on-field rivalry when we represented our teams in the IPL, I have a lot of respect for him for the kind of individual he is and for the kind of cricketer he is," Gambhir concluded. 

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IPL 2022 | Mayank Agarwal confident about team's chances this season

Punjab Kings captain Mayank Agarwal is feeling confident about his team’s chances in the new edition of the Indian Premier League. Agarwal, who has been entrusted with the captaincy this season stated that they have a title winning squad and now it is upon the team to make something out of it. "We like to believe that we do have a title winning squad and now it is upon us as players to execute our skills under pressure and see what we can make out of it," Agarwal told PTI in an interview. Several members of the Punjab Kings hierarchy have already stated that they are quite happy with how the mega-auction went and Agarwal seems to reflect the same view. "As a team we have done a good job at the auction. We were looking at a few skill sets knowing that the tournament will be played in Mumbai and we have covered those bases. We are happy with the balance we have in the side." Agarwal has been Punjab’s best batter for a couple of seasons anchoring the innings from start to finish despite batting at a very high strike-rate. The right-hander stated that things should get easier for him in this season considering the wealth of experience Punjab have in their ranks this time around. "When I am batting I am just a batsman. We have a lot of leaders and experience in the team and that makes it easier for me. I want to excel as a batsman and do the things I have been doing. (On the captaincy front) we have made our plans to take the team forward," the Karnataka born said. It needs to be noted that Agarwal will find support in veteran Shikhar Dhawan this season. The left hander has been one of the best batters in the IPL for several years now, finishing at the top of the charts with dominating performances. Speaking about the same, Mayank was high praises about the former Delhi Capitals player and stated that people will feed off his energy. "He (Dhawan) is an absolute livewire, a great entertainer, a massive performer and a lot of the guys will feed off his energy. He is also in a great mind space." Punjab Kings go head to head with Royal Challengers Bangalore in their first game of the IPL on March 27 at 7:30 PM. Both sides are looking strong and have a new core going forward into the tournament.

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ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 | What did captain Mithali Raj say after India’s loss?

After Saturday’s loss against Australia, the Indian team have been left at a tough spot in the league table of the ICC Women’s World Cup. Being played in New Zealand, India are currently fourth in the points table with four points from five games, being threatened by New Zealand and defending champions England for the fourth and the final spot for the semi finals. While a week’s worth of cricket is yet to be played, it is practical to believe that South Africa alongside Australia have already qualified for the first two positions of the top four, and West Indies, who are third currently have a 2-point advantage in the table. This loss against Australia means that India are in a do-or-die fight with New Zealand and England for the final spot and have to make a strong turnaround in the tournament after losing two matches in a row. Asked about the reason for their loss against tournament favourite Aussies, captain Mithali Raj stated that it was one of those days where the bowling unit did not do well. “When you lose you always feel that you are 10-15 runs short. Maybe the way the Australians started, they were ahead and the fielders did not back the bowlers when it was needed. It was one of those days when the bowling unit didn’t do well but they have been for the last four-five games," said Mithali in the post-match presentation ceremony. She acknowledged that this was a position that India did not want to be into but now the team has to fire in all departments to get them out of this mess. “The batting came good today but the bowling did take a hit. The next two games becomes very important and we would look to do well in all departments. We got ourselves in that position but the next two games is a must-win for us." India failed to defend a target of 278 runs against Australia in Auckland owing to a strong batting line-up from the Aussie side that took it away from the Indians in the very first hour of the game. India fought back in pockets but an exceptional innings from Beth Mooney sealed the deal for her country deep into the final overs of the game. Australia are currently undefeated in the World Cup, having won all of their five outings.

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ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 | India lose two in a row; make life difficult in league table

India lost their second straight match in the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022 to put themselves in a precarious position in the points table on Saturday, 19 April. Eden Park in Auckland produce yet another final over thriller - something that is turning out to be a common occurrence in this year’s World Cup. Mithali Raj’s women were undone strong performances in the Australian batting line-up who won the game with 6 wickets in hand and three balls remaining. India currently have four points from their five matches, and just about hanging by the thread in the fourth spot in the points table. Tomorrow’s game between England and New Zealand will have anxious Indian eyes on them, given the result of the game might end up deciding their fate in the tournament. India’s opening issues Coming into this game against a strong Australia side, India knew that they had to put up big runs if they wanted to win the game. Their hopes of that happening were quashed quite quickly by the 19 year old Darcie Brown who removed Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma inside the first six overs to put India off balance. That being said, it is not new for India to fail with the opening in this tournament, and Yastika Bhatiya rose to the occasion at one-down steering India clear of trouble. She found support in her captain Mithali Raj as the duo put up 130 runs between them in 154 balls providing India with the stability that they needed. Yastika was the first one to depart after scoring 59 off 83 balls in the 32nd over and Mithali soon followed her in the 38th having made 68 off 96. Levelling the playing field At 186/4, India needed that they did not have nearly enough to challenge the long Australian batting order and Harmanpreet Kaur immediately got to work. Two quick wickets fell on the other side while she was aggressing, with Richa Ghosh departing at 8 off 14 and Sneh Rana failing to open her account. Pooja Vastrakar was the saving grace of the innings, hitting a rapid 34 off 28 helping Harmanpreet salvage the scoring rate. India were able to put up a decent total of 277 runs in their allotted 50 overs and hoped that they can hang around for a bit and make things difficult for the Aussies. The unexpected assault Once Australia came on to bat, they were expected to start cautiously given the way they had hyped India’s new ball attack just a day before the game. But all that turn out to be of no significance as Rachael Haynes and Alyssa Healy punished India’s wayward lines and brought up a rapid hundred run partnership in the 17th over, battering Rajeshwari Gaikwad for three boundaries. Healy made Indian bowlers look like they had no clue what was going on and was on course for a century. Her downfall came in the 20th over off a well connected reverse sweep that went straight to the hands of short third man, letting India take a sigh of deep breath. The Meg Lanning show After the prized wicket of Healy, India were able to remove the top scorer of the tournament Rachael Hayness (43 off 53) quick enough to have an impact on the game. Fresh batters were at the crease and this was India’s only chance to get back in the game. However, none of that mattered, as Meg Lanning took a liking to Indian bowlers and alongside a struggling Ellyse Perry made the scoreboard tick, putting incredible pressure on the fielding side. The pair provided a real taste of their fitness, converting ones into twos and two into threes using the pockets of the Auckland ground. The final turn Despite Perry’s departure (28 off 51), and a little rain that halted the game for a while, Lanning steered the ship alongside Beth Mooney at a brisk pace, taking the game deep, without any sloppy work. But just as the games have been in this World Cup, fate found its way and provided India with a last chance to win the game. At 97, with just 8 remaining from the last 9 deliveries, Lanning drove a fuller length ball uppishly to Pooja Vastrakar, standing at backward point. The Indian allrounder did not miss out on the opportunity, and grabbed a very low catch. With Lanning back in the hut, India knew they had a chance with Tahlia McGrath on strike. A new batter, who needed to score 8 off 8, should have been nervous. And she was, first ball of her innings, she punched to cover, second one, she went very close to the wide line, trying to hit a yorker. She missed. Australia, all of a sudden needed 8 off the final over. Beth Mooney took strike against Jhulan Goswami in the final over and heaved the first ball over mid wicket for four. Second ball, she tapped to deep cover and induced a mistake from Smriti Mandhana to convert a one into two. The third ball, she hit the full length ball straight over Goswami’s head for another boundary to seal off the game. Force to reckon with There is no doubt that Australia are the team to beat in this World Cup, having won 5 straight matches and sealed their place in the semi finals of the tournament. They play their final two matches against South Africa and Bangladesh, of which, they should win at least one of them. India on the other hand are once again guilty for their method of playing, and their bowling attack that seemed to lack the bite. India, now have to make sure they win their remaining matches against South Africa and Bangladesh and hope that New Zealand lose at least one of them, preferably against Pakistan. Eyes would be glued to the TV sets for the next couple of weeks for the fans of women’s cricket, and it should for the value that it has brought to the world of sports. Three teams, vying for just one spot for the semi-finals position with more than a week of the tournament remaining? It surely doesn’t quite get better than that.