One's a go-getter, the other a slow burner: Mike Hesson on Kohli vs Kane ahead of WTC Final

Former New Zealand coach and current coach of the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mike Hesson wants to see Indian top order batting fighting it out against the New Zealand pace attack at a swinging Southampton pitch in the inaugural World Test Championship Final.

"I am keen to see how India's top-order fares against the swinging ball. The ball does a bit in Southampton and as the cross breeze comes into play -- it can be a challenge for the batsmen,” Hesson was quoted as saying by Times of India. “How the Indian top-order plays the NZ pacers could decide the outcome of the WTC final," he added.

Hesson who guided the Blackcaps to the 2015 World Cup Final, believes that this contest at a neutral venue would be an ideal situation to have an even contest between the two teams. "They are even. The fact that it's being played in a neutral venue makes the WTC final an even contest,” he said, before adding how brilliant New Zealand have been over the last 5-7 years period.

“We (New Zealand) are in our third final after the 2015 ODI World Cup followed by the 2019 WC in England. The Black Caps are a top-quality side who have played quality cricket for a long period of time,” said the 46-year-old former Kenya coach.

Talking about the captaincy styles of Kane Williamson and Virat Kohli, both of whom have played considerable aunt of cricket under his tutelage, Hesson called Kane a slow burner and Kohli a go-getter. "Kane is more of a slow-burn in the sense that he likes to put pressure over a period of time. Virat, on the other hand, is constantly looking for ways to put his side in the driver's seat. The WTC final will be a test of captaincy for both Kane and Virat,” he said.

"As the wicket changes from day to day, it will be interesting to see how both Kane and Virat make those little tweaks in their strategies to stay ahead of the game,” added the coach. The Final begins on June 18

Discover more

Finances are hugely important for us from PSL: PCB CEO

The Pakistan Super League is finally going to resume on June 9 in Abu Dhabi. The tournament was suspended due to rise in Covid-19 cases within the franchise sides. The Pakistan Cricket Board CEO Wasim Khan in an interview with Cricbuzz has said that the PSL is a marquee event for them and it was important for the board to complete the 2021 edition. “Of course, the finances are important but as important is the fact that it's a marquee event for us. From a finance point of view, it is not the be-all and end-all of everything. Every cricket board relies heavily on ICC funding, ICC distributions and broadcasting revenues. We have two to three fixed sources of income that come in as revenue.” Wasim Khan admitted that there is a huge importance of the PSL as far as the finances are concerned. Finances are hugely important for us from PSL, but more importantly, it is a marquee tournament for us on an annual basis which has been built up since 2016. Franchises have invested a lot of time, money and effort into HBL PSL, which is important on a number of levels. From that point of view, it is very important for us to make it happen,” he said. The PSL was earlier put to a halt but was then scheduled to resume in Karachi from June 1 with all the matches to be played at the same venue including the final. But the franchises requested the PCB to move it out of Pakistan citing the Covid-19 situation in the country. The PCB though faced some problems with the logistics throughout the later half of May and then in the first couple of days in June before the dates for the tournament’s resumption could finally be announced. There were visa-related issues for the players travelling from Pakistan to Abu Dhabi while the support staff was also not allowed to take the flight because of lack of clearances.

'Disappointed' on exclusion from England tour, Kuldeep Yadav 'hoping' to go on tour of Sri Lanka

India left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav has not had a lot of opportunities on the field in recent times and spinners who came behind him in the Indian team have gone on to strengthen their place in the squad. He was not given an opportunity to play at the Gabba against England when he was the only spinner left among the main squad members and the trend continued in the home series against England as well when India preferred to have Axar Patel, Shahbaz Nadeem, and Washington Sundar over him for the three Tests of the series. Now, he has been excluded from the tour of the United Kingdom where India will play the World Test Championship and a five-match series against England and unsurprisingly, the spinner has expressed his disappointment over the exclusion. “I am disappointed not to be part of the Indian team because I wanted to go and perform and contribute to the team’s win. These things happen, yes you are sad, but at the same time you are ready to perform in the next opportunity,” Kuldeep told India News. However, he has not given hope of a quick comeback into the Indian team and hoping to return to the white-ball sides for the tour of Sri Lanka scheduled for next month. “I didn’t go there (UK), so hopefully I will go to Sri Lanka and get the chance to perform there. Cricket should continue happening, every player is sad when he is not in the team, everyone wants to remain in the team but sometimes the situation is such that you are not part of the team,” Kuldeep added. India are scheduled to travel to Sri Lanka for a T20 and ODI series and it could provide a massive window of opportunity for Kuldeep Yadav to reclaim his position in the Indian dressing room.

WTC final | Michael Holding rates Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson equally in 'style and entertainment'

West Indies great Michael Holding has said that India will have an advantage going into the World Test Championship irrespective of the conditions in Southampton as they have all their bases covered in the bowling department. He said that the pitches at the Ageas Bowl have provided assistance to spinners in the past and hence India may consider playing two spinners if the overhead conditions will be bright during the game. "Obviously, conditions will play a role. But the bowling attack India have, it will help them even if conditions remain bright. And if it’s sunny throughout, they can even afford to play two spinners. They have that advantage," Holding, an integral part of the fearsome West Indies pace quartet of the 1970s and 80s, told The Telegraph (India). "Even if conditions are damp, I still think India will include one spinner, which could be Ashwin as he can contribute well with his batting too. The pitch there does offer turn for spinners, which will be to India’s liking." He commended Virat Kohli for the value of runs he brings to the table for the Indian team but also suggested that the team is just not about Kohli as they produced a series win against Australia without him. "Kohli’s someone who always wants to get runs, but even when he’s not scoring, India are still winning Test matches. He wasn’t there for three matches in Australia, yet India won the series. So I don’t think India should be too worried about him,” Holding added. He too like many other former greats could not resist the temptation of comparing the captaincy styles of Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson. He said that while Kohli’s passion and animation lift the spirits of his teammates at crucial and tough junctures of the game, Williamson’s calmness and assurances help his teammates a relaxed atmosphere on the field. "I would say both Kohli and Kane are right up there when it comes to style and entertainment. Having said that, style and entertainment are not everything as productivity also counts. That way, Steve Smith plays a vital role as he can produce the runs. So is Joe Root,” Holding added. "A calmer captain can help his teammates stay more relaxed on the field. As a result, they can see to it that they aren’t too tense. At the same time, though, an expressive/animated captain could be required to lift the spirits of his team, especially during tough and critical situations." Holding has been associated with Sky Sports in the UK for a long time and will be doing commentary in the WTC final scheduled to be played from June 18.

BCCI continues Women’s cricket neglect, sources say no T20 Challenge for women this IPL season

The Indian Women’s have got another setback after being continuously denied IPL style Women’s T20 league, the only solace they had in terms of the three-team lollipop by BCCI called the Women’s T20 Challenge, has also been scrapped for this season. A cricket website has confirmed that the T20 Challenge was discussed in the recent BCCI SGM and with the Women’s team to Australia slated for the same period as IPL’s UAE leg, the board decided to scrap it. “There was no discussion on Women’s T20 Challenge in the last SGM but the board has already finalized this. India will be touring Australia in September for a long tour and with WBBL following, so naturally, we are not in a position to host the event,” Cricket.com quoted a BCCI source as saying. The three-team event which took place even last year was slated to be played in Delhi during the IPL playoffs this season as well. This tournament was called off as the board wants to solely focus on the IPL and the World Cup soon after hat. “Title Sponsors Reliance Jio has also been informed of the development by the board. There is a World Cup in a few months and our focus lies in conducting both IPL and World Cup smoothly,” the source added.