VIRENDER SEHWAG SAYS HE WAS DETERMINED TO BAT LONGER AGAINST KOCHI TUSKERS KERALA

The Delhi Daredevils skipper, Virender Sehwag said on Saturday that he had gone in to the Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Kochi Tuskers Kerala with an intention to lead from the front by batting throughout their innings.

"Absolutely happy. The wicket was not easy, I took the responsibility and once we crossed 120, I thought we had got par. We were very happy we got 158," said Sehwag after the match.

"I was hitting the ball nicely, it was obvious I had to bat longer. I told myself if I just stayed longer we could get 130, a good total on this wicket. And then just told my bowlers to bowl straight, and the wicket would do the rest," the visiting skipper added further.

The swashbuckling Indian opener led the Daredevils from the front with a whirlwind 80-run knock which came of just 47 balls. His knock steered the hosts to a daunting total of 157 for 7 before the Morne Morkel-led bowling attack rolled over Kochi for just 119 runs, to register a 38-run victory at the Nehru Stadium in Kochi.

Morne Morkel and Roelof van der Merwe shared three wickets each, conceding 18 and 20 runs respectively, while Irfan Pathan and Ajit Agarkar returned with two wickets apiece.

The Kochi captain, Mahela Jayawardene, lauded his counterpart for the belligerent knock and said that that Sehwag's heroics at the top of the order took the game away from the home side. He said that 130 to 140 runs would have been a competitive total, but chasing 160 was quite tough.

Jayawardene wished they had removed Viru early. He also said that after getting on to a relatively good start, the bowlers failed to keep hold in the second half of Daredevils’ innings.

"The way we bowled in the last 10, we didn't have any control over things. We didn't bowl good areas. The first 10 we were good," said Jayawardene.

The Delhi Daredevils were earlier at the bottom of the tournament points table, but the victory against Kochi Tuskers Kerala has moved the side up to number seven.

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KUMAR SANGAKKARA, MAHELA JAYAWARDENE BACK LASITH MALINGA’S DECISION TO QUIT TEST CRICKET

Former Sri Lanka skippers Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene have endorsed paceman Lasith Malinga’s decision of retiring from Test cricket due to a worsening knee condition.

Malinga, who is playing in the Indian Premier League for Mumbai Indians these days, announced his retirement from Test cricket on Friday, April 22, 2011 and vowed to pay complete attention to just One Day International and Twenty20 cricket.

The injury-prone pacer had recently withdrawn his name from Sri Lanka’s upcoming tour to England as well. However, after being questioned by the Sri Lanka Cricket about his participation in the lucrative IPL, Malinga made the sudden move to bid adieu to the longest format of the game.

The fast bowler has been blamed for preferring to play club cricket over country. The slinging action bowler, however, clarified that he announced his retirement from Tests in a bid to prolong his career in the shorter version of the game.

Along with 127 wickets in 84 ODIs at an average of 26.84, the 27-year-old paceman has picked up 101 wickets in 30 Tests since making his debut against Australia in 2004.

Malinga claimed that although he had plans to quit Test cricket, the timing of his retirement made the situation awkward.

The former Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara has stated that Malinga’s decision was in team’s interest while Mahela Jayawardene considered that it was the right call from the pacer from a personal point of view.

“While I was captain we tried to manage him as carefully and sensitively as possible during the past couple of years,” Sangakkara said.

“The truth is that Lasith is our best fast bowler in limited-overs cricket right now. If we forced him to play Tests we would be running the risk of losing him completely,” the Lankan wicket-keeper batsman added.

Sangakkara further said that Malinga’s presence in Sri Lanka’s ODI and Twenty20 set-up is a huge blessing. Considering Malinga as a team-man, Sangakkara further rubbished all allegations that the fast bowler quit Test cricket in order to extend his participation in the ongoing IPL.

Ensuring his full support to the fast bowler, Sangakkara made it clear that it is his injury problem which forced him to leave Test cricket.

Meanwhile, Jayawardene described that with a severe knee injury, it is pointless to risk Malinga for five-day cricket.

“If he breaks down then it will be bad for Sri Lanka. Some people have criticised the decision, arguing that he is being selfish. This short-sighted argument is very unfair given that he clearly has a chronic knee problem,” Jayawardene said.

The classy right-hander further explained that if Malinga had kept playing Tests despite injury, it could have put a full stop on his cricketing career altogether.

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SRI LANKAN STALWARTS SUPPORT LASITH MALINGA’S DECISION OF QUITTING TEST CRICKET

Two former Sri Lankan captains and members of the present team, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene have jumped to defend fast bowler Lasith Malinga who was criticised by cricket fans and pundits in his country after he quit Test cricket owing to the condition of his knee.

Many experts of the game in Sri Lanka stated that Malinga made a selfish call and his decision was based around the notion that he wanted to make more money by playing in the lucrative Indian Premier League and other such T20 competitions around the world, which allow cricketers the luxury of making quick bucks.

The right-arm pacer released a statement last week in which he said that he was not fit to play in the longest format of the game, and both Sangakkara and Jayawardene stated that they were fully behind their Number one strike bowler. Malinga had endured great physical pain to represent his country in the last few years, especially after he was plagued by a knee injury.

Sangakkara spoke to Sri Lankan media where he stated that he knew well about the condition of Malinga and how long it took him to recover from a Test appearance he made against India last year. Lasith guided the hosts in the opening Test with a sensational five wicket haul, yet pulled out of the remainder of the series due to the bad condition of his knee.

"We were all well aware of the seriousness of his knee condition and while I was captain we tried to manage him as carefully and sensitively as possible during the past couple of years," Sangakkara wrote in his column in a popular Indian newspaper. "We obviously wanted him to play Tests, but when we asked him to play theIndia tour it took him two months to physically recover from that."

Sangakkara, who relinquished captaincy after the ICC World Cup 2011 Finals loss to India earlier in the month, stated that he does not believe that Malinga quit test cricket to concentrate on the shorter more lucrative varieties. He further added that the call was made by the fast bowler owing to his physical condition which was far from ideal.

Kumar added that Malinga had always given his best as a national cricketer and if it was not for the knee problems he would have played test matches, as he loves performing for his country in any situation.

The left-handed batsman and wicket-keeper, who is hailed as one of the best in the modern game claimed that he supports Malinga’s decision and hopes that as a result of it he will end up playing international cricket for many years.

On the other hand, another former captain and accomplished middle-order batsman Mahela Jayawardene, who was in charge of the Sri Lankan side before Sangakkara took over, also stated that it was unfair to criticise the call made by Malinga.  

Jayawardene added that just like other professions, cricketers should also be allowed to make a call on their careers and chose paths that suit their circumstances the best.

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SRI LANKA’S MAHELA JAYAWARDENE SUPPORTS LASITH MALINGA’S DECISION TO QUIT TEST CRICKET

Sri Lanka’s middle-order batsman Mehela Jayawardene has come out in support of fellow teammate Lasith Malinga's decision to quit Test cricket.

Earlier this week the pacer Malinga announced that he will not be playing in the longest version of the game.

Jayawardene while talking on the matter, stated that the phenomenal pacer took the right decision and it will help him prolong his cricket career.

“In order to extend his career he has to quit test cricket. In fact his target is the next world cup in 2015 and by bidding adieu to tests he has prolonged his career in shorter version of the game.” Jayawardene said.

According to insiders, Malinga has been carrying a knee injury and in order to save himself from doing more damage to his knee, the slingy pacer decided to bid farewell to five-day cricket.

Jayawardene reiterated that in today’s cricket the pacers have to face the brunt of hectic schedules which shortens their cricket career.

Malinga is currently the number one strike bowler for Sri Lanka and the Lankans will want him to play for as long as he can, for which it is imperative for Malinga to cut down his workload.

Earlier there were rumours in the media that Malinga had taken the decision to retire from Test cricket after he was criticized by certain sections in Sri Lanka Cricket, alleging that the player had opted to play the IPL (Indian Premier League) instead of representing the country.

However, Jayawardene brushed aside such rumours and insisted that the bowler had only taken the decision keeping his future in front of him.

The former vice-captain said that Malinga was prone to injury and during his time of captaincy he always had to calculate the amount of workload on the bowler to make sure that he would remain fit nonetheless, even after such a cautious approach he suffered prolonged injuries in the past.

“He had worked hard and made a fine comeback and is performing brilliantly. He has realised that he can't sustain that huge work load and perhaps has prolonged his career. I am very happy for him," said the Kochi Tuskers Kerala skipper, Jayawardene.

Slinga Malinga as he is knick-named sometimes made his test debut for Sri Lanka in July 1, 2004 against Australia, while in the same month he played his first ever One Day International for his home side against the United Arab Emirates.

So far in 30 Test games he has taken 101 wickets while in one-days he has played 77 games and taken 114 wickets.

Malinga has been equally devastating in the shortest version of the game, the Twenty20, where he has played in 29 games taking 35 wickets.

Considering his current form, he will surely be an asset for Sri Lanka in the next world cup which is scheduled to be played in New Zealand and Australia in 2015. 

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KUMAR SANGAKKARA TERMS THE NOTION OF LASITH MALINGA ABANDONING TEST CRICKET FOR IPL AS “NONSENSE”

Former Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara has termed the speculations regarding Malinga's decision against Test cricket for the sake of IPL (Indian Premier League) as utter nonsense.

Sangakkara in fact supported Malinga’s decision, believing that it was a prolonged knee injury that forced Malinga to bid farewell to the longest version of the game.

"I don't think there was ever a question Lasith did not want to play Test cricket. He wanted to play in all three formats of the game. Unfortunately for him, his body was not able to stand the rigours of Test cricket,” he said while defending the ace bowler.

'Slinga Malinga' this week announced his retirement from Test cricket in a bid to prevent his knee problem from further aggravation.

However, his decision was marred by controversy in Sri Lanka as some suggested that he had taken this step after Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) wanted him to leave the ongoing IPL and return home to tend to his knee before the Test series against the English.

With his retirement announced, Malinga now does not have to leave the IPL. However, Sangakkara reiterated that there was absolutely no chance of Malinga ever even thinking of abandoning national duty in favour of the IPL.

According to the left-handed batsman/wicketkeeper, the pacer Malinga had wanted to retire from Test cricket for a long time as he had been advised by his physiotherapists.

"His decision was not a surprise to me. He had spoken about it in January this year and looking at his long-term future for Sri Lanka, I think it's the right decision for him taken at the right time. I think this is the most sensible decision he can take at this time,” Sangakkara revealed while talking about Malinga.  

He also warned that had Malinga been forced to play Test cricket any further, Sri Lanka would have lost the fastest bowler in the history of Sri Lankan cricket to his degenerative knee injury.

He feels that now the pacer will be able to prolong his career which will enable him to represent Sri Lanka at least till the next World Cup which is scheduled to be hosted by New Zealand and Australia in 2015.

Former vice-skipper Mahela Jayawardene also supported Malinga’s decision to quit Test cricket and insisted that there was no controversy behind the pacer’s decision to retire from the five-day game.

Jayawardene also believed that retirement from test cricket will prolong Malinga’s cricket career in the shorter versions of the game.

The 27-year old Malinga is currently playing for Mumbai Indians in the ongoing season of the IPL.

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SRI LANKAN MEDIA CRITICISES SPORTS MINISTER’S U-TURN ON PLAYERS RETURN FROM IPL

Sri Lankan media slammed sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage for taking a U-turn on his earlier decision of calling Lankan cricketers back from the Indian Premier League.

Earlier, Aluthgamage ordered Lankan players to return home by May 5, 2011 in order to participate in the preparatory camp ahead of their crucial England tour. However, in a complete change of stance, the minister allowed the players to stay in India until May 18 and reach England directly.

The media has been demanding Aluthgamage’s resignation for changing his stance that the Lankan players must put country before the cash rich Twenty20 league.

“Now that the minister has not been able to deliver what he promised why doesn`t he seriously consider resignation,” a leading Lankan newspaper The Island wrote.

The paper further described that minister has blamed the Sri Lanka Cricket for issuing No Objection Certificates to players without setting any timeframe for their return.

“We feel the sports minister has completely lost the point here,” the newspaper added.

Under immense pressure from the Board of Control for Cricket in India to extend the earlier deadline, the Sri Lanka Cricket relented after meeting Aluthgamage and permitted its players to stay in the tournament for 13 more days.

The sports minister has been heavily criticised for changing his decision after possible backdoor negotiations with the BCCI.

The former Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara is leading Deccan Chargers whereas Mahela Jayawardene is doing the same job for Kochi Tuskers Kerala.

Along with Sangakkara and Jayawardene, the key Sri Lankan IPL participants include Suraj Randiv (Chennai Super Kings), Nuwan Kulasekara (Chennai Super Kings), Dilhara Fernando (Mumbai Indians), Lasith Malinga (Mumbai Indians), Angelo Mathews (Pune Warriors) and Thisara Perera (Kochi Tuskers).

The Twenty20 League will continue until May 28, 2011 but the SLC has now allowed its players to leave the IPL by May 18.

Sri Lanka will start their tour of England officially with a warm-up game against Middlesex on May 14, 2011 followed by another one on May 19 against the England Lions.

The first Test of three match series is scheduled to begin from May 26, 2011 which means that the Sri Lankan players, who will reach England from the IPL, would have just a week to prepare themselves for the contest.

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KOCHI TUSKERS KERALA CAPTAIN MAHELA JAYAWARDENE TERMS UNITY AS SECRET OF SUCCESS

Kochi Tuskers Kerala captain Mahela Jayawardene has cited unity as the major reason for their third consecutive victory in the Indian Premier League.

After facing a couple of embarrassing defeats in their opening IPL matches, the Kochi team came back hard and notched their third successive win on Wednesday.

Jayawardene and company achieved a narrow six-run win over the leading side of the season, Kolkata KnightRiders.

Although the Kochi batsmen could not put up a huge score on board, their bowlers bowled magnificently.

Chasing Kerala’s total of 132, the Riders could only manage to score 126 in 20 overs.

It was Tuskers’ third victory of the fourth edition. They have already thrashed big guns like Mumbai Indians and defending champions Chennai Super Kings. 

The skipper termed unity and team effort as the vital elements which helped his side to roar back in the tournament.

“It’s all about teamwork. We believe in our abilities. We try and execute gameplans accordingly. Everyone applause each other’s success. It’s really great to have a group like that. We just had to be clinical in executing,” Jayawardene said.

The captain heaped praised on his side for putting up an all-round performance in the previous three matches. Enormously delighted over the third successive victory, the captain explained that the players adjusted their game well according to the changing conditions.

“This is the good thing about IPL, playing in different surfaces, you got to adapt to the situation. The bowlers bowled brilliantly under pressure today and fielding was outstanding. It was a very good team effort,” the Sri Lankan batsman added.

Responding to a question about the reports that he would be replaced by Sourav Ganguly when he returns home by May 5, 2011, Jayawardene refrained from making any comment. He stated that he is completely unaware about the possible date of players’ return to Sri Lanka in order to prepare themselves for their upcoming tour to England.

The captain further lauded his players for rising up to the occasion after a modest batting effort and hoped to carry forward the momentum in the upcoming contests.

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SRI LANKA CRICKET’S DECISION OF CALLING THEIR PLAYERS BACK FROM IPL

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) condemned Sri Lanka Cricket’s (SLC) decision of calling back their players early from the Indian Premier League and revealed that the board is in negotiations with the SLC to fix the issue.

BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla also unveiled that the Sri Lankans were supposed to stay in India till the 21^stof May as it was mutually decided by the boards of both the countries and franchises are also bearing out the same agreement. He added that the Sri Lankan board now wanted the early return of their players, which is not fair.

"Nothing has been decided as yet. The BCCI president is in touch with the Sri Lankan board and some kind of a dialogue is going on between the two boards," he said.

The tensions between the boards of both the countries started when Sri Lankan government forced SLC to ask all their players playing in the IPL to return home by the 5^th of May in a bid to prepare for the England tour which starts with a Test Match on the 26^th of May. The tour includes three Tests, one Twent20 and five One-Day internationals.

BCCI sent a request to the Sri Lankan board asking that the star players should be allowed to play in the Twenty20 format tournament at least till the mid of May. However, SLC did not pay any heed to their request and simply stayed firm on their demand.

The main Sri Lankan players which are currently playing in the IPL include Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Lasith Malinga and the newly appointed Sri Lankan captain, Tillakaratne Dilshan.

Jayawardene is leading the new team Kochi Tuskers Kerala as their skipper while Sangakkara, who stepped down as the Sri Lankan captain following their defeat in the World Cup 2011 final, is leading the Deccan Chargers.

Media reports revealed that BCCI may strike back by asking franchises to seize the players’ salaries and may also refuse to pay SLC its share of 10 percent from the players’ incomes.

Shukla however, denied the reports saying that BCCI does not have any such intentions and is trying to sort out the issue through dialogue.

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