After winning the Talim Shield and Salarjung tournaments, Parsee Gymkhana are all set to thrive in the premier division of the Dr HD Kanga Cricket League.The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) announced on Saturday that the first round of matches will be held today after two Sundays were washed out.
There was no action on the first scheduled Sunday (July 9) because dry weather prevented the pitches from being prepared. Of course, Parsee and PJ Hindu Gymkhana played a practice game in perfect conditions.
Parsee Gymkhana held its pre-Kanga League function earlier this week which was attended by season skipper Aditya Tare, Mumbai stalwart Abhishek Nayar and erstwhile Mumbai batsman Sahil Kukreja, all of whom addressed the Gymkhana's players. Hoshang Dadachanji, who played the Kanga League for many years since its inception and Dr Makarand Waingankar, who has played a role in the team's success, graced the occasion too.
Khodadad Yazdegardi, the cricket secretary of Parsee Gymkhana, said: "I started these functions five years ago and had previously invited former Test players like Nari Contractor, Lalchand Rajput, Paras Mhambrey, Sairaj Bahatule and Chandrakant Pandit to speak to our team.
"As a team we are very clear in our minds, that the process is very important. At the same time, when we are on the field, we always aim to win."
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Rangana-Herath-s.jpg
Sri Lankan stand-in skipper Rangana Herath on Saturday lauded India for their comprehensive 304-run win in the opening Test, saying the visitors were outstanding in all three departments and deserve all the credit.
"You can't be satisfied with a defeat. We bowled badly, fielded badly and batted badly in the first innings. We are a better team than that. We need to find out how we can do better than this moving forward," said Herath.
"When you lose a game you are disappointed. But having said that, all credit to India for the way they played. They played outstanding cricket in all three departments. They deserve all the credit," he added.
Sri Lanka were hurt by the absence of Asela Gunaratne and Herath himself after both picked injuries on the field, reducing the strength of both their batting and bowling line-ups. "Losing Asela was a massive blow for us and he will be out for eight weeks. He has been scoring lot of runs for us in the last few months," he said.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Roland-Jones-s.jpg
England were 74-1 in their second innings, a lead of 252 runs, when rain forced an early close to Day Three of the 3rd Test against South Africa at The Oval on Saturday.Keaton Jennings was 34 not and Tom Westley 28 not out.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Axar-Patel-s.jpg
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel (3-33) and top-order batsman Karun Nair (57 off 83 balls) put up impressive performances as India 'A' comfortably beat Afghanistan 'A' by seven wickets to register their first-win in the tri-nation 'A' tournament.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Jwala-Gutta-a-s.jpg
India badminton doubles star Jwala Gutta was left fuming when a social media user called her mother Yelan Gutta a Chinese.
A heated argument ensued when the user questioned Jwala's anti-Narendra Modi stand. "Is it because ur mother is from China that's y u oppose Modi every time?" the user asked. To that, Jwala replied, "When u bring my parents in the conversation..u wish u didn't see this side of me!!! Mind it."
The user then tweeted, "With all due respect to your parents. I am not questioning anyone. My intention (in fact I am eager) to know what makes the shuttler so anti-Narendra Modi."
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Jhulan-Goswami-s.jpg
She may be an ace cricketer but Jhulan Goswami is in no rush to engage in a romantic partnership at the moment. Indian star Goswami believes in doing just one thing at a time.
"I am focusing on the game. I am so busy with it that I will not be able to devote time to anything else. If I can't devote time to a relationship then I won't be able to do justice to it. I would prefer to do one thing at a time," Goswami, 34, said.
"I have seen my friends.... how they have had to struggle to balance two things at one time. There's a lot of time for that (relationship)," she remarked.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Uncle-Percy-s.jpg
Anyone following Sri Lankan cricket would have seen this skinny, old man waving the national flag of the island nation wherever they play. Percy Abeysekera, or Uncle Percy is what Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary and Chacha Cricket are to Indian and Pakistan cricket respectively.
He is Sri Lanka's one-man-cheering squad and this superfan turns 81 today. One day before his birthday he received a precious gift from Indian captain, Virat Kohli, a kiss on the cheek.
But Uncle Percy went one step further and gave Kohli a return gift that made everyone present there burst out laughing.
Kissed Kohli on both cheeks
"Before the presentation Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan came to me and wished me happy birthday. Then Kohli kissed me on my left cheek. I kissed him on both his cheeks" Percy, a public relations consultant, told mid-day on Saturday.
Just before the presentation ceremony at the Galle International Cricket Stadium after India defeated Sri Lanka by 304 runs, Kohli, Dhawan and Uncle Percy were seen having a long chat followed by lots of hugging and laughing between the trio.
"I had lot of fun meeting them and when I kissed Kohli people around us started laughing.
"Kohli said that he couldn't believe that I am 81, I said that I am just two days younger than Sir Garry Sobers," added Percy.
A native of Galle, the Sri Lankan superfan also shared a funny story involving the entire Indian team. "When they came here last, it was raining heavily. In one of those rain breaks, Kohli and Rohit Sharma invited me to their dressing room to have some fun.
"I didn't go as the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption official raised an objection. But the secretaries of both boards stepped in and allowed me to visit the Indian dressing room.
"Today, Kohli recalled my funny dance in the dressing room that day and we laughed a lot." When asked what was so funny about that day, Percy said, "When I was dancing madly, everyone in the dressing room was urging me to kiss Suresh Raina.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/R-Ashwin-s.jpg
Regarded as a great team man, star India off-spinner R Ashwin on Saturday said he never plays the game with records in mind and for him country's interest always supersedes his personal goals.
Ashwin claimed three wickets giving away 65 runs in Sri Lanka's second innings to help India bundle out the hosts for 245 runs and win the first Test of the three match series by a massive 304 runs.
Ashwin so far claimed 279 wickets from 50 Test matches.
But for the wily Tamil Nadu off-spinner numbers hardly have any significance in his career. "For me it's always team first. Since my childhood days when I dreamt of playing for India I had one goal and that is to take Indian cricket to greater heights," Ashwin said at the end of the first Test against Sri Lanka here.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/mar/Mohmd-kaif7-s.jpg
Muslim Clerics have defended former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif after he was brutally trolled on social media for playing chess with his son.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/el-clasico-tckt-s.jpg
The new La Liga season is still weeks away, but the first El Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid on foreign soil in 35 years, at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami is sold-out, with tickets in black costing upwards of $900 [R57,000] each.
It's the first encounter between the two sides in the United States. Back in 1982, the match staged post-season in Venezuela, coming just before that year's World Cup, was so nondescript it wasn't even shown on TV in Europe.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Aqueel-Ansari-s.jpg
Former India midfielder Aqeel Ansari was glad to see kids battle it out in the muck and display their skills on a flooded football field at the Azad Maidan on Thursday. Ansari was present to watch his son Athar, skipper of St Mary’s SSC School [Mazgaon] play against St Stanislaus [Bandra] during the Mumbai Schools Sports Association U-16 Division I match. "The kids should learn to play in tough conditions like this. It helps to build their strength and stamina," Ansari told mid-day.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2016/jun/28Manoj-Kumar-s.jpghttp://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/HS-Prannoy-aa-s.jpghttp://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/suraj-karera-s.jpg
Mumbai hockey may not be in the best of health at the moment, but there's one bright spark that promises to spurt into a bigger flame.
Goalkeeper Suraj Karkera, 21, yesterday became Mumbai's latest contribution to the senior India hockey team when he got picked in the 18-member, Manpreet Singh-led line-up for the Europe Tour of Belgium and Netherlands beginning August 9. India will play five matches in their Europe Tour -- August 9, 10 against Belgium, August 13,14, 16 against the Netherlands.
Karkera along with five FIH Junior World Cup heroes, Varun Kumar, Dipsan Tirkey, Nilakanta Sharma, Gurjant Singh and Armaan Qureshi will be making their debut as Hockey India decided to rest some key senior players, who were part of India's poor FIH Hockey World League Semi-finals campaign in London (June 15-25).
For Karkera, it has been a long and painful wait. Picked by Mumbai hockey's most famous servant of the game, Marzban 'Bawa' Patel, Karkera first plied his trade for Children's Academy School (Malad) in MSSA's inter-school tournament. He graduated through Bawa's Bombay Republicans outfit and got picked for the Mumbai team for the Senior Nationals in Pune, 2015. However, he did not get a single game there, and was distraught. But a super show at the Willingdon Catholic Gymkhana (WCG) rink hockey tournament the same year turned things around for the Rizvi College (Bandra) boy.
Junior India coach Harendra Singh, who was chief guest at WCG that day, was impressed with what he saw of Karkera. He called the boy for the Junior India camp and the hardworking goalkeeper hasn't looked back since. He then played the franchise-based Hockey India League for UP Wizards under the watchful eyes of current India coach Roelant Oltmans, but hardly got a game with senior pro PR Sreejesh under the bar.
Karkera somehow missed out on selection into India's Junior World Cup-winning team (Lucknow, December 8-18) last year but finally made the senior team for the Sultan Azlan Shah tourney(April 29–May 6) in Malaysia. However, fate had other ideas. A freak ankle twist a week before the team's departure to Malaysia saw him miss the tour. In fact, so severe was Karkera's ankle twist that he could not even recover in time for the Hockey World League Semi-finals.
This time, Karkera is hoping there are no 'twists' in the tale as he steps up between the posts for India. “My debut is against two of the world's top hockey-playing nations, so it's almost a baptism by fire. But I'm ready for it,” Karkera told mid-day yesterday.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/mar/28AussiePlayer-s.jpg
Australia's cricket authorities are hopeful that a Bangladesh tour due to start in less than a month will go ahead despite a player rebellion over pay, a senior team official said.
The scheduled two-Test series has been placed in a jeopardy by the long-running dispute, which has pitted Australia's top cricket stars against the game's governing body.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/cw3-s.jpg
Caroline Wozniacki became the first woman to record 40 wins on the WTA Tour in 2017 by beating Viktorija Golubic at the Ericsson Open.
World No. 6 Wozniacki, the top seed in Bastad, won 6-2 2-6 6-4 to set up a quarter-final clash against Ukrainian qualifer Kateryna Kozlova, who overcame former champion Mona Barthel 6-3 6-3.
Spain's fifth seed Carla Suarez Navarro bowed out of the tournament after a marathon three-set defeat to Belgium's Elise Mertens, who triumphed 6-3 6-7 (2/7) 7-5 in nearly three hours.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/stokestraining-s.jpg
Ben Stokes took the attack to South Africa after Alastair Cook fell in sight of a hundred on the second day of the third Test at The Oval yesterday. England was 269 for six at lunch, with Stokes 64 not out and Moeen Ali unbeaten on 10.
Stokes shared stands of 63 and 75 with Cook and Jonny Bairstow respectively as England capitalised on Vernon Philander's prolonged absence during another overcast morning that should have suited the key paceman.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Chase-Kalisz-s.jpg
*Budapest:* Chase Kalisz says the pressure to continue the legacy of American greats Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte pushed him to gold in the 200m individual medley at the world championships on Thursday.
Kalisz touched the wall at one minute, 55.56 seconds, with Japan’s Kosuke Hagino taking silver at 0.45sec and China’s Wang Shun earning bronze at 0.72.
Having won 400m IM silver at both the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2013 world championships in Barcelona, Kalisz finally has his hands on gold over the shorter distance.
Kalisz, 23, is following in the footsteps of Phelps, who won the 200m IM gold medal at four straight Olympic games from 2004 until 2016, and Lochte, who won four consecutive world titles in the event from 2009 until 2015.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/mukund-cover-s.jpg
Most cricketers have to deal with the uncertainties of sport on a daily basis and the ups and downs that life in the fast lane dish out, but few have to wait six years between international matches. Abhinav Mukund, who emulated Shikhar Dhawan in grabbing the rare opportunity that came to him through injury to India's first choice openers, had all but turned his back on the game not long ago.
In 2011, Abhinav made 49 at Lord's but was dropped just three innings later. Soon after, he was left out of the Tamil Nadu team as well. In 2014, Abhinav seriously contemplated giving up the game, spent two months simply watching movies and not so much as picking up a bat.
*Second opportunity*
When the chance came at Galle, it appeared that Abhinav had let himself down once more, failing in the first innings. But, if he was brooding about that, he did not let it show on the second day, producing two bits of fielding magic close-in, that allowed India to turn the screws on Sri Lanka. On the third day of the Test yesterday, Abhinav showed that he belonged at this level, scoring 81 in a 133-run partnership with Virat Kohli (76 not out) that allowed India to reach 189 for three and stretch their lead to 498.
When asked if he was a bit unlucky to be left out so soon after his Lord's innings, and not get a slightly longer rope, Abhinav broke into a wry smile. "I had a lot of time to think about it. I had six years to think about it. I think you had too. I don't want to talk about it," said Abhinav. "I have gone through my ups and downs, and that is a long time back. I don't even want to get there. I am happy I am back in the squad. I am disappointed I didn't get to three figures today but I am happy I want to be out in the middle and keep performing."
Abhinav, whose shots around the wicket kept India going at a fair clip, admitted that things had not been easy. "There was a point of time – I am very honest about it – that I was raring to even put on whites. I wasn't part of any team, I wasn't part of any first-class team. There was a time when I was dropped from my own first-class team," said Abhinav. "To have this opportunity to be part of the indian team is such a huge bonus. I take every game as an opportunity, that's all. If I am part of the team, not part of the team, again, I will try to do my best wherever I am."
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/ricciardo-s.jpg
*Budapest:* Daniel Ricciardo dominated the opening day of practice for the Hungarian Grand Prix yesterday, topping both sessions for former champions Red Bull to set up a tantalising three-way battle for victory on Sunday.
Aided by a raft of updates on his car, the Australian set a benchmark time of one minute, 18.455 seconds on a hot and sunny afternoon at the Hungaroring race track after also having set the pace in the morning. World championship leader Sebastian Vettel was second, 0.183 seconds behind, with Valtteri Bottas third for Mercedes, 0.201 seconds off the pace.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/virat-kohli-ton-s.jpghttp://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/kl-s.jpg
Freestyle queen Katie Ledecky yesterday cruised towards her fifth gold at the world championships as the fastest into the women's 800m final in Budapest yesterday.
Despite only turning 20 in March, Ledecky is already the most decorated female swimmer in world championships' history. She earned the 13th title, spanning three championships, by anchoring the USA's quartet to victory in the women's 4x200m freestyle relay on Thursday.
Ledecky clocked eight minutes, 20.24 seconds in the 800m heats yesterday morning, the fastest into Saturday night's final as the defending champion.
"It was fine, it went to plan," said Ledecky. "I just had to get my lane for tomorrow, move on and have one more swim," she said.
"I'm excited. I always enjoy my last race at a meet, just giving it all and leaving it all in the pool." Ledecky already has five medals at these championships -- freestyle golds over 400m and 1500m, plus the 4x100m and 4x200m relays, as well as silver in the 200m freestyle. Fresh from victory in Thursday's 100m freestyle final, Caeleb Dressel, 20, was second fastest into the men's 50m freestyle semi-finals during a busy morning for the American.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/SL-Forces-s.jpg
For the Indian team, the action in the middle is something they will cherish. They are also enjoying the state-of-the-art security and hospitality provided by the hosts.
The team is being protected by Sri Lankan Special Forces armed with MP-5 guns, the same machinery used by the American Navy Seals and Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) teams.
A two-layer security cover also consists of special commandos in plain clothes that have been given strict instructions to protect the team at any cost.
To make Virat Kohli and Co. feel at home, well-known hospitality firm Jetwing have brought in their best chefs for the Indian team's meals in the dressing room. "We know roti is a staple diet of Indians so we decided to import the best atta from India before the series," a senior chef of Jetwing told mid-day yesterday.
"We have prepared different menus for the five days based on the requirement and demands of the Indian team management," he added.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/ferdinand-kate-s.jpg
British TV star and model Kate Wright seems to be ready to make her relationship with former England and Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand official by introducing him to her mother and, at the same time, spending time with the former footballer's family.
Some alert fans spotted Rio, 38, in the background of a photograph snap taken during a night out at the members' room at Sheesh, a restaurant in Chigwell, Essex recently where Kate, 36, is seen posing with her dining companions, including Ferdinand, spotted from a mirror sitting opposite the group.
One of Kate's social media followers asked: "Is that Rio in the mirror reflection? Hope you two have a great future together x," while another chipped in with: "I spotted him too."
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/abhishek-bachchan-s.jpg
Discarding thoughts of any distraction, Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan feels working closely with sports franchises has motivated him "to do greater things in life".
Junior B is the co-owner of football side Chennaiyin FC in the Indian Super League (ISL) and owner of Jaipur Pink Panthers in Pro Kabaddi League (PKL).
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/brookbeck-s.jpg
YouTube star Madison Beer has clarified on the mist of rumours that surround her relationship with England football legend David Beckham's son Brooklyn. In an interview with BUILD Series, Madison declared her relationship status as single and stated, "I'm very much single, not ready to mingle. I'm 18 and just trying to navigate my life. I'm having fun and there's obviously boys I can crush on, but I'm very much single."
The round of rumours sparked over media when the duo was spotted hanging around in the city for night outs and shopping together. In fact, the People, officially declared that the couple has been dating for a few weeks.
However, Beer confirmed that she is not dating Beckham and expressed her feelings for best friend Brooklyn and explained, "He's great, though, he's cutie and literally one of my best friends. It's hard because now every time I'm seen with him and people are like, 'Oh my God, they're boyfriend and girlfriend!'' But we're seriously best friends," Madison continued.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Ashwin-R-s.jpg
Sunil Subramaniam, who once coached India's ace spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has been appointed manager of the Indian cricket team currently touring Sri Lanka.
"He will join the Indian team in Sri Lanka before the second Test which begins in Colombo on August 3," a BCCI source said.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/morata-icc-s.jpg
Chelsea coach Antonio Conte said that he holds talks "every day" with club bosses about transfer targets as the Premier League champions race to further bolster their squad.
The Italian is set to give big-money signing Alvaro Morata his first Chelsea start against Inter Milan in a pre-season friendly in Singapore today and has also splashed out this summer on the defender Antonio Rudiger from Roma and midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko from Monaco.
*Conte's wishlist*
But with most of Chelsea's Premier League rivals buying big in the close season, Conte is intent on adding to a squad that this season will also need to cope with Champions League football. The London side have been linked in British media with England international midfielders Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain of Arsenal and Everton's wantaway Ross Barkley. "With the club we speak every day about the way to strengthen this team and the squad," said Conte, talking in Singapore. "The club knows very well which is my idea and where are the positions to strengthen and if this is possible, it is ok. "*Antonio Conte*
Conte said he plans to play his best side against Inter, with Morata -- signed last week from Real Madrid in a deal reported to be worth up to 80 million euros ($92m) -- likely to spearhead the attack from the start.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/offie-s.jpg
Mumbai's young off-spinner Ankush Jaiswal, who claimed five wickets (4-64 and 1-30) in his debut Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh in Indore during the 2015-16 season, but was banned immediately after that encounter due to a suspect bowling action, was cleared by the BCCI on Thursday.
Jaiswal, 25, had undergone bowling arm biomechanical tests at the Sri Ramchandra Arthroscopy and Sports Science Centre in Chennai on July 11.
"We have been informed that Ankush Jaiswal’s bowling action has been cleared and he can bowl again in all matches conducted by the BCCI," MCA vice-president Vinod Deshpande told mid-day. However, left-arm spinner Sidak Singh and left-arm pacer Riddhesh Pawar, who appeared for tests along with Jaiswal, have to wait longer as their results are yet to be declared.
Jaiswal, whose father works as a groundsman at MIG Cricket Club in Bandra East, was happy that his hardwork finally paid off. "I patiently worked on my action during the last one and a half year. Omkar Salvi (Mumbai’s bowling coach) sir worked on my body alignment and he always gave me that confidence that I would be cleared soon," Jaiswal said. He added: "It was quite a testing time for the wily off-spinner during his ban. I went through a lot of frustration during the last year as I was working on my action.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/neymar-argument-s.jpg
*
Neymar*
Neymar has been pictured storming out of Barcelona training following an angry confrontation with new teammate Nelson Semedo as speculation over the Brazilian's future continues to intensify.
Neymar, 25, linked with a big-money transfer to Paris St Germain, appeared to be involved in a heated argument with Semedo during a training session in Miami ahead of today's pre-season friendly against Real Madrid.
Neymar reportedly took exception to a challenge from Semedo, who recently signed from Benfica, and squared up to the right-back until Javier Mascherano quickly intervened. But while Semedo walked away, Neymar was forced to be restrained by Sergio Busquets and then threw his bib on the floor before kicking a ball at a vacant goal in anger and leaving the pitch. Barcelona published a story on their website about the session but there was no mention of Neymar, who was pictured in good spirits in the featured image.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Mithali-IPL-s.jpg
Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Friday announced cash prize of Rs 1 crore for Indian women cricket team captain Mithali Raj.
He also announced that a 600 square yard house plot would also given to her in posh Banjara Hills area of the city.
He made the announcements after Mithali Raj called on him upon her return from England, where she led the team to the World Cup finals.
Rao also announced a Rs 25 lakh cash prize for her coach R.S.R. Murthy.
The Chief Minister congratulated Mithali Raj for taking the team to the world cup finals and creating a record by becoming the world's leading run scorer.
"You have played wonderfully at the World Cup. We thought you would sure to win in the final too. Unfortunately, we lost by a slender margin. But yet your team performed well and the whole nation watched your performance. I have also watched the match," a statement from the Chief Minister's office quoted him as saying.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/zlatan-kingkong-s.jpghttp://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/khloe-s.jpg
Former NBA star Lamar Odom, through a letter on the Players' Tribune yesterday, revealed how former wife, Khloe Kardashian, walked in on him 'getting high with a random chick in a motel'.
He called it "one of the darkest places I've ever been" as he battled cocaine addiction that left him comatose and close to death in a Nevada brothel binge in 2015.
Although he's sober now, Odom, 37, recalled his shock upon waking in the hospital, having collapsed at the Love Ranch brothel outside Las Vegas. "At some point, the main doctor came in and told me what happened. He said, 'Mr. Odom, you've been in a coma for the last four days. Do you understand?' I couldn't talk, so I just nodded. He said, 'It's a miracle that you're here. We didn't think you were going to make it'," said Odom, a two-time NBA champion, adding that he was "surprised to see Khloe" by his hospital bedside.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/aakash-baby-s.jpg
Former India's opening batsman-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra posted this picture on social media yesterday announcing the arrival of his second daughter, with wife Aakshi. "Two little hands, two little feet... now our family is delightfully complete. Happy to announce the arrival of our second princess," he wrote to 999,000 Twitter followers.
Chopra, 39, received a host of congratulatory messages from many famous personalities across a wide spectrum of professions.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2016/oct/5Mohammad-Amir-l.jpg
Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir has dismissed rumours about his retirement from Test cricket.
Earlier in May, unsubstantiated media reports claimed that Amir was considering drawing curtains on his Test career in order to prolong his white-ball career.
However, the left-armer has now put an end to any speculation about his Test future.
"I have no idea what the thinking was behind this ridiculous story," cricket.com.au quoted Amir as saying.
"I'm fit, strong and healthy and have no intentions of quitting any format. What I had said was that as a cricketer you have to take care of your body and look after your fitness levels and someone altered that statement and quoted me as saying that I wanted to quit playing Test cricket.'
'It's totally untrue and as long as I am fit I want to play in all formats,' he added.
Amir, along with fast bowler Mohammad Asif and former skipper Salman Butt, were found guilty of various offences of corrupt behaviour relating to the Lord's Test between England and Pakistan in August 2010 by the independent Anti-Corruption Tribunal in February 2011.
Since his return to international cricket last year, he has taken 43 wickets in 14 Tests during a mixed period for Pakistan's Test side. The figures don't suggest that Amir has had an impressive comeback.
But the left-armer says he's showing signs of getting back to his absolute best.
"I was not under any false impressions that my comeback would be easy and that I would hit the ground running," he said.
He said that during the ban, he didn't even touch a cricket ball and still people were expecting him to make an instant impact on his return to international cricket.
'That was an impossible task and yet critics were writing me off straight after my comeback,' he said.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/may/22mumbai-win-s.jpg
The Supreme Court on Friday sought a detailed response from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over a plea seeking e-auction of media rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches.
The auction process for IPL media rights is slated to be held from August 17 and the rights would operate for a period of five years.
The three-member bench, headed by justice Dipak Misra, has given a two-week time to the BCCI to reply as to why broadcasting rights of IPL matches are not being sold through e-auctioning.
On July 11, Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy moved to the apex court, seeking e-auction of media rights for the matches of the lucrative T20 league.
At present, Sony Pictures Network India (SPNI) is holding the rights of the IPL. However, their deal is going to an end after the event's next edition.
In 2008, the Singapore-based World Sports Group bagged the IPL television rights for a 10-year period with a USD 918 million bid.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/mar/22warner-s.jpg
Australia vice-captain Dave Warner has accused Cricket Australia of wrongly blaming players for not resolving a bitter pay dispute saga which threatens next month's Test tour to Bangladesh.
CA chief executive James Sutherland upped the ante on Thursday when he said unless intensive talks over the next few days produced a compromise, his organisation would seek the intervention of an industrial umpire to end the impasse.
The Australian Cricketers' Association hit back, saying CA was to blame for the crisis dragging on and that it had "lost the players" through its hardball tactics.
Warner, who has been outspoken in the push for players to keep a 20-year revenue-sharing arrangement in place against CA
opposition, also fired back at the governing body.
"This Baggy Green (cap) means the world to me," he wrote on Instagram late Thursday beneath a picture of himself in his
Test kit.
"Myself and all the other players, female and male, want to get out there and play.
"We offered Aus$30 million ($24 million) of our money to grassroots as a peace plan. It was ignored. We asked for mediation twice before and it was rejected. Now CA says there is a crisis.
"The players are unemployed and some are hurting financially but continue to train. Administrators all still being paid. How is it our fault no deal is done?"
After months of negotiations, the players and CA have failed to reach agreement, leaving 230 cricketers unemployed
since the end of June when their contracts expired.
Sutherland went on the attack after knocking back recent compromise proposals from the ACA, who remain adamant that
players must receive a percentage of the game's gross revenues.
"We feel that what has been proposed actually jeopardises not only the Bangladesh tour but in turn the Indian tour that
is upcoming and beyond that even - dare I say it - the Ashes tour," Sutherland said Thursday.
"We have concerns that the urgency at our end is not being reciprocated at the other side and that's why we can hopefully bring the matter to resolution and failing that an independent arbitrator to come in, make a decision and we accept the umpire's decision."
The ACA likened arbitration to an "adversarial process more akin to a courtroom".
"This dispute has arisen from Cricket Australia's attempts to, without making the case, end a successful 20-year partnership with players," it said.
"Cricket Australia has lost the players and most of the game's stakeholders in the process."
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/inter-s.jpg
Chelsea's pre-season campaign continues against Inter Milan on Saturday after they suffered a setback against Bayern Munich earlier in the week.
Here are the five main reasons why you should not miss Chelsea vs Inter Milan:
*1. Recent Encounters*
Chelsea have only faced Inter in a competitive setting twice in their history, with both of those encounters coming over a two-legged Champions League Last 16 tie in 2010. The Nerazzuri, then managed by Jose Mourinho, prevailed 3-1 on aggregate and finished the campaign by winning Italian football's first ever treble and Chelsea went on to claim a domestic double in record breaking fashion under the management of Carlo Ancelotti
*2. Chelsea look to get back to winning ways*
Chelsea look to get back to winning ways when they face Inter Milan in their next match at the International Champions Cup. Some poor defending saw the Blues succumb to a 3-2 loss against Bayern Munich
*3. More from Morata*
New striker Alvaro Morata made his unofficial Chelsea debut against Bayern and will be hoping to score his first goal in club colours against Inter.
*4. Inter’s solid defense*
Inter look pretty solid in the defense and Chelsea, who conceded three goals in the defeat against Bayern are expected to tighten things at the back. Therefore, one must expect a low turnout of goals in this fixture
*5. Star players to watch out for*
Ivan Perisic, Inters playmaker who is heavily linked with Manchester United, and Alvaro Morata who is yet to score his debut goal for Chelsea after his move from Real Madrid
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/dhawan-out-s.jpg
Shikhar Dhawan was left hurt after being dropped from the Indian Test team but says he remained confident of making his way back into the longest format sooner than later.
The left-hander scored a *career-best 190 off 168 balls* on day one of the first Test against Sri Lanka to guide India to 399/3 at stumps.
After day's play, Dhawan recalled the time when he was not part of the Test team. "When I had that lean patch, I knew that if I wasn't going to score runs, I could get out of the side. Of course I felt that pressure at that moment and when I got out of the Test side, it hurt me,' said Dhawan.
"But then, I moved on and I started playing domestic cricket for Delhi and I was enjoying myself there. One thing about me is that I don't like to be sad all the time. I like to be happy and so I was enjoying myself over there and knew that if things have to come, they will come my way.
"I don't want to run around things too much. I am going to keep doing my work and follow my process. I love doing my fitness drills and work on my skill level. I knew if it has to come, it will come."
*Shikhar Dhawan* was not part of the original squad but was brought in after an injured Murali Vijay pulled out of the series last minute. "My plans were to go to Melbourne and spend time with my family, do training and get fit for the ODI series. I was in Hong Kong actually, on holiday, and from there I flew back to India and joined the team.
"That was my plan, but I think destiny had a different plan for me. I am happy and thankful to God," said the opener. "I was happy, of course, to make a comeback to the Test side. Unfortunately, Vijay wasn't fit. I had a good run before this Test series (in the Champions Trophy) and I just came with the same mindset and the same confidence. I did the same process in the nets and got myself ready for this match."
This was Dhawan's second hundred at the Galle International Stadium, after he scored a hundred here in the first Test on the 2015 tour as well.
Overall, it was his fifth Test hundred wherein he put on a mammoth 253 runs for the second wicket with Cheteshwar Pujara and blew away the Sri Lankan attack. He scored at 113.09 throughout his innings and it was a throwback to his maiden hundred against Australia in Mohali, back in 2013.
"Special about this venue is that I am scoring runs over here. So that is a special thing for me,¿ he said. "My debut innings was very much like this one. Even against Bangladesh (in 2015), I scored a quick hundred over there. But this was a bit better than that Bangladesh one, I think," said the centurion.
Despite his great showing in the Champions Trophy, he was dropped from the original Test squad as the selectors retained Abhinav Mukund as the back-up opener to KL Rahul and Murali Vjiay. Injury to the latter and viral fever to the former meant that both Dhawan and Mukund got to play here, but only one of them made it count.
Indian skipper Virat Kohli had predicted a placid track for this first Test, and Dhawan made full use of the chance to bat first on this Galle wicket.
The highlight of his innings was how he handled the Lankan spinners, punishing them with regularity on the leg side as he brought out the sweep effectively.
"The wicket was also good and there wasn't much spin over there. But it still got true bounce and good pace from the wicket. There wasn't much of turn, so I thought I can attack more on spinners and I have opportunity to score runs. I saw it that way and I planned it that way. I feel that I batted well too,' said Shikhar Dhawan.
In the end though, he couldn not temper himself to get to another milestone, despite improving on his highest Test score. Even so, he wasn't too disappointed with the effort he had put in on the first day of the series.
"Of course I was disappointed that I got out for 190. I would have loved to have scored 200, maybe even 300 but it was a hundred runs ahead. I hadn't thought about that. But more than the score though, I got out at the wrong time.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/jadeja-wkt-s.jpg
India lost first innings centurions Cheteshwar Pujara and Shikhar Dhawan cheaply before rain forced an early tea break, leaving India at 56 for two and 365 runs ahead of Sri Lanka on day three of the first Test here.
Before the break, Sri Lanka were bowled out for 291 runs in their first innings after resuming the day at 154 for five.
Besides Pujara (15), the other first innings centurion who fell cheaply was Dhawan (14). Abhinav Mukund, who failed on day one, was batting on 27.
Post lunch, Ravindra Jadeja (3-67) brought the hosts' innings to a quick end as he bowled Lahiru Kumara (2). Dilruwan Perera was stranded on 92 not out, facing 132 balls, inclusive of 10 fours and four sixes. India took a first innings' lead of 309 runs.
Dhawan then fell quickly, caught at backward point off Perera (1-20), chasing after a wide delivery. He put on 19 runs for the opening wicket with Mukund. The latter then added 37 runs with Cheteshwar Pujara for the second wicket.
Some 40 minutes before tea, a thunderstorm lashed the sea-facing ground. But the Lahiru Kumara (1/9) had enough time to bowl one more delivery and Pujara was caught at leg gully.
An early tea was taken to make up for lost time. Earlier, Perera and Angelo Mathews (83) defied India as Sri Lanka reached 289/8 at lunch. The two batsmen put on 62 runs for the 6th wicket as the visitors led by 11 runs.
Starting from overnight 154/5, Perera and Mathews continued from where they had left on Thursday evening and extended their defiant partnership. Umesh Yadav (1-78) and Jadeja got proceedings underway for India, but neither were troubled the duo as they brought up their 50-partnership off 96 balls.
Sri Lanka's 200 came up in the 57th over, and they nearly batted out the first hour without any loss when Mathews chipped a catch off Jadeja straight to Virat Kohli at short cover in the 59th over. There was slight turn available for the spinners on this day three pitch and this wicket was a result of constant pressure built up by the left-arm spinner. In all, Mathews faced 130 balls inclusive of 11 fours and a six.
Two overs later, Perera survived a confident lbw shout off Jadeja via DRS. Originally, he was ruled out lbw but the review came out in his favour, surprisingly. The ball appeared to be sailing well over the stumps, as seen from Kohli's astonished reaction.
Perera then reached his 5th Test half-century off 94 balls, inclusive of four fours and three sixes. He added 36 runs with Herath for the 7th wicket and another 39 runs with Nuwan Pradeep (10) for the 8th wicket.
At the other end though, stand-in skipper Rangana Herath (9) was not so lucky as he went for a reverse sweep off Jadeja and only ended up lobbing up the ball off his glove to Ajinkya Rahane at slip for a catch. The batsman went in for DRS confidently assuming the ball had hit his arm, but Ultra-Edge replay showed that there was some glove involved.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/India-Anurag-s.jpg
Anurag Thakur, former president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), has hailed the exemplary performance of the Indian women's cricket team in the recently concluded ICC Women's World Cup, saying the team despite being unable to clinch the coveted trophy, won the hearts of 1.25 crore Indians.
Thakur met Indian wicket-keeper batsman Sushma Verma and felicitated her on Thursday in the national capital.*Anurag Thakur*
Every Indian is feeling proud of the performance of the women¿s cricket team. Their performance was exemplary. Even though they were unable to win the World Cup, they won the hearts of 1.25 crore Indians,¿ Thakur told ANI.
Especially, for us it was a great achievement as wicketkeeper Sushma Verma made the people of Himachal Pradesh proud, he added.
The former BCCI chief further asserted that the Women in Blue will come out with more improved performance if they are provided with more exposure and facilities.
The Indian team performed exceedingly well throughout the tournament before ending up as runner-up, going down by nine runs to England in a nail-biting final at Lord's on July 23.
During the course of the event, they registered remarkable victories over Australia, New Zealand and hosts England, which eventually won the trophy.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Kamran-Akmal-s.jpg
Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal has lashed out at former head coach Waqar Younis for causing a lot of damage to the country's cricket and failing to guide the national side to success during his two separate stints as the head coach.
In an interview to a TV channel, Kamran revealed that Waqar¿s enthusiasm to 'experiment' with the players and sidelining important players had put the Pakistan team lagging behind by two to three years.
With due respect, Waqar was a failure as coach and he caused lot of damage to Pakistan cricket. In his enthusiasm to experiment and sideline established players, he put the national team back by two to three years,the Dawn quoted Kamran as saying.
It should be noted that this is the first time that a current Pakistan player has openly criticised Waqar for being an abject failure in his two separate tenures as head coach in 2010-2011 and 2014- 2016.
The wicketkeeper-batsman, who appeared in 53 Tests and 157 ODIs for Pakistan, said that Waqar certainly had issues with some players and that he also had no plans to take the national side forward.
I don¿t know the reasons but Waqar certainly had issues with some players. He had no plans on how to take Pakistan forward. An example was when he went to the 2015 World Cup and asked Younis Khan to open the innings and then sidelined Sarfraz Ahmed until late in the tournament, Kamran said.
Although Kamran admitted that Waqar was a great player, he insisted that the fast bowling great was a 'total failure' as a coach.
I can remember Umar Akmal scored a hundred in an Asia Cup match and in the next game he was batting behind Shahid Afridi and others. Waqar no doubt was a great player for Pakistan but as a coach he was a total failure, he said.
Waqar, who was forced to step down after the national side fared poorly in the last World Twenty in India in 2016, had criticized Kamran on various occasions besides also questioning his selection in the team.
The 35-year-old was recalled to the team for the tour to West Indies earlier this year and Waqar had questioned what was the need of keeping two wicket-keepers in the side.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/kohli-ongc-s.jpg
The conflict of interest issue has long prevailed in Indian cricket for a long time. Former Indian cricketers such as Sourav Ganguly, Sunil Gavaskar and Rahul Dravid earlier faced such problems during their career.
Now, Virat Kohli and the Indian cricket team are suffering the same fate. As per reports by Hindustan Times, Virat Kohli has been asked by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to resign from his post at Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd (ONGC). Virat Kohli hold the post of that of manager at ONGC. Other Indian cricketers, too, hold posts at some public sector firms.
Indian cricketers such as Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Ishant Sharma are some of the names that are part of this list.
*Virat Kohli* has earlier played in local tournaments for ONGC. In the past, former cricket stars Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir have held posts at ONGC and have played for the company as well.
The Committee of Administrators (CoA) issues a directive and have also ready to offere brand new contracts to Indian cricketers.
Virat Kohli and the Indian cricket team are currently on tour in Sri Lanka for a Test, ODI and T20I series.
*Also View Photos: About Vinod Kambli, his wife, ex and family*
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Eugenie-Cheat-s.jpg
Canadian tennis ace Eugenie Bouchard, 23, says she stands by her cheater comment about Maria Sharapova.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Neeta-Ambani-s.jpg
The chief of Mumbai Schools Sports Association (MSSA) feels the body which controls school sports in the city is like an orphan. MSSA President Fr Jude Rodrigues told mid-day yesterday that he was disappointed at Mumbai Indians' (the Indian Premier League cricket franchise) withdrawal in the final year of their five-year sponsorship deal which ran from 2012 to 2016.*Mumbai Indians owner Nita Ambani*
*Fifth year issue*
Fr Rodrigues claimed that MSSA has not been paid for the fifth year. "We had a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Mumbai Indians for five years. It is unfortunate that they stopped their sponsorship midway and didn't give us the money for the fifth year. The payments of the yearly sum that both parties agreed on was sent to us late and they sent us a 45-day notice before terminating the sponsorship," said Fr Rodrigues, who refused to comment on the amount – either the agreed amount or the balance. It is learnt that Mumbai Indians paid R7 crore before they pulled the plug on sponsorship.
"I have written to Nita Ambani, Founder and Chairperson of Reliance Foundation, requesting her not to leave us orphaned and asked her to continue the sponsorship and give us the pending dues. At MSSA's AGM held recently, we have decided to take legal action if we don't get the balance amount. We fulfilled all terms and conditions," Fr Rodrigues added. According to the deal, the MI name was to be used by MSSA for their advertisements, press releases, fixtures, websites and on social media, besides hoardings at MSSA premises.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson from IndiaWin Sports Pvt Ltd, which controls Mumbai Indians, said that the reason for terminating the agreement with MSSA was lack of financial transparency. "IndiaWin Sports Pvt Ltd had joined hands with MSSA to support development for school sports across the city, provide best of infrastructure and professional ecosystem for our young athletes. However, with great disappointment we had to exercise our entitlement to terminate the agreement with MSSA last November after fulfilling all our obligations till the date of termination.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Sehwag-Usha-s.jpg
Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag and former sprint queen P.T. Usha have been named in the 12-member committee to pick this year's Khel Ratna and Arjuna awardees.
The committee, headed by Justice (retd) C K Thakkar, will meet on August 3 to select this year's awardees.
The other members of the committee are Mukund Killekar (boxing), Sunil Dabbas (Kabaddi), M R Mishra (Journalist), S Kannan (Journalist), Sanjeev Kumar (Journalist), Latha Madhvi (Para athlete), Anil Khanna (sports administrator), Injeti Srinivas (DG, SAI) and Rajvir Singh (joint Secretary, Sports Ministry).
Meanwhile, former shuttler and current national badminton coach Pullela Gopichand and ace Indian cueist Pankaj Advani have been named in committee to pick Dronacharya and Dhyan Chand awardees.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Nagarkoti-Shaw-s.jpg
Right-arm medium pacer Kamlesh Nagarkoti's match haul of 10 for 112 and Mumbai lad Prithvi Shaw's 86 and 69 in the first and second innings respectively helped the India under-19 team to register a massive 334-run win over England under-19 in the first of two four-day matches at Queen's Park here yesterday.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/madonna-girls-s.jpg
Pop star Madonna's daughters are performers just like their super star mum. Madonna, 58, recently shared a cute video with her whopping 9.7 million Instagram followers of her twin daughters Esther and Stella singing and dancing their hearts out to Colombian pop sensation Shakira's 2010 hit "Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)."*A screen grab of the video posted on Instagram by Madonna of her daughters Esther and Stella dancing to Shakira's 'Waka Waka'*
The song, which formed the theme and anthem of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in Africa, is a favourite with Madonna's girls, who are seen dressed in matching yellow tops and skirts and screaming the lyrics of the track on the top of their voices.
Madonna has confirmed earlier this year that she had adopted two girls, Esther and Stella from the politically tense and aggression-hit East African nation of Malawi.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Women-World-s.jpg
Indian women's team pace spearhead Jhulan Goswami will be felicitated with awards to the tune of Rs 10 lakh at the Cricket Association of Bengal Annual Awards function on August 8.
"The Chief Minister (Mamata Banerjee) will be coming and we will felicitate Jhulan in a big way," CAB president Sourav Ganguly told reporters.
"We are finalising the details but the cash awards will be in the tune of Rs 10," a top CAB official, who did not wish to be quoted told PTI today.
Jhulan and Co, who lost the World Cup final to England by nine runs, were today felicitated in New Delhi and the Bengal pacer will be touching base in the evening tomorrow.
http://images.mid-day.com/images/2017/jul/Muttiah-Muralitharan-s.jpg
Muttiah Muralitharan today blamed non-performing youngsters and an unsettled combination for Sri Lankan cricket team's woes in recent times.
The Lankan cricket is in deep crisis at the moment after losing an ODI series to minnows Zimbabwe at home for the first time in their history.
For the 11th-ranked Zimbabwe, it was also their first overseas triumph in eight years as Angelo Mathews stepped down as captain from all the three formats.
"We lost in the Zimbabwe series for the first time ever in Sri Lanka that means we're not performing well," Murali, who is the spin bowling consultant of Bengal's Vision 2020 programme, said.
"We have the talent but at the moment a lot of senior players are retired. The younger players are not performing well. Too many are playing and every time the team is changed," he rued.
At stumps on the second day of first Test in Galle, Sri Lanka were 154 for five in reply to India's mammoth 600 with centuries from Shikhar Dhawan and Cheteshwar Pujara.
"India will have a better opportunity than Sri Lanka this time. The wicket there is good for batting in the first two days then it starts to spin... So always who bats first have a better chance of winning," Murali said.
Murali felt R Ashwin will do well in his 50th Test "He's is very good bowler and he will do well in this wicket. Also they have Jadeja as the spinner so third, fourth and fifth day onwards spinners will play a vital role in this Test."
Captain Rangana Herath had to settle for 1/159 in the first innings as Murali credited the Indian batsmen.
"Wicket didn't help much and India batted well on the first two days." Reported by Mid-Day 2 hours ago.