Inzamam-ul-Haq hails Rishabh Pant, calls him “left-handed Virender Sehwag”

Former Pakistan cricket team captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has been mightily impressed by India’s young talent Rishabh Pant, following his heroics in the home Test series against England, and has called him the “left-handed Virender Sehwag.”

Hailing Pant during a video on his YouTube channel, Inzamam-ul-Haq said, “After a long time, I have seen a player on whom pressure seems to have no effect. Even if six wickets are down at 146, the way he starts his innings, no one does."

After Pant was instrumental in retaining the 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy for India during their Australian tour earlier this year, the left-handed middle-order batsman played a heroic knock in the recently concluded Test match at the Motera Stadium.

Coming into bat at 80/4, following an early Indian batting collapse, Pant showed nerves of steel to bring up his third Test century in 115 balls. He forged a timely 113-run stand with Washington Sundar to give India an 89-run lead at the end of Day 2. India would wrap up the match on Day 3 with an innings and 25 runs remaining.

“He plays his strokes, irrespective of the pitch or how many runs the other team has scored. He is equally good against spinners and fast bowlers. I thoroughly enjoy watching him. It’s like watching Sehwag bat left-handed,” Inzamam said.

“Sehwag, too, didn’t bother about other factors. When he used to bat, it didn’t matter to him how the pitch behaved or what kind of bowling attack the opponent had. He just had to play his strokes, even if the fielders were on the boundary. After Sehwag, this is the first time I have seen such a player, for whom nothing else matters,” Inzamam added.

Feature Image courtesy: AFP/ Patrick Hamilton

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T Natarajan: A modern day hero for aspiring Indian cricketers

Indian cricket team pacer Thangarasu Natarajan made history in the Brisbane Test against Australia on Friday when he became the first Indian cricketer to make his international debut across all three formats on one tour.

The left-arm fast bowler is just the 17th Indian player to don the national jersey across all three formats. 

Natarajan brought on board as a net bowler for the Indian team

Interestingly, Natarajan was picked for the Australian tour as a net bowler for Team India after his impressive performances for the Hyderabad franchise in the Indian T20 League 2020.

The 29-year-old’s yorker to castle Bangalore talisman AB de Villiers in the Eliminator was arguably the ball of the tournament. 

Natarajan’s ability to execute well-directed yorkers at speeds close to 140kmph helped him receive a call to India's T20I squad for the Australia series following mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy’s shoulder injury. 

Later, just hours before the Men in Blue's first ODI against Australia, Natarajan received his maiden call-up to the Indian ODI squad as Navdeep Saini complained of a back spasm, and the Tamil Nadu-born cricketer was roped in as a replacement for the former. 

Making his dream debut across three formats in Australia

Natarajan eventually made his international debut in the third ODI against Australia on December 2 in Canberra. The left-arm pacer had an immediate impact as he claimed two wickets for 70 runs in his 10 overs, helping India win the match by 13 runs.

Subsequently, the 29-year-old was the wrecker-in-chief for Team India in the T20I series as he helped the visitors beat Australia 2-1. Natarajan was the highest wicket-taker in the T20I series as he claimed six wickets in three matches at an average of 13.83.

 

 The dream run continued for Natarajan as he became India’s 300th Test cricketer replacing injured Jasprit Bumrah in the playing XI at the Gabba.

Interestingly, the Tamil Nadu-born recorded the second-best figures by an Indian left-arm seamer on debut. He finished with 3 for 78 against Australia in the series decider at Brisbane after RP Singh's 4 for 89 against Pakistan way back in 2005/06.

Natarajan has received a lot of praise from former India cricketers, including Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman, for his sensational debut for the Indian cricket team in all three formats.

“Natarajan’s story is a stuff dreams are made of. Feel delighted for the young man,” Sehwag tweeted.

However, the story of the rookie left-arm pacer from Chinnappampatti, a village near Salem in Tamil Nadu, is nothing short of a movie on the silver screen.

How T Natarajan overcame poverty and suspect bowling action

Born to a daily wage construction labourer, Natarajan distributed newspapers and milk to help his parents put food on the table. The rising star of Indian cricket was a tennis ball cricketer for much of his early life and first held a real cricket ball at 20.

Natarajan was selected to play for Jolly Rovers, one of Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA)’s top teams. The southpaw showcased his abilities with the leather ball, which eventually earned him his Ranji Trophy debut. 

However, just when he was climbing up the cricketing ladder, Natarajan's world turned upside down after being reported for a suspect action and suspended for a year in 2014.

In 2016, the left-arm pacer finally made his comeback in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), where he had first turned heads of the IPL scouts with his uncanny ability to nail the yorkers.

In a game between Dindigul Dragons and Tuticorin Patriots, Natarajan's side - the Dindigul Dragons - tied the game off the last ball of the over to trigger a Super Over. Batting first, his side made 12 and left 13 runs for the Patriots to win off six balls.

Natarajan, at the end of the sixth ball, had conceded just three singles and a double. He had bowled six yorkers that night - the six balls that possibly changed his career.

 

In the 2017 Indian T20 League auction, the left-arm pacer was picked up by the Punjab franchise for three crores before Hyderabad acquired him for a lesser fee in 2018. 

Thangarasu Natarajan’s story is undoubtedly one of the most inspirational ones in the world of sports.

Feature image courtesy: David Kapernick / AFP

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Indian cricket team players who have won every ICC tournament

The immediate mention of the Indian cricket team players participating in an ICC tournament invites a wildfire of emotions.

India’s ODI legacy began in an ICC tournament when they won the 1983 Cricket World Cup. Fast forward to 2002, the Men in Blue registered their maiden success in the ICC Champions Trophy, albeit co-sharing the honour with Sri Lanka as the final was abandoned due to rain not just once, but twice. This went down in the record books as India’s second win in an ICC tournament.

In 2007, the Indian cricket team players, led by a debutante captain in MS Dhoni, pulled off one of their greatest victories in the sport when they beat arch-rivals Pakistan to win the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup.

And then, the biggest moment of the Indian cricket team players’ careers came in 2011 as they became the first host country to win the ICC Cricket World Cup. The victory ended Team India’s 28-year-wait to take home cricket’s holy grail.

Despite India’s trophy-laden tenure since 2007, there are only four players who have won all three ICC tournaments in their respective careers, and we take a look at them:

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

MS Dhoni is, by far, the greatest captain the Indian cricket team has ever produced, and is currently the only skipper in the cricket world to have won the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC Champions Trophy and the ICC T20 World Cup.

In the 2007 T20 World Cup semi-final, MS Dhoni carried the momentum set by Yuvraj Singh and Robin Uthappa’s 84-run partnership by smashing an 18-ball 36 that helped the Indian cricket team post a target of 189 for Australia to chase. Needless to say, it ended up being the newly-appointed Indian skipper’s best performance in the competition.

Four years down the line, in the 2011 Cricket World Cup final, MS Dhoni played the greatest knock of the tournament (91 runs off 79 balls) and scripted a new role as a finisher when he scored the winning runs against Sri Lanka with a picturesque six, that remains fresh even today in the minds of Indian cricket fans. 

A composed figure who didn’t hesitate to take surprise decisions during his spell as a skipper in international cricket, Dhoni established as a role model for the current and future Indian cricket team players.

Yuvraj Singh

If you want a match-winner, a prolific middle-order batsman, an athletic fielder and an effective slow bowler in one package, you have a quintessential player called Yuvraj Singh.

The former Indian all-rounder, who played little part in India’s 2002 ICC Champions Trophy triumph, single-handedly laid the platform for the Indian cricket team’s road to victory in the 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 Cricket World Cup and is highly regarded for his then-world record of six sixes in a T20I match. Additionally, he is also remembered for his match-winning performance in the 2011 World Cup quarter-finals against Australia where he scored an unbeaten 57 under immense pressure to book India’s meeting with Pakistan.

At the time he hung up his boots, Yuvraj Singh had already cemented himself as one of India’s greats.

Harbhajan Singh

Harbhajan Singh is one of the biggest pioneers of spin bowling, and also one of the greatest figures for the Indian cricket team players in dire situations.

Having played under two captains, Sourav Ganguly and MS Dhoni, Bhajji, as he was fondly called, produced economical performances in the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy and used that experience to champion the cause in the Men in Blue’s T20 World Cup campaign in 2007 and the victorious 2011 Cricket World Cup campaign.

He may not have been a perennial match-winner, Harbhajan Singh nevertheless proved his mettle when it mattered and has etched his name in history as fifth-highest wicket-taker in ODI cricket (265 wickets).

Virender Sehwag

The Nawab of Najafgarh was the pillar of India’s batting order and played a significant role in the Indian cricket team’s triumphs in the ICC’s three major tournaments.

Virender Sehwag finished as the leading run-getter in the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy, hitting 271 runs. His transition to the T20I format was certainly not up to his standards as he aggregated 167 runs with just one 50-plus score in the 2007 T20 World Cup and missed out on a place in the final against Pakistan due to injury. And in the 2011 Cricket World Cup, Virender Sehwag hit the highest score of the competition in the opening game against Bangladesh (175). Stitching formidable partnerships with Sachin Tendulkar throughout the tournament, the opener finished with 380 runs at a strike rate of 122.58.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Indranil Mukherjee

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Glenn Maxwell responds to Sehwag's "10 crore cheerleader" jibe

Punjab and Australia all-rounder, Glenn Maxwell, has responded to Virender Sehwag's criticism of him by saying that he knows how to move on from such reproval.

Sehwag, a former Punjab batsman, was harsh in his criticism of Maxwell to an extent that he branded the Australian a "10 crore cheerleader". "Glenn Maxwell. This 10-crore cheerleader proved costly for Punjab. And he has had a bad record of shirking work over the past few seasons. But this season he went to new extremes," said Sehwag.

The former India opener was harsh in his analysis, but Maxwell, himself, wasn't particularly impressive either. The 32-year-old scored a mere 108 runs at a mediocre average of 15.42 and a poor strike-rate of 101.88 as his side finished sixth in the 2020 Indian T20 League table.

Responding to Sehwag's words, Maxwell said that he's 'better equipped with dealing with those sorts of things now.'

"It's ok. Viru is pretty outspoken with his dislike of me, and that's fine. He's allowed to say whatever he likes," Maxwell was quoted as saying by The West Australian.

"He's in the media for such statements, so that's fine. I deal with that and move on, and take it with a grain of salt with Sehwag."

In October last year, the all-rounder took a break from the sport due to mental health problems. He pulled out of Australia's home series midway through the season and made a comeback after more than two months for the Big Bash League.

"I think I'm better equipped with dealing with those sorts of things now."

"I think in hindsight it was a pretty good time to go through something like that where I was able to put some groundwork in to deal with adversity. This year has certainly been a massive test of it."

Despite his substandard return, Maxwell will be in action during India's tour of Australia, having been part of the latter's ODI and T20I squad. 

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Sajjad Hussain, Indranil Mukherjee

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PunjabGlenn MaxwellVirender SehwagIndian T20 League, 2020 Indian T20 League

Five Indians with most Man of the Series awards in Tests

On this day back in 2016, the Indian cricket team completed a 3-0 whitewash of New Zealand in the Test series with a mammoth 321-run victory at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore.

The star of the show for India was spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who picked up six wickets in the first innings and seven in the third to not only win the Man of the Match but also the Man of the Series award.

So on the day of Ashwin's exhilarating return, we take a look at five Indian players with most Man of the Series awards in Test cricket:

Ravichandran Ashwin (7)

Following that win over New Zealand, Ashwin got his seventh Man of the Series award, putting him sixth on the list of players with the most of those awards, but on the top when it comes to the Indian players. His first award came in 2011 when West Indies toured India. In the final Test of the series, the spinner picked nine wickets and also scored a century. There has been no looking back since, as the 34-year-old went on to claim the award against some of the best sides like New Zealand, Australia and Sri Lanka.

Virender Sehwag (5)

The only Indian to score two triple centuries in Test cricket, Virender Sehwag played 104 Tests for India and went on score 8586 runs in as many as 39 series. During that tenure, the hard-hitting right-hander claimed the Man of the Series award on five occasions; the joint-second-highest for his country. Sehwag claimed his first award during the 2003-04 series against Pakistan where he scored his maiden triple-ton. A year later, when South Africa toured India, he bagged his second and the prize kept on coming until 2010 (another one against Pakistan and two against Sri Lanka).

Sachin Tendulkar (5)

Batting great Sachin Tendulkar sits on level terms with Sehwag, having won five Man of the Series awards during his Test career between 1989 to 2013. Tendulkar played 200 Tests for India, taking part in 74 series. He, however, had to wait nearly 10 years to win his first Man of the Series award. His first two came against Australia in a home and away series in 1997-98 and 1999-20, while the third was against England in 2002. It took a while for him to grab the rest, but in 2007, he was rightly adjudged as the Man of the Series against Bangladesh in 2007 before claiming the final piece in 2010 against Australia.

Kapil Dev (4)

In a career that lasted almost two decades, former India captain Kapil Dev won as many as four Man of the Series awards. Kapil Dev played 131 Tests for India, taking part in 38 series, scoring 5248 runs and picking 434 wickets. It was in 1981 that the all-rounder claimed his first Man of the Series award when England toured India for a six-match series. He scored 318 runs and picked up 22 wickets to be rightly given the award. Next year, he was at it once again, against the same opponent but this time at their own turf. His third came against the mighty West Indies in a six-match series where he picked 29 wickets, including two five-wicket hauls. In 1985, he claimed his final prize against Australia down under.

Harbhajan Singh (4) 

Harbhajan Singh played 103 Tests for India and was a complete revelation, picking 417 wickets at an economy of 2.84. During the course of his career, he took part in as many as 47 series and won the Man of the Series awards on four occasions. His first came against Australia in 2001 when he picked 32 wickets across three matches, including a hat-trick as Indian won the series 2-0. The same year, he was at it again, this time against West Indies in a drawn series. Five years later, in 2007, he dismantled South Africa by picking 19 wickets in three games to claim his third Man of the Series award. And eventually, the final piece came during the 2010-11 series against New Zealand for an all-round show.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Noah Seelam

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IndiaRavichandran AshwinHarbhajan SinghKapil DevSachin TendulkarVirender Sehwag

Kohli, Tendulkar and many more celebrate Mother’s Day on Twitter

On the occasion of Mother's Day, people in the internet age take to their favourite social media platform and express to the whole world just how much their one and only mother has meant to them all their lives.

With the ongoing lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, not everyone can be with their mother on this special day. However, thanks to these posts, the message gets across to the most important woman in our life.

Cricketers are no exception to this, and almost every player with an active social media presence went on to post about the special place their mothers hold in their lives.

Some posts, such as Sachin Tendulkar's, were accompanied by old black and white photos, while others, like Virender Sehwag's, included video messages.

We’ve gathered some of the best messages we could find and put them together.

 

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / Virat Kohli

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Ajinkya RahaneKuldeep YadavVirat KohliVirender SehwagHardik PandyaYuzvendra ChahalSachin Tendulkar

Virat Kohli - A player born to break records

Virat Kohli might have missed out at Visakhapatnam but at Pune, where India struggled to put together a century in either innings against Australia two years back, the Indian cricket team captain slammed a seventh Test double ton to grind South Africa down on Day two of the second Test of the ongoing series.

Here are few stats and facts from his record-breaking innings:

Seventh Double ton

Kohli slammed his seventh double century in Test cricket, making him the Indian with most double hundreds in the format. Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, two other batsmen who had a fetish for daddy hundreds, have six apiece. He is also the joint fourth highest in the world after Don Bradman, Kumar Sangakkara and Brian Lara. While Bradman has 12, Sangakkara has 11 and Lara 9. Wally Hammond and Mahela Jayawardene have seven each like Kohli.

Fourth quickest to 7000 runs 

Virat Kohli took 138 innings to reach the landmark of 7000 Test runs making him the joint fourth fastest in the world and third fastest Indian to the landmark. Wally Hammond, who did it in 131 innings, is the quickest while Virender Sehwag (134 innings) and Sachin Tendulkar (136 innings) also did it quicker than Kohli. He equalled Kumar Sangakkara and Garry Sobers' record by reaching 7000 runs in 138 innings.

Highest score

This is Virat Kohli's highest Test score. He had earlier made 243 against Sri Lanka in Delhi in 2017-18 in a drawn Test match. That was his highest Test score until he made 254* at Pune against South Africa on Day two of the second Test. His other double hundreds are 235 (vs England), 213 (vs Sri Lanka), 211 (vs New Zealand), 204 (vs Bangladesh) and 200 (vs West Indies). Only one of those - against West Indies - has come outside India.

Read: 68 international centuries, 11 years, 1 Virat Kohli

Highest among Indian captains

Kohli's 254* is the highest score by an Indian Test captain. He surpassed his own record set in Delhi when he made 243. It's also the highest by an Indian captain against South Africa with the previous best being Sachin Tendulkar's 169 in 1996-97. There has only ever been one higher score by an Indian against South Africa in Tests - Virender Sehwag's 319 in 304 balls at Chennai.

Double tons against nations

Kohli has double centuries against six Test nations now. Only Kumar Sangakkara and Younis Khan have double tons against six nations. Interestingly, Kohli has double centuries against all nations he has played Tests against except Australia.

A first 250 plus score

While the 254* is Kohli's highest score, he also joined a select group of Indian players who have 250-plus scores. Virender Sehwag, Karun Nair, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid are the other Indians to have made 250-plus scores in Tests.

Read: The rare blips in Virat Kohli’s impressive Test career

Featured image courtesy: AFP / Punit Paranjpe

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Twitter goes berserk as Sehwag, Tendulkar reunite

Apart from all the hustle from the India-Pakistan game at Old Trafford in Manchester on Sunday, those watching the game in front of their TV sets were up for an absolute treat. Legendary Indian openers Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag reunited in the commentary box, bringing out the good old nostalgia amongst the supporters.

As if that was not enough, the duo was later joined by Pakistan great, Waqar Younis and former Indian captain, Sourav Ganguly in the box. And reacting to it, Twitter went into a frenzy and this is how the fans are reacting to it:

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / StarSportsIndia

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Sachin TendulkarVirender Sehwag Social Buzz