Play for India to win World Cup, not for Tendulkar: Waugh

Australia's cricket great Steve Waugh says Indian players should not be talking of winning the World Cup for Sachin Tendulkar because that's not the 'right attitude,' as the game is bigger than any individual.

'They should think of winning the World Cup for the team, most importantly for the country,' said Waugh on the sidelines of a event here Friday when asked what he thought of many Indian players parroting that they want to win the World Cup for Tendulkar.

'I don't think it is the right attitude. You cannot think of winning the World Cup for one player. The game is bigger than any individual. You have to win it for each other. I am sure that even Sachin Tendulkar will like to win it for the team and the country. Yes, if India win the World Cup it will cap off a brilliant career,' said the former Australia captain.

Waugh said Tendulkar would play a crucial role in the tournament. 'Tendulkar may not be the star of the tournament, but he is going to play a crucial for India. When you need to take control of the game or stop the opposition, he would play a major part. His inputs will be invaluable.'

Tendulkar, who will be playing in his sixth World Cup, came close to winning it in 2003 when India lost the final.

Tendulkar, an inspiration for every Indian: Dravid

Indian cricketer Rahul Dravid was on Thursday, all praise for star batsman Sachin Tendulkar, saying that he was an inspiration for every Indian. He said this at the launch of the book 'Sach', based on Tendulkar's life, written by sports journalist, Gautam Bhattacharya.
Also present at the ceremony were, captain of the Indian Cricket team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, cricketers Yuvraj Singh, Anil Kumble and Gary Kirsten, coach of the Indian team.

Sehwag to captain Delhi Daredevils in IPL-4

The 32-year-old Delhi opener has been part of the Delhi Daredevils since the IPL began in 2008. Under his leadership, Delhi Daredevils reached the semi-finals in the first two editions of the IPL and also topped the league stage in 2009.
Sehwag said he was looking forward to taking the Daredevils to new heights in IPL-4.

"For me there cannot be any other team than Delhi Daredevils in the IPL. As someone who grew up playing cricket in Delhi I am very proud to be playing for the Delhi Daredevils. I am delighted to be part of the Delhi Daredevils and lead the team," said Sehwag.
Srinivas Bommidala, chairman of GMR Sports, said Sehwag was the source of inspiration and strength for both young and experienced players.
"He is a leader who paves the way by example," he said.
P.B. Vanchi, director GMR Sports, said: "Viru has been an integral part of the Delhi Daredevils from the day it was formed. He has been the face of the team and an icon best suited to lead our team. Sehwag's attacking style at the start of the innings sets the tone for the rest of the team."

icc-cricket-world-cup-2011-schedule

World Cup 2011 Fixtures (All timings are mentioned in GMT+05:30)

Timing	Teams	Venue	Results
Sat Feb 19 (D/N) 14:00 PM	1st match Group B - India v Bangladesh	Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Sun Feb 20 09:30 AM	2nd match Group A- Kenya v New Zealand	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Sun Feb 20 (D/N) 14:30 PM	3rd match Group A- Sri Lanka v Canada	Hambantota International Cricket Stadium
Mon Feb 21 (D/N) 14:30 PM	4th match Group A - Australia v Zimbabwe	Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad
Tue Feb 22 (D/N) 14:30 PM	5th match Group B- England v Netherlands	Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, Nagpur
Wed Feb 23 (D/N) 14:30 PM	6th match Group A - Kenya v Pakistan	Hambantota International Cricket Stadium
Thu Feb 24 (D/N) 14:30 PM	7th match Group B- South Africa v West Indies	Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Fri Feb 25 09:30 AM	9th match Group A- Australia v New Zealand	Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, Nagpur
Fri Feb 25 (D/N) 14:00 PM	8th match Group B- Bangladesh v Ireland	Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Sat Feb 26 (D/N) 14:30 PM	10th match Group A- Pakistan v Sri Lanka	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Sun Feb 27 (D/N) 14:30PM	11th match Group B - India v England	Venue TBC
Mon Feb 28 09:30 AM	12th match Group A- Canada v Zimbabwe	Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, Nagpur
Mon Feb 28 (D/N) 14:30 PM	13th match Group B- Netherlands v West Indies	Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Tue Mar 1 (D/N) 14:30 PM	14th match Group A- Kenya v Sri Lanka	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Wed Mar 2 (D/N) 14:30 PM	15th match Group B - England v Ireland	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Thu Mar 3 09:30 AM	16th match Group B- Netherlands v South Africa	Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Thu Mar 3 (D/N) 14:30 PM	17th match Group A- Canada v Pakistan	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Fri Mar 4 09:30 AM	18th match Group A - New Zealand v Zimbabwe	Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad
Fri Mar 4 (D/N) 14:00 PM	19th match Group B- Bangladesh v West Indies	Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Sat Mar 5 (D/N) 14:30 PM	20th match Group A - Australia v Sri Lanka	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Sun Mar 6 09:30 AM	21st match Group B- England v South Africa	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Sun Mar 6 (D/N) 14:30 PM	22nd match Group B - India v Ireland	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Mon Mar 7 (D/N) 14:30 PM	23rd match Group A- Canada v Kenya	Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Tue Mar 8 (D/N) 14:30 PM	24th match Group A- New Zealand v Pakistan	Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
Wed Mar 9 (D/N) 14:30 PM	25th match Group B- India v Netherlands	Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Thu Mar 10 (D/N) 14:30 PM	26th match Group A - Sri Lanka v Zimbabwe	Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
Fri Mar 11 09:30 AM	27th match Group B- Ireland v West Indies	Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Fri Mar 11 (D/N) 14:00 PM	28th match Group B - Bangladesh v England	Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong
Sat Mar 12 (D/N) 14:30 PM	29th match Group B- India v South Africa	Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground, Nagpur
Sun Mar 13 09:30 AM	30th match Group A - Canada v New Zealand	Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Sun Mar 13 (D/N) 14:30 PM	31st match Group A- Australia v Kenya	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Mon Mar 14 09:00 AM	32nd match Group B- Bangladesh v Netherlands	Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong
Mon Mar 14 (D/N) 14:30 PM	33rd match Group A- Pakistan v Zimbabwe	Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
Tue Mar 15 (D/N) 14:30 PM	34th match Group B- Ireland v South Africa	Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Wed Mar 16 (D/N) 14:30 PM	35th match Group A - Australia v Canada	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Thu Mar 17 (D/N) 14:30 PM	36th match Group B - England v West Indies	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Fri Mar 18 09:30 AM	37th match Group B - Ireland v Netherlands	Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Fri Mar 18 (D/N) 14:30 PM	38th match Group A- New Zealand v Sri Lanka	Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Sat Mar 19 09:00 AM	39th match Group B- Bangladesh v South Africa	Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Sat Mar 19 (D/N) 14:30 PM	40th match Group A- Australia v Pakistan	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Sun Mar 20 09:30 AM	41st match Group A- Kenya v Zimbabwe	Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Sun Mar 20 (D/N) 14:30 PM	42nd match Group B - India v West Indies	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Wed Mar 23 (D/N) 14:00 PM	1st Quarter Final – A1 v B4	Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Thu Mar 24 (D/N) 14:30 PM	2nd Quarter Final – A2 v B3	Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad
Fri Mar 25 (D/N) 14:00 PM	3rd Quarter Final – A3 v B2	Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Sat Mar 26 (D/N) 14:30 PM	4th Quarter Final – A4 v B1	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Tue Mar 29 (D/N) 14:30 PM	Semi Final – Winner of 1st QF v Winenr of 3rd QF	R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Wed Mar 30 (D/N) 14:30 PM	Semi Final – Winner of 2nd QF v Winner of 4th QF	Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Sat Apr 2 (D/N) 14:30 PM	Final - TBC v TBC	Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

When Sachin played under Imran

In a book titled 'SACH,' by Gautam Bhattacharya, Tendulkar revealed that he played under Imran but as a substitute fielder during a festival match at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) in Mumbai.
Imran asked him to field in the deep and Tendulkar couldn't complete a catch and going back home, in the local train, constantly grumbled about the captain's field placements.
"Absolutely true. I went in as a substitute. Imran was the Pakistan captain. No words were exchanged with him. But yes, I may've got the catch if I was kept slightly ahead (laughs)," Sachin said.
The book also revealed that a year before in 1987, Sachin was selected as a promising fast bowler to train at legendary Australian fast bowler Dennis Lillee's MRF Pace Academy in Chennai, but was rejected.
"I was okay with it. In any case I was not aspiring to become a fast bowler. I thought of myself as a fast bowling all-rounder. That is precisely the reason I had carried my batting kit to Chennai. I didn't get an opportunity to bat. I did bowl for one or two sessions," Sachin said.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly was also part of the camp, but Sachin doesn't remember meeting him.
"As for Sourav, I don't remember meeting him there. Later on at the national camp, I caught up with him," said Sachin

Why Australian batsmen need to go back to the basics

Australia coach and to a 30-year-old former Shield player recently was to understand the challenges currently faced by those responsible for directing the game in this country. As in other arenas, a battle is on between the classical and the contemporary. Suffice to say the classical is in retreat. Wise nations and activities seek to strike a balance between the eternal and the present, seek to take the best from both.

The coach spends his time instructing selected youngsters in the techniques of the game. Except that those skills seem to have changed. Coaches chide any batsman allowing a ball to pass, and teach them to use the bottom hand not as an assistant but as the driving force. Youngsters are taught to open their hips and lift the ball.

Ignoring the traditions of local batsmanship, they are told to go forwards, anticipate and punish full deliveries. Is it any wonder that Australians keep hooking off the front foot or that the captain keeps losing his wicket to the shot?

Spinners are to be played from the crease. Hardly any of the younger brigade and previous few of the seniors can step down the pitch to dictate length to the tweakers. Most sit back and search for anything off line. Some of the batting against spin seen in local Twenty20 tournaments has been embarrassing, and the new Test men were often the worst offenders. Michael Clarke has dancing feet but the rest seem to be bogged in mud. Meanwhile the Poms use their feet confidently.

Kirsten has done wonders to my game: Gambhir

When Gautam Gambhir was struggling to cement his place in Team India, the appointment of Gary Kirsten as India coach proved to be a godsend. The Delhi batsman gives the former South African opener a lot of credit for understanding him both as a cricketer as well as a person.

Gambhir, 29, feels Kirsten's presence in the India dressing room has done a world of good to his game as he has given him a lot of confidence.

Kirsten, who joined the India team in March 2008, carried it to the top of Test rankings, and Gambhir says he is one of the players to prosper in the process.

"Kirsten worked on my game, he has helped me a lot. Unlike other coaches, he has never asked me to make changes in my game. Importantly, he understood me both as a player and person," Gambhir

"Kirsten worked on my basics and tried to improve on them. It was quite encouraging coming from a person who has played 100-odd Tests."

The left-hander, who made his debut in 2004, had only one Test century to his name till 2007, but hit two more and a double century in 2008 and four centuries in five Tests in what turned out to be an incredible 2009, the year in which he was voted the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Player.

Gambhir, who returned home after the South Africa Test series following a hand injury, said Kirsten, himself being a left-handed opener, worked on key areas to better his performance.