Michael Hussey was approached by former India batsman VVS Laxman for the job of Team India head coach, the ex-Australian cricketer has revealed in his latest book.
Just a fortnight left to prove his fitness, Michael Clarke appeared to be heading in the right direction as the Australian captain bowled, fielded and batted without any signs of discomfort against Bangladesh in a practice match in Brisbane.
Our selection was wrong, says Aussie spin great Shane Warne.
'Before Shastri's induction, things were sketchy and it was not known who was responsible for taking cricketing decisions around the team. The selectors chose a squad of players, the captain ran the show on the field and the coaches helped draft plans, or sort of tried to. There needed to be one man who could coordinate all elements around the squad -- someone who had the backing of the Board, the respect of the players and that of the support staff.'
Australia skipper Steve Smith on Saturday stressed on the importance of winning the ICC World Twenty20, the one trophy missing from the glittering cabinet of the record five-time world champions who're no 1 in Test and ODI format. "It's the one trophy that eluded us. We want to win every tournament and series that we play in. We are pretty settled. We have got 15 guys who can give this tournament a real shake," Smith said about the fifth ranked side. "We played good in South Africa to win that series there. Guys have stepped up and we're in good form. It's going to take us squad mentality to do well in this tournament," the Aussie skipper said about the team who won in South Africa 3-1 before landing here." Australia lost in New Zealand 1-2 in an ODI series before winning the Tests 2-0 and they travelled for the World T20 build-up to South Africa where they won 2-1. "It's just about being positive. We've got a good squad together. We know what to expect. It's about going out there and making sure we can execute our skills. If we do that well hopefully we will win a lot of other games."
Aus all-rounder James Faulkner says that the new Powerplay rule crucial to team's total
- 'The aggressive approach was the right one. The approach will remain the same' - 'I feel what he (Kohli) did throughout the Adelaide Test was really great'
Gary Kirsten has no doubts they will bounce back and be challenging for One-day cricket's most coveted trophy next year.
- 'Always strong at the psychological game, the Aussies put the pressure on the opponents, knew how to handle the pressure themselves and exploited virtually every situation to their advantage' - 'They are firmly and categorically told never to allow success to go to their heads. You don't find Australian cricketers getting even a little complacent'
It will be difficult for Australia's besmirched cricketers to reclaim their reputations when the dust settles on the ball-tampering scandal but the episode is nonetheless a chance for the team to reclaim some of its lost principles and values, feels former batsman Michael Hussey.
After what at one stage earlier this month looked like a vast game of musical chairs, reigning champions India ended up topping the world rankings when the five-month countdown to the 2015 World Cup started on Sunday.
Ponting shrugged off Australia's injury worries and the idea of there being risk in rushing Smith and Warner into the team.
Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar paid tribute to retiring Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson on Tuesday, describing him as a special bowler.