Former Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson has taken a dig at Virat Kohli ahead of his country's do-or-die clash against host India in 2016 World T20 at Mohali. Johnson, who has retired from cricket, reminded cricket fans about how the Indian batting superstar "went missing" during last year's Cricket World Cup semi-final loss. Kohli told reporters on Saturday he thrives in situations when opposition teams attempt to throw him off his game through sledging, in particular against Australia, saying "if anything, it motivates me more". But Johnson questioned whether Kohli could stand the heat when the pressure was on after reading Kohli's words on Twitter. "Love it!! Went missing in WC semi last yr when it really counts," Johnson tweeted. Chasing Australia's imposing 7-328 at the SCG in the World Cup semi-final, Kohli was dismissed by Johnson for one.
A modest New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson has said his team was "fortunate" to be playing on similar wickets after pulling off a dramatic victory over Australia in the ICC World Twenty20 in Dharamsala on Friday.
Stung by a prolonged losing streak in what has turned out to be a nightmarish tour, a hapless India will now look to avoid a Twenty20 whitewash when they lock horns with Australia in the second match in Melbourne.
Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Shaharyar Khan says it will not be feasible to play the proposed bilateral series in India, as suggested by Board of Control for Cricket in India.
'We are looking forward to the game against India, had the first warm-up game and have got a game against England in a couple of days. I guess these games care for nothing'
Sri Lanka's tour of Zimbabwe has been cancelled due to 'issues facing Zimbabwe Cricket', said SLC Secretary Nishantha Ranatunga on Friday.
Injured New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor will test his fitness ahead of next month's World Twenty20 tournament in India when he plays in an 'Island of Origin' match next week.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday.
West Indies paceman Kemar Roach was happy to get under hosts India's skin but regretted the team's failure to put up a challenging total in the first One-dayer in Cuttack on Tuesday.
'Our plan in to take early wickets in the first 20 overs and that will help us to put pressure on the opposition'
The actor will promote his new Mission Impossible film here.
"Conditions are different in India and they have so many world class players, especially in the batting and spin-bowling."
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
South African spinner Imran Tahir's participation in the high-profile World Cup match against co-hosts India hangs in the balance after he suffered a thumb fracture, Cricket South Africa said on Wednesday.
Germany's junior hockey team coach Valentin Altenburg believes hosts India will be one of the contenders to win the FIH Junior World Cup, which will begin in Lucknow, on December 8.
The prestigious Champions Trophy men's hockey tournament will be held in New Delhi from December 3 to 11, the FIH announced on Friday. The world's top eight countries, including Olympic champions Germany and 2010 World Cup winners Australia, will take part in the tournament.
If you go by the form book or if you go by the statistics, everything stacks up against England, heading into the World Cup Group B match against India in Bangalore, on Sunday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
'India owes us two home series and we want them to first fulfill this obligation to us'
The team has thus far failed to inspire and the players look to be going through the motions. It is a concern heading into the important games against South Africa and the West Indies, followed by the knock-out stages. What, in your wisdom, is lacking in the Indian team?
In spite of winning both the T20 and One-Day International series, South Africa don't hold any significant psychological advantage going into the four-Test rubber against hosts India, said visiting team opener Stiaan Van Zyl.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has taken up the issue of cancellation of bilateral series with India last December, as per an MOU signed between the two boards in 2014 to play six bilateral series, with the International Cricket Council. An official in the board told PTI that chairman Shaharyar Khan had brought up the issue at the recent ICC board meeting in Dubai and stressed the need for boards to respect bilateral agreements. "Shaharyar did take up this issue at the ICC meeting and pointed out that India had not played Pakistan in a bilateral series since 2007 and it had caused loss of millions of dollars to the PCB in estimated revenues," the official said. He said Shaharyar made the point that if the BCCI had to seek government clearance to play Pakistan in a bilateral series it should not have signed the MOU in the first place.
India's jam-packed itinerary has not only taken a physical toll on the players but could also affect their mindset heading into the World Cup, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said.
West Indies batting legend Brian Lara considers hosts India the favourites in the World Twenty20 Championship but insists that the West Indians can also pose a threat if they select their best players for the March 8 to April 3 event.
Sri Lanka will not name a successor to head coach Trevor Bayliss until after the tour of England which starts next month.
Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara on Saturday said he was surprised when he learnt that his side's last league fixture against New Zealand in the World Cup would be played in Mumbai and not at a home venue.
Hosts India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will play their knock-out matches at home if they advance to the quarter-final stage of the World Cup, International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Haroon Lorgat said on Friday.
World Cup Tournament Director Ratnakar Shetty on Wednesday admitted that the fixtures for the mega event, beginning February 19, were made to favour co-hosts India and other top teams making it to the knock-out stage.
Sport can sometimes act as a great healer and it was wonderfully demonstrated during the opening ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi on Sunday.
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson is too familiar with the fickleness of cricket's shortest format to take his team's red-hot form for granted going into Wednesday's World Twenty20 semi-final against England. The Kiwis cruised into the last four as the only unbeaten team in the tournament to book a clash with England who seem to be peaking at the right time. "I know that going into tomorrow, it's a big, exciting match but our feet are firmly on the ground and we going to be running to perform our plans as best as we can," the bearded 25-year-old told reporters at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Williamson has displayed the tactical flexibility required to win a major tournament by sacrificing pace and gambling with three spinners, a ploy that paid off in the tournament opener against hosts India.
Dashing opener David Warner may lead the Australian team in place of an injured Steven Smith during the upcoming limited-overs series against India starting January 12.
Pooja Ghatkar overcame technical issues to clinch the women's 10m air rifle bronze medal as hosts India opened their account on a positive note in the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup in New Delhi.
India keen to take down Australia for perfect end to season.
Hosts India beat defending champions Netherlands 3-2 in a penalty shootout to win the bronze at the Hockey World League Final in Raipur.
Misbah-ul-Haq has stressed on the need for Pakistan and India to revive their bilateral cricket ties .
In an injury scare, Indian opener Gautam Gambhir was on Sunday rushed to a local hospital in Chandigarh after being hit on his right wrist by a delivery during Board President XI's game against Australia only to be discharged later without any problem.
Conceding that time is running out for the proposed India-Pakistan bilateral cricket series to take place, BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said the Board is still waiting for the government's approval.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
The much debated Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) will not be used in the forthcoming Test and ODI series between hosts India and Australia, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said on Saturday.
Sunil Chettri scored twice as India thrashed Portuguese second division side Uniao Desportiva da Serra 3-1 in their first practice match of the week at the Pope John Paul II stadium, Fatima in Lisbon.
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