Dhoni unhappy with NZ travel schedule
AUCKLAND: India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni today expressed his displeasure at the travel itinerary of his team during its trip to New Zealand which affected the players as many of them were drained due to change in time zone and odd hours of journey.
The Indian team had left Perth for Melbourne on March 7 and reached Auckland from Melbourne at midnight (New Zealand time). From Auckland, it was an hour and half’s bus journey to Hamilton.
Auckland to Hamilton is a 25-minute flight and no big airbuses operate on that route. The ones that operate are 10-seater small air planes which certainly wasn’t enough to carry a jumbo contingent of 33 (15 players and 18 support staff).
Perth is four and half hours behind Melbourne while Auckland is two and half hours ahead of Melbourne. The time difference does take a toll on the body when one is taking successive flights, which exactly happened with some of the members of the team. (PTI)
Tournament draw helped Pak: Misbah
Undated: The vagaries of the World Cup draw may have helped Pakistan rediscover their swagger at just the right time to push them to the brink of a quarter-final, according to captain Misbah ul-Haq.
Pakistan face Ireland in a must-win clash in Adelaide on Sunday with the winner finishing third in Pool B.
The loser of the match could still advance to a quarter-final against New Zealand in Wellington depending on the outcome of the West Indies-UAE game earlier in Napier.
The 1992 champions had been woeful in their first two matches and then limped to a tense 20-run victory over Zimbabwe before they accounted for a stubborn UAE side by 129 runs.
Those two victories built their confidence to a point where they were able to beat pre-tournament favourites South Africa by 29 runs on the Duckworth/Lewis method in a rain-effected match at Eden Park last Saturday.
“We were playing against two tougher oppositions up front just at the start of the tournament and they played better cricket than us,” Misbah said of their successive losses to India and West Indies. (Reuters)
‘Associates nations have justified WC spot’
Undated: Even if Ireland fail to make the quarter-finals of the cricket World Cup they and the other associate members have shown enough promise to warrant inclusion in future tournaments, skipper William Porterfield said on Saturday.The Irish, the only one of the four associates to beat a test playing nation at the 11th edition with wins over West Indies and Zimbabwe, can make the last eight by beating Pakistan in their Pool B finale in Adelaide on Sunday.Even if they lose, a first victory for their associate colleagues United Arab Emirates over West Indies would send the Irish through.
But with the ICC controversially cutting the number of teams from 14 to 10 for the 2019 tournament, defeat for both UAE and Ireland on Sunday would likely mean a long wait for another World Cup chance.
Ireland have three wins from five games here, but UAE, Afghanistan and Scotland have lost 15 of 16 matches to offer some justification to the ICC’s decision. (Reuters)
Shoaib worried about Pakistan batting
New Delhi: Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar is worried about the team’s inconsistent batting ahead of its clash against giant-killers Ireland in a must-win final pool B league encounter of the cricket World Cup in Adelaide on Sunday.The Misbah-ul-Haq-led side has won three out of five games to be locked on six points with Ireland and both teams need a win to stay above West Indies, who are likely to get past UAE, in the points table. For Shoaib, Pakistan’s batting effort will be key in the crucial clash in Adelaide.”I am not worried about our bowling attack, it is our batting which I’m worried about – especially while chasing a target,” Akhtar said.The team has failed to cross the 250-run mark barring just once when they posted 339 for six against an inexperienced UAE attack while Misbah is the only batsman in the ranks to average above 50. Akhtar believes Pakistan are a better side while defending a target.”In my opinion, Pakistan should choose to bat first if they win the toss and set a big target which is difficult for Ireland to chase against the revitalised bowling attack of Pakistan,” said Akhtar.Even Pakistan’s batting coach Grant Flower has warned the batsmen of pulling up their socks in time or it might get too late.”I would like to believe our best is yet to come. If we don’t, I don’t think we will go much further in the tournament,” the former Zimbabwean star said. (PTI)
‘Windies have much to lose against UAE’
Undated: The United Arab Emirates have sensed an inconsistent West Indies side could be ripe for the taking in their final World Cup Pool B match in Napier, UAE captain Mohammad Tauqir has said.
West Indies need a big win at McLean Park on Sunday to ensure they qualify for the quarter-finals and offload the pressure to Ireland and Pakistan, who clash in the final match of the pool phase in Adelaide later that day.Jason Holder’s team have four points from two wins, while Pakistan and Ireland have each won three, though the Irish have an inferior run rate to the other two sides.
“West Indies will be under the pressure of getting qualified for the knockout,” Tauqir told reporters in Napier on Saturday. (Reuters)
