Watch IPL 2014 Live Streaming and Live Telecast in India

Introduction to IPL 2014

Indian Premier League’s seventh edition begins from 16th April 2014. The first twenty matches are to be played in the UAE due to national elections being held in India. The premier league returns back to India from 2nd of May and rest all 40 matches would be played in India. Ticket sale concluded on a high note in the UAE and the sale would soon begin in India too.

Where to watch the IPL 2014 Live?

IPL 2014 live streaming would be available in India on Star Sports official website. One can also enjoy IPL 2014 live telecast on Sony Six and Sony Six HD in India.

IPL 2014 Schedule

Date	Matches in the UAE
Wednesday 16th April 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Thursday 17th April 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Friday 18th April 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Kings XI Punjab
Friday 18th April 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals
Saturday 19th April 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Mumbai Indians
Saturday 19th April 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Delhi Daredevils
Sunday 20th April 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Kings XI Punjab
Monday 21st April 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Delhi Daredevils
Tuesday 22nd April 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Wednesday 23rd April 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings
Thursday 24th April 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Friday 25th April 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Delhi Daredevils
Friday 25th April 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Mumbai Indians
Saturday 26th April 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Saturday 26th April 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Kings XI Punjab
Sunday 27th April 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Mumbai Indians
Sunday 27th April 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Chennai Super Kings
Monday 28th April 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Tuesday 29th April 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Rajasthan Royals
Wednesday 30th April 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Sunrisers Hyderabad

Date	Matches in India
Friday 2nd May 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Saturday 3rd May 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab
Saturday 3rd May 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Rajasthan Royals
Sunday 4th May 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Monday 5th May 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Monday 5th May 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Chennai Super Kings
Tuesday 6th May 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Wednesday 7th May 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Wednesday 7th May 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Chennai Super Kings
Thursday 8th May 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Friday 9th May 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Kings XI Punjab
Saturday 10th May 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Saturday 10th May 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings
Sunday 11th May 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Sunday 11th May 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Rajasthan Royals
Monday 12th May 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians
Tuesday 13th May 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Rajasthan Royals
Tuesday 13th May 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Delhi Daredevils
Wednesday 14th May 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Kings XI Punjab
Wednesday 14th May 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Mumbai Indians
Thursday 15th May 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Daredevils
Sunday 18th May 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Sunday 18th May 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Kolkata Knight Riders
Monday 19th May 2014	Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians
Monday 19th May 2014	Delhi Daredevils vs Kings XI Punjab
Tuesday 20th May 2014	Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Tuesday 20th May 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings
Wednesday 21st May 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Mumbai Indians
Thursday 22nd May 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
Thursday 22nd May 2014	Chennai Super Kings vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Friday 23rd May 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Daredevils
Friday 23rd May 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Rajasthan Royals
Saturday 24th May 2014	Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Chennai Super Kings
Saturday 24th May 2014	Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Sunday 25th May 2014	Kings XI Punjab vs Delhi Daredevils
Sunday 25th May 2014	Mumbai Indians vs Rajasthan Royals
Tuesday 27th May 2014	TBD vs TBD
Wednesday 28th May 2014	TBD vs TBD
Friday 30th May 2014	TBD vs TBD
Sunday 1st June 2014	TBD vs TBD

For further information on the IPL winners so far, daily match updates, reviews, previews, etc kindly visit this site: liveiplt20cricketscores.blogspot.com Let us have fans opinion on who would win the IPL this time. Guesses, predictions, logics – bring them all and vote for the team you feel is most likely to win the IPL 2014 title.

India vs Australia 4th Test Live Streaming

Indian fans would be on their feats if India could make it 4-0 against Australia. This won’t be the first white wash victory though because India did win 3-0 against England in the 90s. But a 4-0 win will be the first of its kind in India’s 80 plus years of test history.

MS Dhoni has accumulated innumerable amount of feathers on his hat. This could be another one. After statistically becoming the most successful test captain for India now he would love to be the first ever Indian captain to clinch a 4-0 series win.

With Murali, Dhoni, Sachin, Pujara in good touch and bowling clicking pretty well with Ashin, Ojha, Bhuvaneshwar, etc; another win looks likely for India. Shikhar Dhawan, the hero in the last match; is ruled out due to injury and he is replaced by Suresh Raina in the squad. It still stays a question, who would play instead of Dhawan. Will Rahane open with Murali or will Raina sneak in the middle order thus shifting Pujara to the opening slot?

Michael Clarke looks doubtful for the test match due to an injury. The dropped vice captain Watson returns to India and he might lead the team if Clarke isn’t available to play. Australia needs to pull their socks really high if they have to compete this strong Indian team.

Let us hope we witness another beautiful and enthralling test match cricket between India and Australia.

Live Streaming of 1st T20 between India and Pakistan

The wait is over and the face off begins. The mother of all games India vs Pakistan cricket begins as these two teams clash for the 1st T20 at Bangalore. With the cheer for a bilateral series come in, also comes in a sad news for Indian cricket fans. Sachin Tendulkar retires from ODI cricket from immediate effect indicating that he won’t be playing the ODI matches against Pakistan. This has been a set back for the Indian fans but someday this decision had to come. The whole cricketing fraternity praises his contribution to cricket and appreciates his records in ODI cricket which rather look unbeatable.

Pakistan T20 squad landed in India on Saturday meanwhile the additional ODI members would reach India on 26th. Mohammed Hafiz, T20 captain for Pakistan,  expressed a lot of excitement to face India after their hard hitting preparation for this long awaited bilateral series. He agreed to the fact that there is immense pressure for both the teams in any India Pakistan match but he said his team is well prepared to handle this pressure.

MS Dhoni has suffered a lot of setbacks this year in all forms of cricket. India has performed below average while touring other countries. In Asia they have dominated in ODI cricket but after 2007 T20 world cup victory, they haven’t been in great form in T20 either. India needs to win consistently in T20 cricket which could be their specialty following IPL.

A lot depends on the performances of Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Piyush Chawla and many more to name. A united effort can put India in the driver’s seat. Although India enjoys home advantage but their bad performance at home during the England series have put them under a lot of pressure. Let us see which team handles the pressure well and registers a victory here at Bangalore in the 1st t20 match.

Live Cricket Streaming India vs England T20 ESPN Star Cricket

India vs England T20 series begins as both the teams face off first at Pune and then at Mumbai. The first match is to be played at the Sahara stadium followed by the second and final T20 at Wankhede Stadium Mumbai. England triumphed in the test series with a margin of 2-1. A test series victory after 28 years in India is a real big achievement for England. Their good year in test cricket ended with another huge success.

India would be itching for a revenge in the T20 series. England team looks a bit weaker in absence of Pietersen, Swann, Finn, Broad and many more to name. Some of them are out due to injuries and some of them are rested. So we may see lot of new faces under captain Eoin Morgan.

India has pitched in a strong team with players like Kohli, Raina, Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh, Rahane, Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Awana, Vinay Kumar, Ashwin, Chawla and many more to name. Sehwag is dropped out yet again from the t20 format and as we all know Sachin doesn’t play in T20 matches.

A T20 series win here will be of great importance for India. After losing test series at home even a small T20 series win provides a boost to the confidence especially when India is about to play arch rivals Pakistan in a bilateral series after a long time. Let us hope for some good T20 cricket between India and England at Pune and Mumbai.

India vs England 4th Test Live Streaming ESPN Star Cricket 2012

After a long long time Indian cricket fans would have faced such a situation in a home test series. India has hardly tasted any defeats in last few years at home. Infact it was way back in 2004 when India lost a test series at home. And India has never lost a test series to England since 1984. But they seem to be on a verge of such a disappointing end, unless and until they win the last test here at Nagpur.

India played Pakistan at home in 1999-2000 and lost two test matches on the trot. After that it never happened again. But in this series India lost second and third match after winning the first one. The best India can do now is win the last match and level the series 2-2. That would almost be like a series winning performance for India after humiliated at Mumbai and Kolkata test matches.

We can’t expect too many changes in the England team as they are winning whatever they have played since the Ahmedabad test. On the other hand, India has already dropped Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan. The selectors have picked Ravindra Jadeja, Parwinder Awana and Piyush Chawla as replacements for the dropped players. These players were selected on the basis of their good performances in first class cricket this year.

Unlike the pitches at Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Kolkata; the pitch here at Nagpur will be flat and more full of runs. So we can expect the play to enter fifth day with a bit of big innings from both the sides. Stay tuned for more such cricketing updates.

India vs England Live Streaming 2nd Test 2012

After registering a thumping win against England at Ahmedabad, India is all set for the second test against England. The venue for second test is Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. Cricket experts and fans would expect another turner at Mumbai but hope we all know the soil used to prepare the Wankhede pitch provide a little help to the pacers also. So a bit of good news for quick bowlers also.

Things are not on track for England. Only two batsmen viz. Cook and Prior clicked well for England. The others failed miserably against a good spin attack. It is really important now for batsmen like Pietersen, Trott, Compton, Bell, etc to click before England lags behind 0-2 in this series.

Indian batsmen Sehwag and Pujara looked in their prime form as they both scored well. Sehwag scored a very quick century followed by a double century from Pujara. Yuvraj Singh played a brilliant knock as well. If Sachin, Gambhir and Kohli strike form, Indian batting line up can pile up more runs. Indian bowlers did a pretty good job in first innings but faced good batting from Cook and Prior in the second innings.

A win here will take into in the driver’s seat and a loss here will make the series more interesing. A lot of cricket to follow in this series, so stay tuned with live cricket streaming online updates.

India vs New Zealand 2nd T20 Live Streaming

Rain Gods didn’t allow a match at Visakhapatnam and let us hope we have the 2nd one to be played today at Chennai. Indians are roaring out to play against New Zealand and send them back home without a win. On the other hand New Zealand would love to finish this dreadful tour with a win.

These teams badly need some practice before they head towards Sri Lanka for ICC T20 World Cup 2012. Weather predictions aren’t in the favour of cricket as there has been a constant cloud cover over the city of Chennai. If somehow weather God permits a match here, it would be a real treat for the cricket fans.

Cricket fans from all over the world have appreciated the fighting spirit of Yuvraj Singh the way he struggle through his cancer days and has been courageous enough to return to International cricket. All the eyes are set on his return match which is today at Chennai! Hence maximum focus is on Yuvraj Singh. Let us hope we see a full match today here at Chennai.

India vs Srilanka 5th ODI Live Streaming

India has already won this series with an unbeatable lead of 3-1 and they would like to clinch this series 4-1. At the same time Srilanka would like to play for pride and win this one to reduce the margin of loss to 3-2. Also we shouldn’t forget that these teams still have to play a T20 match after ODI series and they also feature in T20 World Cup that is to be played in Srilanka from September 2012.

Indian confidence will be high with the good form of Gambhir, Raina and Virat Kohli. Irfan Pathan has bounced back pretty well in his career with some good performances in Asia Cup and now this ODI series. He has provided a good stand to the middle order batsmen and anchor the team to win. Bowling looked a bit absurd in the start but as the series went on the bowling looked better with Zaheer, Sharma, Pathan, etc. The only big failure in this series is Rohit Sharma who has hardly contributed to the team’s totals.

Srilanka has to recover from the loss of Sangakkara due to injury. He has been the most integral part of the team but he will take almost three more weeks to recover. On the other hand the primary batsmen like Jayawardene, Dilshan and Tharanga have lacked consistency. Bowling has been not so good and they had shortcomings in the fielding also.

Let us hope this match doesn’t turn out to be a mere formality and it presents a stiff competition between the two teams.

India Vs Australia 2nd Test Live Streaming

India Vs Australia Live Streaming

ESPN STAR live streaming continues as India vs Australia 2nd test has already begun at Sydney and Australia is purely dominating the proceedings. India nowhere looks in a condition to bounce back after losing the 1st test at Melbourne. The best batting line up in the world failed again in the 1st innings as India was bundled for 191 runs. The highest scorer in the Indian innings was MS Dhoni followed by Sachin Tendulkar.

There is again a fear of another white wash troubling the Indian fans’ thoughts. A loss here would take India in a position from where they can’t win this series. Infact they would now be thinking of somehow saving another whitewash. In a reply to a small Indian total, Australian batting line up has purely dominated Indian bowling.  At the end of Day 2, Australia leads India by 291 runs which is huge by all means. And above all Australia still has 6 wickets in hand. It doesn’t look if they will have to bat again.

Ponting has now silenced his critics by scoring a brilliant hundred. On the other hand, skipper Clarke scored a double century which is also his maiden one. Australia looks unstoppable right now. India needs to pull a rabbit out of their hat to save this test match which almost looks a lost cause now.

Sachin’s 48th century sets India’s fightback in 2nd test

Source: Cricket Nirvana

After losing the 1st test against Srilanka, India was again facing a danger of follow on when early on the third morning India lost three quick wickets with Sehwag stumped on 99!

But Sachin and Raina played well to take India to a safer position. Sachin scored his 48th century and he is just piling up his records. This is his 94th international century.

Click here to know more about Sachin record: Cricket Records

Click here to know more about ‘stumped on 99 records: Cricket Records

Click below for:

India Srilanka Scorecard

Dhoni marries childhood friend Sakshi Singh Rawat

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Indian Skipper MS Dhoni is now all set to play a new consistent innings of his life as he gets married to his childhood friend Sakshi Rawat.

28 year old Dhoni married his childhood friend Sakshi Rawat who is a hotel management student. The wedding ceremony took place at Vishranti resorts at Bidhauli situated at about 25 kms from Dehradun.

Read the complete story here.. Dhoni ties the nuptial knot with childhood friend

Other useful links:

ICC rankings

India Vs Srilanka Test Series 2010

Latest ICC Rankings – India finishes the year on 2nd spot

Source: Cricket Nirvana

ICC Rankings

ICC has confirmed that India will finish on the second position on the ODI rankings as the cut off date is of 1st April. India will receive a prize money of  $75,000 for achieving the second spot while Australia finishes 1st with a prize money of $175,000.

India has experienced a huge success this year in International cricket as they finished 1st in the ICC rankings for Test cricket which makes them eligible for a prize money of $175,000 in Test Cricket.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni with 819 points heads the ICC ODI rankings for batsmen. Sachin stands on the 4th position followed by Sehwag on 11th and Yuvraj on 13th. Harbhajan is on the seventh position in the bowler’s rankings.

Sachin Tendulkar speaks about Bharat Ratna

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Sachin Tendulkar speaks about the speculations of Bharat Ratna to be awarded to him. He said that he would like to be on the list of ‘Bharat Ratna’ awardees but currently he wants to concentrate on cricket.

Former cricketers Ajit Wadekar, Kapil Dev and Dilip Vengsarkar expressed their views that he should be awarded the highest civilian honour following his emphatic 200 runs knock against South Africa in the Gwalior ODI.

About his double century he said he would love to see an Indian breaking this record in future. He also said he is eagerly waiting for the 2011 World Cup which to be held in the Indian sub-continent.

Cricket News

Latest ICC Test Rankings – India number one!

Source: Cricket Nirvana

India Vs South Africa

India after defeating South Africa at Eden Gardens has leveled the World Championship of Cricket Series 1-1 and has also managed to retain the number one spot in ICC ratings for test.

Apart from this the Indian team will also receive a prize money of  US $175,000, which is presented to the team that reaches the April 1 cut-off date in top spot.

Useful links for more information:

ICC ratings

India South Africa Highlights

India South Africa Series Videos

Sehwag & Sachin hit centuries: India Vs South Africa 2nd Test

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Sehwag and Sachin were the stars today when they outplayed South African bowling with their brilliant batting performances. Sehwag scored 165 while Sachin scored 106. Their partnership of 249 runs was an absolute treat to watch. Sehwag scored his 19th test hundred while Sachin scored his 47th test century. This was Sachin’s fourth century in as many matches. Once India were cruising well on 331 for two but few quick wickets saw India at stumps with 342 for 5.

Earlier today South Africa added 30 valuable runs to their overnight score of 266 and ended their first innings on 296 all out. India now lead by 46 runs and a good batting display tomorrow can strengthen India’s position in this test match.

Click here for live cricket streaming of the 2nd test

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Rahul Dravid retired hurt on 111 whereas Sachin Tendulkar scored 143 against Bangladesh

Source: Cricket Nirvana

India has almost batted out Bangladesh of the second test match with Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar displaying a great example of batting by hitting a ton each. The inexperienced Bangladeshi attack was hammared by the batting maestros as India scored a huge 459 for 5 in reply to Bangladeshi score of 233 in the first innings. At the end of day two India is leading by 226 runs after losing 5 wickets.

Sachin Tendulkar - Rahul Dravid

Virendar Sehwag scored 56 while Gautam Gambhir scored 68. Gambhir looked set for hitting his 6th consecutive test century but he gloved the ball behind the wickets. He extended his superior form with his 11th consecutive half century in Tests and equaled Sir Vivian Richards in this record.

Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar shared a 222 runs partnership, their 17th 100 plus partnership which is a world record! Dravid found himself uncomfortable today against the short pitched bouncy deliveries. He was hit on the helmet while ducking a short ball from Shahadat Hossain. The blow was hard and Dravid was retired hurt when he was batting on 111.

Bangladesh Cricket Board president Mustafa Kamal, who visited Dravid at the hospital, confirmed that the Indian batsman has suffered two light fractures.

Sachin scored a brilliant 143 from 182 deliveries (his 45th test century). After the loss of Sachin’s wicket, India lost the wicket of Murali Vijay who scored an impressive 30 runs. Harbhajan lost his wicket in the last over of the day while skipper MS Dhoni was still on the crease at stumps.

Latest ICC Test Rankings

Source: Cricket Nirvana

After the conclusion of India Vs Bangladesh 1st test match, there are few changes in the ICC ratings for Test Cricket. Gautum Gambhir who scored a brilliant ton in the second innings has strengthened his top position in ICC batsmen rankings. He leads the chart with 881 points, a big 38 points lead over second placed Graeme Smith.

Sachin Tendulkar, the man of the match in this test match, who scored his 44th test ton has moved to 13th position with 744 points. VVS Laxman has also gained two spots and is now placed on 15th position. Rahul Dravid has slipped down to 19th rank.

Harbhajan Singh is the only Indian bowler who is placed in the top 10. He is on the 6th position with 705 points. Ishant Sharma has also gained nine places in the latest rankings and now sits in 16th position.

ICC ratings

Dhoni receives Test Championship mace

Indian Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni received the Test Championship mace from ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat after leading his team to the pinnacle of ICC Test rankings.

“It is a special feeling to receive this mace. I am taking this on behalf of the team and BCCI. Being an Indian it is a proud moment. We have really worked hard as a team in the last 14 months to get to this position. We want to remain here longer and everything depends on our performance,” said the Indian skipper.

India is the third team after Australia and South Africa to become the number Test side, after their 2-0 series victory over Sri Lanka early this month.

The ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat hailed the achievements of Indian cricketers in the recent past and said the team deserved to be on the top with such talented players. “In the last 14 months India has been dominating the world. In October 2008 India was ranked third in ICC Test Championships and in the last 14 months has risen to number one.

“In the ODI also, India is now ranked number two. Then you have Gautam Gambhir at the top of ICC Test batsmen ranking while Dhoni is on top in ODI chart. Dhoni is the ICC ODI player of the year for two consecutive years and chosen captain of both the ICC Test and ODI teams of the year.

“Then you have Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid who have immensely contributed to this transition. It reflects on the talent you can boast of. India has players who after a few years will be considered as legends of the game,” Lorgat said.

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Latest ICC ratings

Gautam Gambhir says “It was my best ODI knock”

Elated after guiding India to a facile, series-clinching win against Sri Lanka, star batsman Gautam Gambhir said he would rate the unbeaten 150 as the best innings of his career so far. He also expressed satisfaction of staying till the end and guiding the team to victory.

“This is the first time I finished a game remaining unbeaten. It was important for me to get going and convert it into a big one. It feels great that I finished the game,” Gambhir said after being named as the man of the match for the Kolkata contest. It was a brilliantly paced innings by the left-hander who added 224 runs with Virat Kohli (107) for the third wicket to put India’s chase back on track.

Gambhir said the series-clinching victory was made possible by the team’s impressive bench strength.

“We have enough guys in the bench who can prove themselves even in the absence of great players like Dhoni and Yuvraj,” Gambhir said.

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Dhoni banned for two one day matches

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been suspended for two ODIs for slow over-rate in the second One-dayer against Sri Lanka, according to television reports.

Match referee Jeff Crowe awarded the ban to Dhoni after the match got delayed by about an hour due to recurrent deliberations among the Indian players in the field when Lankans were closing in to the target.

Owing to the ban, Dhoni might miss the next two One-dayers of the five-match series, to be played in Cuttack and Kolkata. The Indian skipper will hence return to play the final ODI in Delhi.

Though reports say that opening batsman Gautam Gambhir is likely to take over the leadership in Dhoni’s absence, there has not been any confirmation from the BCCI in teh matter.

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Virendar Sehwag: It’s the best ODI innings I’ve played

Indian opener Virender Sehwag described his match-winning blistering 102-ball 146 in the first ODI against Sri Lanka as his best knock in one-day internationals.

“It is my best knock in one-day internationals. It is better than the 130 I made earlier,” the Delhi dasher said in the post-match press conference after India beat Sri Lanka by three runs.

“When Tendulkar and I were batting we thought we could reach 350 as the wicket was that good. But then when I and MS Dhoni got together to raise the 300 in the 32nd over we felt we could get 400,” he said.

“I could not have won the match alone. It was a team effort,” he declared.

A modest Sehwag also did not agree to suggestions that his batting was as destructive as that West Indian legend Vivian Richards.

“I don’t think I am anywhere near Sachin or Vivian Richards. It’s you media people who are making this up,” he said.

Source:  Cricket Nirvana

Yuvraj Singh: It’s the best birthday I’ve ever had

After leading India to a thrilling win over Sri Lanka in the second and final T20 International with an all-round performance, Yuvraj Singh, who turned 28 today, said that it was his “best birthday” so far.

“This is my best birthday till now. I am very happy the way we played, especially the batsmen,” Yuvraj said after scoring a blistering 60 of 25 balls and taking three crucial wickets

The flamboyant southpaw believed that after being set an imposing target of 207, Indian openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir had given a good start to the team.

Yuvraj has not had many special performances on his home ground to cherish. Expressing satisfaction over his stellar knock, he said, “now, I am happy to turn it around today. But frankly I was not expecting to score 60 of 25 balls”.

The birthday boy said after the victory his teammates celebrated in the dressing room by smearing the cake all over his face.

“There was lot of cake on my face. M S (Dhoni) held my hands and the rest of the players kept applying it all over my face and I could not see who all were the culprits. But I will take revenge once I come to know their names,” quipped Yuvraj.

Source: Cricket Nirvana

Harbhanjan advises young spinners “Never Give Up”

Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh advises junior spinners like Amit Mishra and Pragyan Ojha to back their talent with toil to prolong their international careers.

“Cricket has changed a lot and it’s still changing. The truth is, now it is even more difficult for spinners to grow.

“Now you have a lot of Twenty20s and ODIs, which are invariably high-scoring affairs. Even Test cricket has changed. There was a time when 250 was considered a par score in a day but now you have teams scoring 350-plus or even 400 with ease.

“No wonder, you don’t see too many young spinners coming up. An average spinner today is scared of flighting the ball or trying to get those big, spectacular turns. That is an art and I’m afraid it is on the wane,” Harbhajan rued.

Despite the difficulties, Harbhajan asks the aspiring spinners to develop wicket-taking abilities rather than looking to contain runs.

“I think we still need to find youngsters who can overcome this habit of containing and are willing to take the risk and responsibility, keeping enough faith in their ability to do well,” said Harbhajan, who has 586 international wickets under his belt.

The off-spinner now wants to pass on to the youngsters some valuable advice, “Be it Ojha or Amit Mishra, they are all talented guys and you have to give them time to settle down. Sometimes, they will find the going easy and at times, they would have to be patient.

“My advice to them is to never give up and keep trying. That is what I learnt from Anil Bhai and I would pass on the same message to the youngsters. They have to keep working hard if they want to play for a long time and bowl a lot of overs for India,” said Harbhajan.

Source: Cricket Nirvana