The Unbeaten Indian team will look to solve the bowling troubles

An unbeaten Indian team will look to find a few answers to their bowling woes when they meet a hot and cold Netherlands in their World Cup Group B match at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi on Wednesday.

Co-hosts India are leading the group with wins against Bangladesh and Ireland and a nerve-wrangling tied match against England.

While the batting has shown depth and maturity with the team crossing the 300-run mark twice, the bowling has lacked punch [ID:nLDE7260LO].

India has vowed to play seven batsmen in their team with the part-time spinners handling the fifth bowler's job and it has meant that there has been a lack of wicket-taking options.

But the hard-fought victory against Ireland on Sunday has only made captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni more determined in playing seven specialist batsmen.

"The most important thing was everyone got a chance to bat and we were batting under pressure. It was very good exposure for all the batsmen," captain Dhoni said after their five-wicket victory against Ireland.

"These are the games where you feel it's always good to have a batsman at number seven."

Although Yuvraj Singh will occasionally silence the critics with his part-time spin, India will need their regular spinners to fire more often.

Leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, while showing a lot of variation, has been expensive and there has been talk of bringing in off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin for Chawla.

"We are showing signs of improvement," Dhoni said about his team's bowling.

"I think it's important to peak at the right time since it's a long tournament. What we have seen is slow and gradual improvement in the bowling side."

Netherlands, for their part, started the tournament on a high, racking up 292 for six against England in their first match.

But their form has declined ever since as they got shot out for 115 against West Indies and 120 against South Africa in their next two matches.

They are lying at the bottom of Group B with three straight losses.

WI, Bangladesh captains declare that there is no issue with UDRS

DHAKA: The Indian cricket board is backing captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni over his controversial statement about the implementation of the Umpire Decision Review Decision (UDRS) after a decision went against them in the thrilling tie against England but not many skippers in the World Cup are willing to throw in their hats in the ring.

West Indies captain Darren Sammy refused to be drawn into the affair saying, "You have to ask the BCCI to answer this not me".

About his view on UDRS Sammy said, "I think it's a good asset to have in today's game as it minimizes errors. It brings out the correct decision most of the time. I've have no problems with it. It's a good addition to the game."

Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan, too, felt that the UDRS is more beneficial than detrimental. "I have no complains, I don't know about the others," he said.

"Technology helps, maybe not 100 per cent of the times. I still feel we should use it," added Shakib.

Dhoni had said that "adulteration of the technology with human intervention wasn't good for the game".

India on its part hasn't approved the use of UDRS stating that the technology isn't true at all times.

Very Hard to improve fielding - Dhoni

BANGALORE: India's sloppy fielding nearly cost them defeat against England but skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni admitted it would be difficult to lift standards in his ageing side.

India racked up a huge score of 338 in their clash on Sunday in Bangalore, helped by a century from Sachin Tendulkar, but the match ended in a dramatic tie after England skipper Andrew strauss hit 158.

The host nation's powerful batting line-up has fired in both World Cup matches so far but there are growing concerns about their bowling and fielding after conceding 283 in their win against Bangladesh and 338 against England.

Dhoni said it would be tough to boost fielding standards due to the make-up of the squad after a cumbersome fielding performance. "I don't think we can improve the fielding very much because we have got quite a few slow fielders in the side," he said. "But as far as the bowling department is concerned I think we have got a talented group so hopefully in the coming games we can improve a lot."

Tendulkar is the oldest player in the squad, at 37, with Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan both 32 but a number of other players are also nearing 30.

Giving his reaction to the sensational tie, Dhoni said: "I am not disappointed, not excited. I have got mixed feelings. There were times when we could have lost, and times when we could have won the match."

"It was a thrilling match because both the teams were facing defeat or victory at some point. All credit to England for the way they batted," he added.

Asked about his frequent discussions with Sehwag during the England innings, Dhoni said he consulted senior players for the good of the team.

"There are quite a few decisions you have to make. We have some experienced guys and we are always trying to make the best decisions for the team," he said.

"I always let the fast bowlers set the field when they are bowling. It's only when they don't work I set my own."

Asked about the inclusion of leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, Dhoni said he was not sure whether three seamers would have given the right balance.

He said paceman Ashish Nehra needed to be 100 percent fit to be considered for selection.

Dhoni Get Offers if india Win World Cup

The St Xavier's College in Ranchi has welcomed the Jharkhand government's plan to award an honorary degree to Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Jharkhand human resource development (HRD) minister Baidyanath Ram last week announced the plan to give the honorary degree to Dhoni as a giftElectric Scooter in India

if India win the cricket world cup starting Feb 19.
"We welcome the government's announcement to award an honorary degree to Dhoni. We will do the needful if we get a proposal from the government," Father Nicolas Tete, principal of the college, said.

College students are also excited over the announcement.

"We will be happy if Dhoni is gifted an honorary degree as an award for winning the world cup after 28 years," said Rajesh Sen, a final year graduation student. Hyundai Dealers in India

Dhoni is not a graduate. He took admission to a graduation course in 2008 in St Xavier's College but could not find time to complete it.

Blue India Have More Match Winners: Kirmani

"All the players from top to bottom are match-winners. Anyone from the group is capable of winning the match for the country. Starting from captain (Mahendra Singh) Dhoni to iconic batsman (Sachin) Tendulkar to devastating (Virender) Sehwag to (Gautam) Gambhir, Yuvraj (Singh), Suresh Raina or Yusuf Pathan ... it could be just anyone.

"We have an extremely well-balanced team and the best part is everyone seems to be in form," Kirmani said.second hand cars in chennai

Asked if a second wicket-keeper could have been a good option in case of an injury to regular Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the former stumper said it was not at all a worrying factor.

"We are playing in the sub-continent and in our own environment so it would not be too difficult to bring in a replacement wicket-keeper immediately in case of a casualty. So, probably taking this fact into consideration, the selection committee did not go in for a second wicket-keeper," he said.

Stating that the current Indian squad is one of the favourites to lift the Cup, the 61-year-old said he has been hoping and praying for the last 28 years for the country to bring back the glory.

"We have a very good chance this time as our side is a very competent one.electric bicycles in India They are equally competent, if not more, than some of the other teams. We have been hoping and praying for the last 28 years for India to lift the Cup again and it seems that this team has it in them to fulfil the wish," said the former India Test cricketer.

Kirmani admitted that the four-time World champions Australia will be a weaker side compared to India, South Africa and England in the upcoming mega-event but cautioned that the Kangaroos can never be taken for granted.

"You never know, Australia can come back any time. You can never count them out. Obviously, the experienced players, who won the Cup thrice for the country are not there anymore but Aussies are in a process of re-establishing themselves.

"The youngsters will certainly take some time to reach that level. So, as a team they definitely look a little weaker at the moment as compared to some of the stronger sides like India, South Africa, England," he opined.

"But again if you look at the ongoing ODI series between England and Australia, the latter are doing well and the English, who thought it would be a cake-walk for them after their 3-1 Ashes victory, are finding it tough," added Kirmani.

Kirmani, who played 88 Tests, predicted that India, South Africa, England and Sri Lanka would make it to the semifinals of the mega-event, starting February 19 in Dhaka but warned that there could be a few surprises as well.

"The New Zealanders, Pakistanis and Australians could never be underestimated. Just like Australia, Pakistan also have some talented young players who can spring up surprises," Kirmani said.kerala used cars

Asked to compare the current Indian side with that of the 1983 World Cup winning team, he said, "Unlike ours, which was a weaker unit and were given a tag of the underdogs, this team is very strong."

"We never thought we would lift the Cup. We were the most inexperienced team in the competition. We just aimed at qualifying for the knockout stage. That was the only thing on our minds. In fact, no body even expected us to reach the knock-out round also," recollected Kirmani, who was awarded the best wicket-keeper in the 1983 World Cup.

"But we gained confidence when we won our opening match against then reigning world champions West Indies by 34 runs. After that game, we thought if we could beat the Windies in the very first encounter, why should we look back?"

Attributing Indian team's success in the 83' World Cup to their positive approach, consistency and complacency of other teams, he said, "Whosoever we played they thought that we were a very weak side and took us lightly. But they were under a wrong impression. They failed to realise that on a particular day we were the better players."

Looking back at his own most memorable contribution to the team's success in the 83' World Cup, Kirmani said the match where captain Kapil Dev scored unbeaten 175 against Zimbabwe to turn the tide in India's favour, had him as a silent contributer at the other end.

"One of our most important matches of the tournament was against Zimbabwe when India found itself reeling at 17 for five with Kapil Dev trying to pull us out of trouble single-handedly. At 140 for eight, I joined Kapil who was playing at some 50 plus score with another 30-35 overs more to go in a 60-over match.

"I walked in very boldly, as usual, without losing my concentration and before I took the stance I just went to Kapil and told him 'don't worry, you just play your natural game and I will be at my best at the other end, giving you the maximum support and maximum strike. I will just take a single and leave the deliveries for you to face'," narrated Kirmani.

"From there on it was one of the most fabulous knocks of Kapil that I have seen - perhaps the most devastating one - and I gave him the strength and we remained not out till 60 overs. He scored 175 and I scored somewhere between 23 to 30."

Pepsico Book Dhoni

the company paved the way for a dramatic play-off with India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni who is heading rival Pepsico India’s brand endorsement projects.

Coke, it is understood, is paying Tendulkar Rs 20 crore for a three-year deal. That’s more than what Dhoni is getting from Pepsico and is quite a turnaround for the little master who had earlier seen the number of endorsements dipping over the last few years. “This is set to see a correction now with Tendulkar playing almost at his best,” says Santosh Desai, Future Brands CEO.

The brand Sachin versus Dhoni battle also took a new turn when reports came in that the former had turned down an offer to endorse a leading liquor brand which would have been the highest-paid deal for an Indian sportsman. And these happened just days after Dhoni signed a Rs 26 crore endorsement contract with Vijay Mallya’s UB Group, making him the highest paid sportsperson for a single endorsement deal in the country.

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Brand experts, however, say the so-called brand battle between the two are just sideshows in a year when big ticket sporting properties such as the ICC World Cup 2011 and the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League are going to jack up the endorsement fees for both.

Indranil Blah, vice president, Kwan Entertainment which is into sports management, says, “While the number of brands that Tendulkar and Dhoni endorse is not expected to increase sharply as compared to last year, their rates may go up by 40-50 per cent.” According to industry estimates, both Tendulkar and Dhoni get paid as much as Rs 5 crore per endorsement, which is set to rise to over Rs 7 crore this year.

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Tendulkar is endorsing 15 brands at present. He is the face of Castrol products in the country and promotes brands such as Castrol Power1, Activ and GTX. He also endorses appliances major Toshiba, ITC’s Sunfeast, Boost, Canon, Royal Bank of Scotland, Reynolds, Jaypee Cements, Aviva Life Insurance, Adidas, luxury Swiss watch Audemars Piguet and Pune-based Amit Housing Enterprises among others.

Industry sources estimate the size of sports endorsement market to be valued at around Rs 200 crore, which can grow by 20 per cent due to the cricket packed season. Dhoni, for instance, renegotiated his existing deal with Maxx Mobiles for seven years for Rs 29 crore which was initially valued at Rs 10 crore.

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Dhoni’s associations are managed by Rhiti Sports Management (RSM). Arun Pandey, president RSM, said, “Dhoni at present endorses 24 brands. There is a lot of interest from companies to have in on board.” Dhoni is also the brand ambassador for Fashion Bazaar, Sonata, Amrapali Housing amongst others.

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Dhoni Take Piyush in Wordcup Squad

Chawla has been a surprise inclusion in the squad, announced on Monday by the Kris Srikkanth-led selection committee in Chennai.

"It is good to have Piyush in the side as he provides that variety to the attack. He is one guy who can bat a bit. He has scored decent runs in Ranji and also while playing in County circuit. If we plan to play with five bowlers, then he can be a handy number seven or eight batsman," Dhoni said on the eve of India's third ODI against South Africa.

Chawla has been picked despite not playing a one-dayer since July 2008, and Dhoni was aware of that.

"I would always say that playing in first class match or IPL match and playing in the international match is different. Piyush needs that international match practice," the India skipper said.