Westindies tour of india 2011. News and update.

[M@zh@R]

We don't panic whatever the situation, says a proud Sehwag

CUTTACK: The edge-of-the-seat one-wicket victory in the first ODI against the West Indies was too close for comfort for the thousands at the Barabati stadium and millions more watching on television.

Admitting that he was "a bit tense in the end when we needed 11 runs with our last pair out in the middle," Virender Sehwag was quick to add that they didn't panic at any stage.

"No, there was no panic. That has been the quality of this Indian dressing room for the past couple of years. We don't really panic, whatever may be the situation. We all stay calm and cool, and believe in ourselves," the Indian skipper said at the post-match press conference.

Sehwag was all praise for his young guns who fought bravely when the chips were down. "I am happy with the way Rohit (Sharma), (Ravinder) Jadeja and R Vinay Kumar shaped up. They all played very responsibly," said Sehwag, standing in for MS Dhoni, who has taken a break.

India were far from convincing en route to going one-up in the five-match series, but Sehwag was not perturbed by the narrow margin of victory.
Newspaper:Times Of India,1st Dec

 

[M@zh@R]

Sehwag praises Rohit, Jadeja and Vinay

India captain Virender Sehwag on Tuesday gave full credit to Man-of-the-Match Rohit Sharma for his match-winning 72, Ravindra Jadeja and R. Vinay Kumar for shaping India's one-wicket victory over the West Indies at the Barabati Stadium to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match ODI series.

“A win is a win. It does not matter whether the victory is by one wicket or by 10. It was important that we began the series on a winning note.

“Full credit to Rohit, Jadeja and Vinay. They built partnerships, which is very important to win matches,” he said at the post match press conference.

“When you lose five quick wickets, it is difficult to come back. I praise Rohit and Jadeja as their partnership took us very close to the target. After that Vinay and Rohit had a good partnership. It is not easy when a team loses five wickets.

“The way Rohit, Jadeja and Vinay batted it was great to see the team recover from a bad start. Also we stayed calm. We believe that we can win from any situation,'' he said.

He said two good balls were bowled to him and Virat Kohli. “Parthiv Patel, Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina were soft dismissals. We have to learn from the mistakes. We have to back our batting,'' he said.

Sehwag singled out Rohit's innings for praise and said, “Rohit is one of the most talented batsmen. He is one of the best and he is proving himself.''

On putting the opposition in, Sehwag defended his decision and said, “My decision was absolutely right. We restricted the West Indies to 212. It was the batsmen's mistake that we plunged to 59 for five.

“I hope we will come up with strong batting performances in the next games.”
Newspaper:The Hindu, 1st Dec

 

[M@zh@R]

Teams arrive for second ODI

India and the West Indies arrived here on Wednesday for the second one-dayer to be held at the ACA-VDCA stadium on December 2 (Friday).

The teams preferred to stay in their hotel rooms after their arrival. They are, however, scheduled to practice at the stadium on Thursday.

The organisers said that all arrangements have been made for the smooth conduct of the match, and added that the pitch would be batsmen-friendly.

All tickets of lower denomination were sold out in less than one hour at various counters across the city on Tuesday.
Newspaper:The Hindu, 1st Dec

 

[M@zh@R]

Ind vs WI: India look to maintain winning mode in 2nd ODI

VISAKHAPATNAM: When a team is in winning mode, it doesn't know how to lose, while teams unaccustomed to victory somehow contrive to let the advantage slip.

That's what happened in the first one-dayer in Cuttack, when India had a bad day in office but still ended up on the winning side. The West Indies, who did much better than expected while defending a low score, failed to raise their game at key moments and that cost them the match.

"India have won a lot of matches at home in the recent past. They've found a way to win even from hopeless situations and that I believe is what makes them a dangerous team," West Indies skipper Darren Sammy said on Thursday, the eve of the second ODI.

"We can take heart from the fact that we have managed to take the Indians to the wire. This will definitely give the team a lot of confidence. We too have to find a way to win. We are a young side and I believe in the potential of these players," Sammy said.

Confidence is a great thing but the skipper knows that it will take more than mere confidence to stop the Indians at a venue where they are yet to lose a game.

India, meanwhile, have to guard against the kind of batting failure which nearly cost them the Cuttack game. Skipper Virender Sehwag is hoping the dismal performance of the top order is just a blip on the radar, and that his men will make best use of a traditionally batting-friendly strip.

Sehwag will be itching to get among the runs himself. Virat Kohli - who has a century against his name on this ground - and the likes of Suresh Raina and Gautam Gambhir would not like to be left behind. Rohit Sharma will be hoping his impressive performance in Cuttack is the first of many.

The Windies batsmen, on the other hand, will have to somehow conjure up that elusive commodity called consistency. Barring Darren Bravo, the rest of the lot haven't really made use of their starts. Added to that is the inability to tackle spin. They also need to come to terms with the pace of Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav, who have got India the early breakthroughs.
Newspaper:Times Of India,2nd Dec

 

[M@zh@R]

Senior players may leave for Australia early

MUMBAI: There is a strong possibility that some senior members of the Indian cricket team, especially Test specialists like VVS Laxman who does not play ODIs, would leave for Australia ahead of the team's departure on December 12.

"Nothing has been decided as yet and we would inform the media once it happens, but yes the possibility of some players leaving early for Australia exists," a Cricket Board source said on Thursday.

India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni told reporters in Mumbai after the conclusion of the three-Test series against the West Indies that such a move, if it happens, would benefit the players to get used to the conditions in Australia ahead of what is touted as a battle royale against the hosts.
Newspaper:Times Of India,2nd Dec

 

[M@zh@R]

Windies will hope openers, Pollard come good

A miss is as good as a mile, and despite dominating India in phases the West Indies still searches for its first win on tour going into the second ODI, to be played at Visakhapatnam on Friday. The setting — the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Stadium — is hardly an ideal one for a visiting team to come out on top.

Four hundreds and 11 fifties have been plundered at this ground in three matches, and the result on every occasion has gone the way of the home team. The conduciveness of the pitch to batting is no secret, and it will take some doing to fell the host at a ground so partial to one facet of the game — something India has traditionally excelled at.

It was, however, the host's green pace-bowling trio of Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Vinay Kumar that set the ball rolling in the first ODI at Cuttack. With a little help from R. Ashwin, the three restricted the West Indies to a manageable 211 for nine, after which Indian batsmen fell like ninepins and half the side was out for 59.
Newspaper:The Hindu, 2nd Dec

 

[M@zh@R]

Rohit wants to win Vizag ODI for mother Purnima

Rohit Sharma, the architect of India's nail-biting one-wicket win in the first ODI in Cuttack, is eager to win the second ODI against West Indies today not only for the team but also for his mother Purnima, who hails from the port city.

Sharma said a win today would be a perfect gift for her. "Of course, that (win in second ODI) will be a gift (for her)," Sharma told reporters on the eve of the match. "Vizag has been always good for us. It's always been a belter of track as far as my knowledge goes. I've done really well whenever I've played here. Against Australia, we chased down 290 with five wickets to spare," added Sharma, who scored a brilliant match-winning 99-ball 72 in the last ODI.

The Indians will also be looking to maintain their 100 per cent win record at the Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium. "The wicket here is batsman-friendly. We will try to keep that record intact. We want to focus on our preparation and have to take it from there. We don't want to think too far ahead," Sharma said.

However, Sharma said it was a mistake to leave the task unfinished for the tailenders while chasing a modest 212 for victory in the last one-dayer. The Mumbaikar was disappointed to have failed to finish off the match as he departed with India 201-9, leaving the task to the last-wicket pair of Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron.
Newspaper:Mid Day, 2nd Dec

 

[ssparikshya]

Toss: Slight delay to the toss because of drizzle, covers are on.

 

[Karthik]

Toss will be at 2.30pm. Match starting at 2.45pm.

 

[Ravi budhwar]

India won the toss and elected to bowl first