Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Virender Sehwag


Virender Sehwag pronunciation (help·info) (born on 20 October 1978, in Delhi) also known as "Viru" is an Indian cricketer (batsman) and member of the Indian national cricket team since 1999 (one-dayers) and 2001 (Tests). He is an extremely aggressive right-handed opening batsman and an occasional right-arm off-spin bowler. He is the record holder for the highest score made by an Indian in Test cricket in a single innings (319), the fastest triple century in Test cricket (reached 300 off only 278 balls) and is the only Indian to score a triple century in Test cricket. He is one of the only three players to have scored two triple hundreds in Tests, along with Don Bradman and Brian Lara. He is the only player to score two triple centuries and take a five wicket haul at Test level.

Sehwag was appointed as vice-captain of the Indian team under Rahul Dravid in October 2005, until poor form saw him replaced by V. V. S. Laxman in December 2006 as Test vice-captain and January 2007 saw him dropped from the ODI team and later from the Test team as well.[1] During his term as Vice-captain, Sehwag skippered the team in place of injured Dravid in 2 ODIs and 1 Test. Following his return to form in 2008 and the retirement of Anil Kumble, Sehwag has been reappointed vice-captain for both Tests and ODIs.
Personal information
Full name Virender Sehwag
Born 20 October 1978 (age 30)
 Delhi, India
Batting style Right-handed
Bowling style Right arm off spin
International information
Test debut (cap 239) 3 November 2001: v South Africa
Last Test 6 November 2008: v Australia
ODI debut (cap 123) 1 April 1999: v Pakistan
Last ODI 26 November 2008: v England
ODI shirt no. 44
Domestic team information
Years Team
1997 – present Delhi
2003 Leicestershire
Career statistics
 Tests ODI FC LA
Matches 64 196 125 266
Runs scored 5,508 6,124 9,936 8,077
Batting average 51.96 33.28 49.92 33.10
100s/50s 15/17 9/33 29/35 10/50
Top score 319 130 319 130

Balls bowled 2,281 3,871 6,912 5,476
Wickets 29 84 93 130
Bowling average 38.58 40.63 38.19 36.20
5 wickets in innings 1 0 1 0
10 wickets in match 0 n/a 0 n/a
Best bowling 5/104 3/25 5/104 4/17
Catches/stumpings 49/– 76/– 106/– 100/–
Early years

The son of a grain merchant, Sehwag spent his childhood in a bungalow in a joint family with siblings, uncles, aunts and sixteen cousins[citation needed]. Though now settled in New Delhi, the Sehwag family hailed from Haryana. Sehwag was the third of four children born to father Krishan and mother Krishna Sehwag, with two older sisters Manju, Anju and younger brother Vinod. His father attributes his interest in cricket to a toy bat which he was given when he was seven months old. He attended Arora Vidya School in Delhi, and pestered his parents to let him play cricket, on the basis that he was not academically gifted.[2] His father tried to end his career when he broke a tooth as a child in 1990, but Sehwag evaded the ban with the help of his mother[3].

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Cricketing career

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Early domestic cricket

Sehwag made his debut for Delhi cricket team in first class cricket in the 1997–98 season. He was selected to the North Zone cricket team for the Duleep Trophy the following 1998-99 season, ending fifth in the total runscoring list.[4] The following year he was fourth on the Duleep Trophy run scoring list, including a 274, the highest score of the competition.[5] This was attained against South Zone at Agartala in just 327 balls, and followed a rapid 187 from just 175 in a Ranji Trophy match against Punjab.[6] He was then selected for the U-19 team which toured South Africa.[2] He was seventh in the 2000–01 season with two centuries,[7] but his consistency earned the attention of selectors and he became a regular member of the national team in mid 2001.

Since his international career started, he has continued to play for Delhi in the domestic competition whilst he is not occupied with international duty and has captained North Zone to victory in the Deodhar Trophy in 2004–05 and 2005–-06.[8] He also had a short stint with Leicestershire in county cricket in 2003, but a back injury lead to a mutual termination of the contract.[9]

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ODI career

Sehwag's ODI career started poorly when he scored 1 against Pakistan in Mohali in April 1999. His bowling performance was also ineffective and expensive, conceding 35 runs off 3 overs.[10]

Sehwag wasn't given another match until the home series against Zimbabwe[1] in December 2000. Sehwag rose to prominence in his fourth ODI match in March 2001 when he scored 58 off 54 balls, against Australia in Bangalore. Combined with his three wickets, he help earn India a victory and was awarded his first man of the match award.[11] He followed this with an unproductive tour of Zimbabwe in mid 2001.

Sehwag had his international breakthrough in Sri Lanka in August 2001 when he was promoted to the opening slot for the tri-series also involving New Zealand. The promotion to open the innings came because regular opener Sachin Tendulkar was absent due to a foot injury.[12] In the match against New Zealand that was to decide the finalist, he scored his maiden century from 69 balls.[13] The century is the third fastest ODI century for an Indian behind Mohammad Azharuddin's 62 ball effort and Yuvraj singh's 64 ball effort. This was his first score beyond 50 in ten matches and saw him named man of the match. This performance earned him a regular spot in the ODI squad in the middle-order. An innings of note in 2002 was the 22 ball half-century against Kenya in Bloemfontein, tying the second fastest 50 by an Indian.

With Ganguly's injury in the India-England ODI Series in January 2002, Sehwag received another opportunity to open the innings which he seized by scoring 82 from 64 balls in Kanpur in an eight-wicket Indian victory.[14] With good performances as opener, Sehwag was made a permanent fixture at the top of the innings. Sachin Tendulkar, who opened in the England ODI series, was moved to middle order[15] - a strategy that reaped dividends for India in 2002 in ODI matches. In the England series and the preceding tour to South Africa, he compiled 426 runs at 42.6 with four half-centuries [2].

After modest returns on the tours of the West Indies and England in early and mid 2002, he scored 271 runs at 90.33 in the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka, with two man of the match performances. After running out Ian Blackwell, he was involved in a 192 run partnership with Ganguly, scoring 126 from 104 balls to help set up an eight wicket victory against England in a group match.[16] He then scored 58 from 54 balls and took 3/25 including two wickets in the final over to help defeat South Africa by 10 runs[17] to help India progress to the final.

In late 2002 he scored an unbeaten 114 from 82 balls that included a 196 run partnership with Ganguly to lead India to a nine wicket win over the West Indies in Rajkot.[18] He was the only batsman to score a century in the 7 match New Zealand ODI Series where he made two centuries - 108 in Napier[19] in an Indian defeat and 112 in Auckland[20] in a one-wicket victory.

Virender Sehwag had a mediocre 2003 Cricket World Cup, scoring 299 runs at an average of 27, he top scored with 82 in the loss against Australia in the final.[21]
 
Sehwag in fielding practice.

Later in 2003, he scored his fourth century and earned Man of the Match award against New Zealand in Hyderabad, scoring 130 and putting on a 182 run partnership with Tendulkar, to lay the foundations for a 145 run victory.[22] In spite of it, Sehwag struggled for consistency in 2003 and 2003/04 ODI series where he had only one century and 3 fifties, two against minnows - Bangladesh and Zimbabwe and one against Pakistan, in 22 matches.

Even with his inconsistent form, he earned 3 MoM awards in 2004 and 2004/05 ODI season with one award each against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. In the match against Pakistan in Kochi he scored 108 off 95 balls, his first century in eighteen months which set up a 95 run victory.[23]

Sehwag then started a two year streak without a century in ODIs, as well as having his ODI tour of Pakistan in early 2006 curtailed due to a shoulder injury.[24] His drought in limited overs cricket has puzzled cricket experts because of the consistent performances in Test matches with a high scoring rate has not translated into significant contributions in the ODI format of the game.[25] Sehwag was dropped from the ODI Squad for the WI-IND 4 Match ODI series. With debate over whether he needs to be included in the 2007 Cricket World Cup squad, captain Dravid's insistence on his retention paved the way to being named in the world cup squad.[26] However, despite this assurance, Sehwag's form has continued to decline, and he has now failed to pass 17 in his last seven games. India have won only two of those games.

Sehwag started the 2007 World Cup in poor form, only being picked for the side because of Rahul Dravid's wishes. He scored poorly in the first group match but bounced back to hit a magnificent 114 from 87 deliveries against lowly ranked Bermuda. The Indian team scored 413-5, the highest team total in a World Cup match, and went on to win the match but this was their only win in the tournament.

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ODI summary

In ODI cricket, Sehwag has enjoyed the most success against New Zealand, scoring four of his eight centuries against them, whilst averaging 45 in 16 games. Sehwag's worst record is against world champions Australia, against whom he averages only 22 in 17 games, with just two half centuries. Sehwag's scoring rate is extremely quick, at 96.76 runs per 100 balls (it is exceeded only by six current players, only one of whom has played 100 matches), but his average is a fairly ordinary 31.50. His average is highest whilst playing in New Zealand, and is higher in the subcontinent and Oceania than in other places. He has had more success in run chases, averaging four more than when batting first, as well as scoring five of his nine centuries in run chases. He has led India on three occasions, due to the unavailability of Dravid due to illness, injury or rotation policy.

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Test career
 
An innings-by-innings breakdown of Sehwag's Test match batting career, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line).

Sehwag's maiden century in mid-2001 in Sri Lanka was not enough to gain selection in the Test team for the corresponding series.[27] Sehwag made his Test debut in late 2001 in the First Test against South Africa in Bloemfontein as a middle-order batsman. He scored 105 on debut despite the South African win.[28] He was given a one match suspension by ICC match referee Mike Denness for overappealing[29] in the Second Test in Port Elizabeth, which lead to political dispute amongst the ICC and the two countries. He returned for the home series in 2001-02 against England and Zimbabwe. After scoring two half-centuries in the preceding series, he was promoted to a makeshift-opener on the 2002 England tour after the failure of previous openers and an experiment with wicket-keeper Deep Dasgupta. He scored 84 in the new role at Lord's[30] and then a century in the Second Test at Trent Bridge,[31] and has batted there in Test matches ever since. He scored his maiden home-century of 147 in the First Test against the West Indies in the 2002-03 home season in Mumbai, which was at the time his top score in Test matches, earning him his first man of the match award.[32] After a poor tour to New Zealand, he scored passed 50 for the first time in 9 innings when he scored 130 in a Test at Mohali against New Zealand in late 2003[33][34] [3].

He then scored 195 against Australia on Boxing Day 2003 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.[35] His dismissal on the first afternoon lead to an Indian collapse and eventual defeat.[36]

In early 2004, he became the only Indian to score a triple century in Test cricket, with 309 against Pakistan in the First Test in Multan, beating V. V. S. Laxman's previous Indian record(281 against Australia) and helping India to a total of 5/675, the highest ever against Pakistan.[37] India went on to win by an innings, with Sehwag named man of the match.[38] He also scored 90 in the Second Test defeat in Lahore[39] and was named man of the series for his efforts after being the highest run scorer and average for the series.[40][41] He later auctioned the bat with which he made the triple century, for Rs. 70,000, to aid in relief efforts for the tsunami victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake[citation needed].

In the First Test of the 2004 Border Gavaskar Trophy in Bangalore, Sehwag was fined for showing "serious dissent" towards umpire Billy Bowden following an LBW dismissal.[42] Replays showed that he had hit the ball off the middle of his bat onto his leg, which later lead to an apology from Bowden.[43] Sehwag scored 155 in the Chennai test match to set up a triple figure lead for the Indians, but the match was rained out on the final day with the Indians requiring 229 for victory.[44][45] In the home series against South Africa that year, he scored 164 in the drawn First Test in Kanpur,[46] and 88 in the Second in Kolkata, which India won to claim the series. Sehwag was again named man of the series.[47]

Sehwag failed on the tour of Bangladesh, but on the 2005 home series against Pakistan, he scored 173 in Mohali,[48] 81 in Kolkata[49] and then 201 in Bangalore,[50] totalling 544 runs at an average of 90.66 to win the man of the series award. He passed the 3000 run mark in Tests during the Bangalore Test, becoming the fastest Indian to reach the mark in terms of innings played.[51] His performances over the preceding 12 months earned him selection in the ICC Test Team of the Year as well as nomination for Test player of the year.[52]

He earned selection for the ICC World XI which played Australia in the 2005 ICC Super Series, where he top scored in the first innings with 76. He attracted some criticism at the end of 2005, having failed to pass 50 in four Tests against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. He also missed the Second Test against Sri Lanka in Delhi due to illness,[53] but returned to the team in the following match in Ahmedabad and captained the Indians to victory whilst Rahul Dravid was ill.[54]

Sehwag scored his first century in a year when he compiled 254 against Pakistan in the First Test in Lahore in January 2005, the highest ever Test score at a strike rate of over 100 and the second fastest double century ever.[55] In doing so he was involved in a 410 run partnership with captain Rahul Dravid, the highest ever against Pakistan and in Pakistan, and just four short of a new world record opening partnership in Test matches.[56] Sehwag went on to lampoon the Pakistani attack led by Shoaib Akhtar.[57] Sehwag however failed to pass 50 in the following two Tests against Pakistan, and aside from a 76* in the Second Test in Mohali against England, fell seven times for less than 20 runs to the new ball [4], leading criticism of his position in the team.[58]

During the 2006 West Indies tour, Sehwag narrowly missed out on scoring a century in the opening session of the Second Test in St Lucia, ending with 99 at the interval.[59] He went on to compile 180 in just 190 balls, and also collected four wickets for the match to be named man of the match.[60] Although Sehwag had collected more than 50 wickets in ODIs, he was substantially used as a Test bowler for the first time on the West Indies tour, taking nine wickets in the first two Test matches when he was used in the absence of off-spinner Harbhajan Singh as India opted to only use one specialist spinner.[61] He had previously only three wickets at Test level [5]. He was also fined in the First Test for excessive appealing.[62]

Poor form saw Sehwag being dropped from the Test team in 2007. In December 2007, he was recalled for India's tour of Australia after being omitted form the list of probables, [63] amid calls for his return by several commentators, most notably Ian Chappell [64].

Though he was omitted from the team for the first two matches, both of which India lost, he was picked for the third Test at the WACA in Perth after scoring a century in a tour match against the ACT Invitational XI [65]. He played a key part in India's victory, making 72 runs at a brisk pace and taking 2 crucial wickets [66] He scored a match-saving 151 in the second innings of the fourth Test in Adelaide. This was his first century in the second innings of a test match, and was notable in that he rejected his usual, aggressive batting style in favour of a more defensive approach which was the need of the hour[67].

Sehwag continued his good form against South Africa in the home series in April 2008, scoring 319 in the first Test in Chennai, having reached 300 off just 278 balls, the fastest triple century in test history. Sehwag became only the third batsman after Sir Donald Bradman and Brian Lara to score 2 triple centuries in Test Cricket. He scored 257 runs the third day of the match, which was the most runs scored by an individual batsman on a single day of a Test match since 1954, when Dennis Compton made 273 runs on the second day of the Nottingham Test against Pakistan [68].

He has a habit of making big centuries, with his last eleven centuries having all been over 150, including two triple centuries and further three double centuries which surpassed Sir Donald Bradman's record of having seven consecutive centuries beyond 150.[56]

He has been noted for his record against Pakistan, averaging over 90 against and in Pakistan, scoring four centuries against India's arch rivals. The disparity in his average in the first and second innings is often noted, being 68 and 25 and all but one of his fifteen Test centuries having come in the first innings[6].

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Sehwag in Non-India Colours

He was selected in the ICC World XI for the 2005 ICC Super Series against Australia in late 2005, but only managed 64 runs at an average of 21.33 [7]. Earlier in 2005, he was selected for the Asian Cricket Council XI for the fundraising match against the ICC World XI in the aftermath of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

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Playing style
 
Sehwag batting in the nets.

Sehwag was often compared to Sachin Tendulkar in his early days due to the similar batting style, build and appearance.[6] He has acknowledged numerous times that he consciously attempted to model his playing style on Tendulkar's in his youth.

Sehwag's technique is often cited as being particularly unorthodox, often backing away (considered technically incorrect) to free his arms whilst playing his shots, in particular to cut or drive spinners inside out. He is frequently cited by commentators for his extremely strong (physically) square cutting and upper cutting and power through the off-side.[69][69]He is also an excellent player of the late cut.[citation needed] In particular his tendency to strike the ball in the air and risk dismissal is a trait which has seen him noted for his chancy and adventurous mindset.[70] He is also noted for a relative lack of footwork,[71] with his timing often attributed to his eyesight. Of late, Sehwag has shown a proclivity to be dismissed by inswing deliveries, something attributed to his leaden-footed batting style. He has also got dismissed playing the cut shot when the ball was too close to his body to cut, especially in limited over matches. [72]

Virender Sehwag is often noted for his extremely attacking style of batting, and in 2005 he was described by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack as the "most exciting opener in the world"[73] due to his consistency in Test matches, though his strike rate in Test cricket was inferior to that of Adam Gilchrist and Shahid Afridi. Sehwag has also been noted for his apparent disregard for the match situation, exhibited by aggressive batting even when his team is in a poor position or after being out manoeuvred by the bowler in the recent past.[74] This is a two-edged sword as it allows him to not be psychologically hindered by previous failures, but can also lead to excessive aggression.[75] He was quoted by Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer as a sophisticated slogger.[76] But over the years, his style has changed from "reckless hitting" to that of "controlled aggression", according to an article in the Sydney Morning Herald.

As on 1 March 2007, Sehwag has an average of nearly 65 in the first innings of test matches where he has scored 3374 runs, 12 centuries and 8 fifties in 52 matches. In the second innings, his average drops to 25 and has scored 781 runs and 4 fifties in 50 innings. The first and second innings difference of 40 runs is the one of the highest and indicates a lack of ability in dealing with more difficult batting conditions as the pitch deteriorates. However, his match-saving second-innings 151 against Australia at Adelaide during the 2007-08 Border-Gavaskar series, and a match winning 92 in trying situations at Nagpur during the 2008-09 series, went a long way towards repairing that image.

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Controversy
Main article: Mike Denness and Indian cricket team incident

In November 2001, Sehwag was involved in controversy in the Second Test match between India and South Africa at St George's Park, Port Elizabeth, when he was given a one Test ban for "excessive appealing" by ICC Match referee Mike Denness. He was one of six Indian players to be receive bans, four of which were suspended bans. The unprecedented severity of the bans precipitated an international cricketing, political and administrative crisis with the Indian cricket establishment threatened to call off the tour unless Mike Denness was removed as match referee from the third test match. ICC backed Mike Denness[77] and the South African board backed the Indian cricket establishment[78] and did not allow Mike Denness to enter the stadium[79] on the first day of the third test match. ICC declared that the match was 'unofficial' and 'friendly five day match'[80] and the series was officially declared as a 2 match series and South Africa as 1-0 winners. The subsequent England tour to India was placed in jeopardy when India picked Sehwag in the test squad.[81] Subsequent to this development, ICC issued a warning that any match with Sehwag in the cricket team will not be considered an "official" Test match until Sehwag had served his one match ban.[82] After negotiations with ECB and ICC and in general interest of cricket, Sehwag was dropped from the team for the first Test against England.[83]

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Personal life

Sehwag married Aarti Alhawat in April, 2004 under heavy security in a media publicized wedding which was hosted by Arun Jaitley, the union law minister of India at his residence.[84] The couple have a son, born on October 18th 2007. [85]

Sehwag is fondly referred to in the media as the Nawab of Najafgarh, Najafgarh being his home locality in Delhi. A lifelong vegetarian, Sehwag owns a vegetarian eatery, Sehwag Favourites, which opened in late 2005 in the Fun Republic cineplex in Delhi, following the footsteps of his role model Sachin Tendulkar. The majority of the products on the menu are named after cricketing themes related to his memorable innings, such as Multan Ke Sultan Ki Tikdi, meaning dish for three persons, which alludes to his triple century in Multan and is priced at 309 rupees. There are plans to expand the chain across India with a second outlet already planned in Ludhiana. Sehwag does charity work for UNICEF [8].

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International centuries

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International Test centuriesVirender Sehwag's Test Centuries
 Runs Match Against City/Country Venue Year
[1] 105 1 South Africa Bloemfontein, South Africa Springbok Park 2001
[2] 106 7 England Nottingham, England Trent Bridge 2002
[3] 147 10 West Indies Mumbai, India Wankhede Stadium 2002
[4] 130 16 New Zealand Mohali, India Punjab Cricket Association Stadium 2003
[5] 195 19 Australia Melbourne, Australia Melbourne Cricket Ground 2003
[6] 309 21 Pakistan Multan, Pakistan Multan Cricket Stadium 2004
[7] 155 25 Australia Chennai, India MA Chidambaram Stadium 2004
[8] 164 28 South Africa Kanpur, India Green Park 2004
[9] 173 32 Pakistan Mohali, India Punjab Cricket Association Stadium 2005
[10] 201 34 Pakistan Bangalore, India M. Chinnaswamy Stadium 2005
[11] 254 40 Pakistan Lahore, Pakistan Gaddafi Stadium 2006
[12] 180 47 West Indies Gros Islet, St Lucia Beausejour Stadium 2006
[13] 151 54 Australia Adelaide, Australia Adelaide Oval 2008
[14] 319 55 South Africa Chennai, India MA Chidambaram Stadium 2008
[15] 201* 59 Sri Lanka Galle, Sri Lanka Galle International Stadium 2008


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One Day International centuriesVirender Sehwag's One Day International Centuries
 Runs Match Against City/Country Venue Year
[1] 100 15 New Zealand Colombo, Sri Lanka Sinhalese Sports Club 2001
[2] 126 40 England Colombo, Sri Lanka R. Premadasa Stadium 2002
[3] 114* 46 West Indies Rajkot, India Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Ground 2002
[4] 108 52 New Zealand Napier, New Zealand McLean Park 2002
[5] 112 56 New Zealand Aukland, New Zealand Eden Park 2003
[6] 130 78 New Zealand Hyderabad, India Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium 2003
[7] 108 108 Pakistan Kochi, India Nehru Stadium 2005
[8] 114 169 Bermuda Port of Spain, Trinidad Queen's Park Oval 2007
[9] 119 - Pakistan Lahore, Pakistan National Stadium Karachi 2008


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Achievements

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Awards
Arjuna Award (2002)[86]

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Records
Only Indian batsman to have scored two triple centuries in Test cricket. He is the third batsman in the history of Test cricket, to score two triple centuries (first two being Sir Donald Bradman and Brian Lara).
Third fastest century in ODI cricket by an Indian[87] - 100 runs off 69 balls against New Zealand in 2001[88]
Second fastest ODI 50 by an Indian[89] - a record, he shares with Rahul Dravid, Kapil Dev and Yuvraj Singh - when he took 22 balls against Kenya in 2001[90]
Five double centuries - the first three of which came against Pakistan.[91] Greg Chappell is the only other player to have scored multiple double centuries against Pakistan (2)
Highest score by an Indian batsman in Test cricket. He first achieved this when he scored 309 against Pakistan in Multan in 2004, and bettered his previous record in March 2008 at Chennai against South Africa by scoring 319.
Fastest triple century: His second triple century scored at Chennai on 27-28 March 2008 against South Africa was the fastest in terms of balls faced by any batsman (off 278 balls).
Consecutive 150+ scores in Test cricket: He holds the record for consecutive test hundreds converted to scores of 150+, at 11.
He is one of the only five players to have scored more test hundreds than test fifties(15c/14f), along with Don Bradman(29c/13f), Azharuddin (22c/21f)[92], Matthew Hayden (30c/27f) and Kevin Pietersen(13c/11f)[93] as on August 7, 2008[94].
Two consecutive double century partnerships in a Test innings. He achieved this record, for the first two wickets in Chennai on 27-28 March 2008 (with Wasim Jaffer and Rahul Dravid respectively). This was the first time in Test history that the first two wickets in an innings have resulted in double-century stands.
He is the first person in the history of test cricket to hit two triple century and take five wickets in test match.

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Test Matches Awards

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Man of the Series Awards# Series Season Series Performance
1 India in Pakistan Test Series 2003/04 438 (3 Matches, 4 Innings, 1x100, 1x50); 6-0-27-0; 2 Catches
2 South Africa in India Test Series 2004/05 262 Runs (2 Matches, 3 Innings, 1x100, 2x50); 1 Catch
3 Pakistan in India Test Series 2004/05 544 Runs (3 Matches, 6 Innings, 2x100, 1x50); 5-2-14-0; 2 Catches


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Man of the Match AwardsS No Opponent Venue Season Match Performance
1 West Indies Wankhede, Mumbai 2002/03 1st Innings: 147 (24x4, 3x6); 2-0-7-0
2nd Innings: 1 Catch
2 Pakistan Multan 2003/04 1st Innings: 309 (39x4, 6x6); 2-0-11-0
2nd Innings: 3-0-8-0; 1 Catch
3 Pakistan Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 2006 1st Innings: 254 (47x4, 1x6); 6-0-24-0
4 West Indies Gros Islet, St Lucia 2006 1st Innings: 180 (20x4, 2x6); 16.1-5-33-3
2nd Innings: 30-9-48-1
5 South Africa Chennai 2007/08 1st Innings: 319 (42x4, 5x6); 11-1-37-1
2nd Innings: 22-2-55-1
6 Sri Lanka Galle 2008/09 1st Innings: 201 (22x4, 4x6)
2nd Innings: 50 (6x4, 1x6)


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ODI Cricket Awards
Sehwag has not won the Man of the Series Award in an ODI Tournament.

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Man of the Match AwardsS No Opponent Venue Season Match Performance
1 Australia Bangalore 2000/01 58 (54b, 8x4); 9-0-59-3
2 New Zealand Colombo (SSC) 2001 100 (70b, 19x4, 1x6); 3-0-26-0
3 England Kanpur 2001/02 82 (62b, 14x4); 1-0-9-0; 1 Catch
4 England Colombo (RPS) 2002/03 126 (104b, 21x4, 1x6); 5-0-25-0
5 South Africa Colombo (RPS) 2002/03 59 (58b, 10x4); 5-0-25-3
6 West Indies Rajkot 2002/03 114* (82b, 17x4, 2x6); 6-0-29-0
7 New Zealand Napier 2002/03 108 (119b, 9x4, 2x6)
8 New Zealand Auckland 2002/03 112 (139b, 11x4, 3x6)
9 New Zealand Hyderabad 2003/04 130 (134b, 15x4, 2x6)
10 Zimbabwe Hobart 2003/04 90 (102b, 5x4, 5x6); 10-0-40-2; 1 Catch
11 Sri Lanka Colombo (RPS) 2004 81 (92b, 6x4, 2x6); 9-0-37-3
12 Bangladesh Dhaka 2004/05 70 (52b, 9x4, 2x6); 6-1-31-0
13 Pakistan Kochi 2004/05 108 (95b, 9x4, 3x6); 5-0-26-0
14 Bermuda Port of Spain, Trinidad 2007 115 (87b, 17x4, 3x6); 5-0-15-0
15 England Bangalore, India 2008 69 (57b, 9x4, 3x6)

Monday, December 1, 2008

Mahendra Singh Dhoni


Mahendra Singh Dhoni or MS Dhoni pronunciation (help·info) (Hindi: महेन्द्र सिंह धोनी) (born July 7, 1981 in Lavali Vilage Almora, Uttarakhand) is an Indian cricketer and the current captain of the Indian team. Initially recognized as an extravagantly flamboyant and destructive batsman, Dhoni has come to be regarded as one of the coolest heads to captain the Indian ODI side. Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, CB Series of 2007-08 and IDEA Cup India-Sri Lanka ODI Series of 2008, the first ever bilateral ODI series win of India in Sri Lanka and The Border-Gavaskar trophy 2008 in which they beat Australia 2-0 thus letting India regain its spot at No.2 in world test rankings(fallen to No.3 after Sri lanka tour). Dhoni also recently captained the ODI team that beat England in the series 5-0.Dhoni is currently ranked the best ODI batsman in the world by the ICC. [1] Mahendra Singh Dhoni was awarded the ODI Player of the Year award in 2008, the first Indian player to achieve this feat.


Personal information
Full name Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Nickname Mahi
Born 7 July 1981 (1981-07-07) (age 27)
 Ranchi, Bihar Now Jharkhand, India
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Batting style Right-hand batsman
Bowling style Right-hand medium
Role Wicket-keeper, Captain
International information
Test debut (cap 251) 2 December 2005: v Sri Lanka
Last Test 6 November 2008: v Australia
ODI debut (cap 157) 23 December 2004: v Bangladesh
Last ODI 26 November 2008: v England
Domestic team information
Years Team
1999/00 - 2004/05 Bihar
2004/05- Jharkhand
2008- Chennai Super Kings
Career statistics
 Test ODI FC List A
Matches 33 125 73 178
Runs scored 1,725 3,935 3,893 5,843
Batting average 36.70 46.84 35.71 47.12
100s/50s 1/13 4/25 4/27 10/36
Top score 148 183* 148 183*
Balls bowled 6 – 36 –
Wickets 0 – 0 –
Bowling average – – – –
5 wickets in innings 0 – 0 –
10 wickets in match 0 – 0 –
Best bowling 0/13 – 0/7 –
Catches/stumpings 76/17 125/40 182/35 191/55
Personal life

Mahendra Singh Dhoni was born in Ranchi Jharkhand to Pan Singh and Devaki Dev.[2] His paternal village Lvali is in the Lamgarha block of the Almora District of Uttarakhand. Dhoni's parents, moved from Uttarakhand to Ranchi where Pan Singh worked in junior management positions in MECON. Dhoni has a sister Jayanti and a brother Narendra. Dhoni had long hair which he has now shortened; he cut it because he wanted to look like his favourite film star John Abraham.[3] Dhoni is a fan of Adam Gilchrist, and his childhood idols were cricket teammate Sachin Tendulkar, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan and singer Lata Mangeshkar.[4][5]

Dhoni studied at DAV Jawahar Vidya Mandir, Shyamali, Ranchi,Jharkahnd where he initially excelled in badminton and football and was selected at district and club level in these sports. Dhoni was a goalkeeper for his football team and was sent to play cricket for a local cricket club by his football coach. Though he had not played cricket, Dhoni impressed with his wicket-keeping skills and became the regular wicketkeeper at the Commando cricket club (1995 - 1998). Based on his performance at club cricket, he was picked for the 1997/98 season Vinoo Mankad Trophy Under-16 Championship and he performed well.[3] Dhoni focused on cricket after his 10th standard.[6]

[edit] Playing Style

Dhoni is an aggressive right-handed batsman and wicket-keeper. Dhoni is one of a number of wicket-keepers who have come through the ranks of junior and India A cricket teams to represent the national team — Parthiv Patel, Ajay Ratra and Dinesh Karthik also followed this route. Dhoni, referred to as 'Mahi' by his friends, debuted in the Bihar cricket team during the 1998/99 cricket season and was selected to represent India-A for a tour to Kenya in 2004. Along with Gautam Gambhir, Dhoni made multiple centuries against the Pakistan-A team in a tri-nation series and was selected in the Indian national team later in that year.[citation needed]

Dhoni tends to play mostly from the back foot with a pronounced bottom hand grip.He has a very fast hand speed through the ball which often results in the ball racing across the ground.From this initial stance his feets do not show much movement which sometimes results in chasing balls while not coming to the pitch of the ball or inside edging a lot of balls.

Dhoni scored 148 against Pakistan in his fifth ODI match in 2005 — then the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper. Later in the year, he broke his own record as well as set the current world record for the highest score in the second innings in ODI matches as he scored 183* against Sri Lanka. Dhoni's success in the limited overs format secured him a place in the test team. Consistent performances in ODI cricket through the end of the 2005/06 season saw Dhoni briefly ranked as the No. 1 batsman in the ICC ODI ratings.[citation needed]

Dhoni's form dipped through 2006 as India lost matches at the ICC Champions trophy, DLF Cup, away bilateral series against West Indies and South Africa. A return to form in the home series against West Indies and SriLanka in early 2007 proved to be an inaccurate indicator of Dhoni's form as India crashed out of the first round in the 2007 Cricket World Cup. Dhoni was out for a duck in both India's losses. After the World Cup, Dhoni won the Man of the series award in the bilateral ODI tournament against Bangladesh. For the tour of England, Dhoni was named the ODI team vice-captain.[7]

As a batsman, Dhoni has shown the maturity to restrain his aggressive nature and play a responsible innings when the situation requires.[7] Apart from traditional shots, Dhoni has two very unorthodox but effective cricket strokes. Since his entry into the Indian cricket team, Dhoni's aggressive batting style, success on the field, personality, and long hair have made him one of the most marketable cricketers in India.[8][9]

[edit] Domestic career

[edit] Junior cricket

Dhoni was included in the Bihar U-19 squad for the 1998/99 season and scored 176 runs in 5 matches (7 innings) as the team finished fourth in the group of six and did not make it to the quarter finals. Dhoni was not picked for the East Zone U-19 squad (CK Nayudu Trophy) and Rest of India squad (MA Chidambaram Trophy and Vinoo Mankad Trophy). Bihar U-19 cricket team advanced to the finals of the 1999-2000 Cooch Behar Trophy where Dhoni made 84 to help Bihar post a total of 357. Bihar's efforts were dwarfed by Punjab U-19's 839 with Dhoni's future national squad teammate Yuvraj Singh making 358.[10] Dhoni's contribution for the tournament included 488 runs (9 matches, 12 innings), 5 fifties, 17 catches and 7 stumpings.[11] MS Dhoni made it to the East Zone U-19 squad for the CK Nayudu trophy but scored only 97 runs in four matches as East Zone lost all four matches and finished last in the tournament.

[edit] Bihar team

Dhoni made his Ranji Trophy debut for Bihar in the 1999-2000 season as an eighteen year old. He made a half century in his debut match scoring 68* in the second innings against Assam cricket team.[12] Dhoni finished the season with 283 runs in 5 matches. Dhoni scored his maiden first-class century against Bengal in the 2000/01 season in a losing cause.[13] Apart from the century, his performance in the 2000/01[14] did not include another score over fifty and in 2001/02 season he scored just five fifty in each season in four Ranji matches.[15] Dhoni's performance for the 2002/03 season in the Ranji Trophy included three half centuries in the Ranji Trophy and a couple of half-centuries in the Deodhar Trophy competition as he started winning recognition for his lower-order run contribution as well as hard hitting batting style.

In the 2003/04 season, Dhoni scored a century (128*) against Assam in the first match of the Ranji ODI trophy. He was part of the East Zone squad that won the Deodhar Trophy for the year and contributed with 244 runs in 4 matches. In the Duleep Trophy finals, Dhoni was picked over International cricketer Deep Dasgupta to represent East zone.[16] He scored a fighting half century in the second innings in a losing cause.[17]

[edit] India A team

He was recognized for his efforts in the 2003/04 season, especially in the ODI format and was picked for the India A squad for a tour of Zimbabwe and Kenya.[18] Against the Zimbabwe XI in Harare Sports Club, Dhoni had his best wicket-keeping effort with 7 catches and 4 stumpings in the match.[19] In the tri-nation tournament involving Kenya, India 'A' and Pakistan 'A', Dhoni helped India 'A' chase their target of 223 against Pakistan 'A' with an half-century.[20] Stressing on his performance, he scored back to back centuries - 120[21] and 119*[22] against the same squad. Dhoni scored 362 runs in 7 matches (6 innings, Ave:72.40), and his performance in the series received attention from the then captain - Sourav Ganguly[23] amongst others. However, the India 'A' team coach Sandeep Patil recommended Karthik for a place in the Indian squad as wicket-keeper/batsman.[24]

[edit] ODI career
ODI Career of Dhoni. Brown line indicates 10 match average while the orange line indicates career average progression

The Indian team in the 2000s saw the use of Rahul Dravid as the wicket-keeper to ensure that the wicket-keeper spot didn't lack in batting talent.[23] The Indian cricket establishment also saw the entry of wicket-keeper/batsmen from the junior ranks with talents like Parthiv Patel and Dinesh Karthik - both India U-19 Captains in the test squads.[23] With Dhoni making a mark in the India-A squad, he was picked in the ODI squad for the Bangladesh tour in 2004/05.[25] Dhoni did not have a great start to his ODI career, getting run out for a duck on debut.[26] In spite of an average series against Bangladesh, Dhoni was picked for the Pakistan ODI series.[27] In the second match of the series, Dhoni in his fifth one-day international, scored 148 in Vishakapatnam off only 123 deliveries. Dhoni's 148 erased the earlier record for the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper,[28] a record that he would re-write before the end of the year.

Dhoni had few batting opportunities in the first two games of the Sri Lankan bilateral ODI series (October-November 2005) and was promoted to No. 3 in the third ODI at Sawai Mansingh Stadium (Jaipur). Sri Lanka had set India a target of 299 after a Kumar Sangakkara century and in reply. India lost Tendulkar early. Dhoni was promoted to accelerate the scoring and ended the game with an unbeaten 183 off 145 balls, winning the game for India[29] - an innings described in Wisden Almanack (2006) as 'Uninhibited, yet anything but crude'.[30] The innings set various records including the highest score in ODI cricket in the second innings,[31] a record that still stands. Dhoni ended the series with the highest run aggregate (346)[32] and was awarded the Man of the series award for his efforts. In December 2005, Dhoni was signed by BCCI to a B-grade contract, skipping the initial C-grade level due to his performance on the cricketing field.[33]
Dhoni bowling in the nets. He rarely bowls at international level.

India scored 328 in 50 overs with Dhoni contributing 68 in their first match of 2006 against Pakistan. However the team finished poorly, scoring just 43 runs in the last eight overs and lost the match due to Duckworth-Lewis method.[34] In the third match of the series, Dhoni came in with India in a precarious situation and scored 72 runs off just 46 balls that included 13 boundaries to help India take a 2-1 lead in the series.[35][36] The final match of the series had a repeat performance as Dhoni scored 77 runs off 56 balls to enable India win the series 4-1.[37] In recognition of his consistent ODI performances, Dhoni overtook Ricky Ponting as number one in the ICC ODI rankings for batsmen on April 20, 2006.[38] His reign lasted just a week as Adam Gilchrist's performance against Bangladesh moved him to the top spot.[39]

Two canceled series in Sri Lanka, one due to the withdrawal of South Africa from the Unitech Cup due to security concerns[40] and the replacement 3-match ODI bilateral series against Sri Lanka washed due to rain,[41] was India's prelude to another disappointing tournament - DLF Cup 2006-07. Dhoni scored 43 runs as the team lost twice in three games and did not qualify for the finals. India's lack of preparation showed in the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy as they lost to West Indies and Australia, though Dhoni scored an half-century against West Indies. The story of the ODI series in South Africa was the same for both Dhoni and India as Dhoni scored 139 runs in 4 matches and India lost the series 4-0. From the start of the WI ODI series, Dhoni had played 16 matches, hit just two fifties and averaged 25.93. Dhoni received criticism on his wicket keeping technique from former wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani.[42]

Preparations for the 2007 Cricket World Cup improved as India recorded identical 3-1 victories over West Indies and Sri Lanka and Dhoni had averages in excess of 100 in both these series. However, India unexpectedly crashed out the World Cup after losses to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Dhoni was out for a duck in both these matches and scored 29 runs in the whole tournament. Dhoni put behind his disappointment in the World cup by scoring 91* against Bangladesh after India were left in a tight spot earlier in the run-chase. Dhoni was declared the man of the match for his performance, his fourth in ODI cricket. He was also later adjudged the man of the series after the third game of the series was washed away. Dhoni had a good Afro-Asia Cup, getting 174 runs in 3 matches at an average of 87.00, with a blitzkrieg 139 not out of 97 balls, a Man Of The Match innings, in the 3rd ODI.

Dhoni was nominated as the vice-captain of the ODI team for the series against South Africa in Ireland and the subsequent India-England 7-match ODI series.[7] Dhoni, who received a 'B' grade contract in December 2005, was awarded an 'A' grade contract in June 2007. And also he was elected as captain of Indian Twenty-20 Cricket Team for the World Twenty20 in September 2007. On 2 September 2007 Mahendra Singh Dhoni equalled his idol Adam Gilchrist's international record for the most dismissals in an innings in ODI by catching 5 English players and stumping one.[43] He led India to the ICC World Twenty 20 trophy in South Africa with a victory over arch rivals Pakistan in an intensely fought final on 24 September 2007, and became the second Indian captain to have won a World cup in any form of cricket, after Kapil Dev.

[edit] Test career
Test Career of Dhoni. Brown line indicates 10 innings average while the orange line indicates career average progression

Following his good one-day form against Sri Lanka, Dhoni replaced Dinesh Karthik in December 2005 as the Indian Test wicket-keeper.[44] Dhoni scored 30 runs in his debut match that was marred by rain. Dhoni came to the crease when the team was struggling at 109/5 and as wickets kept falling around him, he played an aggressive innings and was the last man dismissed.[45] Dhoni made his maiden half-century in the second Test and his quick scoring rate (half century came off 51 balls) aided India to set a target of 436 and the Sri Lankans were bowled out for 247.[46]

India toured Pakistan in January/February 2006 and Dhoni scored his maiden century in the second Test at Faisalabad. India were left in a tight spot as Dhoni was joined by Irfan Pathan with the team still 107 away from avoiding follow-on. Dhoni played his typical aggressive innings as he scored his maiden test century in just 93 balls after scoring his first fifty in just 34 deliveries.[47]
Dhoni at fielding practice.

Dhoni followed his maiden test century with some prosaic batting performances over the next three matches, one against Pakistan that India lost and two against England that had India holding a 1-0 lead going into the test match. Dhoni was the top scorer in India's first innings in the third test at Wankhede Stadium as his 64 aided India post a respectable 279 in reply to England's 400. However Dhoni and the Indian fielders dropped too many catches and missed many dismissal chances including a key stumping opportunity of Andrew Flintoff (14).[48] Dhoni failed to collect the Harbhajan Singh delivery cleanly as Flintoff went on to make 36 more runs as England set a target of 313 for the home team, a target that India were never in the reckoning. A batting collapse saw the team being dismissed for 100 and Dhoni scored just 5 runs and faced criticism for his wicket-keeping lapses as well as his shot selections.

On the West Indies tour, Dhoni scored a quick and aggressive 69 in the first Test at Antigua. The rest of the series was unremarkable for Dhoni as he scored 99 runs in the remaining 6 innings but his wicket-keeping skills improved and Dhoni finished the series with 13 catches and 4 stumpings. In the test series in South Africa, Dhoni's scores of 34 and 47 were not sufficient to save the second test against the Proteas as India lost the test series 2-1, squandering the chance to build on their first ever Test victory in South Africa (achieved in the first Test match). Dhoni's bruised hands ruled him out of the third test match.[49]

[edit] Indian Premier League

M.S.Dhoni was contracted by the Chennai Super Kings for 1.5 Million USD. This made him the most expensive player in the IPL Auctions which was closely followed by Andrew Symonds. Dhoni is the present captain of the Chennai Super Kings team.

[edit] Controversies

Walk-off: On the fourth day of the first test match at Antigua Recreation Ground, St John's, Antigua during India's tour of West Indies, 2006, Dhoni's flick off Dave Mohammed to the midwicket region was caught by Daren Ganga. As the batsman started to walk back, captain Dravid declared the innings when confusion started as the umpires were not certain if the fielder stepped on the ropes and Dhoni stayed for the umpire's verdict. While the replays were inconclusive, the captain of the West Indies side, Brian Lara, wanted Dhoni to walk-off based on the fielder's assertion of the catch. The impasse continued for more than 15 minutes and Lara's temper was on display with finger wagging against the umpires and snatching the ball from umpire Asad Rauf. Ultimately, Dhoni walked-off and Dravid's declaration was effected but the game was delayed, and Lara's action was criticized by the commentators and former players. Lara was called by the match referee for explanation of his actions but was not fined by the match referee.[50]

Home Vandalized: After the loss to Bangladesh in 2007 Cricket World Cup, the house that Dhoni was constructing in his home-town Ranchi was vandalized and damaged by political activists of JMM.[51] The local police arranged for security for his family as India exited the World cup in the first round.[52]

[edit] Captaincy Skills

  * Dhoni was recommended for captaincy by Sachin Tendulkar. In 2007, when Rahul Dravid resigned as Test and ODI captain, Sachin Tendulakar was offered captaincy by the board of selectors and Sharad Pawar, but Sachin politely refused and said, "Give it to someone like Dhoni".
  * Team India went on to win the inaugural T20 cricket World Cup 2007
  * First ever trilateral ODI series win in Australia versus Australia and Sri Lanka CB Series of 2007-08.
  * First ever bilateral ODI series win in Sri Lanka (IDEA CUP 2008).
  * He captained Team India to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at home versus Australia. India went on to win the coveted 4 match Test series(2-0).
  * Previous captains Anil Kumble and Sourav Ganguly have said that under Dhoni India will reach greater heights and even all time great Richard Hadlee said that "Under Dhoni,India will become the world no.1 team" and he also said that by this 2-0 win that the Australian dominance in the cricket world had finally come to an end.[53][54]
  * As a farewell gift to former Indian captain, Saurav Ganguly who was set to retire after the Nagpur test against Australia, Dhoni asked Saurav Ganguly to lead the team for one last time towards the end of the Australian innings in the last test at Nagpur. [55]
  * Dhoni has already been compared to Australia's Steve Waugh for his captaincy skills. In the battle of nerves, the mental toughness accompanied with the cool temperament exhibited by Dhoni just resembles the times of Steve Waugh’s leadership.[56]

[edit] Achievements

Awards and Recognition

  * Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award-2008

Dhoni was awarded the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the country's highest sports honour, for his contribution to India's success in the 20-20 world championship and the 2008 Australian series.[57]

  * ICC ODI Player of the Year 2008 Award
  o Mahendra Singh Dhoni has won the ODI Player of the Year 2008 award at the LG ICC Awards ceremony in Dubai,becoming the first Indian player to get this particular award. Dhoni beat off tough competition from team-mate Sachin Tendulkar, Australia fast bowler Nathan Bracken and Pakistan stalwart Mohammad Yousuf to take the prestigious award. During the voting period (between 9 August 2007 and 12 August 2008), Dhoni played 39 ODIs and scored 1,298 runs at an average of 49.92 and at a rate of 82.46 runs per 100 balls faced. In that time he hit a century and nine fifties making sure he led his team from the front. Also in that time, wicketkeeper Dhoni captured 62 dismissals (46 catches and 16 stumpings), which is almost twice as many as the next best, albeit having played more matches than any other ’keeper.[58]
  o Dhoni also received nomination for the inaugural International Twenty20 Performer of the Year 2008 award, for leading his team to victory at the ICC World Twenty20 2007 in South Africa.
  * Dhoni was selected for the ICC World ODI Team of the Year 2008[59]
  * MTV Youth Icon 2006

Dhoni was voted as MTV Youth Icon 2006 and he also joins cricketers Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar in winning the award. He is the amazing icon of the Pogo TV amazing kids awards.[60]

[edit] Cricket Performance

[edit] ODI Cricket
ODI career records by opposition
# Opponent Matches Runs Average High Score 100s 50s Catches Stumping
1 Africa XI[61] 3 174 87.00 139* 1 0 3 3
2 Australia 16 405 36.81 58 0 2 22 6
3 Bangladesh 8 146 36.50 91* 0 1 9 6
4 Bermuda 1 29 29.00 28 0 0 1 0
5 England 18 501 33.4 96 0 3 19 7
6 Hong Kong 1 109 - 109* 1 0 1 3
7 New Zealand 3 50 25.00 37* 0 0 3 1
8 Pakistan 22 917 57.31 148 1 7 19 6
9 Scotland 1 - - - - - 2 -
10 South Africa 10 196 24.50 55 0 1 7 1
11 Sri Lanka 27 968 60.5 183* 1 7 29 4
12 West Indies 13 317 39.62 62* 0 2 10 2
13 Zimbabwe 2 123 123.00 67* 0 2 0 1
Total 125 3935 46.84 183* 4 25 125 40

ODI Centuries:
ODI centuries
# Runs Match Against Stadium City/Country Year
1 148 5 Pakistan ACA-VDCA Stadium Vishakapatnam, India 2005
2 183* 22 Sri Lanka Sawai Mansingh Stadium Jaipur, India 2005
3 139* 74 Africa XI[61] MA Chidambaram Stadium Chennai, India 2007
4 109* 109 Hong Kong National Stadium Karachi, Pakistan 2008

ODI Records:

  * On 31 October 2005 Dhoni scored 183* runs of just 145 balls against Sri Lanka in Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. The following is the list of records created during the innings.[31]
  o The score of 183* is the highest in ODI cricket in the second innings (Earlier record: 153 by Lara). During the epic Aus-SA 2006 match, Herschelle Gibbs came close to the record by scoring 175.
  o The innings featured 10 Sixes, the most by an Indian in an Innings, and the second highest in ODI cricket (The highest is 11 by Sanath Jayasuriya and Shahid Afridi)
  o He broke Adam Gilchrist's record of 172 for the highest score made by a wicket keeper
  o The innings set the record for the most number of runs scored in boundaries (120 - 15x4; 10x6) breaking the record held by Saeed Anwar. The record was broken by Herschelle Gibbs (126 runs in boundaries - 21x4; 7x6) against Australia during his knock of 175.
  o In the same match, Kumar Sangakkara also made a century, making it the first match in which both wicket keepers scored a century
  o The score of 183* equaled the record of the highest score against Sri Lanka in ODI cricket set by Ganguly during the 1999 Cricket World Cup.

  * Among Indian batsmen who have played more than 50 matches, Dhoni has the second highest average.[62] Dhoni's batting average is the highest amongst wicketkeeper in ODIs.

  * In April 2006 Dhoni was briefly ranked No.1 in the ICC one day Batsmen's ratings.

  * In June 2007, Dhoni(139*) and Mahela Jayawardene(107)[61] set a new world record for the sixth wicket partnership of 218 runs against Africa XI during the Afro-Asia Cup.[63]
  o Dhoni erased Shaun Pollock's record for highest individual innings by a number seven batsman in one-day internationals during his unbeaten innings of 139.[64] Incidentally, Pollock record stood for just three days as his score of 130 came in the first match of the 2007 Afro-Asia Cup while Dhoni's century came in the third and final match of the series.
  o Dhoni also holds the records of the most dismissals by an Indian wicketkeeper and joint International (with Adam Gilchrist) with 6 dismissals (5 catches and one stumping) against England at Headlingly 2 September 2007.

Man of the Series Awards:

  S No Series (Opponents) Season Series Performance
  1 Sri Lanka in India ODI Series 2005/06 346 Runs (7 Matches & 5 Innings, 1x100, 1x50); 6 Catches & 3 Stumpings
  2[65] India in Bangladesh ODI Series 2007 127 Runs (2 Matches & 2 Innings, 1x50); 1 Catches & 2 Stumpings
  3 India in Sri Lanka ODI Series 2008 193 Runs (5 Matches & 5 Innings, 2x50); 3 Catches & 1 Stumping

Man of the Match Awards:

  S No Opponent Venue Season Match Performance
  1 Pakistan Vishakapatnam 2004/05 148 (123b, 15x4, 4x6); 2 Catches
  2 Sri Lanka Jaipur 2005/06 183* (145b, 15x4, 10x6); 1 Catch
  3 Pakistan Lahore 2005/06 72 (46b, 12x4); 3 Catches
  4 Bangladesh Mirpur 2007 91* (106b, 7x4); 1 Stumping
  5 Africa XI[61] Chennai 2007 139* (97b, 15x4, 5x6); 3 Stumpings
  6 Australia Chandigarh 2007 50* ( 35 b, 5x4 1x6); 2 Stumpings
  7 Pakistan Guwahati 2007 63, 1 Stumping
  8 Sri Lanka Karachi 2008 67, 2 Catches
  9 Sri Lanka Colombo (RPS) 2008 76, 2 Catches

[edit] Test Cricket

Test performance:
Test career records by opposition
# Opponent Matches Runs Average High Score 100s 50s Catches Stumpings
1 Australia 8 448 34.46 92 0 4 18 6
2 Bangladesh 2 104 104.00 51* 0 1 6 1
3 England 6 315 35.00 92 0 3 19 3
4 Pakistan 5 323 64.60 148 1 2 9 1
5 South Africa 5 218 27.25 52 0 1 6 1
6 Sri Lanka 3 149 37.25 51* 0 1 5 1
7 West Indies 4 168 24.00 69 0 1 13 4
Total 33 1725 36.70 148 1 13 76 17

Test Centuries:
Test centuries
# Runs Match Against Stadium City/Country Year
1 148 5 Pakistan Iqbal Stadium Faisalabad, Pakistan 2006

Man of the Match Awards:

  S No Opponent Venue Season Match Performance
  1 Australia Mohali 2008 92 & 68*

Test Records:

  * Dhoni's maiden century against Pakistan in Faisalabad (148) is the fastest century scored by an Indian wicket keeper. Only three centuries by two players (Kamran Akmal and Adam Gilchrist - 2) were faster than Dhoni's 93 ball century.[66]
  * Under Dhoni's captainship, India defeated Australia by 320 runs on 21st Oct'08, biggest ever win in terms of runs for India.[67]

[edit] Endorsements

MS Dhoni signed with Kolkata-based celebrity management company Gameplan Sports in April 2005.[9][68] As of March 2007, Dhoni is reputed to have 17 endorsements.[69] The following is the list of endorsements signed by Dhoni.

2005: Pepsico,[8][70] Reebok,[8][70] Exide,[70] TVS Motors.[71]
2006: Mysore Sandal Soap,[72] Videocon,[73] Reliance Communications,[74] Reliance Energy,[74] Orient PSPO Fan,[75] Bharat Petroleum,[76] Titan Sonata,[77] Brylcreem,[78] NDTV,[79] GE Money.[80]
2007: Siyaram.[81]
2008: Fashion at Big Bazaar, Maha Choco, Boost (health food)

Yuvraj Singh


Yuvraj Singh pronunciation (help·info) (Punjabi: ਯੁਵਰਾਜ ਸਿੰਘ, born 12 December 1981 in Chandigarh, India) is a cricketer from India, and the son of former Indian fast bowler and Punjabi movie star Yograj Singh.[1] He has been a member of the Indian cricket team since 2000 (ODIs) and played his first Test match in 2003. He wass the vice captain of the ODI team from late-2007 to late-2008. At the 2007 World Twenty20 he hit six sixes in an over against England's Stuart Broad - a feat only performed three times previously in any form of senior cricket, and never previously in an international match between two Test cricket nations.

Personal information
Nickname Yuvi
Born 12 December 1981 (age 26)
 Chandigarh, India
Batting style Left-handed
Bowling style Slow left arm orthodox
Role All-rounder
Relations Yograj Singh (father)
International information
National side India
Test debut (cap 247) 16 October 2003: v New Zealand
Last Test 11 April 2008: v South Africa
ODI debut (cap 134) 3 October 2000: v Kenya
Last ODI 26 November 2008:v England
Domestic team information
Years Team
1996/97–present Punjab
2003 Yorkshire
2008–present Kings XI Punjab
Career statistics
 Tests ODIs FC List A
Matches 23 222 79 289
Runs scored 1,050 6,466 4,816 8,612
Batting average 32.81 37.16 43.00 38.10
100s/50s 3/3 10/37 16/20 14/50
Top score 169 139 209 172

Balls bowled 282 3,070 1,338 4,067
Wickets 4 64 15 96
Bowling average 41.75 40.71 47.46 35.69
5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 n/a 0 n/a
Best bowling 2/9 4/6 3/25 4/6
Catches/stumpings 24/– 67/– 83/– 88/–
Early career

Yuvraj first came to attention when he captained the U-19 Punjab cricket team in the final of the Cooch-Behar Trophy against Bihar U-19s, in which he scored 358.[2] He then gained selection for the U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka in January 2000, where he was part of a team lead by Mohammed Kaif which won the tournament.[3] Yuvraj was subsequently selected in 2000 for the first intake of the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.[4]

[edit]
ODI career

Yuvraj made his One Day International debut against Kenya at Nairobi in 2000, at the ICC KnockOut Trophy. He showed his potential in his second ODI which was against the Australians where he scored a quickfire 84 off 82 balls against a quality pace attack consisting of bowlers like Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee and Jason Gillespie.[5] However, after a lean run of form, he was dropped for the one-dayers against Australia in India in early 2001,[6] but returned later in the year and helped India to victory in a match in Sri Lanka with an unbeaten 98.[7]

One of his most memorable innings was a partnership with Mohammad Kaif in the NatWest Series final against England in July 2002 which led India to victory.[8] He was selected and represented India at the 2003 Cricket World Cup. He scored his first century in his fourth season with the Indian team against Bangladesh in 2003. After that he also scored hundreds against Zimbabwe and Australia, including a 139 off 119 balls at the Sydney Cricket Ground.[9] In the Indian Oil Cup 2005, he made 110 (off 114 balls) (his third century) and an important partnership worth 165 runs with Mohammad Kaif, to become the man of the match against West Indies in the last match of the round robin league. After reaching his century, he attracted attention by angry gesticulations to the Indian dressing room, which was postulated to be due to his clashes with team management - Greg Chappell had been appointed as the new Indian coach and he had criticised Yuvraj.[10] He later praised Chappell's techniques.[11]
 
Yuvraj in his ODI batting kit.

Yuvraj had a good run of form late in 2005 and early in 2006, in the ODI format of the game. He was named as the man of the series in three consecutive series, against South Africa (joint with Graeme Smith),[12] and then against Pakistan and England, in which he scored three centuries and four half-centuries in fifteen matches, which propelled him into the top ten of the ICC ODI batting rankings. During the Pakistan tour, at times when captain and vice-captain Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag were absent, Yuvraj was the on-field captain, indicating that he may be seen as a potential captain.[10] In the next series in the West Indies, Yuvraj hit two fifties in four games, even though India lost the series 4-1. His performance was recognised with his shortlisting by the ICC as one of four nominees for the Internation One Day player of the year award.

Yuvraj missed the first game in the series after that, the tri-series against Australia and West Indies in Kuala Lumpur, due to illness and after failing to reach double figures in the following two games, was axed for Mohammed Kaif in the last group match. He showed signs of returning to form in the Champions Trophy, hitting a restrained unbeaten 27 to guide India to victory against England in the opening game after he was recalled in place of Kaif, but a knee injury forced him out of the final group match. He subsequently missed the tour of South Africa and was in doubt for the 2007 Cricket World Cup, but made a faster than expected recovery to play in the ODI series against the West Indies in India in January 2007. He struck a fluent 95* from 83 balls in India's final match against Sri Lanka before heading to the World Cup.

At the World Cup, Yuvraj only managed one fifty against a lowly Bermuda and along with rest of the squad, was criticized for India's first-round exit. Nevertheless, Yuvraj kept his place in the side for the tours of Bangladesh and Ireland in 2007.

In September 2007, he was named as the ODI vice captain of Mahendra Singh Dhoni after the resignation of Rahul Dravid. He then scored 121 in a losing cause during India's One-day International series defeat at the hands of Australia before enjoying a return to form as India beat Pakistan 3-2 on home soil in November 2007 and he was named Man of the series. In the five matches, he scored four half-centuries, although he was fined after showing dissent in the final match in Jaipur.[13]

In November 2008, he hit 138* from 78 balls against England at Rajkot, taking 64 balls to reach his century, the second fastest by an Indian in ODIs, after Mohammad Azharuddin's century in 1988 against New Zealand came off 62 balls. After reaching 50 from 42 balls, he added a further 88 in the next 36 balls. He did so despite straining his back, which necessitated the use of Gautam Gambhir as a runner.[14] This was followed by 118 from 122 balls and a 4/28—all his wickets being specialist batsmen—in the next match in Indore, earning him two consecutive man of the match awards.[15]

[edit]
Test career
 
An innings-by-innings breakdown of Yuvraj's Test match batting career, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line).

Yuvraj made his Test debut against New Zealand in Mohali in late 2003 in front of his home crowd in Punjab due to the absence of regular captain Sourav Ganguly in the No. 6 position.[9] He was omitted upon Ganguly's return but got another opportunity in the Test team in the 2004 Tour to Pakistan, when Ganguly was again injured. He scored his first Test century in a losing effort against Pakistan in the second Test at Lahore. When Ganguly returned for the third Test, Akash Chopra was dropped and it appeared that the Indian selectors wanted to give him a regular place in the team. He was subsequently played as Virender Sehwag's opening partner, but after two poor matches in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia,[16] he was dropped in favour of Gautam Gambhir. He was recalled to the Test team, batting in the No. 6 position for the away series against Zimbabwe in August 2005 after Sachin Tendulkar was sidelined with tennis elbow. He then retained his position in the Test team after Ganguly was axed following a row with coach Greg Chappell. He scored a second Test century in the third and final Test in Pakistan in the series in January 2006, which India again lost. However, Yuvraj has struggled subsequently in 2006, failing to pass 50 in six Tests against England (two, both at home) and the West Indies (four, all away from home). His injury in late 2006 allowed the return of former captain Ganguly to the team, who subsequently top-scored in the series.

Yuvraj was included in India's Test squad to face Pakistan in November 2007, but was not included in the playing 11 for the first test. Yuvraj was picked in the 3rd Test due to an injured Sachin Tendulkar. India were 61/4 before he and Sourav Ganguly made a 300 run partnership with Yuvraj recording his highest Test score of 169.

He had a very poor Test series against Australia in Indian tour to that country in 2007–08. After his poor showing in the first two Tests he was dropped for the remainder of the series.

[edit]
Twenty20 career

On 19 September 2007 against England in the ICC World Twenty20 Super 8 match held at Kingsmead in Durban, he hit 6 sixes off one Stuart Broad over. This helped him to reach the fastest fifty ever in Twenty20 game, off just 12 balls and also the fastest in any form of international cricket.[17][18][19] This was the fourth time that six sixes had been hit in one over in senior cricket, the first time in Twenty20 cricket, and the first time in any form of international cricket against a bowler from a test playing nation. (Garfield Sobers and Ravi Shastri did it in first class matches, and Herschelle Gibbs did it in a 2007 Cricket World Cup match against Dutch bowler Daan van Bunge.) He has also hit the longest six of the tournament:119 meters off of Australian bowler Brett Lee and currently is the world's leading 20-20 batsman in terms of strike rate.[20]. Yuvraj was awarded a Porsche 911 car for his 6 sixes achievement by the Vice President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Lalit Modi. Yuvraj also received Rs.10,000,000 (US$252,716) in cash from the BCCI for his splendid performance in the tournament.[21]

Yuvraj also scored 70 runs off 30 balls and went on to claim the Man of the Match against Australia in the World Twenty20 semifinals at Durban.[22]

He is the icon player and captain for Indian Premier League team Kings XI Punjab. They came second in the round robin phase of the tournament, but lost their semi-final to the Chennai Super Kings.

[edit]
Style
 
Yuvraj during fielding practice.

Yuvraj is primarily a left-handed batsman but can bowl part-time left-arm orthodox spin. He is regarded as being better at batting against fast bowling than spin bowling, and cites the Indian Oil Cup 2005 as a turning point in his career.[23] He is one of the better fielders in the Indian team, fielding primarily at point, with a good aim at the stumps. A Cricinfo report published in late 2005 showed that since 1999, he was the fourth most prolific fielder in effecting ODI run outs, and of those on the list of prolific fielders, he had the second highest rate of effecting a run out.[24] He was previously often characterized as having attitude problems,[25] but later often assumed leadership positions during Rahul Dravid's tenure as captain.

[edit]
Test CenturiesYuvraj Singh's Test Centuries
 Runs Match Against City/Country Venue Year
[1] 112 3 Pakistan Lahore, Pakistan Gaddafi Stadium 2004
[2] 122 13 Pakistan Karachi, Pakistan National Stadium 2006
[3] 169 20 Pakistan Bangalore, India M.Chinnaswamy Stadium 2007


[edit]
County cricket

After the 2003 Cricket World Cup, Yuvraj was signed by Yorkshire, becoming only the second Indian after Tendulkar to represent the county.[3] However, he had a disappointing run, scoring less than 200 runs in either form of the game,[4] but described it as an important learning experience.

[edit]
Commercial interests

Yuvraj was signed by Microsoft to be a brand ambassador for the Xbox 360 video game console when it was launched in India in 2006. He appeared in advertisements for the console alongside Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar. Codemasters' cricket video game Brian Lara International Cricket 2007, was released with his endorsement in India, titled "Yuvraj Singh International Cricket 2007"[5]

V. V. S. Laxman


Vangipurappu Venkata Sai Laxman pronunciation (help·info) (born November 1, 1974, in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India), better known as VVS Laxman, is an Indian cricketer. Laxman represents Hyderabad in domestic cricket and has played for Lancashire in the English county cricket competition. He was the captain of the Deccan Chargers team in the Indian Premier League in its first year before being replaced by Adam Gilchrist for the next year.

Laxman bats right-handed and occasionally bowls off-spin. He is noted for his superb timing and the ability to hit against the spin, reminiscent of his role model Mohammed Azharuddin. Laxman is particularly noted for the skillful use of his supple wrists, which allow him to flick the ball to various places, but usually through the leg side. This also helps in his catching, and he in stationary catching positions, typically fields the slips cordon or in a bat pad position.

Laxman is noted most for his batting against Australia, in both tests and one day internationals. As of November 8, 2008, he has scored 6 out of his 13 test hundreds, and 4 out of his 6 ODI hundreds against Australia. He has two double-hundreds in tests, both of them against Australia, including his personal best of 281 at Kolkata. He has also scored 10 fifties in tests and 2 in ODIs against Australia.
V. V. S Laxman
India cricket team 


Personal information
Full name Vangipurappu Venkata Sai Laxman
Nickname Very Very Special
Born 1 November 1974 (age 34)
 Hyderabad, India
Batting style Right-handed
Bowling style Right-arm off spin
International information
Test debut (cap 209) 20 November 1996: v South Africa
ODI debut (cap 112) 9 April 1998: v Zimbabwe
Domestic team information
Years Team
1992 – present Hyderabad
2007, 2009 Lancashire (squad no. 5, 26)
Career statistics
 Tests ODI FC LA
Matches 100 86 215 167
Runs scored 6,381 2,338 16,090 4,944
Batting average 45.25 30.76 52.07 34.57
100s/50s 13/37 6/10 46/73 9/27
Top score 281 131 353 131

Balls bowled 324 42 1,751 698
Wickets 2 0 21 8
Bowling average 63.00 – 34.66 68.50
5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 n/a 0 n/a
Best bowling 1/2 0/5 3/11 2/42
Catches/stumpings 105/– 39/– 226/1 73/–
Career

Laxman made his Test debut in 1996, scoring a fifty against South Africa at Ahmedabad. However, he was unable to cement his place in a star-studded Indian middle order. Instead, he was asked to open the innings, starting in South Africa in 1997. Laxman intermittently continued in this role for nearly three years, but without any consistent success. In January 2000, he made 167 against Australia at Sydney, a rare high point for India in an otherwise disastrous tour. Despite this success against an attack containing both Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, Laxman apparently decided that he would return to domestic cricket, rather than continue playing as opener, a role which he believed did not suit him. As a result, Laxman was out of the Test team for nearly a year. He was recalled in late 2000, and also found a spot in the side for the home series against Australia in 2001.
 
An innings-by-innings breakdown of Laxman's Test match batting career, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line).

[edit]
Australia's tour of India

Laxman's career changed dramatically in the home series against Australia. In the first Test at Mumbai, Laxman made 20 and 12, as the entire Indian batting line-up, with the exception of Sachin Tendulkar, capitulated, leading to a 10-wicket defeat. In the next Test, however, Laxman shot to fame with an extraordinary Test innings of 281 in the second innings (following on) against Australia at Eden Gardens, when under tremendous pressure, he broke Sunil Gavaskar's long standing Indian Test record score of 236*.[1] This remained the highest ever by an Indian until it was eclipsed by Virender Sehwag's triple ton against Pakistan in Multan in March, 2004. The innings also contributed to a record partnership of 376 with Rahul Dravid who made 180 and together they survived the whole 4th day. Laxman's performance was of enormous consequence: India had been on the brink of an innings defeat but went on to win the Test and the series, denying Steve Waugh conquest of the "final frontier". This was only the third time in the history of cricket that a team had managed to win a Test after being forced to follow on. It has become one of the most celebrated tales of Indian cricket, and the innings is ranked the sixth best Test innings ever by Wisden Cricketers' Almanack.[2] At the time, the pitch was taking significant turn, and to negate Laxman's free scoring, Australian leg spinner Shane Warne pitched his deliveries into the footmarks outside leg stump. However, such was Laxman's play that he consistently drove the ball through long on four boundaries against the spin, something that is considered to be technically dangerous. When Warne attempted to stop Laxman from scoring by defensively stationing most of the fielders on the leg side (leg theory) and bowling outside leg stump, Laxman proceeded to skip down the pitch and drive Warne inside-out through the vacant off side, hitting through the line of a substantially turning ball. Warne later admitted that he was clueless as to how to stop Laxman.

Laxman then cemented his place both in the Test and one day teams for a few years. He has continued to perform well against Australia, especially during India's tour of Australia in 2003, in which he hit three ODI and two Test centuries. One of his centuries, his 148 in the second Test at Adelaide, came in a triple century partnership with, once again, Dravid. India won the Test, which was their first Test victory in Australia in two decades. His sublime innings of 178 at Sydney also came in a triple century partnership, on this occasion with Sachin Tendulkar. For this reason, Ian Chappell described him as Very Very Special Laxman.

[edit]
Decline of form

However, Laxman's form was on the decline since the series against Australia. Beginning with the series in Pakistan in 2004, Laxman had only Test centuries to his credit, with one coming against a weak Zimbabwe side. He struggled against his favorite opponents Australia in the home series in October-November 2004, although his 69 in the final Test at Mumbai helped India record a consolation victory. Laxman was dropped after scoring a duck in the first Test against England at Mumbai in March 2006. He regained his place for the tour of the West Indies in place of the injured Tendulkar, and made a hundred in the third Test. In ODI cricket, Laxman was left out persistently since Greg Chappell took over as coach in mid-2005, mainly on account of his poor fielding, but also a perception that his batting is too one paced for ODI cricket. This was despite his superb form in Australia and Pakistan in early 2004, when he made four centuries in 14 games, including three in a week in the VB Series in Australia.

[edit]
Return to Form

In December 2005, Laxman helped India to victory against Sri Lanka with a fine century. In June 2006, Laxman again rescued India from a difficult position against the West Indies with a gritty century. In November 2006, he was selected in the test squad for India's tour of South Africa. In the first test in Johannesburg Laxman scored 73 in the second innings to help India claim a historic 123 run win. In the 2007 tour of England Laxman produced three good innings, two of which were half-centuries and a vital 39 that helped India draw the first test at Lords. He passed the 5000 run landmark in the first day of the final Test.

After the tests he joined Lancashire as their overseas player in place of Brad Hodge. He played in five games of the county championship and showed glimpses of his sublime batting. In their final County Championship game of 2007, against Surrey at the Oval, Laxman scored a century in the second innings which Lancashire were chasing 489 to win. They just missed out by 25 runs and subsequently lost the Championship to Sussex. His performance for Lancashire was good with 380 runs scored in 5 matches at an average of 54.28 with 2 centuries and 2 half-centuries[3]

In India's home series against Pakistan in 2007, VVS Laxman once again showed his importance to the team with a disciplined batting performance in the 1st Test[4]. He then followed that innings of 72 in the first test with 112 in the second test.[5]. This ensured his place on the tour of Australia which would be his 3rd to that country.

Laxman's good form continued in the 2007/08 series against Australia with him scoring a languid 109 against Australia on the second day of the controversial Sydney Test. It was his 12th hundred in test matches, and his 5th against Australia. It was also his third consecutive century at SCG, giving him an average well above 90 at the venue. He followed this up with a gritty knock in Perth, assisted by Mahendra Singh Dhoni and RP Singh, which set India up to record a historic and unexpected victory at a ground on which previously no Asian team had won.

Laxman was supposed to replace Adam Voges for Nottinghamshire but this move was vetoed by the BCCI due to the fact that there are players from the rival league ICL. Laxman also reached 6000 runs in the Sri Lankan series in August 2008.

During the Third Test against Australia at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi in November 2008, Laxman scored an unbeaten 200 in the first innings with characteristic use of his wrists and flicks through the leg side. He made an unbeaten 59 in the second innings and was named man of the match.

[edit]
Personal life

Laxman's parents, father Shantaram and mother Satyabhama, are doctors[6]. Laxman himself was a one-time medical student but later chose cricket over a career in medicine. He married G.R Sailaja, who is a post-graduate in computer applications, in February 2004[6]. The couple welcomed a son, Sarvajit, in March 2007.

[edit]
Centuries at a glance

Test Centuries
167 v Australia Sydney 2 Jan 2000
281 v Australia Kolkata 11 Mar 2001
130 v West Indies St John's 10 May 2002
154* v West Indies Kolkata 30 Oct 2002
104* v New Zealand Mohali 16 Oct 2003
148 v Australia Adelaide 12 Dec 2003
178 v Australia Sydney 2–3 Jan 2004
140 v Zimbabwe Bulawayo 13 Sep 2005
104 v Sri Lanka Ahmedabad 18 Dec 2005
100 v West Indies Basseterre 22 Jun 2006
112* v Pakistan Kolkata 30 Nov 2007
109 v Australia Sydney 2 Jan 2008
200* v Australia Delhi 29–30 Oct 2008

ODI Centuries
101 v Australia Margao 6 Apr 2001
102 v Australia Gwalior 26 Oct 2003
103* v Australia Brisbane 18 Jan 2004
106* v Australia Sydney 22 Jan 2004
131 v Zimbabwe Adelaide 24 Jan 2004
107 v Pakistan Lahore 24 Mar 2004

Anil Kumble


Anil Kumble (Kannada: ಅನಿಲ್ ಕುಂಬ್ಳೆ) pronunciation (help·info) (born 17 October 1970 in Bangalore, Karnataka) is a former Indian cricketer and captain of the Indian Test cricket team. He is a right-arm leg spin (legbreak googly) bowler and a right-hand batsman. He is currently the leading wicket-taker for India in both Test and One Day International matches. At present he is the third highest wicket-taker in Test cricket and one of only three bowlers to have taken more than 600 Test wickets. Kumble has had success bowling with other spinners, notably Venkatapathy Raju and Rajesh Chauhan in the 1990s and Harbhajan Singh since 2000.

Kumble was appointed the captain of the Indian Test cricket team on 8 November 2007[1]. His first assignment as captain was the three-test home series against Pakistan that India won 1-0. Then he led the Indian Test team on its tour to Australia for the 2007-08 four-test series of The Border-Gavaskar Trophy that India lost 1-2. Kumble succeeded his state team mate Rahul Dravid, who resigned as the captain in September 2007 [1]
 
. Since his debut in international cricket on 25 April 1990, he has taken 619 Test wickets and 337 ODI wickets. Although often criticized as not a big turner of the ball[2], Kumble is the second highest wicket taker among leg spinners in Test cricket behind leg spinner Shane Warne of Australia and the third of all bowlers after Warne and off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka and has claimed 619 Test wickets. He is one of only two bowlers in the history of cricket to have taken all 10 wickets in a test innings, the other being Jim Laker of England.[3] Kumble is currently ranked the 18th best bowler in Tests by the International Cricket Council[4]. He was awarded the Padma Shri, one of India's highest civilian honours, by the Government of India in 2005. After playing for India for 18 years, he announced his retirement on 2 November 2008. His last match was against Australia at his favourite venue,Feroz Shah Kotla Ground in Delhi.

Personal information
Full name Anil Kumble
Nickname Jumbo
Born 17 October 1970 (1970-10-17) (age 38)
 Bengaluru, India
Batting style Right-handed
Bowling style Right-arm leg break
Role Bowler and Test captain
International information
National side India
Test debut (cap 192) 9 August 1990: v England
Last Test 29 October 2008: v Australia
ODI debut (cap 78) 25 April 1990: v Sri Lanka
Last ODI 19 March 2007:v Bermuda
Domestic team information
Years Team
1989/90 – 2008/09 Karnataka
2006 Surrey
2000 Leicestershire
1995 Northamptonshire
2008 Royal Challengers Bangalore
Career statistics
 Tests ODI FC LA
Matches 132 271 244 380
Runs scored 2,506 938 5,572 1,456
Batting average 17.77 10.53 21.68 11.20
100s/50s 1/5 0/0 7/17 0/0
Top score 110* 26 154* 30*
Balls bowled 40,850 14,496 66,931 20,247
Wickets 619 337 1,136 514
Bowling average 29.65 30.89 25.83 27.58
5 wickets in innings 35 2 72 3
10 wickets in match 8 n/a 19 n/a
Best bowling 10/74 6/12 10/74 6/12
Catches/stumpings 60/– 85/– 120/– 122/–
Personal life

Anil Kumble was born in Bangalore, Karnataka to KN Krishna Swamy and Saroja.[5] His family, of Kannadiga origin, takes its name from Kumble village situated in the Kasaragod district of Kerala, close to the Karnataka border: his paternal great grandfather hailed from this village while his maternal family hails from Karnataka.[6] He is married to Chethana Ramatheertha.[7] Anil has 3 children - daughter Aaruni (from Chethana's previous marriage), son Mayas and the youngest Svasti (daughter) [8][9]

Kumble began playing cricket on streets of Bangalore and joined a club called Young Cricketers when he was 13 years old. Kumble did his primary schooling at Holy Saint English School and his high schooling at National High School, Basavanagudi. He got his Pre-University College education from National College, Basavanagudi. Kumble graduated from Rashtreeya Vidyalaya College of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering in 1991-92. Anil's studious dispensation is not without a basis in fact. Prior to his selection for the England tour, he did exceedingly well in his academics passing mechanical engineering with distinction in the top of his class. Anil was dedicated enough to be promoted at the end of each year to the next grade. Two of his college team mates, M.P. Vivek and Rashid Mohsin went on to have scintillating but short lived first class careers. Kumble has a brother by name Dinesh. He has a nickname Jumbo not only because his deliveries, for a spinner, are "as fast as a Jumbo jet".[5], but also because his feet are quite big or Jumbo as observed by his team-mates. However the main reason his nickname is "Jumbo" is because his name "Kumble" has "umb" in it and sounds like "Jumbo".

[edit] Career

Kumble is a right-arm leg spinner with an unorthodox style, most famous for his flipper. He started his career as a medium pacer, which has given him a useful faster delivery. He relies more on accuracy, variations and bounce than spinning the ball.[6] His unique bowling style can be attributed to matting pitches in Bangalore which assist top-spin and over-spin.[10]

He made his first-class debut for Karnataka against Hyderabad in November 1989, taking 4 wickets and bagging a pair. He was selected for India Under-19s against Pakistan Under-19s, scoring 113 in the first test and 76 in the second. He made his ODI debut against Sri Lanka at Sharjah in the Australasia Cup on 25 April 1990. He also made his Test debut in that year on India's tour of England in the second Test. It was when India toured South Africa in 1992 that he established himself as a quality international spinner, taking 8 wickets in the second Test. Later that year, when England toured India, he took 21 wickets in just 3 Test matches at an average of 19.8.

He took his first 50 Test wickets in just 10 Test matches, the fastest an Indian bowler had achieved the milestone. He went on to become the second fastest Indian bowler to reach 100 Test wickets (in 21 Test matches), after Erapalli Prasanna. On 27 November 1993, he took 6 wickets for 12 runs in an ODI against the West Indies at Calcutta, a new record for best bowling figures by an Indian, one that remains unbeaten till date.

His performance in ODI cricket peaked in 1996, the year in which the World Cup was held in Asia, when he took 61 ODI wickets at an average of 20.24 and an economy rate of 4.06.

Kumble is one of only two bowlers ever (the other being Jim Laker) to have taken all 10 wickets in a Test innings. Kumble achieved this against Pakistan in the second Test played in Delhi between 4 February and 8 February 1999, although by failing to dismiss Pakistan's Waqar Younis in either innings, he missed out on the achievement of dismissing all 11 batsmen in a Test match. It has been said that once he had got 9 wickets his friend and teammate Javagal Srinath tried not to take a wicket so that Kumble could take the 10th.[citation needed] The achievement was commemorated by naming a traffic circle in Bangalore after him.

On 6 October 2004, Kumble became only the third spinner in the history of Test cricket (after Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan) and the second Indian bowler (after Kapil Dev) to capture 400 Test wickets. Reaching the mark took him 30 fewer Test matches than it took Kapil Dev, and 7 fewer than Warne. He is one of only 2 Indian bowlers (the other being Javagal Srinath) and one of only 3 spinners (the others being Muralitharan and Sanath Jayasuriya) to have taken over 300 ODI wickets. In the India-West Indies series of 2006, Kumble took 6-78 in the second innings of the final Test in Sabina Park, Jamaica, and bowled India to a historic series victory; it had been 35 years since a similar series victory. During the first innings of the match, Kumble scored 45 and became the second player in the history of the game (after Warne) to score 2000 runs and take over 500 Test wickets. Anil Kumble also holds the world record for most wickets leg before wicket (lbw)[11]
Test career batting performance of Anil Kumble.

On 10 December 2004, Kumble became India's highest wicket taker when he trapped Mohammad Rafique of Bangladesh to surpass Kapil Dev's haul of 434 wickets. On 11 March 2006, he took his 500th Test wicket. On June 11 2006, Kumble passed Courtney Walsh on 520 Test wickets to take 4th place. After returning to India from the 2007 Cricket World Cup, he announced his retirement from ODI Cricket on 30 March 2007. [12]

Towards the end of his career, Anil Kumble came up with yet another potent weapon in his armory - a googly or the wrong 'un which was reportedly delivered with a more orthodox grip and worked upon, using a tennis ball during practice.[13]

On 10 August 2007, Kumble scored his maiden century, with an innings of 110 not out against England to help them finish with 664. He took 118 Test matches to reach his maiden Test hundred, which is a record, beating Chaminda Vaas who had held this record previously with 96 Tests. It was also the only hundred by an Indian in the 3 Test series.[14] He is the only Test cricketer to have taken all ten wickets in an innings and score a Test hundred in his career. A day after scoring his ton, Kumble dismissed Vaughn for his 900th International wicket and 563rd Test wicket, drawing him level with Glenn McGrath. Later he trapped Monty Panesar for an LBW to finish the innings and overtake McGrath in the list of all time wicket takers, only Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne have more wickets.


He is one of the 4 bowlers, alongside Richard Hadlee, Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan, and the only Indian bowler ever, to have taken 5 wickets in a Test innings more than 30 times. He also holds the world record for the largest number of caught-and-bowled dismissals in tests, 35 - which forms 5.65% of his total wickets. His ODI bowling average, which is above 30, is considered high compared to other great bowlers, and he is known to be a much better bowler in India than elsewhere. He is also one of 4 Indian bowlers to have conceded over 250 runs in a Test match, although he took 12 wickets in that match. He is known for bowling tirelessly, having bowled 72 overs in a Test innings once. He is also remembered for his tenacity in bowling even when injured, especially after an incident in a match against West Indies where, despite having his broken jaw being heavily taped, he came back to prise out the wicket of Brian Lara.

His Test batting average is acceptable for a lower order batsmen; however, his unconvincing running in ODIs, giving him a fairly ordinary average of around 10, has prevented him from becoming an all-rounder. His fielding is considered adequate and he usually fields on the boundary or at gully.

On 17 January 2008, in the third Test against Australia at WACA, Perth, Anil Kumble became the first Indian bowler and the third in the world to reach the milestone of 600 Test wickets. Kumble achieved the record just after the tea break when he had Andrew Symonds caught by Rahul Dravid at first slip. In a friendly gesture, Adam Gilchrist shook hands with Kumble and congratulated him. Kumble would go on to lead India to its first Test victory in Perth and deny Australia a record of 17 consecutive test victories. Kumble's 600 wickets came in 124 matches at an average of 28.68. Kumble has captured most number of wickets against Australia by an Indian bowler. He has taken 104 Australian scalps in 17 matches at an average of 27.5.

Kumble is the third bowler after Muttiah Muralitharan and Shane Warne to take 600 Test wickets. Paying tribute to Kumble on reaching this milestone, cricket analysts have provided some interesting insights to his bowling skills, specifically vis-a-vis Warne and Muralitharan. Sambit Bal, the editor of Cricinfo, writes: [15]

  "That he [Kumble] has been an unusual spinner has been said many times before. It has also been said, a trifle unfairly, that he is a unidimensional bowler. Palpably, he has lacked the turn of Warne and Murali, but his variety has been subtler, far more apparent to batsmen than to viewers. He has shown that not only turn and flight that can deceive the batsman but also the changes of length and pace. He has been a cultured practitioner of his unique craft and a master of nuances."

Columnist and former cricketer Peter Roebuck interestingly argues that in a bowling method that relies more on precision rather than big turns, Kumble is closer to fast bowler Glenn McGrath rather than his fellow spinners Warne and Muralitharan: [16]

  "Curiously, Kumble has little in common with his two great contemporaries, Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan. They relied on excess, spinning the ball ferociously and able, by sleight of hand, to fool batsmen into playing at thin air. They created error by destroying hope. Kumble more closely resembles Glenn McGrath because he does not so much baffle batsmen as torture them with precisely-pitched deliveries. Like the Australian, he does not tear opponents apart, just works away methodically till the deed has been done. Apparently he is an engineer, but he belongs in the courts of law as an inquisitor."

During the 4th test against Australia at the Adelaide Oval on 25 January 2008, Kumble was only 13 runs short of his 2nd test hundred by scoring 87 runs off 205 balls, with 9 fours in India's first innings of 526. Only Sachin Tendulkar scored more than him, with 153 runs off 205 balls.

[edit] Retirement

Anil Kumble announced his retirement on the last day of the match on 2 November 2008 in the 3rd test match at Feroz Shah Kotla cricket stadium at New Delhi, India. The decision although was on cards came as a surprise. Kumble injured his little finger of left hand while attempting a catch off Matthew Hayden in Australia's first innings which rendered him unfit for the 4th and final test of the series against Australia. Kumble was finding it difficult to find his striking form and went wicketless in four consecutive innings for the first time in his career before the first innings of Australia in the third test of the series against Australia in which he managed three lower order wickets. Mitchell Johnson of Australia was the last victim of Kumble. He declared the Indian 2nd innings with only 6 overs of play left in the drawn match in order to have one last trundle. His figures were 4-0-14-0. The final ball of his test career was a low full toss which was decisively driven down the ground for four by the batsman Matthew Hayden.

[edit] Awards and honours

  * Arjuna award, a sports award from the Government of India, in 1995[17]
  * One of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year, in 1996
  * Among the 16 cricketers shortlisted for the Wisden Indian Cricketer of the 20th Century, in 2002[18] (Kapil Dev won)
  * Padma Shri, a civilian award from the Government of India, in 2005
  * A prominent intersection in M. G. Road, Bangalore has been named after Anil Kumble.

[edit] Man of the Series awards

[edit] 4 Awards in Test cricket

  # Series Season Series Performance
  1 England in India Test Series 1992/93 16 (3 Matches, 2 Innings); 181-53-416-21 (1x5 WI); 1 Catch
  2 New Zealand in India Test Series 1999/00 39 Runs (3 Matches, 3 Innings); 197.4-76-364-20 (2x5 WI, 1x10 WM); 2 Catches
  3 Zimbabwe in India Test Series 2001/02 47 Runs (2 Matches, 3 Innings); 134.2-48-291-16 (1x5 WI)
  4 Sri Lanka in India Test Series 2005/06 67 Runs (3 Matches, 4 Innings); 138.3-28-374-20 (2x5 WI, 1x10 WM); 2 Catches

[edit] 1 Award in ODI cricket

  # Series (Opponents) Season Series Performance
  1 Sahara Friendship Cup (Pakistan v/s India) 1996 26 (5 Matches & 3 Innings); 44-2-159-13


[edit] Man of the Match awards

[edit] 10 Awards in Test cricket

  MatchMatch
  S No Opponent Venue Season Match Performance
  1 Sri Lanka KD Singh Babu, Lucknow 1993/94 1st Innings: 4 (1x4); 37-10-69-4
  2nd Innings: 27.3-9-59-7; 1 Catch
  10+ Wicket Match
  2 Pakistan Feroz Shah Kotla, New Delhi 1998/99 1st Innings: 0; 24.3-4-75-4; 1 Catch
  2nd Innings: 15 (2x4); 26.3-9-74-10
  10 Wickets in Innings and 10+ Wickets in Match
  3 New Zealand Green Park, Kanpur 1999/00 1st Innings: 5 Runs; 32.5-12-67-4
  2nd Innings 26.5-5-67-6
  10 Wicket Match
  4 England Mohali, Chandigarh 2001/02 1st Innings: 37 (6x4); 19-6-52-2; 1 Catch
  2nd Innings: 28.4-6-81-6; 1 Catch
  5 Zimbabwe VCA, Nagpur 2001/02 1st Innings: 13* (1x4); 33.5-12-82-4
  2nd Innings: 37-15-63-5
  6 Australia Chepauk, Chennai 2004/05 1st Innings: 20 (2x4); 17.3-4-48-7; 1 Catch
  2nd Innings: 47-8-133-6
  10+ Wickets Match
  7 Sri Lanka Feroz Shah Kotla, New Delhi 2005/06 1st Innings: 8 (1x4); 28-6-72-6; 1 Catch
  2nd Innings: 36-7-85-4; 1 Catch
  10 Wicket Match
  8 England Mohali, Chandigarh 2005/06 1st Innings: 32 (2x4); 29.4-8-76-5
  2nd Innings: 29-7-70-4
  9 England The Oval, England 2006/07 1st Innings: 110* (2x4); 29.1-7-94-3
  2nd Innings: 8* 37-9-123-2
  10 Pakistan Feroz Shah Kotla, New Delhi 2007/08 1st Innings: 24 (3x4); 21.2-6-38-4
  2nd Innings: 27.1-8-68-3

[edit] 6 Awards in ODI

  S No Opponent Venue Season Match Performance
  1 England Headingley, Leeds 1990 11-2-29-2
  2 West Indies Eden Gardens, Kolkata 1993/94 5* (1x4); 6.1-2-12-6
  3 New Zealand Basin Reserve, Wellington 1993/94 10-0-33-5
  4 South Africa Wankhede, Mumbai 1996/97 8.2-0-25-4
  5 Bangladesh Wankhede, Mumbai 1998 10-4-17-3
  6 Kenya Gymkhana, Nairobi 2001/02 10-1-22-2

[edit] Test wicket milestones

  * 1st: Allan Lamb (England)
  * 50th: David Houghton (Zimbabwe)
  * 100th: Martin Crowe (New Zealand)
  * 150th: Sherwin Campbell (West Indies)
  * 200th: Pommie Mbangwa (Zimbabwe)
  * 250th: Dion Nash (New Zealand)
  * 300th: Matthew Hoggard (England)
  * 350th: Jacob Oram (New Zealand)
  * 400th: Darren Lehmann (Australia)
  * 450th: Mohammad Sami (Pakistan)
  * 500th. Stephen Harmison (England)
  * 550th: Khaled Mashud (Bangladesh)
  * 600th: Andrew Symonds (Australia)
  * 619th: Mitchell Johnson (Australia)

[edit] Endorsements

  * Indigo Nation
  * Manipal Education[19]
  * ING Vysya[20]