Sports

New Delhi, December 12: Former national selector Mohinder Amarnath created a flutter on Tuesday by admitting that “certain internal reason” stopped the selection committee from replacing Mahendra Singh Dhoni as Indian captain after eight successive Test defeats in England and Australia. “Definitely, there were discussions to replace Dhoni and people were agreeing to do so but for some internal

Pune, December 11: Mohinder Amarnath on Monday joined the chorus against MS Dhoni's continuation as India's Test skipper, saying Dhoni's performances did not merit selection but nobody within the Indian cricket board (BCCI) had the "guts" to remove him. Known for his plain speaking, the 62-year-old Amarnath, one of the chief architects of India's first World Cup win in 1983, has had a stormy

Karachi, December 11: Pakistan's experienced allrounders, Shahid Afridi and Abdul Razzaq, have been omitted for the forthcoming One-day series against India although the former has been retained for the two T20 matches. The Pakistani selectors had a number of surprises in store for the cricket community today when they announced the squads for the series in India. Pakistan tours India from

Nagpur, December 11: The India-England series was pitched as a revenge series. Over the last two Tests, the theme has changed completely with Team India suffering a role reversal. Far from being the avengers, they are the ones at the receiving end now. With back-to-back wins, it is England who are revelling in alien conditions. As both India and England arrived in Nagpur on Monday for the fourth

London, December 10: Former India captain Rahul Dravid was scathing in his criticism after India's abject surrender in the Kolkata Test, questioning the "skill, ability and talent" of the players who are representing the country. "People talk about attitude and say [the players] don't care because there is too much money in the Indian Premier League. That's one side of things but the main thing is

Kolkata, December 10: It's never prudent to write off someone who has been a class act over some time, knowing that all it takes for such talent to bounce back is rediscover pride and belief. But, then, Zaheer Khan's omission from the Nagpur Test squad has come at a time when recovery and resilience have a very different ring to it for him. It's not just the skills that have deserted him, it is

Karachi, December 10: Former ICC president Ehsan Mani has criticised the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for agreeing to tour India for a short one-day series later this month. “I think the PCB is wrong to have agreed to this. If it is a political decision, then the PCB should have asked the politicians to make sure that India reciprocated by coming and playing against Pakistan even if it was at a

New Delhi, December 10: Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly was critical of Sachin Tendulkar’s form and said that he if was in a similiar situation he may have retired from cricket. “Sachin desperately needs to get runs. He has achieved a lot. He is getting a long rope because of what he has achieved. By now he should know how to turn it around,” Ganguly told ‘Headlines Today’ on Sunday. “As

Kolkata, December 10: Good news! Team India, down in the dumps after losing back-to-back Tests in their backyard, have identified their flaws. But, then, there is nothing new in their job description from here that they didn't know at the start of the four-Test series. Asked if this was the lowest phase for the team, and also for him as the skipper, Dhoni responded, "I think the England and

Kolkata, December 9: Stung by two successive defeats, the national selectors today cracked the whip by axing veteran pace spearhead Zaheer Khan and batsman Yuvraj Singh from the squad for the fourth and final Test against England starting on Thursday. Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who did not play the last match, also found himself in casualty list as the selectors opted for a leg-spinner in Piyush