We are a superbly united team: Dhoni

Nottingham: Mahendra Singh Dhoni made a unique and unprecedented statement — that his team stood united — here on Friday.

On the eve of the India versus Bangladesh duel in ICC World Twenty20, the Indian skipper left the media stunned during the pre-match captain’s press conference.

It was not skipper Dhoni alone but the entire Indian team, including the support staff, that made an appearance during what was expected to be a routine media interaction between the press and the skipper.

Then, Dhoni, flanked by his men, read out a statement. “This message is for the people of India, and for Indian cricket fans worldwide and comes from the whole team. That is why we are all here.”
Making a statement

Dhoni added: “As we prepare for the Twenty20 World Cup, we are a superbly united team. The team spirit is as good as it has ever been, with each individual supporting each other, both on and off the field.

“Recent reports in the Indian media of a rift between myself and (Virender) Sehwag amount to nothing but false and irresponsible media (reporting),” he said.

The Indian captain further said: “Our fans and supporters can take confidence from the wonderful unity that continues to exist in the team. We thank our fans for their continued support and look forward to entertaining you during this tournament, into which we go into as a well-prepared, confident and unified Team India.”

Dhoni had been, “hurt”, as team coach Gary Kirsten revealed, by reports in a section of the media that spoke about differences between the skipper and senior batsman Sehwag.
Shoulder tear

Sehwag, Kirsten said, was suffering from a grade 1 tear in his right shoulder. He said Sehwag was progressing well but was not willing to commit himself to a time-frame for his complete recovery. Sehwag has been ruled out of the first game.

Left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan, another cricketer recovering from fitness concerns (strained bowling shoulder), bowled at the nets at Trent Bridge on Friday. But then, the team-management is unlikely to risk a prime bowler in the early stages of the competition.

Apart from Sehwag and Zaheer, Pragyan Ojha and Ravindra Jadeja may not figure in the eleven for Saturday’s game. It could, however, be a toss-up between Jadeja and Irfan Pathan for the final spot. Left-arm spinner Ojha has been bowling well but Harbhajan’s greater experience and the ability to clear the ground in the end overs is expected to clinch him a place.
No complacency

Despite being a strong and balanced side with explosive strikers of the ball and an incisive attack, India will not take Bangladesh lightly. The memories of the debacle against Bangladesh in World Cup 2007 will ensure against any complacency.

India has a healthy blend of right and left-handers, the power hitters and those who can rotate the strike. It is a line-up that can disrupt the rhythm of an attack.

It is an outfit of exemplary energy and intensity levels. Importantly, the side is not daunted by adversity.

The team could, however, have to grapple with chilly conditions at night in a game that begins at 6 p.m. local time (10.30 p.m. IST).

It is becoming increasingly cold in these parts at night and spells of icy winds will not make the players’ job easier. Dew could be a factor during the chase and defending may be a better ploy.

There, traditionally, is a measure of assistance for the pacemen at Trent Bridge. Ishant Sharma & Co. could probe the Bangladesh line-up.

Bangladesh is an enthusiastic fielding side and has in skipper Mohammad Ashraful and paceman Mashrafe Murtaza — despite his IPL misadventure — men who can swing games.

Given that an innings is limited to 20 overs, individual performances can impact a match more in this format.

Shakib Hasan, Tamim Iqbal and wicketkeeper-batsman Mushfiqur Rahim have pulled their weight for Bangladesh in the past.

But then, the odds are clearly in favour of the defending champion.

The teams:

India (from): M.S. Dhoni (captain), G. Gambhir, R. Sharma, S. Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Y. Pathan, I. Pathan, P. Kumar, Harbhajan Singh, R.P. Singh, Ishant Sharma, R. Jadeja, P. Ojha, Zaheer Khan.

Bangaldesh (from): M. Ashraful (captain), Shakib Hasan, Roqibul Hasan, Rubel Hossain, Shahadat Hossain, Tamim Iqbal, Naeem Islam, Mahmud Ullah, Mohammad Mithun, Mashrafe Mortaza, Mushfiqar Rahim, Shamsur Rehman, Syed Rasel, Abdur Razzak, Zunaed Siddique.

Umpires: S. Taufel & B. Bowden. Third umpire: N. Long.

Match referee: C. Broad.

Match starts at 10.30 p.m. IST.

Champions League expanded from eight to 12 teams

The domestic Twenty20 winners of West Indies, Sri Lanka and New Zealand, as well as Delhi Daredevils, will also get an opportunity to participate in the inaugural Champions Twenty20 League, to be held from October 8-23 in India, just after the Champions Trophy. Lalit Modi, the tournament's chairman, said the prize money for the tournament will be US$ 6 million, and the draw will be held in London on June 23 after which the venues will be finalised.

Delhi have been included on the basis of having topped the round-robin stage of the 2009 IPL. They will be joined by Deccan Chargers and Royal Challengers Bangalore, the 2009 IPL finalists.

Other 2009 domestic finalists and winners include Victoria and New South Wales (Australia), Cape Cobras and Eagles (South Africa), Otago (New Zealand), Trinidad and Tobago (West Indies) and Wayamba (Sri Lanka). England's Twenty20 Cup only begins on Monday and the finalists will only be decided on August 25.

There will be a total of 23 matches and the teams will be divided into four groups of three each to play on a league basis before the top two teams from each group move on to the second stage. The four top teams from there will play the semi-finals.

Last year's IPL finalists Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings will not be eligible. Sialkot Stallions, the winners of Pakistan's domestic Twenty20 tournament, will not feature as originally scheduled because their government has restricted travel to India.

"Unfortunately, the Pakistan government won't give them clearance to come to India, and since yesterday was out cut-off date, it's not possible to have a team from Pakistan this year," said Modi. "Delhi Daredevils this year have highest points from the league. But from next year, the third team from India will be decided from a play-off between the two losing semi-finalists."

Modi also said that players from the unofficial ICL could also represent their domestic teams, provided they resign from the league before May 31. However, if their domestic sides qualify for the Champions League those players will not be allowed to play as part of a "one-year cooling period".

The tournament was initially supposed to held from December 3-11 2008 in Mumbai, Chennai and Bangalore but was put off after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. The cancellation came as a huge blow for the teams that qualified for the 2008 edition, as they would have received at least US$250,000 as participating fees. Each team gets a minimum guarantee amount for playing in the tournament.

On the night of the IPL final in Johannesburg, Modi said on television that the fourth season of the IPL, in 2011, could feature ten teams instead of eight.

Symonds' double blow proves crucial

The IPL final could have gone either way but Andrew Symonds' back-to-back strikes tilted the balance in favour of Deccan Chargers, according to captain Adam Gilchrist and his Bangalore counterpart Anil Kumble.

Chasing a modest 144, Bangalore looked on course for victory until Symonds struck twice in the 15th over, removing both Ross Taylor and Virat Kohli with the second and third deliveries respectively. Gilchrist believed the match was evenly poised until then and congratulated Bangalore on making it a great contest. "I think for us, Pragyan Ojha did really well claiming three crucial wickets but those two wickets in two balls, that really hurts especially when a team is chasing," Gilchrist said.

Kumble agreed that over was the turning point. "On this track, chasing 144 was not a big task and we needed seven runs an over. But losing Taylor and Kohli in two balls hurt," Kumble said. "Earlier, we lost Rahul [Dravid] and that put the brakes on. We didn't have partnerships and still were one hit away from a win."

They were also plenty of positives for both captains to dwell on. Gilchrist, who was adjudged the Player of the Tournament, was delighted with the performance of the youngsters in the team and he singled out Harmeet Singh, who took two wickets and a stunning catch, for special praise.

"We have a number of youngsters in the side and all of them are eager to learn and grow," Gilchrist said. "It was amazing to see Harmeet tonight, the way he bowled and then took that amazing catch."

Kumble credited his team-mates for the incredible turnaround in the tournament, having finished second from bottom last season. "Two weeks ago, after the match against Mumbai, we said it was tough to win five in a row and reach the final. I credit my teammates for doing just that and coming so far," Kumble said. "Of course it was so near and yet so far but it was a good game of cricket today."

He also pointed out that it was a deliberate ploy to open the bowling, since he wanted to get rid of the hard-hitting Gilchrist at the earliest. "If you let someone like Gilchrist get away, he would run away with the match. It was for me to put up my hand and bowl. Fortunately it worked well," Kumble said.

Life came a full circle for Gilchrist and his team following a spectacular reversal of fortunes from the previous season, when they finished at the bottom of the table. Gilchrist felt the lack of pressure had a positive effect on his side.

"I really encouraged our team to try to play everything down and fly under the radar if you like, because we were happy with that, without having any expectations on us," Gilchrist said. "This is only the cricket I play now, so given what we went through last year, this is just a really tremendous effort from the whole franchise to turn it around. It's just been a great experience.

"The first thing I said at the start of our first meeting was, 'Guys, we're all in it together'. That was my first line of our first team meeting and yeah, we're all going to enjoy this together."

He was also full of praise for the way Bangalore scripted a very similar revival against the odds. "I'm thrilled for him (Kumble) and their franchise, the way they turned it around," Gilchrist said. "They experienced a lot of the pain and disappointment that we went through last year."

Gilchrist reflects on a job well done

Deccan Chargers captain Adam Gilchrist has said he would have picked team-mate Andrew Symonds in Australia's Ashes squad on the strength of his performance in the second IPL season. Symonds didn't make the Ashes cut but played a huge role in Deccan winning the tournament.

With Deccan clinching the title on Sunday following their six-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final in Johannesburg, Gilchrist had spoken of how Symonds played a key role in the team's success. Symonds took the wickets of Ross Taylor and Virat Kohli with successive balls to effectively end Bangalore's chances.

"He [Symonds] would be in my [Ashes] team," Gilchrist said. "Ever since I've played with Andrew Symonds he's been a real team man. You saw a glimpse of that last year when he only played four games - the respect he had from the Indian players and international players alike. He became an instant favourite in the squad. He's a great personality and a wonderful talent on the cricket field who can turn matches."

Gilchrist also had words of praise for VVS Laxman, from whom he took over as captain after the team finished bottom of the league last season. "Although we made changes in the coaches and the captain, everyone in the squad bought into it, including VVS," Gilchrist said. "He went through a lot emotionally. The captaincy was taken away from him and he only played five games, then the selectors decided we didn't need him."

Laxman remained a good team man despite being dropped, Gilchrist said. "He continued to contribute around the group with his experience and his vast knowledge. He wants to learn to be a better Twenty20 player. That's a wonderful example to young players to see a player at his age wanting to evolve into a better player."

Gilchrist said Laxman even worked with the team's coaches to improve his Twenty20 skills. "It's not just the young kids who are learning all the time, it applies to all of us. VVS epitomises what this franchise is all about."

Gilchrist attributed the team's turnaround to several factors, including emphasising to the players to "make sure every ball is the most important thing in their life at that moment". He said the team's owners had also played a role by agreeing to his requests for some changes in personnel.

"The main one was [coach] Darren Lehmann, who has a wonderful cricket brain." Gilchrist also brought Australian fielding coach Mike Young and fitness trainer Steve Smith on board.

IPL Points table

IPL Points table 15 May,2009

Team	Mat	Won	Lost	Tied	N/R	Pts	Net RR	For	Against
Delhi Daredevils	14	10	4	0	0	20	+0.311	1978/255.2	1953/262.4
Chennai	14	8	5	0	1	17	+0.951	2086/255.3	1855/257.1
Bangalore	14	8	6	0	0	16	-0.191	1994/276.0	2027/273.2
Deccan Chargers	14	7	7	0	0	14	+0.203	2111/272.4	2097/278.1
Kings XI Punjab	14	7	7	0	0	14	-0.483	1787/251.2	1887/248.3
Rajasthan Royals	14	6	7	0	1	13	-0.352	1688/253.1	1810/257.5
Mumbai Indians	14	5	8	0	1	11	+0.297	1897/256.2	1802/253.4
Kolkata	14	3	10	0	1	7	-0.789	1757/248.5	1867/237.5