'Contender' White backs Clarke to lead Oz T20 side

Published>Tue, May 18 10 02:08 PM

Sydney, May 18 (ANI): Australia's Twenty20 vice captain Cameron White has backed incumbent Michael Clarke to lead the side for his leadership skills, despite selectors toying with the idea of allowing Clarke to focus on 50-over cricket and Tests.

Clarke expects his spot in the Australian Twenty20 team to be reviewed after batting performances at the World Twenty20 that "haven't been up to scratch".

Clarke guided Australia to six consecutive victories before the final where Kevin Pietersen hit 47 off 31 balls to inspire England to a seven-wicket win.

White said Clarke deserved credit for his leadership skills. "What Michael's done for the team, his leadership and captaincy, has been a great effort," he said.

"We've come a long way. There was a stage when we weren't considered a very good Twenty20 team. But I think we've showed in this tournament that we are," The Sydney Morning Herald quoted White, as saying.

Clarke also said that Australia has taken a big step forward, reaching the World T20 final for the first time at its third attempt. (ANI)

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Barca VP says club in talks on buying Fabregas, Villa

Published Tue, May 18 10 01:48 PM

Barcelona are in negotiations to buy Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas and Valencia striker David Villa, acording to club vice president Rafael Yuste.

Talks with Valencia on Villa's transfer "are on the right track," Yuste said in an interview with Catalan radio station Ona FM quoted by Spanish news agency EFE.

Bringing Fabregas back to Barca, where he was a youth player, was "more complicated because lengthy negotiations with his club lie ahead," Yuste added.

"But both players want to come and that makes everything easier," he said.

Yuste also hinted that French forward Thierry Henry could be on his way to a club in the United States.

The France captain and Barca had to "put the finishing touches (to a deal) so that both are happy", he told Ona FM.

Barca director general Joan Oliver said on Monday reports that Henry would sign for a Major League Soccer (MLS) side "were not completely wrong".

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Pakistan lack quality Test players: Yousuf

Published Tue, May 18 10 01:38 PM

Karachi, May 18 (PTI) At present there is dearth of quality Test players in Pakistan and in such circumstances it is unfortunate to see the board''s extra emphasis on Twenty20 cricket, former captain Mohammad Yousuf said. "Pakistan presently does not have any worthy Test player. Our team is only good for T20 cricket and the board has also been laying lot of importance only on T20 cricket which is unfortunate," Yousuf said appearing in front of the inquiry committee looking into Pakistan''s disastrous tour of Australia earlier this year. The right-handed batsman warned the committee members that if remedial steps are not taken immediately then Pakistan''s Test future will be in serious jeopardy. He pointed out that many of the present players are also interested only in playing limited overs cricket and not Tests. Incidentally, the former skipper was the only player to question the Pakistan Cricket Board''s decision to set up an inquiry committee after the tour of Australia. The video recordings of his hearing show on plenty of occasions Yousuf exchanged words with the committee members, forcing PCB legal advisor Tafazzul Rizvi to ask him not to dictate terms. "I am not dictating to anyone. What I am saying is for the betterment of Pakistan cricket," Yousuf responded. From the outset of the hearing, Yousuf expressed his said serious objections over the setting up of the inquiry committee. "In last three years we have lost to South Africa, India, Sri Lanka. Why was an inquiry committee not set up then why only now?" he questioned. "If you understand cricket then you will know this was not our best team on the New Zealand and Australia tours," he said. Yousuf, who was sacked as captain and banned for an indefinite period on the recommendations of the inquiry committee after the twin tours of New Zealand and Australia, has announced his retirement from international cricket. He accepted that he made some mistakes as captain during the tour but said he cannot do anything if fielders drop catches constantly. "I can also suggest to the board to bring about sanity and order in the team. Name the captain for atleast a year or two not on series-to-series basis. If you have a long-term captain then the players know they have to go by what he says," Yousuf said.

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T20 winning captain Collingwood back in team as regular trooper

Published>Tue, May 18 10 01:22 PM

London, May 18 (ANI): England's Twenty20 World Cup winning captain Paul Collingwood will join the team as a regular player at Lord's on Monday for the first Test against Bangladesh.

Collingwood will not even be the vice-captain of the England cricket team. Andrew Strauss will be back as skipper, with Alastair Cook his No. 2.

Strauss has not led England for four months. In that time England played in Abu Dhabi, Bangladesh and the Caribbean, while he has been struggling to make early-season runs for Middlesex, The Sun reports.

"I don't think Straussy will have trouble going back into the dressing room, despite not being part of this victory. He is our leader at the moment.

"Colly has become a lot more confident. He has led from the front with his attitude," the paper quoted Flower, as saying.

Bangladesh on the other hand are confident that their captain Shakib Al Hasan will recover from chicken pox to face England in the first Test at Lord's. (ANI)

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White being tipped to replace Clarke as Oz T20 captain

Published>Tue, May 18 10 01:18 PM

Sydney, May 17 (ANI): Victoria captain Cameron White, who led his side to the Big Bash title, while winning four of the past five championships, is being tipped to be the new Australian Twent20 skipper after incumbent Michael Clarke's tenure comes under review over his suspect batting in the shortest version of the game.

Clarke has conceded that his position must come under review following Australia's seven-wicket loss to archrivals England. He finished with 92 runs in the tournament at 15.33. White on the other hand scored 180 runs at 45, with a strike rate of 146.34 compared with Clarke's strike rate of 80.7.

It is a difficult consideration for selectors because of Clarke's astute leadership and excellent winning record as captain. But his not holding his place in the Twenty20 team as a batsman is proving a weakness, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Clarke's performances in the three World Twenty20s so far have yielded 108 runs at an average of 10.8, with a strike rate of 77.14. White, by contrast, has played only 20 games for Australia, but has more runs - 481, at a superior average of 43.72 and an excellent strike rate of 148.45.

"There is no doubt the selectors will need to have a look at my performances. I certainly know they haven't been up to scratch and as good as I would've expected throughout this whole tournament, and probably Twenty20 cricket in general," said Clarke.

"I'm sure the selectors will have a look and if I'm not the right person for the No.3 position and the captaincy of this team they'll make that decision," he said.

White was predictably diplomatic when asked about taking over the leadership in wake of Clarke's comments.

"If that's what Michael thinks, that's what he's thinking. I'm in no position to think about selection. All I can do is make sure I'm doing well and the team's doing well and playing my part for the team and supporting Michael as vice-captain as well," White said. (ANI)

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Flintoff likely to play for Queensland in Australia's T20 Big Bash

Published>Tue, May 18 10 01:08 PM

London, May 18 (ANI): Injured all rounder Andrew Flintoff, who has still not given up hope of returning to England's limited-overs team, is all set to play in an Australian domestic Twenty20 tournament.

Flintoff, 32, who watched England secure a historic win over the Aussies in the World Twenty20 final, is scheduled to play for Lancashire in late July.

He has been approached by three Australian states to play in the Big Bash tournament, with Queensland being his likely destination, The Sun reports.

The tournament clashes with the one-day series versus Australia in January, which builds up to the 2011 World Cup in Indian subcontinent.

But Flintoff admitted that he faces a battle to get into the England's side following their recent success. (ANI)

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Shoaib opts spiritual treatment for knee pain

Published Tue, May 18 10 12:52 PM

Karachi, May 18 (PTI) Eager to make a comeback to the national team, Pakistan''s controversial fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has approached a spiritual healer for the treatment of his chronic knee pain, which could not be cured even after a major surgery in England last year. According to sources close to the bowler, Shoaib went to see a spiritual/faith healer in Karachi who specialises in treating people with orthopedic and muscular problems. A source said the healer has attributed the pain to a nerve being trapped inside the knee resulting in blockage of normal blood circulation. According to the source Shoaib had admitted taking injections regularly and medications to fight the pain. "The knee used to get stiff and painful but he is feeling great now and is back to normal. There is no pain in the knee at all. "He has been targeting a comeback to the team for a while and now he is confident if called to the camp he can prove his fitness to the selectors," the source said. Shoaib has not played for Pakistan since May 2009 due to fitness and disciplinary issues though he played some domestic cricket recently to prove his fitness and form to the selectors. Chief selector Mohsin Khan has said that Shoaib''s case will be considered when the selectors will finalise the team for the Asia Cup and England tour. "Shoaib, Umar Gul, Wahab Riaz have all recovered from fitness issues and we will have a close look at them before final selection in the camp. "If he is ready, definitely it will be good for the team because he is an experienced performer particularly in English conditions," ," Khan had said on Monday.

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