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'Spin strategies take centre stage'

Match facts

March 2-6, Hyderabad
Start time 9.30am (0400GMT

Big Picture

The clinical victory in Chennai marked a job well begun by India, but MS Dhoni's side won't be too thrilled yet, having lost the previous series against England despite taking a 1-0 lead. England's fortunes turned with the inclusion of the extra spinner in Monty Panesar for the second Test in Mumbai, and Australia's team management have also been pondering whether to switch to a two-spinner policy, which has historically not worked too well for them in India.

What could prompt Australia to stick to their pace-heavy line-up will be that left-arm spinner Xavier Doherty's Test credentials aren't in the same league as Panesar 's, evidenced by an unflattering first-class average of 44.56.

India Vs Australia Second Test 

India, too, have been wondering about an additional tweaker, though in their case it will expand their spin trio to a quartet. Pragyan Ojha, the left-arm spinner, was perhaps India's best bowler in the series defeat to England but was surprisingly left out in the first Test. India's quicks had little to do in Chennai, and Ojha could take one of their places.

Though Ojha is the latest in a long line of Hyderabad players to have played Tests for India, the city has not been a traditional venue for Test cricket, having only hosted three matches till 2009. Tests returned to Hyderabad in 2010 at the new Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, and the Australia match will be the third in Hyderabad in three years. It is the only Indian stadium to get two Tests this season, benefitting after the Australians complained about the facilities in the original host city, Kanpur. Briefly there were concerns that the match might be moved out of Hyderabad as well, after powerful bomb blasts hit the city just over a week ago. Security has been tightened before the match, with two units of an elite anti-terror squad deployed, and 60 CCTVs being used to monitor the stadium and surroundings.

Form guide

India WDLLW (Last five matches, most recent first)
Australia LWWWL

Watch out for...

In Chennai, James Pattinson once again showed why he's rated so highly by Australia's team management, bowling with ferocious pace to fluster India's batsmen and finishing comfortably the best of the Australia's fast bowlers. Pattinson has a tendency to break down, though, and was used only in two short bursts of three overs each early in the first innings. Can his body handle the intensity of back-to-back Tests?

Pattinson dismissed the opener M Vijay cheaply in both innings. The Chennai Test was Vijay's first chance in more than 18 months, and failure in the second Test could relegate him to the sidelines again. With Gautam Gambhir out of the squad, runs in Hyderabad might open the way to a long run in the side for Vijay. He didn't have the best of Ranji seasons - making only 138 at 17.25 in five matches - but will be hoping to capture the form that brought him centuries in both Irani Cup (a first-class Indian domestic match, which pits the Ranji champions against a Rest of India side) games this season.

Teams news

After the Chennai victory, MS Dhoni had talked about India having found a 'settled' side, indicating that there aren't likely to be too many changes. The only decision the team management will have to make is whether to bring in Ojha, and if so, at whose expense.

India: (probable) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 M Vijay, 3 Cheteshwar Pujara, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Virat Kohli, 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 8 R Ashwin, 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 and 11 Bhuvneshwar Kumar/ Ishant Sharma/Pragyan Ojha

Unlike Chennai, where Australia confidently announced their XI well before the match, they have yet to name their team for Hyderabad. The batting is unlikely to change, unless David Warner fails to recover from his bout of gastro. Though their coach Mickey Arthur suggested that, in hindsight, Australia should have played two spinners in Chennai, it is expected that they will play only Lyon as the specialist slow bowler.

India Vs Australia Second Test Sachin Tendulkar

Australia: 1 David Warner, 2 Ed Cowan, 3 Phillip Hughes, 4 Shane Watson, 5 Michael Clarke (capt), 6 Matthew Wade (wk), 7 Moises Henriques, 8 Peter Siddle, 9 Mitchell Starc/Mitchell Johnson/Xavier Doherty, 10 James Pattinson, 11 Nathan Lyon

Pitch and conditions

It will be hotter in Hyderabad than in Chennai, with the temperature predicted to be around 35C in the afternoons. There is no rain forecast over the next week. The pitch is expected to provide help for the spinners, though it should have more in it for the quick bowlers than the turner in Chennai as it is a harder surface.

Stats and trivia

In his previous innings, Dhoni moved into the top 10 among six-hitters in Test cricket, going past Kevin Pietersen. He has cleared the ropes 75 times in Tests, and needs 26 more to break the all-time record held by Adam Gilchrist

Peter Siddle's bowling strike-rate of 41.6 is the best by an Australian against India

Quotes

"When you go onto a ground, you have a good feeling if you have done well before over there … [you have] a good positive mindset."
R Ashwin took 12 wickets in his previous Test in Hyderabad 

"Spin formula India's best bet''

An American football coach once had the basic principle of sports writing explained to him by a reporter: "When you lose, we make fun of you. When you win, we make fun of the other guy."

Much fun, therefore, is being made of Australia's bloopers in the Chennai Test and India are spared the pincushion treatment for now. They would hope the respite lasts for another few months at least.

Victory in the Chennai Test has brought relief rather than fist-pumping 'payback' celebration. Three Tests and three months of introspection lay between India's last Test victory in Ahmedabad against England and the Chennai Test. This was a victory they needed as much as they wanted. It was eked out through a fairly simple formula, one that India hopes will keep working through the rest of the series.

India Vs Australia Second Test Photos 

Chennai was dusted and done, in that order, 90 minutes into day five. After MS Dhoni's brutal double-century on Sunday, the Indian spinners brought their brand of business into play on day four. R Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh and Ravinder Jadeja ran through the Australian batting on a track that spat, bit and either leapt with venom or sizzled with zip.

This is the way this series is going to go, in all likelihood. The focus is on pitches that will allow India to successfully play three spinners, including Jadeja. As long as their batsmen can hold out (Dhoni did far more than hold out in Chennai, he led a surge) and the inexperienced Australians keep sweating, India will control the series.

It is, it appears, India's best chance of securing a result that stays true to script and overturns their own overturning by England.

Before Chennai, India's last Test victory had come on a sluggish surface and led to complaints about the man-hours and sweat-buckets required by India's spinners to get 20 wickets. The turner that was demanded, rather openly, backfired on them in Mumbai after England re-grouped, played Monty Panesar ahead of Tim Bresnan and roared back.

The only similarity between Panesar and Australia's Xavier Doherty is that they are quickish left-arm spinners. Doherty is more of a limited-overs specialist and, not surprisingly, Panesar has played over 100 first-class matches more than him. India will be on the lookout for any copycat approaches from Australia which, if unsuccessful, will no doubt be mocked too.

So far so good. Chennai was originally the venue of the fourth and final Test of the series. The venues were switched around to open the series in the south when it was decided that Hyderabad would host the second Test instead of Kanpur (Cricket Australia had expressed dissatisfaction over the facilities in Kanpur). The ideal script for India would be Australia heading into a north Indian spring, in Mohali and Delhi, 0-2 down.

 VVS Laxman's succinct description on television of what the pitch in his home town for the second Test would be was "hard, firm and crumbling". In the previous Test played in Hyderabad, New Zealand were beaten soon after tea on the fourth day, with Ashwin and Ojha taking 18 of the 20 wickets.

Word from the Indian camp is that injury to one quick bowler after another meant that spin became the only 20-wicket option available to the hosts for this series. One tally even has the number of injured at ten but in real terms the list includes Zaheer Khan, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Vinay Kumar, Irfan Pathan and a fittish RP Singh (who comes with wishful longing for a 2007 version).

The Chepauk track was called 'decent' by Dhoni and 'typically Indian' by Jadeja, while Clarke said it "looked a lot worse than it played". There were 1243 runs and 32 wickets over four-and-a-bit days, evidence, it was said, of its perfectly respectable nature. What cannot be denied though is that - barring Pattinson's manful effort in the first innings - the pitch largely favoured a type of bowler, rather than give both quicks and slow men their moments over five days.

Ironically, the species of bowler Chennai favoured is the kind that is sadly going out of vogue in India to the point that the national selectors couldn't find a surprise newcomer to throw into the mix. Laxman's estimate of the number of quality spinners - and he knew how to play them - in the country numbered at "seven or eight", rather than the "two or three per domestic team" that he remembered running into in the 1990s.

To say that a dry, slow, crumbling, unpredictable pitch equates to what other sides do - play to the home team's 'strength' - is somewhat misleading. If India had more confidence in the spinners they consider their 'strength', the surfaces would not require, as the Chennai curator delightfully explained in the Indian Express on Wednesday morning, "selective watering". This is more a reflection of India's limited options and the weakness of a new, raw generation of Australian batsmen. And not wanting to be made fun of.

'I missed bowling in Chennai' – Watson

If Shane Watson's commitment to playing as a batsman only on this tour was ever going to be tested, standing in the field for 154.3 overs during India's the first innings in Chennai was the time. As the runs piled up for India and Australia's attack struggled for impact they missed Watson's bowling, and Watson missed being part of it. But he said while the possibility of bowling later on the tour had crossed his mind, he knew that for the sake of his fitness and form, he had to stick to his plan.

Over the past few years in Test cricket, Watson has had a happy knack of breaking partnerships and an unhappy habit of breaking down. His most recent injury, the problem with his left calf that ruled him out of the third Test against Sri Lanka in January and the one-day series that followed, prompted him to declare that he would give up bowling for the Test tour of India to concentrate on his batting, and on stringing together as much cricket as he could.

India Vs Australia Second Test Hyderabad 

Having missed the whole of the previous Australian Test summer due to calf and hamstring injuries, and then the Brisbane and Adelaide Tests against South Africa, Watson decided his best option was to temporarily give up bowling. As India's batsmen put on a series of frustrating partnerships in Chennai, Watson was itching to take the ball and he said the experience had confirmed in his mind that giving up bowling would not be a permanent move.

"That was a time that reaffirmed to me that I do want to bowl," Watson said. "That was a time where if I hadn't have made the decision not to bowl for this tour that I could have had some input on the game at a crucial time in the match. That to me was the first time over the last month since I came back that I missed bowling.

"The decision I made is more a longer-term decision to get some running and conditioning into my legs, so when I start bowling again, my body has more chance of handling it. I do appreciate the decision but it certainly reaffirmed to me that I'm never going to give up bowling. It excites me having some input on the game, especially when what I do could have an influence on a certain part of the game."

For the time being, Watson's plan is to resume bowling during the second half of the IPL with the ultimate goal of being able to contribute with the ball during Australia's Ashes tour of England in July and August. He said while the thought of bowling at some point on the Indian tour was tempting - he has taken 12 wickets at 33.41 in his past six Tests in the country - he was resigned to the fact that his existing plan was a better long-term idea.

"That thought has gone through my mind a few times but I suppose we do have to stay on course," Watson said. "There were reasons why I made that decision - to try and get my body conditioned enough to get back into my bowling.

"I know I've needed two or three months just to be able to get some conditioning into my body, to then hopefully hold together for the next period of time once I get back bowling again. There is a big reason why I'm not bowling at the moment - in between the Test matches to get some running into my legs to continue to build that resilience, so I can hopefully just stay together."

In committing to his long-term plan to stay on the field, Watson took advice from Cricket Australia's medical staff as well as his personal physio, Viktor Popov, and it was made after discussing the idea with the captain Michael Clarke. The bowling issue came to a head after the Hobart Test against Sri Lanka, when Watson bowled 47.4 overs, easily the most he had ever sent down in a game, and he struggled with his calf in the next Test.

"I took a lot of information in at the time, especially through the summer having the same calf injury again and also the amount I bowled in Hobart, that was the most I've ever bowled in my career in four or five-day cricket," Watson said. "I knew my body could handle it, it was more so backing up to handle it again. I had to get the right conditioning in my legs, things like running technique, doing all those things to give myself a better chance to hold together my body when I'm bowling.

"But I also need to be more careful in the future about the overs I do bowl. One, I have the chance to do it more consistently and have less chance of injury but also there were times when it affected my batting, more so in Test cricket over the last 12 to 18 months, especially when I was opening. There were a number of reasons why I made that decision, most importantly is trying to score some runs in Test cricket as well."

To that end, Watson has been working in the nets on his footwork, with the intention of being able to come down the pitch to India's spinners rather than simply playing back as he has on previous tours of India. He made 84 and 60 during the warm-up match against India A and showed encouraging glimpses in the first Test but was unable to build a big score, falling for 28 in the first innings and 17 in the second.

Chennai knock Dhoni's best – Chappell

Former Australia captain Greg Chappell has rated MS Dhoni's double-century in Chennai as his best in Tests. Dhoni's knock of 224 tilted the scales in India's favour, according to Chappell, and helped them to a 1-0 lead in the four-match series against Australia.

"He has played several memorable knocks in one-day cricket, but this was the best I have seen him play in Test matches," Chappell told The Times of India.

"I have seen him smack a yorker-length delivery from James Anderson for a six. It requires special talent. His success on a crumbling Chennai track stems from his ability to strike the ball hard on pitches where the ball tends to keep low. Had he scored just 124, the match would still have been in the balance. The manner in which he attacked a tiring Australian attack, shielding the tailenders, truly makes him a match-winner."

This was India's seventh win in the last 21 Tests, five of which have come against West Indies and New Zealand. India lost eight consecutive overseas Tests, and conceded a series at home to England for the first time in 28 years. Chappell accepted that the Indian team looked average on their tour of Australia last summer but maintained that Dhoni's captaincy shouldn't be under doubt.

"It is true that the Indian team under Dhoni looked below par during their tour Down Under, but he has answered his critics in the best possible way. In my book he remains the best man to lead India in all forms of the game.

India Vs Australia Second Test Livestreaming in Hyderabad 

"At a time when players all over the world are struggling to cope with their workload, it is amazing how Dhoni manages to play every game with the same intensity. That he has done it successfully now for five years speaks volumes about Dhoni's fitness, mental strength as well as his commitment. India are lucky to have him."

Although Australia crumbled under Dhoni's onslaught to eventually lose by eight wickets, a few of their players had impressed. One of them was the debutant Moises Henriques, who scored half-centuries in both innings, finishing with an unbeaten 81 in the second dig to help prevent an innings defeat. In Henriques, Chappell saw the makings of a long-term allrounder.

"It was good to see Henriques coming good at last. He has been on the fringe for a while. I hope he can be the allrounder that Australia have been looking for, particularly after a question mark over Shane Watson's ability to contribute with the ball."

Regardless of the result of the first Test, Chappell felt the series wouldn't be one-sided.

"It will be a close series, but thanks to Dhoni, India do have a significant advantage."

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R Ashwin Ravichandran offspinner latest Innings India Vs Australia Photos Pics Latest News Videos

R Ashwin Ravichandran offspinner.Ashwin Ravichandran latest Innings.Ashwin Ravichandran India Vs Australia.Ashwin Ravichandran Photos.Ashwin Ravichandran Pics.Ashwin Ravichandran Latest News.Ashwin Ravichandran Videos.

R Ashwin is a tall offspinner who took the soduku ball, a finger-flicked tennis-ball legbreak, from the streets of Chennai and used it effectively in international cricket on a bigger, harder cricket ball. His inspiration was Ajantha Mendis' carrom ball. Even before Mendis had played for Sri Lanka and bamboozled India's heavyweight Test line-up in one series, this 21-year-old saw him in a game in Chennai and went home convinced it could be done with a cricket ball too. In his first season of first-class cricket back then, Ashwin put his long fingers to tireless work on that variation. Soon after Mendis had became a brief phenomenon, Ashwin unleashed it in Twenty20 cricket.

R Ashwin Latest Pics

That carrom ball, an arm ball just as good, his control over his offbreaks, and a sharp brain made Ashwin a quintessential limited-overs spinner. For his IPL franchise, he opened the bowling, bowled at death, came on when wickets were required, and was the Man of the Series in the 2010 Champions League played in South Africa. In fact, Ashwin is one of the rare players who actually came up through the IPL and was good enough to hold his own in bigger forms of cricket.

He had been playing the Ranji Trophy well before the IPL and the Champions League, but didn't lead the charts. His success in T20 cricket earned him a call-up to the national side. He made his international debut in Zimbabwe in 2010, went on to play a big role in the home whitewash of New Zealand, and it wasn't surprising to see him in the Indian squad for the 2011 World Cup. While India went for the experience of Harbhajan Singh in most of the games in the tournament, Ashwin replaced his childhood hero in ODIs soon after. A good show there won him a call-up for a home Test against West Indies, and he justified his selection immediately, taking nine wickets in his maiden appearance, the second-highest by an Indian debutant after Narendra Hirwani's 16, and winning the Man-of-the-Match award. By the time he finished the three-Test series, he had 22 wickets, a Test century, and the tag of leading spinner for India. He struggled in Australia, but enhanced his reputation in home conditions by taking 18 wickets in two Tests against New Zealand in 2012.

R Ashwin Latest Innings

Ashwin’s Sixer...., 30-4-88-6

Australia's captain Michael Clarke was the beneficiary of a major reprieve in the minutes before tea as he and the debutant Moises Henriques attempted to regather the tourists' innings after R Ashwin struck telling blows on the first afternoon of the first Test in Chennai.

Clarke was given not out when Ashwin appealed vehemently for a bat-pad catch, but replays showed a clear inside edge. Seldom have India cursed the lack of DRS given their opposition to its vagaries, but they were left to gnash their teeth this time.

Ashwin Ravichandran

Batting first after Clarke showed rare glee at winning the toss on a parched surface devoid of grass, the visitors made a rapid start before stuttering twice, first when Ed Cowan's intemperate charge down the wicket was followed by the swift exit of a vulnerable Phillip Hughes, and again when Shane Watson, David Warner and Matthew Wade fell swiftly after lunch.

Clarke played with typical skill against India's array of slow bowlers, and Henriques did not look out of place at Test match level having been brought into the side as a middle-order batsman and change bowler. They will hope to go on from their starts in the evening.

Ashwin was clearly India's most accomplished performer, gaining spin, dip and bounce for his five wickets, but the rest tended to pitch too short and gave the Australians room to manoeuvre the ball around the Chidambaram Stadium. Ishant Sharma and the debutant Bhuvneshwar Kumar already appear peripheral members of the attack.

R Ashwin Chennai Innings

The left-arm spinner, Pragyan Ojha, was among the four players left out of the final XI. Ojha's omission was something of a surprise given his strong returns against England in the recent Test series, while he was also an accomplished performer against Australia on their last Test visit to India in 2010.

Cowan and Warner made a cheery start, swatting the ball around with ease against Bhuvneshwar and Ishant. Warner was the scratchier of the two, having batted properly in the nets for only a few days before the match due to his rehab from a fractured thumb. Twice Ashwin beat Warner outside off stump, first drawing an edge that an incredulous Virender Sehwag contrived to spill at slip, then creating a difficult stumping chance that MS Dhoni failed to complete due to the bounce extracted.

Meanwhile Cowan looked serene, so much so that he advanced to loft Harbhajan down the ground for only the second six of his 14-Test career. If that stroke showed how good Cowan was feeling, his next aggressive measure was to smack of misplaced comfort.

Trying to belt another six, he was beaten by Ashwin's greater drop and bounce, and failed to get back to his crease before Dhoni tipped the bails off. On the first morning of the series, it was hard to imagine a more wasteful exit.

Unlike Cowan, Hughes had failed to make a decent score in the warm-up, and his indecisiveness was evident in a stay that featured plenty of shuffling and ended with a horrid, half-hearted cut at Ashwin that dragged the ball onto leg stump. As so often happens in India.

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India Vs Australia today’s Match Livestreaming watch online Cricket Highlights Sachin Tendulkar

India Vs Australia today’s Match. India Vs Australia Livestreaming. India Vs Australia watch online. India Vs Australia Cricket. India Vs Australia Highlights. India Vs Australia Sachin Tendulkar. India Vs Australia Latest News. India Vs Australia Photos.

Spin v pace in series opener

Match facts

February 22-26, Chennai
Start time 9.30am (0400GMT)

Big picture

For a rivalry that has produced plenty of gripping cricket over the past decade or so, the run-up to this series has been strangely muted. The Indian captain hasn't spoken to the press even once before the series, there have been no major controversies in the warm-up matches, there hasn't been too much of the pre-series mind games, and even the broadcasters' TV campaign has changed from the taunting tone it had before the England series to a more sober, cricket-centric one.

Both India and Australia are going through a generational change in the batting, but when it comes to the bowling, the Chennai Test could feature two of the most contrasting line-ups in any match. 

India Vs Australia

Though the surface at the Chidambaram Stadium is expected to have plenty of turn, Australia are going in with only one specialist spinner in Nathan Lyon, and with three fast bowlers and medium-pace bowling allrounder Moises Henriques. India, on the other hand, are almost certain to start with only one quick bowler in Ishant Sharma, and play three, or even four, spinners. Unexpectedly, India announced a day ahead of the Test that Harbhajan Singh, Australia's nemesis on so many occasions, will be in the XI for what will be his 100th Test.

The series also presents a huge challenge for both captains.In Chennai Michael Clarke, without the reassuring presence of Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey, will be leading a XI of which only three players have played a Test in India. The other eight all have 20 Test caps or less. For MS Dhoni, whose stocks have steadily declined since the high of the 2011 World Cup, another high-profile home series defeat could trigger the end of his Test captaincy.

India Vs Australia Toss

When these two teams faced off in a Test series last year, the consensus in India was that the tour offered the best chance to beat Australia in Australia. It ended with India losing all four Tests, some of them in an abjectly one-sided manner. This will be a much closer contest - India have been flaky in Tests over the past couple of years but still have a formidable home record, while a re-building Australia briefly flirted with a return to the No. 1 spot but have traditionally found the going difficult in India.

Form guide

(Last five matches, most recent first)
India DLLWW
Australia WWWLD

Watch out for...

A spate of injuries to India's quick bowlers has thrust Ishant Sharma into the role of pace spearhead. The only other fast bowlers in the squad are Ashok Dinda and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, neither of whom have made their Test debuts. Indian cricket has given Ishant a long rope, but nearly 50 Tests into his career, his bowling average is a disappointing 38. Television ads building up to this series are still replaying his famous spell to Ricky Ponting from five years ago. Over the next month, Ishant needs to deliver on the promise that heady performance showcased.

India Vs Australia today’s Match 

Shane Watson is another player who is in a more senior role than he would have expected. The departure of Ponting and Hussey means that he is the only batsman besides Clarke who has played Tests in India. In addition to his responsibilities as an experienced member of the side, Watson will also have to adjust to playing as a specialist No. 4 batsman in this series. He has spent much of his Test career as an opener who also bowled medium-pace, and his decision to not bowl in this series will have critics pointing to his lack of centuries and questioning whether he is good enough to be in the side as a pure batsman.

Teams

India's two major decisions are over who will partner Virender Sehwag at the top of the order, and the identity of the No. 6 batsman. M Vijay is the front-runner for the opening slot, ahead of Shikhar Dhawan, while the No. 6 position is likely to be a toss-up between Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja.

India Vs Australia Probables

India: (probable) 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 M Vijay, 3 Cheteshwar Pujara, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 Virat Kohli, 6 Ravindra Jadeja/Ajinkya Rahane, 7 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 8 R Ashwin, 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Pragyan Ojha

Australia announced their XI two days ahead of the Test, picking Moises Henriques for the allrounder's spot, ahead of Glenn Maxwell.

Australia: 1 David Warner, 2 Ed Cowan, 3 Phillip Hughes, 4 Shane Watson, 5 Michael Clarke (capt), 6 Matthew Wade (wk), 7 Moises Henriques, 8 Peter Siddle, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 James Pattinson, 11 Nathan Lyon

Pitch and conditions

For a city that is one of the major cricketing centres in the country, and one that is reputed to have a Test-appreciating crowd, it is a bit surprising that Chennai hasn't hosted a Test match since the famous chase of 387 against England in December 2008. The Chepauk pitch is completely devoid of grass and is expected to be spinner-friendly. Temperatures are expected to be around 30 degrees and no rain is predicted over the next week.

India Vs Australia Livestreaming Sachin Tendulkar

Stats and trivia

In 12 Tests against Australia at home, Harbhajan Singh has 84 wickets at 24.48, including seven five-wicket hauls

Henriques is set to become the second Portugal-born Test cricketer, after South Africa's Dick Westcott

In the past 28 years, India have lost only one Test in Chennai - the iconic 1999 match against Pakistan

Quotes

"I said we can beat Australia 4-0 and why not? If you don't believe in yourself, who will? I believe we can do it, and we can work towards it. you have got to believe in yourself."
Harbhajan Singh

"I'm not that bothered about what's happened in regards to the Indian series against England. I watched a fair bit of it ... but we're a different team to England."
Michael Clarke

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Tendulkar takes over Mumbai Indians captaincy IPL-6 Indian Premier League Players News Photos

Tendulkar takes over Mumbai Indians captaincy. Mumbai Indians IPL-6. Mumbai Indians Indian Premier League. Mumbai Indians Players. Mumbai Indians Latest News. Mumbai Indians Photos. Mumbai Indians Captain.

Sachin Tendulkar will return as the Mumbai Indians captain for the sixth edition of the IPL, which will commence on April 3. Tendulkar, who will turn 40 during the course of IPL 6, had given up the Mumbai franchise's captaincy after IPL 2011 and his India team-mate, Harbhajan Singh, had taken over.

ESPNcricinfo understands that Tendulkar agreed to lead the team this year after Harbhajan, who had captained the franchise owned by the Reliance Industries Ltd in the Champions League 2011 and IPL 2012, expressed his inability to continue in the role.

The development on the eve of the player auction puts to rest all speculation that Mumbai Indians are likely to go all out for Ricky Ponting or Michael Clarke during Sunday's auction, as a captaincy candidate.

Tendulkar, who missed the first seven games of IPL's inaugural edition due to injury, was at Mumbai Indians' helm since its inception. After he passed on the reins to Harbhajan, Mumbai Indians won their maiden title when they claimed the Champions League T20 title in 2011. In IPL 2012, under Harbhajan, Mumbai Indians made it to the knockouts where they lost to Chennai Super Kings in the Eliminator.

Ricky Ponting into MI-SQUAD IPL-6

 Mumbai Indians appoint John Wright as head coach

Former New Zealand batsman John Wright has been appointed Mumbai Indians' head coach ahead of the sixth season of the Indian Premier League, while Robin Singh will continue to provide his services to the team.

The news came days after Anil Kumble was named the chief mentor of Mumbai Indians, and a week before the IPL auction, scheduled for February 3 in Chennai.

Nita Ambani, the owner of the Mumbai Indians franchise, said she was pleased to have a coach like Wright associated with the team. "It's a great pleasure to have John on board with Mumbai Indians. John is immensely respected and I am sure his cricketing knowledge and experience will be of enormous help."

John Wright- Mumbai Indians Coach

Wright was the coach of the New Zealand team from 2010 to 2012. Under him, the team reached the semi-final of the 2011 World Cup but a year later, he decided not to renew his contract with the team, citing differences with New Zealand's director of cricket, John Buchanan.

Prior to that, he was the coach of the Indian team from 2000 to 2005. During this tenure, India won a Test series against Australia at home in 2001, drew a Test series in Australia in 2003-04, reached the 2003 World Cup final, and won a Test and ODI series in Pakistan in 2004.

Wright played 82 Tests and 149 ODIs for New Zealand before he retired in 1993.

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IPL AUCTION 2013 Players Who sold to Whom and Unsold Indian Premier League Latest News Photos

IPL AUCTION 2013 Players.IPL AUCTION 2013 Who sold to Whom and Unsold.IPL AUCTION 2013 Indian Premier League.IPL AUCTION 2013 Latest News.IPL AUCTION 2013 Photos.IPL AUCTION 2013 Players List and Prices.

IPL AUCTION 2013:

'I have never in my life seen this much money'

In ten minutes at the IPL auction, South Africa allrounder Chris Morris went from a franchise cricketer on a decent contract to rich beyond his dreams

Chris Morris was in the Kimberley dressing room with his Lions team-mates on Sunday morning. Little did he know he was sitting on a diamond mine.

IPL AUCTION 2013

Across the Indian Ocean, the IPL auction was taking place. Morris was one of the outsiders, with a base price of just US$20,000. That is the equivalent of R177,000 - which can buy a mid-level new car in South Africa.

IPL AUCTION 2013 Players

Who was sold to whom

Bought

Ricky Ponting - $400,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $400,000)
RP Singh - $400,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Johan Botha - $450,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $300,000)
Michael Clarke - $400,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $400,000)
Luke Pomersbach - $300,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $50,000)
Phillip Hughes - $100,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000)
James Faulkner - $400,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000)
Glenn Maxwell - $1,000,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $200,000)
Moises Henriques - $300,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Abhishek Nayar - $675,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $100,000)
Thisara Perera - $675,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $50,000)
Jesse Ryder - $260,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $100,000)
Darren Sammy - $425,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Jaydev Unadkat - $525,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Pankaj Singh - $150,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $50,000)
Ravi Rampaul - $290,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $50,000)
Manpreet Gony - $500,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $200,000)
Fidel Edwards - $210,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000)
Sudeep Tyagi - $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Dirk Nannes - $600,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $200,000)
Nathan McCullum - $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Ajantha Mendis - $725,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $50,000)
Jeevan Mendis - $50,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $50,000)
Chris Morris - $625,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Sachithra Senanayake - $625,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base price $50,000)
Christopher Barnwell - $50,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price 50,000)
Nathan Coulter-Nile - $450,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000)
Ben Laughlin - $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Kane Richardson - $700,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $100,000)
Jacob Oram - $50,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $50,000)
Quinton de Kock - $20,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $20,000)
Dan Christian - $100,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Akila Dananjaya - $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Clint McKay - $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Jason Holder - $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Ryan McLaren - $50,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base pirce $50,000)
Kushal Perera - $20,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $20,000)

IPL AUCTION 2013 Players

Unsold

Aaron Finch - base price $200,000
Upul Tharanga - base price $100,000
Martin Guptill - base price $100,000
Darren Bravo - base price $100,000
Herschelle Gibbs - base price $200,000
Adam Voges - base price $100,000
Matthew Wade - base price $200,000
Tim Paine - base price $100,000
Matt Prior - base price $200,000
Kaushal Silva - base price $20,000
Prasanna Jayawardene - base price $50,000
Dane Vilas - base price $20,000
Denesh Ramdin - base price $50,000
Dinesh Chandimal - base price $100,000
Ravi Bopara - base price $100,000
James Hopes - base price $100,000
Vernon Philander - base price $100,000
Doug Bollinger - base price $200,000
Cameron Boyce - base price $20,000
Veerasammy Permaul - base price $20,000
Suraj Randiv - base price $50,000
Devendra Bishoo - base price $50,000
Steve O'Keefe - base price $100,000
Paul Harris - base price $20,000
Rangana Herath - base price $100,000
Sulieman Benn - base price $20,000
Aaron Phangiso - base price $20,000
Farveez Maharoof - base price $50,000
Scott Styris - base price $100,000
Ben Cutting - base price $100,000
Josh Hazlewood - base price $100,000
Travis Birt - base price $100,000
Henry Davids - base price $20,000
Ben Rohrer - base price $50,000
Rilee Rossouw - base price $20,000
Kevin O'Brien - base price $50,000
Rory Kleinveldt - base price $50,000

Glenn Maxwell was Sold for 5.3 Cr ($1,000,000) to Mumbai Indians

Interested to see if he would be picked up by any team, Morris and some of his team-mates turned on an iPad and watched the action unfold live on this website. Three franchises bid for Morris - the Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and the Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Super Kings' bid reached US$95,000 and then Mumbai upped to US$100,000. Gordon Parsons, the Lions bowling coach, "grabbed the iPad away from me and saw that it was up to 100,000," Morris told ESPNcricinfo. "He said, 'Good going, that's a fair amount of money.'" But that was not all.

Mumbai soon doubled the amount, then Chennai raised, and so the ping-pong went. Morris' head was spinning. "Neil McKenzie had a little joke with me when it got to 450,000 but nobody could really believe what was happening," he said.

Eventually the hammer was hit when Super Kings put $625,000 on the table. That was more than 31 times the amount Morris was initially up for. In rands, he will now earn R5.5 million which can buy anything from a luxury home to a massive investment. "I have never in my life seen this much money," he admitted. In the space of ten minutes, Morris went from a franchise cricketer on a decent contract to a multi-millionaire.

The first thing his team-mates wanted to know was what he was going to do with his riches. "I honestly don't know," he said, before giving it a little more thought. "I suppose one of the things I'd like to do is give my parents anything they should like and spoil them a little bit."

Willie Morris, Chris' father, is a former Northern Transvaal first-class cricketer, so the sporting genes in the family are strong. It took Morris junior a few years before he was recognised after going through the academy structures. He was only contracted by a franchise two seasons ago, but since then his stocks have risen steadily.

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Mithali Raj Women's World Cup WWC 2013 India Cricket Latest News Images/Photos Career

Mithali Raj Women's World Cup WWC 2013.Mithali Raj India.Mithali Raj Cricket.Mithali Raj Latest News.Mithali Raj Images.Mithali Raj Photos.Mithali Raj Career.Mithali Raj Career Statistics.Mithali Raj Begins WC2013 with Top Rank.

Mithali Raj Profile:

Mithali Raj at 19 emerged as one of India's most capable batswomen with a staggering 214 against England in the second and final Test at Taunton. The middle-order bat now has the second highest score in women's Test cricket, having been surpassed by Kiran Baluch who scored 242 against West Indies in March 2004.

Playing for Railways in the domestic competition, Mithali began by playing with stars like Purnima Rau, Anjum Chopra and Anju Jain for Air India. Now, though, she has emerged as one of India's most dependable bats, scoring heavily in both one-dayers and Tests. Her composure when at the crease and ability to score briskly make her a dangerous customer. In addition to her ability with the bat, Raj rolls her arm over bowling leg-spinners and providing variety to any attack.

Mithali Raj

Raj has grasped every opportunity she has been presented with - and impressed. Coming to the wicket at times when batting is difficult, Mithali has shown an ability to soldier on without being perturbed. A star in the one-dayers, Mithali was taken ill with a strain of typhoid in the CricInfo Women's World Cup in 2002, seriously hampering India's progress. However, she then led them to their first World Cup final in 2005, in South Africa, where they met Australia who proved just too strong. In August 2006 she led the side to their first-ever Test and series victory in England and wrapped up the year winning the Asia Cup - the second time in 12 months - without dropping a single game.

Mithali Raj Profile

But that high was followed by a disappointing Quadrangular where India were placed bottom of the table at the end of the tournament despite winning more matches than England, placed third in the table. ICC's bizarre rule-making meant that despite the fact that England lost all their group matches they gained third spot for beating India in a play-off. Raj had an unimpressive run with the bat in the tournament with one fifty from seven games.

In May 2008 she led India to their fourth successive Asia Cup title and reached the 3000-run landmark on the way. India have not dropped a single game in the tournament since it began in 2004. But a poor tour of England later that year, where India failed to win a single game, lost her the captaincy.

Mithali Raj Indian Captain

India begin against dangerous West Indies

With a BIG WIN ‘INDIA WON BY 105 RUNS’

India are playing the tenth Women's World Cup, this one in home conditions, but apart from the weather their captain Mithali Raj does not believe being hosts grants them any particular advantage. India, who finished third in the 2009 edition, play their opening game against West Indies under lights at the Cricket Club of India on Wednesday.

WC2013 INDIA WON THE MATCH BY 105 RUNS AGAINST WI

West Indies finished fifth in 2009 in Australia "as underdogs", but have gained plenty of experience since then and are here to win this time, said their captain Merissa Aguilleira. West Indies have played 38 ODIs since the previous World Cup, only one behind England, who have played the most.

India have been restricted to 26 one-dayers in the same period and their previous ODI was as far back as July 2012. Raj said she would have liked to play more games, but was nevertheless satisfied with the side's preparation and their showing in the two practice matches.

"It depends on the board completely to give us a number of matches," Raj said. "As players, whatever amount of games we get to play before the World Cup, we try and make the best of it. As a player, I would definitely want to have more tournaments, more international games to play.

"We had the domestic season and after that we had two camps, one in NCA and the other one in Mumbai. We have prepared really hard and we get into the tournament will full preparation. But again we will take it one match at a time. I personally would not emphasise more on the results, I'd rather go with the process. If everything goes well, then … we might … do it."

Raj was expecting flat pitches which she felt would restrict India's home advantage to their experience of the weather. "It is going to be the humid conditions. During the practice games, we have had very flat wickets, and scores have been generally high. Basically, the ICC has provided batting tracks so that a lot of runs are scored in the tournament. We have had a camp in Mumbai so our players are used to the conditions. We are also used to slightly slower wickets.

"If it is a flat track, it is definitely not an advantage. In an ICC tournament everybody would want to see 300 on the board rather than 89 all out. I guess that is the reason, everybody around the world wants to prepare a batting track.

"I feel when it is a flat track, it could be anybody's game. There will be a lot of runs. The bowling needs to be tightened up. The crucial thing would be the fielding because the wicket will not change over both the innings."

Compared to previous World Cups, Raj felt India had a strong opening combination going into the tournament. "One thing I have always felt is that India never had a very good opening pair. That was a concern. This time we have Thirush Kamini who has made a comeback. In both the [practice] games, the openers [Kamini and Poonam Raut] have given us a good start.

"We do have the senior players Jhulan Goswami and Amita Sharma. We have the vice-captain Harmanpreet Kaur. We have two comeback players, Kamini and Karu Jain. I hope with this kind of combination we will do very well."

India lost the ODI series 2-1 on their Caribbean tour in early 2012. Raj said West Indies were a constantly developing side. "They have very talented players and some hard-hitters too. With Indian conditions, and I guess some of their players not keeping well, they are still to get acclimatized to the conditions, that might help us and also the kind of form we are in, I am sure the girls will put up a good show."

The experienced offspinner Anisa Mohammed had troubled the Indians in West Indies and Aguillera said her spinners would play a key role in India. "We are an all-round team. We have five spinners in the side and that has worked really well for us," Aguilleira said. "We'll make an impact with the compact side that we are.

"We went into the last World Cup as underdogs and lacked experience. But we've gained a lot of experience in the past four years and are not just taking part but competing this time."

West Indies were so tired after their trip from the Caribbean that they cancelled their second warm-up fixture following a heavy defeat to Australia Women in their first practice match. However, they are coming off a tied ODI series against South Africa at home and should not feel short of time in the middle. Aguilleira said the South Africa games had helped the side adapt to the new ODI rules which mandate a maximum of four fielders in the deep.

Mithali Raj Gallery:

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