Posted by CricZone
in Saturday, 30 June 2012
Smith considered resigning Test captaincy...
Graeme Smith has revealed that he considered stepping down from all forms of leadership last year but was talked out of quitting the Test captaincy byGary Kirsten. Smith led South Africa in all three formats for eight years but relinquished captaincy of the Twenty20 and ODI teams in August 2010 and April 2011 respectively. The latter was timed to coincide with the end of the fifty-over World Cup and it was then that Smith also considered giving up the Test captaincy.
"After the World Cup, when things were tough, it certainly was something that was on my mind," Smith told ESPNcricinfo ahead of the team's departure to England. "Gary played a role in me keeping the captaincy. He talked me into doing it for longer and he was the reason I decided to carry on."
The World Cup was a massive turning point in Smith's career. It seemed to change him on many levels. South Africa were knocked out in the quarter-finals, after failing to chase down a modest total against New Zealand in Dhaka. Having chosen a squad suited to subcontinental conditions, beaten India in a thrillerin Nagpur to top their group, and been the only team to bowl out their opposition in all six matches, South Africa appeared set for a run to the final. With expectations growing, they were on track to finally lift an ICC trophy for the first time since 1998, only to run into a tenacious New Zealand, who forced a choke out of South Africa.
The whole squad was shell-shocked by the defeat but Smith was particularly affected. He addressed the media almost in tears as he explained how he had wanted his last act as one-day captain to be a victory. He did not return home with the rest of the team but flew to Ireland to propose to the woman who is now his wife, Morgan Deane. A fickle public rejected him and his profile nosedived. Smith was criticised in many forums, for his lack of both leadership and form.
When he eventually returned home in June, he apologised to fans for the World Cup defeat and his subsequent no-show. It was only through his match-winning century against Australia in the Newlands Test in November that Smith began to win back hearts and minds, although negative sentiment still surrounded his inclusion in the one-day team. Again, it was through a gritty innings, a century against Sri Lanka in January, that Smith regained the faith of the cricketing masses.
He described the period that followed the World Cup as "the most difficult" of his career, because he was also going through a run drought. He thought reducing his load would allow him to concentrate on batting.
However, without any clear replacement available, even though AB de Villiers was appointed limited-overs captain, Smith was asked to stay on and provide continuity at a time when everything, including the coaching staff, was changing. "Gary was a big instigator in me carrying on captaining the Test side," Smith said. "I've certainly enjoyed working with him and the management team, which has also helped. As long as I can keep enjoying it and keep adding value then I will captain."
It is not a job Smith wants to do forever, though. "I don't know if I will captain the Test side for as long as I play. I've only just turned 31 and I feel I still have a lot to offer from a batting perspective but I certainly don't see myself captaining until the time I retire."
Retirement, however, is not in Smith's current plans. "In the long run, I'm going to concentrate on performance. I'm still hungry, I've got a lot of things that I want to achieve."
First on his list of things to do, is captain the side successfully on the tour to England. With South Africa competing for the No.1 ranking in Tests, Smith said he will be required to contribute both with the bat and as a leader if they hope to topple England. He feels he has matured since his first visit to the country in 2003, as a 23-year-old novice captain.
"In the early days I didn't know who I needed to be and what was important from a leadership role. I wanted to come across as a strong leader," Smith said, explaining why he was sometimes perceived as cocky. "But now I'm at peace with things and I think that comes through. I'm more relaxed in showing my personality and how I feel, and I'm much more at peace with understanding what I need to do."
Posted by CricZone
in Tuesday, 26 June 2012
Yuvraj begins training in Bangalore...
Yuvraj Singh, the Indian batsman who is recovering from treatment for cancer, has begun training at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore. Although he said he did not want to rush his comeback, Yuvraj was hopeful of making the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka in September.
"I will be in [the] NCA for a while now. I want to come back and play for India, that's my goal. It's not very easy on the body. I have gone through a lot and my body has gone through a lot of shock," Yuvraj said. "People are expecting me to come back very quickly, but I don't want to rush. I will have to take my time and come back 100% fit.
"[I'm] feeling good. My body will become stronger stage by stage. Twenty20 world cup is my target. Hopefully I can be ready little before that." Yuvraj hoped he could play in some domestic tournaments as part of his comeback attempt.
Yuvraj was diagnosed with a type of cancer called "mediastinal seminoma", a germ-cell tumour located between his two lungs, in February. He underwent three sessions of chemotherapy in Indianapolis, at the IU Simon Cancer Centre at the Indiana University Medical Centre. He finished the last cycle of chemotherapy in mid-March, and his response had left his medical team "fairly confident" that he would not suffer a relapse.
Posted by CricZone
in Wednesday, 20 June 2012
Afridi mulls ODI retirement after poor Sri Lanka show...
Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, has said that he may consider retiring from ODI cricket to give selectors a chance to build a strong, young team for the 2015 World Cup being held in Australia and New Zealand. Afridi struggled, with both bat and ball, in the ODI series against Sri Lanka, scoring just 28 runs from four innings and picking up three wickets.
He said that he would reassess his future after the team returned home from Sri Lanka in mid-July. "People expect a lot from senior players, so I must sincerely review my performance [in ODI cricket]," Afridi told ESPNcricinfo. "I want to step aside for new players [to come through], so that Pakistan can build a good team for the 2015 World Cup. But I must, first, check if anyone is ready to take my place in the team, so that my retirement won't be unfair to the team."
Afridi, who was dismissed for scores of 2, 17, 0 and 9 in the ODIs against Sri Lanka, said that even if he retired from ODI's, he would still continue playing the Twenty20 format. "[I had decided that] the day I became a burden to cricket I would walk away [from the game]. I am considering [whether or not to retire from ODIs] and would consult some senior players and friends before making a decision. But even if I retire from ODI's I will continue to play Twenty20 cricket."
Pakistan were shoddy in the field, in the ODI's, with several dropped catches and missed run-out opportunities, allowing Sri Lanka to gain the upper hand. Afridi attributed the 3-1 series loss to poor fielding. "Fielding has been our weakness ever since I started playing cricket," he said. "We didn't play as we expected, but Sri Lanka were strong in their own conditions. They used the conditions very well."
In the past Afridi had announced his retirement on a number of occasions. First, in 2006, he decided to take a temporary sabbatical from Test cricket to concentrate on ODIs. Then in 2010, he announced his Test retirement after Pakistan lost the first Test against Australia at Lord's. A year later he announced a "conditional" retirement from international cricket to protest against the way he was "humiliated" by the PCB, who had stripped him of his ODI captaincy
Posted by CricZone
in Tuesday, 12 June 2012
Katich ends Australian first-class career...
Simon Katich has announced his retirement from first-class cricket in Australia, ending a Sheffield Shield career that spanned 16 seasons for Western Australia and New South Wales.
Katich, 36, will play on for Hampshire this year and his decision leaves the door open to continue his county career if he chooses to do so next year. He has also committed to playing for the Perth Scorchers in the Champions League Twenty20 later this year but said in a statement that with a young family and a desire for extended time at home, he had decided to reassess his priorities.
Just over 12 months ago, Katich was considered an important member of the Test side but he was the primary victim of a move for change following the 2010-11 Ashes debacle. Katich lost his Cricket Australia contract last year and with it any realistic chance of adding to his 56 Tests, especially after he lashed out at the way Australian cricket was run during a frank press conference.
His replacement at the top of the order, Phillip Hughes, was unable to hold his place but Katich was not called on again, and the Australians are now using a David Warner-Ed Cowan opening partnership in Test cricket. Katich will leave the game having scored 4188 Test runs at 45.03, while he can still add to his first-class tally of 19,667 runs this county season.
A long-time captain of New South Wales after moving from Western Australia, Katich lost the state leadership last summer as the Blues looked to blood younger leaders. However, he kept scoring runs for New South Wales and made 483 at 43.90 in the Sheffield Shield last season.
