Monday, November 14, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
I have never got wickets on such a pitch: Ashwin
There were no nerves and no fumbles in R. Ashwin's approach as he squared up to the media after setting up India well in the first Test against the West Indies. The replies were sharp and focused while the off-spinner discussed his craft and the angst of a Test debutant, which he denied.
Excerpts:
The approach
“I didn't expect any wickets or so many of them, but before the Test match I was hoping to get a five-wicket haul and probably some more runs as well.
“Unfortunately the second part did not happen.”
Wickets that mattered
“Marlon Samuels was probably playing for the turn and he seemed worried about the bat-pad to short-leg but probably if you have played in Delhi and the Kotla, you do know that it won't go to short-leg.
“Unfortunately he did not know that and he was looking for the spin and it went straight on.
For Chanderpaul, I was bowling around the wicket in the first innings, so here I came over the wicket and was just trying a different angle. Fortunately it worked.”
The Harbhajan shadow
“I am a youngster and he is a senior professional and he has done his job and probably when I am given my duties I need to live up to my conscience and do my job.”
Pitch and other turns
“Honestly speaking I have never got wickets on such a pitch. It is not my bread and butter as I need spin and bounce. There was nothing for the batsmen or the bowlers. If the batsman is not patient enough you can get a wicket.
“Today I tried to bowl a wee bit quicker and on to the stumps and it paid off.”
“I didn't feel any nerves but yes the body wasn't moving the way I wanted it to in the first few overs. I didn't know whether my hip was turning, whether the release was perfect.
“All I was doing was concentrating because I have never seen a wicket that is so less receptive to so many revolutions on the ball.
“All these things were weighing on my mind before I went in for the lunch break (on the first day) but as time went on, I just had to handle myself.
“I don't think I was that nervous.
“To play alongside Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid is a blessing.”
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Trust deficit with Pak ‘shrinking’: Krishna
Striking a positive note ahead of the Indo-Pak Prime Ministerial meeting, India on Wednesday said the trust deficit with its neighbour was “shrinking” and there was a very positive atmosphere.
Talking to reporters on his way to Maldives to attend the SAARC summit, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said he was very optimistic about the forward movement during the meeting as the “trust level has gone up between the two countries“.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani will meet on Thursday in Maldives ahead of the inauguration of the summit of SAARC nations and are expected to review the progress in bilateral ties.
Mr. Krishna, who will also be part of the bilateral, said the “trust deficit with Pakistan is shrinking” and there was “a very positive atmosphere”.
While the heads of governments of the eight SAARC nations — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka — will hold summit talks here, all eyes are on the Dr. Singh-Gilani meeting that comes against the backdrop of positive developments, including Pakistan’s decision on granting the MFN trade status to India.
He also said that it was “necessary for Pakistan to work out a joint strategy with India in order to fight terror”.
When asked specifically about the existence of terror training camps in Pakistan, the Mr. Krishna said Pakistan has to take action against them.
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