A Barrel Full - User contributions [en]

Good Cricket Mixed With Bad Blood Makes For Fine Series

2020-06-25T18:58:09Z

Suzanne00K: Created page with " By Amlan Chakraborty DHARAMSALA, India, March 29 (Reuters) - As India celebrate the return of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy from previous holders Australia, the overri..."

By Amlan Chakraborty DHARAMSALA, India, March 29 (Reuters) - As India celebrate the return of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy from previous holders Australia, the overriding consensus is that the hosts maintained order between the sport's top two test sides in a series that had everything. Seldom has a tour been dragged deep into the gutter through tit-for-tat accusations of cheating and foul play only for it to rise magnificently in the wake of some quality cricket by the bitterest of antagonists. "It was a magnificent series, one of the best I've been part of," Australia captain Steve Smith, a key protagonist in the series, said after his team finally succumbed to a 2-1 loss in the fourth and final test on Tuesday. Given their history, it seemed inevitable that tempers would flare between sides that endorse an identical brand of aggressive cricket when they met in Pune for [https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl] the opener, which passed without incident barring a surprise win for the visitors. The veneer cracked in the second test, however, when all hell broke loose after Smith gestured to his dressing room whether to review an lbw decision against him during a tense but fruitless run chase in Bengaluru. The "brain fade" drew a predictable reaction from his feisty Indian counterpart Virat Kohli, who claimed it was but one of several similar breaches by the tourists, an allegation Australia summarily dismissed. The incident quickly snowballed into a major crisis with both boards springing to the defence of their respective captains. BITTERNESS RETURNS The game's governing body moved quickly to douse the flames with a lenient view of the episode, which must have felt like deja vu for India coach Anil Kumble. Kumble was captain of the Indian team who threatened to abandon their 2008 tour of Australia after Harbhajan Singh was found guilty of racially abusing Andrew Symonds, a conviction that was later overturned. Match referee Richie Richardson sat Kohli and Smith down before the third test, reminding them of their duty to uphold the spirit of the game. The draw in Ranchi stood out for Cheteshwar Pujara's dogged resistance and Pat Cummins' successful return to test cricket but the bitterness returned when Glenn Maxwell mocked Kohli for an injury that would keep him out of the series decider. India prevailed in Dharamsala, the third new test venue unveiled in the series, after some fine individual performances pushed the balance in the home side's favour, but there was little let up in the acrimony. Ravindra Jadeja exchanged heated words with Matthew Wade and Smith was caught on camera mouthing abuse towards Murali Vijay after he claimed a clean catch that was overturned by the TV umpire. "I have sort of been very intense in my own little bubble, and at times I have let my emotions and actions just falter a little bit throughout this series and I apologise for that," added Smith, the top scorer in the series. Kohli, who endured a poor run with the bat, made no such conciliatory attempt, saying he was no longer friends with the Australian cricketers, many of whom he would be meeting in the Indian Premier League (IPL) next month. (Editing by John O'Brien)

I Drank Too Much After Monkeygate: Symonds

2020-06-25T16:54:03Z

Suzanne00K: Created page with " Andrew Symonds admits he started drinking "way too much" after his 'Monkeygate' incident with Harbhajan Singh. He also revealed the Indian spinner later broke down..."

Andrew Symonds admits he started drinking "way too much" after his 'Monkeygate' incident with Harbhajan Singh. He also revealed the Indian spinner later broke down in tears when he finally apologised over the episode. Symonds was allegedly called a monkey by Singh during a heated Test match at the SCG in 2008. The Australian allrounder alleges Singh had also called him a monkey during a previous ODI clash but promised not to do it again after that match. Singh has previously claimed he never called Symonds a monkey during the SCG Test but rather the Hindi slur 'teri maa ki'. The controversial spinner was initially handed a three-match Test ban but it was later overturned as the powerful Board of Control for Cricket in India flexed its considerable muscle. "I suppose this would be the moment where my whole persona to cricket changed," Symonds said in a Fox Cricket documentary Monkeygate - Ten Years On. "I didn't realise the politics, the power, the money until this moment in my career,. "I didn't realise how powerful one player, one incident, how much money was at stake and the ramifications. "I went downhill pretty fast after this because I felt responsible for four of my mates, close mates (Michael Clarke, Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist), that I dragged into this whole situation and it beared very heavily on me. "I started drinking way too much and my cricket, my mindset -- I started to go downhill, I just wasn't in the right frame of mind." Symonds scored 162no and 61 in a match-winning performance in that Sydney Test. But his Test career ended less than 12 months later as his life started to spiral out of control. However, Symonds reached a sense of closure when he joined Singh at IPL franchise Mumbai Indians a few years later. "When I first arrived there was deafening silence in the dressing shed when I walked in. There was a pink elephant in the corner. You could feel it," Symonds said. "We (went) to a very wealthy man's place for a barbecue, drinks and dinner one night and the whole team's there and he had guests there, and Harbhajan said, 'Mate, can I speak to you for a minute out in the garden out the front?' "He goes, 'Look, I've got to say sorry to you for what I did to you in Sydney. I apologise, I hope I didn't cause you, your family, your friends too much harm and I really apologise for what I said, I shouldn't have said it'. "And he actually broke down crying, and I could just see that was a huge weight off his shoulders, [https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl] he had to get rid of it. "We shook hands and I gave him a hug and said, 'Mate, it's all good. It's dealt with'. "I said to him, 'It wasn't your fault or my fault, it was the way it was all handled', and after that you could see that it was a weight off his shoulders."

User:Suzanne00K

2020-06-25T15:13:24Z

Suzanne00K: Created page with "Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma had already given an indication about the gala celebration that they were going to have when he said ‘the party has just begun' after [h..."

Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma had already given an indication about the gala celebration that they were going to have when he said ‘the party has just begun' after [https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl] winning the IPL-8 in Kolkata on Sunday. Here is my web blog: [https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl https://soulofcricketer.bookmark.com/harbhajan-singh-performance-in-ipl]