The idea of Twenty20 cricket at the Olympics is definitely worth pursuing : Steve Waugh

Former Australia Test captain Steve Waugh has thrown his weight behind Twenty20 cricket becoming an Olympic sport, saying it would help globalise the game.
"The idea of Twenty20 cricket at the Olympics is definitely worth pursuing," he told the South China Morning Post. "If you want to globalise the game then you have to look at including countries like China and the United States, and getting cricket into the Olympics will fast-track that move."
In December last year, cricket was given the status of "recognised sport" by the International Olympic Committee for two years. The honour is usually granted to sports that are not part of the Olympic programme but conform to its ideals of youth promotion and anti-doping policies.
Cricket was last seen at a major multi-sport event at the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, but was dropped for the next two editions in England and Australia.
Waugh played in Kuala Lumpur, when Australia won gold. "I had the time of my life at those Games. Winning the gold medal was one of the highlights of my career," said the 43-year-old, who played 168 Tests for Australia, including 57 as captain.
He added that he felt Twenty20 cricket was on the verge of becoming a huge global success. "Twenty20 is going through a honeymoon phase at the moment," he said. "But in the next few years, I believe it will become a worldwide phenomenon."
His comments follow those of his former Australia team-mate Adam Gilchrist, who in a column for Monday's edition of the Deccan Chronicle wrote: "Take it from someone who has won almost everything cricket has to offer — the Olympics is the absolute pinnacle in sport.
"The chance to stand on top of the Olympic podium, to wear an Olympic gold medal and the pride of belting out your national anthem would be a life-changing money-can't-buy experience."
Waugh, one of three mentors for the Australian Olympic team along with former Wallabies captain John Eales and gold medal-winning rower Kate Allen, was in Hong Kong to see the Australian equestrian team.
"I have 11 sports assigned to me and equestrian is one of them," he told the newspaper. "I met the team. I was asking most of the questions. It was not about me telling them how to ride a horse but really talking about how to handle pressure situations."

India coach believes big challenge would be to keep the momentum in the third Test

India coach Gary Kirsten says he is confident the team will remain focused in his absence when they take on Sri Lanka in the crucial third and final Test starting here on Friday.
"I have complete faith in what (captain) Anil Kumble can do," said Kirsten, who will be unavailable for the match as he left on Tuesday for his native South Africa to be with his ailing mother.
"There is a calm focus about the team and there is a humility about how we are going to go about our business. There is no arrogance in the environment."
The series is currently tied 1-1, with Sri Lanka winning the opening Test by an innings and 239 runs in Colombo and India coming back strongly to clinch a 170-run victory in the second match in Galle.
"These players are aware what they need to do and they are right on track in terms of preparations. The important thing is the awareness of the situation. They know they have an opportunity (to win the series)," said Kirsten.
"Every guy is aware if he is not fully focused for the next Test it could affect the team's performance."
Kirsten said he had faith in the team's ability to fight back. "We were happy with the team's response as they lifted their performance by at least 20 percent (in Galle)," said the former South African opener.
"But the important thing is there is a real awareness about things to achieve in the next Test. And we have always believed that when this team is firing on all cylinders they can match the best in the world."
Kirsten said it was not difficult to motivate the team after the big defeat as they took "great pride" playing for the country.
"There was a tremendous hurt in the team after the loss. I think it all started with Kumble and from there it filtered down to the rest of the team. He is a fantastic leader and fighter," he said. "So, to motivate the team to improve their performance by 20 percent was not really difficult. The big challenge now is to see that they maintain it in the third Test since they have pulled one back."
Kirsten was all praise for teenager paceman Ishant Sharma and opener Virender Sehwag for playing big roles in the team's victory at Galle.
The 19-year-old paceman rattled the top order with two quick wickets before finishing with 3-20 off 15 overs as Sri Lanka were shot out for 136 chasing a 307-run target.
"He is quality seamer and at the moment he stands out in the Indian line-up. I am very impressed by what he has to offer," said the coach. "He is learning which are good areas to bowl. So, at the end of the day we tell him to bowl the natural length. And when he is bowling his natural length he is as good as anyone in the world."
Sehwag dominated the Sri Lankan attack with his brilliant strokeplay, scoring an unbeaten 201 in the first innings and 50 in the second. He was named man of the match.
But the Indian coach said it was not necessary that every batsman should play like the hard-hitting opener. "The success of any Test-playing side is how each batsman sticks to his own skill," said Kirsten. "We certainly don't say that Sehwag plays like this so the rest of the batsmen need to play like this. He plays like that since he has the skill and ability to play like that."

Gibbs back in again ODI squad

South Africa have named a 15-man squad for the one-off Twenty20 international and five-match ODI series against England. Herschelle Gibbs, who had expressed doubts over his international career after being left out of the Test squad, has been included, so has Dale Steyn, who was ruled out of the final two Tests against England due to a broken thumb.
"The squad is made up of the players who have done well for us over the past year and we have every confidence that they will regain the No. 1 ranking from Australia," Joubert Strydom, the convenor of selectors, said. "The only player who is no longer part of the mix is Charl Langeveldt, who is no longer available." Langeveldt, who had opted out of the tour to India following his selection ahead of Andre Nel due to South Africa's controversial transformation policy, joined Derbyshire on a two-year Kolpak contract.
"We have included Hashim Amla as the 15th player in the squad because of the heavy workload that Graeme Smith has had to carry and the injuries he has suffered recently," Strydom said. "Hashim played in our most recent ODI series against Bangladesh and he will provide the cover in the opening batting area.
"Including the warm-up matches, there are nine matches to be played in the limited-overs section of the tour and the selection of an additional player is more than justified." Smith had suffered a back injury while batting in the tour game against Bangladesh A. However, he played the subsequent Test at Edgbaston, leading South Africa to a five-wicket win with an unbeaten 154.
Jacques Kallis and Makhaya Ntini, who had been rested for the Bangladesh ODIs, return to the squad, in place of Alviro Petersen and Charl Langeveldt.
Gerald Majola, Cricket South Africa's chief executive, congratulated the team on their triumph in the Test series and looked forward to further success on the tour. "The Proteas' first Test series win in England since unity in 1991 is a fantastic achievement and one that has made the whole country immensely proud," Majola said. "We hope now that Graeme Smith and his players can finish off the Test series at The Oval with another high-quality performance before turning their attention to Twenty20 and ODI cricket."
The Oval Test starts on August 7. South Africa then play three warm-up matches before the Twenty20 international on August 20.

South Africa squad: Graeme Smith (capt), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, Mark Boucher (wk), AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Andre Nel, Makhaya Ntini, Justin Ontong, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn.

Kirsten to go back to attend to sick mother

India's cricket coach Gary Kirsten will not be with the Indian team for the crucial third Test against Sri Lanka as has been granted leave to be with his ailing mother in South Africa.
The Indian cricket board (BCCI) has granted Gary Kirsten leave go to South Africa to be with his Mother as she is very critically ill, a release from BCCI secretary said on Tuesday.
Kirsten will not be with the team during the third Test Match as he will be leaving from Colombo for South Africa Tuesday night. There will not be any replacement in his absence, the release adds.
The three-match Test series in Sri Lanka interestingly poised with both the teams winning a Test each with the third and final Test slated for Friday.

Kevin Pietersen has been swiftly appointed as England Captain

New England captain Kevin Pietersen said on Monday that he wanted to take his "instinct" approach as a batsman into his new role as leader of the team.
Pietersen said: "The way I play is very gut instinct orientated and I like to do things spontaneously. I like to do what I feel is right in a situation. I think over the years I've played cricket I've gained a good cricket brain. My gut instinct when I've been batting for England has assisted me tremendously. It's a brand new challenge for me and I love challenges."
He said he would captain England "with a smile on my face".
Pietersen paid tribute to Michael Vaughan, who resigned on Sunday, and said he had "huge boots to try and fill."
He believed that Vaughan remained a great batsman and that after he had taken some time off he would go back to county cricket for Yorkshire and win back a place in the England team.
He said the invitation to captain England had turned his life around. He said he accepted the job after speaking to his wife Jessica and his parents in South Africa.
"You could see how emotional Michael was when he spoke about his family and it's an emotional decision," said Pietersen, who said he had a good meeting with coach Peter Moores on Sunday.
"He likes to challenge us on a daily basis. There are a lot of strong characters in the dressing room and a lot of opinionated people. I sat down with Peter and we had a real good discussion about how we want to take this team forward. I think my position from a player to a captain is totally different and we need to unite and to get on the same hymn sheet."
He said he would lean on people like Vaughan. "I will always respect what happened in the past and I will always ask for advice. I'm fresh into this and I will need some help. One of the most exciting things is that I have had text messages and phone calls from senior members in the squad who have said they are right behind me."
Chairman of selectors Geoff Miller confirmed that uniting the Test and One-Day captaincy was something he had wanted to achieve. Paul Collingwood resigned from the One-Day captaincy Sunday.
Miller announced only one change in England's 13-man squad for the final Test against South Africa, with batsman Ravi Bopara replacing \ Vaughan, which he said was a sign that there was no panic from the selectors with England trailing the four-match series 2-0. He said the selectors had not contemplated a change of captaincy before Vaughan's resignation.
Nottinghamshire batsman Samit Patel is the only uncapped player in a 15-man squad for a Twenty20 international and five One-Day Internationals against South Africa.
Wicketkeeper Matt Prior has been recalled. Pietersen was quoted recently as expressing doubts about travelling to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy next month. He has also been linked with the Indian Premier League Twenty20 competition.

npower series: Steyn out of final Test

South African fast bowler Dale Steyn has been ruled out of this week's fourth Test against England at The Oval but should be back for the One-day series, the BBC reported on Sunday.
The 24-year-old paceman suffered a fracture to the base of his left thumb and is due to be in a plaster for another week so he will miss The Oval fixture which starts on Thursday.
Steyn had to miss South Africa's series-clinching third Test against England at Edgbaston with the injury.

Twenty20 at the Olympics : The dreams of Adam Gilchrist

Pitched as the game to reach out to the rest of the world, former Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist feels administrators should force for Twenty20 cricket to be included in the Olympics from 2020.
"This may seem like a pipe dream but it is a potential reality. It doesn’t matter where the 2020 Olympic Games are held but many of us who’ve experienced international Twenty20 cricket and the IPL are convinced that cricket should bid to become an Olympic sport in time for the 2020 Olympic Games, wherever they’re held," GIlchrist wrote in his column for Deccan Herald.
Gilchrist says that after a prolonged hiatus from the pinnacle event in world sport (Cricket was included only once in the Olympics in 1900), the time has come for the Gentleman's game to be a permanent part, especially with the advent of Twenty20.
"Now is the time for the 10 full member-nations of the ICC to plan for the development of the sport over the next 100 years. Over the next century, the challenge for all of us who love the game is to spread the word of cricket to parts of the globe that have never heard of it and currently don’t play our sport," Gilchrist, who was part of the Indian Premier League playing for Deccan Chargers Hyderabad, said.
"I believe the Olympic Games is the vehicle the sport should use to aggressively sell the message of our sport to all 202 competing Olympic nations, so our sport is strong and robust in countries where it is currently played and exciting and ground-breaking in countries who haven’t yet caught the 'cricket-bug'," he adds.
Gilchrist, who retired from international cricket earlier this year, said that the incredible success of the shortest form of the game through the IPL means that cricket has shed the image of being long and dreary.
"The IPL has been such a success and has changed cricket forever. I saw the revolution first-hand during my time in Hyderabad.
"Having established one of the most the most exciting leagues in world sport Mr Pawar, Mr Manohar, Mr Modi and their colleagues at BCCI along with David Morgan, Mr Bindra and their friends at ICC can now reach for the stars and ensure that Indian cricketers — and others — are winning medals on the world’s biggest stage: The Olympic Games," he writes.
He adds that the introduction of cricket in the Olympics would mean countries like the US and China could become competitive in a much shorter span of time.
Gilchrist also argues for cricket to be played in the Olympics by both men and women, and says that the Olympics "will lead to more Test playing nations, something that the sport will need in the coming century."
"I look forward to the day when Australia takes on Italy in a Test match in Rome."
The three-time World Cup winner also explains that cricket in the Olympics will not lead to any clashes with bilateral tours and other series played during the year as it needs only a two-week window for the Games.
He also adds that the Games will also add a sense of greater pride to cricket. "Take it from someone who has won almost everything cricket has to offer — the Olympics is the absolute pinnacle in sport."
"Cricketers won’t care about the money. The chance to stand on top of the Olympic podium, to wear an Olympic gold medal and the pride of belting out your national anthem would be a life-changing money-can’t-buy experience," he adds.
Gilchrist urges cricket's flag bearers to go all out on making this dream a reality.
"The Olympic movement knows it needs to increase its presence in the Asian sub-continent as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh contribute nearly 22 per cent of the world’s population," says the left-hander.
"If everyone in the sport grasps this opportunity then Twenty20 gold in the 2020 Olympic Games could well be a reality for India and its cricket-crazy fans."