Indian Premier League: Andrew McDonald named Rajasthan Royals head coach

McDonald has been a part of the IPL in the past having played for the Delhi Daredevils in the 2009 edition before being signed up by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2012-2013

Sports News: Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Rajasthan Royals have appointed Australia cricketer Andrew Barry McDonald as their new head coach for a period of three years. McDonald has been a part of the IPL in the past having played for the Delhi Daredevils in the 2009 edition before being signed up by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2012-2013. He was also the bowling coach of RCB. Reacting to his appointment, McDonald said: “I’m delighted to join the Royals family. It’s a great honour to take on this responsibility.

“The Rajasthan Royals is a new, exciting challenge for me, and I can’t wait to get started working with our world class players and coaches in one of the biggest sporting leagues in the world.” The former Australian all-rounder has coached Leicestershire, Victoria and the Melbourne Renegades.

The 38-year-old, who played four Tests for Australia, had guided Victoria to the title win in Sheffield Shield in his first year as senior coach. He then moved the Renegades from seventh position to winning the Big Bash this year. Ranjit Barthakur, Executive Chairman, Rajasthan Royals said: “We are delighted to appoint Andrew as our head coach. He shares our belief of discovering potential and championing dreams and is aligned with our vision to continue to drive innovation in…

IPL 2019 CSK vs RR: When ‘captain cool’ Dhoni lost his cool on the umpire

Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was seen angrily gesturing at umpire Ulhas Gandhe for backtracking after initially signalling a no ball

Chennai Super Kings chief Mahendra Singh Dhoni got away from a boycott and was let off with a 50 percent fine on his match expense for an uncommon showdown with the on-field umpire amid the IPL experience against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur. In an uncommon example, Dhoni, who was not intended to be on the field of play, lost his cool and surged out of the uncovered to challenge umpire Ulhas Gandhe after he flip-tumbled on a no ball on Thursday night.

“MS Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings commander, was fined 50 percent of his match charges for rupturing the VIVO Indian Premier League’s (IPL) Code of Conduct amid his group’s match against Rajasthan Royals at Jaipur,” the BCCI expressed. Gandhe had attempted to govern a midsection high full hurl as no ball by RR all-rounder Ben Stokes. Yet, he turned around his choice after square leg umpire Bruce Oxenford did not motion for it. “Dhoni admitted to the Level 2 offense 2.20 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct and acknowledged the authorization,” it further expressed.

Likewise READ: Week 2 of IPL sees 21% expansion in TV viewership, indicates BARC information As it is the situation with IPL groups, the establishment will pay the fine for the player’s sake. Dhoni was seen indignantly motioning at Gandhe for backtracking after at first flagging a no ball. It took some persuading from Oxenford for Dhoni to make a beeline for the burrow despite the fact that he appeared to be a long way from persuaded.

 Be that as it may, the disarray and the resulting encounter did not have a course on CSK’s fortunes. Feeds bombed in the last finished and Mitchell Santner completed the match with a six to take his group to a four-wicket win in a pursuit of 152. As per the ICC Code of Conduct, which administers the IPL, demonstrating genuine contradiction at an umpire’s choice by words or activity can prompt a most extreme discipline of one-Test or two-ODI boycott.

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Dhoni unreal as captain, can lift the team even without talking much: Tahir

The South African also credited Dhoni for living up to his reputation of being one the best finishers in the world and a good tactician

Veteran spinner Imran Tahir described Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni as “unreal”, saying even without talking much he has the capability to lift the team up. Chennai Super Kings secured a thrilling eight-run win over Rajasthan Royals in their IPL match here on Sunday night as Dhoni hit a match-winning unbeaten knock of 75 off 46 balls to guide his team to a respectable total of 175 under challenging conditions.

“The way he carries himself is just unreal. He won’t say much but he knows how to lift the team up. He is a great leader and a great human being,” Tahir said at the post-match press conference. The South African also credited M S Dhoni for living up to his reputation of being one the best finishers in the world and a good tactician.

“You know Dhoni plays really well in these situations because like (Dwayne) Bravo he’s done this so many times, and that’s why he’s called Mr Cool. He works hard on his game plan. Even in practice sessions, he helps his team-mates. And we respect that. “I think as a bowling group we did really well. Even while batting, Mahi bhai played unbelievably well and set the tone for us. I’m just really happy with whatever we did as a team,” he told reporters after the match….

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CSK to donate proceeds from first IPL home match to Pulwama martyrs’ kin

Tickets to the much-awaited game were sold out within hours of the opening day sale.

Chennai Super Kings will donate proceeds from their first IPL home game to the families of the CRPF personnel martyred in the Pulwama terrorist attack, with skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni presenting the cheque.

The 12th Indian Premier League will begin with defending champions Chennai Super Kings taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore and ticket proceeds of the game, scheduled to be heal at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday, will go to the kin of the CRPF personnel who lost their lives in the February 14 terror attack, said CSK’s director Rakesh Singh.

“ChennaiIPL first home match ticket proceeds will go towards the families of the victims of Pulwama Attack. Captain MS Dhoni, who is honorary Lt. Colonel of the Indian territorial army, will present the cheque!” Singh said on the team’s twitter handle. Tickets to the much-awaited game were sold out within hours of the opening day sale.

More than 40 jawans lost their lives in the attack perpetrated by Pakistan-based terror outfit Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) in South Kashmir’s Pulwama. A convoy of 78 buses, in which around 2,500 CRPF personnel were travelling from Jammu to Srinagar, came under attack on February 14. As a mark of respect for the personnel who lost their lives, Indian cricketers recently sported special army caps during the third ODI against Australia and donated their match fee to the National Defence Fund…

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IPL 2019 schedule: Dhoni’s CSK to take on Kohli’s RCB in tournament opener

IPL 2019 will be off to an earlier-than-usual start owing to Lok Sabha elections, dates of which are yet to be announced. Any change in the provisional IPL 2019 schedule will be revised accordingly

Sports News: The Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) on Tuesday announced the schedule of Indian Premier League (IPL 2019) for the first two weeks, comprising 17 games. Defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will play against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the tournament opener on March 23.

The IPL will be off to an earlier-than-usual start this year owing to the Lok Sabha elections 2019, dates of which are yet to be announced. Any change in the provisional itinerary — from March 23 to April 5 — will be revised accordingly.

While the weekends will have double-headers but the schedule doesn’t clarify whether the BCCI will continue with the usual 4 pm (afternoon) and 8 pm (evening) format or there will be a change in timing.|IPL 2019

“These are still subject to the announcement of the Lok Sabha 2019 election dates. Once these have been released, the BCCI will address any issues with the first two weeks and will also prepare a schedule for the remainder of the season working with the local authorities around the polling dates,” read an official statement from the IPL.

On March 24, Kolkata Knight Riders will host Sunrisers Hyderabad in the afternoon encounter of a double header in which Mumbai Indians will take on Delhi Capitals in Mumbai. Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab will meet each other in Jaipur to complete the first round of games…

IPL auction 2019: Who’s retained, who’s released? Here’s list for all teams

From Chennai Super Kings to Mumbai Indians, teams are ready to bid for the best in the IPL auction 2019. Also, the Right to Match would be an interesting factor in the auction.

It’s time to splurge on sport — at least for some! The gala T20 cricket tournament Indian Premier League 2019 (IPL 2019) may still be months away, but time has come for the bids and counter-bids as 351 players go under the hammer on Tuesday. IPL franchises would be cometing to get the best possible combination at today’s IPL auction.

The player salary cap has been increased this year to Rs 800 million from Rs 660 million last season, giving the eight franchises a window to spend some more without worrying about the limit. The auction would be a one-day affair, unlike the previous auction that went on for days. In another change from the usual, Richard Madley would not be the auctioneer this year and we will see a new face donning the role.

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The 351 cricketers in the auction will be split into three groups — batsmen, bowlers and all-rounders.  The teams have already provided the list of retained and released players. The teams, however, can have 25 players in the squad, compared with 27 earlier. The teams can now have eight overseas players, against nine earlier, and they need to keep at least 18 players in the squad…(Keep Reading: IPL 2019)

IPL 2018: Shubman, Karthik power KKR to 6-wicket victory against CSK

In the 33rd match of Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL 2018), Kolkata Knight Riders beat Chennai Supers Kings by 6 wickets, thanks to Shubman Gill's half-century

 

In the 33rd match of the VIVO Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018, Kolkata tasted victory at home as youngster Shubhman Gill shined with the bat and scored his maiden half century. With the win, KKR move to third position in the VIVO IPL points table. Gill contributed with a significant knock that sealed the victory for the host side. The bowlers did not get much help from the pitch but still, wickets fell at regular intervals for both sides. Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) won the toss and asked Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to bat first at the Eden Gardens.

Shane Watson and Faf Du Plessis opened for CSK and the batsmen did not face much resistance from the bowlers. Soon, there came a turn as Faf Du Plessis was trapped under experienced leg-spinner Piyush Chawla's googly. It was a smooth sailing for Chennai during the major portion of their batting. Chennai crossed the 100-run mark in the 12th over and Kuldeep yadav got the better of Raina in the same over. Sunil Narine struck a blow to Chennai by removing in-form Ambati Rayudu at a cheaper score this time. Dhoni swung into action and kept sending the ball into the crowd, during the process he got a lifeline too as he was dropped in the 18th over. Chennai put up a target of 178 runs.

Chasing a target of 178 runs, Kolkata Knight Riders openers Sunil Narine and Chris Lynn came to bat and Lungi Ngidi got an early breakthrough as Lynn walked back towards pavilion in the first over. Robin Uthappa replaced Lynn, Narine got two consecutive lifelines, courtesy below-par efforts from Ravindra Jadeja who dropped him twice in the second over. After Narine, Shubhman Gill and Rinku Singh kept the fight alive for a brief. Gill continued scoring runs for the team and made his fifty, Karthik gave him company and contributed 45 runs.

Kolkata Knight Riders innings analysis at the end of the match

Chasing the modest total of 179 runs, Chris Lynn and Sunil Narine opened the innings for Kolkata Knight Riders. Lungi Ngidi came to bowl the first over and after playing two dot balls Lynn hit two consecutive sixes of the 3rd and 4th ball but he got perished of the last ball on DRS. KM Asif came to bowl the 2nd over and Narine hit the 4th ball of the over followed by 2 drop catches by Ravinder Jadeja unimaginable. Nigidi continued from the other end and Narine hit two consecutive four of the 2nd and 3rd ball, as he showed what a costly dropped it was. Nigidi conceded 14 runs of his 3rd over. Watson came to bowl the 4th over and started off with a wide as he conceded 7 runs in his 4th over. KM Asif came to bowl the 5th over and started off with a wide and took the Robin Uthappa wicket of the 2nd ball. Asif conceded 5 runs in his 2nd over. Shubman Gill came to the crease after the wicket of Narine. Watson came to bowl the last over of the powerplay and Gill hit 3 fours to collect 12 runs. Jadeja came to bowl the 7th over and Narine hit the second ball for 6 followed by a double but Narine got perished while hitting another six and Jadeja took the revenge but at the cost of 32 runs. Harbhajan came to bowl the 8th over and Rinku Singh hit a classic inside-out shot for four over the cover fielder but Harbhajan Singh pulled it back for CSK as he gave away only 1 run in his last 5 balls. Jadeja came to bowl the 9th over and gave away 8 runs in his 2nd over.

Chennai Super Kings innings analysis after 20 overs

Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Dinesh Karthik won the toss and asked MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings to bat. Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis opened the batting for CSK while Mitchell Johnson came to bowl the first over of the innings for Kolkata Knight Riders. Johnson started the over with 2 dot balls followed by a straight drive hit by Shane Watson. After Watson took a single off the 4th ball and Faf du Plessis collected a four of the outside edge as ball went past the flying slip. Jonshon conceded 10 runs in his first over. Piyush Chawla came to bowl the 2nd over and du Plessis hit the third and fourth ball for four as he collected 8 runs of the Chawla’s first over. Shivam Mavi came to bowl the 3rd over and bowled brilliantly as CSK Watson took a quick single off the first ball. Mavi conceded 6 runs his first over.

After the end of the 3rd over Chennai Super Kings scored 24 runs with Shane Watson (6 runs off 8 balls) and Faf du Plessis (18 runs off 10 balls) on the crease Shane Watson and Faf Du Plessis opened for CSK and scored runs without facing many challenges from the bowlers in the initial overs. Runs kept coming comfortably for Chennai and Kolkata Knight Rider bowlers just watched the ball fly in different directions. Soon, there came a turn as Faf Du Plessis was trapped under experienced leg-spinner Piyush Chawla's googly. Kolkata got the breakthrough but Suresh Raina kept sending the ball towards the fence. CSK were 57/1 after 6 overs.

RCB vs CSK Match Highlights: Dhoni finishes off in style as CSK thump RCB

Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni chased down 206 runs to lead CSK to the top of points table, beating RCB by 5 wickets

Chasing a huge total of 206, Chennai Super Kings' captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ambati Rayudu held their nerves after wickets fell in the initial overs.

 

Dwayne Bravo hit some good shots in the last over to make it easy for MSD to hit the winning shot. With this win, CSK goes on the top of VIVO IPL points table.

MS DHONI'S TRADEMARK FINISH

After the West Indies batsman launched a massive six and a four, Dhoni calmly mauled a length ball into the stands at deep mid wicket to seal an epic win. Pure legendary stuff.

A CRUCIAL PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN AMBATI RAYUDU AND DHONI

The partnership between Ambati Rayudu and Dhoni turned it around for CSK. Rayudu contributed a brilliant 82 runs to the run chase as CSK beat Royal Challengers Banglore by 5 wickets with two balls to spare.

RCB's bowling attack floundered in the penultimate overs, despite having built pressure on CSK by reducing them to 74-4.

Earlier, quick wickets and a few runouts helped CSK restrict RCB to 205 when they could have crossed 220 easily. Some brilliant bowling at the death helped CSK's cause. However, Washington Sundar hit it well and helped RCB touch 200 mark.

A CLASSIC SHOW BY 'CAPTAIN COOL'

Dhoni's 70 off 34 balls and the over-boundary finish was a déjà vu for cricket fans across India as his innings rekindled the memories of a classic Dhoni showdown.

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IPL 2018: Dhoni does it with trademark 6, CSK back on top of points table

Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni led the chase of 206 and made sure CSK cross the line in the end. CSK beat RCB by 5 wickets. CSK are now on the top of VIVO IPL points table

Chasing a huge total of 206, Chennai Super Kings' captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Ambati Rayudu held their nerves after wickets fell in the initial overs. Rayudu made a brilliant 82 runs to make the chase possible. CSK beat Royal Challengers Banglore by 5 wickets with two balls to spare. Dwayne Bravo hit some good shots in the last over to make it easy for MSD to hit the winning shot. With this win, CSK goes on the top of VIVO IPL points table. RCB could not bowl well in the final overs, despite having built pressure on CSK by reducing them to 74-4. The partnership between Ambati Rayudu and Dhoni turned it around for CSK. Siraj gave a few extras in the penultimate over. Prior to that, Negi bowled a costly over that brought down the required run rate.

Earlier, Quick wickets and a few runouts helped CSK restrict RCB to 205 when they could have crossed 220 easily. Some brilliant bowling at the death helped CSK's cause. However, Washington Sundar hit it well and helped RCB touch 200 mark. CSK will now need 206 to win

Earlier, After a brilliant start given by AB De Villers and Quinton De Kock, RCB seemed to lose their way as wickets fell in packs. ABD, De Kock, Cory Anderson fell in back to back overs. Imran Tahir scalped ABD and Cory.

Chennai Super Kings innings analysis after end of innings

Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu came to open for CSK. Pawan Negi was introduced to restrict the run flow. Watson smashed him for a six but lost his wicket in the next ball. Raina walked in to accompany Rayudu. Umesh Yadav came to bowl the second over for RCB. The quick change took place on the bowling side and Washington Sundar came in but ended up conceding two sixes. CSK was at 24/1 after 3 overs. Rayudu 15(10) and Raina 2(4).

The fourth over started on a high note for CSK as Rayudu smashed a six on Umesh Yadav’s delivery, Raina soon joined in and hit a boundary. CSK were 35/1 after 4 overs. Rayudu kept the momentum in the 5th over as he smashed a Six to deep square leg on Mohammed Siraj’s second ball of the over. Raina yet again and smashed a boundary by creating some room off the fourth ball of the over. Rayudu ended the over with a boundary straight down the ground. CSK were 50/1 with the run rate of 10 per over.

Umesh Yadav came in to bowl the 6th over and got a leading edge of Raina on the very first ball, Raina flicked too early and Mandeep Singh made no mistake in backward point's and Raina was on his way to pavilion. Next ball, a big appeal for LBW but Umpire was not interested, Sam Billings took the advantage and hit a four to the deep square leg in the next ball. CSK were 55/2 after 6 overs with Rayudu at 31 (18) and Billings at 4 (5). The run rate was 9.28 with the required run rate at 10.79....

Royal Challengers Banglore innings analysis at the end of innings

Chennai Super Kings led by MS Dhoni won the toss and elected to bowl first, Virat Kohli and Quinton de Kock opened the batting for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Deepak Chahar came to bowl the first over of the innings and gave 5 runs as RCB batsmen were cautious. Shardul Thakur came to bowl the 2nd over of the innings and Kohli hit the third ball for four over the mid-off fielder. RCB batsmen collected 8 runs in the Thakur’s first over. Chahar continued from the other end and got a top edge of the 2nd ball. Dhoni ran for the catch but failed to reach and fielded brilliantly to save 2 runs. De Kock hit the third ball for six over mid-on fielder. Chahar gave away 15 runs in the third over of the innings.

Harbhajan came to ball the 4th over of the innings and de Kock hit the 5th ball of the innings for 6 over mid-on. Harbhajan gave away 7 runs in his first over. Shardul Thakur came to bowl the 5th over of the over and got the wicket of big fish Virat Kohli of the 2nd ball as Jadeja dives and takes it at mid-on. Virat Kohli scored 18 runs off 15 balls with the help of 3 classic boundaries. AB de Villiers came to the crease after the dismissal of Virat. Thakur bowled a brilliant wicket maiden over as he didn’t allow de Villiers to score a single run. Harbhajan continued from the other end and de Villiers belted Harbhajan all across the ground as he hit 2 sixes and a four to collect 17 runs in the 6th over of the innings. RCB were scoring at a run rate of 8.66....

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IPL 2018: Chennai Super Kings are back with a bang; but not at home

They may not be playing at home but what has not diminished is the unquestioning adulation the team receives in Chennai

As Ravindra Jadeja slammed the ball for a six, little did everyone know that it would be the last time Chennai Super Kings would get to celebrate a victory at the Chepauk stadium in the latest iteration of the Indian Premier League. Days later, it was confirmed that Chennai Super King will play its remaining home games in Pune. The protests over the Union government’s inaction over sharing of Cauvery river waters had already seen calls for boycott of the match against Kolkata Knight Riders. As the threat perception grew more serious in the police’s eyes, CSK was asked to find a new home.

Ironically, the build-up to this campaign for the ‘Yellow Army’ was dominated by the narrative of 

return. After spending the last two years in suspension due to team official Gurunath Meiyappan’s involvement in betting, CSK’s comeback was eagerly awaited. Particularly by its loyal fan base which gave short shrift to the accusations of spot-fixing and conflict of interest. Rather, the supporters felt unfairly targeted.

CSK has always prided itself on the manic support it seems to attract. The uncritical adoration has been carefully nurtured by the franchise. Arguably, no other IPL side can boast of such loyalty. Even during the Cauvery protest last week, some agitators spoke of the difficulty in choosing their politics over their favourite team.

CSK itself gives rise to dilemmas as it reflects the contradictions which beset the IPL better than any other side. Like the league, the franchise entertains and succeeds in good measure; but it also replicates the IPL’s tendency to court controversy, leaving a miasmic trail behind.

It began with the charges of auction-fixing (2009) and then moved on to betting and conflict of interest in CSK’s ownership model. Moreover, Chennai has not been an entirely hospitable venue to the IPL. The ban on Sri Lankan players and officials is still fresh in memory while three stands at the Chepauk stadium have remained shut since 2012. Yet, the bumps in the road have not dimmed the enthusiasm of the CSK faithful.

As witnessed during this IPL, the franchise is mindful of playing up this emotional connect. In the lead-up to the tournament, we saw fan videos gain immense traction while CSK itself sought to play up its return to the Chepauk. To embellish its connection with Chennai, the franchise had its players mouth off lines from the trailer of Rajnikanth’s latest film Kaala. In another video, made by fans, supporters borrowed a famous line from the superstar’s hit movie, Kabali – “Tell them we are back,” they roared, with pride.

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