Sports India

Gavaskar has questioned the rationale behind asking players to indulge in activities like rock-climbing and termed as ‘naïve’ all the talk about getting the players to bond.

The team members other that coach and captain Rahul Dravid, are real unhappy in wasting time with activities that is just useless.

According to my sources within the team, some team members are even joking about the coach and the captain for ‘’childish indulgence to new experiment.'’

Some other former cricketers are also questioning the new training camp in the outskirt of Bangalore. India has been experimenting with many new techniques for a long time with little effect till this date.

Indian captain Rahul Dravid Saturday said the squad’s three-day secret training at the Pegasus Institute for Excellence, about 65 km from here, would help players in the long run.

Addressing a press conference, a day after the players returned from the institute to resume their conditioning camp for next month’s triangular series in Sri Lanka, Dravid said the outing had given the players some ‘new experiences’.

‘Every camp has got some element that is directed towards the short term,’ he said about the stint, from which the media was barred. ‘There is also an element that is directed towards the long term.’

He added: ‘It (the stint) gave new experiences to people who tried to get something out of their personalities.’

The Pegasus Institute for Excellence is well known for its ‘Outward Bound Learning’ programme that is aimed at increasing tolerance levels.

‘We had a session in Tai Chi, which is like yoga. We had heard about it and we wanted to experience it,’ said Dravid. ‘It might benefit them. It depends on an individual how he takes it.’

The conditioning camp will continue at the National Cricket Academy housed at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

A cricket camp will follow this one, before the team leaves for Sri Lanka.

After three days of sweat and secrecy, Rahul Dravid and his men were back on the familiar terrain of flashbulbs and autograph hunters. The skipper was a visibly pleased man as he spoke to the media at length about the closed-door training stint at the Pegasus Centre besides dwelling on the forthcoming tri-series in Sri Lanka and the welcome return of Sachin Tendulkar.

Excerpts

On the three-day stint: It’s a good set-up in Doddaballapur. Executives from more than 100 companies have trained there in the last eight years. The activities we did were challenging physically and mentally. It also involved teamwork. It was a good experience and helped some of our boys to explore different facets of their personality. Not many have the opportunity to train and be on their own without having a lot of people around them, without having the press constantly photographing them. The challenge for us is not only about helping them grow as cricketers but also to help them grow as people.

On specific activities: Most of the activities were something which none of the guys had done before. I have seen some reports that we did rock-climbing and rafting but we didn’t do any of them. Pegasus is a set-up, which has some sort of army drills, and the physical aspect is something that we as athletes can do but it also challenges you mentally to finish the task. It was a nice experience to stay in tents and do new things but we didn’t go there just to bond but we also went there to help the guys explore themselves in terms of their physical and mental aspects.

On the World Cup team: I’m not a selector and not in a position to give a definite answer but I feel everyone who is playing domestic cricket is available for selection. Obviously these 20 are the ones who have played for us in the recent past. They include the 15 scheduled to tour Sri Lanka and the others who played for us in the West Indies. But if some special talent crops up in the next few months, we will definitely not ignore him.

On Tendulkar’s return: Sachin responded well and did everything that was asked of him. Obviously we had our physio to advise us in case anything we did had a risky element in it but then we did not do anything like that and he participated in every single thing we did. He was very keen and looks in very good shape but more than shape, he looks in a very good state of mind and that is most important to me.

On the tri-series: Sri Lanka at home is a tough outfit. It has always been a challenging tour. We are all excited about it and if we perform well there, it will be a good start to our season.

On future camps: It depends on situations and what we are trying to achieve. It did help us in the last three days and in the future if we come across a similar situation, then we might do it again or we might do something completely new.

Expressing happiness over the fitness of Sachin Tendulkar ahead of the tri series in Sri Lanka, Captain Rahul Dravid said that he would be looking forward for a good cricketing season. “I’m very happy” was the one-liner Dravid said when asked about his reaction on Sachin’s fitness and inclusion in the tri-series involving South Africa.
Tendulkar, who missed the entire West Indies tour and the series with England following a shoulder surgery, was declared fit to play the tri-series to be held from August 14 to 29. He comes into the team after a gap of nearly four months.
Dravid, who was here on an endorsement photo opportunity, did not entertain questions on cricket saying that “this is not the right forum.” However, the captain said that he would be looking forward for an interesting tour in South Africa and the conditioning camp would begin today at Bangalore.
“We hope to do well in the island,” he said and refused to take any further questions on cricket. When asked how comfortable he felt while endorsing products, Dravid who is the brand ambassador of quite a few companies said, “It would be good. As you get to know people and build relations.”
Dravid, who posed to a battery of cameras while launching a new range of Samsung products in the city, said that he was comfortable during product promotional events.

Indian Cricket team captain Rahul Dravid said that the return of master blaster Sachin Tendulkar into the team is nothing short of wonderful.

Rahul who is in Hyderabad at present, opined that the comeback of the little master into the team will further strengthen the team. He expressed that the team is keen on winning the one day series in Sri Lanka.

Indian Cricket team captain Rahul Dravid said that the return of master blaster Sachin Tendulkar into the team is nothing short of wonderful.

Rahul who is in Hyderabad at present, opined that the comeback of the little master into the team will further strengthen the team. He expressed that the team is keen on winning the one day series in Sri Lanka.

Indian cricket team Captain Rahul Dravid said on Tuesday that the team was looking forward to the tri-series in Sri Lanka beginning August 14.

Dravid said the Men in Blue were looking forward to the new season and were hopeful of performing well in the triangular series, involving hosts Sri Lanka and South Africa.

“We are excited about the tri-series. We are looking forward to the start of new season and performing well and doing our very best,” he told reporters in Hyderabad.

The Indian team, meanwhile, will start its pre-season conditioning camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore from Wednesday, which will end on August 1.

Gregory King, physical trainer of the Team India, said the team would be experimenting with Tai Chi, a martial art to help the team.

“The NCA has been using Tai Chi. It is a martial art which is done very slowly. It`s supposed to help relaxation, balance and focus. It is supposedly very good for concentration. I am just experimenting with it. I am only doing one session at the camp it is just to give the guys a new experience. Obviously, we will be persisting with yoga which we use all the time and have been using in the previous camps as well,” King told reporters.

All-rounder Irfan Pathan and batsman Suresh Raina have already started training with Fraser.

Team India remains fourth in the Test Championship table and skipper Rahul Dravid static at a distant second, behind his Australian counterpart Ricky Ponting, in the batting list of the latest LG ICC Test rankings issued on Tuesday.

India is just two points behind the injury-ravaged England, which is currently busy with the Test series against Pakistan at home.

Dravid is the only Indian batsman in the top 10 list with veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble being the sole representative in the bowlers’ standings topped by Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan. Muralitharan will go head-to-head with second-placed Makhaya Ntini in the series set to get underway in Colombo on Thursday.

Test championship: 1. Australia (130), 2. Pakistan (120), 3. England (113), 4. India (111), 5. Sri Lanka (99), 6. South Africa (98), 7. New Zealand (92), 8. West Indies (72), 9. Zimbabwe (28), 10. Bangladesh (2).

Top 10 batsmen: 1. Ricky Ponting (Aus) 931, 2. Rahul Dravid (Ind) 882, 3. Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pak) 846, 4. Jacques Kallis (SA) 832, 5. Mohammad Yousuf (Pak) 828, 6. Matthew Hayden (Aus) 808, 7. Younis Khan (Pak) 788, 8. Mike Hussey (Aus) 780, 9. Brian Lara (WI) 732, 10. Kevin Pietersen (Eng) 724.

Top 10 bowlers: 1. Murali Muralitharan (SL) 901, 2. Makhaya Ntini (SA) 841, 3. Shane Warne (Aus) 813, 4. Glenn McGrath (Aus) 811, 5. Matthew Hoggard (Eng) 776, 6. Andrew Flintoff (Eng) 759, 7. Shoaib Akhtar (Pak) 743, 8. Anil Kumble (Ind) 736, 9. Shane Bond (NZ) 720, 10. Chaminda Vaas (SL) 700.

Top five all-rounders: 1. Jacques Kallis (SA) 486, 2. Andrew Flintoff (Eng) 454, 3. Shaun Pollock (SA) 302, 4. Daniel Vettori (NZ) 290, 5. Chaminda Vaas (SL) 271.

Team India remains fourth in the Test Championship table and skipper Rahul Dravid static at a distant second, behind his Australian counterpart Ricky Ponting, in the batting list of the latest LG ICC Test rankings issued on Tuesday.

India is just two points behind the injury-ravaged England, which is currently busy with the Test series against Pakistan at home.

Dravid is the only Indian batsman in the top 10 list with veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble being the sole representative in the bowlers’ standings topped by Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan. Muralitharan will go head-to-head with second-placed Makhaya Ntini in the series set to get underway in Colombo on Thursday.

Test championship: 1. Australia (130), 2. Pakistan (120), 3. England (113), 4. India (111), 5. Sri Lanka (99), 6. South Africa (98), 7. New Zealand (92), 8. West Indies (72), 9. Zimbabwe (28), 10. Bangladesh (2).

Top 10 batsmen: 1. Ricky Ponting (Aus) 931, 2. Rahul Dravid (Ind) 882, 3. Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pak) 846, 4. Jacques Kallis (SA) 832, 5. Mohammad Yousuf (Pak) 828, 6. Matthew Hayden (Aus) 808, 7. Younis Khan (Pak) 788, 8. Mike Hussey (Aus) 780, 9. Brian Lara (WI) 732, 10. Kevin Pietersen (Eng) 724.

Top 10 bowlers: 1. Murali Muralitharan (SL) 901, 2. Makhaya Ntini (SA) 841, 3. Shane Warne (Aus) 813, 4. Glenn McGrath (Aus) 811, 5. Matthew Hoggard (Eng) 776, 6. Andrew Flintoff (Eng) 759, 7. Shoaib Akhtar (Pak) 743, 8. Anil Kumble (Ind) 736, 9. Shane Bond (NZ) 720, 10. Chaminda Vaas (SL) 700.

Top five all-rounders: 1. Jacques Kallis (SA) 486, 2. Andrew Flintoff (Eng) 454, 3. Shaun Pollock (SA) 302, 4. Daniel Vettori (NZ) 290, 5. Chaminda Vaas (SL) 271.

Rahul Dravid takes on world billiards champion Pankaj Advani and mutiple Grand Slam winner Mahesh Bhupathi for the 2005-06 Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award in what promises to be one of the closest contests in recent years.

In a meeting of government of India sports observers in Delhi on Friday, these three main contenders for the nation’s highest sporting award were discussed. An observer pointed out that while Dravid may be the public favourite on account of the tremendous passion that cricket arouses, the other two names are backed by solid performances.

In fact, the least well known of the three — Pankaj Advani — may well be the hottest contender as he became the only Indian to win two world billiards titles (in point and time formats) as well as the Asian billiards title in 2005. Then, Mahesh Bhupathi notched up his Grand Slam haul to 10 titles by claiming two mixed doubles crowns in 2005.

The Khel Ratna which was instituted in 1991 has only gone to one cricketer till date. Sachin Tendulkar earned the honour for 1997-98. Geet Sethi was the last billiards player to be given the award (92-93) while Leander Paes in the only tennis player to have got the honour (96-97).

The final selection will be made by the second week of August and the President is to confer the award on August 29 along with a cash prize of five lakh.