Dravid takes responsibility for India's poor show

Captain Rahul Dravid has taken responsibility for India's cricket World Cup failure but says resigning the captaincy was not an issue.

BCCI News

India aiming for long-term prospects after World Cup ouster

Shaken by India's humiliating exit from the World Cup, the country's cricket governing body has convened a meeting to decide the future of action, an official said on Monday.

BCCI meet on April 6

Following the disgusting performance by the Indian blues in the World Cup, the Indian Cricket Board officials, headed by president Sharad Pawar, will meet on April 6th to discuss about the furture of Indian cricket.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

West Indian Richards offers to help struggling India

West Indies batting great Viv Richards has offered to assist struggling India after their shock first-round elimination at the World Cup last week.
"I would certainly like to help India in this aspect of their preparation," the former West Indies captain wrote in a syndicated column on Thursday. "I have always enjoyed a challenge as a player and would enjoy the challenge of instilling self-belief and confidence in a group of players as talented and promising as the Indians."
Winners in 1983 and runners-up in the last edition, India crashed out in the Caribbean after losing two out of three group matches, to Bangladesh and former champions Sri Lanka. "I would not blame the team management for this debacle, but there has to be some reason why a team as supremely talented as India`s does not achieve more success," he wrote. "The reasons have less to do with talent and potential and more to do with mental strength." Irate fans in the cricket-crazy country have demanded the axe fall on captain Rahul Dravid and coach Greg Chappell, but Richards urged fans not to judge the team`s ability on the basis of three games.
"I remember the West Indies were devastated when we lost the World Cup final in 1983," he added. "That is why we came in full force and with great intent to win when we toured India later that year," he said of the 5-0 rout of India in the one-dayers. "We needed to prove to the world, and, more importantly, to ourselves that we were the best team in the world." The seven-week World Cup, the first to be played in the Caribbean, culminates in the Barbados final on April 28.

Anil Kumble quits ODIs

Veteran spinner Anil Kumble has retired from one-day cricket after India's early World Cup exit but will continue playing Test matches, media reports said. Kumble, India's most successful bowler in both forms of the game, revealed his retirement to team-mates in Port of Spain soon after India were knocked out of the tournament last week, the reports said.
The 36-year-old had already said the World Cup would be his last one-day assignment before the team departed for the Caribbean in February. The leg-spinner had not been an automatic selection in the shorter game in recent times even though his 547 wickets in 113 Tests and 337 wickets in 271 one-dayers are the most by any Indian bowler. Kumble, playing his fourth World Cup, got just one preliminary game against first-timers Bermuda as spin partner Harbhajan Singh was preferred for the more important matches against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. India lost both games to record their worst World Cup performance since the 1979 edition in England when they also won just one match.
Kumble is best known for taking all 10 wickets in an innings against Pakistan in New Delhi in 1999, only the second bowler to achieve the feat after Englishman Jim Laker. Kumble will return home with the rest of the World Cup squad on Thursday. India's next international assignment is a three-week tour of Bangladesh in May comprising two Tests and three one-day internationals.

Indian board to meet over World Cup debacle

The Indian cricket board is to analyse the national team's early World Cup elimination at a meeting next week which could lead to the sacking of the captain and coach. The 1983 winners crashed out in the first round of the event in the Caribbean last week after losing two out of three group matches, to Bangladesh and former champions Sri Lanka.
There can be two Indian teams," Board president Sharad Pawar told Indian television news channel NDTV on Monday, about the board's plans to build a side for the future. "The Indian Senior and India Blue team, which would be given the much needed experience of playing on international pitches," he said, looking ahead to the 2011 World Cup hosted by the sub-continent.

Following is the result of the survey we had before the World Cup began. While more than half of those responded were optimistic that India will eventually lift the cup, nearly a quarter thought they would at least make it to the Semi-finals.

What are India's chances in the 2007 World Cup?  Winner    516   52.0%   Runner-Up    81   8.2%   Semi-Finalist    217   21.9%   Super Eight    178   17.9%  Total Votes : 992

India lost to Sri Lanka, out of World Cup

India again put up a pathetic display to lose to Sri Lanka by 69 runs in a Group B match and crash out of the cricket World Cup at Queen's Park Oval in Port of Spain on Friday. With this win Sri Lanka took their points tally to six from three matches while India failed to add to the two they had from the win over Bermuda. Only one match, between Bangladesh and Bermuda, is left in this group. The only way India could now go through to the next round - and the chances are extremely slim - is if Bermuda upset Bangladesh Sunday.

Meanwhile, hundreds of cricket fans across India burnt effigies, defaced posters and held mock funeral processions of the national team, a day after their defeat to Sri Lanka in the World Cup match in the Caribbean. Cricket is taken very seriously in India, where players are treated as huge celebrities, paid big money to endorse major commercial brands and put on pedestals by cricket-crazy fans. On Saturday, television pictures showed furious cricket fans in towns and cities across India taking to the streets to show their outrage at their national team's defeat.
Security has been stepped up outside the residences of some of the cricketers, including captain Rahul Dravid's home in Bangalore, for fears of an attack or stone-pelting by fans.

Brief scores: Sri Lanka (254 for six wickets in 50 overs) beat India (185 all out in 43.3 overs) by 69 runs

ICC Women's Quadrangular Series in India 2007

New Zealand Women beat India Women and reach final

New Zealand assured themselves of a place in the quadrangular women's cricket tournament final in Chennai with a commanding 91-run win over hosts India.

ICC Women's Quadrangular Series : New Zealand Women 272 for 7 beat India Women 181 all out by 91 runs

Australia Women beat England Women by six wickets

Austraila, having lost their first two matches, continued their fine rally to be in second position with a confident six wicket win over lowly England, who have lost all their five matches so far.

ICC Women's Quadrangular Series : Australia Women 269-4 beat England Women 268-8 by six wickets

ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

Zaheer wants to use slower ball in World Cup

Zaheer Khan wants to use the slower ball as a weapon during next month's World Cup cricket in the West Indies.

ICC Women's Quadrangular Series in India 2007

India Women beat England Women by eight wickets

Openers Karuna Jain and Jaya Sharma struck fluent half-centuries and medium pacer Amita Sharma grabbed 4/16 as India scored an eight-wicket win over England in the Quadrangular women's international series.

ICC Women's Quadrangular Series : India Women 144 for 2 beat England Women 143 all out by eight wickets

New Zealand Women loses to Australia

The New Zealand women's cricket team has suffered its first loss at the quadrangular tournament in Chennai. However, New Zealand still leads the competition.

ICC Women's Quadrangular Series : Australia Women 232 for 8 beat New Zealand Women 183 all out by 49 runs

ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

India Matches

India finishes 10th in the CWC 2007 edition