It's probably the toughest day of my career: Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly, who announced his return to the Indian Premier League with a gutsy unbeaten 32 in Pune Warriors' win over Deccan Chargers, said it was the toughest day of his career and he came into the match with zero-confidence.

The former India captain was the cynosure of all eyes on Tuesday as he scored a gutsy run-a-ball 32 not out laced with a six and three boundaries to help Warriors beat Chargers by six wickets at Rajiv Gandhi stadium at Uppal here.

"I said it's probably the toughest day of my career. I have not picked a cricket bat for five months. I came into this game with zero-confidence," said Ganguly after the match.

Ganguly carried forward the good work done by the openers Jesse Ryder (35) and Manish Pandey (49) as the veteran left-hander helped the Warriors chase down the modest target of 137 runs with 10 balls to spare by holding one end as three wickets fell on the other side.

"It feels good (to score some runs). I haven't played for a long time and needed some hits in the middle. It's about anticipating which I haven't done for a while," he added.

The 38-year-old experienced campaigner proved a point or two to those who ignored him during IPL auction in January in the match that generated interests among cricket fans in anticipation of his comeback in the lucrative Twenty20 league.

Ganguly said he was not ready for the game against Mumbai Indians on May 4 after Warriors roped him in as a replacement for injured Ashish Nehra.

"I wasn't ready for the game on May 4th against Mumbai. I missed the game against Mohali also as I wanted to be get ready."

© PTI

Happy for Ganguly, says Dravid

Rahul Dravid welcomed long-time team-mate and fellow Test debutant Sourav Ganguly's entry to the IPL. Dravid and Ganguly had enjoyed a memorable debut with the latter getting to a century and Dravid walking for a snick when he was on 95 at Lord's, and Dravid said he was happy to see his old team-mate playing. "I am happy for him," Dravid said. "He has got the opportunity to play in the IPL like he wanted and I hope it goes well for him."

On the other hot topic in Indian cricket - the appointment of Duncan Fletcher as the new coach - Dravid welcomed the decision and looked forward to interacting with him.

"He obviously comes with a great record, having coached international teams and a lot of great international players also. So I am looking forward to catching up with him when I get the opportunity.

"I haven't had the chance to interact one on one with him at any stage. I will soon interact with him and see what his thoughts are and how we can take it forward," said Dravid at a pre-match conference ahead of Rajasthan Royals' clash against Chennai Super Kings.

Dravid is playing under an opponent he has had many battles with - most memorably in the unforgettable 2001 series between India and Australia - in Shane Warne for the Rajasthan Royals, and said he had "never dreamt" of playing along side the spin legend in the same team.

"I never dreamt it would happen. I never imagined. But that's the beauty of the IPL. It gives this opportunity to play with the guys you have really competed hard against.

"We have discussed (the 2001) series over a few times in the course of the last four weeks. Being together so much you know, we've discussed a lot of other series too. I really enjoy my time playing under Warne and I think he brings an infectious enthusiasm to our side.

"He sets very good fields, shows very good leadership. It's been fun, as I said it's the beauty of the IPL that you play with some guys you've had some fantastic battles with," he said.

Regarding tomorrow's clash, Dravid, whose team have won three successive matches, said, "If the law of averages catch up with us I hope they catch up with Chennai as well. They've also won three in a row. (But) it's good to have momentum, especially in Twenty20.

"We're coming into this game with a bit of momentum behind us and obviously when playing a team like Chennai, who are the defending champions, you want to have a bit of confidence behind you. I think we've had a good week, hopefully we can play some good cricket."

Dravid said he was comfortable with the Twenty20 format.

"I've always been at peace with this format. I think I was totally taken out of context. My comment was that if I was 20 or 21 year old, I would've looked at this format and realised there's a future in this format and this was something I needed to master.

"It's just that for lot of us this format came at a later stage. It was like 50 overs. When I was 20, 21 I knew that I'd have to well in 50 overs because it was going to play a significant part in my life.

"Any kid today who's 20, 21 has got to recognize the fact that T20 is going to be a significant part of his life whether he likes it or not. That was the basis of my comment. I don't know how it got misinterpreted. I always liked this format. I get to travel across the country, share the dressing room with great players. I also enjoy the fact that it seems to capture the imagination of the country for six weeks, which is nice for a domestic tournament to be able to do that," he stated.

© Cricbuzz (with inputs from agencies)

Ganguly could make come-back in IPL-4

The lack of interest in Sourav Ganguly after the auctions for IPL-4 caused a furore amongst his fans, but for the many who felt that this edition of the IPL wouldn't be worth watching without their 'Dada' their may be hope after all.

According to reports, Ganguly could make a come-back with the Kochi Tuskers Kerala with the franchise reportedly interested in him after Steve Smith was ruled out of the tournament with an injury.

News reports on the CNN-IBN channel said that sources had confirmed that Kochi was indeed interested in signing on the former India captain.

More to follow...

© Cricbuzz (with inputs from agencies)

Shahrukh bowls googly in cola deal

MUMBAI: After making Shahrukh Khan croon "Yehi hai right choice baby" for the last ten years, Pepsi decided to let go of the Bollywood superstar recently.

However, while doing so, they did announce that the company would like to be associated with Khan's IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders.

The actor, however, seems to have other plans. KKR has now gone ahead and tied up with Coca Cola - brand Sprite to be specific - for the coming two years.

TOI has reliably learnt that Sprite will now be one of the team sponsors, which seems to be a clear case of Pepsi's loss being Coke's gain. The Coke spokesperson was unavailable for comment.

The deal is expected to involve sponsorship of merchandise, aligning with the team as a beverage partner and serving beverages in home stadiums.

In fact, Coke has also signed up with the Delhi Daredevils and leading India cricketer Gautam Gambhir.

However, the association between Coke, the team and the player isn't brand-specific as yet.

Reacting to Pepsi's disassociation after almost a decade, Khan told TOI that he is "now perhaps too old for Pepsi."

Recently, Mumbai-based market research firm AC Neilsen had revealed that Sprite has gone past Pepsi as the number two soft drink in India behind market leader Thums Up.

"They have thrown me out and I'm jobless," Khan had said after Pepsi dropped him as the brand ambassador when the contract ended in 2008. The actor did admit that he was looking forward to a renewed deal. He underwent a surgery at a Mumbai hospital on Monday and was unavailable for further comment.

Recently, Pepsi had also dropped Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly as brand ambassadors. Ganguly, incidentally, is also the captain of the team owned by Khan.

Sources suggest that these men do not fit Pepsi's bill as the company is now targeting the younger generation.

http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4146425.cms

Wet blanket on key IPL match

IANS Thursday, May 22, 2008 2:03:03 PM
The unseasonal rain continued Thursday, putting a big question mark on the Delhi Daredevils versus Kolkata Knight Riders IPL match scheduled in the capital Thursday evening. The match is crucial to both teams who are fighting for the last spot in the semi-finals.

A senior official of the Delhi Daredevils team said Thursday morning the match was unlikely unless the rain stopped and the sun came out 'at least for a few hours' as the outfield was wet.The teams will get a point apiece if the match is washed out, which will do neither any good. Delhi Daredevils are in the fifth spot on the eight-team league table, while Kolkata Knight Riders are sixth. Mumbai Indians, in fourth place now, will be the beneficiary of a washout.Though water logging led to the usual traffic jams in the capital, flights were on time, said an airports official.On Thursday morning, meteorologists held out little hope for a break in the weather. Their forecast warned of thunder squalls and hail storms all over north India for the rest of the week, thanks to a mini-cyclone that was sitting over the India-Pakistan border.

To add to that, 'a fresh western disturbance is likely to affect western Himalayan region and adjoining plains of northwest India from Friday', said a met official.Thunder squalls and hail storms have also been forecast over the east and northeast of the country.

Meteorologists expect a low pressure area to form over southeast Arabian Sea around Friday. They have forecast rain or thundershowers at a few places over Kerala, Lakshadweep and south coastal Karnataka.

Source: http://in.sports.yahoo.com/cricket/ipl/news/news_20080522_454.html