ICC

David Gower: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

David Gower Pricks Shoaib Akhtar’s Hot Air Balloon

What he said:

"Its all talk, hot air. Wouldn’t want to get stuck in the argument.”

Former England skipper and commentator David Gower is dismissive of Shoaib Akhtar’s remarks concerning Sachin Tendulkar in his autobiography, “Controversially Yours”.

Gower said:

Shoaib had the talent. He was one of the quicks in his generation. He had the pace to trouble the best. Even (Vivian) Richards was troubled by pace. There was nothing new about that. But look at Sachin’s record, his thousands of runs in Test and one-day cricket…Its all hot air, irrelevant!

The left-hander with the sublime skills at the crease was equally critical of Akhtar’s suggestion that ball-tampering be sanctioned:

I understand what they are saying but there has to be a line somewhere. Its like legalising good ivory. It will increase poaching anyway. If you say its okay to do tampering, you will get a lot of tamperers. It will encourage cheating.

What he really meant:

“Shoaib’s  blowing hot and then cold on Tendulkar makes this a non-starter. Do we really need to take this topic further?”

What he definitely didn’t:

“I’m a batsman. Do you seriously expect me to take a bowler’s side—on this? I can still recall quaking in my boots when we had the West Indian quartet of fast bowlers at our throats in the 80s. It’s the stuff of nightmares.”

Rajeev Shukla: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Rajeev Shukla Is Not Fatigued For Excuses

What he said:

We have three formats. There are very few common players. There is no fatigue in common players.

To avoid fatigue, we said there should be proper coordination between physio and trainer. We will talk to the franchises to reduce the participation of players in parties that are held on the eve of matches.

So that the players get rest. But, if you say that there is fatigue due to IPL, I don’t agree with that.

IPL Chairman Rajeev Shukla refutes the ‘absurd’ notion that cricketers are tired because of the IPL. The ICC virtually cleared the Future Tours Programme (FTP) schedule to accommodate the IPL.

The BCCI was severely criticized following the abject surrender of the national side in the away series in England. The tourists lost 0-4—a complete whitewash.

The IPL was seen as the largest contributory factor for this defeat.

Injuries to key players on the tour only exacerbated the perception.

What he really meant:

“Cricketers are superheroes, robots or demi-Gods. Have it whichever way you like. Fatigue is for mere mortals.“

“Just wave a little IPL moolah and the word ‘fatigue’ disappears from the players’ dictionary.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“It’s a no-brainer. Let’s drop Tests altogether.”

Yuvraj Singh: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Yuvraj Singh Lays Down The Law

What he said:

“The problem in India is if some one says a rooster has given an egg it will become news!! Whether it’s true or not it doesn’t matter."

Yuvraj Singh is livid that bookie Mazhar Majeed named Harbhajan Singh and him among the cricketers he had ‘access’ to.

Majeed and Pakistani fast bowler, Mohammad Asif, are on trial in a London court facing spot-fixing charges in a betting scam.

The News Of The World broke the sensational expose with footage of meetings between intrepid reporter Mazhar Mehmood and the crooked bookie.

Yuvraj tweeted:

"And who is Majid!! Absolute rubbish! Don’t no (sic), never met!”

The next tweet compared Majeed to a rooster practically terming his ‘lie’ a cock-and-bull story.

Harbhajan Singh was equally furious speaking to reporters in Nagpur:

I don’t know who this person is, I have never met him. We will definitely take some action against him. I don’t know whether it will be legal action or whatever.

But I will definitely bring it to the BCCI’s notice and I’m sure they’ll take the right kind of action against these kind people who are trying to spoil the game.

What he really meant:

“Sensationalism first, fact-finding later. That’s the name of the game.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“This rooster (Mazhar Majeed) laid some golden eggs for us (Harbhajan Singh and me).”

Graeme Swann: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Graeme Swann Provides Skipper Material

What he said:

“I lose my rag fairly easily, so the captains I’ve enjoyed playing under are the ones who don’t get flustered in the middle even when the pressure is on.”

Graeme Swann expounds on his reasons why Kevin Pietersen was not the right choice for skipper of the English cricket side.

Swann wrote—in the Sun:

There is no doubt Kevin Pietersen is a really fine batsman but he was never the right man to captain England.

Some people are better leaders of men and Kev, for all his talent, is not one of those natural leaders.

The English off-spinner further elaborated that he needed someone “who can calm me down”.

Swann said—of Pietersen:

“At one point in India, his leadership was reduced to screaming ‘F****** bowl f****** straight’ at everyone.”

Swann contrasts Andrew Strauss’ leadership saying “he is one of those guys who demands respect.”

The No. 1 Test bowler in the world commended Strauss:

He always says the right things and his word is never questioned.

If you were in the trenches, you’d pick him to be in charge and his captaincy is founded on leading from the front. He can be hard-nosed, too, if necessary.

What Graeme Swann really meant:

“You can rest assured asking me to ‘F****** bowl f****** straight’  got me to do anything but that.”

What Graeme Swann definitely didn’t:

“Just give us a ‘F****** skipper’—as long as it’s not me.”

Ravi Bopara: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

What he said:

"It’s a cut-throat business.”

Ravi Bopara believes that the competition for spots in the English cricket team is ruthless.

Bopara claimed:

"You’ve just got to keep playing well whenever things are in your favour, and make sure you nail it."

The English all-rounder of Indian origin has been in and out of the English squad failing to carve a niche for himself.

What he really meant:

“Tell me about it. I play county cricket—a bloody sacrifice—and yet Eoin Morgan is selected ahead of me despite waltzing off to the IPL.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“That’s why they term the willow—a blade.”

Anil Kumble: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Anil Kumble is no ‘Gandhian’

What he said:

"I don’t see any conflict of interest here. The positions with the KSCA and NCA are honorary jobs, and I have to look after myself. At this stage of my career, I have to do that. Otherwise, you’d have to become like Gandhi and give up everything."

Anil Kumble is the third Indian ex-cricketer—after Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri—targeted by current affairs magazine, Outlook India,in their latest issue for an alleged conflict of interest.

Kumble is  director and owner of  player management firm, Tenvic. He is additionally president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) , chairman of the National Cricket Academy and mentor to IPL franchise, Royal Challengers Bangalore. In the latter three capacities, the former leg-spinner could favorably influence the fortunes of his Tenvic wards.

What he really meant:

“I’m not well-versed in perception management. Besides, Gandhi was no cricketer. No real comparison there. N Srinivasan’s my guru.”

What he definitely didn’t:

 “Money, Money, Money. It’s a rich man’s world.”

Shoaib Akhtar: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Shoaib Akhtar ‘Rats Out’ An Australian Elephant

What he said:

“If one could make up one’s body with steroids, I would turn a rat into an elephant. But I’d advise Hayden to take some steroid that could make him look better. Good answer? Give him this answer.”

Pakistan cricket’s enfant terrible, Shoaib Akhtar, reacts to Australian Matthew Hayden’s allegation that he built up his body with steroids.

The speedster was in the spotlight following the release of his autobiography, “Controversially Yours”.

What he really meant:

“Now, if Hayden were following his former teammate Shane Warne, he’d discover that Estee Lauder facials and creams are more efficacious than drugs.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“You can call me ‘Red Bull’ Akhtar.”

Andrew Strauss: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Andrew Strauss Is Running With The Hares

What he said:

“We’re the hunted rather than the hunters.”

English Test skipper, Andrew Strauss, admits that his side are fair game for other Test playing nations since achieving the ICC Test No. 1 ranking. England whitewashed India 4-0 at home to dethrone the current ODI World Cup champions.

What he really meant:

“We were all chasing Chicken Tikka (Team India)  for the past 18 months; now, it’s Fish ‘N’ Chips (us).”

What he definitely didn’t:

“We can hunt with the foxes and run with the hares. We’re that good.”

Kapil Dev: What He Said, Really Meant and Definitely Did Not

Kapil Dev Is In A Funk

What he said:

“Spin bowling is an art and so is fast bowling. All artists are crazy and similarly whoever wrote the book for Shoaib is also crazy between his ears.”

Former Indian skipper, Kapil Dev, is “artistic” in his denouncement of Shoaib Akhtar’s remarks concerning Sachin Tendulkar in his autobiography, “Controversially Yours.”

The all-rounder was delivering the 3rd Dilip Sardesai Memorial Lecture at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai on September 29, 2011.

What he really meant:

“The co-author (Anshu Dogra) of Shoaib’s biography is simply nuts—by association.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“What a load of spin on a fast bowler’s life story.”

Shahid Afridi: What he said, really meant and definitely did not

Shahid Afridi Has The Shivers For Sachin Tendulkar

What he said:

“I saw Tendulkar’s legs shivering while facing his bowling.”

Shahid Afridi backs up Pakistani speedster Shoaib Akhtar’s claims in his autobiography, “Controversially Yours”, that Sachin Tendulkar was intimidated by Akhtar’s raw pace.

Afridi added that this was normal for most batsmen. Every batsman feared one bowler or another.

“There are times when every batsman feels the pressure, it happens against [Pakistani off-spinner] Saeed Ajmal even,” said Afridi.

What he really meant:

“My teeth were chattering so much standing so close to Tendulkar’s blade that everything else appeared to shimmer.”

What he definitely didn’t:

“More ice-cream for us in the lunch break. That’s the solution.”