Sreesanth in no hurry to play Test cricket

Ask S. Sreesanth about the forthcoming Test series between India and England, and the rookie medium-pacer will immediately say: ‘‘...

Ask S. Sreesanth about the forthcoming Test series between India and England, and the rookie medium-pacer will immediately say: ‘‘I’m not worried whether I’ll get to play in it or not.’’ The Kerala bowler, after an impressive stint in the one-dayers against Pakistan, is intent on staying relaxed and waiting for his chances to arrive.

‘‘I am not thinking of making it to the Test team at the moment. Things will come if I work hard,’’ he says. Sreesanth, for now, wants to concentrate on bowling his best and improving with every game. ‘‘That is what is expected of me.’’

During the recently-concluded one-day series against Pakistan, the 22-year-old came in for a lot of praise for his disciplined approach with the new ball. ‘‘It was a great opportunity and I got a lot of help from my seniors,’’ he says.

Story continues below this ad

The youngster says he is no hurry to play Tests. He insists that if he plays well, he will get his chances soon. In the recent one-dayers, captain Rahul Dravid used Sreesanth as his new ball bowler alongside Irfan Pathan in all matches except the last one. For the bowlers, though, opening the attack or coming as first change makes little difference: ‘‘It doesn’t matter whether I open the attack or not.’’

Sreesanth has already played in Nagpur against Sri Lanka and will be happy to receive another chance there, this time against England.

Sourav deserves Test berth: Yuvraj

New Delhi: Strongly backing his former skipper Sourav Ganguly, Yuvraj Singh today said he “deserved” a place in the team in his own right and not just as a replacement.

Yuvraj, who is in direct competition with Ganguly for a similar slot in Tests, said he was not concerned too much about his own place in the side and felt the Kolkata player should be picked for the first Test against England.

Story continues below this ad

“Sourav is a great leader. He deserves a place in the team. I do not bother much about my position. I’ll play whenever my chance comes,” said Yuvraj, who has been ruled out of the first Test against England owing to a hamstring injury.

“He (Ganguly) has played 48 Test matches as a captain and of course I am sure he’ll be out there. He will be there in the team for the first Test,” he told a news channel today.

The Punjab player also praised Ganguly’s leadership qualities. “He is a great leader and mentally very strong. He’s always supported me and given me a lot of confidence. I respect him.”

Yuvraj, who emerged as the hero of India’s recentPakistan tour, agreed that he had evolved over time as a cricketer. “It is not just about maturity. If I have a good series, people say that I have become mature. But slowly by playing games you learn more. It’s a part of evolution as a cricketer.

Story continues below this ad

“But I still don’t mind being the bad guy of the class. I’ve been always been like that,” he said. (PTI)

Bihar SIR: Voter list shrinks by 6% after 3-month revision, nearly 50 lakh names dropped

Political Pulse37 min ago

The Election Commission has removed 50 lakh names from Bihar's voter list, resulting in a 6% decrease in the total number of electors. The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process, which was criticized for resembling a citizenship check, resulted in 3.5 lakh deletions and 21 lakh additions.

View all shorts

Live Blog

PHOTOS