Dravid, Ponting, Taylor inducted into ICC Hall of Fame
Dubai, July 2 : Former captains Rahul Dravid of India, Ricky Ponting of Australia and retired England women wicketkeeper-batter Claire Taylor were inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame during a glittering ceremony in Dublin.
Dravid became only the fifth player from India to be named in the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame while Ponting is the 25th from Australia to do so. Taylor is the seventh woman overall and the third woman player from England to be named in the list.
Former ICC Cricket Hall of Famers and members of the media selected the three. "The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame is our way of honouring the greats of our game," ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said on Sunday.
"Only the very best players in the world are recognised for their contribution to cricket in this way and I would like to congratulate Rahul, Ricky and Claire who are wonderful additions to the list of cricketing luminaries in the Hall of Fame," he added.
On being inducted, Dravid expressed plaeasure and said: "It is a matter of great honour to be named by the ICC in the Cricket Hall of Fame.
"To find your name in a list of all-time greats across generations is something one only dreams of while setting out on a cricket career and the kind of recognition that would delight any player," Dravid added.
"I'm thankful to my near and dear ones as well as players I have played with and against, coaches and officials who have backed me over the years and helped me develop as a cricketer," the 45-year-old said.
"I would also like to thank the KSCA and the BCCI for all the support over the years and the ICC for recognizing my achievements and picking me in this group of Hall of Fame inductees."
Both Dravid and Ponting have scored more than 10,000 runs in Tests and ODIs.
Dravid aggregated 13,288 runs in 164 Tests with 36 centuries and 10,889 runs in 344 ODIs with 12 centuries and was in 2004 named as the ICC Cricketer of the Year as well as the ICC Test Player of the Year.
Dravid, who played a solitary Twenty20 International, was also a brilliant slip fielder and finished his Test career in 2012 with 210 catches, which is a world record.
Ponting too ended his career in 2012, amassing 13,378 runs in 168 Tests with 41 centuries and 13,704 runs in 325 ODIs with 30 centuries.
Named as the ICC Cricketer of the Year in 2006 and 2007 and as the ICC Test Player of the Year in 2006, Ponting reached four ICC Cricket World Cup finals, winning in 1999, 2003 and 2007.
He captained Australia in a record 26 successive unbeaten ICC Cricket World Cup matches from 2003 to 2011 and led the team to victory in the ICC Champions Trophy in 2006 and 2009. Ponting also featured in 17 Twenty20 Internationals.
Taylor, who scored 103 runs in 15 Tests, 4,101 runs in 126 ODIs and 615 runs in 21 T20Is, was named the ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year in 2009.
She was named the player of the tournament in the ICC Women's World Cup 2009 and in the ICC Women's World Twenty20 2009.
She ended her career with an average of more than 40 in both Tests and ODIs. In Tests, she finished with 18 catches, In ODIs, she had 41 catches and five stumpings and in T20Is she had 12 catches and two stumpings.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
4th T20I: Brilliant Samson, magnificent Tilak score tons, India post mammoth 283/1 against SA
Johannesburg, Nov 15: Sanju Samson's precision met its match in Tilak Varma's muscular elegance as India toyed with South African bowling attack to post an imposing 283 for 1 in the fourth and final T20 International here on Friday.
This is by far India's highest T20I total overseas and highest by any country on South African soil.
Among the plethora of records that tumbled, the most special one will be two Indian batters scoring centuries in same T20I innings. Samson and Varma also posted the highest partnership for India in T20 Internationals --- 210 off just 93 balls for the second wicket.
Samson (109 not out off 56 balls), who smashed a superb century in the first game, once again pummelled the Proteas in company of Varma (120 not out off 47 balls) who has really come into his own with new found confidence and vigour at number three.
Samson now has three T20I tons in the last five knocks which also included two ducks while Varma has scored back-to-back T20I tons.
Samson completed his ton in 51 balls while Varma's (41 balls) took 10 balls less.
Abhishek Sharma (36 off 18 balls) should also get his share of credit for upping the ante in the Powerplay with four huge sixes.
On a good batting track with true bounce on offer, Indian batters hit a record 23 sixes as it was possible to hit through the line by just clearing one's front leg. Samson's nine maximums was one less than Varma's 10.
It only helped India that the opposition's best fast bowler Gerald Coetzee seemed to be carrying a niggle. The two medium pacers Andile Simelane (0/47 in 3 overs) and Lutho Sipamla (1/58 in 4 overs) seemed like lambs for slaughter. The Indians hit 10 sixes from Simelane and Sipamla.
By the time Coetzee was brought by skipper Aiden Markram for his second spell, the damage was done. Such was the nervousness of South African bowlers that they bowled 17 wides in trying to check the momentum.
They didn't vary the pace and pitched it on length as Samson and Varma were severe, either hitting them inside out over extra cover or at times straight down the ground.
Even Keshav Maharaj and Tristan Stubbs were not left unpunished as there was everything on the platter -- cuts, pulls, slog sweeps, reverse sweeps. There wasn't a single corner of the ground that didn't feel the power of strokes from the two Indians.
In fact one of Samson's shots hit a lady spectator's cheek. The TV cameras caught her sobbing in considerable pain.
Samson was more muscle as he would slightly shuffle towards leg-stump and loft the length balls while the silken Varma would make a mockery of spinners with uppish sweep shots, stand and deliver down the ground hits.
They slowed down a touch nearing their milestones but by then they had done enough to deflate the Proteas.
