Expect KL Rahul to be top scorer and Mohammed Shami to be leading wicket-taker in T20 WC: Brett Lee
Dubai, Oct 21: Former Australia speedster Brett Lee feels India's KL Rahul and Mohammed Shami could emerge as the top run-getter and the leading wicket-taker in the T20 World Cup Super 12s.
Rahul has been in sublime form in the IPL where he was the third highest scorer and his Punjab Kings teammate Shami bowled some great spells in recent times including one in the World Cup practice game against England.
"I think India are probably the favourites with their top four or five batters and their bowling attack. I have KL Rahul down as the top run-scorer in the tournament and Mohammed Shami to be the leading wicket-taker, purely going on the last few months," Lee wrote in his column for ICC.
"So if they deliver and India have one of the leading run-scorers and wicket-takers, it's a good start."
Talking about Australia, Lee said that even though David Warner's confidence may have taken a beating after the harsh treatment meted out to him by Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, the dashing opener is a big stage player, who will be key to the team's success in World Cup.
SRH removed Warner from the captaincy in the first leg of the IPL this year and when the league resumed in the UAE he, was left out of the playing XI after ordinary outings in the first two matches.
Lee exhorted the Aussies to change the statistics since they are yet to win a T20 World title. Australia begin their campaign against old foes South Africa on Saturday.
"We have not had a lot of success in this format - it is time we changed it and we do have a side that can take it all the way. It obviously won't be easy, especially when you look at how strong teams like England, India and New Zealand are," Lee further wrote.
"But this Australian side is loaded with talent and for me, the key is David Warner. I would like to say he is saving the runs for the games that count after his IPL form! He was really harshly dealt with there and it may have knocked some confidence out of him but he thrives on the big stage. Everything should be rosy for him here, class is permanent."
The 44-year-old, who played 76 Tests and 221 ODIs, picked Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood to do well for Australia, apart from Warner.
"I will also put a lot of weight behind Mitchell Starc. There has been some debate in the last year about Starc being past his best but he would be in my team every single time, Josh Hazlewood has had a good IPL and Pat Cummins is a superstar. He is the David Beckham of the team, whatever he touches turns to gold!."
About Australia's tournament-opener against the Proteas, Lee said "South Africa pose a massive threat".
"Players come and go, greats come and go. But when you play against a nation like South Africa, the respect is always there. We know they have some match-winners and that is where the T20 game will suit them.
"They have guys who can take the game away within four or five overs and it will be a real test.
"I think South Africa are closer to the Australian culture than any other nation, in terms of sport. New Zealand are obviously closer geographically but South Africans are abrasive on the sports field. They are always in your face and I love that, it's great. It is also why they have been so successful in all formats. I know they will give Australia a red-hot crack."
Lee also believed that teams from the Indian sub-continent should excel in the UAE conditions.
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FIDE Women's World Cup final: Humpy draws with Divya in first game
Batumi (Georgia), Jul 26 (PTI): Young Indian International Master Divya Deshmukh held her nerves to hold stalwart Koneru Humpy to a draw in game 1 of the FIDE Women's World Cup final, with both players having their share of opportunities to take the lead here on Saturday.
The draw with black means Humpy, the two-time World Rapid champion, holds a slight edge going in the second and final game under the classical chess rules in the two-game mini-match, and should the deadlock continue, games of shorter duration will be played to determine the winner.
Humpy employed the Queen's gambit accepted as black and it turned out to be a pretty fascinating game right out of the opening as Divya, 19, came up with a piece sacrifice early to deny the black king the right to castle.
Humpy was the first to err and, according to computers, Divya had things under control on the 14th move. However in her bid to recover the extra material, the Nagpur girl, who has secured a place in the Candidates tournament with her sterling performance here, missed a promising continuation.
What followed the exchange of all minor pieces and the ensuing queen and rook endgame gave enough counter play to both players. The game was eventually drawn after Humpy sacrificed her rook to force perpetual checks.
"The game saw an extremely sharp battle with the game ending in a draw in 41 moves. On move 7, Divya made her aggressive intentions clear by offering another pawn,
which looked like home preparation. Humpy made a practical decision of refraining from taking the pawn and a balanced position was reached by move 10 by white," said Grandmaster Pravin Thipsay, an Arjuna awardee and the first Indian to get a chess Grandmaster norm.
"However, instead of developing the undeveloped Knight, Humpy retreated the centralised Knight on move 10, giving huge positional advantage to Divya. Divya could have gained huge positional advantage on the 12th move by moving a rook. However, she chose to play for King side attack by sacrificing a piece instead.
"Humpy, too, erred at this stage and instead of moving the King to Queen side, moved it to the King side. Divya, on move 14, could have obtained a crushing attack by threatening a mate by developing her Queen. Instead she chose to exchange a pair of Bishops first, which enabled Humpy to defend her King by returning the piece," said Thipsay.
"Players thus reached a balanced Queen and two Rooks ending. Divya continued to play ambitiously and tried to attack Humpy’s King but the latter defended accurately and the game was drawn in 41 moves by perpetual check," he added.
In the play-off for the third place, Chinese players Zhongyi Tan, the former women's world champion and top seed Lei Tingjie also decided to split points out of a Queen’s gambit declined game.
The opening raised visions of a close contest between the two but having been knocked out of title race in the previous round, none of them wanted to take any huge risk. It was still a middle game when the players shook hands.
With the top two positions sealed for the Indians, the berth to the next Candidates is also assigned, while the player finishing third will also get an entry to the premier event scheduled for 2026.
Results: Divya Deshmukh (Ind) drew with Koneru Humpy (Ind); Zhongyi Tan (Chn) drew with Tingjie Lei (Chn).
