Malinga thanks IPL.

Lasith Malinga, the Sri Lanka fast bowler, has said that he was not looked after by his country's board after his career-threatening knee injury and it was the IPL that helped him get his career back on track. Malinga, who announced his retirement from Test cricket last week, injured his knee in early 2008, and didn't play for Sri Lanka again till August 2009. He played a few List A games in Sri Lanka in early 2009, but it was his performance in the 2009 IPL, during which he took 18 wickets for Mumbai Indians, that brought him back into the limelight.

"Because of the IPL I got a chance to come back to the national team," he said at a media conference in Colombo. "After the injury nobody looked after me and I was not offered a contract. The 2008 interim committee did not care for my well-being. But thanks to the IPL I didn't lose anything but I improved my cricket a lot. I'm saddened the way I was treated but not disappointed."

Malinga had announced his Test retirement after Sri Lanka Cricket questioned his decision to declare himself unfit for their upcoming Test series in England, while continuing to play in the IPL. On Tuesday, Malinga reiterated his stand that he was fit enough to play only the shorter formats of the game, and explained the gravity of the injury he sustained three years ago.

"I'm not injured but I'm not physically fit to play Test cricket after my injury. If I play in a Test match it would take a longer period for me to recover. The time taken to recover after playing Twenty20 and 50-over cricket is much less.

"My doctors in Australia had said that mine was a rare type of injury and that I would not be able to play again. But thanks to president Mahinda Rajapaksa's private physician Dr Eliyantha White who treated me, I was able to play for the national team again."

In response to criticism that he had chosen the IPL for its riches, Malinga said his retirement from Tests had nothing to do with money. "The Test retirement was never about money. I can't be a commentator, coach or umpire. But I can bowl well and get wickets. It's unfair to say money was the root cause of my decision."

This is a contest between a team that would like to believe it has turned a corner and another that seemed to have turned a corner, before it was rather rudely pulled back. They are also traditionally strong IPL sides: Delhi Daredevils and Deccan Chargers have both made two semi-finals each, and Deccan have won once. The auction has left them unsettled though. Delhi have lost many players, including the likes of Gautam Gambhir, Daniel Vettori and Dirk Nannes. Deccan have lost their captain and father figure, Adam Gilchrist, and big players like Andrew Symonds and Rohit Sharma. The replacements are there, and they come with reputations, but are yet to settle in and compensate for the losses.
Deccan shrugged off a slow start by beating Royal Challengers Bangalore, but Gilchrist and his Kings XI Punjab ran all over them in the fourth game to leave them with just one win from four matches. Delhi had a similar start to their campaign before they finally won in their third attempt, chasing down 188 against Pune Warriors in Mumbai.

James Hopes, the Australia allrounder, has said he will stay on with Delhi Daredevils till the end of the IPL and will not be going to Australia to be with his father, who has been diagnosed with bowel cancer. Hopes, who cost Delhi $350,000 in the auction, said he made the decision because his father had told him to continue playing.

Throw him out of squad...now

1)DROP CATCH
2) 2 MISSED FIELDS 3)2 COSECATIVE FULLTOSSES TO LEFT HANDED BATSMAN JADEJA......WHAT THE F*** IS THIS........THROW HIM OUT OF THE TEAM NOW SACHIN........TOTAL INEXPERIENCE BOWLING BY MURTYA........

RAHUL GAWADE

RAHUL's Fun Site

RAHUL GAWADE

RAHUL GAWADE

Mumbai Indians Should make changes in there team.

Mumbai Indians Should play Moises Henriques . He is a partner of Kieron Pollard. Sachin Should open with Aden Blizzard. He is any time better opener than D. Jecobs. Otherwise rest of the team is perfect.

VALTHATY

The IPL's northernmost franchise found a hero with roots in the south, as Paul Valthaty stunned Chennai Super Kings to clinch a maiden win for Kings XI Punjab this season after a disappointing performance in their opening game. Valthaty was a surprise promotion to the opening slot, instead of the regular Shaun Marsh, and he answered the call with a blistering start, keeping his team on par with the required-rate in the middle overs and surging again at the death to complete victory after achieving a spectacular century.

At 27, with just one List A game and 13 Twenty20 matches, Valthaty had been on the sidelines of the Mumbai team on India's domestic circuit. His previous highest in the IPL was 6, but whatever he must have done at the practice sessions ahead of this game sparked a potentially career-changing turn of events. Punjab had been deflated at the end of the Chennai innings, after they had squandered the perfect start of two wickets off the first two balls to concede 188. The sight of an unfamiliar face walking out with Adam Gilchrist raised eyebrows, but it didn't take too long for Valthaty to justify his promotion.

Kochi Kerala Tuskers 1 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 2 Parthiv Patel (wk), 3 VVS Laxman, 4 Brendon McCullum, 5 Brad Hodge, 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Raiphi Gomez, 8 Muttiah Muralitharan, 9 R Vinay Kumar, 10 RP Singh, 11 Sreesanth.

Pune Warriors 1 Graeme Smith, 2 Jesse Ryder, 3 Yuvraj Singh (capt), 4 Robin Uthappa (wk), 5 Mithun Manhas, 6 Mohnish Mishra, 7 Rahul Sharma, 8 Murali Kartik, 9 Shrikant Wagh, 10 Wayne Parnell, 11 Alfonso Thomas.

In the battle between the new teams, Mahela Jayawardene chose to bat at the DY Patil Stadium. Both Kochi Kerala Tuskers and Pune Warriors decided to retain the same XI they fielded in their opening games.

There were plenty of runs in the day's first match in Mohali, and there could be loads more in store as both teams feature powerful batting line-ups, and look a little light in the bowling department.

Kochi are still looking for their first win, after going down to Royal Challengers Bangalore in a close encounter on Saturday. Pune, on the other hand, will be buoyant after a big win over Kings XI Punjab in their opening match.