Blaming Dhoni for the defeat is pointless!

The writing was on the wall for many many weeks. The India T-20 World Cup squad was basically a good team, capable of winning any cricket tournament. Unfortunately, it is also the most over-worked team in the world. Mahindra Singh Dhoni, the captain himself could do with some much needed rest. It is absolutely insane the way some of our best players have been over-exposed. Ishant Sharma has been used like a work-horse for two years without a break. BCCI could break him apart just like they did with Irfan Pathan. Besides, a young captain like Dhoni needs a veteran in the slips for a second opinion. Sachin Tendulkar or even Rahul Dravid could give the required input, standing beside a wicket-keeper captain in times of crisis. Mahi (Mahindra Singh Dhoni) looked confused when Zaheer Khan failed to use the bouncy Lords pitch to his advantage. R P Singh pressed his attack with reasonable line and length but Ishant Sharma lost the momentum. Ishant has been out of his league for a long time, he needs to recharge his batteries. He gave 10 extra runs just too many. Yuvraj Singh as a bowler was a very bad idea at that time, Yusuf Pathan could have been a better alternative. But this is all 20-20 hindsight, the important point is that we win some and we lose some. What matters is that we play good cricket for the long run.

‘Kings XI Punjab’, Cricket Team Mohali, Punjab

Preity Zinta, co-owner, ‘Kings XI Punjab’, officially launched the Team Mohali on March 31, 2008 at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali, Punjab. ‘Kings XI Punjab’ is the youngest cricket team of the Indian Premier League, tournament. The team is led by Yuvraj Singh and coached by Tom Moody, the former Australian all-rounder. ‘Kings XI Punjab’ is part of the eight competing teams promoted by the Indian Premier League.

The owners of the franchise are Preity Zinta (Bollywood actress), Ness Wadia (Bombay Dyeing), Karan Paul (Apeejay Surendera Group) and Mohit Burman (Dabur). The owners believe in nurturing talent at the grassroots level and are committed to developing the game of cricket especially in the Punjab region.

Neil Maxwell, an Australian all-rounder from New South Wales and Victoria, has been named the Chief Executive Officer of the ‘Team Mohali’. Neil is 40 and also represent, Adam Gilchrist, Brett Lee and Michael Hussey. Team Mohali has been named ‘Kings XI Punjab’ and has signed-up with leading national and international cricketers like Yuvraj Singh, Irfan Pathan, S Sreesanth, Piyush Chawla, VRV Singh, Romesh Powar, Brett Lee, James Hopes, Luke Pomersvach, Kyle Mills, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardane and many more up-coming local cricketers.