Yesterday, after India’s win against Ireland, MS Dhoni overtook Sourav Ganguly’s record of 8 consecutive wins in World Cups.

However, for once, it was not Dhoni accomplishing yet another record that was the topic of discussion, but his antics behind the stumps that kept the audiences’ ears glued to the TV set.

MS Dhoni was at his wittiest best behind the stumps, as all the ‘wisdom’ he passed on to his teammates were caught on the mic.

In the 14^th over, when Jadeja was hit for a four, which was followed by a short-pitched delivery that was defended by Irish captain William Porterfield. Dhoni urged him to give the ball a bit of flight, in the process making him play on the front foot. That is what Jadeja did, which impressed Dhoni and he followed it up with, “Badhiya. Aage se maarne de”.

MS Dhoni advises Ravindra Jadeja

The 18^th over saw him advising Ajinkya Rahane, who was a bit slow to get to the ball, off one of Ed Joyce’s defence strokes. His advice to Rahane, “Halka peeche reh sakta hai Jinx, ye dheere nahi khelta” helped as Suresh Raina bowled Joyce the very next delivery.

Ajinkya Rahane took Dhoni’s suggestion seriously, too

In the 29^th over, he took a shot at Ambati Rayudu, who was the substitute fielder at the time. Rayudu waited for the ball hit by Porterfield to come to him to which Dhoni responded, “Rayudu, jaag ke zara. Iska pair dekh kaise hil raha hai. Uske hisaab se anticipate kar. Volleyball ki tarah khada hua hai beech mein”.

MS Dhoni criticised Ambati Rayudu’s fielding

Dhoni’s genius mind was again at play in the 33^rd over when he accurately predicted the next move. Niall O’Brien was batting with Suresh Raina as the bowler. Dhoni advised Mohammed Shami, “Ye waala peeche khada ho jaayega, udhar maarne ke liye”. Unfortunately, his advice fell on deaf ears and the next ball was hit for four in a similar fashion.

Dhoni’s suggestion to Shami fell on deaf ears

This is not the first time Dhoni has been heard saying one thing or another to his teammates.

In the past, Ravindra Jadeja, Sreesanth and others players have all been victims to his stump mic suggestions.

Here is a compilation video of some of those ‘tips’ that will leave you in splits.

We hope Dhoni continues this trend, as it somehow motivates his teammates and affects the end result of the game in India’s favour.

The post MS Dhoni Shows How To Put The Stump Mic To Good Use appeared first on Youngisthan.in.

Bangladesh stunned England yesterday defeating them by 15 runs. They not only defeated the European giants, but knocked them out of the tournament.

India vs Bangladesh seems likely in the quarter-finals of the tournament, but only if India beats Ireland in their bout today. If India manages to beat Ireland, they will face Bangladesh at Wellington on March 21.

India and Bangladesh are likely to face each other in quarter-finals

England’s defeat yesterday would have definitely brought a smile on India’s face, for if it were not for that result India would possibly face England in the quarter-finals.

Bangladesh beat England by 15 runs

Batting first, Bangladesh scored 275, thanks to a century score from Mahmadullah (103) and half-century by Mushfiqur Rahim (89). England’s two top scorers were Jos Butler and Ian Bell, who scored 65 and 63, respectively. Eventually, England was bundled out for 260 runs.

India will be wary about giant-killers Ireland. Their medium pace bowling, especially, is accurate and could cause the Indian batting line-up trouble.

India vs Ireland

Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar had a word of caution for India before their match. “Batsmen have to be careful in New Zealand. The ball will move in the air and off the pitch. India need to tighten up their batting. They should play every match like a final from now on”, Gavaskar said.

MS Dhoni, on the other hand, has a chance of overtaking Sourav Ganguly’s record of successive World Cup match wins (8 wins tied between the two). After beating the West Indies last Friday, Dhoni became India’s most successful overseas ODI captain (59 wins).

Bangladesh, too, are renowned for handing crushing defeats to their opponents at cricket’s most coveted tournament. It was in 2007 when Bangladesh beat India in the first match, which eventually played a crucial role in the latter being knocked out of the tournament early.

Bangladesh players celebrating their victory against England

This is the first time for Bangladesh entering the quarter-finals. They are likely to face the subcontinent giants India provided they finish fourth in the Group A table and India remain on top in Group B.

The celebration after victory against England was a sight to witness. Even the crowd went berserk, as instantaneous victory processions transpired in New Zealand as well as in the home country of Bangladesh.

Bangladesh fans celebrating their victory against England

The Tigers, at present, sit at the third sport in the points table. With their last match to be played against the in-form New Zealand, their chances of losing the match seem high. This would push them to the fourth spot setting up their clash against India in the quarter-finals.

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The 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup has reached an interesting stage. It is India vs Ireland tomorrow, another Group B match with a lot at stake for the minnow team.

India and Ireland compete on 10th March

Ireland is just one point shy of making it to the quarter-finals. A victory tomorrow for the Irish would mean Pakistan or West Indies facing elimination.

It would be fair to say that Ireland has not been a consistent team, but they have not let go of the habit of disappointing Full Members. They have already beaten West Indies and Zimbabwe in this edition.

India, on the other hand, qualified for the quarter-finals after defeating West Indies in their last match. The ‘Men in Blue’ now have four victories in four matches with two more to go.

India have already qualified for the quarter-finals

Ireland, too, have two tough matches – India and Pakistan. They have amassed six points from their four matches; one more point and they sail through into the quarter-finals. 

Head to Head

India and Ireland have faced once earlier (2011 ICC World Cup), where the team from the subcontinent convincingly beat their European rival.

India are 1-0 against Ireland

The Teams

Though Ireland’s team, more or less, looks the same since the two teams last met, Team India’s look is different. The young guns would be aware about their rival’s habit of defeating top teams and will want to give their best shot.

“I don’t think their guard will ever be down and they’re not going to look to lose any momentum from their point of view. Whatever they decide to do is out of our control”, said Ireland captain William Porterfield.

Ireland captain William Porterfield

The Location

One of the things that will be different for India on Tuesday is the pitch. They will be playing their first match in New Zealand in this World Cup edition with all their matches so far been played in Australia. Ireland though did play West Indies in their opening game at Saxton Oval, Nelson in New Zealand.

India will play their first match in New Zealand in this World Cup

Prediction

Ireland are clearly the underdogs in this match. Though India has a new team, they have displayed their prowess in all their four matches. India is likely to win this match.

However, if the game is washed out, both teams share one point each and Ireland enters the quarter-finals. This will mean Pakistan beating Ireland in their next meet or having a better NRR than West Indies to qualify.

If either Pakistan vs. Ireland or UAE vs. West Indies gets washed out, the team from the Caribbean will be knocked out of the tournament.

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