All posts by h716a5.icu

The BCCI is likely to propose a special committee, to be led by interim president Jagmohan Dalmiya, to review the daily affairs of the IPL

Nagraj Gollapudi27-Jul-2013With no one currently heading the IPL, an influential section of the BCCI is likely to propose a special committee, to be led by interim president Jagmohan Dalmiya, to look into and review the daily affairs of the league. After Rajiv Shukla resigned as chairman of the IPL, no replacement was appointed as the BCCI was busy sorting out the mess created by the alleged corruption scandals. The proposal is likely to come up for discussion at the BCCI working committee meeting to be held in Kolkata on Sunday.Although the IPL governing council, a BCCI sub-committee, still remains the body to look after the league, some board members feel there is room to accommodate a separate committee that could review the IPL. It is understood that Dalmiya has consulted Arun Jaitley, one of the the BCCI vice-presidents, on the matter and has got the nod. It is also learned that Dalmiya has spoken to a few former Indian cricketers, seeking their opinion about how best to run the IPL.Immediately after he took over as the interim BCCI president, Dalmiya had initiated “operation clean up” for the IPL, wherein he announced proposals to enforce a “stricter code of conduct” for players and match officials, as well as putting an end to the “sleaze” element in the form of entertainment and after-hours parties.Dalmiya took charge on June 2 after N Srinivasan “temporarily” stepped aside pending inquiry into allegations of corruption and spot-fixing during the sixth season of the IPL. Dalmiya recently attended the ICC annual conference as the Indian representative, even though Srinivasan participated in influential meetings such finance and commercial affairs via video conference.It is understood that Srinivasan will not attend Sunday’s meeting, which is also likely to discuss the tour itineraries for India’s tour of South Africa, and their scheduled visit to New Zealand early next year.It is also learned that the working committee will not discuss the findings of the two probe panels investigating the corruption scandals of IPL 2013. Ravi Sawani, the BCCI’s anti-corruption head, has not yet concluded his probe into the alleged spot-fixing by three Rajasthan Royals players. Although Sawani has finished speaking to Sreesanth and Ankeet Chavan, he has yet to meet Ajit Chandila, who is still in judicial custody.The inquiry commission appointed by the BCCI, made up of two retired judges, has not yet finished its work. The commission was appointed to investigate charges against Gurunath Meiyappan and Raj Kundra, respectively part of Chennai Super Kings and Royals, who according to Mumbai and Delhi Police, had admitted to betting during IPL matches.

Warwickshire could benefit from a change in the procedure by which the ECB allocates major matches.

George Dobell02-Jun-2013Warwickshire could benefit from a change in the procedure by which the ECB allocates major matches.The county missed out when the lucrative Ashes Tests for 2013 and India Tests for 2014 were allocated but retain hope of winning the battle to host at least one of the games recently resubmitted for tender by the ECB.Durham were originally awarded the rights to host a T20 against India in 2014 and an ODI against Australia in 2015 but handed them back to the ECB, questioning how lucrative the fixtures would be, coming so close to their other international matches – ODIs against Sri Lanka in 2014 and New Zealand in 2015.That new tendering process has now ended and the ECB is expected to make a quick decision over the reallocation.The ECB no longer allocates matches to the highest bidder but instead offers them to counties at a fixed price while taking account of a raft of other criteria. On this occasion, the ECB will give extra weighting to a ground’s previous record of ticket sales and its capacity. It will also take into account the number of international games in a 50-mile vicinity and the anticipated ticket price of those games.While several of the top English grounds have bid for the two games, Edgbaston’s large capacity – only Lord’s can accommodate more spectators – and the absence of an India Test in 2014 may prove crucial. The Oval is also understood to have made a persuasive case for one or both of the games, with Bristol having also submitted a bid.Warwickshire announced losses of over £2m for 2012 as a result of poor weather and deprecation costs on their redeveloped stadium.

Gautam Gambhir believed it was Eoin Morgan’s busy innings that set up the team’s 48-run win against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Eden Gardens

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Apr-2013Gautam Gambhir may have been declared Man of the Match, but the Kolkata Knight Riders captain believed it was Eoin Morgan’s busy innings that set up the team’s 48-run win against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Eden Gardens.”We always believed he [Morgan] is a class act,” Gambhir said. “We thought of giving him some more time in the middle and thus pushed him up the order. He responded magnificently.”Morgan has scored 114 runs from four matches, which is only behind Gambhir’s tally for Knight Riders this year. On Sunday, he was pushed up the order to No. 4 and he joined Jacques Kallis ahead of the out of form Yusuf Pathan after the fall of Gambhir’s wicket with the score on 102 for 2.”We had this thing in our mind to go on with the left hand-right hand combination which has worked for us and looked to do the same in this game as well,” Morgan told . “Jacques is very calm at the crease and I plan to keep it that way as well, which is why we had a lot of sensible talks in the middle. We were quite smart in what we did and it managed to come off which was quite nice.”The two batsmen added 67 runs off 30 balls, with Morgan taking 22 runs off the 18th over bowled by Sunrisers’ allrounder Thisara Perera.”It was one of those occasions were the bowler sort of missed his lengths and I got my way,” he said. “It can happen especially here with a short boundary and with the ball coming on to the bat too well. I was glad I could manage to clear the ropes on a few occasions.”This year, Morgan has found a regular spot in the team’s starting XI after not getting a game in IPL 2012. “Last year, trying to get into a winning side was very difficult,” he said. “I hope I get to play as many games as possible for KKR this year.”Tom Moody, the Sunrisers’ coach, laid the blame on his team for allowing Knight Riders to post a big tota. He said Knight Riders were a good side, but not unbeatable.”Our defensive skills were never as sharp as they can be,” Moody said. “It was not a 180 runs wicket but we allowed the hosts to put an imposing total.”Dhawan’s absence is a big setback for us. Without him, our batting is a concern. But I think our overseas batsman need to perform better than they are doing at the moment. We haven’t batted as well as we can do.”

Member of parliament Thilanga Sumathipala has announced his candidacy for the position of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) president for next month’s election, while three others will run for other board positions

Andrew Fidel Fernando27-Feb-2013Member of parliament Thilanga Sumathipala has announced his candidacy for the position of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) president for next month’s election, while three others will run for other board positions as part of his group. Sumathipala has been SLC president three times from 1997 to 2004, and also served as president of the Asian Cricket Council from 2000 to 2001. He also served as the director of the ICC from 1998 to 2000.He currently represents Colombo as an MP for the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance, of which both the sports minister and chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya are members, and is believed to have the support of fellow MP Namal Rajapaksa, who is the son of Sri Lanka’s president, Mahinda Rajapaksa. Sumathipala is also the joint managing director of a business conglomerate that owns a betting business.Sumathipala was also a candidate for the SLC president’s position last year, but his group withdrew from the race, allowing Upali Dharmadasa’s group to win the election uncontested, amid claims of political interference.Mohan de Silva, who contested one of the vice-president roles alongside Sumathipala last year, will do so again, while Shammi Silva, who is also part of Sumathipala’s group, will contest the other vice-president position. The two other members of Sumathipala’s group are Eastman Narangoda, who will run for treasurer, and Erwin Jayawardene, who will run for assistant treasurer.”After discussing it with some SLC members, we handed over our names today as a team with the experience, talent and ability to improve and develop cricket in Sri Lanka,” Sumathipala said on Wednesday.The Sumathi Group, of which Sumathipala is joint managing director, owns Sporting Star – a betting business that primarily deals in horse racing bets. He has distanced himself from Sporting Star in recent times, claiming the business was run largely by his family, with minimal involvement from himself. Betting on cricket is illegal in Sri Lanka.Sumathipala denied that either his political office or business interests constituted a conflict of interest should he become SLC president, and was adamant there were no laws, in Sri Lanka or the ICC, that prevented him from contesting the position. The SLC president occupies a seat on the ICC’s board of directors, and the ICC Code of Ethics states in section 7.2 (b) that “no director shall have any business association, or enter into any business arrangement (whether formal or informal) with any person or company who has interests in gambling.””I have been involved with Sri Lanka cricket since 1995 and have been serving cricket for a long time now,” Sumathipala said. “I am very well respected at the ICC. I was involved when the ICC was compiling many of these rules, and have also been part of the board of directors. So, given all that, I have a good knowledge of what the ICC says about politics.”The ICC had given boards two years to become free from government and political interference in 2011, in accordance with the Woolf Report’s recommendations , but has since said it would review that stance because some boards depended on government patronage. In 2011, the ICC had indicated that it would have to consider taking steps against boards that had not moved to become detached from political interference by June 2012, but are yet to impose any formal sanctions on members who have failed to do so.”I think what I have done in cricket administration in the past is appreciated by the ICC, and they trust me. There are many politicians in the world who have improved sports, not just cricket. I don’t think they’ll see this involvement in SLC as a political one, because I’ve been in cricket administration for 18 years.”Sumathipala’s group does not have a candidate contesting the position of secretary, but he hoped current secretary Nishantha Ranatunga would continue in that post, and even invited Ranatunga to join his team. Ranatunga has been linked to the government through the Carlton Sports Network (CSN) channel, of which he is also CEO. CSN is owned by the Sri Lankan president’s sons, and is the current local broadcast rights holder for SLC.Sumathipala was SLC’s president from 1997 to 1998, 2000 to 2001 and 2003 to 2004 and his board was forced to stand down in the wake of an investigation into alleged financial irregularities in 2001. In 2004, he had to pull out of the elections as he was in jail at the time for allegedly aiding and abetting falsification of travel documents for a suspected mafia assassin , who was said to have received travel expenses from SLC to go to the 1999 World Cup. Sumathipala was convicted of the crime and sentenced to two years hard labour in 2007, but was acquitted of all charges on appeal.Current SLC president Upali Dharmadasa’s brother, Jayantha Dharmadasa, has also expressed interest in contesting the presidency, while former captain Arjuna Ranatunga has also suggested he may run. Candidates must submit their nominations to the sports ministry by Thursday, February 28, and the elections will take place late in March, with the winners announced at the annual general meeting on March 30.

Shemaine Campbelle’s rear guard 105 could not save her team as the Sri Lankan women chased their target inside 46 overs

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Feb-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDespite West Indies’ Shemaine Campbelle scoring 105 after an early collapse, Sri Lanka leveled the three-match series at 1-1, chasing down West Indies’ total of 180 in Dambulla. West Indies elected to bat, but had a horror start as Udeshika Prabodhani took three quick wickets to help reduce West Indies to 7 for 4 and then 23 for 5.From there Deandra Dottin and Shemaine Campbelle put together a 45-run stand to try and steady the ship, before Dottin was dismissed. A further 110 runs were added with Anisa Mohammed before Campbelle was finally out for 105. West Indies finished on 180, with Prabodhani and Sripali Weerakkody claiming three wickets each.Sri Lanka’s chase started in omnious fashion, as opener Chamari Polgampola was dismissed with no runs as yet scored. Chamari Atapattu and Deepika Rasangika then put on 40 runs, before two wickets fell in the same over to leave Sri Lanka at a precarious 40 for 3. A 60-run partnership between Shashikala Siriwardene and Dilani Manodara for the fifth wicket though helped Sri Lanka regain control of the match, and they completed the chase inside of 46 overs.

The UAE heat should prepare Australia well for the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, Australia’s acting coach Steve Rixon has said

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Aug-2012The UAE heat should prepare Australia well for the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, Australia’s acting coach Steve Rixon has said. Even though the ODIs on the trip start at 6pm local time, meaning they will finish past midnight, there were still concerns, expressed by the Australian Cricketers’ Association, about the playing conditions.”We knew what we were going to get and when someone says it’s 40 degrees then you know it’s going to be hot, ” Rixon said upon the team’s arrival in the UAE, where Australia play a total of four ODIs and three T20s. “Most of the players have been in places with access to that kind of weather and have acclimatised accordingly so now it’s not as big a deal (as it might have been in the past).”Our hydration people have been working on this for close to six months, putting checks and patterns in motion (to help the players cope). If we sit here and talk about the weather all day (then) we’re not getting the job done.”It’s a bonus for us to be playing here as it’s important for us to be getting miles in the legs [ahead of the World Twenty20] and this is the best place to be doing it. Whatever happens here will be a very big stepping stone to us being successful in Sri Lanka. If we get through this, Sri Lanka will seem like a holiday resort.”The ODIs are expected to go on until 1.45am, something new for the teams to adapt to. “It’s one of the few times in my 30-odd years involved in international cricket where we will be looking to keep players up at night to make sure they get their [sleeping] patterns right,” Rixon said.”We won’t see the sun and we’re in night cricket mode, albeit it will still be warm and the idea is to get into some sort of pattern so that when the first match comes around the players have adjusted their body clocks so that it works for them. Breakfast will probably be between 11 and 1 every day.”Australia’s captain Michael Clarke tweeted on arrival: “Just landed in Dubai. 5.30am and it’s 37 degrees Celsius … Think we are in for a hot couple of weeks.”Australia’s tour begins with an ODI against Afghanistan on August 25. They then play Pakistan in three ODIs and three T20s.

Preview of the third ODI between West Indies and New Zealand in Basseterre

The Preview by Abhishek Purohit10-Jul-2012Match factsWednesday, July 11
Start time 0930 (1330 GMT)
New Zealand have managed to do this just twice in four games, at the cost of 326 runs•AFPBig PictureMuch has been said about New Zealand’s preparation for their tour of the West Indies not being ideal. What could have gone wrong for them, has. They were already missing a key player or two; they went ahead and had injuries galore. They were expected to be hammered. They have been so far.But New Zealand have always fought their way through constraints of all kinds throughout their cricketing history. A wafer-thin player base, lack of funds, not many prodigious talents, you name it. ‘Punching above their weight’ has become second nature to them. Which is why it was even more disappointing to see them not show much fight so far on this tour.Can they show some of that fight tomorrow? Can they play like the New Zealand we have come to know? It takes only one delivery to get even Chris Gayle out. Who knows how the West Indies middle order, full of hard-hitting allrounders, will tackle that situation, something they haven’t faced in the past four games?You would think that is the only factor West Indies have to manage. They seem to have pretty much everything else under control, and have their first ODI series win against top Test-level opposition in more than four years within sight.Form guide West Indies WWLLL (completed games, most recent first)
New Zealand LLLLLWatch out for…Nathan McCullum has said the New Zealand bowlers have made some plans for Chris Gayle that they “are pretty sure are going to work”. That looks like asking a lot of an attack that has managed to take just six wickets in two games. But that could also be New Zealand’s only chance. A batting line-up that relies on an international rookie like BJ Watling to be its top-scorer for two games running does not inspire any confidence at all.The West Indies batting, barring Gayle, hasn’t been tested all that much. While there have been creditable supporting acts from Marlon Samuels and Dwayne Smith, it has been Gayle who has been the driving force of the line-up. He now has five scores of fifty-plus from six innings since making his international comeback. He can’t go on like this. The early dismissal will happen, maybe tomorrow, and it will be interesting to watch the approach of the other batsmen then.Team newsAgain, barring injuries, there seems to be no reason why West Indies would want to change a winning XI. Unless they want to replace the struggling Lendl Simmons and bring Johnson Charles in at the top. Darren Sammy did mention after the second ODI that he could be the one to be rested later in the series, but it probably will not be for a potential series-decider.West Indies: (possible) 1 Lendl Simmons/Johnson Charles, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Dwayne Smith, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Dwayne Bravo, 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Andre Russell, 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 10 Ravi Rampaul, 11 Sunil NarineBrendon McCullum was expected to join the squad less than 24 hours before the start of Wednesday’s game, and it will be asking too much to expect him to play. “We’ll see how he feels,” the coach John Wright told New Zealand reporters earlier. “It’s a long journey [from New Zealand], that may be a little bit tight.” New Zealand have the option of handing an ODI debut to left-arm fast bowler Trent Boult to beef up the attack, something Wright hinted they could go in for. Unfortunately, there are no options left to beef up the batting.New Zealand: (possible) 1 Rob Nicol, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Daniel Flynn, 4 Kane Williamson (capt), 5 Dean Brownlie/Tom Latham, 6 BJ Watling (wk), 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Tim Southee, 9 & 10 Nathan McCullum/Tarun Nethula/Trent Boult, 11 Kyle MillsStats and trivia Lendl Simmons averages 9.00 this year from four ODIs and two Twenty20s Kyle Mills needs two more wickets to overtake Chris Harris as the second-highest wicket-taker in ODIs for New Zealand, behind Daniel VettoriQuotes”At the end of the day we’ve just got to get him out.”

Kieran Powell, fresh from a tough Test tour of England, hit his highest first-class score of 139 as West Indies A took a 90-run lead over India A in the series-deciding third unofficial Test

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jun-2012
ScorecardKieran Powell made his highest first-class score of 139•West Indies CricketKieran Powell, fresh from a tough Test tour of England, hit his highest first-class score of 139 as West Indies A took a 90-run lead over India A in the series-deciding third unofficial Test in St Lucia. Resuming on his overnight score of 16, Powell batted almost till stumps on day two, and struck ten fours and three sixes in an innings that lasted nearly seven hours.Powell’s century was the first in a series that has been difficult for batsmen on both sides and took him past India A captain Cheteshwar Pujara’s match-winning unbeaten 96 in the first unofficial Test. Powell was the common factor in several key partnerships with the middle order as he added 54 for the second wicket with Kyle Corbin, 51 for the third with Nkrumah Bonner, 67 for the fifth with Donovan Pagon and 78 for the sixth with Devon Thomas, who was the second-highest scorer in the innings with 50.Jalaj Saxena, the Madhya Pradesh allrounder, picked up three wickets with his offspin while fast bowlers Shami Ahmed and Parvinder Awana had two strikes each. But West Indies A were able to build partnerships throughout the day, apart from when Saxena sent back Bonner and Jonathan Carter off successive deliveries to reduce the hosts to 142 for 4.India A struck in the second over of the day when Awana had Kraigg Brathwaite edging an outswinger to the wicketkeeper. But Powell and Corbin hit back aggressively in a breezy stand which ended when Corbin charged out only to be stumped off left-arm spinner Akshay Darekar. The spinners were able to get through some tight overs after Corbin’s departure. Saxena, finding some turn and bounce, had Bonner caught at short leg and trapped Carter in front first ball with a straight delivery.Powell took control, negating the spinners with several lofted straight hits while Pagon played some powerful drives off the fast bowlers. It was Saxena again who ended the stand, catching Pagon off his own bowling. The keeper Thomas joined Powell and the duo went after the spinners. India A delayed taking the new ball till the 91st over and Powell and Thomas put together the highest partnership of the innings.When finally taken, the new ball proved effective immediately, as Ahmed and Awana had Thomas and Veerasammy Permaul edging to the slip cordon. India A ended the day on a positive note when Ahmed had Powell miscuing a pull off a bouncer a couple of overs before stumps. But Powell had ensured that West Indies A held the advantage going into the final two days of the game.Powell was happy with his effort after having struggled against England with 71 runs in five innings. “Coming out of the tour of England I noticed a few things in my technique which I wanted to iron out, so I was happy I got a lot of time in the middle. That was the most important thing for me,” Powell said. “I was able to settle down and play at my pace. My movements, both back and forward, as well as the way I played against the spinners have given me confidence. I had to battle really hard. The Indians did not give us any easy runs. We are now in a good position where we can push for a result.”Powell was disappointed to get out in the closing stages of the day’s play. “I was looking to bat through the innings, so I actually wasn’t too happy that I got out just before the close. I felt I could go on for much longer, I wanted to come back tomorrow and push the team ahead.”

A century from Alex Gidman was swiftly followed up by four wickets taken by brother Will as Gloucestershire took control

Ivo Tennant at Bristol31-May-2012
ScorecardA century for Alex Gidman put Gloucestershire in charge against the Division Two leaders•PA PhotosThis was a tale of the Gidman brothers. A century from Alex, the elder and arguably still the better, was swiftly followed up by four wickets taken by Will, bowling in gloomy light at a quickish medium pace. The upshot is that Derbyshire, five second innings wickets intact, lead by a mere 12 runs. They did bat with more conviction than when they were bowled out for 95 on Wednesday, but will do well to avoid a heavy defeat.That Gloucestershire gained as sizeable a first-innings lead as 199 was chiefly down to Alex Gidman making his first century of the season. Hitherto this summer he had gone past fifty only once. Now, with less movement to contend with than that which confronted Derbyshire’s batsmen on the first day, he punched his drives through the cover ring and cut savagely at times.Resuming on 72, Gidman reached his century off 196 balls with 11 fours. He had made 129 in all when, facing Tim Groenewald, he slightly over-balanced in the crease and was leg-before. By then, Ian Cockbain had also gone, held down the leg side off Tony Palladino, as had Chris Dent, who pluckily came out to bat after fracturing a finger the previous day. Such gestures, noble in concept, rarely seem to work, however. Driving at Jon Clare, he edged to second slip.Will Gidman stayed with his brother for a while before he was leg-before to Palladino, who finished off the innings by removing David Payne’s off stump. Gloucestershire by now had quite a sufficient lead and when Matt Lineker drove airily at Will Gidman to be caught at gully and two further wickets fell before tea, they might even have countenanced a two-day finish.Martin Guptill showed glimpses of his undoubted class in reaching 42 with seven fours – his cover and straight driving was a delight – but, like Lineker and Wes Durston, rather gave his wicket away. He swiped at a rising ball outside off stump from Ian Saxelby and succeeded only in edging to Jon Batty. Durston, whose innings was barely underway, shaped to play Will Gidman as if providing catching practice for the slip cordon: another victim for Batty.Still, Wayne Madsen added 97 with Dan Refern, which represented solidity. Had the captain, who reached a half-century with five fours and drove firmly off the front foot – he is not one to loft the ball – remained until the close, Derbyshire might just have had some hope of a recovery along the lines of the one they memorably managed here two years ago. Yet, having reached 72, that man Will Gidman had him lbw on the front foot.Meanwhile, off-the-field celebrations were continuing apace over the decision by Bristol City Council’s development control committee to grant planning consent to Gloucestershire. The building of 147 dwellings within an apartment block effectively will replace the Jessop Stand opposite the pavilion. Rex Body, the chairman, dispensed champagne to all the staff. Well, not the players until the close.The club has spent £900,000 in securing this consent, which safeguards the future of cricket at Nevil Road. Paul Russell, the former chairman of Glamorgan who was instrumental in the development of the SWALEC Stadium at Cardiff, impressed upon councillors at their meeting on Wednesday evening the amount of revenue the city of Bristol would accrue from staging international cricket. This, of course, is on the basis that the one-day fixture scheduled for 2014 between England and India will go ahead. The club should be on course to have completed a sweeping redevelopment by then. That match alone will attract millions of television viewers. Nothing like cricket to put Bristol on the map in India.

Yuvraj Singh has shown a “slightly better than expected” response to his first cycle of chemotherapy

Sharda Ugra16-Feb-2012Yuvraj Singh has shown a “slightly better than expected” response to his first cycle of chemotherapy to counter a germ-cell tumour called mediastinal seminoma. His medical team in India and the USA will however arrive at a definitive conclusion after conducting a CT scan at the end of his nine weeks of treatment.Explaining Yuvraj’s progress, Dr Nitesh Rohatgi, a senior medical oncologist at Delhi’s Max Cancer Centre who is co-ordinating the treatment with doctors in the USA, told ESPNcricinfo that Yuvraj’s blood tests and X-rays were “positive and we know that the treatment is working”.Rohatgi was speaking after Yuvraj’s upbeat tweet [below] late on Wednesday night about his progress. “We can only be certain after the CT scan at the end of the treatment,” Rohatgi said. “We have to give him enough chemo to melt it [the tumour] all down and also to aim at preventing it from recurring.”

Got very good news from dr lawrencetoday! The tumor is almost way out of the system Aftr reading my todays scan !Second cycle has started

— yuvraj singh (@yuvsingh09) February 16, 2012

The “Dr Lawrence” Yuvraj was referring to in his tweet is Dr Lawrence Einhorn, who headed the treatment of cycling champion Lance Armstrong in 1996. Armstrong had been diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of testicular cancer and was given a 40% chance of survival. Einhorn is regarded as the pioneer of life-saving treatment for testicular cancer, increasing survival levels up to 90%, and an expert in the chemotherapy used to tackle seminoma. Though he largely focusses on research these days, he has taken on Yuvraj’s case. On Tuesday, Armstrong sent Yuvraj a personal message of support.The chemotherapy that Yuvraj will undergo involves nine weeks of a combination of three cancer drugs – bleomycin, ciplatin and etoposide – in three cycles. He has finished the first of the cycles that included a combination of the drugs every day for five days and then, after a week’s gap, two days of a different schedule of the drugs. A week’s gap follows, at which point the next cycle begins with five straight days of the drugs. His second cycle began on Wednesday.”The cycles work this way,” Rohatgi said, “because you want to maximise effect and minimise side-effects. This is the most commonly used and the most effective treatment, and this is going to keep him most physically fit.”Once the after-effects of his first cycle of chemotherapy began to wear off, Yuvraj tried light rounds of cardio-vascular exercises, like jogging and cycling, in the gym. He had spoken to Rohatgi at length on Thursday, to understand the interpretations of the results of the first round of his chemotherapy.