Gilchrist backs India's T20 events

A day after Australia captain Ricky Ponting and coach Tim Nielsen criticised lucrative Indian domestic T20 tournaments - Indian Premier League and Champions League - former Australia wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist differed from his countrymen and threw his weight behind the slam- bang version of the game.While Ponting and Nielsen openly held the domestic T20 tournaments responsible for injuries to the Australian players ahead of the second Oneday International in Nagpur on Wednesday, Gilchrist said that injuries were part and parcel of the game. The lefthanded batsman said that the domestic T20 tournaments couldn't be held responsible for injuries to James Hopes, Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson.Hopes and Lee missed the game on Wednesday.Daily sports news "Injuries can happen at any time in a player's career. There have been instances when players have been resting for six months at a stretch and they have suffered an injury the moment they got back to international cricket. But it is true that the international calendar has intensified to an extreme level and the International Cricket Council ( ICC) needs to monitor the cricket calendar," he said.Here to promote the University of Wollongong, Gilchrist also sympathised with the administrators of domestic T20 tournaments. "I feel sorry for the organisers of the domestic T20 tournaments. Not only do they have to keep shuffling their events so that it doesn't clash with the international calendar, but they also have to cope with other issues like security threat etc.," he said."The Champions League was originally supposed to be held in 2008, but it had to be cancelled due to the security scare that engulfed the country during that time.online sports Even the ICC Champions Trophy had to be postponed due to safety concerns in Pakistan in 2008, resulting in the further cramming up of the international cricket calendar this year." Gilchrist was, however, quick to point out that it was entirely up to players to choose where they want to play. "It is solely dependent on cricketers whether they want to play for their country or earn some quick buck. I salute Ponting's dedication for his country even after having represented Australia for so many years. He pulled out from the cash rich leagues to stay fit and concentrate on his international cricket," the 37- year old said.On the debate whether Test cricket was dying a natural death with the introduction of T20, Gilchrist, one of the most aggressive players to have played the shortest format of the game, said that Test cricket was the ultimate form of cricket. "Test cricket can never die. Most cricketers are desperate to play Test cricket.The same question had cropped up when ODI format burst into the scene. But no format can displace Test cricket from its designated position," he said."Just because Test cricket doesn't have capacity crowds at the stadiums doesn't mean that it has no follower. We have a passive love for the format. T20 and ODI cricket will only enhance the game's purest form - Test cricket," said the IPL Deccan Chargers' captain.On Deccan Chargers' poor performance in the recent Champions League, Gilchrist said that his team performed below his expectations. "We failed to live up to the standard set by us in the IPL- II in South Africa. We should have been much more competitive against the top domestic teams from across the globe. But this was an eye- opener for us ahead of IPL- III, and we hope to use this experience to prepare ourselves to aptly defend the trophy next year," he said.Read More....