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Maradona wants to coach Argentina
Buenos Aires, Nov 15 (IANS) Football legend Diego Maradona has expressed a desire to return as coach of Argentina’s national team after their 2-4 loss to Nigeria in a friendly.
Tuesday’s result in the Russian city of Krasnodar follows a torrid period for the Jorge Sampaoli side, who only secured a berth in next year’s World Cup by defeating Ecuador 3-1 in their final qualifier last month, reports Xinhua news agency.
“Who has won more? Let’s make our own conclusions,” Maradona said in a social media post. “I’m upset because they have taken away our prestige. You can’t blame the players. I want to return!”
The words were accompanied by a table showing the record of 11 previous Argentina coaches.
Maradona is the most successful on the list, having won 18 or 75 per cent of his 24 matches in charge of the Albiceleste from 2008 to 2010.
The 1986 World Cup winner has been an outspoken critic of Sampaoli since the former Chile boss took charge of Argentina in June.
In the days after his appointment, Maradona said Sampaoli was “no better” than previous coach Edgardo Bauza, who was sacked after only three wins in eight games.
–IANS
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Sunil Gavaskar gives his opinion of GT allrounder Rahul Tewatia
The left-handed batsman from Haryana is garnering praise from all quarters for the way he’s finishing games regularly in the most exciting IPL season.
Gavaskar reckons Tewatia’s whirlwind knock in Sharjah (in IPL 2020) where he smashed West Indies pacer Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over, gave him the confidence that he belongs to the big stage.
Speaking on Cricket Live on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, “That assault on Sheldon Cottrell in Sharjah gave him the belief to do the impossible and the confidence that he belongs here. We saw the impossible (he did with the bat) the other day as well. There’s no twitching or touching the pads (which shows a batter’s nervousness) when he bats in the death overs. He just waits for the ball to be delivered and plays his shots. He’s got all the shots in the book, but most importantly his temperament to stay cool in a crisis is brilliant.”
Gavaskar has also nicknamed the 28-year-old cricketer the ‘ice-man’ and lauded Tewatia’s ability to remain unruffled during the tense moments.