Former India wicketkeeper Kiran More, who was present at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore on the second day of Indias training camp on Thursday, had called Anil Kumble the Muhammad Ali of cricket, after the legspinner ended his 18-year Test career in November 2008. Kumble was the ultimate fighter, as exemplified during his uninterrupted 14-over spell, which included the wicket of Brian Lara, with a broken jaw in Antigua in 2002. In his final Test, against Australia, Kumble probed away, despite an injury to his left hand.Throughout his career, Kumble was always at the batsmen, his face mirroring a cocktail of focus and intensity. He brought the same focus and intensity as an administrator, and it was intact during his first net session as Indias head coach.Kumble was among the first to step onto the ground, ahead of training, and ensured the nets were in good shape after rain had forced the players indoors on Wednesday. Kumble stood at the centre and supervised the bowling of Ravindra Jadeja and Amit Mishra to Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma. Jayant Yadav, Shahbaz Nadeem, Shreyas Gopal, and Karun Nair, who are not part of the squad for the Caribbean tour, also rolled their arms over, but there was a prominent absentee - R Ashwin. The offspinner, who regards Kumble as his idol, missed practice on Thursday because of personal reasons. He is set to the join the preparatory camp on Friday, according to the BCCI.Virat Kohli faced throwdowns from Sanjay Bangar, the batting coach, and Raghavendra, the teams throwdown specialist, before easing into drives against the spinners. He took regular trips down the pitch and drilled the ball straight. Ishant Sharma, sporting a samurai bun, then arrived and tested the batsmen in the channel outside off. When the seamer had issues with his landing area, Kumble himself applied sawdust and evened things up.The clock ticked to 10.45 am, and Kumble unzipped his winter jacket. He windmilled his arms as Cheteshwar Pujara took guard. He jogged and floated seam-ups, which Pujara blunted with a straight bat. Next up to face the coach was M Vijay. The opener was given a quick leg-stump ball, which he whipped firmly. Kumble couldnt hide his excitement and exclaimed: shot.Kumble largely bowled seam-ups, for about 45 minutes, and Vijay couldnt hide his awe for the former India captain though they havent spent enough time with each other, at the press conference. Vijay was handed his Test debut in the fourth Test against Australia in Nagpur, a few days after Kumble had retired.Hes [Kumbles] been an unbelievable cricketer for the Indian team, Vijay said. We are really looking forward to sharing some quality time with him... I couldnt spend a lot of time with him then. But Ive been a great fan of him as a youngster, who isnt?! It is a great opportunity for us to talk to him about cricket, his thought processes and learn from that and move forward. I think it is going to be a great time for us.When asked about Kumbles impact, Vijay said it was too soon and pulled off a classic leave outside off. Vijay, though, believed that the head coachs vast experience as a player would serve the young side well.Over a period of time, its going to be good for us, because he has 900 [956] international wickets under his belt, Vijay said. Its going to be great for us to know what kind of things we can expect in a high-pressure game. Its going to be good for us as a batting unit, as well. Its going to be a great 12 months for us. That much I can guarantee as a team.Kumble worked more closely with the spinners in the afternoon session, having lengthy chats with Jadeja, Nadeem and Jayant. Even when one of the younger net bowlers strayed down the leg side, Kumble gesticulated to keep it tight and straight.If Kumble can inject his focus and intensity into the young side, India have a chance to be the best in all three formats, as he had said in his first press conference as the head coach. Cheap Senators Jerseys Authentic . -- Teemu Selanne scored the first goal of his 22nd NHL season, and the Anaheim Ducks extended the best start in franchise history with their fifth straight victory, 3-2 over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. Wholesale Senators Jerseys . -- The Bishops Gaiters are showing they belong among the countrys top varsity football teams. http://www.cheapsenatorsjerseys.com/ . In Europe, top teams seem to be largely happy with their squads after spending nearly $1 billion in the off-season. And although English league clubs are unlikely to splash cash in January, Arsenal and Chelsea could be tempted to strengthen their squads with new strikers. Cheap Adidas Senators Jerseys . Speaking Thursday on TSN 1050 Thursday, the Leafs GM also touched on the questions surrounding the teams leadership and the struggles of his big-name free-agent signing. “Its not from lack of effort from the coaching staff. Cheap Ottawa Senators Jerseys . The home side created most of the chances but struggled to break down Braunschweigs resilient defence, resulting in the Bundesligas 1,000th scoreless draw. The Seattle Seahawks look at their small sample of shortcomings and figure things will turn around.While the Seahawks have room for error, that has just about expired for the Carolina Panthers.When the teams meet Sunday night in Seattle, it nearly qualifies as a must-win situation for Carolina, which is running out of second chances.Well just keep fighting, keep playing, Panthers head coach Ron Rivera said. Now we still have an opportunity. Well see what happens. Theres no reason for us to look any other way, but theres a glimmer of hope. Thats all you need sometimes.The Seahawks (7-3-1) are coming off a puzzling 14-5 loss at Tampa Bay. Despite the setback, theres no sign of panic from the Seattle side.Im not worried about it a bit, Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said. Not one bit. Lets go back to work and get right. ... I dont think this is a trend. Well get this thing fixed.Seattle holds first place in an otherwise weak NFC West. Carolina (4-7) occupies last place in the NFC South, though that division isnt exactly a powerful group.We are just trying to win a game, Panthers tight end Greg Olsen said. We will let all that sort itself out.The Panthers remained on the West Coast following Sundays 35-32 loss at Oakland. Theyve held practices at San Jose State before heading to Seattle.Even with that, there have been significant developments. Center Ryan Kalil (shoulder) and his backup, Gino Gradkowski (knee), were placed on injured reserve. To replace them, the Panthers signed free-agent center Ryan Wendell and added tackle Dan France from the Cleveland Browns practice squad.The health of this football team is very frustrating, Rivera said.Wendell played seven seasons with the New England Patriots from 2009-15, starting 49 regular-season games and seven postseason contests.Kalil, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, started all eight games he played this season, but missed three contests with the shoulder injury.The Panthers also signed offensive tackles Tyrus Thompson and Jake Rodgers to the practice squad.Its probably a positive thing that we arent traveling back to the East Coast, said Carolinas A.J. Klein, who was the primary replacement for All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly last week.Klein noted the need to recharge after the last outing. While its unnclear if Kuechly will be available after suffering an apparent concussion Nov.dddddddddddd 17, the encouraging aspect was that he traveled with the Panthers to the West Coast and was on the sideline (though not in uniform) for the Oakland game.Also among those on Carolinas injury list as late as Wednesday were safety Kurt Coleman (head) and receiver Kelvin Benjamin (shoulder).The Seahawks have roster movement as well.Linebacker Mike Morgan (sports hernia) should be back after sitting out on injured reserve, while the status of Michael Bennett, who has been out five weeks with a knee injury, remains in question. The Seahawks have used four players to start in Morgans spot at strong-side linebacker during his absence.Safety Earl Thomas will apparently play after he wasnt listed on Fridays injury report.Dont expect major changes to how the Seahawks operate even following a loss.Im going to go with what we know and how we know to be, Carroll said. Well get back on track.The Seahawks are 5-0 at home, though three of Seattles home victories have come by six points or less. While the Seahawks have been far from dominant at CenturyLink Field, it will be another hostile environment for the Panthers.This is why you come into the league, to play these type of games, Carolina quarterback Cam Newton said.The nature of close defeats is wearing on the Panthers.Now its five games where youve lost virtually in the last few minutes, Rivera said. Its frustrating, but thats the nature of this game.Despite the Seahawks sluggish offense from time to time, theyre continuing to find different ways to move the ball. Quarterback Russell Wilsons running ability is something that Carroll said has been encouraging as Seattle heads into the Carolina game.Wilson has kept his normal unwavering demeanor for the most part.Its pretty simple, Wilson said, weve just got to find ways to make plays and we will. We have before.This will mark the seventh meeting during a five-season span as the teams met in the postseason each of the last two seasons.In last Januarys divisional playoff round, Carolina scored the first 31 points and held on for a 31-24 victory. ' ' '
