The removal of Pakistani trio of Amir, Asif and Butt doesn't solve the ICC's problems in dealing with match fixing and other related activities. The players can in no way be stopped from meeting strangers no matter even if they are confined in dressing rooms and other places with full restriction to outsiders. There are a million ways to break these rules.
The Gentleman's game is no longer the same as it was in the Golden era of Botham's and Khan's when only true passion for Cricket used to rule the hearts and minds of Cricketers. May be it is the present generational anomaly of making most out of the opportunity.
The explanation I went through in the media by the Pakistani Board, after the interrogation of the charged players seem to indicate that the players are wrongly framed. The players seemed to have presented a creditable explanation, regarding the bundle's of cash found in their dressing rooms.
No matter what the explanation and the outcome, there seems something murky with which Cricket is being played these days, whether it be IPL or Pakistani Tours or Cricket in the Subcontinent.
One thing is for sure the game of Cricket is more increasingly viewed only as a big money spinner and nothing else. No one really any more cares for the drives of Bradman's or the hook shots of Sober's of the past. Of late people are only interested in the rapid fire four's and sixes of Afridi's or Hayden's or Dhoni's.
It's the administrators equally to blame including the ICC, which is jumping the gun in increasing the popularity of the game by putting too much of the emphasis on newly entertainment oriented quick fire Cricket version of T20's and the likes.
ICC should seriously revert back to put more emphasis on traditional forms of Cricket like the Tests and One Dayers and even emphasis should be laid on tour starters like three day or four day formats. Essentially these formats no doubt are boring for the spectators but they are the real formats of Cricket. And can help bring back the prestige to Cricket.
The reason why I have stated these points is nowadays if you see the present crop of Cricketers they are more tilted towards quick money and fame, rather the hard work and grooming real talent.
One used to see innumerable brilliant stints by the likes if Imran Khan's, Laxman's, Tendulkars or Marsh's in the domestic Cricket without them even making a start at the international level.
By the time they played international Cricket they were far more matured than the present crop of the Cricketers, who all of a sudden appear in the T20 formats and then suddenly show up in the national team based on these performances.
The money spinning element is being ingrained far too much than could be digested, and this culture is sub consciously damaging the game.
There are more chances than ever, the betting syndicates will try and exploit these hectic cricketing schedules where it's hard to focus on any single issue.
So reverting back to policies and formats of the Cricket's most established formats and times with only a small exposure to newer formats, Cricketing glory could be brought back.
ICC's step of banning the Pakistani players is a cosmetic solution to an ever growing malaise of betting, overshadowing the Gentleman's game of Cricket.
Showing posts with label Cricket Articles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cricket Articles. Show all posts
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Sunday, November 8, 2009
India loses the match and the series at Guwahati in 2009 Honda Cup vs Australia
India went into a shudder at Guwahati today after the loss at Hyderabad on Thursday in the 2009 Honda cup series in India. In the process lost the series to Australia by 4-2 with the final match of the series to be played at Mumbai on Wednesday, and now has no consequence in the series. India will be looking to win this match, to salvage the lost ground.
India never recovered psychologically it seems from the loss at Hyderabad, which dealt a crucial blow to the hosts morale and confidence. The series in fact was decided on that fateful evening in Hyderabad when Australia pulled off a humdinger from the jaws of defeat by a margin of three runs to score a point against the under-performing hosts that International Cricket doesn't lets go off Scot free if you make mistakes on a continuous basis through the series.
Sachin sparkled with a solid 175 only to see his side squandering the opportunity by losing 4 wickets in 18 balls requiring almost the same runs to win the match and give a message to Australia, that they meant business. But the hosts were in a different zone altogether, I felt the Jadeja run out was the crucial one in the closing stages of the game, it seemed that the youngster was picking up instructions from the Sachin at the crease, but instead he ran himself out for no apparent reason. That was the sheer pressure the youngster could not handle at this stage. It makes me recollect about Md Kaif the UP skipper who is a great finisher and had did in fact in the Champions Trophy in England when India surmounted another high scoring game. I wonder Why he is not being considered for selection ?
There should be incentives for players when they finish off things for the team, and likewise should be laid off to set the things right for the team.
With the big win in hand at Hyderabad, the visitors had nothing to loose and came hard on a seaming pitch on a Guwahati morning and quickly opened up the Indian top order with quick wickets, the message here out to the Indian team is, no matter you play a second class team or a number one, you need to commit yourself to bring victories.
India needs to play as a unit to win matches and should be professional enough in carrying out the game plan.
India never recovered psychologically it seems from the loss at Hyderabad, which dealt a crucial blow to the hosts morale and confidence. The series in fact was decided on that fateful evening in Hyderabad when Australia pulled off a humdinger from the jaws of defeat by a margin of three runs to score a point against the under-performing hosts that International Cricket doesn't lets go off Scot free if you make mistakes on a continuous basis through the series.
Sachin sparkled with a solid 175 only to see his side squandering the opportunity by losing 4 wickets in 18 balls requiring almost the same runs to win the match and give a message to Australia, that they meant business. But the hosts were in a different zone altogether, I felt the Jadeja run out was the crucial one in the closing stages of the game, it seemed that the youngster was picking up instructions from the Sachin at the crease, but instead he ran himself out for no apparent reason. That was the sheer pressure the youngster could not handle at this stage. It makes me recollect about Md Kaif the UP skipper who is a great finisher and had did in fact in the Champions Trophy in England when India surmounted another high scoring game. I wonder Why he is not being considered for selection ?
There should be incentives for players when they finish off things for the team, and likewise should be laid off to set the things right for the team.
With the big win in hand at Hyderabad, the visitors had nothing to loose and came hard on a seaming pitch on a Guwahati morning and quickly opened up the Indian top order with quick wickets, the message here out to the Indian team is, no matter you play a second class team or a number one, you need to commit yourself to bring victories.
India needs to play as a unit to win matches and should be professional enough in carrying out the game plan.
Monday, November 2, 2009
Australia levels 2-2 in 2009 Honda cup series at Mohali
After looking strong to score 300 at Mohali in the 4th one dayer of the seven match Honda cup series, Australia wound up at 250 by losing wickets at regular intervals.
Fortunately for India the partnerships of Ponting,White and Hussey cut short by some good work by India on the field.
India started of well with Virender Sehwag belting Johnson for erring with 3 fours in an over. But Sachin just a few runs short of career 17000 runs was handed lbw with a slight margin of error, obviously Sachin was unhappy with the decision .
Australia was tight and Dhoni trying to capture a quick single tested Ponting's arm at point which left Yuvraj short of crease at the other end. That was a big blow and the pressure was on the India to put up for the quick loss of wickets.
Barring this Indians played onto the Australian game plan and could not come out of the shell. In the end the gettable total of 250 was lost by India by 24 runs and that's a margin which shows the Australia's recovery in this series.
That's what a seasoned campaigner like Ricky Ponting could do on the field if the opposition errs by making silly mistakes. India now have to work hard again to comeback in this series.
Fortunately for India the partnerships of Ponting,White and Hussey cut short by some good work by India on the field.
India started of well with Virender Sehwag belting Johnson for erring with 3 fours in an over. But Sachin just a few runs short of career 17000 runs was handed lbw with a slight margin of error, obviously Sachin was unhappy with the decision .
Australia was tight and Dhoni trying to capture a quick single tested Ponting's arm at point which left Yuvraj short of crease at the other end. That was a big blow and the pressure was on the India to put up for the quick loss of wickets.
Barring this Indians played onto the Australian game plan and could not come out of the shell. In the end the gettable total of 250 was lost by India by 24 runs and that's a margin which shows the Australia's recovery in this series.
That's what a seasoned campaigner like Ricky Ponting could do on the field if the opposition errs by making silly mistakes. India now have to work hard again to comeback in this series.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
India makes it 2-1 in the 7 match contest with Australia in the 2009 Hero Honda Cup Series
It is great to see India winning back to back matches in the 2009 series between two of the worlds biggest cricketing powerhouses. First match Australia won convincingly only to jolt Indian team out of slumber, which proved beneficial for the hosts.
Second match was exceptional as Skipper Dhoni turned it around for the Team India, it's been a nicely built innings carrying a knock out punch on the opposition. And his innings blew air out of the Australian team long before they started to bat second.
The third match played today at Kotla on a slow and difficult pitch again proved helpful for Indian players as most of the inexperienced Aussie players could not have read, that was going on or accustomed to it. Tour to Indian subcontinent is always difficult for the visiting teams. Only seasoned campaigners like Ponting and Hussey could make some difference to guide their team out of this phase.
The fourth one dayer will be an interesting contest between the teams, with the pitch expected to carry bounce, it should support the visitors.
Second match was exceptional as Skipper Dhoni turned it around for the Team India, it's been a nicely built innings carrying a knock out punch on the opposition. And his innings blew air out of the Australian team long before they started to bat second.
The third match played today at Kotla on a slow and difficult pitch again proved helpful for Indian players as most of the inexperienced Aussie players could not have read, that was going on or accustomed to it. Tour to Indian subcontinent is always difficult for the visiting teams. Only seasoned campaigners like Ponting and Hussey could make some difference to guide their team out of this phase.
The fourth one dayer will be an interesting contest between the teams, with the pitch expected to carry bounce, it should support the visitors.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Anil Kumble, Australia at Kotla 2008 Test Match
It is not surprising to see Australia feeling the heat, the likes of Shane Warne felt the same, and if I am right Shane Warne does still considers the Indian tour as the most challenging he ever faced, where he had to face a battery of onslaught from the Indian batsmen particularly SR Tendulkar, Sachin quite remarkably worked out a comfortable stance against the genious of Warne and there was no respite for Warne throughout the Tour, if I am right was the Tour of 2001 at which India eventually won the series. Though much Credit goes to VVS Laxman for his immortal 281, after India followed on to Win the Test at Kolkata's Eden Gardens, where also, Bhajji took six wickets in the Australian Second Innings. The final Test saw some fireworks from Sachin's blade and India won a Tour against a dominant Australian side in a long time. During my small research I found Anil Kumble the present Indian Skipper who the media is out asking for his retirement day, took some 13 wickets in an inconsequential drawn Test match in 2004 at Chennai. In the first Innings he has figures of 7/48 under 18 overs thus putting Australia under pressure in the first innings as it managed only a 235. And in the second innings he fights with a big heart to see India win with figures of 6/133 in 43 overs. It is no wonder the Australian Captain would not like to see Kumble under the Aussies throat, particularly in this series, because experienced Kumble is more of a threat against the inexperience of this Australian side.
Australia might find some respite due to Harbhajan's injury, it will be interesting to see how Amit Mishra combines with Anil Kumble to bowl in tandem. First day at the Kotla Test 2008 belonged to India backing on a splendid hundred from Gambhir. Australia will have to make a last ditch effort on the second day morning to restrict India around 400, though the chances are very remote for that as India looks very comfortable to score around 600. Kotla is a traditional hunting ground for Anil Kumble, how the punter plays the hunter is the battle on cards.
Australia might find some respite due to Harbhajan's injury, it will be interesting to see how Amit Mishra combines with Anil Kumble to bowl in tandem. First day at the Kotla Test 2008 belonged to India backing on a splendid hundred from Gambhir. Australia will have to make a last ditch effort on the second day morning to restrict India around 400, though the chances are very remote for that as India looks very comfortable to score around 600. Kotla is a traditional hunting ground for Anil Kumble, how the punter plays the hunter is the battle on cards.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Ind Vs Australia 2008 Test Series: Australia looks down the Barrel in the second Test
The Mohali Test is heading for a decisive result and the only side that looks to win this Test is India, Australian team was completely outplayed in the first innings where Indian batsmen completely dominated the scene. Contributions came from almost all the batsman who spent considerable time at the wicket including the opening batsmen. The batting for the hosts has come alive and now India has the lead of 300 runs with out losing a wicket and still two more days are left in this Test, that puts the Australian team under considerable pressure as the wicket will start to turn more and more.
The nature of the pitch is very slow as indicated by Dhoni when he opted to bat after winning the Toss. It will be very tough for the Australian batsman to bat on this weary pitch from now on. Australia lost its way in this Test after being bowled out for 268 in the first innings, Amit Mishra took a 5/71 in his debut Test and that really upset the Australian batting card.
In the second innings the opener's further capitalized on the important first innings lead and put the team into strong position by adding another 100 runs to the first innings lead. Dhoni might be looking for a total of around 400 plus runs lead to defend in the second innings, he will definitely like to tighten up things around in the second innings, I personally feel India will declare around Tea if it gets to the Total in mind. That should give Indian bowlers some good overs left in the day to try and have a go at the Australian top order.
With spinners completely dominating the first innings, I think they will again in the second innings. Lastly but not the least, Sachin Tendulkar by surpassing the highest number of runs in Test Cricket in the World has once again brought the Title to India which was once held by Sunil Gavaskar only to be broken by Allan Border. Many congrats to the little master, who has really made the Indian Cricket look good in all times for almost two decades.
The nature of the pitch is very slow as indicated by Dhoni when he opted to bat after winning the Toss. It will be very tough for the Australian batsman to bat on this weary pitch from now on. Australia lost its way in this Test after being bowled out for 268 in the first innings, Amit Mishra took a 5/71 in his debut Test and that really upset the Australian batting card.
In the second innings the opener's further capitalized on the important first innings lead and put the team into strong position by adding another 100 runs to the first innings lead. Dhoni might be looking for a total of around 400 plus runs lead to defend in the second innings, he will definitely like to tighten up things around in the second innings, I personally feel India will declare around Tea if it gets to the Total in mind. That should give Indian bowlers some good overs left in the day to try and have a go at the Australian top order.
With spinners completely dominating the first innings, I think they will again in the second innings. Lastly but not the least, Sachin Tendulkar by surpassing the highest number of runs in Test Cricket in the World has once again brought the Title to India which was once held by Sunil Gavaskar only to be broken by Allan Border. Many congrats to the little master, who has really made the Indian Cricket look good in all times for almost two decades.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Bangalore Test ends in a tantalising Draw.
The match ended in a draw after some interesting Cricket, as I have mentioned earlier a lot depended on the Toss and the wicket was not conducive for pacing the innings against the odds and it did not turn much, as a result both the teams heavily banked on the pace bowlers, who took most of the wickets in this Test. With this Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble would have played their last Test at the Chinnaswamy stadium at Bangalore, Kumble particularly was injured and that showed up on his lacklustre performance, he was more of a captain anchoring the team and successfully led the team to a honourable draw.
Had India won the toss, I would say match would have been more interesting to watch, still I would not have given an outright victory to the Indian team though the match would have been very close.
The remaining pitches will turn more than this pitch and the series has definitely come alive, with teams having a look at their performance and now the battle should really kick on from here.
Ricky Ponting gave India a modest total on the final day to achieve but a 5th day pitch was never going to be easy to bat on, with cracks opening up, Indian batsman particularly Sachin and Laxman had a good time in the middle kept the Australian bowlers thinking all day.
This Indian middle order will surely be missed in the days to come when they will no longer be on the scene, and that change in the team is taking shape with Ganguly taking the call first. Truly a champion cricketer, Ganguly upped the pace of Indian Cricket, the team rised to become a dominant force in International Cricket went from strength to strength.
As Aussie skipper said in his post match conference there was still room to improve showed his worry that this Australian team lacks in talent as well as experience. Though it was a very good performance by the Australians who were lucky to start the series on a positive note having drawn the Test. This should give the Aussies immense satisfaction to take from this match, though they would have been more happier had they won this match, but Test Cricket is a hard nut to crack where you just can't do without a full blooded performance.
Lastly but not the least Indian bowlers, shall we say all rounders here ? Man of the Match Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh played a crucial role in India drawing the Test match, other wise the match would have been very very close.
For Australia Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey proved to be the main stays, though Michael Clarke and Mathew Hayden are equally capable of big match innings.
The teams would be now gearing up for the next match. Mohali is a fast paced pitch and it should support spin on the final days of the Test, both the teams equally balanced, another battle for supremacy will be on display.
Had India won the toss, I would say match would have been more interesting to watch, still I would not have given an outright victory to the Indian team though the match would have been very close.
The remaining pitches will turn more than this pitch and the series has definitely come alive, with teams having a look at their performance and now the battle should really kick on from here.
Ricky Ponting gave India a modest total on the final day to achieve but a 5th day pitch was never going to be easy to bat on, with cracks opening up, Indian batsman particularly Sachin and Laxman had a good time in the middle kept the Australian bowlers thinking all day.
This Indian middle order will surely be missed in the days to come when they will no longer be on the scene, and that change in the team is taking shape with Ganguly taking the call first. Truly a champion cricketer, Ganguly upped the pace of Indian Cricket, the team rised to become a dominant force in International Cricket went from strength to strength.
As Aussie skipper said in his post match conference there was still room to improve showed his worry that this Australian team lacks in talent as well as experience. Though it was a very good performance by the Australians who were lucky to start the series on a positive note having drawn the Test. This should give the Aussies immense satisfaction to take from this match, though they would have been more happier had they won this match, but Test Cricket is a hard nut to crack where you just can't do without a full blooded performance.
Lastly but not the least Indian bowlers, shall we say all rounders here ? Man of the Match Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh played a crucial role in India drawing the Test match, other wise the match would have been very very close.
For Australia Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey proved to be the main stays, though Michael Clarke and Mathew Hayden are equally capable of big match innings.
The teams would be now gearing up for the next match. Mohali is a fast paced pitch and it should support spin on the final days of the Test, both the teams equally balanced, another battle for supremacy will be on display.
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Australia in a good position on Day 1 of the Bangalore Test 2008
Australia ends day one of the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore in a strong position. Ricky Ponting scored his first Test Century on the Indian soil leading the way in the Australian batting scorecard. Australia ended the day with 254/4 with Michael Clarke bowled out in the last over of the day's play by Zaheer Khan caught in front of the wicket.
In the morning Australia won the Toss and elected to bat first on a good batting wicket and Mathew Hayden was out third ball of the innings edging out to Zaheer Khan. Ricky Ponting and Simon Katich build on the innings from there on for a 166 run partnership for the second wicket, with Katich scoring a good fifty before getting out.
Day two again will be easier to bat on, with Mike Hussey well set on 46 and White, Watson and Haddin still to bat, there is lot of work cut out for the Indian bowlers. The track is very good indeed for batting and it will start turning when the cracks open up as the wicket gets weary. I personally feel the wicket looks too good to be a turner as we might expect so as to produce a result, in all probability if the Indian first innings matches the Australian total in the first innings then we might be heading for a draw.
Had India won the toss it would have put Australia bat last in the Test and would have been interesting to see Australia bat against the turners, that's what the Indian think tank might have wished for. It would still not have made much difference considering the nature of the pitch which has very less to offer for the bowlers and the Australia having a good eye in the Indian conditions would have been equally capable to play out the Indian spin.
Day two of the first Test should see Australia consolidate on the overnight score, Indian bowlers if had their way and run into the Australian tail-enders quickly then match would come alive, let's hope for a good competitive Cricket on day 2 at Chinnaswamy stadium, Bangalore.
In the morning Australia won the Toss and elected to bat first on a good batting wicket and Mathew Hayden was out third ball of the innings edging out to Zaheer Khan. Ricky Ponting and Simon Katich build on the innings from there on for a 166 run partnership for the second wicket, with Katich scoring a good fifty before getting out.
Day two again will be easier to bat on, with Mike Hussey well set on 46 and White, Watson and Haddin still to bat, there is lot of work cut out for the Indian bowlers. The track is very good indeed for batting and it will start turning when the cracks open up as the wicket gets weary. I personally feel the wicket looks too good to be a turner as we might expect so as to produce a result, in all probability if the Indian first innings matches the Australian total in the first innings then we might be heading for a draw.
Had India won the toss it would have put Australia bat last in the Test and would have been interesting to see Australia bat against the turners, that's what the Indian think tank might have wished for. It would still not have made much difference considering the nature of the pitch which has very less to offer for the bowlers and the Australia having a good eye in the Indian conditions would have been equally capable to play out the Indian spin.
Day two of the first Test should see Australia consolidate on the overnight score, Indian bowlers if had their way and run into the Australian tail-enders quickly then match would come alive, let's hope for a good competitive Cricket on day 2 at Chinnaswamy stadium, Bangalore.
Friday, October 3, 2008
IPL vs ICL: A reality taking shape
The recent decision by the Sri Lanka Cricket Board chief and the Former Sri Lanka Captain Arjuna Ranatunga to allow the former players of the country to play in the Indian Cricket League has given a first official stamp from a ICC full member to its players to play in the un-official ICL, thus breaking the monopoly of the BCCI, ICC, PCB and CA which were pressuring up players who would participate in the un-official ICL.
It is a pity that a league who were the first to launch a tournament have been looked at as untouchables for this long. I think Cricket will benefit if there is opening of the stance from the Cricket's official bodies to recognise the league and it will be in the interests of all. Definitely, the credibility of the official boards is at stake, but then the Official bodies were behind the ICL in launching a Tournament and that's where it has given some people with ideas to take the lead.
Mushtaq Ahmed the former Pakistan Test Cricketer and the ICL player for the Lahore Badshahs team sheds some more light on the ICL standards, he says Cricket played at ICL is of a highly competitive nature and he regards it higher than the IPL. Mushtaq Ahmed is one of the finest leg spinners in the world to have played the game along with Shane Warne and helped win Pakistan many matches. And he is regarded very high in Cricketing circles for his immense talent.
And is of the view that BCCI should open up its narrow stance and include ICL in the Champions Trophy edition this year and allow more such tournaments in the future. This would be another block-buster of sorts if the existing rivalry between the clubs is given a utilised in a practical manner.
It is a pity that a league who were the first to launch a tournament have been looked at as untouchables for this long. I think Cricket will benefit if there is opening of the stance from the Cricket's official bodies to recognise the league and it will be in the interests of all. Definitely, the credibility of the official boards is at stake, but then the Official bodies were behind the ICL in launching a Tournament and that's where it has given some people with ideas to take the lead.
Mushtaq Ahmed the former Pakistan Test Cricketer and the ICL player for the Lahore Badshahs team sheds some more light on the ICL standards, he says Cricket played at ICL is of a highly competitive nature and he regards it higher than the IPL. Mushtaq Ahmed is one of the finest leg spinners in the world to have played the game along with Shane Warne and helped win Pakistan many matches. And he is regarded very high in Cricketing circles for his immense talent.
And is of the view that BCCI should open up its narrow stance and include ICL in the Champions Trophy edition this year and allow more such tournaments in the future. This would be another block-buster of sorts if the existing rivalry between the clubs is given a utilised in a practical manner.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Sourav Ganguly was always in the scheme of things
The newly formed selection committee headed by Kris Srikkanth has selected Ganguly in the 15 man squad for the series, media reports say two Tests, but hopefully he is in for this Test series and I think, selectors feel seniors might make a call about their future plans rather than they calling the shots, it was a decision coming and he deserves his spot in the squad considering his experience within the Indian team. The unlucky ones missed out are Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma and Mohammad Kaif, I think they will have to wait for some more time as the Indian batting line up is still hot in the middle.
India definitely need the experienced players in the middle to capitalize on any opportunity that come along with some new set of Australian players in the team who are a bit inexperienced at this level, but should feel comfortable with the playing conditions. Test Matches in my view will be close fought ones as Australia is a formidable team and all of the players know their Cricket well despite some fresh faces.
Bryce Mcgain is already off the seen due to a shoulder injury and its a bad luck for the spinner and Shane Watson is down with a fever, but Ricky Ponting's men are enjoying the valuable match practice they have been having, a quick warm up at RCA and now the tour game in Hyderabad should instill good confidence in the team.
Meanwhile Indian camp too had some valuable match preparations in Bangalore under the eyes of the Coach Gary Kirsten. It is important to note the observation the Australian coach Tim Nielsen made, Australia definitely is going to pick the players who will adapt to the conditions quickly he said and that's a good way to follow up in announcing the team.
Bangalore is the home ground of the Indian Skipper Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid, they might be looking forward to take advantage and give India a good start after a not so good outing in Sri Lanka in the recently concluded Test series.
S Badrinath and Amit Mishra are two call ups in the Indian team. The latter having a good stint playing along with Shane Warne and has given him immense confidence. It will be interesting to see if India plays three spinners in any of the Tests. I think it will all depend on the outcomes of the first Test at Bangalore, where India would like to go with a full experienced side in search for a quick lead against the inexperienced Australian team and put them under pressure, a draw will give Australia a tremendous boost to their campaign. The first test starts on October 9.
News Source Cricinfo.com
India definitely need the experienced players in the middle to capitalize on any opportunity that come along with some new set of Australian players in the team who are a bit inexperienced at this level, but should feel comfortable with the playing conditions. Test Matches in my view will be close fought ones as Australia is a formidable team and all of the players know their Cricket well despite some fresh faces.
Bryce Mcgain is already off the seen due to a shoulder injury and its a bad luck for the spinner and Shane Watson is down with a fever, but Ricky Ponting's men are enjoying the valuable match practice they have been having, a quick warm up at RCA and now the tour game in Hyderabad should instill good confidence in the team.
Meanwhile Indian camp too had some valuable match preparations in Bangalore under the eyes of the Coach Gary Kirsten. It is important to note the observation the Australian coach Tim Nielsen made, Australia definitely is going to pick the players who will adapt to the conditions quickly he said and that's a good way to follow up in announcing the team.
Bangalore is the home ground of the Indian Skipper Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid, they might be looking forward to take advantage and give India a good start after a not so good outing in Sri Lanka in the recently concluded Test series.
S Badrinath and Amit Mishra are two call ups in the Indian team. The latter having a good stint playing along with Shane Warne and has given him immense confidence. It will be interesting to see if India plays three spinners in any of the Tests. I think it will all depend on the outcomes of the first Test at Bangalore, where India would like to go with a full experienced side in search for a quick lead against the inexperienced Australian team and put them under pressure, a draw will give Australia a tremendous boost to their campaign. The first test starts on October 9.
News Source Cricinfo.com
Monday, September 29, 2008
Welcome to Corporatisation of Cricket
VVS Laxman was replaced by Adam Gilchrist as the captain of the Deccan Chargers, one of the Franchise of the Indian Premier League T20( Twenty Overs a side ) Cricket to lead the side in the next edition played in India. Ironically the team ended at the bottom of the table despite boasting some big names in the game with a repertoire to slam-bang Cricket.
Herschelle Gibbs from South Africa, Andrew Symonds from Australia, Shahid Afridi from Pakistan and Adam Gilchrist from Australia again are one of the strongest hitters of the Cricket ball the game has ever seen. They altogether have astonishing style of play and bring loads of charisma into the game. VVS Laxman is a pure Test Cricketer where none of the above players come into the bracket except Adam Gilchrist. But still the style of Play Laxman boasts is hard to find these days, he is mainly a wristy player who could play the ball in a flash making it hard for the bowler to stick to a particular line and length. And the best of bowlers can struggle against on his day. The purest form of Cricket needs time for a batsman or a bowler to settle down at the wicket, where as contrastingly T20 just starts from the very first ball. You don't have time in this version and it is basically entertainer form of Cricket, where people like to see some big hittings.
But captaincy of VVS Laxman was the reason behind the dismal performance of the team cannot be judged so soon despite team mate Shahid Afridi's observations. But the Franchise seems to want to correct their selection of the slot for the captain, I think the DC management made a mistake here, it should have thought out carefully when selecting the team in the inaugural version itself, this is some short sightedness to the fore. What will DC do if the team fails to perform under Adam Gilchrist next year ? Adam doesn't posses some magic wand in his pocket. Where he could change the fortunes of the side in a flash. But definitely he is a good performer and reads the game well.
Same could be said of Royal Chanllengers from Bangalore, we know the style of play Rahul Dravid boasts off, it doesn't suit the 20 20 style of play, how much Rahul will be successful it will be interesting to see in the future. Will there be a change at the team in the Royal Challengers team also ? Vijay Mallya did twisted the side in the last version with his comments in the press.
Going by the trends till date it shows Corporate Cricket will see many such decisions in the future, as here money dictates the game, no reputation can withstand that onslaught. Welcome to corporatisation of Cricket.
Herschelle Gibbs from South Africa, Andrew Symonds from Australia, Shahid Afridi from Pakistan and Adam Gilchrist from Australia again are one of the strongest hitters of the Cricket ball the game has ever seen. They altogether have astonishing style of play and bring loads of charisma into the game. VVS Laxman is a pure Test Cricketer where none of the above players come into the bracket except Adam Gilchrist. But still the style of Play Laxman boasts is hard to find these days, he is mainly a wristy player who could play the ball in a flash making it hard for the bowler to stick to a particular line and length. And the best of bowlers can struggle against on his day. The purest form of Cricket needs time for a batsman or a bowler to settle down at the wicket, where as contrastingly T20 just starts from the very first ball. You don't have time in this version and it is basically entertainer form of Cricket, where people like to see some big hittings.
But captaincy of VVS Laxman was the reason behind the dismal performance of the team cannot be judged so soon despite team mate Shahid Afridi's observations. But the Franchise seems to want to correct their selection of the slot for the captain, I think the DC management made a mistake here, it should have thought out carefully when selecting the team in the inaugural version itself, this is some short sightedness to the fore. What will DC do if the team fails to perform under Adam Gilchrist next year ? Adam doesn't posses some magic wand in his pocket. Where he could change the fortunes of the side in a flash. But definitely he is a good performer and reads the game well.
Same could be said of Royal Chanllengers from Bangalore, we know the style of play Rahul Dravid boasts off, it doesn't suit the 20 20 style of play, how much Rahul will be successful it will be interesting to see in the future. Will there be a change at the team in the Royal Challengers team also ? Vijay Mallya did twisted the side in the last version with his comments in the press.
Going by the trends till date it shows Corporate Cricket will see many such decisions in the future, as here money dictates the game, no reputation can withstand that onslaught. Welcome to corporatisation of Cricket.
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Cricket News
Meanwhile Krishnamachari Srikkanth has been appointed as the new chariman of the national Cricket Selection committe succeeding Dilip Vengsarkar who finishes his stint as the national selector. The new selection panel comprising four other national selectors are Yashpal Sharma, Raja Venkat, Surendra Bhave, Narendra Hirwani and N Srinivasan.
Shashank Manohar has been selected as the new BCCI President( Board of Control for Cricket in India) succeeding Mr Sharad Pawar who is also the Union Minister in the Central Government of India and also the ICC ( International Cricket Council ) Vice President, the body responsible for the International affairs of Cricket in the world.
The new hierarchy in the BCCI also announced the national selection committee of selectors headed by Srikkanth will be on a national contract of 4 years which will be reviewed annually and the first such contract said to be paid by BCCI. The other notable transfer is Niranjan Shah who was the secretary and now has been appointed as IPL ( Indian Premier League ) the twenty overs a side cricket tournament played in India annually, the Cricket version of club football, a latest in the development of the game. More such tournaments are being scheduled to take place, with the latest Champions Trophy 20 20 version scheduled in December involving top Test Playing nations such as Australia, England, South Africa, Pakistan etc.,
All together Cricket has three versions which has International Recognition.
1. Test match Cricket ( Played over five days with two innings a side )
2. One Day Cricket ( 50 Overs a side, an Over comprises of six deliveries )
3. Twenty Twenty Cricket ( 3 hour, 20 overs a side format )
Shashank Manohar has been selected as the new BCCI President( Board of Control for Cricket in India) succeeding Mr Sharad Pawar who is also the Union Minister in the Central Government of India and also the ICC ( International Cricket Council ) Vice President, the body responsible for the International affairs of Cricket in the world.
The new hierarchy in the BCCI also announced the national selection committee of selectors headed by Srikkanth will be on a national contract of 4 years which will be reviewed annually and the first such contract said to be paid by BCCI. The other notable transfer is Niranjan Shah who was the secretary and now has been appointed as IPL ( Indian Premier League ) the twenty overs a side cricket tournament played in India annually, the Cricket version of club football, a latest in the development of the game. More such tournaments are being scheduled to take place, with the latest Champions Trophy 20 20 version scheduled in December involving top Test Playing nations such as Australia, England, South Africa, Pakistan etc.,
All together Cricket has three versions which has International Recognition.
1. Test match Cricket ( Played over five days with two innings a side )
2. One Day Cricket ( 50 Overs a side, an Over comprises of six deliveries )
3. Twenty Twenty Cricket ( 3 hour, 20 overs a side format )
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Symonds gets a call from Skipper Ponting
Ricky Ponting did the right thing at a time when the team still has not left the Australian shores for the India tour by calling up Andrew Symonds into the team. His experience can be hardly missed by any captain, but the Team Management did show some concern at Symonds's behavior of late, I think the team sent him a strong signal that they need a total commitment from his side and he seems to have understood the message. Australia will now have a semblance of a balanced team with many fresh faces in the team with hardly any experience in the sub-continent conditions where the ball plays differently than the hard Australian pitches.
Indian seasoned campaigners Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh will be looking forward to the challenge in the home conditions where they are more suited best and would definitely like to capitalise on any chinks in Australian batting order, Ponting has been out a number of times to Harbhajan and it will be an interesting duel to watch between the bat and ball. Shane Watson riding on his brilliant stint with the Rajasthan Royals is more experienced to the conditions now and might get a chance in the Australian playing level.
India has a solid batting line up with Virender Sehwag at the top gives this Indian team a solid look, but Brett Lee given his speed and accuracy can cause a lot of problems specially when the ball is new and swings a lot and could reverse it too in the later part of an innings when the ball gets older. It will be interesting to see the Australian bowling line up, particularly the spin department with new names such as McGain turn out to be. It will be a good learning tour for the debutant's and they can count on this tour with the experience they gain out of it.
Shane Warne made his debut against the Indian team in Australia and his figures where not that attractive in his first match of his career as India at that time had all very good players of Spin including Ravi Shastri. And that might have given Shane a good starting experience as when you bowl against good quality batsmen who play spin well, you will learn faster. With all the issues now seem to settle down, lets hope for a good Cricket Test Series in the coming days.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Cricket Australia's Flip-Flop casts a shadow on Cricket
Cricket Australia's flip-flop regarding the India Tour on the grounds of security concerns has kicked up a new controversy, already CA has canceled its Champions Trophy campaign along with a host of other cricket playing nations including South Africa, England, West Indies etc.,
And now Cricket Australia has held an internal inquiry whether it is safe to conduct a tour in India under the circumstances, and only after taking into all the aspects into consideration the tour has been given a green signal, I think it is a bit harsh on the Champions Trophy hosts Pakistan, what with the PCB officials voicing displeasure in the press. There needs to be a consensus on the issue, whether the Australian team is going to play Cricket or it is going to play a pick and choose game. If it is playing Cricket it should play Cricket and leave all the other worries aside.
It is understandable the home conditions in Australia are quite different with what we get to see here, but these are what the available conditions in the sub-continent, I think the canceling of the Champions Trophy and the latest Flip-Flop of the Cricket Australia of the India tour has surely cast a shadow on the beautiful game of Cricket, which is very unfortunate.
And now Cricket Australia has held an internal inquiry whether it is safe to conduct a tour in India under the circumstances, and only after taking into all the aspects into consideration the tour has been given a green signal, I think it is a bit harsh on the Champions Trophy hosts Pakistan, what with the PCB officials voicing displeasure in the press. There needs to be a consensus on the issue, whether the Australian team is going to play Cricket or it is going to play a pick and choose game. If it is playing Cricket it should play Cricket and leave all the other worries aside.
It is understandable the home conditions in Australia are quite different with what we get to see here, but these are what the available conditions in the sub-continent, I think the canceling of the Champions Trophy and the latest Flip-Flop of the Cricket Australia of the India tour has surely cast a shadow on the beautiful game of Cricket, which is very unfortunate.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Australia's tour of India for October 2008 Test Series
The upcoming Australia's tour of the sub-continent for the four match Test series in October 2008 will be again a battle of sorts. Australia won the last Test series in the sub-continent in 2004 after 35 years. India will be keenly looking towards to reverse the results this time around.
India's 2007-08 tour down under was marred by controversial episodes of one upmanship, which took the game's normal tempo to a level where things became very sour. The followers of the game, especially the online community quickly came to the rescue of the game, where many voiced concern at the on field behaviour of the hosts.
The latest news about Andrew Symonds does not augur well for the bloke, who is adored for his game in the cricket mad Asia despite the unsavoury incidents involved in the past involving the Indian offie bhajji, there seems to be a furore of sorts at Michael Clarke's handling of the situation, but in the long term interests of the game, team management stood united in their decision in dropping Symonds out of the team. This is an indication to Team India about the importance this series is attached with. Any Australian team is always a difficult side on the field, where they use all the tactics of the game to the hilt. No wonder why this Australian is the world champion and top cricketing nation in the world.
An early selection of the team can give the team much needed practice to take on the formidable Australian team. Though Mike Hussey has suggested earlier in the news reports of the Australia's lack of ideal preparation of the upcoming tour, but one cannot under estimate any Australian side and definitely there is no point in relaxing.
India's 2007-08 tour down under was marred by controversial episodes of one upmanship, which took the game's normal tempo to a level where things became very sour. The followers of the game, especially the online community quickly came to the rescue of the game, where many voiced concern at the on field behaviour of the hosts.
The latest news about Andrew Symonds does not augur well for the bloke, who is adored for his game in the cricket mad Asia despite the unsavoury incidents involved in the past involving the Indian offie bhajji, there seems to be a furore of sorts at Michael Clarke's handling of the situation, but in the long term interests of the game, team management stood united in their decision in dropping Symonds out of the team. This is an indication to Team India about the importance this series is attached with. Any Australian team is always a difficult side on the field, where they use all the tactics of the game to the hilt. No wonder why this Australian is the world champion and top cricketing nation in the world.
An early selection of the team can give the team much needed practice to take on the formidable Australian team. Though Mike Hussey has suggested earlier in the news reports of the Australia's lack of ideal preparation of the upcoming tour, but one cannot under estimate any Australian side and definitely there is no point in relaxing.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Laxman-Afridi duel does not reach any conclusion
Laxman was not happy with the way Shahid Afridi made comments about his captaincy in the last years IPL Tournament according to the news reports. Laxman was of the view that it didn't helped the team's cause and was definitely not in tune. Shahid Afridi commented in news papers regarding Laxman's captaincy and said Australia's Gilchrist would have made a good captain in his place.
I think it is too early to say what went wrong with IPL Hyderabad team of Deccan Chargers last year, there are many reasons behind the below par performance by the Deccan Chargers, team collectively under performed, Andrew Symonds left the team after his stint at the IPL for the tour of West Idies and many other factors did not go as expected, which Laxman defended in his response to Afridi's comments. Afridi's temperament is that of a hard hitting batsman who wants to hit from the very first ball quite contrast to Laxman's style of play. Laxman's style of play basically suits more Test version of the game, but it doesn't mean that a batsman cannot be as effective in other formats of the game. But this might hold true that a hitter batsman cannot adapt to Test variant where a batsman needs to apply more at the wicket for longer periods of time.
Laxman did much as a captain for the team by sacrificing the Icon status to accommodate Symonds in the team, at that time it was a huge attraction, coming out of the unceremonious happenings involving Harbhajan singh, talking about the captaincy on field, I think it is about the team balance and how fellow team mates respond to the situation at hand, no matter it is a 20-20 game, still there has to be a collective effort and an individual's failure cannot be the whole reason behind a team's failure. Actually it was Laxman, Afridi and Gilchrist who didn't performed to their potential, the local players did well. Symmonds did well with the bat but also gave away too many runs with the ball, if anybody remembers Delhi team's overhauling Deccan chargers total at Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi stadium at Uppal, it was Sehwag who won that match for Delhi from size able contribution from Gautam Gambhir.
I think it is too early to say what went wrong with IPL Hyderabad team of Deccan Chargers last year, there are many reasons behind the below par performance by the Deccan Chargers, team collectively under performed, Andrew Symonds left the team after his stint at the IPL for the tour of West Idies and many other factors did not go as expected, which Laxman defended in his response to Afridi's comments. Afridi's temperament is that of a hard hitting batsman who wants to hit from the very first ball quite contrast to Laxman's style of play. Laxman's style of play basically suits more Test version of the game, but it doesn't mean that a batsman cannot be as effective in other formats of the game. But this might hold true that a hitter batsman cannot adapt to Test variant where a batsman needs to apply more at the wicket for longer periods of time.
Laxman did much as a captain for the team by sacrificing the Icon status to accommodate Symonds in the team, at that time it was a huge attraction, coming out of the unceremonious happenings involving Harbhajan singh, talking about the captaincy on field, I think it is about the team balance and how fellow team mates respond to the situation at hand, no matter it is a 20-20 game, still there has to be a collective effort and an individual's failure cannot be the whole reason behind a team's failure. Actually it was Laxman, Afridi and Gilchrist who didn't performed to their potential, the local players did well. Symmonds did well with the bat but also gave away too many runs with the ball, if anybody remembers Delhi team's overhauling Deccan chargers total at Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi stadium at Uppal, it was Sehwag who won that match for Delhi from size able contribution from Gautam Gambhir.
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