All posts by h716a5.icu

There were almost no flaws in Sydney Sixers’ victorious campaign. Brad Haddin had rich resources at his disposal and he managed them astutely

Firdose Moonda29-Oct-2012At the start of the Champions League T20, there was little to suggest Sydney Sixers were different from the other contenders. Their first media engagement was held in the same room as everyone else’s and they addressed a small contingent of reporters, speaking with the same bravado and brushing off similar concerns. However, there was something about Brad Haddin that made him a little more serious than other captains, especially when he spoke of the management of the young fast bowlers in Sydney’s squad.”My job is to tell them to go out there and bowl fast,” Haddin had said in response to a question on how carefully he had been asked to look after Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. Sydney coach Corey Richards also voiced his opinion: “Managing them is important, but from our point of view we are here to win a competition and to get them performing as best as they can over the next couple of weeks.”At the time, those statements did not seem too revealing, except to say Sydney were taking the competition seriously. Over the three weeks, however, talk about the three quicks became almost as frequent as discussions of KP text-gate, only more exciting. The conditions suited Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood and they turned in performances that would have made those who don’t appreciate 20-over cricket take notice.Starc was the leader. With exceptional control for a young bowler, he was able to limit run scoring and prise wickets. Hazlewood backed him up and emerged as perhaps the second best prong of the attack. Cummins, however, may have reached a stage where his reputation precedes him. Despite being the quickest, he was targeted and expensive at times. But Cummins still showed why he is regarded as a special talent, and also held his nerve with the bat.As the trio turned in performance after performance, Haddin’s words echoed in the background. He managed them expertly and was getting as much as he could out of them. With a Test series between South Africa and Australia beginning next week, there was heightened interest in the quicks and their showing left locals in no doubt that Australia’s fast-bowling resources are well stocked.There was more to Sydney, though. A peek behind the bowlers gave a glimpse into the rest. They had a batting line-up that seemed never-ending. Against Titans in the semi-final, Ben Rohrer scored some of the most important runs in the Sydney reply and was later acknowledged by Richards as having done so. Steve O’Keefe was promoted to open the batting in that match and also did not disappoint.There was the all-round presence of Moises Henriques, who probably should have won Player of the Series. He outshone all the big names in the first match and ended up being one of the most reliable performers in the competition.The spinners were in the shadow of the quicks through the tournament but they achieved plenty in the final. A clever captaincy move allowed Nathan McCullum and O’Keefe to own a Wanderers pitch as though it was a dustbowl in Sri Lanka, and they did not even need turn to do it.And then there was Haddin. He missed out on selection for the home Tests against South Africa, but showed why he remains in contention. His leadership, which included playing with an injured thumb, was classy. He batted like he captained and was a major part of all of Sydney’s key moments in the tournament.As a result, Sydney dominated the tournament from start to finish, the latter parts without Shane Watson. They owned all the important statistics. They were the tournament’s only unbeaten team and won the final by the highest margin, in wicket terms, in the event’s history. Starc was the highest wicket-taker and Michael Lumb overtook four South Africans on the final day to become the leading run-scorer.The numbers, for once, did tell the whole story. As the final drew closer, opposition camps were describing Sydney as the most “complete” unit. Come to think of it, that word could have been used to explain Sydney’s poise in that first press conference: they looked as though they were complete.

A level-headed cricketer who is aware of his game’s limitations, he hasn’t been fazed by anything thrown at him during the World Cup

George Binoy in Townsville25-Aug-2012William Bosisto, the Australia Under-19 captain, was facing Bangladesh’s Soumya Sarkar in the quarter-final of the World Cup, when he saw the bowler ‘mankad’ the non-striker Jimmy Peirson, who was backing up earlier than he should have been. The next few minutes were fraught with confusion and tension as Bosisto spoke to Anamul Haque, to see if the Bangladesh captain would withdraw the appeal. He did not, and Australia were 33 for 4 chasing 172, their position worsened by an unconventional dismissal that is within the rules but perhaps not in the spirit of cricket.The Australian fans watching at Endeavour Park did not like it and voiced their displeasure. In a tinderbox of a quarter-final, it would have been natural for a teenager to get worked up and play a shot in anger. Bosisto said he did get worked up, but he did not do anything rash. Instead, the incident steeled his focus and Bosisto’s maturity came through during his conversation with the new batsman Travis Head.”Nothing different to what I would have told him if it had been caught behind or any other dismissal,” Bosisto said, when asked what he had told Head after the mankad. “Just about playing straight and bat for a period of time and establish a partnership.”Head scored 44 out of the 67-run stand but it was Bosisto who battled 134 balls for an unbeaten 71 to put Australia in the semi-final. That Man-of-the-Match performance was his fourth unbeaten innings in as many games this World Cup. Two of the first three were also compiled after Australia had lost early wickets during a chase. Bosisto was dismissed for the first time in the tournament by South Africa, run out for 40 with Australia four runs away from a place in the final and plenty of resources to get there.Bosisto’s batting is more gritty than it is aesthetically attractive, characterised by punches down the ground and shots square of the wicket played with economical movement. Among batsmen who’ve scored more than 150 runs in the World Cup, his strike-rate of 50.40 for an aggregate of 189 is the lowest. Bosisto is not fussed by it. He comes across as a level-headed cricketer who at quite an impressionable age is showing remarkable awareness of the strengths and limitations of his game and playing within those boundaries to lead his team to success in Townsville.”When you’re playing out in the middle, you want to be reasonably within your limitations,” Bosisto said. “I think at this World Cup, I haven’t really had to try too much audacious stroke play. I’ve just been required to be not out at the end and do it that way.”Despite having grown up during an age of aggressive Australian batsmanship at Test level, Bosisto’s not tried to over-reach himself too early and knows that there will be opportunities to develop his repertoire in the future. “Maybe growing up I’ve always tried to be a technical player, maybe my aggressive stroke play hasn’t come on like some of the younger generations that are brought up now, playing so freely right from the first ball kind of thing, like a David Warner kind of player,” Bosisto said. “But that’s certainly something that I need to work on over the next five-ten years to expand my repertoire, I suppose.”I know I’ve heard people speak about Justin Langer and Mike Hussey, two of my sort of idols. You know when they were 17 and 18, they were probably not far off, they just worked the ball around and maybe didn’t score as quickly as what they have when they’ve become older. They’ve just developed their stroke play, and as they got bigger and stronger it became easier to score more quickly.”

He plays within his limitations and there’s plenty of batsmen out there who get pretty 20s and 30s. That won’t get you too far, it might go alright in the IPL, but won’t go too far in Test cricket, don’t forget we’re producing cricketers here to play cricket for Australia at Test levelStuart Law on Bosisto

His coach Stuart Law is firmly in Bosisto’s corner. “He plays within his limitations and there’s plenty of batsmen out there who get pretty 20s and 30s. That won’t get you too far, it might go alright in the IPL, but won’t go too far in Test cricket, don’t forget we’re producing cricketers here to play cricket for Australia at Test level,” Law said. “And Will, as he progresses, will become a better one-day player and a better Twenty20 player as well, if he becomes a really good four-day player.”Law also rated Bosisto’s captaincy highly and if he had to pick out one criticism, it would be that it was over-aggressive at times, which was “a great thing” actually. “He’s got us over the line a lot of times, when we seemed to be in a bit of trouble,” Law said. “He’s just got a cool head under pressure. He’s been a gem to be around, he trains hard, one of the hardest trainers going around. He plays hard and that’s the way you should always play. It’s pleasing for me and Greg Chappell that we put our faith in him to lead this side and he’s led it with more than enough distinction.”Bosisto hasn’t been captain of Australia Under-19 for very long either, unlike his counterpart in Sunday’s World Cup final, Unmukt Chand, who’s led India since September 2011 and has 20 matches of international experience to date. Australia only settled on their captain two to three weeks before the tournament. In international matches before that, they tried Kurtis Patterson, Cameron Bancroft and Ashton Turner as captain.”It’s something that I love doing and I think it’s a good way to impose yourself on a game,” Bosisto said. “As a cricketer in the field, it’s sometimes hard to dominate I suppose, but as a captain you really get a chance to stamp your authority on the game with the way you go about your bowling changes and field placements.”There’s a number of leaders out on the field, Kurtis Patterson is one that you can go to, and we tend to bounce ideas off each other. I make the final calls but it’s great being able to bounce ideas off people. The more people throwing out ideas the more chances you’ve got of reaching the right outcome.”It’s good being able to captain such a strong side, often it makes your job easier when you’ve got such talented players who can execute the plans you ask them to. Often you don’t have to do a hell of a lot really. I suppose that’s the job of a captain, your role comes into play maybe when the things aren’t going so great, and you’ve got to try different things or keep the side up.”Bosisto’s earliest memories of cricket are of playing with his father at Jasper Green Reserve, a park down the road from his house in Perth, every morning before school. He’s on the opposite coast of Australia at the moment, preparing for the most significant match of his nascent career. Irrespective of Sunday’s result, Bosisto is in a great place for someone of his age, because being self-aware is half the battle. He needs to develop a few more gears but there’s time for that. Another calm, unbeaten innings at a strike-rate of 50 during a chase could be enough to win the World Cup.

On the surface, Sri Lanka’s chances are not promising, but they have drawn steel from their rivalry with Australia in recent years

Andrew Fernando in Hobart13-Dec-2012Though Sri Lanka may not rank as highly on Australia’s list of favourite foes, for most Sri Lankan fans, a victory against Australia is sweeter than any other. Australia were the arch-villains in Sri Lanka’s adolescence in international cricket, and those memories remain vivid, and attitudes entrenched, almost 20 years later.The only time Sri Lanka played a Boxing Day Test, the man who would become their greatest cricketer was called for throwing by an Australian umpire. Several months later, Australia declined to play a World Cup match in Sri Lanka, and were their opponent in the final – an occasion which unequivocally remains Sri Lanka’s most treasured cricket memory.Even beyond Sri Lanka’s coming of age, the taunts Murali endured in Australia fueled the rivalry, particularly when then prime minister of Australia, John Howard, waded into the debate. A decade of tactics aimed at mental disintegration also failed to endear the Australian side to Sri Lankan fans, whose own team often espoused a simpler, friendlier ethos, which seemed the diametric opposite of Steve Waugh’s abrasive, but outstanding approach.Times have changed. Ricky Ponting was the final remnant of that Australian era, but will not take guard in this series, and he had softened with the tide in any case. Murali is now a coveted commodity in Australia’s Big Bash League, while Lasith Malinga – the more modern evangelist for Sri Lankan heresy – reaps scalps with abandon in the same competition. Yet, a victory against Australia, particularly in their own country, will not rank far below their World Cup triumph and will be celebrated for years to come.On the surface however, the visitors’ chances are not promising. Australia may be stitching up the cuts endured in an epic tilt at the top ranking, but a seemingly unsettled top four hides a middle order deep in form at its most fetching, while the attack has begun to reclaim the ferocity – if not quite the magic – of its predecessors. Ponting will take some replacing, but a relatively fresh batting order will find Shaminda Eranga, Chanaka Welegedara and Nuwan Kulasekara a far less daunting assignment than the venom-tipped steel of South Africa’s fast men.A pace attack bereft of a single bowler with 50 Test wickets to his name, or even 20 appearances at the top level, may serve as the perfect opportunity for Shane Watson and Phillip Hughes to break in their new roles, and for each of the top four to tune up ahead of tours in India and England. Rangana Herath has emerged as Sri Lanka’s primary match-winner in the last 18 months, but Australian pitches will likely limit his threat, and as Kumar Sangakkara hinted ahead of the first Test, only a surface approaching a greentop in Hobart will dress the Sri Lankan attack with enough penetration to effect a win there.For Sri Lanka’s batsmen, the tour shapes as a hugely defining one, particularly on a personal level. This will be the last dance in Australia for the two latest inductees into Sri Lanka’s batting pantheon, and Sangakkara in particular has a chance to confirm himself as a modern great if he succeeds over the next month. Rumours have been floating of Tillakaratne Dilshan’s Test retirement too, while Thilan Samaraweera will also want to further erode a former-reputation as a home-track hero, before what looms as a largely empty 2013 for him, with Sri Lanka’s Test postponements and cancellations having left Test specialists with little to look forward to.”A lot of the guys will be very hungry to do well,” Mahela Jayawardene said. “It’s a big occasion for some of our guys, including myself. I haven’t played Tests in Melbourne or Sydney, for example, and it’s a great atmosphere. Those are incentives for the guys to lift their game and do well. Especially when you’re playing against a top side like Australia, you want to lift your game. It’s about pride. We aren’t just there to make up the numbers, we’re going to play a good game. Individually the guys will have to come up with a game plan on how they’re going to adjust. The bowlers will have to work out how to attack a really good batting line-up as well.”Sri Lanka have drawn steel from their rivalry with Australia in recent years, and have competed well in ODI series, even winning a three-match bilateral down under in 2010. They may not have the personnel in hand to shape up as a serious challenge to Australia, but if they can find that extra tenacity in their reserves like they have in the limited-overs series, perhaps they can lift their game as Jayawardene hopes. It is the only way they can break a 24-year old duck on Australian soil.

Spin – both facing it and bowling it – has been a challenge for Australia on their previous tours to India. How well will they cope this time?

S Rajesh20-Feb-2013An Australian line-up with only four players who’ve experienced Test cricket in India before will attempt to achieve something that only three other sides have managed in 23 series since 2000. When England trumped India 2-1 in the four-Test series late last year, they became the third team – after Australia in 2004 and South Africa in 2000 – to win a Test series in India since 2000. Despite India’s Test fortunes being on a downward slide in the last 20 months, it’ll be a tough ask for Australia to replicate what England achieved: England had two high-quality spinners, and a settled and experienced batting line-up; Australia’s spin attack looks far inferior when compared to the Graeme Swann-Monty Panesar combination, while their batting line-up is still grappling with the retirements of two heavyweights, Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey.The India-Australia historical head-to-head shows two distinct sets of numbers, depending on the country hosting the matches. In Australia, India have struggled to notch up victories, losing five Tests for every one they’ve won. At home, though, they’ve won more than they’ve lost, and have been especially dominant in the last few years, winning ten out of 17 since the beginning of 1996.The average columns indicate that Australia tend to slip up in both aspects, the batting and the bowling, when they tour. At home against India, they average 39 with the bat and 29.49 with the ball; in tours to India since 1995, the batting average has dipped to less than 32, and the bowling one has gone up to more than 37.In these 17 Tests in India, Australian batsmen have scored more hundreds than the Indians – 16 to 15 (though their batsmen have also batted 28 more times). However, they’ve also been dismissed cheaply more often, getting out for 20 or less 178 times, compared to 151 for India.

Australia v India, in Tests

TestsAus wonInd wonDrawnBat ave-AusBat ave-IndOverall8238202335.4230.89in Australia40265939.0029.49in India4212151432.1532.42in India since 199517410331.5937.21Three teams have done significantly better than Australia when they’ve toured India, of which two are South Africa and England, teams you’d expect should also struggle to play spin. South Africa have won as many Tests as they’ve lost, and they’re the one team whose batting average is higher than the bowling one. For Australia, the bowling average is more than five runs higher than the batting average.

Overseas teams in India since 1995

TeamTestsWon/ lostRatioBat aveBowl avePakistan93/ 31.0034.0039.09South Africa125/ 51.0035.6731.58England123/ 40.7534.6035.12Australia174/ 100.4031.5937.21New Zealand130/ 50.0030.9345.79Sri lanka90/ 40.0034.2046.93West Indies60/ 40.0027.8344.03Zimbabwe40/ 30.0033.0164.08Australia’s susceptibility against spin was on display in their warm-up game against India A, and traditionally too they haven’t handled spin all that well in India. Since 1995, Indian spinners have averaged 29.05 runs per wicket against Australia in 17 Tests, their third-best against any team during this period. England and South Africa have the best stats against India’s spinners, but while England’s batsmen have performed relatively poorly against India’s seamers, South Africa have done well against them too. Australia’s stats against pace is pretty good in India, but they’ve succumbed to spin pretty regularly: 15 times India’s spinners have taken five-fors against them in 17 Tests.Almost half of those 15 five-fors have been taken by Harbhajan Singh, which explains his inclusion into the Indian squad despite not having lived up to his reputation in the domestic season. In 12 home Tests against Australia, Harbhajan has taken 81 wickets at 24.48. Anil Kumble was equally spectacular as well, with 62 wickets in ten Tests at 24.46, but in his absence, it remains to be seen if Harbhajan can be equally effective.Among the current Australian batsmen, Michael Clarke and Shane Watson are the two batsmen who’ve faced the Harbhajan threat in Tests in India. Clarke has the better stats against him, scoring 132 runs at an average of 44, while Watson averages 31. Both have pretty low scoring rates against him, with Watson scoring only 93 runs in 273 balls.Australia will also miss the experience of Ponting and Hussey, especially when it comes to handling Harbhajan. Ponting struggled against Harbhajan in 2001, but did much better thereafter, scoring 148 runs and being dismissed only twice. Hussey scored 136 off Harbhajan and was dismissed three times. In their absence much of the batting onus will be on Clarke, and though he scored a century in his first Test innings in India – which was also his debut – his overall numbers in India are disappointing: 686 runs in 19 innings at 38.11. Watson has done slightly better, averaging 40.09 in 11 innings.

India’s spinners and pace bowlers at home v each team in Tests since 1995

OppositionSpin-wktsAverage5WI/ 10WMPace-wktsAverage5WI/ 10WMWest Indies7924.027/ 06434.430/ 0New Zealand12727.148/ 25934.051/ 0Australia21029.0515/ 48236.572/ 0Zimbabwe4331.272/ 02737.291/ 0Pakistan9131.506/ 26735.165/ 1Sri Lanka7331.823/ 24836.082/ 0South Africa11832.615/ 05640.392/ 0England12034.847/ 16432.790/ 0

Clarke and Watson v Harbhajan Singh in Tests in India

BatsmanRunsBallsDismissalsAverageRun rateMichael Clarke132308344.002.57Shane Watson93273331.002.04While Australia’s batsmen have struggled against Indian spin, the visitors’ spinners haven’t made much of an impression on the Indian batsmen, either in terms of taking wickets or in terms of keeping the runs in check. The Australian spinners have conceded almost 42 runs per wicket, at an economy rate of 3.50 runs per over. Thus, the onus of taking wickets keeping a check on the runs has fallen on the fast bowlers, and they’ve done a reasonably good job of it. Among the bowlers in the current Australian squad, though, only Mitchell Johnson has played more than one Test, and his six matches have fetched him 21 wickets at 37.23.

Australia’s pace and spin in India in Tests since 1995

WicketsAverageEcon rateStrike rate5WI/ 10WMPace15733.782.8670.83/ 0Spin9041.733.5071.43/ 1Among the Indian batting lot, the pressure will be on Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, both of whom have had poor spells of late. Tendulkar scored a commanding century in the Irani Cup and has an outstanding record against Australia both home and away, while Virender Sehwag has better stats in Australia than in India. The biggest contrast in numbers, though, is for MS Dhoni, whose home average against Australia is more than twice his away average against them.

Indian batsmen v Australia, home and away since 1995

BatsmanHome TestsAverage100s/ 50sAway TestsAverage100s/ 50sSachin Tendulkar1562.655/ 81555.424/ 7Virender Sehwag1040.151/ 51047.402/ 4MS Dhoni644.120/ 4718.690/ 1Murali Vijay262.501/ 0—All four venues hosting the Tests – Chennai, Hyderabad, Mohali and Delhi – have been pretty good ones for India: collectively they’ve lost only 13 out of 73 Tests at these grounds. Since 2000 they haven’t lost at any of these venues, winning 13 out of 21 Tests, and drawing eight; they’ve won five out of six in Delhi, four out of seven in Mohali and three out of six in Chennai. Australia, on the other hand, haven’t played a Test yet in Hyderabad, but have a losing record at the other three grounds, winning only two Tests out of 14, and losing six.

England do not lose too many Test matches these days

Andy Zaltzman25-Feb-2013England do not lose too many Test matches these days. But when they do lose, they lose properly. They go down hard, they go down fast, and they go down in a blaze of statistical ignominy. Since the Flower-Strauss era began, with an almost mathematics-defying innings defeat after collapsing to 51 all out in Jamaica three years ago, England have lost only five more Tests (which, to put their current travails in perspective, is as many as they lost in six weeks in Australia in 2006-07, or in two months against the West Indies whenever they played them in the mid-1980s). They have won 20, drawn 11, and risen to the top of the world rankings. But when they fail, they do not mess about with half-measures. They take a treble measure of neat cricketing vodka, and wash it down with a meths chaser.The ten-wicket Dubai splattering by a resurgent, skilful and determined Pakistan followed in the pattern of the 267-run clouting in Perth in last winter’s Ashes (do not let Australians persuade you that was in fact “last summer’s Ashes”, it was not; it was in the winter; after watching it, I went outside and had to put a woolly hat on; therefore it was winter; the Australians play cricket in winter; that is a fact). The sequence was partially interrupted by a fluctuating four-wicket loss to Pakistan at The Oval, a close game but one that nevertheless featured some historically inept batting by England. Prior to that, England had been clobbered by an innings by South Africa in Johannesburg, and by Australia at Headingley.All of these defeats have featured collapses of 1929 stock market proportions – displays of landmark batting uselessness in an era notable for its unusually persistent and increasingly dominant successes, and also for its dogged, match-saving rearguards. The Jamaica debacle was England’s third-lowest Test score of all time, and only the fifth time that ten Englishmen have failed to reach double figures in a Test innings; at Headingley, England had eight players dismissed for 3 or fewer in a Test innings for the first time in their history, registered 13 dismissals for less than five runs for the second time ever (the first was another 1880s scorebook-burning classic), and were dismissed in under 34 overs in an Ashes Test innings for the second time in 105 years; in Johannesburg, England failed to last 550 balls in their two innings combined for just the third time in over 100 years; at The Oval, all of England’s top six were dismissed for 17 or fewer in the first innings of a Test for the first time since 1887, none of England’s bottom six scored more than 6 runs in the second innings of a Test for only the seventh time in their history, and England lost their last seven wickets for less than 30 runs for the first time in over a decade; in Perth, they failed to last 100 overs in the two innings of a Test in Australia for the first time since 1903-04.Dubai was the latest outbreak of proper, unmitigated batting failure. England slunk to 42 for 4 in the first innings and 35 for 4 in the second ‒ the fifth-worst match performance by England’s top four wickets since the First World War. They then subsided to 94 for 7 and 87 for 7 – the first time since 1988 that England have lost their seventh wicket for less than 100 in both innings of a Test, and the sixth-worst match performance by England’s top seven wickets since the treaty of Versailles heralded 21 years of glorious peace for the world. (Those 21 years, of course, followed four years of war – giving Versailles an 84% success rate, and thus making it a better treaty than Bradman was a batsman. Arguably.)It is a curiosity that England’s rare failures are so cricketingly catastrophic. They have succeeded through collective excellence with bat and ball. They seem to fail with similarly impressive levels of teamwork.They have also tended to respond positively to their isolated failures. They may fall off their horse from time to time, but they get straight back on that horse, feed it a sugar lump, and then Knievel it over a row of buses. Each of their last four defeats has been followed by a victory. And a big victory – by and innings and lots in Melbourne in the Ashes, and at Lord’s against Pakistan, by 181 in Chittagong in the first Test after the Johannesburg blooper, and by 197 at The Oval after seeming to be intent on hurling the Ashes away at Leeds. They also followed the 51 all out schemozzle with 566 for 9 in the next Test.Certainly England were deservedly beaten in Dubai, and they were beaten like a naughty egg white in a 1970s police investigation. On the evidence of the Flower-Strauss years, from that beaten egg white, a deliciously crunchy meringue may grow in the Abu Dhabi Test. However, this admirable Pakistan team, only the second Pakistan Test side to contain (a) seven players over the age of 30 and (b) no one under the age of 25, is unlikely to be quite such compliant assistant dessert chefs as Australia were in Melbourne in 2010-11, or as a very, very different Pakistan team was at Lord’s 18 months ago.ExtrasThe more eagle-eyed Confectionery Stall readers among you may have noticed that I did not entirely predict the narrative and outcome of the first Test. My forecast of a one-nil series victory for England is now looking distinctly unlikely. At best. The two players I highlighted as the Ones to Watch did not adorn the match with scintillating brilliance. Azhar Ali adorned it with one solitary run, and Monty Panesar did not adorn it at all, other than by looking on lugubriously from the pavilion, wondering whether, given his glorious undefeated rearguard in his previous Test, in Cardiff in 2009, he might have been able to stem England’s collapses. In my minimal defence, I did write that England’s obviously imminent victory might not happen if they were “scuppered by the wiles of Saeed Ajmal”. At least seven true words out of 1100. That is by no means the worst performance ever by a British journalist. If I can indeed describe myself as a journalist. Which I certifiably cannot.Some stats: Saeed Ajmal became the first bowler to take ten wickets in a Test against England since Murali (twice) in 2006, and the first Pakistan bowler to do so since Abdul Qadir, who did it three times in 1987. England had lost 16 wickets to specialist spin bowlers in their previous three major series, at an average of 86 runs per wicket. In Dubai, Ajmal and Abdur Rehman took 14 for 186. They bowled very well. England batted very badly. Before the last Test, Ajmal had taken 21 wickets in UAE Tests at an average of 34.I did promise to write about India’s struggles in this blog. I have not done that. Many other people have done that. I may do it next time. Unless the struggles have been miraculously cured. Or become significantly worse.

The confidence he has gained out of performing against the big names in the IPL has helped Ambati Rayudu climb to the top of his game once more, after a few troubled years

Amol Karhadkar29-Apr-2013Ambati Rayudu hails from Hyderabad and represents the franchise from Mumbai. But there’s something about the team from Bangalore that ensures Rayudu is in the headlines when playing against them.In 2011, his match-winning, unbroken partnership of 110 with Sachin Tendulkar against Royal Challengers Bangalore was followed by the master batsman asking Rayudu to join him at the presentation ceremony to share the Man of the Match award. Last year, his ugly spat with Royal Challengers’ Harshal Patel resulted in Rayudu being fined his entire match fee for the game.This year, again, Rayudu, the only regular without an international cap in the Mumbai Indians’ star-studded line-up, was in the thick of the action during Mumbai Indians’ high-profile duel with Royal Challengers. If his controversial run-out, which resulted in the Wankhede Stadium crowd booing Royal Challengers captain Virat Kohli all through the night, wasn’t enough, Rayudu waited and waited with his breath held before latching on to a skier from Chris Gayle just a few inches inside the boundary rope. It may not have looked as spectacular as some of the other catches so far in IPL 2013, but in terms of its impact on the game Rayudu’s catch was right up there at the top. No wonder then that as soon he had regained his balance after completing the catch, he burst into a wild, celebratory sprint. The catch turned out to be the catalyst for Mumbai Indians’ mauling of Royal Challengers.If one has to draw up a list of domestic cricketers for whom the IPL has turned out to be more of a boon than bane, Rayudu would feature at the top. His fall was as sharp as his rise as the next big thing in batting from the stables of Hyderabad. He went from being the most promising youngster around in 2002, to being discarded by both the domestic teams from the state by 2007, and joined the Indian Cricket League. And then came the IPL. Once Rayudu returned to the BCCI’s fold following ‘amnesty’ in 2009, he was signed by Mumbai Indians, then led by Tendulkar and coached by Robin Singh, both of whom rated him highly despite the middle-order batman failing to make optimal use of his phenomenal talent on the field. A decent debut IPL season in 2010 was followed by a better one: in 2011 he finished Mumbai Indians’ second-highest run-getter after Tendulkar.”IPL definitely worked for him in many ways. Once he started performing well against the international players and in front of big crowds, it made him really confident,” Sanath Kumar, who has been the coach of Baroda – Rayudu’s domestic team – for the last two seasons, said. “That is when he started believing all over again that he can come back and play for the country. During our numerous conversations, he always says ‘money will come and go sir, but representing the country is the main goal’. I am sure he is not very far from achieving the goal since he has been doing all the things right.”Once his confidence was restored, it reflected in his performances for Baroda. He gained in consistency, something that he had badly lacked for almost a decade prior to that. This ensured he became a permanent fixture in the India A squad over the last two years. And the big dream of the boy who had led India’s Under-19 World Cup team in 2004 was achieved ahead of last year’s twin Twenty20s against England, when he was named in India’s squad. Rayudu might not have played in the series, but the call-up rubberstamped the fact that he had risen to the top again after his falling away.Two years ago, during an interaction with this writer, Rayudu had mentioned Robin Singh was one of those people who stood behind him like a rock, even during his difficult days. “Robin has been the one who has been guiding me all these years,” Rayudu said. “He has been telling me to spend time in the middle. ‘You will eventually make many runs and you will personally be surprised with the runs that you get’ he says.” Now that backing is paying off for Mumbai Indians.Over the past four IPLs, Rayudu has played a role similar to what Rahul Dravid did for India’s ODI side a decade ago. From an opener to No. 8, he has been floated all across the line-up. He has also donned the gloves when the team was struggling to find a batsman-wicketkeeper.During this year’s edition, his role has changed again. The gloves are off but Rayudu is being utilised more at No. 6 with a decision being taken to use Kieron Pollard ahead of him. He didn’t seem to take much time to get adapted to his new role of a finisher, as his cameo against Delhi Daredevils showed – that was the first game in which he was slotted in at No. 6 this season.Rayudu has not really surprised himself with his performances, but he certainly has forced quite a few of those who had written him off earlier to have a rethink.

If you are a fan of Indian cricket, the Sunday game in Delhi would have made you very happy

Prithvijit Roy22-Apr-2013Choice of game
It was my dream to watch a good Virender Sehwag innings live and write an account of the day. I have watched matches in stadiums since 2005, my under-grad days, and it’s an addictive exercise. This was the first time I got to watch Sehwag in the flesh.Getting to the stadium
Since it was a marquee game, the stadium was packed. With all the security checks and general crowd mismanagement by the authorities, we missed the first three balls. I was heartbroken, because I had wanted to watch Sachin Tendulkar and Ricky Ponting walk in together. However, I was relieved to see that it was Dwayne Smith and not Ponting who had accompanied Tendulkar.Fan love
All the spectators watched Tendulkar’s entry with bated breath, regardless of the team they supported. Everyone must have cheered his defensive prod as much they did as his trademark straight drives or his vicious pulls to the boundary line. Shahbaz Nadeem became the darling of the crowd because he dropped a catch off on 37. It was only when Tendulkar was dismissed that you could make out the difference in allegiances.As the evening wore on and a cool breeze blew into the stadium, Rohit Sharma and Kieron Pollard made mincemeat of Delhi’s hapless attack.Key perfomer
I had already got my money’s worth from seeing Tendulkar bat. But I soon realised that was only the appetiser, because the main course was to be served by the artist and the butcher – Mahela Jayawardene and Virender Sehwag. From a spectator’s point of view, both styles were equally appealing. While you could hear a loud thwack when Sehwag struck the ball, it was only when you saw the ball race towards the boundary that you realised Jayawardene had made contact.My friends know I am an ardent Sehwag fan and he was indeed the showstopper yesterday, but in the years to come, perhaps, I will recall the razor-like precision with which Jayawardene manipulated the field. Who could believe this team was at the bottom of the table? I can proudly say I was a part of an evening crowd that watched one of the best batting displays. There were no slogs, no dilscoops or ugly hoicks. Just proper cricketing shots that struck a chord with the audience.One thing I’d have changed about the match
I’d have preferred to see Ponting bat rather than sit in his pads in the dugout.The comic relief
In between all the Sehwag-Jayawardene mania, Harbhajan Singh entertained us when he got hold of a kite that had floated down to the ground.Crowd meter
I usually try to get tickets for the East Stand, which has a better view, but this time I only managed to get seats in the West Stand. It was fascinating to watch all those mobile phone flashing across the stand to capture Tendulkar at the boundary line, the closest many fans would get to him. The good thing about players like Tendulkar and Harbhajan is that they acknowledge their supporters wherever they play, making it a point to wave to the crowd.Unfortunately my phone had got switched off, so I could not analyse the match with my friends who were watching TV, nor could I add a photo of Tendulkar on the boundary to Facebook to make them envious.Overall
As the match was drawing to a close, with Daredevils needing seven to win (and Sehwag on 91) David Warner became the villain of the day as he clipped a boundary and prevented Sehwag from getting a hundred before the match finished.Knowing that it would take us a long time to get out of the stadium, we hurried down from the third floor to the first so that it would be easy to make our exit. Seeing the floodlit stadium from the bottom up made me think how beautiful some of the innovations of this game are, like coloured clothing and day-night cricket. It has given the sport a wider appeal.

The nucleus of this England side is not going to change overnight, but some key players are now the wrong side of 30 and will leave tough holes to fill when the time comes

George Dobell22-Aug-2013Whatever else happens over the last three days of this match, England may reflect on the Oval Test of 2013 as having provided a disconcerting peek into their future.It is not just that their two debutants in this match – Chris Woakes and Simon Kerrigan – have endured tough baptisms into Test cricket. It is that, over the last four years, England have now brought 12 new players into their Test side without any of them making an incontrovertible case for long-term inclusion.You have to go back to 2009, when Jonathan Trott won his first Test cap, to find an England player who can be said to a have made an uncompromised success of his elevation.Since then a dozen men have been tried – Michael Carberry, Steven Finn, James Tredwell, Eoin Morgan, Ajmal Shahzad, Samit Patel, Jonny Bairstow, James Taylor, Nick Compton, Joe Root, Kerrigan and Woakes – and, while four or five (Taylor, Finn, Bairstow and Root in particular) may yet prove themselves worthy Test players, none have yet progressed to become long-term, automatic selections.As a result, England continue to rely on the same trusted characters. But the unsettling suspicion is that, scratch beneath the surface of this strong England side, and there are doubts about their bench strength.While England look relatively well stocked with top-order batsmen – the likes of Varun Chopra, Luke Wells and Sam Robson – and tall, fast bowlers – the likes of Jamie Overton, Boyd Rankin, Finn and Tremlett, who responded to be overlooked for this match by claiming five wickets for Surrey on Thursday – they are no closer to finding a replacement for the swing of James Anderson or the spin of Graeme Swann.Maybe that is not surprising. Anderson and Swann are two of the best bowlers England have possessed in decades. But they are both over 30, they are both required to shoulder heavy workloads and neither can be expected to do so indefinitely.While it had been presumed that Monty Panesar would inherit Swann’s role in this side – and there are whispers that this could, just could, be Swann’s final Test in England – recent revelations about Panesar have thrown some doubt over his long-term involvement. Suffice it to say, it would be naive to conclude that his bizarre behaviour in Brighton recently was simply an aberration.That would mean that Kerrigan could be England’s first choice spinner much earlier than had been anticipated. Aged only 24 and with an impressive first-class record, Kerrigan no doubt has a bright future. But on the evidence of this game, he is some way from being a Test cricketer.In some ways, the second day of this Test was even more depressing than the first for Kerrigan. There are caveats to the decision not to bowl him – it was a day truncated by poor weather and conditions favoured the seamers – but to see Trott called into the attack ahead of him hardly provided a ringing endorsement of his captain’s faith in his abilities. Perhaps a more sympathetic captain might have found a way to involve Kerrigan a little more.Any judgement on Woakes’ debut depends on how you perceive his role. He bowled tidily enough on a flat wicket and will surely never let England down. Whether that is enough to justify a Test career as a third seamer is highly debatable, though. And, while he may yet score match-defining runs from No. 6, what has become clear is that he cannot be viewed as a viable alternative as the incisive swing bowling replacement of Anderson. England don’t have one.

In some ways, the second day of this Test was even more depressing than the first for Kerrigan. There are caveats to the decision not to bowl him – it was a day truncated by poor weather and conditions favoured the seamers – but to see Trott called into the attack ahead of him hardly provided a ringing endorsement of his captain’s faith in his abilities

It may be too early to draw conclusions as to the reasons for the struggles of recent England debutants, but part of the problem may lie in the county game. Over the past few years, English county cricket has witnessed the removal of Kolpak registrations – a well-intentioned but not entirely positive move – an increasing difficulty in securing top-quality overseas players, an absence of the top England players on international or even Lions duty and the premature elevation of inexperienced cricketers due to young player incentives.Every change was well intentioned, but the combination has weakened the breeding ground of England’s Test team. There are too many weak young players who might never have made it into professional sport a decade ago competing against one another.Compare it to the side that took England to No. 1 in the Test rankings. It contained four men in the top seven (Alastair Cook, Andrew Strauss, Trott and Matt Prior) who had scored centuries on Test debut, two more (Ian Bell and Kevin Pietersen) who had scored half-centuries and a bowler (Anderson) who claimed a five-wicket haul.Every one of them had been developed in county cricket at a time when young players had to fight for inclusion among Kolpak registrations, experienced England players and some excellent overseas cricketers. County cricket prepared them much more thoroughly.There is a strong suspicion that the next few months will witness a changing of the guard in the management of this England side, too. Andy Flower, arguably the most positive influence on England cricket in a generation, may well step down from his day-to-day coaching role with the side after the tour of Australia this winter.While he is highly likely to remain involved in a role overseeing the England teams – a position similar to that undertaken by Hugh Morris at present – it is anticipated that Ashley Giles will assume day-to-day coaching responsibilities.Sooner or later England must embrace change. The next test for them will be to see whether the improvements of recent years are the result of a once in a lifetime collection of players – the likes of Pietersen and Cook and Anderson and Swann – or whether, with all the money invested in age-group teams, talent identification and coaching, the national centre of excellence and a dozen other schemes, the entire system has been transformed to ensure continuity of excellence and a constant conveyor belt of quality players.The evidence of this Test has not been especially encouraging.

South Africa squashed their opponents at home last summer. This year’s visitors are expected to be tougher, and Graeme Smith wants his team to be as ruthless

Firdose Moonda in Johannesburg17-Dec-20130:00

‘Hoping Tahir will make an impact’ – Smith

The summer of 2012 had some milestones for South African cricket.It was the first time Graeme Smith’s team played at home after winning the Test mace in England that August. It was also the first time since readmission that there was no Test in Durban: Kingsmead’s traditional Boxing Day fixture was cancelled in favour of a Twenty20 series. When the Tests began, South Africa won all of them in a home season for the first time in a decade. None of the matches lasted five days.That last point was the most notable of the lot. After becoming the top-ranked Test side and then winning a series in Australia, South Africa’s mission was to assert their authority over the rest. They were ruthless against New Zealand, who barely posed a challenge, and Pakistan, who worried them only on the first day in Johannesburg and when Saeed Ajmal took ten wickets in Cape Town.The summer of 2013 is expected to be trickier. South Africa are still No. 1, having ended a seven-month break from Tests with a drawn series against Pakistan in the UAE. It’s not mid-table teams they are up against at home, though, and they have to play in Durban, where they have not won a Test since January 2008. It is likely that matches will last longer than they did last summer.Tahir v Peterson

The Wanderers pitch promises to be seamer-friendly and as a result South Africa could have picked the holding left-arm spinner in Robin Peterson in the XI, instead of the attacking legspinner Imran Tahir. Graeme Smith and the coach Russell Domingo, however, selected the aggressive option.
“Imran has been bowling really well,” Smith said. “Even though we know the role of the spinner may be limited here, we felt that if an impact was needed, he could do it. We also felt our batting depth was good enough and Imran could really be effective against tailenders.”
Tahir was dropped for Peterson after conceding 0 for 260 in Adelaide in November 2012, but had an opportunity to make a comeback when Peterson was ineffective against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi.
Tahir took his chance, claiming eight wickets in Dubai to secure his spot. He is familiar with the Wanderers pitch because it is one of the home grounds for his domestic franchise, the Lions.

South Africa’s first opponents are the No. 2 ranked side. Though India’s rise in the rankings has been a result of victories at home, they have been competitive in South Africa in the past. There’s reason to believe they will be again, despite the transition they are going through after Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement.”Their line-up is hugely talented, although very different to the one I have become accustomed to playing against,” South Africa’s captain Graeme Smith said. Of the 27 Tests South Africa have played against India, only twice have they not come up against Tendulkar. In 2008, he missed the Kanpur and Ahmedabad matches with a groin injury.Tendulkar’s absence has got the South African bowlers excited. Morne Morkel said that without him and Rahul Dravid, India’s line-up lacked “guys who can bat time,” although he singled out Cheteshwar Pujara as being someone with the potential to do that. He expected the other batsmen to attack and said they may come unstuck if they adopt that approach.For Morkel, possibly South Africa’s gentlest soul, to issue such a stern warning shows the level of self-belief in this squad. They don’t think they can beat teams; they know they can.Smith said that was the major difference between this Test side and the one that could not beat India three seasons ago. “There’s confidence and composure now, and growth in terms of knowing that we can win from certain situations,” he said.Where South Africa have to be careful is in ensuring that their conviction does not become complacency. To guard against that, Smith has spoken about building a legacy – a term that is used to remind his team that every series is part of a bigger goal.”We play the game hard and there’s a big respect for the opposition. Hopefully we will be able to set standards,” Smith said. “If you look at the Ashes, it puts into perspective the type of performances we’ve been able to put in. It’s legacy and we need to have a care factor for that.”The Ashes winners, Australia, will tour South Africa later in the summer and that is expected to be a fiery affair. Smith does not want to look that far yet. “I don’t feel there is any hype around the dressing room for that. We need to overcome this first.”Smith’s focus is in the right place because South Africa have not won a series against India since 2006: the last three series were drawn. Their goal is crystal clear. Last summer, South Africa wanted to show they could win big. This year, they want to prove they can win hard.

Graeme Smith was the last of South Africa’s old guard. The roots of the new one need to grow deeper

Firdose Moonda06-Mar-2014In one summer, South African cricket has lost 30 years. The retirements of Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis took away three decades of experience and ended an era. Not just any era. South Africa’s most successful era.Before the 2013-14 season began, South Africa’s Test side had lost only one series in eight years. That was to Australia at home. They had gone from Antigua to Auckland, and Birmingham to Brisbane, and did not lose for 14 series.That run isn’t as good as those of the great sides – Australia were unbeaten for 16 series between 2001 and 2005 and West Indies for 29 over 15 years – but it broke new ground for South Africa. It made them serious contenders to be considered among Test cricket’s legendary outfits. They might not have the longevity, but they do have the ingredients.Comparisons between Clive Lloyd’s West Indian attack and this South African one began when Vernon Philander’s rise completed a three-pronged pace battery. With Kallis as the fourth seamer, South Africa had the complete set, though they lacked a world-class spinner. But so did that West Indian team.Comparisons with Steve Waugh or Ricky Ponting’s Australia for ruthlessness, however, could not be made with certainty. South Africa were known more for the art of not losing rather than the art of winning. They play hard but their aggression has not yet been sharpened to be as crafty or nuanced as Australia’s. Still, when they wiped the floor with last summer’s opponents – New Zealand and Pakistan – there were signs the killer instinct was awakening.The defining characteristic of this South African side was resilience. It was their greatness. They learned conditions around the world, sometimes better than they did the ones at home, and developed a style of play suited to every location. They learned how to get themselves off the ropes and put the opposition on them. The ability to counterpunch is no less a skill than the ability to land the first blow.Now, South Africa will have to stage their most difficult counterattack yet. This is the challenge Smith talked about 19 months ago, when his team wrested the Test mace from England. He said they would have to learn to stand firm when the wind came to blow them off the mountaintop. The South Easter has arrived.The great sides of West Indies and Australia had more than one wave of success, and that is why they became iconic. South Africa need a second wave, because the first has washed ashore.Not only are Smith and Kallis gone, the leader of the triad Mark Boucher went before them. Though South Africa rose to No. 1 without Boucher, who was forced into retirement before that England series by injury, they had been infused by his influence. Boucher remained best friends with Kallis and Smith and close to the rest of the squad. He joined them at training sessions and on team-building camps.The other person instrumental for South Africa’s successful team environment is also no longer a part of the set-up – their former coach Gary Kirsten. Like he did with India, Kirsten took a group of talented individuals and turned them into a winning team. He did that by allowing players the freedom they needed to become a family.The majority of that family is still around, and they will have to fill the gaps left by the absentees. Dale Steyn has already put his hand up to do that. On the team’s early morning flight to Port Elizabeth for the start of the Twenty20 series against Australia, following the Newlands Test defeat, he tweeted a picture with the captain: “Bouch, Kallis and now Biff gone! Officially the old man in the team looking after the new kids!” The photograph was of Steyn sitting next to Quinton de Kock. The young wicketkeeper was fast asleep.South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo spoke about his desire to see AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, Hashim Amla and Vernon Philander use what they learned from Smith, Kallis and Boucher and become icon players themselves. De Villiers and Amla have already done that with their batting. Now they need to it through their leadership.De Villiers already does to some extent as captain of the ODI team, and Amla does it quietly through example. That has its own benefits because as much as South Africa need to find a new core of seniors, they also need to find suitable personnel. They have already seen how difficult that can be, in the quest to fill the Kallis-sized hole.Because there have been very few like Kallis in cricket, South Africa have had to try out different lower-order allrounders to find a replacement. It is too early to tell which of Ryan McLaren, Wayne Parnell and Kyle Abbott is the long-term solution, especially given Philander’s ability to do a similar job in the tail.Now South Africa have the additional task of finding an opening batsman, possibly two. Alviro Petersen is only just clinging on to his spot. Dean Elgar was fighting him for it, but now that Smith is gone Elgar has an easier vacancy to fill. The opening duo of Petersen and Elgar will not inspire the same confidence as Smith and Petersen, or Smith and Elgar, or Smith and anyone did.It’s that syndrome South Africa will have to get over. The only way to move on from losing Smith – and Kallis and Boucher – is to make a clean break. No comparisons, no longing for their return and no excuses. It needs to be balanced against making sure they get the appreciation and praise they deserve for their all they have given South African cricket.When last spring sprung, nobody would have said with certainty that both Kallis and Smith were about to join Boucher and Kirsten as men who had decided the autumn of their careers was over. Domingo has already endured one winter of discontent in his first assignment as national coach with the ODI side, in Sri Lanka last August. He will not want another when he takes the Test team there this July under a new captain. Should South Africa come through that unscathed they can look forward to a good home summer. A summer of new beginnings.