West Indies's cricket in a disarray!

Everyone knew that cricket in the Caribbean was going through tough times, but it is sad to see the situation getting worse as it is not just the battle between WIPA and the board, but the coach of the team Dyson has been made a scapegoat for the defeat against Bangladesh and sacked, though one can surely say the side that lost to Bangladesh was a second string side.

The cricket in Caribbean has been on a slow decline for more than 15 years now, but the sad fact is it is getting worse, and probably it has reached its nadir.

I do remember senior players like Marshall, Dujon etc at the time of their retirement in 91/92 saying everything isn't rosy as far as cricket in the Caribbean is concerned.

In 1995 Richie Richardson had problems with the star batsman Lara, and Lara didn't even tour Australia in 95/96. Finally Richardson retired after the 96 world cup as Walsh became the captain. I have also heard about disunity at that time itself.

Lara was finally given the chance to captain the side in 98, but again even in 98 there were problems between the board, and the players association before a tour to SA, though it was resolved just in time, but it did affect the performance of the side as they lost 5-0 in SA.

For a brief period Lara got disillusioned with cricket, and took a break as Adams took over the captaincy, but the Caribbean team lost most of their matches as Adams finally resigned from the role of captaining the side.

Hooper, who had retired from the game came back to take up the mantle of captaincy as he, and the coach Logie did a decent job, but the stop gap arrangement didn't last long, and finally it ended after a disappointing world cup campaign in 03.

Players strike came back to haunt the side in 04 during the tour of Lanka when Chanders took up the mantle of captaining a second string side, and he continued to be the captain in spite of senior players coming back into the side only to see the team lose match after match as he finally resigned as Lara again became the captain.

King the coach of the side at that time wasn't said to be good, and was criticised for his methods as he eventually resigned after the a disappointing 2007 world cup. It was also the last time we saw of Lara. Yes, he was a great batsman, but was involved in too many controversies.

Temporary coaches like Moore came and went as finally Dyson took over, and it looked like Gayle and Dyson were doing a decent job as the team defeated England at home in a test series, and that was a decent achievement, but again the controversies came back to haunt cricket in the Caribbean as the board, and the association fought on the issue of contracts. The board fielded a second string side against Bangladesh, and that side promptly lost to Bangladesh. The board had to find some scape goat, and it was of course the coach Dyson, who was sacked! On the other hand the association lead by Ramnaraine and the board are still at each other's throat, and the board has selected again a second string side for the champions trophy!

So, who is to be blamed for the mess???

The board lead by Hunte seems to be as incompetent as it gets, but I believe players, who have played for the last few years or so also have to take some blame for the cricket in Caribbean reaching such a bad state.

The Caribbean team haven't utilised whatever talent has been there as well as most of the players, who looked like had some talent either were dropped too soon, or have stagnated.

So what is the future for players like Darren Bravo, Barath, Roach etc? Can they make a living out of a sport which is in such a mess?

I have also heard about Trinidad and Tobago even thinking of competing as a different entity!

On this issue Tony Cozier has got it absolutely right as in his column he rightly points out if the the Caribbean team gets fragmented into smaller teams, and end up playing in the proposed second division with Zimb, Bangladesh etc no sponsors would be interested. So, with no money around cricket would ultimately suffer.

So, one can think of players disunity, strikes, bad selection, board being incompetent etc. The situation for a team which produced some of the greatest cricketers like Ambrose, Walsh, Lara, Marshall, Hall, Richards, Lloyd, 3 W'S, Headley, Holding etc can't get worse, and there doesn't seem to be any light at the end of the tunnel!

Can New Zealand upset the apple-cart?

So, with New Zealand embarking on a tour to Srilanka to play test matches, and onedayers I thought of writing an article on how the New Zealand team may fare in Srilanka.

New Zealand in recent times

To start with New Zealand have a young side as they look to rebuild their side. In recent times NZ have lost most of their senior players for variety of reasons like a few players retired from playing cricket. The prime examples being their inspirational captain Fleming, who was also a fine batsman in his own right. Macmillan, Astle, Richardson etc can also be added to the list. A few of them made themselves non available for selection by playing in the unsanctioned ICL league like Bond, Vincent and Tuffey though with ICL gone players like Tuffey have come back into the fold, and their pace spearhead Bond has made a come back to the one day side. Hamish Marshall made himself non available for selection by playing as a kolpak in CC.

So, NZ are looking to rebuild the side though the revolving door policy with regards to selection like they would occasionally pick Sinclair then he would be dropped with say Fulton coming in the side, and again some other player would come in his place hasn't helped their cause. It has also wreaked the careers of players like Sinclair, Fulton etc. Yet another good example would be during the tour of Australia Redmond was picked, but was soon dropped from the side. Redmond had his problems in England as he didn't come forward, but in Australia especially at Adelaide he showed that he was strong on the back foot, and looked ok only to be dropped after making 86 at Adelaide!

All the examples show that NZ'S selectors are inconsistent, and have a revolving door policy.

So coming back to the tour of Lanka it would be tough tour for the NZ team as they have to first counter the hot and humid conditions in Srilanka, which is tough for any foreign team to adjust to, and of course the threat of both Murali and Mendis.

Murali has always been a major threat to opposition teams, but Mendis can be a threat too. Pakistan's batsmen played him well, but he would be a different proposition against the inexperienced NZ'S batsmen!

So, let us have a look at the NZ side

Openers

Guptill, McINTOSH, Cumming

Of the 3 openers it looks like Guptill and McINTOSH would play.

Andy Moles has stressed upon Guptill and McINTOSH to occupy the crease, and look to bat out as many overs as possible, which may really backfire as someone like Guptill is essentially a strokemaker, and he should look to play his natural game.

Guptill has a habit of going hard at the ball, and that may not be the right way to play on the slower wickets of Lanka as one has play late, and look to find the gaps, but him playing a game, which is not natural to him may really back fire.

I haven't see McINTOSH play, but he seems to be ahead in the pecking order at the moment though with NZ'S revolving door policy one can't predict about him being in the side for long, but with Cummming as the reserve opener, who to be frank isn't test math standard I would say McINTOSH should be given a decent run in the side.

Middle order

Taylor, Ryder, Oram, Elliot and Flynn.

I do expect Taylor and Ryder to bat at 3 and 4.

Ross Taylor has become one of their mainstays of the batting. I have a feeling though he has to take more responsibility as a batsman. He has the talent, but has the tendency to throw his wicket away, which a team like NZ don't need. Taylor also has the habit of playing too much on the onside, which against M and M maybe risky. Murali would surely go around the wicket, and bowl doosra to him, and it won't be easy to blindly blast Murali on the on side. Taylor is another player, who has the habit of going hard at the ball, which may land him in trouble on the slower tracks of Lanka.

Ryder has a history disciplinary problems, but he has some talent. At his best he is a clean striker of the ball. He can succeed in Srilanka provided he looks to hit down the ground, and not try to play too many shots square off the wicket. His strength is to play square off the wicket, but on the slower wickets it can be risky. He should take Tresco's approach to his batting. Tresco in 2001 waited for the ball, and tried to play in the V against Murali and co. and succeeded. Ryder can do well in Lanka provided he shows discipline in his batting.

I do expect Flynn to play at 5 or 6. Andy Moles has occasionally tried him at 3, which again is another mistake he has done as Flynn plays better lower down the order, and has the knack of playing well with lower order batsmen. At his best he is a tenacious player, and he may do ok in Lanka as he has got what it takes to succeed in tough conditions, but he shouldn't play at 3!

Oram would likely take up the allrounder slot though he has been in wretched form in recent times, and against the spinners he can look all over the place too. I would prefer Elliot as he plays late, and has improved as a batsman in recent times as he has become a lot more aggressive as a player. The factor I would consider while choosing the allrounder would be Elliot's ability to play late when compared to other NZ'S batsmen, and it may come in handy on the slower wickets of Lanka against M and M. NZ'S management though would likely pick Oram because of his reputation, and he is the better bowler of the two.

McCULLUM, who is now a senior member of the side should play as a wicketkeeper batsman. In recent times he has been reluctant to keep wickets, but if he doesn't take the job of wicketkeeping it would seriously affect the balance of the side as they would be one batsmen short and NZ, who don't exactly have a good batting line up would end up struggling even more.

McCullum as a batsman would as usual play his aggressive game. It may not be the best way to go about on the tracks of Lanka, but I doubt whether he can play in any other way.

Bowlers

Vettori, Patel, Martin, Tuffey, O'Brien( Vettori can surely be considered as a allrounder though)


Vettori, who as we know is the captain of the side has done an admirable job till now especially when one consider the resources at his disposal. As a bowler he is not a big spinner of the ball, but he is a canny left arm spinner as he varies his pace well, and unlike Panesar has a good arm ball. Of course he has improved as a batsman as he has bailed NZ out of trouble on many a occasion.

Patel would be his spin bowling partner. He can be effective with his off spin on a turning track like Galle, but Lankan wickets demand a spin bowler to be very consistent as on slow wickets one can't even think of dragging it short.

Among the seamers I expect Tuffey to succeed in Srilanka though I see he is not playing in the first class match that is going on at the moment. It can be another mistake that Moles would do as Tuffey is bit like the taller version of Kulasekara.

On Lankan wickets unless a seamer is exceptional the bowlers, who would likely succeed are those bowling at about 80- 82 miles per hour, and consistently hit the good length spot to take advantage of the bit of movement one gets to see on Srilankan tracks and Tuffey is good at daoing that.

Skiddier bowlers on those wickets are easier to hit as they come onto the bat easily, and Lankan batsmen are always masters at using the pace, and finding the gaps.

O'Brien is a consistent seamer, who has a good slower ball. He surely can use that slower ball against the likes of Dilshan, Jayawardene, S'weera etc as they all like to stay on the back foot, especially it can be used against Dilshan as he is mainly a back foot player. It can be used as a surprise weapon to bring the Lankan batsmen forward.

Martin is another consistent seamer though he seems to have lost a yard of pace, and has the habit of bowling short. He can be ok on Lankan wickets as he is consistent, but I feel whatever Martin does Tuffey would do better in Lanka.

So let us look at keys to New Zealand's success in Lanka

Adjust to the conditions- The conditions in Lanka is always an obstacle for the opposition as it would be hot and humid, and NZ'S inexperienced players may find it really tough to adjust to it, but they have no other choice, but to adjust as much a they can to the conditions in Lanka.

The threat of M and M- Murali is always a threat in Lanka, but Mendis too can cause damage against NZ'S batsmen as their batsmen are inexperienced, and it takes time to pick Mendis's variations. NZ'S players also have a habit of going hard at the ball, which may not help them against Mendis and Murali. All their batsmen have to wait for the ball, and can look to pick both M and M off the pitch as the wickets are slow it is easier to pick both spinners off the pitch.

NZ also can't underestimate bowlers like Kulasekara, Tushara and the left arm spinner Herath as they all had success against Pakistan. To keep it short NZ'S players have to wait for the ball, and look to find gaps instead of trying to muscle it to the boundary on the Lankan wickets.

Look out for Sangakkara- Srilankan captain Sangakara has been consistent over the years. He can defend well, and when the situation demands can attack. He doesn't seem to have any real weakness, but I believe someone like Tuffey who is consistent can bowl to him as he does make the batsmen play, and occasionally Sanga early in his innings looks slightly vulnerable against spinners so, Vettori can bowl from the other end. S'weera, Jayawardene and Dilshan are all good, but Sanga is their main player.


NZ should look to break the opening partnership - As it would make sure the strong middle order would play against the new ball. Lanka have Pavitrana and Warnapura as their openers, but against Pakistan they struggled a bit so, that is a key area NZ can look to exploit.

Finally it would be a daunting task for the New Zealand team to defeat Lanka as playing against Lanka in their own backyard in hot and humid conditions is really tough, but if NZ are smart with their tactics they may have a slim chance of upsetting the apple-cart.

Anyhow I always like to root for the underdogs so, this time around I would be supporting New Zealand!

Having a look at Ramprakash

Since England's debacle at Headingely there has been a huge debate regarding whether Ramps should be recalled or not? did he fail in tests due to lack of ability, or was it because he didn't had test match temperament?

To start with I am not a fan of Ramps, and if I look at his average of 27.32 I would say he isn't good enough, but if one looks deeper into it I may say the selectors didn't handle him well.

His critics will always say he played in 52 tests, and was given ample opportunities, but they don't see the number of times he has been dropped after every 2 or 3 games.

Ramps made his debut in 1991 against Ambrose Walsh, Bishop and co. and as expected he didn't do well against an superb bowling attack. Next up on the cards he had to play 2 tests against Akram and Younis and was dropped after that series.

It is not right to pick a player against such type of quality bowlers, and then to drop him soon.

Anyhow coming back to Ramps the pattern continued as in 93 he came back against Aus, and did well only to be dropped after another series against Ambi and co.

He was again picked against Ambi and co in 95,but again dropped after 1 bad series against SA.

In 98 he started to play better, and these are his averages in that period.

66.5 against Ambi and Walsh.

31.12 against Donald and co.

47.37 in Aus. against Warne and McGrath.

47.5 against Murali and co.

25.4 against NZ.

Again one bad series and he was dropped!!

He came back in 2000 only to be dropped again after a few games.

In 2001 he again came back, and made a splendid hundred against Aus. only to be dropped in 2002. After selectors dropped him in 2002 he has not played for England.

The selectors never gave him a decent run in the side, and when he looked good in 98 he was dropped after one bad series against NZ though he had succeeded against his nemesis Ambi and Walsh, McGrath, Murali etc.

Anyhow coming back to the test at Oval I would say there aren't many candidates for the middle order slot.

Ramps is still in great form in CC.

I don't see too many question marks regarding his ability as he plays late, and has more time on his hands than the average County batsman.

He is 39 years of age which can go against him.

His mental toughness would be a question mark as he hasn't succeeded in test cricket, but he does average 42 against Australia!

I was against England picking Ramps, but on second thoughts if I look at the candidates available for selection I would say Ramps need not be the worst pick.

Johnson

Johnson was ridiculed for his poor performance at the start of the series, but it looks like he is slowly coming back to form.

At his best, he is not an easy proposition to face as he gets awkward bounce from a good length, and nowadays can swing it back into the batsmen. He has a slingy action, and sometimes it would be hard to pick him because of that.

In my view he was struggling in the early part of the series mainly because he was looking to swing it too much instead of sticking to his strengths of hitting the deck, and getting that awkward bounce. In the test at Headingley though he bowled with better control and looked far better.

He has got some success now, and on a true surface like the Oval he can't be underestimated as it may suit his style of bowling!

Punter's classy knock

It is great to see that Ponting has gone past Border as the highest run getter of the Australian team. He deserves to be the highest run getter of the Australian team as he has been very consistent.

On the way to becoming the highest run getter for the Australian team he has come up with some amazing knocks, and I have been privileged to watch a few of them.

The one knock that I always think highly of is his 197 against Akram, Shoaib and co. on a quick track at Perth in 99. In 1999 Perth still was a lightning quick track, and the opposition had bowlers like Akram, Shoaib etc. So, it was a fine pace attack indeed.

Pakistan on a quick track got cleaned up for just 155 as they couldn't handle the pace and bounce of the WACA track as the Australian quicker bowlers made merry, but Pakistan struck back with the tall Mohammad Akram supported by Wasim had Australia reeling at 54 for 4 what with players like Slater, Waugh twins back in the pavilion it looked like Pakistan had got back in the match. The characteristic of any great team is there would be someone, who would stand up and be counted. On that day it was Punter and Langer.

In 1999 Punter was still known as a player with potential, but someone, who has the habit of throwing his wicket away, and until then he even had a bad series, and there were even calls for him to be dropped for that match at Perth, but on that day he majestically pulled and hooked Shaoib and co to play a great knock. I am still in awe of those shots he played on the back foot, and how quickly he shifted his weight on to the back foot to hit the likes of Shoaib and Akram all over the park. Langer too made a superb century but Punter's majestic knock overshadowed Langer's efforts.

I know that Punter played a fine knock under pressure at Old Trafford in the Ashes 05, but for the sheer pleasure of watching him pull and hook Shoaib and co. on a quick track, and the way he turned game on its head as Australia were in a spot of bother at 50 odd for 4 well, I would say if not his best knock it would have to go down as one of his best knocks!

The photo for this article is Punter celebrating his century at Perth in 1999. I thought I won't get a photo of a match that was played about 10 years back, but thanks to cricinfo I got one!

Having a look at the prospective candidates

After England suffered a humiliating defeat at Headingley against Australia is it time to drop Bopara, or even Bell? if so, who are the candidates to look out for?

So, I thought of having a look at few of the players who can play for England.

Trott

Trott has been picked as the reserve batsman so, he maybe the likely candidate to come into consideration. Trott has had a very good season for Warwickshire as he has scored lots of runs, and should be high on confidence.

The points that can go against him are the track at Edgbaston has usually been a slow track so, he did play on a track on which run scoring wasn't that difficult. I have a feeling he is a bit like Colly, and may even call him as the poorer version of Colly as he does have a habit of trying to work deliveries from the off stump deliveries to the on side, and may get out straight balls, and add to it he is not that good on the off side.

Key

Many cricket fans pick him as the player who can replace Bopara, or Bell, but I have never rated him as a player. Other than an double hundred against a weak Caribbean bowling attack he has looked out of his depth in test cricket.

My opinion is that any decent test bowler who has the ability to move the ball should trouble Key as he is flat footed when he drives, and can play around his front pad.

I also wonder if Patel doesn't look fit how can one say Key is fit?

Shah

He never looked the part as a number 3 batsman as he is a nervy starter. His style of play which includes taking risks may not be suited for the number 3 position.

At number 5 though he can be ok and on a true surface like the Oval it can suit his style of batting as it would allow him to play all those wristy flicks, or those horizontal bat shots.

So, with KP out having an attacking player like Shah at number 5 on a true surface like the Oval is surely not the worst option in the prevailing circumstances.

Moore

Moore of Worcestershire didn't had the best of starts this season in CC, but has just played an important knock against Lancashire, and that shows he is returning back to form. He did make most of the opportunity in the Lions game against Australians at Grace Road by scoring a hundred against Lee, Clark, Johnson and Hauritz. He does look ok against pace, and seems to have the temperament to bat in the top order.

He is basically an opener but in the prevailing circumstances he is worth a gamble.

Horton

Another opener and this time from Lancashire, who if needed can bat at number 3. If England want a player, who goes about his job of accumulating runs without much of a fuss, then he is the payer.

He is usually consistent, but this season he has been in average form in CC. Another player just like Moore, who for some reason rarely gets talked about.

Joyce

I feel that he is one of the more talented batsman in CC. A very graceful player to watch. Joyce the lefthander used to play for Middlesex, but probably in an attempt to play first division cricket is now playing for Sussex.

He did score a hundred for England in the CB series in Australia in 06/07, but failed in few subsequent matches and was soon discarded. At his best Joyce looks a bit it like Gower though occasionally he can get out to soft dismissals.

I wonder why players with some talent like Joyce are discarded very soon, but Key got 15 chances to play test cricket, and still gets talked about!

Hildreth

A good strokemaker, who plays in the middle order, but some cricket fans have the habit of saying as he plays at Taunton he gets easy runs as the pitch at Taunton is usually flat.

He looks good when he gets gets going, but may have a weakness against the inswinger.

Patel

Another player who is wristy and strong on the on side. He can struggle to get his timing right when he plays shots on the off side, and can be a bit of lbw candidate. He can also bowl a bit of left arm spin.

He hasn't had a good season in CC this year.

Morgan

He did play for England in the T/20 world cup. Morgan of Middlesex is a good timer of the ball, but his habit of moving across the crease makes him an lbw candidate.

If he does some work on it he may play test cricket in the future.

Solanki

Solanki was a surprise selection to play in the Lions game against Australia. Botham once even ridiculously hyped him up as the next Sobers.

His tendency of having a high back lift even against bowlers, who bowl full means he would always be in trouble. For example Lee bowled full in the game against the Lions team and his stumps went for a walk.

Denly

At his best he looks like an well organised player, and did scored a fine 90 odd against the likes of Clark and Warne for Kent against Hampshire in 2007, but he is not consistent enough.

Ramprakash

A few fans still talk about Ramps coming back, but he has been given 52 chances, and he is also about 39 now.

Players like Northeast are too young to come into consideration.

After having a look at the prospective candidates my feeling is selectors at most would go for Trott instead of Bopara, and there can be a slim chance of them going for the Kent captain Key instead of Bell.

It would be the usual case of selectors looking at County records, or players who get talked about like Key instead of what Fletcher did in 2000, when he stressed for the selection of both Vaughan and Tresco though at that time neither didn't had good records in CC, but Fletcher saw them as players with test match temperament, and the rest is history!

Clarke in sublime touch

It has been a privilege to see Clarke bat in this particular Ashes series. In 2005 he did struggle in England to counter the swing. It can happen to most players when they first play in England, as one has to play late to counter the swing, but Clarke went hard at the ball, and got himself into trouble in 2005.

In 2009 it has been an different story altogether, as Clarke has looked in sublime touch against the swinging ball. He has played very late, and that has helped him to counter swing. He has also mixed caution with aggression instead of all out aggression that he tried in 2005. A few of the cover drives, or those flick shots he played at Headingley were great to watch.

He has no doubt matured as a player, and he has at the peak of his prowess. I would dare say on the basis of current form he is Australia's best batsman!

England are down and out!

The second day's play of the third test was a disastrous day for England as Australia took a commanding lead of 343, then took 5 wickets to leave England in tatters.

As far as the Australian team is concerned Clarke again looked in sublime touch as he played very late to counter the swing of Anderson, and played some delightful cover drives and flick shots. North was also very good as he made sure that Australia would take a lead of 343.

England needed a good start in the second innings, but Johnson had other ideas as he got 3 vital wickets to leave England in tatters. He got it to swing late into the batsman, and occasionally got it to hold its line to leave the batsman at pace, which is more than good enough to trouble most of the batsmen. At his best Johnson is not an easy proposition to handle as he has got the ability to swing back into the batsman, and can get awkward bounce. The ball with which he got Colly out was a good example as he got it to swing late into Colly, and he was plumb in front. As far as others were concerned Bell won't be happy with the way he got, and question marks on his ability to perform under pressure against even decent teams remain. He won't face Bangladesh's or the Pakistan's attack made up of Nazir, Afridi, Sami and Gul everytime, and bowlers know that with Bell if they bowl back of a length just outside the off stump he would edge one and get out tamely. Bopara was a bit unlucky as he could have got an edge to it though he was adjudged lbw by Rauf, but he has had a disappointing series till now, and his footwork looks suspect. A player can't blame anyone, but himself if he continues to play across the line to straight balls. He has been given 4 tests to perform and has failed. It is all about taking your chance!

The only encouraging sign could be Broad's 5 for, but one good performance doesn't make him a good bowler as he has to continue to do that to convince his doubters.

Overall it has been an disastrous test match for England, and it looks for sure it would be 1-1 going into the match at Oval.

Bond at his best!

It is great to see that NZ'S strike bowler Bond is coming back to play for NZ's team.It made me remember of all those great spells he has bowled in his career.

The one I really remember was his 5 for at Adelaide on a flat deck against Aus. in 01/02. NZ had scored about 240 which looked like a par score and they were up against a formidable batting line up as Australia had Gilly, Waugh twins, Bevan, Martyn, Punter and a few all rounders, but Bond just ripped apart their batting line up with genuine pace. It looked like the flat Adelaide deck was suddenly on fire. He started the collapse by bowling a superb inswinging yorker to send Gilly's stumps cartwheeling, Martyn was dropped, but the next ball he was gone too, Punter too got out to Bond but Bond's efforts did not end there, as he continued to bowl with hostility as he troubled the elder Waugh with bouncers, and tailenders like Bichel and McGrath just were looking to back away to Bond's bouncers, and all this happened on a flat deck!

I also remember his superb spell at PE in the world cup. The way he bowled to Tendulkar in a test series in NZ and his lion hearted spells on Caribbean tracks in 01, and in that series he constantly troubled Lara.

He may have got slower with age but it is great to see that he is likely going to play for NZ again!

Can England make a comeback in the match?

It was a bad first day for England at Headingley as first Freddie was declared unfit to play, and it was followed by another bad news of Prior getting injured though he is playing in the match.

When the mach started Australia bowled out England for just 102, and it was followed up by England's bowlers bowling short, and getting smashed.

As far as the batting was concerned England's batsmen weren't disciplined enough. The track surprisingly has a bit of bounce, but it is more of a tennis ball bounce so, the batsmen have to play late, and show good judgment outside the off stump by playing with a straight bat, but England's batsmen didn't show good judgment, and were playing at deliveries outside the off stump which, could have been left alone. Yes, Australian bowlers bowled well, but England's batsmen weren't disciplined enough.

It was followed up by England's bowlers like Anderson and Onions bowling too short. Anderson may have also bowled from the wrong end as swing bowlers can have more success from the Kirskstall end, but Harmison was the one who get to bowl the new ball from the Kirkstall end. Anderson also looked like had done some damage to his hamstring.

I may have criticised Broad, but in my view he was England's best bowler yesterday as he was just hitting the good length spot, and bowling the odd delivery a bit fuller at decent pace. The pitch which has tennis ball bounce did the rest. On such a track if the bowlers bang it into the pitch it just sits up, and the batsmen can easily play shots on the back foot. The Australian quicks have always been masters at just hitting the good length spot, and that is what they did yesterday. It is not rocket science but needs concentration!

Harmison blew hot and cold where as Onions bowled better as the day progressed. England may have missed Siders who is consistent.

If England's bowlers hit the good length spot, and bowl the odd delivery a bit more fuller the team can still dismiss Australia for about 260 or 270 as the pitch still has enough help for the bowlers, and may have a very slim chance of coming back into the match, but if the bowlers bang it into the pitch, and bowl short the bowlers will get hammered.

Overall a very disappointing day for England!

Should Lee play at Headingley?

It looks like Lee is fit and can be selected for the team. I have a feeling that he should not play at Headingley, but at Oval as it may suit his style of bowling.

The Oval track can help bowlers to get reverse swing as it is more of a abrasive surface, and is a bit quicker than Headingley which is usually on the slower side, and may not suit Lee's style of bowling.

Headingley track usually suits bowlers who are accurate, and pitch it up, but Lee is not accurate and has the habit of bowling short on slower wickets. Lee is a good bowler but he is not in the class of Steyn as he is not consistent enough though at Oval the pitch can suit his style of bowling.

South African all time x1

South African team

Smith (C)
Richards
G.Kirsten
G.Pollock
Kallis
Procter
Boucher or Lindsay
S.Pollock
Tayfield
Adcock
Donald



Honourable mentions- Nourse, P.Kirsten, Jimmy Cook, Rice, Heine, Barlow, Van der Biji and Peter Pollock.

Marcus North

It looks like Australia have found a player who can occupy the number 6 slot. Yes, he has played only a few tests, but he has already already shown he can be a fine cricketer in the future.

In his first test against SA he did score a fine hundred against Steyn and co. on a track that did help the quicker bowlers. One also has to consider the fact that he did score a hundred in SA at a time when Australia had lost a few wickets in the first innings, and there was pressure on Australia after losing the series at home against the same team.

In this series too he has played well, and that can be seen by the fact that he scored a hundred at Cardiff. The pitch at Cardiff may have been flat but he did show good application to get a hundred, and at Edgbaston he played really well under pressure to help Australia get a draw.

He has a habit of coming half forward and going hard at the ball, and Anderson did exploit that weakness in the first innings at Edgbaston. His habit of going hard at the ball may not help him against the spinners, and he is a bit of instinctive puller but for all his weakness he seems to be a tenacious player who plays well when his team is in trouble!

Swann?

It is good to see that Swann has got Punter out. At Cardiff he pushed it through but, he has bowled better at Lords, and he is doing it at Edgbatson. He gives it just enough flight, gets a bit of drift, and can trouble batsmen.

Today to Punter he did the same as he flighted it, got a bit of drift, bowled just around off stump and cleaned him up. Of course against lefthanders he is always good ,Hussey and co. have to play him well as he bowls well around the wicket.

Are there cricket fans still questioning his ability? I do think he is a fine bowler.

Anyhow it is good to see the trio of Onions, Anderson, and now Swann doing well!!!

Fourth day's play

To start with Aussies have bowled better and it has been a good session for them.

For England Bell did ok. Yes he has survived some close l.b.w shouts, but the credit has to go to him. The Aussies have tried to bowl full to him to get him out l.b.w, but it could have been better if they had mixed it up with back of a length bowling as Bell sometimes has a habit of coming half forward so, I still think the full swinging delivery should be used as a surprise weapon.

Strauss again looked in good touch as he played late and showed good judgment outside the off stump before losing his concentration and edging one outside the off stump.

Australians bowled better to Colly as they were not bowling on his pads but were bowling outside the off stump and Colly being bottom handed can struggle to score runs if a bowler is consistent just wide of off stump and the plan eventually worked.

As far as the Australian bowling was concerned Hilfy swung it consistently, Johnson bowled a lot better as he got a bit of awkward bounce and a bit of swing and Siddle though was a touch inconsistent still he occasionally troubled Bell by bowling full. I was also impressed by Manou as he looks like a good wicketkeeper

Punter would be happy with the way the quicker bowlers have bowled especially Johnson is looking better.

As far as the umpiring is concerned I would just say Rudi has been very inconsistent and that is not good enough!

So now it looks like England have the upper hand as Australian quicks couldn't maintain the same sort of intensity they showed in the first session what with Freddie, Broad and Prior doing well.

It is all upto Anderson and co. now.

Has Mendis been found out?

So, I do see that Mendis has again been dropped by Srilanka as he has been a bit lackluster against Pakistan.

So have the Pakistani players worked him out? Surely they have played him better as they have played him on the front foot and not looked to sit on the back foot, they haven't played him for turn and they have picked him off the wicket which on the slower wickets of Lanka can be done.

So can Mendis come back? of course most other teams still haven't faced him and with his variations like the carom ball, googly, off spin etc he still can be a handful, but there is no doubt that Pakistan's team have played him well.

I also do think that on slower wickets Mendis has bowled too short and he has to pitch it up further so, that batsmen don't pick him off the wicket.

Onions and Anderson do well

It is good to see that Onions and Anderson have come good. I have said before that Onions in England can be useful as he makes the batsmen play and gets it to move just enough either way to cause problems to the batsmen and that is what he did today. He also can bowl long spells and has a good bouncer.

Anderson may have got a bit lucky with a few decisions but he bowled better today as he bowled with better control.

Anderson has improved as a bowler and I don't think he deserves the amount of criticism he still gets. He can occasionally go for runs but he can take wickets as he gets it to swing very late and no batsmen would like to face that. A good example would be the ball that he bowled to Manou which swung late to clean him up.

The one bowler I am still not convinced is Broad though some do rate him highly.

To end it it has been a fine performance from both.

The great knock played by Hanif Mohammad

Most cricket fans do remember Hanif Mohammad for that great knock of 337 at Bridgetown Barbados in 1957/58. So how good was it?

If one looks at the knock statistically Pakistan team were already 473 runs behind after getting bowled out for just 106 in the first innings. So, in the second innings Pakistan were in all sorts of trouble but, Hanif played a great knock as he scored 337 runs in 970 minutes which shows that he must have had great concentration powers. As expected he holds the record for playing the longest innings in test cricket. His knock of course helped Pakistan to save the match and add to it the Caribbean team had bowlers like Sobers, Gilchrist, Valentine etc. So, one can say it was a good bowling attack.

Tony Cozier once said, he defended so much that a guy who couldn't get into the stadium but climbed on a coconut tree to see the match went into a deep slumber after seeing the way Mohammad was defending and in the end fell from the tree and that woke him up!

Kulasekara?

To start with Kulasekara seems to a good bowler. He may not be quick as a bowler but, he can move it both ways as he has the ability to bring it back sharply into the batsmen and to get it to straighten just enough to cause problems to the batsmen.

He also uses the bouncer as a surprise weapon and I have seen him getting players like Shewag out with a surprise bouncer. He can also get useful runs lower down the order.

So it looks like he can be a very useful player for Lanka.

Your views on Kulasekara.

The battle for Frank Worrell trophy 95

I thought of writing an article on the battle for Frank Worrell trophy in 1995. It was a great test series as Aussies played out of their skins to defeat the Westindies to get back the prized Frank Worrell trophy after so many years.

It all started with the the Westindies thrashing the Aussies in odi's and Aussies had more problems as both Dermott, and Fleming got injured. Australia's woes was compounded by Warne looking ineffective as Lara, and Hooper played him very well. So, let us see how the test series unfolded.

In the first test Julien was the surprise package as he took four wickets. Australian fielders took some great catches which helped the team but, there was a controversial one if I remember taken by S.Waugh of Lara? when the Aussies played they got a lead as everyone chipped in with a good score. In the absence of McDermott the young McGrath took the mantle of being the main bowler as he bowled superbly to take 5fer as the Aussies won by 10 wickets. In the second test the Aussies did well again as Reiffel with his accurate bowling got wickets even Warne chipped in with few wickets. For Westindies Walsh bowled superbly.In the end Mark Waugh and Boon rescued the sinking ship to take Australia to safety as the match ended in a draw.

In the third test Ambrose bowled superbly as it looked like the speed king had woken up from a deep slumber because in the first two tests he wasn't good. One also can remember some heated exchanges that happened between Steve Waugh, and Ambrose as the Aussies were crushed though, not before McGrath again showed why he is highly rated by taking another 5fer. It was a sight to see McGrath not holding back against Ambi, and Walsh as he tested both of them with bouncers. So, it all came down to the final test where the Aussie bowlers dismissed the Windies cheaply then the Waugh twins took over, and played magnificently with their trademark flicks and cuts as S.Waugh scored a double hundred and Mark chipped in with a fine hundred. Windies did show some resistance in the second innings but, soon it all ended with the Aussies winning.The celebrations began as the Aussies celebrated long, and hard!

To end it the Aussies played as a team and won a historic series.

Adcock and Heine

When it comes to opening bowling pairs from say 1940 to about 1960 many talk about Lindwall and Miller, Trueman and Statham, Hall and Griffith but, what about Adcock and Heine of SA?

I actually first read about both Adcock, and Heine in a cricket magazine and it made me look for more information about Adcock, and Heine.

Of course everyone remembers Adcocok for hitting Sutcliffe of NZ on his head and as expected he was said to be quick and fearsome also what about Peter Heine? he is said to have supported Adcock well. Heine may not have been in the class of Adcock but, most of the former players who played with him or against him say that he had a never say die spirit who could bowl long spells.

Mike Procter on Adcock,and Heine

"Adcock was quicker but Heine put the heat into the combination."

Monty Noble?

Most cricket fans talk about Miller as the greatest allrounder Australia have ever produced but, how good was Monty Noble? He may not be in the class of Miller but, during the early part of the 19th century he did very well for Australia.

He was known to be a graceful batsman who could mix caution with aggression and could change his game as the situation demands. As a bowler he had reasonable success against England. He usually bowled medium pace and mixed it up with spin.

As the captain of the Australian side he was by all accounts good and under his leadership Australia did defeat England in 1907 as well as in 1909. I have read that he was tactically good.

So, one can surely classify Noble as a genuine allrounder as he was a good batsman, good as a bowler, was said to be a fine fielder, and of course did well as a captain too.

Another allrounder that comes to my mind is Gregory. It looks like he too was a fine allrounder.

Technique?

I have had some discussion about what is actually technique? As Ian Chappell once said technique is all about helping a batsman score runs.

My take on it.

Technique doesn't mean that every batsman should have an text book like technique. It is there to help a batsman score runs.

S'wag scores runs so he is technically very good but Afridi tries to slog everything and can't succeed in test cricket!

Actually if we look at it Afridi has great hand eye co-ordination and confidence as does S'wag and KP but Afridi hasn't succeeded in test cricket.

Yes technique matters but over analysis on whether his technique is like what is written about doesn't look right.

In my view a player has to be mentally tough and a technique that works for him.

Pietersen's contributions to English cricket

in recent times there has have lots of debate regarding whether KP is a team player, is he good when England have been in trouble etc.

So I have come up with those knocks which he has scored when England were in trouble to see whether he is a team player or not.

In his first test at Lords in 2005 against Australia he comes into bat with England in all sorts of trouble as England are down in dumps with the score reading 21 for 5 in reply to Australia's 190 but in his first test itself he plays sensibly against McGrath and co and scores 57 as England get bowled out for just 155! In the second innings he fights hard amidst the ruins surrounding him as he scores 64 not out and he is the only one to reach the half century mark as England get bowled out for just 180 to lose the match.

In the famous test at Edgbaston England did start well as Tresco just hammered the opposition bowlers but as soon as he got out England lost quick wickets and the score suddenly read 187 for 4, but KP along with Freddie came up with a crucial century partnership to get England to 400. KP scored 71 in this innings.

Of course I do not have to say much about his 158 at Oval. England were looking to draw the match but before the lunch session itself England had lost few wickets, but KP plays all types of unorthodox shots which annoys the purists and gets 158 to save the match for England.

KP scored a fine hundred at Faisalabad too. It was a slow track with the ball not coming on to the bat. In reply to Pakistan's 462 England were 107 for 3 and on a slow track taking a bit of spin it was KP who scored a hundred. He took the attack to the opposition bowlers like Kaneria and Akthar and took the team to 446. Of course Bell also has to get the credit for making a fine century.

His 87 at Nagpur in 2006 against India also was a good knock. England had taken the lead in the first innings, but after a good start from Strauss and Cook England suddenly lost both of them as Kumble with his googly and Harbie start troubling England, but KP was still there as he took charge of the proceedings and started hammering the bowlers and the way he left almost all his 3 stumps and smacked Kumble bowling from the rough was amazing. He made sure that England would have enough time to declare. Another point to note is that he could have taken singles and slowly got to yet another hundred if he was THAT SELFISH!

142 at Edgabston against Lanka in 2006 was another fine knock which came under pressure. England had bowled out Lanka for just 141, but Malinga and Murali did well to help Lanka make a come back, but KP took on Murali and co and scored 142 out of 293 runs which was almost half of the runs England scored in that match as England went onto win the match! Of course most of the cricket fans remember that switch hit of Murali from that match.

I do rate his 92 at Brisbane very highly too. England were 445 runs behind after the first innings, but Australia bat again for the second time around and score some more runs to make sure that England are down and out. In the second innings too England lost a few early wickets but enter kp who starts his knock by playing with a straighter but shorter back lift against Clark and McGrath as both were looking to bowl full to him and looked to come forward to both of them, though he did stay a bit more in the crease to the quicker Lee. In this knock he mixed caution with aggression to make 92 and maybe he should look at this innings as it may give him a clue regarding how to play Hilfy and Siddle. Anyhow coming back to the innings he tried his best only to see England getting all out for 370 and as expected lost the match.

Against the Caribbean team in 2007 England needed quick runs to declare so, who comes good? of course it is KP as he scores 109 out of 138 balls. If he was not a team player he could have again slowed down when nearing his century!

Against India he scored a fine 134. In this match though England took the lead in the first innings, but the second time around they lost 4 or 5 wickets early, but KP with his 134 took England to a winning position but only for rain to save India from a certain defeat. Actually this knock came on a pitch that was helping the quicker bowlers and the so called selfish KP was the 9TH MAN OUT.

His knock of 101 at Oval helped England to save the match against India.

His knock of 115 at Napier helped England to make a come back from 5 for 86 to win the match.

At Oval against SA his hundred came at a crucial time what with England in trouble as he again took the team to a position of strength as England won the match.

At Mohali he came in at 1 for 2 and scored 144 to take England to a draw.

At Trinidad he scored a quickfire 102 to help England declare.

I have not included his curial knocks in one day cricket as the list can get long! He plays a few silly shots but everytime he does that he gets criticised like anything.

In this series he has been in decent touch with an average of 38 but if I listen to some it looks like he has scored about 10 runs!

I hope he gets fully fit and returns back to the side very soon. Good luck KP!

Swann against left handers

So after a fine performance at Lords can Swann continue to do well in the rest of the series?

He did bowl too full and pushed it through at Cardiff and didn't look like the wicket taking option I thought he would be. Strauss did use him as a stock bowler too which was not great too see and some people even thought that Giles was better!

In the second test Swann did give it a bit of flight and got a bit of turn. I have said it previously that he always likes to bowl to lefthanders because unlike many other modern day spinners he goes around the wicket and is consistent when he goes around the wicket. He can also turn that quicker one a bit which helps him.

I thought with his limitations Giles did a ok job in 05 Ashes but Swann is more of an attacking option especially against the lefthanders and should be used as an attacking bowler by Strauss. To end it Aussies do have 5 lefthanders in their side!

All time team for WI

After having a look at the Pakistan and NZ all time teams I also thought of having a go at the team from Caribbean. With so many legends around it is always tough to select the side but this is my side.

Greenidge
Haynes
George Headley
Lara
V.Richards C
Sobers
Dujon
Marshall
Holding
Ambrose
Gibbs

I have picked Gibbs as I thought that there should be some variation in the attack and that is why great quicks like Constantine, Martindale, Hall, Walsh, Roberts Garner etc have been left out.

Headly had a great record of playing well in a average side on not so easy tracks, so I have picked him.

Pitches

The ICC have been thinking about making test cricket more interesting what with day and night matches, test championship, even four day tests etc but what about the tracks on which cricket has been played?


The track at Perth is no more lightning quick, the track at Brisbane does not help the quicker bowlers like it used to, or for the matter the Adelaide track which has always been good for batting but nowadays every batsman thinks that if he plays on the Adelaide track he should get a big score!

The track at Barbados on which England and the Caribbean team played was so flat that the match may not have finished even if they had played for 10 days on it, or even the track at Jamaica has become a lot more flat.

The tracks in subcontinent like Kandy, Karachi, Mohali etc always had something in it for the bowlers but nowadays it is known more for big hundreds.

The track at Basin reserve in NZ was one of the best tracks as it had bounce and a bit of sideways movement but when India played NZ it had nothing in it for the quicker bowlers.

The tracks at Lords and even Headingley have become a lot more batsmen friendly and the pitch at Oval is just a belter.

The South African tracks like Durban still has something in it for the quicker bowlers though the Durban track now has more of a tennis ball bounce rather than the true bounce one used to see in the past.

So let ICC do something about the pitches and things like overrates to make cricket more interesting as without good wickets cricket won't be interesting as one needs to see an even contest between bat and ball.

Pakistan and NZ all time teams

I thought of coming up with all time Pakistan X1 and NZ X1.

Here are my all time Pakistan and NZ teams. First up is the Pakistan team

H.Mohammad
S. Anwar
Miandad
Z.Abbas
Haq
I.Khan (C)
Bari
Akram
Qadir
Fazal. Mohammad
Younis



Debatable selections can be Zaheer over Yousef, Fazal over Sarfraz. Fazal was said to be almost as good as Barnes but Sarfraz could just be brilliant on his day and with regards to Majid V Anwar again it can be debated and changed as can any other selection which is not agreed upon.

All time NZ X1

Turner
Sutcliffe
Fleming- captain
Crowe
Reid
C.Cairns
Ian Smith
R.Hadlee
Vettori
B.Taylor
Bond

Maybe Andrew Jones or someone else can be included instead of Reid as can other players like Donnelly, Congdon, Motz, Collings, Wright etc but this list can change.

Ashes cricket

My take on the final day's play of the test match between England and Australia.

Anderson set the tone with a great first over.

Freddie bowled the perfect first over as he go it to straighten just a bit and as expected Haddin played away from the body and got out.

Clarke and Johnson battled through some hostile bowling by Freddie especially Johnson looked all over the place. He surely likes to come forward.

Swann again showed that he is a good finger spinner as he got the important wicket of Clarke. He does turn it a bit and gets the quicker one to turn a bit as well and that helps and of course to the lefthanders he comes around the wicket.

Freddie got a 5 for at last and Swann got yet another lefthanders wicket by coming around the wicket to end the match.

M.Waugh- The connoisseur’s delight Part-2

So in this part of the article I would continue to talk about the graceful player from Australia.

So, after a successful world cup in 96 he yet again showed his class in 97 at Port Elizabith on what can be described as a very difficult wicket to bat on. The Saffers had lost the first test at wanderers on a relatively flat deck so, under pressure the groundsmen at PE spiced up the wicket. Yes,the wicket was still slow but there was lots of grass on the wicket and it was uneven too which made sure that batting on that wicket against let it be genuine quicks like Donald, dibbly dobbly medium pacers like Cronje or wrist spinners like Bevan and Warne very difficult. As expected SA and Australia did not make huge scores in that match as Australia finally required 270 to win the match and series and one has to say that considering the nature of the pitch it looked like a daunting task but as I said that Mark had the uncanny ability to come good when the conditions were difficult and there was pressure on the team to perform. Anyhow in the second innings Donald bowled quick but Mark showed great temperament and exemplary technique to handle Donald and when he would bowl short he took heavy toll on him as well as on the left arm chinaman bowler Adams. The Saffers finally dismissed him but it was too late as Aussies went onto defeat South Africa. The Wisden in its rankings rightfully recognises it as one of the best innings of all time!

In 1997 itself I also remember his fabulous shot of Vettori against NZ at Perth. He just came down the wicket and hit him with effortless ease into the stands. Till now I have not seen a six which has gone further than that one and he did it with so much ease! In that year he also played a gusty knock at Adelaide against SA to save the match. Again not many associate Mark with gusty knocks but as I said that under pressure Mark was very good!

He also played a fine knock at Madras against Kumble and co. In that knock he used his footwork beautifully against Kumble, and Harbie.

The betting scandal did affect his batting as his form got worse still he showed glimpses of what he can do again on difficult tracks like at Auckland where the track turned a lot and there was uneven bounce. Vettori almost looked unplayable in that match but of of course Mark played a delightful knock of 80 odd and helped Aussies to gain the vital lead which proved decisive in a low scoring match. It was something to see batsmen struggling at one end but on the other side Mark was using his feet brilliantly to Vettori and taking him to the cleaners.

As the time went on his form became erratic. Yes, he still had his moments like in England in 2001 but he played his final test in 2002 at Sarjah against Pakistan. I still remember that final innings of Mark when he played two glorious cover drives of Saqlain only to lose his concentration and get out to Saqlain. It was something which had become a sort of pattern with regards to his batting late in his career. It was sad to see him play his final knock in front of empty stands at Sarjah but as they say all good things have to come to an end!

I surely have to touch a bit on his fielding skills as he was an outstanding fielder. As we know that he was a great slip fielder and some of the catches he took like that of Haq at Hobart were just too good to be true! I have also seen him field at places like deep mid wicket and look as good as he did in the inner field! He even fielded at point before Ponting came on to the scene and if I remember correctly he ran out Hooper with a brilliant direct hit in a WSC game in early 90’s from that position and add to it that run out of Donald in the 99 WC.

Finally I would say that he was one of the few players I would pay to watch. He was a true match winner which SURPRISINGLY MANY OF THEM FORGET WHEN THEY JUDGE A PLAYER.

M.Waugh- The connoisseur’s delight Part-1

The player that I am going to talking about made cricket look so easy that when he played it looked like poetry was written on cricket field, one felt like a Mozart symphony making you forget all your worries, just all ease and grace. Of course I am talking about Mark Waugh the elegance personified batsman form Australia who made everything look so easy.

To describe about Mark’s early career in domestic cricket one has to look at what sometimes his biggest admirer and sometimes his biggest critique and former Australian coach Bob Simpson had to say about the classy Australian player.

“When I first saw him he was a real tearaway with quite a lot of pace. In fact, in his first season in first class cricket, in 1985-86, I had him opening the bowling for New South Wales and he could send them down as quickly as anyone in the side”.

“Mark loved to bowl bouncers and would take on any batsman regardless of his reputation”.

It is very interesting to note that at the start of his career Mark was reasonably quick as a bowler and Simpson even said that he wanted Mark to develop as a batsman in Sheffield Shield cricket as he thought that he was too much of a leg side player so, as his elder twin got selected to play test cricket Mark had to be content with playing the odd onedayer for Australia and had to wait for his chance to make his test debut. It finally arrived in 1990 against England when he replaced his twin brother Steve in the team. It must have been really tough for Steve to be replaced by his younger twin. Anyhow Mark made his debut and what a debut it was! as he made a classy 139 against England and when one sees highlights of that innings one could clearly see those trademark flicks, drive, cuts that made Mark such a graceful player. He continued to show glimpses of what he could do when he made a majestic 116 against the likes of Marshall, Ambi, Walsh, and Patterson at Antigua. The main factor to consider in those two knocks of Mark was his ability to come good when the team was in trouble as both these two centuries came when the Aussies were in some trouble and it continued to be the hallmark of his entire career!

After a good start to his career he did go through a horror period in Lanka when he could not buy a run and there was immense pressure on him when the Windies met the Aussies in 92/93 to score runs and he did respond with a fine hundred at Sydney. He had a reasonable series with the bat though the Aussies had to watch the Windies retain the trophy, especially that heart wrenching defeat at Adelaide must have been hard to digest.

So he came to England more or less having established himself as a player and throughout that tour he was consistent as a player and who can forget his sublime knock of 138 at Trent Bridge which again came when the Aussies were in trouble but Mark with his trademark flicks, drives, Pulls, and cuts turned the match on its head and Aussies were able to win.

During that time there was an interesting incident of Mark bowling just bouncers in Pakistan in 94 as he was frustrated by the flatness of the wickets in Pakistan and the number of catches that were dropped by Australia in that series. As per reports he even got to one of the deliveries to get big on Sohail and it did hit Sohail flush on his face because of which he had to retire hurt. He did come back with stitches on his face and made a fine century but it reminded me of what Simpson said about his bowling during his early days!

In 95 when the Aussies went to the Caribbean a lot was expected from Waugh twins and both of them responded in a great fashion in that unforgettable test match at Jamaica. The series was locked at 1-1 and the Windies looked to be in charge of the final test as they had taken 3 early wickets. So, Ambi and Walsh were smelling blood when Steve joined his twin in the middle but just before lunch Mark launched into both of them with some brave pulls and cuts which changed the tone of the match as after the lunch session both the twins looked in very good touch as Mark would back away a bit and play those upper cuts as well as hook Ambi for boundaries. He also took heavy on Hooper by using his feet. He just played like a true gambler in this knock and with his twin brother changed the course of the match against a good bowling attack.

In the 96 WC he started the open the batting in O.D.I’S and made a great impact in that WC as he scored lots of runs. I still remember that classy knock at Madras when he looked all at ease and who forget those delightful shots like that pull shot of Javs when with effortless ease he hit him for a six or that slog sweep of Raju and even that slog sweep did not look like a slog, he even got Tendulkar stumped by bowling a wide delivery as he saw him come down the wicket and pushed it wide to get him stumped! It was indeed a great WC for him as he yet again proved in that WC he was a match winner!

The rest of the article will be continued in part-2

Trezza at his best

I just thought of looking at Tresco's career and his achievements.

It was in 2000 when Tresco played for England. He was very much an unknown quantity then and was a surprise inclusion in the England one day side. Fletcher had seen him score a breathtaking triple hundred for the second team so he insisted on him being included.

Anyhow what struck me most in his first onedayer was his confidence. He just came down the wicket and smacked the second ball of Streak's over for a boundary and Streak was not some club standard bowler. He had a very successful one day series and there was a clamour for his inclusion in the test side. As expected there were many skeptics of his technique like some said that he had concrete feet but all those whingers had not seen the fact that Tresco's balance at the time of playing the ball was so good and he played with such a still head. Of course he had such good hands, and hand eye co ordination. Anyhow in spite of all that rubbish which was said about him he was selected and he immediately made an impact by doing well against the likes of Walsh and Ambi and played a huge part in helping England to win back the Wisden trophy.

His bigger test came in that winter when England went to Pakistan, and Lanka where the slow and low wickets would test the technique and temperament of many a batsman but Tresco stood up to it especially in Lanka when he played a masterful hundred at Galle against Murali and co. on what was an turning wicket. He showed excellent technique and patience in that innings. What struck me most in that innings was he had such good hands because of which he was able to manoeuvre the strike and he RARELY USED his pad against the spinners.

Back home he did well against Pakistan at Old Trafford when he scored 117 though at the other end wickets fell like nine pins and England lost. Again he showed that when the team is in trouble he is the one who will come good. In the Ashes that followed though he did ok he was not outstanding and again the so called experts started questioning his lack of footwork but thankfully it did not get into Tresco's head as in India he yet again did well and most of the times the team were under pressure yet Treso stood to the task.

His biggest test though came later in that year in Australia when he started to get low scores and were not the pundits waiting for it as they all jumped into the bandwagon and started questioning about his technique and one has to say that there was immense pressure on the guy when he walked to bat against SA at Oval in 2003 as he had not scored a century for over a year but how well he responded by playing a magnificent knock and getting a double hundred. Infact England were behind in that match as they were chasing a good score of 485 made by SA yet Tresco anchored the innings beautifully and helped England to win. His shots against Paul Adams in that knock were great to watch. After that series he scored a fine hundred against Bangladesh at Dhaka. I am discussing this knock just because even against Bangladesh England were in trouble and without Tresco's hundred England may have lost.

He had his troubles in the Caribbean and as expected the cricket pundits were beginning to question his technique but Tresco silenced them atleast for sometime as he did well at home still there were whispers about him failing on the bouncier tracks of SA but in his usual style of standing upright and getting a good stride in Tresco was able to do well in SA. His knock at Durban where he and Strauss put on a double hundred first wicket stand helped England not only to make sure that they will not lose but got them back in the match as suddenly England from losing had a good chance of winning! At Wanderes he helped England to win the match by scoring a blistering 169 which helped England to declare early as England won the series in SA. Few of the shots which I still remember from the knock were that nonchalant flick of Kallis, and coming down the wicket and hitting Boje straight down the ground against the spin.

The next big series was against Australia and the cricket experts were back on track as they started pointing towards Tresco's rather modest record against Aussies especially Ian Chappell was very critical of him as he said that both Kasper, and Dizzy will get him for single digit scores but did not he prove them wrong and who can forget his 90 at Edgbaston which brought some new life to England's camp or all those consistent scores throughout the series. In total he scored 430 runs and for once all his critics shut their mouth. He showed his class in Pakistan with a fine 189 at Multan though his team let him down by collapsing as England lost.

I don't want to get into the details of all that happened after that tour as Tresco finally retired in 07 but there is no doubt in my mind that he was an underrated opener. He was someone who stood upto the challenge whenever England were in trouble.

Siddle

So I again see that some are underestimating Siddle but just like I expected Siddle to succeed in SA I do believe that he can do well in England.

With time I expect him to be an all wicket bowler as he has good pace, can get it come back sharply, and seems to never give up,yes at times he can get carried away but with time I do think that he will get better at that. The only difference between England, and South African conditions is that in SA along with bit more bounce one does see more variation in bounce which can help bowlers like Siddle as he has a quick arm action so it is hard to pick him but I still believe that he can do well in England.

As far as Hilfy is concerned I still do not think that he makes the batsmen play enough but when one looks at some of the England's batsmen habit of flirting at deliveries outside the off stump with half hearted shots means that Hilfy may not need to make the batsmen play that much. I do hope that England's batsmen show better judgment when it comes to playing deliveries outside the off stump.

Buhanan and his band of coaches!

Buchanan looks like wants a big team of coaches for the 20/20 format. The list is as follows-

John Buchanan, director of cricket operations, chief coach Mathew Mott, assistant coach Brad Murphy, wicket-keeping coach Wade Seccombe, bowling coach Andy Bichel, assistant coach for strength training Michael Buchanan (John's son), team director Joydeep Mukherjee, trainer Adrian Le Roux, physiotherapist Andrew Leipus, fielding coach Jon Deeble and last heard, Buchanan's second son is also a part of the camp.

Now Andy Moles the New Zealand coach, has joined the Kolkata Knight Riders as an 'observer' and will be with the team till May 5, according to the Kolkata-based Telegraph. Moles is saying that he wants to study the 20/20 format and implement those ideas with NZ team but so many coaches and now Andy Moles joining them for whatever reason well it looks like we too can get some job with KKR!

Tendulkar plays a pull shot???

I saw Tendulkar playing a savage pull shot of Sharma and hit it for six against KKR.I have not seen Tendulkar play this shot for sometime now probably as he had back problems he had left playing that shot.

It surely made me remember his glorious knock at Cape town in 1997 when he pulled and even hooked Donald in a test match and made 169.

I also saw him play a shot which was almost like a reverse hockey flick against Gayle!

Finally it looks like Tendulkar is almost back to his best as he is making mincemeat of the opposition! where are those ho wanted him out after the 2007 world cup

Strategies against Hughes

To begin with there is no doubt that Hughes has started very well as a batsman and is going to be a threat to the opposition teams in the days to come, so what can the opposition bowlers do is the question.

Many experts do think that sustained short pitched bowling can be used against him as his technique of not covering the line indicates the tactic of bowling bouncers can be used but I don't buy that view as at present there are not many bowlers who can do that and when SA quick Steyn tried it Hughes was able to get away with that, yes he did not look comfortable but he showed the grit to play it well enough. So what else can be used against Hughes is the question.

I surely think that spin is an option against Hughes as he does play with hard hands and as he straightaway goes after the spinners with those slog sweeps. So I definitely think that England can take a chance and introduce Swann early on and make him bowl around the wicket which will make sure that Hughes has to hit against the turn when he tries those slog sweeps and I don't see him as someone who believes in taking quick singles which is expected as he does not play with soft hands.

Opposition teams can look at swing bowlers who pitch it up around the off stump as an option as Hughes does not like to play in the V but I do think the best option is to go with spinners.

Finally Hughes is an unorthodox player who with his success has definitely challenged the opposition teams to come up with some new plans and it will be interesting to as to see what the opposition teams will do to counter him.

Best batswoman of all time

I have seen many experts, statisticians, cricket fans debating who is the best batsman of all time but what about the best batswoman of all time? So I thought of analyzing about who can be the best batswoman of all time.

Heyhoe Fint

It is always said that Hey Hoe Fint was the one who brought respectability to women’s cricket . As a player she was said to be very good in defence also SHE could play attacking shots and was rightfully inducted into MCC in 04. She also captained the England side.

Janette Brittin

I was fortunate enough to see this player from Surrey who also played for England. Her greatest strength was that once she got settled at the crease she had the ability to get big scores as she had a good defence. Brittin played for nearly 20 years for England and still holds the record for the most number of runs in test cricket.

Karen Rolton

She was another fine player from Australia. Her greatest strength is that she is powerful and generates great amount of bat speed. She is easily the most powerful batswoman I have seen . She is also the captain of the present Australian side. Finally when one remembers Rolton everyone remembers her great innings against South Africa in the 2001 world Cup and in that innings it rained sixes from her bat. It even made Murdoch sit up and take notice and the media mogul even took the gamble of televising that tournament. It just shows the kind of impact she made in that tournament.

Mithali Raj

Now how can I leave the Indian lass Mithali Raj who holds the record for highest individual score in test cricket. She is a very sweet timer of the ball and once she gets set has the ability to get big scores. A very fine player indeed. She is a connoisseur’s delight.

Anjum Chopra

Another fine Indian player who too has served India well over the years. Chopra the lefthander is another sweet timer of the ball who can be good to watch.

Charlotte Edwards

The present captain of England may not have had the best of world cup still she too is a fine player. Edwards is very strong off her legs and can get big scores.

Hockley

Probably she was the best batswoman of NZ. Her greatest strength was her ability to be innovative. A very seasoned campaigner indeed.

Belinda Clark

For me the best batswoman of all time has to be Belinda Clark. I did not see the legendary Hey hoe Fint but whatever I have seen of Belinda Clark makes me think that she was the most complete batswoman of all time. She had all the shots in the book and played some great innings like that double hundred against Pakistan in the 97 world Cup. Yes the bowling attack was weak still it was a fine performance from her and who can forget her valiant 90 odd in the 2001 world cup final and one has to say that her stroke play in that knock as exemplary especially her footwork against spinners.

Upcoming players like Claire Taylor and the new sensation Sarah Taylor who is also an competent keeper too are really good and one count Stahlekar of Australia as well.

Ireland and Netherlands

Ireland, and Netherlands
So after what was a competitive ICC qualifying tournament I thought of looking at the present state of some of the ICC associate teams like the champions themselves Ireland, and Netherlands.
Ireland
To start with Ireland who were the champions easily looked the better side of the tournament and they lost only two games in the entire tournament. Ireland showed great team spirit and of course they have some fine players too like the captain, Porterfield, Niel' O Brien, the former captain Jhonston, Rankin etc but there have been times in the past when they have underperformed but this time around they showed their class and deservedly won the trophy.

Porterfield the left handed opening batsman looks like a gutsy type of player who is strong on the back foot as is the wicket keeper batsman N 'O Brien who does have a better range of shots than Porterfield but again he too is very strong on the back foot and tidy behind the stumps too, Rankin the tall quick had some shoulder problems but has come back and is now playing for warwickshire. He too played a important part in the final of the tournament against Canada and of course there is the experienced Jhonston who showed that he is still very good by taking 5 wickets in the finals.

Overall it was an fine performance by Ireland though it is worrying to see that some of their main players like Joyce, Morgan have left Ireland to play for England.
Holland
Netherlands also did well to reach the semifinals. The players who did well for them include the experienced Zuidrent who is still going strong. When one thinks of Bas Zuidrent the first thing that comes to anyone's mind is his superb batting in the 96 WC and in that tournament he played well against bowlers like Cork. Since then he has played for Sussex and has continued to do well for Netherlands. Of course players like Klas van Nortwijk, Luke Van Troost have left the scene and Dirk Nannes being unavailable also did not help still having players like Zuidrent, the inspirational all rounder Ryan ten Doeschate, Van Bunge the opener, youngsters like Kervezee has meant that they do have a bright future ahead of them.

So it has been a good tournament for both the teams what with Ireland winning the tournament, and the Dutch team reaching the semi finals yet both have to show that they can mix with the big boys. Of course the Irish team did show in the 2007 Cup that they can do well as they did defeat Pakistan in that tournament but they have to create more upsets like that. One more factor to consider is that teams like Netherlands. Ireland rarely get to play the full fledged teams which is hampering their progress