November 21, 2009

Making sense of strange omissions

Posted by Cricinfo - 6 hours, 48 minutes ago in Selection

From R.Giridharan, India

	Rahul Dravid was axed from the ODI squad despite playing his part to a nicety © AFP

All of a sudden assets could become liabilities; strengths turn into weaknesses. I suspect that is what happened to Rahul Dravid, when the squad for the one-dayers against Australia was picked. He played his assigned role to perfection when all around him did not. Still others held their places, he got the boot. Despite obvious injustice, he has held his dignity, maintained his composure and has not murmured anything faintly resembling dissent. What strength of character! Has his armour become his Achilles heel?

To be fair, selection is a zero-sum game and someone has to be axed to make way for someone else. Men in the hot seat prefer not to ruffle feathers, more so when the going is tough. A man who handles injustice with calmness and dignity is the easiest cat to bell. After all he can be trusted not to wash dirty linen in public.

By no means is this malaise peculiar to India. Australians Doug Walters and Brad Hodge, Pakistan’s Aaqib Javed and England’s Matthew Hoggard have been administered with doses of the same poison.

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November 14, 2009

Cricket and generation Xbox

Posted by Cricinfo - 1 week ago in Cricket videogames

From Suhas Cadmabi, United States

	Cricket video games haven't achieved the popularity of those of other sports © Getty Images

If age were purely a reflection of musical taste, I'd be in my forties. Common reactions to my choice in artists range from amazement ("Man, that's what my dad used to play during his IIT [Indian Institute of Technology] hostel days!"), to outright concern ("Don't you listen to anything contemporary?"). And yet, thanks to the advent of Guitar Hero, a number of teenage cousins suddenly want to engage me in discussions on how Hendrix died young, or whether Mick Jagger was indeed a better frontman than Roger Daltrey. I'm only too happy to indulge them.

The argument here is that lifestyle choices of the urban teenage demographic are being increasingly shaped by the gaming industry, and this also applies to the sports they consume. Take, for example, the schoolkid who aspires to be able to talk football one day with his classmates; he might find the latest edition of EA Sports' FIFA series to be a very handy companion to the live action on the telly. And, going all the way with Manchester United in the virtual world provides the perfect supplement to watching them clinch the Premiership title in the real one.

By the same token, cricket-based games have been rather conspicuous by their inability to make a dent in this market. Could this be a reason for the (perceived) decline in popularity of the game among metropolitan kids, especially in India? An uncle of mine certainly agrees. We were discussing a Cricinfo article in which the author, intrigued by the fact that his fifteen-year-old son should find greater pleasure in watching Thierry Henry and Arsenal than Rahul Dravid and India, observed that cricket appeared to be "reasonably popular, but not cool" among his son's peer group.

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November 11, 2009

Restructure the game around Twenty20

Posted by Cricinfo - 1 week, 3 days ago in Twenty20

From Geoff Willetts, United Kingdom

	Club cricket could well be the wave of the future © Global Cricket Ventures-BCCI

Much has been made in recent weeks of the need to rejuvenate the traditional forms of cricket. In the case of Test cricket, there have been suggestions of Test championships, night-time games with coloured balls, and reducing the number of days from five to four. In the one- day arena, there have been an even greater number of “innovative” ideas, such as split-innings of 25 overs each, reducing innings to 40 overs a side, more Powerplays, less Powerplays, and removal of bowling and fielding restrictions.

To get to the heart of the matter, the force behind this drive for change - as so often is the way - is money. Every sport needs to grow to survive. The ICC’s route to growth has been to significantly increase the overall number of international matches played, particularly in recent times with seven-match one day series becoming more common.

It is a continuation of a trend, however. In the last ten years there have been on average around 140 games of one-day cricket played per year, an almost 50% increase in matches per year when compared to the ten years from 1989-99. Unfortunately for the ICC, the size of the traditional supporter’s wallet has not grown at the same rate, and perhaps neither has their enthusiasm. Hence, to fill the stadium twice as often, and retain the same number of TV viewers per game, probably requires a market comprising twice as many cricket enthusiasts.

So, how to broaden the appeal of cricket? The rejuvenation suggestions mooted above have all been made in the name of increasing the interest of the game to the masses. The goal has been to try and introduce more excitement into what has always been a purist’s sport - one complete with its own set of complicated rules, statistics, and jargon.

Looking at other sporting codes, some have done it well, others not so well. Baseball is an example where teams can now play more than 160 games per year, any night of the week. Matches are typically played in packed stadiums even though games can be long, boring, the outcomes predictable, and with a number of dead rubbers.

Football is the same. In the UK, the big premiership clubs play 60-odd games per season, and every year the same teams inevitably dominate. Still each game is passionately supported by thousands of fans. A third example, rugby league, also prospered in Australia well beyond its original “working class” fan base.

The formats and rules for these sports have not changed significantly in recent history, yet the crowds still show up, every week. The three examples above all have one major thing in common: simplicity. You can explain the sport and its basic rules to someone who knows next to nothing about it in around 60 seconds.

Cricket is not simple - say the words “dead ball”, “reverse-sweep”, “LBW”, “silly mid-on” and “batting Powerplay” to the average American and their eyes glaze over. That’s before you tell them games can last five days and be declared a draw at the end.

In its present form rugby union is not simple either. Like cricket, it has been dogged by dwindling support in recent years. Both codes have made repeated attempts to improve their respective spectacles, and whenever this has resulted in increasing the complexity of the game, they have failed. An easy lesson for cricket’s administrators is therefore if you must do anything, then simpler is better.

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November 6, 2009

A cricketing renaissance

Posted by Cricinfo - 2 weeks, 1 day ago in Twenty20

From Ram Srinivasan, United States

	Tillakaratne Dilshan shows off his innovative scoop shot © AFP

A lot of ink and bits have been spent discussing the evil that is Twenty20 and the IPL. However these primarily identify the effects of Twenty20 cricket, good or bad, on the players and the business of cricket. The focus here is different; understand the effect of Twenty20s on the game of cricket. Not the business of cricket.

Batting The batting equation has changed considerably. Ten wickets and twenty overs, instead of fifty overs. This has encouraged, or even forced, batsmen to dance on the thin line that separates recklessness and aggression. The most famous addition to the cricketing manual in recent years has been the Dilscoop. While it was pioneered by Tillakaratne Dilshan, it is fast catching on. I have had to sit through Lendl Simmons try, and miserably fail, to play the shot at least five times during the Champions League Twenty20.

The reverse-sweep, which has been the pariah of cricketing shots, is now legit and has been endowed citizenship status. Even as late as 2007, a batsman getting out on the reverse-sweep was morally culpable for any subsequent defeat. Twenty20 cricket has simply increased the percentage in the shot. First, with a number of captains (foolishly, if I might add) deciding to do away with the third man in Twenty20, the reward has increased. This has motivated players to practice the shot in the nets, reducing the risk in the shot.

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November 4, 2009

Grandmasters of cricket

Posted by Cricinfo - 2 weeks, 3 days ago in Rankings

From Mahendra Mapagunaratne, Canada

	Which of these legends is not in the ICC Hall of Fame? © Getty Images

I feel that ICC should commence an honorary title system for the greatest players in the game. One may coin a suitable title but for the sake of this article I suggest Grandmaster or Cricketmaster. No one except the most passionate cricket fans would know whether a certain player is in the ICC Hall of Fame by hearing his name, but certainly a Cricketmaster/Grandmaster title would make people note that he has been honoured and even later generations with little idea of history would realise a certain player with a Grandmaster Title besides his name would have been special in the past. Wouldn't it be marvellous for instance to address Sachin Tendulkar as Grandmaster Sachin Tendulkar? ICC could take a cue from chess. Here is the chess hierarchy in descending order: Super Grandmaster [SGM], Grandmaster [GM], International Master [IM]. I think if you poll the players they are bound to like the idea of having a title beside their names.

November 2, 2009

Where are my slippers?

Posted by Cricinfo - 2 weeks, 5 days ago in Fielding

From Mark Browning, Australia

	Limited-overs cricket has reduced the importance of the slip cordon © Getty Images

The popular saying goes, “Bowlers win matches.” In the longest form of the game they can’t without help. First-class and Test matches are also won by guys who are usually the least athletic members of the team. They are the fieldsmen who don’t run much and stand with their hands on their knees; sticking out their backsides at the spectators. For these are the “slippers”, the unsung heroes of Test cricket.

And they have been the true litmus test as to what constitutes a great team. Without the support of “slippers” many bowling legends of the game might be forgotten. Fifty-over cricket diminished the importance of the “slipper” while Twenty20 makes the spot almost redundant. How many know that Cameron White is a fine snaffler of edges? Will a time come when it won’t matter if he’s any good in the cordon or not? One of the main reasons why the Indian team were able to push their hosts in the 2007-08 series Down Under was the reliability of Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid in the cordon in making the most of the opportunities provided.

In his final summers Richie Benaud’s television commentary role has been reduced to intermittent observer, but he was spot-on when he lamented the absence of slip-catching specialists. Their type played a large part in Australia’s dominance in times gone by. Benaud himself was superb in the gully and in his era Neil Harvey took some beauties.

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October 30, 2009

The genesis of a cricket nut

Posted by Cricinfo - 3 weeks, 1 day ago in Fans

From Gopal Rangachary, India

	The late 70s was a good time in India to become a cricket fan © Getty Images

Are you born a cricket nut or do you become one? At least in my case, that is the one thing I can’t blame my genes for (I have successfully blamed them for a variety of character flaws from being disorganised to having ghastly handwriting). My father was apparently anti-cricket - thought it was a waste of time – and if he had lived long enough to see me through my teenage, the world of cricket nuttiness’ would have lost me.

I have impeccable pedigree though for a cricket nut. I was born near the home of cricket (no, not in the Lord’s pavilion. It would have been impossible to have done so, as women weren’t allowed in at the time). Actually I was probably born closer to Edgbaston than to Lord’s, but at least in the country that invented cricket – and when I was seven moved to the new spiritual home of cricket, India. My primary school was at Bramall Lane in Sheffield, which is the only inactive Test venue in England today. I understand there was a turgid Test played out there about 100 years ago, where England lost to Australia.

My early recollections of sport in England are patchy. I vaguely remember kicking (or given my motor skills, missing) a football a few times, and playing one game of cricket in the street. My duties were vaguely described to me as “fielding”, and I remember being positioned at what would be a very deep long-on at the Adelaide Oval, and probably at the back of the bar on most Test grounds nowadays. Needless to say, it didn’t capture the imagination too much.

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October 26, 2009

Mystery and Magic: Iverson, Ramadhin, Gleeson and Mendis

Posted by Cricinfo - 3 weeks, 5 days ago in Bowling

From S.Giridhar and V.J. Raghunath, India

	Australian bowler John Gleeson demonstrates his grip © Cricinfo Ltd

A prison cell during World War II: An Australian prisoner of war is spinning a ping-pong ball to pass time. Iverson is trying out different grips to flick and turn the ping-pong ball against the wall. He finds he can turn the ball both ways by flicking the bent middle finger on either side of the ball and keeps practicing. When the war is over, Iverson unleashes this in Sheffield Shield. Called to play against Freddie Brown’s English team in 50-51, he takes 6 for 27 in the second innings of the third Test in Sydney…..

Iverson is the pioneer, the “first man ever” in this story about right-arm mystery spinners. If Bosanquet introduced the googly to add magic to leg spin and if Saqlain discovered the doosra to spice up offspin, then Iverson it was who first showed the world the magic of imparting spin either way with fingers in a manner difficult for batsmen to fathom.

How rare is the mystery finger spinner? The title of our article itself contains the names of all the well-known exponents of this art form. There are over 150 spinners in Test history but Iverson, Ramadhin, Gleeson and Mendis occupy the table of mystique – the Harry Potters of cricket.

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October 24, 2009

Mystery of the missing wrist-spinners

Posted by Cricinfo - 4 weeks ago in Bowling

From R .Giridharan, India

	England has had plenty of quality finger spinners like Derek Underwood, but where are the wrist-spinners? © Getty Images

An arrogant cricketing official once dismissed a young Kapil Dev, “There are no fast bowlers in India”. One wonders whether aspiring wrist-spinners in England, New Zealand and South Africa were rebuffed in similar ways. This article is a humble attempt to identify the factors that conspired against the emergence of any worthwhile wrist spinner from these countries.

Nature, of course, is the first stumbling block. The wickets in England and New Zealand are soft and green and the outfields moist, breaking the heart of any wrist spinner. Overcast skies encouraged captains to prefer gentle wobblers over the tweaker. In South Africa, wickets are harder, but loaded with juice that the quicks can exploit. Currie Cup, the premier domestic competition was played for long with two balls, thereby keeping the ball newer for longer periods. The quicks therefore remain in the hunt throughout.

The three teams believe in keeping things tight, drying up easy runs and throttling the opposition, especially when spinners are bowling. Spinners are expected to play second fiddle and perform effective hold-ups while the quicks rest, refresh and recharge. Finger spinners fit the bill admirably. Indeed, Lohmann, Verity, Lock, Laker, Underwood, Giles, Panesar (Eng), Tayfield, Symcox, Boje (SA), Dipak Patel, Bracewell, Vettori (NZ) all made their way into the playing eleven as personifications of accuracy, before carving their own niche. The aggressive, predatory worldview of the wrist-spinner would probably be discarded in such a milieu.

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