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September 29, 2006
Posted on 09/29/2006 in Pakistan cricket
In the aftermath of the Code of Conduct hearing at The Oval, the media has gone into overdrive. While the decision came too late for the Australian papers, and most in Asia took agency reports, in the UK, there was no shortage of comment.
In The Independent, Angus Fraser reveals that he has actually seen the ball at the heart of the whole row:
The state of the ball surprised me. It was protected in bubble wrap and treated as though it was part of a murder investigation. My first impression was that there was not a great deal wrong with it. I expected there to be more. This was not a ball that was about to reverse swing - the phenomenon created by the type of ball-tampering the Pakistan side had been accused of - extravagantly. The seam and quarter seam were in as good a condition as you would expect from a ball that was 56 overs old. They had definitely not been tampered with. There was a contrast between the two sides of the ball, as there always is. This is because one side has sweat and spit put on to it and is polished, while the other is left alone. The darker side is the one that has been polished and it generally looks tidier, while the other side always appears rougher.
Continue reading "'The state of the ball surprised me'"
September 28, 2006
Posted on 09/28/2006 in Pakistan cricket
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Ranjan Madugalle and David Pannick QC prepare for the hearing yesterday
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| Although the ICC Code of Conduct hearing was conducted behind locked doors at The Oval, that has not stopped a couple of reports appearing offering insights into what happened.
In The Daily Telegraph, Simon Briggs claims that the Pakistan Cricket Board’s legal team are ahead on points:
In the course of the hearing, it became clear that Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove — the umpires at the centre of last month's ball-tampering storm — had not fully followed protocol during the emotional and chaotic afternoon of Aug 20. Insiders say this has weakened their case substantially.
Continue reading " Lawyers put umpires to the test"
Posted on 09/28/2006 in Ashes
Ricky Ponting has enough on his own plate without worrying about Andrew Flintoff, writes Mike Selvey.
Aside from his batting, we shouldn't worry too much about Ponting, whom one eminent Test cricketer of recent vintage, who is familiar with him, described to me as a panicker.
Following pedigree leaders such as Allan Border, Mark Taylor and Steve Waugh would always be a tough call but these words of wisdom come from someone who relinquished the hold on the Ashes that his predecessors had established, got in such a lather over substitute fielders that even Duncan Fletcher cracked a smile and who in Malaysia recently was forced to hand over his match fee following a rant over a wide delivery in a no-account game in a competition to match.
Posted on 09/28/2006 in Ashes
Is the word 'Pom' is an abusive term, asks Andrew Mueller:
The view of Australia's human rights and equal opportunities commission is that Pom, while hardly a compliment, isn't quite an insult: it has ruled that Australian fans may utter it, though it wearily acknowledges that Pom might stray into the realm of racism when deployed in conjunction with words commonly associated with the term.
September 27, 2006
Posted on 09/27/2006 in Pakistan in England
As the cricket world’s attention heads back to The Oval – and not even with the badly-scheduled 2004 Champions Trophy was the old ground in the headlines so late in the year – the speculation and rumour surrounding events five weeks ago continues to keep the media busy.
Today, a report by Christopher Martin-Jenkins in The Times claims that Inzamam did not act on his own in refusing to resume play after tea but was persuaded by others.
The refusal to take the field may not have been his idea but that of Waqar Younis, the touring team’s bowling coach, or one of the other senior figures in or around the Pakistan dressing-room at the time, The source said that Waqar, who was suspended and fined in 2000 when found guilty of changing the condition of the ball by a referee in Colombo, took Inzamam into the lavatory for a secret discussion at the start of the tea interval, from which point the situation spiralled out of control.
Continue reading "ICC facing recipe for anarchy"
Posted on 09/27/2006 in English cricket
Mark Ramprakash, named the Professional Cricketers' Association Player of the Year, reveals, in a column in The Independent, the secret of his success.
In the same paper, Chris Adams, captain of the victorious Sussex, talks about the art of captaincy on a shoestring budget.
Posted on 09/27/2006 in Offbeat
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While Matthew Hayden hopes to strike such a pose at the Gabba, Lillee and Thomson will be manning the beaches of Queensland
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The Ashes can wait... some serious cricket first as reported in The Australian
After decades of wasting their summers at Lord's, the SCG and Sabina Park, a clique of ageing Test cricketers has finally realised what the rest of us have known for years - the best games are played on the beach.
Mark Waugh, Damien Fleming and Dean Jones will make up the rest of the local side, which will face off old adversaries such as Courtney Walsh, Joel Garner, Curtly Ambrose, Graham Gooch, Allan Lamb and Graham Hick in the international clashes.
One side of the field will be constantly under water, which has caused concern for some of the West Indies players and the English, who either cannot swim or have heard too much about the man-eaters that surf at our beaches.
Posted on 09/27/2006 in
Amid his fraught preparations for the hearings, Inzamam-ul-Haq talks to the Guardian about life, religion and Shoaib Akhtar.
Inzamam and a majority of the Pakistan team are the most visible adherents of the Tablighi Jama'at, a south Asian Islamic movement related to the austere and uncompromising Deobandi sect. Its latest recruit is the batsman Mohammad Yousuf, formerly Yousuf Youhana, who converted from Christianity. Yousuf now regularly leads the team in prayer.
"Over the past four years, there has been a change in the Pakistan team," Inzamam says. "If you look at the team, its entire reputation has changed. In the past, before my captaincy, we used to be routinely accused of match-fixing and other scandals. Now, all the boys pray together, collectively, five times a day. There is greater unity in the team. And we are widely respected as a team with integrity."
Posted on 09/27/2006 in Indian Cricket
The Challenger Trophy in Chennai will see a host of youngsters making their debut on the big scene. In the Kolkata-based daily Telegraph, Mohandas Menon gives a brief summary of their careers.
September 25, 2006
Posted on 09/25/2006 in Ashes
The Sydney Morning Herald reports how the precious Ashes urn is set to make only its second visit to Australia since it was handed to the Hon Ivo Bligh, the England captain, by a group of ladies in 1882.
The case containing them will have its own separate business class seat on the flight from London. It will not leave the wrist of Mr Chadwick, the MCC museum curator, who will be the only person to handle the urn during its four-month stay in Australia. Arrangements are being made to clear it through customs, including paperwork covering materials, value and provenance, a 24 hour acclimatisation period at the museum and a detailed examination. Every scratch, stain and mark is noted and photographed.
The urn’s only previous visit was for Australia’s bicentenary celebrations in 1988. It was due to return in 2002 but x-rays detected cracks in the ancient terracotta pot and cricket’s most symbolic trophy had to undergo major renovation.
Posted on 09/25/2006 in English cricket
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Lancashire's season ended in farce at The Rose Bowl
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| Over the last few weeks it seemed as if Lancashire’s 72-year wait for a Championship title might be nearing an end, but once gain they just failed to do enough and the crown instead headed down to Hove.
In The Guardian, Colin Shindler, who watches more Lancashire games than most, looked back at the season and its unsatisfactory end.
It was somehow appropriate that Lancashire's season expired at the Rose Bowl in circumstances of pure farce. It was symbolic of a season that promised so much and delivered, again, so little. On Friday we had stared mournfully as the rainwater collected in gloomy puddles on the covers. On Saturday we had the unedifying spectacle of Hampshire bowling virtually unplayable "moon" balls at Lancashire batsmen who were too embarrassed to acknowledge the conventional landmarks of their innings.
But whereas many spluttered and moaned that Lancashire’s failure this time was down to the weather – and they were hit by more than their fair share of rain-blighted games – Shindler is unconvinced.
It also rains quite frequently on the other side of the Pennines but everyone knows that Yorkshire's failure to win the championship more than once since 1968 is because they have had some poor teams and a divided club. It is about time the inept Lancashire committee stood up and admitted as much. Instead they can only splutter that the ECB has taken away their Test match.
Posted on 09/25/2006 in World Cup 2007
The build-up to the World Cup continues to throw up issues … will the grounds be ready, will the infrastructure cope? But a row has broken out in Antigua over a proposal to license sex workers in the region in time for the tournament.
If people thought that being accosted by one of the ICC’s zealous anti-branding rottweilers was an issue, the Antigua Sun put them straight.
Under the Immigration and Passport Act, if an immigration officer suspects that a person is coming into the country to behave in the manner of a prostitute the officer has the authority to refuse entry.
Moves are being floated to recriminalise prostitution in time for the event – although surely the ICC should investigate the apparent links between cricket and sex – but Clyde Walker, Antigua’s chief immigration officer, had a serious warning that security officials had enough to cope with trying to "keep out terrorists, deportees, travelling criminals, and undesirables".
Posted on 09/25/2006 in English cricket
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Shane Warne wasn't amused by Lancashire's tactics
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Hardly a week goes by when Shane Warne doesn't find himself in the news for all the wrong reasons and it will come as no surprise to learn that the past 48 hours have been no different, writes Richard Boock in The New Zealand Herald.
His latest circus act came during the final round of the English County Championship on Saturday when he vented his spleen at Lancashire for not declaring their second innings closed in the interests of creating an exciting finish.The Hampshire import was so incensed that he began bowling donkey-drops and other apparently ridiculous deliveries; at one point sending down a stream of bouncers and being no-balled for throwing.
September 24, 2006
Posted on 09/24/2006 in Australian cricket
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Better with the bat than the ball...for now
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Opinion remains divided surrounding Cameron White. A superb summer at Somerset, whom he captained in place of the injured Ian Blackwell, he retained captaincy of his Victoria for the forthcoming season. But while his captaincy credentials are not in doubt, his allround game is; of his two facets, it is his batting which has most developed, argues Lyall Johnson in The Age
White's season with Somerset also confused the argument as to where he should bat in the order. White himself is happy to bat wherever is best for team balance, but clearly enjoyed coming in at No. 5 for Somerset and No. 3 in the limited-overs matches. He has batted mainly at No. 6 and No. 7 in four-day cricket in Victoria and numerous spots in one-day matches.
Last season, he batted at No. 6 in the Pura Cup, with Jon Moss shifted back to No. 7.
White's numbers with the ball for Somerset weren't quite as impressive. He grabbed only 15 wickets at an average of 48.20 in the four-day format and eight wickets at 28.50 in one-day games.
Because White is not possessed of a massive leg break, many batsmen in four-day competitions play him as they would a medium pacer, driving him off the front foot because they're unafraid of being beaten off the deck.
Posted on 09/24/2006 in Ashes
The Barmy Army have been entertaining supporting England for a number of years, through the dark depression of the nineties and out into the altogether brighter 2000s. But with the Ashes a mere 59 days, 13 hours, and 28 minutes (ish) away comes the news that Australia are urging their public not only to turn up at the cricket, but beat the Barmies at their own game. Further proof in video format here and here - two commercials airing on Australian TV at the moment.
Never mind the cricket; this winter's real contest could be in the stands.
Posted on 09/24/2006 in Pakistan in England
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It's verdict time for Darrell Hair on September 27
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| Michael Atherton, the former England captain, wonders if anyone really cares 'whether a cricket ball was tampered with and whether one man brought the game into disrepute'. Looking ahead to the hearing on the Oval controversy, he reckons that all the parties involved will be pleased with the verdict.
Given the lack of television evidence, and the absence of any absolute condemnation from the expert witnesses, Inzamam will not be charged with ball tampering. In order for the ICC to save face, however, he will be charged with bringing the game into disrepute and so the blame for the cancellation will be laid firmly at his door. A small rap on the knuckles, maybe a fine and a small suspension, will ensue.
Read the full piece in The Telegraph.
Posted on 09/24/2006 in Offbeat
Ramachandra Guha has a look at a few fascinating stories linked to some cricketers' names.
If Pataudi's was the most democratic name change undergone by a cricketer, surely the most charming was that effected by the England fast bowler Bob Willis. He made his first-class debut with the two Christian names his parents gave him. Then he spent a winter following Bob Dylan around the west coast of America. After he returned to England, and cricket, he changed his name by deed-poll to "Robert George Dylan Willis
Read the full piece in The Hindu
Posted on 09/24/2006 in Australian cricket
Ian Chappell may have been a hard taskmaster during his Australian captaincy days, but as Will Swanton of The Sun Herald observed, meeting Chappell now would 'dispel every ill-conceived notion you had of him'. Chappell's contributions as a cricket writer is as significant as his insightful commentary and he recounts his early days as a writer, and what it takes to succeed in the field.
"There was a quote from Red Smith's son which said the thing he remembered most about his dad's writing was that he used to pore over a word. He just wanted to get the right word. That's always stuck in my mind. I get like that. I think, 'Shit, there's a better word for this'. You find the right word and it lifts the sentence so much."
On the topic of the Ashes, Chappell rates England's chances, and he strongly feels that Andrew Flintoff's appointment as captain is an aggressive move which should serve England well.
Read the full piece here.
September 23, 2006
Posted on 09/23/2006 in Miscellaneous
Bob Woolmer's recent suggestions to legalise ball-tampering in order to even things out between batsmen and bowlers may not be in the best interests of the game, writes Bob Simpson in Sportstar. The trend of batsmen leaking runs at will has coincided with the decline in bowling standards.
But why, after 100 years plus and in an era which is claimed to be the most scientific and professional ever, do bowlers need outside aid and changes to the law when, for over a century, Test bowlers have used guile, skill, hard work and the mastery of line and length to obtain results? Is it that the modern bowlers have lost all these abilities?
The way forward is for bowlers to keep it simple, like Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, who've each fetched over 500 Test wickets by just sticking to the basics.
Posted on 09/23/2006 in Miscellaneous
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When Sachin Tendulkar smiles, the world smiles with him
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Cricket fans better stay tuned in as we can expect a long season of action and drama, with the Ashes series and the World Cup ahead, as well as Sachin Tendulkar's return to form, writes Peter Roebuck.
By next April, a hundred issues will have been settled, a thousand rumours will have been heard — some of them almost true — fifty conspiracy theories will have been mooted, none of them well pitched.
Read the full piece in The Hindu.
September 22, 2006
Posted on 09/22/2006 in Miscellaneous
It's 20 years since India and Australia played out a titanic contest at Madras, only the second tie in the history of Test cricket.
The Times of India revisits the day and speaks to Maninder Singh, the last man to fall, who maintains that he got an inside edge and was wrongly given lbw.
On the other hand, Mid-day, a Mumbai-based tabloid, chats with Vikram Raju, the umpire who delivered the verdict, who sticks by his guns: "My decision was clean as a whistle".
Also read Cricinfo's coverage of the events - Eye-witness accounts from Bobby Simpson, Dean Jones, Greg Matthews and Ravi Shastri. There's also an interview with Dean Jones, who had no hesitation in terming the Test as one that 'marked the renaissance of Australian cricket'.
Posted on 09/22/2006 in DLF Cup
Ben Dorries attempts a look at the lives of Lara, Tendulkar and Ponting in The Courier-Mail.
Three cricketing worlds collided for a few precious moments in exotic Malaysia as modern-day greats Ricky Ponting, Brian Lara and Sachin Tendulkar chewed the fat in a rare get-together. The private lives of the world's three top batsmen – with 30,766 Test runs between them – could not be more different away from their glossy magazine ads and rich endorsement deals.
AAP's Daniel Brettig writes about Ponting's planned team approach in the early overs of today's game against India.
September 21, 2006
Posted on 09/21/2006 in English cricket
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Roberts has overseen Flintoff's training for several years - here, pictured in March 2005 on the moors
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Simon Hughes follows Andrew Flintoff in and around the hills of Bolton, with Dave 'Rooster' Roberts, as he continues to prepare for strapping on his bowling boots again.
Roberts, who cajoled Ian Botham back to fitness after a back operation in 1988, leads the way. Having lived in the area since boyhood, it is very much his territory. Flintoff, eight weeks after ankle surgery, follows gamely behind. The undulating, uneven terrain would be a good test of a mountain goat never mind a 100kg cricketer in rehab. He exhibits no discomfort as we skirt the water and climb the first of several wooded slopes. Everything is tailored to cricket-specific fitness, so we canter for three minutes, then walk for three, in keeping with a fast bowler's normal match cycle.
We stop at the foot of a steep incline and Flintoff and Wyatt race each other up it three times. The lack of an obvious spring in his step belies Flintoff's power: he wins each time.
We weave through the trees and stiles, running, walking. There is little banter. Just the occasional "off we go again!" from Roberts. Having worked together now for three years, there's an innate understanding between the two men.
A fascinating read at The Telegraph.
September 20, 2006
Posted on 09/20/2006 in Ashes
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Richard Hadlee suffered Down Under
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| Richard Hadlee was the favourite target of Australian supporters in the 1980s and he tells Robert Craddock, of The Courier-Mail, Monty Panesar has done the right thing by seeing a psychologist to deal with potential problems. However, Hadlee says his best advice came from Greg Chappell.
"Greg took me aside and said I was over-reacting to the crowds and if you antagonise them or show them they are getting to you it will only get worse," Hadlee said. "In the early days as a young puppy I overreacted.
"Greg said forget about the distractions and do your talking with the ball – and at the end of the day there were more Test wickets for me against Australia than any other nation. I think it worked out pretty well.”
In The Australian Malcolm Conn writes about Kerry Packer, another high-profile figure during the 1980s.
Australia's players will today honour the late Kerry Packer as the most influential man in the history of the sport by naming a life membership award after him. Shunning the opportunity to highlight a great player of the game, the Australian Cricketers' Association instead decided to recognise Packer for making the game professional with the introduction of World Series Cricket in 1977, and the ongoing multi-million-dollar support of the Nine network.
Posted on 09/20/2006 in Women's cricket
There are mountains and there are molehills and The Surfer suspects that the latter is about to turn into the former with the news that a private text allegedly sent by the chairman of Leicestershire, Neil Davidson, has caused much indignation at Somerset, who have lodged a complaint with the ECB. And it’s about girls. Read the sorry saga, as reported in The Times here.
Posted on 09/20/2006 in Australian cricket
Chloe Saltau reports in The Age how a Victorian country association has resorted to expensive measures to save their turf competition.
At a meeting this week of the Bendigo and District Cricket Association, in the part of Victoria most severely affected by drought, clubs voted unanimously to invest in a recycled watering system worth about $60,000. The alternative was to cancel the turf league, a breeding ground for elite Premier Cricket in Melbourne, or move their gun players onto hard, synthetic wickets, far from ideal for cricketers aspiring to play for their state or country.
"It's going to be hard," said association president Darren Lewis. "We had a meeting last night with the clubs, and we spelt out the financial possibilities and said, 'Either we put our hand in our pocket to guarantee our future, or we don't,' and the clubs unanimously said, 'We've got to do it.' "
September 19, 2006
Posted on 09/19/2006 in Umpires
Umpires are in the news again today, starting with Darrell Hair’s belief he will stand in the Champions Trophy. The Courier-Mail’s story is here and the Sydney Morning Herald’s report is here.
In the Herald Sun Jim Wilson writes Cricket Australia supports neutral umpires for any Test series.
Posted on 09/19/2006 in English cricket
A couple of weeks ago the ECB staged their first 'spin match' at Derby where a collection of the most promising young spinners in the country pitted themselves against promising young batsmen in a range of set-up situations. Only one of the spinners involved, 22-year-old Sachin Vaja, does not have a county - but that probably won't last long. He styles himself on Muttiah Muralitharan and has already bowled at some of England's top batsmen in net sessions and has excited many coaches. Matthew Pryor chatted to him for The Times.
The 22-year-old from East London has travelled far since last August. He was discovered by Neil Burns, the chief executive of London County Cricket club, and could be at the beginning of a successful career.
Posted on 09/19/2006 in Miscellaneous
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The coach... according to Warne
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| In The Daily Telegraph, Derek Pringle supports Shane Warne’s recent comments and argues that a coach is not much use to great players.
This winter, England will tour India and Australia with as many as five coaches, and that is not counting the physiotherapist, masseur, doctor, media managers and security advisers who will accompany them. When England toured Australia in 1982-83, neither team had a coach.
The old days might not have been the way to do things, but Pringle goes on to suggest we might gone too far the other way ...
What Warne is really saying is that great players don't need coaches, and he is right. Certainly the most gifted players of my acquaintance, Ian Botham, Vivian Richards and Brian Lara, were instinctive and possessed great flair. The only advice they listened to came from their inner voice. Coaching, by contrast, is about advice based on method and analysis, things anathema to pure talent.
It all comes under the umbrella of team preparation which some coaches, perhaps justifying their hefty salaries, have pushed to the limits of acceptability. While computer and video analysis are considered standard now, wacky ideas such as the use of earpieces between coach and captain (a Bob Woolmer idea subsequently banned by the International Cricket Council) and studying the Art of War by the ancient Chinese general, Sun Tzu (another Buchanan initiative), have invited derision and not just from the press.
September 18, 2006
Posted on 09/18/2006 in Pakistan cricket
James Root in The Observer carries out an in-depth interview with Mushtaq Ahmed where he talks about the importance that religion has in his life.
My religion has helped me big time It makes me disciplined. Now I don't think of tomorrow, I think for today. I used to take five wickets in a day and worry about tomorrow rather than enjoy it. I don't feel under pressure to perform any more.
People have no idea what Islam is about because of the media's negativity. If people read the Koran they would see a different message. If I do something wrong it doesn't mean Islam is wrong. Don't believe that Islam is the religion that makes people do these things. Islam says if you kill one man, you kill mankind.
Nick Bratt, who skippered him when he played league cricket in Staffordshire, hints at a different side to the old Mushtaq:
I think he got to a period in his life when he felt that things had to change and he found Allah … Mushy told us about some wild nights but he can tell you more about that than I can.
Posted on 09/18/2006 in Ashes
In today’s Daily Telegraph, two views on the Ashes selections from either side of the divide. TV anchor Mark Nicholas bemoans the fact that England have picked a side full of walking wounded.
The damaging effect half-fit players had on the tour four years ago was quite a shock. These are the Aussies we are talking about, and wounded ones too. Now we have exposed ourselves again. It is unbelievable. Why are the doubtful starters not to be in Perth with the Academy, having a run-out in the leagues? That way they could be added to the party when proven fit, rather than subtracted if found unfit, which is so debilitating.
Ian Chappell, meanwhile, is hardly complimentary, while acknowledging that the selectors did about as well as could be expected.
When I first read the England Ashes squad my reaction was that of the ubiquitous fearsome rugby league forward, who when smashed in the jaw by an opponent in the opening scrum, grins and says: "Is that the best you've got?" However, not wanting to be a smart aleck and also mindful of a couple of atrocious 2005 Ashes predictions the thought didn't linger. It could also have been that, apart from one or two contentious issues, this was the best the England selectors could muster under trying circumstances.
September 17, 2006
Posted on 09/17/2006 in Australian cricket
Move over Boonie, Beefy's in town.
Foster's is believed to have chosen English cricket legend Ian "Beefy" Botham as the new face of its popular talking doll.
The little Beefy will appear alongside a new talking David Boon doll for the coming Ashes Tests in Australia.
In a new take on the old talking Boonie, the dolls will argue and respond to one another's wry comments.
Foster's gave away about 200,000 talking Boonie dolls with Victoria Bitter slabs during the 2005-06 one-day series.
Via The Herald Sun
Posted on 09/17/2006 in Ashes
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'I will be flying out there thinking about hitting hundreds'
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Ian Bell has issued a warning to Australia not to underestimate him, or England, in this winter’s Ashes.
"It will be an aggressive and very good series. We played aggressively against Pakistan and we need to keep doing that, while also staying in our game plan and not getting too carried away.
"We have just beaten a good Pakistan side with no Michael Vaughan, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles or Simon Jones. To do that with so many big players missing has given everyone a lift.
"As for me, I'm a tougher, harder cricketer now. Last summer I was still questioning myself. I wasn't sure going into the first Test at Lord's whether I was good enough to play at that level.
"But this time I will be much more positive - I will be flying out there thinking about hitting hundreds."
Full story at the Sunday Mirror
Posted on 09/17/2006 in Ashes
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For some cricket now: See you in Brisbane on November 23
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England's Ashes squad was announced on September 12 and experts have a lot to say about the selections.
Vic Marks writes in The Guardian -
If anyone is under pressure after the selection of this winter's squads it is the ECB's medical staff, who have presumably delivered the assurances about the crocks.
Meanwhile Michael Atherton has received a text message from Ashley Giles...
"Christ, Ath," said the text message in the middle of last week, "I've not had my legs amputated, you know. Any jobs going then this winter?"
Read The Sunday Telegraph for more.
September 16, 2006
Posted on 09/16/2006 in Ashes
The debate over who should lead England in Australia raged on until the final moment, when Andrew Flintoff claimed the honour. David Graveney, the chairman of selectors, said it was the tightest of calls before it eventually fell to the man who was central to England's success last summer. Ricky Ponting has said it doesn't matter to him who leads England but Thornton McCamish, in The Age, says it is great news for Australian fans.
I'm delighted. As captain, Flintoff will be in the game from coin-toss to post-match debriefing. Australian cricket fans now face a thrilling prospect: a summer dominated by players we can warm to.
Posted on 09/16/2006 in South African cricket
And here's another South African cricketer in the arms of a model. Herschelle Gibbs and his fiancé, Tenielle, are considering a wedding ceremony on the idyllic island of Antigua during next year's World Cup in the West Indies. Read the full piece in News24.
It was unusual to see Gibbs - well-known for his late night gallivanting - up and on the go before breakfast. And to see Gibbs out of bed that early and in the presence of a member of the opposite sex could only mean one thing - he was smitten.
Posted on 09/16/2006 in Australian cricket
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The rebirth of Shane Watson
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The transformation of Shane Watson from a man-in-a-hurry to Australia's latest 'allrounder hope' can be attributed to his new-found love for the guitar. He taught himself to play the instrument on the internet, spending $1500. Four months on, he now belts out his favourite tunes from Maroon Five and 3 Doors Down like a pro. Watson also looks ahead to The Ashes.
"It's such an amazing way to get away and relax, go for a run along the beach or go for a swim and just chill out. I'm 100 per cent more relaxed than I ever have been and it's definitely starting to come across in my cricket."
Read the full piece in The Courier Mail.
Posted on 09/16/2006 in Australian cricket
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'It takes one ball to get a batsman out' - some wise words by Thommo
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Fast, though he claims not furious, Jeff Thomson, one part of the Australian twin terrors of the '70s, chats with Kolkata-based The Telegraph while on commentary duty for the DLF Cup in Malaysia.
Maybe bowlers do look at the speed gun, but it’s rubbish anyway... The calculation is out of the bowler’s hand, not at the other end... It gives a false impression and the actual speed could be ten per cent slower... The question is: What are the coaches doing? It’s not that hard to make the ball swing and, so, why aren’t they working with the bowlers? Kapil Dev, Akram, Waqar Younis... All these guys swung the ball and picked up a huge number of wickets... The coaches and super coaches aren’t teaching the blokes properly.
I’m a believer in that the more you bowl, the better you get. Follow that and you’re going to be able to handle tough situations.
Posted on 09/16/2006 in Australian cricket
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'I am officially the spin doctor now'
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The name's Warne... Doctor Warne.
In a big day for the champion leg spinner — who is alleged to have written several books, though he claims never to have read one — Southampton and Solent University awarded him an honorary degree on Wednesday for services to cricket...
Warne appeared delighted with his first degree. He paraded around the outfield with a gown and mortar board over his cricket uniform
Read The Age for more
September 15, 2006
Posted on 09/15/2006 in Ashes
Kevin Pietersen understands better than anyone that Australia provides the greatest of all opportunities to seal both his cricketing reputation and growing celebrity, writes Donald McRae in The Guardian
"It's September 12 today," said Pietersen as he passed the magazine to Jessica, who had stretched out on the hotel bed. "Exactly this time last year, at 10 past three, I was still at the crease, batting with George Clooney [Pietersen's nickname for the greying if not so dashing Ashley Giles]. It was everything I dreamed of as a kid, china."
Posted on 09/15/2006 in English cricket
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Angus Fraser was one of quite a few who felt that Strauss should have been captain
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"He's relaxed about missing out on the Ashes captaincy, but the England opener has firm views about leadership, public school accents and which side his (Australian) wife will be supporting this winter". Brian Viner speaks to Andrew Strauss for The Independent.
"Look, I like to think I will have an opportunity to captain the England team again," he says. "This was not about a leadership contest. It's about 16 guys keen as mustard to retain the Ashes. As captains I think Fred [Flintoff] and I both have plenty of attributes, but they are very different. I think your characteristics as a captain are your characteristics as a person and if, as captain, you do something foreign to your character, you'll come unstuck very quickly.
September 14, 2006
Posted on 09/14/2006 in Ashes
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Ashley Giles: England's best 90% fit net bowler
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| One of the most contentious selections by England for the Ashes was that of Ashley Giles, who last bowled a ball in anger in November 2005 … almost a year to the day before the first Test at Brisbane is due to get underway. In The Daily Telegraph, Giles looks to put a positive spin (ho ho) on his rehabilitation:
The fact that I have not played any cricket since last November doesn't really concern me. I am a strong believer that if I am bowling well in the nets then I can carry that into a game.
If that was not worrying enough, he then reveals that he’s not exactly at 100% even in the nets:
I'm bowling in the nets again but not quite off my full run-up. I'm probably at about 90 per cent fitness at the moment and I'm confident of being fully fit by the end of this month. Obviously that will come too late for me to play any cricket this season. But I'm going to India with the Champions Trophy squad and that will give me the chance to bowl in the nets and in the middle.
So come November, England will have a choice between someone who looks good in the nets and possibly in a few club matches in India, and Monty Panesar, who has taken 32 wickets in 10 Tests while Giles has been sidelined. What is really worrying is that it is even being discussed …
Posted on 09/14/2006 in Ashes
Alastair Cook reveals to The Daily Telegraph the feeling when he heard his name announced by David Graveney as being one of the England squad for this winter’s Ashes series. Although he had been told earlier in the day by Graveney in a telephone call, watching the press conference from The Oval was still surreal:
I was standing on a cross-trainer in the gym when the team was announced on TV. I couldn't hear what they were saying – I just watched the pictures, but it was still a pretty amazing feeling to see my name up there. Over the next few minutes, I'm sure I set a personal best on the machine.
Posted on 09/14/2006 in Ashes
Alex Brown, of the Age, the Melbourne-based daily, is not convinced about the potency of the English squad for the Ashes.
A closer look at the England squad reveals that Flintoff, himself returning from injury and preparing for his first Test in Australia without a "super" prefix, has little in the way of reliable, experienced campaigners with him. Only three other players have more than 50 Tests to their name, and of those, Marcus Trescothick's emotional issues and Ashley Giles's dodgy hip must surely be cause for concern. Nine members of the "senior" squad of 16, meanwhile, have played fewer than 20 Tests - including Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell and Monty Panesar, of whom much is expected this summer.
The Age's Greg Baum concurred:
England might also have outsmarted itself by making Flintoff captain. Certainly, he proved himself last year as the long-awaited and much-mythologised next Botham. But it should not be forgotten that the last Botham, the original, not only was a conspicuous failure as captain, but while in office was reduced to a mere mortal as a cricketer, too.
Bob Woolmer, writing in the Australian, reckons England have recovered this summer from their post-Ashes celebratory state of mind but still believes Australia will win back the Ashes.
. If I was a betting man, I would say — sadly, for I remain an Englishman — that England will not retain the Ashes.
September 13, 2006
Posted on 09/13/2006 in Ashes
The response to England's Ashes squad announcement exactly a year after the Ashes were won back after 16 years and eight barren series has drawn critical acclaim from the British media. The final squad was no real surprise, but the decision to appoint Andrew Flintoff as captain has been seen as the bravest decision by the selectors.
A strong, imposing captain is essential in Australia, which is why the selectors chose Flintoff, writes Derek Pringle in The Daily Telegraph.
Continue reading "England gamble on injured contingent"
Posted on 09/13/2006 in Miscellaneous
Hardly a week goes by these days without someone excitedly claiming that cricket is about to take-off in China. Now it emerges that ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed will be in Beijing next week to find out how the land lies.
The China Cricket Association has unveiled a strategic plan that has 60,000 schoolchildren playing cricket in three years and 150,000 in five years, with Beijing, Shanghai and Dalian the hubs for promoting the game. Mandarin editions of the Laws of Cricket are now available in China while Australian cricketing officials have visited the country to conduct coaching courses.
But perhaps the real reason that cricket’s bosses are so keen on China was found in a remark by Syed Ashraful Huq, the boss of the Asian Cricket Council when he told DNA Sport that if China participated in future World Cups then “lucrative commercial windfalls would follow”. He added: “As soon as China breaks through, I foresee the total global revenues for cricket increasing by up to 30 to 40%."
As Gordon Gekko said in Wall Street: "Greed is good, greed is right … greed works."
September 12, 2006
Posted on 09/12/2006 in Pakistan in England
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Inzamam-ul-Haq: an awesome presence at the crease
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Inzamam-ul-Haq didn’t have a happy time on Pakistan’s tour to England, but Guardian’s Frank Keating insists that Inzamam provided him with the “most rewarding purr of content all summer”.
Watching with intense pleasure his two cameo masterclasses at Lord's in July I was smitten by a rare and cherished eureka moment which has not gone away. As the burly, noble fellow toyed with England's perspiring bowlers in the sun, I half closed my eyes and, of a sudden, the revelation overwhelmed me - in form, style, bearing and ingrained majesty, Inzy must be the nearest thing I'd ever seen to witnessing WG Grace at the wicket. The massiveness was all, and the control. In my reverie, it really could have been "the Champion" down there.
Posted on 09/12/2006 in Miscellaneous
It’s widely accepted that cricketers are a barmy lot. But even by those standards, four people who decided to play an impromptu game on a sandbank on the Skate Bank in middle of Scotland’s Moray Firth can safely be described as barking. One of them was quoted in The Daily Telegraph as saying:
The charts have not been updated since 1918, so there was a chance that it had moved or shrunk. However, we decided it was worth investigating. My brother would not allow me to take his proper cricket gear, but we found a small bat and a tennis ball and set out to play the first game on the sandbar for 80 years.
Unfortunately, their energetic bowling and their enthusiastic celebrations were mistaken by a member of public on the shore more than a mile away as signals for help and a rescue helicopter and a lifeboat were launched to rescue them!
Posted on 09/12/2006 in Ashes
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England's Ashes
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As the Ashes squad is named, Patrick Kidd recalls in The Times, with the help of others, the moment Australia were beaten a year ago.
“On Monday morning I saw a newspaper headline which read: ‘One hero wanted at The Oval, report in at 10.30 in the morning’,” Pietersen said. “I wanted to be that hero.” The hero rode his luck. The hat-trick ball was deflected off his shoulder to slip. Then, he edged Warne behind but Adam Gilchrist knocked the ball out of the path of Matthew Hayden. Pietersen was then dropped on 15 by Warne.
September 11, 2006
Posted on 09/11/2006 in Australian cricket
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The Australians at boot camp
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What does Richie Benaud think about John Buchanan's boot camp to improve the spirit and skills of the Australian team? Read The News of the World to find out.
I was captain for the final six years of my Test career and I am certain my players would have thought I'd gone bonkers if I'd even put up the idea of such a gathering. How would I have handled Australian coach John Buchanan's modern-day version, which he hopes will toughen his players for the Ashes battle against England? For a start, I would have taken great care to protect my right shoulder.
Posted on 09/11/2006 in Miscellaneous
Surprise surprise. The legendary Sunil Gavaskar is thinking of making a foray into blogging. Gavaskar was the star guest on the second day of BlogCamp, India's biggest blog unconference.
I look around and I see almost everyone here sitting with a laptop in front. I belong to the transistor generation. My columns even now are written in longhand.
Posted on 09/11/2006 in Miscellaneous
The Indian board has nominated three umpires for ICC's Panel and Suresh Shastri is one of them. Returning to international umpiring after eight years, Shastri speaks to The Indian Express about what lies ahead.
"I am not young but at the same time I cannot be called a veteran too. There are many in the Elite panel who are 55-58 but there are still good. I think, as you go ahead, you tend to handle pressure better. One thing I have learnt in these years to stay in control of the proceedings, and in these times, it’s important."
Posted on 09/11/2006 in DLF Cup
Australia and West Indies will play the opening match of the DLF Cup on September 12 at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lampur. The Deccan Herald has a preview of the ground.
A little over three years back, the Oval was not even a figment of anyone's imagination. Rubber plantations abounded in this part of the Malaysian capital, and what is now the Kinrara Oval was also a plantation then
With a capacity between 4,300 and 4,500, the Kinrara Oval boasts of six pitches, apart from four turf practice pitches and three other synthetic tracks, and 21,000 square feet of soil has been imported from Darwin in Australia
Posted on 09/11/2006 in Pakistan in England
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'I think the selectors have a fair idea what sort of captain I am, and likewise with Fred [Flintoff]' - Strauss chooses his words before the big day
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With England's Ashes squad and Champions Trophy squad to be announced on September 12, Andrew Strauss can only hope that the selectors consider England's recent Test victories over Pakistan and not the forgettable one against Sri Lanka. Read the Guardian for more
Two months ago, assuming his return to full fitness, a Flintoff-led England in Australia looked inevitable. But Strauss' candidature has gained momentum as his calm and authoritative leadership has guided England to a victory against Pakistan in the Test series and a drawn NatWest Series that had seemed beyond them. The decision, to be announced tomorrow, remains too close to call.
September 10, 2006
Posted on 09/10/2006 in English cricket
A Twenty20 match is to be held tomorrow at Grace Road comprising local Christian clergy and Muslim imams to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
The Christian and Muslim teams first met in a football match earlier in 2006, where the imams won 5-0. It was decided to have a rematch in a different sport.
Bishop Stevens said: "I am looking forward to playing this game myself, though that may not lead to a clergy victory.
"The work of the Muslim-Christian dialogue is seen as a model of how to break down negative stereotypes and adds to community cohesion."
The match will start at 1600 BST on Monday 11 September.
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