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November 4, 2006
Posted on 11/04/2006 in Champions Trophy
"Chris Gayle has been the cricketer of this tournament," says Peter Roebuck in The Sydney Morning Herald. "Normally as docile as a government backbencher, he has burst into life, driving and pulling his way to three incandescent centuries, bowling tidily in his understated way and becoming so heated on one occasion that he was called before the beaks and obliged to submit a portion of his match fee."
Posted on 11/04/2006 in Champions Trophy
It is his combustible qualities that have propelled Dan Cullen to national selection at just 22, well before most offies are considered mature enough to have their patience and courage tried at international level, writes Trevor Marshallsea in The Sydney Morning Herald.
November 3, 2006
Posted on 11/03/2006 in Champions Trophy
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Graeme Smith reflects on another semi-final defeat
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The South Africans were clearly beaten by the better team in Jaipur. A sub-standard pitch was blamed for their defeat against New Zealand in a low-scorer in Mumbai, and the food and facilities were apparently not 'up to scratch' in their Jaipur hotel. The sight of Graeme Smith and his team eating cold take-aways after training was peculiar, to say the least. But were they being too fussy? Neil Manthorp finds out in Supercricket.
The fact that the hotel was an hours drive out of town, in Indian traffic containing camels, dogs, pigs and elephants as well as the usual hoard of tuk-tuks, bicycles and oblivious pedestrians deserves genuine sympathy. A journey of 15 minutes in such conditions, with the constant braking, swerving and hooting, can be as physically and mentally draining as a journey ten times as long on a South African highway
November 1, 2006
Posted on 11/01/2006 in Champions Trophy
Stephen Fleming and Michael Vaughan have much in common, writes Peter Roebuck in The Age. Apart from being lanky and looking like James Bond, both convey an inner peace balanced by a fierce competitive streak.
It has been illuminating to watch these tacticians hatch their plans. A keen understanding of their opponents lay behind their strategies. Both appreciated the need to turn Australian aggression back on itself, so that it became a self-destructive force. Both realised that the Aussies would not, could not, hold back. In strife, they'd double the stakes.
October 29, 2006
Posted on 10/29/2006 in English cricket
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Out of form? Out of sight.
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Following Kevin Pietersen’s match-winning 90 yesterday, which handed England a consolation win over the West Indies, Simon Wilde in the Sunday Times says form matters not-a-jot for him:
When he has got his eye in, and there is a match to win on a good batting pitch, the form book gets shredded along with the bowling. Tell-tale averages, hard-won reputations, both are scattered to the winds. He knows that once the ground work is done, he can score at around two runs per ball against the seamers.
In the same paper Wilde interviews Ian Bell; as Iain Duncan-Smith, the former Conservative leader once said, “never underestimate the determination of a quiet man”. Pleasingly for England, Bell is rather more popular and a far greater success than Duncan-Smith.”He has left the chrysalis and started to spread the most handsome butterfly wings”:
Bell still barely looks old enough to cross a road unsupervised, let alone the boundary rope of an international arena, but he has, at 24, assumed a stature worthy of the predictions made for him by many good judges while he was still in his teens. Don’t bet against him being England’s leading run scorer in the Ashes this winter.
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Harmison insists he will be ready for the Ashes
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Over at the Daily Mail, Steve Harmison says the management didn’t reveal their reasons for dropping him in England’s final Champions Trophy match yesterday against the West Indies. He does, however, insist he will be ready to roll come the Ashes:
I know things haven’t quite worked out as I planned here in India at the ICC Trophy. I don’t quite know why I was dropped yesterday because the management didn’t tell me, but I can only assume it was because I didn’t bowl particularly well in the first two games. I feel a little hard done by because on both occasions we were defending a low score, but it’s not the end of the world.
What I do know is that everything’s going well in the nets, my fitness is good and Kevin Shine, the bowling coach, is very happy with my progress. I know how I am best of all, both physically and mentally, and I can categorically state that my confidence is good and I expect fully to be ready, fast and taking wickets in the Ashes series.
October 27, 2006
Posted on 10/27/2006 in Champions Trophy
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Captain Marvellous: Fleming's demand for more international respect might have gained at least a foothold now
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New Zealand's progression to the semi-final stage of the ICC Champions Trophy may have surprised some sections of the public and media, but for Stephen Fleming the success has been hard-earned. Aggrieved at the lack of recognition his team received for their efforts on the international scene, Fleming's role with the bat has spoken louder than his words, feels Richard Boock.
Writing in The New Zealand Herald, Boock lauds New Zealand's effort - in particular, Fleming's captaincy and influence - and chalks up just where each member of the squad stands in the tournament.
"The win means New Zealand are now guaranteed of qualifying for next week's semifinals, and pressing for a repeat of their epic mini World Cup triumph at Nairobi six years previous.
Fleming yesterday hailed a grand team effort; the win coming on the back of some excellent batting from himself, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram and Brendon McCullum, and some demanding bowling from Kyle Mills, Oram, Vettori and - eventually - fast-bowler Shane Bond."
Click here to read more.
October 24, 2006
Posted on 10/24/2006 in Champions Trophy
No single moment has summed up England's ineptitude in the Champions Trophy more excruciatingly than Steve Harmison's opening delivery to India's Virender Sehwag, writes Lawrence Booth in The Guardian. It was so far outside leg-stump that a statuesque Chris Read merely watched it go for five wides, since when Harmison's tournament has gone from embarrassing to look-away-now. That first over went for 20, and on Saturday against Australia he returned figures of 4.5-0-45-1
"Losing here [to Australia in Jaipur] has no bearing on the Ashes," Kevin Pietersen tells Stephen Brenkley in a freewheeling interview in The Independent. "Conditions are completely different, it's a different format, the hype, the crowd at Brisbane will be much bigger... Everything now, is totally focused on the Ashes."
Posted on 10/24/2006 in Champions Trophy
Chris Gayle has been finding it difficult to sleep in Ahmedabad. There isn't much to do in proximity of the West Indies' team hotel so find out how Gayle spends his time by reading his tour diary in The Trinidad Express.
October 23, 2006
Posted on 10/23/2006 in English cricket
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Andrew Strauss on his way to 56 against Australia
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| Andrew Strauss, in his column for The Daily Telegraph, admitted that England’s defeat by Australia was disappointing but insisted they were in good spirits ahead of the Ashes.
I still maintain, however, that this trip has been very beneficial. The training and fitness work we have done will set us up for the Ashes and World Cup, and the feeling of togetherness which a bit of hardship brings will stand us in good stead later this winter.
Although he was not blaming the conditions for England’s problems, he did say that they had caught a number of sides on the hop:
One thing which hasn't helped us is that the pitches haven't been anything like the ones we played on earlier this year, so touring here in March and April might not have been an advantage. A late monsoon apparently hasn't given the groundstaff the chance to prepare the hard tracks we were expecting, and I don't think we are the only side in the tournament to have been duped into thinking this would be a high-scoring event. No batsman has so far scored a hundred in this Champions Trophy. In fact it wouldn't be going too far to say that every run to date has been worth two.
October 22, 2006
Posted on 10/22/2006 in Champions Trophy
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Shane Bond: Like a good sports car, he needs more time on the track
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Writing in The New Zealand Herald, Mark Richardson, the former New Zealand opener, reckons that Shane Bond needs to be played as much as possible. The long he sits on the sidelines mulling over his fitness, the greater the chances that he may even become obsolete.
Writes Richardson:
"He is like that prized sports car you keep locked in the garage. Man it can hum and itturns heads, but the factory warranty has expired and you can't really afford the insurance.
So it sits there, looking all shiny and sparkly. Occasionally you climb into a seat,
start it up put it in neutral and pretend you're charging down country roads at
break-neck speeds, slamming it into second and taking corners like you just
shouldn't, then back up through the gears laughing at those you overtake"
Click here to read more.
October 16, 2006
Posted on 10/16/2006 in Champions Trophy
Robert Craddock writes in The Courier-Mail about Shoaib Akhtar following his positive drugs test.
Shoaib Akhtar was asked just last week did he have a great cricketing dream. "Yes," he replied. "To play one day of my life without pain."
Cricket's indomitable showman turned his back on a legion of experts who told him to cut down his outrageously long 34m run-up for the good of his body and longevity in the game. As a consequence he broke down more often than an Indian phone line.
In the Sydney Morning Herald Alex Brown compares Darren Lehmann’s philanthropic activities with those of Bill Gates and Warren Buffet.
Morris Iemma, the New South Wales premier, is under fire from England’s non-violent Barmy Army after he wrote to Tony Blair asking for a list of the country's sports hooligans.
Posted on 10/16/2006 in Champions Trophy
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Andrew Flintoff: a bad day at the office
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| In The Daily Telegraph Simon Hughes underlines how poor England are at the one-day game but also flags that for all its money and mouth, the Indian board has issues it needs to address.
Events in Jaipur emphasised the perversity of Indian cricket and the predictability of England's. Having secured over £500 million in sponsorship and TV rights, the Indian cricket board is the richest in the world, but yesterday's one- day international was played on a diabolical pitch which would have disgraced the poorest village.
Sending out their lavishly remunerated superstars to play on that was like racing a £2.5 million Formula 1 car round the North Circular. With bald tyres. This folly was compounded by the premature launch of a massive fireworks display just as the meticulous, ever-reliable Rahul Dravid took guard. Utterly distracted by the commotion, his innings lasted three balls.
October 11, 2006
Posted on 10/11/2006 in Champions Trophy
The common thought is that the Champions Trophy is being held in a country that can't get enough of one-day cricket. However, Rohit Brijnath says he is losing interest in the shorter form of the game as more and more matches become forgettable events. After the recent matches between West Indies, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in the early rounds of the Champions Trophy it is easy to understand why. Read his thoughts here on the BBC.
The point, of course, is larger than the Champions Trophy. Quite simply, like an affair that has tired in time, one-day cricket has no fascination for me any more. Once I leapt onto my sofa as the final five overs unfurled, but no longer. Though this could be because the springs of an old sofa and older knees complain as much as the wife.
October 8, 2006
Posted on 10/08/2006 in Champions Trophy
Andrew Strauss missed out on the England captaincy but is now ready for the winter ahead after a break to refresh himself after a long summer. In his Sunday Telegraph column he talks about how important it is for England to build on their two late wins over Pakistan before heading Down Under.
The Ashes has always been the pinnacle of Test cricket as far as England's cricketers and supporters are concerned, and by the end of this winter we want one-day cricket to be viewed as equally important. As players we therefore have the responsibility to improve and perform in the Champions Trophy, the one-day series in Australia and the World Cup. And after plenty of difficulties in one-day cricket last summer I believe we have a much clearer vision of what we need to do, of our roles and the right frame of mind.
October 6, 2006
Posted on 10/06/2006 in Champions Trophy
Ricky Ponting talks about Australia's preparations during the off-season and about the importance of the Champions Trophy. Read his column in the Australian here
October 1, 2006
Posted on 10/01/2006 in Champions Trophy
The Champions Trophy is less than a week away but no team has a steady opening pair. Read The Times of India for more.
Only three pairs have opened in more than 10 One-dayers in the past one year: Australia's Gilchrist and Katich, Jayasuriya and Upul Tharanga for Sri Lanka, and South Africa's Graeme Smith and Boeta Dippenaar.
Even in the not-so-recent past, most teams could boast of a recognised opening pair. That has now whittled down to only one steady option for most teams, and most managements are playing Russian roulette in an attempt to pin down a steady partner for that opener, who is, in most cases, a tried and tested veteran.
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