An unique double!

1000 posts and a year of blogging!!!

Way to go Uncle J!!

Come on. England!!!

( or why I want England to win the inaugural Stanford Twenty20 bash!)

A deal will mean that if England win, each of the XI will receive US$1 million, the rest of the squad share US$1 million, and the management team splits another US$1 million. The remaining US$7 million will be shared between the ECB and the West Indies Cricket Board, regardless of the outcome of the match itself.

Now, if England were to lose out on the 13 million promised to the winners, the recriminations will begin in earnest.. Scapegoats will be found, players will find themselves out of favor within the team, players will be named and shamed.

The team will be disrupted!

Which is not the ideal preparation for the India tour.. And not that I will be complaining too loudly if this happened.

But it will be a temporary blip - the player ( or players) who contributed most to the loss will find themselves out of favor with the team and the management and, in all probability, find themselves on the sidelines ( unless you are a Freddie Flintoff or a Kevin Pieterson, but even then you will find yourself the source of much team animosity).

But, on the other hand, an England win will have more far reaching consequences...

Think about it,,, Here is the XV named for the Stanford series -

Squad for Stanford and India ODIs Kevin Pietersen (capt), James Anderson, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Alastair Cook, Andrew Flintoff, Stephen Harmison, Samit Patel, Matt Prior (wk), Owais Shah, Graeme Swann, Ryan Sidebottom, Luke Wright

Of these XV, XI lucky players will stand to get a million dollars each while the four benchwarmers will get 250,000 dollars each.

So, for starters, questions will be asked of the team selection - who in the XV are closest to the captain and the coach?

Then, there is the money itself.. For the players losing out on the loot ( even if they made their presence felt in the leadup to the game), there is going to be resentment at being left out.

And, if the team, in a rare moment of charity, decides to divide the loot equally, there will be members from the playing XI who will think that they have been given a raw deal.

Either ways, team unity and harmony will be put to test...And if the feelings fester, the long term implications will be tremendous.

Imagine the same cast of players participating in the Stanford quadrangular scheduled in England ( prior to the Ashes, methinks) and the same cast of bench warmers missing out on a lions share the $9.5 million pay cheque!

Nothing like success to destroy a team's fabric!

no Mishra?

"For God's sake, allow me to fail," said his captain. Then why is he denying Amit Mishra the same?

Cant play spin?

Yesterday, after India A lost its first 3 wickets to Bryce McGain and ended the day at 180/4, there was a lot of talk of India's inability to play spin.

And the usual breast beating began - batting quality has gone down, "they don't play spin like they once did." etc etc.

So it was with some interest that I looked at the scorecard of the second day's play between India A and Australia A.

Australia 113/8 in 44.5 overs ( RR 2.52)!!!!

But... but.... Australia always scores at 4 runs or more per over.. And they play spin as well as, if not better than the Indians. And they play spin with soft hands.. And they rotate the strike.. And they work on partnerships.. And they target specific bowlers.. and fielders..

So, have the Australians forgotten how to bat?

But.... but.... wasn't Shaun Marsh at the IPL proof positive that there was enough roster depth in the Australian domestic setup to keep the Aussie flag flying for altleast one more generation?

So how does that dovetail with the current capitulation by Australia A?

Or is India's "inability" to play spin a knee jerk reaction?

And for all the talk of India's players using their feet to get to the pitch of the ball etc, here are my two cents

1. Using your feet when the spinner is tossing it up makes sense. But try using your feet when the ball is aimed flat and fast.. And good luck with that!

2. Heavier bats and smaller grounds make using the feet to get to the pitch of the ball irrelevant. Batsmen can swing through the line (or across the line) fully secure in the knowledge that even mis hits will accrue runs.

3. Pad play- anyone remember Jimmy Adams? And does anyone remember the amount of pad play in the 80s and the early 90s? For all the talk of using the feet to the spinners, how often did batsmen, beaten in the flight, thrust their pads out to negate the spinner?

We have had, through the ages, quality players of spin.. But not all 11 of the team were spectacular players of spin.

I mentioned on Soulberry's excellent blog that, because we have been blessed with great depth in spin bowling, the tacit assumption has been that we are great players of spin ( across generations). Which is not necessarily true.

Because, by that logic, the Pakistanis have to be the best players of reverse swing bowling.. But the truth is otherwise!

The new season begins

Day 1 of India's new home season - India A 180/4

Why?

Remember this

The Australians are known not to give an inch to their opposition and they extend their discourtesy out of it too. The quality of bowlers provided by Cricket Australia for the net sessions can be best described as pedestrian. It happened at Melbourne, Sydney and now at Perth. The local officials asked a school boy team from England called as Australian Cricket Experience to bowl in the nets ahead of the third Test.

Interestingly, it isn’t the same when the Australians are practicing. For instance, the home team batsmen batted against high quality Western Australia team bowlers.

Batting coach Lalchand Rajput was left livid with the quality at hand and made no bones of it. “I asked them why do we get such bowlers and they turned around said speak with Cricket Australia. I’ll ask Chetan (Chauhan) to take the matter up. It’s really unfair.”

One of the bowlers was so inept that Sourav Ganguly shooed him away yesterday. It only adds to the workload of the Indian bowlers who have to put in that much extra so that the batsmen get ready. Chauhan said that he’ll speak with the boys first before protesting with CA.

so why in the world are we bending over backwards in accommodating Cricket Australia with an additional tour match prior to the start of the Border Gavaskar Trophy?

Batting wins you games...

Bowling wins you Championships

For your perusal

Indian vice-captain Rahul Dravid tonight has been fined 50 percent of his match fee for a breach of the ICC code of conduct at tonight's VB Series match between India and Zimbabwe at the Gabba.

ICC match referee Clive Lloyd found Dravid guilty of a Level 2 offence and imposed a Level 2 penalty.

Dravid was charged under the ICC Code of Conduct, specifically clause 2.10.

Clause 2.10 refers to: "Changing the condition of the ball in breach of Law 42.3 as read with Standard Test Match and ODI Playing Conditions clause 42.1 (this supplements and does not replace the provisions of the Laws of Cricket and Standard Test Match and ODI Playing Conditions).

Dravid attended a hearing after the match and was subsequently informed of the penalty.

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NSW fast bowler Nathan Bracken yesterday revealed there was a particular English breath-freshener that helped the ball reverse swing.

"It is just a breath mint you put in your mouth but it makes your saliva very sugary and that is being talked about being used over there," Bracken, who has played English county cricket for Gloucestershire, told radio station 2KY.

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Nathan Bracken has backed down from his claim that breath-freshening mints may have aided England's reverse swing.

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MARCUS TRESCOTHICK has sparked a new cheat storm by confessing he used SWEETS to help win matches.

The ex-England batsman (right) and hero of our historic 2005 Ashes win over Australia admits in today’s News of the World that he mixed mints with saliva to shine the ball.

Cricket laws strictly forbid the use of ‘any artificial substance’ and the sport’s ruling body may now launch a ball- tampering probe.

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Excuse me?

Exhibit A

Munaf Patel, the Indian fast bowler, has been fined 75% of his match fee for a breach of the ICC Code of Conduct during the second ODI against Sri Lanka in Dambulla.

Munaf was found guilty of a Level 2 offence by match referee Chris Broad at a hearing following the conclusion of the match won by India by three wickets. Munaf was found to have breached clause 2.8 of the Code which refers to "using language that is obscene, offensive or of a seriously insulting nature to another player, umpire, referee, team official or spectator."

The incident related to remarks made by the player to umpire Gamini Silva after the official turned down an lbw appeal. During the course of the hearing Munaf pleaded not guilty to the charge but did admit to speaking aggressively to the umpire.

"I accept that in international cricket there is a lot of passion but that does not excuse players talking back to umpires in an aggressive manner, as happened in this case," Broad said. "That is unacceptable and I hope this decision and the fine imposed demonstrates that fact."

The incident in question -

16.3 Patel to Kulasekara, no run, huge huge shout for lbw from the Indians. It cut in from a length outside off , beat the waft and hit the back pad right in front.of the off stump. The umpire perhaps thought it had hit the bat. There was no edge, though. Hold on the umpires are on the walkie talkie. It can't be about the decision, can it. No reviews here. Anyway game resumes. Kulasekara is lucky to survive there

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Exhibit B

Having struck with his second ball of the match to remove Graeme Smith, Flintoff needed three attempts to see off Neil McKenzie - after a drop from Paul Collingwood and a reprieve-by-referral after Andrew Strauss's low catch at slip - before Aleem Dar delivered the not-out verdict that lit a furnace of indignation within the most mild-mannered of strike bowlers.

Incredulity, closely followed by incandescence, was Flintoff's reaction when Jacques Kallis, on 55, was struck flush on the toe, plumb in front of middle stump, and with the bat not even close to the action. He appealed, then pleaded, then demanded, and at the end of the over, could still be heard giving Dar an earful as the pair moved to their positions at square leg.

Flintoff's reaction was entirely out of character, and he quickly apologised at the close, but as Kallis would testify, he backed up his furious words with even more livid deeds. "My emotion was running quite high," said Flintoff, "but you can chunter as much as you want, you've just got to get on with it.

The incident in question here

66.5 Flintoff to Kallis, no run, another fast yorker, hits the toe and that's plumb. Surely. No! My word - Kallis has escaped there. Flintoff is furious.

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And then they expect us to respect the office of the Match Referee?

PS:-

Per the ICC code of conduct

The Offences set out at 1.1 to 1.7 below are Level 1 Offences. The penalty for a Level 1 Offence shall be an official reprimand and/or a fine of up to the equivalent of 50% of the Player or Official’s match fee (as determined in accordance with sections I (3) and I (4).

1.4 Using language that is obscene, offensive or insulting and/or the making of an obscene gesture

and the ICC explanation is

This includes swearing and obscene gestures which are not directed at another person such as swearing in frustration at one’s own poor play or fortune.

and

The Offences set out at 2.1 to 2.11 below are Level 2 Offences. The Penalty for a Level 2 Offence shall be a fine of the equivalent of between 50% of the Player or Official’s match fee up to their full match fee and/or a 1 Test Match or 2 ODI Match ban

2.8 Using language that is obscene, offensive or of a seriously insulting nature to another Player,
umpire, Referee, Team Official or spectator. (It is acknowledged that there will be verbal
exchanges between Players in the course of play. Rather than seeking to eliminate these
exchanges entirely, umpires will look to lay charges when this falls below an acceptable standard.
In this instance, language will be interpreted to include gestures).

and the ICC explanation is

This is any language or gesture which is directed at another person or persons. In exercising his
judgement as to whether the behaviour has fallen below an acceptable standard, the umpire seeking to lay a charge shall be required to take into account the context of the particular situation and whether the words or gesture are likely to:
• be regarded as obscene; or
• give offence; or
• insult another person.
This offence is not intended to penalise trivial behaviour. The extent to which such behaviour is
likely to give offence shall be taken into account when assessing the seriousness of the breach.

Now, I saw every ball of the game, including this particular incident. And I have seen worse on the field of play. Munaf himself has contested the charge.

And yet, Chris Broad deems it fair to charge the player. On the basis of what exactly?

Many a slip..

Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma are our first slips to pacers and spinners.

Really?

Is there an unwritten rule that the best point fielders make for the best slippers when the regulars are absent?

And shouldnt the Yuvraj as a slipper experiment have been jettisoned right after the Pakistan series in 2005?

By hook or crook

or because they intended it, India have hit upon the near perfect combination for the second ODI at Dambulla.

4 pacers, 2 left arm and 2 right arm, 2 swingers, 1 seamer and 1 hit the wicket bowler, an offie and, if reqd, 1 left arm spinner. And if they really want it, 3 additional off spinners ( Raina, Badri and Sharma).

And to top all that, a batting lineup that bats upto #10.

Good omens, these!

Just scrap it!

David Morgan, the ICC president, says he is "concerned" over the fact that, with the Champions Trophy "perilously close", some of the participating teams are yet to confirm their presence in Pakistan for the tournament starting on September 12.

Sri Lanka is the alternate venue, but there have been doubts expressed on the feasibility of hosting the tournament ther, given the island's ethnic problems. Also, per the the BBC weather center

Most of the country has an abundant or moderate rainfall that is well distributed throughout the year. The southwestern coast and mountain slopes are the wettest regions and here rainfall is greatest during the periods April to June and October to November.

The northeastern side of the island, particularly the lowlands, is much drier, with little rain between February and September. The main rainy season here is between October and January when the northeast monsoon blows onshore

With the Champions Trophy running from the 12th until the 28th of September, there is more than a likely chance that weather will intervene sometime during the course of the tournament.

The third alternate is England. But given that they have barely gotten 50 out of the supposed 140 overs ( one off ODI against Scotland and the only Twenty20 against South Africa), it is extremely unlikely we will get a proper tournament there as well.

Given that all the elements are conspiring against it, this is as good a time as any to give the Champions Trophy a decent burial.

Instead of the Champions Trophy, the T20 World Cup can be alternated with the ODI World Cup - a world Championship every two years in two different formats of the game!

Dunno if this will see the light of the day

but I am so chuffed with what I have written as a response to Dileep Premachandran's response on his blog that I am reproducing it here -

Dileep,

First off, apologies for a long post.

Secondly, "The spin impasse is even more demoralising for a country that once prided itself on an endless reservoir of talent." - after implying that the spin reservoir has somehow dried up,the author then goes to name 4 possible candidates to replace our captain. Five, if you consider Ramesh Powar in that list. This is in addition to Harbhajan Singh.

So what we have is - 2 leggies, 2 offies and two left arm orthodox bowlers to fit into the one vacant slot - how then is "The spin impasse is even more demoralising" ?

Thirdly, and I take up your latest argument here - the lack of Test credentials of the above mentioned people.

Conventional wisdom in India has been to pair a leg spinner with an off spinner and not a left arm orthodox because, despite the different angles that they bring to the plate, both spin the ball in the same direction. Which is why we havent played too many left arm orthodox bowlers except when we have pursued the 3 spinner option - and it has been a long time since we did that ( Venkatapathi Raju is the last left arm spinner who comes to mind who had a fairly extended tenure with the Indian team).

In more recent times, India, because of the depth in its pace attack, have gone into Test matches with just the one spinner - Trent Bridge and Perth are the latest examples of that.

In both of the above cases, our default spinning option has been Anil Kumble - because he is a great bowler and because he is our captain. And when we have ventured into the two spinner area, Harbhajan is the de facto choice ( 250 wickets with no loop and no flight and a leg stump line is nothing to be scoffed at).

Given that the spin set up is such a closed shop, how do you expect anyone to break in - isnt that why the spinners named dont have the test credentials to back themselves?

And here is the other thing, they did not come into contention because we picked names from a hat - Amit Mishra has served his apprentice in domestic cricket, Pragyan Ojha has been amongst the wickets, Chawla had been identified as a prospect from his u-19 days and Kartik is well, Kartik.

Also, as we are talking of replacing Anil Kumble, something we may never be able to do ( Like Sunil Gavaskar and the opening conundrum, Anil Kumble will be irreplaceable).

That said, it does not diminish what the other spinners bring to the plate - just because they are not Anil Kumble does not imply "we don't have any other options." nor does it take away what they have to offer.

And finally, coming to the moot point - I had stated the if Dhoni had not played the Kitply Cup, some hack or the other would have questioned his credibility as captain and the value of the ODI captaincy. As a response to this, you stated "I'd seriously question the credentials of any journalist who had criticised a player for skipping Kitply".

Thing is, just as to drive home the point about the immense challenges India faces when Kumble hangs his boots you made certain other observations( dearth of spinners, lack of quality spin, lack of Test match experience) that may or may not have been grounded in reality, why is it so difficult to assume that some other hack would do the same if Dhoni had skipped the Kitply Cup ( captain not interested, IPL success gone to his head, does INdia need a captain in absentia etc etc.. You know the drill :) )

Cheers,

Poms!

A two-Test drubbing in Ahmedabad and Mumbai, however, will prove almost as little as the one-Test victory that Pietersen has already presided over. The man himself knows the contest by which his tenure will be judged, and for once, to their credit, so too do the selectors.

So I ask you, why should we dignify this bunch of whingers by playing India's best?

I would strongly recommend that we field our U-15's because, seriously, for a team more concerned about Christmas than playing Test cricket, deserves no better!

Say it again, Sam!

Whose line-up is it anyway?