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?

All's not well

in the Emerald Isles

The unravelling of a team.

"Maharashtra is a huge state," says Ajay Shirke, the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) president. "And it's not feasible for the talent in the districts and small towns to come to us; we will have to go to them with the game. We realised that for the last two-three seasons we have been working on that."

is that why

Ajay Shirke, an entrepreneur from Maharashtra was busy striking a deal with Lawson, the West Indies fast bowler capable of flustering the likes of Australia. In India, Maharashtra has taken the lead in this regard having got Darren Holder as their director of cricket last year, and 'importing' Munaf, Sairaj Bahutule, Sridharan Sriram, Chandrakant Pandit by getting them to shift allegiance from their original states.

and

Bangladesh left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Jr and Sri Lankan medium-pacer Sujeewa de Silva will join the Maharashtra squad for the 2008-09 season. Haque and de Silva will replace Sairaj Bahutule and Munaf Patel who have not renewed their contracts. The selectors were keen on choosing international professionals since other states could be interested in domestic players, Maharashtra Cricket Association president Ajay Shirke, has said.

This, from a team that

Maharashtra have surprised all so far by securing 15 points from four games - with seven debutants and several unknown players, they have outplayed every team they've come up against. They started the season without veterans Sairaj Bahutule and Hrishikesh Kanitkar, who were not back to full fitness after injuries from the previous season.

and

Maharashtra went into the first match of the season with seven debutants. Some had not played much outside their districts, most were torchbearers for towns that hadn't produced first-class cricketers earlier. Unlike a few other states, Maharashtra hadn't been impoverished by the ICL (only a couple defected) but had decided to ease out a few players for a few fresh ones.

Left to themselves in unknown territory, they've held their own. Halfway into the Ranji season, and they've been the side that's made everyone take notice. They entered the first match without Sairaj Bahutule and Hrishikesh Kanitkar, their two most experienced hands, but nearly grabbed first-innings points against Tamil Nadu. Had rain not intervened, a victory was on the cards. They went on to beat Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh before stunning Mumbai, at the Wankhede Stadium, for the first-innings lead.

I am sorry, but this is plain wrong.. For a team that, for a substantial portion of last season, was a contender, to unravel in this manner is nothing short of criminal.

Vikram Solanki and Kabir Ali did not do the trick for Rajasthan. Why should Maharashtra be any different?

The Soufth Effrikan

India, December 2008.

After circumnavigating most of northern India ( and getting walloped), England face a rampant Sehwag and Gambhir on a shirt front at Ahmedabad ( and there is no liquor around to drown their sorrows in)..

Monty, England's best bet to get them out of the hole they find themselves in, come on to bowl.

Which Soufth Effrikan would be the best bet to marshal the English in this situation?

I thought Strauss, the English selectors thought otherwise.

Honors even!

Day Two and Sehwag continued playing Lone Hand Luke, notching a double hundred in the process. And Ajantha Mendis took 6 wickets to justify the hype.

215/5 chasing 329 leaves the game in the balance. Sri Lanka have Mahela Jayawardene ( avg 102.5 at Galle) and Prasanna Jayawardene at the crease. Lose one wicket quickly and it is Advantage India. Dig in and play attritional cricket and the momentum will shift Sri Lanka's way.

India has, in its ranks, a rejuvenated Harbhajan Singh. - bowling round the wicket to right handers.Extracting turn and bounce and generally looking like the guy who took 32 wickets in 3 Tests against the Australians.

Anil Kumble is yet to get amongst the wickets but I wont discount him - if the wicket keeps being up and down, Sri Lanka have to bat last on a wearing surface.

India's biggest worry right now is that Rahul Dravid no longer has the presence at the batting crease as he once did.

Bad form? Maybe, but the more I see Dravid, the more he looks like a batsman playing from memory - his 93 at Perth and 100 at Chennai notwithstanding.

And this has been evident from that scratchy 12 at the Oval.

If he cannot turn his form ( and mindset) around by the time this season is over, India will have to make the tough call on his career!

Not too shabby!

BAW Mendis 14-1-74-2
M Muralitharan 8.3-0-39-0

India RR 4.8.

Virender Sehwag 128*

All this with half the day's play lost and by a team walloped in the first test by an innings.

An up and down wicket with the odd ball bouncing more than usual, a mid order wobble and yet, at the end of the day's play, India ( fielding an unchanged side) have done all that was required of them - won the toss, took the attack to the bowlers, put on a decent first day score.

And all this on a sluggish outfield.

The portends for tomorrow - get a score in the vicinity of 350 ( or higher) with the wicket staying up and down and Sri Lanka batting last and the pressure ( because of India's rate of scoring) will be on Sri Lanka.

Which is not necessarily a bad thing :)

Yorked!

Raising a piquant situation for BCCI, it has come to light that master batsman Sachin Tendulkar has played alongside 'rebel' player Dinesh Mongia for Lashings World XI in two matches in England last month.
Tendulkar and Mongia had opened the innings for Lashings' XI against St Bede's School Headmasters XI at the school ground in Essex on June 27. While Tendulkar sizzled with an 84-ball knock of 98, Mongia hit 72 off 41 balls, according to the club website.

Tendulkar had batted at number two and the left-handed India discard Mongia at number three on June 24 for the same side, making 32 and 66 respectively against Eastbourne College XI at the latter's ground.

Mongia has aligned with the rebel Indian Cricket League.

Interestingly, Mumbai left-arm spinner Nilesh Kulkarni was also part of the Lashings' squad which also contained New Zealand's ICL rebel Chris Harris.

The Cricket Board has stopped Piyush Chawla and VVS Laxman from signing up to play for English counties due to the presence of ICL rebels in their ranks.

The BCCI has maintained right through that it would have no truck with ICL and also banned players who have taken part in the Essel Group-bankrolled rival league that took off much before the Board's own and highly successful Indian Premier League. PTI

Huh?

Test discard Faisal Iqbal could be handed a ban or a hefty fine if the Pakistan Cricket Board decides to take disciplinary action against him for appearing in a Twenty20 tournament in Florida featuring players from the rebel Indian Cricket League.

Will it follow that the BCCI suspends Md. Azharuddin's pension since he partook in the tournament also?

And will the BCCI please issue show cause notices to messers Sharad Pawar, Inderjit Bindra, Ratnakar Shetty, Dilip Vengsarkar and other BCCI office bearers for maintaining contact with him?

Addendum :- Since Azharuddin is not on the BCCI payroll, the BCCI has no locus standi on his actions. Ditto the PCB.