Indian cricket has seen many changes at the helm but the two important landmarks that Indian cricket will never forget is the Ganguly Wright era and the Dhoni Kirsten era.
Wednesday will see India captained by Virat Kohli enter into a new viesta . Kohli has always advocated the five bowler theory is the only way to get 20 wickets home/overseas.
Batting though seems to be a bit of a worry with Vijay being ruled out of the first Test. Kohli and Rahane seem to be the mainstay in SA and Australia. India might get away with in the sub continent but the big Q comes when India travel a.
SL on the other hand will bid goodbye to a colossus in Sangakkara after the first two Tests and it seems to be going back on experience with Tharanga earning a recall against Pakistan .
It will be interesting to see as to who will accept the change quickly for it is that team who will stand victorious at the end of the series.
The tale of two contrasting journeys
He conquered the World in 2007, he had charisma clarity and as Edward De Bono puts it the ‘ability to think out of the box’. His attacking style of play took one’s breath away.
He has two World Cups a Champions Trophy and also saw India s ascend to the top of the Test ladder in 2009.
His knock of 224 vs Australia in Chennai in 2013 would rank among the best knocks in Test history. His 148 v Pakistan at Faisalabad also is of note.
Things started going wrong from the Dominica Test 2011 where he shut shop to win the series which is till date India s only series win in the last 3 years but was battered and bruised everywhere he travelled losing six series abroad 15/30 Test matches overseas.
Ideally he should have played five bowlers overseas instead of four. Defensive and weird field placements only compounded the issue. Speculations are rife that the incidents on the tour of Australia should have played heavily on him quitting Test Cricket.
Whatever it may be ‘to err is human’ .
Moral of the Story: We have seen a different side of Mahi today
India and The Ghost Of The Old Blighty b
The 2nd of April 2011. The day when the wait for a billion Indians ended. India had finally scaled the peak in One -Day Cricket after 28 years.
This gave new hopes of domination of cementing an era of dominance like the West Indies of the 1970 s and Australia of the 90’s.
More importantly the country can now attribute a 50 over World Cup win to Dhoni and his men and mention the 1983 win later in their conversations though the win in 1983 would be more special always for it was an upset victory and the fall of an all mighty team.
So India set off to their tour of the Caribbean after the IPL with seniors opting out of the ODI series. Dravid Laxman and Dhoni returned for the Test series.
Dravid scored a century at Kingston, Jamaica and India went 1-0. The Test at Dominica is a very important one in the scheme of things India opted to play it safe and settle for a draw with 90 required off 15 overs.
The decision came as a shocker knowing Captain Cool s enigmatic leadership skills. What followed on India s following tour of England was even more disastrous losing Zaheer and Gambhir early on due to hamstring pulls and concussion.
Dravid being the only beacon of light scoring two hundreds (including one as an opener) and his first century at Lords the one he had missed in his debut Test at by three runs at this very venue 15 years back.
Praveen Kumar Stuart Broad and Anderson starred with the ball for their respective sides with Broad being the destroyer in chief with a hat-trick at his home ground in Trent Bridge.
So what has 2014 have for India?
The fab four has gone into the sunset . Kohli Pujara, Rahane all on their first Test tour to England.
Only Gambhir, Dhoni and Ishant Sharma in the squad have played Tests in England before.
Dhawan seems to be struggling against the bumper cramping him for room and Vijay against the swinging pitched up deliveries.
England on the other hand have gone for a complete overhauling from their fateful Ashes summer ‘Down Under’. The likes of Anderson Broad Jordan and even Bresnan can dish out a few rib ticklers and a hostile pace to get the indian batsmen hopping.
So is India susceptible to short pitched stuff, no as Kohli showed against SA in Jo’burg that he can ride on top of the bounce with ease play the cut and pull with audacity and keep the strike rotated. Pujara and Rahane also fall under the same category.
India falls short on bowling experience with no Zaheer in the squad and Ishant taking up d role of the senior bowler guiding youngsters like Bhuvneshwar Kumar , Ishwar Pandey and Pankaj Singh can be tough as one knows India s problem in finishing the tail and folks India plays five Tests and not four which could be a long ordeal.
The opening combination should ideally be the Delhi southpaw and the right handed batsman from Tamil Nadu.
Pujara Kohli and Rahane lend solidarity to the middle order. I would give a chance to Stuart Binny as he could be India s batting all rounder who bowls seam up stuff.
Dhoni should play as a non wicket-keeping captain with Saha donning the gloves who is a dodgy little batsman.
A leggie should always be in the eleven as he gives the skipper an attacking option with three seamers.
This is my ideal team to upset the English apple cart and win a hard fought series and drive away the Ghosts of the Old Blighty.
(Old Blighty refers to England)
A colossus bids a tearful adieu
Tendulkar, 1989 when he started on that tour as a 16 year old nobody knew that what was to follow over the next 24 yrs. cricketing history was going to be re-written for years to come. A hundred hundreds 200 Test matches, 51 Test Hundreds first man to score a double hundred in ODI s. The records can go on endlessly but more importantly he inspired many like me like when my mom passed away I had a semester to give in 10 days time and his hundred vs Kenya (140) in the ’99 World Cup when his father passed away. Many similar instances.
Another great virtue that Tendulkar thought all of us is that our performances speak louder than our words. He also changed the attitude of an Indian and embodies the face of ‘Youngisthan’ fearlessness and that s also contributed to his success along with his technique. 1st Test Hundred in Manchester, then two on the trot in Australia , in Perth and Sydney against a Aussie attack breathing down your neck, likes of Whitney, Merv Hughes, to take ’em on boy needs some class. He was also up for a challenge, Tendulkar vs Warne Chennai ’98 (155) Tendulkar vs McGrath Nairobi 2000 (36), Pakistan v Tendulkar Chennai’ 99 (136) and he was also battling a stiff back and cramps vs Saqlain’s off-spin, on a wearing wicket coupled with the reverse swing of the two W’s.
The best trait about Tendulkar s game was he had multiple shots to a delivery and could take a bowler completely by surprise like Warne found out for the second time in the same year at Sharjah in ’98 when he pinned the Aussie attack into submission to twice in two days to single-handedly win the cup.
Even late in his career his century vs England three seasons ago in Chennai on a dust-bowl against Swann and Panesar to achieve a target of 387 batting 4th the highest so far in India. The 50th Test century in cape town and also the 169 in Jo’burg in ’97 also assumes great importance.
As a bowler too he got India into the Hero Cup Final, a fifer against Australia at Kochi in ’98 Test match spells in Kolkata 2001 and Adelaide 2003-04 are noteworthy.
Finally World Cups has a special love-affair with Sachin, six World Cups 5 centuries in all and the most memorable one, no not a hundred but a 98 vs Pakistan at Centurion where
Shoaib Akthar was sliced for a six over backward point and the rest is history.
Thank You Paaji for all the joy. Always my inspiration.
Dheepakh
Destined for greatness
Hello am penning a blog after a long tym but this time with a difference s not on sports but a even dearer topic on my life . I do not know the brickbats that follow as a result of this writing but I dont mean to hurt/ offend anybody and value each and everyone the same coz all of you ve played an unique part in my development .
Am gonna start from the mid 90’s as my life started in the fast lane at JGHVMHSS, West Mambalam and learnt and faced quite a lot with both Vidyasagar and my parents laying a strong foundation especially my mom spending sleepless nights in the fear of how I would cope with the demands of mainstream education. My father used to give me exposure like no other father taking me to Mac stadium for seven continuous years and I owe my position today to my parents . My father used to get me sportstar every Wednesday and today whenever I come across a copy this imagery often flashes across my mind. Amma used to attend M A sociology classes after working@ Vidyasagar as a speech therapist taking care of my grandma and me of course prepare food and study for her exam with dad s help after I went to bed . She passed the exam with 55 per cent and the entire family the elegant apartments felt extremely happy. I grew and everything was smooth sailing until life hit a roadblock with my mom deducted with breast cancer . She fought gallantly but succumbed to it in 2007 and also lost my dad in 2004 due to a massive cardiac arrest whose wish was to see me as a cricket commentator and who believed in the Paulo Coelho s theory’ follow the heart’ . Rest of my family members went that extra mile in ensuring that my life went on smooth which includes friends from JGHVMHSS and loyola college . Salute to all of you . You guys rock!!
Many people know well that I m interested in sports but I had personal setbacks and thanks to sports which s keeping me going still . I wonder how relationships are so easily shown in movies in 3 consecutive scenes but in reality it is not. Well I always had this thought at the back of my mind but shared it to very few people, I want to marry a girl who ll resemble certain qualities of my mother and she did almost all v knew each other well but I jumped the gun . My proposal to her right after college days was the killer. I value her as a person and we dont talk now and I would take this opportunity to reiterate that I did not mean to harm her in anyway just that it panned out that way was my bad luck.
The title of my blog are the words that she used to say often and even now when m low these words provide me with the elixir of hope.and all the positive synonyms one could relate to. I hope someday she would read this and end up smiling.
Well that s it then folks !!
Hope my attempt would be a success.
Until I write the next tym .
Ciao
Dheepakh
Cricket s fight with corruption
Cricket s fight with corruption
Cricket has always been seen as a gentleman‘s game. It has seen many greats such as Sir Donald Bradman, Ken Barrington, Len Hutton and Sachin Tendulkar who have raised their game, and by achieving what immortals do, brought glory to the sport.
Cricket has its dark side too: it has been plagued by match–fixing allegations and spot–fixing scandals, which have crippled the game‘s image in the recent past
This blog of mine will trace cricket‘s darkest hour in the recent past with articles on cricket and through views from experts and current cricketing stars on the spot fixing scandal.
The three players involved in the scandal are Pakistan skipper Salman Butt and two other members of his team, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, who bowled deliberate no–balls in the Lord’s Test between Pakistan and England on August 29, 2010. The three players will face a hearing in Doha, Qatar, to be chaired by Michael Beloff, head of the ICC Code of Conduct Commission, which is slated for [month/year].
The ICC has said recently that it has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to match fixing allegations. Banned Pakistan bowler Rana Naved has expressed his frustration over the delay in the enquiry on match fixing allegations, which is delaying his comeback to international cricket indefinitely. Several cricketing icons have reacted strongly against the allegations, which have once again raised question marks over the genuineness of the game. India’s ace batsman Tendulkar has called for severe punishment against the guilty for bringing the game into disrepute if the allegations are found to be true. Former Australian skipper Steve Waugh feels that the spot fixing scandal is unfortunate for the game. Many youngsters are playing the game currently, proving easy targets for book makers.
Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar joined the chorus of international cricket fraternity in asking for imposition of exemplary punishment on Pakistani players if found guilty of ‘spot-fixing’ but recommended a thorough probe before coming to any conclusions. With all these statements doing the rounds, it is certainly a dark hour for cricket. One could well blame the ICC for being soft on the bookies who trespass on the rules of the game. The time has come for the ICC to act tough as the custodians of the gentlemen’s game called cricket. Otherwise, cricket could well be on the verge of extinction and the game’s rich legacy forgotten sooner rather than later. It’s high time that the governing body of the game started educating youngsters about the hazards of fast money at a very early stage in their lives.
Sources
http://cricblitz.blogspot.com/2010/09/mahi-sachin-in-espn-cricinfos-india-all.html
http://www.india-server.com/news/spot-fixing-scandal-sachin-tendulkar-32858.html
http://www.aussieindolanka.com/news/index.asp?newsid=90958&NewsDat
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/92814/gavaskar-exemplary-punishment-spot-fixing.htmle=
http://wn.com/ramiz_raja_on_match_fixing_scandal
http://cricketnext.in.com/news/icc-to-discuss-spotfixing-at-board-meeting/51011-13.html
the future of test cricket
Test Cricket is the purest form of the game, according to experts. The purists love it. The world has seen some classics in the longest form of the game. The tied Test at Chennai in 1986 between India and Australia, the 2001 India Australia Test series, the 2003 series between India and Australia Down Under, Ashes Series 2005 and the recently concluded series which India won 2-0 over Australia.
So why is Test Cricket’s future in doubt? Well, the answer is simple. Patience – yes, you heard it right – patience is what a modern day spectator lacks. Commercial interests have begun to dominate to such an extent that the toughest format of the game is on the brink of extinction.
Sources:
http://ezinearticles.com/?Is-Test-Cricket-Going-to-Die?&id=4747921
http://www.cricketworld.com/internationalcricketnews/article/?aid=21068#
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Twenty20-is-the-future-of-cricket-Gavaskar/articleshow/1647619.cms http://www.cricinfo.com/australia/content/story/454749.html
http://www.thelatestnews.in/t20-at-par-with-test-cricket-gilchrist/13540.html
Cricket‘s greats and former players have called for a rapid reconstruction of the game to save Test cricket. Former Pakistan great Imran Khan fears that cricket’s current crop of players calling it quits for Test cricket and play T20s for higher lucrative deals, citing Afridi and Tait calling it quits for Test Crickas examples. He feels that 50-over cricket should be done away with.
‘The Sultan Of Swing’ Wasim Akram pleads to differ with his former captain and feels that Test matches like the recent one between India and Australia at Mohali make Test cricket more exciting than T20’s.and and Akram concludes that it is still ‘alive and kicking’.
But interestingly, Marylebone Cricket Club and the ICC have opposed views on a possible Test Championship by 2015 and the future of Test Cricket.Indian batting legend Gavaskar is of the view that people would embrace T20’s just like they did the One-Dayers (50 overs) when it was first introduced in the 1970’s and according to him, T20’s could well be the future of cricket
Pankaj Kumar Mishra, a columnist on Ernie Articles, is afraid that legends like Ponting and Tendulkar, when retired, would also make the crowds sit back and Test arenas would be desolated.
One of the game’s greatest captains Steve Waugh feels that change is the need of the hour and has called for day-night Tests and pink balls.
Former Australian wicket – keeping great Adam Gilchrist has said that both T20 and Test Cricket are ‘on par with each other’ as both these formats don’t give teams a second chance to resurrect themselves.
But all said and done, one has to save Test Cricket for our future generations to know and play cricket the hard way and enjoy the real test of the game‘s greatest players.
It is now or never for the ICC in its mission to save Test cricket, and matches like the Mohali Test would really help Test Cricket retain its place in its fight for survival.
PSD PENS... 