Partners in crime

Virender Sehwag was right. It is turning out to be  a rather ordinary series. The only day of excitement on the test was the first day when Bangladesh had India on their knees. But thanks to Tendulkar, and some pretty shoddy performance by the Bangladesh team in the second innings, India managed to pull off a rather facile victory. If nothing else, this series has provided the Indian team to rack up some records. Gambhir for instance, had equaled Viv Richards’ record of 11 fifties in 11 consecutive tests. He is at par with Bradman’s record of 5 consecutive centuries, but it seems that he will unfortunately miss out on breaking the Don’s record unless Bangladesh get some formidable second innings total.
There was another record that was created on the second day of the Mirpur test; one that went largely unnoticed. Maybe it was because the two principal characters involved in the record are so used to create monumental records that this one was but a footnote in their illustrious career. I am ofcourse talking about Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, and their magnificent 222 run partnership that helped India get a firm grip over this test. It was a typical Sachin-Rahul partnership with Dravid holding one end firm while Sachin milked the bowling from the other end, and finally upped the ante with some shots to the fence. While Dravid’s innings was like wave having periods where he was dominating and others where he was quiet, Sachin’s innings resembled the stock market in its heydays – rising steadily, getting more and more risky but still a treat to sore eyes. Both got some reprieves from the opposition ofcourse – with Dravid dropped once and Sachin twice. But the experienced campaigners that they are, these two veterans of Indian cricket made sure that Bangladesh would rue the missed opportunities.
For those who are statistical minded, this was the 17th century partnership between these two – another world record for the gentle giants of Indian cricket. They were previously tied with the pair of Gordon Greenidge-Desmond Haynes and Matthew Hayden-Ricky Ponting. And looking at their current form they look far from finished; beware South Africa! For more than a decade, these two have been manning the number three and four positions respectively for India, and looking at this recent piece of statistic it must be said that they haven’t done too bad a job.
One last piece of statistic before signing off. It seems that Sachin Tendulkar can’t really make any runs these days without creating a record. This double century partnership between these two was the 15th such partnership that Sachin was involved; equaling Ricky Ponting’s record. With Australian batting not looking in the kind of shape it used to be, Sachin certainly has a great chance of going past the Aussie great. Amen!

The one that could have been

The Australia vs Pakistan Series can be best summed up based on the fourth day of the second test. Kamran Akmal dropped four catches on the day, and a test which Pakistan should have won easily, was handed out on a platter to the Aussies. After having taken a 206 run lead in the first innings, all Pakistan had to do was bowl sensibly, keep up the pressure on the Aussies, and make sure that they held onto catches which a kindergarten kid wouldn’t drop. Instead, they did what the Pakistan side has been famous for all these years: commit hara-kiri. Even apart from the poor fielding by Akmal, the most baffling aspect of the fourth day’s play was the bizarre captaincy by Mohammed Yousuf. On a day when Pakistan should had tightened the screws by keeping attacking fields and not giving away easy singles, they almost seemed to be in awe of Hussey’s and Siddle’s batting prowess. By the time Pakistan came out to chase the stipulated target of 176, it was a foregone conclusion that they would end up losing the game and that they would truly require a miracle to save it.
This loss was ofcourse sandwiched between two more losses by even bigger margins. But I guess it is the loss in the second test that must have hurt Pakistan a lot. Not many teams apart from Africa have had the Aussies on their knees at home the way Pakistan did. And yet no other team must have squandered such an opportunity to crush Australia at home from such a comfortable position as Pakistan did. The blame game began immediately ofcourse; with everyone from Yousuf, to Akmal, to the selectors getting blamed. Even T20 cricket wasn’t spared as Pakistan’s abysmal collapse was attributed to the influence of the newest member of the cricketing fraternity. Ofcourse the Australian team got the credit for scripting such a comeback, but everyone – including the Australian team – knew that Pakistan had lost the test rather than Australia winning it. The victory margins in the 1st and the 3rd tests – 170 runs and 231 runs respectively – are a testimony in itself of how the tests would have been played out. Both the tests played out to an almost similar script; Australia getting a big total in the first innings, Pakistan floundering in their first innings, trying to make a comeback with some good bowling performances in the second innings, only to see their batting give way again.
All in all, there were very few positives for the Pakistani team in this series. All the four pacemen who played in the series – Mohammed Asif, Mohammed Aamer, Umar Gul, and Mohammed Sami – impressed at one point or another during the series. But none of them, barring Aamer to some extent, could put in consistent performances. Amongst the spinners, Saeed Ajmal, who was supposed to trouble the Aussies, came out to be a cropper. But Kaneria, who was picked up from the second test, managed to put in some good spells. Like their bowling, the Pakistani batting too lacked in consistency. Apart from Salman Butt, none of the other batsman could come up with decent scores. Umar Akmal promised a lot, but failed to deliver. But perhaps the biggest disappointment for Pakistan, in the batting department, was the form of Yousuf. For Pakistan to have even some chance in the series, Yousuf had to display the form that had made him one of the best batsman of the last decade. But unfortunately he failed to do so and hence the Pakistan team were always found wanting in crunch situations. But more than their inconsistent batting and bowling, more than even the four dropped catches by Akmal, what hurt Pakistan most was Yousuf’s captaincy. Agreed he was under tremendous pressure, and being a captain of the Pakistan Cricket team is a specialized job in itself, but there were times when he himself seemed to have given up. And when that happens, it’s difficult for the captain to pick up the team.
For Australia, the biggest concern at the beginning of the series was the form of Ricky Ponting. But by the time the series ended, even that issue had been resolved for the Aussies. The rest of the batting lineup clicked for the Aussies time and again; except ofcourse the disastrous first innings of the Sydney test. A word about Michael Hussey here. He began his career with a near-Bradmanesque average, which has fallen to a more moderate 53, yet he remains the go-to man whenever Australia is in trouble; and this he demonstrated very aptly in this series. The only man who will have some concerns about his place in the side is Michael North. The only man who got less runs than him was Bollinger. And North knowing the Aussie system, North cannot hope to survive on his Ashes exploits for long. Amongst the bowlers, Bollinger continued his fine run in international cricket picking up handy wickets consistently. Johnson not only picked up wickets, but was economical too. His two wickets in a single over in the first over of the last day in the Melbourne test – when Akmal was threatening a turnaround with Yousuf –  really set up the Aussies for a big win, and a bigger mental advantage as was evident in the next test. Siddle battled on bravely despite not being completely fit, and Hauritz proved that while he is nowhere as good to fill in the hole left by Warne, he can still turn some matches on his own. His performance must certainly have come as a fitting answer to those who think that he is not test material. But the man of the series – and he was actually awarded the ‘Man of the Series’ award – was undoubtedly Shane Watson. He was rock solid at the top, patiently building the innings when required, and blasting the bowlers when the situation demanded, he well and truly came of age in this series as an all-rounder with some very tidy spells and important wickets to make sure that Australia did not miss a fourth seamer.
The ODI series starts soon and Pakistan must be hoping that the inclusion of their ODI specialists will infuse them with the much needed zest. But for that to happen, they must clear the cobwebs in their heads. Because a mentally fit Pakistan side can take on any comers and crush them at will.

Back to the Basics

How often have we heard people wishing that they were back to school? I hear it atleast once a week. While most people say this in jest, to emphasize how rough their life has become, a lot of people also say because deep inside they are feeling lost and feel the need to start over again. The same applies to an international cricketer. The busy schedule now-a-days, barely leaves the players with enough time to spend with their family. However, for the youngsters trying to cement their place in the national team, the off-season can be a vital time to take stock of their game.

How often in the recent past have we seen young players like Irfan Pathan, Rohit Sharma, Robin Uthappa, and so on, entering the international arena with some superb performances, but then fading away as the opposition teams managed to find chinks in their armory. Somehow, rather than improving, these players seem to forget how they got till this level. Ofcourse, the hype created around these players by the media and the supporters is also to blame. But blaming just the media, and the followers of the game is not enough. Soccer players experience similar adulation, and idol worship; they earn much more than our players do, and they appear in many more ads than cricketers. However, we still see them doing well at the top level.

What the youngsters in the Indian team seem to lack is the desire to keep improving. How many times have we heard all the great players - both of yesteryears, and current - say that they kept on learning right till the end. The best way for the youngsters to do so is to go to the roots; the domestic cricket arena in their case. The Indian domestic cricket structure may not be in a great shape, but still it can do wonders for any player willing to exploit whatever advantages it offers. Even if the standard of cricket at our domestic level is way below the international standards, going back to the grassroots level means that you get to analyze how far your game has changed - for better or for worse. Your coach at the domestic level may point out some defect that may have crept in your game; which your national team coach may not have noticed.

One of the best examples of benefits of going to the grassroots level was displayed recently by Rahul Dravid. Embarrassed shamelessly by our selectors, he refused to break down (as he has done so often in the past), and instead of moping around, went back to play for Karnataka in the Ranji trophy to prepare for the test season ahead. The results were clearly visible yesterday. For a man who had not played test cricket for a long time, he seemed perfectly at ease in the testing conditions during the morning. And as the pitch eased off, he proceeded to play one of the finest innings he has played in the past few years. So the question to be asked is: If an established player like Dravid can go back to the Ranji level to fine tune his technique - even though nobody has raised their voices against him - why can’t some of our players who are struggling against the short deliveries, accept the facts facing them humbly ,and work out the chinks in their techniques? What is it that stops them? Ego? Laziness? or a false sense of accomplishment (especially in IPL)? Whatever it is, unless they get rid of it, the future of Indian cricket looks grim.

West Indies' Tour of Australia: A Comprehensive Preview

The last time West Indies played Australia in a test match, they were trounced by 87 runs – which helped the Australia retain the Frank Worrell Trophy ; the last time these two teams met in a one day international – in the Champions Trophy - Australia managed to win quite easily despite some early hiccups; and the last time these two teams met in a T20 international, Australia were trounced by the West Indies – or rather Chris Gayle. The way things are looking right now for the West Indies, the above trend may continue except for the T20 internationals. They have of course received a huge shot in the arm with the return of their regular players after the contracts fiasco.

How well these players are able to gel together remains to be seen. If one were to go by their performance in their tour match against Queensland, then the usual suspects – Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, and Dwayne Bravo – look to be in good form with the bat. But then again, one doubts whether any of the bowlers from the Queensland lineup will make it to the Australian team.

The bowling does look a bit dodgy, and these set of bowlers will have to come up with something special to dismiss an Australian line-up consisting of the likes of Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, and Marcus North to name a few. What’s worse is that the Aussies will be desperate to stamp their supremacy after losing the Ashes. While this may be a big deterrent for the West Indies, it may also prove to be a blessing in disguise. The Aussie teams have shown in the past that they come at their opponents really hard if they have suffered a defeat. And in these circumstances they may make some mistakes in their over enthusiasm.

However, these mistakes are very few, and the West Indies will not only have to keep their eyes, they will have to wear thick rimmed glasses to spot these mistakes. Eventually, it is all going to boil down to how they manage to combine as a team after what they have been through in the last few months. It will be upto their manager Joel Garner to make sure that he instills in them the same pride that was visible in the West Indies’ teams of the 70’s and 80’s.

The Australians on the other hand look as prepared as they can be. They have won the Champions Trophy, defeated India in India, and have discovered a fantastic talent in Doug Bollinger who has been included in the first test. The only thing that they will be worried about is that their performance in the Test arena in the past couple of years hasn’t been too convincing. Though of course, the present West Indian setup does not seem too likely to trouble them.

The main worry for the Australians will be their bowling setup. Though Peter Siddle, Mitchell Johnson, Ben Hilfenhaus, and Nathan Hauritz have improved leaps and bounds in the past few seasons, doubts still persist over their ability to capture 20 Test wickets consistently. This series may well prove to be the watershed series for Australia as they seek to stabilize their Test squad before beginning their quest to capture the number one rankings again.

As Shane Warne commented recently, that there’s a certain period of time when one team is in transition, after that the only way they can convince their fans to support them is by giving results. The Australian batting on the other hand looks in good shape with Shane Watson occupying the opener’s slot and looking solid. This will be the same line up that got 8 hundreds in the Ashes.

The biggest headache for Australia in the test series would be how they surrendered key sessions of the Test matches to England, thus losing the series despite being the better team. But looking at the West Indies team, it looks like this will be the perfect time for the Aussies to wash off their sins. The fielding is going to be the main difference between the two teams. While the Australian fielding has been showing signs of cracking at times, the West Indies will do well to remember that fielding played an important part in the Australian victory against India recently.

How do the squads balance against each other? Australia definitely are the better test team here. Their bowling easily out matches the West Indies’ bowling attack. Another plus for the Aussies is that 2 out of 3 games are at Brisbane and Perth respectively, which means that the Australian attack will have ample chances to display their wares during these games. Though West Indies do have the bowlers who, if they do not get carried away by the pace and the bounce on offer, can do some damage themselves; especially Gavin Tonge who was very impressive during the recent ICC Champions Trophy. The batting looks good for the West Indies with the return of Chris Gayle. And Chanderpaul still looks quite a sticky customer. But the rest of the batting barring Sarwan and Bravo looks very brittle, even this duo looks susceptible when it comes to batting for long hours.

The Aussie batting on the other hand looks strong and raring to go. West Indies are a bit more balanced when it comes to the one dayers; but the Aussies should be able to dust them off without any major problems. It is in the Twenty20 arena where the West Indies could really cause some problems for the Aussies. They have Dwayne Bravo and Ravi Rampaul who did so well for Trinidad & Tobago during the recently concluded Champions League Twenty20 in India. Add Gayle to the setup with a few utility players and you have got a squad which can give the best teams a run for their money.

So how will the series turn out to be? Aussies will end up winning the Test series and the one dayers, but will have to struggle to get past the West Indies in the T20s. If West Indies really want to have a fighting chance in this tour, then they only have to look at how T&T competed during the CL T20. They were fearless, competitive, and yet enjoyed themselves. In short, they will have to relearn how to play the game in the Calypso style. If they can do that, one might see some honor being restored to the West Indian game.

Sreesanth: The Return of the Cavalier Prince

First up, a trivia question: Who is the only bowler from Kerala to have taken a hat-trick in the Ranji trophy?


Answer: Shanthakumaran Sreesanth.


A lot of people may not know this fact. And those who did know this, would have forgotten it by now. The only memories that the name S. Sreesanth would invoke in most people’s mind would be the cavalier bat-swirling-over-the-head dance that he performed after hitting Andre Nel for a six, and the images of Sreesanth crying unabashedly on our television screens after being slapped by Bhajji.


His exploits on the cricket field – although limited – have been overshadowed by his antics on and off it. Like most young Indian cricketers who made their debut during the first decade of the new millennium, Sreesanth too was quick to make an impression – and a positive one too. He possessed a lethal out-swinger which he could bowl at decent pace. However, like most of these youngsters, he was unable to handle the sudden fame and the extra perks that come with job of being a cricketer in India.
What happened next is well documented, and probably has been discussed and dissected to its very core. And yet whose fault is it that he had to stay out of the side for so long? Because it certainly wasn’t just the lack of performance that forced the selectors to drop him. There were other bowlers in the side who were bowling just as bad; if not worse. The man himself is to be blamed to some extent, because at the top level one is expected to take care of himself, discipline himself, and make sure that one do not embarrass oneself, and one’s team in front of everyone. But that fact remains that Sreesanth was not only unpopular among the opposition, but also some of his own team mates. So does this mean that his team mates had forsaken him as a lost case? If that is true, then it certainly is a very sad thing; because every young cricketer who makes his way into the national side needs to have a mentor of sorts in the team. It is well documented how Sachin acted as one for Bhajji (Harbhajan Singh), and apparently Shane Warne for Michael Clarke.
Sreesanth may have been a difficult character to handle, but then that’s what captains and especially, managers are for. Letting go of a player just because he is difficult to handle is not a good thing to do; especially if he is a valuable one. Australian cricket is a perfect example for this kind of situation. Ricky Ponting was no saint when he started playing cricket. But they persisted with him, and today he is the captain of the side. Even someone like Andrew Symonds got a lot of chances, with a lot of players talking to him, before he was offloaded off the team.


And the important thing to remember here is that it is Sreesanth’s stubbornness that makes him different from most other Indian bowlers. Most bowlers’ reaction on being hit for a boundary of a full length delivery is to bowl a back-of-a-length delivery; which most often than not speaks of a negative mindset. But Sreesanth has stood out in this respect that he has rarely backed down and taken this route. He knows his strength and sticks to them; irrespective of whether the batsman is doing well or not.


Allan Donald spoke of his lack of discipline, and recently even the BCCI pulled him up and cautioned him to behave himself. Despite all this, he’s made it back to the Indian team after a long hiatus. Now would be a good time for some senior player to take him aside and put a word of fatherly advice in his ears, because not all players are Anil Kumble, who was born with tremendous self-discipline, and not everyone has a Ajit Tendulkar in his life to keep him grounded. Nineteen years ago, another player had made his debut for India. He too attained instant fame and fortune only to wither away due to what everyone perceived as lack of discipline. The player in question of course is Vinod Kambli. Though he was not so much of a maverick as Sreesanth, but nevertheless there are great parallels here. In the second Test match against Sri Lanka, Sreesanth bowled a beauty of an outswinger to get rid of Tilakratne Dilshan. He had already picked up five wickets in the first innings, but this wicket is the one that is worth watching over and over again.


It seemed like things were back to normal as far as Sreesanth was concerned. But then again, Indian fans have had that feeling before.