Sachin to miss super series

Its sad that Sachin will miss the exciting Super series that is just round the corner. On the one hand I am glad that he is taking his time to return. On the other hand I have a suspicion that this injury is mighty serious and the master batsman Sachin that we all know off might be a thing of the past (like some of his critics claim).

Whatever be the case, I hope Sachin bids his goodbye when the time comes on his own terms. It will be awful to see Sachin quit all of a sudden without a flourish or be dragged out of the team like Kapil (Ganguly?) and so many others in Indian cricket.

Pathan strikes, again

Irfan Pathan grabbed 7 wickets immediately after a fine all rounder show in the first test against Zimbabwe. I can't remember the last time (since Kapil Dev?) that an Indian player scored over fifty runs and took so many wickets in two successive tests. I just hope he can maintain his good form. He is clearly the best of the current lot of bowlers.

Yusuf Youhana turns to Islam: Religion in Sports

I was surprised to read about Youhana converting to Islam. Everytime he scores a century, Youhana diligently looked upto the heavens and gestured with the Christian cross sign. So I got the feeling that he was a devout Christian. His permanent presence in the Pak team in the company of Danish Kaneria gave the Pak team semblance of diversity and secularism. Now that is no longer the case. Wonder what is going through Danish Kaneria these days as the odd man out.

Over the years, I have noticed that the Pak team has had an increasing tendency to indulge in a public display of religious fervor -- the joint prayers on the field, the captains reference to Allah prior to answering interview questions etc. I don't see the need to mix religion and sports, especially when games are emotionally charged affairs and spectators on both sides can get out of hand fairly quickly.

I am not against any religion, nor am I against the Pak team, but I think it will help everyone and the game in general if sportstars keep their religious displays off the field. There is enough communal trouble in the world as is, let visible individuals (who automatically become role models) like sportstars downplay religion rather than promote it.

Sourav-Chappell saga

Its very unfortunate that Ganguly chose to go public about his internal squabbles. Personally, I have a lot of respect for Ganguly and what he has done for India cricket. Unfortunately, it appears as though he is going through the same crisis faced by most India sportsman (politicians included) about when to call it quits. Of all the Indian cricketers, I think Sunil Gavaskar is the only one who went out on his own terms. Pretty much every India top star has been dragged out at the end of his career: Kapil Dev, Vishwanath, Vengsarkar, Bedi, etc.

In the case of Ganguly, I think the intense pressure just got to him. He probably knows that his days in the team and as captain are numbered for many reasons possibly even beyond his performance. So he proably thought that with a century behind him he could build up some support!

The commission scheduled to meet later this month includes Gavaskar, Shastri, Venkataraghavan, Chappell and R. S Mahendra (the Board President). While Mahendra has past scores to settle, Chappell has his reputation at stake and will do whatever it takes to build Team India. The others are tough task masters and will feel the onus of setting the direction for the Indian team for the years to come. In short, it a pseudo selection committee where the stakes are high. Its good to know that Chappell is trying to clean house and I hope he succeeds. I still think Ganguly is a good captain, but it appears as though the standards set by Chappell are a little too much for him. If this is true he must go.

Ashes: Well-deserved win for England, Aussies back to the drawing board!

England truly deserved to win after fighting performances from pretty much all there players throughout this series. The Aussies never really looked like an unbeatable side this series. They have struggled through out. Now that England has finally won the Ashes, it will be interesting to see how the Aussies cope with defeat at the hands of the English (wait to see the British press rub it in and claim global dominance!)

In any case, I am very very curious to see how Cricket Australia copes with this defeat. My guesses... John Buchanan's term is over. Someone at the top has to go and Buchanan is a safe bet. It will be interesting to see how many of the current team will survive for the next tour. I suspect Martyn, Katich, Gillespie and Kasparovich will be dumped for the next tour. I won't be surprised if they take a bold step and name a new captain for ODIs with a look ahead to the world cup. Cricket Australia has its task cut out...

Ashes Decider: Day 2, 3

Its a pity that the weather intervened. I think this match is over for the Aussies. There will be pockets of excitement (weather permitting) but this test will most likely end in a draw or an English vitory. The pressure and frustration of the repeated weather breaks (plus some excellent attacking bowling by England) seems to have crushed the Aussie hopes of a large total. It will be interesting to see how the Aussie deal with this decline of their cricketing fortunes after this test.

Ashes Decider: Day 1

Its very interesting to see how the Aussies are coping with stress/pressure. Just look at all the finger pointing that has started to happen. Ian Chappell, Rod Marsh, Dean Jones, Slater, Benaud, Hughes (to name a few) have all joined the clatter for changes. On the eve of a defining moment in their cricket history it is very very evident that their entire cricketing establishment is shaken and worried. Under these circumstances, it will be truly amazing if the Aussie team can pull off a victory. I suspect they will rise to the occasion (my prediction:-)

Day 1: What an exciting days play! Brilliant batting from Strauss. This guy is a top class player. Hats off to Warne. He is a true genius. Too bad none of the other Aussie bowlers could provide any comparable support from the other end. Lee and Tait were particularly bad, I thought with so many super fast juicy deliveries all over the place! I think the Aussies are going to pay the price for over-bowling Warne today. If the Aussies can wrap up the rest of the English wickets before a score of 350-375 then they have a good chance of fighting their way back into this test. If England cross the 400 mark, the Aussies will be under severe pressure. Hayden could be playing his last test!

Team Composition: It sounds like England has gone into this test with a defensive mindset by bringing in Collingwood for Simon Jones (a part time bowler for a strike bowler!). This could backfire on them as the test progresses. They are going to miss Jones' wicket taking ability especially if the famed Aussie batting line up begins to strike form. As for the Aussies, they have stuck to the same team. Ponting seems to have decided to swim or sink with the same team rather than make changes at this stage.

All in all, the next few days are going to be exciting....

NZ-India final

As expected by most Indian cricket fans, India lost the final to NZ in the Videocon Tri-series. When the batting clicks, the bowling fails, otherwise the fielding fails, else everything fails. The biggest positive from this tour is that JP Yadav definitely deserves to be in the team as the all-rounder/fifth bowler. Next, Dhoni can certainly help speed up things in the last 10-15 overs. He has proved that more than once and can be counted to deliver in the future.

Venu lost a good chance to prove himself and might find himself dumped for good. Kaif and Yuvraj have extended their survival lease by the odd good performance. Agarkar fans now have more ammunition to fight his cause. Dumpimg Dravid from the captaincy seems to have taken its toll. He probably thinks he has had enough scoring runs under Dada and can keep his place without super performances. Lastly, India is certainly missing Sachin and his all round skills.

All in all, the Indian team is going through a lousy phase. Despite so much talent, a cricket playing nation with so many resources continues to fail. Don't know what exactly it is, but something has to change. If it doesn't, the same story will continue through to the World Cup in 2007.

India's win over NZ: Nothing to get excited about!

NZ rested Shane Bond for the match and that made all the difference. Struggling Indian batsman batted like champions. It was a smart move to rest the star bowler in my opinion. He'll be fresh and hungry to have another go at the Indian batting.

NZ's bowling without Bond and Vettori is pretty mediocre. On the other hand, when Bond does the job of putting serious pressure on the batsman from one end, the other bowlers start grabbing wickets from the other despite bein mediocre by themselves. In any case, this victory will give India some much needed confidence going into the finals. It is great that Dhoni played a useful innings to finish up the match for India. The final acceleration is something that India has been badly lacking. The fielding in particular was impressive especially the run outs.

If India win the finals, then all the complaints about Ganguly and co. will be promptly forgotten and Dada will be firmly in control once again.

Cricket: The Day of Reckoning?

Tomorrow could be the end of an era in world cricket. After over a decade of dominating world cricket the Aussie slide is now on the verge of being completed. A defeat at the hands of the English! After a long wait the English press I bet can't wait for its day(s) in the sun!

Nothing has gone right for the Aussie on this tour of England. They have struggled right through and never looked like a champion side. Tomorrow is their last chance to turn the tables. Given the recent performances this seems highly unlikely. A VVS-Dravid show does not happen every day. :-)

Ashes: Aussies in shambles, still worthy of playing the World XI?

England continues to strengthen its hold over the Aussies with this test. As always Flintoff makes all the difference. Just when it looked like the Aussies had England down at 229 for 4, Freddie turns out a fine century. Man, this guy is real good!

The way the Aussies are playing, I don't think this team deserves to play against the rest of the world! The World XI deserves to play a stronger side, perhaps Steven Waugh's Australian side.

India vs. NZ: Bonded by Bond

Shane Bond simply destroyed India's batting. Its not surprising. The team has been performing horribly. Our celebrity stars show up late. Ganguly is still sleep walking more than batting. Viru looks like he has had a little too many "aloo parattas" during the off-season. Dravid is probably pissed with his short stint as captain and too distracted as a result. Yuvraj thinks his century on the SL-WI series is enough for a while. Kaif is mostly a fielder etc. etc.

The saving grace of this match: India finally gave JP Yadav a shot and he certainly looks set for the all-rounder slot. Irfan is evolving into a potential all-rounder. Our opening bowlers have survived longer than one series without injuries and actually performed quite consistently. Last but not the least, India gave one of its youngsters (Venugopal Rao) a good chance to prove himself. Unfortunately, he ended up facing an unplayable delivery. In the competitive environment of world cricket, playing the unplayable is what sets apart the true stars. Nevertheless, Venu needs a few more chances, especially considering how long we persist with our celebrity stars.

Chappell's honeymoon is over

Greg Chappell was pissed with the Indian players for showing up late at the start of the tour. He was even more pissed with the press for jumping all over him and taking pictures. Sounds like Chappell's honeymoon period is over. If India flunks this meaningless tournament in Zimbabwe, the pressure on him is bound to get worse. Perhaps he'll have to learn a few lessons about defending himself from Dada.

Graeme Smith: World XI Captain

Its quite an achivement for Graeme Smith to lead the cricket World XI against Australia. Until a few years back, he was brought into lead SF, despite being a virtual unknown. Though he has had mixed results as the South African captain, his recent performance in the county championship Twenty20 tournament and the match against Australia for Somerset speaks volumes of his abilities. Captaining the World XI should be quite a crowning moment for him.

Masala Cricket: Asia XI vs Africa XI

The “masala” cricket that is underway between Asia XI and Africa XI just witnessed another display of classic spineless performance from our Indian tail-enders. Just when tail-enders in the Ashes series are performing unbelievable wonders, the Indian tail-enders succumb with the least resistance as always. Btw, Viru’s bad form seems to continue into this worthless series. India should have sent in the lesser stars/discards like VVS instead. Dravid did a smart thing by withdrawing.  Btw, this entire series is available for $20.00 on broadband.

Ashes: Third Test

Wow! What an exciting test match. I can't remember the last time test series was so exciting.

Hats off to both teams for spirited performances. Flintoff seems to have come into his own this series and that makes all the difference to the England side. For Australia, Brett Lee deserves a lot of credit for saving the Test unlike the last test where he ended up on the loosing side despite a fighting performance. Most importantly, Ponting played an outstanding innings when most needed.

Here are some thoughts that come to mind after this test:

• Hayden badly needs a break. Katich failed too but I think he deserves a longer rope. Brad Hodge in place of Hayden might be a useful change. However, I think Brad Hodge will come in place of the injured Clarke and both Hayden and Katich will survive another test.

• Steve Bucknor must be forced to retire. His umpiring has been consistently poor for the last few years (especially in matches involving India). His Martyn decision almost cost Australia the match. Btw, I am curious if he (or whoever the match referree is) will show the guts to haul Ponting to the discplinary stand for resenting when Martyn was given out?

• Gillespie is another guy who badly needs a break. His batting is more useful to Australia than his bowling :-) Kasporovich or Shaun Tait should definitely play in the fourth test! I will be terribly surprised if Gillespie plays in the next test.
  

Ashes: England bounces back

What a game! Hats off to the Aussies for fighting back so hard and almost pulling off a victory. England should be relieved to have leveled the series. Flintoff's super abilities and McGrath's absence made the difference to both teams respectively.

With both Lee and McGrath doubtful for the third Test, the Aussies have their hands full with problems. Lee was taken apart in this test, and both Kasparowicz and Gillespie are no where are as menacing (even from a wicket taking point of view). I think its a good idea to try out Shaun Tait as a good surprise package for England. This Ashes is shaping up very well with England putting up a credible fight. Its is also a sign of Australia's waning superiority over other International teams.

Indian Oil Cup: India scrape through to Final

It was a close match after India had WI on the mat. It just proves that India's bowling is weak with a full fledged fifth bowler. Given the wickets in SL are conducive to spin it makes sense for India to play five bowlers including two spinners. This match also strengthens the case for saving Dhoni for the last 15 overs. The opening spot should be a choice between VVS and Ganguly. I don't think there is room for both of them in the team. Hopefully, Viru will fire in the final. Its a pity the JP was a mere passenger on this tour. And sure enough the poor guy will be dropped for the next tour. So much for India's search for the elusive all rounder.

The team for the final in my opinion must be:

Sehwag
Ganguly (if he is fit, else open with Yuvraj and play Venu in the middle order)
Dravid
Yuvraj
Kaif
Dhoni
Pathan
Kumble
Harbhajan
Zaheer
Nehra

WI win against SL. Huh?

Was this match fixed? Or the Sri Lanka team took it easy? Or they decided to lose the match in order to inject some excitement into this boring triangular series? It had to be one of these. Its hard to imagine this WI team pull off a victory against any team. ...barring maybe India on a really bad day:-(

India-Zimbabwe series coming up

Another meaningless cricket series is round the corner. Two tests against a second string Zimbabwe side. I sincerely hopes the Indian selectors give our so-called celebrity cricket stars a rest and send in an entire team of newcomers. It would be painful to see the Ganguly, Sachin, Sehwag and Dravid pile up centuries against the second string Zimbabwe side. Another golden opportunity for India to try and expose some up and coming players to international cricket.