Cricket India

End Of Chappell Era

2007-04-04T20:07:00.000+05:30

What follows this paragraph was intended to be an independent post. I wrote it and went to have a coffee. And on TV the news of Chappell’s resignation was breaking out. I was a bit perplexed by this development for a moment but soon it became clear to me that things were taking their expected course. So I thought I would let the post follow this intro. I was almost certain that I would ignore

Ideas Matter Not Persons

2007-04-03T12:22:00.000+05:30

The discussion on the future of Indian cricket now has, after a severe scrutiny of the players’ and captain’s culpability, has moved on to the future of the coach of the national team. After the initial euphoria, Greg Chappell was quick enough to collect critics and they are now making use of the plight of the Indian team to pull him down from his pedestal. Many were at the very beginning

Let Dravid Continue

2007-03-30T13:06:00.000+05:30

In one’s eagerness to distance himself from the tragedy Indian cricket is going through, the average cricket enthusiast is on a mission to find fault with any one connected in some remote way with the game in India. The players must now be thinking about ways to get off the tiger’s back. Now it is the captain’s turn. The catastrophe according to many was obviously the handiwork of the captain.

Murali Another Factor

2007-03-28T13:12:00.000+05:30

Yesterday I forgot to add an item while talking about the failings of the disgraced Indian cricket team. Batting problems, bowling inadequacies, poor fielding, lack of grit etc were there.. At least against Bangladesh, the pitch-again a failure on the part of the captain- was a tad unfriendly. But the crucial factor which worked against India in the match against Sri Lanka was Murali. I know I am

The Panic Button Stays Pressed

2007-03-27T17:10:00.000+05:30

The failure on the part of Bermuda to upset Bangladesh in the last preliminary match of this World Cup has sealed India’s slimmest chance of sneaking into the Super Eight stage. This becomes all the more agonizing as it comes in the wake of very expensive and exotic preparations through the last few seasons when the fulcrum of all the efforts was the Caribbean conquest. . India had three

Pathan To Open?

2007-03-23T12:50:00.000+05:30

An error crept into my last dispatch and sorry for that. I wrote about a five-bowler attack and Karthik. It was obvious that they won’t go together. It was clear that to play five bowlers one batsman has to be dropped. One’s hope was that that loss would be at least partially compensated by Pathan. And the batsman I suggested for the block was Uthappa. But I overlooked the obvious that Karthik

Battle Won, War Still To Be Fought

2007-03-21T08:23:00.000+05:30

At last when confronted with the frightening reality, India unleashed it batting potential in no uncertain terms and posted the highest total in the history of the Cup. Its only four hundred-plus score! I would like to interpret it as a warning to the rest of the contenders that India has after its trials and tribulations during its training sojourn has acquired the strength to roar. Teams will

Poor Pakistan!

2007-03-19T19:19:00.000+05:30

What a World Cup Pakistan has had this time! Even during the preparations, there were problems with Akthar and then Akthar and Asif were declared positive in the dope tests. In an attempt to put up a façade of responsible behavior and at the same time to take care of practical needs, Pakistan cricket authorities tried to reduce the period of punishment meted out to these players only to be

Difficult Days Ahead For India

2007-03-19T13:13:00.000+05:30

Four years of hard work, emotional strain, single-minded dedication everything almost went up in smoke for India with its shock defeat at the hands of Bangladesh. Bangladesh by any stretch of imagination is not a match for India’s might. But a combination of factors, some of them unavoidable and some unpardonable, combined to carve a convincing win leaving India wounded and dejected perhaps

Pathan A Vital Cog

2007-03-17T13:54:00.000+05:30

India plays its first match of this World Cup this evening against Bangladesh. Going by form, talent and a few other parameters, India should win the match comfortably. But this is an occasion for India to look further ahead and plan accordingly. This is most opportune moment for India to try out the five bowler option. Pathan who bowled reasonably well in the warm up match against West Indies

Pitches And Huge Totals

2007-03-17T13:52:00.000+05:30

The World Cup has begun! Arguably with an upset. West Indies, the hosts managed to subdue Pakistan, that too disabling their superiority in the batting department. There were a few other matches also, Australia,s match against Scotland being the most noteworthy among them. Australia piled up 330 plus and then skittled out Scotland for a paltry score to register a 203-run victory. All these

India Among The Frontrunners

2007-03-10T17:33:00.000+05:30

It is very difficult to organize one’s thoughts and arrange them in a logical way after a pretty long break. I was away from my system for a long while. Since then the Sri Lankans came and lost a series, and the squad for the Caribbean was announced. Quite a lot has happened since then that it is becoming almost impossible to talk about things with any sense of chronology. After a long spell of

WC: Most Select Themselves

2007-02-05T12:33:00.000+05:30

After a confidence-boosting series win against the West Indies, India has suddenly found it easy to give shape to its World Cup squad. India which wore an unsettled look as late as last week looks a well structured outfit even before the actual team has been announced. The credit for this achievement may be claimed by both the Chappell camp and the new selection committee. I personally feel it

India Still Has The Unsettled Look

2007-01-27T12:05:00.000+05:30

After the South African tour, India has already launched into another series, this time a one-day series against the West Indies. And India has already won the first two matches though narrowly. The main difference in the complexion of the team is that it does not have Sehwag and Yuvraj in the team though for different reasons and Ganguly is in, deservedly too. In the first ODI on a belter of a

Casualties Of SA Tour

2007-01-15T11:28:00.000+05:30

Various teams have moved into the World Cup mode by announcing their probables for the mega event. India has also has published a list of thirty players from whom a final squad will be selected. Along with that, a fifteen member-squad for the first two matches against the West Indies also has been released. Against the background of the venomous criticism in the aftermath of the Cape Town test,

India Bungles Its Way To Defeat

2007-01-11T09:03:00.000+05:30

India could not overcome the setback of the third innings of the Cape Town test. The way Indian batsmen played as if they had forgotten their brief affected the team’s confidence to such an extent that most of their plans and their execution went awry quite miserably. The fifth day was a disaster for India. First, they were simply outmaneuvered by South African captain who sent in Pollock. That

South Africa Given A Toe-hold

2007-01-06T10:42:00.000+05:30

India has a long history of choking when it matters. Here at Cape Town also India after being in a position to bat the hosts out of the game got itself into such a tangle that South Africa only had to go through the motions to get them out one by one. They came, committed some foolishness and got out. After having reached a comfortable position of 90 for two, India worked its way to disaster and

Third Innings Syndrome

2007-01-05T11:08:00.000+05:30

The decider at Cape Town is poised ideally. Both first innings are over with India claiming a modest but probably crucial lead of forty one runs. The test at the end of the first day belonged to India. Though India was not in an unassailable position, it was expected to at least draw the test if no unexpected batting collapse and bowling failure did happen. At the end of the second day, India

Happy Start For India

2007-01-03T10:26:00.000+05:30

Indians must have been baffled by the New Year present they received from the curator at Cape Town. A flat track with low bounce that would put Delhi or Mumbai to shame! A bowling attack that looked quite ordinary because of the pitch and the absence of Andre Nel allowed India to put on a reasonably good score that might have already saved the test for it. Dhoni’s injured fingers did not permit

A Good Contest In Offing

2007-01-01T17:00:00.000+05:30

India has lived up to its reputation of being a very inconsistent team. After registering a glorious win against the South Africans in the first test, India sank without putting up the kind of resistance worthy of an equal opponent. This loss at Durban again makes one doubt if the first-test win was not a fluke. But it was not because the Indian bowling again proved to be capable of causing

Wonderful Turnaround

2006-12-20T06:02:00.000+05:30

Unbelievable is this transformation from a loser, its tail tucked between its legs to a convincing winner who held the upper hand through almost all the sessions of the first cricket test at Wanderers. India almost at the end of its tether after the drubbing it took from the Proteas, bounced back with tremendous grit and sense of purpose and handled the adverse conditions surprisingly better than

Ganguly Again!

2006-12-08T11:54:00.000+05:30

India has begun its second leg of the South African journey showing its inability to handle the new ball and its reserve power which pulled the chestnut out of fire A century by Pathan has put India in a comfortable position against a second-grade team which though includes a few players sharp enough to get into the main eleven. Pathan was perhaps proving that the faith reposed on him by Chappell

Difficult Choice For India

2006-12-06T06:09:00.000+05:30

Response to India’s cricket performances is as fast as running commentary about the same thing. People just don’t have any time to absorb what they have seen and then respond to it. In their eagerness to be the first to be out with the comments many just shoot off the hip. The last match of the one day series against South Africa has been played. The pitches have afforded bounce and lateral

First Round Of Misery Over

2006-12-04T17:56:00.000+05:30

The India-South Africa one-day series has come to an end, with a result on the expected lines. India, totally ill-prepared to handle the bounce and off-the-pitch movement that the South African pitches confronted them with, buckled under the onslaught by the Springboks. Its batsmen who failed to make the necessary but difficult adjustments to deal with the bounce perished meekly. The bowlers who

Indian Cricket: A Love-Hate Relationship

2006-11-27T12:38:00.000+05:30

You should honestly congratulate yourself in choosing cricket as your favorite game because there seems to be no game which commands so much attention in our country. Illiterate street urchins and knowledgeable parliamentarians find time to comment on the poor performance levels of Dravid and co and ignorant as they are of the game are adamant that they also should be heard while solutions to

Play Opens As Per Script

2006-11-24T11:38:00.000+05:30

As was feared, Indian batting collapsed against some steady South African pace and betrayed certain ill-hidden truths covered by some amateurish hype created by the media. A group of journalists bent on analyzing the scores of each match to establish a non-existent trend, has created this atmosphere of utter disappointment in the minds of the Indian cricket fan. True, Indian performance was even

Chappell On The Right Track

2006-11-21T13:10:00.000+05:30

The first match of the five-match series in South Africa was washed out by rain and India moves on to Durban with the same diffident mindset. Disturbed by severe criticism about its inability to deliver, Indians must be praying for an opportunity to prove themselves. The criticism mainly has been on two flanks, one about India’s failure to perform consistently and two about the incessant changes

Jaffer's A Sensible Selection

2006-11-18T07:27:00.000+05:30

India’s cricket team has left its shores with hopes and apprehensions. They know that a good performance is not beyond them but feeble responses to situations recently have put the fear of failure in the players’ minds. India has sent out its best possible outfit to South Africa but it is entirely different a point if this team is good enough to put up a satisfying performance both in the one day

Mammon The Next Mahavishnu?

2006-11-09T16:40:00.000+05:30

Clash between civilizations could easily take the shape of clash between cultures also. Often what you are used to in your backyard will not be taken kindly in a different society. To err there may not be the most heinous crime but lack of preparation in this area of mutual respect can be termed insensitivity. Not to show regret for a error committed definitely calls for condemnation. Yes, A cup

Champions Trophy Too Goes Down Under

2006-11-06T13:13:00.000+05:30

After a brief flutter, cricket has settled to its old rhythm and the moment of shock whooshed past without making any impact on us. Australia has finally broken the jinx by claiming the Champions Trophy and has shown West Indies its place in international cricket. Sunday’s final showed us the difference between a champion team and a good one. West Indies has a history of doing well in the

Can They Do It Again?

2006-11-05T12:48:00.000+05:30

To be frank, I don’t know what is behind this transformation in West Indian cricket. None has ignored the fact that they who were in the dumps not long ago, has definitely managed to climb towards respectability. But anything beyond that, any reference to a champion team might be praise without substance. But one thing is certain. They either because of excellent, inspired leadership or

New Strategies, New Replies

2006-11-02T11:12:00.000+05:30

Australia has at last entered the final of a Champions Trophy after repeated, unsuccessful attempts. Even this time they found the going rather difficult but efficiency and confidence came to their rescue when the Kiwis looked like getting the better of them both at the beginning and the fag end of the match. The pitch though not as spiteful as the Pakistan-South Africa one, had enough in it to

India Doesn’t Look Good Enough

2006-10-30T11:08:00.000+05:30

Thus India’s Champions Trophy campaign has ended; ended almost in a whimper. India which set out on a very positive note with the induction of Greg Chappell has moved forward two steps and slid back three during the last couple of seasons. Sunday’s defeat in fact is a very explainable one. India lost to a better equipped outfit that was ready with talent and preparation. Their bowling was

Pitches Conspire Against Batsmen

2006-10-28T11:48:00.000+05:30

Something basically is wrong with this edition of Champions Trophy. The pitches offered for the games have had a uniform purpose: To prevent the batsmen from playing to their potential. Most of them made the ball keep low, the ball refused to come on to bat and made poor timing par for the tournament. Then comes this pitch at Mohali which would put Waca to shame! The ball here bounced about like

Convincing Win For Windies

2006-10-27T12:38:00.000+05:30

A highly underestimated outfit which often plays with just two frontline bowlers- West Indies- has managed to pull off wins, often with not much to spare but crucial wins all the same. It is generally accepted that they are better off in the batting department but matches are won by their makeshift bowlers. In their match against India in the Champions Trophy also, their batsmen could just make

Pak Pace Throws Away Match

2006-10-26T12:54:00.000+05:30

The toss against New Zealand was actually a passport into the semis for Pakistan but they threw away a golden opportunity by wasting the new ball by not bowling in the right areas. Had Rana Naved, Rao Ifthiqar and Umer Gul bowled with purpose and made the batsmen play more deliveries, Pakistan would have made major inroads into the Kiwis’ batting and the final onslaught would not have been

Sri Lanka Disappoints

2006-10-25T11:28:00.000+05:30

This edition of Champions Trophy seems to have a charmed life. The tournament, it appears, is being hijacked by its Group B matches. Now that South Africa has managed to overcome Sri Lanka in a march very crucial to its continued presence in the tournament, things look very hazy in that group. All teams in that group have one win each so far. Sri Lanka who began as one of the favorites, has

Is Doping Such A Major Crime?

2006-10-23T11:38:00.000+05:30

Doping like most issues is a multi-dimensional thing. Which only means it has got arguments of subtle shades which could confuse you about their real intentions. A person takes certain medicines which increase his muscle mass and make him stronger. Stronger muscles are useful in sports and hurling a cherry a few yards faster is one of the benefits in cricket. You can run after the ball a little

No Final Verdict On Adhesive Spray

2006-10-21T12:50:00.000+05:30

There is no conclusive evidence on the efficacy of the adhesive prayed on the Brabourne pitch by the ICC specialist Atkinson. It theoretically binds the surface together. It obviously can’t make it faster or bouncier or even simply better. All that was expected off this plastic spray was to provide a thin coat of film which seeps into the small crevices and presents a relatively better-bound

An Open Look To Tournament

2006-10-19T11:45:00.000+05:30

What a thriller this version of Champions Trophy is turning out to be! New Zealand accounts for South Africa, a written-off Pakistan brushes aside the strong Sri Lanka and tonight, the mighty Aussies are humbled by the qualifier West Indies! Of all the matches in this edition so far (qualifying matches excluded) the punters have read only India’s match right. The Brabourne pitch by any standards

Pak Win Injects Life Into Tournament

2006-10-18T14:20:00.000+05:30

The wonderful win that Pakistan carved against the in-form Sri Lanka is the best tonic that the world of cricket could have hoped for. A team rocked by scandals and disciplinary actions rose from the ashes like the proverbial Phoenix to make a powerful statement of their inherent cricketing strength. Against a team on a roll, on a pitch which suited the Sri Lankan bowling, Pakistan it was widely

Cautious Start To Champions Trophy

2006-10-17T11:40:00.000+05:30

So much has happened in the corridors of cricket and intrigue in the last few days. West Indies managed to sneak into the less formidable group in Champions Trophy, India made heavy weather of brushing aside England’s feeble opposition, New Zealand exploited the conditions better to register an emphatic win which may make things easier for them to get into the semifinals and Pakistan’s Akhthar

The Horrors Of Bowling Second

2006-10-12T11:19:00.000+05:30

It is only early October and fall has just shown its face in North India. Already there are indicators to warn us of some problems which are going to be there in more pronounced ways as the tournament progresses. Yes, the dew factor. The authorities have repeatedly shown their unwillingness to learn from past experiences. During the last several seasons, since the introduction of lights and

A Timeframe Needed For Tweaking

2006-10-10T17:50:00.000+05:30

There seems to be a raging controversy about the issues of experimentation and consolidation in the selection and structure of the Indian team. This experimentation attempted systematically by the team management is quite different from the rotation system in place in the Australian scheme of things. Here Chappell seeks a fine-tuned balance for the team as a whole and along with that tries to

Can Any Team Prevent Australia From Winning?

2006-10-09T19:07:00.000+05:30

Now that the qualifying matches are underway in the Champions Trophy, it is time to look at the chances of the various teams to lift the Trophy. It goes without saying that Australia is the favorites. The most important question is who is likely to upstage them or make maximum use of the benefit out of an unexpected misfortune suffered by the Aussies. Teams like India, Pakistan, South Africa and

Time For Consolidation

2006-10-08T11:16:00.000+05:30

Now we are on the threshold of a new championship. After the mixed fortunes at the Kuala Lumpur outing, India should be doubly wary of its chances in this much bigger tournament where the stakes are higher too. The Indian experiments have drawn flak form almost all quarters and perhaps it is time to settle down to the comfort of a well set pattern. But the World Cup being the one all are eyeing

R.P Singh Should Be Replaced...

2006-09-21T23:49:00.000+05:30

Today’s match will affect India in a very significant way. More than an opportunity to reach yet another final, a win here will restore India’s confidence in itself. India on more occasions than one has betrayed a sense of non-belonging at the top. India has undeniably in the past, sneaked into exotic positions and slunk away with drooping shoulders. Now what assumes importance is the opportunity

A Tough Task Ahead Of India

2006-09-21T13:48:00.000+05:30

Rain god’s inclination to stay away from the scene of action has certainly influenced the quality of cricket at Kinrara Oval. The full quota of fifty overs was possible and that has allowed the game to develop more on a structured pattern. So a variety of patterns woven were put on display and this and its adequate response brought about a qualitative change in the game’s attractiveness.Despite

Evenhanded Approach by Rain gods

2006-09-18T15:47:00.000+05:30

It seems rain gods have developed a special liking for Indians. They got into the mood in Sri Lanka and not fully satisfied with their performance there have moved with the team to Malaysia. They have intervened in both the matches India played there hijacking a win from India’s hands in the first one and saving India from the jaws of defeat in the other. Against the West Indies, despite a strong

Indians Have to Pitch'em Up

2006-09-16T12:07:00.000+05:30

Last time I got so carried away by the sheer brilliance of Tendulkar’s innings that I could not look at the match as such. Actually his innings dimmed the fact that India actually lost the match even though via the Duckworth-Lewis route.It was a satisfactory batting show on India’s part though heavily influenced by one innings. India duly made use of the Power Play, settled down to beef up the

If Injuries Can Do This To Him

2006-09-15T12:51:00.000+05:30

Eating one's own words at least on certain occasions seems to be a pleasant experience. Think of a master chef, almost branded as a former magician of the kitchen, who conjures up some exotic stuff out of mundane and often just passe vegetables! Yes. I, to behonest, thought that Tendulkar would slide down a gear and look for (and find with comfort) an ordinarily good batsman's slot on his return

Let Hair Be There

2006-08-23T15:50:00.000+05:30

The Pakistan-Darrel Hair incident is strictly speaking beyond the purview of this blog. But it has assumed such a huge proportion that so many non-cricketing issues are likely to influence the resolution of this issue. And it is very likely that this particular development in the wake of a few similar things in the past, may have a lasting sway over the future course cricket equations may take.

Unseasonal Cricket Not Rains

2006-08-19T23:30:00.000+05:30

After about a month's rest, Indian cricket team has gotthe extra rest for more than ten days in the rain-soakedSri Lanka. This uncomfortable, forced rest was a foregoneconclusion for those who were even in a distant wayfamiliar with the pattern of the monsoon. The south-westmonsoon sets in during the first week of June in Kerala.It should hit Sri Lanka at least a couple of days earlier.It is

Wasn't Manjrekar Right?

2006-07-28T15:29:00.000+05:30

Mumbai or to be more precise Bombay, was known for the special cricket ambience. And it is against this background that the recent Manjrekar-Tendulkar controversy has assumed such a proportion. Sanjay Manjrekar made some comments about Sachin Tendulkar and stung to the bone, Tendulkar responded with unusual sharpness.What were the points raised by Manjrekar that hurt the master so much? Manjrekar

Sri Lanka The Favorites?

2006-07-22T09:01:00.000+05:30

After an unexpected setback in West Indies, India now gets ready to play a triangular one day tournament in Sri Lanka, South Africa being the third team. The Indian squad has been announced and as was the case for the last few occasions, there are no surprise inclusions or omissions. The only player outside the current data base, seems to be Dinesh Mongia. When Venugopala Rao and Uthappa were

What You Are Is What You Get

2006-07-04T11:13:00.000+05:30

What the West Indian batsmen could not do, the weather could do for them in two of this four-test series. If Windies could scrape through by managing to keep their last wicket stand going to prevent India from winning the second test, West Indian guardian angel intervened quite blatantly in the St.Lucia test by snatching a full day and thus the test away from India’s rightful grip. But here at

When Records Lie

2006-06-15T10:38:00.000+05:30

Brian Lara with the help of Mother Nature managed to pull the St.Lucia test out of IndiaÂs seemingly fatal grip. You can imagine the comfort with which India could have pocketed the match from the final score. Just three tail enders to fight it out and oodles of runs still to be climbed. And India would not have needed many of those ninety mandatory overs robbed by rain on the fourth day.Well, a

Unexpected Turnaround In Tests

2006-06-14T11:13:00.000+05:30

I don’t even remember what I wrote about last. A long absence forced upon me by a medical problem. I only hope using the mouse may not lead to such severe repercussions again.O.K. Let us get back to what we like most. Talking about Cricket. So much has happened during this long break that I falter at recollecting what we were talking about. Anyway one thing is certain, the entire one day series

A Kind Gesture From The Host

2006-04-12T21:08:00.000+05:30

India did enough to give a helping shove to the Englishmen who were quite reluctant in their attempt to score even a consolation win. The four-zero winning lead must have made the Indians less hungry and they looked half-hearted in their attitude to the fifth one-dayer. The washout at Guwahati has given both the teams a well deserved rest but that was not enough to keep the enthusiasm going,

Series Becoming One-sided

2006-04-04T16:19:00.000+05:30

Now that the one day series is near the half way mark, it has become clear that the hosts are too powerful for the visitors, handicapped by the absence of their stalwarts. Only a miracle of the first grade would enable the Englishmen to salvage some respect out of this series. India has out batted,out bowled and out fielded the tourists in all the three matches so far. This new-found enthusiasm

India Too Good For England

2006-04-01T12:56:00.000+05:30

At Delhi, almost everything was in favor of England and they failed to exploit the favorableconditions. At Faridabad, it was a reversal of fortunes for India. The pitch suited their styleof batting, the ball gave just enough help to its spinners, the think tank opted in favor ofRomesh Powar which was amply vindicated. The opening overs gave the tourists a good start though the openers never

England Swept Out Of Delhi

2006-03-30T15:23:00.000+05:30

Conditions,toss,an Indian top order collapse, everything pointed to an easy win for England atDelhi. Well into the twentieth over of their innings England looked on course too. But somethingsnapped somewhere and they just could not put the pieces together again. 117 for three with just87 more to get with seven wickets in hand, the match was so much loaded in favor of England thatsome of my

India Has An Edge In Onedayers

2006-03-28T09:21:00.000+05:30

The test series has ended and the dust has almost settled down. Not exactly because there wasn't enough to dissect threadbare but the one-day series is already upon us. When the excitement of seven one-dayers is ahead of us who is bothered about doing a postmortem on a mistake committed by the Indian think tank. The only sour note left by the 1-1 result of the test series is India's inability to

Satisfying Win For England

2006-03-22T17:23:00.000+05:30

The Indian think tank must have reserved the opportune moment of captain Dravid's 100th test match to give England an unforgettable gift. A team battered by withdrawal of several of its stalwarts and handicapped by the conditions and heat of the sub-continent was given the key to a cricket test by India. Today after a semblance of a fight in the pre-lunch session, India caved in ignominiously,

A Beautifully Scripted Finish

2006-03-21T18:50:00.000+05:30

What a way to finish a series! The final test is a cliffhanger with the car a shade more likely to fall off the cliff. If it does not happen then England has none to blame except itself. They took about 80 overs today to stitch together less than 160 runs. And remember they were the team which very badly needed to win this test to square the series.Let us go back to this morning and try to look

England's Lead Handy But...

2006-03-20T18:36:00.000+05:30

It was an inspired spell, as inspired as they come. Sreesanth, brisk but not exactly a McGrath, bowled the spell of his lifetime this evening at Wankhede stadium. Never leaving the Corridor of Uncertainty, he made the ball do enough to make the English batsmen look like the boys in the back alleys of Mumbai. It weaved away from the unsure bats and when least expected, it darted in. The Englishmen

England Smells Victory

2006-03-20T10:59:00.000+05:30

I don’t know why Dravid chose to field first in the third test.. If history is the reason, then he should have jumped at the idea of bowling last on a dusty, crumbling pitch. If Chappell and Dravid made an assessment unlinked to history, then they were divorcing themselves from their position just 24 hours old. In fact Dravid had predicted that this track would start turning by the third session.

Emphatic Win For India

2006-03-14T19:12:00.000+05:30

Even the disruptions in the first few sessions could not prevent India from winning the Mohali test. The pitch had something in it for every one: batsmen who played sensibly got runs and bowlers who could bowl good line and length got wickets. The faster bowlers could get the ball rear up-some thing totally

Good Start For India

2006-03-10T09:09:00.000+05:30

At last Indians are convinced that one extra bowler against this England makes good cricketing sense. A good look at the pitch might have impressed upon them the usefulness of having one more spinner. And thus Piyush Chawla makes his debut in test cricket.The experts were not unanimous in their interpretation of the pitch at Mohali. Some said it was dusty and brown and would turn. But England

Lessons For Both Teams To Learn

2006-03-09T06:48:00.000+05:30

England could come out of the first test without many bruises when compared with India. England which came with the reputation of a world beating team lost much of its sheen owing to a mixture of misfortunes; injuries to Vaughan, its premier batsman and Simon Jones, a main weapon in their armory and the absence of Trescothik for personal reasons. And that even before the test began. These

Indians Let Off The Hook?

2006-03-05T10:15:00.000+05:30

The heat must have done it. Even the sturdy Flintoff must have found it difficult to think clearly at 40+ C. Otherwise what would seem obvious to a tyro, must not have missed the experienced eye of Flintoff and Fletcher. You are given a 70-run lead and almost two full days to try for a win on a playable pitch. A 70-run lead does not insure you against a possible defeat. So your first priority

Test Still Very Much Open

2006-03-04T05:48:00.000+05:30

Pitches are blamed undeservedly for not influencing a game in a positive way. Look at the Nagpur pitch. It by nature causes no problem to the batsmen and does not give any undue advantage to the bowlers. But the match at the end of the third day's play will prompt you to change your perceptions about the relationship between pitches and the progress of a game.On the first day, India

Finely Poised After Two Days

2006-03-03T09:53:00.000+05:30

Even on placid pitches drama can be scripted. And the very placidity of the track enables one to rewrite the unpleasant lines. On the first day of the Nagpur test, India had things under control and it seemed the toss was not very significant. 240-plus with three tail enders to be mopped up, was a situation very much in India's favor. But on the second day, England almost took the game away from

Smart Selection

2006-02-26T10:41:00.000+05:30

Kiran More and his men have done a good job this time. They selected possibly the bestcombination that could be assembled from those who hold the Indian passport. The balance is certainly better now than in the case of the lopsided one of the one-day squad against Pakistan. This team is an admirable blend of experience and talent. Of course, as usual, most of the players simply walk into the team

On The Way To greater ODI Heights

2006-02-21T18:13:00.000+05:30

India keeps on exceeding its own expectations. A team which obliged the pundits by surrendering meekly before the Pakistan pace bowling at Karachi, suddenly found the Pakistani pace very tasty in the ODIs. Indian batting played to its potential for a change during the entire series and raised the bar whenever

India Clinches Series In Style

2006-02-17T19:36:00.000+05:30

It is not a pleasant thing to be forced to eat one's own words. But this unbelievable twist in the fortunes of the Indian team forces me to admit that I like every other so-called cricket enthusiast has some egg on my face. Frankly I didn't think that Pakistan would so meekly surrender whatever advantage they had over India. They have a reasonably strong batting line up which could comfortably

Akhtar, Murali And The Bent Arm

2006-02-15T16:48:00.000+05:30

After the third test that India lost heavily, Indian coach Greg Chappell made a reference to Shoib Akhtar’s bowling action. He chose to call it seriously different. Mind you, Chappell never said that Akhtar’s bowling action was in any way suspicious. He even did not mention about the straightening problem. But that created a furor in Pakistan. Akhtar requested Chappell to at least respect ICC.

Sachin Silences Critics

2006-02-14T17:36:00.000+05:30

Indian batting is carrying the team on its shoulders now. That is the only way good Indian performances can happen but the authenticity of the Indian efforts surprises even the ardent fan of Indian cricket. India’s is arguably the best batting line up at least on sub-continental pitches. But it never functioned consistently to do justice to its reputation. This is a series where the Indian

A Satisfying Win

2006-02-12T11:53:00.000+05:30

I am not the 'didn't-I-say-so' type of person. But I had in my last post, written that India's only chance of retrieving some pride out of this series lies in someone's rising beyond the ordinary. When one player can, by raising his game to another level, achieve a higher stratum of collective comfort, imagine what

India The Underdogs

2006-02-10T18:55:00.000+05:30

If the tracks for the remaining one-dayers are as docile as the Peshawar one, you can safely assume that India might just fail to stop the Pakistani juggernaut. We just don't have the fire power to restrict them to any reasonable score so that we can make an attempt to overhaul it. But regardless of all the talk about Pakistan's new-found cohesion and team spirit, I feel a very targeted assault

Asif, My Man Of the Match

2006-02-07T15:39:00.000+05:30

When a small patch of a balloon loses its elasticity, it bursts. If you somehow manage to protect the patch, some other area of the balloon begins to get soft. It has to happen if the balloon does not have the inherent strength. By playing five bowlers, India reduced its batting power and to compensate that the think tank resorted to use the floaters. They did well, Pathan and Dhoni but India

Advantage Pakistan

2006-02-06T09:45:00.000+05:30

The test series is over and India carries the hurt of the ignominious defeat in the Karachi test into the ODIs. It is not the one-innings collapse that would irritate Dravid but the way the Pakistanis made India realise that on most occasions they are just a mediocre side. Only when the pitch plays tricks on their behalf, can the Indians raise their game a few notches. That should hurt Indian

The Old Story Continues

2006-02-04T10:41:00.000+05:30

I understand that a threadbare discussion on the debacle of Indian batting and helplessness of Indian bowling may not be the best thing now. But a realistic assessment of the reasons might help in making an effort to avoid such inadequacies in future. India which scored 238 runs in the first innings in conditions much more friendly to bowling, failed to do any better in the second essay even

Is This Potential Never To Be Realised?

2006-02-03T15:32:00.000+05:30

The inevitable has happened. India after a good start squandered the opportunity and Pakistan made full use of it. It was a thumping victory for them, a very clear and emphatic statement of dominance which would go on hurting India for a long time. It is not actually the loss as such which would cause pain but the manner in which India was mauled by Pakistan in both aspects of the game. It

Ganguly's Neat Innings

2006-01-31T09:39:00.000+05:30

One thing I forgot to mention in my yesterday's post was the contribution by Sourav Ganguly. A batsman engulfed in self-doubt, made more vulnerable by his spat with the coach and exposed brutally by the pacemen all over the world recently, Ganguly quite surprisingly played a tight innings in India's first innings at Karachi. The ball was doing all sorts of things in the morning session but he

India In Trouble

2006-01-30T19:19:00.000+05:30

At last after two highly forgettable tests, Pakistan has mustered courage to prepare a cracker of a pitch.As I wrote last time, Pakistan has the artillery to push India into a difficult position from which recovery may be almost impossible provided their pace battery gets a sporting pitch. Now that they were given exactly that and they showed that they could outperform India in that

Farcical fear of India

2006-01-27T18:34:00.000+05:30

What a ridiculous farce this India-Pak series is turning out to be! Thousand plus runs for the loss of eight wickets of which quite a few were not really earned in the first test. Thousand six hundred plus for 22 wickets in five full days' play at Faisalabad! It simply shows that Pakistan has not got over the India blues even after two almost back to back series. People have started to talk

Dravid's Success Poses Problems

2006-01-19T12:10:00.000+05:30

Thus the long-awaited series has begun soaked in a flood of runs piled up on a sleeping beauty. Five days of cricket, interrupted by a few hours of indifferent light and a few spells of fine drizzle, produced just eight wickets of which two were run outs. This, it seems, is the greatest advertisement against test cricket in an era where the limited over versions show signs of getting shrunk even

A Good Team Minus Ganguly

2005-12-25T13:35:00.000+05:30

They have done it again! The very same people who kept the former Indian captain out of the team giving naive to foolish reasons, took him back when there was no reason for doing so. They then went on to greater heights of stupidity and recalled him from exile.One thing I am sure. Only those who do things will be criticised. But that does not give you the right to commit yourself to acts of

Ganguly, Chappell's main worry?

2005-12-23T12:48:00.000+05:30

India has,it seems,found new winning ways at least on home soil. The timidity and lack of self-confidence have taken the back seat. These are early days yet but looking at the strong signs emanating from the Indian camp, this flavor may linger for sometime.The Indian team did not show any change in its overall approach to the game even after Greg Chappell took over as the coach of the team. But

Even Worse This Omission

2005-12-16T15:40:00.000+05:30

India has won a keen contest at Kotla and congratulations to Rahul Dravid for his auspicious debut as captain. Credit should go to the other members of the Indian team. and that includes Sourav Ganguly also. I know there are several other things to talk about on the Delhi test but I can't discuss anything else until my moral indignation gets some sort of release. I am like millions in Indians

Creditable Display By India

2005-11-30T17:22:00.000+05:30

The last two matches at Kolkata and Mumbai went according to the script. Only with a minor difference. At Kolkata, Dravid lost the toss and India, perhaps a little unnecessarily lost the match comprehensively. India got caught at the wrong end of the toss and that,at Kolkata,was a satisfying reason for the debacle that ensued. Wickets tumbled and the feeble effort at recovery was nipped in the

Ganguly's Selection

2005-11-24T23:06:00.000+05:30

Finally the suspense is over. The Indian test squad to play the first match has been announced. Nobody had any problems with the retention of the one-day team for the last two matches against South Africa. And nobody really believed that there could be any major change in the composition of that team. That was the consensus regarding the test team also. All decisions except one were on expected

No Walkover This For S.A

2005-11-21T16:09:00.000+05:30

The new series has finally got the flavor it was supposed to have. The first match at Hyderabad seemed to tell us that India would find it difficult to scrape through even in one match. And I had a feeling that this resurgent India did not deserve such a negative image. South Africa is a strong team no doubt but even a very powerful team would find it quite tough to overcome Indian conditions.

Chappell's Series

2005-11-12T23:26:00.000+05:30

The kind of transformation that has happened to India is, by any stretch of imagination, unbelievable. Why it exploded right in your face is because you were not at all ready for such a dramatic change in India's fortunes. The tour to Sri Lanka was rightly an extension of India's recent one-day form and not many were surprised when Dravid's men again demonstrated their traditional weakness

Exciting Times ahead

2005-11-11T18:56:00.000+05:30

The return of Pathan and Harbhajan has made it very clear that the Indian bowling supremacy at least over Sri Lanka, is real. During the entire series, the visitors could perform with a reasonable degree of confidence only in the fifth match when these two were absent along with the batting maestro. Even though the bowling hero here was R.P. Singh, it was the pressure applied by the team which

Consolation Win For Sri Lanka

2005-11-07T15:58:00.000+05:30

At last sanity returned to the India-Sri Lanka one-day series. After four consecutive, authentic wins, a truncated India played well but became a victim of Sri Lanka's desire to win. India did well to each 285 but there wasn't much to crow about except the two centuries by Gambhir and Dravid. Batsman after batsman walked in and began to play exotic strokes, And they perished in their endeavour to

Miles To Go

2005-11-06T12:04:00.000+05:30

Even the most gullible may find it a little too much to swallow. India who recently capitulated to Sri Lanka, in an unbelievable metamorphosis, plays like a champion team. India's winning matches against Sri Lanka easily by itself is a rarity. But winning four consecutive matches with lots to spare, batting first or second! What is happening to the Indians? This sort of transformation is perhaps

GREAT START TO THE SERIES

2005-10-28T12:51:00.000+05:30

Let me first apologise to you for the long absence. Some problems back in the home turf and I just could'nt think of the text editor for a few weeks! Amidst all the chaos that descended upon Indian cricket of late, the brilliant comeback by the great Sachin Tendulkar brings a lot of relief to the Indian cricket lovers. The Chappell-Ganguly spat, Ganguly's elusive form, Harbhajan'soutburst etc

Cricket At Its Best

2005-08-16T16:36:00.000+05:30

Ashes 2005 continues to surprise you. It digs deeper into its reserves to produce cricket of even greater beauty and results which would take some beating to improve upon. The Lord’s test showed sparks of what was in store before petering out into a draw. But a rejuvenated England came back strongly at Edgbaston and controlled play almost throughout the test. Only a spirited fight back by the