All posts by h716a5.icu

Once the prodigal son frittering away his talent, he has been a man on a mission ever since he returned to the side in South Africa four years ago

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Oct-2010India is no country for pace bowlers. That might explain the Anton Chigurh intensity that Zaheer Khan brings with him to the middle. Once the prodigal son frittering away his talent, he has been a man on a mission ever since he returned to the side in South Africa four years ago. When Tim Paine was brilliantly caught by VVS Laxman low to his left at second slip, it gave him a 10th five-wicket haul, only the third Indian pace bowler to achieve the feat. Kapil Dev had 23 from 131 Tests and Javagal Srinath 10 from his 67.In his second avatar, Zaheer, who has the best strike-rate (59) of any Indian bowler with more than 200 wickets, has taken seven five-wicket hauls in 31 Tests. The strike-rate during that period (52.6) is comparable with the elite fast bowlers of any era. On more than one occasion, he has inspired Indian victories, providing breakthroughs with new ball and old.On Indian soil, where the ball loses its shine quickly, his mastery of reverse swing has been central to the team’s fortunes. Even when the slow bowlers have walked off with the big swag of wickets, Zaheer has invariably rattled the stumps or angled one away to take the outside edge when the team was desperate for a breakthrough.These days, his status as leader of the pack is beyond dispute. Harbhajan Singh, who was the supporting act in Mohali on the second day, said as much when asked to assess his team-mate’s importance to the side. “Zak bowled his heart out today, he deserves a lot of credit for his performance,” he said. “He will surely be remembered as one of the greats who bowled [fast] for India, like Kapil Dev and Javagal Srinath. Taking wickets on this track – there’s no carry – is very difficult. He’s very smart with reverse swing.”Zaheer shouldered an additional burden on day two, with Ishant Sharma unable to bowl till the 49th over, having left the field injured on Friday. It meant that India delayed taking the new ball till the 147th over, by which time he had tried pretty much everything to coax something out of the older, softer ball.He eventually finished with 5 for 94, but will doubtless wonder just how much better the returns could have been had his mates held their catches. Neither Shane Watson nor Tim Paine had gotten off the mark when dropped off his bowling, by Virender Sehwag at gully and MS Dhoni behind the stumps. Between them, they occupied the crease for 89 overs and scored 218 runs.”We always complain about our fielding, and there’s always room to improve,” said Harbhajan with typical candour. “Some days, I’ve seen these guys take brilliant catches and making diving stops. We know we need to help the bowlers. Hopefully, in the second innings, we won’t drop any.”As with most matches played in India, the first innings will be decisive. India will need to at least match Australia’s 428 to have any chance of forcing a result, but with few signs of wear on the surface so far, Harbhajan was confident that the game hadn’t drifted away. “We need to bat well in the first innings and put pressure when they bat second,” he said. “There will be some wear and tear and some spin, and we will try to bowl them out for as little as we can and try and chase that on the fifth day.”He admitted, however, that the loss of Virender Sehwag just before stumps was a major setback, after he had once again toyed with the bowlers in the early stages. “Viru looks to dominate, it doesn’t matter whether he’s playing in Perth, Mohali, Sydney or England, and he wins a lot of games,” said Harbhajan. “It would have been nice if he was still there, but we have Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, [VVS] Laxman, [Suresh] Raina, Dhoni, and myself … we have a lot of batting.”Those batsmen will need to stand up and be counted on Sunday. Two years ago, when the series started in Bangalore, Zaheer and Harbhajan had to bail India out of a desperate situation in order to save the game. Having strived so hard with the ball, Zaheer will hope that no such heroics are needed this time.

Indian batsmen have better stats than their West Indian counterparts against spin in this tournament so far, which could be key given the nature of the Chennai track

S Rajesh19-Mar-2011West Indies have been struggling to compete against the top teams for a while now, and their record when playing at the home of their opponents is quite poor – since 2000, their overall away record is 35 wins and 53 defeats. However, India is the one country where they’ve competed well, with six wins and as many defeats against India in India since 2000. In fact, India have an overall head-to-head advantage against West Indies since 2000, but that’s mainly because of their win-loss record in neutral venues – 6-2.In World Cup games too there’s been nothing to choose between the two teams: the two teams have shared the six matches equally, and so egalitarian have they been that neither team has won two in a row. West Indies won the first one in 1979, India won two out of three in 1983, while West Indies won in 1992 and lost in 1996. If that trend continues, West Indies can look forward to upsetting the form book on Sunday.

ODIs between India and West Indies

ODIsIndia wonWI wonOverall953854Since 2000321714In India since 20001266In World Cups633In Champions Trophy312The West Indian batsmen have generally enjoyed the pitches and the conditions in India, though the track in Chennai might not be as favourable to run-scoring as some of the other venues in the country. Chris Gayle averages almost 56 in ODIs in India, with six of his 19 ODI centuries coming in this country. Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan both average more than 40 too, though neither has got going in the World Cup so far: in seven innings between them, the highest either batsman has scored is 49. In fact, batting has been a worry for West Indies in the tournament, with Darren Bravo, Chanderpaul and Sarwan all averaging less than 30.

West Indies batsmen in ODIs in India

BatsmanODIsRunsAverageStrike rate100s/ 50sChris Gayle22111755.8594.186/ 3Shivnarine Chanderpaul2073248.8076.401/ 6Ramnaresh Sarwan1966547.5080.600/ 5Kieron Pollard417844.50161.810/ 2Devon Smith727739.5772.891/ 1Darren Bravo410827.0078.260/ 1The Indian batsmen have done reasonably well at home against West Indies since 2000, but the one player who has struggled is Yuvraj Singh: in eight innings he has managed only 209 runs at an average of 26.12.If the last two matches at the MA Chidambaram Stadium are any indication, spinners will have plenty to do on Sunday, and the batting team which handles the spin better could be the winner. On that count, India seem to be better equipped. West Indies have lost 19 out of 39 wickets to spin, and their average and run-rate against spin are much poorer than the corresponding numbers against pace. The Indians have a much higher average against spin, while there’s almost no difference between their run-rates against pace and spin.

West Indies against pace and spin in this World Cup

AgainstRunsBallsWicketsAverageRun ratePace7377512036.855.88Spin3744761919.684.71

India against pace and spin in this World Cup

RunsBallsWicketsAverageRun ratePace7197082035.956.09Spin6866781449.006.07The overall pace and spin numbers for Chennai in this World Cup suggest that fast bowlers have done better than spinners, but that’s largely because of the first game at the venue, when Kenya crumbled against New Zealand’s fast bowlers. Excluding that match, there’s little to choose between the stats for the two, with the spinners faring slightly better in terms of average and run-rate.

Pace and spin in Chennai in the World Cup so far

RunsBallsDismissalsAverageEcon ratePace5096833016.964.47Spin4366282021.804.16

Pace and spin in Chennai excluding the NZ-Kenya game

RunsBallsDismissalsAverageEcon ratePace4225642021.104.48Spin3825562019.104.12

ESPNcricinfo presents the plays of the day from the clash of the minnows in Delhi

Nagraj Gollapudi in Delhi07-Mar-2011The error
Only Hot Spot could have saved Steve Tikolo. And the ICC’s reluctance to deploy the technology cost the Kenyan dearly. Trying to defend a delivery from Rizwan Cheema that cut in, Tikolo played forward and was beaten. It seemed like the ball had taken a faint edge before hitting the front pad in line with the middle stump. Tikolo asked for a review. Even though Hawk Eye confirmed the path of the delivery was hitting the middle stump, but what could not be established was the inside edge. The ICC can say that the DRS has improved the decision making of the umpires considerably, but without all the technology glaring errors still make their way through.The reprieve
Interestingly, one man who managed to avoid suffering injustice in a similar situation was Cheema. Thomas Odoyo earned an lbw as Billy Doctrove gave the decision against him but Cheema was quick to call in the DRS. A minute later the third umpire over-ruled the decision, having observed a thick inside edge that Doctrove had missed.The ‘oh-yes-oh-no’ moment
The next ball Cheema failed to read the slower delivery from Obuya and went for glory. David Obuya, standing at mid-off, charged confidently to his right to get under the skier. For a moment everyone thought he had it right until suddenly Obuya realised he had not read the track of the ball and turned abruptly in the opposite direction. By then it was too late. The 5,500-strong crowd, who had come to the Kotla despite the host nation not being involved, enjoyed a brief chuckle.Take two
James Ngoche delivered his first ball of the World Cup. It slipped down behind the legs of Ruvindu Gunasekera, who lunged forward to flick it but fumbled and missed the ball. Maurice Ouma, the Kenya wicketkeeper quickly picked ball, tried flicking the bails swiftly, missed it, kept his smile intact and ripped the bails off a fraction before the batsman dragged his feet to regain the lost ground. Replays confirmed Ouma was the winner. Ngoche was all smiles for getting his maiden World Cup wicket off his first ball. He could have doubled the tally had Seren Waters not shelled a straight drive from Jimmy Hansra at mid-off. Jonty Rhodes, Kenya’s fielding consultant at the outset of the World Cup, would have winced at mistake if he was watching.Poster of the day
“We don’t care as long as India wins.”

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the IPL match between Rajasthan Royals and Kochi Tuskers Kerala

Sidharth Monga24-Apr-2011The combination
Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman have been through a lot playing for India. Ask any Aussie about that. On Sunday night, though, they were on opposite sides. In a Twenty20 game. Amiss. Just wrong.An interaction came in earnest when VVS Laxman initiated a single after an edge from Mahela Jayawardene rolled towards Dravid at slip. Turned out, Laxman had overestimated himself, and was yards short when Dravid’s underarm throw broke the stumps. In another world, the correct world, they would have batted together, and would never have needed quick singles.The return
To say Rajasthan Royals have missed Johan Botha, out with a hairline fracture on his finger, would be an understatement. They couldn’t get him back soon enough. And he came back with immediate impact. The first ball he bowled turned in sharply across Jayawardene, hit the bottom of the thigh pad, and took the stumps. We’ve been expecting you, Mr Botha.The bad blood
Rajasthan Royals and Shane Warne would have reason to feel they had put Ravindra Jadeja on the map, although those who follow domestic cricket might disagree. “Rockstar,” Warne used to call him, but that was only for the first two seasons. Before the third, Jadeja allegedly tried to find himself a new team, and was consequently banned. Both parties lost. When Jadeja came out to bat on Sunday, there was nothing to suggest old wounds would be opened. No sledging, no verbals to welcome him. However, Warne was to bowl the first ball to him. Late in his delivery stride, he changed the grip, and let rip a bouncer. Jadeja ducked under it. Warne gave him a long, cold stare. “Lethal,” said the big screen. Welcome back, Jaddu.The Victorian
The other set of team-mates that came face to face was Warne and Brad Hodge. The battle of the Victorians, though, lasted only four deliveries. Warne was putting some serious revolutions on the ball, getting some dip and landing it on a length, around middle and leg. Hodge couldn’t do much with the first. To the second he tried to go back, but the ball hurried onto him. The third Hodge swept well for two. Then the inconsistent bounce played up as Hodge went back to punch a shortish delivery through the covers, only for the ball to rise shin high, take the inside edge, and disturb the stumps.The six
It was no surprise that on this slow and low pitch, with occasional uneven bounce, the first six of the match took 29.2 overs coming. Who should be the man to hit it, though? Rahul Sharad Dravid, with a slog-sweep over long-on. Who’da thunk it?The what-goes-around-comes-around moment
Dravid might have run an ambitious Laxman out in Kochi’s innings, but during the chase he showed he was getting on himself too. After playing beautifully for his 44, Dravid cut to third man and initiated the second, only to find out that he wasn’t swift enough for it and needed a dive to save his wicket. The dive wasn’t a-coming.

At a ground where he got a pair in the 2005 Ashes, Bell made his first double-century and set up a potential whitewash of India

Sharda Ugra at The Oval20-Aug-2011In an England line-up dominated by boyish “Daddy” scorers and Ferrari-driving rock stars, Ian Bell struck one for the regular guys this summer. He spent eight hours in one place and did it all, efficiently, attractively and purposefully. Ticked off leftover boxes, banished ghosts, took care of leftover business and showcased his prowess at No. 3.Bell’s first double-century could only have happened at The Oval in Kennington, the venue of the Test cricket’s summer finale in England. It provided the official seal for Bell’s declaration of his place in the international game. Until today, The Oval, while a place of much happiness for Bell, also served a dismal reminder. It is where he made his debut seven summers ago. It is the same ground where, as England pushed to seal their 2005 Ashes victory, Bell scored a pair, and was given the cruel nickname of Shermanator in the following Ashes by Shane Warne (now lavishly praising him on the Sky TV commentary). Two years later, on this very ground, with the 2009 Ashes to be decided, he top scored in the first innings to set up England’s victory, which he has called the “resurrection” of his career. For Bell, The Oval will surely now contain almost biblical overtones.All through his seven Tests here, Bell said on Saturday evening, he has sat on the same dressing room seat, “and it’s finally paid off.” He calls The Oval, “a funny ground, I’ve never gone big here … I have had mixed feelings about playing here.” He won’t anymore, because he is, by his own admission, a very different No. 3 in this line-up, than he was in his very early days with England. He is, he believes, “as good as I’ve been form-wise in my career.” The double century, his second three-figure score in the series, has taken his highest Test score off a three-year old jinx of 199. He celebrated with pure joy and laughed at the double, “That one run does make hell of a difference.”That it came at No. 3 has in many ways completed a circle for one of England’s foremost composed, new-age batsmen. Bell’s “unfinished business” at No. 3 has he says been about his development as a “run scorer” in a refurbished England set-up. “At times when I was up the order at 3, I don’t think I was mature enough and ready. I believe I’m a much better cricketer now than the last time I did it; I’ve a lot learnt a lot batting at 5. I’ve really enjoyed the challenge in this series against a good bowling attack to get up there and show everyone what I can do at No. 3 now.” Bell moved up the order in Trent Bridge from No. 5 to 3 following an injury to England’s one-down machine Jonathan Trott. Bell says now, “I’m pretty realistic as well, that in next series I’ll be back at No. 5.”Ian Bell sat on the same dressing-room seat for seven years at The Oval, and it finally paid off•Getty ImagesHis innings of 235 also means that Bell has overtaken Alastair Cook as the leading run scorer for England this year. It was a fluent, chanceless knock; turned weighty because it required what all double centuries do: concentration, a total focus on accumulation, the ability to abandon professional arrogance even when faced with largely below-par bowling, which he most generously called “good.”What has been noticed in the series is England’s appetite for run-making – seven centuries between five batsmen, as against India’s two from the same man, Bell’s double being England’s seventh in 15 months – and as Bell revealed, their batsmen’s eyes for the numbers. “When I started you used to get the programme,” Bell had said at the start of the series about his earliest days, “you used look at it and it used to be four hundreds and five hundreds (for England). You look at the opposition and it would be 20, 30, 40 (hundreds). It’s great now to look at that and see all the guys now with 19 hundreds and 16 hundreds.” He was asked if the batsmen quietly and competitively tracked each other’s numbers and he said, “Yeah, yeah, we all know. And it’s good to see we are stacking up the numbers now like opposition teams we’ve played in the past, which is great for English cricket.”The fourth day, Bell believed, had been set up for Graeme Swann to come into his own in the series. “It is exciting for us to go into day four and to see Swanny full of confidence, it lifts the rest of the guys. If we have to make them follow on, we know that Swanny can bowl at one end and our seamers can rotate and stay quite fresh for the other end.” Swann’s role had been limited in the series because of the pitches on offer in the previous games. The Oval, Bell said, for the first time in the summer had produced the first “bat-first wicket” for Swann to come into play. “Lord’s was a green seamer, Trent Bridge exactly the same.” The Oval though he said was playing like it did in 2009, “it is very dry – and to see the kind of spin we have seen on day three it is quite incredible.”

Bangladesh need to work on building their skills in the longer formats of the game, but the next four months will see their domestic season dominated by 50-over and T20 games

Mohammad Isam23-Dec-2011A changeover was afoot at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium at the end of the second Test match between Bangladesh and Pakistan. As the players shook hands and strolled towards the presentation ceremony, trucks rolled into the ground from its northwestern gate. They were loaded with artistes, models, sound systems and other paraphernalia attached to Bangladesh cricket’s big “launch event” for the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). It marked the first steps in the BCB’s bid to join the worldwide Twenty20 market.In a completely literal example of how Twenty20 cricket was encroaching on the game’s most elite version, the arrival of this noisy troupe of trucks quickly pushed aside those attached to the Test match. This shifting focus in Mirpur was another reminder that Bangladesh will soon be returning to shorter cricket after playing only five Test matches following a gap that had lasted 14 months.As captain Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan and coach Stuart Law pointed out during the Test in Dhaka, this was not going to do Bangladesh any good. The schedule that lies ahead is heavily skewed against the team improving their Test credentials. Over the next three months, Bangladesh will be gripped by the country’s most coveted 50-over competition, the Dhaka Premier League (DPL), and the newly formed BPL.What this means is that the players will only be able to reintroduce themselves, their skills and mindset to Test cricket in four months, when they tour Pakistan in April, 2012. It is not as if someone like Tamim Iqbal must re-learn how to bat, but the concentration and endurance required for Test cricket is not served by a glut of 50-over or T20 cricket.Tamim’s lack of form in Test cricket this year can be directly attributed to the fact that he has not played first-class cricket for a long time. His last first class innings at home was in December 2008. Now that he feels less secure about his batting, he doesn’t even have a match of any substantial length to help him sort out his troubles.The BCB is too dominated by the Dhaka clubs so it is next to impossible for the body to decide on anything else, such as a few first-class matches against ICC Associates. Though England Lions are touring Bangladesh, they will only play five one-dayers and two Twenty20s. The entry of Nazimuddin and Elias Sunny are encouraging signs for Bangladesh cricket and much-needed boost for the National Cricket League that is often referred to as “picnic cricket” due to its slipshod make-up. But the pair have made impressive debuts, good enough to warrant a regular place when Bangladesh next play a Test.Shakib, recently named the world’s No1 all-rounder, talked about the disregard for first-class cricket in his newspaper column saying, “We will play the Premier League and BPL after the Pakistan series. But we won’t play four-day cricket, the real area of concern. I don’t want to say much about it because we all know the prescription, but we never take the antidote.”The absence of enough three and four day cricket, which helps cricketers elsewhere sharpen their skills for the long form, is perhaps the best reason why Bangladesh have been found short not merely against Pakistan, but Zimbabwe and West Indies too.Bangladesh have shown a marked reluctance towards batting long, bowling with discipline or staying hungry through a fielding session. Starting from the extremely flat body language in the first session of the Harare Test to the six dropped catches in December, Bangladesh have been involved in one frustrating Test after another.Test cricket’s more subtle nuance has defeated them repeatedly. When they are faced with last-day survivals (three this year), they have attacked too early and fallen in a heap. When they needed to bowl negative, the fields have been spread out far too much. Sometimes they lack energy in the field and have very few specialists. While fielding coach Jason Swift can work on key players in specialist positions, he depends entirely on them delivering on their major skills regularly to hold their place in the team. Or he must start over again. Due to the lack of continuity in team selection, it is hard to have succession plans in order. The coaches and the captain have to work with whatever they have, regardless of individual capabilities.In the last four months, there have been several batting collapses, some of which were predictable, while one came out of nowhere against the West Indies in the second Test. Too many batsmen have thrown their wickets away after getting starts. This is old news for Bangladeshi fans but to continue it through 2011 leaves the team without excuses.During the second Test against Pakistan, Shakib had Shahriar Nafees as a willing ally to rebuild the first innings after yet another top-order implosion. Tamim, Nazimuddin, Nasir Hossain and Mahmudullah perished to tight lines as much as demanding conditions. Their second innings came with a similar tone of intent; despite Tamim and Nafees getting bad decisions, Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur’s shots did not belong to the situation in which they were played.Shakib was not immune to poor decision-making either. The final day in Harare produced one of his most disappointing performances for Bangladesh, with an ungainly swipe to end a short stay. In the second innings against West Indies in Dhaka, Shakib was stroking the ball perfectly and right when he looked good for a big, meaningful innings, he top-edged one to the wicketkeeper.In the same vein, the catches dropped during the Dhaka Test weren’t down to technique or lack of interest but flagging focus. Most of the players aren’t used to fielding for long hours and it is the sort of appraisal that has come from one of the players. “I have played three games now where I have had to field for more than 150 overs so it is quite different from other formats of the game,” Shahriar Nafees said during the Dhaka Test. He attributed the dropped catches to “breaks in concentration” coming as they did after lunch and tea intervals. “Nazim dropped his catch right after lunch break and Shahadat dropped his a few overs after tea. I think our concentration drops at times but it is natural for teams after coming back from breaks in play.”Bangladesh still have some fighting bowlers in their ranks, chief among them Shakib. He has often said that bowling in the longer-version requires a lot more skills. Shakib went wicketless against Pakistan in Chittagong, not due to a lack of effort but the demands made by long spells. Amongst the other bowlers, Rubel Hossain’s improvement as a Test bowler contrasts with Shahadat and Shafiul Islam’s lack of progress after promising beginnings. Shahadat was excellent in 2010 but since the Lord’s five-for, he has lost pace. Shafiul’s one-dimensional length has worked against him and the selectors believe he needs more variety in the Test format. Robiul Islam was a find during the Zimbabwe Test, but he too needs a lot of work on the pivot in his bowling.Law would have preferred first-class matches to iron out the team’s problems with enough time at hand. He will, however, have to wait till after the Asia Cup to arrange four-day games but again, that would totally be up to whether the BCB sees organizing such games as worth their trouble.In fact, Law will be initiated into an understanding of the strength of club cricket through the DPL, which will give him a well-rounded view of Bangladesh cricket. The cry for more first-class cricket has so far only been on paper. While the players have pointed out the need for more longer-version games, their top players’ bread and butter comes from the DPL. The BPL also promises much, including loud murmurs that many companies within the sub-continent are showing an interest in buying a franchise.Amidst the call for another first-class tournament, it must be remembered that the BCB chief has often promised a franchise-based competition which is yet to materialise. In fact, the BPL has been given more priority, a decision that is laden with danger for a country like Bangladesh that cannot risk its form in Test cricket. It is a status it cherishes and has fought for, for far too long.

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the third day of the third Test in Dominica

Daniel Brettig in Roseau25-Apr-2012Observance of the day
Australia’s players took to the field on day three in Dominica with poppies fastened to their shoulders, in recognition of the Anzac Day commemorations that had taking place back in Australia and in New Zealand. It is rare for the Australian team to be engaged in a Test match on April 25, and the squad marked the occasion before play with a team huddle that also included two New Zealanders – the match referee Jeff Crowe and the umpire Tony Hill. They were addressed by the opener Ed Cowan, who gave a speech about the values implicit in the Anzac story, which began with the landings at Gallipoli on this day in 1915. The wicketkeeper Matthew Wade then recited the Ode of Remembrance.Change of angle of the day
Nathan Lyon very seldom bowls at left-handers from over the wicket, preferring to angle and drift the ball in from around the stumps then spin it away, enhancing his chances of an lbw decision if the ball decides not to turn. However Ravi Rampaul showed early comfort against this angle of attack, drawing Lyon to inform umpire Hill that he would try from his less preferred line. Previously calm against the spinning ball, Rampaul suddenly panicked, the ball now pitching in his blind-spot on or outside leg stump then screwing across towards first slip. A first slog attempt resulted in a play and miss, and the second resulted in an ineffectual edge that settled gently in David Warner’s hands at backward point.French cut of the day
Without a significant score all series, Cowan lived on his wits early on, and was fortunate to escape several tight scrapes against the new ball delivered by pacemen and spinners. Kemar Roach strained particularly hard to dismiss him, having already found a way past Warner. In his seventh over of a spell that bookended lunch, Roach coaxed Cowan into a drive at a ball from around the wicket that was onto him a little quicker than desired, and drew an inside edge that flew centimetres wide of the stumps on its way to the fine leg boundary. Roach reacted with all the disappointment of a bowler who had given his all, and it was to prove his final over of the stint – Rampaul replacing him for the next over.Periscope of the day
Ricky Ponting looked relaxed and comfortable across most of what was his first significant innings for the series. But as stumps drew near he again fell to Roach, though in circumstances that were as much the result of happenstance as the bowler’s hostility. It was perhaps out of recognition of previous pain inflicted on him by Roach’s short ball that Ponting chose to duck rather than pulling a delivery that did not get up particularly high. However in going down to his haunches, Ponting left his bat hoisted dangerously above the shoulder, and in keeping with Roach’s hold over him, the ball unerringly found it. The chance looped as if in slow motion to Shivnarine Chanderpaul, leaving Ponting to walk off the field after what was surely his last Test innings in the West Indies.

Analysing individual batting and bowling performances in IPL 2012

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan07-May-2012In the matches played over the weekend, both Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore pulled off what seemed to be impossible chases. AB de Villiers yet again played a vital hand of 47 off just 17 balls to enable Royal Challengers score an astonishing 72 off the last 23 balls. In the ESPNcricinfo analysis of top batting performances in IPL 2012, de Villiers’ remarkable effort, although not a huge score, finished as high as 12th. de Villiers also holds the top spot for his 59 off 23 balls which enabled Royal Challengers recover from a dicey 67 for 3 against Rajasthan Royals. Virender Sehwag, who has struck a purple patch, figures twice in the top ten for his innings of 87 against Pune Warriors and 73 against Royals. Deccan Chargers, who have struggled for consistency so far have found Cameron White’s batting form to be a blessing. White has scored over 300 runs with three fifty-plus scores so far at a high strike rate of 156.Ajinkya Rahane, who features twice in the top ten, has failed to maintain the run he managed at the beginning of the tournament. Kevin Pietersen, whose 103 is third on the list, will be sorely missed by Delhi Daredevils but David Warner’s arrival is likely to boost their already explosive batting options. Chris Gayle, who became the first batsman to hit 100 sixes in the IPL, features once in the top ten and three times in the top 20. Gautam Gambhir too has been extremely prolific and his success is reflected in the fact that three of his batting performances feature in the top 20 of IPL 2012.

Top ten batting performances in IPL 2012

BatsmanTeamOppositionRunsPointsAB de VilliersRoyal Challengers BangaloreRajasthan Royals5959.31Ajinkya RahaneRajasthan RoyalsRoyal Challengers Bangalore10354.25Kevin PietersenDelhi DaredevilsDeccan Chargers10353.46Gautam GambhirKolkata Knight RidersRoyal Challengers Bangalore9352.82Virender SehwagDelhi DaredevilsPune Warriors8752.09Virender SehwagDelhi DaredevilsRajasthan Royals7350.03Owais ShahRajasthan RoyalsRoyal Challengers Bangalore6049.83Ajinkya RahaneRajasthan RoyalsKings XI Punjab9847.72Chris GayleRoyal Challengers BangaloreKings XI Punjab8746.16Cameron WhiteDeccan ChargersPune Warriors7846.14When it comes to the top bowling performances in IPL 2012, spinners dominate the list taking the top four spots. While Ravindra Jadeja is on top for his five-wicket haul against Chargers, KP Appanna and Pawan Negi take the next two spots. A distinct feature of both these spells is that the majority of the wickets picked up by the bowlers were those of top-order batsmen. In Appanna’s case, all four wickets were that of top-five batsmen while in Negi’s case, three of his four wickets were batsmen in the top five. Fast bowlers take five of the next six positions with Dale Steyn’s 3 for 12 in a lost cause against Mumbai Indians being the stand-out performance. In another case of a highly economical bowling performance getting its due credit, Praveen Kumar’s outstanding figures of 0 for 8 against Royal Challengers finished 15th on the list.

Top ten bowling performances in IPL 2012

BowlerTeamOppositionSpellPointsRavindra JadejaChennai Super KingsDeccan Chargers5/1659.08KP AppannaRoyal Challengers BangaloreRajasthan Royals4/1952.22Pawan NegiDelhi DaredevilsRajasthan Royals4/1851.96Sunil NarineKolkata Knight RidersKings XI Punjab5/1951.40Dale SteynDeccan ChargersMumbai Indians3/1249.66Dimitri MascarenhasKings XI PunjabPune Warriors5/2549.33L BalajiKolkata Knight RidersRoyal Challengers Bangalore4/1849.10Munaf PatelMumbai IndiansDeccan Chargers4/2048.40Shahbaz NadeemDelhi DaredevilsDeccan Chargers3/1647.14Lasith MalingaMumbai IndiansRajasthan Royals2/1347.06Virender Sehwag’s terrific consistency has seen him retain the top spot on the list of leading batsmen in IPL 2012. Gambhir follows closely with Gayle in third position. The excellent form of White and de Villiers has ensured that they leapfrog Rahane to finish in the top five. Both Shikhar Dhawan and Faf du Plessis have been superb at the top of the order for their respective teams and feature in the top ten. Although Rahul Dravid has scored at a comparatively low strike rate (116.25), his consistency has meant that he has scored nearly 400 runs in 11 innings.

Top batsmen in IPL 2012 (min 250 runs scored)

BatsmanMatchesPointsVirender Sehwag1026.70Gautam Gambhir1025.46Chris Gayle1024.27Cameron White823.67AB de Villiers1121.00Ajinkya Rahane1120.63Kevin Pietersen820.23Shikhar Dhawan1019.58Faf du Plessis1218.38Rahul Dravid1116.51Lasith Malinga, who missed a couple of matches following an injury, got back to his best form and continues to stay on top of the list of best bowlers in IPL 2012. He is also the leading wicket-taker in the tournament with 20 wickets in just eight matches. Sunil Narine and the second-highest wicket-taker Morne Morkel are in second and third positions and are separated by less than one point. Steyn, who had an ordinary day against Royal Challengers, has dropped from second position to fourth. Brad Hogg, Piyush Chawla and Shahbaz Nadeem have all managed excellent economy rates under seven and grab three of the next four spots.

Top ten bowlers in IPL 2012 (min 30 overs bowled)

BowlerMatchesPointsLasith Malinga834.30Sunil Narine928.61Morne Morkel1128.15Dale Steyn925.04Brad Hogg823.74Piyush Chawla1123.29Munaf Patel921.09Shabhaz Nadeem1120.54Siddharth Trivedi920.08Ashish Nehra1018.89Sehwag’s incredible run has lifted him to fourth position above Shane Watson on the list of all-time leading batsmen in the IPL. Gayle and Shaun Marsh, by virtue of their consistency across seasons, continue to take the top two spots. While Sachin Tendulkar has moved up from eighth to seventh, Gambhir’s recent form has also seen him move up one position from tenth to ninth finishing above Suresh Raina.

IPL top batsmen overall

BatsmanMatchesPointsChris Gayle3822.96Shaun Marsh3921.33Matthew Hayden3218.55Virender Sehwag6117.60Shane Watson3417.46Michael Hussey2216.82Sachin Tendulkar5816.66Kevin Pietersen2116.46Gautam Gambhir6615.62Suresh Raina7415.61Malinga retains the top spot with a considerable lead over the second-placed Amit Mishra who is only marginally ahead of Farvez Maharoof and Muttiah Muralitharan. Morkel and Steyn, who have been the stand-out pace bowlers in this season of the IPL, finish comfortably in the top ten. Morkel, in particular, has risen from seventh position to fifth on the latest list. His South African fast-bowling partner Steyn, however, has suffered slightly as a result of a couple of ordinary displays and has fallen from fifth to eighth. R Ashwin and Munaf Patel round off the top ten taking the last two spots.

IPL top bowlers overall

BowlerMatchesPointsLasith Malinga5026.77Amit Mishra5423.52Farvez Maharoof2023.37Muttiah Muralitharan5023.18Morne Morkel2622.99Anil Kumble4222.97Doug Bollinger2722.86Dale Steyn4922.39R Ashwin4222.14Munaf Patel5421.59

West Indies recovered from the most terrible of starts; Sri Lanka collapsed spectacularly when they had batted so well on this pitch two days ago

Sambit Bal in Colombo07-Oct-2012On the night the Caribbean dream survived the worst imaginable beginning, the Sri Lankans relived their most dreaded nightmare. Over 30,000 fans watched in stunned silence as 30-odd West Indians produced the merriest celebratory waltz to cap one of the most bizarre nights of cricket.West Indies cricket has endured such misery in the last two decades that it is impossible to grudge them their joy and certainly no other bunch of cricketers can express it with such panache and style. They had little support in the stands throughout the evening but a group of Sri Lanka fans stayed back long enough salute them on their victory parade. They were still waving Sri Lankans flags but the beat was all calypso – unmistakably, emphatically.And at the same time it was impossible not to feel the grief and lament of a cricket-crazy nation that had prepared itself for the grandest of parties. It will be a breeze to the hotel from the cricket ground tonight, but the silence will feel eerie and the air of deflation will be palpable. The dancing on the streets on the day of Sri Lanka’s semi-final win had felt premature, but perhaps those out revelling that night took their chance when they had it. Heartbreaks in cricket finals are now a recurring theme for the Sri Lankan fan.How, though, does one make sense of the night? How could a team that blasted three sixes in the first six overs two days ago, crawl to 14 runs in six overs tonight? And how could a team that scored 32 runs in their first ten overs, its lowest-ever Twenty20 mid-innings tally, go on to win by 36?Take this too. Two Sri Lankans bowlers gave away 23 runs from eight overs, claiming five wickets between them, and one leaked 54 for none in four. There were 101 dot balls in the match, and yet 62 runs came in three overs. Fifteen batsmen struggled to hit the ball off the square, and one man batted as if the night belonged him, hitting six sixes while the rest managed two between them. It was said after the first semi-final that Mahela Jayawardene’s innings was on a different plane; tonight Marlon Samuels batted as if he was from another planet.The World Twenty20 is a young tournament but four have already been played in five years (it took 12 years to get to the fourth 50-over World Cup). And it can be safely said that Samuels has played the finest innings in a championship final. Only Michael Hussey’s 24-ball 60 in the 2010 semi-final bears comparison but, given the history of his team’s wretchedness and for what it ultimately achieved, this was an innings of far deeper resonance. First, he dragged his team out of the abyss and then, in course of three stunning overs, lifted it to a place where a fight remained within its grasp.The irony that the West Indian innings contained was unmistakable. It was their over-reliance on boundary hitting that got them into the hole in the first place. Sri Lanka’s new-ball bowlers hit an impeccable length on a pitch that was slow yet bouncy, and, though not as good as the one on which West Indies had belted Australia, by no means, as poor as the one on which Sri Lanka beat Pakistan. The sign that the West Indians were not getting their way came early, when Chris Gayle gave Nuwan Kulasekara the charge and missed. That has not been his way. He clubs them standing, head still, arms swinging. But for 16 balls, nothing came in his zone, and they couldn’t, or perhaps couldn’t bring themselves to, find singles. The innings ground to a halt, Gayle’s ended in a whimper, beaten on his forward defence.And yet their ability to produce sixes made the difference in the final reckoning. Lasith Malinga has been carted around in the recent past, but on each occasion it has taken some special batsmanship from truly skillful players. Samuels’ first six off him, a full-length ball dug out from deep within the crease, was executed magnificently, a combination of anticipation and perfect execution. It changed and set the tenor for the rest of the innings.It can be argued that Jayawerdene, not for the first time in recent history, erred in trusting Malinga with his full quota when he had other options. Akila Dananjaya conceded less than six runs an over yet ended an over short – as did Kulasekara, who had been so splendid in his opening spell. On another day, Malinga might have repaid his captain’s faith but Samuels caned him mercilessly tonight: 39 off 11 balls is some hammering; in a low-scoring game it was decisive.But despite this sensational revival – 105 came off the last ten overs – it was the Sri Lankans who came out as the favorites after the interval. They had scored a couple of runs more on a far more difficult pitch against a much superior bowling attack a few nights earlier. Even after Tillakaratne Dilshan went in the second over, they remained on course until the 10th over, with Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara building the base.But perhaps the nerves did them in. Sangakkara started struggling to score singles and holed out in the deep; Angelo Mathews was bowled trying a lap sweep, Jayawardene fell to a reverse sweep – a shot he had executed expertly the other night – and two other batsmen ran themselves out in desperation. West Indies had appeared frozen and fazed in the first six overs but, luckily for them, they lost only two wickets. Sri Lanka had a meltdown in their worst five overs, losing 6 for 21. From 69 for 7, there was no coming back.As the rest of the world rejoices in a rare moment of glory for West Indies – they are after all every non-West Indian’s second-favourite team – Sri Lanka will spend the night and coming days in bitter reflection. Of all the finals that have slipped away, their grip had looked the firmest on this one. They beat themselves as much as their opponents did. This must hurt.

There has been a quiet confidence around the England team in the build-up to the Kolkata Test and a sense that history is within their grasp

George Dobell04-Dec-2012It says much for how quickly things can change that England go into the third Test in Kolkata not so much fearing a turning surface, but regarding it as something of an opportunity.It would be stretching a point to claim that England’s problems against spin bowling are resolved. After all, only three England batsmen have passed 50 so far in the series and a case could be made to suggest that the excellence of Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook has masked the struggles of some of their colleagues. Certainly more will be required of Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell and co. if England are to win the series.But the victory in Mumbai not only showed that England’s batsmen were learning, it also showed that England had weapons of their own in such conditions. In Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann they have spinners who utilise a turning pitch every bit as well as their India counterparts. India, for all their reputation as masters of such conditions, looked mightily uncomfortable against them in Mumbai.The Mumbai result will not alter India’s tactics to any great extent and nor should it. Not only would it be unwise to read too much into one result, but they have few options for a Plan B anyway. Their batsmen play better on pitches of low bounce and England’s batsmen have, historically, struggled against spin in such conditions.”We should still stick to turning tracks, because that’s what our strength is,” India’s captain MS Dhoni said at the pre-match media conference. “That’s what home advantage means.”If you come to India, why do you want to play on wickets that are flat for the first three or four days? Sometimes even five days is not enough to get a result. We lost the last game, but still we want to play on wickets that suit the sub-continent. It is what the sub-continental challenge is all about.”We are a side that relies a lot on the openers, but we don’t really want to put the extra pressure on them. It doesn’t matter if we lose a few games, or if we win the series, the crucial thing is that a cricketer who has played five or six years can say ‘I went to the sub-continent, and the wickets were turning and bouncing and I scored runs or I failed’.”It is, in many ways, an admirable policy. The last thing Test cricket needs as it fights for its place in the world is a series full of bore-draws.The fact is, however, that by trying to land a knockout blow on England, India have left themselves open to a counter punch. By insisting that the pitches will assist the spinners, India may just have given England an opportunity to steal a highly unusual series win. Instead of drawing England into a war of attrition in conditions for which they are ill-suited, India have provided both teams with a route to victory.As England captain, Alastair Cook, put it: “The Mumbai Test proved that a turning wicket gives both sides a chance. It gave us a great chance of winning as it was a result wicket. If you go in on real flat ones it can be very hard to get a result. I’m not quite sure how this wicket will play. I don’t think it will have the bounce Mumbai had – it hasn’t got that red clay – but all the reports say that, after especially after day three, it will turn, so that brings both our excellent spinners into the game.”It may also prove to have been a risk to stage this game on another used wicket. This pitch was used for a four-day game that finished on November 20 and nobody can confidently predict how it will play by the time it is seven or eight days old. There is very little precedent for such a tactic in Test history. If India find themselves bowling at England in the fourth innings as the pitch crumbles, it will look wise. But if they are bowled out by the England spinners in the fourth innings it will look reckless.India have allowed England the oxygen of belief. Coming into this tour, the scars inflicted upon the England batsmen by Pakistan in the UAE were still clearly visible. Now, however, with a morale-boosting victory behind them, all the pressure is on India. It is the Indian players who are fighting for their international futures.Whoever wins the toss will surely bat. The relative cool brings the possibility that the ball will assist the seamers in the first hour, although the effect of a 9am start should not be over-exaggerated considering that India only has one timezone and Kolkata, on the east coast, sees the sun rise earlier than most.With England likely to bring in Steven Finn for the jaded Stuart Broad, the tourists go into this game with their first-choice attack for the first time in the series. For India, who are likely to revert to an attack comprising two seamers and two spinners, the loss of Umesh Yadav, the most incisive seamer on either side in Ahmedabad, looks more costly all the time.Cook expressed support for Broad – “I’m very glad he’s English and I’m glad he’s in this squad. He’s a fantastic player and he’s put in fantastic performances this year and over his career” – and for Jonathan Trott – “He’s not having the year he would probably like to have, but you can’t write off people with quality like that” – but acknowledged that England required more contributions throughout the side if they were to win.India, meanwhile, have questions to answer about several senior players – not least Yuvraj Singh, who averages only 34.38 in Test cricket and has not scored a century since 2007, and Sachin Tendulkar, who has not reached 30 in his last 10 Test innings. If they lose their proud home record, searching questions might need to be asked about the direction in which Indian cricket is travelling.No-one disputes that India have, over the last few years, marketed the game – or certain aspects of the game – with unprecedented success. Perhaps, however, somewhere along the way, the style has obscured the lack of substance. It required a decade of humiliation before England acted to reverse their decline. Perhaps, in the long term, a series defeat would be a wake-up call Indian cricket requires.