Finally Indo-Pak Series is here

finally, both countries are here. Indo-Pak bilateral series is one of those things I have always enjoyed. Nothing could hinder it after all. No political issues, No governmental issues. Cricket has won after all.

The best thing about Indo-pak series is that Many temporary fans are born. People knowing nothing about cricket too are anxious about win or loss. They will forget every worries. Even excuses like : There is too much of cricket, Indian team is not doing well, There is no Sachin Tendulkar etc. are not gonna stop them from being the witness of this series. Thanks a lot to Christmas and Santa claus for making a way for happening of this series.

The captains of both teams may say that it is just one more series for both the teams. But,unfortunately the arrogant cricket lovers won't get satisfaction with anything less than a win. Although it remained a short tour, only two T20s, and three ODIs, still the average heart beat of both nations are surely gonna rise. Both teams kick off the T20 series from Bangalore on christmas eve.

Both teams had not played each other in bilateral ties after Mumbai attacks in 2008. There came a desert of no Indo-Pak games and only a few oases  like World cup encounters 2011 and 2012, asia cup 2012 etc. gave some hope of revival and finally it is happening.

For those, who don't wanna watch cricket, Just let the saga begin and I bet you won't be able to resist at all. So, Just Check your heart beat and get ready to watch some super exciting cricket.

Thanks

We will miss u "Sachin"

Sachin retires from One-day internationals. Does it make just another news for you like the other rubbish news these media is filled up with. For me, it isn't. It is as if I could stop the wheels of time and bring those 23 revolutions of earth around the sun back.

I know I did not see Sachin's debut as i was not even born at that time. But, I know how were One-dayers like. There used to be only red-leather balls and players used to wear white dresses before 90's. The only channel available in India used to be Doordarshan.
With the passage of time, the scene changed.  Coloured clothing and floodlit games become commonplace. Duckworth and Lewis,Powerplays, Supersubs and Super Overs etc. They all appeared and who has seen it better than the maestro?  He saw the changes and brought revolution in the game by his extraordinary technique.

My own emotional development as an adult seems to run parallel with Sachin Tendulkar’s career.As he was the cricketer who took me from my birth to the college life. Many of my friends liked Ganguly or Dravid. But I always admired him the most.Slow to anger,uncomplicated, aggressive and honest.

As a batsman, and teamman, Sachin was something I just instantly fell for.

His batting was elegant to watch. His shots were crisp and final. The ball was delivered, the ball was hit.That double hand slaps he would give at anything that had floated onto his surface. Or the double tap at the pitch he would do with his right hand. All will never be fading from my mind.

I was not old enough to get cricket when Sachin came around, and once I got just old enough, I knew this was a player for me. Sachin didn’t bat for records, milestones or cheers, he batted to win.

The great batsmen are often selfish creatures who would run out even their children if it meant they get to continue doing what they do best. That wasn’t Sachin. People often compare him to Don Bradman, but who knows Bradman only played tests and also almost against few teams and limited supply of stadiums,While Sachin played across the whole globe.

Sachin bats like a team player.Every time he entered the field he had had to control the game from there onwards.He made to move it forward, he had to make sure his team were in a better position than they were before, he had to win. The sight when Tendulkar is dismantling Fleming, Warne and Kasprowicz in Sharjah will remain until the sun stops shining.

Sachin is going from One day internationals on 23rd December 2012. I am 19 now. I wonder how will I ever tell my son/daughter in the future how I spent almost entire time of living with Sachin Tendulkar. I’d definitely tell him about his 143 in Sharjah against the best attack of the world, every detail of being at the world cup 2003, the 241 not out he produced at Sydney when Waugh had announced retirement.There were tears of happiness everywhere, including on my cheeks.  But mostly I’ll tell him that despite how I loved Sachin as a batsman, and never hated him on his failures, that he was the player I grew up with.

my favourite,the player that was always there. And when my son/daughter gets bored of me going on about this old cricketer he will never see, I’ll just play him a collection of his shots that I’ve found on the internet. I wish if i would give the immortal images of him playing those shots, stuck in my mind. My friends may like Kohli, Sehwag, Dravid, VVS, Ganguly etc. but sachin is mine. To me, his batting was everything.

Sachin is the India  I grew up in. But, it is now only a memory. We are indeed the lucky ones. Hail to him, my role model, SACHIN TENDULKAR.

It's Morgan speaking here

Not among a good day at all from India's prospective. A good T20 track and a flurry of runs made it worth watching. The batting was relatively even between the two teams. I think that the main difference was the fielding. England's was clearly superior and that was worth a difference of maybe 20 runs in the end.Yuvraj once again proved why he is the best shorter format player India have ever produced and was a worthy 'man of the series' not sure if 2 matches really merits being called a series. Poor captaincy decisions by both teams really caught my attention.

Michael Lumb blasted a quick-fire half-century which got England off to an ideal start before a splendid knock under pressure by skipper Eoin Morgan. Chawla really looks poor to me and I don't see any reason for him to be picked up. Also Awana only added to the MSD's worries. England will be pleased with their efforts as they sign off an extremely successful series with a well deserved victory.

In the end i would just send a message to the whole world that Please send a good quick bowler in India as more than 1 billion fans are suffering needlessly (not to mention i am included too).
cheers and merry christmas.

Puzzling Indian Approach in Nagpur

Finally we lost it. Our pride of being invincible at home was shattered by the English.I would like to congratulate England for this massive achievement, something they had not done in last 28 years. They fought hard, and now they are enjoying the fruits of their hard work.

The better team won. Everything looked perfect for India after the first test in Ahmedabad. It is easy to pinpoint mistakes. But , i personally think England played better cricket than us. I would rather praise England than to blame India.Some of the tactics of MSD were puzzling ones in this test especially the way India approached their innings on fourth morning. They should have accelerated in the overs they played. And then they declared 4 runs short which doesn't make sense to me.

I personally think many players in the indian squad either do not want to play test cricket or they do not enjoy playing it. Their fitness level is far from required for five days play. They look better for 4 overs. And regarding Sachin Tendulkar, i am upset too like millions of fans with the way he is getting out. But, i will still say he is good enough for continuing cricket. At least he did not throw his wicket away like most others did, rather he fell to some very good balls.

Now, coming ahead is T20 series against England. And i am looking forward to it.

Bye Bye Punter

Hi to all and this is the post completely dedicated to one of the best cricketers i ever had vision of, Ricky.

Sincerely speaking there was a time when i always wanted to see Ponting getting out regardless of the opposition. He was arrogant, bull-headed, and sledging Aussie who just terrorised the world. The worst the style of his getting out, the better i used to feel. I remember how he had destroyed my dream of watching India the world champs At wanderers in 2003 by his blazing 140 not out in the finals. That is one of the reasons why i felt so good to watch him lose his wicket each time.

I never heard Ponting saying that Oh i love India and its people. Maybe this is one of the reasons why all indians hate him. Instead Ponting just used to spit on his hands and always be ready to shake hands with you after the end of the match. His aggression in the field taught me much about cricket and its finer details.Ponting only idea about India was that this was a place Aussies have not conquered in few decades and he just loved winning and he used to come here with a firm purpose.His eyes were always looking for win and he did that in india in 2004 too conquering the series here. It feels sad that he won't be padding up anymore. I have grown up watching him bat and learnt a hell lot of things from him. Maybe i will miss him too.

I remember he was smart even in the eyes of my sister too who doesn't know a bit about cricket. Maybe it was something inside him which made him a true legend. It is really heart-breaking to lose him.

Mumbai Test: A frustating experience

I am home now. Thank god i am not gonna miss these crucial test matches due to some freaky endsems or other stupid things. Away from all hurdles, here in Patna.

But sadly, not the best of the times here as India lost the test to make the scores level to 1-1.India were handed a humiliating 10-wicket loss by the English, who were expected to struggle on the spinning  track that Dhoni had asked for before the game.Instead of the Indian spinners, it was England's Monty Panesar who made batsmen dance to his tune and walked away with 11 wickets. On the other hand, Kevin Pietersen and Alastair Cook proved their class with hundreds on a track that seemed horrible for the others.It was a victory which will have roused England's self-belief in Asia. Otherwise they had gone home empty handed when they last time visited india in 2009.

I will also remember this match for some crucial umpiring errors by Aleem Dar, still knowing that India would still have not done better. They must learn from their mistakes. As the series is not wide open, India must go to Kolkata on   a high spirit. England has been able to make impact after the first innings of Ahmedabad.

I am waiting eagerly for the Kolkata test. Let's see what combination does India trust for the eden gardens.
thanks

India vs England First Test: Ahmedabad

Since The end sems are going by, i could not watch this one completely. Still , it was a lot better than i had anticipated it after 3 days.India have comprehensively trumped England in the first Test at Ahmedabad to set the tone for the series. There were some batsmen in this test who looked like they could bat forever, take cook, pujara. Pujara was looking as if he wanted to bat till the earth finishes in 2012. And Alastair Cook, He almost did it.He spanned for about 505 minutes and His 176 was a monument to concentration, stamina, skill and determination.He left records trailing and the Indian bowlers at a loss.In partnership with wicketkeeper Matt Prior, who again showed his ability against spin, Cook gave England hope of saving the match.

When a captain begins his second innings with a 330-run deficit after following-on, batting for so long is as much a mental discipline as a physical one.Pietersen’s contribution was of six balls that showed all his problems against left-arm spin. He miscalculated a sweep so badly he was bowled behind his legs.And a personal bad news is that Gautam Gambhir fled back to Delhi due to his grandmother's death.

It was a team-effort with two players in particular standing out. The caravan now moves to the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and India must maintain the same level of intensity in the second Test. They shouldn’t allow England to come back if they are to avenge their defeat of the summer of 2011.

Waiting eagerly for next test and also end sems to pass over.
Thanks

Indian Bench Strength

I have still not been able to understand the reasoning behind giving Rohit Sharma this many number of chances ahead of Manoj Tiwary.Forget Day and Night Test cricket, if ever there’s Bench Cricket, Manoj Tiwary will be its captain. The selectors say: Rohit Sharma has talent, Suresh Raina trains to finish the game and Yuvraj Singh is back so poor Manoj Tiwary has got no chance at all.For now, Rohit is a T20 special, who blocks that slot regardless of runs.His lack of scores are a mystery not only for me but for him as well.This would not have happened at all had the selectors had him let go out of the team after such dismal show against Srilanka (Mind it he had scored 13 runs in 5 innings in that series.) Instead, Rohit returned like a sequel of movie.

Then there is Suresh Raina. Everywhere we go, Raina keeps telling that he trains to finish the game. That must be IPL games, and the occasional T20 and one day game for India.He still has not been able to impress me at all.

And Yuvraj Singh, personally i like him a lot. He is like a force, you can't control it.He is the only one who can bat, bowl, or field all. He also got the wickets of KP and Ian Bell in the practice game. He is after all India's third spinner for the test.

But, The strategy of Indian selectors is still like some computational problem:
Whether P=NP or not?

Thanks

Is Indian Team really hungry for winning?

India were decimated in England last summer. The 4-0 whitewash doesn't even begin to describe the complete and utter domination of the English side. The story doesn't end here. They lost against Australia too to make it 0-8.

But what about the team now, do they believe that they can win every single match against the English at home?They had certainly better be aiming for that.While they might be realistic about the nature of the pitches and the outcomes, still the 4-0 result is less likely now looking at the forms of each individual in Indian team. As i feel the team has weakened by the spots of Mighty Rahul Dravid, and very very special Laxman. England will be quite happy to play for a draw in the series. If England are to win even one of the matches, that will be victory enough for them. The big question then is, just how badly do India really want to thrash England.

India's rise to the top wasn't the result of dominating the world cricket scene,Rather, India played consistently good, cricket over a period of time while other sides declined to do so. India were destined to become the first side to win the world cup at home. Isn't that a great achievement?

But, now where we are today? Rank 5 in tests, 3 in ODI and 5th in T20s. Very dismal indeed for a nation where cricket is treated like a religion.  I am just hoping that they will overshadow this poor phase and bounce back really very hard.

Thanks.

Why cricket is better than GirlFriends?

I do not know whether it is the result of my parents, teachers, friends or someone else, but whatever be the case,or some reason or another I have been an obsessed cricket nerd and i am quite proud about that.In the school whenever i got even a little time between recess or anything, i chose that for cricket rather than other activities. Numerous exams of mine have been ruthlessly spoilt due to this, but No matter what life has thrown at me, my desire to watch Test matches, one-dayers and now Twenty20, has never diminished and will never diminish.It all started in 2000 and will continue till last breath. When India reached final in world cup 2003, then lost it who can forget that moment? Still , i was too damn proud of this national cricket team. In fact, these are the only things that make me happy from inside. Now i got why i could never have any girl friend as if ever i had one, i would have treated her only after cricket which would have led to what you say "breakup".
Ok so this post still has not really deciphered what exactly it is that thrills me about cricket, so I’ll throw in some keys points on what gets me going.

A team winning or losing off the one remaining ball. A six being smashed for the win. That sound of the stumps being cracked.An elegant sweep shot. That shared moment of laughter between batsman and bowler when there is a near miss. Sachin Tendulkar, Dale Steyn. Mitchell Johnson. and numerous names waiting.
If you love cricket I’m sure you nodded in agreement at a few of the above.
I just want you all to say:"There should be more of Cricket in the World!"

Thank you

Tricky targets in T20

Mumbai Indians, the defending champions, bowed out of the CLT20, with an embarrassing defeat at the hands of the Sydney Sixers. Having done well to restrict Sydney to 136, Mumbai were too slow to start with their run-chase and couldn’t make up for it as the overs went by.However, such an approach has been seen a number of times when teams are chasing those in-between totals in T20 cricket. Such instances do beg the question: How should a team approach such a run-chase?

My views regarding this is :
When a team has to chase totals within the range of 130-150, the first thought that may come to their mind is, “Come on, we can knock them off pretty easily? It is T20 cricket after all!” However, somewhere at the back of their minds, there is a voice of cautioning which says, “Hang on; we don’t want to lose this one. It could be a major embarrassment.”

The fall of an early wicket is what makes such a feeling stronger and may push the team into a shell. The other possibility is that the openers themselves get a bit too cautious. Thus, such scores are more a psychological battle when compared to some of the 170 or 180 plus totals we see.On many an occasion, we see such low scores on surfaces that aid the bowlers. Such run-chases can be tricky, but the targets can be achieved with proper application.

When the team starts the chase with a flier – then that takes the pressure off their middle order. Having set a base and by getting the run-rate under control, the other batsmen have no problems in getting into their stride. Batting sides can attempt such a practice if the conditions are good and the batsmen can play their strokes. In difficult conditions, it may be a gamble – which may or may not pay-off.

Ultimately, it seems to be a mind-game and it is all about handling the pressure and maintaining your cool. A team’s cricketing sense is tested in every way when faced with such challenges.

thanks 

Invaluable Watson

Shane Watson: As i will say this name is enough for making any opponent against him sweaty.Since he hit his stride as a top-class international allrounder in all formats, Watson's stats have been staggering, across Tests, ODIs and T20 internationals, with both bat and ball. Watson's contributions in the shorter forms of the game has been outstanding.When cricket Australia called him back just after a few games he played in CLT20, the angry reaction of Sixers was natural, but given Watson's form with both bat and ball, it's understandable that Cricket Australia wanted him in the best possible shape for a crucial series.It was just a strategy  to give him more time to prepare for the vital Test series against South Africa later this season, a win in which will once again give Australia the No. 1 Test ranking.Watson has been the one consistent performer - with a substantial body of work - in all three formats of the game, with both bat and ball, over these last four years.

So, i am waiting eagerly for the super entertaining series between Aussies and Proteas starting from november 9.(And don't forget Watson is there too).
Thanks

Fairness vs Unfairness

It is not, as its name suggests, a competition of winners. But,Is it fair that teams from India, Australia and South Africa have a direct entry into the main CL T20? I, personally don't agree.The imbalanced nature of the competition is its greatest flaw. With four IPL teams, two South African franchises and two Australian gaining automatic entry into the event, the rest are right to feel a little left out.I think the farce regarding qualification rounds for some teams and direct entry for some others is causing heartburn in the heart of some of the nations.Also, too many teams from a single nation dilutes the very essence of Champions League. Yeah, i know that they are the owners of this tournament and as owners of the tournament, Ind,Aus and SA have the right to have more teams in the tournament proper for commercial reasons but on the other hand it has failed to achieve the true motto of the tournament, Champion of the champions.

But, as usual, we have to live with it. Let's forget this and just watch upcoming superexciting matches.
Thanks

One team One people One Goal

I could never get the fact that why People love to abuse or mock Darren Sammy. He is, after all, West Indies’ non-playing captain.Most people don’t think he should be in the side.His medium pace is very gentle and his wild slogging is rarely effective.Chris Gayle could do a better job and he’s taking the spot of someone better, is what they say. They say it a lot.Sammy has heard all of this. He’s just a nice guy.His innings was as far from pretty. He barely kept out yorkers, hit crazily across the line, mistimed almost everything . He heaved West Indies to a score that Sri Lanka could not challenge. This was a captain’s innings.With the ball, he came on at a time when Sri Lanka had thrust Angelo Mathews up the order. Sammy brought up his fine leg, knowing Mathews would be tempted. Sammy tried an offcutter and Mathews fell straight into his trap, missing the ball as it moved further away from him off the pitch.West Indies have played well at times against England, Australia, India and New Zealand and just often failed against them (except New Zealand).To win this tournament you need luck, skill and timing.They played their most perfect game and smashed Australia in every way.In the final of the World T20, Sammy ended with 2 for 6 off two overs, 26 off 15 balls and a trophy.Isn't it a captain's knock?Sammy is the man no one wanted as a player. Sammy is the man who no one wanted as a captain. And Sammy is the captain who has given his team their first major ICC trophy since 1979.Isn't it ironical?

Now coming to their dancing, they were better than Srilankan cheerleaders in every possible way. Although i like cheerleaders, and i am eagerly waiting for them in this champions league anyway, yet i can't stop praising the West Indies' dancing skills. and Lastly the most important innings of the match : Marlon Samuels, i am going to remember this innings for ever. One man army, from 32-2 in 10 overs, he made the most valuable contribution to the match and gave West Indies a fighting total, which in the end proved 36 runs more.Hats off to him.

Now in the words of Darren Sammy, i am concluding this world cup as:

“This is it for the fans wi bleed maroon wi came wi saw and wi conquered. One team one people and the goal was achieved”.

thanks

India:One more elimination in T20 WC

India ended their World Cup campaign on a winning note, but it was not enough in the end.Bitter sweet moment for India, they go home with 4 wins out of 5 matches, they lost one match that determined their fate in the tournament. What do you call it? Misfortune is not the accurate word here.India were knocked out of the World Cup for the 3rd consecutive time and Pakistan qualified for the semis for the 4th time in 4 T20 World Cups. India will reflect upon the hammering at the hands of Australia. A trifle better show might have helped them sail through to the semis, they now go empty handed.What a time to come good for Faf Du Plesis, not good enough to win a match, but good enough to annoy a billion people at once.India were really good, really bad. It seems as Dhoni's men have given us everything, yet nothing both at the same time.

But on a night like this there is really nothing more you can do than sit back and enjoy the sweet sound of cricket.

Result: India once again got eliminated from the World T20. Yuvi is back in his old touch and as usual South Africa continues their form in the ICC Tournaments.
Now looking forward for the champions league and England series.

Thanks.

India Vs Pakistan : Was this time any different?

Pakistan have a great bowling attack against anyone who isn’t India.Isn't it true?
If Shane Watson is superman , then certainly Virat Kohli is Batman.A day which was full of abuse finally ended with usual result with India making it 8-0 in the world cup encounters against their favourite opponents. What a moment it is!!! A wicket is the greatest moment ever. A six is greater than the greatest.Nothing remains as usual in Indo-pak game.The crowd chants Sachin’s name even though he is not there. 70% of the crowd (I am not sure about this number , may be larger)  have their countries shirt on. People with face paints are more likely to dance. Pakistani fans leave earlier enough so  that they don’t have to deal with too many Indian fans on the way out. Indian fans stay, dance and cheer the tv interview.Just mesmerizing it is!!!

About the match , there is hardly anything to write. India broke the three year old jinx of not being able to win a single game in the Super 8 stages of the T20 World Cup In a game of the magnitude of India v Pakistan, putting a total on board is always a safe option and Mohammad Hafeez chose to do exactly that when he won the toss. I totally disagree with Hafeez looking at the fact that 6 of the 7 games played earlier in the super 8 stage were won by the team chasing. Pakista never looked in the game after first 2 overs. Almost every batsman of them getting out was in suicidal mode. And rest was nothing surprising . The target of 129 was never going to tough and it was later confirmed by the solid performance of Virat Kohli. Now The matches of Tuesday have become interesting. Too much depends on that day. Let's see which team is the one to hold the nerves in the end.

thanks.

Australia with Watson

Just forget about the ping pong deliveries bowled by Indian bowlers.
Just forget about the impressive display by the Aussies batsmen.
Just forget about the lethal bowling of Patty Cummins.
But one thing which you can't forget is : Australia at the moment with Shane Watson being a freaking robot of death.In T20 cricket you need to bow down to Watson for what he can do to a single game.
Now, surely we can say that even you, i or anyone else would have sent those rubbish deliveries of india into the crowds. But sincerely speaking, No indian bowler would have been so much lethargic against us. It is because At the moment Watson is getting these balls delivered to him simply because his machismo is just destroying the bowlers even before they come in.Wickets, runs, cheques, he’s getting them all, threee man of the matches in a row in this world cup. It's simply amazing. Also he is now joint highest number of man of the match award bagger tieing with Shahid Afridi. While afridi played 53 games to get those 7, watson has taken only 33. Isn't that impressive enough?

Result: Chawla and Sharma are back as usual in their original touch. and  i have one question to the aussies? Why do they not take singles off the Indian spinners? Why only send them to the crowd mercilessly? Please I can't get over this so easily.

Waiting for the game against Pakistan.
thanks

England vs Spin Mystery

Finally, the most awaited game finished with india thrashing England in style.The pitch was ok for spinners. OK. Not anything more.Greame swann bowled well too on this pitch. But England could barely handle the bat when the spinners came on. It wasn’t even one of the obvious players that ended their world. Piyush Chawla is the player Indian fans abuse when they’re tired of abusing Rohit Sharma. This looked like the  same Indian bowling attack that has the Indian media attention since i was a kid.Some wanting four bowlers, some five, some eleven.You need a research grant and a team of technicians to look into who played the worst shot.Almost each of the England players played shots that They would like to forget asap. In their minds, England seemed to be playing on a ghost pitch but that is not very true.They must blame themselves more than the 22 yard thing.

Overall, india rested some key players, still they emerged as one sided winners yesterday. I am just hoping Indians might even give Chawla and Shamra a day or two of less abuse.
Looking forward for the next games.

thank you

India Vs Afganistan

Have you ever imagined what have been hands for in cricket, when you are fielding?
I personally feel that they are for catching the ball when the striking batsman has lofted it.In the case of Afghanistan, hands are made for deflecting the ball randomly and then placing on your head and just to feel sorry and wishing if that moment can be brought back.I thought this was because they didn’t need to catch the ball, but now I see it might just have been because they lacked the hand eye coordination needed for catching.So far in their development that Afghanis haven’t mastered batting, but hitting, oh yes, surely hitting they do.  They all seem obsessed with Dhoni, and that’s no bad thing.  It’s 11 excitable tailenders,Yesterday while i was watching, some opener of afganistan played a shot called helicopter(i don't know why helicopter? Does it fly abruptly or whatever be the reason, just ignore it.) which clearly demonstrated the way they have been watching Mr. Dhoni.

India should have shut them down a bit more efficiently.But as always they are slow starters.Of all three major sides so far, India were the least impressive.(others impressive ones were Srilanka and Aussies). Waiting for the next matches so anxiously....

Thanks to all......

Andrew Strauss.. A man to remember

When Andrew Strauss appeared as captain in around 2008-09 (i don't remember exactly), then ’d never thought of him much at all.That’s not to say I ever thought he was rubbish, he just wasn’t someone who I thought of much. But for someone who had been around for so long, he was almost anonymous to me.
But there was something special inside in him which always compelled me to watch him.
Strauss always treated it more seriously than some of his team mates and he almost got it everytime.
Strauss turned a team of decent players into a professional unit that beat teams up with precision and tedium. They, briefly, took over the world. There is no doubt that without Strauss this team would have continued to be an inconsistent spoiler team. That’s not to say Strauss was perfect. But for a Late blooming Test player to play 100 Tests, 50 as captain, win three Ashes (two in charge), beat the number one team 4-0 and claim the number one title all with a batting average of barely 40. There is something special to that. It’s an overachievement on a massive scale.
In doing all Strauss went from a fairly forgettable opening batsman to a captain who’ll be mentioned for years to come. Strauss only touched greatness a couple of times, but who expected him to even touch it once? Especially with an average of 40.91.
Strauss was definitely much more than a forgettable opener with a few decent shots through point. I’m just glad we got to see it.

Thank you for your likes and comments.

Zimbawe vs Ajanta Mendis

After watching yesterday's match, i concluded the following:
Zimbabwe fielded like a team who had never noticed how hard a cricket ball was before. What was going on, it looked like a team trying to give the themselves a few more to chase in a practice match.
Their bowling was missing a Ray Price or three.Then they played A Mendis, and it seemed unfair to refer to this as a match. Zimbabwe looked like they were a 90 year old grandfather who had been told to operate dos through his laptop. Where will it stop, none knows. let us see what happens.

Thanks for your reading and comments.

Rotation Of Players

I recently heard that Ian Botham has criticised the policy of ECB to rest Jimmy for the third test against West Indies resulting in the devaluation of the game. I do disagree.In my view, what England management has done is fully in the favour of both Jimmy and bright future of English cricket. No doubt, Jimmy has been the most valuable  bowler for England since the former quickies got retarded. But He still is a human being. Even the records show that he has not sit on the benches for more than one game of test cricket since 2010, which is incredible as a matter of fact. But he is overstraining himself uselessly. Also, steven finn had been in exceptional touch in the last test he played. So, resting Jimmy for the third test and making a change is fair enough. And regarding the devaluation of cricket, i strongly feel that this has nothing to do with it. Even the pace attack of finn/onions, Bresnan, broad and along with swann; it constitutes a world class attack for the inexperienced and struggling west indies batsmen.
I hope you do agree with what i think.
thanks!

What is a knock-out game?

I think you must have seen some teams only play their best in knockout game while some teams are not good at them. Rather they play when there is no such pressure as knock-out.

In my opinion, in a non-knockout game, it is like practising on nets ,where there is always next chance. And some players are so good on nets. but in a knock-out game, once you play a bad shot, all your experience and skill becomes of no use. This thinking creates unnecessary pressure on the players.
often the players get confused which shot to opt for so as to gain maximum without taking extra chances and often they are unable to decide quickly and lost their wicket in knock-outs.
Whereas in non-knockout, they know i can take chances as there is always a next opportunity waiting.

I hope you'll like this.