December 14, 2007
The trend of hiring a foreign coach is quite prevalent in the sub-continent. The cricket boards of these nations do not show any interest in the cricketing greats from their respective countries. These foreign coaches are not able to gel well with the players because of cultural and traditional differences. What they bring along with them to the dressing room is nothing but confusion!
Moreover, the foreign coaches give more emphasis to workouts at the gymnasium. Weight training is OK to get in shape but not sufficient to achieve the fitness of batting for eight continuous hours. Weights swell the muscles and cramps accrue due to weight training and hence the injuries. The best way to achieve match fitness is to spend six hours in the nets everyday, instead of gym. Batting requires a different fitness level which can be achieved by batting, batting and only batting. Jogging and stretching exercises are much more useful for batsmen and bowlers alike, because these are natural forms of exercise and don’t exert the body too much.
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December 13, 2007
The ‘Dada’ or ‘Big Brother’ of Indian cricket, Sourav Ganguly, has proved it once again that he still has enough fuel to be the best batsman in the world. His masterly knock of 239 and 91 in the third test at Bangalore has made him the only batsman after Jaques Kallis(1,125) to have scored more than 1,000 runs in a calendar year, i.e. 2007. He still has two more innings to go this season.
Had he completed his century in this test he would have become the seventh batsman in the world to have scored a double century in the first and a century in the second innings of the same test match.
I wish him all the very best for the tour Down Under. May he carry the same good form there, as well.
In the picture above, Mayor of Kolkata Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya presents a bouquet to Sourav Ganguly as State Industry Minister Nirupom Sen looks on during a programme to felicitate him for his stellar performance in the recently concluded India-Pakistan test series. (Photo courtesy: HT)
December 13, 2007
BCCI pulled another surprise when Viru Sehwag was included in the final 16 to tour Australia this December. Mind you, he was not in the 24 probables’ list. This is indeed a good decision as Viru is the master of backfoot and quite a genius at playing cuts. He has displayed equal finesse in playing on the bouncy pitches of Australia. This could also be a moral booster for Parthiv Patel and Aakash Chopra, who were not selected despite their terrific form in domestic cricket, that if they perform they may be back in the team.
A blunder has been committed by dropping Murali Karthik, though. India need specialist spinners on the pitches of Adelaide and Sydney. Kumble and Harbhajan are good but the captain can’t replace the ace left leggy with a part time bowler.
Dinesh Karthik has been lucky to have retained his place despite a below par series with Pakistan. His place was threatened by Parthiv Patel, who is an equally competent wicket-keeper and opener batsman. Had Viru been dropped, Aakash Chopra would have definitely donned the Test cap. Better luck next time Aakash and Parthiv.
Indian pace attack has regained it’s fitness. Zaheer Khan will lead the pack. RP Singh has passed the fitness test, as well. Ishant Sharma and VRV Singh will retain their spot. Another surprise entry in the test squad against Australia has been Pankaj Singh of Rajasthan. The 22 years old, 6′5″ pacer is well suited for Australian conditions. Because of his height and bowling action he can deduce extra pace and bounce from the wickets, Down Under.
The final 16 member squad for the Australian tour which starts in Perth from December 24, 2007 is as follows:
- Anil Kumble (C)
- Mahendra Singh Dhoni (VC)
- Rahul Dravid
- Sachin Tendulkar
- Sourav Ganguly
- VVS Laxman
- Yuvraj Singh
- Virendra Sehwag
- Dinesh Karthik
- Zaheer Khan
- RP Singh
- Ishant Sharma
- Pankaj Singh
- Irfan Pathan
- Harbhajan Singh
- VRV Singh
December 13, 2007
The final test between India and Pakistan at Bangalore witnessed a display of immense talent and sportsmanship. These guys turned the shape of the match. Man of the Day for:
Day 1: Yuvraj Singh made a sizzling statement with the bat which drew comparisons to West Indies batting genius Brian Lara.
Day 2: Sourav Ganguly broke a few barriers, some physical and some mental while carving a fluent knock that ranked high in tenacity.
Day 3: Younis Khan once again put his hands up when the chips were down. He loves a fight with India as his 1321 runs in 9 Tests suggests.
Day 4: Misbah-ul-Haq continued to be India’s nemesis as Kumble & Co found it impossible to dismiss him. As his wont, he batted with panache.
Day 5: He might have delayed the declaration, but Anil Kumble took it upon himself to unsettle the rivals for his fifth five-wicket(5/60) haul against Pakistan.
The efforts of Yasir Arafat and Ishant Sharma were also commendable. The former had a five wicket haul on debut and also played some courageous shots in the second innings. Ishant bowled brilliant line and length on the fourth day and bagged five wickets in only his second test. The comeback man Irfan Pathan also added 102 runs to the team’s total and this was his maiden test century.
December 13, 2007
Whatever!!! But we defeated the arch rivals on Indian soil after 27 years and that’s it. The concluding hours of the final test at Bangalore packed a lot of exciting moments for the Indians though, but for the bad light we lost the chance to capitalise on 1-0 lead. This has fired up a debate on Kumble’s decision to declare 90 minutes after lunch. Here are a few reasons at what makes Kumble a villain and a hero at the same time.
What makes Kumble an antagonist?
Bad lights cut short what could have been a 2-0 lead. Team India still had 12 overs to bowl and only 3 Pak wickets were intact. Win was in definite sight. But overcast conditions forced the umpires to call it a day, as the floodlights also did not help. Had Kumble not waited for Dinesh Karthik’s half-century, India would have had enough overs to bowl Pakistan out. Moreover, India had a lead of 310 runs at lunch. On the fifth day the pitch supported spinners. So the stakes for a comprehensive win over Pakistan would have been higher had Kumble declared the innings after lunch. Moreover, the opponents could not have, under any condition, scored more than 250 in two sessions.
What makes Kumble a protagonist?
He gave Dinesh Karthik a chance to regain his lost confidence by giving him enough time to score his maiden 50 in this series. This will definitely do some damage control for the wicket-keeper batsman. Kumble did not want to do anything silly since the series was already in India’s pocket. He wanted to put enough runs on the board so that the bowlers did not come under any kind of pressure. Had Kumble known that the sky would be overcast, he would have declared early.
So, we can’t really put any blame on Kumble for late declaration. As I’ve said earlier, had it not for the bad light, India would have bowled 12 overs more. All praise to Kumble and his boys. Instead of grimacing over the Kumble’s decision on declaration, we must celebrate our victory over Pakistan.
December 12, 2007
After a gap of more than 100 years, IOC has recognised cricket as a part of Olympic games. Cricket last featured in Paris Olympiad in 1900. This is very good for cricket as a whole as it will help enhance it’s profile in countries where it is still developing.
The Olympic governing body has given this recognition to cricket for 2 years initially and it will be extended after discussion in 2010. When the first cricket match will be played is not known but this decision has really given both the men and women cricket a new lease of life.
I don’t think they will be playing Test cricket at the Olympics 
. It will be Twenty20, I reckon.
December 10, 2007
The final test match between India and Pakistan, underway in Bangalore, has witnessed some great temperament and show of character. The three comeback men, Sourav, Yuvraj and Irfan, had a point to prove and they did it in style.
Sourav was once sidelined from the side for almost 8 months for the only reason that he was out of form. Guru Greg did not at all take his past record into account. He was recalled in the team in the December of 2006 and after that he did not look back. In the series against England in May this year, he proved to be the backbone of Indian batting lineup. He scored a ton and a double ton in his 98th(Kolkata ‘07) and 99th(Bangalore ‘07) respectively. What more can one ask for from the legendary southpaw?! It Dada’s sheer grit and determination that saw him don the Indian colours once again. Hope he carries the same form to his 100th test at Melbourne. Hats off to his winning ego and temperament.
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December 8, 2007
Here are a few lookalikes of cricketers. Mind you, these lookalikes are great personalities.
- Younis Khan/Hrithik Roshan
- Ricky Ponting/George Bush
For more such lookalikes log onto Cricket365.
December 8, 2007
Yuvraj Singh once again proved the selectors wrong by playing a masterly knock of 169 during the final test(08/12/2007-12/12/2007) against Pakistan at Bangalore. The southpaw last played his test against WI at Kingston in July ‘06 and was regularly sidelined by the selectors because of the presence of more experienced players.
In the morning session, India were 61/4 and the damage was done by the debutant, Yasir Arafat. India’s left-hander duo, Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh scored handsome centuries to save the day for India.
Yuvi has given a strong message to the selectors and team management. Hope he is in the playing eleven of the team which plays Australia in two weeks time.
December 8, 2007
Sachin Tendulkar might be a doubtful starter for the third Test against Pakistan, but otherwise is in the form of his life. The master bat spoke to Harsha Bhogle and said he isn’t retiring any time soon. That’s definitely good news for India.
The little master talks about getting struck at the 90s. Great comments!
Excerpts here.
