All posts by h716a5.icu

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan on why India’s premier cricketer needs to fire both as player and captain

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan26-Jul-2007

Uneasy lies the head: Dravid hasn’t had too good a time of it lately © AFP
You normally don’t associate words like “confused” and “unsure” with Rahul Dravid but there are times during this early stage of the England tour when they have seemed apt. Amid all the excitement over the bowlers and the angst over the batting heavyweights, Dravid’s situation should not be ignored. It is one that prompts more empathy than criticism.He endured two failures with the bat at Lord’s and, excluding Bangladesh, he has now gone four Tests without a contribution (in South Africa last year, he didn’t once go past 50). He’s leading a side that includes a few rookies and has to do without the services of a coach. It comes as no surprise that he has stuttered through press conferences – before the game he said Harbhajan when he meant Kumble; after the game he said, “England’s confidence will surely be 0-0.”Most of India’s important victories in the last five years, at venues as diverse as Adelaide, Rawalpindi and Kingston, have been Dravid-inspired. Under normal circumstances you wouldn’t want your best batsman to be straddled with the captaincy, but Dravid remains the best available option and there’s no point debating the issue. He needs to lead, he needs to score, he needs to win matches. It may be too much to ask but he also needs to win tosses.If the bowlers need to iron out a few creases, they have Venkatesh Prasad to approach. There’s Robin Singh to talk to if anyone has an issue with fielding. But who does Dravid turn to?He is someone who thinks a lot about his batting, visualises his shots the previous day, and ponders hard over the construction of an innings. “I do my best to be in a relaxed state of mind because that’s when I play at my best,” he told in December 2003, when he was still a long way away from the captaincy. “I try to slow things down a couple of days before the game. I have long lunches, do things in an unhurried way. The morning of the match I always get up a couple of hours before we have to get to the ground, so that I have plenty of time to get ready. I take my time to have a bath, wear my clothes, eat breakfast. I never rush things, and that sort of sets up my mood for the rest of day.” India have relied so much on Dravid over the last five years that a minor blip in his form causes a rise in the mercury levels It’s tough to imagine the Dravid of today having enough time to go through all these routines in a relaxed manner. He needs to think of team composition, plan net sessions, sort out his team-mates’ struggles, and do his best to keep morale high. Captaincy can be hard work in such circumstances. Ravi Shastri, who led in only one Test but made a name for himself as a shrewd tactician, thought Dravid was over-attacking on the first morning by setting a 7-2 field for the England openers. India’s bowlers were taking time to come to terms with the Lord’s slope, as well as the occasion, but Dravid refused to relent. It was no doubt the bowlers’ fault for being off line, but England raced away with the momentum too easily. Again Dravid was probably guilty of letting the game drift on the fourth afternoon, but stopping Kevin Pietersen when he’s in that mood isn’t easy.India have relied so much on Dravid over the last five years that a minor blip in his form causes a rise in the mercury levels. England experienced the downside of appointing a talisman like Andrew Flintoff as captain; are India entering similar territory?The last time he left England, Dravid had successfully made the step up from a good batsman to a great one. If he can get back his groove and help India win this series, he might transform himself from being an uncertain leader to an assured one.

Gideon Haigh’s latest collection showcases a fine writer at the top of his game says Chandrahas Choudhury

<i>Haigh's latest collection showcases a fine writer at the top of his game. By <b>Chandrahas Choudhury</b></i>07-May-2007All Out: The Ashes 2006-07 by Gideon Haigh, Aus $26.95
Black Inc, 298 pp

Haigh’s book has a great sense of the ebb and flow of the game © Black Inc.
When at the WACA last December Ricky Ponting’s Australians overwhelmed Andrew Flintoff’s Englishmen for the third time in three games, the most eagerly anticipated Ashes series in two decades had proved instead to be among the most one-sided ever. There seemed to be only two reasons for allowing a so obviously dead rubber to continue.One, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath announced they were hanging up their boots, which automatically gave the last two Tests a sepia-tinted, valedictory air. And two, Gideon Haigh had been working up a nice rhythm in his reports and dispatches from the games, and to interrupt him at the top of his game, as Mike Atherton once did Graeme Hick in an Ashes Test, would have been too cruel.Of all modern cricket writers, Haigh is the most versatile and companionable. In our post-post-Cardusian times, when television brings every detail of the great game into our living rooms, and in the breaks grey-haired pundits tell noodle-strapped women everything there is to know, it is still possible to watch a day’s cricket and then profitably read Haigh on it the next morning.He has a great sense of the ebb and flow of the game, an eye for the quirks of character of those who play it, a lovely prose style that throws off sparks of both erudition and sunny good humour, and a cat, Trumper, who was unfortunately left behind when Haigh went to cover the cricket. Most daily journalism has a short shelf life, but the reports and columns collected in All Out merely bring together between two covers and some sturdy binding pieces we were all collecting anyway.Insofar as the 2006-07 battle for the “sacred soot” was a contest – and England did have their moments – Haigh shows how it was one, and how the visitors gradually lost their way. The decisive moment of the series was at Adelaide, when England, after having controlled the game for four days, faltered inexplicably on the final morning and conceded a victory that surprised even their all-conquering opponents. That left England two games down, and from there they went steadily downhill.Could it have gone differently? Haigh argues that the itinerary did England no favours: not only did they have little match practice by way of warm-ups, but also the first two Tests were back to back, allowing them little time to regroup after defeat at Brisbane.A highlight of the series, as of the 2005 Ashes, was the bowling of Shane Warne. In turn, Haigh’s writing is never better than when on the subject of Warne. One of the reasons why All Out will prove to be an enduring book is that it enshrines the moods and moves of the greatest slow bowler cricket has seen, during his last few days on the big stage.Haigh remembers the time he first saw Warne’s art broken down on a super-slow-motion camera, “his fingers undulating like piano keys as they set the ball rotating”. He evokes Warne’s garrulous, hectoring presence: walking back to his mark between deliveries, Warne is always “searching for eye contact, eager for a chirp”; sledged while batting, he protests, “You’re making me concentrate!” The only opponent who gets under his skin is his Hampshire team-mate Kevin Pietersen; their simmering face-offs are contests that Warne “affects to enjoy, but which he could enjoy more”. Just to see Warne hand his cap over to the umpire was to know that the game was going to rise in pitch. Just as there can never be another Bradman, says Haigh, there can never be another Warne. On these pages, more than anywhere else, Warne will always remain not out..

Shaun Pollock suits the role of the pinch-hitter, technically competent enough to bat at various tempos and in different situations. With that in mind, it wasn’t such a surprise to see him coming in one down here

Osman Samiuddin in Multan26-Oct-2007

Why hasn’t Shaun Pollock batted up the order more often? © Getty Images
Mickey Arthur said before this match he had a plan to counter the middle-over tangle South Africa have found themselves in twice against Pakistan’s spinners. It turned out to be one of the oldest modern-day ODI tactics: call in the pinch-hitter.For intangible reasons, the use of the pinch-hitter – a lower-order batsman sent up the order – has faded in recent years. Maybe it was just a passing mid-90s fad, as opposed to a full-blown trend. Maybe the definition of a pinch-hitter has become more fluid: aren’t players nowadays expected to be multi-dimensional anyway? The game has quickened up, sides are loaded with big-hitting proper batsmen, and perhaps the pinch-hitter is now expected to be a proper batsman and not just some fluke chancer.Irfan Pathan was a recent, prolonged example of the tactic, though some might argue he has become a better batsman than bowler by the end of it. But in its time, for shock value, the promotion of a lower-order batsman to capitalise on a good start, or provide impetus to a faltering one, was often priceless. Who can forget Chetan Sharma’s only hundred, against England, or Bob Woolmer’s use of the sensational Lance Klusener up the order or little Romesh Kaluwitharana’s 1996 madness?Some players, allrounders particularly, are ideal for the job. Chris Cairns and Ian Harvey were good enough batsmen to occasionally pull it off. Even Abdul Razzaq did it well enough, but Pakistan’s traditional problems with opening often forced him, like Imran Khan during the 1992 World Cup, to become as much a pinch-blocker at as an aggressor.Shaun Pollock suits the role too, technically competent enough to bat at various tempos and in different situations. With that in mind, it wasn’t such a surprise to see him coming in one down here. To learn, however, that it was only the fourth time he had done it in his entire career was a considerably greater one. And the other three occasions were hardlyserious attempts to sway a match. Why he hasn’t been used in the role more often, especially based on the evidence of this innings, is difficult to fathom.South Africa’s starts have been good during this series but it is their middle order that has pottered about against Shahid Afridi and Abdur Rehman, not scoring enough runs and eventually losing their wickets. Pollock came in just as spin did, another good start already banked.”Today we made some decisions and I am very grateful they came off,” explained Graeme Smith later. “As captain you’re happy that those gambles come off. Shaun came in and played superbly. Earlier in the year he got a hundred, which was great to see, and he’s been craving the opportunity to get up the order, especially in these conditions. Today, with his experience, and Albie Morkel at the end of the innings, it allows us to do it. It was a superb knock.”That Pollock wasn’t going to go the way of his middle-order men became immediately clear, and the manner in which he did it – a delicious, late cut off the last ball of the over for a boundary – set up the blueprint for the rest of his innings. This was no slog, for Pollock is no slogger.Most of his subsequent strokeplay was composed of proper cricket shots; lofted drives straight down the ground, inside out drives over extra cover, solid pulls, and one near-perfect sweep. Among current batsmen Pollock’s bat-swing is perhaps the one that comes closest to Brian Lara’s in terms of beauty. At its top, before it swoops down for contact, it could be the swing of a golfer, coiled yet languid. His long arms also provide a useful, rubbery whip to his shots. The feet, and those long graceful strides in particular, were well employed to nullify the spin, not only reducing its threat, but turning it into a weakness for Pakistan. Perhaps only the bat swing of Brian Lara compares to Pollock’s in terms of beauty. At its top, before it swoops down for contact, it could be the swing of a golfer, coiled yet languid. His long arms also provide a useful rubbery whip to his shots Eighty-four balls were enough to make you wonder why he is so much more acclaimed as a bowler. Alternatively, it tells you just how good a bowler he actually is, as a fantastic opening spell earlier in the day also made perfectly clear. But a batting average of 26 in nearly 300 matches, only one hundred, and now 13 fifties, does scant justice to a rare gift. This was his highest ODI score in South African colours, his solitary hundred coming for the Africa XI earlier this year.”I enjoyed it today,” Pollock said. “Graeme and Herschelle [Gibbs] got us off to a flier and my aim was to take advantage of the Powerplays. I enjoyed it, but there are some fantastic cricketers up there who normally do the job.”Those lower down are no less fantastic.

Dammika Prasad justified Sri Lanka’s decision to hand him a debut by taking three big wickets – Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar – in the first session

Jamie Alter in Colombo08-Aug-2008
Dammika Prasad, on debut, rattled India’s top order before finishing with figures of 3 for 82 © AFP
On the day Dilhara Fernando was named in the squad for the ODI series against India and the Champions Trophy in Pakistan, another raw fast bowler showed how much Sri Lanka have missed someone with his speed and aggression. Dammika Prasad was handed a debut to bolster Sri Lanka’s ineffective new-ball attack and, by taking three big wickets in the first session of this Test after India’s openers got off to a flier, he proved the decision was a smart one.To bowl India out for 249 on the first day on a flat track was something, and it was Prasad’s introduction to Test cricket that injected life into Sri Lanka. That’s something Chaminda Vaas and Nuwan Kulasekera, who never went far beyond 125kph, failed to do in the first two Tests. Prasad was picked ahead of left-arm medium-pacer Thilan Thushara because he provided Sri Lanka with a right-left opening combination and for his 4 for 58 in India’s practice match before the series, where he got the ball to skid on.Prasad’s first spell in Tests was rather eventful. His first ball, 139kph, was whipped from leg stump for four by Gautam Gambhir. Two balls in that over clocked 140.02 and 143 kph but Virender Sehwag took him for further boundaries. After three overs, Prasad had leaked 25 runs. A fall to the floor, trying to stop a Sehwag straight drive, resulted in medical attention to his left wrist. And then came a moment of jubilationPrasad landed one on a length inches outside off stump and straightened it, only for Sehwag to feel for it loosely. The regulation nick was held and Prasad growled in satisfaction. “Sehwag was in very good form, and I was nervous just before I got him out,” a humble Prasad said. “My team-mates told me not to think of it as my first Test, don’t panic, just bowl.”The last five overs of his spell cost just five runs and from there on Prasad bowled intelligently. This was a pitch that demanded he keep it straight and he overcame his early nerves commendably. A bowler capable of bowling above 140kph in the subcontinent is crucial, and today Prasad played an important crucial hand, hitting the crease hard, maintaining decent channels and generating good pace.Throughout his morning spells, Prasad used the ball to achieve that extra bit of bounce that unsettled a few of the batsmen on this pitch. But he also tried hard to make sure that he didn’t get too predictable, varying his pace and length regularly. He was quick in his first three overs, but actually bowled better when he kept his speed in the mid-130s. That’s when he achieved a hint of swing to go with appreciable lift.After a change of ends, Prasad picked up Rahul Dravid with one that swung in late, and Sachin Tendulkar with inward movement. Between the two dismissals Vaas had two brief chats with Prasad, the second with his arm around his shoulder and a large smile on his face. When Tendulkar was adjudged out on a review – replays showed that about 40% of the ball was inside the mat at the point of impact and headed for middle and off – Vaas had his arms around Prasad again. The relief was perhaps palpable for Sri Lanka.A well-built bowler who relies on his shoulder strength, Prasad clearly thrives on intimidation but is capable of sensible movement as well. Sourav Ganguly was given a work-over with short-pitched stuff and, a couple deliveries later, Gambhir was beaten off the seam by a slow offcutter. He hit the deck hard and moved the ball off the seam. He doesn’t have Fernando’s height, but there is a similar rawness in the two, as well as a keenness to run in and hustle the batsman. Lasith Malinga remains Sri Lanka’s first-choice pacer when fit but Prasad, who has a decently disguised slower ball, can seriously boost his Test career if he learns the art of reverse-swing.Prasad’s success is also special because he is a workmanlike bowler; on the domestic circuit his is not a name spoken of with any great excitement. He doesn’t have any outstanding spells domestically, and locals don’t rate his 6 for 25 for Southern Province in 2004 very highly. But his success highlights the rewards for hard work and perseverance. Prasad’s maiden one-day appearance in early 2006 included two wickets in his first two balls, but a back injury kept him out of the game for six months. He recovered and represented Sri Lanka A in England in 2007, and has worked manfully, if unspectacularly, to force his way back.This wasn’t among the most lethal new-ball bursts by a Sri Lankan fast bowler in modern times, but it was the best they have had all series. Ajantha Mendis’s killer efficiency, bowling to the lower order, helped Sri Lanka dig deeper and complemented Prasad’s strikes. With Vaas again going wicketless and Muttiah Muralitharan nowhere near his best, Prasad and Mendis, rookies alike, helped give Sri Lanka the advantage on day one, with minimal fuss.

The first thing Daniel Vettori did upon arriving at Seddon Park, two days before the first Test, was to have a look at the pitch. He inspected it for a good five to ten minutes and then chatted with the curator Karl Johnson

Sidharth Monga in Hamilton16-Mar-2009
Ishant Sharma is working on his inswing at Seddon Park © AFP
The first thing Daniel Vettori did upon arriving at Seddon Park, two days before the first Test, was to have a look at the pitch. He inspected it for a good five to ten minutes and then chatted with the curator Karl Johnson. The Indian batsmen did some shadow practice at the pitch before fielding practice and a net session.That, if people didn’t know already, was a clear indication that the Tests are about to begin for until now on the tour, no one has bothered to look at the pitch even a day before the match.In Wellington, the teams made their first visits to the venue two hours before the toss. Things have changed, the pitch is being talked about, long-term weather forecasts are being sought, and the anticipation is kicking in. Pyjamas to flannels is a bit of cliché – given the innovative whites teams wear nowadays – but the Test match mood has kicked in.The anticipation for the Tests showed not only in the interest around the pitch – which looks deliciously green now with the grass yet to be shaved off – but also in the increased intensity of the training sessions. Both teams spent about three hours each at Seddon Park and there seemed more purpose to the way they went about their business in the nets.So far batsmen played to imaginary one-day fields and looked to hit big, innovate, and played shots that would get them singles, while the bowlers tried to contain them. The Test intensity today was summed up by one exchange. Sachin Tendulkar padded up first for India, to face Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan, L Balaji and a few local net bowlers.After facing two balls from Ishant, Tendulkar went up to the bowler and asked, “Are you trying to get it to move in?” The first two deliveries hadn’t actually moved in. Ishant replied in the affirmative and Tendulkar went on to tell him he was making it too obvious. “It seems you are trying too hard to move it in,” Tendulkar said, and went on to show him the release that was required – not a big jerk of the wrist, but a smooth push just before letting the ball go. “You might over-pitch for a while, but keep trying it. First get the release right, the rest will come automatically.”Ishant over-pitched for a while, slowly getting the inward movement going until he beat Tendulkar with one that nipped in sharply. “Ye achcha tha [This one was better],” came the acknowledgment. The exchange was as much as an acknowledgment of how well Tendulkar knows the game (he could see, while trying to focus on his batting, what was wrong with the bowler’s wrist at the time of release) as also the fact that containment was not the key here. Ishant was ready to bowl loose deliveries just to get back his No. 1 delivery.The next batsman in the same net was Virender Sehwag. The first ball he faced from Ishant jagged back in, got the inside edge, hit the thigh and took the leg stump. It’s good that the Tests are around.

Concentration is about living in the moment – which unfortunately isn’t as easy as it sounds

Aakash Chopra30-Jul-2009Ever since I started playing cricket I’ve been told about the importance of concentration and how it’s the key to batting for a long time and scoring a lot of runs. There has always been plenty of emphasis on this aspect of the game. I’d often hear a commentator say that a lapse in concentration cost the batsman his wicket, or a coach telling me to concentrate harder whenever I couldn’t put the bat to ball.Though I understood the importance of concentration fairly early in my career, I didn’t entirely understand the concept itself. And I wasn’t the only one.What exactly is concentration?
A few years ago I was selected to play in the Challenger Trophy (before I made my international debut). We had an interactive session with Geet Sethi, the billiards player, whose definition of concentration remains etched in my memory. He said that concentration is simply remaining in the present. The longer you can remain in the present, the greater your span of concentration. Sounds easy, right?Nearly two decades of playing cricket has taught me that it isn’t. The mind has the peculiar ability of wandering off at the first available moment, and it doesn’t need any permission. You might be in the middle of an important match, playing an important knock or bowling the most crucial over, but the mind has a mind of its own. Two places it likes to wander off to are the past and the future.I’d either start feeling bad or good about what had happened in the past – the ball before – and get disconnected from the present, or I would start worrying about or prematurely celebrating events in the future, getting away from the task at hand.Whatever happened in the past or might happen in the future does not have, or at least should not have, any bearing on the ball you’re going to bowl or play next. All that matters is what you do with that particular ball. Remaining in the present is the only way to concentrate.One needs to start concentrating once the bowler starts his run-up and the concentration has to be at its peak from the time of delivery till the ball hits the bat. (Of course, this changes for fielders, who need to be alert till one of them fields the ball.)How can you improve your concentration?
Most games of cricket go on for at least six hours at a time, with occasional breaks. Now concentrating for a few minutes at a time is quite difficult, let alone six hours. So the idea is to switch off after every delivery and then switch on before the next. Switching off means allowing the mind to wander away for a few seconds before getting it back on track. This is not restricted to only batting and bowling; fielders do it too. One needs to relax before starting to concentrate again.Batting or bowling in the nets can be instrumental in improving concentration, since one needs to concentrate ball after ball in that situation, with very little time in between (as there are usually about six or seven bowlers operating at all times).The trigger movement
Most players follow a set routine – adjusting the equipment, or something else – that acts as a trigger to snap them out of wander mode and back to the game. Greg Chappell would look at the crowd after playing every ball; MS Dhoni fiddles with his bat and gloves; I scratch the leg-stump mark on the pitch with my shoe; Jason Gillespie used to stop for a few seconds and take a deep breath at the top of his run-up.Staying in the game
While it’s important to switch off and allow your mind to wander, one still needs to ensure that it doesn’t drift too far away. For example, a captain has to still think about the field placements and plan his course of action, like bowling and fielding changes. A fielder is supposed to always be looking at the captain or bowler for instructions on any possible changes in the fielding position before starting to concentrate again. A batsman weighs his options of scoring runs off the next ball. I call this not-so-focused form of concentration “staying in the game”.The zone
Then there are some – we call them geniuses – who seemed to get into the zone at will: the state of mind where everything flows automatically. You don’t consciously switch on or off, your mind doesn’t wander into the past or the future, you’re constantly aware of your surroundings and almost always play the ball on its merit or bowl where you want to bowl. We all have times when we get into such states, but to do it on a consistent basis is an art that only a few have mastered. Sachin Tendulkar seemed to get into the zone more regularly than the rest.How can one attain that state at will?
Honestly, I don’t know for sure. I’ve gathered over the years that even the greatest minds can wander. Thoughts keep coming into your head regardless of whether you want them to. The best way to deal with them is to acknowledge their presence rather than trying to ignore them. Trying to push the thoughts away gets you involved and takes you away from the task at hand. When you leave them unattended, they disappear. Tendulkar’s innings in Sydney in 2004 is the perfect example of not paying heed to the thoughts that try to intrude. He didn’t play a cover-drive for most, if not all, of his innings of over 200, and I refuse to believe that the thought of playing the shot didn’t cross his mind, especially once he was set.

Sunil Gavaskar once told me that when you reach a milestone your mind takes you to the ones you love most. You feel an immediate connection to those close to you who are watching you achieve the feat and your heart goes out to them and with it your mind too, which results in a loss of concentration

When are we most vulnerable to losing concentration?
I used to think that staying in the present was important only at the beginning of the innings. After all, it’s only at the start, when we’re plagued with self-doubt, that we are most susceptible to failure; once we get that elusive start, everything falls in place. But I’ve learned that I was mistaken. A loss of concentration can occur at any point during an innings, and most often does when you’re feeling good, like after going past a milestone, when you drop your guard a bit.I once asked Sunil Gavaskar about it, and he said that when you reach a milestone, the mind takes you to the ones you love most. You feel an immediate connection to those close to you who are watching you achieve the feat and your heart goes out to them, and with it your mind too. You thank everyone on the ground by raising the bat, thank God for his blessings, and your family members in your heart. At such times the mind is anywhere but on the cricket field, and you often end up taking the long walk back before realising what’s happened. His advice to me was to recognise that emotional surge and allow yourself a little time to regroup; perhaps spending a few overs at the non-striker’s end at such times is a good idea.The external factors
Bowlers and fielders, especially the ones close to the bat, often try to talk the batsman into playing a poor stroke. Few batsmen succumb to the tactic and lose focus; the majority have their own ways of dealing with it.Sunny told me that the best way is to ignore the comments and even avoid eye contact with the talkers. On the contrary, someone like Matthew Hayden relishes a chat with the bowler and the fielders. Then there’s Brian Lara. The Indian team would decide before the start of a series against West Indies to leave him alone, because if you try to get under his skin he starts concentrating harder and then is almost impossible to dislodge.Even the crowd has a role to play. But contrary to popular belief, a hostile crowd doesn’t have as much of an impact as a cheering crowd.I remember getting hit on the helmet in Melbourne during the Boxing Day Test in 2003, and 70,000 people cheered Brett Lee and Co to do it again. But the only effect it had on my game plan was to make me more determined. On the other hand only 30,000 people egging me on to hit another four off Daniel Vettori in my debut Test, in Ahmedabad, was enough to lure me into a false stroke. I got ahead of myself and was dismissed.We now know that regardless of whether we know the definition of concentration or not, whether we play cricket – or any other sport or for that matter – remaining in the present is the essence to being successful. We all do it unconsciously, and perhaps that’s why we slip out of it without knowing, but if we manage to do it consciously, at will, keeping close tabs on our mind, we’ll be able to control it a lot better and produce better results.

Stats preview to the second semi-final of the World Twenty20 between Australia and Pakistan

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan13-May-2010Australia enter the semi-final against Pakistan as overwhelming favourites not just because of their superb performances in the tournament so far, but their astounding run in major tournaments over the last few years. They have triumphed in both the 50-over World Cups in the past decade and also in the last two editions of the ICC Champions Trophy. Their only blemish has been not winning the World Twenty20, but their run this year suggests they might just break that jinx.Pakistan have every reason to be overawed by their opponents. They have lost all the matches played across all three formats in the last year against them, including a convincing defeat in the group stages in this year’s tournament.The table below shows the overall batting and bowling performance of both the teams so far in this tournament. Shane Watson and David Warner have provided aggressive starts, while superb late-order hitting from Michael Hussey and Cameron White has boosted the Australian run rate. On the bowling front, their pace attack led by Dirk Nannes, Shaun Tait and Mitchell Johnson has wrecked the top order of all opponents in every game played so far. Pakistan, on the other hand, have performed well below the level they managed in the previous edition of World Twenty20. The absence of Mohammad Asif and Umar Gul has seriously affected their wicket-taking ability in the first few overs and inconsistent batting has also not helped their cause so far.

Overall run rate and economy rate

TeamMatches playedRun-rateEconomy rateRun-rate differenceAustralia58.236.182.05Pakistan57.567.430.16Watson and Warner have had a fairly successful time at the top of the order in the tournament. Despite a couple of failures against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, they posted a century stand in quick time setting up the victory against India. Although the Powerplay batting stats for Australia are not the best, the match-winning capabilities of the openers is a constant threat to opponents. Pakistan’ batsmen have struggled in the Powerplay overs. Salman Butt has looked good on most occasions but has not received much support.

Batting performance in the Powerplay overs

TeamRuns scoredBalls facedRun rateWickets lostAverageAustralia2131807.10923.66Pakistan1941806.461019.40Michael Hussey and Cameron White have provided the fireworks in the final overs consistently. Hussey, especially, has been in terrific form throughout. He helped his team wriggle out of a hole against Bangladesh, and in the course of the century stand with White against Sri Lanka, the pair added nearly 70 runs off the last five overs to propel Australia to a match-winning score after a terrible start. Pakistan, meanwhile, have been inconsistent, with a good showing against South Africa being the only positive.

Batting performance in the last six overs

TeamRuns scoredBalls facedRun rateWickets lostAverageAustralia27815810.551321.38Pakistan2361807.861813.11Australia’s fast bowlers have been exceptional in the beginning of the innings. Nannes is the leading wicket-taker in the tournament so far and Johnson and Tait are not far behind. The early wickets have allowed Australia to establish a stranglehold in all the games played. Pakistan haven’t taken as many wickets in the Powerplays, though they’ve done pretty well to keep the runs in check.

Bowling performance in the Powerplay overs

TeamRuns concededBalls bowledEconomy rateWickets takenAverageAustralia1851955.691611.56Pakistan2091886.67729.85Australia have been so convincing that they have not had much bowling to do in the final overs of the innings. Their performance is still exceptional in the last overs with their pace attack doing most of the damage while the legspinner Steven Smith has also chipped in with a few wickets. Pakistan’s spinners have been ordinary in this tournament except in one game when they managed to curtail the scoring rate of a strangely subdued South Africa. Saeed Ajmal, though, has picked up ten wickets in the tournament so far and is the biggest threat.

Bowling performance in the last six overs

TeamRuns concededBalls bowledEconomy rateWickets takenAverageAustralia1431336.45168.93Pakistan2491828.202111.85The Australian fast bowlers have bowled the majority of the overs for the team and have been remarkably successful, going at just over six runs per over and picking up 32 wickets. Smith has led the way for the spin attack grabbing nine wickets and conceding less than seven runs per over. The combination seems to be working perfectly with the initial damage being done by the pace attack and the spinners further denting the opposition in the middle overs. Pakistan’s spinners have not been as impressive as they were in the previous edition of the tournament. Shahid Afridi has not been among the wickets this time. Even so, they have performed better than the fast bowlers who have hardly looked threatening.

Performance of pace and spin bowlers for Australia

Type of bowlerRuns concededBalls bowledEconomy rateWickets takenAveragePace4043826.343212.62Spin1821686.501512.13

Performance of pace and spin bowlers for Pakistan

Type of bowlerRuns concededBalls bowledEconomy rateWickets takenAveragePace3292527.831325.30Spin4283457.441922.52Australia have played twice in St Lucia and won on both occasions, including the game against Pakistan. Pakistan have played three times at this venue and won two including a very good win against South Africa. Australia have batted first in four of the five games they have played and all four have been comfortable wins, the lowest margin being 27 runs. Pakistan did lose to England after batting first, but it seems to be their best bet as their inconsistent and brittle line-up might not match up in a tough chase against the best bowling side of the tournament.

Plays of the Day for the second day of the second Test at the SSC

Sidharth Monga at the SSC27-Jul-2010Great partnership, part I
During the course of their 193-run stand, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene overtook the combination of Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting to become the second-most prolific partnership between non-openers. By the time they were separated, they took their tally to 4798, behind only the 5993 that the Sachin Tendulkar-Rahul Dravid combination has added, in 42 more innings and at an average which is 12 runs lesser.Great partnership, part II
That great minds think alike was manifested when Sangakkara and Jayawardene thought of running on the same part of the pitch in the 111th over. They ran into each other, but a major collision was avoided. Not sure if the Indians had any energy left to laugh at it, though.Harper and his body parts
During Sri Lanka’s chase in the first Test, Daryl Harper copped one smack on the chest when he couldn’t get out of the way of a pull from Tillakaratne Dilshan. During the second Test, he was spotted showing his badly bruised chest to a Sri Lankan batsman. It wasn’t a pretty sight. Today, a throw from M Vijay got the umpire on the back side. Spare us the details this time, Daryl.Dhoni gets Jayawardene, finally
India needed something out of the ordinary to unsettle Jayawardene and get his wicket. That had not happened until MS Dhoni lobbed a throw back to the bowler, and managed to hit Jayawardene, softly, on his head. That did the trick, and soon Jayawardene lobbed one to midwicket. That also earned the Indian fielders a mercy declaration.Harbhajan gets a wicket
Stop the press. That Jayawardene wicket was also Harbhajan’s first of the series, in 449 deliveries spread over three innings.The SSC stats dossier
Jayawardene extended his own record for most runs at a venue, taking his tally at the SSC to 2641 runs at 82.53. He also broke Sir Don Bradman’s record of nine centuries at the MCG the most at a venue – with his 10th at the SSC. Sangakkara who made 219, took his tally to 1822 at 72.88, also scoring his seventh century here. Thilan Samaraweera was not to be left behind; by virtue of staying unbeaten, he took his average here to 81.93, and the runs-tally to 1229 in just 14 Tests.Welcome to Test cricket, son
If you are a spinner on debut, you don’t want to be bowling your first delivery to Virender Sehwag, who has scant respect for the breed. Suraj Randiv’s first act in Test cricket was to be cut away for a four, first ball, and then go for another four through the off side in the same over. As soon as he put a fielder deep on the off side, Sehwag dropped it into the off side and took another single.

A collection of quotes from Shoaib Akhtar and by others about him over his colourful career

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Mar-2011″How many diamonds can you retrieve from one single mine; there has to be an end somewhere. I don’t see any natural fast bowler after me.”
(June 14, 2008)”I think I will donate the money to Mother Teresa or something like that.”
. (May 30, 2008)”Once Shoaib sees the crowds, and of course the babes around, I think he will be able to perform.”
(May 7, 2008)”The Shoaib Akhtar [of our team] is Asmavia Iqbal … The only difference between him and her is that she’s completely fit, sticks to her game and does the job she’s asked to do.”
(April 24, 2008)”I don’t know – for us or for Pakistan?”
(September 29, 2007)”This would be a first for Shoaib, who is widely regarded as a more committed playboy than cricketer.”
(May 11, 2007)”He said I looked like Tarzan, and wondered how I could bowl fast looking like that.”
Shoaib reveals how Andrew Flintoff inadvertently boosted his will to win (December 14, 2005)”Shoaib, leave the chicken man alone, and start your practice.”
(November 27, 2005)”I didn’t see him in Australia because he didn’t turn up for the first three days of the Test.”
(November 11, 2005)”This is not a joke, so just shut up.”
(October 20, 2005)”A bloke’s bowling at 150kph trying to rip the fingers off your arms or probably even worse. It gets your blood going and the adrenalin pumping. You are in a fight. And to me that’s what Test cricket is all about.”
(January 1, 2005)It is quite surprising that one is unfit in Pakistan and by reaching England gets fit overnight.”
(May 12, 2004)”I am not an angel, I have my bad days and good days. I am still learning day by day.”
(April 10, 2004)”We will try and pull the chain and stop the train midway.”
(March 4, 2004)

The Plays of the Day from a thrilling encounter between England and South Africa in Chennai

Firdose Moonda at Chennai06-Mar-2011The gamble
After Johan Botha successfully opened the bowling against West Indies, Graeme Smith decided he would roll the dice in that direction again. This time, it was with Robin Peterson. There was some logic to having Peterson open given the other Pietersen – Kevin – has such a renowned weakness against left-arm spin, but the plan worked better than Smith could ever have hoped. With his third ball, he lured England’s captain into a carefully created trap. Andrew Strauss launched it high, long-on galloped, plucked and Peterson erupted. It was the start of a magic spell for him.The bobbling ball
Imran Tahir was without a wicket and returned for his second spell – which has proved to be his wicket-taking one throughout this tournament. He unleashed the googly immediately and when that didn’t work he went for the full toss. Trott gave it everything, only to watch Dale Steyn make good ground in the deep. He had the ball in his grasp, but only until his forearms hit the ground. As they made contact, the ball spilled out on the grass and the chance was lost.The wonder-delivery
Imran Tahir has so many different balls in his repertoire, it’s tough to pick a favourite but in this match it must surely have been his googly. Not just any googly, but the one that got Stuart Broad. It took some courage to bowl it at the length he did to a left-hander. Tahir pitched it on leg stump and replays showed it was hitting the top of off.The walker
Jacques Kallis added a touch of good old-fashioned sportsmanship when he relied on Matt Prior’s honesty to see if he was out. Kallis chased a Broad delivery that he should have left alone and got a small nick. It died on Prior who took the catch low down and there was some doubt if it carried. While Broad was pointing wildly at the floor and Prior, Kallis simply asked Prior if he had caught it cleanly. When the wicket-keeper said yes, Kallis walked off the field, the second time he has done so at this World Cup.The incredible end
As the advantage changed hands quicker than black-market money, it was Broad who made the difference. Back to top form after the stomach ailment that interrupted his campaign, Broad removed South African’s two quicks, Steyn and Morne Morkel. Both went to full balls, Steyn struck flush on the pad and Morkel nicked off while attempting a booming drive. Two bowlers had been undone by one of their own.