All posts by h716a5.icu

As observed by Michael Hussey, Nathan Lyon is the beating heart of the Australian team. Fortified by the lessons of India, he is poised to play a pivotal role during a dry English summer.

Daniel Brettig in Nottingham07-Jul-2013No-one in the Australian dressing room better epitomises the pure joy of playing for their country than Nathan Lyon. In a landscape increasingly riven by loyalties more commercial than communal, Lyon’s childlike glee about pulling on the baggy green is endlessly refreshing. It so impressed Michael Hussey that on the day of his retirement he handed Lyon the honour of leading the team victory song.So it is no surprise to hear of Lyon speak about the Investec Ashes series with enthusiasm so unbridled that it is possible to wonder how he has managed to wait seven weeks in England before the Trent Bridge Test rolled around. Lyon would never speak of the game in the careworn manner of the career professional, but it is clear that the game will never feel less like a job than it does right now.”Cricket is something I love and I’ve been fortunate enough to make a career out of it,” Lyon told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s only the start of my career and hopefully I’ve got a few years left. But I just really love playing cricket for Australia, and I’ll do everything I possibly can to help each team-mate out there. It’s going to be a tough series, no doubt about that. We have to play some really good cricket to put England to the sword. But we’re here to win the Ashes, and we plan on taking them back home with us.”Lyon’s career had been sculpted with this year, and these two series, very much in mind. Chosen for the Sri Lanka tour that followed the team’s humbling defeat at home against England in 2010-11, Lyon’s first Test arrived immediately after the release of the Argus report that charted Australian cricket’s troubles and suggested ways around them before the urn was next contested. Since then, Lyon has played 22 of a possible 24 Test matches, claiming 76 wickets along the way.He has also learned to cope with the swings and roundabouts of the international game. There have been plenty of peaks, including 5 for 34 on debut in Galle, key spells against South Africa in the white-knuckle Johannesburg victory later in 2011, the 4-0 hiding of India at home, and Michael Hussey’s retirement decision that it should be Lyon to claim the honour of leading the team victory song . Chief among the troughs were the 47 in Cape Town, a narrow defeat to New Zealand in Hobart for which Lyon was the last man out, and the hellish tour of India.Lyon was dropped after the first Test of that series, cast aside due to match figures of 4 for 244 and a habit of offering up one loose ball an over. But an admirable resilience and capacity to learn was to be written all over his display in the final match of the series in Delhi. Nine Indian wickets were harvested on a dusty surface, helped by a line around the wicket that capitalised on the turn available.The India tour could quite easily have ruined Lyon, as the 2010 tour did for Nathan Hauritz in 2010. But he emerged from it stronger, smarter, and quicker in the mind, if not through the air. In a dry English summer, Lyon’s role may prove to be almost as expansive as the deviation he extracted at the Feroz Shah Kotla.”There’s no doubt I feel I’ve grown in myself from the experiences in India from the first Test to the last Test,” Lyon said. “It’s hard to say you’re proud when you lose 4-0 and you’re not able to contribute to a team victory over there. It was a disappointing tour, there’s no doubt about that, but on a personal level I definitely learned a lot about my bowling and the pressures of international cricket.”Hype surrounding the legspinner Fawad Ahmed’s qualification to play for Australia, via Federal Government legislation to expedite his eligibility for a passport, has worked somewhat in Lyon’s favour. As much attention has been placed on Fawad, who may or may not take part in the Ashes, Lyon has worked quietly and with increasing confidence in the company of the Centre of Excellence spin coach John Davison. The energy he showed at the bowling crease during the tour match against Somerset at Taunton was palpable.”That is a good thing about being over here, I haven’t looked into any of the hype surrounding Fawad,” Lyon said. “I’ve been over here for seven weeks now and was fortunate enough to have John Davison come over for the first two weeks and I was able to do a lot of work with him and just worry about myself, what I can do and what I need to do to contribute to the team.”I’m feeling really good with my bowling at the moment. I feel really confident in my skills to get the job done and I feel really energetic and really loving bowling. I’ve always loved bowling, but it’s gone to a new level from working with Davo in Brissy and then over here for a couple of weeks. I’m really excited about this Ashes series, it’s a dream come true to be a part of an Australian squad for an England tour.”Davison’s advice has been a constant during Lyon’s time in the Australian team, a period in which he has also had to come to terms with the amount of advice hurled his way from all directions. The South Australia coach Darren Berry, the former Test spinners Ashley Mallett and Stuart MacGill, the national selector John Inverarity and the assistant coach Steve Rixon have been just a few of the voices in Lyon’s ear, but the most resonant and lasting has been that of Davison.

Armed with experience of twirling the ball down towards batsmen far more adept at spin than anyone in Alastair Cook’s team, Lyon will be a more nuanced bowler than the trier who wheeled through 99 increasingly rushed overs against South Africa at Adelaide Oval last year as Faf Du Plessis ground out a draw.

“In international cricket there are a lot of people with a lot of different opinions and that’s something I’ve learned,” Lyon said. “You have to figure out things for yourself, take on advice, and you might pick up something from someone who may not have played the game at the highest level. John Davison’s been fantastic for me, I’ve worked with him really well and I’ve got a lot of trust in Davo.”Something else Lyon can trust is the fact the lessons of India will help him against England. Armed with experience of twirling the ball down towards batsmen far more adept at spin than anyone in Alastair Cook’s team, Lyon will be a more nuanced bowler than the trier who wheeled through 99 increasingly rushed overs against South Africa at Adelaide Oval last year as Faf Du Plessis ground out a draw. He will also be more confident in his ability to capitalise on pitches prepared to offer assistance to his opposite number, Graeme Swann.”Indian players obviously play spin quite well and it was a great challenge for me personally over there,” Lyon said. “That’s something I have learned, that I have to think faster. Really compete against the opposition and put into place some different tactical movements to compete against the batter and plan to get him out.”I’m learning as quick as possible about the English conditions and what role I have and what I have to do to get the best out of my bowling over here. I’ve been doing my personal research on every batsman in the English squad. Hopefully I’ve picked up a couple of points I can try to use out there in the middle.”Success in the middle will lead to celebrations in the rooms. And if there is anything Lyon is itching to do more than play in an Ashes series, it is for the next chance to bellow at the top of his lungs.

A series win shared with 25,000 other fans in Dhaka. Nothing like it

Fahmim Ferdous01-Nov-2013Choice of game
I chose this game because I could not get leave from work for the first ODI, and probably will be out of town for the third. There was also the auspicious factor – the only other time in recent years that I’ve seen Bangladesh win an international fixture in Mirpur live from the stands was in October. And because a friend managed to get tickets for this one.Team supported
Bangladesh, through and through.Key performer
Sohag Gazi played a handy knock with the bat to see Bangladesh through a patchy period, and then came back to bowl with the new ball and put in five very tight overs while also dismissing Anton Devcich. Gazi also kept it tidy during the batting Powerplay, and got rid of Ross Taylor, the only man who could have snatched it away, and James Neesham.One thing I’d have changed
There was really not much left to wish for, but with 14 sixes hit in the day, I wish one had landed somewhere near me.Face-off you relished
Tamim v Southee, the ace aggressors in respective sides. After bowling a sharp opening over, Southee was hit for his first boundary by Tamim – a delightful drive through cover. An over later, Southee snorted one past Tamim’s nose, who responded by charging out and whacking one right over his head out of the park.Wow moment
Devcich’s desperate dive in the closing overs of the Bangladesh innings and Mushfiqur Rahim’s stunner of a catch to send back Corey Anderson made it into my notes for the wow moment, but the real moment came when Mashrafe Mortaza knocked out Southee. Innings. Match. Series. The 25,000-plus people in the stadium exploded in ecstasy; high-fives, hugs, screams in already-sore throats, and the flying flags… it was unreal.Close encounter
Grant Elliot fielded close to our stand early during the Bangladesh innings, and rather strangely, took sips out of a water bottle behind the boundary ropes thrice in the same over. After every delivery, he would come and take a sip, drop the bottle and go to field, only to come back the next delivery. The crowd expressed concerns over his bladder situation. Rubel Hossain and Abdur Razzak, who also patrolled the zone, got loud cheers.Shot of the day
Kyle Mills was brought back to bowl the first over of the batting Powerplay. Facing him was Naeem Islam, also known as “Chokka” to fans, because he’s the only batsman in domestic cricket to hit six sixes in an over. Naeem stepped out to a fuller ball and nonchalantly hit it over long-on for a six. Whaddashot!Surprise element
With the two most destructive New Zealand batsmen at the crease – Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor – Mushfiqur handed the ball to Mominul Haque, despite having more experienced options in Nasir Hossain and Naeem. Mominul’s seemingly innocuous offies not only tied the batsmen down – he went for just four runs in his first three overs – but also trapped McCullum in front. He returned after the Powerplay to dismiss Nathan McCullum.Crowd meter
The stands are always packed for limited-over games in Mirpur, but there was a little extra spirit in this game. It was loud and throbbing throughout. Rapid Mexican waves circled the gallery, coordinated claps and beats echoed frequently, and every Bangladesh boundary and New Zealand wicket was greeted with thunderous roars. Even the 12th men circling the ropes with towels and bottles of Gatorade were cheered on. It was great to run into two members of the pulsating cricket forum banglacricket.com, Lamisa and Zeeshan, in the same gallery as us.Entertainment
The sound system was lousy and we couldn’t hear much of what the DJ was playing, so the non-cricket entertainment was not great. However, an excited electronic scoreboard operator typing “Bangladesh win by 40 wickets” was pretty hilarious at the end.Accessories
With too many restrictions as of what could be brought inside the stadium, we could only take our flags to the ground, but the four of us who went together (a shout-out to Dip, Ananda and Samin) painted our faces red and green. The paint work was so impressive that some spectators even had their photos taken with us.Banner of the day
“Kiwis, do you remember you were Banglawashed in 2010?. (PS) I love you Rita”Overall
This was a dream match. To watch our side put post a competitive score, which was backed up by the bowlers with a zingy, disciplined effort to ensure a clinical series win was nothing short of overwhelming. While New Zealand fought hard, Bangladesh were never in real threat of losing the game. The atmosphere was buzzing, the cricket was splendid, and there were no interruptions or lapses. As I rode my bicycle out of Mirpur into the relatively empty Dhaka streets after the match, I knew the warm feeling of victory inside me was one I’d never forget.Marks out of 10
10.

As England discovered in the Ashes, knowing what to expect from Mitchell Johnson is a different matter to countering it

Daniel Brettig13-Feb-20140:00

‘Enjoying my role as the aggressive bowler’ – Johnson

With these words, Ian Botham described facing Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis in the fractious English summer of 1992. Well after it was established that Pakistan’s pace duo were masterful at moving the old ball, England continued to collapse to it. If anything, the slides became more dramatic as the series went on, the knowledge of previous implosions fixed in the minds of both hunter and hunted, and culminating in a hiding at The Oval.Mitchell Johnson’s thrilling, terrifying and utterly compelling burst at Centurion carried a similar whiff of the familiar. He had done all this before, in full public view, against England in the Ashes. He was bowling to South Africa, the best team in the world, packed with players who had faced Johnson plenty of times before. And there was nothing subtle or secretive about his method, all furious pace, sharp bounce and plenty of menace from that powerful, slingy action.But for all that was known about Johnson, and Australia, and for all they had boasted of claims to being the best attack in the world, the moment of collision still hit South Africa’s batsmen with shocking and unexpected force. The bowling coach Craig McDermott had threatened that Johnson was capable of improving upon the torment he inflicted upon England, an outlandish claim considering the 37 wickets he had plucked. Yet by the close of play McDermott’s words rang true – not once during the Ashes had Johnson dismembered the England top order in quite the manner he did so here.Would Mitchell Johnson’s form continue? The answer was not long in coming•Getty ImagesMuch of Johnson’s value against England had been in how he completely unnerved the tail, after disciplined work by Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, Nathan Lyon and Shane Watson to winkle out the top order. This time, however, Johnson cut through the world’s most-vaunted batting line-up almost on his own, opening up a wound that not even the singular talent of AB de Villiers could adequately dress. South African pride in their Test team is considerable, but the usually boisterous gathering at Centurion was reduced to stunned, awed silence.Johnson did have some helpful history to call upon. His efforts in 2008-09 against Graeme Smith and company had first announced him as a potentially irresistible force, breaking hands and faces as well as wickets. Certainly Smith took on a haunted, fidgety visage when preparing to face up to Johnson, fully aware of the pummelling his digits had taken in the past. The captain, Michael Clarke, capitalised on this, posting a backward short leg and a packed cordon, while exhorting Johnson to whir in at his fastest.What followed was the kind of brief exchange that Johnson had previously with Jonathan Trott in Brisbane. His first ball thudded into Smith’s thigh and looped to Alex Doolan under the helmet, too quick for the captain’s bat. His second was shorter, straighter and, unless the speed gun is to be believed, faster, angling sickeningly towards Smith’s head well before he was ready. Initially, Smith shaped to hook, then to defend but succeeded in neither. His feet were off the ground as the ball looped off the bat handle, and his head soon bowed as Shaun Marsh took a decent catch.Such ugly dismissals stay in the minds of batsmen, whether they be the one dismissed or his team-mates who watched it. Alviro Petersen was a witness at the other end and there was something involuntary about the panicked swish he offered in Johnson’s third over, offering a simple edge to Brad Haddin. Around this time, Kevin Pietersen tweeted from his couch in London: “When you facing someone as quick as Mitchell, your instinct occasionally makes you do things you shouldn’t.. PACE causes indecision!” It was the first thing Pietersen has said in months that Alastair Cook would have to agree with.A finer delivery was still to follow. Faf du Plessis may have scored few runs in recent times but to Australians he is still the unflappable debutant who confounded them with his dead bat and calm countenance in Adelaide and Perth in 2012. Johnson duly conjured a shortish ball that spat and seamed, catching the shoulder of du Plessis’ bat before he knew it had arrived and skewering to Clarke at second slip. An exultant “F*** off Faf” was heard through the stump microphone, as Johnson’s brutality brought Australian blood-lust to the surface, much as it had done in Brisbane.Three for 23 then, and South Africa shattered. Peter Siddle chipped in with an excellent spell to subdue Hashim Amla, who was struck a painful blow on the arm by Johnson before he succumbed lbw – another nod to McDermott’s desire for a fuller length. Though de Villiers fought, with momentary help from JP Duminy, these early incisions were deep ones. Johnson’s hold on proceedings would be enhanced by a magnificent running catch to reward Nathan Lyon for tempting Duminy and then a ball rather wasted on the porous forward defence of Ryan McLaren.It is too early to know exactly how this battering will play on South African minds. They may be capable of moving past it, and summoning an effective method against Johnson. But like Botham, they knew what was coming and could do nothing about it. Johnson now knows this too, as he did against England. He will kill again.

The winning feeling must return to the Bangladesh team and Chandika Hathurusingha will need to adapt quickly to help make it happen

Mohammad Isam20-May-2014Chandika Hathurusingha has become the head coach of a Test team, in itself a major opportunity to put up his value as a coach. While on the job, he will be able to access the built-in advantage of Bangladesh cricket, which is to create history by beating higher-ranked sides in Tests and ODIs as well as bringing visible improvements to a developing cricket team.Despite reasonable coaching experience, handling a team of this stature and following will take some time to adjust to, and it should be no different for Hathurusingha. Interestingly, adjustment is also what the Bangladesh Cricket Board has to do. Having seen a bitter end to the promising Shane Jurgensen’s reign as head coach, they will have to show more patience with Hathurusingha. He will come with new ideas and fresh thinking, and that has to be given time to mature.Results are going to be in demand but should not alone define him, as was the case when board directors cast doubt over Jurgensen’s future or when Richard Pybus fell out with them during his short reign. Jurgensen was hardly noticed when Bangladesh were playing well, but when wins dried up in the space of three months, the BCB directors suggested the need for new men in charge. It was far too soon to question a coach, but this experience and the fact that their last three coaches did not see the end of their contracts should be suggestion enough on how to approach the new man.They have made a good start, so to speak. The committee’s five members have stuck their necks out in suggesting his name and then working hard to get him to agree. Khaled Mahmud, one of the three former captains on the committee, said he was a long-time admirer of Hathurusingha the coach.”It is not only his Level-4 coaching degree or the fact that Kumar Sangakkara thinks highly of him but what I liked about him is his coaching philosophy and work ethic,” Mahmud said. “I have seen him coaching from up close, and I feel he is a good communicator. His coaching experience doesn’t have international cricket but I feel he can make it up with his own attributes.”Hathurusingha has been coaching for nine years and has built quite a reputation, so much so that Sangakkara had written a letter to the SLC describing how good he felt Hathurusingha was, and to reconsider him after the fallout of 2010. He has coached Sri Lanka A, UAE and Sydney Thunder and assisted at New South Wales. Regardless of the standard of his coaching experience, he is well regarded in his homeland.His move to Bangladesh may be viewed as a forceful indictment on the state of affairs at the SLC. That the BCB can pay its coaches more is no surprise, but merely a week ago Hathurusingha had expressed interest in the Sri Lanka job, outlining the allure of working for his home team, in his own land.Whether he would have been the best candidate for the Sri Lanka job is unclear, but there’s no doubt he made a fine candidate. A coach with intimate knowledge of the local systems, who communicated clearly, excelled in his knowledge of technique and strategy, and was already a popular and respected among the players, might have been brought in for discussions with the board. Instead he was kept at arm’s length over an ancient scrape.From Bangladesh’s point of view, they would be seeking further improvement as a Test team, more success as an ODI side and greater learning in T20s. Bangladesh’s birth as a competitive international team began under Dav Whatmore, developed further with Jamie Siddons, moved along with Stuart Law for less than a year, but hardly went anywhere with Pybus. Jurgensen brought more success in Tests and ODIs, and Hathurusingha will be expected to perform better than his predecessors.His first look at the team will be during the short ODI series against India, after which he will get two months to prepare the players for West Indies. Tests against Zimbabwe are scheduled, and then the World Cup in Australia. Hathurusingha’s intimate knowledge of those conditions will be useful but it will be the Bangladesh players who have to take a few extra steps, having last played there in 2008.But first, he has to understand what he has to work with in Bangladesh. When asked what a coach has to do to succeed here, Jurgensen said it would have to be someone who can adapt to the local culture, but remain in control and be forceful.”As a coach, one needs to have the ability to adapt to any situation, whether it is Bangladesh, India or Australia,” Jurgensen said. “That team will have a culture, and you have to be able to adapt quickly. It is also important that he is able to relate to a young team.”Yes, have control and right discipline to the environment but ensuring to adapt. I was here for three years but the players will be here for 10-15 years. That team will have a foundation of a culture and environment. There’s an opportunity here to take the team to the next level. It started under Stuart in the Asia Cup and then 2013 had some significant results. The next five years could be exciting, give the opportunity and support for the team and coach.”Adjusting and adapting will be in Hathurusingha’s mind the moment he lands in Bangladesh next month. The same applies to his new employers, particularly because this is a time when the winning feeling has to be returned to the Bangladesh team.Additional reporting by Andrew Fidel Fernando

Sanjay Bangar talks about his quick transition from player to coach, his philosophy and the reasons behind Kings XI Punjab’s turnaround

Interview by Nagraj Gollapudi18-Sep-2014″[At the auction] I was looking for players who were looking to prove a point”•BCCIAs the first Indian coach in the IPL, how did you look at the job: was it challenging or exciting?
It was both. There were a lot of expectations to begin with. I always felt that it could open up opportunities for qualified Indian coaches to get a look-in based on how an Indian performs. So from that perspective I always felt that it was a sort of added responsibility.It was exciting because till I took over the role at Kings XI I had just worked with a group of youngsters from the India A team. Even during my time with Railways I played the role of mentor. So I had just worked with Indians. At Kings XI, I suddenly found myself with a mix of international cricketers. There are always self doubts which you have to counter, look in the eye and overcome.But you had no coaching experience.
It would not be fair to say I had no coaching experience. I had gone through courses at the National Cricket Academy and also conducted few training camps and the India A experience was also part of it. After 2004, during my time with Railways, it was not only about playing – I was also doing a lot of things around the team [in terms of mentoring and coaching]. You can say that was a learning experience.This was T20, not a game where you were successful as a player. Did you have to mould your thought process in a certain way?
Not exactly mould myself. But probably understand how T20 operates a bit better and try and identify players who could possibly have the potential to play that sort of a role. From that perspective I just felt I needed to identify players who are capable of playing various roles. Versatility and identification of the skills they possess is important.What were the parameters that you judged players on before shortlisting them for the auction?
Intrinsic motivation was a big part. I was looking for players who were looking to prove a point. People are at various stages of their careers: there are going to be players who are starting, there are some who are at the end of their careers, and there are some who are experiencing a golden run. Obviously the motivation for each is different. It is not just the financial part that should be the motivation. Apart from that, cricketing ambitions and having a cricketing point to prove were more important.Do you remember the first time you assembled the dressing room?
When we arrived in Mohali I had just the Indians, most of whom I had played with. Then the entire squad met in Dubai [where the first phase of the IPL was held]. At that point there were obviously a few self-doubts, as to how I would be liked. After the first few days, I felt relaxed. It might have been just five days.Coaching is so much more about trust and having a good working understanding and relationship with players. You need to earn the respect of players and that takes time. Just as a coach wants to see his players put everything into practice and matches, the players also want to see somebody who is working probably equally hard.You said you wanted a certain brand of cricket played. Virender Sehwag said Kings XI were playing aggressive cricket. Can you expand on this?
Kings XI is a Punjab-based team. And we know how tough the people of Punjab are. They identify with a few qualities quickly – like bravado, because they have had to wage so many battles to sustain themselves over the last nine or ten centuries. From that perspective they admire qualities like resilience and a brand of cricket that is fearless and without doubting one’s capacity. That was a message we tried to drive home at various times.How much did Sehwag bring to the team think tank?
Viru’s role is very important. He was struggling throughout the last season, not getting enough runs in the Ranji Trophy. But the class was there. I have always maintained that his skill has not really gone down. The way he was batting during his prime is still there. That sort of freedom and the sort of mindset he brings into the game is so refreshing and it catches on so quickly. That is something we really benefited from. Also, the kind of team man he is: there is no ego as such because he is probably one of the greatest batsmen of our times and was one of the biggest influences on Indian cricket’s success recently. So his overall personality and the way he conducted himself without any sort of inflated self-importance had a tremendous impact on the entire group. Not just the uncapped Indian players but even among the international overseas players.The other senior man in the team is George Bailey. Did he make your job easy?
A man of great integrity and very judicious. He did a lot of things to make the Indian guys comfortable. He did make an effort to reach out to them, and that is one big reason he could bring the best out of the Indian players.Initially there was a bit of reluctance on his part to consider the captaincy. Because as a captain you have to deal with various things, including taking care of players, communicating to them about selections, attending the media. It can be a thankless job. Life as a player is far easier as opposed to life as a captain of a high-profile team.And then to have another senior international player under you at times, that can also add to the challenge. But our areas of work were clearly demarcated: I would do the bulk of those jobs before he stepped onto the field. Keeping all that in mind, George has done a very good job.

“Players are the main drivers of the game of cricket. I always believe that coaching is something that needs to be done in the background. The credit should always go to the players who are putting their bodies on the line”

Then there is Glenn Maxwell.
He is the lifeline of our team. He is a very jovial guy, a character full of life. Apart from his on-the-field antics, he would double up as an entertainer off the field. He would do impromptu interviews within the group and post them on the web. Apparently those were followed a lot and quite hilarious at times.Maxwell’s strength as a batsman is, he feels there is not one area on a ground where a shot cannot be played. I believe he wants to challenge all boundaries. He wants to challenge the coaching manual.The other key batsman is the South African, David Miller. Why did you decide to promote Miller?
I believe Miller was just batting too much lower down the order. I felt there has to be a batsman at No. 5 who can accelerate and consolidate as per the match situation. He fulfilled that role very well for us by at times curbing his natural instincts, which is to attack. Both Miller and Maxwell are as good as brothers. You know how brothers are: they quarrel, pull pranks, they are at each other all the time. They share an interesting camaraderie. And that helps the entire group. You have said that being hungry is the key, and a quality you look for in a cricketer. How do you assess that?
Take the case of Wriddhiman Saha. I always believed he has been one of the best wicketkeepers in the country, and who has a lot of capability with the bat as well. But that has never been utilised by the teams he has played for. He has been dying for somebody to say that this guy can do the job. Make him believe he has the ability and can perform. I could sense that during my time in domestic cricket while playing against him. So Saha was one of the finds for us. He took his chances so well and made a really good case for himself.At times you also see certain players, despite performing very well, do not get an opportunity. There are players from smaller states who do not get the platform because they are not being seen by people who matter. Maybe that experience of seeing them first-hand could have helped me a bit.Some of the boys I saw in an Under-23 camp organised by NCA. Some of the spinners we eventually picked were from that group: Shivam Sharma, who was struggling to find a place in the Delhi U-25 team was one. Akshar Patel from Gujarat has contributed in all departments, and Sandeep Sharma was not getting enough opportunities [in the IPL] in the past. The credit should go to players because they raised their game and could fulfil their potential.Sehwag compared your style of coaching – in terms of providing the motivation and keeping calm – to that of Gary Kirsten. How big a compliment is that?
Unfortunately I could never work under Gary. I played all my cricket under John Wright. But Viru is somebody who always speaks his heart. So definitely I take it as a big compliment.You have always kept a low profile, even as a player. Does it help to remain understated and work in the background?
Players are the main drivers of the game of cricket. I always believe that coaching is something that needs to be done in the background. The credit should always go to the players who are putting their bodies on the line. It is their careers. So what I could give them is provide them a broad framework, motivate them, and provide them a good working environment.According to L Balaji, you are very clear what the team needs from an individual.
There are so many small, small things that happen which contribute to the eventual outcome of a match. So identifying those small moments and encouraging them and building up is important. Giving those small contributors equal importance, as much as a player who is seen as a match-winner is necessary. Players like Rishi Dhawan, Karanveer Singh, Mandeep Singh – these guys gave their all in any capacity and tried to improve their cricketing skills.You are said to be very clear in your communication. How important is that in an environment like the IPL?
Communication is absolutely vital. During the IPL there were a few harsh decisions where I had to tell a player that he is not part of the team, or he would not be travelling with the squad. At times it can get to a level where it can be termed as nasty. But it is always good to speak directly because once you do that, people will respect you for it.”The way Virender Sehwag conducted himself without any sort of inflated self-importance had a tremendous impact on the entire group”•BCCIYou were suddenly appointed assistant coach during India’s ODI series of England. Was it overwhelming to enter the Indian dressing room again?
So long as I was playing I could put on my India t-shirt or put the Indian emblem on my helmet and play. But after you retire, that opportunity is no more there. So the feeling to be back in the Indian dressing room and wear the national colours is a proud moment.I do not think I was overwhelmed. I just look at the job as a level ahead, as a responsibility. I start each assignment by taking a fresh guard. It is again about trying build relationships, trying to earn respect, trying to earn the trust of the people you work with. It takes time.Do you believe that an Indian coach can play a key role in the national dressing room?
It should never be about an Indian or an overseas coach. We need to get over such things. You need to be competent enough. You need to be challenging your own benchmark on a regular basis. Cricket is evolving and any person in that capacity needs to constantly evolve, try and improve and bring fresh ideas.There is a popular belief that an Indian coach will communicate better with players than an overseas one.
It all boils down to individuals. How badly one wants to make a mark – that probably drives the kind of work he eventually does.What have you learned in your first year as a coach?
There is so much more to learn, that is what I have learned. You have to be yourself. If you put on a face that is not you, you will be found out.

Australia gambled with their XI, Clarke set some unconventional fields, but the result remained the same – another day of Pakistan domination

Brydon Coverdale in Abu Dhabi30-Oct-2014It was hard to decide what was the strangest sight on the first day in Abu Dhabi, Glenn Maxwell’s name at No. 3 on an Australian Test team-sheet or the presence of a fielder at straight-hit. Or a five-man cordon the batsmen. Australia tried funky selections, funky captaincy and funky fields. At the end of it all, they were still in a funk.By the 63rd over they had used eight bowlers; for a while Michael Clarke and Steven Smith rotated in one-over spells from the north end. They had run out of ideas in Dubai and made up for it here, where they expected the pitch to be even deader. For all the eccentricities the result was the same. Another day of Pakistan domination, another Younis Khan hundred.Clarke walked off the ground clapping his bowlers but might well have scratched his head with Pakistan’s total on 304. He was not exactly short-changed on the bowling front, for the inclusion of Mitchell Starc for Steve O’Keefe gave him an extra fast man on a surface he felt would offer less spin than Dubai. A few half-chances went begging but only two wickets fell. It is hard to visualise an Australian victory from here.It will be fascinating to see how his batsmen fare on day two or, more likely, day three, given that Pakistan will be in no hurry to declare. It will be fascinating full-stop to see this particular batting line-up operate in a Test, with allrounders at first drop and No.6.There was an Australian cricket journalist who used to refer to his head office as “the ideas factory”, a place where half-baked concepts would be formulated with little concern for the man on the ground tasked with implementing them. Clarke might feel like he’s had a visit from the ideas factory himself.Maxwell, the selectors say, has the x-factor. Maxwell as a Test No. 3? That’s a case of the “why?” factor. No longer a selector, Clarke was seen in a long discussion with coach Darren Lehmann at training on match eve. When that tete-a-tete broke up, Clarke called over his vice-captain Brad Haddin and an equally lengthy chat took place.The gist of Clarke’s conversation with Haddin: what the hell do we do with the batting order? Together they came up with the idea that Maxwell would come in at No.3. Clarke was handed Maxwell for Alex Doolan but took responsibility himself for deciding that it would be a straight swap at first drop; by his reckoning, Maxwell handles spin well and has the necessary positivity.”If spin doesn’t open the bowling it will be on pretty early,” Clarke said. “I think batting in these conditions is like batting in the middle order. We have seen what the wicket is like and I think we have seen after about two overs with the new ball, the ball will stop swinging and then we all become middle-order players. If we were playing in different conditions or another part of the world it might have been different.”That Maxwell scored more runs at a higher average than Doolan in the Sheffield Shield last summer suggests that the swap will cost Australia little in the batting department while offering them an extra bowling option. A safer approach would have been to promote the in-form Smith to No. 3 and keep Maxwell down in the lower middle-order, where all of his first-class success has come.Of course, Phillip Hughes must wonder what more he needs to do to avoid being a permanent mascot. He struggled badly against spin in India last year, so presumably the selectors felt Hughes for Doolan would offer them little upside; Maxwell for Doolan at least gave them an extra bowler. But after scoring 597 Shield runs at 54.27 last summer, he deserves to be in the mix for the home Tests against India.Late in the day, Hughes was on the field as a substitute and put in a desperate rolling dive to cut off a boundary when Younis swept Maxwell. It was the kind of selfless act that spoke of a desire to keep impressing, to keep reminding the captain and selectors of his worth. Clarke raised his hands above his head and gave Hughes a hearty clap.By that point, Clarke was happy with any little thing that went right. He had tried everything his imagination could summon. He surmised early that this was not a pitch on which edges would be flying, and within the first 10 overs of the day the fast men were operating with one slip and four catchers in front of the wicket.The most peculiar fielding setups came after lunch when Peter Siddle bowled with two short midwickets, a short mid-on, a short mid-off and a short cover. It was as if the slip cordon had walked in front of the batsman and turned around. Even weirder was the presence of Mitchell Johnson behind the umpire at the top of Siddle’s mark. It could best be described as short straight-hit.”It seemed that was where the ball was going at the time,” Clarke said, “so I tried a fielder there.”By the end of the day David Warner, Chris Rogers and Brad Haddin were the only men who had not been called on to bowl. You wouldn’t rule out their having a trundle on day two. But it was strange that Smith was asked for only three overs, for although he can leak runs his unpredictability creates chances. His first over brought an edge from Azhar Ali that narrowly beat Warner at slip.It could be argued that Clarke mixed things up too much, that he might have been better off plugging away with a more regulation field. But really, would it have made a difference? Pakistan’s batsmen showed in Dubai they are well suited to patience and choosing their shots wisely on pitches that offer the bowlers little.The story goes that it was in Arabia that Aladdin rubbed his lamp, and it was where on day one the Australians similarly hoped to conjure something from nothing. In the end, they conjured nothing out of nothing. They will be glad they are not here for 1001 Arabian nights.

Australia won this series in spite of some of the flattest pitches seen down under for years. It is three decades since Melbourne and Sydney both ended in stalemate

Daniel Brettig at the SCG10-Jan-20153:46

Agarkar and Bevan’s combined XI

Last time the Melbourne and Sydney Tests both finished in draws, it was 1986. Sunil Gavaskar and Allan Border were opposing each other on the field rather than presenting their trophy to the victorious captain. Steve Waugh, Merv Hughes and Geoff Marsh were uncertain debutants, Ravi Shastri a wiry twenty-something allrounder.India were an emerging power in the game, having won the 1983 World Cup and the 1985 World Championship of Cricket. But they were still considered a poor relation by the likes of England and Australia, and it had not been long since they were required to pay for the reciprocal right to tour other nations.Test cricket was a sedate affair – draws were frequent, and scoring rates commonly hovered around 2.5 an over. In Adelaide, the first Test of that series, Australia pottered around for 149 overs to make 381, and India responded with 520 across 202 overs. As Wisden put it: “Adverse weather, which cost 300 minutes’ play during the last three days, was only one of the factors leading to the draw.”For all that, Melbourne would have been an Indian victory without rain washing out the final session when the visitors stood poised at 2 for 59 in pursuit of 126. Sydney was also in the lap of Kapil Dev’s team, and had they batted with a little more purpose early on the second day there would surely have been enough time to round up a nervy Australian team when they followed on later.What this illustrates is how rare it has been for the Boxing Day and New Year’s Tests to both end in stalemates, and how much Test cricket has moved on in pace and proactivity to lessen the possibility of such non-results. What the observer of history and trend is left to conclude is that the pitches for Melbourne and Sydney – and to a lesser extent Adelaide and Brisbane – have left too much to the batsmen’s imagination.As they are apt to do, Australia’s pace bowlers were first to suggest that the surfaces for this series have been a little too friendly to those who wield the willow. Mitchell Johnson reckoned that while Adelaide is expected to be a difficult week for fast bowlers, Brisbane had lost pace and bounce relative to the rapid strip prepared for England, and Melbourne’s drop-in was neither lively enough at the start nor cracked enough at the finish.Johnson’s pace dropped away significantly during the series, as he was pushed into longer spells by Steven Smith and Darren Lehmann on unresponsive pitches. Ryan Harris and Josh Hazlewood had their moments, but the former offered similar critiques of the pitches, and the major share of the work was left to Nathan Lyon. His response was admirable – 23 wickets was a career-best in a single series, the first time an Australian spinner had led the series aggregates in a home bout since Nathan Hauritz against Pakistan in 2009-10.But the struggles of the faster men against opponents who have a reputation of being uncomfortable on pitches affording bounce or movement told a story that went beyond the relative merits of the two teams. Australia’s curators for 2014-15 have been a timid lot, preparing surfaces that they hoped would produce a result on the last day, but not providing enough assistance at either end to make it certain.The administrators, too, have played a part, by excising Perth from the rota of Test match grounds for the first time since 1973. The WACA Ground’s facilities are a matter of some debate, and there has been much conjecture about the future of the ground given the widespread move towards homogenised all-sport stadia with drop-in pitches, as will be built at Burswood in 2018. India would not mind never playing a Test at the WACA Ground again, but Australia’s fast bowlers – and more than a few batsmen – would weep at the same thought.Where is the variable bounce? Where is the seam movement? What do bowlers turn to?•Cricket AustraliaThe bowlers were driven almost to tears on day five in Sydney, as the uncertain bounce they hoped for did not materialise. Only Lyon managed to get the sort of variation desired, one ball in each of first and second innings sliding fast along the floor to defeat Rohit Sharma then R Ashwin. Mitchell Starc gained a tad of new-ball swing and rather more reverse in arguably his best Test match display. But when he and Ryan Harris took the second new ball they found remarkably little movement off the surface.Steven Smith and Virat Kohli, the two opposing captains in this series, have also been masters of every bowler they surveyed. Four hundreds and near enough to 700 runs each, they have batted to a wondrously high standard. But they have had to, in the knowledge that a first innings short of 500 would be decidedly pregnable, and a fourth innings chase was always conceivable no matter how distant the target.”It has been tough to get 20 wickets in this Test series,” Smith said. “The wickets haven’t broken up quite as we thought they might have, I don’t know the reasons for that. But it’s been tough and the bowlers have toiled extremely hard throughout these four Test matches, and I’m really proud of how they’ve gone throughout these games.”I thought 90 overs with them having a little dip at us with the bat, we would be a good chance to win this game but it wasn’t to be. I think the wicket didn’t break up quite as much as I thought it would, there wasn’t much up and down movement with balls on the stumps, I think with Nathan into the rough there were a few that hit the gloves and went straight into the ground, on a different day those pop up and you get wickets.”Kohli cast his mind back to 2011-12. While he reasoned that the MCG’s drop-in barely changed and Adelaide retained its character, he reckoned that Sydney had slowed considerably, while the replacement of the WACA with the Gabba reaped the most equitable pitch of the series.”Melbourne I think was pretty similar last time, I don’t think we played that well the last time around,” Kohli said. “Adelaide again was similar. I think Brisbane was probably was the most true wicket this series. It had a bit for both bowlers and batsmen. This wicket was surprisingly slow. Sydney the last time around was much quicker as far as I remember.”That Indian team had been unhappy with the wickets served up, most notably those in Sydney and Perth. This time they have managed to halve the margin from 4-0 to 2-0, helped in no small part by the pitches prepared. If the cricket of 2014-15 was not quite as slow burning as that of 1985-86, then the gap was uncomfortably close.

He was India’s best player in England, but how would he cope with Australian conditions when the Kookaburra ball fails to swing? Sydney showed he wasn’t able to

Sidharth Monga at the SCG07-Jan-2015Bhuvneshwar Kumar was India’s conscience on the tour of England. Not only was he their best player of the tour, he was their spirit, their fight, their pride even when others capitulated towards the end. Only in The Oval Test did he play a loose shot to get out. Yet there were question marks over whether he would be in the Test XI in Australia because the ball doesn’t seam much. Or swing, it is mysterious.Nobody has ever figured out a fool-proof cause-and-effect relationship with regards to swing. When suggested that Bhuvneshwar might not be effective in Australia because of his low pace and no seam movement, former India captain Rahul Dravid said, before the start of the series, “He swings the ball, boss.” If a cricket ball is going to swing, you can trust Bhuvneshwar to do it.Only the Kookaburra swings the least of the three cricket balls used in Tests, SG in India and Duke in England. And if selected for a match this series, it would have been Bhuvneshwar’s first with the Kookaburra. In Adelaide, the team was spared an uncomfortable decision: do you play your best player from the previous series despite conditions not being conducive to his type of bowling? Bhuvneshwar was injured, and India had no choice. Given the inconsistency of the attack, though, by the time India reached Brisbane they became desperate to get him fit. He bowled in the nets before the MCG Test, but was not match fit.There was much anticipation around Bhuvneshwar when he was finally picked for Sydney. There was trepidation too. His ankle was strapped and he hadn’t quite gone all out in the nets on the day before, or at least that’s how it seemed. The bigger question, though, was what if it doesn’t swing? In this series no bowler has been able to swing the ball conventionally apart from the odd one here or there. What would Bhuvneshwar fall back on when there is no swing?It was apparent soon enough that there was no swing. Or seam. Or variable bounce. The pace soon dropped. The keeper began to stand up to the stumps. Bhuvneshwar even got some treatment on his ankle in the final session of the day. On day two he regularly bowled around 120kmph. When Ryan Harris smacked him around he had to wait and wait – he could have signed a few copies of his newly released book – and wait for the ball to arrive.As usual the areas he bowled was immaculate. If Mohammed Shami starts to bowl those areas he will be a real mean Test bowler. Yet there was no pace or movement. ESPNcricinfo’s graphs have yellow balls for speeds between 55mph and 80mph, and orange ones for 80 to 85. The orange ball is ideally where Bhuvneshwar wants to be. He has them only for left-hand batsmen, who were the openers. By the time he came back for later spells Bhuvneshwar had ceased being a factor, bowling only two balls that breached the yellow zone. You are not going to be a threat at Test level if you don’t do anything with the ball, and hardly bowl 130kmph. At least he didn’t go at four an over.Yellow fever: Bhuvneshwar Kumar barely got past 80mph•ESPNcricinfoThe pitch was so flat the India attack would have conceded 500 regardless. When there is no encouragement from the pitch and when the batsmen are running rampant, it is difficult to keep bowling with the same intensity as when you were successful. Yet you can’t help but wonder if India had been a bit too desperate, rushing him back to Test cricket, with not much cricket under his belt. MS Dhoni had said before the last Test that he was fit for a one-day international, but not quite up to Test-match fitness. Now with Ishant Sharma, too, injured, India possibly fell for the need for experience and got Bhuvneshwar in prematurely. This is only the third time in his career that Bhuvneshwar has bowled at least 10 overs in an innings, and has gone wicketless.The India camp won’t have any of it, though. Shami said at the end of the day’s play that there was no way Bhuvneshwar would have been picked had he not been a 100% fit, and that his fitness shouldn’t be judged based on his pace. What about the treatment he received on the sidelines when the play was on? Was it possible he worsened his ankle during the game? Shami said those were just running repairs.Don’t take India’s words on players’ fitness, though. A day after BCCI sources had ruled Bhuvneshwar out for at least the first two Tests, but on the eve of the match in Adelaide, then stand-in captain Virat Kohli said there was nothing wrong with Bhuvneshwar and that he was available for selection for Adelaide. Go figure.

Stats highlights from the World Cup final between Australia and New Zealand

Bishen Jeswant29-Mar-2015547 Runs scored by Martin Guptill in the 2015 World Cup, the most by any batsman in the tournament. He is the only New Zealand batsmen to score 500-plus runs in a single World Cup. Scott Styris scored 499 runs in the 2007 edition.0 Runs scored by Brendon McCullum in this match, the lowest by any captain in a World Cup final. No other captain has scored a duck in a World Cup final, with the previous lowest being Clive Lloyd’s 8 against India in the 1983 final.1 New Zealand’s opening partnership, their lowest this World Cup. New Zealand’s opening pair averaged 56.5 in the World Cup prior to the final.400 The final was the 400th World Cup game. In all, there have been 3646 ODIs, so World Cup matches account for 11% of all ODIs.Brad Haddin, old and chirpy•Quinn Rooney/Getty Images1 Number of individuals who have played in a World Cup final and also umpired in one; Kumar Dharmasena is the only such man. He played in the 1996 final and officiated as an on-field umpire in the 2015 edition.37 Brad Haddin’s age (37 years, 157 days), making him the oldest Australia player to feature in a World Cup final. The previous oldest Australian was Glenn McGgrath (37 years, 78 days) when he played the 2007 final. The oldest man to play in a World Cup final is Rohan Kanhai (39 years, 177 days), in 1975.6 Number of players who have made 50-plus scores in the semi-final and final of the same World Cup. Grant Elliott became the fifth while Steven Smith became the sixth. The other players to do this are Mike Brearley (1979), David Boon (1987), Javed Miandad (1992) and Aravinda de Silva (1996).7 Ducks scored by New Zealand against Australia in this World Cup. They scored four ducks in the Final and three in the group game. No New Zealand batsman has a scored a single duck against any other opposition during this World Cup.22 Wickets taken by Trent Boult and Mitchell Starc during this World Cup, the joint-most in this tournament. Trent Boult’s 22 wickets is also the most wickets by any New Zealand bowler in a single World Cup.5 Number of World Cups that Australia have won, by far the most for any team. No other team has won more than two World Cups. India and West Indies have won a couple of World Cups each, while Sri Lanka and Pakistan have won one each.

As Matt Prior hangs up his gloves, a look back at some of the highs and lows of his career which included three victorious Ashes series

Andrew McGlashan11-Jun-2015April, 2001: Sussex debutsMatt Prior made his one-day and first-class debuts for Sussex early in the 2001 season, both against Worcestershire.December 2004: Bulawayo bowHis England debut came at one-day level first, against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, where he made 35 off 48 balls playing as a batsman and opening the innings with Ian Bell.May 2007: Larging it at Lord’sMarked his Test debut with a ferocious hundred against West Indies, 126 off 128 balls, becoming the first England wicketkeeper to make a century on his first appearance.December 2007: Drops and droppedPrior remained in the Test team for the remainder of 2007, but he endured a difficult series against India where he was embroiled in the controversy over who threw sweets on the pitch at Trent Bridge and, more importantly, spilled catches behind the stumps. That continued in Sri Lanka and at the end of that tour he was left out in favour of former Sussex team-mate Tim Ambrose.December 2008: Chennai comebackHe made his comeback towards the end of the 2008 season in the one-day side, under the captaincy of Kevin Pietersen, and then returned to the Test team on the tour of India when it resumed following the Mumbai terror attack. He made an unbeaten 53 on his return – although England lost to a Sachin Tendulkar-inspired run chase – and he would remain a fixture in the Test side for five years.March 2009: Tonking in TrinidadOn the following tour of West Indies – the first under the leadership of Andrew Strauss and Andy Flower – Prior capped off the series with his career-best 131 in Port of Spain, followed by 61 in the second innings.August 2009: Ashes gloryPrior’s first taste of Ashes cricket ended with England regaining the urn at The Oval. He made two half-centuries in the series (although he nearly missed the Headingley Test with a back spasm) and on the fourth day at The Oval produced a slick piece of work to stump Marcus North.January 2011: Sydney stunnerHe emerged from a slow start to his next Ashes – he was the middle victim of Peter Siddle’s Brisbane hat-trick – with a surge of runs in the famous victories at Melbourne and Sydney, finishing with 118 at the SCG, and he also claimed 23 dismissals behind the stumps, the most he took in a series.May-August 2011: Ruling the worldA golden period for Prior as he made it three hundreds in five Tests with centuries against Sri Lanka and India at Lord’s – although the match against Sri Lanka also saw him make headlines for the slightly more unfortunate incident of putting his bat through a dressing-room window. Made more important runs against India at Trent Bridge on the way to England’s 4-0 series victory which lifted them to No. 1 in the Test rankings.March 2013: Great escapeAlthough England’s Test fortunes soon started to slip from their 2011 peak, Prior remained at the heart of the team. He scored 275 runs in three Tests against South Africa and was a central figure in the famous victory in India, but he saved his best for New Zealand in Auckland. Five down at lunch on the final day – and seven at tea – England were given little hope of saving the match and hanging on for a share of the series but no one told Prior. Surviving a huge piece of luck on 28 when the ball did not dislodge a bail, he produced an unbeaten 110 and, alongside Stuart Broad and Monty Panesar, pulled off a great escape.December 2013: Not quite the endNamed England’s Player of the Year at the start of the 2013 season, Prior’s form took a dip as he started with a pair against New Zealand at Lord’s and was never at his best during the subsequent Ashes which England won 3-0. He started the return series down under, but when the Ashes were conceded he was dropped after the Perth Test where he had struggled with the gloves.June 2014: Battling backPrior was never one to give up and he fought his way back into the Test side at the beginning of the following summer, marking his return with 86 against Sri Lanka, but his injury soon started to take its toll again.July 2014: Leaving at Lord’sShortly after England had fallen to defeat against India at Lord’s, Prior announced that he was withdrawing from the team due to his injury although he would likely have been dropped. That Test would prove to be his final professional match. For a player who had such a fine record at Lord’s, it was ultimately fitting.