NZ ODIs - India strike first in a match of second-strings

NewZealand decided to make the ODI interesting by resting their two stars - Dan Vettori and Brendon McCullum - against an Indian team that had already rested five mainstream players. The Indian team lost the toss once again and it was a good chance for the Black Caps to take quick wickets.

The opening pair from India was quite good and even though they may not have scored a big one, managed to get a good start for the hosts. Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh capitalized on this and scored at a good pace. Virat has had a good start to his international career so far - taking care of all the opportunities that he has received thanks to injuries or India's rotation policy. An investment for the future, for sure - how he will fit into the playing eleven when the regulars are back is a good headache for the selectors.

Yuvraj has slipped in his own high fielding standards but seems to be making up for it by his bowling. He picked up useful wickets and looks like he will play this role frequently for India in the World Cup. Yusuf Pathan got a chance once again and thanks to missed catches, scored a brisk 29 - his bowling was not so good however. What impressed me most in this match was the bowling of the off-spinner Ashwin. The ball he bowled to Ross Taylor was one that displayed his temperament while being punished by the batsmen. Bowling a similar ball with the same flight and line, he foxed Taylor with the one that moved away. His captain was so confident about his bowling that most of the overs bowled during the Power-Play was done by Ashwin - again a player for the near future.

The Kiwis lacked the firepower in the bowling first and then the batting collapsed after the dismissal of Taylor. This is close to the team that lose to Bangladesh recently and not more is expected in this series as well. The bowlers struck regularly to bring the innings to the lower order. The token resistance from Mills was expected while the catches taken by Munaf Patel was surprising to watch!!!

Related articles

• NZ series - India finish the 2nd innings quickly (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)

Ashes series - Tame end to Brisbane test match

The First Test of the Ashes ended in a tame draw but not before a clear message was sent to the host team about its inability to take twenty wickets. They were helped by the bowling of Siddle on the first day of the test but in the second innings on the last two days of a test match that had a bit of rough, they drew a blank (The only wicket being taken by a part-time bowler). Australia would have given their everything to have a bowler who has half the ability of a Shane Warne or Glenn Mcgrath in their playing eleven but the truth is that they dont make such bowlers any more. Agreed that the wicket was not helping the bowlers in a big way - there was no innovation by the captain also in these circumstances. Ponting realized that he could not get wickets like the old ages and went back to the traditional approach followed by hundreds of captains in the game.

Aside Siddle's bowling display, Michael Hussey and Brad Haddin stood out in this test match with a rearguard display without which this test would have surely gone the English way. The Oz team management must be worried about the manner Clarke gets pinged on the helmet regularly these days. North will get a century in one of the subsequent test matches but that will not be enough. Shane Watson and Simon Katich are the ones who have been consistent in the days where the performance (and subsequently the ICC rankings) of the team has gone down - they were a bit inconsistent in this test match however. Overall, the Aussie batting does not give a comfort feel to their supporters and there is always an impression that the innings closure is just one dismissal away to start. The bowlers need to put up a better display in the next test matches if the Australian team harbors any hope of regaining the Ashes. Mitchell Johnson is on a downward spiral and a rest will probably give him a new dose of inspiration. Doherty tried his best but that was nowhere near the performance that could get even a couple of wickets, forget running through the innings. The fielding was also below-par, indicating that there were more issues for the think-tank to look at. With a strong opposition attack, the curators might be thinking of providing a pitch that suits a run-feast - this might be again a ploy that will backfire on the Aussies.

England made up for their first innings display very quickly with their bowling display. The H2 (Hussey-Haddin) partnership revived the hopes of the home team but the English closed the innings once they got through the partnership. Then came the memorable partnerships with the bat - Strauss must be cursing himself for having got out. If he had not succumbed to the wide ball of the occasional bowler, the scorecard could have very well read 517 for no loss. Alistair Cook and Trott made sure that the English domination went on for another 2 sessions on the last day. That was the extent of the domination caused by the English batsmen in the second innings. This batting display must have given the ex-English players (commentators like Nasser Hussain, David Gower, Ian Botham) a sense of revenge for the treatment they received from a certain Steve Waugh in the late 80s and early 90s. The bowlers did a fair job in the match but need to continue the same display if the team wants to have a favorable result in the next test. Swann was assaulted by Hussey in the first innings but very soon, the bowler managed to settle down his nerves. Even though he did not get the success he is usuallly associated with, he will be a bigger threat to the Aussies as the series progresses.

The series is 0-0 after one test match. My previous prediction still stands - the English are 55-45 ahead of their rivals.

Related articles

• Aussies consider bowling changes (news.bbc.co.uk)
• The Ashes 2010: England head to Adelaide with psychological ascendancy | Vic Marks (guardian.co.uk)
• James Lawton: Psychological victory is England's as Strauss and Cook tear into Johnson (independent.co.uk)

NZ series - India finish the 2nd innings quickly

India settled the match today very quickly, wrapping up the series in a convincing manner. They were helped by the umpires who had an off-day. The match never looked like ending on a different note, forget ending a day earlier. Rahul Dravid in this test match and Harbhajan Singh in the series have lead well in their roles, keeping the Indians at the top spot of the ICC Rankings.


MS Dhoni did the right strategy by starting the day with Pragyan Ojha. He struck early to put the Black Caps on the back foot. Wickets by Harbhajan and Suresh Raina meant that the NZ team was down to the lower-order batsmen before lunch. Token resistance by the tail was broken by Ishant Sharma. It helped the Indians that Ryder was suffering from calf injury (which has forced him to go back before the ODI series).

The poor NZ batting in the first innings, coupled with the bowling of Ishant Sharma was key for the Indians to make gains in this test very early. The return to form of Sreesanth and Ishant is good for the Indians before they embark on the South African tour. MS Dhoni's innings in this test should have given him a lot of confidence while his request for rest to be provided to Raina must be considered - Pujara is on the sidelines waiting for his chance.

Vettori must be happy with the performance of the team in the first two tests but this test match was beyond the capability of his team. The wicket in this match was a typical Indian wicket with turn and bounce. The form of McCullum must be a good sight for the captain while that of Ross Taylor must be giving him a headache. The reinforcements for the ODI matches will change the mood and set the tone for the new series. 

Related articles

• India select squads for NZ ODIs and SA series (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)
• NZ series - India manage to draw the 1st test (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)
• India clinch innings win over NZ (news.bbc.co.uk)

NZ series - Only rain can stop an Indian win

The Indian team made further progress today at Nagpur in slamming the door on the Black Caps, after a convincing display in the field.

Sachin Tendulkar, once again, gave his wicket to a debutant today. Does he try to inspire the newcomers by gifting his wicket away to them? Maybe this is his blessings to the youngsters in the cricketing world. Whatever it is, his early dismissal combined with a rare Laxman dismissal and a quick Raina exit put the Indians on the back-foot.

But, Rahul Dravid was not to be denied. Everyone in the recent past (including yours truly) has asked for his career to be brought to an early exit. "The Wall" did not think so. He was steady at the crease and ensured that with MS Dhoni, he would take the Indians to a large lead over NZ. Dhoni, playing his natural game, got to a near-century and kept the scorecard ticking. The selectors have agreed to his request for rest and this must have made him think freshly !!

New Zealand has, so far in this test match, won only half a session - the one where they took 3 quick wickets. Other than this, the 8.5 sessions have been won by the Indians. Looking forward, the NZ team should look at how the Indians did occupy the crease for 2 days in Napier and follow their example. But, the task is very huge - the ball is spinning and turning now. Only a rain can surely save the test series loss to NZ, not the batsmen.

Related articles

• NZ series - India make gains in the third test (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)
• NZ series - Harbhajan pulls India ahead in Hyderabad (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)
• NZ series - India manage to draw the 1st test (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)
• India select squads for NZ ODIs and SA series (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)

Ashes series - more trouble for Australia

The Australian team seemed to plunge into more problems on the Ashes series - recalling a person who was removed from the big original list of 17 only yesterday. Usman Khawaja was the beneficiary of a back injury to the vice-captain Michael Clarke - one that has been afflicting the batsman for quite sometime now.
The batsman was suffering from bad form in the previous tour to India - this injury coming at the start of the series must have given him and his captain a head-ache alright.

 
The captain himself is under pressure to get his act right in this series and bring back the urn to the Aussie sub-continent. He has lost two ashes series and another defeat now will put him under tremendous pressure. He put up a brave face at the conference today but agrees in the perception that his job is on the line.

Simon Katich and Marcus North however agree that Anderson will be handy in the Brisbane test. Even though Mitchell Johnson has mentioned that he will target the English captain in the test match, the general feeling that one gets on reading these articles is that the Aussies have really gone soft. Or are they really feeling the heat after the initial warm-up matches that the Poms played?

After today's development, I would feel that the English are slightly ahead (55-45) of the Australian team in this series. Let us see how the next 2 days pan out before the start of the first test.

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India select squads for NZ ODIs and SA series

Surprise selection!!!

The Indian selectors named two squads yesterday - NewZealand ODIs in India and the South Africa test series overseas. Few surprises there but overall the team has familiar faces as the core. 

The squad for first two ODIs versus New Zealand is:

Gautam Gambhir (capt), M Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Saurabh Tiwary, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Praveen Kumar, R Vinay Kumar, Munaf Patel, Sreesanth, Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja. 

The elevation to Gambhir is a recognition of his good work over the years and the confidence the team has on the opener despite his poor run this season. MS Dhoni's request to have a rest has been acknowledged by the selectors while that of Suresh Raina (through his captain) has not been entertained. Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra have been rested for the first 2 ODI matches of the series. Probably at some point of the series, one or two of them might still make a comeback. But, this was on expected lines. These players will also be the ones who might be sent earlier to South Africa.

Yusuf Pathan makes a comeback while Sreesanth is retained due to Nehra's absence. Ashwin gets couple of chances to prove his mettle again. Vinay Kumar seems to have given the impression to the selectors that he is fit for the ODIs more than the test matches. Jadeja continues his presence in the team but a good show by Yusuf will cement the latter's position for the next set of ODIs.

The squad for South Africa Tests has been announced as:

MS Dhoni (capt), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh, Suresh Raina, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Sreesanth, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Wriddhiman Saha, Umesh Yadav, Jaidev Unadkat, Pragyan Ojha. 

Couple of surprise selections here - Umesh Yadav and Wriddhiman Saha - for the squad embarking on the tour to South Africa. The reserve opener slot goes to Vijay while the middle order reserve slot goes to Pujara. Saha, surprisingly, gets the selection ahead of Dinesh Karthik or Parthiv Patel - probably the regional politics having its say. Jaidev Unadkat has not done so well in the Ranji matches to warrant a selection to the tour ahead of Vinay Kumar and Mithun. Ojha is the reserve spinner on a tour where the expectation would be to play only 1 spinner in the playing eleven. Sreesanth, Ishant Sharma along with Zaheer Khan will form an impressive pace-bowling team in test matches, provided they get their heads straight. This will be one tour the Indians will fancy their chances to win more than one test match (like the last tour).

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• Yadav, Saha picked for South Africa Tests (espncricinfo.com)
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Ashes series - Australia prune their squad

The Australian selectors dropped four players from their original squad of 17 with one surprise. Nathan Hauritz, the spinner they have preferred for quite some time now, has been dropped in favor of Xavier Doherty. The left-arm spinner has come out of nowhere in recent times into the squad and will fight with Steven Smith for the spinner's slot.

Are the Aussie selectors hoping to target Kevin Pietersen with the left-arm spinner? KP fell to a left-armer in the warm-up match - continuing his failures against left-arm spinners all around the world. If this was the reason for the Oz selectors, then I feel it is probably a short-sighted selection. Hauritz has gained by his experience and would have probably done a better job - though one must admit that in the spin department, England has the better bowler.

No other surprises in the squad though one wonders what option the Oz will go if Simon Katich is injured for the test match. Shane Watson is a converted opener and an injury to Katich against the formidable English opening pack will mean disaster. Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus, Doug Bollinger will fight out for two slots to partner Mitchell Johnson with the new ball.

After their strong performances in the warm-up matches, the English team must be very confident of the series that starts this week. The Australian team must feel the pressure but they still have the game to turnaround. This series will truly be a memorable one to follow.

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• The Ashes 2010: Shane Warne blasts Australia selectors for omitting Nathan Hauritz from 13-man Test squad (telegraph.co.uk)
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NZ series - India make gains in the third test

India was missing Zaheer Khan, MS Dhoni had lost yet another toss, New Zealand had performed well in the first 2 test matches of the series. All signs of a good day's play for them after they started the match.

Just like Rohit Sharma of the Indian team suffered a fall before the start of a test match against South Africa, McCullum had a fall but the Black Caps were not confident about dropping him from the match (especially after he had scored a double century in the previous test).

Sreesanth stepped up to lead the attack with some good swing bowling that he is renowned for. Good balls accounted for the opening batsmen - one wonders why this bowler does not have more days like this. If he can gain consistency like Zaheer, India will be a potent force to play against. Ishant also helped in getting wickets, reducing the Kiwis to a low score.

How many times does the Indian team allow Ryder to score big? He did once again even though he couldnt run much. It was a sorry sight to see both the batsmen at the crease struggle to run even a single, when there were runs on offer. Their footwork were also hampered and India made the most of it.

Of course, Dhoni has, of late, been making strange moves on the field when there are tailenders at the crease. For some reason, he moves the field outside for the batsmen so that they can take easy singles so that the bowlers can concentrate on the tailenders. This doesnt work many times and here also, it helped the Black Caps come back in the match with a partnership between McCullum and Ryder.

Overall, a good day for the Indians where they have won both the sessions played today. Tomorrow, they will have to finish the batting and the batsmen have to come to party. This match is not over but a good start for India has been given - they have to end well.

Related articles

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Should MSD follow McCullum and Sangakkara

Wikipedia
MS Dhoni has mentioned today that he will request the BCCI for rest before the series against South Africa overseas. He has mentioned Suresh Raina along with him. He says:

We will put in a request to the board but we have to see whether senior players are available or not

This statement means that he is still not sure of the rest. The squad will be announced probably during the last day of the test match.



If one remembers, few days back, the BCCI had agreed to send few Indian players early to South Africa to acclimatise. It is too early to say who will be rested from the Indian team for the ODI series. The selectors have a tough job on hand - they need to balance the squad for ODIs as well as the travel to South Africa. Both are equally important for the Indian team and this request by MSD will put them in a quandry. Of course, this does not mean that his request is not necessary - he has been one of the busiest person in the entire team.



While on this, one feels for the person. He has been donning the role of a captain, keeping wickets and shoring up the lower order in all the three formats. Is it asking too much of him? Add to this, the similar responsibilities for his IPL team. His keeping has gone down a notch - dropping vital catches in test matches. His batting in test matches has gone down quite a bit, though in ODIs he is still the Number 1 batsman. There are other keepers in the country who can do a good job with the gloves - ones like Dinesh Karthick or Parthiv Patel.

Should he follow the example of Brendon McCullum and Kumar Sangakkara in test matches? They have given up the gloves and handed over the duties to another person. This will ensure that he retains his freshness for the prime role of captaincy while making him still invaluable to the team.

Related articles

• Brendon McCullum makes 225 to steer New Zealand to safety against India (guardian.co.uk)

Season of the underdogs in test cricket

Image by geoffandsherry via Flickr
Test cricket is always interesting - this is the statement on everyone's lips these days. The underdogs seem to have a good time going for them recently across the world.


It all started when NewZealand visited India after being beaten 0-4 by Bangladesh in an ODI series. No one gave them a chance (myself included) but after two test matches, the scoreline shows 0-0. What must India be thinking now?

Staying in the sub-continent, one is witnessing Srilanka's painful experience in the post-Muralitharan era. As if Gayle's triple century was not enough, the Lankans have capitalised in their first innings against West Indies and looks like they might follow-on.


England (yes, we will call them underdogs in a series against the once-mighty Aussies Down Under) has been making all the right noises in their warm-up matches - dominating their opposition and scaring the selectors to choose a 17-member team for the test series.

In the Gulf, Pakistan managed to draw their first test match against No.2 South Africa. Pakistan, the team that can lose to Zimbabwe one day and then beat Australia the next, has shown signs of comeback. One wonders how long it will be this time.


Will there be a return to the normal order next week? One wonders if the rule of the underdogs will be for a long time. What do you think? 

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NZ series - McCullum force draws the match in Hyderabad

Image via WikipediaBrendon McCullum scored a double-century to help his team draw the second test match in the series against India. With this result, the Black Caps have gained two draws against the No.1 test team in the World. Thus, they have achieved what their coach Greatbatch had remarked before the tour. Whatever happens in the final test is a bonus for them. But, having got to this level, they must be surely fancying their chances in the last test to leave the shores at 0-0 in the test series.

Can they go one step further and win the series? Not impossible but extremely difficult. India has to cooperate in their campaign to win in Nagpur by playing badly. The series is set at an interesting stage now after 2 test matches. India will hope that they get a favorable surface (didnt they get it this match?) in the next match.

Will there be any changes from the Indian side? Zaheer Khan has been ruled out because of his strain. Ishant Sharma will make his comeback into the playing eleven. Harbhajan cannot be dropped because of his exploits with the bat - even he will agree that his bowling form has been patchy to say the least. The batsmen will continue to get another chance at the attack next test - how the NZ bowlers recoup after the two tests remains to be seen.


Still, the Indians will be the favorites to win the final match - how it pans out, will be seen.

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Ashes series - Is the new Australia same as old England?

Years ago, when the Aussies were beating anyone and everyone who played them in test matches, England were a sorry lot. They picked players in the hope that they would perform. A player would be selected for a match only to be dropped the next one, without any reason. Even captains were not spared - the English team resembled the tube stations that dot all across the country - players going in and out of the team regularly.

How times have changed - Australia are resembling their ashes counterpart now. Today's announcement was something that would have done the English team proud. SEVENTEEN!!! 17 players for the first test in Brisbane. What were the selectors thinking? 

Going into details of the squad, let us see was it really required?  The players selected include - Simon Katich, Shane Watson, Ricky Ponting (capt), Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, Marcus North, Usman Khawaja, Callum Ferguson, Brad Haddin (wk), Steven Smith, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Xavier Doherty, Ryan Harris, Peter Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus, Doug Bollinger

The players likely to play the test at this time are Katich, Watson, Ponting, Clarke, Hussey, Haddin, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz. The remaining 3 slots are open - one is the No.6 slot where North seems to be the front-runner and in all likelihood will play in the first test. The other two are the slots of the pace bowlers - Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus will be the first choices with Bollinger in the hunt in case of an injury.


Why then did the selectors choose 4-5 more players than the usual list? Of course, injury worries are there but that doesn't necessitate the selection of so many players. Are the selectors trying to confuse their opponents? Michael Hussey is too good a player who can be replaced given the current status of Aussie cricket - then, why go for players like Ferguson? Is it the presence of a person by name Greg Chappell, who is introducing these "novel" ideas? Or are the Aussies really confused? Whatever it is, they are probably the New England team now. Will their performance resemble the English also? Time will tell.

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NZ series - Harbhajan pulls India ahead in Hyderabad

WikipediaIndia managed to lose the initiative gained due to Sehwag's start yesterday, thanks to tight bowling and taut fielding by the Black Caps. The Indians were held under pressure most of the day, resulting in the fall of regular wickets. In fact, the first session after tea offered the rewards to the NZ team but Harbhajan had other ideas.

The off-spinner is in the richest form of his life (with the bat) and more importantly, he is cashing on the windfall. He even rotated the strike like a top-order batsman and put together with Sreesanth, a 50+ partnership for the last wicket. Who knows - if he continues his form tomorrow, he will have another century to his credit tomorrow.

Before his innings, the Indians had made progress thanks to the innings of VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid in the morning. Sachin Tendulkar, again feeling the pressures of nearing his 50th ton, falling early to Vettori (thanks to a great reflex catch by Ross Taylor). The scoring rate was low but Rahul and VVS had no other escape routes. They ground the bowling to an extent that the latter batsmen could capitalise later in the day. Everyone at the ground expected VVS to score a century on his home ground but he was beaten for pace.

Raina and MS Dhoni could not continue with the run-scoring because of the fielding/bowling. Dhoni's batting has slipped a little even though his batting in ODIs has not been affected. He needs to play his shots and forget the fact that it is a test match format he is playing. That might help him in the future.

Vettori has to be credited for his perseverance and hard-work throughout the day. His captaincy was on cards but the limited bowling resources meant that he had to face a long day on the field. The fielding led by Brendon Mccullum was top-notch - the wicket-keeper joining AB De Viliers, Dinesh Karthick as the group of  ex-keepers who are the best fielders in their teams. 



India gained an advantage over the NZ team mainly in the last session - the Indians clearly having a one session advantage thanks to Harbhajan's heroics. 

Related articles

• Harbhajan powers India into lead (news.bbc.co.uk)
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Anil Kumble back as captain

Image via WikipediaAnil Kumble is back in limelight - not as a Wildlife photographer. Not as the Director of NCA. He is now making an attempt to get into administration of KSCA - standing in the elections against Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar. 


In a press meet yesterday, the leg-spinner showcased his team and answered questions about their capability in administration. His team-mates in this cause are ex-colleagues, Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad among other players. Brijesh Patel has wisely teamed up with them but it remains to be seen what role he will play.


Though this is a good move by the ex-players, one wonders how much time they will be able to spend on the activities of KSCA. Kumble has an answer for this:

People ask if we have time... we will have to make time and we will make time for this game

Whether they can break the image that players dont make good administrators remains to be seen. But, the attempt to make a change is commendable. The following statement definitely resonates among those who have seen the world and the facilities other countries provide:

When we go around the world, we look at the facilities, the way things are organised, how academies are run, how cricket is played; and then when we come back here, it hurts us. But what’s the point if we only complain and not do anything about it? So this is why we thought of getting into the system and doing things

Let us wish Anil Kumble and his team all the best. Hope this is just the beginning of a long era. May he get into the national committee after his stint in KSCA and cleanse the ills that is bogging down the national body. If this works, I am sure Indian cricket will have another reason to say thanks to the veteran leg-spinner. Commendable, indeed.

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Ashes series - starting soon

Image via WikipediaThe Ashes is definitely the most-anticipated series across the world - the amount of articles written about it are numerous. Being an Indian, I feel that the India-Australia or the India-Pakistan series are even more liked but that is probably restricted to the Indian sub-continent. 



Interviews are happening with almost every English player active in the cricketing circles. There are a number of people who believe that England has a chance to retain their urn while some more think that the Aussies will be able to repeat the performance of the last Ashes in Australia (which they won 5-0). The TV crews are all over the place in Australia while the English at home are following the action very closely.

The English team has started the warm-up matches in right earnest - the Indians must take a leaf out of their English counterparts - by starting the tour almost three weeks earlier and getting used to the ball, bounce, pitches in Australia. One can only laud the ECB for their planning. Will Andy Flower succeed where his predecessors failed?

The teams are evenly matched at this time - probably, the spin bowling department is one where Swann scores higher than Hauritz. The spectators must be hoping for the lead batsmen (Kevin Pietersen and Ricky Ponting) to return to form.

England has not done so well to call themselves the favorite for the series but try telling that to their supporters. The Aussies have slipped from the heights of their achievements but on their soil, they are still a mighty force to reckon with. They lost the test series against South Africa but this series should see them straining every sinew to bring back the urn. 

I feel that the series will be closely fought but still rate the Aussies as favorite to win the Ashes back. 

The great performance that I feel has happened even before the series has started has been (yes, on for the last 14 months) by a person who has been cycling for more than 25000 kms from Lords to Brisbane - really superb feat by this great person - HATS OFF!!!

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Pointers from the Indian selectors and Ranji matches

Image via Wikipedia
Two pointers from news incidents that happened today:

•  The new contracts were given by the BCCI - Yuvraj Singh being the surprise movement in the list of contracts. Suresh Raina replaced him while Virat Kohli, Murali Vijay and Pragyan Ojha have moved up to Grade B. Rohit Sharma has been demoted to C. RP Singh and Munaf Patel, who were previously in Grade B, have not been offered contracts. This definitely shows the thinking of the Management involved in the selection. Raina has made good progress in test cricket while cementing his place as a dependable player in ODIs. Yuvraj has fallen out of contention in test matches and his ODI form has been nothing great to write about.
• Similarly, the Ranji matches has thrown up performances from fringe players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Yusuf Pathan, Vinay Kumar, Robin Uthappa has increased our hopes that the bench strength remains as a good pipeline for the national teams. Let us hope they continue this performance and reach greater heights.

Yuvraj Singh has the matches till the ODI series against the "Black Caps" starts, where he will play at least 5 matches. This should give him good practice period to get back to his groove.

India, meanwhile, start their 2nd test against NewZealand tomorrow at Hyderabad. Rain could play a major role in this test match, which should see the Indians win if the match is played in full-time. VVS Laxman is playing his first test at home - hope he makes a century in front of his friends and family.

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• Indian cricket: Of multi-crore deals, consistency and Ranji Kings Mumbai (linusfernandes.com)

NZ series - India manage to draw the 1st test

Image via WikipediaThe first test must have shaken the complacency off the Indian team, especially after what they faced in the second innings of the match. Harbhajan Singh must only hope now that he will contribute more with the ball rather than the bat, as he did in this match - only then, he can continue to be called the First Spinner in the country. From Pragyan Ojha's contribution with the ball, the left armer must be counted as the best spinner in the country right now. And, Ramachandran Ashwin is not far behind.


What can we talk about VVS Laxman now? He must definitely rank above Sachin Tendulkar in 2nd innings of test matches - is there any further doubts remaining? VVS has many more years to go with his bat and only his back-pain (that keeps recurring often) can prevent him from greater heights. When there is a challenge, there can be only this man who will put his hand up in the 2nd innings of the test match. What a player!!!





NewZealand have not only accomplished one of their dreams (of drawing 1 test match) but managed to shake the Indian line-up. They will have to be more prepared in the next test as the giant has now woken up. The next test will see all the players giving their best once again.