Random Cricket Headlines !

This is Radio Doctoring the Balls 99.99. Cricket Headlines brought to you by Dr. Balls.

Shahid Afridi didn't announce retirement from any form of Cricket today.

Sachin Tendulkar's legs were not trembling when he registered his first vote in the Rajya Sabha because Shoaib Aqtar was not present in the house at that time. Shahid Afridi has confirmed this report.

Kevin Peitersen has appointed Shahid Afridi as his 'Retirement Coach' and Mohammed Yousuf will act as a Consultant on retirement plans.

On grounds of anonymity, a BCCI insider has confided to Dr. Balls that Gautam Gambhir lost his Vice-Captaincy not on disciplinary grounds. Since GG is actually 2G, the BCCI patronized by Sharad Pawar didn't want to be seen promoting anything even remotely related to 2G.

What do the juniors in Team India call Sehwag behind him ? Virus [Viru S] !

Former Australia Captain Ricky Ponting's Biography has been titled, "Rickypedia". The contents have been kept top secret. But Dr. Balls promises to bring out a preview even before it is written and plans to call it, "Rickyleaks".

Amnesty International is not amused because Kapil Dev has joined Rapidex advanced English speaking course to understand the meaning of Amnesty !

After injuries to two international Wicket-keepers Mark Boucher and Kumar Sangakkara, Pakistan fans sincerely hope they'll be third time lucky with Kamran Akmal aka Kakmal.

India and Sri Lanka have decided not to play another 5 match ODI series in near future. Sri Lanka because they fear Virat Kohli will become the first ever player to score 100 centuries against same team and India because BCCI saw too many empty stands during the last series.

Manoj Tiwari says, 'You improve mentally when you are a part of Team India'. What he means is when you compete with reservation candidates like Rohit Sharma, your performance is bound to improve.

Pakistan offers to play their home series against India in India.

Mahindra set to sponsor Sri Lanka Premier League. Sri Lankan fans fear it is Rajapaksa and Indian fans believe it is their own Captain Cool Dhoni. 

Tiwary is a serious contender for a regular place in ODI team: says Coach Fletcher. Rohit Sharma runs crying to Dhoni and is pacified by the Captain saying, "Don't worry, we can always REST Viru Sehwag".

After Andrew Strauss dropped himself down the order during second test, Alistair Cook was heard telling his mates, "We'd be better off if he drops himself from the team". Broad has declared all this as baseless.

And finally the tail-line:
Away from Cricket, though Mary Kom apologized to the nation for not bringing the Gold, she has reasons to cheer. Manappuram Gold Loan people have expressed willingness to sanction Gold Loan against her bronze medal so that she can buy LPG cylinders in her state.

SPun Doctor Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.blogspot.in/

Baap of all Cricket Retirements !

Why do I believe Pakistan Cricket has the 'X-Factor' ? Because they have the largest number of 'Ex-Captains' in their team.

Everyone seems to be in a hurry there; to retire, come back, retire again and come back again and then retire finally. Or do they ?

We have retirements, premature retirements, immature retirements and non-retirements. There are much awaited and anticipated retirements like that of Rahul Dravid.

Then of course the extremely catastrophic event of the retirement of Sachin Tendulkar. The fear is looming large. Well of course, that should not be much of a problem if you are a Pakistan supporter.

So finally the day the whole world was fearing about has arrived. No, not Sachin's retirement day. Not even the end of the world, but much larger and infinitely terrible tragedy. An end of an era or say any buffalo dung you like. Shahid Afridi has retired !

But that is old news, some might say. So we will twist it a little bit. Shahid Afridi has re-retired. Now, that sounds better. We can add more 're's as we progress. But wait, has he re-come back ?

It would be unfair to talk only about Afridi. Cricket has evolved from being 'Gentleman's Game' to 'Mental Jam's Game'. Everybody plays 'Mental Games'. Sometimes games and very often just mental. Steve Waugh believed 'Everything was fair in Cricket and War'. Ponting believed nothing was unfair in Cricket and Ashes.

But coming back to Afridi, what is he playing ? Game ? Mental Game ? Mental ? War or plain dumb ? Last heard he is contemplating return to Cricket. I swear on Ijaz's Butt, Pakistan Cricket is a marvel like nothing before and nothing since.

A lot of discussion has already taken place on Afridi's retirement. Enough and more has been said about this re-retirement. But how can I retire without my say ? So I decided to take a random look at retirements of our Cricketers from the past; distant and not so distant.

Don Bradman retired because '99.94 ain't so bad'. It in fact appears a lot sexier than 100 today.

Gary Sobers retired after he found out that he could no longer drive after drinking.

Geoffrey Boycott retired after proving to himself that he was technically a better batsman than Sunny Gavaskar.

Bishan Singh Bedi retired because the butterfly wasn't able to float and the bee wasn't stinging either as Zaheer Abbas and Miyandad made him look ordinary.

Sunny Gavaskar said, "Quit when people ask why rather than when". He retired scoring a tragic 96 in his last test innings and a hundred and a duck in his last first class match. A man of his words.

Mohindar Amarnath retired after he was convinced that nobody will break his record of come-backs. The 'Bunch of Jokers' made his decision easier.

Dilip Vengsarkar retired after the stupid adjudicators gave Man of the Match award to Kapil Dev for taking 434 wickets. There of course was other reason. There was no test to be played at Lords in nearest future at that time.

Kapil Dev retired after Javagal Srinath threatened to retire and Richard Hadlee almost died of boredom waiting for his record to be broken.

Azaruddin retired because of 'Maine match banaaya'. Today, he is playing a different innings in Indian Politics. He is an Icon for the likes of Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamer, Ajay Jadeja and Sulman Butt. Politics on either side of Indo-Pak border will not suffer for want of Sportsman Spirit.

Kim Hughes retired in tears. A real tearful adieu !

Alan Border retired because he had scored more runs than Gavaskar.

Manoj Prabhakar was retired by Sanath Jayasuriya.

Ravi Shastri was tired down by his knee and retired by Indian crowds baying for blood.

Sanjay Majrekar was retired by his shoulders. After shouldering arms to all balls outside the off stump in a One day match in the 49th over, he developed a fixed shoulder deformity. He has since proved to be a much better commentator and blogger.

Miyandad retired like only he could; like a street fighter. He fought with opponents, Umpires, Dennis Lillee, Ian Botham, his mother in law and Zaheer Abbas before there was nobody left to fight.

Imran Khan retired because he became bigger than Pakistan Cricket and in one of the proudest moments in Pakistan Cricket, he forgot his team.

Clive Lloyd retired because he had nothing more to achieve as Captain and only a little more in him as batsman.

Vivian Richards retired because he saw the beginning of the end of Caribbean domination.

Richie Richardson retired because he seriously began to believe he was in the wrong team.

Brian Lara retired because nothing else was right and he was left handed and stranded all the time.

Steve Waugh retired because he couldn't have continued for long without facing the risk of axe. He made 'Retirements in Installments' a fashion.

Inzamam ul Haq retired because there was no one left in entire Pakistan who was not run out by Inzy Bhai.

Courtney Walsh retired because people started taking advantage of his magnanimity and started running even before he marked his run up. Once a pair of Australian batsmen actually completed 2 runs before Walsh reached the bowling crease.

Shane Warne retired because 6 weeks of IPL was more lucrative than 1 year of 'Baggy Green'. And he didn't have to slog for ten and a half months. He retired from IPL because he wanted to badmouth a RCA Official in public.

Glen McGrath retired because Warne was retiring and he could no longer dare to predict 5-0 white wash without sounding silly.

Saurav Ganguly retired from International Cricket after scoring a double century because he was 'once bitten, twice shy'. He retired from domestic Cricket and came back to help his team qualify and then re-retired. He again faced the axe in IPL. But the Tiger roared again in IPL-2011 and we are waiting for total retirement.

Younis Khan retired because he couldn't handle the foul smelling posterior that heads Pakistan Cricket. He looks both tired and retired as of now.

Anil Kumble retired because the graceless Cricket fans in India wanted him to and anoint Dhoni the Captain. Why ? They want Dhoni to retire ! Kumble again retired from IPL because even the President of Karnataka State Cricket Association is not allowed to play Cricket in suits.

Muralidharan retired because 800 is a huge number and the ICC rules still don't allow runners for fielders.

But no retirement or re-retirement is quite like that of Mohammad Yousuf / Yousuf Yohana. His was the first retirement that came with a clause and a comma. He retired for the time being ! Later he was re-retired by Selectors. Before that, he retired from his religion. With that he also took retirement from shaving. In between he retired from ICC Cricket and signed up for ICL Cricket. But even before it began, he retired from ICL and wanted to Captain Pakistan. Then he retired as Pakistan Captain and now we don't know. Even he doesn't know if he is retired or is on a come back trail or on a go back trail. Move over Afridi, Yusuf is the most retired man on earth. And his is the 'Baap of all Cricket Retirements' !




SPun Doctor
Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.org/category/contributed/govind-raj-shenoy/

Mahi Way: Rear-view Vision of a Victorious Journey !

Feels like it was a dream and then feels like it has come true. No need to pinch oneself. That six was as Dhoni as Dhoni ever was. 

Mahi Way !

Ever since Praveen 'Pehelwan' Kumar got injured and India went in with Piyush, Sreesanth, Munaf and Nehra, I have been vocal in my criticism of selection and the way Team India played. I never gave them a chance of winning actually till the last 2 overs.

Spare a thought for me and many like me. Why did I do what I did ? Very simple. I have said it before. My love, admiration and adulation for Team India is boundless. It is just that it hurts badly when they lose. Even though they have won more often than not in recent years, it still hurts when they lose. Especially so if that happens in the Finals. And India had lost 7 out of the 9 Finals they have played against Sri Lanka before this one.

So if you keep criticizing and finding faults, you have better chances of absorbing the shock of a defeat. And a Win will be that much sweeter. So for all those negatives I spewed about Dhoni and his Blue Blooded Brethren, I am not going to eat crow because I am a vegetarian.

I loved them after they lost 2003 World Cup Finals. I defended them after those two T-20 World Cup disasters. I almost assassinated Greg Chappell after the 2007 World Cup first round exit. And today, I am ecstatic and over the Moon like all fellow Indians.

Turning back, let us take a look at some interesting subplots through the journey that was. 

The Journey that was

For India, the journey began with 'Taming the Bengal Tiger' at Mirpur. On the way they scratched past the minnows, tied the Poms and stumbled but once against Springboks. Then they regrouped to knock the Kangaroos out. There came the Mother of all matches and the arch enemy was vanquished at Mohali. The road show came to a grand finale in Mumbai where they signed off "Slaying the Lions" ! 

Current Affairs

Dean Jones said, "Dhoni is dreaming if he thinks India can win". Border thought Sri Lanka will be too strong for India and Steve Waugh rated Sri Lanka as favorites. Mark Taylor declared after India's win against Pakistan that Pakistan had better chances of beating Sri Lanka but India would be easy meat for the Lankan Lions. Only Ricky Ponting declared after his team's quarterfinal debacle that India will not only beat Pakistan in Semifinals but will also go onto win the World Cup. It was 4 former Australian Stars vs 1 Current Captain.

Moral of the Story: Current Opinion matters because you've seen the balls on ground, not on LCD TV ! 

Toss ka Boss : Caught Cheating ?

Sanga: Tails I Win, Heads I win Too !

Sanga perhaps cheated,

Pushpakumara bleated.

All the others Tweeted,

And Dhoni just Batted !

Okay, You take the Toss,

That'll be the only Loss,

For me, nothing is gross. 

In the end, I am the Boss !

And the Spirit of Cricket literally went for a 'Toss' once again in an India - Sri Lanka match after la affaire Randiv !

Sehwagging: 175 - 0 in Six weeks

Viru 'Revenge' Sehwag started the proceedings with such a flourish against Bangladesh that all our middle order batsmen became complacent. His 175 curtain raiser spoiled them and there were too many collapses. So Viru decided enough is enough and went downhill. He creamed Gul in the semi-final before Riaz fixed him and Indian batting crippled after that. So Viru opened with a 'duck' in the Finals and Gautam and Mahi came to party !

Awful Taufel

This man must be rated the best Umpire of all times. In an era when the job is coming under increasing scrutiny, this man stands 'tall and handsome'. He had 11 Challenges against his on field calls. 10 were correct and the eleventh was inconclusive. The benefit of doubt always goes to batsmen. Not very fair ! Aleem Dar too was fabulous.

Day of Poonam Pandey

India did win. We all know that and Rajnikant has confirmed that what we saw on Saturday actually was a full length highlight of the match he watched on Friday the First of April. So where is Poonam Pandey ? We are waiting for the date and the day !

Best Team need not Win 

South Africa by far were the best team this time around. They had the fabulous top-4 and Duminy at 5 and a cool Du Plessis. Their fielding has always been class act. Nothing special about it. Most importantly they had the finest variety of bowling attack. Two world class quickies. One classic leg spinner. One nice left arm spinner and then Botha. How on earth can one team be so unlucky in knock out stages ?

The Series of the Man 

Thousands of short messages and emails did the rounds questioning his fitness, flair and form. Runs were hard to come. In spite of making fun of his fitness, I had predicted before the Cup that India's fortunes will rest on the fitness and form of 'One Man'. 4 Man of the matches. Runs in crunch moments. 2 successful chases under lights and tremendous stress. Wickets whenever his Captain asked him to bowl. What more can a man do ? This world cup was about 2 Individuals. Shahid Khan Afridi went out due to his batting follies. Yuveraj Singh made this World Cup his own with a magnificent All Round show ! Take a Bow Yuvi, you deserve all the accolades !

About Pakistan and Shahid Afridi

Pakistan played very good Cricket. They came across a well knit bunch who played for their Talisman like Captain Shahid Khan Afridi. I would have loved to see them in final. Alas ! They had just 2 bad days. Given some kind of support, they will go a long way. And please throw Senator Rehaman Malik into dungeons along with Ijaz Butt.

About Minnows 

All about Ryan ten Doeschate, Ireland, 2 successful 300+ chases, Kevin O'Brien, fastest World Cup Century, George Dockrell, Paul Stirling and too many useless matches. Give Ireland more exposure and perhaps a Test Status by 2015 should be theirs.

About some Great Men

Some really great men have played their last world cup matches. Ricky Ponting left a heart broken man with his winning streak broken. Murali left without much of an impact when it mattered. Sachin had his moments and charmed lives. He fell at the doorstep of history. But his team didn't let him down for once. He will walk away a contented man.

At another level, Sehwag, Brett Lee, Kallis, Peitersen, Strauss, Collingwood, Dilshan, Mahela, Sanga, Zaheer Khan, Shoaib Akhtar, Younis Khan and Hussey too might have played their last world cup matches. Malinga has declared he might not play another world cup.

Cricket will find new Stars and Brand Ambassadors for the Future. Virat Kohli, Umar Akmal, Tharanga, ABDV and many more will come. But we will miss the 'Greats' mentioned above. Especially 2015 World Cup might open as the first World Cup in 23 years not to feature a certain Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar !

And a Solemn Wish 

Let us all make a solemn wish that Pakistan will find a genuine Wicket Keeper before the 2015 World Cup !

SPun Doctor
Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.org/category/contributed/govind-raj-shenoy/

Good Bye to a Bloody Mean Champion Cricketer !

A young friend of mine tweeted after tonight's match...
Australia meet West Indies... at the Airport !

That was funny and a lot of people are rejoicing the fall of a Champion.
Let Australia sulk. Stronger or weaker, they will come back.
But there was one man who went out tonight perhaps for the last time in a World Cup.

I never liked Ponting. His earliest claim to fame was on a juniors tour of India when he flayed all the junior Indian bowlers. Many of them never played senior Cricket. Then he made more news for pub brawls than for his on field exploits. Ever since he made his debut, I had a special dislike for him.

I disliked Ponting because...

He had the best team playing with him or under him through most of his career.
He blasted India in the 2003 World Cup Final and that scar can't heal. Not even after this win.
He had Shane Warne and Glen McGrath giving him wickets whenever he wanted.
He was the most prolific scorer in the new millennium and not Sachin.
He almost threatened to overtake Sachin at one time and break most of his records.
He had three World Cups in his kitty and two of them as as Captain.
But most importantly, he had never lost a World Cup match as a Captain.

I hated Ponting because...

He had transgressed the spirit of Cricket more often than anyone could care to remember.
But he somehow escaped with much lighter punishment than others, especially Asians.
He lead from the front all the unholy activity during the infamous Sydney Test in 2008.
Forget walking, he regularly contested Umpiring decisions and mostly escaped Scott free.
And most importantly for never walking but expecting opponents to 'walk' !

There can be a million reasons to dislike Ponting and hate Ponting.
But he was a Genius without a doubt. A flawed Genius if there is one.

For one who had not lost a single World Cup match and had overseen annihilation of all the 3 South Asian Teams in 3 successive World Cup Finals, Ponting went out against 3 South Asian Teams. He couldn't beat any one of them this time.

Sri Lanka were in a very good position before the rains intervened.
Pakistan gave Ponting the first taste of World Cup defeat in a dozen years.
And India knocked him and his team out of the World Cup tonight.

He was under pressure from all corners. For the LCD episode. For the Steve Smith episode. For not walking. For talking. And for being Ricky Ponting ! But what a way to go. He was out of form for longer than even Rahul Dravid. Boy, did he choose a match to strike form ? He couldn't have done anything more or better. He and his team just ran into a slightly better team on the day.

Ricky Ponting has tormented Indians for so long and so badly, it is a relief to see him walk away into sunset or to hell.

But before that, let us say gracefully...

He was such a bloody mean Champion Cricketer !

And he went out with his head held high !

Good bye Ponting !



SPun Doctor
Also blogs @ http://diehardcricketfans.org/category/contributed/govind-raj-shenoy/

Kakmal, Super Moon and other World Cup Trivia, Part 2

If there is a Part-1, there has to be sequel. So I had to come with Part-2 to "Yuckmal and other World Cup Trivia". Who else could have inspired this post other than the Akmals ? So here we go again...

Please Read the post at "DieHard Cricket Fans"


SPun Doctor

Why India may not break the WC Jinx ?

I have received quite a lot of flak for predicting doom for India in this World Cup and a Pakistan win. People in India cannot accept either. Well guys, get ready with your stones and effigies. No, not me; who cares for me ? I am talking about Indian Cricketers...

THIS is my post for Die hard Cricket Fans ! I am providing the link here to avoid duplication issues with Google !


SPun Doctor

Shahid Afridi: The Day of the Whack-all !

The Day of the Whack-all or Reincarnation of Shahid Afridi !

Cricket is a Team game with individuals often making large impacts. I will deal with Kevin O'Brien some other day. One Knock Out there doesn't make a Champion. For now, let us just say he landed the KO punch on Poms last night.

I am old fashioned, slow and used to bowl leg-spin as a teenager. I retired to pursue my profession after watching THIS. Well, that actually was because I realized I was way too mediocre a bowler. But I still am a bowler at heart and love the bowlers getting the better of a batsman than watching those flat-track bullies go bombastic.Okay, Viru Sehwag is an exception.

That is why I loved 'The revenge of the Slinga" and today I just rooted for Afridi. From biting the ball, he has traveled a long way to make it take flight, hiss and bite back ! Shahid Afridi has been a revelation in this edition of the World Cup. Pray where is the Shahid Afridi we all knew till the other day ?

He has looked calm, mostly composed and not once bitten; no not the ball, I mean the tongue. And there aren't those expletives too.

We don't really know how old Afridi really is. Shah Rukh Khan once claimed Afridi made his debut when SRK went to college. That must be ages ago because SRK made his debut when I went to college and I myself went to college once upon a time.

He is Pakistan's Wicket taker in Chief. He is their most economical bowler. He is their motivator par excellence on field and he is not keeping wickets. If he were to know he'd have to live with KAkmal, he perhaps would have learned that too. And he is the 'fastest slow bowler' on the planet today.

Against Sri Lanka, he bowled a gem of a spell and picked up a wicket every time his team needed one. His dismissal of Lanka counterpart Sanga was one of the most important moments of this Cup.

He would like to carry the Premadasa minefield wherever he goes. No wonder he doesn't want to play in India before the final. One doubt though, does he really believe India will go that far ? Being an Indian, I don't.

Watching KO Brien's pyrotechnics, I was reminded of a younger and dangerous Afridi. Too much of maturity has 'Dhonied' him. He came as a batsman who could bowl. Today, he is a bowler who it is believed 'can bat'.

But what the heck ? Afridi is winning matches and that is what matters. I love Leg Spinners and when I say that, I don't mean Piyush Chawla.

Afridi had most of his wickets bowled or LBW, except for Gordon. The wides apart, his accuracy was immaculate.

Those who were waiting for another upset tonight, better look elsewhere. England and India are always there. If any team can defend any total, that has to be Pakistan. And their Captain has played a huge role in this rejuvenation. For me, Pakistan are Favorites.

He was the perpetual 'Whack-all' for a little too long. But he showed some kind of maturity during their T-20 WC win in 2009. Since then, he has blown hot and blown cold as a batsman. But his utility as a 'Team Man' has soared amazingly and he leads the MVP Race without scoring too many runs.

Towards the business end of this Cup, I suspect he might just peak with the bat too. Remember he wants to play the 'Final' in India and India doesn't have a Premadasa.

Sorry Murali, Sorry Sachin, Sorry Ricky, Sorry KP and Sorry everyone else...

I am afraid April 2, 2011 will be the "Day of the Whack-all" !




SPun Doctor

Pakistan Favorites !

Cricket needs Pakistan and that is a Cricketing Gospel. They did all they could to create some drama in the match. They were brilliant and then pathetic. There were stupid run outs, dropped catches, missed stumping and 29 extras. All typically Pakistan; but win they did finally. And once again they have kept a World Cup record intact. Sri Lanka have never beaten Pakistan at the Cup.

All the feelings behind the drama were expressed in one moment of sheer fun when Umar Gul put his tongue out even as he was heaving a sigh of relief when Kulasekara hit a full-toss straight to Umar Akmal at long on. The ball well went... Umar se Umar tak !

Gul had a bad match, but Afridi trusted him to bowl the last over and he did well. Kakmal was good, bad and ugly in the same match, many times over. Still, this team seems to be bonding well. Yunis Khan is playing the pivotal role and he looks rock solid. And Shoaib Aqthar has never looked better.

Misbah-ul-haq and Yunis Khan are forging a formidable middle order. With Umar Akmal, Afridi and Razzack to follow, they can be a handful. That Ukmal guy has some cheek. After completing the Kulasekara catch, he actually walked very close to the boundary rope, as if to taunt the vociferous Sri Lankan crowd. And Afridi mock-slapped him.

Coming to Sri Lanka, why are they hiding Malinga ? They seem to stagnate once into middle order. Chamara Silva top-scored, but was perhaps the reason for the stagnation.

This World Cup promises to be the Cup of the Leg Spinners and I am not complaining. It was another Pakistani in South Africa colors who has made life worth living and Cricket worth watching. Is Dhoni watching ?

Afridi has now proved he can do wonders when entrusted with responsibility. First it was the T-20 Win in England and now he seems to be gearing up for the World Cup. He delivered every time they needed a wicket, including the wicket of his counterpart Sanga. And let us not forget he can bat a bit.

Pakistan are warming up and they can still improve and that is worrying for the opponents. But can they maintain the tempo till the end ? I hope not, because I want India to win.

But if India don't win, I would prefer Pakistan to win ! Now I am prepared to be roasted by Indian friends for this comment ! Pakistan is my second favorite team and they always will remain, in spite of fixers. We can't let the talent they manufacture there to go waste.



S-Pun Doctor

World Cup Early Favorites : Mind Speaks !

I am not at all happy writing this post. But when I feel like this, I have to.

Will India triumph on 2 April 2011 ?

My Heart wants to say "Yes", but the mind screams "NO" and silences the heart !

Why ? Let me give my reasons why other teams stand better chances.

This World Cup is like a Marathon Race. It is quite long, as long as some of my posts. The last team standing on the podium will be the one with the maximum endurance. And India don't look like they possess it.

Let me explain why I rate the chances of India lower than other teams.

1] South Africa: For me, they are the favorites this time. They have played good amount of Cricket and almost all are fit. Their Batting might is perhaps second only to India. But they have the best bowling army with enough ammunition to exploit any conditions. Bowling and quality of fielding will make the difference on Subcontinental pitches. So they start as favorites.
Key Players: Kallis, who else ? Steyn and Amla.

2] England: Forget Ryan ten Doeschate. Forget 6-1. That was a team drained after the monumental Ashes win. England will be a different team at the WC-11. They too have a fabulous batting line up, perhaps third strongest. But it is the bowling and the Swann factor that will make the difference. They seem to find ready replacements for any injured bowler. So, they are my second finalists.
Key Players: This could be ODI Swann song for Peitersen and Paul Collingwood !

3] Sri Lanka: Their middle order is nowhere near that of India or South Africa. But the 'Big Two' seem to deliver most of the times when it comes to ICC World Cup. But what makes them hot is the sheer quality and variety of their bowling attack. No team can boast of having every type of bowler except the Lions. How the middle order fairs will decide their fate in the knock out stages.
Key Players: Malinga and Murali.

4] Australia: Forget ThrAshes. Forget practice matches. Aussies are a different team in ODI Cricket. Absence of Mussey will hurt them. Else I would have put them at No. 2. They have two vital players, Watson and Lee and they will leave a big impact on WC-11. And never discount Ponting. Bowling is much better than India and that gives them the edge.
Key Players: Shane Watson and Brett Lee.

5] Pakistan: Cornered from all sides thanks to match and spot-fixing and players not mixing; Pakistan nevertheless is a team on the accent. They play their best when they are pressed hard. Bowling looks impressive even though a tad erratic. But if they can bowl out teams after conceding 25 wides, who cares ? Yunis Khan will be the fulcrum of this low on experience but high on Adrenaline Team.
Key Players: Any one from the 11 !

6] India: Batting card looks like a dream. But bowling causes nightmares. Sreesanth can win and lose matches single-handed. More often he manages the second. Ashish Nehra does not inspire enough confidence either. Munaf had a decent outing against Bangladesh. But can he bowl as well defending 270 ?

Bhajji doesn't really know his role in the team. Is he supposed to control runs or take wickets ? Zaheer can be fit and unfit even before you can pronounce the name Isha Sharvani. And then the Yuveraj Singh issue, is he a batsman who can bowl a bit or a bowler who can bat a bit ?

It is 'All is well' for Men in Blue when at least 2 of the top 4 score big. But that doesn't happen everyday. And there lies the problem. When the Top order falters, India lose the plot. So, for the miracle to happen, Sachin, Viru, Gauty and Virat should fire in every single match. Will that happen ?

If India have to win in spite of all these short-comings, Zaheer and Bhajji will have to deliver consistently and big time apart from the Top order !






S-Pun Doctor

Ponting is Right !

In spite of his great batting deeds, in spite of his 3 successive World Cup wins and in spite of his place in the pantheons of the 'All Time Greats' of Cricket; I have never really liked Ponting.

Well, almost all Indians have reasons not to like him. The caning suffered in the 2003 World Cup Final being just one of them !

Most of the times, I have scoffed at Ponting and his rantings. But not this time.
What he said is absolutely true.

Minnows have no place at the World Cup !

The ICC should seriously think in this direction and thankfully they already have if the reports are to be believed. But I am against having even 10 teams. There should be only 8 teams, just 8 and no more.

But isn't this injustice to the associate members ? This could sound so on face value, but it is not. There is a way out. This is how we go about it...

The Main Event should have only 8 teams as it was till 1987.

Each Team will play another team once and the Top 4 will qualify for the Semi-Finals.

The Final should be a best of 3 affair to test the endurance and the ability to bounce back.

Top 6 Teams qualify to play main event based on overall ODI rankings 12 months prior to the main event.

There should be a First round of qualifying tourney involving teams ranked 7 to 20 in the format that is being played now at this Cup.

Let this be held in different countries and the ICC should support the event. This tourney can also be called Plate Division World Cup or something like that.

Both the finalists will get to play the main event.

This will mean the minnows will get to play more matches between themselves and also get to play 2 - 3 teams from the Test playing group. The competition will certainly improve.

Fear of relegation can lead to an improvement in the Test Playing Nations Group too.

Imagine India, England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, South Africa or even Australia being relegated to the qualifying tourney. That will hurt the egos and can inspire stiffer competition.

A Test playing nation missing out on main event is a possibility. When that happens, it will act as a wake up call to that team and an incentive to the one that pipped them.

What happened yesterday [20 February 2011] was just not Cricket.
It was massacre, slaughter, annihilation, decimation, humiliation and anything you like !
Let us not suffer more of those insufferably lopsided Sundays.
Who will watch them ? Just who will pay to watch Canada playing Kenya in India ?



S-Pun Doctor

Neighbor's Envy, Owner's Pride ?

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Neighbor's Envy ? Yes

Owner's Pride ? Unfortunately Not !

India's World Cup Team has been announced. Some surprises never manage to surprise us. We know there will be surprises. We just have get ready to be surprised. Remember Sunil Valsan ? He has a distinction which even Sachin Tendulkar doesn't have. He was part of a World Cup winning team.

On every tour, we should carry a reservation candidate. Right now, Saha is the one in South Africa. Piyush Chawla it will be, for the WC-11. The OBC perhaps. How did he manage to get in there is a question only Srikkanth and Co will be able to answer.

Why does Sreesanth find himself out of favor and perpetually unfit and of late profligate Nehra retain his place is a big surprise too. No one grudges Munaf Patel's selection, but this team has at least 5 men in the 'wounded soldiers' list. Sachin, Sehwag, Gambhir, Praveen and Zaheer are the names. Do we have worthy replacements ? What will happen if 3 or 4 or all of them fail to recover ?

With Dhoni having more faith in any Tom, Dick and Harry compared to Pathan, it won't be a surprise if they go for 5 bowlers scheme of things. That should give some hope for Chawla. Else, he will not be playing a single match during the Cup.

As I was wondering over the selection issues, I was tickled by THIS ! Howsoever stupid might be their Head Butt; Pakistan Cricket is a marvel to be marveled about. They have demolished New Zealand in New Zealand, within a month of the Kiwis' tour of India where the fancied Indians were made to sweat and grind on home soil.

This is practically Half-B Team of Pakistan. Yunis Khan, Misbah ul Haq and Umar Gul are the only players from the possible best Pakistan -11 playing here. In spite of that, they have crushed the Kiwis in the first test and done so quite handsomely. Coming to second test, Pakistan are on the verge of a series win; their first since 2006.

We are talking about Australia missing their greats and how they are suffering. We also see how South Africa miss Kallis and India miss their 'Stars' every time they lose. Murali-less Sri Lanka become tooth-less Tigers. Pakistan are playing without almost entire team thanks to several problems and Ejaz Butt. But they still can win.

I salute the 'Spirit of Pakistan Cricket' ! And also the ever enthusing talent pool ! If only they had a proper system, they would have been the team to beat. Why doesn't someone bump off the Butt and some more of those Mismanagers of PCB ? They have so much talent at their disposal even for this job ! After all Butt is a Blasphemy on Cricket !

Still, in spite of all their problems; for me, Pakistan will be the dark-horses for WC-2011 !




S-Pun Doctor

Collapsistan Lost and Nobody Blamed !

Pakistan lost badly to South Africa at Abu Dhabi.

Collapsistan Lost and Nobody Blamed !

Kevin Peitersen calls John Buchanan [JB] a 'Nobody' [NB]. Does that mean Bhooka Nan was blamed ?

Usually Cricket reports contain so many details about balls and no-ball calls, wickets and tickets and runs and ruins !

And This was reported as a matter of fact rather than as a matter of act !

Beats me, just take a look at what all weird things happened...

From 140 / 1 after 30 overs, Pakistan were bundled out for 203 in the penultimate over.

Collapses aren't new to Pakistan Cricket. They can definitely be renamed 'Collapsistan'. But even by their own exalted standards, this was ridiculous because they weren't even properly hitting out !

After the departure of Younis Khan, from Misbah-ul-Haq down; 8 Pakistan batsmen just could not hit a single boundary if we leave out the lone sixer by Shoaib Actor.

In fact the last boundary of Pakistan innings was a mishit of the last ball of 26th over. Actor managed the lone sixer of the third ball of 49th over.

Younis Khan once again proved, "Clash is Temporary, Class is Permanent". Why is he such a recluse ?

Zulkarnain Haider made his ODI debut and played a classic test innings. Has he 'booked' his berth ?

Pakistan deployed 7 bowlers and they managed only 2 no-balls and both were bowled by Actor Miyan. They just are not ready to cross the line !

Hashim Amla is playing like Virendar Sehwag. Who gave him the liberty ?

Graeme Smith hurt his fingers again for the 739th time. 'Poppadam Fingers' !

Pakistan batsmen must have been intimidated by the name Lonwabo Tsotsobe. They probably thought it was some mosquito causing Dengue Fever. It's rumored that Afridi called Yuveraj Singh to find out about it !

AB de Villiers scored only 51. Can't believe that. When was the last time he got out so cheaply ?

Graeme Smith retired hurt. Kallis didn't want to be left behind and he too cramped !

South Africa are called Saffers or SA. But Pakistan team has three SAs in their 11. Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal and Shoaib Actor. This was 3 SAs vs SA !

Saffers are shuffling their batting order like nobody's business. Is Greg Chappelle around there ?

Billy Bowden wasn't there, but A-sad Rauf more than made up for that by getting the prized wicket of Younis Khan !

So much happened and absolutely no noise pollution ! Why ?

Here are the reasons...

Pakistan Parliament hasn't constituted an inquiry commission and all the donkeys in Pakistan are reported to be safe.

Ejaz Butt is silent. Someone was heard gossiping he was attending an intensive course on 'Fart of Living' !

Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif are in Dubai; away from their herd, busy being heard.

Miyandad is playing 'Grand-Dad' and is getting ready to welcome his daughter's fifth child. He wants 11 children from her so that he can have a team of his own. He hopes to become the Undisputed Coach of Pakistan.

And Mohsin Khan is busy seeking no objection certificates for the As-ifs and Butts and is talking to Dawn !



S-Pun Doctor