what will they do...?

if these centuries will come in testing conditions... circumstances...?

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good bye no. 1 ranking...

it was nice till it lasted... was nice up there for a while...

if there were already doubts that we are actually no.1 or not in the real sense... then be prepared to safely say good bye even to the no.1 ranking and not only coz of the skills or talent the current team has at its disposal... which is how unfortunate it can be...

for quite some time it is clear that there is no synchrony between team management or to be precise dhoni and our bunch of jokers... if one is heading north then other is heading south just to show who is actually the boss... there just does not seem to have any thought or effort put into to not only keep the rating at the helm going but taking it to beyond the realms of ranking...

i agree that injuries have not helped but the functioning of current regime goes beyond buffoonery...

we have already discussed here that how 'farsighted' was the selection of ishant and sreesanth... but the ongoing omission of mishra is the classic example of open tussle that is going on between dhoni and the selectors...

it is clear that dhoni does not like mishra... and he has good reason to not... you don't boost your chances of play when you say "sehwag will be better captain than dhoni" while playing under later without putting up performances that can't be ignored...

without going on the merits and demerits of mishra's (non)selection in final xi... under the circumstances picking mishra is just a waste of place as it is happening in sri lanka right now... despite below par performances of harbhajan who is refusing to be the leader of the pack despite his claims and ojha who not even looking like restricting the scoring to bolt one end up leave alone coming close to taking wicket... is playing second tests on a pitch which is offering some bounce where mishra would have been more effective and logical choice...

amit mishra is a seasoned campaigner... he was bowled 20637 deliveries and taken 367 wicket in domestic cricket... and so its not that they want to give exposure to him by selecting him for tests and away tours... but somehow the rope given to him is so short that before you notice him bowl in tests you see him carrying drinks for his mates...

if you pick a player with an intention of not playing him then this is a waste of place to me... no.1 teams do not carry passengers with them... but the ongoing tussle between leadership and bunch of jokers has ensured that we are one option short to fall back to... one place that could have gone to ashwin... piyush chawla (sangakkara rates him as best leg spinner from india) or even to murali karthik or ramesh powar...

in a well settled team most players pick themselves... but selectors gain reputations for their selection of fringe players... which not only shows which direction they are heading to but keep the talent at disposal interested... but current selection panel is hell bent on killing everything their predecessor have managed... and if our team is still performing well and winning more matches than they are losing... then it is despite their buffoonery...

part of the blame should go to dhoni as well who seems more interested in creating his comfort zone... massaging his ego with his set of pet players rather than rise above it and play final xi on its merit... and if someone is thinking that in second test there at ssc we are playing with best xi then i must be watching different cricket...

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shri shri muttiah muralitharan 800 spinbaaz...

cut above the rest...

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very very selfish laxman...?

the batting or to be precise farming of strike from vvs laxman has been very strange in this test... though he has done it earlier but this galle test takes the cake... as if he is hell bent on giving every opportunity to murali to achieve that magic figure of 800 wickets...

when the more accomplished batsman is at crease batting with tailenders one would assume that the former will take the lead and farm the strike as much as possible... muck like hussey who is master at the art of batting with tailenders...

now there are two schools of thoughts one says that take every run which is available and trust tailender to do the job... another, like me, thinks that irrespective of what the personal belief you as a batsman may have... keep the team interest in mind and optimize every opportunity specially when one is saving the tests where occupation at crease become much more important... sometimes it does not take anything away from you if you play for your mate...

one instance from this match comes to my mind... when yuvi came to the crease it was clear that only few overs of the day were left... we all know that yuvi, specially in early part of his innings, does not play spinners that good... it was clear from the gestures of umpires that the next over, due to be bowled by murali, is most probably going to be the last over of the days play... but yet laxman showed no inclination to take the lead and play out murali instead...

now one can come up and say that if no.6 batsman can't play out last over of the day then he should sit out which is perfectly reasonable... but as a part of the team... one must sense these little things... as these small little things adds up to the final tally... who knows if laxman played out that over from murali things could have been bit different for team india today... knowing that two front line batsmen will be at crease followed by dhoni...

we all know about the dosti of sehwag and gambhir... and in one interview gambhir categorically said that when he would feel the pressure or would not time the ball as good as he would like... or struggle against particular bowler... viru will take the cue and play out that bowler or made him stand in non-striker end to let that phase pass out... no wonder they share such level of camaraderie and respect for each other...

now one cannot expect the same level of camaraderie from ever member of the team but the point is same as i said earlier... it does not take away anything from your game or reputation or your so called personal belief if you play for your mate...

as i was writing this mithun got out and laxman took the single off first ball of murali to expose ishant sharma for full over after doing the same with mithun for a while... one wonders...

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first test: india showing age old problem...

when returning from break... team india always takes time to warm up to the game... is known to be the slow starter ever since they have started playing game...

years have come and gone and so the players of different mind sets... but one thing which has been going on like a true legacy is... our inability to hit the ground running...

the reason given this time is that india has players like dravid... laxman who plays only one format of the game... tests that is... and tendulkar who misses many matches due to him taking rest or forced rest... it takes some time for them to be back in the groove... wonder why the same was not said in justification for the players like langer(s) of yesteryear's or katich(s) from the more contemporary players...

before the series began, dravid and sehwag labeled this series as unfinished business... wonder whether that was their individual opinion or they really represented the views of team as whole... but even our 'slow start' enigma permitting... some of the shots played by our batsmen defied the sentiment of a team on to some unfinished business...

coming back to slow start... this is why first test of the test series... home or away does not matter... becomes very important for the teams playing against us... this is where we are at our vulnerable best... and once we are out of first test jittery we become a different team altogether... so even if the bowlers might be bit tired sangakkara must press for follow-on and should go for no-holds-barred approach... the only team that can lose this game is india and he must press for it... this is his best... and i dare say... only chance...

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elbowgate: chris broad give reason... at last...

only yesterday this blog asked chris broad to give reasons why he let ponting off the hook...? why he was not reprimanded... at least...?

chris broad has allegedly confessed...

reprimanding ponting would have meant discussing the elbowgate issue with him in close proximity and after seeing the video who with the semblance of mind would risk that...? so i decided to...

for more repercussions of elbowgate... checkout at bored...

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elbowgate: icc accepts they are partial...

sorry for uploading the same image twice within few posts... but i thought it was necessary to make the point...

since i have been following cricket... i have never seen icc recognising the instigator or provocateur... they have always punished the offender irrespectively... the cricket history is flooded with such instances and there is not need to mention them separately... collectively...

now under this light if we see both incidents (coz they are the most recent elbow incidents) gambhir was banned for the same offense but ponting got scot free even after it is established beyond doubt that both gambhir and ponting 'deliberately elbowed' their opponents...

once it is established that both deliberately made 'contact' then even as per the icc and the judgement they have been handing out in the name of 'spirit of cricket' or 'justice' the preceeding circumstances that led them to 'deliberately elbow' their opponent becomes irrelevant...

now see what chris broad said during his 'unofficial' public reprimand of aamer...

"It has happened twice now so we as a playing control team thought it would be sensible for me to have a word with him. He accepted it graciously and undertook to avoid a repeat occurrence. As far as we are concerned the issue is now closed."

so ponting has the right to deliberately stretch his elbow with the intention of making contact... coz aamer has done it twice...?!

don't you think that this is bit rich of broad to almost justify what ponting did...? and who would explain why and under what justification ponting was let off without even a word uttered to his empty vessel so that it would have resonated loud and clear to all and sundry...?

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lord's elbowgate: landmark judgement from chris broad...

mohammad aamer (you read it right... it's aamer not ricky ponting) has been gently reprimanded by chris broad... he noted...

"Aamer is a young, exciting, talented player full of enthusiasm for this great sport and that is to be celebrated and nurtured," Broad said. "But there are a few things he still has to learn in relation to how to conduct himself on the field of play.

but chris... what about the player who has been captaining national team for years... is second highest scorer in the history of test cricket and featured in more matches than the overs aamer has bowled...? why not even a word on him on 'how to conduct himself on field of play'...?

"I told him that when he takes a wicket, he should celebrate with his team-mates rather than getting himself into the personal space of the outgoing batsman. It's a spirit of cricket issue.

so under the (new) spirit of cricket... it is OK if to get elbowed in full glare of fans and media if you infringe a player's space...

no surprise then that pricky does not even find a mention in the judgment and since the precedence has been set... batsmen who were finding it bit restrictive for the want of their personal space but could not find a way to get out of it... now they can elbow whoever who dare to come within their range of 'personal space'... and once again its pricky who has shown them the way by putting his neck on the line...

look at it any which way... this is a remarkable observation... judgment from chris broad...

from now onwards you have elbowed a player or not is not even the contention point anymore... the (other) player stepped into your personal space or not is...

BRILLIANT!!!

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my elbow is penalty free than yours...

when ponting successfully managed to elbow aamer the way that it was visible to everybody but to the on-field umpires and match referee... michael holding was on air... and this is what he said (though the words may not be the same) almost justifying him elbowing aamer... on behalf of pricky...

"ponting was just trying to create the space for himself... by stretching his elbow he was showing aamer that this is my space and i don't think there is anything wrong with that..."

i did not know, before this, that only pricky is entitled to create his space this way...

though there is also this small matter of icc rule that says... under no-circumstances... you cannot make physical contact with your opponent with an intent to hurt him... and i don't think ponting meant a gentle hello to aamer there... but this is pricky... the most 'behaved' captain in the history of cricket... and this is our system... if one cannot see it... one cannot penalise it...

i also blame pakistani players and for that matter... all players other than oz team... who just do not show courage to stand up for their mates... remember... only a gentle pat at the back of brett lee by harbhajan, which even lee did not mind, led to monkeygate...?


related story – log-on to achettup's soal... guess who? we’ll be keeping an eye on this... for more insight into this incident...

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