Bored Member Ottayan fell upon the leggy blonde cricket fans website.
To get to the girls, you’ll have to go thru a gatekeeper.
In the name of leggy blonde cricket fans
Bored Predictions.
Some predictions for the week ahead!
Last Test between India and NZ is going to end in a draw or an India win, hence India will win the series.
England will win the last ODI against the WI thus winning the ODI series.
SA is going to win the ODI series against Oz.
Predictions based om guesswork, comparision of teams, current form and of course gut instinct.
by Mohit Varma
hypocrisy at its best...
every time new zealand has suffered defeat there come voices from all directions about preparing ‘green’ pitches…the attitude suddenly becomes 'let's shove them to the greenery reminiscent of india’s last tour…and see how it goes…'
the ‘green’ pitches they are referring to are meant to test india with seaming and swinging conditions…that this is only way they fathom nz’s chances…
no problem with that…
then by the same token why they piss off when we talk about preparing spinning tracks here…
does that not test the batsmen's skill…?
why don't spinning tracks get the same respect as say these ‘green’ tracks…?
or is this written in the cricket bible that only a ‘green’ pitch tests the skills of batsmen and others are just ‘road’ or ‘dust bowl’…?
so, dear friends, next time you find then whining on ‘dust bowls’ do not forget to laugh on the hypocrisy of these morons…
Happy Bored Day O healthy one
Happy B'Day Amla. Just you wait and see: once you score heaps of runs and become a star, the Indian media will claim you, your ancestors and those Guju roots. Don't say I didn't warn you.
bored joke- describe amla's accent in one word: fruity
long live 'follow on'...
i mean, look at the end scenario...the team that scored 620...got the first innings lead of 300+ but still did all the running...
the bowlers looked jaded after a herculean effort of bowling 270 odd overs non stop...it's not rocket science that they will be praying india doesn't win the toss and elect to bat in the next test...
though the seeds were sown in kolkata 2001...
i think this draw is the last nail in "follow on's" coffin...
what say...?
3 days and 300 overs later
On 3rd April, New Zealand host India in Wellington.
Be on the back of 300 overs bowled across 7 sessions.
The Hunchback of Notre Dame will be there too, among friends – the Kiwi bowlers.
If India win the toss and elect to bat, New Zealand will bowl to Gautam Gambhir again.
Can get a tad monotonous, doing the same stuff again and again and again
As if ten hours, forty two minutes wasn’t enough.
The Gambhir decision
159.4
Patel to Gambhir, OUT, Gambhir departs after a marvelous marathon effort. 642 minutes. It drifted in from round the stumps, landed on the middle and leg and straightened a bit. Hawk eye says it would have clipped the leg. McCullum was already pushing down leg. What a fine innings, though.
G Gambhir lbw b Patel 137 (642m 436b 18x4 0x6) SR: 31.42
Want to talk about it?
If things go Sydney from here, at least we'll all have something(s) to blame.
Watch the Yuvraj
New ball taken, will Yuvraj be taken too - Thank God for small mercies and gifts on the legside.
Watch the line
when Daniel Vettori bowls round the wicket and goes wide of the crease. I always thought that cutting the return crease was a no ball - unless the no ball rule has changed !
Chris Gayle is an actor in cricket clothing
"I'm confident, but not overconfident," Gayle told the Trinidad & Tobago Express. "I'm a little nervous too, because it is a very important game."
Gayle said this while playing poker with friends, Spike Lee, Denzel Washington, Sidney Poitier, and some other gents from the film frat.
The England players in a hole somewhere, could not be reached. They are expected to play in the 5th ODI once the series is lost.
Meanwhile, the West Indies players have threatened not to play that game, sighting an unresolved pay dispute as the vague reasons.
Chris Gayle, on conditions of anonymity said, "the money's much better in Hollywood, maan"
Actor! Actor!
Oye unLucky! unLucky Oye!
72.2
Vettori to Dravid, OUT, Caught at short leg! Vettori has broken through here. Dravid doesn't seem to be happy with the decision. And we can see why. The bat hit the pad and the ball bounded off the pad to short leg where How dives forward to take it. Dravid c How b Vettori 62 (241m 220b 6x4 1x6) SR: 28.18
Did you see Dravid's reaction? Looked like he had anger management issues. Good, as before this, he had no anger, only management. And don't we know MBAs don't quite cut it in cricket. C'mon Jammy, let it rip. If you put your mind to it, you can swear too. Who knows, maybe even slap somebody.
Even funnier than Sehwag's reaction after he gets himself out!
On Johnson's innings, a samplerBy the end of the innings Mark Nicholas was so high he was humping the floor, eye’s glazed as if in a trance while Kepler Wessells continued indifferently with his dry, laconic commentary “An excellent innings by Johnson.”
Be damned if you don't read the B-list of cricket, over at Bored Member Achettup's Punter's Biggest Fan Blog.
And where there is an Achettup, there has to be a Sam - digging into Sanga 'n Buch at Arm Ball.
On multiple captaincy, a teaserWe would have been happy to know who are the many captains in your side. May be Chuck as the bowling captain and the chucking captain who teaches spinners to bowl illegally, Vaas as the fast bowling captain, yourself as the keeper captain and Mahela as the blabberer captain J.
Watch your favourite cricketers bat twice in two days.
Even better, you could watch some of them bat twice in one days.
What more could a bored cricket crazy indian ask for
Thank you Daniel Vettori
Two T20s
One official, the other played in the second innings of an ODI between Gayle and England.
The first innings, when England batted does not qualify as any form of cricket.
Like English cricket, the innings was deformed.
Begs the question, if Zimbabwe can be disqualified from tests, why can't England be taken out of their pain.
Take a deep breath, and answer this honestly:
Can you, will you, do you want to watch England in their present mentally mauled, and physically flawed state play ODIs or T20s?
For heaven's sake, do they want to play themselves?
How many factions are they within this English XI?
Will it not be easier to put the whole lotta them on dole, and for the ECB to channel their futile efforts into some fledgling cricket nation
Just a thought, who knows, maybe Moldovia has a hope in hell.
Who does John Coach?
Sri Lanka?
West Indies?
England?
Ever wondered what to do when your team is on a winless streak, when you are struggling to beat a team you were expected to?
Ask the England captain Andrew Strauss and he will have this answer:
“Get the opposition coach to bat for you. I sincerely thank Mr Dyson (coach of the WI team) for giving us our first win after 13 consecutive winless internationals.”
In the first ODI, WI were chasing England’s 270 and the light was fading. Ramdin got out of the second ball of the 47th over, with WI at 244/7. The umpires decided to offer light to the batsmen and Dyson frantically waved his hands (with the D/L sheet in hand) to ask his batsmen in the middle to take the light and come back. He was certain WI were ahead and will win the match by D/L. Infact, WI were 1 run behind the par score and lost the match. WOW
Dyson later told:
"When it came down to that last wicket I didn't go across the column. I went down the wrong column. It's my responsibility, that's it. I've apologized to the team, that's all I can do. It was a bad mistake."
Well, Mr Dyson, I did not know it was that tough to read a sheet of paper with rows and columns. Anyway England are not complaining. Strauss knew all along that they were ahead and happily walked off the field. They got their first win of the tour courtesy Mr Dyson.
Just for info: England lost the next ODI too and the series is now 1-1. 3rd ODI is to be held today. Earlier, England lost the test series 0-1 with other 4 matches drawn.
This extraordinary blunder brought back memories of the infamous match between Srilanka and South Africa in 2003 World Cup. SA needed a win to stand a chance of making Super Six. They were chasing and rain came. Sensing that play would be called of at the end of the over, SA dressing room asked Boucher and Klusener to block last 3 balls of over as according to them they were ahead of D/L by 1 run.
What they didn’t realize was that D/L sheet had the par score(the score to tie the match). The match was tied. SA were ousted from the World Cup and rest is HISTORY.
by Vyom
Bored Joke: To take the piss as a coach, your first name should be John. Ask John Wright, John Dyson, John Buchanan, John Chappell.
who says multiple captains is this 'john's' idea…?
i would like to take you back to india’s 2003 world cup campaign…when it was proudly reported that the men in blue had different captains as per their specific skills…
if my memory serves me right, srinath was the bowling captain…sachin, batting captain...while kaif or yuvraj was the fielding captain…
and of course we know who the real captain above all these captains was…our own dada!
apparently this idea was tabled by our then coach john wright, to maintain a constant focus…and it turned out to be a success after the disastrous start…we charged into the finals of that world cup…
so why is another 'john' is being given the credit for this ‘weird’ experiment…?
…btw even current team india has zaheer khan as the bowling captain…!
india continue to amaze...
or to put it more appropriately sehwag's india continue to amaze...
as if dropping sitters, offering free runs was not enough...
we have started to offer wickets too...so much for generosity...
however attacking viru is with the bat he is just as defensive in his approach as captain...sending ishant as nightwatchman with over 5 overs to go, to protect a batsman on a pitch where batsmen yearn to pad up and play...?
from looking invincible to another team strolling in a park in just two days flat...that's what a 'jatman' can do to your team...
who said the captain is as good as his team...
Jatman, six and out
8.5 Vettori to Sehwag, SIX, take that! Sehwag launches it over long-on for a towering six
8.6 Vettori to Sehwag, OUT, outside the off stump. In fact, he could have had nothing to do with it, but then he looks to slog sweep it from outside the off stump and gets a faint edge back to McCullum, who does no mistakesV Sehwag c McCullum b Vettori 34 (39m 25b 5x4 1x6) SR: 136.00
And then, Jatman's kid bro
16.6 Patel to Gambhir, OUT, and the move to get Patel into the attack works! Gambhir comes skipping down the track, is beaten in flight and tamely lobs a catch to Vettori at mid-off. He would be frustrated at throwing a start away
G Gambhir c Vettori b Patel 16 (77m 53b 1x4 0x6) SR: 30.18
The 138 kmph half volley
Easy run up, easy action
Minimum effort with the ball
The 138 kmph half volley
Minimum effort with the bat
Four
Easy come, easy go
The 2 over Munaf Patel spell.
Missing Amit Mishra
Of 133 overs:
When Munaf bowls 26 overs
When Ishant bowls 25 overs
When Zaheer bowls 34 overs
When Harbhajan bowls 40 overs
When Yuvraj and Sehwag collectively bowl less than 10 overs
Times like this you wonder, why New Zealand picked two spinners
And you didn’t even pick one.
Jatman’s XI
Most days of test cricket start with little hints of what will be.
The day at Napier began with some skywriting “MSD backs out”.
Or Sehwag is skipper.
Now, if Mahi is a lucky captain, Viru is anything but that.
India still may not lose this test, but they should come darn close.
Closer than Yuvraj will come to catch one at slip.
Munaf did not survive the first day, on the second he may even regain his lost ODI form.
And Dinesh Karthik will continue to serve reminders why MSD is such a natural keeper.
But far more crucially, Sehwag, burdened by captaincy, might think and bat.
And to think, just the other day the Bored Members had a confab about the Jatman’s XI.
Without another thought, here’s the non-thinking man’s team:
The Jatman’s XI
1. Virender Sehwag (Captain)
2. Chris Gayle
3. Herschelle Gibbs
4. Kevin Pietersen
5. Andrew Symonds
6. Yuvraj Singh
7. Andrew Flintoff
8. Brad Haddin
9. Andre Nel
10. Harbhajan Singh
11. Sreesanth
12th Man:
Shahid Afridi
And when in the mood, Shoiab Akhtar will drop by for a few overs and sniffs
Mangaer: Niranjan Shah
Coach: Kapil Dev
Mentor: Greg Chappell
Bowling Coach: Jeff Thomson
Batting coach: Navjot Sidhu
Fielding Coach: situation vacant
can you explain mr robin singh...?
what you have been doing these (three) years or so...?
no my question is not related to the pathetic fielding display...i am used to seeing it...
my question is related to yuvraj dropping catches at slip...and the question is...
have you ever anticipated that dravid, sachin and even laxman are not gonna carry on for ever...
being a fielding coach can you lay claim on developing a single slip fielder in all these years...?
what's the role of a fielding coach then...doing fielding drills that even boycott's mom can do...?
...and we are regressing alarmingly on that front too...
Make more of MS Dhoni's captaincy
In the next few days as Viredner Sehwag leads India, in the second test match at Napier.
You just keep me dangling on.
click on image to enlargeWhile I grabbed a burger, a hundred and some Delhi Daredevils danglers (maybe that’s their new name, 4D for short) fluttered.
My burger stopped in midair, as I read the 4D misinformation.
It proclaimed, like some pre-poll propaganda -
“Join the Delhi Daredevil Club, make it to the Net sessions”
That really took the burger.
How on earth were they going to fly us all members for net practise to Johannesburg?
This was a few days back, pre-SAF announcement.
Then I see this in the mail (image above).
It says, The IPL is on track and the Daredevils are back.
This was March 16th, more than a week back, when the IPL was anything but on track.
It also talks loads about attending net sessions, hanging out with the team at post-match parties, travelling with them to away matches (in 3D transportation).
Wow. But how?
Happy Bored Day Old Chap!
Happy B’day Bill Lockwood Sir. You make us hark back to a different era; Wisden Cricketer of the Year 1899. Pleased to make your acquaintance sir.
(to see Bill Lockwood come alive, look left to see his page today, for tomorrow we'll forget about him again)
Go places with the IPL
Three sides to every story, right? Dip into what the Boredmembers have to say at their backyards:
Head out to John’s Pseudonationalism, Homer’s Setting a Precedent and SP’s How insensitive we have become.
And if that gets too heady, you can always head back here.
now that a precedent has been set...
no i am not talking about IPL being shifted to south africa...
i am talking about the reason england lost out to south africa...
it was anticipated that had bcci organised IPL in england, 70% matches would have been washed out due to bad weather…and this fact tilted the balance in favor of south africa...
no problem with that...
it's just that since bcci has now set a precedent of shifting the venue of their most important tournament, IPL, coz of weather...can we expect that some care if not equal consideration will be given to when finalising the itinerary of some 'unworthy' international matches...?
bored joke: why south africa was preferred over others...? coz they are SAF...
Azhar, come again, why have you joined politics?
click image to enlargeAfter Azhar the politician, now Azhar the cartoon makes a comeback.
You can go here for earlier comments, or be inventive for a change.
Speak for Azhar, god knows he needs it.
The most Bored reply goes into the blurb.
Boys, played well. Now play well again.
Happy Bored Day Big Mouth
Happy B’day Deano, doomed to be known for advancing down the wrong track. On this day, let's look back and recall others of his ilk. And milk them dry. Shoot sir, teri…
NRIPL
I just couldn't resist this - ipl becomes nripl! just like shah rukh and karan johar movies now even spectacle cricket moves out of the country. no more problems over cheerleaders' skimpy outfits.
by Sunny Narang
Happy Bored Day Pigeon's Bunny.
Happy B'day Athers. How does it feel to have a test avg below 40, your mates still can't stop talking about it. Tell you what, you were far more bearable on the field than in the box. Some commoner's gonna box your stiff upper lip one of these days.
(to visit Atherton's page, look left, tomorrow he'll be out again)
For more cricket animals, go to Som's
Is cricket that predictable?
Earlier today while speaking to a fellow Bored Member I called it.
Much before Johnson’s tirade at the crease, and way before Strauss’ long vigil, I called their 100s.
Enough conceit for one little post.
Btw occasionaly I do get some stuff wrong, like Gambhir's meteoric rise.
But then I'm not in his mind fields, Paddy is.
Get out when Ramdin gets out
In the 1st ODI, day before, as in the 2nd one today, when Ramdin was dismissed the players left the field of play.
1st ODI Fall of wickets1-6 (Gayle, 2.5 ov), 2-131 (Sarwan, 30.1 ov), 3-152 (Simmons, 33.4 ov), 4-212 (Chanderpaul, 40.4 ov), 5-213 (Bravo, 41.1 ov), 6-242 (Pollard, 45.5 ov), 7-244 (Ramdin, 46.2 ov)
2nd ODI 12.55pm West Indies just losing their way here. And, as I write, a very blustery shower scurries across the ground and the covers are hurriedly dragged on
46.1 Collingwood to Ramdin, OUT, well that's a bit of a poor shot really. He stood with both feet pointing down the pitch and tried to scoop it very fine over the keeper's head, but could only spoon it straight to a short fine-leg.
1st ODI: Ramdin dismissed 46.2, 2nd ODI: Ramdin dismissed 46.1
And again
5.15pm But that's it. They're heading off. It's fairly hammering down. England are 15 runs behind Duckworth-Lewis. The cut-off time if now 6pm apparently, so...the game's not over yet.
46.2
Pollard to Strauss, FOUR, slashed through extra cover for four!
It's hammering down now
46.1
Pollard to Strauss, 2 runs, crashed through cover for two, bringing up his third one-day hundred
The covers are about to be dragged on. Oh blimey. Lights are on
What's with the 46th over in Guyana, with or without Ramdin, but always with rain
Deadly Cocktail? Squashed! Defused?
Thoughts. Were coursing through mind. Why not extend Kiwi tour and set up and set off IPL there?
Anyway, India polls and IPL might have been a bad cocktail, Molotov cocktail perhaps. Deadly combo.
Move it to Kangaroo land after a few games. Move it further and nearer home to Hong Kong. Get on top of time and jet lag. Not Macau, the Las Vegas style playground. HK may have rectangular grounds, not round ones or oval shaped, but Macau has casinos, but no cricket, perhaps no baseball, but pinballs.
So, South Africa. Good choice, hopefully. Land of Sun City and lions. A pride of them not far from J’burg at a white farmer’s big outdoors. The guy mollycoddles the kings of jungle. Good sight, if cricket watchers are given Entry. Some hope.
But land of Freddie and Kevin—for some games—might be equally interesting. Vizzy Mallya would be pleased as punch. Good pitch for Kingfisher beer.
After May 16 when chickens have been counted, would home turf be game? Dharamsala in cool mountains. Or Chail, at 8,000 ft above sea level, with the world’s highest ground, with trees around the boundary and machans in some of them for ex-royals, expelled by Viceroys of old for Scandal on the Shimla Ridge. Machans for Patiala pegs and frolicsome kings.
by Lalit
Jai ho innings defeat ki.
Australia lose by an innings and 20 runs, after an innings and ten years.
The match is over but Johnson is still hitting it.
Cool Dude
Dhoni. Not with flowing locks any more. But locks or no locks, luck and lust to win: both intact. A cool dude, eh. No bragging. No jumping the gun. One win. But more needed. Not yet in the kitty. Hard work ahead.
England has had a secret weapon: rain. Kiwis have strong winds. Winds which demolished India’s T20 games, both of them. With one 50-50 defeat, Kiwis could say it is 3 all, but they know it’s not fair and square.
Back to gusts of wind: Did India manage to get on top of them? Perhaps.
When MSD won the toss at Hamilton, he admits he felt the breeze might help him. They did. In the first two hours, day one. But the storms petered out after six wickets pre-lunch.
Danny Vettori. Also cool. Readily agrees Indians not just upbeat but upfront. Own boys must learn to play 120 overs and score, if they want a fighting game. Field well. Don’t floor sitters.
Two sides. Gentlemen? The word is still in the dic. Still means something. Playing cricket, not hooky. Good boys. Stay good. Don’t lose shirt, white or blue or black.
by Lalit
Pakistanis in the IPL?
Misbah, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul, and Kamran Akmal are the only Pakistanis still contracted to IPL franchises.
With the IPL moving out of India, the above four have the opportunity to play.
But are the franchises going to rope them in now?
Or will the Pakistan foreign ministry still allow them to play for Indian teams?
It should be alright in my view for the Pakistanis to appear, as long as they are not travelling to India.
Maybe the franchises should look to buy the services of Shoaib Malik, Shahid Afridi, and Fawad Alam - they may catch 'em cheap!
IPL shifts out of India!
Dear Bored Members (and Guests and other readers),
Times of India reports that IPL is being shifted out of India, probably to South Africa or England. Probably, you already know about this!
What I am about to write in this letter may sound a little politically incorrect to a few, or just a letter out of frustration to others. Frankly, it is both!
If the bloody government cannot guarantee singular events in its country where there is a concentration of a few thousands, how can it guarantee the safety of us billion people who are scattered across this country!
I am now scared living in my own country, aren't you?!
(This is also the 600th post on BCC!, but I have lost all excitement in it even though it's coming out of me!)
Sachins thankfully,
Ankit Poddar
Times of India reports that IPL is being shifted out of India, probably to South Africa or England. Probably, you already know about this!
What I am about to write in this letter may sound a little politically incorrect to a few, or just a letter out of frustration to others. Frankly, it is both!
If the bloody government cannot guarantee singular events in its country where there is a concentration of a few thousands, how can it guarantee the safety of us billion people who are scattered across this country!
I am now scared living in my own country, aren't you?!
(This is also the 600th post on BCC!, but I have lost all excitement in it even though it's coming out of me!)
Sachins thankfully,
Ankit Poddar
Another Outpost Conquered
Another outpost conquered by India as a result of their emphatic win at Hamilton.
It's our first ever Test win at Hamilton. Previous wins in New Zealand include: 2 at Auckland and 1 each at Wellington and Dunedin.
Interestingly, over the last decade we have fared extremely well in alien conditions to post maiden Test victories at a number of Test centres (something very gratifying for a cricket crazy Indian like me). Here's a flashback (not taking matches against Bangladesh into account for obvious reasons):
It all began with an eight-wicket win at the Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo in 2001. Next to fall were Kandy (2001), Adelaide (2003), Multan (2004), Rawalpindi (2004), Harare (2005), Kingston (2006), Johannesburg (2006), Nottingham (2007), Perth (2008), Galle (2008) and finally Hamilton (2009).
Next on the radar:
Napier (next week), Bridgetown, Georgetown, St John's, Birmingham, Manchester, Christchurch, Brisbane, Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Blomfontein, Centurion. Also Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Faisalabad, even though highly unlikely in the near future thanks to Ajmal Kasab and his brothers.
Ironically, Pakistan have never won a Test in Delhi and Mumbai while India has not recorded a Test win at Lahore and Karachi.
Desired impact of India's win
1st Test (Hamilton): India wins by 10 wickets.
2nd Test (Napier): India’s aim should be to bat only once.
3rd Test (Wellington): India’s aim should be to bat not even once.
1st margin of victory: by 10 wickets
2nd margin of victory: by an innings
3rd margin of victory: by two innings
Is this achievable?
Yes. New Zealand bats first, and is bowled out for an abysmally low score at Wellington. Rest of the match is rained off. India pulls off a huge moral victory.
Bored Peon & Bored Neon's New look in New Zealand
Bored Peon: how will we get into the players' party?
Bored Neon: Why do you think we're wearing these t-shirts, to impress sheep?
on rahul opening the innings...
is he on his farewell tour...?
that's the first thought which came to my mind seeing rahul dravid open with gautam gambhir today...
or was he in as a nightwatchman...
century on debut...
BE McGain (lbg) 11.0 2 102 0 9.27
this is the fastest century on debut by a bowler...
congrats mcgain!!
update
here is the complete list...courtesy dear bored member soulberry!
Rahul Dravid got it right.
As always, Dravid was thinking ahead. He had picked Kallis and Chanderpaul keeping the IPL season 2 in mind. While Kallis ravaged a debutant, Chanderpaul ripped into a has-been for 26 runs in one over. As Chappell once infamously said to Dravid, it’s the process that matters.
Break on through to the other side
2.23 AM (IST) 12 overs shy of an ODI roundup in Guyana.
3.15 AM (IST) the 4th day kicks off at Hamilton.
Being a Bored Cricket Crazy Indian often means being stuck in the middle.
Does one good turn require another?
A Cricinfo report ‘Tendulkar's catch attracts controversy’ ends with an interesting inference.
Moles' disappointment could have to do with an incident earlier in the day, when Mahendra Singh Dhoni was given not out after the referral of another low catch that New Zealand claimed. Dhoni had cut low to the right of Jesse Ryder at gully, where he seemed to have pulled off a blinder, but after initial celebrations, he had indicated he was not sure. The replays showed the ball might not have carried and the benefit of the doubt prevailed.Apparently, Moles and the New Zealand team are disappointed that India did not return their favour. If that is the case then it not the legality of catch it is the lack of reciprocity that is being questioned. Therefore it is Moles expectations that is controversial.
save this tiger...
imagine he could have missed this test coz of injury playing some meaningless ODIs...
one can argue that he can get injured playing in tests too...
but sir...
tigers are not meant to get injured while crossing the road...if injury has to happen, let it be on the real battlefield...
The Crucket so far
2000 words or the Ryder-Vettori graphic by Ben.
Very graphic indeed.
Leave Yuvraj Singh alone
Do with Yuvraj what he did with the ball that got him.
97.3
Martin to Yuvraj Singh, OUT, that's a poor leave and he looks back to see his bails splattered on the turf, Martin really gets this one to bend back in from round the wicket and Yuvraj nonchalantly shoulders arms, the ball knocks the offstump back
Yuvraj Singh b Martin 22 (74m 50b 4x4 0x6) SR: 44.00
Damn these negative vibes.
It’s been Giles B’day, and still is in parts of the world.
Only natural then that some of the negativity born on this day would spread to various corners of the cricketing world.
Australia played the dead rubber blues, and India got the blues in lieu of Sehwag’s run-out.
Two hours short of the 3rd day’s play, I’ve been infected by Giles negative lines.
Partly due to India’s score that’s one shy of the Kiwis.
Is there some voodoo in that?
Are we to have a reverse collapse, another 60/6 pre-lunch.
338 all out.
Not that hard to fathom. Knock either Sachin or Yuvi fast with that 10 over old-new ball and what do you got –
Jumpy MSD, and then the tail.
Which includes our own Chris Martin, Munaf Patel.
Put in 3 slips, 2 gullies, and go for the jugular – pitch it up, let it swing.
Let the weather move in from England.
And then India will rue, what could have been.
Six wickets on the first day before lunch.
Six wickets on the third -how far they take India, should decide the match.
Who knows, this test could go down as the “six for sixty” test match.
Then again, maybe it'll rain.
And that was written by Giles, not me.
Hamilton Test Day 2 - Where's your money?
Gambhir and Dravid scored today. Laxman flopped, by his standards of course.
Where's your money for tomorrow? Here's mine:
- Sachin if he makes it past the initial "settling down"
- Harbhajan (yes, really) :)
Cheers!
Happy Bored Day Negativity
Happy B’day Ashley Giles. If Dravid said that after God, there’s Ganguly on the off side, then, what he left unsaid was, before the Devil, there’s Giles on the leg side.
bored joke: how to say no to giles - nagiles
Were's the Attack?
So Gambhir, Dravid, and Sachin all faced a 130 odd deliveries and scored between 66 and 72.
I would have thought Gambhir would be more attacking.
Maybe running Sehwag out made him circumspect.
What happened to Laxman though? 90 deliveries for a 30?
Come on he's better than that.
Ryder scored at a better rate than all the Indian batsmen.
Hell even Vettori scored at a better rate. In fact better than all batsmen in this match, except for Sehwag ofcourse.
Whats wrong? The indians are known to be an attacking lot. Past demons?
Yuvi wasn't even there the last time round and he's scratched around for 30 deliveries to score 8.
Awful!
What’s better than a Monk?
An Old Monk.
It started with an article on Rahul Dravid in TOI.
Gist was Dravid’s monk-like demeanour the day before the test match.
Appears he was serenading the pitch barefoot and playing propah cricketing shots without a cricket bat.
Good only, as when he used his bat, it didn’t quite come off, did it?
Somewhere between all that divinity, Dravid was stamped with another name.
The Monk.
I liked the nonchalant way in which this moniker had been dropped -
It was as if Dravid had always been the Monk, almost like a good, old shoe.
This really got me thinking, what better than a Monk, monsieur?
What better than an Old Monk.
Steeped in many centuries of obsessive, unyielding headiness.
Rahul Dravid, the Old Monk.
Was he any younger wouldn’t have been bowled like that today.
second day: india fail to force issue...
for the first time in recent times indian innings stagnated after the fall of dravid...specially in third session of play...
usually the team looks to up the ante in this session to capitalise on a good foundation...on tired bowlers and to get into some sort of momentum before the new ball is due...but what we saw was just the opposite...the batsmen at the crease kept on blocking and blocking without any visible intention of looking even for a single...
ryder was given too much respect and we specially failed to capitalise on vettori's off color bowling when he was surprisingly flat...
nz would think they still have a chance and if they can pick a couple of wickets in the first hr tomorrow the lead can be restricted to manageable levels...
there is still quite a bit of time left in this test match and if nz manage to restrict india and post a decent score in the next five sessions india will be in a defensive position coz they will have to bat in the fourth innings...if this happens india will look back at third session as the missed opportunity where they could have been little more proactive...
again on two consecutive days no team can lay claims to be in distinctive advantage...
Outstanding coverage
After no telecast, stuck frames, Hathway Cable had this creepy crawly running around the bowler's run-up, two inches from the bottom of screen: This cable network has outstandings towards the OneAllianceChannels comprising Max, Sony Entertainment Channel, AXN, Discovery, Nick, Animal Planet, MTV, Aaj Tak, Headlines Today, Tez, SAB, Travel &Living, NDTV…. All or some of these channels are likely to be disconnected shortly.
Community Fa(r)ce
"I will be their motivator and will cheer them through to the IPL season two finals." He will also interact with fans during the event in his role as 'fan mentor' and 'community face' for the franchise.
Thats Sreesanth. Shantakumaran-"I-haven't-played-cricket-in-a-year"-Sreesanth. Slapped by Harbhajan Singh. He will now be a "community face" for Kings XI Punjab. The irony is killing me.
K11P... Is this really what you want to represent your "community face"? "Fan Mentor"? Are you trying to tell all your fans you want them to be cry babies?
Why You Playing Bhajji?
India play 2 spinners at home because the conditions demand that.
They play 1 spinner on tours because the conditions demant that.
All well and good.
But shouldn't the 1 spinner be Amit Mishra?
Surely I would go for a leggie rather than an offie in a test match.
Any day!
Then why is Bhajji playing again?
Hamilton Test Day 1 - A better late than never report
I must begin with my apologies for posting so late for I'm the bored member who said I'd be up at 3:30am to watch the proceedings of a long anticipated Test clash. But dang it, my arm, I couldn't even move it two days ago, I didn't even make it to work today. Moving to the match.
If you ask me, there isn't much that's new about India letting go of an opportunity to dominate. That said, NZ did well to recover. Vettori played a captain's innings and Ryder gave good support. Good to see that Ryder got the century he deserved - wish it wasn't against us, though!
Tomorrow, Gambhir will be key. I think this will be tour in which Gambhir can go from "seems good" to "really good". This will be a true test for him.
Looking forward to tomorrow.
Not quite Sir Daniel Vettori yet, but what the heck.
Bored friends, I give you Sir Richard Hadlee.
And commoner, captain Daniel Vettori.
Let’s look at the batting numbers here, boys –
Vettori, always considered more of a bowler than a batsman, shares the same test batting average as Hadlee: 27
Not just that, he has 3 tons compared to Hadlee’s 2.
Both have 3000+ runs in nearly the same number of tests.
But what about the bowling? What about it.
Bored Aside: After Gambhir, Sehwag, Dilshan, Amit Mishra, AB de Villiers, Daniel Vettori is yet another Delhi Daredevil to run into some seriously scorching form.
What say sir?
some observations...
dhoni is better test wicketkeeper...is better odi captain...
slip cordon can't be 'spaced' out...it should be 'filled' by a fielder...
dravid a point fielder...?
yuvraj is odi part time bowler...
sehwag is test part time bowler...
harbhajan still doesn't know what kinda bowler he is...
an attacking one or stock bowler...
got more...?
And now the Tigers say, “Thank You Sachin!”
Not the Bangladeshi cricket team, but the ones burning bright in the forest of extinction
That’s Sachin for ‘Save the Tiger’ Campaign.“When I was growing up, I was told there were once creatures called dinosaurs, which are extinct. Unless we do something about it, we could perhaps end up talking about the tiger in similar manner to future generations”
And this is us for Save the ‘Thank You Sachin’ Campaign.
What ruled Balaji out
Appears it was bouncing twice before it reached the batsmen in the nets. That pretty much ruled Balalji out.
Between the pillow and play
As you wake up, before you wake the TV up, on the first morn', you're bound to do some calculations:
I had settled for NZL batting and outing themselves, 60/5. It was 10 mts before lunch then.
NZL was 56/5.
I had McCullum's wicket for bed tea.
Actually a four through slips before that.
And then the wicket.
And then Arun Lal.
And I'm writing this in my sleep.
Just as Lal and Charu Sharma speak in their sleep.
But the real fightback begins now, Ryder and Vettori still there.
I'm not. Back to the bunkers for lunch.
Cricket in NZL just doesn't make sense.
Know the enemy.
beige brigade
crucket
cricket=action=art
dead ball
ian o brien
mike on cricket
sports freak
sports review
One of them will be too busy to blog during the game. Who does he think he is, a cricketer?
Why you must wake up at 3.30 AM
To have Charu Sharma wish you a very Good Morning! Dr Vijay Mallaya will be up to follow Dravid and Ryder’s progress and pigs will fly.
To have a look at Javagal Srinath’s boots
To hear Sanjay Manjrekar make politically incorrect statements about Sachin Tendulkar
To watch Sachin Tendulkar turn them into milestones
To watch a rain delay
To have Charu Sharma give you updates on the rain delay
To hear Charu and Sanjay enlighten you on the 3rd seamer options
To see their coffee mugs
To see their mugs
To be mugged of your sleep
To watch the first ball of the test match at Hamilton.
You’ve come a long way baby
There was a time when the fast bowler talk hovered around -
When will we have one
When will Kapil Dev break Richard Hadlee’s record
Will Kapil Dev break Richard Hadlee's record
When will Kapil Dev retire
Will Kapil Dev retire
When will Javagal Srinath play a home test
Will Javagal Srinath play a home test
Kapil Dev has retired
Javagal Srinath has played a home test
When will India have a world class pace attack
Who will be the second quick
The Ides of March pose a new question –
Who will be India’s third seamer?
Over to John's O-bala, no-bala, Sam's Munaf, Achettup's Defence of Munaf and SP's Enough of Munaf
Bored Joke: when Munaf doesn't play, who does - Munafa.
some things never change...
New Zealand win by 5 wickets. Handshakes all around, good effort by New Zealand Women to pull this one off. India Women's performance on the field was terrible, dropped catches, misfields and run outs missed. Amita Sharma was the only one who did well on the field with two catches to her name.
Goswami: "It was a decent score, the fielding let us down."
even if the gender is different...how some things remain same...
Where do you belong?
An incredibly moving tale of Ravi Varma, over at Straight Points.
How Ravi moved to the Emirates and saw his cricket dreams come true.
Got me thinking about how so many talented young cricketers should have got off their bony butts and moved their asses elsewhere.
What’s more important, chasing a useless dream but never playing for your country, or playing cricket at the highest level for any nation that will have you?
KP, can you hear me?
Look at what could have been:
Stuart McGill playing hard-to-get for the Poms
Rohan Gavaskar driving down to Dacca
Andrew Symonds & Andre Nel causing more upheaval in Afghanistan
Misbah-ul-Haq for anyone who will have him
Mohammed Yousuf for anyone who will not have him
Laxman Sivaramakrishnan for a dry state
Ashley Giles playing for a Negative State of mind
Vivek Razdan for the Russian basketball team
Thin lips, Hemang Badani playing as the third Flower
Brett Lee for the Hollywood Superstars, U.S.A
Glenn McGrath instead of the bowling machine
Kiwi for Maths, and Aussie for beer
First it was Justin Vaughan, CEO of Kiwi cricket who took his Casio scientific calculator out:
After the black caps’ lone ODI victory, he solved a highly complex equation:
3-3 is what he said (India 3-1 in the ODIs, NZL 2-0 in the T20s, Q.E.D)
Then the Kiwi coach, Andy Moles took his abacus out, in consultation with the Chinese he arrived at this:"Of course the Indians will say that they won the series. That's fine. Our answer is there have been six games of cricket, they have won three, and we have won three. So we are level going into the [Test] series. They outplayed us in the one-dayers, but we are looking forward to the Test series."
Got me thinking, had England won yesterday’s T20, the series according to Vaughan & Moles, and the world according to Garp would’ve been locked at 1-1.
Balderdash.
enough of munaf...?
you name it he has it…
attitude problem…
injury problem…
fielding IS problem…
and yet such are the ‘riches’ of india's bowling attack that we fall back on him time and again…
the test will start on wednesday and we don’t know yet who will join ishant and zaheer to share the cherry…
will we fall back on munaf again or will it be from bala or kulkarni…
going back to munaf will send a wrong signal that being lackluster in attitude and in field does not matter in the end…
to me he needs a jolt...the shock may stuff some senses into the vacuum between his ears…though after seeing him floundering chances after chances…i am pretty sure he is beyond repair…usska maraj ab dava aur dooa dono ki hadein paar kar chuka hai...
i think balaji will make a good choice coz he swings ball both ways…though has lost a bit of pace but is largely accurate to make up for it…he makes the batsmen play and that’s what you want in seaming conditions…
what say?
India should win Test Series
No, I'm not saying this because the Nawab of Pataudi feels that way, I genuinely believe India can pull of a Test Series win in NZ.
First, it'll be great to see VVS and Dravid back, and I feel VVS is going to do well in NZ. He has the game for the NZ pitches. Sehwag, Dhoni, Gambhir and Sachin are all in form and have seen enough of the Kiwi bowling and pitches. Zaheer and Ishant are definitely going to be a factor on these pitches.
Dhoni's team will continue to rewrite history.
by Mohit Varma
Pervez Musharraf wants to be a third umpire
Former Pak Pres Musharraf said this at the India Today Conclave:
“I would like to play the role of a third umpire between India and Pakistan in the peace process”Just not cricket. No, No, No!
Really should stick to MSD’s haircuts, he’s far more credible then.
India win
The women that is. Like the men, they beat the Aussies. That too in a World Cup super six game. Asked to comment on her match-winning 76, Anjum Chopra said MoM's the word.
Happy Bored Day Skinny Joe
Happy B’day Bruce Reid. Your action was described as being "all arms and legs ... like a porn movie without the sex." How blue can you get.
Bored Trivia: what do venki prasad and bruce reid have in common?
both have been bowling coaches for India
(to check Bruce’s appendages click his link on your left, tomorrow it’ll be someone weightier)
Where to go
Back to the pavilion, 149/10.
Straight Points’ Warning signs for team India.
Achettup's 23.2 overs (including 17 power play overs)
A search for Yusuf Pathan here.
How Auckland can that be?
I was surfing TV
Ain’t no live games on
Just a dead rubber morrow
How Auckland can that be?
Get a full house in, pack a million Indians in
How Auckland can that be?
Wake up at half past six on a Saturday
How Aukland can that be?
To watch a dead rubber game
Am I repeating myself here?
Are these dead rubbers repeating themselves too?
Or is just me and you?
Who wanna get out, and watch something live
Where will we go?
To another dead rubber in Cape Town
How Auckland can that be?
But before that there’s the first test in Hamilton
Wake up at half past three on a Wednesday?
How Auckland can that be?
JATMAN inspiring jats...
according to this report...
"Before Sehwag shot to fame in the late '90s, there were hardly any Jat players in the Ranji squad. Today, 40% of Ranji players from Delhi are Jats''it seems that after seeing the heroics of JATMAN... jats are inspired like never before...the day is not far when JATMAN's pupils will take over the world to rule till eternity...
...and we at BCC! already have an 'anthem' for JATMAN here...
(ideally sung to the tune of Jana Gana Mana...or any other appropriate tune)
jatman bunn abhi aakar chhore oye…tera devta boolata…
bowlers ko vo aise maarta...dravid bhi hans deta...
vettori himanchal dhooni ramata…paani na maange malinga…
jub vo bat dikhaaye…tub bowler maidaan chhodkar bhaagay…
dhoni series jeet kay gaata…
jatman bunn abhi aakar chhore oye…tera devta boolata…
जाट मैन बन अभी आकर छोरे ओये... तेरा देवता बुलाता...
बोलर्स को वो ऐसे मारता... द्रविड़ भी हंस देता...
विट्टोरी हिमांचल धूनी रमाता... पानी ना मांगे मलिंगा...
जब वो बैट दिखाए... तब बोलर मैदान छोड़कर भागे...
धोनी सीरीज़ जीत कर गाता...
जाट मैन बन अभी आकर छोरे ओये... तेरा देवता बुलाता....
(feel free to add your lines...)
bowlers ko vo aise maarta...dravid bhi hans deta...
vettori himanchal dhooni ramata…paani na maange malinga…
jub vo bat dikhaaye…tub bowler maidaan chhodkar bhaagay…
dhoni series jeet kay gaata…
jatman bunn abhi aakar chhore oye…tera devta boolata…
जाट मैन बन अभी आकर छोरे ओये... तेरा देवता बुलाता...
बोलर्स को वो ऐसे मारता... द्रविड़ भी हंस देता...
विट्टोरी हिमांचल धूनी रमाता... पानी ना मांगे मलिंगा...
जब वो बैट दिखाए... तब बोलर मैदान छोड़कर भागे...
धोनी सीरीज़ जीत कर गाता...
जाट मैन बन अभी आकर छोरे ओये... तेरा देवता बुलाता....
(feel free to add your lines...)
John Wright Sings!
I give you John Wright.
Just another yardbird.
Enjoy his ode to Kirsten the Peacock.
Birdie num num!
Bored Trivia
Older than the Ashes More angst than an Ind-Pak
130 years of unbroken Cricket
Who says cricket in the Subcontinent is Boring?
by Damith
Please Tell Me You're Not Serious
We're going half way around the world, to play four ODIs on grounds that are famous for the lack of concern and effort Chinese construction companies have for developing anything related to the sport? This in a year when we will play another stupid 7 match ODI series against the Aussies, the Champions Trophy, the T-20 World Cup not to mention the IPL and Champions League.
The first two tests of the Eng-WI series were exciting, the last one only got a little bit exciting in the last couple of sessions. Otherwise it was one heck of a boring tour. Even like that, I see no point in a team going all the way to the Windies for a bilateral ODI series. Looking at this schedule after this series in NZ we will next play a test in November against SL (3 matches) and then 2 against the mighty TIGER CRICKET minnows, Bangaldesh.
I was really glad when the BCCI decided to add an extra test to the NZ series. But the truth is our schedule is so packed with these stupid, meaningless, bilateral ODI matches that there is no room for tests. And don't get me started with the Champions Trophy, it was a stupid tournament last year when it never took place and I don't honestly know how many people want it this time around. Somebody please tell me that the schedule for the series in the WI is incomplete and they're still working on it. Its right after the T20 World Cup, and the Windies have a series against Bangladesh just after that too.
Bored Trivia
Did you know that only one member of the 1983 world cup winning Indian team was clean-shaven during that tournament. And his bat remained dormant throughout the tournament even though he was exceptional in the field, especially the slip cordon. Gavaskar - The Little Master.
by K
What do Sara McGlashan and Peter McGlashan have in common?
Looks like Sara, but is Peter
Looks like Peter, but is Sara
Would you believe it, they got the same parents. That’s right mate, Sara is the Kiwi keeper, Peter McGlashan’s sister. Bet they’re both gushing as they read this.
While Peter scored 56 in a losing cause vs. India yesterday, Sara outdid her bro, scoring two fat ladies (88) in a winning cause vs. SAF in the women's world cup.
Just shows, no matter what the gender, these South Africans are losers.
Btw Sara also keeps. If you do come by any childhood pictures of Sara pulling Peter’s pigtails while beating the shit out of him in a backyard game, send it to me.
‘coz you’re bored like I’m bored, got nothing happening but for the cricket.
JATMAN
Haryanvi Jats continue their domination of Indian sport as Virender Sehwag's blistering century powers India to their maiden ODI series triumph in Kiwiland. This nerveless & free spirited wonder (sehwag) doesn't flinch for a moment (super-human quality) before launching the ball out of the park despite being at the doorstep of a historic century, double century, triple century (very un Tendulkarlike).
The best part being: he retains the same dumb expression at all times as if he's playing with a bunch of kids. Nevertheless, a once-in-a-century cricketer for India whose positive attitude makes him a true ambassador of a legendary martial race (the Jats) that has also produced the ONLY Olympic heroes in combat sports (boxing, wrestling) for India. With the exception of the great Maratha wrestler Khashaba Jadhav (bronze medalist, wrestling, Helsinki Olympics 1952).
by K
Shame on you 19.2 overs
Rain. 4 more balls to make a game. Vettori holds on to the ball. And the umpires balls too.
Gambhir Beta!
Gambhir Beta!
Want to open again?
Sachin won't be playing.
Gambhir Beta, don't wory.
After 2011 you will be the regular ODI opener.
And till then, there's always IPL, T20, test.
Gambhir Beta, Dost Free with Coke.
But Viru is with Pepsi?
Open happiness. What's that?
38.4 overs
England in 38.4 overs 237/6d
West Indies in 38.4 overs 85/527.2 overs remain. West Indies deserve to lose. Just as South Africa deserved to, earlier today.
the wicket alert on cricinfo has dismissed Chanderpaul(6) and Hinds(20) and Gayle(4) for a duck. And Powell (0) for a duck.
Daren Powell is in the team as a batsman, he did not bowl in the Eng 2nd innings.
64.1
Anderson to Edwards, 1 run
I think I'm turning into Bill Lawry.
This is unbearable
George Headley, Everton Weekes, Garry Sobers, IVA Richards, BC Lara, FH Edwards...
Isa Guha versus Mithali Raj
Class swing bowler versus elegant batswoman.
What a cracking contest!
"I bought a few Kiwis"
And it didn’t amount to match fixing. It's not like you say, I bought a few Indians, picked a few Pakistanis or sourced a few South Africans. Or am I getting ahead of myself, you heard of Kiwis being bought? IPL, ICL, aside.
Bored to the bone # 79
What do you call a white who plays for the Windies: Nash
What do you call a white who doesn’t play for the Windies: SatyaNash
If and when the West Indies score 500, a commentator is supposed to run naked at the Queen's Park Oval. The bets these days.
do not preach what you cannot follow...
before the wellington match...shastri interviewed bhajji...
the talk was about the role of being the senior bowler and how well he bowled in the previous curtailed odi in which he took 2 wickets in an over and how bamboozled nz batsmen looked against him...
this is the essence of what harbhajan said
i know i'm a senior bowler in the team and i'm enjoying the responsibility...i realised that if i give them pace to work with it's easier for batsmen to score against me...so i bowled slower in the air...got grip, turn and bounce...which was very pleasing...
now recall his bowling in last odi...specially his initial spell...
he did exactly the opposite of what he said in that interview...he came to bowl with preset defensive mind set at best...his average ball speed was around 95 kmph and he just shot the ball on the batsmen's pads...basically bowled dirt...and only when the lesser batsmen were at the crease did he flight the ball...
now that's for 'self acknowledging' senior and spearhead bowler...'enjoying' the responsibility...
when it's so obvious to him to say what he said in interview, what prevents him to practise what he preaches...?
or it's just that you want to sound 'intelligent' and say things you don't believe in....?
you decide...
The soul of Sachin.
It was another one day innings I nearly missed, and then I read Soulberry’s carefully crafted ‘Pad’s with leather straps and metal buckles’. Thank You Sachin.
Happy Bored Day Little Heart!
Happy B’day Parthiv. 24 today, made his test debut 7 long years’ back and he’s not even Pakistani. It’s a proven fact that little p was all of 17 years and 4 ft when he hopped on to the field at Trent Bridge. Right now though Patels are better off in Kiwi cricket. Yes, Munaf?
(look left for PP's page today, tomorrow it'll be MSD's day again)
that's two in two...
they got it wrong...for the man of match that is...
last time it was raina that played the blinder which enabled india to post a total beyond kiwis reach...but it was dhoni who got MoM...
this time it was the brilliant impetus provided by yuvraj which swelled india's total to proportions no one believed were possible...
earlier during the initial part of indian innings there were talks of two paced nature of the wicket and how a 260ish total will be a good one...india too were cruising along that line...
but not yuvraj...
after seeing off some balls he displayed the kind of unabashed 'west indian' stroke play he is feared for all over the world and turned the game on its head...
suddenly even 400 looked possible and achievable...
he was the deserving man of match for me...
Move Over...
Sehwag, Gambhir, Yuvraj, Dhoni, Raina ...
No one looks as good as Sachin when he scores.
And how he scores!
163 magical runs.
He had the record today if it weren't for those cramps.
Lord Sachin - may you play till your 50th birthday!
Drink & Drive
Close up of banner headline "If you drink and cover drive, you're a bloody Ryder".
Cut to Jesse Ryder.
Good 5 sec Ad break that.
(spoofs the Ad headline - if you drink then drive, you're a bloody idiot)
Hum Red & White pahenney walon ki baat hi kuch aur hai
Preity Zinta has won
the Red & White Bravery Awards, Kallis has not
For something far less pretty read 'blood on the pitch' at jrod's
It's about what a Johnson of a bitch of a ball can do
00W0W0
Pollock hit the right lines in the box, calling Mitchell Johnson's first a W0W over. McKenzie and Amla gone on either side of a dot ball, W0W indeed.
0.5 Johnson to Amla, OUT
HM Amla lbw b Johnson 00.4 Johnson to Amla, no run
0.3 Johnson to McKenzie, OUT
ND McKenzie c Haddin b Johnson 0
Happy Bored Day Sir
Happy B'day Viv Richards. Glad we caught you in your prime. Esp in '83.
In Trini
One team goes in with the extra batsman. The other with an extra bowler. On a slow,low wicket. With the ball holding up at times. On the first day.
And I am not even sure England have chosen the right spin combination for the match.
Fun times!
Laxman and Dravid to play in ODIs
Looking for some much need practise before the test series, what better than a warm up in the ODIs? After the Wellington ODI, the heavy weather forecast for the rest of the ODI series, and MSD’s ability to bat first, Laxman and Dravid are slated to make a comeback for the remaining one-dayers.
Meanwhile Dravid claimed his T20 form was good, and he's looking forward to play in some 28 over games in New Zealand.
Rain stops in Wellington.
First rain stopped play in Wellington. Then the rain stopped and play started. But then the rain started again, and play had to be stopped again. For the full effect of the Wellington ODI go back to the beginning of this post. Wear your raincoat while you’re at it.
Appears the rain has stopped in Wellington, and the players have sleep walked on to the field. To call it a mechanical one-dayer would be an understatement. To say, that the BCCI chose this itinerary, as they often do Chennai in the monsoon, is more accurate.
If you were up at 6.30 (IST), then both Sehwag and Sachin would have had the same effect on you: while Sehwag’s shots would have kept you awake, Sachin’s would have made you lose sleep.
And if you hit the sack after Sehwag was dismissed by umpire Watkin, you can ask what I’m asking: did Sachin accelerate to 60, or was that Sehwag who stayed back, swapped jerseys, and scored his runs.
Anyway looking forward to more T20 games.
Who will fit into Srinath’s boots?
When Javagal Srinath hung his boots six years’ back, it was often asked, “who will fit into Srinath’s boots?” And now six years later, Srinath himself has got into his boots. Over at the Set Max studios, Srinath in mighty, big boots. All that’s missing is a fishing mate. Anybody seen Symonds? Yeah, last seen he was like a fish outta water.
how much time it takes...
...for third umpire (obviously not counting special 'talent' daryl harper) to communicate to on-field umpire about an obvious error!
or
just stop stripping an umpire naked in front of the world by showing countless replays...
he has given a batsman out...get on with it...
related story: not dissent. not over appealing either
Bored Meeting
In defiance of the terrorist attacks, a Bored meeting was convened at Defence Colony, New Delhi. From here we travelled to New Zealand, Pakistan, and back to India for beverages. Bored Members present: John, Straight Point, Naked Cricket. Rohit Sharma’s future and Raina’s past were discussed among other non-cricketing issues.
Polls that do not interfere with the IPL
A new poll here at BCC!, after a long time really, but much sooner than once in five years. Vote on how Cricket can counter terrorism. No queuing up in lines, no security hassles, one day all polls will be this way.
will johnson become the next brett lee...
so siddle and hilfenhaus could not cope with the work load and now their fitness is under assessment...
but what about the work horse mitchell johnson...?
he has bowled nearly 450 overs in his last 9 tests...club that with the time spent while batting...and you can imagine the herculean effort he puts in for australia match after match...innings after innings...
but till when?
we have already seen what happened to brett lee...he succumbed to the relentless workload of carrying the attack after the retirements of stalwarts like warne and macgrath...
...and it won't be long before johnson too will burn out that last ounce of energy left in him...
the scenario can't be ruled out when it will be time for fully fit brett lee raring to go at opponents...johnson will be cooling his heels in a quiet rehabilitation room...
australia it seems have not heard the story of the goose with the golden eggs!
they must look to share his workload or they will be left with an attack which will be as penetrative as...oh leave that...
you get the drift...
Khalil, the driver, the pilot and the coach.
According to reports just emerging Mehar Mohammad Khalil, the hero bus driver in Lahore was also the pilot of US Airways plane that successfuly landed in Hudson River. At the time due to political pressure he was forced to adopt the name Chesley Sullenberger.
To avoid publicity he returned to Lahore and became a part time bus driver to blend in to society. In the afternoons he instructed Pak captain Younus Khan on the best ways to bat against Murali and Mendis.
Mr Khalil has revealed that SL Sports Minister Mr Big House phoned him this morning to offer him the job of bowling coach with the responsibility of eradicating the no ball problem of Dilhara Fernando and making him bowl straight. Mr Khalil said he was forced to turn this job down as the task was beyond the ability of any man even one who managed two miracles in such short a time.
written by Inside Edge as a comment at Damith's Fly Slip
IPL to be postponed?
everyone pray that this is not true
let us all join our hands in prayer to the cricket gods
these torrid times need the IPL
I am no one to take guarantee of security in India, but for god sake, the IPL should not suffer
there is too much hope involved, there are no pakistani players involved
the IPL should not be affected, please!
so here is the prayer:
dear almighty, god of cricket
what is this sticky wicket?
do not curse the eye-pee-el
i promise sree-bhajji would kiss and tell
We asked you for money
you gave us plenty
we asked for lots of wins
you gave us god* and the prince*
we demanded a blend of everything awesome
season one was more than welcome
and now all we ask for is an encore
do we deserve this furore?
sachin would be thanked duly well
gilly would continue his farewell
haydos, dada would join in the fun
why do we fear, why be on a run?
we want eye-pee-el
we want eye-pee-el
we want eye-pee-el
we want eye-pee-el
amen
Happy Bored Day to Warnie’s Bunny
Happy B’Day Cullinan – a question, when on air, does Warne bowl to you? No, right? Then why are you so anxious? Or was it just SAF going down that got to you. Like that ODI when you wreaked havoc for 5 overs, and then Warnie appeared and you disappeared.
(Look left for Cullinan's page today, tomorrow he'll be gone again)
(Look left for Cullinan's page today, tomorrow he'll be gone again)
what next for pakistan...?
...as well as world cricket…
right now hoping for cricket in pakistan is like hoping against hope…but the real question is can world cricket afford to isolate pak cricket...?
most certainly not…
west Indies is like hot one day and cold another…fighting with new zealand to keep last place of test cricket at bay…who in turn are struggling to find fit (willing) and skilled eleven to play test cricket...
bangladesh is sticking relentlessly to its juvenile state as far as test cricket goes…
...and more often than not sri lanka has to do away with playing minnows coz they find themselves in receiving end as far as FTP goes…
so out of nine test playing nations…can test cricket survive with almost half of them struggling for one reason or another…?
at the time when icc is looking to globalise cricket we cannot afford to lose one of the founding test playing nations and we must ensure that they don’t feel isolated from world cricket…
icc must sit with pcb to get engaged in honest one to one talks…to find alternative venues for ‘home’ grounds…and ensure that enough money is pumped in to save pcb from going bankrupt...who is already on the verge of going down the drain first with cancellation of tours...and now in wake of this terrorist attack...
so if security permits australia must honor abu dhabhi ‘home’ series…and so are other tours involving pakistan…
if cricket can bend its ways to accommodate lucrative IPL into scheme of things…i think some ways can most certainly be found for saving pak cricket…
its time to make them believe that we care for their cricket and make them believe they belong to the little cricketing community and one accident can not sweep them away from us...
this is not the time of writing obituaries of ailing pak cricket...but inventing ways of preventing it from melting into oblivion...
its time to offer helping hand to pak cricket so that it can stand and fight again to be counted...
coz any way the rivalry of pakistan and indian cricket do not depend on the venue they play cricket in…
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