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It came up the other day, in the bored meeting, that who'd be taking up the middle order slots once Sachin, Rahul and VVS retire from tests.
i kept trying to think of three names who could be the replacements but no one is an automatic replacement.
The Contenders:
Rohit Sharma : The Mumbai kid who seems to be favored a lot by the selectors. looks 27 at least, but says he is 22. Looks good when he gets going. Has a lot of time when playing his shots. Rameez says so. flashes a lot outside the off stump though.
has the shots, but does he have the temperament to make it at the biggest level? has flattered to deceive on a lot of occasions. Might as well turn out to be a t20 specialist.
S Badrinath : Has been a consistent performer for TN over the past few years. Has a sound technique. Could well be the next RD. Surely, deserves to be given a few chances to prove what he's got. Admittedly hasn't been too flash for chennai in the IPL, but he looks like someone for the long run. But, he's 29 now, is it too late already?
Cheteshwar Pujara : BCC!'s beloved Che has been scoring runs in truckloads in the domestic circuit. His scores in crucial stages of last years ranji and deodhar trophy prove that he can cope with big match pressures. Also, has a good technique and can be difficult to get out. Being only 21, he has age on his side too. hope that knee injury he got, doesn't hamper him too much, like yuvi. Che for one, looks like he can walk in to replace one the big guns.
Manoj Tiwary : Watched him bat against Mumbai, in the ranji trophy. Looks like he belongs at the highest stage. Is an aggressive batsman who doesn't mind using his feet against the spinners. injured his shoulder before his debut against bangladesh, wasn't given enough chances in the Aus tour. Definitely deserves a go.
Suresh Raina : Has had a fairly successful run in the limited overs format. But a flaw in technique has been exposed against the short ball. But Ganguly played quite a few years without ever improving his play against the short ball, While Sehwag looks to have improved on the leg side play with the addition of the pull. No reason why Raina can't make a change. Again, has the shots, but is there enough temperament?
there might also be a few wild cards in Abhishek Nayar, Ajinkya Rahane, Y Venugopal Rao.
Mohammad Kaif anyone??
Prafs also blogs at Right Arm Fast
The Contenders
sachin finally relents...
we knew that Gambhir's spectacular innings will not go unnoticed, at least not like any other innings played to save a match...
but the innings will have such an impact on the team...even we didn't anticipate...
for some time now fans have argued that if sehwag and gambhir open in T20s and tests, why separate them in ODIs...and lo the wishes of all these fans will soon be realised...
sachin after praising gambhir's monumental effort has finally decided not to open in ODIs...
yes you read it correctly...
he has requested team management not to consider him as an opener in ODIs with immediate effect, also stating that whatever role team management decides for him...he is 'open' to it...
no wonder they all seem so happy (see pic)...
so hurray!!...get ready to see sehwag and gambhir open in ODIs too...together they will spell 'VIR-GATI' for bowlers the world over!
but do remember...you read it here first...
welcome kumar dharmasena!
| 3.4 | Thushara to Tendulkar, OUT, not the best decision unfortunately but Tendulkar has to go, the ball pitches marginally outside the leg stump and straightens and hits him fairly high on the pad as he tries to work it to the on side, Kumar Dharmasena thinks about it for a while before raising the finger, this is Dharmasena's first decision in ODIs |
| SR Tendulkar lbw b Thushara 5 (15m 16b 0x4 0x6) SR: 31.25 |
welcome on bored dharmasena...!
you are obviously appointed under "debutant-gets-sachin's-scalp" scheme floating around for quite a while now...
No Rhyme, No Reason.
by Naked Cricket
He scored two fat ladies
And he scored them fast
What a pity that he didn’t last
Arum!
He ran past Lara
And he ran past Baran Hazara
What a pity he never ran past Scarlett O’Hara
Arum!
You got no rhyme
You got no reason
You been with him for the last twenty season
Arum!
notes: two fat ladies is for 88, SRT's first innings score.
Bored to the Bone XIV
To salute Saurav’s 7k, we propose a 7000 Metre shirt at Eden. For Sachin’s 12k, kindly contact RBS. They want that once-in-a-lifetime idea. Tailor made.
the debate goes on...
so if for once we put nationality aside
and think purely as cricket fanatics...
who is the better batsman?
my take...
never a man of great words...
so allow me to compare with
shahrukh khan and aamir khan analogy...
to drive home the point...
sharukh undisputed king of bollywood...and box office...
more meaningful films in his kitty...
which were equally successful...
Who needs a kick on the butt?
by Raja Baradwaj
With the Irani Trophy slated for tomorrow and the selection for the Australia Test series to follow, we would have a busy week ahead. All we bored cricket fans would be busy arguing, justifying and as usual accusing & abusing the wise men and their marshal.
To lead us into the debate here are some numbers and also a few pointers, my interpretation of what these numbers mean. To start, these numbers are from cricinfo.
What do we see here?
1. These are statistics taken from the last 25 test matches these guys have played
2. It becomes the last 23 test matches for Yuvraj and the last 21 for Dinesh Kartick
3. We can see the Runs scored, the number of completed innings played for scoring the runs (not outs and didn't bat not included)
4. Also there are the average number of runs scored – In total, in the first innings and in the second innings
5. Another assumption here is that Sachin would be ready and fit for selection by the time the wise men sit
1. If at all someone from the middle order needs to go, it looks like Tendulkar, he has the leanest scorecard at present. And also a very poor second innings track record
2. Kumble scores more runs in his first innings than what Tendulkar makes in his second
3. No difference between the two wicketkeepers analyzed. The max difference we see is that one is called DHONI!!
4. We have a solution for Yuvraj, to be part of the test team. Go learn to keep wickets in tests. Otherwise his average seems lots better when you compare it to the two wicketkeepers. That seems to be the only way he can force his way into the test team.
5. Tendulkar should be given special permission to bat only in the first innings. Kumble could bat for him in the second, he would score more because that innings would be his first and his first innings average is better than Sachin's second
6. We should get the rules changed a bit to play 2 wicketkeepers in a match. Dinesh Kartick should be played in the first and Dhoni should play the second innings
7. Ganguly should be in the team, the numbers say that he is the best middle order batsman we have at present
Do we suspect the intentions of junior sympathizers?
In other words--Do people question the intentions of those who keep on praising the seniors? Like the way they suspect those who sympathize with juniors. What do you say?
