Friday, November 16, 2012

India-England first Test; Sehwag, Pujara take India to 323


Ahmedabad: Choosing to bat first after winning the toss at the dry track here, Team India was comfortably placed at 323/4 at the end of day’s play.

Virender Sehwag top scored with 117 while Cheteshwar Pujara remained not out with his innings of 98.

With Virender Sehwag being at his blistering best- as he always is when he plays in India, the hosts got off to a good start. His run-a-ball innings of 117 (15X4,1X6) included elegant cover drives and a fine display of delicacy in hisbatting.

His century comes after two years. Incidentally, the last time he scored a century (173)was at the same venue against New Zealand.

Virender Sehwag’s wagon wheel of his innings of 117 against England at Ahmedabad Picture courtesy: © ESPNcricinfo ltd


Along with Delhi opener Gautam Gambhir, they managed to score 120 runs without losing a wicket at lunch.  

Their 134-run partnership for the first wicket was broken by Graeme Swann as ripped off Gambhir’s timber as it slid inside as he looked to play it on the off side. He played a cautious innings of 45 from 111 deliveries.

Swann was the highlight from England’s side with his figures of 4/85 in 32 overs. But the visitors were sloppy on the field with misfields and dropped catches.  

Meanwhile, Sehwag continued his blitzkrieg from the other end with a plundering six off Tim Bresnan’s bowling as the ball sailed over long-on.

Pujara played sensibly as he kept rotating the strike with Sehwag to continue the momentum. The latter brought up his hundred with a boundary of Swann’s bowling.

Their 90-run second wicket partnership came to an end with Najafgarh batsman completely misjudging the Swann’s turn and got bowled while trying to sweep.

Sachin Tendulkar added 13 runs to the total- he succumbed to the bowling of Swann.
Virat Kohli also showed some aggressive intent by scoring three boundaries in his innings of 19 before getting bowled to Swann’s bowling.

As Swann broke open the top order, Pujara kept the scoreboard ticking who bought up his second Test fifty.

His innings exemplified resilience and impressive stroke-play. He ended the day with a boundary off the last ball taking his score to 98*.  He was accompanied by Yuvraj Singh (24*) on the other end.

Monday, August 20, 2012

VVS Laxman: the irreplaceable silent hero



One of the finest knocks that Vangipurapu Venkata Sai Laxman played was inside the conference room of the Rajiv Gandhi international stadium in Hyderabad on August 18th. It was built with humility, power, elegance and the usual ingredient in his innings- focus.

He announced retirement from Test cricket with immediate effect; a declaration which came as a surprise even to the chief of selectors K. Srikkanth. It is necessary to point out though, that this was not the farewell the man deserved for the services he meted out to the nation for over 15 years.

V.V.S. Laxman- a class apart!


A day before announcement, a national daily had reported that the veteran player had been hurt by the recent comments in the cricketing circles about his dip in form. However, ironically, he scored a marvellous 169 versus Karnataka State Cricket Association President’s XI. It was obvious from the immediacy of the decision. A newspaper rightly titled its piece on the batsman’s retirement- ‘Retired Hurt’ and it couldn’t be more apt.  

The contemplation for this decision had begun already before the Ind-NZ series and it was expected that his home turf would witness the wristy magician’s last walk on the cricket field. However, and as usual, he managed to surprise. He did that in 2001 when India had almost conceded a defeat and a resilient Laxman scored that gem of 281 to win the match. His innings of 148 versus Australia (probably overshadowed with Rahul Dravid’s 233) epitomized fighting spirit.

He was a silent assassin for the team and set an example with his irreplaceable determination. His hunger to play the game for the ‘team’ elevated him in the league of the extraordinary gentlemen almost from his debut. The quality was witnessed very differently in his match-winning innings of 73 versus Australia at Mohali in 2010. It was a fiery innings when passion his and aggression were particularly visible on the field. Take a look:



In a nutshell, the latter half of this decade has seen three of the holy four cricketers hanging up boots at the right time. His last series in Australia could be one exception in his performances- probably the time he felt the age was catching up to him. Nevertheless, the silent hero would never be forgotten from fans like me.

His successor S.Badrinath, who replaced him, would have a huge responsibility to fulfill. Given his experience in mind, as a fan, I can only hope that he could come up to the levels of the great cricketer.

Thank you VVS for all that you have done for the game. You will surely be missed. 


Pictures © Getty Images

Friday, June 1, 2012

‘Cricket stands to lose more if this continues’


Cricket needs to address the player-board run-in (or stand-off) issues at the earliest. The problem in its entirety lies in the adamancy on both the sides. Ultimately, the nation’s cricket is at loss.

Kevin Pietersen’s announcement of retirement from limited overs’ format was certainly a shocker. In his statement Pietersen said, “With the intensity of the international schedule and the increasing demands on my body, I think it is the right time to step aside and let the next generation of players come through to gain experience for the World Cup in 2015”.

The last two ODIs that he played for England saw him score 111* and 130 respectively against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi. His last T20 score was 62 against the same opposition. These not only show the kind of form he carried but a collective loss of England cricket, the board and lastly himself. Certainly, his frequent run-ins with his ‘adopted board’ have led to this decision.
Kevin Pietersen after scoring a century against Pakistan at Abu Dhabi


The England Cricket Board (ECB) had a rule stating that central contract players would have to make themselves available for both formats in the limited overs or nothing. Pietersen, however, was keen on continuing in T20s and quitting ODIs. The board refused and resultantly, the decision was announced by him. "For the record, were the selection criteria not in place, I would have readily played for England in the upcoming World Twenty20," Pietersen said. His central contract would also be downgraded as he would be only chosen for the Tests henceforth.



A point worth noting- he has not announced his retirement from club cricket and the Indian Premier League. This further would start the never ending club versus country debate and giving impetus to the new concept of freelance cricketers. Chris Gayle was an example to this until sometime back when he wasn’t considered for any national commitments by the West Indies Cricket Board due to their stand-off. Now the differences, although not completely, have been resolved temporarily and he has made himself available for the ODI series against England now. Freelance cricketing is a very disappointing thing to have happened. Imagine the plight of a West Indies cricket fan when he sees Gayle bludgeoning the opposition in club games whereas the national team performs miserably in the batting department!

Such incidents only hurt the game. A balance has to be struck somewhere in between. Alternatives would emerge only when such impressive cricketers go. But players like Pietersen and Gayle have made it to this level due to impressive skill and rigorous training. Nurturing the young guns will take a lot of time and their nation’s performances would be at a greater risk till then. Instead, if the training continues with such players being around, a pool of competitive cricketers would be created making them ready for major events such as the World Cup in 2015.

Rigidity is the least needed thing in such times. ECB must rethink its stance on the central contract and ensure players’ wish as well. Also, it is a sign for other boards not to be egoistic about issues and resolve them quickly for the betterment of the game.



Pictures © Getty Images

Pictures © PA Photos


Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Kohli’s elevation justified


Australian sports psychologists always recommend- take care of the runs and the dollars will take care of themselves! Virat Kohli epitomises this thought. The rare day of the leap year brought special news to him as he was promoted as the vice captain of the team ahead of the Asia Cup which starts on 11th March.


His magnificent performances down under which include a hundred apiece in Tests as well as one-day games led to his elevation. He amassed 373 runs at an impressive average of 53.29. Resultantly, he was rewarded with this responsibility after his marvellous innings of 133* versus Sri Lanka at Hobart.  It questions the leadership role of other seniors in the team . For instance, Gautam Gambhir who was seen as the successor to M.S. Dhoni was snubbed on this occasion. Virender Sehwag too, was ‘rested’ for this series.

In one of his recent interviews Rahul Dravid mentioned that Gambhir should not be disappointed with the elevation of Kohli to this post. There was a need for him (Kohli) to establish himself but this shall be a good experience for him. Other retired players like Wasim Akram have questioned his appointment stating that there would be unrest amongst the seniors. Former World Cup winning captain, Kapil Dev also accused Dhoni of being biased in appointing him for the post.

In my opinion, Kohli can prove to be a good leader. The last time India played the tri-series in Australia in 2008, it was under his captaincy that the Indian U-19 team won the World Cup in Malaysia. His skills as a leader were appreciated in the last Indian Premier League when he captained the Royal Challengers Bangalore for most of the time in the tournament. The sense of responsibility in him needs no justification. At the age of eighteen he was playing Ranji tournaments. In one of the matches, he was batting on 30 when he got the news that his father’s demise. He insisted on continuing the innings so that his team could win the match and scored 90 runs. And then went home to perform the last rites. This incident speaks for itself!


Other youngsters in the team have had their experiences at captaincy. Experimentation has been done with Gambhir and Suresh Raina. Given his current form and his capabilities, Kohli certainly deserves a chance to prove his mettle as vice captain. 



Pictures © Getty Images