Simplifying The Daily Existence

I might be getting a bit too suspicious here but the fact is that on the eve of their departure to the West Indies for the forthcoming World Cup 2010, the Indian captain did seem very mindful of the fact that most of his team members had participated in the very demanding format of the IPL3 and that this Indian squad certainly wasn't the freshest one in terms of the participating teams at the Caribbean event. What makes me believe this is that MSD himself isn't the greatest of supporters for the theory of playing non-stop cricket.

If you look at this captaincy record, there have been instances where MSD had himself sought the permission of the BCCI to take a rest between two series-something that no other Indian captain has dared to do in the past. Further, Dhoni himself has a very suscpet back that has been troubling him for the last two seasons. Further, to maintain the balance in the team, he cannot risk taking upon another specialist keeper to resolve this issue. So, there is basically no way in which Dhoni can reduce his workload and further, some critical teammates like Ashish Nehra and Yuvraj Singh are still recuperating and are yet to hit peak fitness.

He can hardly speak a word in English and he has that raw, out-of-this world kind of expression on his face but Umesh Yadav can do one thing that most Indian fans have been desperately waiting for and that is, He bowls fast and I mean, consistently fast without looking as if he is really exerting himself. Playing for the Delhi Daredevils in IPL 2010, this young bowler from Bihar has been exemplary in his first stint in competitive cricket. Further, he has not even played for his state side on a consistent basis and yet, he can bowl steadily at around the 145 km/hr mark.If you are an Indian fan that much speed is perhaps the maximum that any Indian bowler has ever generated. If Yadav can put in some eye-catching performances in the domestic scene, it is just a matter of time before this lad will be seen sharing the new ball with Zaheer. Ishant Sharma must be thinking how fast can life turn around:(. However, he is still young and capable of making a comeback...at least, I hope so. There have been just too many disappointments in the past with the likes of Irfan Pathan falling apart. It is still a mystery what actually happened to the young Pathan who was supposed to be the next, Wasim Akram. However, there seems to be something more to Umesh than what meets the eye. Firstly, he doesn't really exert himself and yet, he hits the 140 Ks mark with regular ease. This does point to the potential of being quick in the league of someone like Brett Lee. But then again, these are very early days in his career and these are just the first impressions....keeping my fingers crossed. Further, his bowling action is such that he doesn't exert too much pressure on his back and lower limbs, something that has been the scourge for most of the quick bowlers over the last five years.

One of the few things that I like about the IPL is their method of issuing orange and purple caps for the tournament's highest run-getter and best bowler, respectively. I am wondering if this can be introduced for international matches. I am not recommending this for tournaments but for every team. This mean that every team can cap and mark-out its most successful bowler, its highest run-getter for the season and may be the Most Valuable Player or MVP too. The MVP system has been used in professional basketball and many other American sports for a long time. This does not do much in terms of making the game more interesting but is just a small change that can seep into the present system and add some value-addition for the TV-watching, cricket audience.

The next edition of the T20 world cup is upon us and a rather strange question has entered my mind. This is regarding the state of the current teams, i.e. in regard to their overall conditioning and their preparedness. As assumed, most of the test matches have been wrapped-up since the shortest format of the game will be played in the world cup in the Caribbean and it just doesn’t make sense to carry on playing for five days when the matches will last for just about 3 hours. However, it should be said that each team seems to have taken upon a totally different approach to prepare itself. While teams like India are simply overworked, there are others like the Kiwis and the Poms who seem to have it rather lightly. Matches in the Aussie domestic circuit are still going on, so these guys would be in good knick but what about the rest of the international teams that either have their players scattered around, playing in the IPL, or simply cooling their heels? The timing of IPL2010 has made it sure that none of the nations could have gone ahead with a prestigious, local T20 tournament that would have been a great help. The IPL doesn’t give chance to entire teams to hone their skills.

In that regard, the case of Pakistan seems even stranger—when was the last time any of them even played a T20 or are they now busy fighting each other in some wrestling arena? I would not bank upon India considering how overworked these guys are and nearly half the squad is carrying some form of injury.

By the time this article gets published the Kings XI Punjab would have completed a rather comprehensive victory over the Delhi Daredevils in the last of the handful of league matches in IPL2010. It was interesting to note that though the Kings XI team is totally out of contention in terms of making a claim for the last four berths, they keep on passing comments that suggest they want to beat the opposing teams black and blue in their remaining encounters. Even their coach, Tom Moody, has often said in the last few weeks that he was looking forward to spoiling the party for the remaining teams. I just could not understand this viewpoint. I mean, by spoiling some other team's chances of qualifying for the IPL3 semi-finals, is Tom Moody and his team trying to extract some sort of a sweet revenge. Why this sudden intent of not letting other teams to qualify further? I am not suggesting that the Kings XI team should lie flat on the pitch and let their opponents walk over them but why this sudden pre-occupation of 'spoiling' it for others? I simply believe this is a case of sore losers. I have always believed that it takes a real man to accept defeat in a humble manner and it is confirmed now that not many of this type can be found among the red & white uniform holders of the King's XI squad.

If you look at the career statistics of Shivnaraine Chanderpaul, it will suggest that he is among the best of batsmen who are current playing and that is across all forms of the game, i.e. the ODIs and test cricket. This might cause some of you to raise the argument that he hasn’t excelled in T20. However, it should be understood that this isn't because of his inability to adapt to the faster version of the game but simply due to lack of opportunities. For some reason, despite being the perennial saver for his team and an awesome ODI record, this guy is never counted among the current crop of batsmen who are often heralded as ‘greats’.I presume that this is due to two main factors. One, he is simply too raw in terms of handing the media part of one’s career that has become a necessity for the modern player. Even the newest of entrants in the Caribbean team can be seen making some form of a style statement by either covering themselves in oodles of gold or with some ritual-like dance after dismissing an opposition batsman. Some folks might say that this is a part of the Caribbean heritage but I would like to opine that these are simply practices stereotypes that are being done to make a splash in the media coverage of the game, ensuring that their overall marketability is sustained for money-making tournaments like the IPL or for county stints.
This is even more applicable to a West Indian player, considering that they lose so many matches that even centurions and five-wicket hauls are mentioned in a remote corner of the newspaper column. Secondly, Chanderpaul has a strange, un-classical batting stance which might be the reason that he is continuously omitted from the bracket containing stars like Sachin and Ponting. Some people might argue that the modern era of cricket is very accommodating in terms of accepting people with unconventional batting styles but I personally feel that the stance used by Chanderpaul is simply so hideous that it drives-out any form of serious praise that might be coming his way.

You might say that I am blowing the same horn that has been voiced by some of the betting agencies who have placed the Delhi Daredevils as the most favored team to win the IPL3 but this isn’t so—the fact is that this is one of the most balanced sides in the third edition of the IPL. They have someone like Glenn McGrath waiting in the ranks and Rajat Bhatia hasn’t been listed for the first four matches though he is a very useful all-rounder. Further, there is an abundance of handy players in the side who can bat and bowl, including the likes of Sehewag and Dilshan who are good enough to win matches with their batting alone. Add to this mix, the likes of Gambhir, the Daredevil skipper, and DeVilliers and you have the most formidable batting line-up in the competition. The fielding standards too are at par with any other team playing in IPL3 and none of the players are scheduled to leave the side before the final match is played—a problem being faced by many sides in the competition, and none of the benched players are unfit or struggling for form. What all this means is that Daredevils are the only side that can field a full-fit and competitive side for each of their IPL3 league matches.

If there was a Razzie for the worst cricketing team to have ever numbed our senses, the award would have gone to the Pakistan team, every year, every time. It is difficult to even coin a name for what their Board has done now, having fined nearly half the team and banned the other half. Further, nearly every cricketing expert believes this is to be another PCB histrionic wherein the players will be reinstalled much before they pay their dues or complete their sentences. Why? Simply because this is how Pakistani cricket is run and this time too, we have no reason to believe otherwise. If an innocent Pakistani were to look at the present situation, though it is difficult to believe that there are any people who don’t realize the depths to which their team has fallen, it would seem that there is simply no player in the national team who isn’t charged of either indiscipline, camping against senior or juniors, taking sides, tampering with balls, speaking against higher authorities or even doping…phew!!

Yes, as unbelievable it may sound, Matthew Hayden of Australia has got some sort of a half-racquet, half-bat for the third edition of the IPL. Many people had suggested that the increasing amount T20 cricket being played in these days would eventually lead to further changes in the way batsmen approached their game, and this includes the gear and the equipment they use. If you look at it, Big Matty’s new bat has an extremely long handled and the actual meat of the bat is just about 80% of a conventional bat. I guess, it means that he is planning to stand on his backfoot and use his bat for swinging across the line even more now. Just one question though—wasn’t Hayden scary enough for the bowlers with his old bat that he had to bring something so ridiculous looking and so far-off from the norm?

It is an unarguable fact that Sachin Tendulkar is perhaps the greatest batsmen in contemporary cricket even as the debate on his status as an all-time great among the game’s leading run-scorers will continue to seep into every cricketing conversation for many years to come. His most recent landmark—the 200+ score in an ODI may become something of a precursor, considering the amount of runs that are being scored in an average ODI game. It seems that scoring in excess of 300 runs is a mere formality when playing in the sub-continent and with Sachin’s record-breaking effort, the mental block of reaching the double-century mark in the 50-over game might have been broken. Considering the kind of batsmen that are opening the innings in the modern ODI format, from Sehewag to Gayle, and the mediocrity of the bowling oppositions, it might become a more regular feature than any of us could have imagined a couple of years back. I would say this is Sachin’s second biggest contribution in redefining the ODI game. Firstly, he single-handedly introduced the feature of an aggressive, opening bat who was relentless on the bowlers and the pattern was emulated by every international team. Now, he has reset the benchmarks for ODI openers and might have opened the floodgates for ODI doubles!!

I am not talking about Zimbabwe's run-rate or the emergence of any notable player but for the first time, in the last decade or so, the team is playing cricket in a manner that is managing to engage some attention. For starters, Raymond Price has been opening the opening against the West Indies with spin bowlers, including himself. The last time this was done on such a consistent basis was by Martin Crowe of New Zealand during the World Cup of 1992. What is more encouraging is that now the Zims can actually bat-out fifty overs on a consistent basis and the batsmen are ready to make-up for their lack of experience or sheer talent with some on-field doggedness. It would be going too far to say that the team is about to induce some major upsets, but yes, a somewhat more tenacious and capable Zimbabwe cricket team is definitely helpful for the game. Price has been ruthless as a leader and the young Zims are following this methodology of approaching the game wherein the 33-year old throws a punch for everything that comes his way.

England might still be reeling under the absence of their foremost all-rounder, Andrew Flintoff, but as things present themselves for the moment, they do have a good bunch who can make-up for Freddie's absence. In Stuart Broad and Bresnan (big dude in the pic here), England have found two useful players who can bat and bowl and are pretty agile in the field. Bresnan, in particular has been impressing a lot during the last few months, scoring some very decent knocks during the latter part of the innings. Add to this, Collingwood, who is a handy, if not a complete bowler, and England pretty much size-up to most sides in terms of all-rounder strength. However, what is lacking is one or two batsmen who can give them blistering starts when batting. You really cannot expect Strauss of Ian Bell to do that. I still believe that Pietersen finds himself lost since his captaincy was taken away. For some strange reason, his sudden removal from the profile has caused his confidence to slip far too much for an international player.

I thought that it was some sort of off-season injury or some other weird reason that Sreesanth was bowling so slowly during the first of the one-dayers against the South Africans. As it turns out, that wasn’t just a one-time thing. Like many other of his young Indian counterparts, he has actually slowed-up remarkably although there is no injury and neither has he been used excessively. This is some sort of a virus that seems to affect every speedster coming from India who has some promise to offer. Further, it seems that his bowling action too has changed a bit. Sreesanth never really did have remarkable line or length to boast of—it was swing bowling at some good speeds that got him all the wickets and made him a tough customer if the pitch had anything to offer. He even showed signs of being able to use the old ball. Now, he can hardly cross the 130 km/hr barrier and his swing is lacking due the change in the manner in which his is delivering the ball. Yes, the seam is still very upright—one of young Sreesanth’s typical bowling traits, but now the shrug-like movement that he had at the time of releasing the ball has gone and has been replaced by a more controlled sort of stride that may be prettier from a technical aspect but sure as hell doesn’t make him a better or a more lethal bowler.

You can call it the result of playing on docile wickets and the fact that Indian batsmen are chasing 300+ scores in nearly every one-dayer that they play or the ineffectiveness of the Indian bowling attack but the fact remains that the Indian selectors have understood that this team just cannot afford to have too many specialist bowlers. As a result, from Yousuf Pathan to Jadeja and now even, Abhishek Nayyar, all players who have a record of contributing with the bat and the ball have been inducted into the team. 2011 World Cup is not very far away and the selectors and the team management most probably understand that there is not much difference between someone who can give-away six or seven runs per over, and hence, if the compromise in bowling attack means having nearly 8 batsmen, then why not take the advantage. It should be understood that a similar approach has been taken by various international teams with widely varied results. In 1996, the Sri Lankans used their part-time spinners to put together a world cup-winning effort whereas the West Indies have tried it many times and are still trying it with a host of players who can bowl medium pace or a bit slower but have found no success whatsoever. It is not a sure-win formula by any stretch of imagination but when the domestic scene is so completely devoid of quality bowlers with any real spin or pace to talk about, are there any good alternatives?

Some folks might not be asking this question but I am surely not one of those guys. I honestly feel that the present scheduling of IPL3 is highly questionable considering that the T20 World Cup 2010 in Caribbean is so near. This will lead to another T20 glut that is not going to do any favors to the viewership for the club games. Let us get thing very clear, and that is in the cricket perspective: we are not in the mold of the English Premier League wherein the same bunch of guys can form great, talked-about friendships during their club stints and still go totally ‘Mexican’ when it comes to the competitions wherein national teams participate. This is still a more conservative form of a not-so-global sport and we want to see some real bad blood, I am trying to say ‘extreme competitiveness’ here, between the players and the presence of IPL3 so close to the World Cup is bound to hamper this. Further, after seeing IPL matches round the clock, doesn’t the very status of a World Cup get slightly eradicated, particularly considering that T20 matches are still assuming the serious proportions that they have promised.

Most cricket followers may no longer recall the name of former Indian paceman, Ajit Agarkar. However, it is worth mentioning that he was once, the most promising of the Indian fast bowlers to have arisen from the famous Mumbai factory of cricketers. Often dubbed as the ‘perpetual underperformer’, Agarkar had promised a lot as a leading swing bowler and more so, as an all-rounder. His batting abilities never really surfaced during his decade-long career but most analysts and coaches from the Indian domestic circuit had believed that he was the one who would be able to replace the vacuum created by Kapil Dev’s retirement, to some extent, some day. That never happened and Agarkar never rose to the status that nearly everyone who had seen him blossom as a young performer believed was his for the taking. Now, another youngster from the same Mumbai team and one of Agarkar’s current bowling partner Abhishek Nayyar is being billed as the next big thing to arrive from the Mumbai stables and a complete all-rounder that the Indian team has been missing for some time. Yes, Irfan Pathan did promise a lot but he too has fallen by the side and no one really knows what he is doing at the Ranji circuit and whether his performances are being even watched by the selectors. Nayyar had been included in the Indian ODI squad after a string of decent performances in the first edition of the IPL but then, many observers say that he is being over-hyped simply because he is neither a very pacy bowler nor a very talented batsman in terms of being technically superb or a brilliant hitter of the ball. Many critics have gone on to say that the prime reason for the undertones regarding his selection are arising simply due to the desperation of the Mumbai supporters to get someone from their team in the Indian squad.

To be very honest, Delhi has left Mumbai way behind in terms of hogging the spots in the Indian team and besides Tendulkar there is literally no other player who is even in the scheme of thing — plz don’t raise the name of Rohit Sharma, we all know that he is just another bubble about to burst at any point. For me, even the comparison between Agarkar and Nayyar are misplaced, simply because Agarkar’s rise-to-fame and the huge expectations were because of his natural talent that was very evident in the very first ODI game he played. He had the ability to swing the ball on dead pitches and had the panache of a natural batsman — Nayyar on the other hand seems to be peddling on a wave of optimism regarding his capabilities rather than having actually delivered or showcased as much as Agarkar during his long but not-so-impressive career.