Orange caps for International Matches too?

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.

T20 World Cup 2010: competition among the most abled or the freshest?

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.

Case of Sour Grapes in IPL3

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.

Chanderpaul: Contemporary Cricket’s Most Underestimated Batsman?

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.

IPL3: The 'old' guys shining bright!

I have myself never bothered to think too much about the age factor at least when it comes to sports but it does seem that many of the players and coaches in international cricket do think that it is only youth that can survive the rawness with which T20 is played. I would like to point-out to these people that if the performances of IPL3 are closely watches, it seems that it is the older, more experienced guys who are excelling in performing consistently. Whether it is the sheer genius of the master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar or the prolific form of the very-consistent Kallis, it seems that experience does matter even when it comes to playing a game that many believe is all about batting like crazy and hit the living daylights out of the cricket ball. Yes, someone like Murali Vijay has been able to impress but what about the likes of Brave or Pollard or for that matter, the much talked-about, Rohit Sharma? These guys are supposed to be the force that is supposed to take T20 game forward, but they cannot seem to score some runs against the near, 40-yr old Kumble in a competition that isn't even being played with clear distinction in terms of representing your country.

IPL3: Not jerking this—Daredevils do have an edge

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.

Pakistan does it again: cricketing idiocy at its very best

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!!

Hayden’s got a racquet instead of a bat!!

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?

Is Tendulkar's Epic Innings precursor to ODI 200s??

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!!

Zimbabwe finally have something to offer!!

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.