IPL Preview # 1 - Kolkata Knight Riders

Sunday, February 28, 2010 cricket, fake ipl player, ipl, kolkata knight riders, preview, rishabh bablani, sourav ganguly 9 Comments

Right, then - this is the first of my previews ahead of the mega-hype that is the IPL. I will be starting with the teams that I don't really like and end with my favourites.

KKR are easily the flashiest team, but following their first ever match where B-Mac slammed a hundred and BCR collapsed, they have spiralled. Downwards, that is.

Team politics and management haven't been great, really unfortunate for SRK, who has provided the money to buy the best players and coaches. Not the uniform though, that's hideous.

Here's their squad -

Sourav Ganguly (capt), Cheteshwar Pujara, Charl Langeveldt, Chirag Pathak, Iqbal Abdulla, G Vignesh, Brendon McCullum, Angelo Mathews, Wriddhiman Saha, Ajit Agarkar, Chris Gayle, Manoj Tiwary, Rohan Gavaskar, Harshad Khadiwale, Varun Aaron, Eklak Ahmed, Owais Shah, Murali Kartik, Brad Hodge, Ajantha Mendis, Laxmi Shukla, Ashok Dinda, Ishant Sharma, Shane Bond.

Issues: One would think that with B-Mac and Gaylestorm at the top, with much-loved (in Kolkata, that is) captain Saurav Ganguly in the middle, as well as do-it-all Aussie Brad Hodge, and star spinners in Mendis and Murali (Kartik), KKR would be great to go. But as we know, the first two tend to blow hot and cold, and the bowling is always a let-down. Ishant Sharma is not fit for shorter formats, and going by recent form, any format. Agarkar is, well, Agarkar. There's no David Hussey, the leading six hitter in the IPL last year. No Morne van Wyk either. Bringing in completely out-of-depth (for T20s) players like Bangar and Akash Chopra wasn't too smart either last year, and Fake IPL Player didn't exactly help team spirit.

Good news: Express paceman Shane Bond has been recruited, though he'll be joining once the ODI's against Oz have been completed. Ganguly is back as captain, where he belongs. Indian players Manoj Tiwary, Saha, Iqbal Abdulla and Chirag Pathak have definitely improved since last year, and domestic giant Cheteshwar Pujara is fit. G Vignesh, the superslogging allrounder is back from the ICL. KKR now has a different away kit. Whoop-de-do.

Okay, this is the likely line-up (with a full squad when the Kiwis are back):

Brendon McCullum (wk)
Chris Gayle
Sourav Ganguly (c)
Brad Hodge
Cheteshwar Pujara
Manoj Tiwary
Laxmi Ratan Shukla
Ajit Agarkar
Murali Kartik
Shane Bond
Ishant Sharma

Until the Kiwis arrive, Saha will probably keep, with Ganguly filling in as opener. Angelo Mathews should fill in for Bond, and Owais Shah will get a few games. Looks like fire at the top, solidity in the middle, and a half-decent bowling attack. I'm trying very hard to preview them without scorn.

My Official-sounding prediction for KKR this season - Will do better this season. And since they rightfully earned the wooden spoon last year, 'better' is a very wide term. So I'm going with 6th place for them.

Rajasthan Royals up next. Until then, Korbo Lorbo Jeetbo Re (*pukes*)(*wipes mouth*).

Busy^infinity, atleast for another day

Friday, February 26, 2010 brett lee, craif kieswetter, cricket, mohammed ashraful, random, rishabh bablani, selection 2 Comments

Exams attacking me from all directions. I made an exception for you-know-what, obviously. (Check out Sachin's first interview 21 years ago here)

But I begin IPL posting soon, so watch out for that.

For now, some stuff happened. Tiny list:

Brett Lee retired from Tests. Good move, looking forward to him rejoining Oz's other 150 kmph medium pacers in shorter formats. :)

Craig Kieswetter smashed a hundred for England Lions, Prior looking uneasily over his shoulder.

Mumbai lost horrendously to Tamil Nadu in a domestic one-day match. Somebody's gonna get a hurt real bad, Chennai Super Kings.

Bangladesh finally drop Ashraful, who is replaced for the England ODI's by - guess what - a left arm spinner who can bat.

India will be without seven first-team players in the third ODI against South Africa, after selectors rested Sehwag, Sachin and Praveen Kumar and picking Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay and Abhimanyu Mithun. Also left out was Nayar, to which Shashi Tharoor and Harsha Bhogle did not react too favorably.

That's it for now, keep the worm alive, or < insert cool exit line here >.

Magnificent, and 200 other synonyms for it

Wednesday, February 24, 2010 commentary gems, cricket, dhoni, india, ravi shastri, review, rishabh bablani, sachin, south africa 8 Comments

Who knew I'd be doing a post this early in the morning? I didn't.

Everytime Sehwag goes past 50 in his typical quick time, commentators began their quack about he being the most likely man to get a 200 in ODI's.

How about his mentor you idiots?

I won't waste my time trying to describe his innings. Pointless, really.

Okay, I'll try.

Sachin was...

Nope, got nothing.

I'll say this - he did not make a single error.

Dhoni was as fantabulous as it gets, that # 1 spot is his to keep - his innings throughout his career have ranged from circumspect to blistering, but he always makes runs. How he makes them is tied to the situation, which is what makes him the batting key. Today he took the pressure off Sachin by getting the required boundaries towards the end. Or maybe he was just having fun. Great viewing either way.

Can't really be bothered about the rest of the match, it's an ODI. I'll leave you with some commentary gems from the latter stages of the Indian innings, because I only started watching after Sachin's 100 came around. I'd be glad if anyone could throw in some more!

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan : "He goes for the big one, and it will stay... big." So many words, Siva.
Danny Morrison (in the company of Shastri): "He's hit that like a tracer bullet!"
Ravi Shastri: "Keen as mustard" (talking about Sachin going for a second run)
  "        "      : "He was a greedy boy, and ten years down the line he's still greedy" (on Sachin again)
  "        "      :  "He wields the bat like an axe" (on Dhoni)
Shastri also mistook Amla for Duminy. Seriously. Amla for Duminy. Figure that one out.
And finally, after Sachin's 200 came up, he called him the "Superman from India". hmm. This is why I didn't use any words.

"I bless thee with my batting."

Player scores for the series, South Africa

Saturday, February 20, 2010 cricket, india, review, rishabh bablani, south africa 6 Comments

9.5 - Hashim Amla: Three innings. Three hundreds. High Score of 253*. 490 runs, average of 490 and dismissed only once. Phenomenal stats, and he was virtually undismissable. I docked half a point for exposing Morkel to Harbhajan too much in that last wicket stand.

8.5 - Dale Steyn: He took 11 wickets at 20.27, but 10 of those wickets came at Nagpur, where he put in a fearsome display of fast swing bowling to twice run through India. He was off the boil at Kolkata, though, after Sehwag attacked him at the start. Nevertheless, he's one of the few menacing quicks in world cricket.

7.5 - Alviro Peterson: A classy, nerveless hundred on debut bodes well for him and South Africa, but his dismissal, chasing a delivery that went across him, was the start of the collapse and he looked edgy in the second innings. Will get a decent run in the team, though.

6.5 - Jacques Kallis: 203 runs at 67.66 doesn't seem too bad, but after his great 173 at Nagpur he didn't really do much. Got out sweeping irresponsibly in the first innings at Kolkata, while a good legbreak accounted for him in the second innings. He's been around far too long to be batting nervously on a pitch that held no demons.

5.5 - Morne Morkel: Took 4 wickets at 59.5. He was very aggressive at Nagpur and created pressure for Steyn to feed off, but he was all over the place at Kolkata. Persisted with an outside off-stump line to Sehwag who repeatedly thrashed him around on the offside, and bowled too straight to Sachin who continually flicked him for boundaries. He deserves credit, though, for batting gutsily in both innings at Kolkata.

5 - Mark Boucher: Didn't have to bat too much at Nagpur when his team racked up a huge total, and was out with a back spasm for the second Test and deVilliers took over. He'll be welcomed back, both for his tidy keeping and lower-order batting experience.

4 - Wayne Parnell: Showed promise, especially when coming around the wicket and swinging it away from the right-hander, and with his batting talent. But 3 wickets at 64 with an economy of 4.8 would suggest he needs more time to develop his game for the longer format.

3.5 - AB deVilliers: He scored 68 runs at 22.66 which, for a batsman considered to have 'great' potential, is quite poor. After a composed fifty at Nagpur, he foolishly ran himself out and then failed to read a googly from his Delhi Daredevils teammate Amit Mishra. This is probably just an off-series, though - he'll be back to doing well.

3 - Paul Harris: 5 wickets at 59.4. He wasn't too rubbish at Nagpur, where all he had to do on the last couple of days was pitch it in the rough and wait for something to happen or the batsman to get himself out. At Kolkata, though, on a better pitch, he stuck to the same line and was repeatedly wided by the umpire for that negative crap. Sehwag reverse-swept him several times with success too. It's not from lack of trying, he just a bowler who doesn't turn the ball - he's a workhorse doing what the captain tells him to do. And who gets bullied and dismissed by Ishant Sharma twice?

2.5 - Graeme Smith: 30 runs at 10. Ahh, Zak had his number all right, and it was 1-800-INSWING. And the one time he played out Zak, Mishra got him with a normal legbreak. He was at sea at Kolkata when the great Indian runfest was on. But let's put that down to the batsmen, shall we?

0.5 - Ashwell Prince: 24 runs at 8 and he had no idea what was going on. His bad form at the top continued, even when he got a chance to bat at his natural position at number 5. He's probably going to be dropped, and for good reason.

0.5 - JP Duminy: 15 runs at 5 and just the one wicket at 114 caps a terrible series for JP. He dropped catches, too, and is no doubt on the chopping block. He'll be back, of course, because he's better than this. I hope this form doesn't continue in the IPL for the Mumbai Indians.

Player scores for the series, India

Friday, February 19, 2010 cricket, india, review, rishabh bablani, south africa 4 Comments

Everything here is in my opinion, fair.

9 - Virender Sehwag: Scored 290 runs in three innings for an average of 96.66 with a strike rate of 87.34. More importantly, showed he can bat while everyone around him collapses, while being able to slow down his scoring rate to a Richardson-ish 70. Was responsible for snatching the game away from South Africa in the 2nd Test with a hurricane 165 as he rendered Steyn and Morne toothless for a large part of the game.

9 - Zaheer Khan: Took 7 wickets at 31.14, but bowled with great skill in both matches and kept India in the game in the 2nd Test when South Africa had started strongly, starting the collapse with the wickets of Peterson and Amla as he attacked relentlessly. Completely owned Graeme Smith, too. Dhoni used him a lot too, and the strain probably got to him as finally got injured on the 4th day, forcing him out of the ODI series. This is obviously a blessing in disguise, earning him well-earned rest ahead of the IPL, where he will be key to the Mumbai Indians' campaign.

8.5 - Sachin Tendulkar: 213 runs at 71 look like good figures, but the Master knows he could have done better. Failed in the first innings at Nagpur when India collapsed, but notched up successive centuries after that, the second of which was crucial at the other end of a Sehwag special. Can't have enjoyed getting out after the hundred twice, but he's done his job well enough, showing no signs of slowing down as a run-machine.

8 - VVS Laxman: 143 not out in his only innings at his favourite ground, and it was an important innings too, as he, in Dhoni's company, ensured that the start provided by Sehwag and Sachin wasn't wasted by the frailties of the new-look middle order. Still amazing to watch him bat, he showed us what India missed in Nagpur.

7.5 - MS Dhoni: Scored 163 runs at 81.5. He was left with too much to do lower down the order, twice at Nagpur. Was unlucky one of those times as an innocuous delivery from Harris reared out of the rough to catch his periscope/bat and fly to slip. Showed how much improved he is as a Test batsman at Kolkata with a busy hundred in a huge partnership with Laxman. As a captain, he made some decisions that may seem odd to us, but it's better to go along with him - there's no question he's been a huge factor in India's fortunes in the last few years.

7 - Harbhajan Singh: Took 10 wickets at 28.9. Was largely panned for his performance at Nagpur as the South African batsmen handled him with great ease, despite the pitch offering turn. There was no doubt he would bounce back at Kolkata, the ground where he made history 9 years ago. He bowled well without reward for most of the first day, and when Zaheer had broken through he got three quick wickets as the South African batsmen threw their wickets away to topspinners and armballs. Brilliant in the second innings, he bowled 48.3 overs and condeded only 59 runs as he successfully *choked* South Africa and snared five wickets in the process. Fed off the cheering crowd, he dealt the final blow with Morne's wicket to secure a famous win. Remains to be seen whether he will continue to do well overseas. Will do well for the Mumbai Indians, I hope.

4.5 - Subramaniam Badrinath: 63 runs at 21. Scored a very solid 56 in his debut innings, but went missing after that. Needs to tighten up his defence if he is to survive at this level. Good temperament though.

4.5 - Amit Mishra: 4 wickets at 72 is a terrible return for an Indian spinner in India, and all those wickets came in the 2nd Test. Was very unlucky at Nagpur where he beat the bat a lot, and he just didn't use enough variations. Found a much better line and length at Kolkata, but still bowled too many four-balls and no-balls. He used the turn on offer well in the second innings and accounted for the important wickets of Smith, Kallis and deVilliers. He needs to up his game, there's competition from Ojha and possibly Ashwin.

4 - Wriddhiman Saha: Thrown into the lion's den by the selectors, he was quickly taken out by Steyn in his first innings without scoring. In the second innings, though, batting with the tail, he played a gutsy innings of 36 and survived over a hundred deliveries, sweeping well too. He won't we back anytime soon though.

3.5 - Gautam Gambhir: Only 38 runs at 12.66. Cold, hard facts. Got out to two absolute jaffas from Morne Morkel in the first match, and started very well with Sehwag in the second before his partner ran him out in a moment of madness. He isn't really out of touch and will be back scoring in no time.

3 - Ishant Sharma: 3 wickets at 78.66, all wickets coming at Kolkata. Rubbish at Nagpur, no more words need be said. Was better at Kolkata, though not by a whole lot. One hostile spell to Amla paved the way for Zaheer and Harbhajan to get the wickets. With Zaheer out of the attack in the second innings, still wasn't the best seamer for India. Harsh, yeah, but he needs a break. Bring him back after that, but please, a break.

1 - Murali Vijay: 43 runs at 14.33 is not at all a good return for a top-order batsman, especially a number three. He was out leaving the ball in the first innings and sweeping in the second at Nagpur. Should lose his spot when Dravid and Yuvraj return.

South Africa to follow in a bit.

Aaaaand we won!

Thursday, February 18, 2010 cricket, harbhajan singh, india, rishabh bablani, south africa, virender sehwag 5 Comments

Yes! What a gripping day! Didn't miss a minute! Overjoyed! Suddenly love exclamation marks!

Harbhajan completely redeemed himself for me, Mishra too a little bit, not so much Ishant. While it scares me that India didn't have a quick bowler to come in and bowl full. swinging, tail-wiping deliveries, I'll let that pass for now and let it surface again later. Amla was perfect, a one-man army, but one player doesn't win a match, at least not this one.

A review post with player scores for this series will follow, but for now I'll leave you with this:

Just our luck

Wednesday, February 17, 2010 cricket, dale steyn, funny picture, india, review, rishabh bablani, south africa 14 Comments

India has completely owned this match. As if scoring a mammoth 634/6d isn't enough, 3 South African wickets went down as Zak, Mishra and Harby bowled their best.

Then the rain returned.

No more cricket could be played that day, bar one over. And now India has to take seven wickets to win on the final day, with Hashim Amla, the South African Santa, still out there. Prince the walking wicket has been sent out there in what could be his, and Duminy's, last chance to fight for their spot in this line-up - both have done nothing for far too long, though Duminy seems far more useful because of his ability to turn the ball more than Mindy, the first-choice spinner. They're complicated, aren't they. The other guy left is AB deVilliers, who can definitely hold his own in this sort of situation. The tailenders are no mugs, but the pitch has deteriorated enough for them to not be an issue.

What I'm saying is, India deserve the win, and the weather better not play spoilsport.

Maybe the Steynmeister had something to do with it, angry face and all.

 

"You better make it rain up there!"

A day for Sehwag, Sachin and Test cricket.

Monday, February 15, 2010 cricket, india, review, rishabh bablani, sachin, south africa, virender sehwag 13 Comments

How many times do you feel like watching an entire day of test cricket? Every session, every minute of it? I always thought I had the capacity, but during the recent India-Sri Lanka tests I realized I couldn't expose myself to it any longer. Well, except for Sehwag and his 293, almost all of which was on a single day. We all know it - Sehwag makes us watch test cricket, just like last night, when he was pummeling the Saffer bowlers wherever he wanted to. The entire time Sehwag was at the crease, Steyn and Morkel were made to look ordinary except for when Morne got Vijay to nick one to AB.

Sachin, as always, was the ideal batting partner, a calming influence on Sehwag who again crossed 150 during his 19th test ton. Both batsmen displayed, as usual, their full array of strokes, Sehwag reverse-swept Mindy thrice -  annoyed at the bowler's negative line. Mindy was again bowling over the wicket, but since there was no rough, the pitch being fresh, he couldn't turn the ball enough to get it to come into the batsman which prompted the umpire to call a wide 10 times for negative bowling. I don't know how, being a first-choice spinner for the national side, he cannot spin the ball... all you have to do is tweak your fingers!

Another big partnership for India at the Eden Gardens, after an amazing turnaround. This match appeared identical to the first test - Zak got Smith with a wicked inswinger early and there was a long dull phase where two Saffer batsmen marched on and the Indian bowlers, save Zak, looked innocuous.

Then came tea.

I've no idea what India ate/drank/listened to/read/played/danced to, but following Ishant's sudden bouncer barrage at Amla, everyone got fired up. Zak had gotten rid of Peterson and Amla, and Harby's brain, unused for two sessions, came up with something. 'If I'm not getting wickets with turn,' he thought, 'why not bowl straight balls?' Result? The wickets of Kallis, Prince and Duminy in quick succession. A startlingly amazing bit of fielding from Zak, and AB was gone, and then it was all over for the most part.

The Saffers got back into the game, though - Sehwag fell to Duminy, who finally did something right in this match. The big fish was out, and South Africa were no longer spectators. Mindy immediately picked up Sachin and Steyn (back to Meister form) ran right through Badri.

Lax-man, Mishra, Dhoni and the tail should be able to take a decent lead, I hope, and then we'll see if Ishant and Harby have retained their mojo.

India v South Africa 2: The Return of Laxman

Saturday, February 13, 2010 cricket, india, preview, rishabh bablani, south africa 19 Comments

A lot of things have happened at the worst times for India this series. Rahul Dravid is missing only his second match since his debut 14 years ago - worst possible time for that to happen. It's also the meanest thing Bangladesh has ever done to India. The worst time for the law of probability to catch up with Gambhir. The worst possible time for Paul Harris (Mindy) to turn the ball. The worst possible time for Yuvraj to finally get injured so we can replace him with someone better suited to Tests. The worst possible time for Rohit Sharma to play football. The worst possible time for the selectors to make the dumbest selection, ever. And now, ladies and gentlemen, the worst possible time for someone to stand up to the BCCI.

The pitch curator at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata has not, as was requested, prepared a raging turner that would hand India victory in three days. In fact, upon the pitch inspection, MS Dhoni said that there probably wouldn't be much turn for the first two days. Two whole days. Which means if South Africa bat first, India are pretty much buried if we go by current form. Two days, enough for South Africa to bat India out of the match - all they have to do is protect their lead.

The line-up is crucial for India. Laxman is back, but despite his awesome record at the ground (avg 81.63) he can't shoulder the batting responsibilities. Some positives could be that Sehwag and Sachin seem in decent nick, and Gambhir is unlikely to fail three innings in a row - besides, how many jaffas can Morne serve up in a row? Don't answer that. Ishant had a terrible outing, and Sreesanth, despite not having played competitive cricket of late, could get the nod - he's simply more of a threat than I-shan't Sharma. Mishra was amazingly unlucky considering how many times he beat the bat. Maybe he should turn the ball a tad less. That's horrible advice, actually - as a legspinner myself, there's nothing more satisfying than giving the ball a fair rip and watching it weave past the bat. Almost better than chocolate and taking wickets.

Anyway, the team. Badrinath, from what I saw of him, is quite Dravid-esque in his approach, so I'd suggest dropping Vijay - he's flashier and more susceptible to the Steynmeister. Badrinath should be at number three, Laxman at five and Dhoni at six, and five bowlers to follow, so it would look like this:

Sehwag
Gambhir
Badrinath
Sachin
Laxman
Dhoni (c) (wk)
Harbhajan
Mishra
Zaheer
Sreesanth
Ishant

That is highly unlikely, given India's traditional reluctance to play less than seven batsmen, even though Harby, Mishra and Zaheer can all bat. Plus, Steynmeister is a real tail-killer. So this is more likely:

Sehwag
Gambhir
Vijay
Sachin
Laxman
Badrinath
Dhoni (c) (wk)
Harbhajan
Mishra
Zaheer
Sreesanth

News from the South African camp, though, is that Graeme Smith has injured his finger. That guy's a real fighter though, and expect him to load up on the painkillers and march right onto the field. He may not have scored in the first match, but his captaincy is vital to South Africa. They still have issues with Prince and Duminy's form, and I would bet on one of them getting replaced by Alviro Peterson, but after this series - a winning team is not to be tinkered with. Boucher has a niggle, and AB can take that over which would give Peterson a game anyway. That's minor of course. Steyn and Morkel, unfortunately are in full fitness, and so are Kallis and Amla.

India will will either make a remarkable turnaround and win, or lose again. They should not, under any circumstances, play for the draw.

Wow, this looks like a lot of analysis. It really isn't.

Euthanised

Tuesday, February 09, 2010 angry rant, cricket, cricket comics, funny picture, india, review, rishabh bablani, selection, south africa 3 Comments

I'm amazed, what a comeback.

A double hundred from Sachin built around grinding fifties from Vijay, Badrinath, Dhoni, Saha and then fireworks from Harbhajan enabled India to take a 214-run lead, leaving South Africa to chase 215 with 10 overs left on day 4 and on a tricky last day pitch. Zaheer Khan then picked up a hat-trick in his second over, and Ishant picked up two more before Harbhajan picked up another wicket on the last ball of the day. South Africa need 180 on the final day with AB deVilliers, Steyn and the tail remaining.

Wait, that was the version in my head, did I say that out loud?

Actually, Sachin made a hundred and got out, there were no fifties, and the lower order crumbled after starts. It was a merciful killing, really - who wanted to watch more awful delaying-the-inevitable stuff?

India were shit and that's the truth. Everyone is to blame - selectors, management, players. The selectors for throwing a largely untested keeper into the deep end, as a batsman no less, when the likes of Dinesh Karthik, who has faced South Africa before, are around. The team management for picking Saha in the actual lineup - the bowling is weak, it's a flat pitch, South Africa's batting lineup is strong... Mithun could have been a surprise weapon. And besides, in the event of a batting collapse, as we saw, an extra batsman is hardly going to help - an inept one no less.

The players are like zoo lions who are fed all their meat in the cage and don't have to go hunt for it, and when a bigger predator comes along, they don't know how to fight back. A lot of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh really isn't going to raise standards - they simply weren't prepared for the Steynmeister and Morkel and Mindy (Harris) (yeah I'm calling him that now).

Obviously we know what the backup plan is - prepare a square turner at the Eden Gardens. But what of that? Mindy outperformed both Indian spinners - granted, he was bowling on an imaginary set of stumps right next to the actual ones... that actually seemed to work for him though. Harby, flight the ball please. Duminy looks more threatening than you.

Laxman will probably be back, but if he isn't, either Karthik will return or Raina will make his debut, which is ridiculous... his handling of the short stuff is exceptionally bad. Sreesanth is unlikely to play, having been inactive for a month now. Of course, I don't know what goes on in the minds of those in control. It takes one to know one, and I'm not a moron.

Finest beard in the game

Sunday, February 07, 2010 cricket, india, review, rishabh bablani, south africa, virender sehwag 6 Comments

Two days into the match and I'm terribly bored by it. Graeme Smith, you clout, you should have put India in to bat, if only for our entertainment. Instead, we had to watch Zaheer Khan give us false hope by picking up the two early wickets of Graeme "shovel-to-the-legside" Smith and Ashwell "walking-wicket" Prince.

But the way this match is positioned is similar to the first test match at Chennai when South Africa toured India two years ago. A big Hashim Amla hundred, terrible bowling by Harbhajan, and a big first-innings score.

Those of you who know what happened after that, good on you, treat yourself to a cookie.

Those who don't, I'll tell you, but hell awaits if you touch that cookie jar.

India took a lead of close to a hundred runs, and Sehwag scored the quickest triple century ever. Who was in the bowling attack? Steyn, Morne Morkel, Makhaya Ntini and Paul Harris.

True, India had Dravid and Laxman, but there was no Gambhir then. Murali Vijay played well against Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson on debut, pace doesn't bother him. And Badrinath is the best domestic batsman to make his debut in the middle order since Dravid and Ganguly 14 years ago, he should fit into the role.

And it's a flat pitch.

This match is surely heading for a draw, as despite the turn on offer, Harbhajan and Mishra don't look up to the task. If this series is to have a result, the next match should either be on a green top and let South Africa win, or a dustbowl coupled with Pragyan Ojha getting a game.

Day 3 begins today, and that's where the match should be taking off.

Here we go

Friday, February 05, 2010 cricket, dinesh karthik, india, laxman, preview, rishabh bablani, rohit sharma, saha, selection, south africa 7 Comments

It's about five minutes until the match begins, and the news is already bad for India.

Laxman is out.

And it gets worse.

Rohit Sharma, his designated replacement, injured himself this morning.

And it gets worse.

His replacement is Wriddhiman Saha.

You can scream now.

This is a case of selector stupidity again - Dinesh Karthik dropped for Saha. Karthik went on to make two absurdly brilliant 150+ scores, taking South Zone near to a Duleep Final Trophy almost single-handedly. His experience and class would certainly have come in handy right now. I've seen Saha bat - he's talented, but to throw him in against Steyn, Morkel and Parnell, can't be good.

I can only hope he proves me wrong.

Murali Vijay has so far shown that he belongs in this team, and Badrinath is finally getting his chance after years of domestic excellence. He's a long term prospect and a good performance from him is crucial.

Right, the match has begun.

Australia sweep Pakistan - metaphorically

Friday, February 05, 2010 afridi, australia, cricket, pakistan, review, rishabh bablani, saturday night live, T20, video 2 Comments

As I watched the final over of the T20 between Australia and Pakistan, the equation was 8 needed from 3 for Pakistan with one wicket remaining, and one of the commentators said,

"Good teams find a way to win."

Obviously, that was about Australia - and my mind immediately conjured up the corollary: bad teams find a way to lose.

Now obviously, Pakistan has good players - immensely talented, as Kamran Akmal displayed while batting and Umar Gul while bowling.

But that doesn't make them a good team.

This may be a cricket cliche, but they did snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Not that I want to take anything away from the way the Aussies bowled and fielded - they were simply amazing.

Shaun Tait made a fiery comeback, picking up three wickets while making the batsmen hop, clocking 160 kmph in the process. Dirk Nannes and Mitchell Johnson were 150 + too, and Johnson recovered especially well after conceding 20 in his first over - his next three overs went for only three runs!

Newbie Steve Smith held his nerve to pick up wickets at key moments, not getting intimidated by the batsmen going after him.

There were three maiden overs by Australia. In a T20. That's probably unprecedented, and disappointing from Pakistan. But then how much confidence can they be expected to have, losing every match on this tour.

Oh, and Afridi bit a ball.

Hahahahaha.

I'll leave you with this, and this is not in any way related to what I think the Pakistan cricket team does at bedtime.