Author: Bobji

The first Ashes Test

Posted on by Bobji

Australia won a tight contest right at the end and it was fitting that Cummins, the captain, not only scored the winning runs but was at the very end to take his team home. Cummins, who had lost some of his batting potency, seems to be rediscovering it at the opportune moment. The game was quite entertaining right till the end with the rain interruption adding to the thrill. Test cricket is tough and winning Tests, especially away from home is always rewarding. Australia must be appreciated for winning 2 of them in quick succession. The Ashes always hold a special place in the hearts and minds of both England and Australia. The first Ashes Test was no exception either.

A declaration that should not have been

England was not exactly in the driving seat but was poised to score more than 425. Root at one end was playing beautifully whereas Robinson was quite secure with his batting on the other. The partnership had already added 43 and looked good enough to add another significant chunk of runs. Runs in the ultimate analysis could have ensured victory for England. However, Stokes thought it fit to declare on the first day of an Ashes Test to pounce on Australia.

“I thought that was a time to pounce.”

How was he going to pounce on Australia with just 4 overs left for the day? By the time Anderson and Broad get their line and length correct, a couple of overs would have gone by already. The Australian openers would have been left with just 2 overs to survive. It would not have been a tough job on that pretty placid pitch.

Root and Robinson would have easily added another 50-60 runs. Root must have seen the ball like a football, and Robinson, who had scored 20, would have fancied himself to score 50. These missed runs proved crucial in the final outcome. Ofcourse, England could have lost both the wickets quickly and could have been bowled out for less than 400 but the chances of that were slim. The batsmen were quite comfortable.

Stokes commented that the game would not have been entertaining if not for his declaration.

“I could also turn it around and say, ‘if we didn’t declare, would we have got the excitement that we did at the end of day five?’ I’m not a hundred percent sure, but I’m not going to be looking back on this game as ‘what ifs’… the reality is, we just didn’t manage to get over the line.”

Ashes is the pinnacle for England

This shows that Stokes did not understand the gravity of his error. International players are not there for entertainment. The movie industry is for entertainment. The music industry is for entertainment but sports is a different altogether. It is played for winning and not just for competing.

Especially Ashes. For every English supporter, The Ashes is the pinnacle of the sport. They do not care about World Cup or series wins against any other side. An Ashes victory is the be-all and end-all of things for them. There was a whole generation of players who never tasted success in Ashes. Ask them, they will tell Stokes the pain of not winning Ashes. Alec Stewart, Mike Atherton, Nasser Hussain to name a few were never involved in an Ashes series win. Stokes being a New Zealander, perhaps does not realise the importance of Ashes for every English supporter.

Moreover, it wasn’t a decision that took the Australian openers completely off-guard because at 8 wickets down, they would have been mentally prepared to bat. It is just that, they wouldn’t know by when.

There is a thin line between being aggressive and looking ridiculous. This decision of Stokes looked ridiculous.

It was surprising that neither Atherton nor Hussain condemned the declaration. It was only Michael Vaughan and Pietersen who spoke against it.

Oliver Brown, writes Stokes is, as The Telegraph’s Oliver Brown wrote, “a high-roller to his very core.”

“Whatever the risks, whatever the circumstances, he backs himself to deliver with gambles that make sense in his mind but that seem ludicrous to everybody else.”

England may win from here

Ofcourse, it is just the first game and there are 4 more to go. Stokes may hold the Ashes high above his head once the series is over but the defeat has made things that bit more difficult. Remember, England must win the series to regain the Ashes and a draw will not be sufficient. Stoke will have to decide which is more important for him. Test wins, series wins, Ashes or entertaining the public? There is nothing wrong with Bazball. Afterall, it is about mindless slog but being positive all the time and looking to score. It need not be through boundaries but singles and doubles are also included in that.

Right, enough about the declaration.

Ollie Robinson’s comment

After Robinson made his debut, one of his tweet surfaced which portrayed him to be a racist. He apologised for his comment and promised to change. However, just after the day 3 drew to a close, Robinson was answering the press when he mentioned that the Australian bottom 3 are all number 11s and that it is easy to dislodge them.

“It’s something we’ve spoken about as a group,” Robinson said.

“We’ve said once we get past (Pat) Cummins, we feel like they’ve got three No. 11’s (in Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland and Josh Hazlewood).

“It’s something we can target through the series and try to wrap things up quite quick and give us that momentum throughout the series.”

This was audacious to the core. Lyon has shown great patience at the crease to not just hang in there but also to score runs. He may not have scored 50s but has scored sufficient number of 20s and 30s to prop the score up. If a proper batsman is at the other end, Lyon does not gift his wicket away. He is a fighter to the core. As for Boland, he is new to international cricket and not much is known about his ability with the bat. He showed that in the 2nd innings when Broad was at his fiery best. It is ridiculous for Robinson to paint all of them with the same brush. Perhaps, this quote of his motivated Lyon and Boland to do whatever is possible from their end to win the game.

Bairstow’s keeping

Some of Bairstow’s innings in 2022 were outrageous. His daring strokeplay was in complete contrast to the Bairstow of old. Geoffrey Boycott predicted a bright career for Bairstow before he made his debut but he wasn’t suitable for the approach with which England played earlier. The Stokes-McCullum era has awakened the sleeping giant in him. Perhaps, this is what he does best. The audacious batting in the 1st innings was breathtaking. He completely overtook Root who had been at the crease for longer than him. England just cannot imagine a team without Bairstow.

What about his keeping? That is England’s conundrum. Bairstow missed a couple of catches and a stumping. Atleast 2 of them were simple chances. These misses directly contributed to Australia’s score and England’s loss. England just cannot continue with him as the keeper. A way must be found for Foakes, an excellent keeper and decent batsman. The obvious replacement will be either Pope or one of Duckett or Crawley though I am not sure whether Bairstow is comfortable opening the innings. It might even result in puncturing the confidence of Bairstow. Stokes needs to make a tricky decision. However, the news that is coming out of the England camp seems to instill faith in Bairstow’s keeping. England and specifically, Moeen will hope that the Australian batsmen do not miss any delivery and that they do not edge any delivery towards the keeper.

The point of Moeen Ali

Moeen Ali was picked from obscurity. He had hardly played red-ball cricket for 2 years. Yet, Stokes felt that he can still contribute to the cause. Jack Leach’s injury left England will a spinner short but it is hard to believe that there isn’t any spinner in County Cricket who can replace Leach. Hence, Moeen was plucked out of nowhere.

He was literally massacred by the Australian batsmen. Khawaja especially, came down the wicket repeatedly to clobber him straight down the ground. 30% of Australian runs came off Moeen’s bowling. Perhaps, Stokes had too much faith in Moeen. It was misplaced faith. With Leach ruled out of the series, Moeen is likely to play in all the games. Alongwith the keeper, this is another area of concern for England. If Moeen fails to step up, England can kiss the Ashes goodbye or they will have to find another spinner from County.

England’s bowling resources

All the England seamers are of the same nature. None of them, including Stokes are capable of bowling at 140KMPH and above. Ollie Robinson is much more slower than the rest. It does not really instill any dread in the Australian batsmen. England’s bowling is their weakest link.

They need someone who can hurl the ball at 145KMPH consistently. In the absence of Archer, Wood or Stone is the obvious choice. Wood is part of the squad. Anderson had a quiet game but one can understand. He will comeback to his usual self pretty soon but I do not see any reason to retain Robinson. Yes, he can bat and yet, he picked up some wickets but he never looked threatening. If Stokes wants to retain Robinson, Wood must come in for Moeen which will essentially mean using Root as the main spinner just to keep up with the overs rate.

WTC finals mark for Indians

Posted on by Bobji

Just to think that India has lost one more final and thereby one more attempt at an ICC trophy has gone abegging makes every Indian supporter quite sad. Over the last several years, we have come to expect our team to stumble either at the last hurdle or the one before that. With every passing year, hopes of India winning another ICC tournament fades. Having said that, let me give marks to the Indians in the WTC finals mark for Indians.

Adding to the sadness are the post-game comments of both the coach and the captain made people even more angry because of the stupidity of it. Rohit Sharma wants a best of 3 finals, Dravid and Rohit blame the bowling on the first day and Rohit wants a win of 20-25 days preparatory period before the finals. A load of nonsense.

Let me begin with the openers. The marks are for 10

Rohit Sharma (Two)

The captain was virtually clueless throughout the game. First was his decision of leaving out Ashwin which though did not find any kind of support, I think was taken as a continuity of previous decisions India has taken with respect to playing Ashwin in overseas conditions. Having said that, on the field, he looked listless. He was unable to prevent the mayhem on the first afternoon. After having begun well, Indians gave away a lot of boundaries to both Head and Smith. Rohit Sharma was unable to control the game at that point. It proved disastrous in the end. The coach picked this passage of play as the decisive phase of the game.

With the bat, he was uninspiring. Chasing a tall score, an excellent contribution from the openers was very much needed. The batting conditions have significantly improved. There was not a cloud in sight and yet, Rohit Sharma didn’t press on for a big daddy hundred.

Perhaps, it is time to look elsewhere for captaincy. He can remain in the team for another year but beyond that, at the age of 36, it is difficult to see Rohit being part of the next WTC finals if India qualifies.

Shubman Gill (Two)

The most in-form batsman in the Indian team. He came into the WTC finals on the back of multiple hundreds in the IPL. Not only that, he was quite impressive during the Bangladesh series and secured 100s in all the 3 formats. The expectations were really high. If one believed that he will finally be able to fulfil his gifted talent justice, we were all in for a major disappointment.

 Ever since his exploits in his very first series in Australia, Gill has never lived upto to the promise. Time and again, he has squandered multiple opportunities. It is time he realises that he will not have perpetual opportunities because he is talented. The sooner he starts to perform in important games and under tough situations and conditions, the better it is for him and the team. Otherwise, he will remain one of those batsmen who was good in patches.

Cheteshwar Pujara (One)

The selectors have made a blunder by picking him because of the mountain of runs he scored for Sussex. More than a year ago, the decision to drop both Pujara and Rahane was the correct decision but no one could have imagined that within a short space, both will be back in the team. Last year, before the Edgbaston Test, Pujara scored hundreds by the will for Sussex and come the Test, he was found wanting. He was hardly able to get the ball off the square. Much the same can be said about this finals too. Here again, he was prolific for Sussex but was miserable against better bowling. It is clear that he has passed his best. It is better India look elsewhere.

Virat Kohli (Two)

I have been among those supporters who wanted to give Kohli a lengthy rope when he was struggling. When he didn’t know where his next run is going to come. However, the rope has been really lengthy. Granted just a Test ago, he scored a mammoth 186 but that was on the featherbed of a pitch. His contribution on challenging pitches against better bowlers has been negligible. It will be a shame if Kohli retires with a sub-50 average but maybe just maybe, the time has come to place Kohli on notice. This cannot be allowed to go on. Especially, with India playing just the 5 proper batsmen.

Ajinkya Rahane (5)

The comeback batsman. Good performance with the bat in both the innings. He kept the team in the game just that bit longer. However, was it correct in the first place to bring him back? I do not think so. The problem is that, he will be persisted with for atleast another year because of this one performance. However, he can continue if he is made the captain. Afterall, he won the series in Australia with bowlers who had hardly played 5 games combined.

Ravindra Jadeja (4)

Decent with the ball but disappointing with the bat. The only reason Ashwin was kept out of the playing eleven was because of Jadeja’s ability with the bat. He has done decently well in the recent past but with Rahane at the other end batting well, he must have kept him company and must have ensured India post a good enough first innings score.

Shardul Thakur (5)

He did not do his chances of being picked again whenever India tours abroad any damage. A couple of vital breakthroughs apart, his batting was really a revelation. Despite multiple hits on the body, he did not flinch and give up his wicket, unlike the illustrious batsmen. Though he did not contribute anything with the bat in the 2nd innings, he did enough to justify his spot.

Bharath, Umesh (One)

What was Umesh doing on the field? How is he in the team for the last 10 years? He is another Ishant Sharma who hasn’t improved an inch throughout the career. It is time to wish him well and let him go. As for Bharath, there was a clamour to include Ishan Kishan and Bharath did not do anything to dispel their clamour.

Siraj, Shami (Five)

They bowled with a lot of passion and fire but the exposure to T20 cricket for 2.5 months messed up their lines and lengths. Towards the middle of the 1st day, they were jaded. It contributed to Australia running away with the game.

Wrapping up WTC finals mark for Indians

It is time some 35 years old are bid goodbye and build a new team.

About WTC can be read here and here

Rohit, Dravid, the team and the board

Posted on by Bobji

The World Test Championship lost and lost quite convincingly. Why would India even qualify for such games only to crush the hearts of millions of supporters? The post game comments of both the coach and the captain make people even more angry because of the stupidity of it. Rohit Sharma wants a best of 3 finals, Dravid and Rohit blame the bowling on the first day and Rohit wants a win of 20-25 days preparatory period before the finals. A load of nonsense. Let me review the finals.

Let me start with the coach Rahul Dravid

It is still a pity that Dravid hasn’t resigned from his post. His CV as a coach is pretty ordinary. Just the one series win against Australia, albeit on some questionable pitches, Dravid’s CV does not make for good reading. If he applies for the position for some other country, no one would even shortlist him. Yet, he is clinging onto the post presiding over one debacle after another.

“It wasn’t a 469 wicket,” Dravid told Star Sports, after Australia wrapped up a 209-run victory. “On the first day, last session, conceding 157 [for no wicket] was disappointing. We knew the lines and lengths we needed to bowl; the lengths weren’t bad, but we went wide with our lines, gave a lot of room to Travis Head, he capitalised and we fell behind.”

The bowlers were coming off of a tight IPL schedule where they bowled only 4 overs per game. Shami was involved till the very last game. The IPL tamasha went on for 2.5 months during which bowlers would have adapted to a certain line and length. It just is not possible, even for professionals to change the line and the length that quickly in the finals. Ideally, there should have been atleast a couple of practice games so that the bowlers would have gotten used to the red ball.

One might say that the Australians too didn’t play any preparatory game but none of the Australian bowlers were involved in IPL. They had every opportunity to practice with the red cherry. They know the English conditions like the back of their hand. Much better than Indians.

Short turnaround

Dravid knew pretty well the short turnaround time after IPL and before the final. Shouldn’t he in the capacity of the coach, instructed BCCI to pull out all the bowlers a month before the finals? If the BCCI was unwilling, shouldn’t he have resigned stating that he will not be able to work with bowlers who are tired?

What about the batsmen? Why didn’t he blame them? The conditions were sub-continent like according to every commentator on the last day. Yet, the team was bowled out before lunch. The batsmen have been failing time and again in major games. The T20 World Cup against England, last WTC Finals and so many others. I am not saying that the bowlers were splendid.

Fight? Where was it?

“The good thing was we were behind for two days in this Test but didn’t give up and fought well.”

Another gem from the coach. Where was the fight? If Kohli had hit any of the opponents or any of the umpires or even had a go at the stump mic, there would have been a fight. Otherthan that, there was absolutely no fight shown by the Indians. Was Dravid sarcastic? That is the only way to interpret his comments. In his playing days, he never flinched from any challenge. The innings at Durban, Headingley were all legendary but now, from which angle did Dravid saw the fight from the Indians is beyond me.

The BCCI too tweeted along similar lines that the team fought hard. Seriously BCCI? You never care about how the team performs in international cricket or understand the hurt of every Indian. All you care about is money.

Rohit’s preparatory duration

“But in an ideal scenario, yes, I would prefer if we have 20, 25 days to prepare for a game like this.” This fellow knows that the finals will be tough and that it will be played in England on greentop and yet, he didn’t have the nerve to inform the BCCI of a longer preparation. He himself didn’t find the need to excuse himself from the last couple of weeks of the IPL and prepare for the finals. This clearly shows that neither Rohit nor the board nor the players care about international cricket anymore. They are happy to play in the IPL for a shorter duration. Manjrekar has written in his autobiography that Mumbai players are much more passionate about their Ranji team than while playing for India. Rohit is only carrying that torch.

Best of 3 finals

Next comes his gem. Best of 3 finals.

“But honestly, in a big event like this, you need to have fair opportunities to both the teams. You know, a three-match series would be nice, but it’s about finding that window where it can be fit in.”

Finals can never be a 3 game affair. As Cummins rightly pointed out, Olympic medals are won with just one final and not the best of 3. India faltered in preparation. They didn’t care about winning the international game and were happy to be part of the hit-and-giggle IPL. The WTC 2021 loss must have hurt them enough and it must have spurred them to win in 2023. The fact that it didn’t mean only one thing. Playing for India is the least of their priorities. It is unfortunate that Indian cricket has sunk to this low.

Wrapping up Rohit, Dravid, the team and the board

It is time they understand that it is the supporters who have made them. They are earning millions because of supporters like us. We want our national team to win at the highest level. If we are fed up of the so-called fighting performance, we will stop watching the game. Every Indian will hope that some other sport or multiple sports captures the imagination of the public and as a result, funds from the BCCI will be diverted to those sports by the sponsors. The day that happens will be the day Indian cricket will think of winning consistently and at all times.

Other WTC posts here and here

India vs Australia WTC Final

Posted on by Bobji

I would like to pour all my frustrations about the India vs Australia WTC final in the blog. Indian supporters do not fret. This was something that was expected of this Indian team. Let us make no mistake. Australia started as the overwhelming favourites. They are a team that is used to playing in England. Years and years of playing Ashes have fine-tuned them into how to play in England.

Indian supporters, do not fret because India was always expected to lose but we the supporters, expected a semblance of a fight but it wasn’t to be. That is alright because this was expected anyway.

Indian supporters, do not fret because we must not expect India to win whenever an ICC tournament starts. Rather, we must be surprised if they do win. Yes, the display has been horrendous but we the supporters must not worry too much because this was expected anyway.

Indian supporters, do not fret because an overwhelming majority of our cricketers are on the wrong side of their 30s and are likely to retire almost at the sametime. The lack of young talents is making the older players stick to their places for far too long but do not worry because we are anyway expected to lose.

Indian supporters, do not fret that the bowlers bowled poor line and length on a helpful surface that allowed Australia to race upto a score in excess of 450. It does not really matter because we are expected to lose anyway.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India is the main culprit

The display has been horrendous, to say the least. I am not prepared to blame the players alone for the ghastly couple of days. The board is equally liable. Infact, the board must carry a higher percentage of the blame than the players. It simply is impossible to play in a serious World Test Championship Final after gruelling 2.5 months of IPL which was T20 cricket for all intents and purposes. It was played on the flattest batting decks in India where the only role for the bowlers is to turn up for every game and deliver some overs. 2.5 months is a lengthy period during which the technique of every batsman and every bowler would have shifted to suit a specific brand of cricket.

The batsman will not have to worry about bounce or movement off the surface. They will only have to plonk their front foot forward and hit through the line or over the top. Most of the grounds in India are quite small. 60MTS, 65MTS just do not do any justice to the game. Bowlers toil really hard on lifeless pitches that are designed for sheer entertainment value and nothing else. One can hardly find a contest between the bat and the ball in IPL’s existence for 16 years.

The players need rest

Add to that the human body is not designed to perform like a machine. It needs rest and will have to be recuperated. 3 of the playing eleven on the Indian side played in the IPL till March 28, the day of the final. Mohammed Shami, the main bowler in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, is one among them. The fitness of the Indian players has increased manifold. This is not a motley group of players in the 80s or 90s or for that matter, even the first decade of the new millennium when the fitness levels were extremely low. Despite that, these players need frequent breaks for them to be able to perform at their optimum.

The board deprived the players of this rest by organising the IPL games right till the end of May. Naturally, the players are jaded and are not at all motivated to turn up one more time and that too in England. Ideal preparation would have been to rest every player for about a month, send them to England, play a couple of preparatory games, understand the pace, bounce and movement and finally, approach the final.

BCCI would have none of it. For them, what matters is money. Whether India wins or lose is immaterial to them. So long as the IPL brings in an obscene amount of Rupees into the board’s coffers, all is well and good. We the Indian team’s supporters are really unlucky to have such a board. It really is sad that this self-centred board dominates world cricket because of us.

Players cannot escape blame

8 of the 11 are above the age of 34. Long ago, Australia used to mock England by calling them Dad’s Army because most of the English players were aged. Much the same could be said for this Indian team too. Rohit Sharma’s fitness has not really improved which is affecting his game. The middle-order of Pujara, Kohli and Rahane does not inspire any confidence though Rahane got 89. I have said this before and I will say this again. Pujara and Rahane are past their sell-by-date notwithstanding Rahane’s 89. For all of Pujara’s runs in English County, he is a spent force at the Test level. His runs clearly show how mediocre Division 2 is.

Kohli is increasingly becoming a flat-track bully. The 180 a Test prior was on the flattest wicket one could ever find. On slightly challenging pitches, Kohli has been found wanting. It is ridiculous for the selectors not to think of succession. They made a blunder by recalling both Pujara and Rahane when someone younger could have been given an opportunity.

Shubman Gill has time and again floundered the chances given to him. He is prodigiously talented and in good form too but is not making use of that form. He is worth continuing with but perhaps in the middle-order

Wrapping up India vs Australia WTC Final

Indian supporters, do not fret because this game is running with the script. We can expect the match to end on the 4th day. This team is an embarrassment. Knocked out before the semi-final in both Asia Cup and World T20 2020, lost by 10 wickets in World T20 2021, unable to win or even draw the WTC 2020 despite substantial time lost because of rain.

Other WTC articles can be read here, here, here and here.

Lucknow Supergiants IPL 2023 review

Posted on by Bobji

2 seasons and 2 commendable performances to have reached the playoffs stage. The performance was indeed commendable but Lucknow would have liked to do one better this time around with a place in the finals. However, it wasn’t to be. They were knocked out in the eliminator by Mumbai Indians. It wasn’t just a knockout but it was a killer punch. Lucknow lost to Mumbai by 81 runs. This is an extraordinary margin of defeat even in a league game but in a knockout, it is mindboggling. This is Lucknow Supergiants IPL 2023 review.

The team management must have had a lot of expectations following the auction. Nicholas Pooran, the West Indian dasher was procured for a staggering amount of 16 Crores. This was an exceptional figure and it directly places a lot of pressure on the player. It did pay off in some games but overall, you can say that Pooran repaid the faith placed in him upto 50%. 

Standout performer

Marcus Stoinis was their proven performer. He was the only Lucknow batsman to score more than 400 runs. It included 3 fifties. The assault on the RCB bowlers was breathtaking. It was Stoinis who took the initiative to the RCB bowlers and Pooran followed it up. Stoinis also ended up with 3 man of the match award. Not bad for someone who is not a mainstay in the Australian side. If not for Stoinis’s contribution, LSG might have struggled to even reach the playoffs. 

Major problem

The over-dependence on 3 of their overseas batsmen. Kyle Mayers, Stoinis and Pooran. The pressure to score runs and score quickly, was enormous on them. In a sense, they mirrored that of RCB who also depended heavily on Faf, Kohli and Maxwell. The Indian batsmen for LSG did not help these batsmen in any way. Krishnappa Gowtham, who was sold for 15 Crores a few years ago for another franchise, did not inspire any confidence with either the bat or with the ball. Deepak Hooda, who made his debut for India not so long ago was another who was found wanting. It could be that after his not-so-impressive returns for India, he has lost some confidence. If not for the IPL rule of not allowing more than 4 overseas cricketers, the chances of Hooda continuing in the team were slim. In 12 games, he managed only 84 runs. 

Baffling decision

Was to leave out Quinton de Kock from the playing eleven consistently. He only played 4 games. Here was a batsman who could have provided the much needed support for Stoinis, left out of the team regularly. On what basis did LSG decided to bench Quinton quite often is beyond understanding. He could have easily replaced Mayers at the top or Pooran lower down the order. In addition, he could have kept wickets too. 

The ugly

It certainly was the spat between Kohli-Gambhir-Naveen. It was ridiculous to watch and a surprise to see none of them were banned for a certain number of games. Gambhir and Kohli had a similar disagreement some 6 years ago but for that to spill over into the field of play was insane. All the 3 must have been banned for some games to teach a lesson. The watching youngsters will also learn that banter is just not on on the field of play. Naveen, who has hardly played a handful of games was definitely out of his scope. He has a longway to go and has a lot of things to improve and learn. Abusing the opponent is certainly not among the things he needs to learn. 

Wrapping up Lucknow Supergiants IPL 2023 review

Lucknow did well to reach a second straight playoffs but was unable to proceed beyond that. I do not think that Rahul’s absence in anyway affected their batting. He hardly inspired any confidence with his slow approach. Lucknow could have utilised Rahul’s absence better and must have opened with Quinton for a quick and bright start.

Other related blogs can be read here, here, here, here, here, here, here, h             

Delhi Capitals IPL 2023 review

Posted on by Bobji

One more season done and one more disappointment. Alongwith RCB & Punjab, Delhi is the only side not to have won even a single IPL trophy in 16 attempts. Even in a short span, Deccan Chargers and Gujarat Titans managed to win one apiece but not Delhi. This despite the fact that they are having whom Nasser Hussain calls the greatest thinker of the game at the moment, Ricky Ponting. Ponting himself must have felt helpless because he had to work within the rules of the game. Otherwise, there is no point in persisting with such mediocre performers like Prithvi Shaw. Delhi Capitals IPL 2023 review. 

Ricky Ponting, the coach is not used to this performance from his side. He afterall is the most successful international captain. He captained Australia to great heights the likes of which this world has seldom seen. Not even the mighty West Indians or the wily South Africans can match the performance of Australia under Ricky Ponting. The same Ponting must be really disappointed and angry at his team. Perhaps, great teams make great captain is true.

The curious case of Prithvi Shaw

Before the start of the tournament, Ponting had high hopes on Shaw. “He’s trained harder and better than I’ve ever seen. I’m pretty sure leading into an IPL, he is in better physical shape than I’ve ever seen him before,” Ponting told reporters in Delhi on Friday. “And I spoke to him the other day about his attitude and the way that he’s working and how things are going. I honestly feel that this is going to be his biggest season ever in the IPL.”

Success has come his way too sooner than he deserves. It is clear that Shaw does not really learn from his mistakes. He has continuously failed to deceive. Whether he even works hard is open to questioning. If reports are to be believed, he was warned by the BCCI repeatedly for poor fitness and poor attitude but he does seem to change. His non-performance was so bad that Delhi was eventually forced to drop him from the squad. A fall for someone who is touted to achieve higher laurels for India. All the faults that the Indian selectors found in him seem to be intact.

It will be a miracle if he even plays for India again with this attitude. He seems to think that he is bigger than the game but he fails to realise that it will come back to bite him. If there is a limited auction this year-end, Delhi will be pleased to release Shaw from their pool. I am sure Ponting has had enough of such a spoilt brat. 

Shaw will have to talk to Gill

One is forced to ask Ponting whether he has worked with Shaw to solve his technical problem of which Ponting himself spoke on-air during the 2020 Australian tour. One biggest problem with Shaw is his lack of fitness. For a 23 years old, he definitely looks overweight. For someone who was expected to break into the Indian white-ball squad more than a year ago, he is not even on the radar now. It shows the depths Shaw has fallen. Time is running out for Shaw. His compatriot in the U-19 World Cup squad, Shubman Gill has established himself in all the 3 formats and is even being touted as the future Indian captain. Shaw will have to look at himself in the mirror and ask some tough questions. Does he want to be remembered as an Indian cricketer or just one among the many Ranji cricketers?

At this rate, I could see Prithvi Shaw following in the footsteps of his predecessor, Unmukt Chand and going over to America because he will find opportunities that are few and far between in India. Shaw is a classical example of how a talent has gone to waste because he wasn’t able to handle the limelight quite well. 

Where were the batsmen?

Just 5 wins out of 14 and a lowly finish of 9th. This damning statistic will hurt David Warner and Ricky Ponting. It shows that Delhi was either poor in terms of skills or poor in terms of execution. In Mitchell Marsh, Phil Salt & David Warner, they had enough destructive batsmen but they never fired in unison. Therein lay the actual problem. It was mostly left to Axar Patel to transform a middling score into a fighting score. Yet, they somehow managed to pull off an incredible win against Punjab Kings. Perhaps, Ponting should have gone back to his punter days and promoted Axar Patel higher up in the order considering the number of runs that he scored. 

Bowlers were missing

Mitchell Marsh was the highest wicket taker for Delhi. 12 wickets. This single statistic reveals a lot about Delhi’s bowling. Where were the bowlers? From when were they missing? If an allrounder ends up as the highest wicket taker, the team as a whole does not deserve to progress to the next round.

Wrapping up Delhi Capitals IPL 2023 review

They have deceived for far too long. They had enough firepower to play with. Yet, Delhi could win only 5 games in the whole tournament. For someone like Ricky Ponting, who usually expects any team that he leads to win all the games, this must have been a huge disappointment. Could he have done anything differently? He could have dropped Shaw a longtime ago and could have promoted Axar Patel. Perhaps, Warner could have been persuaded to come down the order with Marsh and Salt opening the innings. Nortje and Ngidi could have formed a potent bowling attack alongwith Kuldeep Yadav. Next year, Ponting can be expected to do things a bit differently.

Other related blogs can be read here, here, here, here, here, here, here, h              

RCB IPL 2023 review

Posted on by Bobji

16 attempts and 0 titles. This is RCB’s record in IPL. This despite having amongst their ranks arguably one of the best batsmen during his era. To begin with, RCB did not have much hope this year. Rajat Patidar, their standout batsman in 2022 was rendered ineffective through injury. Josh Hazlewood was unavailable for more than half of the games. They have a non-existent middle and lower order. Bowlers with the exception of Siraj were nowhere to be seen. Extremely lengthy tail. So, the problems for RCB were far too many to warrant any sort of confidence. To their credit, they came within a game’s win to quality. This is RCB IPL 2023 review.

Two games that decided their campaign

The loss against CSK and the loss against Lucknow. Have we not seen the script unfold time and time again? More often than not, Royal Challengers Bangalore against Chennai Super Kings ends up in favour of CSK. With the win in the league phase, CSK has won 50% more than RCB. It denotes significant domination on the part of CSK. The only difference was that it was a high-scoring contest this time. The game itself was breathtaking for some astounding shots. Cricket is a game for the batsmen and T20 more so at that, pitches like these will only kill the game sooner than expected. RCB and their nemesis CSK

RCB seems to be having problems everywhere. Lack of support for their main batsmen and a lack of quality bowlers. Every opponent realises that it is just a question of 3 wickets and the entire team will fold. That is exactly what happened last night at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. The partnership between Faf Plessis and Maxwell was incredible. They scored 126 runs in just 61 deliveries. That is more than 2 runs for every delivery. Chasing a tall score, it was very much required. So long as both of them were at the crease,

RCB believed that they can pull off an incredible chase. However, at the back of their minds, they knew that one wicket could spell trouble and their fears turned out true. It just beggars belief how brittle the RCB’s batting order is. You just cannot have Shahbaz Ahmed walk in at number 5. The absence of Rajit Patidar is a major blow for RCB but it should not mean that the entire batting becomes somewhat suspect.

The management failed

The loss against Lucknow was another heartbreaker. When will Mike Hesson, Kohli and Faf realise that Bangalore is not 200 runs ground? A minimum of 225 is what is required in Bangalore to be able to defend. It still is only a par score. Bangalore ground is too small and has the flattest pitch in the country.

Wicket keeper batsman will have to change

Dinesh Karthik is another liability. Sure he had a fantastic 2022 IPL. Last season, he had the luxury of a Patidar above him who batted almost throughout the innings in the company of Lomror and as a result, Karthik was left with only the last 2-3 overs to create mayhem. However, in the absence of Rajat Patidar, Karthik just cannot stick to his old methods. He needs to take more responsibility and bat according to the situation. He just cannot say that he is a finisher and that he will bat only during the fag end of the innings. It is time Karthik adapts his method or he is shown the door.

Bowling is another worry

If the batting is a concern, bowling is even more of a worry. The injuries to Reece Topley and Hazlewood have definitely impacted RCB’s bowling plan. Especially Topley but the bowling leaves a lot to be desired. Hasaranga and Siraj are probably their best bowlers. Perhaps, it will be better to allow Maxwell 4 overs so that one more batsman can be picked. Somehow, just somehow, they need to find a way to replace Harshal. He is expensive and is not the same death bowler any longer.

It must also be mentioned that RCB lost the services of Reece Topley right in the first game. He could have provided the cutting-edge bowling that RCB were so much looking for in a bowler all these years. He showed how good he is in this format even in the few overs he bowled. Siraj and Topley would have been tough for any team to bat against but it wasn’t to be.

The eternal bridesmaid

Ever since the inception of IPL, RCB had got an eye for talent. They picked Kohli when he had barely played for India and that proved to be a masterstroke. Kohli himself had revealed how grateful he is for RCB because no one gave him a chance during the earlier part of his career. Kohli repaid the trust by performing for several years. Some of those years beggars belief. Yet, RCB has not managed to win the title. Kohli captained the team for a number of years and even that did change their fortune.

Kohli had enough and relinquished the captaincy and Faf Plessis became the captain in 2022. He helped RCB finish 4th last time around which was creditable considering that Kohli on whom much was depending upon, was badly out of form and they hardly had good hitters.

Hero and villain

It is Kohli. Towards the fag end of the tournament, he got a couple of hundreds but was equally responsible for the loss against Lucknow in the above-mentioned game. His go-slow batting virtually put paid to any hopes of RCB scoring more than 230.

Wrapping up RCB IPL 2023 review

Rajat Patidar’s return will boost the side but there are far too many journey-men cricketers. Shahbaz, Karthik, Harshal, Lomror and to some extent, even Maxwell. Maxwell was among the 3 successful batsmen but he failed in the crucial final league game and in games where runs from his blade could have tilted the game in RCB’s favour.

Other IPL blogs

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CSK IPL 2023 analysis

Posted on by Bobji

By far the most consistent side in the history of IPL, Chennai Super Kings won their 5th title in 2023. 10 final appearances in 14 years, is a consistency that is seldom seen in the realm of sports. Remember, they were banned for a couple of years due to misappropriation. As a yardstick to judge CSK, the next best team with the best consistency is Mumbai Indians. It will take another 10 years for them to match CSK’s performance. Ofcourse, by then, CSK is likely to leapfrog everyone into the unchartered realms. Right, now, how was the 2023 season for CSK? I will say, bloody brilliant. Let me elaborate on CSK IPL 2023 analysis. 

The openers

Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway laid the foundation for CSK in almost every game. Even in the finals, Conway’s runs at the top of the order provided an impetus for the team to chase down a stiff target. The pair combined to score 849 runs. This is a record for the most runs scored by an opening pair in a single season. Looking at Conway, it is almost impossible to believe that it is the same cricketer, who when he made his debut, spent close to 2 days to score a double hundred against England. He transforms himself into a beast in T20 cricket. New Zealand has definitely found a cricketer after Kane Williamson who can adapt to all the formats. At a period when Williamson’s career is meandering towards the end, Conway is likely to carry that torch further.

As for Gaikwad, he was exceptional in 2022 and now, he is picked up from where he left. He is young. If he keeps this consistency, he will surely be a partner for Shubman Gill for India and both have the ability to serve the country for a longtime. 

The competition for Gaikwad is cut-throat. The belligerent 92 of just 50 balls in one of the league games was brilliant to watch for as long as it lasted. The heart warming aspect of that innings was the fact that he didn’t try to get to his hundred and instead looked to score as many runs as possible. The astounding aspect of Gaikwad’s batting was that he picked the lengths rather quickly and went on the backfoot or the frontfoot accordingly.

CSK management

Credit must be given where it is due. The CSK management. They kept their faith in Gaikwad despite his scores of 0, 5 and 0 in 2020. Soon after, he was down with Covid and if he had thought that his chances have come and gone, he wouldn’t have been wrong. However, that is not how CSK works. They invited him back into the team and reposed faith in him. This sort of galvanised Gaikwad and has since then become an important member of the CSK squad.

Dhoni’s appreciation

Dhoni was quite appreciative of his efforts

“Ruturaj, when he gets going, he’s a pleasure to watch,” Dhoni said. “Because he times the ball really well, uses the pace of the bowler and makes the right decisions. Under pressure, it’s all about making the right decisions. Over the years, the way he has groomed himself and the way he picks his options, especially when he gets going, he’s very pleasing on the eye.”

Shivam Dube & Rahane

What makes players who were not so successful for earlier franchises suddenly become good? Shivam Dube and Rahane were 2 such cricketers. Dube was hardly able to buy a run when he turned out in RCB’s colours. Time and again, he went in only to get out quickly and create more pressure on the remaining RCB batsmen. Rahane, be it Delhi or Kolkatta was never really trusted as a T20 batsman. Both of them, when they turned out in CSK’s colours, were different batsmen altogether. Rahane’s strokeplay was breathtaking.

Supporters of Indian cricket never knew this side of Rahane. We all know that he can play a few crisp shots and then get out but this side of Rahane was a revelation. One only wishes that he had batted in a similar abandon a few years ago for India which could have helped us win more games because it is too late now for Team India. 

Jadeja’s form

The Indian team will be happy going into the WTC final. Jadeja picked up 20 wickets during the tournament and scored the all-important 10 runs off the final 2 deliveries in the finals. Jadeja will be among the eleven that will play in the finals against Australia. He holds the crucial allrounder’s spot. Runs from his bat will boost the Indian score and wickets will tilt the balance. As such, it is good to see Jadeja in form. He hardly has another 3-4 years of cricket left in him and he will have to make the most of it because his initial years were anything but good.

The inexperienced bowlers

Dhoni was left to operate with inexperienced bowlers. Pathirana with a Malinga-like action was the find of the tournament with 19 wickets, mostly during the final stages. Tushar Deshpande ended up with 21 wickets and Deepak Chahar chipped in with 13 of his own. These names are hardly household names and yet, they made it count when it mattered.

The Dhoni factor

Dhoni’s hitting is behind him. In most of the games, he batted a lowly as number 7. He does not have much confidence in his batting anymore and it is understandable. He is in his early 40s. T20 cricket is certainly not for older players. Yet, he continues to inspire the team. His role in the team currently seems to be captaincy. A la Mike Brearley. 

Lessons to be learned

Bowling, for all their inexperience, is still a worry. Consistently, they gave away far too many runs. The batsmen were able to transcend the shortcoming of the bowlers by either posting huge totals or chasing one. Nevertheless, CSK will have to ensure that they have good bowlers at their disposal. 

Another disappointment was the unavailability of Ben Stokes for almost the entire tournament. For a 16 Crore purchase, this was a body blow for CSK. There are rumours that Stokes is likely to takeover from Dhoni in a year or two. If that is the case, they will need a fully fit and committed Stokes to lead the team for the next 5 years. 

Concluding CSK IPL 2023 analysis

5th title has been won. Celebrations all-around. However, they will have to answer the Dhoni question. Do they seem him leading the team in 2026? 

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WTC Finals an Indian perspective

Posted on by Bobji

The second edition of the World Test Championship will be upon us in about 3 months from now. India and Australia will compete for the title. For Australia, who has won everything under the sun, this is the only ICC Trophy that hasn’t adorned their glittering cabinet. As for India, it has been more than 10 years since they won any ICC tournament. They have come close only to fall in the last or penultimate hurdle. In terms of a recent big tournament win, Australia is ahead of India. They won the World T20 as recently as 2021. What must India do to win the WTC finals? The WTC finals an Indian perspective.

Let us get onething straight. Australia will be the odds-on favourite in the finals. They have an extensive knowledge of the English conditions and with The Ashes scheduled to commence in July, one would assume that they will have all the bases covered for the England tour and that includes the WTC finals. Another important factor in favour of Australia is that most of their main bowlers have had decent enough breaks. Either forced or because of injury. Cummins missed the last couple of Tests in India whereas Starc, the first couple. Hazlewood the entire series. Lyon will not be part of the IPL and hence will have an extended break.

The pressure on India will be enormous. They will have to cover every possible base to be in prime condition for the finals. Against an Australian side who will eager to avenge the multiple series losses over the last several years, India will not only have to be in peak form but will also have to be mentally strong. I have tried to identify the 5 aspects that the team and the board must take care of inorder to win the finals.

Rahane is back but why?

Ajinkya Rahane, the much-beleaguered Indian batsman, is back in the Indian squad for the WTC final in England in June. First, it was Pujara and now, it is Rahane. Both the batsmen were dropped after the disastrous series in South Africa when it was no longer tenable to continue with the senior cricketers who were past their prime. The struggles of both Rahane and Pujara were simply unbearable, to say the least. Both of them were part of some historic wins. They have contributed handsomely. However, over the last 4 years, the runs have dried and so have the wins alongwith Kohli’s form. It was left to the bowlers to perform Houdini act most of the time and they weren’t successful. Now, Rahane is back in the Indian team.

It must be remembered that not long ago, Rahane was completely removed from the Indian players contract. He did not even find a spot in Category C. At that time, I had written that despite his being dropped, he must still be given a contract because it wasn’t that long ago. Never did I imagine that Rahane will find his way back into the squad.

A pitch that will help bowlers

The pitch will carry a lot more bounce than usual. ICC over the last several tournaments has ensured that the bowlers have a fair amount of support from the surface. That is the reason it is not that easy to find scores of over 325 that easily in ICC ODI tournaments when on the same ground, in other bilateral games, teams would have easily scored more than 350 and still felt vulnerable.

As such, it calls for 6 proper batsmen with 4 bowlers being enough. A youngster could have utilised this opportunity to play alongwith a Kohli or Rohit or Pujara to understand the nuances of the game at the highest level. Afterall, 5 experienced batsmen could easily shield a youngster. Now that chance has gone unutilised.

Swing bowlers

This is where India is likely to struggle. English conditions are known to help the swing bowlers. Especially, when the clouds rollover. India is severely restricted on this front. Shami, Siraj & Umesh, who are likely to form the attack, are essentially hit the deck bowlers. More suited for the bounce of Australia and South Africa. Unfortunately, the decline of Bhuvneshwar Kumar has left a huge void. With his bowling skills and his ability with the bat, he could have been an asset in England.

Get the team combination perfect

This is imperative. In 2021, the team combination was flawed. On a seaming pitch under overcast conditions, India went in with two spinning all-rounders. Neither of them was required to bowl a lot of overs and as such, Kohli was limited to just 3 medium pace bowlers. How he would have loved to have a 4th seamer who could have kept the pressure on from one end?

The pitch at The Oval is likely to be similar to the Rose Bowl. The curator is likely to leave a lot of grass on the pitch. I am thinking along these lines because being an ICC event, it is they who will have a say on the pitch preparation. Neither India nor Australia or not even England will have any role to play. If the past events are anything to go by, ICC has tended to prepare a pitch that will help the bowlers. The Oval is usually the flattest pitch in England but in ICC tournaments, it is unlikely to be.

Also, being early June, rain cannot be ruled out and hence overhead conditions will enable the ball to move. It will not be a typical Oval pitch where the batsmen prevail and the bowlers struggle.

I do not think that there is a need for a 5th bowler. Ofcourse, there is the possibility of one of the bowlers getting injured leaving Rohit with just 3 bowlers. Despite this, I would still want Rohit to take just 4 bowlers and pack the team with 6 batsmen. 6-1-4 must be the ideal combination. The game is unlikely to last beyond lunch on the 5th day because of the bowler friendly conditions that are likely to be found.

Mental aspect

From time immemorial, whenever India travels abroad, the instinct is to bowl first if they win the toss. It is to discourage the opponent from taking advantage of the friendly bowling conditions. This shows a lack of confidence in the batsmen. Recently, this attitude has shifted ever so slightly. Unless and until the overhead conditions are likely to be advantageous to the bowlers to a great degree, India must resist the urge to bowl first. There is always something about runs on the board.

History has shown us that in India if their batsmen post a low score, the bowlers will fight like tigers and more often than not, have managed to restrict the opponents within manageable proportions. It is another matter that the batsmen have often squandered the brilliant efforts of the bowlers but batting first will remove a critical facet of the game where the pressure is the maximum. Chasing a competitive total in the 4th innings.

The mental aspect needs challenges. The Indian batsmen must believe that it does not really matter who the opponents are and what the conditions are like, they will bat first and post a decent enough score to be able to win the game.

Wrapping up WTC finals an Indian perspective

All said and done, the Indians must believe that they have it in them to win an ICC Trophy. Years of falling short just before the last hurdle must have affected the confidence of everyone involved in the team but by the looks of it, atleast for a few cricketers, Rohit, Kohli, Pujara, Shami, Jadeja, this final and the ODI World Cup this year will be their final chances to win that elusive trophy. They must leave no stone unturned to achieve victory in the WTC finals.

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The expansion of IPL

Posted on by Bobji

The IPL is beginning to flex its muscles and the signs are ominous. The sooner the cricketing world realises and takes remedial measures, the better it will be for the game. If not, the game will forever be taken over by the franchises and cricket will cease to be a game among international teams. Last season, 2022, has already seen the introduction of 2 new teams into the league. Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants. It is just a question of time before more and more cities and teams are added to the league. There will be a point when every city in India will have an IPL team. IPL will run for about 8 months and international cricket be damned. The expansion of IPL is a threat to cricket itself.

When the IPL was first conceptualised, it was along the lines of the English Premier League. The English Premier League is the pre-eminent sporting league in the world. Most of the teams and their players are known throughout the world. Fans from far-off countries have stayed glued to the television in the hope of seeing their favourite players in action. Now, it can be argued that international football did not suffer because of EPL. The last Football World Cup was sold for record bids. It must be remembered that outside of the World Cup, no one even bothers about other international games. Club games, yes but not international ones. World Cup is the only arena where patriotism spills over to the games.

Cricket cannot afford something similar. Every game involves a lot of statistics. Infact, statistics is the base of the game and is also the backbone of the game.

The future looks scary

Much of the same can be said for the IPL. I foresee a scenario where outside of the ODI and T20 World Cups, other games between national teams will pale into insignificance. To make matters worse, cricketers may even refuse to turnout in their national colours for a significant number of games. We have already witnessed some off late. Trent Boult did not wish for his contract to be extended by Cricket New Zealand because he wanted to make himself available for franchise cricket and thereby secure his future. He wasn’t at fault here. The money in New Zealand cricket is pretty low. Being a bowler, who has a higher chance of being injured, he just cannot afford to let an opportunity slip.

Some marquee series like The Ashes, India against England & Australia will still be played but other games will lose their value. When that happens, the smaller boards will be severely hit. They will find it impossible to come out of that rut. Some boards may simply vanish or will be propped by the IPL franchises just for them to be able to pick the correct talent for their teams.

IPL teams, now with massive access to wealth and a higher number of players required because of the expansion, will be willing to offer money that was seemingly out of bounds. Let us remember that the life of any sportsperson is limited. He or she will have to make their entire life secure from a small part of their living life. When faced with such an eventuality, it is a no-brainer which way the players will swing.

Combined contracts

There are already informal talks going on between the players and various franchises. Accordingly, cricketers will be issued a combination contract. In a sense, they will be eligible to play in multiple leagues around the world. Indian franchises already own all the teams in the South African league. They have a significant presence in the ILT20. As time goes by, these franchises will most probably invest in other leagues as well.

Heath Mills, executive chairman of FICA, the global players’ body. “There have been informal conversations between some franchises and players about being available to play in multiple tournaments,” Mills told ESPNcricinfo. “That can take a different shape and form for different players. But it should come as no surprise to anyone in cricket that these conversations are happening and that players will have these sorts of options in the future.

When this comes to pass, the players will be employed by their respective franchises rather than by their board or county. How can the boards, especially, the boards of Sri Lanka, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan or for that matter, even South Africa will be able to stand up to the money on offer? Let alone paying a higher salary but these boards will not even be able to come close to the offer on the table.

The administrators may be in denial that this may not happen as the ECB’s managing director, Robert Key states, “Test cricket is still the hold for English players, I don’t see any time in the near future certainly where one of the Test players, certainly the centrally contracted players, is going to say ‘by the way I’m going off to America for three weeks,” Key said. “I just don’t think that’s going to happen. That is not a threat at the moment

Ranji Trophy will be the biggest sufferer

The bigger casualty, atleast from the Indian perspective will be the Ranji Trophy. With international games losing their significance, fewer and fewer players will be willing to go through the grind of a Ranji game. They do not have any bigger prize to aim for and hence, will not want their bodies to go through the chore day in and day out. Instead, they will be happy to play in the domestic T20 competition to prepare themselves for getting picked during the auction.

Wrapping up the expansion of IPL

The BCCI created a monster in the form of IPL. It is here to stay permanently. It may undergo transformation but will not be relegated. The English Premier League runs for 8 months thereby capturing the imagination of the sporting public. IPL too will eventually end up with the same duration.

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