Bobji, Author at Cricket Critique

Week 1 of IPL, what have we learned so far?

Posted on 17 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

IPL 2021 is underway but not in its usual fanfare but somewhat subdued. With no spectators allowed inside the ground, it is understandable. There were some close games and some ridiculous ones too. Week 1 of IPL, what have we learned so far?

IPL so far

IPL 2021 have thrown some surprising results during the first week. It is RCB who are leading the table with 2 wins in 2 games. That includes a win against the favourites Mumbai Indians. Chennai pitch is certainly better than Mumbai and in all probability, better than Kolkatta or Ahmedabad later in the tournament. It has given the bowlers a chance. Unlike the one in Mumbai where Royals almost chased down a total of 220.

First of all, if a team is able to score 220 in 20 overs, that pitch must be rated poor because the bowlers never really had a chance. It is no wonder Chennai produced 4 thrillers because it helped the spinners. KKR and Hyderabad, turned a walk in the park chase into a monster and lost. They lost in the last 5 overs and no in the beginning. Pitches like Chennai must be encouraged in T20 cricket.

Mumbai vulnerable

Mumbai suddenly seems vulnerable and they won one game only because of the good bowling of Rahul Chahar. These are early days and Mumbai will certainly regroup. The sign is ominous. Rohit Sharma is struggling to force the pace at the top and the lower order hitters are struggling too. Probably it was because of the Chennai pitch but if the playoffs are held in Chennai and Mumbai is among them, they must be worried.

Surprisingly, RCB have won both their games with the much maligned Glenn Maxwell proving to be the difference in both the games. This is good news for RCB who will feel that the 14.50 crores spent on Maxwell is serving them well. However, this is a long tournament and it remains to be seen whether Maxwell will be able to continue on the same vein.

Elsewhere, Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer have been ruled out of the tournament because of injuries. There are also some Covid induced time off for Axar Patel, Padikkal and a few others. This raises a question. Why should players like Stokes & Archer be paid their full due when they have hardly played any? Shouldn’t there be proportionate payment based on the number of games played? I am not even getting into the performance against pay argument. Franchise that have invested a lot of money on players who will play the full tournament will feel cheated as will be the fans. I hope that better sense prevails and that every player earns their worth. We just have to hope that no player will ever fake an injury and remain sidelined but earn in the millions.

Kohli reprimanded

As usual, Kohli is in the news but for the wrong reasons. He has been reprimanded for venting his anger at the signboard and at the chair for getting out cheaply. This is not his first offence nor will this be his last. It is time the game’s governing body takes note of things like these and ensures the superstar’s are banned from a few games. Kohli is a customary offender. He deserves to be banned for the entire IPL tournament. The BCCI must show that they are not bothered about the personality of a player and will come down hard on bad behaviour. I can only hope that the youngsters watching Kohli will not be influenced by his crass behaviour.

It was really a surprise that Kohli was only warned and not fined or banned. This shows how afraid is the match referee and other officials are of Kohli. This is not at all good for the game. Kohli must be made a living example of how irresponsible behaviour can cost you.

Other topics related to IPL 2021 can be read here and here.

About Kohli’s behaviour

Bavuma’s ambition and West Indian cricket

Posted on 17 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

Temba Bavuma, the new South African limited overs captain has expressed strong opinion about the South African limited overs team. He will captain the team until the end of the 2023 ODI World Cup. In the interim, he will also preside over the next couple of T20 World Cups. He believes that his team can transform themselves into a powerful unit. An unit that will take on England in terms of power hitting. Is that even possible?

Bavuma’s comments

“I agree in terms of 2015 and looking at how England went about their business. There was a definite change‚

It is onething to aspire to bat like England but it is completely another thing to be able to actually bat like them. England is blessed with power hitters throughout their line-up. They have Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes who come in down the order. It allows them to play their strokes right from the beginning. Jason Roy and Johnny Bairstow are among the most feared opening batsmen. They do not know any other way of playing rather than hit the ball out of the park. Joe Root stabilises the innings beautifully with Stokesand Morgan to follow. Dawid Malan and Buttler are capable of completely taking the game away from the opposition. They also have express fast bowlers in Archer and Wood. It is a nicely rounded outfit. So much so that, if at all any team can score more than 500 runs in ODI cricket, it will be England.

Bavuma is asking him teammates to emulate that. Does he have the personnel capable of batting at that level or does the team have enough depth? This is something not everyone will be convinced.

How does the South African squad square up?

South Africa have Quinton de Kock at the top of the order. Yes, he is an aggressive opener. In the mould of Bairstow. At the start of his career, he was super aggressive but off late, he has mellowed down. Probably because of the fact he is one of the main batsman in the team. This has ensured that he concentrates on preserving his wicket and play lot more overs. As a result, run making suffers. Markaram and Bavuma follows him to the middle. Both of them are batsmen who belong to the traditional mould. They play percentage cricket. They aren’t that aggressive in that they can hardly be expected to score at a strike rate of 100 leave alone at 150.

David Miller and Rassie have the ability to score quicker but with a lot of over taken by the top order, it hardly leaves these players any room to increase the score substantially. These two are followed by Klaasen and a host of bowlers who can hardly score.

With a team like this, Bavuma can hardly hope to emulate England. Instead, he must forget the thought of playing like England and encourage his players to perform to the best of their abilities and win based on who they actually are. Bavuma himself has been quite consistent when it comes to ODIs though not flashy. He has anchored the innings well and has kept one end tight. He will do well to stay who he is and not be confounded by thoughts of playing like someone or some other team.

India’s example

India in the recent series have shown that it is indeed possible to defeat England by playing the cricket that you are known for (though I will not agree with India’s approach because in India’s case, they do have the personnel to score heavily). South Africa and Bavuma will do well to heed to this type of cricket.

West Indian cricket signs a landmark deal

West Indian cricket has signed a deal with an Indian company called Fancode. They hope to increase their fan base amongst the Indians through this deal.

“West Indies cricket remains immensely popular all around the world and many Indian fans see us as their second favourite team,” said CWI chief executive Johnny Grave.

“They have always followed West Indies teams and players and this partnership will provide great access to bring them even closer.

“It is very important for the West Indies to access the significant cricket-loving passionate audience in India. We are excited and eager to work with FanCode and their innovative, digital-first broadcast platform.”

Yes it was true. West Indies team had lot of fan following amongst the Indians. There were lot of Indians who supported West Indies over India. The exploits of Richards, Holding, Marshall, Garner, Roberts, Croft, Hall, Lloyd and a host of others were remain legendary among the Indians. There was a time when Indians wanted their players to practise in the beach because we heard that the West Indies were exceptional because they played on the beach. However, that was all in the past. The current West Indies side is not a patch on the past great ones. As such, the current team have certainly lost lot of fans. Indians do not queue up to watch West Indies play.

Conclusion

West Indian board must not look at the Indians to develop their game. They must concentrate on making the game appeal to the islanders again. Only then will they be able to sustain the game for a very long time. If they are to depend on a third country that is not even closely resembles their own, they will only fail. It is not the responsibility of the Indians or the Indian board to run other teams. Every team must find their own support structure.

What is the point of West Indies against Sri Lanka series?

Posted on 17 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

If you were given an option of watching an ODI series involving the top teams in the world and the test series involving the bottom teams in the world, which one will you watch? The answer is pretty obvious, isn’t it? Another one. If you are given an option of watching the lower middle ranked teams battle for supremacy but with almost no hopes of a result against watching a movie or some other sport where there is excitement, which one would you prefer? Again, the answer is straight forward. This was how it felt when West Indies and Sri Lanka played a test series. What is the point of West Indies and Sri Lanka series when either team does not want to win?

West Indies and Sri Lanka recently played probably the most meaningless test series. This is in no way disrespecting of either of the sides nor is this meant to offend the teams or their supporters. World cricket is increasingly polarised into the so called big three with South Africa and New Zealand that come close to matching the big three though not in terms of financial means but in terms of cricketing prowess. Games that does not involve any of these teams or in some cases, two of these teams is hard enough to find spectators leave alone the fact other teams remain difficult to be sold.

About West Indies

Spectators in the Caribbean have long ago deserted the game and their team. Hardly a few hundred seats are sold in all the grounds in the Caribbean. Such has been the fall from grace for the West Indies team. Gone are the days when fans will be queueing in front of the gates for hours together to get in and watch some of the great West Indian batsman and bowlers play. Viv Richards and the bowling quarter were awe inspiring. Matches involving those players were never null and it was always a given that there will be a result.

About Sri Lanka

There was a time when Sri Lanka were absolutely unbeatable in their own island. Not only that, they even went to England and won a couple of tests including a series. They won in New Zealand and for awhile, Pakistan were really petrified of Sri Lanka. The likes of Sangakkara and Muralitharan have excelled against the best ably supported by Jayasurya and Jayawardene. Things have changed and not for the better.

Ofcourse, it is almost impossible to replace such greats and especially in islands that have stopped caring for the game. Nonetheless, in this day and age, it is important they produce cricket of a good quality and that the pitches help in producing good cricket.

Onus is on the teams

Alas, it wasn’t to be. Both the tests were drawn. A mere draw is not bad for the game but the manner of the draw is really troubling. Both the games weren’t high scoring. If that was the case, you can blame the pitch because it did not help the bowlers to be effective. It wasn’t the case. In all the 4 innings, except in one innings, the score never went above 400. When that was the case, you would expect that both the test to produce results but it didn’t. Did rain play spoilsport? It did rain but it did not last long to effect the result of the games.

This clearly shows that neither West Indies nor Sri Lanka were willing to go the extra mile to win the game. West Indies certainly did not want to lose to Sri Lanka in their own country. Sri Lanka was happy with not losing a series outside of their island.

On such pitches, when the games involving lower ranked teams are craving for attention, it is the responsibility of the respective teams to ensure good quality cricket and a result.

Phil Simmons has rightly voiced his opinion to produce result oriented pitches.

“I think we, from a country standpoint, need to get better wickets where we can have Test matches that will create a result,” he contended.

“Even if we lost a Test match after it’s gone to the fifth day, you will still think that we’ve done well to get to the fifth day and were in with a chance of winning the Test match, so I think that’s an important part of it.”

Conclusion

Yes India, Australia and England earn a lot of money from the game but it is not their responsibility to run other teams. They can help by playing the other teams often but it is upon the other boards to raise revenue from the game. The sooner teams like West Indies and Sri Lanka improve their game and their performance, it is better for world cricket. With hardly 12 teams playing the game, it is imperative the teams are competitive so that fans will be able to watch hard fought games. Remember, it is the fans who run the game.

Other related news can be read here and here.

De Kock in the news and Prithvi Shaw

Posted on 10 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

An interesting incident took place during the 2^nd ODI game between South Africa and Pakistan. Suddenly, de Kock was in the news throughout the cricketing world and for the wrong reasons. Was it really his fault? Did he intentionally deceive the batsman? Also, Ponting has revealed some strange Shaw’s preference about practise. Let me try to analyse De Kock in the news and Prithvi Shaw.

Quinton in the news

In the recently concluded ODI between South Africa and Pakistan, Fakhar Zaman was runout in a strange fashion. He was running towards the striker’s end when he was runout. Till that point, Zaman was batting beautifully and was approaching a rare double hundred. That was when de Kock decided to get into the act. He misguided Zaman into thinking that the throw was towards the bowler’s end when the ball actually came to the striker’s end. There were lot of condemnation of Quinton because he was thought to have cheated. Was he cheating? By the looks of it, it didn’t seem like de Kock was cheating.

Did he deliberately mislead Zaman? Maybe may not be. That is besides the point. The point is that the batsman is not supposed to look at the fielder or in this case the keeper for clue as to where the ball is. He is supposed to trust his instinct and his partner to complete a run. If he is incapable of doing either, he must not run. It is better to stop ball watching and run to reach the crease.

Luckily, Fakhar Zaman have himself come out in support of de Kock. This is good to see. He agreed that he was looking for his partner, which by the way is not wrong and failed to get back in crease ontime. Now it is better for the so called pundits to stop criticising de Kock.

Fake fielding law can be read

Ponting is flummoxed by Prithvi Shaw

Ricky Ponting, the Delhi Capitals coach has revealed a rather unpleasant insight into the mind of Prithvi Shaw. He said that when Shaw is playing well and scoring runs, he does not want to stop batting but when he isn’t scoring runs, he does not want to practise and rectify his faults. This is such a damaging comment.

“He had an interesting theory on his batting last year. When he’s not scoring runs, he won’t bat, and when he is scoring runs, he wants to keep batting all the time. He had four or five games where he made under ten and I’m telling him, ‘We have to go to the nets and work out [what’s wrong]’, and he looked me in the eye and said, ‘No, I’m not batting today’. I couldn’t really work that out.

Shaw is young with loads of cricket ahead of him. However, his attitude requires a generational change if he wants to make an impact on the international stage. This attitude of his probably explains the reason for his continued failure in New Zealand and Australia. Especially in Australia where he was nothing but a sitting duck. All Cummins and Starc had to do was just run and bowl, they will have an easy wicket. He must have refused to practise which would have helped him to come out of the rut that he found himself in because he wouldn’t practise when he is not scoring runs. This is so ridiculous.

When I first saw Shaw, I really thought that here is a batsman who will play for India for a long time. After reading Ponting’s comments it is better for the team if he never plays for the team again, lest he will corrupt the other players too.

Ponting further states

“I was going pretty hard at him,” Ponting said. “I was basically telling him, ‘Mate you’ve got to get in the nets. Whatever you think you’re working on, is not working for you.’

“It’s my job as a coach to challenge someone’s preparation if they’re not getting results. So I challenged him and he stuck to his word and he didn’t practice much at all towards the back-end of the tournament, and didn’t get many runs towards the back-end of the tournament either.”

Here is a player who is regarded as one of the great batsman of his generation asking a young player to come over to the nets to work on flaws but Shaw simply refused to follow him to the nets. I seriously hope that BCCI and Mumbai cricket takes note of such a poor attitude on the part of Shaw and ensures that he takes him game seriously and failing which he must be stripped of any comfort.

Other South African cricket news

South African win against Sri Lanka

England’s cancellation

Importance of SA

SA at crossroads

Jacques Kallis

IPL 2021 and the threat of Covid

Posted on 10 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

IPL 2021 is all set to start tomorrow under the heavy thread of Covid. The pandemic has started its second innings in the country with more than 50K infections everyday. So much so that not even a single state is immune to the disease. The situation within the country has become dire. The infection seems to have become doubly dangerous than the initial one. Some of the players, management staff have also been infected with the virus though some of them have already recovered. It remains to be seen whether they are fit enough for the grind of IPL. IPL 2021 and the threat of Covid.

The pandemic has been raging across the country and it is not showing any signs of slowing down. Yes, IPL 2021 will be held indoors. Spectators will not be allowed and the players and the support staff will be under strict bio-bubble. The entire hotel staff will also be under bio-secure bubble. All of these are designed to ensure the safety of everyone involved. The BCCI must not leave any stone unturned that will ensure the safety of the players and the rest. The country’s image in is under stake. The BCCI cannot afford to falter. Afterall, this is the biggest event outside of the World Cup. Will the BCCI be able to pull off a successful and efficient IPL? Only time will answer.

Should the tournament even be held?

Having said that there is a school of thought whether the tournament itself is unnecessary? Shouldn’t the tournament be held outside of India if at all it must be? There is merit in the argument and I am not going to deny that. First of all, the tournament must be held even under the cloud of a severe pandemic. The BCCI have ensured a crowd-free tournament. So, IPL will not be responsible if the pandemic spreads even further.

There are a lot of series that were played over the last one year to ensure continuity of cricket and sports in general. This has only ensured that not many lose their jobs and the professionals who depend on the game is getting paid. Some of the industries that depends on sports for survival have survived. Sports have ensured that the general populace have something to look forward to. It has certainly given everyone an opportunity to vent their frustrations and it has kept everyone entertained. The IPL being such a massive event will ensure that for the next 2 months, every evening, there is something to look forward to.

IPL must be played in India

The IPL must not be held anywhere outside of the country. As I said before, the country’s reputation is at stake. The world is watching to see whether India can conduct a successful tournament under severe stress. The World T20 may probably be moved out of the country if IPL fails. That will be a bigger blow to the country in general and BCCI in specific.

Having said that, I really wonder how the Australian players have all made it a point to be part of the IPL despite the pandemic. The same Australian players refused to travel to South Africa where the infection isn’t this serious. This despite the fact that they would have travelled to South Africa as one team whereas to IPL they travel as individuals. Graeme Smith stands justified because he really angry that Australia refused to travel despite South Africa giving them lot of assurances.

The massive popularity of the IPL

This clearly shows the power or the obscene money involved in IPL. It is not only the money but the incredible opportunities for every player. Players do expand their profile during the IPL. They are able to create a market for themselves eventhough they do not belong to the top performers. The IPL is that rewarding. Each player become a brand. Ofcourse, all of these comes with a cost. They are expected to behave properly though it does not always work. A Virat Kohli, who is probably the worst behaved player, has such a huge following that he is compelled to be rubbish on the field.

Stupid Ganguly

The players are ofcourse under lot of mental stress. They will always be on the lookout for that one situation when they will also come under the scanner for Covid. The players will be nervous when every morning they will be subjected to Covid tests. Others like the Indian cricket board’s president, Saurav Ganguly will do well to keep their mouth shut.

“I feel we Indians are a bit more tolerant than overseas (cricketers). I’ve played with a lot of Englishmen, Australians, West Indians, they just give up on mental health,” the former India captain said at a virtual press conference ahead of the IPL starting this week.

“In the last six-seven months, with so much cricket being going on in the bio-bubble it’s so tough. Just going from the hotel room to the ground, handle the pressure and come back to the room and then get back to the ground again, it’s an absolutely different life.”

Ganguly has never in his career had to play under such enormous mental pressure. All he had to do was to cope with the pressure of the situation and the number of games were less during his playing career. The current players have the double pressure of playing the situation on the field and not being able to move around freely. It is better if officials like him concentrate on running the game rather than commenting on something that they do not understand. I do not think any of the former cricketers have the right to comment on mental pressure that they themselves have never experienced.

Conclusion

Here is hoping for a successful and Covid free IPL 2021. I am not really bothered about who wins because I am not really a fan of IPL.

What do you think of conducting the tournament in India? Do you think IPL must have been moved to Dubai or some other country? Please pass your comments.

IPL 2021 so which is the team that is hard to defeat?

Posted on 10 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

It is April and a fresh season of IPL is on the way. It still is going to be a 8 teams format with 2 additional teams from 2021. There are some strong teams and some average ones. There are some excellent players and some good ones. Just like other seasons, this season also has one runaway champion team and it remains to be seen whether that team can be stopped. IPL 2021 so which is the team that is hard to defeat?

Some rather good decisions by BCCI

Unlike the previous editions, in this IPL, most of the teams will not have home advantage. For instance, the first game between RCB & MI will be held in Chennai which is neither team’s home. There is nothing to complain on this because we are living under strange circumstances. The BCCI have done their best to ensure continuity of the bubble and to ensure the safety of the players.

This IPL will also be the first edition to be held in India behind closed doors. That is spectators will not be allowed in any of the grounds. Again there is nothing to complain because the safety of the players and everyone involved with the tournament is of utmost importance.

Another good decision taken for this IPL is that the umpire’s soft signal has been done away with. It is the most ridiculous thing in cricket. The on-field umpire deciding whether the catch is clean even when the catch was taken in the deep. The ICC didn’t have the courage to remove this but the BCCI have done that.

Mumbai Indians

Just like the previous couple of editions, even in this edition, Mumbai Indians are the team to beat. They are simply too strong for their opponents. They have match winners right from the top all the way to the bottom. Anyone is capable of winning a game on their own. The world witnessed the belligerence of Surya Yadav and Ishan Kishan in the recent T20 series against England. Krunal Pandya followed that up with an exhibition of his own though he was not that effective with the ball. Hardik Pandya and Rohit Sharma are proven match winners. With Jasprit Bumrah & Trent Boult, their bowling attack is strong as well.

All of them are in rather good form though Bumrah did not have much to do over the last few weeks but I still think that other teams will have to come up with something special to upset the Mumbai Indians juggernaut. MI will only have to play upto their level and they will emerge triumphant.

Having said that, who are their likely competitors?

Chennai Super Kings

For some reason, CSK is adamant on picking or sticking to players who are old enough to have retired from all forms of the game. Starting with their captain MS Dhoni, 7 players at a minimum in the playing eleven will be above 30. Infact Imran Tahir is above 40. The age factor is one of the reason CSK finished at the bottom of the pile last year. CSK is rigid in their ways. That is because of Dhoni. The thrive at Chennai by stifling the opposition with spin but are easy pickings away from home. I expect CSK to finish at the same level or even a level lower compared to the last edition

Royal Challengers Bangalore

This is another franchise that are exceptionally good, on paper. It has players of the calibre of Kohli & De Villiers. However, the impressive Padikkal is out of the first few games because of Covid. It certainly weakens their batting. RCB have a poor bowling attack. Chahal, Saini, Siraj are all known to be expensive. They have a couple of exorbitant signings in Maxwell and Jamieson. Only time will answer whether these players prove to be a success or a complete let-down. RCB is no match for MI either.

Kolkatta Knight Riders

KKR have some decent fast bowlers in Nagarkoti, Mavi, Krishna and the mercurial Andre Russel but their batting is quite light and except for Russel, I don’t see anyone else who will be able to change the game on a whim. KKR will certainly give CSK a tough fight to finish at the bottom.

Punjab Kings

Again this is a top heavy team with Rahul and Agarwal at the top and not much depth in either batting or bowling. However, they have the world’s best T20 player in Dawid Malan and it remains to be seen whether he can create any impact.

This leaves only 3 teams who can challenge the might of Mumbai Indians. Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals.

I predict this to be the line up for playoffs.

Delhi Capitals

Have a couple of good batsmen in Rishabh Pant who is in form, Steven Smith and Marcus Stoinis. Steve Smith for some reason hasn’t really cracked the T20 code and coupled with his performance last year, I do expect him to make his mark this time around. Especially after the way he wasn’t picked up for higher amount that his base price. Stoinis made a real impact last year. Together with Nortje and Rabada they have a pacy attack. Whether they are good enough to topple Mumbai Indians, I do not think so.

Sunrisers Hyderabad

In Warner and Bairstow, they have an explosive opening combination. With Kumar, Natarajan & Rashid Khan, they also have a strong bowling attack. However, this was the same team that failed to go beyond the playoffs. I expect much of the same.

This leaves us with only one team that can challenge the might of MI. That is Rajasthan Royals.

In Archer, Buttler, Stokes & Samson, they have multiple match winners. Just like MI. Stokes and Buttler have something of an X factor in them. Chris Morris, Tewatia and Miller are capable of doing the same. I firmly believe that if at all any team in this tournament can stop Mumbai Indians, it will be Rajasthan Royals.

Some serious ICC playing rule changes

Posted on 3 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

Some serious ICC playing rule changes. The game of cricket has witnessed a lot of changes over the last 120 years. It probably is the most complex of all the sports. I do not think that any other sport can even come close to cricket when it comes to the myriad rules. Golf which is another cumbersome game is some distance away. Trying explaining cricket to someone in Europe or America or in Brazil. They just would not understand. You might spend considerable amount of time explaining the rules to them but in the end they will go away with a blank expression on their face. Why go that far? Even the fans of the game will find it really hard to understand certain rules.

Like the recent instance when a LBW decision against Rishabh Pant was overturned by the third umpire but the 4 runs, the ball went over the boundary, was not awarded to the team. Even the die-hard cricket fan learn new rules every other day. It is in light of this the game’s administrators have introduced new rules into the mix.

The administrators have decided to allow substitutes onto the cricket field. This is not the traditional substitutes whose only role is to field without any batting or bowling responsibility. This changed with the introduction of substitute if a player is ruled out of the game because of concussion. In the wake of the Philip Hughes tragedy, this was a welcome move. As was the decision to allow a substitute if a player is tested positive for Corona. However, the change the ICC is currently mulling and have even decided to introduce the change at the first class level is more drastic than they had ever introduced.

The ICC have allowed unqualified use of replacement players

“To better understand the implications of allowing players to be replaced during a match the definition of a First-Class Match will be changed to allow the unqualified use of replacement players.”

This essentially means that a team can bring onto the field of play whomever is required during that particular passage of play. If the wicket is turning, a spinner can be brought. If a batsman is seen to be struggling, he can be replaced with another batsman. Imagine a scenario. On the 5^th day of the test and on the last session, a team is desperately trying to save the game and another team is desperately trying to win the game. The batting side is 7 down with only the bowlers left and suddenly the batting team decides to introduce 2 fresh batsman who are anyway better than the tailenders. The bowling side will feel cheated.

This is just one such scenario. They will be multiple scenarios when the rule is actually implemented.

Prithvi Shaw and Shubnam Gill

If this rule had been introduced in the recent India vs Australia series, Prithvi Shaw who was clearly a walking wicket, could have been replaced with Shubnam Gill right after the first innings. The ICC does not seem to have clarified whether there is a player limit to this rule. Whether only one player can be replaced or multiple players can be replaced? If that is not the case, it will lead to lot of hilarious situations. The entire playing eleven may end up being replaced with a new playing eleven.

The 11 who started the game may not necessarily complete the game. This rule change will mean that the captains are not always obliged to select the best possible eleven before the game. They will know that they can always introduced new players during the middle of the game. I will not welcome this change because it will only lead to lot of confusion and a feeling of betrayal.

No change in umpires call

This is one change the entire cricketing fraternity wanted removed but the ICC as usual decided not to remove this. They want to retain the human element in decision making.

“The Cricket Committee had an excellent discussion around Umpire’s Call and analysed its use extensively,” committee chairman Kumble said.

“The principle underpinning DRS was to correct clear errors in the game whilst ensuring the role of the umpire as the decision maker on the field of play was preserved, bearing in mind the element of prediction involved with the technology.

“Umpire’s Call allows that to happen, which is why it is important it remains.”

This is as ridiculous as it sounds. The day technology was introduced, umpires seized to be the main arbiters. Nowadays, all the umpires are happy to send the decision to the third umpire. Even checking for no-ball is now in the purview of the third umpire and what sort of decision maker is Kumble talking about? Even runout decision, even if the batsman is well short of the crease or well inside the crease, the decision is taken by the third umpire.

The umpires call rule itself is that ridiculous. The batsman is either out or not out. If the ball hits the stumps or the bails, the batsman is out. If the ball misses, then he is not out. It is as simple as that. It is utter nonsense to retain umpires call despite multiple instances of how absurd it is. The compromise that the ICC has offered is that now the Wicket Zone is extended all the way upto the top of the bails. Come on ICC. Make the game simpler. You are going the other way and making the game much more complicated even for the fans from cricket playing nations to understand.

Other rules

It wasn’t all gloom. There were a couple of good decisions too. The captain can ask the umpire whether he thinks the batsman played a shot before signalling for review. This will help in the reviewing team not losing a DRS review.

The other is the additional DRS review per innings in all formats.

Conclusion

It is time the ICC simplifies the rules and not complicate them even further. The BCCI have removed soft signal from this year’s IPL and they will probably remove soft signal as well.

Kohli and Rohit differences and Smith’s ambition

Posted on 3 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

Cricket is not an individual sport. It is a sport where close to 15 players are involved. In some cases, there are more than 15 players. This essentially means that there are 15 different personalities with various ambitions and expectations. There is bound to be personality clash among the players. More so in a team like India which has representation from different cultures, different languages and different regions. There are bound to be differences. One such difference is between Kohli and Rohit and reports have emerged that it was Ravi Shastri who pacified them. Also, let me talk about Smith’s captaincy ambition. Kohli and Rohit differences and Smith’s ambition.

Great teams too have players who are at loggerheads at eachother

Team sport in world history is full of differences amongst the team members. Afterall, even in a family of 4, there are lot of opinions that is not the same. Sport is played under immense pressure. There are bound to be arguments and in some cases even serious fights. Not the physical one ofcourse. The famous Australian cricket team of the 1990s and early 2000s had multiple gifted players. They were all strong and had strong viewpoints. It is a well known fact that Shane Warne and Gilchrist loathed each other.

The same was the case between Steve Waugh and Warne. Warne never rated the coach at that time Buchannan. Nonetheless, none of these mattered on the field. They fought as one team and all these players won lots of games for Australia. That team was known as one of the two all time great team because of these players who fought amongst themselves.

Rohit and Kohli

There are bound to be different school of thought when players of high calibre play in the same team. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are two such players. Kohli will easily rank amongst the best Indian batsman whereas Rohit Sharma is known the world over for his destructive brilliance in the limited overs format. Both are of similar age and have played the game for more than 10 years. They have rich and varied experience having played in every country. It is only natural that they may not agree all the time. This must be expected. Rohit Sharma is seen as a natural leader who has won lot of titles albeit the IPL. It is also a fact that he won the only tournament that he captained. Nidahas Trophy.

On the otherhand, Kohli is yet to win a multi-nation tournament whereas he has won lot of bilateral games and series. If they do not see each other in the eye, so be it. They are not required to. So long as their rivalry does not affect the performance on the field or by virtue of being the captain, if Rohit is deliberately not given enough opportunities, that is when a middle ground must be found.

Ravi Shastri helped

“Apart from winning two big series, that’s been the biggest gain inside the Team India dressing room. A great deal of personal bonding has happened in recent weeks and they’re more in sync now than ever with regards to their cricket, the team, their responsibilities and the upcoming challenges. They understand now, more than ever, that the team will only benefit if they find themselves on the same page. This has been the biggest takeaway in the last four months.”

“All the chatter from the outside was causing too much bitterness and all the hearsay was making things worse. It’s been the story of Indian cricket for far too long – of vested interests time and again taking advantage of rivalries between players. Like all professionals, Virat and Rohit too would have their disagreements from time to time. But until recently, they never thought of sitting down and talking it out with the kind of clarity that is now visible,” the source added.

Ravi Shastri being the coach of the team naturally has a reason to pacify things between Rohit and Kohli. He did his part but should have said these things in public is something that is debatable. Rohit’s and Kohli’s will have their disagreements but over the last few years, it did not affect their performance or the team’s performance.

The Indian public must stop worrying whether the team is united and whether they talk to each other and go out together, eat together etc. What the public must be worried about is whether the performance of the team is of the highest quality and let the players be players.

Steve Smith wants to become the captain again

If not for the Newlands sandpapergate scandal, Steve Smith would still have been the captain of the Australian team. Whether he would have been better than Tim Paine, that is something we would have never known. The one huge blunder have cost him his place in the team for 12 months and his captaincy too.

“I’ve certainly had a lot of time to think about it and I guess now I’ve got to a point where if the opportunity did come up again I would be keen,”

Smith is well within his rights to aspire to become the captain again but does he really deserve to be the captain? I do agree that once a cheat is not always a cheat but what Smith did was something beyond reproachment. If he becomes the captain again, I am sure the English crowds and the South African crowds will never allow him to forget what he did. The captain of the Australian team being called a cheat in every ground is something the Australian public cannot digest.

Langer does not think so

Luckily better sense seems to have prevailed. Langer has all but effectively ruled out Smith becoming the captain again. Cummins is encouraged to takeover from Tim Paine now that he has been made the captain of his state. Marnus Labuschagne is also in the frame once Paine decides to move on. With passage of time, Australia will definitely get a few more candidates but Smith must be ruled out.

Other topics related to Kohli can be read here, here, here, here & here

Criticising Kohli’s batting and England series MOS

Posted on 3 April 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

Virat Kohli as we all know is one of the premier batsman in world cricket. His performance across formats is a glorious tribute for someone like Kohli. He had one poor series in England in 2014 but atoned for that with a spectacular batting effort in 2018. Yes, his captaincy record in that series was poor but he has scored runs in all countries against all types of bowlers and in all the formats. Ofcourse one glaring omission in his profile is the absence of a world title. Having said that, there is a growing amount of animosity towards Kohli and batting efforts. People seems to point to his lack of hundreds off late. Is this criticism valid? Is Kohli less of a batsman because he has scored hundreds?

Does a hundred define a proven batsman?

It has been more than 40 innings across all the formats since Kohli’s last hundred. His last hundred was on 22 November 2019 when he scored 136 against Bangladesh at Kolkatta. Now is hundreds the only criteria towards a player’s contribution? Certainly not. Joe Root for example, failed to convert overwhelming majority of his fifties into hundreds but it did not make him a lesser batsman and it certainly will not make Kohli a lesser batsman. Some of his innings during this supposed lean period was worthy of a hundred. The 74 against Australia at Adelaide was a good example of his contribution. He concentrated so hard in that game that if not for that unfortunate runout, he would have certainly go on and scored a match defining hundred and possibly a daddy hundred.

In these 40 odd games, he has crossed 50 in close to 20 innings. In some of them he went beyond 70. These clearly shows that Kohli has not lost touch and that it is only a matter of time before he goes on and gets those huge hundreds. Nevertheless, lack of hundreds does not diminish the quality of Kohli the batsman.

Other not praiseworthy attributes of Kohli

Kohli certainly has other attributes that are not worthy enough on an international player leave alone a captain. His on-field behaviour is horrible. His aggressiveness towards opponents and at times towards the umpires is multiple match ban worthy. Most of the time, his team selection is baffling. He keeps on changing the playing eleven frequently. His stubbornness in supporting non-performers like Rahane. Kohli must be faulted for all of these but certainly not for his batting. Till this date and even in the future, he remains India’s primary batsman.

Bairstow given man of the series

In the recently concluded ODI series between India and England, Johnny Bairstow was awarded the man of the series. This was such a ridiculous decision. Yes Bairstow played that blinder in the 2^nd ODI that tilted the game firmly in England’s favour. A few more over of Bairstow in the first game, he could have won England that game as well. Notwithstanding all that, does he really deserve to be MOS? I for one think that he does not.

There are multiple reasons

First, all the games were played on batsmen friendly pitches. It makes the bowlers impotent on such pitches. Just a look at the scores in all the games will reveal why neither Bairstow or any of the batsman must have been awarded MOS. Both the teams managed to score more than 300 in all the games. That showed how flat the pitch was and how easy was it to score runs.

Second, ODI rules are loaded completely in favour of the batsman. The white ball hardly moves. The margin of error on the part of the bowlers is extremely minimal. A foot outside off will be called a wide and anything even close to the leg stump is a wide. They are required to bowl a straight as possible and on pitches like this, the bowlers are like lambs to the slaughter house.

Third, the boundary as in tests has been brought forward but on a flat pitch with a white ball, it becomes easier for the batsman to score sixes or fours easily.

Who must have been the MOS?

It must have been one of the bowler. Shardul Thakur who picked up the most number of wickets and in 2 games, his wickets turned the game in India’s favour. Not to mention his vital 30 in the 3^rd game. Kumar, for his miserly returns in all the games on such horrible conditions for the bowler. Mark Wood for extreme pace on such placid pitches and for keeping the Indian batsman quite in the initial overs. Anyone of these players should have bagged the man of the series award. They bowled and devised ways to make run scoring difficult for the batsman. It is time the game shows some respect for the bowlers.

Other topics related to Kohli can be read here, here, here, here & here

India against Australia 2001 the greatest series – 3

Posted on 27 March 202128 December 2023 by Bobji

India against Australia 2001 the greatest series – 3, Part 1 and Part 2 can be read here and here.

The Australian chase

Hayden and Slater started off briskly. This could be risky for India. Do the Australians know only one way to play? Do they always win? Just the day earlier, we witnessed couple of miracles. Are we going to experience one or few more miracles? I could feel my body getting cold out of anxiety. Then the first wicket fell but Langer came in and was extremely aggressive. Surely, Australians have decided to win the game. If they have decided nothing can stop them. Then Langer fell and in a few overs, Mark Waugh too.

Now, the Australians will play for a draw but they didn’t because Hayden and Steve Waugh scored a further 50 runs in 15 overs. Enough to keep up with the asking rate. Then the sardar and Tendulkar imposed themselves on the game. 5 quick wickets and that put paid to any hopes of an miraculous Australian win.

Nervous last few overs

Will the last pair be able to save the game? McGrath who was a mug with the bat survived 8 overs. Time was ticking by and so were the overs. All my finger nails were chewed. I was sweating in the Saudi heat despite the AC running in full blast. I did not speak to any of my friends for more than 5 hours and I even missed bathroom breaks. The anxiety grew with every passing delivery. Then, Harbhajan turned one delivery that McGrath padded and the vociferous appeal was upheld.

It was a famous and improbable win. Against the odds. Final frontier is still not breached. I was filled with joy but I remained calm. As the Bhagavad Gita says, treat both victory and defeat equally. This test will remains in the memory of everyone who had the privilege of watching it. Easily among the top 3 greatest tests ever. Years later, when a DVD was released, I purchased one of the earliest copy.

Off to Chennai

India was back in the series. Now I was certain that India will win the series. Confidence is high. Momentum is with India. One of the Australian batsman was nullified by Harbhajan. Australia does not seem to have an answer for Harbhajan. Tendulkar’s pride has been piqued. Ganguly, the combative skipper sensed blood. He kept Steve Waugh waiting for the toss throughout the series.

Start of the final test

The game was being played in my home town. Madras. Chennai as now it is called. I am few miles away. It cannot get any worse. I really wished I could be in Chennai watching the game from the stadium rather than shuttling between work and hotel in a faraway land. However, it wasn’t to be.

The Australians were sitting pretty at 340 / 4 when Harbhajan ran through the lower order. This time, the Indian batsmen were confidence personified. The entire top and middle order contributed to a thumping first innings score. Here we have a real chance of winning a series against the world’s best team though in our backyard. The Indians were sitting pretty with a lead of over 100 but Hayden and Slater threatened to wipe out the lead. Suddenly there were a flurry of wickets with the Australians 4 down with just over 30 ahead. Then a partnership endured.

Mini revival

Steve and Mark Waugh. The brothers in arms. The lead slowly increased. 40….50…60…70. Things started to look ominous for India.

And then Mark Waugh fell.

Ricky Ponting came, sent the ball into the orbit and exited.

But the lead is over 100. The rest added another 50 runs and the innings was over. 153 to win.

The Indian response

The Indians didn’t start well but Laxman and Ramesh played well enough to get the score upto 73 when Ramesh fell. Nonetheless, just over 70 required and it will be a cakewalk.

The score crossed hundred with a well set Laxman and Tendulkar in the middle. Gillespie induced a mini collapse with 2 quick wickets.

That is alright. Hardly another 38 required. The champions from the previous test have joined one more time. At that precise moment, a little known bowler, Colin Miller decided to announce himself and Mark Waugh took a blinder that will easily rank among the top 10 catches. India were staring at a defeat. My mind went back to the game against Pakistan a couple of years ago. The venue was the same. The setting was similar. India lost 4 wickets in that game with 16 required. Now the required runs is 20. Will it be déjà vu allover again? With no batsman left, will any of the bowler be able to produce a miracle? My hopes slowly and surely dwindled.

Sameer Dighe the little known Bombay wicket keeper

Sameer Dighe who until then was never heard of outside of Mumbai was nervous but to his credit he didn’t show that. He will have to play a match winning innings that he will remember for the rest of his life. An innings that he can proudly talk about to his grandchildren. Tendulkar once told Dighe that playing Test cricket was not simply about talent or ability. It was heart and the courage to fight that shaped success said Tendulkar.

Does he have the temperament to see the team home? Will Harbhajan and Zaheer Khan be able to give him support?

Every run scored from that point on was loudly cheered. Zaheer Khan gave him company but he didn’t score.

Runs came in tickle when suddenly Dighe will unfurl a ferocious cut to the boundary. The score now stood at 151 when Zaheer Khan departed. 4 more to win. It is now or never. Nilesh Kulkarni the number 11 batsman was a walking wicket. It is upto Dighe and Harbhajan. McGrath came steaming in. He knew one wicket and the match and the series could be theirs.

and the winning delivery

It was a nice swinging delivery that came homing into the offstump. If the batsman misses, he was either bowled or LBW. Harbhajan was equal to the task. As fitting as it could have been, Harbhajan placed his bat horizontal to the ball

The ball stuck the lower part of the bat.

It went between gully and slip. Will the ball defeat the fielders? There was no third man.

Yes it did. The ball went past gully and the slip right to the boundary. Harbhajan was elated. Dighe had played a series winning knock on his debut.

The entire Indian team had come out of the dugout. They were all hugging, cheering and laughing. They have pulled off the greatest series victory of their career. I have witnessed the greatest series victory. It all felt surreal. To this day, the entire series and especially the last 2 tests has stood in my mind forever.

It was an experience that I will never ever forget and as will the players. A lot of series were played after that but none with the exception of the 2005 Ashes could even come close.

The confidence the entire Indian team and the nation took from that series was enormous. The team went onto achieve some great wins after that.

Also read a youngster’s dream fulfilled here, here and here.