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Former players and columnists on the latest saga to unfold in Pakistan cricket

Cricinfo staff18-Jul-2010″If he was not prepared for Test cricket then he should have thought about this before accepting the captaincy. His decision has come at a wrong time for Pakistan cricket and will complicate issues in the team.”

“It makes no sense that Afridi should decide now he is not ready to play Test matches. He is himself totally confused as to what he wants do. To make him the Test captain was a wrong decision.”

“Test cricket will be none the poorer for his absence. His brainless batting besmirched this match; his astonishing lack of leadership mocked some of his team-mates’ best efforts.”
Telegraph’s
“I ask the board, is this not a violation of the code of conduct to announce such a big decision without taking team management into confidence?”
“We all know he took the captaincy unwillingly, but when he took the responsibility he should have fulfilled it. His sudden decision will also affect younger players.”
“Clearly he made the decision himself; he could not be pushed, having been beseeched so recently by his board to return to Test cricket.”
Observer”Afridi was a misfit in Test team so it put added pressure on him.”
“I don’t think there was ever any place in the Test squad for Afridi, and in the first place he should not have been considered for the Tests”
“Afridi was lamentable, an indisciplined disaster, whose sole virtue, bless him, was to recognise that he did not have the temperament for Test cricket.”
Independent on Sunday

The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket

Steven Lynch09-Oct-2006The regular Monday column in which Steven Lynch answers your questions about (almost) any aspect of cricket:

Tatenda Taibu: allround star © AFP
Which Test player, in a domestic match in 2004, scored 175 not out and then took 8 for 43, both in the second innings? asked Amith Rao from India
That sounds like a quiz question … but the compiler missed out an even more amazing fact: the player concerned started the match as the wicketkeeper! The allrounder was Tatenda Taibu, the recent Zimbabwe captain, who was captaining Mashonaland in their Logan Cup match against Midlands at Kwekwe in April 2004. In the second innings Taibu made 175 not out, to help his side to an overall lead of 514, then decided not to keep wicket and bowl instead. He then took 8 for 43 with his offbreaks as Midlands crashed to 185 all out.What is the highest first-wicket stand ever in a first-class match? And a Test? asked Ewen McDonald from New Zealand
The Test record is 413, by Vinoo Mankad (who made 231) and Pankaj Roy (173) for India against New Zealand at Madras in 1955-56. That came under severe threat in January this year, when Virender Sehwag (254) and Rahul Dravid (180 not out) put on 410 for India against Pakistan at Lahore before Sehwag was out. The first-class record is a lofty 561, by Waheed Mirza (324) and Mansoor Akhtar (224 not out) for Karachi Whites against Quetta (who had been bowled out for 104 shortly beforehand) at Karachi in 1976-77. Just to complete the set, the highest opening stand in a one-day international was set in July this year: Upul Tharanga (109) and Sanath Jayasuriya (152) piled on 286 against England at Headingley as Sri Lanka sailed past England’s imposing-looking total of 321 with amazing ease, winning with 12.3 overs to spare.Has any batsman scored hundreds in both innings of the same Test match at the Adelaide Oval? asked Omkar Persaud from Canada
Five batsmen have scored two separate centuries in a Test at Adelaide – two of them in the same match, in 1946-47, when Arthur Morris made 122 and 124 not out for Australia, and Denis Compton replied with 147 and 103 not out for England. The following year Vijay Hazare made 116 and 145 for India there – but Australia still won by an innings. Rohan Kanhai made 117 and 115 for West Indies during the 1960-61 series that included the first Tied Test. The first instance was by England’s Wally Hammond, with 119 not out and 177 in 1928-29, and the most recent was by Dean Jones, who made 116 and 121 not out for Australia against Pakistan in 1989-90. For a complete list of batsmen who scored a hundred in each innings of a Test, click here.Who has scored the most centuries in one Test series? asked Ian James Bull from Surrey
The only man to score five centuries in the same Test series was the West Indian Clyde Walcott, who did it against Australia at home in 1954-55. Walcott, who sadly died recently, hammered 827 runs in that five-Test series, and his five centuries included two in the second Test at Port-of-Spain, and two more in the final Test, at Kingston. Walcott also made 108 in the first Test, which was also at Kingston – and yet despite his efforts Australia still won the series 3-0! Don Bradman (three times), Denis Compton, Sunil Gavaskar (twice, including his first series, in the West Indies in 1970-71), Walter Hammond, Neil Harvey (twice), George Headley, Jacques Kallis, Mudassar Nazar, Herbert Sutcliffe (twice), Doug Walters and Everton Weekes all scored four centuries in the same Test series.

Apart from batting in all 11 positions, Wilfred Rhodes shared record stands for the first and tenth wickets in Ashes Tests © The Cricketer International
Has anyone batted in all 11 places in the order in Tests? asked Jared Thorn from Australia
There are only three players who have batted in every position in Tests during their careers (this counts opening as both No. 1 and No. 2, as there’s some doubt about who actually took first strike in several early Tests). The versatile trio are Wilfred Rhodes of England – who famously shared in record stands for the first and tenth wickets in Ashes Tests – Australia’s Syd Gregory (who had one innings each at 9, 10 and 11, and managed eight runs in total from them), and Vinoo Mankad of India, who rather bizarrely went in at No. 11 in the first innings of the Barbados Test of 1952- 53, then opened in the second innings. Quite a few people just missed out on a full set, batting in ten different spots: Warwick Armstrong, Jack Blackham, Ian Johnson, Sammy Jones and Hugh Trumble of Australia, Farokh Engineer and Ravi Shastri of India, and Pakistan’s Nasim-ul-Ghani, Shujauddin and Wasim Bari. In ODIs six players have batted in 10 of the 11 possible spots: Abdul Razzaq, Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik of Pakistan, South Africa’s Lance Klusener, Mohammad Rafique of Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka’s Hashan Tillekeratne.I noticed that Ray Lindwall took 228 Test wickets without ever taking ten in a match. Is this the highest number of wickets taken without a ten-wicket haul? asked Vikram Ravi Menezes from India
Ray Lindwall’s 228 Test wickets without a ten-for is quite a long way off the record, as this table shows. Top of this particular list is Bob Willis, who took 325 wickets without ever quite managing ten, although he did take nine in a match four times – his best match figures were 9 for 92 against New Zealand at Headingley in 1983. The other bowlers above Lindwall are Joel Garner (259), Jason Gillespie (259 to date), Garry Sobers (235) and Darren Gough (229). Below Lindwall, Heath Streak, Brett Lee and Jeff Thomson all reached 200 Test wickets without the aid of a ten-for

Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, captain Kieron Pollard and Nicholas Pooran have been retained by Trinbago Knight Riders for CPL 2023. Akeal Hosein and Jayden Seales are also among those retained.They will also have Mark Deyal as part of their set-up with the batter joining from the St Lucia Kings. Last month, TKR announced that Dwayne Bravo will be returning to the franchise ahead of CPL 2023.”We are very happy to be able to retain most of the Caribbean players from last year’s TKR squad,” head coach Phil Simmons said. “The experience of Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, and Nicholas Pooran coupled with Dwayne Bravo’s return gives our squad a very strong core. In youngsters like Akeal Hosein, Jayden Seales, and Mark Deyal, we have some of the best young talent from Trinidad representing TKR.”Knight Riders had the likes of Tim Seifert, Ali Khan and Colin Munro among their overseas signings in 2022. Whether they will continue to be part of the set-up will be known during the overseas signings and draft picks that will be announced in late June.”We’re looking forward to the remaining international signings,” Simmons said. “I am excited by the player draft coming up soon to complete the roster and put together a strong squad for CPL 2023.”Knight Riders finished at the bottom of the table in CPL 2022. They will start their CPL 2023 campaign on August 19 against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots.

Pierre joins St Lucia Kings

Allrounder Khary Pierre has joined St Lucia Kings from Trinbago Knight Riders for CPL 2023. Johnson Charles, Alzarri Joseph, Roston Chase are among the players who have been retained Kings ahead of the tournament.Roshon Primus, Jeavor Royals, Matthew Forde and McKenny Clarke are also among the retainees.

Down under, the weather is harsh and the fines harsher, but there are also many postcard-perfect scenes to savour

Sidharth Monga21-Dec-2018The first thing you see when you land in Australia. A fine of over A$5000 for one wrong turn. For such a big, wonderful, free-spirited and roomy country with an unmanageable outback, there are a lot of strange rules and fines. Leave the windows of your car down more than 5cm and wander more than three metres away from it in Victoria or Queensland, and you can be fined $117. Have more than 50kg of potatoes on you in Western Australia and your bank account could be $2000 lighter. Some of these, as you would imagine, lead to urban legend. Victoria Energy had to once officially clarify that it was not illegal to change your own lightbulb.Some day-to-day activities you might not have thought would technically be crimes: riding a bike without a bell or a horn, refusing water to anyone who might knock on your door at any time of the day, eating in a designated smoking area, walking a pet while you are on a bike, not holding a dog on a leash or holding one on a leash longer than two metres in Adelaide Parklands.Siddharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdOr even, for some posh restaurants, doggie-bagging food without getting an indemnity form signed.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdThat’s the Gilberton Swing Bridge over the River Torrens. Cross it every day on the walk from the bed and breakfast in St Peter’s to Adelaide Oval. Was closed to the public because of disrepair in 2014. Was considered beyond repair in 2017. Reopened in January 2018. A piece of Adelaide history. Was constructed by a builder for the benefit of prospective buyers visiting his properties. He donated it to the Walkerville Council. Those who grew up in Adelaide from the 1950s to the 1970s learnt to swim not in pools but at the various swimming clubs by the Gilby. When there was talk of the bridge going down because of safety concerns, a lot of them commented below the line on newspaper articles, urging the authorities to save it.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdRodriguez is now well known after the Oscar-winning documentary told the tale of his accidental fame in South Africa, even as his work was hardly known in Detroit, his home town, or the US at large. His music was an anthemic backdrop to underground rebellion against apartheid in South Africa, but the first country to accord him fame was Australia. DJ Holger Brockman played the song “Sugar Man” on his evening show, and then started getting requests to play more of Rodriguez, whose almost literary songwriting resonated with listeners. Melbourne-based promoter Zev Eizik tracked the man down, and had him tour Australia twice, in 1979 and 1981. Like many things Australia, the news didn’t go out to the rest of the world, and Rodriguez was only really “discovered” after the documentary went to the Oscars. “Australia was my first triumph,” Rodriguez said in an interview this year. This will be his fifth trip to Australia, just before which he will also play the Royal Albert Hall.***Anyone who has been hungry after hours in Adelaide knows the sound of “beauuuutiful” for every ingredient you want in your roll at Falafel House on Hindley Street. It is open till 5am and is good for a quick home-like Lebanese meal, with a pint or two, at a fair price. The man behind the voice is George, a Lebanese immigrant. He won’t give you a last name, and the moment you stop being inquisitive about his life and his migration to Australia, he will get to being the pleasant host he is. Beauuuutiful.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdLoud Afghan and Arabic music plays outside bars, with chairs out and boardgames on, hookahs by the side. South Australia is prone to droughts, but Hindley Street will never run out of hummus, tabouleh, baklava and Turkish delight.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdIn the greens alongside War Memorial Drive, which leads up to Adelaide Oval, is many a headstone in memory of those who lost their lives in the many wars fought on behalf of England. There is plaque in tribute to Her Majesty’s Australian Ships , all known for their conspicuous grey livery before they adopted camouflage after an air strike. The cost of the wars to Australia was huge: 60,000 men lost, a further 150,000 injured. It often doesn’t get acknowledged outside the country.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdHow green are these parklands? Take in a panoramic view of Adelaide from the top of Mount Lofty, a comfortable-ish hike equivalent of climbing some 250 floors.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo Ltd”Under the Southern Cross I stand / A sprig of wattle in my hand.” So goes the Australian cricket team song, referring to the ubiquitous tree that bears the national flower of Australia. But it is the Moreton Bay fig, the Australian banyan, or , found in eastern Australia, that is the most majestic of trees.At any rate, Australia won’t be singing the song in Adelaide after India come back from a hopeless situation on day one – 127 for 6 – to post 250, a total they defend with aplomb. In the last innings, however, India have to bowl 119.5 overs to get the win, which leaves them the least possible time to travel to Perth, adjust to a new time zone and get ready for another Test in three days.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdHow far away is Western Australia? Enough to make you set your watches back by two and a half hours. Perth is about as far from Singapore as from Sydney. It is the only big city between Adelaide and Africa: that is about 2800km of forbidding desert and about 8000 of sea. It is so far, you are not allowed to carry fruit from the rest of Australia into Perth.Well, it might not have that much to do with distance. Australia is home to some of the most amazing plants despite the hostile weather and soil. The ones good for a particular soil will thrive in places where they flourish but not elsewhere. Many of the plants in south-western Australia are not found elsewhere in the world. Perhaps a good job to protect them from accidental competition then – even if it comes from within the country.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdThe bluest city skies, the most brilliant, harshest sunlight are to be found in Perth. It is the most isolated big city in the world, which means there is no one competing for this light. The ozone layer is thin.It can be the most difficult place to play or watch cricket in. I am not aware of whether studies have been done on how many Australian cricketers suffered from skin cancer – let alone those watching topless – but it must have been Perth that led to the first use of zinc cream in cricket. The WACA Ground has refused to modernise, and Test cricket has now moved on to Perth stadium, across the Matagarup Bridge over the lovely Swan River.Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdThe land both stadiums were built on belonged to the indigenous Nyoongar people. The new Perth Stadium is a homogenous stadium that could well be anywhere in the world. It feels like an airport. The seats in the press box have about the same legroom as an airplane economy cabin. However, the concrete exterior bears a nice touch: an inscription of the poem “Kaya”, which means “Yes”. It weaves together 11 verses of Nyoongar prose and six of English text. I feel that if I read them walking into a big contest, as part of 60,000 celebrating a match together, these words might give me goose bumps.

The river snaking slow beside;
The arching sky, ourselves beneath.
Though we reach for light and stars
Our fleshy souls they touch the earth
Again and again and again; a never-dying-fall.
Travelling, we are many peoples;
But our footprints make us one.
Voices grow like tongues of flame,
And in tongues of flame the fires come…
Applause it falls like heavy rain.

Sidharth Monga/ESPNcricinfo LtdBack to an Adelaide sunset after Australia level the series in Perth. Feel sorry for the players, who have gone on to Melbourne and are not free to travel anywhere they want. I wonder if they get to explore countries they play in – and Australia is waiting to be explored. Does one stadium merge into another, one dietician-advised meal into another, a hotel room into another, a silly sledge into another?Feel sorry for myself too, because cricket tours these days hardly give you time to get off the beaten path. Know more about Australia from previous trips, and am reading about it rather than seeing it this time. Mostly Bill Bryson’s excellent . Wish to one day travel the length and breadth of this wonderfully hostile and pleasant country. Right now the tour is more than half over. It’s like coming towards the end of a book you never want to end. Slow down, Sugar Man.

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Sep-2016Wasim removed Andre Fletcher and Marlon Samuels in his next over to reduce West Indies to 15 for 3•AFP/Getty ImagesIn the next two overs, Mohammad Nawaz bowled Johnson Charles and Hasan Ali had Nicholas Pooran caught behind, leaving West Indies tottering at 22 for 5•Getty ImagesKieron Pollard then joined Dwayne Bravo for a 25-run partnership, before he, too, was bowled by Wasim•AFP/Getty ImagesWasim got Carlos Brathwaite two balls later to claim his maiden five-wicket haul in T20s, before Sunil Narine’s run-out left the score at 48 for 8•Getty ImagesBut Bravo kept fighting with 55 off 54, hitting four fours and two sixes to restore some respectability to West Indies’ innings•Getty ImagesHe was supported by Jerome Taylor, whose run-a-ball 21 contributed to a 66-run ninth-wicket partnership, helping West Indies up to a final score of 115•Getty ImagesSharjeel Khan helped Pakistan launch their chase, striking three fours and a six before departing for 22•Getty ImagesThe other opener, Khalid Latif, played the anchor: he batted through the innings for 34 off 32•Getty ImagesPakistan’s main contributor with the bat, though, was Babar Azam. He knocked off 55 off 37 to steer them home with all of nine wickets and 34 balls to spare•Getty Images

In his latest avatar, the Indian legspinner not only understands his craft better but also refuses to get bogged down by rejection

Sidharth Monga01-Jul-20152:14

Quick Facts – Amit Mishra

The new Amit Mishra might have trouble being the new Amit Mishra at the moment.I met the new Amit Mishra during this year’s IPL. He sounded almost like a sage. I asked him a question that ought to have worried him: reminded him how in 2014 he was India’s second best bowler in the World T20; and that he did not go to England (though India played just the one T20 there). When we met, India hadn’t planned the spate of T20 internationals during the home season leading up to the next World T20, in 2016. How did he expect to be able to stake his claim again, given India hardly play that format at international level? Did that then make the IPL a high-pressure event?Mishra said the previous World T20 was history. That he loved to stay in the present. And the present at that time was the IPL. And that at that moment Delhi Daredevils was his India. What clichéd platitudes, I said, in words that sounded less rude. No, said Mishra. “If you don’t think about things that are not in your control, you face less pressure,” he said. “I don’t control the team selection. I can’t do anything about it, I can’t say anything to anybody. In my control is my bowling, my batting, my fielding. I can improve that. I have almost stopped worrying about what’s not in my control.”What had brought about this change in his personality? “I had stopped enjoying my cricket, my personal life,” Mishra said. “I used to go home stressed. I couldn’t do what I wanted to do with my family. I was always consumed by cricket and selection. If I would be with my family, discussions would centre on cricket.”And I used to be under pressure on the field all the time. I wasn’t bowling as well as I knew I could. Then I would think more: ‘I am not bowling well. I can’t get selected for this team. I am not getting picked for that squad.’ Slowly I realised, ‘Hey, it’s better that I enjoy what’s at hand. With the rest, what will be will be.'”Mishra had a fine stint at the 2014 World T20, but despite that he has had to mostly ply his trade at the IPL and for India A•Associated PressTwo years ago, Mishra said – with no particular moment of epiphany to talk of – he began to stop thinking about the India selection. That year he took 21 IPL wickets at 18.76, giving away only 6.35 runs an over. I asked him what, then, did a good performance signify, if not a chance to make a national comeback, a higher hope? What did he think on the nights he did well?”Enjoy just the performance, don’t think if I do well I will get selected in some team. Think: if I have done well in this game, all the batsmen will be watching my video. How do I stay ahead of them? If in the next match [if I am hit around] then I should get depressed.”What began as a small conversation to find out what a fringe player thought of the limited opportunities he got was now becoming a rare insight into a late-developing bowler. Legspinners, it is said, mature late. Mishra is 32. He has had his share of chances playing for India. By the time he made his Test debut, he had already taken 300 first-class wickets, but he was introduced to the larger cricketing consciousness in India only through the IPL. He might have taken a five-for on Test debut, but he had not yet matured. Soon his slowness through the air became an enemy. He would beat batsmen in the air but they would find the time to recover. He was back to being an A team specialist, making sporadic returns, only to go back and watch other spinners succeed with accuracy and pace, and less spin (not to be confused with just sideways turn).The last two editions of the IPL, though, and the World T20, had shown a smarter legspinner. When he took 10 wickets at 14.7 each and an economy rate of 6.68, he was the No. 5 bowler in the World T20 in 2014. Three of the top five were legspinners. “Legspinners have the skill to take wickets,” Mishra said. “The batsmen should know this bowler can get him out. Bowlers are only now realising that.”

“I had stopped enjoying my cricket, my personal life. I used to go home stressed. I couldn’t do what I wanted to do with my family. I was always consumed by cricket and selection”

What did he mean by the skill to get wickets? “Spin the ball. Not just sideways. Impart revolutions on the ball. Flight it. But also you should know when to flight it. You should have the variations. Even if you don’t bowl them, the batsmen should know you have the variations.”We discussed how he has gone slower and loopier, at a time when spinners are bowling flatter and flatter. He said it gives the batsmen time to think, time to doubt, time to make mistakes. He said bowling to world-class hitters like Virender Sehwag, MS Dhoni and Glenn Maxwell, you have to force them to think, you have to give them time to think. If you bowl fast, good batsmen love it. So if it was 60 for 2 in the seventh over, and he was bowling to Maxwell for the first time, what would his first delivery be? “The hardest-spun legbreak.” What if he pulls off a reverse sweep? “That means he doesn’t fancy facing me properly. I will bowl another big legbreak.”One of the bigger changes Mishra has made over the years is the front-of-the-hand quicker delivery, which spins less and skids through, making sure the batsmen have more to do than sit back and play only his slower legbreak after it has turned. “It has been hard work,” Mishra said. “I have worked really hard to develop these variations. Whenever I can get hold of anybody – senior player, batsman, coach – I show them the variations and ask them if they can pick it. When I was in Bangladesh I used to bowl to MS Dhoni and would ask him if the changes are too obvious.”Every time I meet Anil Kumble and LS [L Sivaramakrishnan, former legspinner and now commentator] I discuss my bowling with them. They have told me you can’t survive with just one legbreak. You need two legbreaks, one that turns a lot and the other that turns just enough to take the edge. You need two different paces of legbreak. You need a quicker legbreak so that the batsman can’t afford to just sit back the moment he sees a flatter delivery.”The selectors have in recent months shown a preference for the younger legspinner, Karn Sharma•Getty ImagesIt is an art to do all this without changing your action. To bowl a big legbreak you have to put a lot of shoulder, wrist, body into it. You have to hold back for the smaller legbreak, which is hard to tell from outside. “That’s the whole point. You shouldn’t know it, the batsman shouldn’t know it.”They are catching up, though. This is a world of video analysis, and Mishra watches plenty, both of himself and batsmen. He knows he has a tendency to at times let his body weight fall away from the umpire, because of which he ends up pushing the ball down the leg side. He now doesn’t need a coach to tell him that.Another big difference is the mind games with the batsmen. With some batsmen – and he won’t name them lest it come across as arrogant – Mishra said he can tell from the body language when they will try the release shot. And video analysis reveals what their big shot is. Batsmen, too, catch up and bluff with their body language. They too start to look for signs of when the bowler is going to bowl the variation. In T20, with more riding on every ball than in any other format, it has meant more pressure and more preparation.Mishra spoke about adapting. Sometimes the asking rate is so high that as a spinner you bowl aiming only to deny batsmen boundaries. Sometimes you have to go for wickets. Sometimes you know a batsman is expecting a variation, and you keep teasing him, making him wait for it. Sometimes you sneak one in when he is least expecting it. He knows the batsmen are not taking risks against him now.”They are choosing one ball per over to hit,” Mishra said. “That brings in premeditation and risk. I can see they are happy with singles and not giving me wickets, which might mean I am slightly ahead right now, but I will have to adapt to this too. Find ways to take wickets again.”It felt like talking to an experienced legspinner. Mishra was not just talking about “right areas”. He was in touch with his art enough to be able to explain the nuances. Maybe it took him long to learn them. And it has made him feel wistful again. I asked him if he wondered what might have been if he had been this smart earlier. He slowed down a moment, and then said, “No doubt, if I had learnt all this earlier I would have done better at international level. It is not too late yet. I am doing well. I am making the batsmen think twice.”Of late he hasn’t been able to make the selectors think twice despite the stellar performance in the World T20. Between the two IPLs and the World T20, Karn Sharma got a Test debut and Axar Patel played the World Cup. Didn’t that leave Mishra disappointed? This made him a little rueful.”Everybody feels that,” he said and paused. There was a little heaviness in the voice. It was missing out on the World Cup that had left him disappointed. He composed himself in a second and said, “Ask any cricketer in India – he wants to play for India. That is everybody’s dream. It is my dream too. It is other spinners’ dream too. Just that the World Cup comes only once every four years. It is just different.”I couldn’t sense any bitterness, though, towards Karn or Axar, neither of whom has the body of work to rival – let alone put in the shade – Mishra’s in traditional domestic cricket. They are just about as good or as bad as Mishra in the IPL. What they have going for them is age. Axar is 21, Karn is 27.Mishra can see that. He is trying to work harder on his fitness to counter his older age of 32. He might even understand losing out to younger spinners, but he will have seen newspapers with squad lists that would have crushed the old Amit Mishra. One first-choice spinner has been rested, another has been dropped, and yet Mishra has not been called up to play for India. He has lost out not just to 21- and 27-year-olds, but also to a 34-year-old. That despite the selectors stating that they have selected with the World T20 in mind.Hopefully the new Amit Mishra will see that he has been selected for India A against the touring Australians. That India A is his India now. That he need not worry about selection, but take wickets in the A series. Make them think twice about this late-maturing legspinner.

The performance against Australia gave Pakistan fans hope but, not for the first time, they produced a polar opposite display

Abhishek Purohit in Dhaka01-Apr-2014Pakistan never fail to surprise us, do they? If you had come expecting a thriller between two similar, explosive T20 sides, what you got instead was Pakistan showing us multiple, and all equally self-destructive, states of panic.Two of their best bowlers, Saeed Ajmal and Umar Gul, cracked under pressure and gave away a combined 59 runs in three overs at the death. The top order went down heaving, and the middle order shut shop in response.It was one of those nights from Pakistan. As was the night when they had sparked that incredible Australian collapse earlier in the tournament. We know both happened, separated by a matter of a few days. We also know Pakistan are capable of both kinds of displays within such a short span. We can try to delve into what happened and how it happened. Exactly why it happened, we will never really know.Each wave of panic against West Indies only brought about another, albeit different one, from the following cast. When the opposition is 84 for 5 after 15 overs, and you have overs left from two of the most experienced and best T20 bowlers in the world, the last thing you are expecting is for both of them to lose it suddenly. And Gul lost it so much in the 18th over that as many as three fielders ran up to him at various points in the over with words of advice, or encouragement, or whatever it was that they felt could work at that moment.Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir. All those interventions did not stop the over from going for 21. They also revealed Pakistan’s state of mind at that point. When three different men are needed to rush to your premier fast bowler, all in the span of half an over, you tell the opposition you are on the edge, and are expecting the worst.And the worst came in the next over. Ajmal is usually the master of these situations. He will toss one up a bit more, or he will hold it back a bit more, or he will bowl the one that turns the other way from which the batsman was expecting it to. And the batsman will have a clueless slog and fall. None of this was happening. Ajmal instead bowled short, he bowled flat, he bowled quickly. He became what your average spinner is usually at the death in limited-overs cricket – a massive risk. For that one over, he lost the aura that makes him Saeed Ajmal. He will doubtless regain that, as he did after the 2010 World T20 semi-final, but the damage had been done again.Heaven knows how the Pakistanis felt walking off the field at the break, having allowed West Indies to nearly double their score in five overs. Heaven knows what was spoken in the Pakistan dugout at the break. All we saw was that their top order and middle order came out in two extreme states of trance – one suicidal by dint of action, one suicidal by dint of not acting at all.Ahmed Shehzad can be excused for getting a ripper of an inswinging yorker first ball. Kamran Akmal, Umar Akmal and Shoaib Malik cannot be. Not for facing a collective, unproductive 14 deliveries between them. But for reacting in such a frenzied manner that would have you believe they had been collectively unproductive for 14 overs, and that frenzy was the only way out.To be 13 for 4 in the sixth over is nowhere near the start you want when you are chasing 167 in a virtual quarter-final. To bottle up like Sohaib Maqsood, and particularly Hafeez, did is probably the worst response you want from your middle order when you are 13 for 4.Pakistan consumed 40 deliveries before they hit their first boundary. One-third of a T20 innings without a single boundary. One-third of a 20 innings that had already seen a batsman heave to mid-off, and two batsmen stumped. And yet, there was not a single boundary during the fielding Restrictions. Maqsood and Hafeez added 24 in five overs. And then fell within an over of each other. It was like the cast of a play frozen in extreme stage fright after the opening acts had bungled their lines by trying too hard too soon.If you admire Pakistan cricket for showing you the Australia collapse, tonight you were dealt so many shocks you went numb. You then attempted to make sense of each of them. Batsmen throw their bats around in T20, and as Dwayne Bravo said, even the best bowlers go for runs at the death. The top order had no choice but to try and make the most of the fielding restrictions. The downside was that they could fall while doing so, and they did. The middle order, as Hafeez said, was faced with too many jolts too soon and had absolutely no momentum to build on.You weigh up all these arguments. Maybe they are justified standalone, maybe they are not. But how do you find explanations for such a collective and varied brain freeze? Which is why, exactly why it happened, we will never really know.

Mushfiqur Rahim said that Mahmudullah is set to stay at No. 7 but Bangladesh’s latest performance suggests they may need to be flexible

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur08-Dec-2012Mahmudullah had never walked into a collapse like the one he faced against West Indies on Friday evening. Bangladesh were 13 for 5 in the sixth over and were staring at quite a number of undesirables: the all-time lowest innings total, the lowest total in Bangladesh and also the team’s lowest total. Though he prevented all of these scenarios, he will remain restricted to the role of steering the innings to respectability and safety until the top and middle-order are experienced enough to handle the pressure.Bangladesh were still bowled out for 136, 75 short of West Indies’ modest 211 for 9, with Mahmudullah unbeaten on 56 off 78 balls as he found very few batsmen at the other end to put together a decent partnership. He led the initial recovery, a 74-run sixth wicket stand with captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who later said Mahmudullah would have to shore up the batting line-up from his the No.7 position.”[Mahmudullah] Riyad bhai has been batting there for most of his career,” Mushfiqur said. “But we have some young batsmen so if I, Riyad or Nasir bat up the order, our late order becomes too young or inexperienced. At the same time, if the top order does well, he doesn’t have to bat at all.”Nasir [Hossain] had three good scores in the Tests so it would be difficult to demote him to No. 7. I think our batting order is still fine. We wanted to give the newcomers their regular batting places so that they can bat from within their comfort zones. If there’s a collapse, we need one batsman down the order to anchor the innings.”Mushfiqur is correct in thinking that having an experience-light lower order wouldn’t help the team or the youngsters, but it also shows the backward step Bangladesh have had to take despite having a year in which they had some ODI success. The Asia Cup performance, for instance, was enough to set up a steady batting line-up but instead, the absence of a regular opening batsman to partner Tamim Iqbal and the injury of Shakib Al Hasan has thrown open too many empty slots. It also shows how inflexible Bangladesh are when under the pressure of winning a game.They would speak of playing their natural game but none of the aggressive batsmen attacked Kemar Roach and Darren Sammy and neither did the steady hands bat with patience and authority. It is too early to judge Anamul Haque and Mominul Haque, but they should have watched how Mahmudullah, Bangladesh’s most successful No.7, dug deep and remained unbeaten on 56. He is the highest run-scorer at that position in world cricket since his ODI debut, but even his form, attitude or ability will not earn him a promotion.Mushfiqur has asked the top and middle order to show Mahmudullah’s tenacity under pressure, particularly in the deciding game of the five-match series on Saturday. Mahmudullah had fought hard for more than two hours, often getting beaten outside off stump and yet continuing to find the gaps whenever the loose ball was available. His seven boundaries broke a spell of dot balls that West Indies were building up and pushing the fielders back.The batsmen before him did exactly the opposite as their own wastefulness helped West Indies. Anamul, Mominul and Naeem Islam were all caught trying to force the pace while Tamim and Hossain was comprehensively beaten by Roach’s pace. The top-order collapse was reminiscent of the careless performance that shut them out for 58 runs in the infamous World Cup match last year. Mohammad Ashraful was the No. 7 then, but this time they had a Mahmudullah to cushion the fall.”Credit goes to him for the way he played,” Mushfiqur said. “I would hope that our top order bats exactly like he did today. We knew they would attack us with pace. The wicket wasn’t too bad, and it was only natural that the two new balls, under lights, would swing.”They bowled well but our top-order batsman should have been more serious, take a bit more of the challenge, it wouldn’t have been 13 for 5. Chasing 212 runs became very difficult from there.”In Mahmudullah, Bangladesh have a batsman who is willing to lose the ego of getting beaten time and again, and still have the fortitude to bat the way he likes. He has had success, too, remaining unbeaten on 12 occasions when the team won, which includes his famous last-ditch effort against England in the World Cup. The Dhaka Test last month gave him the confidence, particularly the testing period he survived in the second innings.He is happy batting at No. 7 because the team management prefers him there but a time will come next year when Bangladesh would need him early in a chase before the top order collapses, rather than at a point when the collapse has already happened.

Sunshine, a fine ground, a tight match with the right result – what’s not to like?

Michael Hall28-Jun-2010Choice of game
Any game against the old enemy, Australia, is always an attraction. My daughters Sarah and Charlotte were particularly keen to see the Aussies as they missed live action from the Ashes tour last summer, as I am constantly being reminded (I attended!).Old Trafford has the dual advantage of being close to home and a great viewing ground, although the facilities are the worst of the English Test grounds. The Lancashire authorities also seem to have added what can only be described as a “giant red garden shed”, which apparently is a new corporate facility. I will not be rushing to experience this new structure and wish we did not have to look at it.Team supported
England, although there was a consensus before the game that we would like Ricky Ponting to do well as he is a great hit with the English crowds and we may not see him here again.Key performer
Graeme Swann was the key for England in that he kept taking wickets and contained the batsmen. He seems to love his cricket, which is even more evident at the match than on TV. He seems to be constantly “joshing” with his team-mates. There was a stunned silence at the ground when he got Ponting stumped off what looked like a wide, followed by delight from most of us in the 22,000 capacity crowd. Swanny was cheered and clapped loudly when he came to field at the end of his spell, and returned the compliment with applause for the England fans.One thing I’d have changed
Had the England v Germany World Cup football game at a different time. A few people left the ground to watch the football but 95% stayed and we all knew what was going on by the groans from those listening on the radio. I imagine Kevin Pietersen was rather disturbed with all the cheers as he was dismissed. It’s okay Kevin, it just coincided with word of an England goal. Now that I know the result, who cares about football? We have beaten the Aussies!Face-off I relished
Swann bowling at Ponting was a match-up I looked for at the start. This was one to us, but any England batsman against Tait or Bollinger was no fun at all to watch. England will need to get much better at facing these two or they’ll be losing again. Tait looks fast and wild, while Bollinger has an awkward approach that hides a deceptive accuracy. The whole crowd descended into a collective nervous spasm and my daughter Sarah could not look anymore as they ripped through England’s tail.Wow moment
There was collective relief when Tim Bresnan hit the winning runs after England almost collapsed from needing 30 to win with seven wickets left. The crowd roared but in reality we were just thankful England had not blown a match they should have won so much more easily.Player watch
Steve Smith seemed to get a lot of stick from the boozy sections for reasons I could not quite determine. Andrew Strauss was cheered for his marvellous knock, while poor old Pietersen, suffering from being hit in his “private parts”, just had to take the amusement of crowd and his fellow players.Shot of the day
Two shots from Eoin Morgan. The straight six with utter contempt off Hopes was awesome, and the very cheeky scoop over the wicketkeeper followed by a forward roll was enjoyed by all. Do not try this kids!Crowd meter
Packed crowd of 22,000, who enjoyed a warm and sunny day and quickly got over the football result. We were sitting in an alcohol-free stand, which meant the friendly atmosphere was maintained even late in the day, when sometimes things are spoiled by the heavy drinkers who often take up large sections of English grounds. Great area for families, and a lot of people with children enjoyed the game in a pleasant atmosphere.Fancy-dress index
Less than often at English grounds. No signs or banners, except for the official 4 and 6 banners, which we waved with increasing enthusiasm in the tense last overs. There seem to be a lot of restrictions on what is allowed in, which is a pity, but having witnessed some abuse given to the security guards I can see why the authorities are cautious.Entertainment
I am used to the music now after a wicket or a four but never know what it is and rely on the girls to tell me. Oasis, a Manchester band, was very popular. The poor Australians appeared to have one song only played for them. A bit more imagination here would probably be appreciated by the players.Accessories
A cool box with lunch and drinks in is essential. My binoculars were well used by us all, although not always to view the finer points. Charlotte used them to keep an eye on Stuart Broad, and spotting the Sky Sports heroes was also popular. Being the middle-aged member of the party, I had my radio for , which is mostly a delight, except when they let Boycott on.Overall
Ten out of 10 for an exciting match in wonderful weather at a great viewing ground. The new alcohol-free stand is a winner in my book. Most of all, though, we beat the Aussies. Roll on the Ashes.

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan reviews India’s Test series and rates the players as they contributed

Siddhartha Vaidyanathan14-Aug-2007

Zaheer Khan – 9
Not only the most effective bowler of the series but the one who clinched the Test that decided it. His nine-wicket haul orchestrated the Trent Bridge triumph, where he was incisive with both new ball and old, and provided openings at Lord’s and The Oval. Totalled just 28 runs with the bat but was upset enough about jelly-gate to erupt with ball in hand.Dinesh Karthik – 8
India’s No.1 batsman, both in terms of batting position and run aggregate. The least experienced of the batsmen, he ended as the highest scorer, rattling a half-century in each of the Tests. He offered both solidity and enthusiasm at the top, setting up platforms for his more illustrious colleagues. Blemishes were on the field, though, with two dropped dollies.Sourav Ganguly – 8
India’s most dependable batsman, Ganguly was twice ‘sawn off’ by poor umpiring decisions but still finished with an average touching 50. He played a big part in the match-saving bid at Lord’s and set up a tall total at Trent Bridge but it was his Oval counterattack that drew gasps. It was the most authoritative innings of the series, one that ensured India simply couldn’t lose. He also dismissed Alastair Cook twice in the series.RP Singh – 7.5
He arrived in England as the weakest link and ended as the most improved bowler. The five-wicket haul at Lord’s will be the cherished memory but it was the two big wickets at Trent Bridge that opened the sluice-gates. Pacier, bouncier and cannier, RP Singh’s transformation from a fringe to strike bowler was one of the stories of the tour.Mahendra Singh Dhoni – 7
His uncharacteristic yet fortuitous half-century saved India at Lord’s; his commanding one powered them to a mammoth total at The Oval. And, crucially, on both occasions he shepherded the tail. His wicketkeeping was not up to scratch – he could not wrap his gloves around a tough chance on the final afternoon at The Oval – but he held on to a few important ones before that.Sachin Tendulkar – 7
Not the genius who introduced himself with a century at Old Trafford 17 years ago but the elder statesman guiding the rest. His two half-centuries were guarded yet classy, setting up towering totals at both Trent Bridge and The Oval. He bounded in enthusiastically with the ball, outfoxing Kevin Pietersen in the first innings of the final Test, and held on to important catches.Wasim Jaffer – 7
Made amends for his horror series in 2002 with a string of solid starts, providing Karthik with good company. Their 147-run association at Trent Bridge set up the win – the first time in 28 years that an Indian opening pair had added more than 100 in England. Began with an uncharacteristic blaze at The Oval but, like on four other occasions, gave it away when well set.Anil Kumble – 7
A special maiden hundred capped a fine series with the bat but he struggled to dominate with ball in hand. He could not impose himself, winkling out wickets rather than running through the line-up, though he did provide breakthroughs at some big moments. If the double-strike on the first evening at Lord’s provided cheer on a bad day, the tail-ending operation at Trent Bridge was equally important.

VVS Laxman – 6
Less prominent in the batting cast, Laxman produced three good innings, two of which were half-centuries. Mostly resolute, he was a sturdy presence in the lower middle order and occasionally, as on the second morning at The Oval, showed glimpses of genius. Some cracking catches should not be forgotten.Rahul Dravid – 5.5
Just one fifty in six innings is average by any standards, more so if your standards are as high Dravid’s. At Trent Bridge and The Oval he gave away good starts, falling twice to full deliveries from James Anderson. His 96-ball 12, on the fourth afternoon at The Oval, encapsulated his struggles. As captain he was blessed with luck: winning the toss in two of the three Tests, one of which produced a decisive result.Sreesanth – 5
Erratic through the series: lethal on the second morning at Lord’s, unruly at Trent Bridge and trying too hard at The Oval. He often did not find rhythm, sometimes experimented too much, and was lacking consistency right through. Nobody can ignore the wicket-taking phases – as the final day at The Oval showed – but they were overshadowed by the stints of waywardness.