All posts by h716a5.icu

There was no drama. No last minute dash past the tape. Instead it was a compelling performance from a confident team led by a spirited leader

Nagraj Gollapudi at Edgbaston06-Jul-2010There was no drama. No last minute dash past the tape. Instead it was a compelling performance from a confident team led by a spirited leader. It is funny that despite being the world champions in the format twelve months ago questions were being raised at the outset today about Pakistan finishing on top of this two-match series against Australia. Yes, there is no denying the fact that, like Roger Federer or Rafa Nadal, Australia possess the skill and mental discipline to crush any opponent any day but based on Pakistan’s aggressive performance Monday evening there was never a doubt about who entered the arena more positive.Australia seemed cagey from start to the finish. Pakistan seemed more sure and precise in what they did. In the end Michael Clarke fell short of reasons behind Australia’s defeat. Shahid Afridi, his opposite number, glowed with pride in the gloaming, as he was more decisive on both evenings while defending a par score. He was the single biggest reason behind Pakistan’s self belief and it is easy to forget his tactical nous considering the enfant terrible he has been in the last decade.For Afridi, in addition to his own performance, the biggest challenge was to get every player in the squad to read from the same page – something Pakistan teams have never been famous to do. But once the Pakistan Cricket Board had dealt firmly with the happenings in the aftermath of the disastrous Australian tour and given Afridi the captaincy; he has not wasted time to make his mind clear. Together with his coach Waqar Younis and the selectors, Afridi charted a plan which encouraged the inclusion of youngsters. And despite his eccentricities, Afridi remains a good mentor.Importantly, Afridi knows his winning unit. Shoaib Akthar might not be completely fit to consistently feature in all the three formats but Afridi has shown faith in the maverick speedster. Hence it did not matter that Shoaib had been taken to the cleaners by the Davids – Warner and Hussey on Monday. He returned today charged by the vociferous crowd and steamed in with a renewed vigour that brought back memories of the bowler who once could hold an entire stadium enthralled. Today Afridi did not break Shoaib’s rhythm with a three-over first spell. Though Shoaib managed just one wicket, he troubled the batsmen with bounce, with movement with changes of pace.At the other end the exemplary young talent of Mohammad Aamer continued to flourish as the left-armer got a wicket in first over for the second evening in a row. With his ability to control the swing and also bend the ball at will at optimum pace Aamer is easily one of the most destructive bowlers in cricket. Afridi had worked out his plans precisely where he knew he would save his three best bowlers – Aamer, Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal – for the final five to six overs. These are his go-to men.Australia needed 52 runs off the final six overs with the Hussey brothers looking dangerous. Ajmal straightaway got in his most favourite weapon – the doosra – which the younger Hussey (David) failed to read and returned a simple catch. Afridi was unhappy when Ajmal sent a long hop to debutant Steve O’ Keefe, who duly smashed it past the cover boundary. But O’ Keefe was involved in a run out a ball later and Ajmal finished with impressive figures of 1 for 26. Next over Gul kept his nerves, despite being hit by Michael Hussey for two fours off the first two balls, bouncing back with a a lethal yorker from round the stumps and wide off the crease, which the Australian erroneously tried to reverse sweep and was declared plumb. Aamer took his second three-wicket haul in two days first delivery of the next over, trapping Mitchell Johnson leg before.Like a babysitter Afridi never left the bowlers alone – he walked towards them virtually after every ball, cajoling them, patting them and at times directing them what to do when the bowler failed to carry out the instructions. Obviously the twin victories have now put Pakistan in a positive frame of mind ahead of the two-match Test series, starting at Lord’s next Tuesday. But this result will hardly have a bearing on that, something the Pakistan think tank is well aware of. Waqar was understandably guarded. “[It is] still early days. It is a good start. A win always gives us the momentum,” he said. Still the opponent will be wary now.”We can learn a lot form the way they bowled at the death,” Clarke said in praise of the Pakistan bowlers, before going on to single out Gul who he felt was “outstanding”. “They missed him during the World Cup. You have to be at your best to beat a team like that,” he said.It takes a lot to stir Australia. For the moment, without getting carried away, Pakistan can be proud.

He is just the No. 5 you want when you are dominating and looking for a declaration, challenging himself to score fast and beating the deep fields

Sidharth Monga at SuperSport Park18-Dec-2010At 1.35pm on a sunny Saturday, when Jacques Kallis flicked Jaidev Unadkat to set right one of the biggest statistical anomalies of our time, something more instructive happened at the other end. AB de Villiers, already two double-centuries to his name in less than half as many Tests as Kallis, raised his arms even before he finished running the first run. de Villiers knew it had been flicked fine of fine leg, and reacted as if he had himself reached the double-century. de Villiers has always been like that, with the bat, in the field, behind the stumps, keeping the spirits up, as happy for his team-mates as they are for themselves, just being Jonty Rhodes.And it wouldn’t be wrong to say that he had a part to play in Kallis’ smooth progression from 102 overnight to 201 not out – 62 more than the latter had ever added to an overnight score of 100 or more. Kallis acknowledged that at the end of the play. It was fantastic. “He took the pressure all off me,” Kallis said. “I could carry knocking it around. One of the best knocks I have seen . An absolute honour to stand at the other end and watch it. To see how far he has come in his career, and how he has developed as a player, he has got the consistency now, which is something we all work towards. So fantastic innings again.”de Villiers is no stranger to stomping on the Indian attack when it has already been ground into dust. He did that in Ahmedabad in 2008, in almost similar circumstances. The six he hit off Harbhajan Singh – falling over as he smashed it – onto the roof of the stadium is one of the biggest seen in India. He is just the No. 5 you want when you are dominating and looking for a declaration.It can be boring to come out with your team 200 ahead, and with little personal challenge out there. The fields are spread, the bowlers are trying to stop runs and not take wickets, and the game is meandering towards a declaration. It can be a bit boring for the crowd too. Not with de Villiers around. He takes the domination to a next level, challenging himself to score fast, beating the deep fields. He also keeps the crowds involved, and sets up declarations. And going by the way India went in their second innings, South Africa needed as many spare runs and as much spare time they could get.India would have looked to establish some control and check the flow of runs once they got Hashim Amla out fairly early in the day, but with de Villiers around they started haemorrhaging. He made you watch a spell of play when you would normally switch the TV off and run some errands. And it started with a copybook straight push-drive. Then he unleashed the cut, both through square and in front of it. The pick, though, was the sweep of both varieties. One of the reverse-paddles, played so fine as to beat the fine short third man, sent Harbhajan into a curse-feast. If the fielders were dejected already, now they were dejected and running helter-skelter.So fast was de Villiers that no anxiety was felt around Kallis’ double. He could coolly keep chugging along at the other end. Kallis was 107 when de Villiers came out to bat. de Villiers took a few deliveries to settle down, then started hitting, and by the time he reached 105 with back-to-back sixes, Kallis had added only 47. From 93 to 99 de Villiers went with a six over midwicket. MS Dhoni bucked his trend of letting batsmen get to centuries with singles to long-off and long-on, and brought the whole field up. Didn’t make no difference. The next ball was in de Villiers’ striking zone, and he went over midwicket again, to become the fastest South African centurion, to follow up on having scored the highest individual innings by a South African, in the previous Test.At the time of writing this, about half an hour at the end of the third day’s play, there was thunder and lightning in the air, and the Indians had put up some sort of fight. If it becomes a matter of time in the end, and if South Africa do manage to finish this one off, they will know who to pat in the back.

ESPNcricinfo presents six of Shoaib Akhtar’s best bowling performances

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Mar-20114 for 71 v India, Asian Test Championship, Kolkata, 1999
Two balls that silenced 100,000 spectators. Indian fans weren’t too familiar with Shoaib Akhtar but he introduced himself in a manner that left a packed Eden Gardens shell-shocked in a minute. He broke through Rahul Dravid’s defences with a fiery inswinging yorker that uprooted leg stump but what followed was unfathomable to the crowd then. India’s best batsman strolled to the crease to wild cheers and walked back to the pavilion to stunned silence. Facing Shoaib for the first time, Sachin Tendulkar was at the receiving end of another inswinging yorker, which he failed to keep out and which sent the middle stump cartwheeling towards the wicketkeeper. Shoaib had well and truly arrived. He bagged eight wickets in a match-winning performance.3 for 55 v New Zealand, World Cup semi-final, Manchester, 1999
Shoaib lit up the World Cup semi-final in Manchester in front of a partisan crowd to give his favourite opposition their first taste of what would be a regular diet from him. He hit 90 mph consistently and, though he went for a few, he aimed correctly and just at the right time to prevent New Zealand from posting a challenging score in what turned out to be a one-sided knockout. Shoaib bowled three spells, and dislodged a batsman in each. Nathan Astle was his first victim. Stephen Fleming had just slashed him to third man when Shoaib returned from round the wicket to fire in a 92mph yorker that cleaned up leg stump. And, in his final spell, pace gave way to subtlety as Chris Harris was undone by a superbly disguised slower ball. New Zealand were kept to 241 for 7, and Pakistan chased that down with no difficulty.6 for 11 v New Zealand, 1st Test, Lahore, 2002
New Zealand were steamrolled with both bat and ball in Lahore and Shoaib joined in the hammering. New Zealand were up against it after Pakistan had piled up 643 in the first innings, and Shoaib’s spell shut them completely out of contention. His six victims were all either bowled or lbw as his fiery pace and toe-crushing lengths simply proved too hot to handle. In a spell of fifty deliveries, Shoaib bagged 6 for 11 and skittled out New Zealand for 73, towards a massive defeat.5 for 21 v Australia, 1st Test, Colombo, 2002
Australia’s pre-eminence had rarely been challenged in the late nineties and the early noughties, but one Shoaib spell threatened to cause a major upset against a young Pakistan team. Pakistan were looking to limit the damage after conceding a lead of 188 in the first innings but Shoaib sprung the Colombo Test back to life in a spell that made a nonsense of an unfavourable pitch with searing pace. Called on to bowl for a second spell after Australia had been well-placed at 71 for 1, Shoaib fired in a series of inswinging thunderbolts that crippled a powerful line-up. Ricky Ponting, Mark Waugh and Steve Waugh were sent back in a matter of five deliveries and Adam Gilchrist was knocked off with a missile from round the wicket. Australia lost nine wickets for 53, of which Shoaib nipped out five, to collapse to 127 all out. The Pakistan batsmen, for their part, suffered a collapse of their own to lose by 41 runs.5 for 25 v Australia, 3rd ODI, Brisbane, 2002
Shoaib starred in another significant win for Pakistan, this time helping them seal an ODI series in Australia. He had the cushion of a competitive score and derailed an Australian line-up that struggled to put up a challenge. Ponting fell to pace, Darren Lehmann was bowled round his legs, Michael Bevan was caught behind while the tail offered little resistance. Shoaib followed up three wickets in three overs with a couple more down the order to finish with 5 for 25 and catch Australia short by 91 runs.6 for 30 v New Zealand, 2nd Test, Wellington, 2003
Shoaib’s love affair with New Zealand’s batting continued in Wellington, the hosts caving in to a devastating spell to set up a memorable victory for Pakistan. His pace acquired greater potency with the movement and swing in a windy Wellington and the New Zealand batsmen failed to measure up to that. Shoaib had picked up a five-for in the first innings but his batsmen had let that effort down, conceding a lead of 170. New Zealand looked good to put it beyond the visitors in the second innings before Shoaib struck. He removed a stodgy Mark Richardson and Scott Styris off successive deliveries, and combined with seamer Shabbir Ahmed to clean up the tail. New Zealand lost seven wickets for eight runs in 10.4 overs and Pakistan’s batsmen stepped up in the second innings to chase down 274.

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the IPL eliminator between Kolkata and Mumbai

Sriram Veera25-May-2011Stop and stare at the umpire – I
Manoj Tiwary was trapped in front by Dhawal Kulkarni, but he couldn’t believe it when the decision went against him. He froze. He stared. He remained frozen. He eventually stirred and left the scene.Stop and stare at the umpire – II
Ambati Rayudu was gobsmacked when he was given out caught behind. It was a bouncer from Jacques Kallis and the ball flew over the flashing blade to take refuge in Shreevats Goswami’s gloves. Kallis kept on running towards the keeper who too had started his celebrations. A puzzled Rayudu had a wry smile, perhaps wondering what all the fuss was about. He had a quick look across at the umpire; so did the rest of the field. Asad Rauf’s index finger went up. A stunned Rayudu yanked off his helmet and looked again at Rauf, with his mouth wide open. At long last, he left the crime scene.Bounce, bounce till you succeed
Everybody knows that the best place to bowl at Yusuf Pathan is at the head. His Indian team-mate Munaf Patel didn’t shy from trying out that strategy in the 13th over. He bounced once and it flew off the top edge over the keeper. The second bouncer was swatted uncomfortably to fine-leg and third was mis-hit over midwicket. Yusuf reclaimed strike for the final delivery and Munaf banged it short again. Yusuf tried to flat-bat it out of the park but couldn’t clear long-on.Times, they are a-changing
Munaf used to be a poor fielder. Used to be. Nowadays he gets irate when his team-mates slip below his standards. The proof of the pudding arrived in the 16th over when Kulkarni chose not to go for a risky catch at third man, preferring the stop the ball on the bounce. Munaf, the bowler, wasn’t impressed. He stood there, hands on the hip before slowly turning and suggesting to another team-mate that he thought Kulkarni should have gone for the catch. Later, in the final over of Kolkata’s innings, when Brett Lee steered a short ball to his left at short third man, Munaf rushed across and threw in a dive to prevent the boundary. Now Kulkarni, that’s how you do it.Protection can get you a boundary
Mumbai needed 15 runs from 12 when Lee hurled a bouncer at Harbhajan Singh. It had pace, the awkward height, and the uncomfortable line to fetch a game-turning wicket but it went away for a game-breaking four. Harbhajan was late on the pull, and not only were his tooth saved by the helmet, he also got some vital runs. The ball flew off the edge, crashed into the helmet grille and flew down to the fine-leg boundary.

History is completely in favour of the hosts but New Zealand will fancy their chances against an Australian team trying to cope with multiple injury worries

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan30-Nov-2011The Trans-Tasman rivalry, in contrast to many other famous ones in international cricket, has been extremely one-sided. Except for the mid 1980s, when Richard Hadlee’s superlative bowling helped New Zealand win home and away series, Australia have been by far the more consistent and dominant team, winning 26 matches and losing just seven (win-loss ratio of 3.71). Stunningly, the last Test defeat for Australia against New Zealand came way back in the 1992-93 series in New Zealand. In Australia, it was 26 years, and 17 Tests ago.Since then, Australia have gone on to win 13 out of 18 matches. In 50 Tests played over between the two teams, Australia have a batting average of 38.94, compared to New Zealand’s 27.07. The gulf is even wider in matches played in Australia, where the difference in averages is 14.40. Five of New Zealand’s seven wins have come at home, and the last time New Zealand won a Test in Australia was way back in the 1985-86 season.That was the period when Australia were on the wane following the retirements of most top players while New Zealand were in the middle of their best run. New Zealand won their first series in Australia in 1985-86 and went on to win two home series in the next four years. Statistically, this was the only phase that New Zealand matched and often bettered Australia. In the ten years between 1984 and 1994, both teams won five matches each and Australia were only slightly ahead on averages. However, since then, during an outstanding period of success, Australia have completely dominated New Zealand. The difference in averages between the teams has been a massive 19.55 in Tests since 2000, and 26.87 in the last four series. Although Australia have done well in their last two series in Sri Lanka and South Africa, New Zealand will fancy their chances of troubling the hosts, who are beset with multiple injury problems.

Australia v New Zealand in Tests

PlayedAustraliaNew ZealandDrawnW/L ratioAustralia (avg)New Zealand (avg)Avg diffOverall50267173.7138.9427.0711.87In Australia26142107.0041.6927.2914.40In New Zealand2412572.4036.2226.829.401980-199926106101.6635.1128.456.662000-2011151104-46.3726.8219.55Last four series9801-51.5424.6726.87A surprising stat is that New Zealand have played just 17 Tests since the beginning of 2009. This is far fewer than most teams have played in the same period. Australia have fallen from their perch but have still managed to maintain a fairly healthy win-loss ratio of 1.50, which is behind only those of England and India. While their batting average of 36.14 is fifth on the list, their bowling average (32.88) is second only to that of England. Their average difference of 3.34 is slightly better than India’s (2.82) but lower than England (13.74) and South Africa (6.33).New Zealand’s position in the table is quite the opposite. They have a terribly low win-loss ratio of 0.37, which is only marginally better than West Indies’ 0.25. Their only Test win against a major Test-playing nation came against Pakistan in 2009. New Zealand have a better batting average than Pakistan and West Indies but on the flip side, they also have a bowling average of 42.23. This has meant that their average difference (-9.80) is the second-lowest among top Test teams.

Batting and bowling stats of teams since January 2009 (except Bangladesh and Zimbabwe)

TeamPlayedWonLostW/L ratioBat avgBowl avgAvg diffEngland362054.0044.4930.7513.74India311472.0040.5237.702.82Australia3115101.5036.1432.883.34South Africa20771.0039.6933.336.36Sri Lanka26661.0040.5741.46-0.89Pakistan277110.6330.2433.44-3.20New Zealand17380.3732.4342.23-9.80West Indies283120.2529.7639.90-10.14Australia go into the first Test with a new opening pair following the injury to Shane Watson. Watson and Phillip Hughes shared a 174-run opening stand in the second Test in Johannesburg. This was the first century opening stand for Australia since the one between Simon Katich and Hughes against New Zealand in 2010. In the last two years, Ricky Ponting’s poor form has meant that the partnership average for the second wicket has also fallen. New Zealand, on the other hand, have continuously had problems at the top of the order against major teams. Their average for the first two wickets (28.39 and 29.44) is well below par. While the fifth-wicket averages for both teams are very similar, the numbers for Australia are much better for the fourth and sixth wicket.

Partnership stats since January 2009 (Avg, 100/50) – excluding Bangladesh/Zimbabwe

Partnership wicketAustraliaNew Zealand150.82, 7/2028.39, 2/3241.33, 7/829.44, 1/2337.39, 4/1336.29, 2/6445.75, 7/1132.44, 1/2542.21, 6/942.48, 4/2650.06, 5/1538.92, 2/6Michael Clarke, who took over the captaincy in Sri Lanka, has had a fairly successful start leading the side. He scored a fighting century in the final Test in Sri Lanka and followed it up with an outstanding 151 on a difficult pitch in Cape Town. He has also had tremendous success against New Zealand, scoring over 476 runs at an average of 79.33. Michael Hussey had a poor tour of South Africa, but has been Australia’s stand-out batsman since the Ashes series. He, however, has struggled against New Zealand, scoring 198 runs at an average of 33.00 with just two fifties. Ponting has been fighting for runs recently, and has had his problems against New Zealand too, averaging only 28.16 in his last four Tests against them.For New Zealand, Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum have impressive stats against Australia, and will need to maintain that form for their team to do well. They also ave fine records in Tests over the last three years, averaging more than 45. Jesse Ryder, another vital player in New Zealand’s batting line-up, averages over 42 since the beginning of 2009 but is yet to demonstrate any form in Tests against Australia.

Batting stats of batsmen for both teams (matches, average, 100/50)

BatsmanSince January 2009v New Zealand (since 2006)Ricky Ponting29, 35.76, 2/144, 28.16, 0/1Michael Clarke31, 43.88, 7/94, 79.33, 2/2Michael Hussey31, 44.98, 6/134, 33.00, 0/2Ross Taylor17, 48.74, 3/104, 45.75, 1/1Brendan McCullum17, 47.46, 4/74, 44.14, 1/2Jesse Ryder10, 42.61, 3/22, 17.50, 0/0In the absence of Mitchell Johnson and the impressive Pat Cummins, Australia’s attack could be tested. While Johnson has 24 wickets at 16.57 in four Tests against New Zealand, Cummins bowled with great pace and aggression in his debut game against South Africa in the recently-concluded series. Peter Siddle, who will play New Zealand for the first time, will lead the inexperienced pace attack.New Zealand’s pace line-up is likely to be led by Chris Martin and Tim Southee. Martin, one of only four New Zealand bowlers with 200-plus wickets in Tests, has barely troubled Australia in the past. In his last four Tests against Australia, he has picked up just seven wickets at an average of 68.71. Doug Bracewell had an excellent debut against Zimbabwe picking up a five-wicket haul in New Zealand’s close 34-run win. Daniel Vettori is easily the most experienced bowler for them, but even he has fairly ordinary stats in Tests in Australia, averaging almost 40 per wicket.Brisbane, the venue for the first Test, has been Australia’s stronghold. They have not lost a single Test at the venue since their defeat against West Indies in 1988. Brisbane’s bouncy conditions have generally favoured Australia’s attack and the result percentage has been fairly high. However, in the recent Ashes series, the pitch at the Gabba was completely out of character as the match ended in a dull draw with England scoring over five hundred runs for the loss of just one wicket in their second innings. While the batting averages in the first and third innings in Brisbane have been high, the corresponding numbers for the second and fourth innings are much lower. Pace bowlers, who have 240 wickets at 34.29, have easily outperformed the spinners, who have just 64 wickets at 42.56.Hobart, on the other hand, has played host to just four Tests since 2000. As in Brisbane, the batting averages are high in the first and third innings. The venue, however, has been a far more successful one for spinners, who have picked up 37 wickets at 37.91. In contrast, pace bowlers have struggled picking up 61 wickets at an average of 47.91.

Venue stats for Brisbane and Hobart (matches since 2000)

VenueMatchesResult %1st inns2nd inns3rd inns4th innsPace (wickets,avg)Spin(wickets,avg)Brisbane117342.7831.5940.9525.18240, 34.2964, 42.56Hobart47557.0332.3244.8833.0461, 47.1437, 37.91

What the three teams need to do to qualify for the CB series finals after having each played six matches in the competition

S Rajesh24-Feb-2012If Australia win one of their remaining two games, they are through to the finals•Getty ImagesSri Lanka
They’re currently sitting pretty on 15 points, but aren’t yet through to the finals: if India win their last two games and if Australia beat Sri Lanka in the last match of the round-robin, then Sri Lanka will miss out on the finals. Sri Lanka could also miss out if they lose both their matches and concede a bonus point to India, and if Australia beat India. In such a case India and Sri Lanka will be level on 15, but India will scrape through on the basis of having more wins against Sri Lanka (two wins and only one defeat). However, given their current form and level of performance, Sri Lanka are best placed to make it through to the finals. In fact, they are the only team that can make it even if they lose both their remaining matches (provided Australia beat India and Sri Lanka don’t concede a bonus point to India).Australia
Australia’s two defeats to Sri Lanka have put them in a bit of a spot, though they need to win only one of their last two matches to be certain of a place in the finals. If they beat India, then Australia and Sri Lanka will contest the final, provided Sri Lanka don’t concede a bonus point to India; if Australia beat Sri Lanka and lose to India, then the winner of the India-Sri Lanka clash will go through to the finals against Australia. However, if Australia lose both their matches, then they’ll need Sri Lanka to beat India to go through. In such a case, both Australia and India will be level on 14 points (if Australia don’t concede a bonus point to India), but Australia have two bonus points compared to none for India, which will tilt the scale in Australia’s favour.If Australia concede a bonus point to India – a possibility that admittedly looks remote at the moment – and also lose to Sri Lanka, then they’ll surely be out of the tournament, regardless of the result of the match between India and Sri Lanka. However, Australia have the advantage of playing the last match of the round-robin stage, so they’ll know exactly what they need to do to qualify.India
India have it all to do in the last round of matches. If they win both their matches they’ll surely be through, but anything less, and they’ll struggle: in case they lose one of their matches, India will require a bonus point in the other, and hope that other results go their way. For instance, if they beat Australia with a bonus point on Sunday and lose to Sri Lanka, they’ll need Sri Lanka to beat Australia in the last match on Friday. If, on the other hand, they lose to Australia and beat Sri Lanka with a bonus point, they’ll want Australia to beat Sri Lanka. In that scenario, both India and Sri Lanka will have 15 points with three wins each, but India will have a 2-1 lead in their head-to-head against Sri Lanka, which, according to the rules of this tournament, will take precedence over the net run rate.

A look at which team needs to do what to make it to the playoffs

S Rajesh18-May-2012If Royal Challengers win their final game, against Deccan Chargers, they’ll definitely progress to the last four•AFPMumbai Indians
A win in their last match will mean Mumbai Indians finish their league games on 20 points, which will surely put them in the top three; if Kolkata Knight Riders lose their last game, then Mumbai Indians will finish in the top two. However, if they lose to Royals their task of qualifying becomes much tougher, since four other teams will have a chance of getting 18 or more points. Mumbai Indians’ net run rate is also a worry – at -0.16, they’re only marginally better than Kings XI Punjab (-0.172). If Kings XI win their last match and Mumbai Indians lose theirs, it’s very likely that Kings XI will end up with a better NRR too. And then there’s also Royal Challengers Bangalore, who’ll go past Mumbai Indians if they beat Deccan Chargers in their final game. If they lose to Royals, Mumbai Indians must hope that not more than one out of Royal Challengers and King XI get to 18 or more points. The advantage for Mumbai Indians is that their match against Royals is the last of the league stage, so they’ll know exactly what they need to do to progress.Royal Challengers Bangalore
If Royal Challengers beat Chargers, they’ll definitely progress to the last four, though it’ll be almost impossible to take second place even if Knight Riders lose, because of their respective net run rates. However, if they lose, they’ll definitely be out, since Chennai Super Kings already have 17 points and a better NRR – Royal Challengers can’t catch up on the NRR if they lose.Chennai Super Kings
Three teams already have more points than Super Kings’ 17, and their only hope of sneaking in as the fourth side into the playoffs is if all the other teams in contention lose most of their matches. Thus they’ll want Royal Challengers and Kings XI to lose their last matches. If all those results go the way of Super Kings, they’ll still make the cut as their net run rate will remain more than that of Royal Challengers.Kings XI Punjab
The unexpected defeat for Royals against Chargers means Kings XI have a better chance of qualification. But for that, they need to win their last match, and hope that at least one of Royal Challengers and Mumbai Indians lose their last game. If Royal Challengers lose and Mumbai Indians win, then Kings XI and Mumbai Indians will qualify. If Royal Challengers win and Mumbai Indians lose, then Kings XI will still most likely go through on a better net run rate than Mumbai Indians. For instance, if Kings XI score 150 and win by two runs, and if Mumbai Indians score 148 and lose by two runs, Kings XI will sneak ahead on NRR.The battle for the top two spotsDaredevils have already made sure they’ll finish among the top two: even if they lose their last game and Mumbai Indians win theirs, Daredevils will still end with a superior net run rate. A win for Knight Riders will give them a place in the top two, but even a defeat will do that job if Mumbai Indians lose their last match. What’s certain is that the top two* positions will be decided among these three teams: Daredevils, Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians. (Royal Challengers have a theoretical chance, but even if they win by 60 runs and Knight Riders lose by a similar margin, Knight Riders will still have a higher net run rate.)*14:10 GMT, May 18: The article had earlier said ‘top three’. It has been corrected
18:12 GMT, May 18: This article has been updated to reflect that Rajasthan Royals are out of the race

Australia are looking for a No.3 in their ODI side. Phillip Hughes might have been the man for the job, but has been overlooked again

Brydon Coverdale16-Jul-2012Twenty players were chosen in Australia’s limited-overs squads for the series against Pakistan. A few others must have come close, including Aaron Finch, Rob Quiney and Nathan Lyon. But there was no sign of the man with the highest one-day average of all current Australian batsmen. He also has the highest Twenty20 average of all time among Australians, and is the No.1 run scorer in the county T20 competition this year.His name is Phillip Hughes. And he has played 17 Tests, no one-day internationals and no T20s for his country.It is odd that Hughes has been viewed as a Test specialist. The only other batsmen in the past decade to play Test cricket for Australia without appearing in one-dayers have been Ed Cowan, Usman Khawaja, Chris Rogers and Martin Love, all men with conventional techniques, whose role is as much crease occupation as run-scoring. Hughes is not in that category.Of course, it is easy to look at Hughes and say that he has had his chances. That is true, in the longer format. He has made Test hundreds but has also had his technique picked apart, first when facing the short ball and then when he could not help playing at balls seaming across him. But a slashing, stroke-playing technique is not a bad thing in limited-overs cricket.Perhaps the selectors have felt, in the past, that Hughes was better off focusing on his Test-match game. That is not an issue now, for Cowan and David Warner are settling as an opening combination, with Shane Watson capable of stepping back into the role should Cowan falter. Hughes has lost his Cricket Australia contract and is not part of the Australia A squad to play first-class matches in England over the next few weeks.But he has proven himself capable of scoring runs at international level, and is a naturally aggressive player who can pierce or clear the field. Not to mention the fact that Australia are currently looking for someone to play first-drop in the ODI side. Since Ricky Ponting’s departure from the ODI outfit, Australia have tried Watson, Peter Forrest, Matthew Wade, Michael Clarke and George Bailey at No.3, for a collective average of 25.33.Hughes has been batting at No.3 for Worcestershire this year, and he has made two centuries there. He is fourth on the run tally in the Clydesdale Bank 40-over competition, and is averaging 96. In the Friends Life t20 tournament, nobody has bettered his 322 runs at 80.50, with a strike-rate of 121. For the first time in the competition’s current format, Worcestershire have reached the quarter-finals.Consider the all-time list of T20 averages. Hughes is the leading Australian, averaging 47.16 at a strike-rate of 115. That may drop as he plays more games – he has appeared in only 24 T20 matches – but it’s a pretty good start. On the list of all-time List A averages, only the retired Michael Bevan, Dean Jones, Darren Lehmann, Matthew Elliott and Matthew Hayden sit above Hughes’ 44.48 among Australians.Of course Hughes is far from the only man worthy of an ODI call-up. Callum Ferguson deserved another chance, and has been given it. Quiney would be a capable one-day international player, as would Aaron Finch or any number of others.But Hughes has form, style and international experience on his side, not to mention youth – he is still only 23. His chance in the coloured clothing for Australia might not have arrived just yet, but it should soon. He certainly has the game for it.

Both Pakistan and India had the chance to qualify for the semi-finals today; the difference was that Pakistan’s attack relished the challenge of defending their total

Abhishek Purohit in Colombo03-Oct-2012Both Pakistan and India could have made the semi-finals of the World Twenty20 this evening. Both knew they needed to beat their respective opponents by considerable margins. India knew by exactly how many runs; Pakistan did not have any such prior information. Both sides batted first in their respective games and posted similar totals. MS Dhoni said stopping South Africa 31 runs short of India’s 152 was asking too much of his attack. Mohammad Hafeez said once Pakistan had reached 149, he knew they had the attack to defend it. That was the difference between the two teams. Ability, and the resultant self-belief. Who said bowlers don’t win you Twenty20 games? Pakistan’s did today, overcoming an opponent whose one opener himself had proved sufficient to destroy sides throughout the tournament.It was a staggering effort from Hafeez and his men. After Australia had swatted aside all four of their previous opponents, that Pakistan would make them struggle for their own semi-final qualification, at one stage, was almost unimaginable. But Pakistan have always delighted in the unimaginable, both good and bad. Don’t go by their display against India a couple of nights ago. That was a game played under a completely different kind of pressure, the kind that has, in recent years, only stopped Pakistan sides from playing like Pakistan sides. The kind of pressure on offer today was right up their street. In a way, it forced them to play the way they love to in such must-win situations – start steadily with the bat, build up some momentum, and then attack with the ball.Once they had got almost 150, one knew the Pakistan bowlers and fielders would be nearly unrecognisable from the match against India. What one wasn’t prepared for was the sheer, raw, brutal intensity of it. It seemed to shatter the thick glass wall of the press box and rouse you.Shahid Afridi and Umar Gul, both men no longer young, threw themselves onto the ball in the field. They were more than mere full-length dives. They were akin to big cats pouncing on prey. Legs pointing to the sky, hands coming down on the ball as their bodies crashed into the turf.Hafeez, strangely subdued and hesitant against India, was itching to bowl the first delivery of the chase, shouting instructions even before the Australia innings had begun. Raza Hasan, all of 20, but with skills and maturity far more advanced, began with four dot balls to Shane Watson. The suffocation had started. Watson fell in Hasan’s next over. Warner followed in Hafeez’s next, the first time in the tournament both men had gone cheaply.”We knew that 70-80% of Australia’s strength at the moment is their openers and Mike Hussey,” Hafeez said. “We wanted to get two of them early and their middle-order had not been tested in this tournament. We were very sure because in Dubai, our spinners had troubled their middle-order. We knew if we got Watson and Warner, we had the attack that would put them under pressure.”Hafeez, Hasan, Saeed Ajmal, Afridi, Shoaib Malik. The spinners just kept coming at Australia, who were stunned by the juggernaut, and had no answer. When Pakistan batted, Nasir Jamshed was the answer to their need for stability at 29 for 2. How he moved from accumulation to attack, after a few initial jitters, how he changed the momentum of the innings with a full-blooded thump of a pull for six off Pat Cummins, how he combined calm and power again, was another reminder of Jamshed’s maturity at 22. Hafeez praised both Jamshed and Hasan.”I have always had belief as captain in the talent of these two youngsters, and the selectors too backed them,” Hafeez said. “Jamshed has shown in ODIs that he is an excellent opener for Pakistan technically and Hasan has always performed his role in domestic cricket. We knew that whenever we brought Hasan into the team and gave him any role, with his talent and his maturity, he would fulfil it.”

From Dr

Cricinfo25-Feb-2013Dr. Ajay R. Kamath, India
I was seventeen in the Summer of 83, the year we won the world cup. For all the greatness of our Test performances, it is the World Cup that defines us….it was 1983 that made the world sit up and take notice of our cricket. Until then, it had all been individual performances- a Hazare here, a Gavaskar there, an occasional Vishy cameo and a cheerful thrashing overall.In 1983, we played as a team for the fist time. We had all rounders who bowled seam up. Everyone contributed. All of this was a rarity for us. It is impossible to describe the excitement of that evening. I live in Mangalore and I was a student then. There was no television, so the dulcet tones of Brian Johnston, Christopher Martin Jenkins and Don Mosey kept me company into the night.At first, it was all about “giving a fight” to the West Indies. To lose honourably was the highest ambition, for who could dream of beating the two times champions in a final. It was only at the fall of Clive Lloyd’s wicket that I began to hope and my father promptly went off to bed, a signal that things were hotting up, for he is, to this day, unable to take the tension of watching or listening to an Indian win, which never comes without several dozen palpitations.There were firecrackers outside my house when Holding was leg before. And yet, things on the field were, by today’s impossibly crass standards, very dignified. There are only two television events that make me weep- Amitabh dying in a film (‘Sholay’ brings on a veritable flood) and an Indian cricket win. Assuredly, the emotions are different in the latter scenario.