tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-153869332012-01-23T21:13:59.468+05:30The good, the bad and the ugly of a red ball gameangshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.comBlogger4041100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-67390448321175899762012-01-14T00:53:00.000+05:302012-01-14T00:53:40.952+05:30

Watch this. And before you share it: the guy is called Bevan Small.  He is not small but tall. To me. He might not do anything better than this for the rest of his cricket career...but he is still an addition to my list of idols. The commentators are quite rubbish though!!

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-58896852328561516422012-01-09T02:39:00.000+05:302012-01-09T02:39:03.383+05:30

‎80 years of playing Test cricket, and Indians still don't understand the basic requirement of scoring big in pitches favouring quicks.  It is called the "50/100 openers' rule". This rule is simple:  Either  (a) the openers need to play in a way that maximises chances of a 50 run opening partnership, Or  (b) it really is the plan-B, essentially that in case of an early dismissal of opening

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-27439855889869022132012-01-09T02:29:00.001+05:302012-01-09T02:30:48.858+05:30

"Laxman? Gambhir? Dravid? Kohli? Who gets dropped in 3rd Test?" We debate. But why not sehwag?  This series is not in india. He is not going to be watchful like he was in Aus'2008on a comeback trail..and will look to a 'free' century in Adelaide to maintain his 30 avg outside...(to be complimented by a 70+ at home and thus maintain the total 50 plus avg!!) He does not 'ensure' anything

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-5192113884731563822012-01-09T02:26:00.001+05:302012-01-09T02:30:30.487+05:30

How important is that? In that context, I have always rated that Brisbane'03 century by dada Ganguly (after 90/4) as the 3rd big turnaround point of Team India - after Eden 2001 and Leeds 2002. It changed the series from 'chin musicology' to 'unforgettable'.  And considering it came from a player who never scored another away Test ton against big teams of his time (Oz, SA, Pak), that 144 was

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-8977487185465248732011-12-27T23:23:00.001+05:302011-12-27T23:24:30.986+05:30

"I respect my wicket a hundred times more now" A profound, nine word Dave Warner mantra for all talented youngsters like Kohli, Raina who find it tough to complete the big leap from T20's to Test matches. Why, even not-so-youngsters like Yuvraj can heed it as well. Rohit Sharma, are you listening?

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-41903452149152724812011-12-27T23:16:00.000+05:302011-12-27T23:16:02.004+05:30

Today Sachin was Sachin of old, and Dravid was nowhere like the Dravid of late.Yet Dravid is there at the end of day while Sachin isn't.That's the day's Test cricket for you.

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-61551573638091447462011-11-30T19:16:00.000+05:302011-11-30T19:16:49.669+05:30

Gains from WI series:1) Viru has started getting 2nd innings runs in the 2nd decade of his Test career.2) Ashwin has stamped his Aussie never say die brand of fighting cricket in Tests too, after T20 and ODIs. What a year for him!3) Ojha, the other (better) spinner, nearly turns a dead Test into a win on a flat track...in a single sessn. Memories of the 70s & 90s. Dare say Harbhajan needs to

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-60524808173960297402011-11-20T10:56:00.000+05:302011-11-20T10:56:31.609+05:30

AUs-vs-RSA, 2nd Test, 2nd day at Jo'burg Tahir with Steyn. Top class leg spin with express pace.  Joyous to see both bowlers make the ball talk on same pitch, on same day. It could be called a great session of Test cricket, if only we had batsmen brought up on better stuff than T20...batsmen who "don't look at 3rd slip fielders as aliens encroaching their space" [to borrow the commentators'

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-6344917392939095432011-11-18T01:18:00.003+05:302011-11-20T10:11:44.499+05:30

In year 2008 and at age 35 this man, Rahul Dravid, was beginning to miss catches which he would grab earlier at slip (and in sleep);  he was suddenly batting as if the wall in him had been breached...and he ran so badly that he was his own worst enemy in any form of the game whenever  a short single was on offer. Even I made a blogpost contemplating his Test future at the time.  No one except MS

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-35561534038247385092011-11-15T22:03:00.000+05:302011-11-15T22:03:45.778+05:30

Bloody Amol Muzumder is now a specialist commentator on Neo, and all they can offer for Yuvi's failure is criticising his technique (without specifying WHAT part) and showing repeated replays of Yuvi taking eyes off the ball and getting hit...and then hinting that it might be due to Yuvi's lack of willingness to guts it out. If he hadn't gutsed it out, Sachin would have retired without World cup

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-5797358330085101702011-11-07T21:20:00.000+05:302011-11-07T21:20:37.389+05:30

Rahul Dravid couldn't have it scripted any better from a personal point of view. For the 8th consecutive time this season India are playing on a track assisting bowlers. What better time to strike golden farewell form, and remind the world who used to be world number 1 in such conditions between 2002 and 2006. Even today he had an answer to everything, including a half tracker that arrived at

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-87743465485752943772011-11-07T21:15:00.001+05:302011-11-07T21:16:32.966+05:30

On a 2nd day home track designed to their strengths, they lost about 20 wkts for 209 all out. Between them, the 2 openers were virtually dismissed abt 10 times to short catches and no balls before they finally got out...this while playing a bottom-halfer team, West Indies. I pray not, but I suspect the England series whitewash might have disturbed them like the 2004 'Final Frontier' home loss

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-39468306054198682502011-08-27T17:52:00.000+05:302011-08-27T17:52:10.041+05:30

Indian Cricket team do not have a Facebook account. They do have a Wall though. It keeps standing and doing its job come rain, fog or shine. This Wall does not like whitewashes but it is more than ready for a scrap

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-70307567232434480882011-04-23T23:39:00.002+05:302011-04-24T14:35:30.699+05:30

The customary glance from dinner table at IPL scores on SetMax told me Delhi had set an incredible 230 to Kings XI Punjab..Without looking at the scoreboard, it appears Sehwag has fired. Punjab were decently placed in the chase at 100 odd for 2 in 10 overs but even so the ask looks improbable to achieve. But then the camera pans to a Delhi Daredevils bowler who was released from 3 years of

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-50331259005719239722011-04-21T01:38:00.001+05:302011-04-21T01:42:18.780+05:30

Have a look at this link Do you know what is Murali's jersey number this IPL? I did not notice until tonight that it is derived from his achievements in another format, a format seen to be the only one where bowlers' need to take wickets is FAR more important than just containment. Check pic 9/10 of this link. [I say 'seen to be' b'coz it is only a perception. Taking wickets is the most

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-72582155423396156202011-04-20T22:35:00.003+05:302011-04-24T17:08:20.885+05:30

Actually that thought, posted as subject line, came to my mind as I was browsing through some old Facebook posts in my profile. I came across one on 12th March, as South Africa were taking advantage of India's inactive fields / bowling plans during middle overs. Here's what I wrote as a comment at 8-51pm (at around 40th over of South Africa innings): "Dhoni lets opponent get away in middle

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-80965667758707068182011-04-17T21:55:00.001+05:302011-04-18T21:15:48.074+05:30

A relieved Irfan Pathan turned up for a post-match interview after Delhi Daredevils' close win over Pune Warriors in IPLT20. They say Irfan lost confidence in his bowling. But whenever Irfan speaks, I see a confident & communicative young man ready with intelligent & frank responses without having to be prodded. Today I saw that sparkling side of Irfan once again. I even see shades of the current

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-9986165643417128332011-04-14T23:18:00.005+05:302011-04-17T22:58:31.235+05:30

I was passing via drawing-n-dining room** when I glanced at the TV screen. An IPL match was on, as you would expect this time of the year barring Richter 9. At that point of time they were showing a replay of Deccan Chargers' Ishant Sharma dismissing RCB's Dilshan caught behind with a good quick ball.At that point of time they were showing a replay of Deccan Chargers' Ishant Sharma dismissing

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-38052891533172708822011-04-13T01:25:00.002+05:302011-04-13T01:33:00.213+05:30

What goes up must come down. Likewise whatever gets previewed should also get reviewed - including the preview. Not that it is important to anyone (even myself)..just feel I need to get it out of the system before the World Cup win gets out of everyone's system. I will list a set a set of ticks and crosses. 'Tick's are for the things I was right about, and 'Crosses' for the ones when my foot

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-43357783782109182492011-04-04T23:54:00.004+05:302011-04-05T00:20:27.447+05:30

Following on my previous posts (this and this) urging all of us to be more open and allow day-night first class cricket to happen: I just came across a brilliant post from Michael Jeh on cricinfo's Different Strokes (reminds me of some delicious old days). That post was most impressive, not the least due to the fact that I have been spending some time of late with the kids playing cricket in my

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-70691872661024532182011-04-04T22:38:00.001+05:302011-04-04T22:45:25.315+05:30

Today a 'friend of friend' on Facebook stated sarcastically that he was 'glad that cricket was played mainly by 8 countries' (indicating India hardly had a chance to be world champions if cricket was played widely). He also went on to state that it is time for India to be doing better in sports that is popular in many more countries, like Football. I am sharing with you my reply to that point,

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-39781479791092029102011-04-03T19:59:00.001+05:302011-04-03T20:01:21.948+05:30

Heaven. A cold morning of early January 2011. God sips coffee early in the morning and checks his mailbox. He was out of office for the Durban Test between India and South Africa. The box is overflowing. He finds a lot of applications from India requesting, or almost ordering him to award the 2011 World Cup to Indian cricket team. Reason: This will be Sachin Tendulkar's last World Cup. His

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-33041282656494746812011-04-03T16:10:00.001+05:302011-04-03T16:13:34.948+05:30

We were jointly watching the cup at my friend's place. Sometime around the 30th over of Indian chase, the spinners were losing control on the batsmen. We were discussing if dew was a reason. One of us pointed out that the newly started custom of spraying anti-dew sprays had worked like a dream in favour of India during the semi-final at Mohali. Any effect of dew would suggest non-application of

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-29482999180647126872011-04-03T15:38:00.000+05:302011-04-03T15:38:11.678+05:30

During the Sri Lankan innings, Gambhir chased a ball and made a half-decent attempt to save a boundary off the last ball of the over. He failed. Ad break. Up comes a medical insurance company ad making viewers aware of its coverage of 'gambhir bimari' [serious diseases]. The acceleration of Sri Lankans was getting on the nerves of some of us.Gambhir's concession of that boundary did not help one

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-52618491503980027702011-04-03T14:51:00.000+05:302011-04-03T14:51:57.359+05:30

Anyone out there still likening Zaheer Khan's Cup final performance of 2011 to his performance in 2003? DON'T EVEN!!!!! Zaheer only bowled badly in last 3 overs yesterday. Maybe a better performance in those overs would have slashed 15 runs from Team India total and from his own bowling figures. But in retrospect it is critical that Zaheer saved his most special 1st spell for the final (6 runs

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-5958907899344906762011-04-03T13:58:00.003+05:302011-04-03T14:41:58.903+05:30

Mahendra Singh Dhoni was part of the previous Indian world cup (2007) team that was eliminated early. He, in fact, was integrally involved in the failure, when he failed to support the then skipper Dravid in the still-in-balance elimination match with Sri Lanka. He played the ugliest first-ball shot of his career to Murali first up and departed almost looking happy to go. Then came the elevation

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-51783989667828963312011-04-01T23:39:00.001+05:302011-04-04T23:59:34.156+05:30

My appeal to any cricket followers that read this post by intent or by accident: ------------------------------- Please spare a thought about supporting first class / Test cricket played with pink balls. It needs support. No use supporting the branches and leaves (read ODI's & T20) of a tree whose roots (first class cricket) are shrinking by the day. Currently floodlit first class cricket has

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-87134499302309828272011-04-01T19:48:00.000+05:302011-04-01T19:48:27.256+05:30

Who won the WORLD CUP since its inception (barring 1983, which was won by India)? 1) West Indies (1975, 1979)..& defeated in India's last group league match 2) Australia (1987, 1999, 2003, 2007)..& defeated in quarter final 3) Pakistan (1992)..& defeated in semi final 4) Sri Lanka (1996)..waiting in final India is a nation that respects history. We undo things in the EXACT order

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-79333061217054403502011-04-01T11:24:00.003+05:302011-04-02T00:35:36.701+05:30

As expected before the finals, the Indian players are nervously energetic. None of the Indian players has any idea of how the final will play out for him. Sehwag returns back to his room from a special lecture by Ravi Shastri on "Hitting deliveries to the boundary like tracer bullets" and immediately feels this tension. Being a social animal, Sehwag has no intent of withstanding this

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-32412005085448718762011-04-01T10:57:00.000+05:302011-04-01T10:57:53.830+05:30

This is the 376th post in this blog. Hold your congratulations - I am concentrating on surpassing Lara's 400 right now.. Wish me luck!!

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-33071329875085180192011-03-31T19:11:00.002+05:302011-03-31T19:13:57.918+05:30

The high voltage Ind Pak semifinal match of 2011 World Cup proved that pressure matches can also be played in good spirits. It also finally proved that God exists amidst us. Don't get me wrong - he is not a player who is in his 22nd year of career as many hallucinate. There was proof yesterday that the guy is a mere mortal. He is a slim, sharp looking umpire who has been sublime for many

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-65319111237272904482011-03-31T02:55:00.001+05:302011-03-31T02:56:19.606+05:30

After Nehra's 1st over: Nehra - you must come good. You also got swing in 1st over. C'monUpon my thoughts going back to Wahab Riaz's deliveries in the Indian innings even when the Pak chase was on: Wahab Riaz - can't still get over him!! Wonder what he can be if he gets swing both ways regularly. Upon why I thought India had a good chance of winning, even after making concession of Pakistan

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-57338057695810475512011-03-31T02:09:00.002+05:302011-03-31T02:57:25.902+05:30

"itni shiddat se maine tumhe paane ki koshish ki hai ki har zarre ne mujhe tumse milane ki saazish ki hai.... kehte hai agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaaho toh poori kaynaat tumhein usse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai...aap sabne mujhe meri chahat se mila diya...thanks, thanks very much, kehte hai ki filmon ki tarah hamari zindagi mein bhi end tak sab theek hee ho jaata hai..happys

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-64289711343362787452011-03-29T12:14:00.006+05:302011-04-05T00:00:09.602+05:30

Q-AH: "If India win the WC, would that be more special that winning a Test series against a formidable SA in SA?"A-AH: Difficult to tell - India stopped short of winning the series this January. Had India won the SA test series, I would have probably gone ahead and said 'No'. Actually a World Cup win would be a collective joy, something that I can enjoy with all...without being extra special to

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-15576483074335429772011-03-29T00:51:00.000+05:302011-03-29T00:51:18.862+05:30

Cricinfo's Andy Zaltzman on the main sub-plot of the Indo-Pak WC Semi final: "India’s batsmen now average 74 against Test-opposition spin in this World Cup. Pakistan’s spinners average 21 against Test-team batsmen."Sometimes statistics can surprise you by speaking the truth like no words could. That battle may well decide the war.

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-17151388637677634012011-03-29T00:46:00.000+05:302011-03-29T00:46:26.294+05:30

I seriously believe so...and hence this post is to confirm that I am NOT prepared to write a farewell note on him just as yet.

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-60006946755025806512011-03-29T00:31:00.000+05:302011-03-29T00:31:32.333+05:30

Have a look at these pictures...can't imagine that I never visited these pages of cricinfo till today. I loved the pics and that is why I am storing the links for keeps. In fact, I was tempted to turn back the timepiece by a month and half, load my purse heavily and visit these places even as the matches happened. The last two temptations are nearly as feasible as the first one..but the photos

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-725201227583561602011-03-28T23:47:00.000+05:302011-03-28T23:47:48.772+05:30

This is the video link of the famous desert storm innings, Sharjah 1998: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXRkHervQJc&feature=fvwrel India were facing elimination in the tri-nation tourney if they lost this match by a certain margin. After a major early collapse, there appeared no way that India would even come close to overhauling that margin. Sachin helped the team get over the minimum runs

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-81348224577733349222011-03-25T23:28:00.001+05:302011-03-25T23:47:05.382+05:30

[Note: This is a result based analysis - I have not watched the match live and hence cannot comment on its nuances] On South Africa ---------------- This is an upset. From whatever angle you look at it, this remains an upset. And especially so after New Zealand squandered a good fightback by Ryder and Taylor to limp to 220 odd. But this was ALSO a mishap waiting to happen. For all the well laid

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-79692295769853207392011-03-25T22:27:00.000+05:302011-03-25T22:27:23.696+05:30

A former cricketer on 'walking' controversy in 2011 WC: "It's nice to see people walking but that doesn't happen now I guess,There is a system in place now so that you can't get away with it. I mean people still take chances and why not? Jayawardene took a chance and it went the other way." Guess who said it? 'Walker' Younis!!  

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-69529495968972311642011-03-25T19:26:00.000+05:302011-03-25T19:26:26.532+05:30

Here's a compliment for His Gloriousness Yuvraj Singh from the unlikeliest of quarters - cricket comedian Andy Zaltzman. -------------------- Yuvraj is one of those few fascinating cricketers who combine majesty with vulnerability. As a Test player, he has mostly disappointed, the average of 35 that you see in the record book at odds with the left-hand Wally Hammond that you see at the crease.

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-46285664406320679012011-03-25T00:51:00.000+05:302011-03-25T00:51:10.641+05:30

Ghosts (notions) that India have exorcised today by their winning performance in QF: 1) India can't win in WC knockouts without Sachin playing a big role (before you shout - I said 'big role'...it last happened in 1996 QF; counterpoint - a weak one, 2003 Kenya SF;-) 2) India can win WC knockouts without Yuvraj Singh in playing 11 (it seems irrelevant - but ahead of WC his position in side was

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-15117472503491335012011-03-23T01:57:00.000+05:302011-03-23T01:57:06.244+05:30

We look at the contribution of cricket's genuine ODI all-rounders to matches won by their side. We are silenced in awe. 1) Jayasuriya averaged 41.3 with bat and 27.5 with ball in the 233 ODI's he has played for Sri lanka and ended up on winning side. Essentially he provided an additional player to his skipper: a specialist bowler (it was not occasional partnership breaking spin - he got 222

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-16124731571935109842011-03-21T08:23:00.001+05:302011-03-21T08:25:58.896+05:30

Summary of Indian show in 2011 cricket WC league phase:  1) Ind go into QF without having chased against a Test team. 2) Ind had top order collapses each time they batted second (against minnows) and lower middle order collapses each time they batted first (against Test sides). 3) Outcome of pt.#2: The extra batsman, taken at the cost of a 5th bowler, has been wasted EVERY TIME India

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-9778484873939256222011-03-17T23:47:00.000+05:302011-03-17T23:47:18.552+05:30

Won't say much....as the feeling is yet to sink in. Just got swept off my feet reading the man's words on 'his most special moment' during the press conference announcing his imminent retirement. Shoaib Akhtar truly is one of a kind..a rather heterogenous one. Links to other very readable cricinfo articles on the occasion: Remembering the 'colours' of Shoaib: http://www.espncricinfo.com/

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-16647585861535834612011-03-12T18:44:00.001+05:302011-03-12T18:53:40.500+05:30

Sachin Tendulkar. This guy's too much. I was returning from some urgent work, driving on the road. Having caught a glimpse of India's good opening stand at Nagpur, I turned my car radio on....and sure enough I hear: 'Sachin Tendulkar on 99...and here comes his 100th run!' Another century. He scores so many of them, you can't miss them tons even on the road!! But somehow this one sounded familiar…

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-51871285636881653072011-03-10T15:50:00.000+05:302011-03-10T15:50:40.310+05:30

Here's a thought for those excessively worried about Indian batting collapses  in the last two WC games against unfancied Ireland and Netherlands: Yuvi scores 58, 50* & 51* in successive matches. Good news? YES, even though 2 of them are against Minnows. He got them three scores in three different situations, exactly as Yuvraj Singh mark-2011 should have got them. Not as Virender Sehwag, Paul

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-86177690926954709302011-03-08T21:48:00.001+05:302011-03-09T00:05:23.056+05:30

These 'How'lers were compiled from today's cricinfo commentary page during the last 10 overs of NZ innings during today's Pak-NZ match --------------------- Episode 1: "How boring" - Readers' comments during the innings of Jamie How who scored 4 off 29 runs ..after How concedes a maiden to Umar Gul when the latter is introduced in 11th over: Cam: "How do you put a person to sleep? How." ..

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-81825189914630437272011-03-06T20:15:00.000+05:302011-03-06T20:15:54.211+05:30

Shane Warne dozes off in front of TV on Saturday night and soon ventures into a dream....he is participating in a British WC Quiz conducted by Liz Hurley: ------------------- Liz: Which are the two sides making news in 2011 WC for both great spin bowling as well as their skippers' imaginative use of it?  Shane: One is England..LOL.. Liz: Complete the answer please.. Shane: The 2nd is

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-61752413380624456492011-03-03T22:07:00.000+05:302011-03-03T22:07:30.963+05:30

Ireland overcame a big target yesterday on a batting pitch against Test side England. You would not see it happen nine out of ten times. [That's my humble take on the 'epic upset'] But to be fair to Ireland, they have been the only associate country which, over the years of Kenya's decline as 'potential Test material' during last decade , have looked like bringing about this type of 'upset'. 

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-5315849685218156232011-02-28T00:34:00.000+05:302011-02-28T00:34:01.432+05:30

Another bashing festival on a bowler killing pitch! Only the result and the build up to it (i.e. final 10 out of 100 overs) will stay in memory, besides the rather indifferent captaincy by MS Dhoni before PP3 was taken by England. Interesting takeaway of match: Powerplay 3, dreaded by fielding captains, came to the rescue of both skippers when they were cluelessly ultra defensive in the face

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-36708040702594784392011-02-27T00:32:00.007+05:302011-02-27T00:50:32.358+05:30

Once again pals, I can only share my match summary as posted on Facebook a while ago after the SL-vs-Pak match ended:   SL vs Pak: At last a proper WC match...where we got good batting and good bowling in both innings..Would have been a very good match with close finish if Chamara Silva would have scored more than 13 in his first 40 balls...First the backdrop of my Pakistan review that will

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-66250941228213096152011-02-25T23:32:00.001+05:302011-02-25T23:36:49.054+05:30

I was searching for youtube videos of our featured player of the day. We share those amongst a FB forum of colleague friends trying to make the most out of the cricket World Cup. Each day we have decided to have a World Cup great as a player of the day. I picked up a number of videos from the net to pay tribute to this man...for example this one, or that one - even this. Then I tried to search

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-21387303948302036212011-02-24T20:25:00.004+05:302011-04-01T13:12:44.065+05:30

These days we are playing a little cricket quizzing game in a closed Facebook forum of a few old friends...and trying to answer each others questons without using the net. AD Prasad, one of my friends, asked about the guy who comes in this WC with highest World Cup batting average. Turns out to be Shane Watson (112). Holland hero Ryan ten Doeschate is number 5 with a figure in the 80's from 4

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-39779858178810605122011-02-17T23:33:00.007+05:302011-03-10T22:53:38.422+05:30

I simply love this guy's communications...most willing to make him my communication guru. He might be the only skipper in the history of all cricket to speak exact same things at press meets as well as team meetings - and be respected by all concerned for doing that!! Mahendra Singh Dhoni is a genuine trailblazer in this field. He has blasted all previously held notions of discreetness by

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-7818417318803969592011-02-13T15:49:00.002+05:302011-02-13T16:11:24.797+05:30

You have read millions of articles on 'Dada' evoking love and hate alike. Dileep Peemachandran's cricinfo article on the same topic does not offer new insights to start with...you can skip the "oh no, not again" parts in the first 10 paras. I suggest you go to the 11th paragraph straightaway, where Dileep begins his account of Ganguly's 144 at Gabba. Indeed it was Dada's finest hour of both

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-5526174728304212292011-01-16T02:38:00.006+05:302011-01-16T03:16:51.187+05:30

Disappointed at the tame end to the 3rd Test with South Africa, and also sensing some upheavals on personal / professional front, I made this 'wall post' on Facebook couple of days back: Apologies to my non-cricket loving friends for an overdose of cricket (Indian cricket, actually) related messages on my wall. For next 3 months there will be overdose of silly ODI's and sillier T20's, so not

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-33468752030800920402011-01-16T02:20:00.000+05:302011-01-16T02:20:27.868+05:30

I am not referring to India's thrilling 1 run win defending 190. I stopped short of stating a cliched "yet another comeback from MSD's men", in case you did not notice.. It is a curious few seconds of unusual sight that struck me. I thought I actually watched Munaf Patel running like a gazelle and fielding off his own bowling even with a close-in fielder around. In FB jargon I "superliked" it.

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-8364536641322191892011-01-04T22:58:00.001+05:302011-01-04T23:19:51.766+05:30

"This looks so familiar.... - India plays the best Test opposition available on earth. - At close of 3rd day of 3rd Test little separates the 2 teams; all 3 results are possible @ 33.33% each in the Test, and in the series too. - Laxman has won the 2nd Test, scoring more runs than one of the opponent's innings. Zaheer Khan joins the playing 11 in the same 2nd Test. - Indian bowling, ragged in

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-72505013027400283112011-01-04T01:15:00.004+05:302011-01-04T08:17:49.602+05:30

Indian batsman VVS Laxman scored 38 and 96 in the Durban Test, thus totalling 134 runs in the Durban Test. In the process he helped his team set 300+ as a 4th innings target to hosts South Africa on a seamer-friendly track. South Africa scored a mere 131 runs in their 1st innings as the Indian bowling attack punched way above their perceived capabilities under the stewardship of Zaheer Khan. As

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-45670982963941513082010-12-21T23:37:00.001+05:302010-12-21T23:41:41.228+05:30

The quote below, amongst all I have read in past 5 years that praise or criticise him, best sums up the single biggest quality that defines the Sachin Tendulkar of today. Slyly, slowly and singlemindedly he has gone for the 10th mode of dismissal. Sachin has 'timed' everyone out through his continued love affair with Test cricket. 21 years after debut, it is quite extraordinary that he is

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-46699927257176282652010-12-19T15:27:00.002+05:302011-02-13T16:51:36.801+05:30

Instance 1: Robin Jackman was discussing a replay of Ishant's reprieve last nite (3rd day close of play of Ind-vs-SA 1st Test at Centurion). Ishant, after apparently being cleanly caught of Morkel's bowling, was called back by umpire Ian Gould after he chose to check foot position of Morkel at delivery with 3rd umpire under the new regulations and uncovered a no-ball. Jacko then went back to the

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-53364296274486897332010-12-19T15:01:00.000+05:302010-12-19T15:01:08.819+05:30

Reproducing a Facebook conversation with my friend Bikash Tewari: Bikash: wht do u feel , india has any chance in this test, in my view tomorrow is going to be the last day of this test, nomore 5th day is required. Angshuman: @Bikash: Sharing my thoughts: India being a top Test team does not depend on what the ICC ranking says, or whether the Indian team does Eden 2001 in the next 2 days. It

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-52291995077719735612010-11-21T21:59:00.000+05:302010-11-21T21:59:18.457+05:30

Reproducing my Facebook wall post: "India 292/2 in 82 overs after NZ's 193 all out...When will the Indians ever dominate if not in the current Test?? They are already about 30 or 40 short of what they should have been at end of day given the position and opposition bowling..Get a feeling that there is no 5th gear, and the team believes depending on the opposition car's failure for a win is a

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-83372228859062850252010-11-14T14:20:00.011+05:302010-11-14T14:35:51.994+05:30

I just read an interesting article by Rudi Webster on 'the psychology of cheating', including possible ways to encourage integrity in sportsmen. Recommend it even for non-cricket fans..especially the results of the tests with and without vows of code of honour. What the article does not say: Does it work as well even on sample students taking their 100th test with such vow? Those tainted guys

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-54388390508192689272010-11-13T14:05:00.001+05:302010-11-21T22:00:30.329+05:30

Breaking news: Sehwag made a trip to a new planet today. It is called 'scoring 2 runs in 21 balls'. Amazingly he survived his stay in the planet. Further news: Sehwag's personal score now reads 25(35)..the next 14 balls yielded 23 runs. Perhaps the 12th man came running out to the crease and drew Sehwag's attention to an indignant looking man standing at the boundary rope, fully clad in

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-59142158674026554912010-10-06T02:18:00.001+05:302010-10-06T02:27:07.808+05:30

  Take a great modern Test batsman (i.e. someone with avg easily over 50 plus) Strip his Test stats of ALL "fair weather" runs Check his residual batting average Is it still above 45? Does his century count still top 16? And does he have the number of match winning non-hundreds as the 'benchmark' has? And has he scored nearly a third of his career runs against the most dominant side of his

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-75608043848449008692010-08-18T00:12:00.003+05:302010-08-18T00:17:49.325+05:30

Sneaked into cricinfo today to check the latest on the silly Randiv no-ball controversy - more precisely to check if Sangakkara was involved in asking Randiv for that no-ball as some Indian news channels claimed. Let me confess - I was planning to get more updates on Sanga's guilt so that I could write a post relating this incident to the final sequence of the movie 'A Few Good Men' where

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-6532588086111817112010-08-12T23:08:00.000+05:302010-08-12T23:08:05.017+05:30

Highest numbers by various 'couples' in recent history - Those were the days, RD...

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-35188562767546354242010-08-12T23:04:00.001+05:302010-08-12T23:10:00.286+05:30

Munaf Patel is being flown in to replace Ishant Sharma in the tri nation ODI tourney at SL. Reason: Ishant is struggling with a knee injury. A tinge of sadness comes upon hearing those 2 names. Together, in the same sentence. In another depressing news of injury to an upcoming Indian fast bowler. As of today neither are quite the 'fast bowlers' as per the first three words of that report, none

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-13966738947020091472010-08-06T21:33:00.003+05:302010-08-07T10:12:47.398+05:30

Purpose of this post: Stating a closing argument against the malpractice of deriding Murali's achievements in comparison to Warne's. [statistical closure, I meant - there is no remedy to people using baseless 'arm twisting' tactics of getting away from the statistical argument] The Test bowling stats of Warne and Murali The career Tests stats - TAKEN EXCLUDING BANGLADESH AND ZIMBABWE -

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-91553189569674862462010-08-06T20:00:00.000+05:302010-08-06T20:00:23.505+05:30

"Can't you just speed it up a little bit, because we struggle to fit it into the super slow-mo replays." Rudi Koertzen gets some advice on his signature 'slow death' signal from a television producer [source: cricinfo quotes] Read an older post on Rudi's slow handedness here

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-89362855607866007392010-08-06T19:36:00.003+05:302010-08-06T19:47:45.916+05:30

This post has some usual ROTFL lines (especially on Zaltzman's fave Kamran). Typical Zaltzman....and a bit more than that. It's like a good Rajkumar Hirani film. His examples (starting with Morgan's success last week, and going back to famous ones) and pointers therein on the specific role played by luck were splendid. His thoughts on Pietersen's hundred in the 5th Ashes Test of 2005 took me

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-79308208000363406462010-08-06T16:23:00.002+05:302010-08-06T16:28:11.481+05:30

[Click for LARGER view]The gallant man from Sri Lankan army left no choice, after playing an unforgettable innings of 78 as the Lankan number 10 in the 3rd Test against India on the 4th day. To put the relevance of Mendis' effort in perspective: Sri Lanka are ranked number 3 and are playing a prestigious series against India, the number one ranked team in Tests (thought not the number 1 in

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-77092236993875585412010-08-06T13:36:00.003+05:302010-08-06T13:42:17.512+05:30

Is it possible that Rahul stumbled upon the last "Pavilion View" blogpost? After painstaking innings in the first two Tests, a new avatar of Rahul came out in this Test and scored his first 20 runs off 5 boundary hits. Wonder if it is a first for him in any cricket - leave alone Tests. Dunno, but the haughty b*****d in me would want to believe that this somewhat Sehwag-ised (or Vir-ile) edition

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-16215591908145578262010-08-06T13:26:00.000+05:302010-08-06T13:26:12.123+05:30

I sent an sms to some of my friends on today, the 4th morning of 3rd Ind-SL test at the P Sara stadium. I started keying into my non-qwerty pad at 45 mins point after start of day’s play when Sanga and Mahela were batting, managing to send it about10 mins later. "Ishant looks like Perth'08 bowlg brillntly 2 Sanga who is takg blows but protects wkt. Grt climax, result jo bhi ho (whatever be the

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-14167005226885285232010-07-31T20:33:00.004+05:302010-08-01T23:37:32.716+05:30

Steve Waugh was asked during his recent India visit if the Indian Test side deserved to be ranked number 1 even as it is struggling to bag 20 opposition wickets. Steve responded, tongue in cheek: "If the team continues to struggle to take 20 wickets, there will be no wins and top position will automatically go away". I agree..and see it happen soon if things do not change. However the current

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-88476413528145388582010-07-31T18:56:00.030+05:302010-08-03T02:23:37.441+05:30

Here's Andew Hughes' fun take on the Aussie cricketers' own rules of the sport. Besides enjoying the humour, many of us would admiringly agree with Andrew's findings from the last day of Australia's recent loss to Pakistan: "Why don’t they give up? Every other nation on earth would have gone through the motions this morning. Where does it come from? It certainly isn’t a genetic inheritance. The

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-4241809236090758632010-07-18T23:18:00.001+05:302010-07-18T23:24:56.610+05:30

Afridi has done it again - from being the Pakistan Test skipper, he has retired from Test cricket after the 1st Test of a 3-Test series. Today's quote on the cricinfo page happens to be: "I wasn't good enough"Shahid Afridi doesn't mince words when announcing his retirement from Tests And he goes on to drive the point home: "I took the decision in the best interest of the team and hope a

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-39057510882807715322010-07-18T22:26:00.002+05:302010-08-06T20:10:56.674+05:30

This post aims to clear a few 'Murali' cobwebs and let the sunshine come in at the time when this great cricketer most deserves it - on the eve of his Test retirement. His action first. Here is a frank and reasonably fair assessment of the great Murali's action from that other great Warnie: "Murali's action has been passed by scientific tests, I always thought it was probably legitimate," Warne

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-44497921947526451152010-07-18T22:01:00.001+05:302010-07-18T22:04:14.687+05:30

A nephew asked me this question on Facebook. His personal take was that Murali could have continued as he had more to offer. This is always a difficult question - to 'foretell' what could have been for a top cricketer depending on his advancing age and his diminishing form. We did that once or twice earlier (most notably with Dada in 2005).... we did not spare Sachin in 2006 either...(hard to

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-25879459433036477302010-07-15T02:15:00.039+05:302010-07-15T02:47:35.232+05:30

This video shows how a sixteen year old Sachin spoke in front of TV in 1989, just before international cricket happened to him. And this one shows how he spoke at age 36 in an interview with Boria Mazumdar in 2009, celebrating completion of Sachin's 20 years in international cricket. 180204 AD: Manidus (descendent of humans, but more advanced) have found a 21st century relic. After research

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-74185706097529524342010-04-27T14:22:00.001+05:302010-04-27T14:26:13.598+05:30

Some weeks back I clicked this picture with a cellcam while waiting at my daughter's skating classes. This plant had an interesting arrangement of foliage. Younger leaves were coming into their own from below the dark shaded older ones at the top even as the youngest lot could be seen emerging further down.  An analogy had struck me as soon as I saw the pattern in those leaves. I am trying to

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-38288478989571450192009-12-18T21:56:00.003+05:302009-12-18T23:09:53.612+05:30

Peter Roebuck writes a piece on Jayasuriya who rose above himself as a batsman but never added the negatives that people often inbibe in their nature on that treacherous journey.Who else can fill your mind if you try to think of a Viv Richards who is not throwing attitude, a Sehwag who is even less complicated than Sehwag on seeing bad balls and knowing what to do with them, a great player who

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-62743867157631316522009-11-17T01:32:00.004+05:302009-11-17T01:56:47.802+05:30

2009 is coming to a close. Rahul Dravid chose to play an uncharacteristically racy knock against Sri Lanka in the first Test started today. Certainly a memorable knock.Or is there another cricket-memory that you recall far more vividly than Rahul's 27th Test ton, something that effertlessly defines the decade of 2000's for you?I fancy some of you writing back on the comments section of this post

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-9066318680084371732009-11-16T21:50:00.003+05:302009-11-16T21:54:58.106+05:30

Cricinfo has started this new and absolutely lovely blog on some memorable snaps of live cricket. Those are from the collection of photogrpaher Hamish Blair of Getty Images. As fascinating as the pics are the technical and situational descriptions that go with it. C'mon Hamish, we are waiting for more, lots more.

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-37622568630720977802009-11-14T09:50:00.002+05:302009-11-14T10:07:14.104+05:30

You are sitting on a couch with your 7th bowl of masala popcorns. It is the final ball of the final session of the final Test match of an unusual series of close matches yielding no results due to various cricketing and atmospheric reasons. This last match was a close affair till the end, which is why you have taken a day off and latching on to the television. Your team is bowling the last ball

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-14052928719164521942009-11-13T23:21:00.023+05:302011-03-28T23:52:42.311+05:30

As the comments under this 21 year old Harsha Bhogle article on Sachin explain, the republication of this old post has taken back many readers to their younger (or youngest) days. It takes me back too, but not that far. A not so memorable afternoon from 2002 for Sachin the batsman which happened to coincide with one of the greatest moments of this decade for Indian cricket. The Natwest final,

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-20391564479620800992009-10-24T09:28:00.004+05:302009-10-24T10:01:23.324+05:30

For the last few years we are speculating on the decline of Oz from their lofty standards. Much of it is true."Australian cricket team is on a downward spiral" - I bet you heard that before. They lost major players in a succession. The other teams were catching up. Their two major contenders for the top position, India and South Africa, were taking turns at putting the once invincible Kangaroos

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-11267477452270742222009-10-07T23:49:00.002+05:302009-10-07T23:52:29.876+05:30

NDTV were interviewing Lalit Modi and Ravi Shastri on the exciting prospects of Champions' League T20. Rahul Dravid joined in the interview. Though ke kept looking like a fish out of water in the interview aimed at exhorting the newest thing in cricket's entertainment avatar, Rahul came up with the two best quotes of the session. Rahul reflected back on the way his T2o team Bangalore Royal

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-86009760769365996292009-09-28T11:42:00.005+05:302009-09-28T12:01:07.209+05:30

They used to say that South Africa was the deathland for spinners. There were as many good spinners in the SA team of the 90's as there were fish in the Dead Sea. It slowly started changing since the middle part of the current decade. The pitches in SA did not change much. However the spinners around the world have gradually started realising what Shane Warne always demostrated when he used to

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-55791794677378994572009-09-28T11:41:00.002+05:302009-10-08T14:13:53.475+05:30

I found some thoroughly enjoyable selections in the eleven greatest XI's in ODI's.Some of the nippy comments made to support the various selections:Brian Lara (in All time World XI): "Not many can guide a waist-high Waqar delivery outside off-stump over fine leg for six. Fewer can make a massacre look beautiful."Glenn McGrath (in All time World XI): "No bowler makes batsmen more doubtful of their

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-66014908983489905212009-09-26T19:13:00.003+05:302009-09-26T19:24:02.453+05:30

I thought this was a rather sweet rendition of the Indian National Anthem by a South African singer. This guy did another good job some time earlier with the Pakistani national anthem as well. That is when I decided to record the Indian anthem from the telly with my camcorder. I liked it enough to upload it on youtube.FUN FACT: Notice how Ashish (Nehra) and (Rahul) Dravid appear both in the words

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-63710156314616829142009-09-26T18:55:00.006+05:302009-09-26T19:12:51.445+05:30

A little over 20 years back, I was dreaming of becoming a national level cricketer some day who could play 70 odd Tests and finish with 300 wickets and 3000 runs in Tests. That dream disappeared pretty soon afterwards.Before start of the 2009 ICC trophy India-Pakistan league match today, the players of both teams were escorted out by young boys and girls. Some of them, including Sachin, were

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-82989308518233428412009-06-27T12:02:00.015+05:302009-07-02T02:34:57.662+05:30

Do Michael Jeh and me have a common hub to our "cricket thought processes" somewhere? The next post after Dhoni that I was (not surprisingly) unable to put up on Pavilion View after Pakistan's T20 triumph last week was (not surprisingly again) on Afridi. But here is Mr Jeh, blogging on Afridi on Different Strokes and urging the maverick Pak all-rounder to utilise the rest of his cricketing days

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-58161647131372881532009-06-27T11:48:00.003+05:302009-06-27T11:58:27.207+05:30

Since India's ouster from T20 World Cup I was planning to put up a post on Dhoni. It never materialised.I thank Michael Jeh (Different Strokes, cricinfo) for allowing me to make up somewhat for that non-post. He has written a fine post on Dhoni at 'Different Strokes' where he discusses much the same issues I had in mind.I am referring you to that post, on the rather flimsy ground that I made a

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-28659229191910344802009-05-24T03:26:00.003+05:302009-05-24T03:35:43.455+05:30

[Note: I made this post nearly 2 years back in another blog. The site has since been revamped and the post is nowhere to be seen. I have a soft corner for that post as it brings me back to my past and makes me say Hi to it whenever I go through that post. I am reproducing that Sep'2007 post here in Pavilion View.]Sep 28, 2007“Paara” cricket in Bengal’s suburbsBengal has been game for cricket for

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-20902227608215550402009-05-24T01:58:00.007+05:302009-05-24T02:25:10.706+05:30

What was it that allowed that to happen?Was it the extra bounce? Perhaps it was. The extra rise was clearly worked to the advantage by all the top spinners including Kumble, Ojha, Warne, Vettori, Harbhajan and Muralitharan.Also, was it the extra 10 or so yards from the batting crease to the boundary ropes? I remember Ian Chappell expressing frustration last year at the bats getting better and the

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-10549411888592108062009-05-24T01:33:00.005+05:302009-05-24T02:28:55.117+05:30

....no matter who you have at the crease during those overs with whatever number of wickets in hand.Need proof?Have a look at this chart for the IPL season 2 stats showcasing best strike rates amongst batsmen.The list may well get new additions after the 2nd semi final and the final, but as on 23rd May morning there are only a handful of people who could twice achieve a strike rate of 200 or more

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15386933.post-44370847425668151692009-05-23T23:54:00.005+05:302009-05-24T00:41:47.500+05:30

Do you believe in that?? Then perhaps you can't even picture the man I will talk about now as a remotely good one.Look at this!!We remember Shaun Pollock the captain as the guy that allowed his team to get knocked out of the 2003 world cup by miscalculating the rain shortened target by 1 run....But he is the 3rd most successful captain after Ponting and Jardine in the history of Test cricket. And

angshuhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11727220390983260907noreply@blogger.com0