Posts
Loading ...one-day-cricket
« Previous EntriesHave England started caring?
By Jonathan Liew 3 months ago, 4 Comments »
Here are some of the things Paul Collingwood has said during the current one-day series:
“There are 11 blokes in the dressing-room who are devastated.”
“There are a lot of people in that dressing room that are very, very hurt about tonight’s performance.”
“If I had just hit those stumps, we were a millimetre or so away from winning the game. I will probably be dreaming about it for many years to come.”
Compare this with some of the quotes emanating from the England camp after their last proper one-day humiliation, the 5-0 whitewash against Sri Lanka:
Fletcher: “It would be very interesting if Sri Lanka were missing eight of their players and we had eight of our players back. That is the formula you have to look at. What then would the result have been?”
Trescothick: “Nothing seems to have gone our way this series, nothing’s worked. We’ve talked about a lot of things, but not put them into practice too well.”
Strauss: “Sometimes you’ve just got to hold your hands up and say, ‘Well played.’”
It may be that England finally have some sort of emotional investment in their one-day cricket. In the 2006 quotes there’s hardly any sense of hurt or wounded pride. Rather, the tendency was to see one-day defeat as an annoyance, mitigated by the prospect of finally being able to play some ‘proper’ cricket again. It was the equivalent of being spurned by a lover and then protesting that you didn’t want them anyway.
Under Moores - and I’m sure there’s other factors as well - one-day cricket is a fully-paid up, fully equal partner to the longer stuff. Even though the bowling performance yesterday was insipid, there’s no doubting they really wanted it. Perhaps that hunger told in the end. Compare that with Steve Harmison sleepwalking his way through ten overs of rubbish.
The one-day party has been in full swing for about 20 years. Only now, it seems, have England decided to take their coats off.
4 Comments »Trouble at t’mill
By Jonathan Liew 3 months ago, 9 Comments »
It’s hard to pick just one scapegoat out of the wreckage of England’s latest one-day catastrophe, but let’s start with Ravi Bopara.
Clearly Bopara’s poor series in Sri Lanka has knocked the stuffing out of him. His one-day career, one sparkling innings aside, has been mediocre, and his suicidal run-out of Alastair Cook smacked of a crucial deficit of confidence.
Which raises a valuable question - what on earth is he doing batting at seven? Like most of the England batsmen, he bats in the top three for his county. But seven is possibly the hardest position in which to make your mark - you’ve generally either got three overs to hit out, or thirty to save an innings in crisis. In both situations, Bopara tends to freeze.
So here’s an idea: instead of ringing desperate changes, as the selectors will probably be pressured into doing, how’s about swapping Bopara and Mustard around? Mustard may ultimately be England’s pinch-hitter, but at the moment he doesn’t look like hanging around much longer than the first Powerplay. What’s he like in the middle overs? How will he play spin? This is how you find out.
He’s also the kind of guy you want at the death, unlike Bopara, who for all his hustle has never hit a six in an ODI. It’s worth remembering that even Gilchrist started his one-day career down the order before moving up later.
A top three of Cook, Bopara and Bell might seem a bit stodgy, but it’ll provide some much needed platforms for the likes of Pietersen and Shah to have a blaze later. And all three can score at a fair lick when they’re set, whereas Mustard’s inimitable brand of haru-kiri currently means they’re constantly having to rebuild.
Having said all that, listening to England’s capitulation made me pine for one player in particular - Super Ramps. He’d put that upstart Styris into Row V.
9 Comments »New Zealand v England, 1st ODI, Wellington
By Will 3 months ago, 2 Comments »
England enter the one-day series against New Zealand not only in winning form, but as favourites. What on earth is going on? Me and my boss, Martin Williamson, will be covering the game on ball-by-ball and bulletin throughout the night at Cricinfo. Read Peter Burdon’s preview and join us over there for analysis and humour.
2 Comments »England win a one-day series
By Will last year, mid-October, 7 Comments »
Even I, an insufferable cynic of one-day cricket, had to be impressed by England today. In fact, they have been the better team all series. Athletic in the field, imaginative and flexible with the ball, generally industrious with the bat and captained sensibly by Paul Collingwood.
Your thoughts on the match and series? Is this the turning point or were Sri Lanka caught napping in light of being Muraliless?
7 Comments »A necessary evil
By Jonathan Liew last year, at the end of September, No Comments; be the first!
I have to disagree with what Will’s written below, if only indirectly.
By this I mean that I too wish that there were less cricket, and fewer meaningless one-day nothings. But the reality is that international cricket must turn a hefty profit, seeing as domestic cricket everywhere in the world – and Test cricket in some countries – does not. To fuel the intense growth the sport needs in order to survive, it has to reach as many people as possible. And if you’re not sure that’s a good thing to be aiming for, consider this: a generation ago, the only way of following overseas tours was in the paper the next morning or in a 30-second report on the news. TV and the web have made cricket global, and it’s benefited all of us.
And thus the pointless but necessary one-day treadmill. But it’s not like all this extra cricket is being shoved down our throats against our will. If real cricket fans weren’t prepared to watch and pay for it, it wouldn’t happen. The cricket boards, the ICC and the executives are only meeting demand.
Of course we’re worried about standards, and we’re right to rail at the greed of those in charge. But we shouldn’t discard a formula that has given fans greater access to cricket than ever before. Besides, the only people who could realistically do something about it if they wanted to are the players themselves, and apart from the odd muttered protest, they’ve been strangely inactive on the issue.
A final thought. This time last year England were in exactly the same position – thrown into an Ashes series straight after a major tournament. Back then the criticism was not that England were playing too much cricket, but not enough. We have to strike a balance somewhere.
No Comments »Rest in peace, 50-over cricket?
By Will last year, at the end of September, 19 Comments »
Today’s match, the final of the World Twenty20, was a real cracker; a low-scoring thriller decided in the final over. A fitting finale (if not tribute) to the tournament, some are saying. And I dread to think of India’s reaction to it all. “The greatest day in Indian cricket history!” will be a penned as a headline, somewhere, on a newspaper, website, blog or city wall shortly I’m sure.
But hang on a minute. Is this tournament a viable replacement, as many advocate it should be, to 50-over cricket, a format that has been in place for 45 years? Are we not shortening the games for shortening’s sake?
One-dayers began as 65 overs. Then they were reduced to 60; cut to 50; snipped to 40; bolstered to 45 before levelling off at 50. Until the ECB, panicking at a decline in gate receipts, thought they’d try something new and they cut the whole thing in half again.
Twenty20 appears to have re-energised an ageing format (and game), and so it has. But how long before this too becomes stale and we watch hour-long Ten10 games?
My hunch is that we’re a few years away from Twenty20 becoming the dominant one-day format, but I’m sure it’ll happen. It’s fun, it’s new and different but it’s still one-day cricket and, thus, it sucks rather a lot. As long as they leave Tests well alone; in fact I think Inzamam-ul-Haq wants them extended to six days! Much, much more like it.
Your thoughts please.
19 Comments »Lord’s moves out of the Dark Ages
By Jonathan Liew last year, mid-September, No Comments; be the first!
In the beginning was Lord’s. And all around was a formless void, swathed in darkness. And the MCC said: “Let there be light,†and light appeared. And 5,000 fans saw that the light was good, even though it was only temporary. And the local residents didn’t kick up too much of a fuss. And thus Lord’s took a bold step into the 21st century.
From the distinct lack of glitz on display on Monday night, It’s immediately clear that night cricket at Lord’s will never enjoy the same raucous atmosphere it does at The Oval. But then again, nor should it. The long overdue experiment will hopefully transform the Lord’s experience into something more thrilling and inclusive whilst retaining its respectful eloquence. Day-night games at Lord’s will feel rather like a garden party to which the whole family is invited. There really is no reason why floodlights should automatically be synonymous with furry mascots and Gwen Stefani.
No Comments »Live chat: England v India, 5th ODI, Headingley
By Will last year, at the start of September, 4 Comments »
So, the fifth of seven one-dayers is upon us and England are sensing a series win. Can they do it or will India bite back? Keep an eye on Cricinfo and leave your musings and observations below.
4 Comments »What a difference a year makes
By Will last year, at the start of September, 10 Comments »
Have a look at this. It’s Cricinfo from today, September 1 2007.
Now then. When you manage a site as popular as Cricinfo, it’s especially important we keep our headlines fresh, sharp - and above all, accurate. So when I noticed a colleague had altered the clusters and changed the top headline to “Ruthless,” it struck a chord. Ruthless? This England? Really?
But, in this series at least, they are and they have been. And who’d have thought it after the utter shambles of last year? What a difference a year can make.
10 Comments »Bopara and Broad enthrall Manchester
By Alex Bowden last year, at the end of August, 2 Comments »
Why am I writing a piece for The Corridor when I’ve got a site of my own? Because I’m still ridiculously overexcited about England’s run-chase yesterday, that’s why.
I went to the fourth one-day international at Old Trafford yesterday and having been pretty comprehensively wowed by Stuart Broad’s and Ravi Bopara’s fightback, I made a point of watching the highlights on Channel 5. As is so often the case, the truncated version didn’t give the full effect. England were down and out. Wickets had fallen fairly regularly all day and with even more haste during England’s run chase. England had scored 114 when the seventh wicket fell, but that seventh wicket had been Paul Collingwood who’d scored the bulk of England’s total. The crowd knew that the game was up, so they did what they always do at times like this: Mexican waves, beer snakes and general merriment. In short, anything but watching the cricket.
So having lost seven wickets inside 24 overs, England then lost none in the next 24. The performance of Broad and Bopara was so impressive that drunk England fans, at the end of the day, when they’d been drinking for the longest, actually put down their beer snakes and watched the cricket in near-silence.
I’ve never seen a crowd do that before.
2 Comments »Live chat: England v India, 2nd ODI, Bristol
By Emma last year, at the end of August, No Comments; be the first!
After a near-to-perfect one-dayer as England have played in a long while, it’s a rare sunny day at Bristol for today’s game. India have won the toss again, and there was no hesitation from Rahul Dravid this time in putting England in the field. A couple of changes for both sides: India’s flu bug has forced Zaheer Khan out for Munaf Patel, and India’s tail looks long compared to England’s middle-order of allrounders. The hosts have only one change - Tremlett replacing Panesar.
It’s turnaround, and it will be interesting to see how England’s inexperienced bowling attack cope without runs in the bank. Follow the action on cricinfo and leave your comments and predictions below.
No Comments »India to unleash the Powar
By Will last year, at the end of August, No Comments; be the first!
It seems Ramesh Powar might be given a chance in today’s second one-day between England and India at Bristol, and three cheers for that. Powar is not your average svelte cricketer. In fact, he makes Inzamam look decidedly anorexic. There really are far too few rotund players in the world. The fatter the better, I say.
By all accounts, Powar’s really rather good too - probably better than the merely ‘useful’ tag he has earned. And Michael Vaughan is a little worried about the impact Powar could have, saying he “is a clever, clever bowler who will be a big threat to us in the middle period”.
Tonight’s match is a day-nighter, which is an utter pain in the derriere as it won’t start before 5pm in India, and I also happen to be staying in a place which doesn’t serve alcohol. I’ve tried doubling the dose of lime in my Fresh Lime Soda, but the results are not good for my stomach or my fellow patrons.
No Comments »Excusing India’s defeat
By Will last year, at the end of August, 10 Comments »
I’m in India, hence the total lack of any posts here (bar Ian’s - thanks), but while I was wolfing my breakfast this morning I read a curious sub-header in today’s Hindu. I don’t have it in front of me now, so forgive me if it’s not entirely accurate, but it said of Dravid’s decision to field first: “Probably due to extensive cloud cover”. The partisanship here is like no other country. Face it; England outplayed you.
The channel I watched it on contained commentators who shared a mixture of English and Hindu. But when Sachin was scratching around, as is his modern wont, any drive which pinged off his bat was met with “What a shot! What a shot there from Sachin Tendulkar…and it’s fielded in the covers preventing the single”.
Anyway, it’s a topic for another day. Here’s the brilliant contraption in which I was pushed up 46kms of India’s “Blue Mountains,” the Nilgiris. It really is spectacular here.
Strauss dropped as Collingwood picks up captaincy
By Emma last year, at the end of June, 6 Comments »
The one-day squad has just been announced, and features a couple of surprising new faces:
1. Paul Collingwood (Durham) (Captain)
2. James Anderson (Lancashire)
3. Ian Bell (Warwickshire)
4. Stuart Broad (Leicestershire)
5. Alastair Cook (Essex)
6. Dimitri Mascarenhas (Hampshire)
7. Monty Panesar (Northamptonshire)
8. Kevin Pietersen (Hampshire)
9. Liam Plunkett (Durham)
10. Matt Prior (Sussex)
11. Owais Shah (Middlesex)
12. Ryan Sidebottom (Nottinghamshire)
13. Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire)
14. Michael Yardy (Sussex)
Andrew McGlashan over at cricinfo predicted the potential place for Dimitri Mascarenhas, but what no one will have expected was the selection of Trott. A positive upper-order bat, he has followed Pietersen’s route from South Africa to English qualification, however his present season form ranges from successive ducks to unbeaten centuries. Both of these players are added to England’s Performance Squad, as is Ryan Sidebottom after his impressive performance since Headingley.
Cook’s recall, whilst predicted, poses questions - with no place for Loye, is there really any member of this squad who can force the pace at the beginning of the innings? Who, indeed, is likely to open? The only opener to have survived the World Cup is Bell, who is more naturally a number 3. If Cook make the final XI, he will almost certainly take his place at the top of the order, but is there an opening for Prior to repeat his attempt as a pinch-hitter?
As always, leave your thoughts below.
6 Comments »Who should be England’s new one-day captain?
By Will last year, mid-June, 10 Comments »
I think we all saw this coming, and it’s a timely decision for England’s one-day team.
“Since our disappointing performances in the World Cup, I have been giving careful consideration as to what is the best way forward for the England one-day team and my own role within the side,” said Vaughan in an ECB statement. “I reached this decision some time ago, but I did not want to announce it until after the end of this Test series to avoid it becoming a distraction to the team.
“However, due to intense speculation in the media about my future, I feel it is important to make my intentions clear now. Our priority is to build a one-day squad able to compete strongly at the next World Cup, and I firmly believe that the interests of the team will be best served if I step down and allow another player to gain additional experience of captaincy in the one-day international arena.
But who should replace him? Paul Collingwood is favourite. Who is your choice?
10 Comments » « Previous Entries