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‘I want to be England’s Tendulkar’
By Will last year, at the end of August, 1 Comment »
Not my words, but those of Ravi Bopara, the Essex and England batsman (oh alright: he’s an allrounder. Just). My miniature magazine colleague, Daniel Brigham, did an excellent interview with the future Tendulkar in a recent issue of The Wisden Cricketer, and Bopara’s claims are nothing if not ambitious.
“Sachin’s my ultimate hero. He’s the one who I learnt all my batting off, just watching him constantly. I always tried to copy his batting and put it in my own style. I want to be a top-four Test batter - similar to Tendulkar. I don’t think anyone’s going to score as many runs as him but I want to have a career close to his - do everything he did but do it for England.”
He’s got drive, I’ll give him that. But has he got Tendulkar’s drive? Patrick Kidd, who has championed Bopara’s talents since the lad was about 10, will hopefully tell us more…
1 Comment »Use the force, Luke
By Ian last year, at the start of August, 1 Comment »
I was a little sceptical about Luke Wright’s succession to the England 20-20 squad on the basis that he scored the most runs in this year’s campaign, not least because Chris Schofield was picked for taking the most wickets. Graeme Swann must be uber-gutted! But while I am delighted the selectors have decided to go with a specialist squad, I had developed the opinion that Wright was just a slogger-got-lucky.
Not for the first time, I was dead wrong. His 60-ball hundred last night for Sussex against Gloucestershire was stunning. While there was the odd smear and hoik, almost every shot was orthodox, including a dreamy cover drive and on drive, all hit with terrible power and timing. Gloucestershire are not the very worst of attacks – I’m sure Wright will meet some worse bowlers at the 20-20 World Cup – but he made them look inept. Even Michael Atherton was purring by the end, shifting his stance from, “if you’re good enough for international 50 over cricket, you’re good enough for 20-20†to “if this lad’s good enough for 20-20, he should be good enough for 50 overs too.â€
There were various comparisons, such as he grips and rips like Tendulkar or has the speed of hands through the ball as Ali Brown. Indeed, not since Brown have I seen an Englishman so dismantle an attack in the way Jayasuriya or Gilchrist do for fun. As a right-hander, he had something of Michael Slater about him, although I’ll go for a more modern Aussie as a comparison, who likewise has plenty more to prove. Shane Watson batted in a very similar fashion in the World Cup, matching power and timing with elegance. He bowls a bit too and has the same bottle blond hair. Time will tell whether Luke Wright can mix it on the same stage.
1 Comment »Video: Monty Panesar dismissing Sachin Tendulkar
By Will last year, at the end of July, 6 Comments »
A video of Monty dismissing Sachin Tendulkar. Not quite yet his bunny, but…check out those celebrations.
Click here if nothing appears above.
6 Comments »Too highly rated?
By Ian last year, mid-July, 8 Comments »
I see Kevin Pietersen has been knocked off the top spot in the ODIs by Ricky Ponting. Very difficult to argue with that – Ponting is surely the stand out batsman in both forms of the game. Looking at the other batting rankings, it is difficult to find fault, although on current form, Shiv Chanderpaul ought to be in the test top three at least. Also, I struggle to understand how Mahela Jayawardene doesn’t break into either top ten, while Hussey retains a top five place in both. He’s very good, granted, but is he top five?
The bowlers are altogether more perplexing. For one, how can Shoaib Akhtar still be at number 10 in tests? He’s played four tests since the start of 2006 and taken only a handful of wickets. Maybe in the current game, not playing is the way to climb the rankings. Likewise, Jason Gillespie (22) is still deemed a better Test bowler than Lasith Malinga (28)!
Agreed, it must be difficult to devise a workable system. Also, stats don’t tell the full story. But things start to look decidedly suspect when you inspect the Best Ever Ratings, which is a list of players at their peak. Ponting at four is just about fair enough, given his recent dominance. However, Peter May above Viv Richards shows a flaw, while Matthew Hayden in the top ten is just crazy. KP (21) is one place higher than Sachin and two places higher than Wally Hammond. Enough said.
For the bowlers, I half expected to see the list packed high with bowlers of yesteryear, given how modern bowlers are meant to have struggled, but it does put Murali, McGrath, Pollock, Waqar and Warne in the top 15. Of course, Warne should be in the top three, if not top of the pile. Wasim Akram limps in at number 57 behind the likes of Ntini, Shoaib and Harmison, which doesn’t seem right.
That said, like most critics, I can’t think of a better way. There must be some bright spark at Cricinfo with a formula….?
8 Comments »Wither, bowlers
By Will 2 years ago, mid-November, 6 Comments »
Were the bowlers all blind or drugged into bowling half-volleys?
Two junior cricketers from Hyderabad created history when they added a world-record 721 runs in 40 overs to eclipse the 664-run stand between Sachin Tendulkar and Vinod Kambli set in 1987-88. The St Peter’s School openers B Manoj Kumar and Mohammed Shaibaaz Tumbi, both 13, hit an unbeaten 320 and 324 respectively in the Hyderabad Cricket Association Inter-School Under-13 tournament on Wednesday.
Show offs.
6 Comments »McGrath v Tendulkar
By Will 2 years ago, mid-September, 1 Comment »
2.6 McGrath to Dravid, no run, this time it’s the offcutter and it threads the gap between Dravid’s bat and body.
2.5 McGrath to Dravid, no run, left alone outside the off stump
2.5 McGrath to Dravid, 1 wide, wide outside off stump and moves wider after pitching.
2.4 McGrath to Dravid, no run, good length on off stump, Dravid gets forward and plays it back to the bowler
2.4 McGrath to Dravid, 1 no ball, McGrath oversteps, that pitched outside off and moved away from Dravid who lets it go
2.3 McGrath to Tendulkar, 1 run, worked through midwicket for a single
2.2 McGrath to Tendulkar, no run, beaten by a unplayable ball. That pitched on middle, opened up Tendulkar, and moved a touch away to beat the outside edge
2.1 McGrath to Tendulkar, no run, bang on the helmet, McGrath digs it in short and the ball doesn’t get up as much as Tendulkar thought it would. He ducks into it and the ball crashes into the helmet. What a start to the McGrath-Tendulkar battle
The McGrath-Tendulkar battle has resumed. India are chasing 245 to win.
1 Comment »Duckworth, Lewis, Carib
By Will 2 years ago, mid-September, No Comments; be the first!
Del, protector of the Wisden wallets, rose from his seat this afternoon and jeered “Editorial! Duckworth and Lewis…friends of the West Indies.”
A fervent West Indies fan, he was just slightly pleased at Duck’n'Loo’s calculations which helped them down India in yesterday’s one-dayer. And all that, in spite of 141* from Sachin Tendulkar…on comeback!
No Comments »Tendulkar’s back
By Will 2 years ago, mid-July, No Comments; be the first!
Sachin Tendulkar is back and has been declared fit to play in the tri-series in Sri Lanka:
“Tendulkar has been undergoing rehabilitation under the supervision of team physiotherapist John Gloster and in the last five days has made progress satisfactory enough to make him available for the Sri Lanka series,” he told reporters. “The report we have got is that Sachin is fit to play. He is available for selection again.”
More at Cricinfo
No Comments »Sachin Tendulkar’s 50 at The Oval
By Will 2 years ago, mid-July, 1 Comment »
Tendulkar hit 50 against Pakistan tonight but Shahid Afridi and Inzamam-ul-Haq powered Pakistan to victory. It was a (wet) charity game at (a very gloomy) The Oval. They raised £250,000. Stuck a brief report up at Cricinfo including photos.
1 Comment »Sachin polaroid
By Will 2 years ago, at the end of June, 1 Comment »
Utterly pointless “polaroid effect” of a photo I took of Sachin Tendulkar:
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Photos of Sachin Tendulkar’s 155 for Lashings
By Will 2 years ago, at the end of June, 14 Comments »
Terrific day today. I went down to Cambridge, Fenners to be precise, to see the university host a Lashings World XI side. Some bloke called Sachin Tendulkar was batting, and what a joy it was to see him “live,” so to speak. I’ve only seen him bat in the flesh once or twice, and never in a charity match. I’ve also long wanted to see Lashings, the side fit to bursting with former international players, and on the basis of today it’s a rollicking good day out.
Sachin was quite magnificent. Yes it was against students, on a good track, but he nevertheless batted so correctly, with so much time too. It’s no wonder he is adored by millions in India (and by any cricket fan around the world). His balance is just perfect - he is never wrong-footed or beaten in the flight. While Lara has more shots, and a greater audacity to his strokeplay, Sachin is ridiculously correct and manicured. Like a privet hedge. Each flick raced away for four. He cut with monstrous power. And he’s so small too. It’s just not normal, and it was a bloody honour to watch him bat in a charity game in which there was no pressure whatsoever. He batted as though he was 16 again.
One shot in particular, off a medium-pacer, had the crowd gasping in delight and horror. The slips had been taken out, so it was pretty safe, and the third-man was slightly wide. What did he do? Just chipped it / edged it past the wicketkeeper, past third-man for four. Third-man only had a few yards to move to his left, and he had no chance. He eventually fell for 155 from (I’m guessing) no more than 120 balls.
Madness. Greg Blewett played well too, and I’m still amazed he faded into oblivion. Wonderful batsman. So here are some photos below. More at Cricinfo, and a brief colour piece.
| www.flickr.com |
Sachin at Fenner’s
By Will 2 years ago, mid-June, 2 Comments »
Sorry for the lack of updates. Simply no time at the moment. The Oval was utterly depressing yesterday, so I’m taking solace in Cambridge to watch the University play Lashings. Among their side is one Sachin Tendulkar, who is playing five or so games for them in a bid to regain fitness. It’s quite a coup, so I’m hopefully going to grab a whole pile of photos for Cricinfo.
2 Comments »Show me the money!!!
By Scott 2 years ago, at the start of May, 1 Comment »
Saatchi and Saatchi have signed a three year marketing deal with Sachin Tendulkar that is worth $US 40 million.
That is $A 50 million, 1.8 billion rupees, or about £20 million. Lots of dosh, anyway
1 Comment »India v England, 2nd Test, Mohali, Day Three
By Will 2 years ago, mid-March, 1 Comment »
Sachin’s gone! Rock on
1 Comment »Thoughts of day three at Nagpur
By Will 2 years ago, at the start of March, 1 Comment »
England’s day? Just about, but India will be over the moon at the wonderful hundred partnership between Anil Kumble and Mohammad Kaif. Were it not for that pair, India would have been bowled out for a really paltry total. Indeed, that would have been all the more probable 12-18 months ago, but this Indian side are tougher than they used to be. Tougher they might be, but they remain vulnerable to the swinging delivery and were brilliantly exposed by Matthew Hoggard who, at one stage, had figures of 4 for 6. This Test is alive and kicking and intriguingly poised.
The late strikes by England has put them in charge. The lead of 71 doesn’t sound significant - it’s not a huge lead by any means - but come the fourth innings, it could prove invaluable. India’s number eleven, Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, has a batting average of 5.66 and ought not to make more than that. India need every run they can muster.
After the disasterous pre-series preparations afflicting England’s squad, they seem to be gelling as a team - led by Andrew Flintoff. But the big story of the day has been Monty Panesar. I know I effed and blinded about his over-the-wicket nonsense, but it’s a valid point. As soon as he reverted to bowling around the wicket, he grabbed a wicket - and the key one of Kaif who, until then, had batted sensibly if a little too obdurately. And what a pearler of a wicket it was. His first in Test cricket happened earlier in the day - none other than Sachin R Tendulkar! - but this second, late wicket was all the better. My Editor sums it up better than I can:
Perfectly flighted to drag the batsman forward, late dip to leave him stranded, and turn and bounce to detonate the middle and off stumps, the first Turbanation of the series had just been witnessed. Remarkably, however, it was England’s players who were doing the celebrations.
Well bowled, Monty. And well batted Kumbles.
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