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Onions heralds the new era. Or does he?
By Will last year, at the start of May, 8 Comments »
Wonderful spell by Graham Onions today. He left West Indies’ batsmen looking clueless and cold: they hate May in England, as most touring sides do, in spite of our unseasonally good weather. Onions aside, there were two baffling pieces of idiocy by England today.
The first was the decision by Bopara and Swann to take the “bad light”. This is an evil disease of cricket, and although it’s easy to blame the players, the real fault lies with the ICC and umpires for removing all common sense from the equation. The light was fine to play cricket. Nobody would have died. These are trained sportsmen who are used to facing bowling of all types, in all conditions. The umpires will have taken a reading when the sun was out and, consequently when it became gloomy (and the sun was in), the difference in the two readings seemed to prompt an automatic offer of the light to the batsmen. This is absurd. How can umpires become so rigidly tied to laws and regulations yet forsake common sense? These batsmen have enough protection to go on the front line in Helmand Province, and yet the pair took the silly risk of possibly throwing away the momentum (England had raced along until this point). It was a stupid mistake which, fortunately, didn’t cost them. But it so easily could have, and cricket as a whole – especially Test cricket, in these changing times – desperately needs a dose of common sense.
The second incident was Andrew Strauss’s decision (or was it Andy Flower’s?) to open with Graeme Swann. Yes, Swann had a day to remember, but he is no Shane Warne. Why would you leave out your best bowler, James Anderson, and toss the new ball to a spinner? This too didn’t cost England, who later savaged West Indies’ lineup with a fine allround performance, but it again smacked of fuddled thinking – trying to be too clever.
England ought to wrap this up tomorrow, bar a miracle from Chanderpaul and someone else, and the performances of Onions, Swann and Bopara will swell the pride of selectors and fans. Let’s not get carried away, though, and remember that West Indians aren’t crash hot on a Lord’s greentop in May. But let’s also remember that perhaps for the first time in decades, England have a more dangerous spinner (and possibly spin attack) than Australia.
He bats and catches, too. Our new Gilo has been found.
8 Comments »Flower’s unflinching message
By Will last year, at the end of April, 2 Comments »
Today’s squad announcement was the first by Andy Flower in his official capacity as England coach. And what a statement of intent it was. All the pre-series talk has been of Michael Vaughan, Ian Bell and Owais Shah all battling for the No.3 slot. All three were acknowledged, their names noted down, before scrunching up the paper and tossing it dismissively out of the window. Ravi Bopara is the new No.3 in possession, which is bold enough in itself.
But perhaps the most telling indication of the new regime came from Geoff Miller, the national selector. When asked about Bell, he was almost dismissive about his non-selection, in spite of the runs Bell has scored so far domestically. “We need to get him even more passionate about playing…so he doesn’t lose his place again,” Miller retorted. There are enough clues in what Miller says to indicate that England really aren’t happy with Bell, for a whole host of reasons. You’ll have noticed Bell’s put on a bit of weight, recently – muscle weight – and this is another sign of a man not happy in his own skin. He should be (and will be, I’m sure, eventually) the side’s leading batsman and the heaviest of run-scorers, but his path to achieving that is obstructed by his own insecurities. Only Everestian quantities of runs, and other off-the-field indications as to his hunger, will get him back in.
And this is all good news for England. It’s high time all this indecision and reverting to the old guard was put to one side. Having said that, it still seems implausible that the side which takes to the field next Wednesday will be the same one to take on Australia in Cardiff later this summer.
2 Comments »What did West Indies have for lunch?
By Will 3 years ago, mid-June, 2 Comments »
Today was a microcosm of the problems facing West Indies. They dominated the first session, bowling superbly and at last making England scrap for every run. England went to lunch with Paul Collingwood and Matt Prior at the crease…but not a lot else to come.
Then what happened? What on earth were they fed at lunch? After the interval, everything fell apart with the bowlers losing their lines and the captain, Daren Ganga, for some inexplicable reason choosing to bowl Marlon Samuels. It was a session of such diabolical cricket that they fully deserve to lose this Test tomorrow. It was utterly depressing.
England did very well to rub their noses in it, though – and Matt Prior continues to impress. But, still…it’s pretty painful watching West Indies at the moment and I don’t see how they can recover, either. The selection of Austin Richards to their one-day team is a case in point. Just why he was chosen in place of Wavell Hinds, Ryan Hinds, A.N. Other is anyone’s guess. I tried to write a profile for him at Cricinfo and didn’t get on very well at all. The cynic in me thinks there is something more sinister afoot other than simply being a “random selection”.
2 Comments »England v West Indies, 4th Test, Chester-le-Street, 3rd day
By Will 3 years ago, mid-June, 3 Comments »
We might just get a whole day’s play today. No, what am I saying? This is The North! The forecast is much better for today so let’s at least hope we have a contest on our hands.
Read Cricinfo, watch ceefax below (refresh to update it) and leave your comments below. Go crazy.
Bravo that man
By Will 3 years ago, mid-June, 6 Comments »
Dwayne Bravo sounds more like a name of an American basketball player than a West Indian cricketer. And if this tour amounts to nothing more than a disaster in terms of results, at least the team has Dwayne and his heroics. This guy is seriously good and nothing less than entertaining to watch.
He is cocky and boastful. He bounced Kevin Pietersen, knocking his helmet off, then sprinted down the pitch in a mad celebration – completely disregarding Pietersen who might well have been injured. “Who cares?!” Bravo might’ve thought. “I’ve just dismissed one of the world’s very best batsmen”. One who, incidentally, then claimed he had “never been hit on the head before”, a statement which I think might well be a load of balderdash.
Watching him bat today was a fascinating experience. Owing to yet another damned delay due to rain, Sky were showing us highlights of the 1993-94 tour – the tour which first sparked my love of the game, as I’ve said far too many times – containing West Indian batsmanship of true Caribbean flair. Their opponents, England, were a mishmash of talent: immensely gifted batsmen with mental flaws, brought up in an equally flawed county system. England rarely took the attack to West Indies. It was all about grafting and grinding.
Fast forward 13 years and how things have changed. Two West Indian batsman – Bravo and Shivnarine Chanderpaul – battling it out as though their lives depended on it (their livlihoods probably do, but that’s a matter for another day). Battling it out like Atherton once did. And they did it brilliantly. Bravo to both of them, but particularly to Dwayne. He’s young and gifted and wants to succeed, badly. You can’t say that about many of his peers.
Incidentally, on comms today I nearly wrote “Barov” instead of Bravo. I told the readers this:
I nearly called Bravo “Barov” just then. Barov being Dwayne’s Russian cousin of course
A bored feedbacker wrote in to accuse me of being racist. Have the general public completely lost their sense of humour now?
6 Comments »England v West Indies, 3rd Test, Old Trafford, 5th day
By Emma 3 years ago, mid-June, 3 Comments »
A much improved West Indian performance and suddenly it’s 154 runs or 5 wickets. However, with the last 4 of those real tailenders, Ramdin and Chanderpaul really need to dig in to secure any hope of keeping the series alive until Durham.
Follow the cricket once it starts on Cricinfo and leave your comments below. Though if you have a spare tenner, that’s all you need to get in.
3 Comments »Do it, Shiv
By Ian 3 years ago, mid-June, 8 Comments »
© Getty ImagesModern Test batsmen talk long and hard about ‘playing for the lads’, belittling their own efforts as part of a team collective, which is all very commendable and, of course, a load of old baloney. The best batsmen are selfish and will, more often than not, bat for themselves, which is fair enough. And while they wouldn’t ever wish misfortune on their team-mates, the very best Test innings usually demand that most of the ‘lads’ get out cheaply, while our hero achieves team glory almost single-handedly.
With this in mind, I was trying to think this morning of the best innings in recent memory, where the successful batsman must have stood at the crease during his knock in the second innings thinking, “if I’m out, that’s itâ€. Laxman and Dravid against the Aussies at Eden Park in 2001 was a great example of one more wicket and it’s over; as was Athers’ 185 at Jo’burg in 1996; or even Mahela Jayawardene’s hundred at Lords’ last year. The problem with being an Aussie batsman is that there is usually at least one other who makes runs too, but Ponting’s rear-guard 156 at Old Trafford in 2005 stands out. I am sure there are many others, not least by Adam Gilchrist, although did they ever avert certain defeat?
My favourite for sheer excitement was Lara’s unbeaten 153 to beat the Aussies at Bridgetown in 1999. If Shiv Chanderpaul goes on to score 160 to win today, will that be even better? Agreed, Harmison and Plunkett are not McGrath, Gillespie and Warne. And there won’t be the same swash-buckling bravado. Besides, he hasn’t done it yet! But could anyone begrudge the West Indies this moment?
8 Comments »England v West Indies, 3rd Test, Old Trafford, 4th day
By Emma 3 years ago, mid-June, 6 Comments »
Yesterday might have been Darren Sammy’s day, but you can’t help but feel that England’s present lead is unassailable. Will Monty Panesar take his turn, or will today break the record for most extras ’scored’ in a match? Follow the action on Cricinfo and leave your comments below.
6 Comments »Video of Kevin Pietersen losing his helmet
By Will 3 years ago, mid-June, 5 Comments »
Dwayne Bravo dismissed Kevin Pietersen yesterday, hit wicket, when a bouncer zeroed in on his head, smashing his helmet off which then landed on his stumps. Here’s the video.
Fascinating to see Bravo’s euphoric celebration while Pietersen stands there, stunned and shocked.
5 Comments »Darren DJ Sammy takes seven
By Will 3 years ago, mid-June, 1 Comment »
Well bowled DJ Sammy. Just watched the highlights, and he bowled much better in England’s second dig; full, straight and intelligently cutting it off the seam. Seven wickets on debut and the first St Lucian to play for West Indies, too. He looks like he’s got something about him. Allied to his rhythmical action and control he’s slick in the field (excellent return catch to dismiss Michael Vaughan).
Best of all, he has some of the most entertaining celebrations I’ve seen in a long while
1 Comment »England v West Indies, 3rd Test, Old Trafford, 2nd day
By Emma 3 years ago, mid-June, 5 Comments »
England were complacent with the bat yesterday, and now rely on Ian Bell to marshal the tail for a good score. Will Steve Harmison reproduce his destructive form from last year? Or will the West Indies overcome their inexperience and demonstrate some steadfastness on the most bowler-friendly wicket of the series so far? Follow the action at Cricinfo and leave your comments below.
5 Comments »Right. So, is anyone else a bit bored?
By Will 3 years ago, at the start of June, 6 Comments »
Was anyone else bored by large parts of today? I was, and looking at the scorecard I have absolutely no reason to be anything other than full of adrenaline. Instead, I just feel “eh” and I don’t know why.
It wasn’t without incident. The period of play when Fidel Edwards steamed in, supported by Jerome Taylor at the other end, was West Indies’ most captivating of the series. Seven wickets, nearly 300 runs and yet I was left with a feeling that nothing memorable happened.
Perhaps it was that no England batsman “went on” to a hundred. Maybe it was West Indies’ laughably awful fielding. It could even just be a form of professional detraction from the emotions of watching your country play. But I’m unsettled by it and think it has more to do with knowing that, in spite of West Indies’ improved display, tomorrow England ought to blow them away. It is utterly depressing seeing West Indies in this state; watching Corey Collymore trundle in like a baying donkey. He was frighteningly quick a few years ago but stress fractures and other nasty injuries have taken their toll. Edwards was severely sharp but, as one “staff” member of the Windies party told me, they cannot risk him bowling more than five overs at a time.
As an England fan, I thought they were distinctly poor today. West Indies did put the ball in better areas (a phrase which, someone recently told me, is absolute nonsense: you can’t put a ball in more than one area at a time! Ah the pedantry of journalism) but England looked distracted and, well, a bit bored too.
Clearly I am talking a load of nonsense. Thoughts welcome.
6 Comments »England v West Indies, 3rd Test, Old Trafford, 1st day
By Emma 3 years ago, at the start of June, 3 Comments »
While the media is busy having a field day at the expense of Michael Vaughan, the man at least seems able to win a toss. England have chosen to bat first on a pitch that would have an in form Harmison licking his lips, so he’ll be hoping to stick his feet up until tomorrow. Follow the action at Cricinfo and leave your comments below.
3 Comments »Golden balls
By Ian 3 years ago, at the end of May, 18 Comments »
Gutted about the latest no-show from the West Indies, although I guess that if England can’t win a Test match in early season freezing Headingley against a team of under-prepared novices from the Caribbean, then we never will. Hardly a level playing field.
Of course, it wasn’t just England handing out a thumping this weekend. India gained some sort of revenge for the ignominious defeat at the World Cup, by dismantling Bangladesh. At 408 for 0, has there ever been a worse decision to bowl first? (Well, yes, Nasser, probably…)
My sympathies go to Javed Omar. A first ball duck is never a good feeling, as I reminded myself in a 20-20 match last week. I’ve earned the Primary Club tie on my mantlepiece many times over (five, at least), but I’ll put another note in their online bucket (www.primaryclub.org) for good measure. I’ve also got two diamond ducks (first ball of the innings) on my CV, which is enough disappointment for one lifetime, I hope. Can anyone better that?
Poor old Javed can, I’m sure, as he bagged two in the match. Has that ever happened before? In fact, what do you call that? Is it a King Diamond Pair? Or a Sapphire Pair? Did anyone see the commentary – I suspect someone answered that at the time?
18 Comments »Slow but steady wins the race
By Emma 3 years ago, at the end of May, 5 Comments »
Neither of the last two Tests has provided the kind of intrigue or tension to really kick-start this summer’s cricket. At least, such as it may be called summer when hail stops play. While the crowds may rue the decline of a once great Test nation, however, the England selectors have some cause to smile.
Kevin Pietersen may have sneaked the Man-of-the-Match award with his maiden international double hundred, but Headingley was Ryan Sidebottom’s Test. After the Durham pair of Plunkett and Harmison had comprehensively failed to look threatening at Lord’s, or even manage to find both line and length with any frequency, the prospect of a return for the equally unpredictable Anderson or Mahmood was not one of eager anticipation. Sidebottom’s selection, whilst somewhat left-field and seen by some as a backwards step, certainly served purpose. His experience and discipline was priceless to an attack whose two frontline ‘strike men’ seemed as unsure as the opposition batsmen as to where each of their deliveries was going to pitch. Michael Vaughan possibly summed it up the Aesopian predicament most accurately:
“If you’ve got someone bowling 90mph in the right area, it’s fantastic, but pace bowled on either side of the wicket is something that’s quite nice to face.â€
Sidebottom, like Prior, had not had the most successful start to the cricketing calendar. Handed his second Test cap, he took his best haul in all competitions this season in the first innings, with his second innings figures costing a mere two runs extra. Prior’s two first-innings outings have both been far in excess of any of his scores for Sussex this year. Is Moores simply blessed with good fortune in his early selections, or does he have Fletcher’s Midas touch for the international performer? It is surely too soon to tell; but for the moment it seems likely that Nottinghamshire will have to wait a little longer to regain their curly-haired left-arm seamer.
Not all of the selection decisions have paid off. While Graveney et al cannot take blame for Harmison’s curious lack of consistency, Plunkett’s rather robotic action accounts for much of the troubles that went unhidden by his flattering figures at Headingley. Sidebottom has just highlighted the quality that can be found and developed in the county system that Duncan Fletcher had come to distrust. Unless Donald is able to make a swift and significant impact, a return to Durham for the young man may be the best way to improve his game.
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