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world-domination
Who are the next world leaders?
By Will 2 years ago, mid-November, 8 Comments »
I think it can be said with reasonable certainty now that Australia’s era of global dominance has come to an end. They will still be very difficult to beat, but that aura of invincibility has disappeared in a puff of smoke. But which country is best-placed to begin world domination, the type which Australia achieved for 13 straight years, and West Indies before them? Let’s have a look:
Australia: rich in batting; a recession in bowling. Plenty of quality cricketers but no Warnes or McGraths to be seen. Domestic competition remains strong, but less so than in previous generations.
Bangladesh: talented minnows, an occasional rising star. World domination unlikely in the next 20 years. Reliant on Asian bloc for support.
England: solid if unspectacular batting talent but better-than-average stocks of fast bowling. Loads of money and ambitious if greedy board. Domestic competitions now world class.
India: financial powerhouse allied with supreme talent makes for a juicy cocktail. Domestic tournaments strong. Very strong youth cricket. Fast bowling stocks as good as they’ve ever been. Batting traditionally strong. Politically the most powerful, but increasingly autocratic.
New Zealand: over-reliant on flexible characters and cricketers (ref: Vettori). Still impressively competitive considering the puddle of resources to choose from, but currently suffering a recession of genuine talent.
South Africa: nothing much changes. Fast bowling is promising on paper but inconsistent on the pitch. They continue to lose far too many outstanding players to England’s counties, and are politically unstable. Always challenging on the pitch and strong in youth cricket, but not a contender for world domination.
Pakistan: an absolute goldmine of natural talent, most of it untapped or unrefined. A crying shame they play such little Test cricket. Their board are about as clued up as a cauliflower, sadly. Fast bowling stocks are always impressive, if the contenders occasionally contentious…
Sri Lanka: they have everything apart from fast bowlers and money. Batting is ridiculously strong, and they’re a sick prospect at home but will always struggle abroad. I have more money under my mattress than their board. Will continue to lose players to India’s leagues.
West Indies: no amount of Stanford’s dollars will rekindle the cricket love. Facilities dreadful. No sponsorship for their domestic tournament this year suggests that the decline is still in freefall. When Chanderpaul, Gayle and Sarwan depart, who will step up? One of modern sport’s greatest losses.
So, the only three I can see are Australia, England or India. Of those three, England’s pace-bowling future is probably the most healthy but India aren’t far behind and their batting is frighteningly good. England have a number of young, exciting fast bowlers – but we’ve said that for years and some have fallen by the wayside. As ever, the key to world domination lies with bowlers: so who will take up the mantle over the coming decade?
My money is on India, but there remains a danger that they’ll burn themselves out and/or lose a lot of friends politically.
Discuss!
8 Comments »The Indians who can do it all
By Will 3 years ago, at the end of August, 1 Comment »
Being a cricket journalist while on holiday in India has its advantages, no doubt. Most people I encounter are keen to know my job (and even more importantly which company employs me), and quite a few know of Cricinfo and are desperate, it seems, to prove their cricketing worth. One young chap today (whose friendly nature threatened to descend into irritating begging) is surely the future of Indian cricket, if not the world.
He bowls leg-spin better than Shane Warne and models his off-spinner’s doosra on Murali; he opens the bowling at the speed of light, not unlike Darren Gough apparently; he keeps wicket with the feline-feet of Alan Knott (!) and bats like Marcus Trescothick, Michael Warne (it’s the accent, but I couldn’t help chuckling) and Adam Gilchrist. A killer player, then, if fantastical.
Watch out for him. He, and the identical dozen other youngsters who I’ve come across, will be dominating the world shortly…
