what i am going to talk in this article might be not very popular!
I am a keen cricket lover who himself play the game at very low level, mainly due to talent, fitness, family and life in normal, feel we are seeing too much cricket and due to that public is losing inteset in it.
I think we are trying to follow the football model but probelm we are facing is; we are not following it properly (neem hakeem khatra jan) which mean if you know some think half you have chance of losing it and it is dangerous.
I think we should follow the football model for shoter formate of the game and then we keep a window for test matches which should only be played between nations and ICC should also encourge cricket boards to keep the domestic structure strong and pay more for longer formate of the game to player and introduce some sort of marketing scheme to bring the seriouse crickter lover back to stadium.
Long live cricket.
Ashes, Ashes and Ashes
Ashes, Ashes and Ashes it is every where in UK
If you look at team recent performance you think it is an easy walk for English Men but this want be that easy as it look. Australian will fight till last ball or run and that is built in their nature.
Couple of point which make me feel nervous as an English supporter are:
England - Australian have been poor in recent time and will be itching to do best and this Ashes can provide them that spark they are missing in recent time.
Any time to stop talking and let the 11 guy to battle it out in middle for next couple month.
So Its Pakistan Again...
What you can say about Pakistani Cricket team, donot dare to predict any result for them as they themselves do not know what lies in front of them. Once again they prove to the world that they are more colurful and unpreditcable cricket team in world. As most of us right them off after first two test defeats, but they bounce back courtisy of Amir and Ajmal magic, at one stage it look certain that England will post of big score for Pakistan to chase in last innings. But due to both these individauls they fold them to mere 222, though at 194/3 it look certain that england will post some thing in range of 300 for pakistan to chase and this test will go in fifth day.
Pakistan batting was strength by the arival of their best batsman Yousaf, who look in good touch and guide youngster as well during his stay at crease in both innings. In first innings especially he look certain for three figure after early strugle.
Now Lords is waiting for Pakistan to show world that they can play good sensible cricket in consuctive games. I hope they bat well and catch well.
England cruise as Trott banishes winter blues
JONATHAN TROTT blew away the cobwebs of a miserable winter with a career-best, unbeaten 175 on day one of the first Test against Bangladesh at Lord’s. The man who made the No.3 spot in England’s batting line-up his own with an imperious debut century in the Ashes clinching Test at the Brit Oval last August struggled to live up to that performance in South Africa and Bangladesh.
But Trott set the record straight in his 270-ball stay as he helped England to a dominant 362 for four at the close. The South African-born batsman, who with the emergence of Eoin Morgan would have felt his place was under real threat, said: ‘You’re under pressure whenever you play for England. ‘There’s always pressure from outside.
The last couple of weeks I’ve just accepted that and got on with the job. ‘It comes with the territory, so you just get on with it as well as you can. I was not doing as well as I’d have liked but I was pleased to do well today.’ Trott shared an unbroken stand of 104 with debutant Morgan and 181 with Andrew Strauss (83), the captain who was rested for the tour of Bangladesh.
Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell all missed out. But Trott and Strauss cashed in after the early loss of Cook for a questionable lbw decision to Shahadat Hossain on a cloudy morning which saw the tourists ask England to bat first. Strauss eventually bottom-edged offspinner Mahmudullah onto his stumps. But while Trott was demonstrating his good form, Pietersen was removed after a wild swipe at Shakib Al Hasan.
Bell, so prolific against Bangladesh on many occasions, was next in and was unfortunate to receive a very good ball from Rubel Hossain which nipped back down the hill to beat his defence and knock back off-stump. At 258 for four, England were hardly cruising but Trott and Morgan then took the game out of Bangladesh’s reach. By Chris Stocks
ECB in match-fix warning
ENGLAND cricket chiefs last night warned any player found guilty of illegal contact with bookmakers will face severe penalties as the threat of match-fixing rocked the game. On the eve of today’s first Test with Bangladesh at Lord’s, the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed two players had been approached by bookies. The revelations follow yesterday’s claims by an unnamed county professional he had been asked to fix the outcome of a game.
‘ECB can confirm two players have formally reported approaches from bookmakers,’ said the statement. ‘ECB has reported this information to the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit and to the police. ECB’s Board has reinforced the need to all players and officials to be vigilant concerning illegal approaches by bookmakers.
‘ECB believes unlawful activities such as those attempted here and reported by players must be eliminated. ‘The Board takes this opportunity to remind cricketers and others falling under its jurisdiction any unlawful activity of this kind will result in disciplinary action, and will inevitably be dealt with severely, constituting as it would, a grave slur on the integrity of the game.’
England captain Andrew Strauss backed the hardline stance, saying: ‘If it is happening, it needs to be stamped out straight away.’ And his Bangladesh counterpart, Shakib Al Hasan, revealed he was once approached, saying: ‘I immediately told a member of the board and the ICC guy. They took action. After that he never called again.’
Steve uses his strengths to get up to speed
New line-up: From left, Andrew Strauss, Andrew Strauss Eoin Morgan and Jonathan Trott yesterday ENGLAND’S newest fast bowler Steve Finn is determined to become the country’s answer to Australian great Brett Lee. The 6ft 7in seamer made his Test debut in Bangladesh this year, taking four wickets in two Tests. And the Middlesex player could retain his place against the same opposition at his home ground of Lord’s tomorrow.
Finn admits his boyhood cricketing idol was Glenn McGrath. However, it is another Australian he could end up emulating given he is already regularly hitting the 90 miles per hour mark. Lee consistently reached the mid-90s when he bowled and, with his physical development far from over, Finn may offer England similar express pace in the years to come. ‘I’m bowling quicker now than I ever have because when I have opportunities to work on my strength I’ve used them,’ said the 21-yearold. ‘We had a speedgun out in Dubai when I was with the Lions [earlier this year] and I was consistently bowling 90mph in my opening spell.
‘It’s important for me that it’s not just one spell I can bowl 90mph but that I maintain that throughout the day. Being tall helps me. From the age of 15 I shot up but I was a genuine beanpole then. Now I’m like Arnold p compared to what I was.’
By Chris Stocks
No DRS for Test series & Shahid Afridi is Pakistan Captain
THE International Cricket Council’s decision review system will be unavailable for England’s Test series against Bangladesh. Cost issues appear to be the stumbling block behind the failure to provide video, audio and graphics for third-umpire review.
The announcement comes less than a week after the ICC pledged to seek to provide blanket DRS coverage for all future Test matches and next year’sWorld Cup. An ICC spokesman said: ‘We may revisit the question of DRS for the rest of the summer.’ SHAHID AFRIDI has been named captain of Pakistan in all forms of the game, just three days after ending his self-imposed exile from Test cricket. Pakistan tour England later this summer.
Ambitious Morgan is here for the long haul
EOIN MORGAN has vowed not to change his attacking approach if he makes his Test debut against Bangladesh at Lord’s tomorrow.
After impressing in one-day cricket over the past year, the Irishman is set to make his first Test start as a replacement for the rested Paul Collingwood. Morgan’s innovative shots and attacking intent, coupled with a cool head, have been a vital part of England’s recent success in limited-overs cricket, including the World Twenty20 triumph in the Caribbean earlier this month.
However, there are fears the Middlesex batsman’s modest first-class form – he averaged less than 25 last summer – is a sign he is not yet ready for Test cricket.
‘Last year I was a bit ill-disciplined in my game and wasn’t in the right place,’ he conceded.‘We had a lot of consecutive games and I couldn’t seem to get a score under my belt. But a lot has changed since then, I’ve a lot of runs under my belt and I feel quite confident about my game.’
And Morgan is certain he can make the adjustment to the longer form of the game despite not playing a championship innings since last August. ‘Test cricket is not necessarily about batting in a different way,’ he added. ‘Like one-day cricket, it’s about how you bat with the situation of the game. ‘I think it will be a lot more spanned out and again if the game does dictate a certain shot and the percentages are in my favour I’ll play it – there’s no doubt about that. ‘If the wicket dictates it and I feel in good nick I’m going to play normally.’
The 23-year-old Dubliner, who quali- fied for England last year, admitted: ‘Test cricket is my biggest aspiration and my biggest dream and it has been since I was a kid. I grew up watching England play Test cricket, I wanted to be like some of my heroes so it’s where I want to be – testing myself against the best.’ ‘If I do play it will be huge because the coverage for Irish cricket will be great.’
Swann reaps rewards of a year to remember
The 31-year-old off-spinner completed a hectic and high-profile list of engagements, which included a Downing Street reception for Paul Collingwood’s World Twenty20- winning squad.
Swann recalled the past 12 months of achievement – including last summer’s Ashes victory – for England and himself, and said: ‘I know I’ve had a decent year in all three forms of the game. ‘But when you look at the list of players we’ve got and how well some of them have done, you actually take a step back and realise how good a year it’s been for me.’
Swann, who will take on Bangladesh in the first Test on Thursday, won the award ahead of Andrew Strauss, Collingwood, Stuart Broad and James Anderson. He added: ‘If you’d told me this three years ago, I’d have laughed at you and said “there’s no chance”. It’s a nice bit of cherry on the cake. ‘I’m just enjoying every game, going in and thinking “this is going to be brilliant fun” – doing the job I always dreamed of but that almost never happened.’
Wasim Akram: A stunning match winner
There are several outstanding aspects to Wasim Akram's international career, right from its sheer longevity - almost 19 years - to the amount of success he had in Tests and ODIs, with new ball and with old, with the red variety and the white. He was pretty handy with the bat - you'd have to be if your highest Test score is 257 not out - but it's as a bowler of splendid and varied skills that Akram will be remembered.
Making his Test debut against New Zealand in the beginning of 1985, Akram needed just one match to make his mark: in his second Test, in Dunedin, he returned match figures of 10 for 128 and was named Man of the Match even though New Zealand won the thriller by two wickets.
That set a glorious Test career on its way, but the early years were, as you'd expect for an 18-year-old, somewhat erratic. Even so, there were enough promising performances to prove that Akram was the real deal. In Barbados three years later, Akram took seven wickets in heartbreaker that Pakistan lost, yet again, by two wickets. In his first five years, though, Akram only managed 94 wickets in 29 Tests - a modest average of 3.24 per match.
Akram's best years were about to come. In his first Test of 1990, against Australia in Melbourne, Akram took 11 for 160, and that haul triggered a sensational run that lasted through most of the next eight years. In 48 Tests from 1990 to the end of 1997, Akram averaged five wickets per match, and his average dropped to an outstanding 20.05, before his form finally tapered off in his last four years.
| Period | Tests | Wickets | Average | Strike rate | 5WI/ 10WM |
| Till Dec 1989 | 29 | 94 | 28.18 | 65.9 | 5/ 1 |
| Jan 1990 to Dec 1997 | 48 | 240 | 20.05 | 46.4 | 16/ 3 |
| Jan 1998 onwards | 27 | 80 | 28.96 | 66.0 | 4/ 1 |
| Career | 104 | 414 | 23.62 | 54.6 | 25/ 5 |
During that eight-year period from 1990 to 1997, Akram had the best figures in Test cricket, barring none. There were several legendary bowlers who were at the height of their craft during an era which we now look back on as a golden one for bowlers, especially the fast ones - Curtly Ambrose, Allan Donald, Waqar Younis and Glenn McGrath were all around, but Akram's stats stood out even among them. His average of 20.05 was better than anyone else's during this period (with a cut-off of 150 wickets); in terms of strike rate, only Waqar was ahead.
During these eight years, Akram was Man of the Match in 12 of the 48 Tests he played, an incredible average of one every four games. Eight of these were in overseas Tests, including the game in Melbourne and the next one in Adelaide, when he turned in an outstanding all-round performance, taking six wickets and scoring 52 and 123. At the time it was only the 12th instance of a player scoring 150 or more and taking six or more wickets in a Test.
| Bowler | Tests | Wickets | Average | Strike rate | 5WI/ 10WM |
| Wasim Akram | 48 | 240 | 20.05 | 46.4 | 16/ 3 |
| Curtly Ambrose | 57 | 247 | 20.50 | 52.8 | 17/ 3 |
| Waqar Younis | 46 | 232 | 21.23 | 40.1 | 19/ 4 |
| Allan Donald | 36 | 171 | 23.27 | 48.8 | 9/ 2 |
| Glenn McGrath | 36 | 164 | 23.42 | 53.0 | 9/ 0 |
| Shane Warne | 62 | 289 | 24.08 | 62.9 | 12/ 3 |
Overall, he won 17 Man-of-the-Match and seven Man-of-the-Series awards, both of which are among the highest. Even better, his rate of winning these awards, one every six Tests, is the best among those who've won at least ten such prizes.
| Player | Tests | MoM awards | Tests per award |
| Wasim Akram | 104 | 17 | 6.12 |
| Jacques Kallis | 137 | 20 | 6.85 |
| Muttiah Muralitharan | 132 | 19 | 6.95 |
| Curtly Ambrose | 98 | 14 | 7.00 |
| Imran Khan | 88 | 11 | 8.00 |
| Malcolm Marshall | 81 | 10 | 8.10 |
Not surprisingly, Akram remains one of the most potent matchwinners in Tests for Pakistan. In the 41 wins that he was a part of, he took 211 wickets at an average which compares well with the best in the business.
| Bowler | Tests | Wickets | Average | Strike rate | 5WI/ 10WM |
| Muttiah Muralitharan | 53 | 430 | 16.03 | 42.6 | 40/ 18 |
| Malcolm Marshall | 43 | 254 | 16.78 | 38.1 | 17/ 4 |
| Curtly Ambrose | 44 | 229 | 16.86 | 44.4 | 13/ 3 |
| Waqar Younis | 39 | 222 | 18.20 | 35.0 | 14/ 4 |
| Dennis Lillee | 31 | 203 | 18.27 | 39.0 | 17/ 6 |
| Shaun Pollock | 49 | 223 | 18.30 | 47.5 | 9/ 1 |
| Wasim Akram | 41 | 211 | 18.48 | 42.3 | 13/ 2 |
| Anil Kumble | 43 | 288 | 18.75 | 44.4 | 20/ 5 |
Like most fast bowlers from Pakistan, Akram too mastered the art of bowling grassless pitches, where reverse swing becomes a most potent weapon. He is one of only four bowlers to take more than 150 wickets in Pakistan, while in the three major subcontinent countries, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, his average was marginally better than his overall career average.
| Bowler | Tests | Wkts | Average | Strike rate | 5WI/ 10WM |
| Imran Khan | 51 | 205 | 20.28 | 48.8 | 12/ 3 |
| Waqar Younis | 41 | 191 | 21.07 | 39.2 | 13/ 4 |
| Wasim Akram | 57 | 211 | 22.67 | 52.9 | 11/ 1 |
| Shoaib Akhtar | 26 | 108 | 24.87 | 45.2 | 6/ 1 |
| Javagal Srinath | 35 | 116 | 26.43 | 55.0 | 6/ 1 |
| Chaminda Vaas | 71 | 230 | 27.54 | 62.4 | 6/ 1 |
| Kapil Dev | 86 | 279 | 29.01 | 59.8 | 14/ 2 |
| Zaheer Khan | 38 | 107 | 38.12 | 69.2 | 2/ 0 |
Through most of his career, Akram formed a destructive fast-bowling combination with Waqar: in the 61 Tests they played together, Akram averaged 21.33, with 20 five-fors and four ten-wicket hauls; in the 43 Tests he played without Waqar, his averaged fell to 28.50, and he only managed five five-fors. His wickets per Tests too dropped to 3.07 per match, from 4.62 when the bowled with Waqar. Some of that was also because the periods he bowled without Waqar were also during the first and last parts of his career, when he wasn't at his most potent.
| Tests | Wickets | Average | Strike rate | 5WI/ 10WM | |
| With Waqar | 61 | 282 | 21.33 | 49.2 | 20/ 4 |
| Without Waqar | 43 | 132 | 28.50 | 66.2 | 5/ 1 |
Akram's ODI career was more even, and his stats stayed within a narrow band almost throughout. He announced himself in his third game, taking 5 for 21 against Australia in Melbourne - a haul that included Allan Border, Dean Jones and Kepler Wessels - during the World Championship of Cricket.
His best period, though, was between 1992 and 1997, when he had an economy rate of 3.76 and took 14 of his 23 hauls of four or more wickets. At the beginning of that period was the 1992 World Cup, in which Akram was an absolute star, taking 18 wickets at 18.77. The highlight was his 3 for 49 in the final, when he derailed England's run-chase with the wickets of Allan Lamb and Chris Lewis in successive balls. Even towards the end of his career he remained a significant threat with the ball, and became the first bowler to go past the 500-wicket mark.
Akram played five World Cups over his 19-year career, and finished as the second-highest wicket-taker with 55, next only to McGrath's haul of 71.
| Period | Matches | Wickets | Average | Econ rate | 4+ wkts |
| Till Dec 1991 | 107 | 143 | 23.97 | 3.84 | 5 |
| Jan 1992 - Dec 1997 | 131 | 198 | 21.86 | 3.76 | 14 |
| Jan 1998 onwards | 118 | 161 | 25.17 | 4.09 | 4 |
| Career | 356 | 502 | 23.52 | 3.89 | 23 |
With 326 ODI wickets in wins, Akram is next only to Muralitharan in this regard. He's clearly one of the greatest matchwinners in ODIs, averaging less than 19 at a run rate of 3.70. Among bowlers with at least 150 wickets in wins, only four bowlers have a better average.
| Bowler | ODIs | Wickets | Average | Econ rate | 4+ wkts |
| Saqlain Mushtaq | 93 | 188 | 15.84 | 3.78 | 11 |
| Glenn McGrath | 171 | 301 | 17.94 | 3.65 | 15 |
| Muttiah Muralitharan | 191 | 347 | 18.08 | 3.63 | 21 |
| Waqar Younis | 149 | 278 | 18.76 | 4.33 | 21 |
| Wasim Akram | 199 | 326 | 18.86 | 3.70 | 18 |
| Allan Donald | 108 | 195 | 19.05 | 3.96 | 10 |
Akram's genius and his ability to burst through batting line-ups is obvious from the fact that he has taken two hat-tricks in Tests and ODIs, the only bowler to do so. He finished with 22 Man-of-the-Match awards in ODIs, which isn't anywhere near Sachin Tendulkar's 61, but it's a significant number considering the fact that ODIs are usually dominated by batsmen. In fact, Akram and Shaun Pollock (who also has 22) have the highest number of awards among players whose major suit isn't batting.
And then there's the small matter of Akram the captain. In the 25 Tests in which he led Pakistan, they won 12 and lost eight, and his reign included a series win in England, and clinching the Asian Test Championship. His ODI record was impressive too: a win-loss ratio of 1.6, which is the joint-highest for any Pakistan captain who led in more than 50 games.
| Captain | Matches | Won | W/L ratio |
| Wasim Akram | 109 | 66 | 1.60 |
| Waqar Younis | 62 | 37 | 1.60 |
| Inzamam-ul-Haq | 87 | 51 | 1.54 |
| Imran Khan | 139 | 75 | 1.27 |
| Javed Miandad | 62 | 26 | 0.78 |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)