Aussies Set For A New Record

Well the Australian cricket team may at present not be the number 1 team that it was until recently when the Proteas took over. And after their 2-1 series loss to England in the recently concluded Ashes added fuel to fire when they were stripped off their number 1 status in test cricket also to South Africa. Needless to be said, this has taken a toll on the Australian players and Ricky Ponting especially when he was not only forced to take a short gap after his team's dismal performance but also quit the much hyped T20 cricket. All because of bad luck in addition to bad cricket.

Anyways, coming to the sixth one day international cricket match between England and Australia at Nottingham, as expected, England were thrashed by a whooping 111 runs, the margin coinciding with the top scorer and the man of the match Tim Paine who also scored 111 runs that included 14 hits to the fence and 1 huge one over Long Off. No doubt that there was a life when he was dropped when on 30 by Matt Prior behind the stumps. Anyway, that is almost expected off England whatsoever. They rank the first to make a mess of the game. One has to appreciate the 163 runs partnership between Mike Hussey and the man of the match Tim Paine.

After the match, England looked almost exhausted and got used to such defeats especially against Australia. Since the beginning of the series, starting from the Ashes, England have always been at the receiving end if not for the self destruction made by the Aussie players when they could have well ended up victorious in the very first Ashes test, when a 7th wicket partnership in England's second innings proved too costly for Ponting's men in white. And what all followed suite is well in front of our eyes. What have England got to lose when Australia have no determination to win when the odds favored them?

Well, that is all past, and the future of the Ashes' bitter memory have only made the Aussies strong that is quite evident in the seven match one day international series. With 6 of them already in the Australians' pockets, the seventh one will be a lot more important for Australians especially, since they have lost the Common Wealth Bank series a couple of years back to the same England and in addition to that, in case Australia managed to win this one, they would be the first team in the history of the game of cricket to have won all seven one dayers in a bilateral series. And that is not all for Australia. They will share the number 1 position with South Africa in case they do that. So, who is going to miss that!!!

Rivalling The Ashes?

Well, this was the match that was thought to be worth the wait for all the cricket crazy fans over the world. For, these two have been the teams that are rated high in the minds of the cricket fans. Courtesy- the world record chase of 434 by South Africa against Australia which happened to be one rare case where Australia lost the ODI series 2-3. This I think need not be cited specially whatsoever. And, how can one ever afford to forget such a great match. From then onwards, the encounters between Australia and South Africa have been on the top of the list for all the cricket fans. Oh yes, it includes me too. Well, all that is past. However, even in the present period, things are no different either.

It is deeply rooted in the minds of the cricket fans that, if at all there is a team that could beat Australia it is South Africa. And, as all of us are aware of, South Africa did exactly that in the first two tests against Australia. Not even India or England for that matter come in for such praise. With the two tests being dominated by South Africa, the third test would have really sparked off some or much curiosity among the fans out there. A win in this test would throw Australia from their number one position in test cricket, which they (Australia) have been enjoying since the past eight years or more. With the first two days of play in hand, it is really a tough job to judge the winner right away.

Neither has Australia shown some reluctance in putting a better performance, nor the Proteas are in any mood to sacrifice the third test to Australia for having won the series already. Pressure is found to be on both the sides. If not for the series, for the top spot in world cricket. A big blow in the form of an injury to Greame Smith has found to loosen the hopes of a South African win. However, the way the tail put up a 184 run partnership in the first innings of the second test shouldn't be forgotten. By putting up a decent total of 445 on board, Australia have indicated their come back into the game once again. The proteas have still 8 wickets in hand and a lot to prove. Of course, all of us would be expecting the same ie a South African win.

In the past five years (since 2003), the Australian team has lost its place temperorily on two occasions. And both of them saw South Africa head the list for the strongest one day squad. Way back in early 2007, where South Africa had beaten world cup chokers India and Pakistan in the five match series played by a margin 5-0 and 4-1 respectively. On the other hand, for a change, Australia had lost the two out of the three finals to England in the Commonwealth Bank series 2007, followed by a 3-0 whitewash against New Zealand. And in the second instance, where Australia once again lost to India in 2008, with the proteas registering wins against Bangladesh and West Indies late 2007. However, a similar fate in test cricket is yet to target the Aussies. Now, it time for that. So, can South Africa do it this time?

Dhoni's Comment On Seniors:Just An Ego..

After the T20 world championship win at South Africa,followed by a maiden series win in Australia,it seems as though Dhoni has got wings that could let him even fly in the air.This was from the statement he made on the selection of junior players over the senior ones.

Was that the result what Dhoni wanted in the T20 match in Melbourne?Well,as I said,there was nothing to worry about in my earlier posts.Lets take the Commonwealth bank Series itself,which provoked Dhoni to make the statement.Some awesome performance that I can highlight is the bowling of Ishanth Sharma-to win the first encounter against the Aussies,Praveen Kumar-who won a match against each Sri Lanka as well as Australia,& finally M S Dhoni who played some decent knocks to help India through.

But,what about the rest?Robin Uttappa who had just two decent knocks,Yuvraj Singh-who had just one score of 50+,Piyush Chawla,Sreesanth and much more players who were hardly of any weight.

But,Sachin's knock that helped India win on both occasions.And for the information, how come the contributions of Sourav & Dravid being taken lightly just because the youngsters did a fair job?And is Dhoni ready to take the blame for the young team's debacle caused by his decisions?Well..if Dhoni's predictions come true,I would suggest him to be an astrologer rather than a cricketer!!What Dhoni??

Some Nonsense in ICC Rankings!

For all those dudes who were fed up with the Australia's dominance in world cricket, there was some good news and a relief as well.The reason,as every one knows being that the Aussies have been stripped of their top spot in ODIs as per the latest ICC ODI rankings.

And guess the team to have achieved this feat!Yes,it is South Africa.And this happened at the cost of India.Well thats another issue altogether.But,how many of you guys agree with the latest ICC ODI rankings?And even a few of them who would raise their hands will have to think once again,especially after reading this post.Try it out!!

Taking the recent performance by both the teams,first the Aussies who have lost a home series to India.And on the other side,we have South Africa who have won ODI series' against West Indies (5-0)and Bangladesh(3-0).Both of them being whitewashed.I doubt weather there is any test playing team that would find facing the West Indians difficult,or Bangladesh for that matter?And much to their delight,the Proteas did the feat against West Indies at home.While Australia lost a series to a decent opposition in India.

But,it is something welcome luck for South Africa,in contrast to their unlucky world cup campaigns every year."GOOD LUCK SOUTH AFRICA "

"Racism"

Well since the beginning of the year,most of the news that was being made in the recently concluded commonwealth bank series(probably even more than world cricket) is the "RACISM".With Harbhajan Singh calling Symonds the "M-Word",Hayden calling Harbhajan "an obnoxious weed",Hogg reffering Kumble & co as "B!@#$%^s"....

The most funny thing of them all being "the M-word" supposed to have been called by Harbhajan by Symonds.Some things have to be noticed by cricket fans over the word that has something to do with racism & the names of Englishmen.Some of which that I can highlight over here are:

1)The former Australian captain "Mark Taylor"->pronounced as "Mark Tailor"...so does he stitches clothes?or is he a scar?

2)Ian Bell->What about him?Does he have a habit of ringing at regular intervals?

3)Umpire "Billy Bowden"->Ask some hindi speaking person as to what does "Billy" stands for in hindi?

4)Zimbabwean "Flower" brothers->Do they show cast themselves in gardens?

5)West Indian fast bowler "Franklyn Rose"->Does he appear in six different colours?

For the sake,even the players from the sub continent are also not spared when it comes to funny names.We had players like "Contractor" and "Farook Engineer".Do they take part in constructing buildings?

With this page length being limited,some more examples that I can give is "Woods", "Dominic Cork","Craig White","Brian Lara","Ian Bishop","Malcom Speed","Nick knight","Guy Whittal",Umpire "David Shepherd"and much more...

Looks like none of the match referee so far had got a note on their names.Like the dress code being made compulsory for players,after strict laws being enforced for players making rasist comments,I think that even players with funny names will be banned from playing cricket in the near future.Ha Ha Ha....

Some Lessons To Learn From The Aussies..

Hmm..in the recently concluded commonwealth bank series,Australia had no other option than to lose to India.The debacle was almost expected,as Australians had an ego of suspending players irrespective of their talent and contribution to the team.Some players that come to my mind are..Michael Beaven,Jason Gillespie,Andy Bichel,Bradd Williams and much more..

All Australia did was to maintain the winning combination for reasons god knows.For the instance,Jason Gillespie last played for Australia in the match against Bangladesh,where he surprised everyone by scoring a double hundred inspite of being a nightwatchman.But,the outcome was that he was totally ignored by the selectors for any future tours by Australia.

Then we have Michael Beaven-whose batting average has been one of the best in the world.The man was found to contribute for Australia in crucial situations ,for instance in the world cup semis in 1996 against West Indies and in 1999 against South Africa.In 2003 world cup,it was only the effort of Michael Beaven due to which Australia broke the previous West Indies' record of winning 13 consecutive ODIs.Australia were reeling at 135/8 against England while chasing a target of 205.Then in the super six match against New Zealand,it was Michael Beaven who rescued Australia from 84/7 to 208/9.But,the last this man was found representing for the Australian team was way back in 2004 against Sri Lanka.

In the recently concluded commonwealth Bank Series,there was a need of a Beaven like batsmen during their chase of 259 in the second finals.A Bichael like bowler to support Brett Lee would have been more effective compared to Mitchel Jhonson, James Hopes and Stuart Clarke.

It is now left to the other teams to learn from the Aussie mistakes as well in addition to some from their world dominance.

Adam Gilchrist:

Though its been almost two weeks since the commonwealth bank series got over,the series is still on when it comes to blogs.One man who can never be forgotten is the man who was calling it a day-when it comes to international cricket. Adam Gilchrist.

Though the series was not a memorable one for Australia when it came to answering questions about the ethics of the game,the past record and contribution of this man should never be forgotten.He was the one who walked off the field when he was suspicious about his decision weather out or not out!this was in the first semi finals of the 2003 World Cup against Sri lanka.The pitch on which Australia was batting then had bitter memories against England & New Zealand which had seen their batting tumble.in such a situation,Gilchrist never thought of the consequences before choosing to walk.

The man is known for his explosive batting in addition to his wicket keeping magic.He held the record for the most dismissals by a wicket keeper in tests(416) surpassing South Africa's Mark Boucher(who has reclaimed the record after Gilchrist retired).Irrespective of the wicket,opposition,pressure..Gilchrist always tends to fire with the bat.The man almost snatched a win against India in the TVS Cup 2003 involving New Zealand,when he scored 83 off 79 balls at Gwalior.
Some must watch videos of his include:

1)The second fastest hundred against England.
2)149 off 104 balls in the finals of the 2007 WC against Sri Lanka.
3)First ever to hit a 100th six in tests.
4)172 against Zimbabwe in the VB Series 2003/04
5)118 vs Sri Lanka at W.A.C.A......
6)122 off 91 balls against Sri Lanka

Commonwealth Bank Series 2008-The Ugliest in History?

Last Tuesday saw the commonwealth Bank series coming to an end,with India clinching the trophy after winning the first two of the three finals.This was the end of the most ugliest series ever seen in international cricket.Even the games played between arch rivals for example Australia vs England,India vs Pakistan hadn't seen as much bad blood as seen in this series.

First of them being the bad umpiring decisions from fellow umpires-Mark Benson & Steve Bucknor,followed by some unnecessary appealing from the Australians-especially from Ricky Ponting for the catch of Sourav Ganguly.Next comes the uttering of the "M-word" from Harbhajan Singh to Andrew Symonds in the very same Sydney test.The episode posed a threat of India withdrawing from the tour,untill Harbhajan's punishment was reduced to a petty fine.

Finally there was some relief for the Indians after they won the Perth Test.Once again in the fourth test at Adelaide,the Indians showed that they are no less compared to the Aussies when it comes to make an issue,for they were found to settle with a draw by batting the entire fifth day and not allowing the Australian batsmen to take to the crease.

Then came the Commonwealth bank series which also feature Sri Lanka.Even the Sri Lankans were not spared.An incident of throwing eggs at Muttiah Muralitharan just showed that the Aussies are just untolerable!

Then comes the situation where Symonds appeals for a grounded catch of Chamara Silva in the third ODI.Then the Ishanth sharma showing Symonds the way to the pevilion.Shortly there was Matthew Hayden who called Harbhajan Singh "An Obnoxious weed" in a radio interview.

All these episodes could be forgiven,but for this ugly one.A man getting naked and entering into the ground in not one,but in both the final games between India and Australia-wherein the security men had to get a towel.

Even is this also a trick by the Australian fans to get the attention off from the onfield action?Hmm..it can never get worse than this I believe...With Australia looking anxious about their security concerns during their tour of Pakistan shortly,the entire world has seen the security given to sub continent teams-India & Sri lanka.

Putting the past behind us,lets all hope that these ugly incidents never occur in future cricket tournaments.Else,the cricket stadium can rather be called a kindergarten- where little children quarrel over petty issues.

Is this Really Needed????

Hmmm...after the disappointing world cup campaign at the Caribean its been never look back for the Indian Cricket Team ever since.In all three forms of the game Indians are seeing making history wherever they are found going.The first one being the World T20 Championship at South Africa,followed by test and one day wins against Pakistan. The latest being the Commonwealth Bank Series.

The team has undergone two felicitations-one for the World T20 Championship and the other one for the Commonwealth bank Series.My question is that:Is all these really needed?What was special with India winning the Commonwealth Bank series?Of course!They deserved it for their T20 win-because,the win came against arch rivals Pakistan and that was against all teams of the world.Winning a world cup is all the more special wherein you are supposed to in against most of the opposition.

But,in an ordinary series like that of Commonwealth Bank Series,is nothing special in my opinion.And a felicitation for the purpose is something foolish and just a waste of time and money.All cricketers were being rewarded Rs58 lakh for their achievement.
If this the case to be,I have a lot more situations better than the Commonwealth bank series win which was hardly rewarded.For the purpose,

1)India won the test and one day series against Pakistan in Pakistan in 2004 after India toured Pakistan after 12 yrs.
2)India won the Adelaide test after a long gap of 22 years.
3)India reached the finals of the ICC World Cup 2003 after a gap of 20yrs
4)India won a test series at home against Pakistan after 20yrs
5)A test series win on the English soil after 21 yrs and much more..

When all these achievements went hardly noticed,the Commonwealth bank Series was nothing special.Even the Perth test win was not the talk of the day.This is just discrimination based on junior and senior players I believe.

There were players like Virender Sehwag,Dinesh karthik,Suresh Raina,Piyush Chawla and much more who did nothing worthy.their contribution to the win is absolutely nothing.Players like Yuvraj Singh,Robin Uttappa came back in the leter part of the series.Some noteworthy contributions that I can find is the skipper M.S.Dhoni,Ishanth Sharma,Praveen kumar and Harbhajan Singh who contributed in most part of the series.

It is just disgusting as to what the BCCI is thinking about.The board was found making wrong desisions when it comes to selection,adding to this,some unnecessary rewards for the players who have done something similar that have been done by their seniors(that have gone unnoticed) in the past.

Is this a kind of motivation that is needed,which might see Indian players play good cricket only if they are showered with cash rewards?I totally disagree "BCCI"

A Revolution In Indian Cricket!!

Well,the last Tuesday saw India lifting the Commonwealth Bank series 2008 by defeating Australia at Brisbane.The win not only was their first such win in Australia after 23 years, but also an indication of a revolution in Indian cricket I believe!!

Just let us go somewhere 10 years down the lane where India was found to struggle against each and every team in the world.The most annoying of those were the defeats at the hands of arch rivals Pakistan(in the Pepsi Cup 1999 & Coca Cola Sharjah Cup 1999),against whom team India were all but lost.The match used to be declared by the fans over there even before the match begun.The only match winners being Sachin Tendulkar,Mohd Azharuddin,Ajay Jadeja,Robin Singh,Anil kumble,Sourav Ganguly,Venkatesh Prasad and Javagal Srinath.With these failing to contribute in their respective areas,India was not only bound to lose,but also fail to give in a good fight against a decent opposition.

Any injuries to one or a couple of players,and India could never find any replacement for those.Some names that could come to my mind as replacements for these people were-Nilesh kulkarni,Nikhil Chopra,Harvinder Singh,Sadagoppan Ramesh,
Debashish Mohanty so on and so forth...none of the names known to today's cricket fans.These people were hardly working,and were the last choices by the selectors. But,nothing else could be done.Believe it or not:Even the Mr Dependable Rahul Dravid was not at his batting best.A keeper in Nayan Mongia was at the cost of a batsman,wherein now India can boast of having a wicketkeeper batsman in M.S.Dhoni.

Any match that India won during those days,would be solely due to the contribution by fellow players as mentioned above.

For example,take the world cup 1999 where India couldn't even win against Zimbabwe due to the absense of Sachin Tendulkar-who had to get back to Mumbai owing to his father's death.It was this loss that put an end to India's hopes of making a run in that World Cup-coz India was forced to win all three matches in the super sixes to book a berth in the semis.A loss against Australia ended the hopes of India's future in that World cup.

But,after Sourav Ganguly was made the skipper,Indian cricket team was all but in a new phase one can say.Some players of the caliber of Yuvraj Singh,Mohd kaif,Zaheer khan,Virender Sehwag....who found some decent success as that of making into the finals of the World Cup in 2003-with only Australia to have beaten them,The Natwest Trophy finals 2002-which India won beating England by chasing a world record score of 325,making into the finals of the ICC Champions Trophy 2002 which was forced to be shared with Sri Lanka.

And today,the same Indian team is looking to make history wherever they go.With some match winning players in MS Dhoni,Robin Uttappa,Rohith Sharma,Isanth Sharma,Sreesanth,R P Singh and much more.If not for the disappointing world cup at the caribean,the year was not a bad one for India.India was found winning a test series against England in England(after a span of 20 yrs),against Pakistan -that too after 20+ yrs,the Adelaide test win,Perth test win against Australia....and much more...

And the latest being the T20 championship and the Commonwealth bank series against Australia.And whats more exciting is that team India is finding replacements for these players in case of injuries to one or two of them.This is what is called as a balanced team with absolutely nothing to complain.

"GREAT GOING TEAM INDIA...KEEP IT UP"

Aussies:Riches To Rags???

Last year(2007) Aussies had to surrender the commonwealth bank series trophy to arch rivals England due to a lot of overconfidence from the Australian players.The Australians had lost such a series after four consecutive wins against England in 2003,India in 2004, Pakistan in 2005 and Sri Lanka in 2006(after losing the first of the three finals).

This year,owing to no confidence-after losing the Perth Test,which stopped their streak of 17 consecutive test wins,followed by the Melbourne ODI loss to India in the second round robin of the commonwealth bank series.And at last a loss to Sri Lanka-which came close to winning on the previous three occasions too.but went down due to some reckless batting and rains.This looked all the more sufficient to make the mighty Aussies nervous.

The last time the Aussies were found to have undergone through such a bad patch is in the Ashes 2005 and the Chappell-Hadlee trophy early 2007 which Australia lost 3-0.The changes that have taken place in the tri nation tournament are :

1)The Australian shirt colour-which has been changed from Yellow to Baggy green
2)The sponsorers being the Commonwealth Bank which was earlier Victoria Bitter
3)Australia have been losing the series in the first two of the three finals even after commanding their position by winning most of the league matches(Australia won 7 out of 8 matches last year involving teams-England and New Zealand)

The body language of the Aussies just showed us that they were not mentally prepared for the game.Not only against India,but also against Sri Lanka they were found to struggle unless the Sri Lankan batsmen made a mess of their batting.

Something funny about the test series being that Ricky Ponting started blaming the pitch for the Perth debacle.Is this the way a twice world cup lifting captain is expected to speak?Like the saying goes"A Bad Worksman Quarrels With His Tools".

An Australian decline was bound after so much of messing up with each and every thing that came their way.Well...all controversies that were supposed to have affected India was reversed.This time,no wrong umpiring decisions,no unnecessary appealing,no racial abuse/sledging...nothing came to the Australian rescue...

"BETTER LUCK NEXT TIME-AUSSIES"

Sachin Tendulkar!Reminding the Aussies of his Presence

As everyone in the cricketing world is aware,Sachin Tendulkar got into his 42nd ODI century in the first final against Australia.This was one of the many such knocks by the little master and whenever he does it against Australia it is all the more special for this master blaster.Reason!The man is awarded the man of the match everytime he scores a century against Australia,irrespective of weather India wins or loses.Perhabs!India have lost only once against Australia when Sachin Tendulkar has scored a hundred-in the ODI at Sharjah.

This innings once again proved his calibre as a batsman.According to my opinion,
Sachin not only helped India register their first victory in the finals of the commonwealth bank series,but also helped youngsters like Robin Uttappa and Rohith Sharma put up a confidence knock.Sachin's presence at the other end helped Rohith Sharma notch up his yet another half century(66),along with a 100+ run partnership with him.

Though he was not found putting up big scores across his name,Sachin Tendulkar 's calibre never changed.As the saying goes "Class is permanent & Form is temparory".
This is what Sachin's batting once again proved in Sydney on Sunday.His body language never complained.It just showed that the man is just waiting to prove a point.Sachin was preffered while his fellow experienced-Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly were dropped without any hesitation.This shows the amount of respect this man commands.

Sachin made his place in the team deserving,and not bringing under the BCCI's scrutiny in replacing him with a youngster.Any plans to drop or rest Sachin is nothing but foolishness it can be said-unless the player calls it a day.Very rarely does a batsman in international cricket can be compared with Sachin.The only player who has often been compared with Sachin is the West Indian legend-Brian Lara,who too was no less when it came to being a nitemare for most of the great bowlers in world cricket.

Well I'm running out of words in describing this great batsman.But,one thing is for sure...the day this Mumbai lad retires from international cricket,the respect that he takes home will be a compound interest of those taken by some legends viz Steve Waugh,Brian Lara,Sanath Jayasuriya,Inzy so on and so forth.......

Related Videos:

Part1 Part2 Part3 Part4 Part5 Part6 Australian Wickets Rohit Sharma's Interview Sachin's Interview Presentation

Some Exchanging Of gifts Between the Teams In Melbourne..

Though not of any great consequence,the twelfth ODI match between Australia and Sri Lanka at Melbourne turned out to be a christmas for both the teams,for both Australia and Sri Lanka exchanged gifts between each other.

It all started with Sri Lanka winning the toss and electing to bat first for the first time in the series against Australia.The Sri Lankan batting going on as usual,with hardly any firing from the Sri lankan batsmen.Sri Lanka-who had lost three earlier matches to Australia was not at all expected to come back harsh at the Australians by grabbing a consolation win at Melbourne.

For a change,Sri Lankans batted first in the match.But,the result being the same,ie the team batting first winning the contest.It was something special for both the teams out there.Firstly for Sanath Jayasuriya-the man who is playing his last match on the Australian soil(or probably his last series or match) got his 249th six when he cleared the ropes off the bowling of Brett Lee.And what more...the man got his first wicket in the series and that too of his first ball.And not less for Muttiah Muralitharan who was also playing his last match on Australian soil.The man picked up 2/42..the best against Australia this series.

Next was that of Adam Gilchrist-who for some reasons had planned to quit international cricket all of a sudden was found in a punishing mood altogether,belting 83 runs of just 50 balls.It looked as though the Sri lankans would be disappointed this time too.But,when the rest of the Australian players had planned to gift the match to the Sri Lankans,what more has Gilchrist got to do with it?

At the end of the day,Sri Lanka had something to take away,as they snatched narrow 13run win against Australia,three times after losing to the same even after some initial success with the ball.As deserved,Adam Gilchrist was awarded the man of the match for his astonishing innings.Though it was too late for Sri Lanka,it was some consolation for the Sri Lankan team which had lost all chances to enter the finals.The win can be better said to be Australia's loss rather than a Sri Lankan win.

Well Sri Lanka,this time the Australians have genourously donated a match after the last one was cut short due to rain.Else,an Australia-Sri Lanka finals would not be a wrong statement.

Related Videos:
Part1 Part2 Part3 Part4 Part5 Part6 Part7 Part8 Part9

A Check Needed On Aussie Emotions..

It was once said in Sydney Cricket Ground by Andrew Symonds that no opposition player should in anyway pass on comments on an Aussie,seconds before the Monkey episode took place in the second test at Sydney.With the entire world knowing what provoked Harbhajan Singh(who was believed to have patted on Lee's back for his good bowling) to call him the 'M-word',that led to more bad blood between India and Australia.

Neither the Cricket Australia officials,nor the ICC took some time in analysing the issue before imposing a 2 test ban on Harbhajan Singh,which was later reduced to a fine of 50% match fee.By the time this relief was realised by Harbhajan,the man had to undergo lot many mental agony.All these happened without any effort by the Aussie players nor the Cricket Australia officials.But,it took hell out from the Indian players in getting Steve Bucknor removed despite a clear cut picture in the Sydney test.

Indians showed the Aussies what they are by dropping the charges against Brad Hogg.But,the Aussies are just unbeatable in this regard too.The latest being the verbal volley between Symonds and Ishanth Sharma.The latter showing him the way to the pevilion.But,hardly anyone made it a point to show out the mistake what Symonds did.

Things are not restricted to only India..even the South Africans who toured Australia two years ago witnessed the same.To know more about Aussie comments,ask Muttiah Muralitharan,who at times refused to tour Australia fearing racial abuse from the Aussies.

The latest comment by Matthew Hayden,calling Harbhajan "an Obnoxious weed" and getting away with a petty fine and that too without any apology was just not acceptable.
I would now like to know weather The Australian Cricket is being run by the ICC,for none of the cases against them are made into an issue?And even if one is made,its only to shut the mouths of critics..

My view is that,with Austrlian cricket losing dominance slowly,the players cannot find any other means to tackle the opposition.

Its high time that the Australian players and media as well control their emotions and see to that it does result in bad blood with its opposition.After all even others are human beings like the Australians.....

"SO AUSSIES GIVE RESPECT & TAKE RESPECT"

An Easy Way To The Finals For India?

Its a rare feat that we seldom come across in cricket.A knock out game for both the teams,in which one of the team gives a charitable donation to the other.Yes,this is exactly what happened in the 11th match of the Commonwealth Bank tri series involving India and Sri Lanka.The match which was supposed to be a thriller was gifted by the Sri Lankan team to its subcontinental rivals.In anyway,as a Indian I'm really happy.Chak De India!

But,as far as a cricket fan,I'm really disappointed.A meagre score of 179..My goodness.. Even the great Sri Lankan inform batsman Kumara Sangakkara-who has so far been the top scorer for Sri Lanka in the series,with 315 runs from 7 games at an average of 52.50 was found to struggle with the bat for the first time in the series.

So far the team which made it to the finals of the ICC World Cup 2007 in the Carrebian was found to struggle only against the Aussies.But,even an average team like India(without most of the experienced there in the team) was found to trouble the Sri Lankans.An amazing fact of the tri series is that the Sri Lankans have so far in 7 games could score only one single team total of beyond 200(238 in the Adelaide One Dayer ).HOWZZAAAT!

Well-the Sri Lankans never deserved a berth in the finals of the C B Series.

A fighting spirit even after a loss to the same came for much appreciation from the fans all over.But this time,I'm sorry..The Sri Lankans were found to have given it up even before the match had begun I believe.A minnow team in Zimbabwe four years down the lane were found to put up a better performance compared to the Sri Lankans this time-for they came to grab a close encounter on two occasions against India(one in Brisbane and the other at Adelaide) and one against Australia(At Adelaide).

The same team two years down the lane were found to put up a tough fight against the same,winning three out of four matches against mighty South Africans,followed by an upset win over Australia in the first final of the then V B Series.

A little bit of effort from the Sri Lankan part would have made the competition seem like one .But...After the dismal performance by the Sri Lankans throughout the series,the series is no better than a bilateral series involving India and Australia.

"SORRY SRI LANKAN TEAM..U'VE DISAPPOINTED US"

Related Videos:
Part1 Part2 Part3 Part4 Part5 Part6 Part7 Part8 Part9

Aussies Not At Their Bowling Best...

Well,the 10th ODI match between India and Australia at Sydney Cricket Ground witnessed some brilliant batting from the blades of Ricky Ponting-who scored his 26th century to become the second highest century scorer after Sachin Tendulkar (41),Adam Gilchrist-who belted 15 runs from 7 balls, Hayden(54,62b,5x4,1x6) and Andrew Symonds(59,49b,6x4,2x6).

Though being from India,I enjoyed each and every shot played by Ricky Ponting and co..The shots from these Australian batsmen were worth some praise because they all came against some decent Indian bowling of especially Ishanth Sharma.The Aussies were found to time and place the ball in the gaps frequently.This is what batting is all about.Australians deserved to have put up a score of above 300.

But,comming to the second part,ie the second innings of the match-Indian batting,it was all praise from Ravi Shastri and Wasim Akram for Indian batting especially for Robin Uttappa and Gautam Gambhir after the match.Yes,Gambhir did deserve tons of praise for his 113(119b,11x4,1x6).The man was left to bat with India losing four quick wickets in Sehwag,Sachin,Yuvraj and Rohith Sharma.

But,comming to Uttappa's innings,it was not at all the talk of the day according to my opinion.The six he hit off Lee's bowling was a replica of one of the shots hit by Pakistani slogger Shahid Afridi.With hardly any shot selection,feet movement and balance.The man was once again found struggling when it came to decent yorkers. This was showed by him when he struck his second boundary off Clarke than was short.

The reason why India could manage to be in the game is solely because of the indecent bowling of the Aussie bowlers-who were found to bowl too short,giving the Indian batsmen enough room outside the offstump and bowling no balls that even tail end batsmen like Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan were comfortable batting.

I would suggest those who praised Indian batting to take a look at the Australian bowling.One instance what I can show is the 48.1 delivery bowled by Bracken which was a bye four runs .And even after repeated scoring in the fine leg area,the Aussie captain showed no signs in restricting that area.A dependable batsman like Dhoni was found all but struggling -needing 66balls to score 36runs.

Some decent planning by the Aussie captain on the field would have made things really miserable for the Indian batsmen I beleive.With India losing four wickets for a score less than hundred,even a total of 200 would be tough.But thanks to Aussie bowlers who got carried away after their batsmen supported them and the initial breakthrough.And even the fielders who merely cared when the ball was found rolling over the ropes through the gaps.

Sorry India...You hardly deserve it.....you've got a lot to improve......

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A Dog's Tail...?

A third time in the series the same feat has been repeated by the Sri Lankan cricket team against Australia.With the required total being lesser compared to the previous matches,the Sri Lankans batted brilliantly to see their performance deteriorate each time their batsmen went on to face the Aussie bowlers.And this time,a target of less than 200 was found enough for the Aussies to trouble the Sri Lankan batsmen.

I doubt!Was this the team that were said to be a perfect finalists in the 2007 World Cup to defeat the Aussies?Likewise,the Sri lankan batsmen were considered to be far below par compared to the Aussies.But,such a batting debacle??Oh my god!With each and every match,it was like"Next Time".But,when exactly?

Each time when I expect the Aussies to be defeated after the Sri Lankan bowlers do a fantastic job,the only thing I get to see is a bigger disappointment in Sri Lankan batting.When will the Sri Lankans learn?With every other team's performance being so hopeless,there lies the answer as to why the Australians are still the most favoured team by betters...Kudos to U-Aussies!!!

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A Contest Between Two Similar Teams!

The 8th match between India and Sri Lanka of the Commonwealth Bank Series in Adelaide Oval turned out to be a funny one.Something similar foolish things was found to have been done by both the teams over there.Both the teams were found to have been fined for slow over rates,both the team's face being saved by one or a couple of players,with the rest of them only being to fill the vacancies.

Both the players who have played more than 400 ODI matches were found to have been out for a duck.Both opening batsmen(Sachin & Jayasuriya) being out for a duck.Wicketkeepers saving the face for their teams in both the innings.A captain's knock in both the innings of the match.

The first interesting match of the series,after every other match being almost predictable,this match was on for both the teams out there and untill the last moment,evoking thrill among the fans/spectators in the stands.Finally,no team was either a winner or a loser.The result was only official according to my opinion.Equal display of talent by both the teams would not be a wrong statement.

If it was India who walked away with the match,there was some consolation for Sri Lanka also by grabbing a bonous point.And the man of the match being awarded to Kumara Sangakkara showed just that.If there was Yuvraj Singh & Dhoni for India,there was Sangakkara& Jayawardane for Sri Lanka.

The match was like a game of tug of war with both the teams displaying equal strength.Even a loss to team India wouldn't have disappointed the fans I believe.This is what I call a perfect match.The pressure was on until the end of the game.A perfect treat for all cricket fans...Worth the money the fans would have spent in buying tickets...Isn't it?

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Some Craziness in Indian Cricket!

A rare case where Sunday dosen't seem to be Sunday was witnessed by team India at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday.A Sunday after they won a match against Australia,the next Sunday turned out to be a fool's paradise for team India.Ha ha ha...

A match that was supposed to have won by team India was lost far behind.All good work by the Indian bowlers to restrict the Aussie batsmen for a score just above 200 all went in vain.India was just following the footsteps of Sri Lankans who after a superb start are found to collapse.India just did that.All good work by Gautam Gambhir,M.S Dhoni were for losing purposes I believe...

Just imagine a bowling all rounder to be sent at no 3.It was all critisism from all over after team India's loss to Australia at Adelaide.But,not until then.It took India to lose the match for all cricketing greats to realise their mistake.Why dosen't anyone realise or point out something before the disaster takes place?

The way Yuvraj Singh was out made me laugh.The man who hit the lone six of the match falling prey to such a ball!It was just not acceptable!Then came Dhoni's run out.A captain who is always responsible for what ever the team ends up doing,was found doing some nonsense on the field.When he has a runner in Rohith Sharma,is it Dhoni's duty to tell him how many to run,or is it Rohith's thinking weather to take the second or not?Please answer to this Mahi...

Is Rohith Sharma a machine who does only what his captain asks him to do irrespective of the consequences?And then there was Harbhajan Singh who was seen as a batsman who could score two half centuries when all the so called batsmen failed,was seen giving Gilchrist a memorable farewell.Much was expected from Robin Uttappa,but all he could do was give some catching practice to Gilchrist.With as many as 9 overs to go after the 10th wicket fell,Indians lost a golden opportunity to beat the Aussies once again.

Some sense of thinking for the Indians before assuming something would be advisible.If India wins,all steps taken by the captain deserves a pat on his back. Otherwise,all criticism including for some of the good moves.If Irfan Pathan is to be developed as a batsman-taking into account his batting abilities also,then why not Harbhajan Singh?After all even he was found to have dominated with the bat in the series against Pakistan and Australia...

Well Dhoni..."Look Before you Leap"

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Andrew Symonds:Shame On You

February 22nd 2004:The second ODI between Sri Lanka and Australia.

The match witnessed some heroics from the Sri Lankan cricket team.Andrew Symonds was given out leg before by umpire Billy Bowden off the bowling of Chaminda Vass to a delivery which Symonds had snikked.But,there was something from the Sri Lankan cricket team that deserved a pat on their back.Once the team was aware that Symonds had a slight inside edge on the ball,Sri Lankans showed their sportive spirit by calling Symonds back to the crease.

February 15th 2008:The 6th ODI between Sl and Aus

The same Symonds who was given life by the Sri Lankan team four years ago was found to forget the lessons he was supposed to have learnt from the Sri Lankan team.With Sri lanka in a dominating position,it seemed as though Symonds had found no other way of getting back to the game other fouling.A superb dive to grab a catch.But,the ball was found to have touched the ground before Symonds started appealing.

Full marks for Symonds for going by the lessons taught by his captain Ricky Ponting in the Sydney test against India on January 3rd 2008."Everything is fair in love and war"...So.."Is cricket equivalent to love or war?"

After much criticisms from all over the world by cricket lovers,Australian cricket team members should have learnt their lessons by not repeating the Sydney test episode once more.But,the way Symonds reacted the other day was just rediculous.These thick skinned Aussies are never bound to improve I beleive..

Well Aussies...i have a suggesion for you...after retiring you better cast your eyes on coaching teams with a difference by coaching them not only in techniques,but also on cheating and fouling.Once again "SHAME ON YOU GUYS"