Pakistan have enjoyed success in the shortest format as their players play with freedom, says the captain

Abhishek Purohit in Pallekele22-Sep-2012″ (Why are you sweeping? The ball was outside off stump),” Mohammad Hafeez, the bowler, told Sohail Tanvir, the batsman, during Pakistan’s practice session at the Pallekele stadium ahead of their opening game against New Zealand. The emphasis was on playing more orthodox strokes. Hafeez, the captain, had earlier been asked whether Twenty20 was the sort of cricket (neither played nor watched properly – a line from a popular TV advert). He chuckled but explained that the prevalent notion of T20 being a hit-and-miss game no longer counts.”At the stage where T20 is today, it is not as if you don’t have to work hard for it,” Hafeez said. “You have to plan a lot of things. Technically, a lot of advancements have come into the format and you have to accordingly prepare yourself. You have to play this format with a lot of awareness now.”There is something about Pakistan and T20 cricket. They have made it to the knockouts of all three editions of the tournament, winning it in 2009. Hafeez said the format allowed the players more freedom. “Pakistan play freely and express themselves in this format. That does not mean we don’t express ourselves in Tests and ODIs but T20 frees up you up a bit more to go in and execute your skills. As a team we feel more confident when we get to the T20s.”Throughout the press conference, Hafeez stressed the importance of Pakistan winning the recent T20I series against Australia in the UAE and how that had helped them achieve their preparation goals for the global event. “The team’s desire was to win the series against Australia, everyone worked hard for it. We had decided that we would bring in a very positive momentum with us to this tournament. We have done that. Our intention was to give all the players a chance before the mega event, which we did. At the moment, we have achieved what we wanted to in the lead-up to this event.”Another positive sign was the way we chased so well against India [in their first warm-up game]. All the boys are positive, well-prepared and fit.”The conditions in Pallekele, where Pakistan will play their group games against New Zealand and Bangladesh, have favoured fast bowlers with some movement and carry. Pakistan have played a few games at the venue and Hafeez said they had the attack to do well here. “We don’t rely just on our spinners. We have excellent fast bowlers. The conditions here assist the seamers, there is some bounce as well and it swings too. We have played in these conditions before. We had come here for the SLPL too. All of us have played against New Zealand before. This is a plus point for us that we have faced their bowling before.”Hafeez said having watched both Bangladesh and New Zealand during the group’s opening game on Friday would help Pakistan plan better but admitted they needed to improve their batting. “As a batting unit we really have to work hard not only in this tournament but overall. We know we have to take the responsibilities. We have seen that with some players, they have shown great character. Kamran Akmal is one of them. He is in good form. Everybody has to play their roles to win a game for Pakistan.”The next ball after trying the sweep, Tanvir lofted gracefully over extra cover. “That’s more like it,” a satisfied Hafeez said. Now for the entire line-up to follow the captain’s cue tomorrow against New Zealand.

In the final, New Zealand or India will have up to face up to a bowler who’s delivered for Australia at crucial times this competition

George Binoy in Townsville21-Aug-2012Bangladesh’s Asif Ahmed and South Africa’s Chad Bowes were dismissed in similar fashion in their knockout matches against Australia in the Under-19 World Cup. Both batsmen were struck on the head by short deliveries from Mark Steketee and then caught by the wicketkeeper off fuller ones: a fast bowler’s classic one-two combo.The wicket of Bowes came at a crucial time for Australia in the semi-final at Tony Ireland Stadium. South Africa had progressed from 37 for 3 to 124 and were looking to build momentum during the batting Powerplay, taken in the 36th over. Bowes, batting on 46, tried to lap the first ball around the corner and felt the ball crash into the grille of his helmet. He needed a couple of minutes before facing the next one, which was fuller and took the outside edge of his push.”It was a very important time in the middle of the Powerplay, just at the start,” Steketee said of the importance of Bowes’ wicket. “If we got a wicket there, we pegged them back from possibly getting 230-240 at the time, which we thought they would get. But we got them out and got them for 190.”Steketee also dismissed Shaylin Pillay in the last over of the Powerplay, his tenth over, to finish with figures of 3 for 35. He had also dismissed Quinton de Kock, South Africa’s pace-setter, for 1 with his second ball of the morning.Most days, a steady wind blows across Tony Ireland Stadium, a ground that is open apart from a small section protected by the grandstand, and other World Cup venues. Steketee has been given the responsibility of bowling into it, and sometimes for long spells. “I think it is just how it is,” he said. “I’ll do it if I have to, but if I don’t have to it’s a bonus. You just do it for the team and you just do your best that you can into the wind.”In the first game against England, Steketee bowled eight consecutive overs into the wind and took two wickets, and finished the match with 2 for 35 off ten. Against Ireland, he came back from a slightly expensive first spell to bowl three maidens in the second. And in the quarter-final, he took 1 for 37.”They have been coming out good this tournament,” Steketee said of his bowling. “It keeps on improving every time. You keep on learning new things.”Steketee was born in Warwick, Queensland but lives in Brisbane. He played for Queensland Under-17s in the Australian Championships in 2010-11, taking ten wickets in five games. In the summer of 2011, Steketee went to England to play for Bexhill in the Sussex Cricket League and later that year he won speed competition for fast bowlers in Queensland at the Gabba. After taking 6 for 16 on debut for Souths in grade cricket in January 2012, Steketee played for Queensland Under-19 in the Australian National Championships a few days later. The quadrangular series in Townsville, involving Australia, New Zealand, England and India, was his first call-up to the national Under-19 team.Through all this, Steketee’s worked with Craig McDermott, who said he’d been working with the Under-19 fast bowler since he was about 14. Until recently, former Test bowler McDermott was the bowling coach of the senior Australia team but he is presently part of the Under-19 management group in Townsville.”He’s [McDermott] been a major help to my game,” Steketee said. “I wouldn’t be standing here today if it wasn’t for him and his input. I think he helps my bowling a lot, consistency wise and picking up little things that I am doing wrong along the way.”McDermott’s mantra to the Australia’s Under-19 fast bowlers has been to pitch it up on a fourth or fifth stump line outside off and be patient. The short ball has been used only as a variation, rather than a regular attacking option, despite the bounce on offer in the pitches.”You can’t just run up and expect it to happen, you have to actually make it happen and bowl in the right areas and still do good things with the ball,” Steketee said when asked about the importance of making the bowling-first advantage count. “Obviously the new ball helps, it does a bit, swings a bit especially under heavy cloud conditions like today, so you just grab your opportunity as they come.”Come Sunday, either India or New Zealand will be in Steketee’s sights. He’s on a hat-trick of felling batsmen with the old one-two.

Plays of the day from the first day of the first Test between India and England in Ahmedabad

George Dobell in Ahmedabad15-Nov-2012Detail of the day
If anyone knows about the strengths of the England attack, it is their former coach, Duncan Fletcher. It was under Fletcher than the England team first mastered the skill of reverse swing. It helped them win the Ashes in 2005 and it has been a key part of their armoury ever since. So we should not be surprised that Fletcher, ever one to focus on details, ensured that the Ahmedabad outfield was unusually green and lush. Not only that, but there were no used pitches on the square and nothing else abrasive that may have accelerated the wear of the ball. So, instead of finding reverse swing as early as the 10th over as they did in the warm-up game against Haryana, England were forced to wait until tea before gaining any real assistance.Drop of the day
Virat Kohli was on just four when Jonathan Trott, a new face at slip, failed to cling on to a tough one-handed chance, to his left off the bowling of Graeme Swann. Kohli had endured a tough start to his innings – he did not get off the mark until he had faced 30 deliveries and, perhaps frustrated, attempted to cut but edged to Trott. The decision went to the third umpire after Trott, who lost control of the ball as he turned, allowed it to bounce and then found it in his forearms, admitting he was not sure if he had held on to it. It meant all the pressure England – and Swann and James Anderson, in particular – had built up upon Kohli was wasted.Telling moment of the day
The ball from Tim Bresnan was not that short. Nor was it that wide. But such was Virender Sehwag’s confidence on a pitch of minimal bounce that he had the time – and the power – to pull it through mid-on with an ease that bordered on the disdainful. It underlined the lack of pace and bounce in the wicket and the tiny margin for error high quality batsmen will allow in such conditions. England’s bowlers, with one or two honourable exceptions, were not up to the challenge. Sehwag hit the next ball for six back over Bresnan’s head to underline his dominance.Misjudgement of the day
Cheteshwar Pujara was on eight when he mistimed a stroke off Bresnan and saw his leading edge loop in the air towards mid-on. Anderson, sensing the chance, dashed in only to realise he had over-committed himself and the ball was dropping agonisingly out of reach behind him. He tried to backpedal but it was too late. The ball fell to ground and Pujara hardly played another false stroke on the way to stumps unbeaten on 98. Sehwag, on 80, was also dropped by Matt Prior, down the leg side off Anderson.Stroke of the day
It says much for Pujara’s abundant class that his batting bears such striking resemblance to Rahul Dravid. While only time will tell if Pujara has the defensive technique to survive against all bowlers in all conditions, he certainly has some of The Wall’s attacking flair. One drive through extra-cover bore the hallmark of real class: seizing on a fraction of extra flight from Swann, Pujara skipped down the wicket and drove beautifully between the fielders. It was a fine shot and typical of a fine innings.Debut of the day
Nick Compton has taken the scenic route to international cricket but, aged 29, he received his first cap from Graham Gooch before the start of play. Compton is just the second man, after Chris Tremlett, to follow his grandfather into the England side. Denis Compton played for England between 1937 and 1957, while Maurice Tremlett played three Tests in 1948.Milestone of the day
There was not too much to cheer about for England on the first day of this game. But at least Swann, who offered control and bite for England, finished with four wickets and overtook Jim Laker’s tally of 193 Test victims. That means Swann has taken more Test wickets than any other England offspinner. Swann went past Laker with the wicket of Sehwag, who was bowled attempting to sweep. Bearing in mind that no other England bowler has yet taken a wicket, perhaps Swann may yet surpass Laker’s more memorable record: 19 wickets in a single Test, achieved against Australia in 1956.

They have a long way to go before they can pursue cricket as a vocation, but the world’s blind cricketers are trying to get there

Nikita Bastian20-Dec-2012I walk onto the Central College grounds in Bangalore just in time to hear India have won the toss and will be batting against Sri Lanka. The players are on the field in their team kits, knocking balls around and doing fielding drills. Apart from the lack of giant concrete stands packed with screaming fans, there is nothing to suggest that this is not just another T20 international. Until you notice some of the players are being led onto the field on the arms of their team-mates and support staff.It is the semi-final of the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup for the Blind. Pakistan have just beaten England in the first semi, and India and Sri Lanka are about to play for the other slot in the final. There are a few hundred people milling about, many of them players from the nine participating countries. Off to one side is a table with trophies, to be handed out the following day.On the PA, the announcer says it’s 14 minutes to game time. I find myself a seat and browse through the rules. There are three categories of players in each team: B1, who are fully blind; B2, those who can see up to three metres; and B3, those who can see up to six. The ball, which jingles, is delivered underarm, and rolls along the pitch (there is an overarm variant in England). The B1s bat with runners, and each run they make counts for two under the rules.As the action gets underway, the first 15 minutes produce a powerful helicopter shot, a direct hit from long-on, and a leaping attempt at a catch at fine leg. It is hard to pick out the fully blind fielders at first, as most move quite naturally when the bowler runs in. After the ball is hit, though, you can see the difference: while the partially blind run after the ball, the B1 players only throw themselves, fully prone, in the direction of the ball when they hear it approach.Trying to get my head around what I am witnessing, and wondering how to bring up the players’ visual handicaps without coming across as insensitive, I head in the direction of the teams. I spot a salesman trying to sell a group of players sunglasses. A couple of the visually impaired players try a pair on and then pass them to a blind team-mate, who can’t get them on. “You’re wearing them upside down,” his friend informs him, and he, along with the others, bursts out laughing. I am a little relieved; this lot, from the West Indies, don’t seem to be bogged down by what can be construed as a limitation.What makes the partially sighted or blind get into cricket? “I just went for the juice and snacks,” Toussaint Gardner, the visually impaired West Indies captain, laughs. He says he thinks he’s a better footballer than cricketer. “I was in university when the English brought the [blind] game to Jamaica in 2006. I did not think cricket could be played with a rolling ball, but I tried out and here I am.”Many agree the game opens up new avenues for the players. South Africa’s Hendrik Christiaan, who played two 40-over World Cups before this one, says: “The diseases that lead to you being visually impaired narrow your world. Playing this sport encourages us to get out of that little black hole. It is a means to earn respect in the community.” One of his team-mates who was part of a street gang was shot in the head about five years ago and so lost his sight. “The bullet is still lodged in there somewhere, but that was a turning point for him,” Christiaan says. “He decided to clean up his life and started to play cricket. The game gave him a second chance.”

“While I was on my way to a hundred, the commentator was referring to me as ‘the Jacques Kallis of the blind team’ over the PA – that made me want to stay in all the more”Johan Schroeder, who, during a group game against Sri Lanka, became the first B1 player in history to score a century for South Africa

Sugam Pattarai, Nepal’s team manager and secretary of the Cricket Association of the Blind in Nepal, says many of the players in his team have found jobs because of cricket. “For us, the players develop through cricket. The game lifts them, gives them a better quality of life. Like our captain – he’s a musician in a restaurant in Kathmandu. We also have a professional masseur. These players have found jobs only because of cricket. The businesses’ management is often very excited to see that they play cricket for Nepal and, to help them out, offer them jobs.”As might be expected, finances are an issue for most teams. Several, but not all, countries’ blind cricket associations are affiliated to their sighted teams’ cricket boards, but that doesn’t necessarily mean any financial security; they have to campaign to raise funds. Nepal managed to raise the money needed to fly in for the tournament, but not enough to fly out: they made a 52-hour journey from Bangalore to Gorakhpur on the India-Nepal border, and it then took them another 12 hours by road into Nepal.Almost all the players across teams hold jobs during the week to support their families, and play cricket on weekends. Many had problems getting leave to come to the World Cup. “We don’t have enough time to play,” England’s Hassan Khan points out. “We have our jobs or education to pursue. At times, cricket is not the priority, and we can spare just one or two weekends a month for it.”An added worry for some of the non-subcontinent countries is the lack of youngsters coming through. South Africa are struggling to fill places left vacant after their older players move on, and it’s no different for Australia. “There’s no one to replace the old guys like me,” laughs 42-year-old Hamish MacKenzie, who lost his sight in an accident at 26. “There are 250 visually impaired cricketers in Australia, we have a national championship once in two years and two or three national camps a year. But it is hard to know where the young cricketers will come from. About 15 to 20 years ago blind cricket was the only thing they could take up; now they have so many weekend-sports options. And there are no blind schools anymore to take cricket to – these kids have all been integrated into the mainstream.”We are actively trying to get hold of young kids while they are at school, through organisations like Vision Australia. We players try to do our parts too. I also play goalball, the Paralympic sport, and when playing in the local league in Victoria, I try to talk the players into trying cricket. Sometimes they come and knock a few balls around, and by the time the goalball season finishes and the cricket one starts, they know where they stand with cricket. Hopefully we get a few new young faces that way.”

Blind cricket 101

Vernon Barnard of South Africa bowling•Nikita Bastian/ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Types of balls: The ball that is used internationally is made of plastic and contains small metal pieces, which make the required sound. In Australia, the ball has two layers: the inner shell contains metal bits and the outer is made up of an open weave. In the UK, a size three football containing ball bearings is used; this ball is bowled overarm.
Team composition: Four B1s, four B2s, three B3s. Two players from the same category cannot open the innings. B1 players have to bowl a minimum of eight overs in T20s.
Formats: T20, 40 overs. The Blind Ashes comprises a series of one-day matches.
No. 1 priority: Hearing the ball is crucial and the biggest challenge for the players on the field, almost every player agrees
Global blind cricket tournaments: World Cup 1998 (40 overs), winner South Africa; World Cup 2002 (40 overs), winner Pakistan; World Cup 2006 (40 overs), winner Pakistan; World Cup 2012 (T20), winner India
Next up: The 40 overs World Cup in 2015, which will be in South Africa. Arjuna Ranatunga has also announced plans to launch an Asia Cup.

Vernon Barnaard, whose 19-year-old son Vernon Jr (a B1 player) is the youngest in the South African team, says it’s up to parents to nudge their visually impaired children towards activities that can help them grow. “Once I was driving along with my two sons and we saw people jet-skiing on the lake of a dam. We were discussing it, when Vernon asked me, ‘What’s a dam?’ We often have moments like these, which are very revealing. Many of these kids haven’t even seen a field. They need to be actively led by their families if they are to get into the game. And if they do get into it, it can only do them good, as it broadens their horizons.”Neil Mackay, Australia’s coach, who also works with sighted cricketers, says that a more hands-on approach is often needed. “The biggest challenge is communication. With a B2 or B3 player, you can demonstrate, show them how to keep the elbow up. That’s not an option with a B1. Here you have to spend more time with them and literally hold their elbow up in the right position to tell them how it’s done.”The challenges, though, sit lightly on the players for the most part. Most of the ones I chat with are quite open and seemingly at ease with their blindness. Australia’s MacKenzie tells me how, when the team went go-karting once, his partially sighted team-mates allowed him and the other B1s to have a go at steering, only for him to end up crashing into a large tyre wall and pick up flak about his driving skills. England’s Hassan, also a B1 player, tells a story, overcome with mirth: “I was having a swim at the team hotel. I got out of the pool and dried myself off, and my team-mate and I decided to play a prank on the lifeguard on duty. My friend left me to walk by myself, and I, pretending I didn’t know where I was going, promptly turned towards the pool and walked off the edge. The lifeguard had a moment’s panic and jumped up to rescue me, before we let him in on the joke.”India go on to win the semi-final, and a day later there is good news for blind cricket as a large crowd shows interest in the India-Pakistan final, which the home team wins. The heady few minutes that follow, as the India players take their lap of honour and celebrate with the fans, are a well-timed reminder that cricket is not just about money or power or politics.The essence of the sport, however, is captured by Rupa Balal and Bhagawati Bhattarai from Nepal, the only two women players in the competition. “I’ve devoted mind, body and soul to cricket from the start, and it has taught me so much,” says Balal. “We may not be as powerful [as the men] when it comes to batting and bowling,” Bhattarai says. “But then cricket is not just about power. Technique, strategy, temperament, it all counts. It’s a sport that teaches you many life lessons.”

Lasith Malinga talks about why he wants to do the best he can for Sri Lanka, and whether he has become predictable as a bowler

Interview by Andrew Fernando02-Nov-2012Did you ever feel you had something special back when you were playing tennis-ball cricket on the beach?
I knew that I could bowl well with the tennis ball, but at that time I hadn’t even touched a leather ball. I had no idea that I had the ability to be good enough to play for Sri Lanka. That’s something that makes me very happy, to see how far I’ve come.Champaka Ramanayake took an interest in you early on. How different would your life have been if he hadn’t seen you?
I met him about ten months after I first started playing leather-ball cricket. Since that day, he has done a lot for me. He has been around the A team, club cricket and the national team, and he has helped me in all those capacities. I knew nothing when I started playing with the leather ball – how to control the ball, how to reverse swing it, how to vary the speeds. Under Champaka sir, I was able to learn all that. I didn’t get a lot of opportunity to play school cricket, so the person that helped me get into the national team was Champaka sir.He hadn’t seen someone like me before. He didn’t say anything major. Just, “Bowl as fast as you can, as straight as you can.” He didn’t try to tell me where my arm should be or anything like that. Even today, he says the same thing to me. He never tried to change who I was, and that’s why I’ve been able to come as far as I have.There were a lot of other coaches who really helped me – Anusha Samaranayake, Prabath Nissanka, Rumesh Ratnayake. I am incredibly grateful to them.You practised bowling yorkers by placing two shoes on the crease and trying to hit them. How did you come up with that?
I used to watch Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram on TV and thought that the yorker was a great ball to bowl. We have a saying that it is better to learn from watching than from hearing. I thought I must learn the thing that I love to watch. The yorker was successful for me, so I thought I would make it even better, and I imagined that a batsman was at the crease and tried to hit his feet.Reverse swing came naturally to you with your action. Are you disappointed that you no longer play Tests, where reverse swing is more effective than in other formats?
Definitely I am sad about that. I came into the national team as a Test cricketer. I learnt a lot from playing Tests – how to bowl with the new ball, how to get the better of a batsman once the ball had become old, and it showed me how to always look for wickets. It makes me sad that I can’t play Tests anymore because of my injury. I only played 30 Tests, but what I learnt in those matches has helped me get a lot of ODI and T20 wickets.It was only in my 29th Test that I learnt to reverse the ball in both directions. In that match I took seven wickets, against India in Galle. After that series I wasn’t able to play any more Tests because of my knee injury. I always ask why that happened to me.

“I used to watch Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram on TV and thought that the yorker was a great ball to bowl. I thought I must learn the thing that I love to watch”

You retired from Tests in the middle of an IPL, after you had been named in a Test squad to England. Why didn’t you announce your retirement earlier?
I picked up this injury in 2008, and that’s when I had a long time away from Tests. For three years, no one looked at me for Test selection, no one looked to see how I was bowling. But in 2010, when Murali was retiring, he talked to me and said, “Mali, this is my last match. Do you want to come and play another Test with me?” I respect Murali a lot, and no one can ever say a bad thing about him, so I thought, “Even if this is my last Test as well, even if I break my leg playing it, it doesn’t matter.” In three years I hadn’t even played a two-day match. But still, I was able to be the Man of the Match, by taking seven wickets and making 64 runs, and Murali got to take his 800th wicket.I only played that Test because he asked me. After 2008, I had given up any thoughts of playing Test cricket. The reason was that the knee injury I have is something only four or five other people in the world have – mostly Aussie Rules football players, no cricketers. My doctor told me it would never get better, and that I might have to give up cricket altogether. There was a small chance it would get better, but I would have to spend a long time away from the game. Luckily I got to the stage where I can bowl a few overs a day, but that’s why I had to give up Test cricket.When you played all three formats, which did you enjoy the most?
I loved playing Tests because you get the chance to bowl so much. In ODIs it’s only ten overs and in T20s it’s four, but in Tests you can bowl 20-25 overs a day. Because of that, in Tests you gain a lot of experience, and learn what to do in specific situations. How should you bowl with the new ball in the morning? How should you bowl in the afternoon when it’s hot? How to bowl at the end of the day? But I can’t do that anymore, and there’s no point dwelling on the past. I can only play well in whatever formats I can still play in.You don’t think you will ever play Tests again, then?
I’m 29 now. I think I will only have three or four more years to play. I think going back to Tests now would be very difficult. I’ve been away from Tests for one and a half or two years. I have 100 Test wickets now, and I feel like if I were to play again, I would want to get to at least 150 wickets. To do that I would have to play at least ten or 15 Tests, and I don’t think I can do that, given how bad my injury is. I think it’s much better for the team if a new bowler comes through and plays three or four years at a stretch than if I play for just a few.Malinga played the 2010 Galle Test because Murali asked him to•AFPYou’ve played in all four of Sri Lanka’s World Cup and World Twenty20 final defeats. How did you prepare for those matches?
I didn’t do anything different. I played under Mahela and Sanga and they gave me the freedom to be myself and bowl the way I thought was best. In the first three finals I was good, but in the last final I couldn’t bowl well. I think I was a big reason why we lost. I felt helpless and couldn’t do anything for the team. But I was glad I was able to take five wickets against England in the Super Eights and bowl a good Super Over against New Zealand. I’m very sad about the final, and what I couldn’t do there. But at least I’ve been able to play in four finals.Do you talk to Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara much about your game?
I don’t talk a lot about cricket with Kumar – not that I totally don’t, but not often. But I’m always talking about cricket with Mahela. We talk about how I should bowl when a batsman is playing in a certain way, what balls to bowl in certain conditions, and he has had a lot of input and influence on how I play. We talk cricket all the time.You’ve profited a lot from the IPL. Do you think you have ever compromised your international career for Sri Lanka because of it?
I have never done that. I only played in the IPL after I stopped playing Tests. I haven’t neglected any limited-overs matches for Sri Lanka because of the IPL. As long as I am playing cricket, I am always ready to play ODI and T20 cricket for Sri Lanka.You’ve said that because no one is looking out for you, you have to look out for yourself. Why do you feel that way?
As a cricketer, you have a shelf life. You sacrifice your education and any other line of work to play cricket. The best cricketers might play for ten or 15 years; others might have only five or six years at the top. You don’t know at what time you will be injured or at what time you will lose form, and how long you will stay in the team. I think in that short time that you have, you have to do the best for your team and do everything you want to. After you leave cricket, no one cares about you. I’ve seen that happen to former cricketers. I know that that will happen to me as well. So I just want to play as well as I can when I can do it, and one day be able to reflect on the number of wickets I’ve taken for my country, and the number of wins I’ve been able to deliver.In ODIs, how much has the “new ball from each end” rule affected your bowling towards the end of an innings?
It hasn’t just affected me, it has hurt a lot of Asian bowlers who rely on reverse swing. It’s much more difficult to take wickets at the death now. I really hope that that rule is reversed and that we get one ball per innings. There would be some kind of justice for bowlers if that happened.

“If I were to play Tests again, I would want to get to at least 150 wickets. To do that I would have to play at least ten or 15 Tests, and I don’t think I can do that”

Even in T20s, over the past 12 months you haven’t been able to bowl as well as you used to. You’ve having particular trouble with finding the yorker length. Why is that?
Yes, I haven’t been able to bowl my yorkers as well as I want in both international cricket and in the IPL, and I haven’t been able to get as many wickets. I think because I’ve been playing non-stop for so long, I’m physically drained. I’ve played in every match that I was fit for. I need to take some time out and re-energise, and I hope that I can return to where I was.Do you think you’ve become too predictable?
I guess batsmen know the deliveries I bowl, because they’ve analysed me on video, just like we do to other bowlers and batsmen. That is the nature of the game now. There are new rule changes as well, and I can only be successful if I adapt and handle pressure well. I think in future bowlers will be under more and more pressure.There are no new balls that I can learn; I know how to bowl everything. But in saying that, there are subtle changes I can make to some of the variations to make them more effective. I’m working with the coaches and with the team leadership on what I can change.How does it affect you when it is said that you are only motivated by money?
Some people look at me in a bad light and say those things, but I don’t think you can look at the wickets I’ve taken for Sri Lanka and be justified in saying that. They say I only play well for money, but I’ve set four world records playing for my country. If I was just playing for money, I should have achieved those things in the IPL. I’ve taken three hat-tricks for Sri Lanka. All those things I’ve done playing for Sri Lanka. I have taken 200 ODI wickets for Sri Lanka, and I’m the fastest Sri Lankan to have reached that milestone. In 30 Tests, I have taken 101 wickets. There again, I am the fastest Sri Lankan. If those people look at what I have done properly, they will be able to see what my motivation has been.What would you most like to achieve in the time you have left in the game?
I’m hoping to take 100 wickets in T20s, and if I can play long enough, to take 300 wickets in ODIs. Most of all, I just want to take my team to as many victories as possible for as long as I can.

Dale Steyn at the top of a run up is like staring into the eyes of a man with a knife in his pocket and a snarl in his voice in a dark alley late at night; it’s just not pleasant and Steyn knows it, and he knows when to use that attitude

Firdose Moonda at the Wanderers02-Feb-2013Dale Steyn woke up far earlier than usual this morning. His girlfriend is pursuing her acting career in Los Angeles and he needed to Skype call her before she went to sleep.After they chatted, he prepared for a day’s Test cricket. When he got to the Wanderers, he “dominated” the warm-up football match, which left him feeling pretty good about the day ahead. Not 6 for 8 good, not 49 all out good, just good. But, that’s how good it turned out to be.With a high-quality, sustained assault of swing bowling, Steyn led the South Africa attack in one of their most skillful displays yet. His performance was that of an alpha-male, commanding a pack of hounds that came at the opposition like it had not eaten for months.Dale Steyn’s intent has been described in many ways in recent months. Most commonly it is said to be reflected in his “angry eyes” but in reality it is on show in everything from the spring in his stride to the vein-popping in his arms. Steyn at the top of a run up is like staring into the eyes of a man with a knife in his pocket and a snarl in his voice in a dark alley late at night. It’s just not pleasant and Steyn knows it and he knows when to use that attitude.Apart from having the ability to crank it up when the team needs him to, like he did at The Oval against England and in Perth against Australia, it seems Steyn can also sense weakness and it spurs him on. An example of that was seen as recently as last month. With New Zealand standing on one leg at 47 for 6 in Port Elizabeth, Steyn returned on the third morning to take three wickets in three overs and completely cripple them.With Pakistan it was different. “It’s not like they were jumping and darting around like lower-order New Zealand players,” Steyn said. And it was not only their tail that Steyn trimmed. “It was the first time in a long time that I got wickets upfront. Getting the tail out is what is expected of the strike bowlers but I was pretty chuffed with being able to get wickets at the top as well.”Because conditions suited him from the get-go, Steyn could charge in at Pakistan right away. With humidity in the air, swing was going to be a factor and he found it easily. Swing at pace is difficult for the best batsmen and when dealing with it in foreign conditions, it is only more challenging.Dav Whatmore acknowledged that his team was simply undone by bowlers with greater ability than their batsmen could match up to. “I have never seen two hours of relentless pace bowling like I did today,” Whatmore said. “They just never took the pressure off. It was a combination of a difficult pitch and incredible bowling.Faf du Plessis at the end of play one day one said the South Africa batsmen could not identify which of the Pakistan bowlers to target. The same can be said of opposition line-ups every time they come up against South Africa; Steyn does not go about his work alone. While he was impossible to take a run off today and bowled 46 dot balls out of 49, Philander was equally difficult to get away. Morne Morkel has been the same; his economy rate has shrunk from 3.66 runs per over in 2006 to 3.18 in 2012. That may sound marginal but it means that if he bowls 20 overs in an innings he would concede 64 runs instead of 73.Then, when Jacques Kallis comes on, it’s not to offer relief. He still bowls quickly, often touching 140, and finds swing. The same caution needs to be applied when facing him as compared to anyone else in the attack. Today, that was evident. That leaves the spinner as the one to score runs off and in this innings, Robin Peterson didn’t even bowl.The level of competition within is so high that it can sometimes seem as though they are not taking on the batsmen but each other and Steyn alluded to it. “King Kallis bowled very well; Morne, even though he did not take any wickets was hitting the gloves all the time,” he said. “Everybody wants to do well.”One minute you’re out there and then you’re back in the changeroom watching the batters bat again. The moment goes by pretty quickly and that’s why we really want to enjoy our cricket now, enjoy the moments.”Maybe that sense has been developed because they know tough moments will also spring up, as they did yesterday. Apparently subsequently, this morning was the first time in the past few months that Graeme Smith addressed his team them before play.”There is maturity in the group and we don’t need to be told when someone has done the wrong thing, but today Graeme asked to talk to us for two minutes,” Steyn said. “He told us that he wants a 100% day from all of us and that if we do that, we could dominate the day.”We saw that if we give 100%, we can take the game away from the opposition. When this team puts its forces together, we are tough to beat.” And today, Pakistan learnt that.

Even ridiculous hairstyles don’t stop some from being truly blessed

Andy Zaltzman25-Feb-2013Lady Luck has huge crushes on these two © AFP
A new Test batting star emerged for England yesterday, to go with the new one-day batting star and new Twenty20 batting star, who also emerged over the last year. Eoin Morgan’s highly attractive three-for-the-price-of-one offer has added to the growing competition for places in a Test side that should soon start to impact even on the seemingly undroppable.The calmness, timing and variety of run-scoring capabilities that Morgan displayed in his excellent and stylish performance bode well for his and England’s future, but his innings also illustrated the BruceReidically slender margins that separate the vintage champagne of success from the budget processed grape juice of failure.A better wicketkeeper than Kamran Akmal (any volunteers? – no previous experience required; candidates should ideally possess their own gloves and, preferably, a willingness either to watch the ball all the way into the those gloves, or to move their feet, preferably both; apply to PCB by next Thursday) would probably have been standing in the right place to catch an edge when Morgan, on 5, played away from his body to another good ball by the brilliant Aamer. He later survived what appeared to be a fairly conclusive lbw appeal when missing a sweep off Shoaib Malik on 35.Hawk-Eye suggested the ball would have hit the inside of leg stump, but, to compound the umpiring error, Pakistan had blown their two referrals trying to get rid of Kevin Pietersen, who seemed to be busy trying to get rid of himself anyway, as Kamran expanded the range of known methods of wicketkeeping ineptitude by demanding a referral for a rejected caught-behind appeal after a ball that had barely passed within conversational distance of the bat.Had Morgan been caught on 5, questions would have been asked about his Test-match technique and his footwork against the swinging ball. Had he been given lbw, he would have failed to convert three consecutive 30-plus scores into half-centuries. Instead of proving his Test credentials, he would have raised further questions about them. Instead of delivering under pressure, he would have failed under pressure. Instead of a “magical maiden ton”. He capitalised brilliantly on his luck, and some low-grade spin bowling, to kickstart his Test career in spectacular style. Pietersen had plenty of good fortune in his innings, but looked like a man who doesn’t play much cricket these days, and did not capitalise.Luck has always been and will always be a fundamental, and fascinating, part of sport, particularly in batting, where a batsman’s bad luck is final (how many centuries would I have scored in my career if I hadn’t been unlucky in 99% of all my innings?), and a batsman’s good luck can make the different between an unremarkable failure and a career-defining success.Some examples: Lara, dropped by Durham wicketkeeper Scott on 18, powerdrills his name into the record books by blasting 501 not out. Gooch snicks Prabhakar at Lord’s in 1990, but Indian keeper More Kamrans the primary-school-level chance, and Gooch goes on to score another 297 runs. Pietersen at The Oval in 2005, on nought, edges Warne – but Gilchrist’s glove deflects the ball away from the waiting Hayden at slip; then after 15, nervous in one of the most pressurised periods of play in all Test cricket, he edges Lee to slip, where Warne fluffs a relatively simple chance. On each occasion, the batsman was, essentially, provisionally out. They had made their mistakes, and were merely awaiting confirmation of their dismissals. Before being reprieved, and capitalising to achieve cricketing immortality.Pietersen’s luck was particularly transformative – it probably won the Ashes for England, and he became a cricketing hero over the course of one staggering afternoon. History shows that he played one of the great modern Test innings, one of the most brilliant and important in England’s Test history, an expression of individual cricketing bravery and daring that just about justified a brave and daring hairstyle, and elevated himself to the cricketing A-list. History could have shown that he failed, technically and temperamentally, thus concluding a debut series in which his early promise had faded into a run of costly failures, whilst sporting the most ridiculous haircut in Test history.Similarly, there must be many of one-, two- and three-cap Test players who ended their careers thinking, “If only that usually incompetent fielder hadn’t pulled off that uncharacteristic one-handed diving catch”, or “If only that umpire hadn’t been certifiably blind”. Scorecards do not record luck.Perhaps 1920s batsman Jack MacBryan would have turned out to be a surprise Test-match great. He had an unlucky Test career. In his only Test, in 1924, it rained for much of the first day, then for all of the rest of the match. MacBryan did not bat. And failed, in his 66.5 overs of fielding, to convince the selectors that he had what it takes to succeed at the highest level. Perhaps they spotted some flaw in his technique whilst he was playing pretend shots in the covers in between balls.For Morgan, then, the future looks bright. The cream generally rises to the top. But sometimes, it needs a helping upward shunt from the capricious hand of Lady Luck, a fickle woman whose hand can tenderly stroke or unforgivingly spank.Pakistan have had little luck with umpiring this summer, particularly with lbws, and could have had England in even deeper trouble yesterday. As it was, with Gul and Kaneria off form, only Aamer – fast becoming the world’s new favourite cricketer – and Asif applied pressure, and the fragile confidence of Salman Butt’s side visibly dissipated. At Headingley against Australia, they seemed to become nervous in the field when it became clear they would have to chase more than one run to win. As it was, Farhat and Azhar nervelessly took them close enough that even a top-quality collective choke could not deprive them of an excellent victory. Their inexperienced top order and dangerously long tail will do well to avoid defeat in this game.(A quick comment on the Umpire Decision Review System. It seems to me to be unfairly weighted in favour of the batting team. Generally, more appeals are given not out than are given out, so statistically the fielding side has more occasions on which it is likely to want to use their referrals, and are thus more likely to run out of referrals. If a not-out lbw decision turns out to have been fractionally out, it remains not out. If an out decision transpires to have been fractionally not out, it becomes not out.Whilst this maintains the traditional balance of doubt in favour of the batsman, there is a double punishment when, as happened to Pakistan yesterday, Pakistan referred a not-out appeal, the technology suggested that it could/should have been given out, but only marginally, so the “Umpire’s Call” stood.Thus, Pakistan, despite essentially having correctly referred an appeal that was shown to be out, lost a referral. I suggest that if a team refers and appeal that results in an “Umpire’s Call” refusal, it should not lose one of its referrals. I also think the fielding side should have two appeals, but the batting team should only have one.)(And finally, commiserations to all those who had to watch the Colombo Test match. I can only imagine what you have just been through. It sounds awful.)

The owners of the product seemed to think so

Karthik Gopalan26-Feb-2013Choice of game
The last time a Test match was played in Chennai, I was writing my 12th grade half-yearly exam. Now there was another Test in the city, after I had finished my four-year engineering degree. How on earth could I miss it after the drama last time around? The rivalry between India and Australia drags you in more than their rankings.Team supported
I took my seat hoping for an enthralling day with the match still in the balance, but also hoping India would have a slighter edge. I watched in disbelief as the Aussies fell like a pack of dominos. I applauded each tumbling wicket, but I also wished for a big partnership to balance the Test for the sake of a thrilling climax.Key performer
R Ashwin was terrific with the ball, but still bowled some rare loose balls.One thing I’d have changed
An Australian fightback would have spiced up the Test. Ed Cowan, David Warner and Michael Clarke could have taken a leaf out of Moises Henriques’ book of converting starts into resistant batting.Interplay you enjoyed
There were a few jaw-dropping moments, but they came only in short bursts. MS Dhoni’s aggressive mood lifted a dodgy Monday morning. The Warner-Clarke counterattack was enthralling, but sadly lasted only 35-40 minutes. But the long wait for the best moment was worth every rupee. Ishant Sharma was welcomed with huge applause when he came on to bowl after 75 overs of spin.Filling the gaps
Xavier Doherty practised during lunch, hitting the one rubber-stump target quite often.Wow moment
We looked expectantly at the big screen when Matthew Wade swivelled to hit the stumps magnificently and when Cheteshwar Pujara dived across and sent a bullet to Dhoni, who teasingly let the ball strike the stumps between his legs. But both appeals were turned down by the third umpire.The one that made our jaw drop was when Sachin Tendulkar chased a speeding ball at fine leg. He ran fast, slid at the boundary and threw the ball back to Dhoni, who collected it over the stumps. It was like Tendulkar was 19 again.Close encounter
Henriques and Pattinson were like robots when fielding near us. Ishant had the crowd’s sympathy when he wasn’t given a bowl. Ravindra Jadeja frustrated the spectators with his sideways-finger acknowledgements. Virat Kohli did the “Gangnam Style” dance and dragged Sehwag into it as well.Shot of the day
I have seen Shane Watson pull a hundred times on television, but watching it live was delicious. Harbhajan Singh bowled a short one and Watson, quick on his feet, went back and timed it exquisitely over midwicket with a short-arm jab.Accessories
The security checking is very severe. They even check the space beneath the cellphone battery. Even loose change gets confiscated. Can you imagine that they expected me to carry a notepad without a pen?Banner of the day
Some of the messages I saw on the big screen from spectators: “I work from home today i.e. from chepauk”; “Dhoni, pls sign my leave letter”; “When Dhoni hits the ball, even Google can’t search it”. There was a Zuari Cements sponsor sticker under the screen. Someone sent in a message that read: “Sorry Zuari Cements, Sachin is stronger than you”. Pat came the reply: “Yes, we do agree – By Zuari Cements.”Marks out of 10
7, because while the spin bowling was good, the batsmen’s footwork was very poor, thus failing to set the tone for a fifth-day thriller.

The first and third sessions of the day, which brought Bangladesh five wickets with two new balls, brought the spotlight on to the pace bowlers, of whom very little was expected even from the chief selector a month ago

Mohammad Isam in Colombo17-Mar-2013Bangladesh’s most promising period in this Test match so far has been bowling with the new ball. They had Sri Lanka on the ropes in the first session of the second day with three wickets and later when they took the second new ball, two more wickets kept them in the game. The two periods brought the spotlight on to the pace bowlers, of whom very little was expected even from the chief selector a month ago.Robiul Islam and Abul Hasan led the way in the morning, keeping the scoring rate below three runs per over, and taking a wicket each. Robiul bowled eight overs on the trot and, though slightly expensive, his fuller length drew the batsmen into plenty of shots. Lahiru Thirimanne was his scalp, brought out to defend a length ball but he gave an edge to the wicketkeeper. Abul probably bowled his second decent spell in his fledgling Test career, also drawing shots from the batsmen and with more pace he beat them often.It was because of the pressure they had created that Mushfiqur Rahim could bring Sohag Gazi into the attack quite late, and it was the control of the pace bowlers that gave the offspinner the wicket of Angelo Mathews just before lunch.The opening burst should have brought Bangladesh more success, but Robiul’s four overs in the middle session were just used to contain the batsmen and he only returned to field for a few overs in the final session after he had suffered severe cramps on his lower limbs. Abul too tapered off, bowling three more spells throughout the day without picking a wicket. He had a little more zing with the second new ball, but it was Rubel Hossain who took the two late wickets of Dinesh Chandimal and Kithuruwan Vithanage.Fitness of the pace bowlers has been called into question, publicly, by the selectors. Chief selector Akram Khan called the department a “blind spot” last month when asked whether he had a combination in mind for the Sri Lanka tour.It was a question posed to him during the BPL, a tournament in which none of the pace bowlers playing in this Test match fared well. Robiul didn’t get himself a contract while Abul was hardly ever used by Duronto Rajshahi. Rubel took 14 wickets, but it was never going to be enough bowling ahead of a two-match Test series.During the BPL, Robiul trained at the BCB’s National Cricket Academy for four weeks but the last time he bowled in a competitive game, before this series, was on January 8. It has taken him more than two months to return to the cricket field and he will not bowl in another competitive game until the first Test in Zimbabwe, if he is selected.What brought him into the national side in this series are the 29 wickets he took in seven first-class matches this season. Robiul survives on his years of gathering skill and the knowledge of bowling long spells. Having fought for a place in the Khulna Division team in the country’s domestic competition, he has enough first-class experience to understand the needs of a fast bowler in the middle of a game or at the end. The same, at least this season, cannot be said of the other two bowlers.Rubel had recovered from a shoulder injury at the start of the season, and played only three first-class matches other than the two Tests against West Indies. He raised his pace from time to time, but he is still not the bowler who could bowl at 140 kmph at the fag end of the day. It requires bowling volume, so if he stays fit, the next season could be a crucial one.Abul meanwhile is playing in his 12th first-class match, which is staggering considering the number of matches bowlers go through in countries like England and Australia before being considered Test quality. Those who rush these fast bowlers on to the big stage would say that Bangladesh can’t afford to wait for a fast bowler to grow any older.  Abul is a product of the Dhaka Premier League, which is a one-day tournament. Though there is pressure in the club scene, it cannot be intense enough for a fast bowler playing in a Test match.One wouldn’t expect any of these pace bowlers to give more than what he did on the second day though. They have the third day to bowl on and if the batsmen can give them a target to defend, perhaps more bowling is in the offing on the fifth day too. Bowling plenty of overs in domestic cricket has taught someone like Robiul the methods to put in use. Rubel and Abul have to pick up nuances, teach themselves and then implement it all in their bowling. All in a Test match.

Seven Tests, 31 ODIs, six T20Is in 124 days. Let us lick our lips for what we are about to receive

Andy Zaltzman15-May-2013Here in London the smell of linseed oil is being pumped through the underground system, fresh grass cuttings are being airdropped from the skies, and police vans are powering around the city, blaring out classic snippets of cricket commentary instead of their regular sirens. A new summer of international cricket is upon us.It begins on Thursday, and will end 124 days later, after seven Tests, 31 ODIs, and six T20Is (including Pakistan’s imminent one-dayers against Scotland and Ireland, and some matches between Scotland and Kenya that may escape blanket coverage in the mainstream media). The England women’s team will also be playing five ODIs, five T20Is, and a four-day Test.All this should be more than enough to keep the average cricket follower happy. In fact, it will definitely be more than enough to keep the average cricket follower happy. The average cricket follower may well start to feel slightly queasy at the excess of it all, at some point around the middle of the third Ashes Test.If all the Tests last to their final day, and Mr Rain takes a long-overdue extended summer holiday in another country that does not depend on dry weather for cricket for its psychological equilibrium (I may be mixing up my country and my self), then there will be international cricket somewhere in the British Isles on 73 of those 124 days. So strap in and strap in hard. You will need stamina, patience, and the love and support of your friends, families and psychiatrists.Unusually for an early summer Test series, there is a genuine sense of anticipation about the England v New Zealand showdown that begins this cricket megabinge. It should be an intriguing sequel to the drawn series that the two sides played out in March on the other side of the world, a contest that was more compelling than its 0-0 scoreline suggests, and which ended in high drama, with question marks charging onto the Auckland outfield and leaping enthusiastically onto both sets of players.Those question marks have hung around outside the dressing rooms like unusually persistent autograph hunters ever since. Thursday’s Test should provide at least some preliminary answers to queries such as:1. Can England recover the individual and collective form and swagger of their golden late-2010-to-summer-2011 period, after an 18-month stretch that has been sketchier than Leonardo da Vinci’s notebook?2. Are New Zealand becoming a truly potent side, having demonstrated sufficient quality of batting and bowling to win Tests in Australia and Sri Lanka, and taken England to the brinkiest of brinks, which could now become an awkward force in the Test arena? Or are they still fundamentally the easily crunchable wafer-thin biscuit of a team that was chomped to pieces in South Africa, and have won only two (and lost 24) of their 30 away Tests against major opposition since 2004?3. Were England complacent in New Zealand, or, given their form from January to August last year, have they simply become a middling Test side, albeit one still capable of outstanding performances, especially when aided by a compliant and chaotic Indian team?4. Peter Fulton: flash in the pan, or perfectly (if belatedly) flambéed Crêpe Suzette?There are many other points of fascination in this Test. It should also be remembered, however, that Tests in May do not always reveal immutable truths about cricket, cricketers, or life in general, and New Zealand will have to overcome not only an England team that had won its previous seven home series before losing to South Africa last year, but also the calendar.The entire series will be played in May. The only other time England have played an entire series in May, they annihilated the 2009 West Indians in both Tests, by ten wickets, and an innings and 83 runs, and since the split summer was introduced in 2000, they have tended to have things rather easy in the earlier series.England have won 11 and drawn two of their 13 early-summer series. Of the 34 Tests in those series, they have won 24, and lost just two – in 2001 against Pakistan at Old Trafford, and versus Sri Lanka in Nottingham in 2006. That Old Trafford match was a brilliant, raucously supported game of cricket, in which Inzamam and Saqlain punctured an apparently resurgent England and paved the way for another Ashes capitulation, and remains England’s only defeat in a Test that has begun in May since the calendar rejig in 2000. (Of the other 19 Tests that have started in May in that time, England have won 15, including their last seven in succession, and drawn four.)Furthermore, that Manchester masterpiece started on May 31, 2001, and therefore ended in the more traditionally Test-cricketous month of June. Only once have England lost a Test whilst May was still in progress, and that was 92 years ago, in 1921. It was their first home Test after the First World War, a ten-wicket drubbing by Australia at Trent Bridge that began on May 28 and ended on May 30 (thanks to May 29 being a rest day). Small wonder that the England Test summer, which had begun in May in five of the six summers in which international cricket was played from 1900 to 1921, did not allow itself another dalliance with the accursed month for 36 years.According to the Official Confectionery Stall Prediction, Joe Root is set to lead England to a big win (if they bat first)•Getty ImagesBearing in mind that this series is scheduled to finish on May 28, precedent offers a fearsome barrier for the Kiwis to overcome. England’s record in these early-summer series is so imposing partly because the stronger Test nations have been saved for the choicer end of the season (by comparison, in the later series of the split summers since 2000, England’s record is: played 55, won 26, drawn 13, lost 16), and they have been tougher opponents for their visitors this millennium than in the fading embers of the last one. Nevertheless, May Tests have exacerbated the problems of touring players struggling to adapt to English conditions.You would expect a team that has won 24 and lost two of its recent early-summer home Tests to defeat a team that has won two and lost 24 of its recent away Tests against top-eight opposition, and England should win the series. But this New Zealand team has as good a chance as any visiting team to break the home team’s stranglehold on its early-summer Tests. In other words, little chance. (But, definitely, some chance.)They will try to eradicate any lingering memories of their record-breakingly incompetent batting on their last away Test jaunt, in South Africa, and cling instead to their excellent performance against England in March, and those two outstanding series-levelling victories in Hobart and Colombo, both of which, (a) are still recent enough to be relevant, and (b) were founded on the swing-bowling triumvirate of Boult, Southee, and Bracewell.Official Confectionery Stall Over-Specific Prediction:
England 394 (Root 107, Southee 5 for 94). New Zealand 312 (McCullum 98, Anderson 4 for 75). England 352 for 5 dec (Cook 86, Prior 63*). New Zealand 219 (Broad 4-50). England to win by 215 runs.Put all your money on this happening. Unless New Zealand bat first. (I realise that if this does all happen, it might look a little dodgy. But I can assure you, this prediction has been made legitimately, fairly, and exclusively through examining the entrails of a squirrel that was run over on the road outside my house, using an iPhone haruspex app.)And now, some stats:
● On England’s recent form: In their 20 Tests from the start of the 2010-11 Ashes until they ended last summer’s series against West Indies in a state of Tino-Bestial disarray, their batsmen collectively averaged 40 (the best of the ten Test nations during that period), and scored at 55 per 100 balls (second), and their bowlers took their wickets at 28 (first), with a strike rate of a wicket every 59 balls (second).Since then, their batsmen have averaged 34 (fourth), and scored at 44 per 100 (ninth), and their bowlers have averaged 40 (ninth), with a strike rate of 80 (ninth). Admittedly, this is a relatively short basis period on which to be making judgements, but the figures are (unlike England’s bowlers on too many occasions) striking.● On New Zealand at Lord’s: New Zealand have won only once at Lord’s – in 1999, one of the most disastrous in the impressive catalogue of Late-20th-Century Apocalyptic English Cricket Summers. However, they have been defeated only once at the Home Of Cricket since losing there in 1983, and have had some considerable individual successes there over the years.That 1983 game was the only time in their last nine Tests at HQ, dating back to 1973, that no Kiwi batsman has scored a century. The New Zealand Lord’s centurions: Jacob Oram (2008); Mark Richardson (2004); Matthew Horne (1999); Martin Crowe (1994, a stunning innings); Trevor Franklin (1990, a numbing innings); Martin Crowe (1986); Geoff Howarth (1978).In 1973, three New Zealanders scored hundreds (Bevan Congdon, Mark Burgess and Vic Pollard), the first time that three visiting batsmen had reached three figures in the same Lord’s Test. It transpired that Lord’s Tests in which three visiting batsmen scored hundreds were like London buses – you waited ages for one, and then two came along at once. Later that summer, Rohan Kanhai, Garry Sobers, and Bernard Julien all scored Lord’s tons for West Indies.● New Zealand’s bowlers have also regularly five-wicket-hauled their way onto the Lord’s honours board – six times in their last eight Lord’s Tests. Daniel Vettori in 2008, Chris Cairns in 1999, Dion Nash (in both innings) in 1994, and Richard Hadlee in 1986, 1983 and 1978. Hadlee is one of only three visiting bowlers to have taken three five-fors at Lord’s, alongside Glenn McGrath and the 19th-century baggy green legend Charles “The Terror” Turner. James Anderson is one of six England bowlers to have taken five wickets three or more times at Lord’s, an illustrious club consisting of the six highest wicket-takers in English Test history: Anderson, Bob Willis and Brian Statham (three Lord’s five-fors), Derek Underwood (four), Fred Trueman (five), and Ian Botham (eight).● In 1931, New Zealand, in their first ever overseas Test, became the first team to score 400 in the second innings at Lord’s, aided by hundreds from Stewie Dempster and Curly Page. Only eight teams have done so since, four of them in the last 11 years.● In 1949, Martin Donnelly scored 206, becoming the first batsman from somewhere other than England and Australia to score a Lord’s double-hundred. There was not another double-ton in a Lord’s Test until Mohsin Khan’s in 1982. Donnelly’s remains the highest score by a No. 5 at Lord’s. There were ten double-hundreds in the first 105 Lord’s Tests, until 2003, when Graeme Smith bludgeoned the life out of (a) England and (b) aesthetics. There have been five doubles in the last 20 Lord’s Tests, including that one.