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The man who took Mendis straight from the army into Sri Lanka’s spin-bowling academy says he could be the difference in the Tests against Australia

Ashley Mallett07-Sep-2011In the wake of Australia’s domination in Galle, Sri Lanka must turn to their finger-flick spinner Ajantha Mendis for the second Test. Suraj Randiv, their offspinner, not only struggled to get wickets in Galle, he was unceremoniously knocked about, while the little left-hander Rangana Herath shouldered the spin bowling load. Now, Mendis must play.How well I recall the first time I set eyes on the finger-flick man. Out of the fog-like mist of steamy Colombo in mid-2006 stood a dark young man with sticking-out ears and a smile as big as the Sydney Harbour Bridge. This bloke looked like a darker version of Adam Gilchrist and like Gilly he was a mix of humility and respect for the game, yet very confident in his ability. Balapuwaduge Ajantha Winslo Mendis, or BAW Mendis for short, had arrived unannounced at the Spin Sri Lanka senior training session.He joined others such as the offie Randiv and left-armer Herath, and was now in the senior squad, one of four squads of spinners I had selected to form the Sri Lanka Spin Bowling Academy. We had squads from the under-13s (Cubs), Juniors (under-16s), Colts (under 23s) to Seniors. I had been commissioned by Sri Lanka Cricket to establish a spin-bowling academy. Each squad comprised twelve spinners – 48 of the nation’s best slow bowlers, pruned from the 750 spinners we had canvassed.”I am medium-pacer,” Mendis told me in broken English and before I could tell him we were running a spin, not a pace, session, he continued: “But I am bowling finger-flicking legbreaks, top spinner, googly, offcutter, legcutter and knuckle-ball.” Wow, some repertoire.Mendis charged in from a 15-pace approach. He bowled at the speed of Shane Watson, medium-slow, and was very front-on; yet there was an air of magic about him. He laughed when he beat the bat or skittled someone, and that morning Ajantha Mendis seemed to be laughing after every delivery. For batsmen were bemused and befuddled by this man’s extraordinary mix of spin and bounce.At the time Sri Lanka was still in the grips of a civil war which had raged for 23 years. Mendis was aged two when the war began and he, along with so many others, joined the Sri Lankan army more for personal wellbeing rather than any desire to get on the frontline and shoot people. In the army you’d be assured of three square meals a day, clean clothes and good lodging. At training that day Mendis wore a Sri Lanka army T-shirt and baggy pants, plus his broad smile. He had an army-mate with him, a bloke who bowled with a similar action to Muttiah Muralitharan’s, only he spun the ball off his right thumb.That night I contacted the then Sri Lanka coach Tom Moody and told him of these two unusual spin-bowling talents. “Bring ’em down to the Test nets,” he said. There, even the old master Muralitharan was moved to stay on half an hour longer to study the form of Mendis and his army-mate.”I think he [Mendis] will be good for the one-day side,” Murali said with a glint in his eye. But he reserved comments on the other bloke, whose action looked dubious. We had that army offie’s action tested by the Australian Cricket Board’s scientific team in Perth, and they assessed based on some footage that he bent his arm 34 degrees while bowling, way above the ICC-allowed 15 degrees. All this 15-degrees stuff is gobbly-gook to most sports people.But Mendis was the man. I spoke with a Sri Lanka selector about him, urging his committee to pick Mendis for the national team. “We cannot pick Mendis,” he said, his eyes bulging like a bulldog that had just lost a juicy bone. “Mendis is from the Sri Lanka army and not playing Premier league. He cannot play for Sri Lanka.””But you must play Mendis,” I protested. “He’s in the artillery. I don’t want this bowler who could be a sensation on the international stage to be put in harm’s way. Get him off the frontline and into the cricket team.”Muttiah Muralitharan immediately spotted Mendis’ talent•AFPWhen Mendis finally got his chance in the national side he was a sensation, taking 26 wickets in three Tests against India. He’s had ups and downs since, but his 6 for 16 versus Australia in the Twenty20 international in Pallekele on August 8 was a pointer to what he could do to Australia in the Test series. He seems to be more effective on wickets which hold a bit, that is very slow tracks which are in abundance in the subcontinent.These Mickey Mouse T20s and ODIs are meaningless in the context of a real, decent cricket battle. Only the Test matches really count and after the ongoing series we will be able to judge the better side between Australia and Sri Lanka.Mendis never saw John Gleeson bowl. Gleeson was a finger-flick merchant, but he had a limited repertoire compared to Mendis’ and he bowled with a flat trajectory. Whereas Mendis prefers a slow, turning wicket, Gleeson liked a green-top. He skidded the ball, rather than turned it.His predecessor Jack Iverson was more in the Mendis mould, for he had lots of variety and operated with a high bowling arm. Iverson was in the Australian army fighting the Japanese in New Guinea and during a lull in fighting he taught himself to finger-flick spin a table-tennis ball and wondered whether he could translate that skill to a cricket ball.There are those who think Michael Clarke’s batsmen have the wood on Mendis, because they can read him from the hand. Australia’s own Nathan Lyon has a refreshing approach. He concentrates on his stock ball rather than variations and that is what Mendis should be doing to. I bet the Sri Lankans can read Lyon’s offbreak, just as Darryl Cullinan could probably read Shane Warne’s flipper. But Warney did well almost every time he bowled to Cullinan and Lyon took 5 for 34 on debut in Galle. The bottom-line for a batsman is not just to be able to read the ball but to play it. If Mendis returns to the Sri Lanka side, Australia will be up against it, especially with Ricky Ponting absent from the Pallekele Test.

The idea that Sachin Tendulkar might be a fallible human like the rest of us doesn’t sit well with many Indian fans. And so the wait for the milestone continues

Wright Thompson14-Mar-2012EDISON, N.J. – Not long ago, a group of Indian expats gathered in a restaurant to discuss the continuing struggles of cricket star Sachin Tendulkar. The men could have been in India, so closely does Edison resemble a subcontinent city, or at least the upscale suburb of one. Strip malls line the main artery of Oak Tree Road, block after block of sweet shops and takeaway storefronts, family-owned businesses selling saris and butter chicken. (The word for butter in Hindi is ” Coke. He’s worn a fake beard as a disguise. He’s driven his Ferrari in the middle of the night for a brief taste of freedom. His national importance is so great that he is protected by the Indian equivalent of the Secret Service. Election planners take into account his schedule; politicians know people are unlikely to vote when Sachin is batting. Once, when he failed to reach a century during the past year, a distraught fan killed himself (there were rumours of a huge gambling loss). And all these years, he’s never been ensnared by scandal, or boasted about his wealth and power.These layers of meaning are of utmost importance to the billion fans who follow Indian cricket. No figure in the game shoulders more symbolic power than Tendulkar, whose ascent to global stardom has mirrored India’s own economic rise. Both Sachin and the concept of media-fuelled narrative are children of that rise; heroes and impossible expectations are the Cain and Abel of any society that bruises its way out of the pre-modern.Through more than 20 years, his only real failure was the inability to lead India to a World Cup title. Then, 11 months ago, he achieved that, another storybook ending. It seems important to note here that, while this is slowly changing, a hallmark of Bollywood movies is white-hat saviours and black-hat villains, and crowds have actually set theatres on fire upon the introduction of gray. So the famous T-shirts that say “If cricket is religion, then Sachin is God” are more significant than if they were worn here in New Jersey.After the World Cup was won, India stopped. Crowds of euphoric fans shut down the streets of Mumbai and other cities and towns. Pizza places stopped delivering. They couldn’t get through the throngs. The most common spontaneous chant in Mumbai, echoing down the beautiful Marine Drive, was “Sachin! Sachin!”There was nothing more to accomplish.But there was. He finished the World Cup with 99 international centuries. For cricket neophytes, a century is when a player scores 100 runs in one at-bat. It is like a basketball player dropping 50 points in a game, but more prestigious. The drumbeat began in the press. Indians love statistics and symbolic displays of success. This was a perfect storm, managing to touch the soft underbelly of both national arrogance and insecurity:
Thus began a media-driven quest. The 100 comes from adding Test centuries and one-day centuries, which no one had ever thought to do before. It’s not a real statistic, emerging organically like 56 or 61, but born full-grown by the narrative machine. Reaching this record, which wasn’t really a record at all, could deliver the complete victory of the myth. An easy and fitting coronation, it seemed. The defining century shouldn’t take long. He averaged one for every seven or eight times he went to bat.He’s tried 32 times since then. His last century happened 366 days ago.Never-ending symbolism
The longer Tendulkar stays marooned on 99, the more anxiety spreads through the global Indian cricket community. This includes expat neighbourhoods and colleges in the US, where this story has been hiding in plain sight from the rest of us, dominating conversation at tables and in dorm rooms while never raising a peep in the papers. Atul Huckoo’s three dinner companions host a local call-in radio show, and they’ve heard the anxiety creeping into the voices of their listeners, which grows with each failed attempt.
“They want to know why,” co-host Amit Godbole said.A year ago from this chilly Monday, Tendulkar scored a century, his 98th, in a dramatic World Cup tie versus England. He got his 99th on March 12, against South Africa. The closest he’s come to 100 since was in November, against West Indies, playing in Mumbai.
The at-bat lasted two days. He inched closer, crossing 75 runs, then 80. The crowd chanted his name. At Rutgers University, around 1 am, new graduate student Bhavya Sharma’s phone rang. Campuses, especially those with strong connections to India, are where the Tendulkar watch has been kept most closely in the US, as students explain to class-mates why so many Indians look like zombies in the morning. For reasons such as, say, a phone call from Sharma’s dad in India.”Are you watching?” he called into the phone.She found the match on the internet. Tendulkar was on 90. He scored four more runs. Six to go. The bowler landed it short, the ball bouncing halfway up Tendulkar’s chest. At the last split-second, Sachin opened the face of his bat just a little, and the ball sliced into the hands of a defender. Out on 94. He sighed, and as he reached the edge of the pitch, he looked around at the silent fans.

So many things are happening at once, and they have nothing to do with each other, except in the way that all things are connected. The growth rate is down. Inflation is up. The Indian cricket team is struggling. Its stars are fading. And not only is Tendulkar coming to the last act of his career, he is doing it in failure

Sharma turned off the game. Across town, a group of her friends did the same, heading for late-night food. It was Thanksgiving break, and the campus was empty and dark. It fit the mood. For these students’ entire lives, everything stopped when Sachin came to bat. One student’s grandmother won’t let anyone in the house move positions. Another’s mom refuses to cook as long until Tendulkar leaves the pitch. Everything stops until Sachin finishes. The past year has awakened people to the reality of Tendulkar finishing for good.In the same way the 1950s symbolically died with Elvis, the first rush of hope created by the new Indian economy will end when Sachin retires. The next generation will be successful but lack some hard-to-define simplicity and earnestness. So many things are happening at once, and they have nothing to do with each other, except in the way that all things are connected. The growth rate is down. Inflation is up. The Indian cricket team is struggling. Its stars are fading. And not only is Tendulkar coming to the last act of his career, he is doing it in failure.Listen to former Indian captain Dilip Vengsarkar. He told the on Jan. 7: “We might have left the best behind. We’ve been spoilt by success in the past 10-12 years. The big batting guns have long covered up other shortcomings but they are nearing the end. The increased dependence on Tendulkar after more than two decades is a sign of poverty.”What an odd choice of words to describe sporting failure..Blaspheming his own legacy?
The critics have drawn their long swords.Tendulkar has committed the great sin of being fallible. That’s not good enough. Everyone has an opinion about not only his life but about the inner workings of his mind. Fans and former players are calling for him to retire from one-day cricket, saying his play and his cherry-picking events are damaging both the present and future of the Indian team. One paper called the past year a “terminal decline”. The minority view that Tendulkar chases personal records instead of team wins, and that he crumbles under pressure, no matter how disproved by statistics, has gained tenuous traction.”Maybe his time has come,” a former Indian captain said.”He has to go,” said another.”It’s a monkey on his back, which is now a gorilla,” said a former Indian star.”After 50 runs,” tweeted another, “Tendulkar battles the demons in his head.”Those demons, if they exist, are his alone. Team-mates say he hasn’t mentioned the century, even in the safety of the dressing room. Sachin has said little to nothing publically about the close calls, offering a brief and contradictory interview to an Australian television station.”It is easier said than done,” he said. “It is just a number.”People can only wonder. They watch him eat lamb cutlets at his favourite curry house on Beaufort Street in Perth. They see him at a steakhouse in Adelaide called the Stag Hotel, where a DJ spins records on both levels. They follow him in the Sydney airport, Sachin smiling at the firing line of microphones and cameras, barrels bunched together, each attached to the outstretched arm of a reporter desperate for comment. They get none.The rest of the Indian team walks through baggage claim with little fuss. They climb onto an idling bus. This year has been bad for all of them. The entire team was slumping, swept in a Test series by England, then by Australia. Back home, India was boiling, calling for heads, focusing frustration onto Sachin’s personal quest, perhaps hoping this milestone, if achieved, would disinfect the rot of the past year. Or even offer a symbolic fresh start.The beauty of failure
The ghost of an Australian named Don Bradman looms over all of this. Bradman was the greatest cricketer who ever lived. Millions watched his funeral on television. Even in life people deified him, just as they’re doing to Sachin. His son, John Bradman, has spoken out against that worship. , he likes to remind people. John struggled with his dad’s legacy; for a period in the 1970s, he changed his last name, before accepting his fate and changing it back.Bradman entered his last at-bat in 1948 needing just four runs to retire with a career average of 100. The crowd at a stadium in London stood to cheer its dangerous opponent, the rumble and roar raising goose flesh around the stadium. The legend – however much part of a creation myth – says that the reaction brought tears to the stern eyes of Bradman, and, his vision blurry, he was bowled out on the second ball. That last part isn’t myth. The failure is real. He got out on the second ball and disappeared into the pavilion, his average forever 99.94 runs per game. Over the years, this number has turned into a sort of poem about the inevitability of human frailty, and the nature of the game itself.Cricket is defined by failure. In one-day cricket, a batter gets a single at-bat (an innings). In Test cricket, he gets two. A great innings takes hours, even days, and one slip of concentration, one misread of spin or bad angle with the wrists or conspiring crack in the ground – anything – results in an out. With a game so dominated by failure, it’s seen as appropriate that the greatest career ended with it, as a warning against the hubris of future generations. Men come and go. The game always wins.The last days of an epoch
The streets lay cold and empty at half past two in the morning. Suhrith Parthasarathy walked up Broadway, crossed 115th Street, arriving at the stone gates of Columbia University. As a child in India, he and his grandfather woke up at 5:30 in the morning to see matches from Australia, catching a few hours before school. Now a graduate student, he swiped his card and headed to Room 504C of the journalism school, where the window looks out at a bare tree in a tight quad, backed by the soaring glass walls of the library. Tendulkar was about to bat on this Monday night two weeks ago. Suhrith found the feed on the internet and logged into Twitter, joining in a global community.”Everybody wants him to get it,” he sighed, “so they can bloody well go on about their lives.”At Suhrith’s home stadium in Chennai, he’s seen a few Tendulkar centuries, including a famous 136 in a losing effort against Pakistan. A friend who grew up in Dubai found Suhrith in 504C and pulled up a chair. Hiten Samtani has also seen Sachin centuries in person, including two of the most famous. In April 1998, against Australia, India needed a miracle to stay alive in the Coca-Cola Cup. Before Sachin took the pitch, he told his coach: “Don’t worry. I’ll be there till the end.” Sachin finished with 143 and led India into the finals. Two days later, on his 25th birthday, he took India to a win against Australia, scoring 134. The television announcer said, 14 years ago, “This little man is the nearest thing to Bradman there’s ever been.”In the room at Columbia, the monitor glowing green from the pitch, Hiten remembered those long-ago days. “There were no physical constraints on what he could do,” he said. “He could do anything.”
That night, Sachin reached 39 runs and then got his feet tangled, blocking a ball bound for his wicket with his leg. Hiten sighed. Suhrith rubbed his hands over his face. They switched off the computer and headed back out into the cold. For two days, they thought this would be Sachin’s last chance until September. Then news broke about the line-up for the Asia Cup, stunning the experts. The Indian cricket board had chosen Tendulkar. An important detail soon emerged:Sachin spoke to the selectors himself.A fleeting triumph over myth
He might never make it to 100.However unlikely, there exists the possibility that the Asia Cup will come and go, and then the next series, then another, with no century. Tendulkar is expected to play Test cricket for a few more years, which means he’ll get chance after chance. But what if he fails? A cricket writer in England, Jon Hotten, argued that, as there is beauty in Bradman’s 99.94, there would be a similar beauty if Tendulkar retired on 99. “It will contain in it this kernel of romance,” Hotten said. “He didn’t quite get the hundred hundreds, because no human being should be able to do that.”Like Bradman’s 99.94 career average, the 99 would be a poem about humanity, and failure, and about the nature of Tendulkar’s career. Because the interesting thing about the past 366 days isn’t simply that he’s failed over and over again, but that he’s kept trying under such global scrutiny. This seems like a final siege of expectation in a career flanked by it, the final struggle between the reality and the myth. What could be a more fitting coda?When you look back, it is not his unapproachable statistics that draw the most admiration, but that he managed them with a billion people on his shoulders. He’s almost at the end, and the final test isn’t of his sporting ability, but of something deeper. “Tendulkar’s greatest achievement,” Hotten said, “is he’s resisted the mad circus that’s around him. Tiger Woods, for example, it’s obviously driven him crazy in some respect. This has happened so many times with people you attach the label of genius to. I don’t know how Tendulkar has remained sane. In a way that will end up being the biggest mystery of all: How did he survive it?”The last year has been tough for fans of Indian cricket•AFPTendulkar is a closed book. He smiles and walks to the centre of the pitch. His play suggests he is bending under the weight, but he’ll never admit it. Nobody knows how he feels about the century. Bradman, for instance, never mentioned his career average in a lifetime of correspondence with the dean of English cricket writers, David Frith. There are all sorts of grievances and private insecurities in Bradman’s crowded, upright hand. But not a word about the failure that came to define his success.What does Tendulkar think about the quest? He cares enough to keep chasing it, but maybe the media and the ex-players and the manic fans are missing the point. Scoring the century doesn’t define his career, but the chasing of it does, the willingness to risk failing for the chance of success. In the past year, Sachin hasn’t blasphemed his career. He has reaffirmed it. The failure to achieve this one thing opens a rare window into the cost of all that’s been achieved already, and elevates, for a moment, the attempt above the result.The sacred journey is a familiar idea in his family. His father, a poet named Ramesh Tendulkar, often explored the theme that life is about the hard work of travelling, not the easy peace of arrival. Once he wrote these words, which now speak for his silent ageing son: .

James Anderson talks about playing for the world’s No. 1 side, and looks back at how he made his way in the game

Interview by George Dobell24-Apr-2012Who were your cricketing heroes growing up?
I’m not sure I had any heroes. I loved to watch fast bowlers, though. I admired Allan Donald and Darren Gough very much. And I used to watch Glen Chapple and Peter Martin in county cricket. I went to Lord’s to watch them in a final in the mid-90s. Then, a couple of years later, I was sharing a dressing room with them.Were you always going to be a cricketer?

No. I never stood out as a young cricketer. I batted and bowled, but I didn’t do either particularly well. But then, when I was about 15, I grew very quickly. I went from being one of the shortest in my year at school to being one of the tallest. Suddenly I could bowl much quicker and I started playing for the Burnley first team. Then a mate’s mum mentioned to a coach at Lancashire that I was worth a look and I was soon playing for the Lancashire Under-17s. I would have gone to university had I not played for England – Lancashire offered to support me through university, which was good of them – but I don’t know what I would have studied or what I would have gone on to do. I’ve been very lucky.You were drafted into the England team very quickly. Were you ready for international cricket?

No, I don’t think I was ready. The whole period was surreal. Everything happened so fast. My first full season was in 2002, and on the strength of that I was called into the England academy in Australia. That was a huge thing for me: it was the first time I had been away from home for any length of time – it was about three months – and I was just making new friends within that group when I was suddenly called up to join the full England squad.It was extraordinary. I didn’t think I would play – I was only there as cover – and then, when I did, I didn’t know how long it would last, so I just decided to enjoy every moment of it. I was thrown in and I picked up any lessons I could. I think I benefited from the experience and I enjoyed it, but things like that are less likely to happen now, and that has to be a good thing.The gap between county cricket and the international game has narrowed. The introduction of Lions games and performance squads has been one of the biggest improvements in English cricket in recent years. It means that when someone comes into the England team now, they know the people involved and they know what is expected of them.The ECB look after the workload of young bowlers much better now, too. You might get the odd case – like Chris Woakes at Warwickshire – where a young guy is bowled into the ground, year in, year out, but generally the workloads are managed.Your story is used as an example of both county cricket working and as an example of the benefits of taking players out of county cricket. How do you see it?

County cricket is crucial. I didn’t play a huge amount of it before starting my international career and I’ve not played a huge amount since, but the standard is exceptionally high and it is an ideal place for young players to sharpen and showcase their skills. It has always attracted quality overseas players, too. Even since the start of the IPL there have been some great overseas players involved, who have lifted the standard of county cricket.You had a long period carrying the drinks with England. Was that helpful in that it gave you time to work on your game? Or was it just frustrating?

It certainly wasn’t helpful. Honestly, it would be difficult to describe how bad a job that is. It can be hugely frustrating. Dispiriting, even.

“I’m the type that will have to be dragged off kicking and screaming when it’s time to finish”

Look, it’s always great to be involved with England and it’s always great if you’re asked to go away on a tour. And there are times when you can learn and pick things up. There’s another good thing, too. We’ve all been there. Even Straussy has done the 12th man shift for a while, so we all know what it’s like. So anyone doing it now is treated with the respect they deserve. In the past that wasn’t the case, but we’ve all been through it and we all know what it’s like. It’s one of the reasons we have such a good spirit within the squad.You changed your bowling action for a while. What was that about?

Good question. I was told I had to change my action or I’d have problems with stress fractures. So I changed my action and I lost some pace, I stopped swinging the ball, and then I got a stress fracture.There was a period when I was just running in thinking about my action. I wasn’t thinking about where to bowl – which is all you should be thinking about as a bowler – I was thinking about what to do with my front arm and what I should be doing with my legs. I still see pictures of me bowling – I mean from around 2004 – and they bring back loads of bad memories. My action doesn’t look natural and I can remember what it felt like at the time. It was all very frustrating.In the end I went back to the action that I had. My body was used to it and it worked for me. Again, I think we’ve all learned from that. Obviously if a guy looks as if he is going to snap, then the coaches are right to step in and change things. The way I was coached wasn’t very effective, but coaches have learned that everyone is different and they just tinker with things now.When did you incorporate the inswinger into your game?
It was after my stress fracture. So from about 2006 I started to work on it. It was once I went back to my old action and felt comfortable with it again. It took about two years. I worked with all the bowling coaches. I’ve taken bits and pieces from all of them. And I’ve played with some great players and taken bits from them, too. Darren Gough had a great inswinger, so I talked to him about it.When did you feel you had made it at the top level?

I always had the belief. I had that taste of international cricket very early and it showed I had the skills, on my day, to do pretty well. But maybe I didn’t have the confidence to deliver those skills as often as I would have liked.The key moment for me probably came when Peter Moores was in charge. It was 2008. He dropped Hoggard and Harmison and picked me and Broady and told me he wanted me to lead the attack. That was huge for me: it gave me huge belief and I don’t feel I’ve looked back.I suppose it has only been in the last couple of years that I’ve had the results to show for it. I was performing pretty well in England, but there were still questions about how I would do abroad, and in particular in the subcontinent.”I agree, the next couple of years will define us”•Getty ImagesDo you feel you have unfinished business in limited-overs cricket?
I want to carry on, if that’s what you mean. I love one-day cricket. I know I didn’t bowl as well as I could have done in the World Cup – I didn’t bowl anywhere near as well as I could have done – but I think my form has improved quite a lot in the last six to nine months. It went well in the UAE.I’d like to get back in the T20 side too. It’s a really exciting format and we’ve a really exciting team. I’ve only played one T20 game in the last two years, so I’m looking forward to playing a bit more.What went wrong at the World Cup?

I’m not sure. The whole team was under par, really, and we had a couple of really disappointing performances against Ireland and Bangladesh. Maybe it had just been too long a winter. We were away for five and a half months and when we first went away in October, all our thoughts and energy were on the Ashes. Then we had a seven-match ODI series and we went into a World Cup, which we hadn’t really even had a chance to discuss. Maybe we were just a bit fatigued.Do you still feel a part of things at Lancashire? Can you see yourself playing for them more in the future?
I’d love to play more for Lancashire. In an ideal world, when I finish playing international cricket, I’ll spend a couple of seasons playing county cricket. Lancashire have given me incredible support over the years – they always welcome me back – and I want to repay that. I want to play until I’m 40 – I don’t suppose that will be possible with all the demands there are on us these days – but I can’t imagine not playing. I’m the type that will have to be dragged off kicking and screaming when it’s time to finish.Do you know what you’re going to do after cricket?
Not at the moment, no but I’m starting to think about it. I’m presenting a few radio shows on 5Live with Swanny this year, called . We did a test show at Christmas, which went down really well, so that might be something I want to learn more about.The next couple of years – with series against South Africa and India, and Ashes series home and away – will define the legacy of this England team, won’t they?
Yes, that’s how I see it. Once we became the No. 1-rated Test team we talked about our legacy. We want to be one of the greatest England teams there has ever been, and we honestly feel we have the potential in the dressing room to achieve that. I agree: the next couple of years will define us. But don’t underestimate the West Indies, either. They are pushing a strong Australian side at the moment; they’re a decent team. South Africa are very strong – I see them as the strongest side we’ve played against since the Ashes. And then there’s India. Look, we slipped up over the winter, there’s no hiding from that. So there are bound to be questions about how we can play in the subcontinent. We still have a lot to prove, but we showed signs of improvement towards the back end of the Sri Lanka tour. I think Jonathan Trott’s century at Galle gave the rest of the batsmen confidence to play in those conditions. Winning in India would be massive for us.Vitabiotics Wellman is a proud sponsor of James Anderson

West Indies captain says his side have competed against India and Australia and now need to start winning

George Dobell14-May-2012They may be missing several of their leading players, have been beaten in the warm-up game, written-off in the media and up against the No. 1 rated Test team, but West Indies captain Darren Sammy has warned England not to underestimate his side’s chance ahead of the Test series beginning at Lord’s on Thursday.West Indies’ Test record in recent years is grim. They have won only one of their previous 10 series – and that was against Bangladesh – and only two of their last 24 series stretching back to 2004. Indeed, since December 2003, West Indies have played 80 Tests, won just eight – including two against Bangladesh – and lost 45. It is not a record that inspires confidence.But Sammy believes his side is progressing. While he accepts the results do not show it, he insists there have been encouraging signs in recent Test series. Notably, West Indies pushed India hard in Delhi before collapsing against Ravi Ashwin in their second innings and succumbing to a five-wicket loss. Similarly, they came to close to upsetting Australia in Bridgetown, only for another second innings batting collapse to eventually sentence them to a three-wicket defeat.”The only thing that has not been happening is the victories,” Sammy told ESPNcricinfo. “We’ve been playing good, competitive cricket against strong sides like India and Australia and all our Tests have been going five days and down to the wire. Not many teams go to India and give India a run for their money, but we did that.”Coming from where we are right now, we are not going to start winning straight away. We are taking baby steps to the ultimate goal. We are playing well and dominating teams throughout matches.”The problem is that we keep losing key moments in matches. One bad session keeps costing us. Champion teams seize the moment but we keep having a bad session where we might lose five wickets in an hour. We just need to cut that out. Once we eliminate those bad sessions then we’ll make progress.”Sammy also reminded England that the sides did not have to look back very far to the last team his side caused an upset. A young West Indies squad travelled to England to play two T20 internationals last September and, having lost the first game by 10 wickets, they hit back with a 25-run win to square the series. West Indies also won the last Test series between the sides in the Caribbean.”We were a very inexperienced team in September,” Sammy said. “People said we were just on our way to Bangladesh, but we beat England.”Every team that comes here, the media try and bring them down for England. So we know what to expect. We have to handle the distractions – be they the weather or the press – and concentrate on doing our best on the pitch. People don’t expect much from us, but we know that once we play to our potential we can compete very hard against England. If we can put runs on the board, we back our bowlers to take 20 wickets against England.”If West Indies are to do that, it is crucial that they have their best attack available to them. As things stand there are slight injury doubts hanging against all three of their leading seamers – Kemar Roach (foot), Ravi Rampaul (neck) and Fidel Edwards (back) – though it looks as if all three should be fine. As Roach, who is eagerly anticipating his first Tests at Lord’s put it: “Everyone wants to be here; there’s nothing going to stop me playing.”Sammy also said his entire side had been inspired by the documentary Fire in Babylon, which tells the story of West Indies’ domination of Test cricket in the 1970s and 80s. He drew parallels in the challenges facing his team and West Indies team of the early 70s.”Fire in Babylon is my inspiration,” Sammy said. “I have watched it many times. I knew our history – but to see it again, to hear the passion in the voices of the players – it’s got to make you think about how important what we do is to the people of the Caribbean.”All of the guys have seen it and been inspired. The guys are aware of how important West Indies cricket is to the fans. They appreciate the history and they carry the legacy. Some never knew about it – they knew the team had been great – but they didn’t understand what previous teams had gone through and what they had to endure. They didn’t understand about the challenges they had to rise above.”We have different challenges now. We dominated the world for 17 years and conquered all teams. People got used to success. A lot is expected of all West Indies teams since then. It could be a burden – every fast bowler is compared to Ambrose or Walsh and every batsman is compared to Greenidge or Lara – but I prefer to see it as an inspiration. That’s the path we have to follow.”Everyone in the Caribbean wants West Indies to do well. When we are playing well our brand of cricket is very entertaining. The turnout from the public in our last series – in Tests and ODIs and T20s – we’ve not seen that sort of support for our team in a long while. The reason is that they see the team competing. We’re not winning, but we’re playing with passion and if we do that, the victories should be just around the corner. We’re fighting, we’re showing passion: we understand what we have to do.”Darren Sammy was talking at the launch expansion of Sport for Life, a cricket-based community education program that hopes to equip young people with life skills and instil in them a love of sport. For more details visit: https://www.sport-for-life.org/caribbean/

After being away from the game for over a month, Kumar Sangakkara talks about his time off and Sri Lanka’s prospects in the upcoming World T20s

Sa'adi Thawfeeq03-Sep-2012Kumar Sangakkara, the No. 1 ranked Test batsman, is raring to pick up his bat after a finger injury sustained during the ODI series with India in July forced him into a break. Prior to his injury, Sangakkara had a successful year in all three formats leading to four ICC awards nominations including the Cricketer of the Year.After what he says has been the longest period he has been away from the game, Sangakkara hopes to work on his fitness and make a strong comeback. He spoke to ESPNcricinfo about his recovery from the injury and Sri Lanka’s chances in the upcoming World Twenty20 tournament.Q: Has your injury healed completely and will you be fit for the World Twenty20?
KS: The injury’s healed pretty well. I went and saw the surgeon a couple of days ago he was extremely happy with the progress. I’ve been trying to work on strengthening my hand; my wrist has weakened a bit over the four weeks it was in the cast. It’s just a case of doing my rehab properly and by the beginning of next week I can get back to batting. It’s hard not to touch a bat. As soon as the cast came off, I started just doing shadow batting so that I can get the feel of my hand around the grip, it also helps to strengthen my wrist and get me to kind of mentally prepare myself for playing. Initially when I touched the bat, I felt a bit strange. The finger felt that it was not really part of my hand but now within two days of working with Stephen our physiotherapist, he’s been really great checking up on me at every stage. He’s worked with me really well.Q: Is this the longest period you have been out of cricket?
KS: There was another fracture I had on my thumb but we didn’t have any international cricket at that time, so I was lucky. It was another 5-6 weeks that I spent. I had a hamstring injury in Australia but I was back in 17 days. This is probably the longest.Q: You probably might have welcomed that break from cricket to be with your family?
KS: The injury gave me more time with my family. I don’t think I have missed a game in about two and a half years and it was nice to spend some time with my family and my children, especially when they are 3 years old, it’s a great age to be at home. Also I had to do a lot of household work, household chores, things that I had time to take care of. There were a lot of things I had my attention on, so I wasn’t missing cricket. I had so much to do that it was good that my mind was off the game. It was a good rest. I just need to come back strong and work on my fitness and get back straight into playing.Q: Your views on the Sri Lanka World T20 squad?
KS: Our World T20 side is a very good pick and with two new guys in Dilshan Munaweera and Akila Dananjaya, it would be interesting to see how these guys fare. Munaweera is a top order bat and will be competing for places with Mahela [Jayawardene] and [Tillakaratne] Dilshan at the helm. It would be difficult for him to get a look in at the start unless Mahela is forced to go down into the middle order, that’s probably one way where Munaweera will be playing. But he’s looked really solid in the Sri Lanka Premier League. He has a great body language and great presence at the crease. I watched him time the ball and also he’s shown a lot of maturity from the way he started the tournament. I saw him get into the six overs and batting on. He showed a slight weakness against spin at the start but managed to get over that very quickly. He looks like a guy who learns very quickly.Akila from the way he bowled in the nets and the way he bowled in the SLPL, he looks a lot more mature than his 18 years. It would be interesting to see how he can make the side and what combination we would play to include him in the side. He is an exciting young prospect. He is new and still a bit raw, but most of the sides haven’t seen him so when you have variations like that, it’s good.I’ve been very impressed with Ajantha Mendis, after seven months away, he’s come back into this tournament and bowled excellently. He’s fielded really well and he looks like he’s got a new energy and a new enthusiasm that’s going to really work for us.Then we have the solid guys who have been there, Rangana Herath, [Nuwan] Kulasekara and [Lasith] Malinga, Mahela and Dilshan, at the top, [Lahiru] Thirimanne, Jeevan Mendis and Angelo [Mathews] in the middle and Dinesh Chandimal to bat anywhere, basically he’s more suited to bat at no. 3. We have a very good mixture with Shaminda Eranga who’s come back very strong from injury. It looks a good and balanced side, now it’s a case of going to the games and performing.”Akila Danajaya, from the way he bowled in the nets and the way he bowled in the SLPL, he looks a lot more mature than his 18 years.”•Shaun Roy/SPORTZPICS/SLPLQ: Akila, like Ajantha Mendis before him, has been tagged a mystery spinner. What’s so special about him?
KS: He’s got a great attitude, he is very competitive on the field and he’s got good variations in bowling – about three or four balls. He bowls at a lesser pace than Mendis whose variations were a bit more subtle when he started. Akila is not Mendis, but he’s got something different to him. That’s what you look for in a big tournament when you are trying to play an opposition and try and get a competitive edge.Sri Lanka have produced some of these bowlers over the years but mystery is the wrong word to use to a spinner. There is no mystery in modern day cricket. Everyone has studied everyone. It’s just a case of reading the hand and once a batsman starts doing that, the bowler of course has to change to stay a step ahead. It’s very interesting times for Akila I just hope he keeps this attitude, keeps learning and keeps improving as the years go by.Q: Who are the key players to watch in the World T20?
KS: It’s going to be an interesting time. We got some great T20 players playing in this tournament and it’s hard to single out anyone. Australia always play well, England’s really improved in T20 cricket, South Africa are a great side, Pakistan look very strong but West Indies look like they are extremely well suited to play this format now. With Sunil Narine, Chris Gayle back at the top, [Kieron] Pollard, [Darren] Sammy, Dwayne Smith, Darren Bravo, Dwayne Bravo and Marlon Samuels back they’ve got a great mix. West Indies are a side to watch.We of course play our cricket in a different manner to all these sides. We have players who will stand out, guys like Mathews, Dilshan, Mahela, Malinga, they’ll be the stars. The rest of the guys work hard to give them the foundation they need to shine. Our job is to make sure that once we know our roles, we execute it well. We’ll be a very tough side to beat.Q: Your views on the three World T20 venues?
KS: Khettarama (R Premadasa Stadium) is a classical example where 220 (in ODIs) meant you usually won a game. The ball would turn square, you win the toss, you bat and you win the game. It changed for a while where you batted first not because it turned but because the ball started swinging insanely in the night. When the wickets were relaid, in the first few games there was a lot of turn and now they’ve settled down into beautiful wickets where batting first or second you have an equal chance of winning and batting under lights has become so much easier that some sides now prefer to chase.Pallekele seems to have a lot in it at night. It seams and swings around and that will be an interesting challenge for us being a Sri Lankan side playing in our conditions to encounter those conditions.Hambantota is completely different. There is quite a strong wind from one side and the pitch can be a bit up and down. Our pitches are now offering different challenges but the vicious turn that it used to have is no more. So sides have to adjust accordingly.Q: Have we lost the home advantage in the sense that we are giving other sides also an opportunity with the type of pitches we prepare?
KS: Our sides have also changed a little bit. We don’t depend on spin alone anymore or just a fast bowler in Chaminda Vaas. We have different sets of fast bowlers and different sets of spinners. With the change in conditions, our sides have changed but home advantage is not only about wickets, it’s about playing in your country, playing in front of the people that cheer and love you. It’s about being comfortable at home. All of those things add to your home advantage on wickets. We can’t just look at a wicket and say we want it exactly the way it suits us, especially now they have independent curators who monitor wickets. We’ve got to learn to roll with the punches and change with the times. Playing at home in a World Cup is a massive advantage.Q: Would you put your team down as one of the favourites?
KS: Sri Lanka have always been favourites in my view in any tournament that we play because we’ve been able to rise to those big occasions really well as a unit and adjust accordingly. In big tournaments we always had a great run. If you take our last 4-5 years it’s been an amazing run in big tournaments. We just need to believe in ourselves and believe in that fact and keep playing.Q: What is the biggest change you see the team has undergone that has made them so competitive?
KS: Physically, we can get a lot stronger and that prevents injury. Mentally, we still need to work on controlling emotions, attitude, addressing problems, having better communication with the management, players and administration. All of those things help. Even better relationships with the media help in ensuring that there’s development and an improvement on the field. Skillwise we have always been very good. We’ll be restructuring certain sections of our first-class cricket in the near future and that will help.As a side we have changed in our make-up. We have accepted the fact that Murali and Vaasy are gone, Sanath [Jayasuriya] and Marvan [Atapattu] are also gone and our side’s make up has changed to a more settled outlook where we understand the role of fast bowlers, where we have a new set to choose from. The spinners are different, our batting make-up has changed, we don’t have the Jayasuriya explosion at the top anymore. So we started to win games in different ways. At the same time we have to be a bit careful because playing spin is one of our strengths and we need to keep working on that and improving on it because what I’ve seen around the world is that other sides have improved remarkably against spin – sweeping, reverse sweeping, all these shots have given them a huge advantage. So we need to keep pace with it and go beyond that because traditionally we are very good players of spin.In Asia, we are the best players of pace as well. If you take all the Asian countries, we have this great advantage and we keep producing very good players. If you take the Chandimals and the Thirimannes, they’ve been excellent finds. Even [Jeevan] Mendis is doing really well. We need to take them and polish them up so that they become greats.

They are, if teams know where to look and can work their way around the international schedule

Tim Wigmore23-Dec-2012Surrey’s capture of Graeme Smith suggests that county cricket still retains the ability to attract the world’s best players. But thanks to a combination of Surrey’s cheque book, Smith’s willingness to forego a potential IPL contract, and his lack of involvement with South Africa’s limited-overs sides, his recruitment will remain exceptional: Ricky Ponting has already indicated he will not be playing county cricket. Rather than search for another Smith, county coaches would be better occupied asking: who’s the next Jeetan Patel?Patel, the New Zealand offspinner who averaged almost 50 in Tests at the time, was few people’s idea of an overseas star when Warwickshire signed him for the 2012 season. Yet he bowled with intelligence and control to claim 51 wickets at fewer than 23 apiece. The Championship title, and an international recall, were well-earned rewards.The challenge for counties is to find players to match Patel’s impact. As James Cross, an agent with Target Sports Management says, “It’s very difficult with the amount of money on offer with the various T20 leagues all over the world.” Even with counties no longer participating in the Champions League from next year, Cross says, “a lot of the budget that counties put aside for an overseas player may well be put into the T20 competition.” This is in part due to the difficulties of getting overseas players to commit for the whole season.That task will be harder than ever in 2013, with the Champions Trophy and the Ashes following the IPL. Angus Fraser, Middlesex’s managing director of cricket, admits that it is getting “harder and harder” to find overseas players of sufficient quality. And even when there is a gap in the schedule, “countries are very protective about the volume of cricket that their best players play”. Centrally contracted players require clearance to play for a county, and countries can put limits on the amount of bowling players are allowed to do, as with Vernon Philander at Somerset this year.In such circumstances, it is easy to write off the overseas market as a mixture of has-beens and never-will-bes. But overseas players remain worth the bother: along with Patel, Steve Magoffin and Chris Rogers probably made the most impact of overseas players in the county game last season. They each played for a side that finished in the top four of the Championship.Fraser believes that it’s crucial that overseas signings can commit to more than just a few matches. “You obviously want a high-quality overseas player but I know commitment comes by being there the whole time,” he says. “If you’re only there for ten weeks or whatever, it tends to be a bit more of a fleeting romance than a real commitment to what you’re trying to do at your club.” His words are borne out by the performance of Rogers, who scored 1086 Championship runs for Middlesex in 2012, and research showing the link between settled sides and success.When it comes to counties signing global stars, Fraser says: “The only chance you’ve really got is when a player retires from international cricket.” For the 2013 season, one such player stands out: VVS Laxman. He has retired from India duty and crucially no longer plays in the IPL, but two hundreds in his last four innings for Hyderabad show he is not lacking in first-class motivation. His previous success in county cricket (he averaged over 60 in 16 Championship games for Lancashire between 2007 and 2009), strong team ethic and the potential boost to ticket sales adds to his attractiveness.While no other player who could play for close to a full season rivals Laxman in stature, there is no shortage of viable propositions for counties. The postponement of South Africa’s Test series in Sri Lanka means their Test specialists will be in demand: Jacques Rudolph and Imran Tahir (see below) would be canny county acquisitions. And after the conclusion of New Zealand’s tour of England, Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum could offer counties both runs and flair.A more intriguing Kiwi signing would be Jesse Ryder. His destructive talents may too often extend beyond batting but few possess superior ball-striking ability. Given his current international and IPL situation, he could be available all season.

Six overseas players who are potential county stars

• VVS Laxman Laxman may have retired from international cricket, but his class remains. He would provide copious runs, season-long availability and aesthetic pleasure – just ask Lancashire fans.

• Devendra Bishoo The rise of Sunil Narine has marginalised Bishoo’s position with West Indies. But he is a legspinner with variation, and a legbreak that turns sharply and zips of the pitch. County batsmen beware.

• Daren Ganga A widely acclaimed captain of Trinidad & Tobago, Ganga would bring tactical sharpness and a fresh outlook. He also possesses a resolute defence that earned two Test centuries against Australia.

• Brendan Taylor The quality of the Zimbabwean captain’s batting is sometimes overshadowed by his team-mates’ struggles. But Taylor bats with aggression and fierce self-belief, as highlighted by an outstanding fifth-day century against New Zealand last year, which included five sixes.

• Imran Tahir The mauling of Tahir’s legspin in South Africa’s recent draw in Adelaide means his international career may soon be over. Yet his googly and sharp turn have long proved to be potent weapons in county cricket.

• Jesse Ryder Ryder’s history of disciplinary problems is well established. But the rare combination of power and timing that marks his batting would enrich county cricket, which could be the perfect place for Ryder’s own rehabilitation.

So too would Daren Ganga. He has never played county cricket before, but for any county wanting a captain from abroad he would be an outstanding candidate. Ganga had an unfulfilled Test career as a batsman, but as a domestic captain he is perhaps unrivalled in the world today: his calm and tactically astute leadership of Trinidad & Tobago underpinned their run to the 2009 Champions League final.Counties have seldom displayed much appetite for recruiting from outside the eight main Test-playing nations. Given next season’s schedule, that could change. Two Bangladesh players, IPL commitments notwithstanding, are particularly appealing. Shakib Al Hasan took 35 first-class wickets at under 22 apiece for Worcestershire in 2010, while his batting is also worthy of a county top six, and Tamim Iqbal proved against England in the same year that his technique and scything off-side play could thrive in English conditions.In 2010, Shakib became the first Bangladeshi to be signed as an overseas player in England: how long until we see the first Afghan? You may be disappointed. Thanks to the inflexibility of the ECB’s eligibility criteria, no players outside the ten Full Members are permitted to play as overseas players. That seems a depressingly close-minded attitude, given the excitement that would be provided by Mohammad Shazhad’s switch-hitting or Hamid Hassan’s reverse-swinging yorkers.Nevertheless there is no absence of foreign talent for counties to sign, even as they confront the reality that it has never been harder to recruit established international stars (Smith at Surrey excepted). As for Patel, Devendra Bishoo, the West Indies legspinner with impressive variations, including a dangerous topspinner, could be the 2013 equivalent. He took 3 for 34 on debut against England in the World Cup last year, and as he looks to rejuvenate his international career, he might find that there is no better way than exposing English frailties against spin.

The temperament and skill shown by Asad Shafiq and Misbah-ul-Haq may not save the match but should benefit Pakistan for the rest of the series

Firdose Moonda at the Wanderers03-Feb-2013One of the most appealing aspects of cricket lies in the battle of wits between batsman and bowler even when it seems like there is little going on. Most of the third day of this Test illustrated that.After a capitulation in the first innings that even their coach Dav Whatmore forgave because it was prompted by a “relentless” pace-bowling onslaught, Pakistan had to find a way to bat against this South Africa attack. Few line-ups have been able to provide a prototype, especially when conditions favour the bowlers, and the lessons Pakistan learnt on Sunday are theirs to build on and keep for the rest of the series.Perhaps the most important of them was that it is possible to get the better of the South Africa attack but it takes a careful blend of positivity and patience. If one or the other is applied even slightly incorrectly, the formula fails.Getting the mix absolutely correct will not happen all the time. In fact, it may not happen even most of the time and the only way it will happen more often than not is when players are experienced enough. A large number of Pakistan’s line-up are not primarily because many of them are on their first tour to South Africa.”We have nine out of eleven playing here for the first time so it has been a learning curve right from the beginning,” Whatmore said. “But today the wicket settled down and a combination of the same two factors – a relentless bowling attack and swing – went in the opposite direction and so we did not have the same result.”Whatmore’s statement may seem a little cryptic at first reading. But he seems to be indicating that South Africa’s bowlers will have to tire at some point and that may come when the conditions demand more of them. If a batting side can wait it out long enough for that to happen, they may be able to get away for a while.Nasir Jamshed provided the perfect example of that. The debutant opener bided his time but kept scoring at a good rate and showed the ability to capitalise on anything short, wide or too full. He looked as though he could continue, but eventually the intent became too much. He tried a glory shot to get to fifty, but picked out a fielder.If the milestone wasn’t looming, one can only imagine Jamshed would have been more circumspect. Whatmore let him know that irrespective of a maiden fifty on the horizon, he should have been. “I was very upset with Jamshed,” he said. “I keep forgetting it’s his debut because he has been around the team for a while but I had few words with him and he understands it’s for his own good.”Asad Shafiq and Misbah-ul-Haq have since displayed some of the traits needed to overcome South Africa. Both have shown sound temperament but both could have been out as well. That’s why, AB de Villiers thinks, no matter how comfortable a batsman looks at the crease against the South Africa attack, he is never entirely so.”With the variation in our attack, you always feel you could get a good ball,” he said. “So I would be positive if I was batting against us because there is no use in just sticking it out there. But you also have to read the situation and understand that at times you can’t dominate the bowlers and at times you can and when you can, then you have to have the guts and the skill to do it. The best players in the world can do that.”Michael Clarke and Sachin Tendulkar have scored memorable centuries in South Africa, while Thilan Samaweera and Dean Brownlie are some of the more recent players to have followed suit. All of them relied on the right combination of intent and endurance. Pakistan need one or more of their line-up to find the same.But they face more obstacles than just getting the balance right. A new ball is due after five overs on Monday morning and South Africa will see that as an opportunity to finish the job. In the first Test against New Zealand in Cape Town, South Africa needed 22 overs with the second ball to end the resistance, in the second, it took just 5.3 overs.Pakistan’s batsmen have already shown themselves to be vulnerable against the new ball, especially if there is movement. Rain is forecast for much of the next two days, humidity levels are expected to be high and Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander will be a dangerous combination.To counter them, Pakistan will need the temperament of today many times over. Shafiq is one that Whatmore is looking at to hold the fort. “He is definitely one of a few of our boys for the future. His concentration today was pretty good and we hope he gets a good hundred out there,” he said.With the amount of time left in the game, the equation is simple. If Pakistan bat through, they will win but South Africa only need six balls to achieve the same. While de Villiers hopes for a finish “somewhere after lunch” on the fourth day, Whatmore would not be drawn into what he called “result-oriented predictions”.All he is wants it is to “see how far we can take it” because he knows that whatever else Pakistan learn they will be able to apply it in the next two matches. “What’s important is that this gives a lot of the players confidence for the next two Tests,” Whatmore said. How matters unravel to end this match will determine how much conviction Pakistan can take into the rest of the series.

There was a Test century to each man, M Vijay’s second, Cheteshwar Pujara’s fourth and India hoofed across the Australian first innings total. At stumps, India were 311 for 1, ahead of Australia by 74

Sharda Ugra03-Mar-2013Put M Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara alongside each other wearing anything other than cricket whites or training gear and they will have little in common.Ask them to talk to each other in the language they speak at home and incomprehensibility will rule. There’s a very good chance they do not share, leave alone friends, the same taste in food, music, lifestyle or even favourite cricket shots.What Vijay and Pujara did share on day two in Hyderabad, however, was the ability to sing in perfect sync from the same cricketing sheet. They began with a low sonorous bass all through the first session, but by the time the second new ball was due an hour before stumps, they had hit the high notes.There was a Test century to each man, Vijay’s second, Pujara’s fourth and India hoofed across the Australian first innings total. At stumps, India were 311 for 1, ahead of Australia by 74.A day that began with a session whose scoreline read 49 for 1 in 27 overs, and looked like it was in Australia’s favour, was snatched away with India scoring 257 runs in 63 overs after lunch without losing a wicket.There were two remarkable aspects of Vijay and Pujara’s unbeaten 294-run second-wicket partnership. The first was Vijay’s ability to meld his batting into a manner of play that, for the better part of two hours, could have belonged to Pujara. The other was Pujara’s willingness to absorb, from very early in the day, pain from an injury in his left leg and then spend nearly six hours more at the crease, at times limping and hobbling and diving full length into his crease to ensure he wouldn’t lose out on a morning of labour.The final session of play, when both men completed their centuries as the second new ball neared, generated crowd-pleasing shots. Freebies were gobbled up and 151 runs scored in 30 overs with Australia’s bowling looking tattered and mentally frayed. But the foundation of the partnership and indeed its signature, was laid in the first session when the Australian seamers charged in and Vijay and Pujara were willing to grind and defend.The two strains of effort from Vijay and Pujara have gone to produce one of India’s more carefully-structured days of Test cricket in recent years. What is important is that India’s innings was not shepherded by a seasoned hand, but batsmen who have played 23 Tests between them.In the last ten years, recent memory says that India have seen off a tough first session and cashed after lunch only twice. In the Boxing Day Test of 2003-04, Virender Sehwag and Aakash Chopra scored 26 runs off the first 16 overs, went in to lunch at 89 for 0 in 27 overs and India finished the day at 329 for 4.Six years later, India were 92 for 0 in 18 overs against Sri Lanka in Mumbai at lunch, and followed the next two sessions with 260 for 1 at tea and 443 for 1 by stumps. Sehwag again was the central reason for India’s rapid acceleration. By sheer coincidence, his partner in Mumbai happened to be Vijay.On Sunday, much was in Vijay and Pujara’s favour in Hyderabad. They were batting at home, Australia’s first innings total – 237 for 9 declared – was miserly and the lateral movement off the wicket was not lethal. What they had to handle though was the early loss of Sehwag, a bowling attack that was fresh, keen and disciplined, and the early morning help for the seamers. By the time the first hour of play was done, India had scored only 26 more runs in the 13 overs bowled in the morning.Michael Clarke had cut off the single-scoring opportunities, negated the drop-and-run with men at short cover and short midwicket and stuck David Warner in at mid-off to put doubt into the mind of a batsman trying to take the straight, sober single. The batsmen were being challenged to hit corkscrewing shots into the air.Vijay and Pujara knew this was not the time to hurry. There were no planes, trains or automobiles to be caught. While Pujara, by and large, is neither hurried or lured, it was Vijay, the gung-ho, big hitting opener, who discovered that playing early monk could help.He got behind the line and defended stoutly on his front foot, swayed away from the short ball and when it followed him, jabbed it down. This is Vijay’s comeback series and his hometown Chennai had given him little joy with scores of 10 and 6, dismissed in both innings by James Pattinson.Hyderabad would have brought some manner of epiphany – he faced 10 overs from Pattinson, scored only 14 runs, but dug out the 140kph yorkers and got out of the way of the beastlier of the short balls.Pujara, a quiet well-spoken 25-year-old, can be an utter gourmand when it comes to big runs. He has scored them by the bucketful in domestic cricket, knows how to pace an innings in Indian conditions and loves converting scores just like he enjoys consuming runs. Of his five 50 plus scores in Test cricket, Pujara’s tally reads, 72, 159, 206*, 135 and now 162 not out. Vijay gave enough glimpses of power and aggression in his innings of 129. But on a day when alter-egos found expression, it was Pujara who hooked Peter Siddle for a six off the second new ball to reach his 150.Cricketing partnerships can often end up like holiday romances: intense, memorable but transient. India must wish that Hyderabad 2013 is only the start of a beautiful friendship between the two batsmen who have given India all the controls of this Test.

Stats highlights from Bangladesh’s convincing 143-run win in the second Test, their first Test victory in Zimbabwe

S Rajesh30-Apr-2013

• Bangladesh’s 143-run win is their fourth in 79 Tests, of which they’ve lost 67 and drawn eight. It’s also their first win in Zimbabwe, and their third overseas: they’d earlier won two in the West Indies in 2009. Bangladesh’s overseas win-loss record of 3-34 is thus much better than their home record of 1-33.
• The win was set up by Bangladesh’s batting performance, especially their total of 391 in their first innings. They played 113.2 overs in the first innings, which is their eighth-best in an away Test; over the entire match, they faced 201.2 overs, their sixth-best in an overseas game.
• While no Bangladesh batsman scored a hundred, there were six fifties for them in the game, with the highest of them being Mushfiqur Rahim’s 93 and the lowest Shakib Al Hasan’s 59, both in the second innings. This equals Bangladesh’s record for most fifties in a match: the only previous instance when they had six 50-plus scores in a Test was against England in Mirpur in 2009-10, a match Bangladesh lost by nine wickets.
• Bangladesh’s Nos.5-7, Shakib, Mushfiqur, and Nasir Hossain, were the architects of their batting in both innings, scoring fifties each time they batted. It’s the first time in Test history that the three batsmen at these positions have scored more than 50 in each innings of a Test.
• Before this Test, in 78 matches, only 16 times had a Bangladesh batsman scored fifties in each innings. In this Test alone three batsmen accomplished the feat, taking the overall count for Bangladesh to 19. Habibul Bashar has achieved it seven times, Tamim Iqbal and Shakib thrice each, and Mushfiqur and Nasir twice each. This is the first time three batsmen for Bangladesh have scored fifties in each innings of the same Test.
• Robiul Islam’s series haul of 15 wickets is the third-highest for Bangladesh in a series, but the highest for a Bangladesh seamer. The two bowlers who’ve taken more than 15 in a series for Bangladesh are both left-arm spinners – Enamul Haque Jr (18 versus Zimbabwe in 2004-05) and Mohammad Rafique (17 versus Pakistan in 2003). (Click here for Bangladesh’s batting and bowling averages in the series.)
• Bangladesh also had a surprise wicket-taker in debutant allrounder Ziaur Rahman, who wasn’t expected to be such a force with his bowling. Rahman picked up 4 for 63 in Zimbabwe’s second innings, the second-best debut figures for a Bangladesh seamer, after Manjural Islam’s 6 for 81 against the same opposition in Bulawayo in 2001. Overall, it’s the sixth-best by a Bangladesh bowler.
• Zimbabwe’s two most impressive performers in the series were Brendan Taylor, the captain, and Shingi Masakadza, the seamer who took ten wickets at 16.80. (Click here for Zimbabwe’s batting and bowling averages in the series.) Taylor’s aggregate of 319 is the seventh-best in a series for Zimbabwe, and the best since Tatenda Taibu’s aggregate of 330 in a two-Test series in Bangladesh in 2005.
• In the second innings of the second Test, Hamilton Masakadza finally shrugged off his poor run to score an unbeaten 111, his third Test hundred, and his first since the 104 he scored against the same opposition at the same venue in 2011. In 12 innings between these two centuries, Masakadza had scored 153 runs in 14 innings at an average of 10.93, with a highest score of 25.

The century stand between Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott may not have had the crowd swooning but England know their strengths and they played to them admirably once again

George Dobell at Edgbaston08-Jun-2013Rudyard Kipling almost certainly wasn’t thinking about England’s top-order when he wrote the lines “If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you” but it did seem strangely fitting as they made unhurried progress against Australia.You could almost feel the frustration around Edgbaston as Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott added 111 runs for England’s second wicket in 22 overs. You could almost feel the crowd urging them to pick up the pace and play more aggressively. And you could hardly move at the interval between innings for someone wanting to tell you that the stand had left England 30 short of par and in danger of losing the game.But in a match that featured only one other 50 partnership – an unbroken stand of 56 for England’s seventh wicket – Bell and Trott had, once again, provided the foundations for victory. That the pair of them remained calm against some tight bowling, kept their heads and judged more accurately than the hordes urging them to accelerate what a winning total was on this pitch, played a huge part in this win.England play, by and large, percentage cricket. They are not pretty. They are not exciting. While West Indies or Pakistan attack their opposition like tigers, England attack like a python, slowly squeezing the life out of matches. In some ways, they play the sort of cricket that the limited-overs game was invented to cut out. While marketing types sell the game on the basis flying stumps and flurries of sixes, England try to bowl dot balls and turn ones into twos. Few kids in Birmingham beg their parents for a chance to watch Trott nurdle one into the leg side.But that is not England’s concern. What matters to them is that they have a method they trust and understand. While other teams can thrash and heave, England will nudge and accumulate. While other teams attempt the killer punch, England pick up points and refuse to open themselves up to danger. They apply pressure and look to make fewer mistakes than their opposition. It is not a fashionable way to play limited-overs cricket, but it is England’s way.You might compare it to Wimbledon playing the long-ball game in order to compete with the top football English football sides. Their supporters will find beauty in the result if not the method.They will be times when it proves an inadequate method. There will be times when an opposition batsman plays a brilliant match-winning innings and when an opposition bowler finds a way to unlock the England batting. It will happen. But it may not happen very often and it may not happen in this tournament.It was, after all, a method that took them to the top of the ODI rankings last year. It took them to their record of 10 successive ODI victories. It is a method that really should have won over the critics by now. That it hasn’t perhaps says more about the inflexibility of some in the media – particularly former players – than it does an inflexibility in England’s methods.The point that the critics fail to understand is that England are playing the hand that fate dealt them. They are not trying to play the hand they wish they were dealt. They are no longer trying to ape the methods of Australia or Sri Lanka or whoever the latest fashionable ODI side may be. They have recognised their key strength – technically correct batsmen – and embraced it. Without Kevin Pietersen they are a decent but limited ODI side, but rather than attempting to bat like Sanath Jayasuriya or Adam Gilchrist, they have accepted their strengths lie elsewhere. Nations need accountants as well as warriors.

Bailey praises England bowlers

Australia captain George Bailey credited England’s ability to gain reverse swing as one of the key differences between the sides. “We were very surprised by how quickly England gained reverse swing,” he said. “It’s a good skill. It went from swinging conventionally to reverse swinging within an over or two. No doubt they worked on it a bit; they bowled cross-seam and bowling some spin early played a part. They are highly skilled and it’s something we need to look at and exploit. It made their bowling plans so simple for the quicks once it started reversing: they could just hit a good length throughout the entire innings.
“England didn’t bowl many bad balls. They were very disciplined and made it hard for us. They are a very experienced bowling line-up and there was nothing there we hadn’t seen before. They just executed their skills very well. They exploited the wearing nature of the pitch very well.
“James Anderson is so skilful. He has the record he has because of the skills he has. We were expecting him to reverse it, but he gave us nothing on the pads and nothing to cut. He’s so accurate. It’s testament to the bowler he is and how important he is to England.”

Bell admitted that, at the halfway stage of the match, England were just a little disappointed by their total. He admitted that “at 35 overs we were looking at 300” but felt they fell short as “it was an extremely dry pitch and it was a lot easier to bat up front against the new ball. It got a lot harder to bat.” In a perfect world, of course they would have liked to score more. But instead of being bowled out for 230 in an attempt to reach 300, they settled for 269. They settled for the better percentage.Are there other players within the county game who might provide an alternative method? Of course there are. There is Ben Stokes, a vast talent, who may develop into an international class allrounder, there is Alex Hales, who has earned a place in the T20 side, and there is Jonny Bairstow. But Stokes and Hales both failed to cover themselves in glory on the Lions tour to Australia and Hales is also in a horrid run of form. Their time will come. If England’s method proves inadequate in this event, it may come sooner rather than later.It would be simplistic to suggest that England’s method is solely reliant on their top three. In this game, the acceleration in their innings was provided by Ravi Bopara – on other occasions it will be Eoin Morgan or Jos Buttler – and their bowling was deeply impressive.That is hugely encouraging for them. On a pitch offering traditional English-style bowlers little, they still found a way to trouble the Australia batsmen. James Anderson, in the style of Malcolm Marshall or Zaheer Khan, reacted to the flat surface by going up a gear and bowling with more pace than for some time. He successfully utilised the same tactic on a docile track during the Nagpur Test at the end of last year.England also gained reverse swing that was all but absent for the Australia seamers. There will be those who claim there is something untoward about this but, as was the case when the English used to complain about Pakistan bowlers, it is generally teams that cannot do it who moan.Allied to their admirable accuracy – Anderson was especially impressive in that regard – the movement England gained allowed them to concentrate on bowling a good length and tight line. There was a noticeable absence of variation – the slower balls and slower ball bouncers – that marked their disappointing performances against New Zealand. Bell rated his bowlers’ performance as “exceptional”.There was some bravery in England’s selection, too. The decision to leave out Steven Finn, the No. 3-rated ODI bowler, left them reliant on Bopara and Joe Root to fulfil the role of fifth bowler. It showed a willingness to adapt. It showed flexibility.But those are not the main strengths of this team. England’s real strengths are calm under pressure, a knowledge of their role definition and a shared belief in their methods. They are not the most exciting qualities, but they form a powerful combination.