Happy Birthday Rahul Dravid

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Rahul Dravid turns 36 today. The batting maestro didn’t have a particularly good time in the middle the whole of last year and he needs to take a fresh guard on January 11, 2009 to be able to weather the storm for quite a few more years.

Dravid, undoubtedly the most accomplished batsman of his generation, has still a role to play in the Indian cricket team that boasts of the most potent batting line-up in the world. His presence at number three provides the balance to an outfit whose intent is to play for win.

India today has many outstanding young batsmen who can take the fight to the opposition with their brilliant stroke-play. But how many of them have the capacity to graft an innings or to occupy the crease for a long time in Test matches. The Indian youngsters are doing well in the limited overs contests but they have to look to the seasoned campaigners in the longer version of the game.

Dravid provides stability to the Indian batting. He has the technique as well as the temperament to grind the bowling, a tendency not common in youngsters anywhere in the world. He adds value to the team with his grit and fighting qualities.

I totally agree with the Indian chief selector Kris Srikkanth who has very clearly stated that Dravid will be one of the key elements of the team during the upcoming tour of New Zealand.

"He's a batsman with over 10,000 runs in Test cricket. He is also among the greatest batsmen the world has produced. If you don't give Dravid the extra leeway, whom are you going to give it to?” he very rightly questioned to the critics having gone an extra mile in lamenting Dravid.

"We have specific plans. During the forthcoming series in New Zealand, a player like Dravid will be very crucial for us. There will be bounce and movement for the pacemen there. If India are to progress to the No. 1 ranking, it has to beat New Zealand in New Zealand. Dravid will be a key member of the line-up at the No. 3 slot," Srikkanth was quoted as saying.

It’s very heartening indeed to find the chief selector backing the player undergoing a lean patch. I think Srikkanth deserves credit here for not having got carried away. Obviously he and his panel of selectors much have been under immense pressure to dump Dravid for the tour of New Zealand.

Indeed Dravid has endured a lean patch in 2008. But why do people so conveniently ignore the fact that he held the Indian batting together from the time he entered the Test arena in 1996 until 2007. An ordinary year after 11 golden years doesn’t necessarily mean that the man is finished.

His greatness has been beyond doubt. He has scored heavily in every continent of the world. He has delivered where the others have found wanting. He has won India more Test matches than anyone else. It’s just a matter of time for him to regain his touch. His bat has the power to silence the guns of his critics.

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Victorious skipper Smith out of action for a while

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The loss of victorious skipper Graeme Smith, due to an elbow injury, will be a big blow to South Africa’s chances of pocketing the upcoming series of One-day Internationals against Australia.
Smith, a picture of courage and fortitude, had played the third and final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground despite not being fully fit but he suffered another injury during the course of his innings on the second day and it cost his team dearly.

As usual he was dominating the Australian bowlers when he was hit on his gloves by Mitchell Johnson and he was force to retire. The South Africans were jolted by his non-presence in the field.

Having the scores of 48, 108, 62 and 75 in the previous four innings, he was in complete command of the situation when he had to leave the field abruptly. He did make an attempt to stay at the crease but the first-aid at the ground was not enough to treat the serious injury.

The complexion of the Sydney Test changed with the premature exit of Smith. The incoming batsmen tried to make up but none of them could play the kind of attacking knock the skipper was capable of playing. His knocks had been instrumental in guiding his team to victories in both the previous games.

South Africa, who might have entertained hopes of getting a first innings lead even after Michael Clarke and the tail-enders had extended the Australian total to 445, finished far too many in arrears to add to their discomfort.

Smith’s absence was felt in the field too when Australia came out in pursuit of quick runs in their second innings. It became evident soon that the acting skipper Neil McKenzie lacked the skills to handle the bowlers and set proper fields for them.

The best way of restricting the flow of run was by picking up the wickets but McKenzie appeared more interested in saving the boundaries by spreading the field. What he probably overlooked the fact that his fast bowlers were likely to be more effective when supported by attacking fields.

It was a pity to find a bowler of the caliber of Dale Steyn, who was adjudged Man of the Match in only the previous game, was left to operate with a solitary slip. The edges were found and they went into gaps. The South Africans would have been much better off playing normal cricket instead of going on to the defensive.

One is not sure if Ricky Ponting would have declared the innings as early as he did if Smith was fit. The Australian skipper bought more time for his bowlers by setting a challenging target. It could have been a different story to relate had Ponting delayed the declaration by adopting safety first approach.

Smith reappeared on the field only in the final session of the game in pursuit of salvaging a draw. He came out to bat at number eleven with more than half an hour’s play left. The wounded tiger refused to give up and it was only at the fag end when he picked by Johnson. 

Smith’s batting and captaincy will both be missed in the ODI series but he had to take the break in an effort to be fit by the time these two teams resume their Test rivalry as early as next month. 

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Dilshan the unlikely hero in record win

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
Tillakaratne Dilshan has been around for quite sometime, having made some useful contributions during his international career. He has played his role in the middle-order and also provided the odd breakthrough whenever the champion bowlers in the Sri Lankan side were at the receiving end for a while.
But Dilshan produced a sensational all-round performance in the second Test against Bangladesh at Chittagong’s Divisional Stadium playing the lead role in Sri Lanka’s record 465-run win.

It was the fifth biggest margin of victory in terms of runs but it was Sri Lanka’s highest ever so far. They rattled Bangladesh for 158 on the penultimate day to complete one of the most crushing victories of Test history.

Dilshan stole the limelight by scoring a century in both innings and if it was not enough he picked up four quick wickets for just 10 runs to the fourth evening to make the game his own. He followed up his brilliant knock of 162 in the first innings with another one of 143 in the second outing. 

Mind you Bangladesh were in high spirits after having gone down fighting in the first Test. They were looking quite ominous on the opening day of the second Test as well and it was Dilshan’s knock that allowed Sri Lanka to snatch the initiative. His 162 helped his team register a first innings score of 384 that represented quite a recovery.

The devastating spin duo of Ajantha Mendis and Mutiah Muralitharan forced the Bangladeshi batsmen to submission but Sri Lanka still faced challenges to set a daunting task for the hosts who had batted so bravely in the first Test while chasing an improbable target of 521.

Sri Lanka needed to put a big total in their second innings to dictate terms and it was Dilshan who came up with the most impressive batting display. He completed his second century of the game in style.

Bangladesh had done so well in the Mirpur Test that the Sri Lankan skipper, Mahela Jayawardene, delayed the declaration until the overall lead was over 600. If the target of 521 in the first Test was improbable the task of getting 624 in the second Test was impossible.

Bangladesh had five sessions to negotiate but they knew the task was an uphill one and they had to play even better than they had done at Mirpur. They were confronting the most lethal spin attack in the world on a wearing pitch. Not many sides would be expected to come to terms with Mendis and Muralitharan in such environment.

There was hardly any surprise in watching the mystery spinner Mendis picking up wickets at regular intervals but there certainly was an element of shock when the Bangladesh lower-order succumbed to the friendly off-spin of Dilshan. 

It was Dilshan whose spell ensured the Sri Lankan victory on the fourth evening and it allowed them the luxury of an additional day for sightseeing in the Bangladesh port city. It was a match Dilshan is going to remember all his life.

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Australia’s consolation victory at Sydney

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Ricky Ponting’s sporting declaration on the fourth afternoon had provided South Africa a rare opportunity of inflicting a whitewash over Australia. The kind of performance the visitors had come up with in the earlier two Tests one thought that the Australians had taken a big risk even though Graeme Smith was unlikely to bat.
Ponting’s gamble paid immediate dividends when the makeshift opener, Morne Morkel, was picked up for nothing. But the resolute batting by Neil McKenzie and Hashim Amla late on the fourth day kept the game alive and there were possibilities of all three results on the fifth day.
Obviously Australia held the advantage entering the last day but the inexperience of their bowling attack was a factor that prompted even the experts to believe that the South Africans had a realistic chance of knocking off the runs.
An exciting contest was in prospect at the Sydney Cricket Ground where Australia had pulled off a dramatic win over India in the closing stages last year. The inconsistent umpiring of Steve Bucknor and Mark Benson had helped the hosts greatly in taming the Indians but the Australians managed to down the high-flying South Africans without that kind of outside support.
Like the Sydney Test against India last year, the game went into the final session with the visitors fighting hard to save it. The injured Graeme Smith came in to bat at number eleven to bat out the remaining overs but the objective could not be achieved. 


But it was a very courageous act of the South African captain to have walked to the middle despite carrying a serious injury that had forced him to retire in the first innings. Smith had a broken left-hand and his right elbow was equally sore but he occupied the crease for nearly half an hour with Makhaya Ntini. 
Ntini, nor known for his batting skills, surprised many with his rearguard action. He and his new ball partner Dale Steyn, who enhanced his batting credentials with his gritty knock in the previous game, had earlier frustrated the home side for 75 minutes.

Smith and Ntini were in the process of salvaging a draw when left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson went through the gate of the South African skipper with just five minutes remaining to give Australia a consolation victory. A year ago it was the part-time left-arm spin of Michael Clarke that had earned the hosts a win over India. 

Smith’s ambition of saving the Test could not be fulfilled but he would be leaving Australia, prematurely due to injury, as a man highly satisfied and elated. It’s after all for the first time that South Africa have won a Test series in Australia.
Ponting, under fire for not delivering the goods, had a rare moment to celebrate in the recent times. The inexperience bowling attack at his disposal comprising of Peter Siddle, Mitchell Johnson, Doug Bollinger, Nathan Hauritz and Andrew McDonald won the game that allowed Australia to retain the number one world ranking. 

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Pakistan snooker calendar for 2009 announced

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The new leadership of the Pakistan Billiards & Snooker Association (PBSA) has done a fabulous job by releasing the annual calendar of events on the eve of a new year.

An Executive Committee meeting of the PBSA was held at the Conference Room of the Karachi Club on December 31 in which among other things the schedule for the year 2009 was discussed and finalized. Most importantly it was released to the media within an hour.

The PBSA has planned to hold all the four national ranking tournaments in 2009 besides sending the outfits to the Asian Snooker Championship and the World Snooker Championship.

The PBSA office-bearers are confident that they would succeed in implementing their plans despite the crunch situation.

They could not organize the Latif Masters in the fall of 2008 and it was for the first time in 21 years that the annual event could not be held.

Alamgir Anwar Shaikh, President, PBSA, sounded positive and remarked unlike last year, it would be ensured that all the ranking tournaments are held in accordance with the original schedule.



According to the cue sports calendar for 2009, approved by the PBSA Executive Committee, the 34th National Snooker Championship will be held at Karachi in February to be followed by the second ranking event in the very next month at a venue that is yet to be finalized.

The third national ranking tournament is scheduled for the month of June at Islamabad while the Latif Masters, the fourth and final national ranking tournament of the year, will be taking place in Karachi in September.

The first major event of the year, however, will be the second edition of the NJI National Junior (Under-21) Snooker Championship to be held at the Karachi Club later this month. The event was launched with great fanfare early last year.

Besides organising the national events, the PBSA will be facilitating the participation of the cueists in the World Under-21 Snooker Championship, Asian Snooker Championship, 6-Red International Snooker Tournament and the World Snooker Championship to be held in February, April, May and November respectively.

Meanwhile the federal government will provide financial assistance of Rs 2.5 million to the PBSA in their pursuit for further development of cue sports in the country.


Federal Minister of Sports, Pir Aftab Shah Jilani, who met with the office-bearers of the PBSA at the Karachi Club on December 31, made the announcement while talking to the media corps.

“The Federal Sports Ministry would be arranging a grant of Rs 2.5 million for the PBSA to help them meet their estimated expenses of Rs 5 million for the year 2009. The first installment of the grant would be released to them shortly in order to let them prepare for the National Snooker Championship to be held in February,” Pir Aftab Shah said.

“The PBSA officials informed me that their total expenditure for the year 2009 would be Rupees 5 million that would cover the costs of four national ranking tournaments as well as facilitating the participation of Pakistan’s cueists in the Asian Snooker Championship as well as the World Snooker Championship,” he revealed.

“Half of the amount they plan to raise through sponsorship while they have sought financial assistance of the balance amount from the government. Our Ministry has accepted their request of arranging for the funds of Rs 2.5 million,” Pir Aftab Shah, himself a former first-class cricketer, added.

The assurance from the Federal Sports Minister has not only gladdened the hearts of the PBSA but is also great news for the snooker lovers all over the country. The Pakistan cue sports authorities thoroughly deserve the assistance from the government.

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South Africa, India most likely to rule cricket world in 2009

New Year Special

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The curtain has fallen to the year 2008 and a new year, 2009, has dawned. This could be a year where changes in the world cricket rankings at the top look imminent. In other words the world order of cricket is to be revised. This may happen very quickly too.

South Africa, the most consistent of all Test teams in 2008, appear on verge of displacing Australia from the top of the tree. It could happen as early as the first week of the year because on current form South Africa are the favourites to roll over the Aussies in the third and final Test at Sydney.

South Africa, after having triumphed in 11 of the 15 Tests in 2008, certainly deserve to be crowned as the new leaders. They established total supremacy over Australia in the first two Tests and there seems no why they should not be completing a whitewash at Sydney.

A combination of factors has stretched Australia and it seems a matter of time before they surrender the position they have held for so many years. They have lost the cutting edge in the bowling department with the simultaneous exit of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, two of the greatest bowlers of the game. The retirement of Adam Gilchrist, the most destructive wicketkeeper-batsman, destabilized their batting.

Great cricketers like McGrath, Warne and Gilchrist are born after decades if not centuries. Obviously the Australian line-up lacks the power to knockout the opponents in their non-presence.

The departure of Warne in particular has hurt Australia deeply. Hailed as the greatest spin bowler of all time, he had the rare ability of winning matches on his own on any kind of surface. He foxed the batsmen and created the kind of pressure that used to demoralize the best of teams.

While Australia have lost three of its legendary cricketers, a couple of teams have improved in leaps and bounds during the same period. South Africa and India have emerged on the scene as the most powerful outfits. Lately they have proved too good for Australia as well.

Ricky Ponting now finds life difficult because teams like South Africa and India have greater self-belief and resilience as we have witnessed during the past few months. Another team that could also punish Australia is Sri Lanka with two ‘magical’ spinners in their ranks.



Unlike South Africa and India, Sri Lanka don’t possess a particularly potent pace attack an area they need to work on if they have to come good on hard and bouncy pitches.

South Africa hold the advantage in the fast bowling department with their spearhead Dale Steyn, in terrific form, enjoying the support of the likes of Makhaya Ntini, Morne Morkel and Jacques Kallis. Paul Harris may not be a match-winning spinner yet but he complements the pace battery with his ability to dry up the runs.

India have the most balanced bowling attack in world cricket at the moment and the variety allows skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni to work on different options. With explosive openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir in the middle of a purple match India would be expected to win Test matches more regularly abroad than ever before.

So South Africa and India are the two teams looking ahead to the immediate future with great hopes. Australia may be forced to bring in some more new faces while Sri Lanka would be searching for a couple of quality fast bowlers strong enough to carry the burden at the international level.

England enjoyed slightly better record than Australia in 2008 but they could still face an uphill task as far as recapturing the Ashes is concerned. The traditional rivals had a great series in the summer of 2005 and we can witness some tense battles this summer too.

New Zealand and the West Indies continue to be in the phase of transition and they keep struggling in finding a trustworthy combination. Too much experimentation in both these teams has not helped their cause either.

Pakistan, unfortunately, didn’t get an opportunity to play a Test match in 2008 but hopefully they will not long to make their presence felt once they re-enter the scene in early 2009.

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Bangladesh offer incredible resistance to Sri Lanka

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Not many people would have thought of the first Test between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur, entering the fifth and final day when the visitors had declared their second innings on the fourth morning setting an improbable target of 521.

The kind of cricket Bangladesh had mostly played after being pushed into the Test arena rather prematurely there was little to suggest the match going into the final day. Obviously you couldn’t have expected the team having folded for 178 in a matter of 60 overs in their first innings to do much better on a wearing pitch in their second outing.

Bangladesh surprised even their own supporters by their grit and determination in their second innings while chasing a monumental target of 521. Their top order batsmen played their natural game and they had every reason to feel delighted at having given the champion Sri Lankan bowlers a run for their money.

The hosts already had enhanced their reputation by having finished the fourth day at 254 for five, having negotiated 78 overs. Nobody expected them to go anywhere close to the target when the proceedings began on the final day but there was a hope that they might bat out the time to save the game.

Skipper Mohammad Ashraful and all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan picked up from where they had left the previous evening and by scoring freely they ensured that the pressure was also shifted on the heads of the Sri Lankan bowlers.

The home side was still 229 runs short of their target when Ashraful perished soon after having notched up another hundred. It must have been one of his greatest knocks in Test matches if not the best one.

Then came the brilliant century partnership between Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim that really opened up the game and millions of cricket lovers all over the world became interested.

South Africa had only recently successfully chased down a target of 414 in Australia and who knew Bangladesh were on the verge of rewriting history.

One knew that Murali Muritharan was capable of snaring the remaining four wickets in an over but the growing seventh wicket partnership made the contest much more absorbing than was being anticipated.

Not surprisingly Bangladesh did lose their last four wickets in a rush but not before having scared the mighty Sri Lankans. The hosts suffered a 107-run defeat but they had the satisfaction of going down fighting against a very tough opponent.

South Africa had emerged triumphant by scoring 414 in the fourth innings of the game at Perth but Bangladesh lost the encounter by 107 runs despite aggregating 413 at Mirpur. It was amazing performance by the home side and the resilience they have shown should do their confidence a world of good.

Scoring in the excess of 400 in the last innings of the game is an incredible accomplishment and the Bangladeshis should be complimented for having produced such an outstanding performance against all odds.

The magnificent batting performance by Bangladesh overshadowed another ten-wicket haul from Muttiah Muraitharan, who was chiefly responsible for preventing an embarrassing defeat for Sri Lanka.

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Steyn, Duminy help South Africa seize series at Melbourne

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

What a moment for the South African cricket! Their come from behind win in the second Test at the historic Melbourne Cricket Ground has allowed them to seize the series with a game in hand.
It’s their first-ever series win in Australia. More than anything, as the victorious skipper Graeme Smith recognized in the presentation ceremony, it was the self-belief of the South Africans that powered them to a convincing nine-wicket wicket on the final afternoon after being precariously placed just a couple of days ago.
The record ninth wicket partnership between J P Duminy and Dale Steyn on the third day led the turnaround and they didn’t look back once they had regained control. Like any other great team the South Africans went very hard at their opponents and forced them to submission.
It was quite an extraordinary Test match, befitting the occasion. It was a typical Boxing Day Test with big crowds and they were treated to cricket of the highest quality on all five days. You couldn’t have expected greater entertainment. 
There was plenty to cheer for the Australians on the first couple of days but they clearly became the second best side in the field after the rearguard action of the South African led by Duminy who got overwhelming support from the lower-order batsmen.
Continuing with the second best, South Africa find themselves at a striking distance of displacing the Aussies from the top slot in the ICC rankings. Australia would be relegated to the second position and South Africa would be crowned as the new world leaders if the result of the third and final Test at Sydney is not any different from the first couple of games.
It would come as little surprise if South Africa do complete the whitewash at Sydney. In fact they appear to be in a very good position to do some more damage to the stature and reputation of Australia.
Ricky Ponting is in all sorts of trouble. He has continued to bat well in crunch situations but his teammates have lacked the consistency to trouble the South Africans who have stamped their authority with hints of conviction.
Ponting must have learnt that it’s a different ball game against motivated sides like South Africa and India. Earlier in the season his team was whacked in the Test series in India and now South Africans have humbled them in their own backyard. The Australian skipper must have wished there was a longer series against a team like New Zealand where they could dictate terms and relax.
It would be quite a challenge for Australia to prevent a whitewash in the series in the present scenario. The South Africans have an edge over Australia in every single department of the game and they would dearly love to complete a clean sweep at Sydney.

Coming to the success of the South Africans, on verge of becoming the top ranked side in the world, they have discovered an immensely gifted middle-order batsman in the shape of the left-handed J B Duminy who has class as well as character. His magnificent century in the pressure-cooker situation in only his second Test announces the arrival of another star on the horizon.
Dale Steyn, the lion-hearted fast bowler, has performed exceptionally well throughout the year and there’s every indication to suggest that he would continue hitting headlines in the years to come. His ten-wicket haul, besides that fighting knock, has earned him the Man of the Match award in the Melbourne Test.

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