Flintoff signs off on a high

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Andrew Flintoff’s Test career has come to an end rather prematurely. The versatile England all-rounder was having serious fitness over the past few years and he probably made the right decision to quit the longer version of the game.

He was a potentially great cricketer but somehow could not do justice to his talents. He couldn’t produce the kind of consistency which the champion all-rounders like Tony Greig and Ian Botham had done for the country before him.

Yet Flintoff was a colossus for the team and his presence in the field was certainly a source of encouragement and inspiration for his teammates. He was one of those tough characters who awed the opponents.

Andrew Strauss and his team could not have wished a better sendoff for the big all-rounder than the massive win over Australia in the fifth and final Test at The Oval that allowed England to regain the Ashes.

Ideally Flintoff would have loved contributing more substantially in his farewell Test but he would obviously be delighted with the end result. It was a comprehensive victory over the Aussies and more importantly it enabled England to lay their hands on the Ashes that has not stayed for long with them during the last couple of decades.

Flintoff, however, had a hand in bringing about the victory on the penultimate day of the decisive game. With Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey on song, the Australians were cruising in the afternoon session and there were hints of the contest getting tighter than was being anticipated at the start of the innings.

It was Flintoff’s brilliant direct hit that found Ponting short of his crease and ended the threatening partnership. The run out of the Australian skipper opened the floodgates and England cashed in to seal the fate of the game.

It was a magnificent piece of fielding that not only brought to an end the dangerous partnership but also boosted the morale of the side whose shoulders were beginning to drop during the onslaught.

Flintoff was a tough guy on the field but he knew the importance of human qualities. "I would rather be regarded as a decent bloke rather than any sort of cricketer I might have been. That is far more important to me. Whatever you do on the cricket field is one thing, but being able to face yourself in the mirror every day and say 'You're not a bad egg', that is far more important. Cricket is one thing, but I want some friends afterwards,” he observed rather modestly.

"I don't think I ever achieved greatness and I don't profess to. I was asked, 'have you been a great cricketer', and the obvious answer is no. That's the Bothams, the Sobers, the Imran Khans, the Tendulkars, the Ricky Pontings, who achieved greatness over a long period of time by playing Test after Test after Test,” he added.

"I have had an Ashes victory twice, I have had a Test career where I have played 79 Test matches, and hopefully I will go on playing one-day internationals, so from a professional point of view I am happy. For the bulk of my career I have played through pain and with injury, so to be out on the field was an achievement in some ways. But is that greatness? No," Flintoff conceded.

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Strauss made the difference

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

If anybody deserved to claim the coveted Ashes trophy at The Oval on August 23 it was Andrew Strauss. The England captain had only led from the front but he also contributed the most significantly to the success of his team.

Although there was a Man of the Series from either side, I have little doubt in my mind that Strauss would have edged out Michael Clarke if there were a single award. So awesome was the contribution of the England skipper who gave a perfect exhibition of leading by example.

Strauss was rewarded for his persistence and leadership qualities. He changed gear at will at top of the order to provide a stable platform for his teammates who must have felt motivated by the consistency of their captain.

Strauss was able to execute his plans nearly to perfection primarily because he was scoring runs in nearly every outing in the middle. Conversely it certainly becomes a different ball game when the captain of a team is unable to perform.

He scored close to 500 runs in the five-match series at an average of over 50. The second highest scorer in the series from England, Matt Prior, was way behind the skipper. Prior made 261 while Strauss aggregated 474.

England would have been in deep trouble without the contributions from Strauss, let alone coming anywhere close to Australia and they could have been in danger of facing another massive series defeat.

Strauss held the key to England’s fortunes in their bid to regain the Ashes and he rose to the occasion splendidly to engineer the most famous win of his career yet.

"For me, I suppose it is better than 2005, because I've captained the side. But we've moved forward from then, there are different personalities involved, and a different management team as well," Strauss observed.

"It's one of those situations that you can't prepare yourself for, and you don't let yourself think about that moment in case it never comes. We were all just running around like idiots, to be honest. That's as special a moment as you'll get on a cricket field - 2005 will live long in my memory, and these two moments are as special as anything I'll go through," he added.

“We went through so many emotions today. "Hope, frustration, worry... despair at times when we didn't look like taking a wicket. You don't realise how hard it is to get over the line until you do actually get over that line," he said while recalling the tension and excitement of the day when the Ashes came into his grabs.

"It feels pretty special to be standing here right now. It feels like a lot more than seven or eight months ago when I took over. There's been a lot of water under the bridge, because we were in a pretty bad state, to be honest with you. But it's an amazing day, and one that seemed a long way off after Headingley. But all credit to the guys, because they had to dig deep. An Ashes series forces a player to dig deep, and the guys have done that and come out fighting. It's a special moment for all of us," the England captain reckoned.

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England outclass Australia in decider to regain Ashes in style

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Andrew Strauss and his men proved me right by outclassing the once mighty Australia in the fifth and final Test at The Oval to reclaim the Ashes in style. With 197 runs separating the two sides in the all-important battle there could not be any argument who was better equipped to tackle the pressure.

The experts as well as the bookies firmly believed that the momentum was with Australia entering the fifth Test but I had concluded my write-up on August 11 having said: England, I feel, can still turn it around in the decider at The Oval because there’s not much to pick between the two sides.

I don’t think many people agreed with my observations as they were unwilling to England a chance after the debacle in the fourth Test at Headingley where Australia had registered a comprehensive innings victory.

The reason why I backed England even after their massive defeat in the previous game was my conviction of Strauss being an inspiring leader with the team right behind him. I had a feeling that the Australians would be found wanting if challenged by the scruff of their neck.

I expected England to post at a least 400 on the board when Strauss himself led the charge on the first morning. With just one wicket down and over a hundred runs in the bank in the first session the platform was set for the hosts to put together an imposing total.

It was a bit surprising to find Paul Collingwood take so many deliveries to get a feel of the pitch in at a stage when the Australian bowlers were looking ragged after being counter-attacked by Strauss and Ian Bell.

Australia pulled it back by dismissing Bell and Collingwood in quick succession. The run out of debutant Jonathan Trott didn’t help England cause either and they must have felt let down by the middle-order when bowled out for 332 early on second day.

Stuart Broad’s sensational spell later in the day destroyed Australia and the home side was in great position to seal the fate of the game. The ever-improving Broad swung the ball appreciably to bring about the collapse that literally ensured the return of the ‘urn’ to the Mother country.

It was the turn of debutant Trott to steal the limelight in England’s second innings. He scored a magnificent century to stretch the overall lead past the magical figure of 500. The youngster took the lead from his captain whose second half century of the game was equally crucial as the first one.

Australia had more than two days to get to the target and when they ended the third day at 80 without loss there were quite a few people who thought they could still rewrite history.

The records are meant to be broken and the history is ought to be rewritten. But with available resources it was next to impossible to anticipate one coming at The Oval on August 23.

Michael Hussey played his best knock of the series but never did he look in a position to change the course of the match. The run outs of Ponting and Michael Clarke were resulted by the alertness of the England fielders who sensed blood and meant business.

Steve Harmison operated at over 90 miles an hour to demolish the tail quickly to prevent the game entering the final day. Off-spinner Graeme Swann was rewarded for his good work and it was probably in the fitness of things that he took the final wicket.

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Mind Sports Association join hands with Chess players’ body

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Mind Sports Association of Pakistan (MSAP) has moved a step forward by having signed an agreement with the Pakistan Chess Players Association (PCPA) on August 20 to carry out their mutual objective of further development of the mind sport in the country.

The agreement was signed by Tariq Rasheed Khan, Director, MSAP and Shahzad Mirza, Secretary General, PCPA, with two former officials of the Chess Federation of Pakistan (CFP), Shah Nawaz Khan and Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, being the witnesses.

As a result of the agreement, the MSAP and PCPA will now join hands in particular for the Inter-Collegiate venture besides carrying out other chess promotional events from time to time.

The agreement has been signed initially for a period of three years and thereafter it could be extended to tenure of three more years with mutual consent.

The MSAP has recognized the PCPA being, founded last August, as a national body of the top chess players and organizers.

The PCPA, on its part, has agreed to unconditionally place their resources at the disposal of the MSAP, having reaffirmed its commitment by signing the agreement. It has been clarified that separate Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) will be signed specific between MSAP and PCPA for future events.

Tariq Rasheed Khan, Director, MSAP, described the signing of agreement with the PCPA as a big step towards the further promotion of chess in the country.

“The longest of journeys commence with the first step. We are delighted to have on board the active chess players and organizers who could really make things happen on a fast track,” he reckoned.

Shahzad Mirza, one of the only two International Masters of chess in Pakistan, also believed that the MSAP support for the PCPA would be hugely beneficial in generating more activities from the grassroots level.

“The PCPA has come alive with this agreement. This was the impetus we needed to make our presence felt on the scene in a big way. Our joint efforts would certainly help in raising the standard of chess in Pakistan that’s very much on top in the list of our priorities,” he added.

The agreement between the MSAP and the PCPA augurs very well for the future of mind sports in general and chess in particular. Together they can certainly take the game to another level.

It’s indeed a pity that like many other sports, chess has also suffered due to the politicking by the national federation whose officials have actually done more harm to the game instead of having contributed anything for its development.

The emergence of the MSAP last year was a blessing as they arrived on the scene with some concrete plans and more importantly the idea was to ‘give’ rather than ‘take’ anything away from it.

Bridge and scrabble are the other two games being promoted by the MSAP who are fortunate to be having visionary leaders like Khurshid Hadi and Tariq Rasheed Khan. Both these gentlemen are from the sport of bridge but they are equally interested in promoting chess and scrabble.

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India on verge of becoming top ranked ODI side

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Indian team has had the habit of disappointing their fans with the most horrible performances against the run of play. For some reasons they have not been consistent enough despite being in the possession of a quality outfit.

At times one gets the impression that the movers and shakers in the Indian Board are quite content in watching their team take the second position when they appear quite capable of being on top of the three.

The Indians don’t really look all that keen to attain the number one position. It’s hard to comprehend their reluctance to occupy the top slot. Be it a tournament or the rankings of the International Cricket Council (ICC) they make others feel that they are more than happy to be placed among the top teams rather than being the leading outfit.

There have been numerous tournaments over the years when the fancied Indian outfits have fallen away in the final after being in the driving seat throughout. I think they have lost more one-day finals than any other team.

The latest ODI rankings issued by the ICC, following the conclusion of the recent Zimbabwe-Bangladesh series show India just one point behind leaders South Africa. It very clearly means that Mahendra Singh Dhoni stands a very good chance of taking his team to the top of the points table if his team plays to its potential in the upcoming triangular series in Sri Lanka.

That’s a million dollar question. Will the Indians aim for the number one ahead of the Champions Trophy being held in South Africa next month or will they remain contended with the second spot.

We have seen it so many times the Indians giving it away against unfancied opponents. Neither Sri Lanka nor New Zealand have that kind of powerful team as India but one can’t be sure if Dhoni’s men would be pushing hard for victory.

If the Indians do go hard at both their opponents there’s very little chance of them not accomplishing the goal of winning the tournament and taking the number one position in the rankings. We need to wait a little to know that.

South Africa currently occupy the top position in the ICC’s ODI ranking with 127 points while India are just a solitary point adrift at second position. Australia are placed third with 119 points while England are number four with 111 points.

New Zealand (110), Pakistan (109) and Sri Lanka (104) are not that far behind on the next three positions but the West Indies have only 78 points to be at the eighth position.

Bangladesh, on a high of late, are fast closing the gap having accumulated 55 points to be ranked number nine. The tenth position is taken by Ireland with 27 points with Zimbabwe having slipped to the second last position on the list with only 26 points. Kenya remain at the bottom, not having gained any point yet.

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Resurgence of bookies threatens cricket once more

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) of the International Cricket Council (ICC) has to become more vigilant now in view of the recent ‘disclosures’ of the resurgence of the illegal bookmakers.

Sir Paul Condon, the Chairman of the ACSU, was absolutely right in having pointed out in the ICC meetings in Dubai and London during the last one year or so that the Twenty20 cricket posed the greatest corruption threat to the game since the dark days of the 1990s.

The Twenty20 tournaments, having been organized during the past couple of years, are believed to have provided the perfect opportunity to the bookmakers to renew their contacts in the cricket circles.

As we are discovering now, the bookmakers were not going to limit themselves to the Twenty20 events once they have re-established firm foothold in the cricket arena. The reports are filtering in, albeit very slowly, that attempts were being made to ‘fix’ the matches of longer duration as well.

The news has broken out the other day that the Australian team management filed a report with the ICC's ACSU after a player was approached by a man suspected of links to illegal bookmaking.

It was reported that the approach was made in the bar of the team's London hotel, the Royal Kensington Garden, following Australia's Ashes defeat at Lord's in July. The matter is reportedly under investigation.

The Australian player was believed to have informed the senior officials immediately and, following ICC protocol, team manager Steve Bernard filed a report with the ACSU.

Not very long ago there were reports that some of the Pakistan players had been approached by illegal bookmakers at their team hotel in Colombo during their recent tour of Sri Lanka. The matter was investigated by the ACSU. The ICC's Chief Executive, Haroon Lorgat, declared that there was absolutely no substance to those reports.

"The ICC and its members have a zero-tolerance approach to corruption and rightly so because the integrity of our sport with its spirit is one of its greatest assets. On that basis it is entirely appropriate that any suggestions in relation to that subject are always reported to and properly investigated by the ACSU. I am pleased those investigations have indicated nothing untoward has taken place on this occasion but it is a reminder that all of us - players, officials and supporters - must maintain our vigilance to ensure we remain on top of the issue of corruption,” he was quoted as saying.

Haroon Lorgat and his team at the ICC, however, cannot be expected to sit idle because the matter is very serious indeed and it threatens the future of the game once more. If strict measures are not taken the game could suffer even more than what was witnessed in the 1990s because of the presence of so many communication tools these days.

The ICC should not be making any compromises on this issue because this concerns the future of the game.

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Dravid doesn’t have any point to prove

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Rahul Dravid is one of those rare guys having kept the interest of his team supreme at all times. He is a perfect role model for the young generation. He has performed exceptionally well over the years without ever having said or done anything close to boasting.

I don’t think anyone in the present generation has mastered the art of batting like him. He is a complete package. Because he is technically so sound he always has the freedom of changing gears.

Like any other human being he has had occasional his off days but never has one noticed any lack of application on his part. He has always given his best. The level of consistency attained by him in the highest form of the game is exemplary.

It was so typical of Dravid to have reacted modestly to his return in India’s ODI squad for next month's tri-series in Sri Lanka and the Champions Trophy. He didn't consider the recall as a chance to prove his detractors wrong.

"I have never played my cricket that way, wanting to prove a point. To me, it's about trying your best to be the best you can be, day after day, in whichever format you are playing and for whichever team you are playing," the former Indian captain was quoted as saying in a newspaper interview.

"It's nice to be back, I am very happy. I am looking forward to the Sri Lanka tri-series and the Champions Trophy in South Africa, to giving it my best. It will be nice to catch up with the boys once again," Dravid said.

"I will do my best for the team's cause. I have always believed in preparing well before a match or a competition and it will be no different this time," he added.

The prolific Dravid will now be making a comeback in the national one-day side after about a couple of years. He had played in the Test matches in this period but the selectors had not picked him for the limited overs games with the emphasis being on trying out the exciting crop of youngsters.

The Indian selectors obviously had an obligation to blood the youngsters at the international level after they had done wonders in the domestic competitions. Very few of them, however, managed to do justice to their talents.

There also was a feeling that the newly installed captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was not very keen to have the seniors in the line-up for the ODIs or the Twenty20 Internationals. Sachin Tendulkar, it’s believed, was also reluctantly included.

Dhoni had every right to back his boys who certainly raised the bar in the department of fielding but their batting technique was found wanting on pitched where the ball moved and darted.

Dhoni would also have realized after the recent failures of the young batsmen that it was about time to turn back to the tried and trusted campaigners for an event as important as the Champions Trophy. Dravid would be indeed be a trump card for Dhoni now.

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Welcome back Rahul Dravid

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

What a great move by the Indian cricket authorities to have recalled Rahul Dravid in the one-day arena! I think they did realize finally that life was not all about glamour and lights. The tough characters generally play the pivotal role in bringing about the results be it the entertainment industry or the field of cricket.

When we talk of mental toughness, the one man who comes to mind right away is Dravid. He was probably sidelined from the One-day Internationals in order to accommodate the enterprising youngsters who were knocking at the doors for some time.

The young guns like Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma have been provided the opportunity up the order but they have not been able to deliver consistently yet. The selectors have lost faith now in Sharma at least for the time being, after his run of poor scores of late, but the left-handed Raina has made the cut once more.

Dravid’s recall has been prompted by quite a few factors. Obviously the recent failure of Sharma and other young lads in challenging conditions must have created doubts about their abilities to cope with the pressure.

Dravid’s own performance in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) staged in South Africa earlier this year was brilliant. He had proved the point that skills and experience were the vital elements even in the shortest version of the game.

Thirdly the upcoming Champions Trophy was going to be held in South Africa where the pitches would not be as flat as the ones in the Indian sub-continent. The selectors had to keep in mind the importance of grafters for conditions unfriendly for batting.

The selectors have done the right things by going back to Dravid instead of blooding another raw youngster and jeopardizing his future. It’s always a wise move to go back to the basics.

India would need the expertise of Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar for putting the big totals on the board. The likes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh can do the business in the latter part of the innings but they would love to have wickets in hand when going for the acceleration in the death overs.

The presence of Dravid brings stability to the Indian batting that has been found wanting more often than not in conditions not ideal for batting. He can anchor the innings and more importantly his sound technique would allow him to weather the early overs when the ball does a little bit extra.

Dravid has been a class act throughout his career. He is a team man to the core who is always there to lift the morale of the side. He will indeed feel greater energy in his legs now for the selectors have reposed confidence in him for the big challenge ahead.

With the Indians having a lethal fast bowling attack these days, Dravid is more likely to remain stationed at the slips instead of doing the running around in the outfield. The stage is set for him grab the headlines once more.

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