Rare assembly of World Cup legends

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The countdown to the ICC World Cup 2011 has already begun and the mega event is just a couple of months away now. Four of the greatest cricketers of all time, Imran Khan, Kapil Dev, Arjuna Ranatunga and Viv Richards, were in attendance in a ceremony held recently in India in connection with the upcoming tournament.

It’s not often when these legends have been found under one more roof and more specifically in the company of each other. Their reunion instantly brings to memory their extraordinary performance in the past editions of the World Cup.

Viv Richards (now Sir Vivian) had not exploded in the role of a master in the inaugural World Cup in 1975 but his amazing fielding in the final when he ran out quite a few dashing Australian batsmen with brilliant throws helped the cause of the West Indies immensely in getting crowned as the champions.

Richards had enhanced his reputation by the time the next World Cup was played four years later. He lived to the billing and it was his magnificent century in the final against England that allowed his team to retain the trophy rather leisurely in the end.

He was easily the most destructive batsman in the world when the West Indies came out to England in 1983 with very high hopes of completing a hat-trick of title wins. They were on course of accomplishing this feat with Richards playing another cameo in the final, this time against underdogs India.

It took a spectacular running catch from the Indian captain, Kapil Dev, to remove Richards from the scene and the complexion of the game changed soon afterwards. It was Kapil Dev, not Clive Lloyd, who received the trophy at Lord’s on June 25, 1983.

Pakistan and India, captained by Imran Khan and Kapil Dev respectively, were the overwhelming favourites to clash in the final in 1987 but neither of them could go that far. Both of them were eliminated in the semifinals much to the disappointment of the millions of their supporters.

Imran Khan, by then a veteran all-rounder at the twilight of his illustrious career, didn’t have a particularly strong team at his disposal when Pakistan took the field in the World Cup in Australia in 1992.

Pakistan were languishing near the bottom of the table at the halfway stage of the tournament but then commenced their fairytale success and they exceeded all expectations by winning the event against the heaviest of odds. Imran was instrumental in lifting the morale of the side after the depressing defeats in the earlier games.

The Sri Lankans, however, were the favourites to win the World Cup in 1996 and they did exactly that under the shrewd leadership of Arjuna Ranatunga.

They were rewarded for playing sensational cricket and they pioneered the concept of pinch hitting from the outset. Their bold tactics worked to perfection as there was not much for the bowlers on the flat sub-continental pitches.

Ranatunga was chiefly responsible for taking the risk of attacking cricket. He himself batted very well, particularly his knock in the final against Australia at Qaddafi Stadium, Lahore, ensured there were no hiccups in the closing stages.

readmore »»

India hard done on opening day of high profile series

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The score of 136 for nine in 38.1 overs reflects complete dominance of the bowling side. But it wasn’t exactly the case on the opening day of the first Test between South Africa and India at the Super Sport Park in Centurion on December 16.

India finished the shortened day’s proceedings with an inadequate score but it wasn’t shameful batting performance by any means in conditions tailor-made for the home bowlers. None of their top-order batsmen were guilty of throwing away their wicket while trying anything silly or adventurous. Neither was there any indication of lack of application on their part.

On the other hand it was one of those forgettable days when almost everything went against them. It remains to be seen if they will be able to recover from this precarious position. They have the potential to stage a comeback but how quickly their luck would change to let them regroup can’t be predicted.

Everybody, not only the experts, knew about the weather and the pitch. It went to the credit of the ground staff to have made the play possible during the day even after 10 centimeters of rain in morning.

The tale of horror began from India right from the beginning. They would have been better off getting no play on the first day in order to let their spearhead Zaheer Khan get some more time to recover and assess his fitness afresh on the second morning.

As it turned out, India had to leave out their most experienced fast bowler when Mahendra Singh Dhoni went to toss. No team would have liked to bat first in such trying conditions and Graeme Smith had no hesitation in inserting the opponents.

Dhoni’s misfortune with the toss is nothing new. He has admitted it so many times that calling correctly is something beyond him. He has made up for his rotten luck with the coin by motivating his team further.

India suffered another blow, the first after the start of the innings, when Virender Sehwag, unquestionably the most destructive batsman in the world, was caught at deep third man for a duck. It’s very rare indeed for someone to be caught in that position and that too so early in the innings. As a matter of fact there’s hardly any fielder in the deep on the off side in the first few overs of a Test match.

The dismissal of Sehwag meant so much in the context of the game. He possessed the skill to score the quickly and his mere presence at the crease would have been heart breaking for the bowlers.

His opening partner, Gautam Gambhir, weathered the storm for a while but he couldn’t stay for long enough. Rahul Dravid was looking very solid but fell to his first error of the day. Sachin Tendulkar counterattacked with purpose but he paid the price of staying on the backfoot to a full pitched delivery he could have driven if standing normally.

With the top six batsmen back in the hut for only 71, skipper Dhoni found an assured partner in Harbhajan Singh who probably played the innings of his career. He looked set for a big score only to be run out in the most cruel of manners, summing up a nightmarish day for his team.

Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, who were just ordinary in the two-Test series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), made the most of the lucky breaks to put their side in the driving seat.

readmore »»

Formidable yet unpredictable India hold slight edge in clash of Titans

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Several articles are being written and many talk shows aired already on this subject and why not. This is the series between the two top ranked Test sides and there is very little to choose between them.

Primarily because of the conditions over there the South Africans are being rated a bit higher but I have a different opinion in this matter. Gone are the days when the home advantage decided the fate of the series. With neutral umpires and extensive television coverage there’s not much disadvantage to the visiting team.

Yes I agree that the South Africans have greater experience of playing on their turf but that doesn’t mean they can’t be floored in their own backyard by a superior outfit. The current Indian team, led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, stands a very good chance of winning the Test series in South Africa.

I think the hosts could be low on confidence, no matter what their captain or coach may be saying publicly, because of their inability to win any of the two Test matches against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently.

Neither did the South Africans bat convincingly nor did they sustain pressure with their bowling. Allowing Pakistan to get away with it on both occasions was a clear reflection of their opponents lacking the firepower to close the deal.

The Pakistan team they were confronted was very short on experience, besides having a new captain. As a matter of fact the entire Pakistan team had less number of Test runs or wickets than Jacques Kallis.

Remember that Ricky Ponting’s Australians had lost a Test match to a similar Pakistan in England earlier this year. What has happened since then for the Aussies is nothing short of a nightmare.

Well the South Africans didn’t play bad enough to lose to Pakistan but they were not good enough either to overpower their inexperienced rivals. We will have to wait and see how much they get affected after the below par performance in the desert.

Graeme Smith is banking on weather and pitch to derail India. Obviously the batsmen would be tested with plenty of short stuff and there could be banana swing as well if it continues to be overcast.

In my estimation the Indian batsmen of all people are more likely to come to grips with these conditions. They can collapse once or twice but the possibilities of them to folding every time appear very remote indeed.

The Indian fast bowlers would certainly enjoying doing the job in South Africa rather than back home. The absence of Zaheer Khan will leave a big hole and the responsibility will have to be shared by the other bowlers.

But it are the Indian batsmen who hold the key.If they put runs on the board, Dhoni will have the liberty to set attacking fields for his bowlers, a factor which could bring the home batsmen under greater pressure.

The Indian supporters should, however, not lose sight of the fact that their team despite being so formidable on paper has that knack of faltering against the run of play. That’s why I think India hold just a slight edge over South Africa.

readmore »»

Pakistan’s cueists fail to deliver in crunch games

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Pakistan’s campaign in the IBSF World’s Men Snooker Championship 2010, staged at the Al-Faiha Sports City in Damascus, Syria, came to a premature end with the exit of Imran Shahzad in the pre-quarter-finals on December 13

There were high hopes of the world crown returning to Pakistan after 16 long years when all the three participating cueists, Mohammad Sajjad, Sohail Shahzad and Imran Shahzad, had played remarkably well in the league matches.

While Sajjad and Sohail were eliminated in the round of 32, Imran went through to the pre-quarters where he was toppled by the veteran Alex Borg of Malta.

The vastly experienced Borg proved too much for Imran to down him 5-1 in the best of nine-frame encounter that remained one sided all the way. Borg triumphed with the frame scores of 61-24, 117-0, 78-33, 100-14, 43-62, 78-26.

Imran had stormed into the pre-quarters with an astonishing 5-1 win over Andreas Ploner of Austria with the frame scores of 102-0, 41-54, 112-32, 113-11, 79-27, 104-21 as he registered as many as two century breaks during the game in which he aggregated over 100 in two other frames as well.

The cueists from Thailand blew the whistle on the other two Pakistani youngsters, who had been in terrific form in the earlier games.

Noppadol Sangnil, who was the only cueist to have overpowered Mohammad Sajjad in the league matches, outwitted Sohail Shahzad 5-3 in their round of 32 fixture with the frame scores of 121-11, 102-8, 34-71, 70-28, 35-62, 54-62, 70-51.

It was certainly a keenly contested tie and the young Sohail, making his debut in the World Championship, had the satisfaction of having gone down fighting.

Dechawat Poomjaeng was even more ruthless while hammering Mohammad Sajjad in straight frames with the scores of 71-36, 72-71, 78-24, 83-42, 65-44. Pakistan’s premier cueist offered a challenge in each of the five frames, with the second one being the closest, but could not press home the advantage in any of them.

The failure of the Pakistan’s cueists in the knockout games once again brought to light their inability to handle the pressure. There remained question marks over their mental toughness.

readmore »»

England turn tide decisively with positive display

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

England were rewarded for their positive approach as they overwhelmed Australia by a staggering margin of an innings and 71 runs in the second Test of the ongoing Ashes series at the Adelaide Oval.

It ‘s basically the change of the mindset of the English team which has led them to dominate the proceedings after an uncertain start to their campaign of retaining the Ashes. Aggression was something alien to them when it had come to taking on their arch-rivals.

England have done their homework much better this time and they have arrived Australia in a very positive frame of mind. They have already brought the hosts under enormous pressure, something that had not happened for a very long time.

Although the first Test at the Gabba in Brisbane had ended in a draw, it were Andrew Strauss and his boys who earned more points than losing. The mammoth partnership between Aliaster Cook and Jonathan Trott led the turnaround and Ricky Ponting was left pondering how things went that far.

The Australians would not have imagined claiming just one wicket for 517 runs in England’s second innings no matter how much the pitch had eased and how friendly the conditions had become for batting.

It went to the credit of England not to have gone into a shell after having conceded a substantial first innings lead. On their previous tours of Australia during the past couple of decades they were guilty of playing to save the game generally rather than possessing the self-belief to down the opponents.

England were not being expected to go so hard at the Australians while in arrears and their aggression made immediate dividends. The bowling combination that had looked potent in the first innings was looking just ordinary when attacked.

England picked up in the second Test from where they had left in the first Test. They bowled aggressively on the opening day to send the hosts crashing to 245 all out in their first innings on a perfect batting track.

It was over to the England batsmen and they were in no mood to let the opportunity go. They didn’t let the Australian bowlers settle down and the scoreboard kept ticking over far too quickly to worry Ponting.

Cook was on song again and then Kevin Pietersen, due for a big knock for sometime, took over. The setting was perfect for the dashing right-hander to force the bowlers into submission. His double century allowed England to get a huge first innings lead. More importantly they got the score of 620 for five in quick time to give their bowlers enough time to apply the pressure despite the threats of rain.

I don’t think Strauss had delayed the declaration by extending the innings on the fourth morning for he wanted to have enough runs on the board to take out the possibility of batting a second time.

Not surprisingly the Australians did offer resistance and the fourth wicket stand between Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey did raise hope of the home side running away with a draw but it was Pietersen again who broke the threatening partnership in the final over of the fourth day.

Australia had six second innings wickets in hand at the start of the fifth and final day’s play but England needed just 90 minutes or so to complete one of their most famous victories of the recent times. Off-spinner Graeme Swann turned the ball alarmingly to claim another five-wicket haul and create doubts in the minds of the home batsmen for the remainder of the summer.

readmore »»

Yusuf Pathan makes himself a certainty for World Cup squad

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

There has never been any doubt about the exceptional talents of Yusuf Pathan both with the bat as well as the ball. But there were question marks about his ability to handle the pressures of international matches in the limited opportunities having come his way in an era when the Indian selectors have far too many choices than their predecessors.

Yusuf had done it in the domestic tournaments and besides having showcased his unmatched potential in the Indian Premier League (IPL). But he needed to prove himself in the international arena.

The moment has come for the enterprising all-rounder. He made the most of the opportunity he got in the fourth One-day International of the recently concluded home series against New Zealand in Bangalore. He produced the kind of all-round performance that would have made even the legends proud.

He followed his three-wicket haul with an unbeaten century under pressure to lead India’s turnaround after the home side, chasing a mammoth total of 316, had lost its top order much more quickly than anticipated generally.

It was a day to remember for Yusuf. He was given a longer bowler, although yet not his qouta of 10 overs, but he still managed to pick up three wicket without conceding too many runs when the visitors came up with their best batting performance of the series.

Yusuf carried the confidence into his batting and I am not sure what exactly was in the mind of the caretaker captain, Gautam Gambhir, promoted him in the order. He was supposed to bat at number seven but the skipper sent him in with his side was reeling at 108 for four in the 21st over with more than 200 still needed.

It was a pressure-cooker situation as far as the hosts were concerned and besides talents and skills one needed a cool head to get going. Nobody would have dared asking a regular number six if he failed to deliver but Yusuf’s career was at stake here. He needed to perform or forget about his place in the team at least for quite sometime.

The additional burden brought the best of Yusuf and he proved the point. Dead rubber it was for India but literally it was a matter of life and death for the enterprising all-rounder who didn’t let the chance go.

His match-winning unbeaten hundred (123 off 96 balls) could well be the turning point of his life and career. In the short run he becomes an automatic choice for the World Cup while in the long run he should be a permanent member of the Indian side for quite sometime not entirely on the basis of just one outstanding effort but his extraordinary talents that have already been unfolded.

"I had enough overs in hand, and I sensed an opportunity to play a long innings. With Rohit (Sharma) and Saurabh (Tiwary) we rotated the strike well and kept in touch with the run-rate. At no stage did I feel we were going to lose the game,” he remarked after leading India to triumph.

"At the rain break, Gautam (Gambhir) told me to utilise the Powerplay to good effect. He advised me not to throw my wicket away, and said if I stayed in the middle till the end, I would win the match for India. I am glad I proved him right," Yusuf recalled.

"I don't change my natural game. But of late, I am trying to spend some time in the middle before going for my strokes. But if there is an opportunity to hit the ball, I will not hesitate to do so,” he added with a smile on his face.

readmore »»

India take whitewash rather reluctantly

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The New Zealanders had their moments during their tour of India. I think they fared much better than what had looked likely after their drubbing in Bangladesh not very long ago. The Indians should have won all three Test matches but they chose to be content with a 1-0 win as they had done on numerous occasions while taking on unfancied rivals in the past.

The New Zealanders consider themselves better suited for the limited overs games than the Test matches. Yet they were successful to have drawn two of the three Test matches with the top ranked side of the world and they were whitewashed by the hosts in the ODI series when they virtually fielded their ‘A’ team.

India did win all the five One-day Internationals, that followed the Test series, but the New Zealanders were allowed the kind of liberty that the mighty teams of the past like the West Indies or Australia didn’t allow when they were ruling the world.

Isn’t it a pity that the Indians have remained so reluctant to go for a clean sweep even when they had their opponents at their mercy? Isn’t it a big surprise that it’s only their second 5-0 win in a ODI series?

The last time India triumphed 5-0 was not a whitewash either. It was meant to be a seven-match series between India and England but it had to be halted abruptly due to the attacks in Mumbai. Although the Englishmen had been totally outplayed by the hosts there were many people who sensed India might not have gone for a 7-0 scoreline for the same reasons that had prevented them from doing it earlier.

So it’s actually India’s first 5-0 win in a five-match series. They have achieved it in the absence of some of their prolific performers who were rested for various reasons. This provided the fringe players an opportunity to have a go at a struggling side and most of them came out with flying colours.

Ironically India, with full strength, had lost a ODI to New Zealand by 200 runs during the triangular series in Sri Lanka only a few months ago. The manner in which India’s less experienced guys forced the Black Caps into submission throughout the five-match series only leaves more question marks about that fateful game.

The Indians could have won the ODI series even more convincingly but for the traditional inconsistency of the prolific players. The failures of Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli in the last two games was totally against the run of play. If they are not competent enough to negotiate the all spin attack of New Zealand with the new ball, I am afraid, they don’t deserve to be playing for their national team.

That has been the problem of the Indian team over the years. Despite being in possession of a large pool of talented players they have been reluctant to sustain the momentum. The reasons remain unexplained, beyond comprehension to say the least.

readmore »»

Ejaz Farooqui on a mission to have lively pitches in Karachi

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

The Honorary Secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), Prof Ejaz Ahmed Farooqui, has listed the preparation of lively pitches for the club matches as one of his top priorities.

Speaking as the chief guest in the inauguration ceremony of the Javed Khan Cricket Tournament, being organized by Dawood Sports, Prof Ejaz Farooqui announced that the KCCA was taking measures to prepare fast pitches in the metropolis.

“It’s vitally important to expose our youngsters to lively pitches from the grassroots level so that they face no problems whatsoever in coping with such surfaces when they graduate to the next level. A cricketer having grown up on faster pitches will have a greater chance of moving up the ladder when selected in the national team,” he reckoned.

“I really feel hurt to find the Pakistan opening batsmen failing again and again. This has been happening for quite a long time now. Even the middle-order batsmen struggle to put bat to ball when playing on pitches having bounce and pace,” the KCCA Secretary regretted.

“The remedy lies by having the national tournaments played on livelier pitches. Once the domestic matches are held on faster tracks I am sure every participating team will prompted to have such surfaces for the local matches as well. In this way we will produce cricketers, particularly batsmen, of higher quality,” Prof Ejaz Farooqui believed.

“We have to set an example for the others to follow to have our club tournaments played on sporting pitches rather than flat ones. We will not only start producing outstanding batsmen but we will also have a lot of fast bowlers coming into the limelight,” he felt

“This will bring about a revolution of sorts throughout the country as the technique of the cricketers will improve considerably. They will learn a great deal themselves when they play on surfaces where their skills will be tested,” he added.

“It’s my mission to have sporting pitches prepared in Karachi. I wish to make a contribution in the real sense of the word,” Prof Ejaz Farooqui, who transformed the KCCA Zone II with his dynamic and visionary leadership in a matter of three years or so, observed.

He has a burning desire that Karachi produces the legendary batsmen like Hanif Mohammad and Javed Miandad, whose awesome accomplishments are still talked about in the entire cricketing world.

Prof Ejaz Farooqui was himself showered with praise by all the speakers in the inauguration ceremony of the Javed Khan Cricket Tournament. He was recognized for having rewritten the history books by having a record number tournaments organized in the KCCA Zone II during his tenure as Chairman.

Prof Ejaz Farooqui, who was elected as the Secretary of the KCCA earlier this year, has now set his vision on transforming the whole of Karachi cricket and he has displayed the eagerness already to make things happen on a fast track.

He firmly believes that the game of cricket could be taken to another level for which an integrated approach of all the stakeholders was needed.

readmore »»