Different Strokes
The thing about Pakistan
Those of us used to lulling ourselves to sleep with thoughts of great Pakistani cricket feats have been having a hard time lately
Saad Shafqat
25-Feb-2013
Those of us used to lulling ourselves to sleep with thoughts of great Pakistani cricket feats have been having a hard time lately. Even as recently as a few weeks ago, a silken Mohammad Yousuf late cut between gully and point, a Mohammad Asif in-cutter through bat and pad, or a bludgeoned pull into the stands by Shahid Afridi – or, for the nostalgic-minded, Imran Khan merely turning at the top of his bowling mark, Javed Miandad doing little more than taking guard, or Wasim Akram simply flashing a smile – would have been enough to sink even the most resistant insomniac fan into gentle stupor and a blissful night’s sleep.
As of the last three weeks, these images have not been coming as readily to mind as they once did. In their place, thoughts of misguided fast bowlers delivering suspicious no-balls and sleazy bookies counting a tableful of money have invaded the senses. Not that the betting scandal has been something particularly unusual. After all, off-the-record talk of match-fixing and spot-fixing has been going on in Pakistan cricket for a while. And as far as crises go, for the last few years Pakistan cricket has been going through one monster turn of events after another.
But the August 29 newsflash was spiced with enough salacious detail to take over the conversation completely. Still, any storm is expected to die down after a few days, and by now you would have thought the headlines would move on to an expectant wait, as the ICC appoints a tribunal and fact-finding begins. But a scandal-mongering British tabloid press is refusing to let go, and the sleaze and muck just keeps coming.
Full postWhen mediocre was good enough
We can certainly hope that the remaining matches will be better exhibitions of international-class cricket, but Friday's routine mediocrity was just the sedative the game of cricket needed.
Mike Holmans
25-Feb-2013
It was a relief to have an ordinary game of 50-over cricket on Friday. (All right, 41-over cricket, but you know what I mean.) Neither England nor Pakistan played particularly well or particularly badly, and the team which played a little better than their opponents ran out the winners. That the winners were England was not very surprising: they've become a very good one-day team over the last 12 months, and the present Pakistan squad are probably only capable of being a good team rather than a very good one.
The absence of the alleged spot-fixers clearly weakens Pakistan's playing strength, though it goes a long way towards re-establishing their moral strength, especially with Shahid Afridi as their leader. All the gossip points to his having absolutely clean hands with regard to shady dealings with bookmakers, which is unsurprising given that shadiness has never been one of his characteristics: here is a man who cheats extravagantly in public, whether it be eating the ball or dancing in the middle of the wicket, so it seems very unlikely that he would waste his time committing crimes without an audience.
He was unable to work any leadership magic on the shell-shocked team for the Twenty20s, which were appalling games of cricket as a result: Pakistan were physically present but their minds were obviously elsewhere. But with the suspected villains on their way home and the news reporters congregating at Heathrow rather than Chester-le-Street, they managed to get round to concentrating on cricket and played tolerably well.
Full postHow deep does the malaise run
I'm in the middle of a bad dream; Like Jekyll & Hyde, Romantic and Pragmatist share my cricketing soul whenever I think of anything to do with Pakistani cricket
Michael Jeh
25-Feb-2013
I'm in the middle of a bad dream; Like Jekyll & Hyde, Romantic and Pragmatist share my cricketing soul whenever I think of anything to do with Pakistani cricket. Perhaps Beauty & The Beast is a more appropriate analogy, such is the magic of their style of cricket when everything is above board and the witchcraft that is now doing the rounds of the rumour mills once more.
When I heard of the latest allegations involving match-fixing, the romantic in me refused to believe that such dastardly deeds could possibly happen. Surely no one could be that greedy, that stupid or that mercenary to risk a nation's morale at a time when the whole world was rallying around Pakistan in its time of crisis. Last Friday, my local ABC radio station in Brisbane ran a concerted appeal to raise money for flood victims and by 3 pm, the tally was already pushing the $1.4 million mark. It was as if the darkest hour had passed and the rain clouds were about to slip over the horizon, only for this latest storm to engulf a nation for whom cricket might have been the source of some comfort during a period of pain. For that reason alone, the silly romantic in me refused to believe that any Pakistani cricketer would countenance any form of deception at a time when so many of his countrymen were facing ruin and collapse on a much larger scale than anything that cricket has to offer. Yet, cricket and life in Pakistan are almost too hard to separate at times. I recall the pain in the words of the bloggers at the time of the Sri Lankan team's shooting incident last year and it's clear that for many Pakistan citizens, the two are bound together in bonds of honour and national identity.
And yet, the cold, hard pragmatist in me felt ashamed to admit that this latest revelation did not shock me to the core. There was almost a sense of "here we go again". We've all heard the innuendo, taken some of it with a pinch of salt, swallowed what was left with an uneasy gulp and wondered if there could be this much smoke without a smouldering ember in someone's conscience. I remember the day when a Pakistani friend who was a professional in one of the English leagues told me in 1999 that Pakistan would lose to Bangladesh in a World Cup match. I just laughed at him and told him not to be so pessimistic until I realised (in hindsight) that he was speaking in pain and shame rather than with nerves or pessimism.
Full postCool to Trott
Our esteemed editor Sambit Bal has already said everything I would want to say about the betting scandal, so I'm going to write about cricket, if that's all right with you.
Mike Holmans
25-Feb-2013
Our esteemed editor Sambit Bal has already said everything I would want to say about the betting scandal, so I'm going to write about cricket, if that's all right with you.
It has not been all that easy to make any judgements about the progress of the England Test side this summer, since the first series was against the relatively unchallenging Bangladesh and the second against a Pakistan side which contained several unknowns and whose performances ranged from sublime through substandard to, unfortunately, sub judice. Saying anything about how well England players have done therefore has to be hedged round with caveats.
One long-standing issue, though, has probably been settled: Jonathan Trott looks to have nailed down the No. 3 spot which has been a problem for most of the last thirty years, if not longer. There has been something of a campaign this summer to promote Kevin Pietersen to three, spearheaded by some of the lamer brains in the Sky commentary box using the argument that it is a well-known principle that your best batsman should bat in that position. It's such a well-known principle that Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar and Viv Richards enjoyed their peak periods batting at four, so the best batsmen in their sides on the beefy argument must have been Ramnaresh Sarwan, Rahul Dravid and Larry Gomes.
Full postA riveting battle continues
Another day, another collapse
Mike Holmans
25-Feb-2013
Another day, another collapse. Time to panic about the England middle order and how they will fare in the forthcoming Ashes. Or perhaps not.
A few weeks ago, after Pakistan collapsed at Lord's in their ‘home’ Test against Australia, I offered the opinion that had their bowlers had the opportunity to bowl in similar conditions, they would have skittled Australia for under a hundred. Though I was pooh-poohed by several commenters, mostly presumably Australians, Ponting's men proved me triumphantly right at Headingley later that week. Twice now in similar circumstances, England have at least managed three figures, which clearly proves that they are a better batting side than Australia and are therefore hot favourites to retain the Ashes. QED. And if you believe that, you'll believe anything.
In fact, all the intelligence we have gained about the Ashes is that if the conditions are heavily overcast and damp and Mohammad Amir turns up to bowl with a shiny red Duke ball, whichever side has picked him is going to have a huge advantage. Since none of those circumstances will obtain, what we have learned about the series to come is precisely nothing.
Full postA tribute to Pakistan's resilience
Going into the final Test at Lord's, Pakistan find themselves in a position they have never been in before
Saad Shafqat
25-Feb-2013
Going into the final Test at Lord's, Pakistan find themselves in a position they have never been in before. On only four previous occasions have they bounced back to win a Test match after being 2-0 down. These were all unexpected victories, and most fans will be able to recall them without much mental effort. It happened in West Indies in 1958 (where the deficit was actually 3-0), in Australia in 1981 and 1995, and at home against Sri Lanka in 2000. Neither of these can be considered a genuine comeback, however, because in each case the series was already lost and the contest had been reduced to a dead rubber.
Now ask yourself, how many times has Pakistan bounced back to win a ‘live’ Test after being 2-0 down? The answer is never - until last week at the Oval. Coming from behind is surely the greatest achievement in any battle, including sporting ones. Of all the things that made Oval 2010 special for Pakistan - rise of new blood, return of a legend, emergence of a healthy captain-coach combination, and psychological exorcism of a forfeit - it is this statistic that is perhaps the most special, and it conveys the scale of the accomplishment.
It isn’t that Pakistan haven’t bounced back before. No less than sixteen times have they recovered to win a Test after being 1-0 down. But keeping a series alive after being 2 Tests down is at a different level altogether. You find yourself flat on the mat, shoulders pinned down and your breath squeezed out. Even raising your head from that position is a huge effort, let alone getting back on your feet and delivering a knock out.
Full postWhat cricket can learn from golf
For a non-gifted sportsman like myself, frustratingly, golf and cricket seem to have diametrically opposed plans for me
Michael Jeh
25-Feb-2013
For a non-gifted sportsman like myself, frustratingly, golf and cricket seem to have diametrically opposed plans for me. Despite my best intentions, I tend to finish a round of golf having played far more strokes than is ideal. A regular round of 18 holes has me consistently beating Bradman's famed batting average, whereas in cricket I rarely ever fulfil the plan to play lots of shots or post a big score. I justify the golf score by convincing myself that I'm actually getting value for money by playing as many shots as possible but I can't quite come up with a good enough excuse for my all-too-regular low scores with bat in hand.
I've always felt that golf has so much to teach us about life and about cricket. What is most remarkable about golf is that it is utterly unremarkable that players are expected to police themselves, even when the truth is only between themselves and their conscience. It is a game that is entirely founded on integrity, honesty and manners, much like the way cricket was allegedly played in a bygone era. In golf, you count your own strokes, play the ball where it lies, penalise yourself even if you're playing alone or nobody's watching, bad luck is accompanied by a philosophical shrug, bunkers are raked, players keep quiet whilst their partners are playing - the list of good manners and etiquette goes on.
In the last week, where international cricket confronted a few unusual and delicate issues around the spirit of cricket, golf has just continued doing what it always does best - playing fair without even expecting accolades for it. We've had the Sehwag/Randiv/deliberate no-ball incident and it is to the credit of Sri Lankan cricket that they acted so swiftly to punish their own, even when the cricket world was split down the middle about the heinousness of the crime. I've read many of the blogs on the topic, including Sambit Bal's excellent piece a few days ago, and it's clear that whilst most people agree that it was a mean-spirited thing to do, it hardly ranks up there amongst the worst excesses on a cricket field in recent times. Yet, Sri Lanka Cricket, regardless of their motives (as some bloggers were keen to allude to), were proactive in salvaging some pride from an incident which they felt tarnished their reputation as upholders of the spirit of cricket.
Full postHaider and Ajmal the bright spots
Some players are reportedly not very happy with the UDRS
Mike Holmans
25-Feb-2013
Some players are reportedly not very happy with the UDRS. If he wasn't one of them before, I imagine Kamran Akmal will be joining their ranks any minute, when he realises that UDRS has probably killed his Test career.
Had Zulqarnain Haider not been reprieved by the UDRS in the second innings at Edgbaston, his king pair would have undermined any confidence in him as a batsman, and would have left him very nervous for the subsequent games even if the selectors continued to back him. Unless Haider did something important under those handicaps, Kamran could have seen his way open for a return to the national side.
As it was, Haider proceeded to play the classiest as well as the biggest innings by a Pakistani in the series so far. There were powerful drives, delicate strokes and sound defence. Given what else we've seen from Pakistan, Haider looks a perfectly credible No.4 or 5 in this team.
Full postA swinger's paradise
While Pakistan remain in exile, they could do a great deal worse than make Trent Bridge their headquarters
Mike Holmans
25-Feb-2013
While Pakistan remain in exile, they could do a great deal worse than make Trent Bridge their headquarters. Since the opening of the Fox Road stand in 2003, the Trent Bridge micro-climate has been a virtual guarantee of swing. If you are sceptical about how so simple a thing as a stand can have this kind of effect, consider that the MCC specified that all schemes for redevelopment at Lord's had to maintain the present gap between the stands because their computer modelling had shown that without it the ball would no longer swing.
Pakistan may have been flattened in this Test, but that's because Ijaz Butt got it slightly wrong in his pre-match touting of Mohammads Asif and Amir as the best swing bowlers in the world. The best swing bowler in the world is James Anderson, and has been for a couple of years.
While Ijaz Butt understandably went over the top about the Mohammads' world standing, they are probably second and third on the list. The only other real contenders are Zaheer Khan and Ben Hilfenhaus, so it's a limited field. Amir and Asif are streets ahead of Hilfenhaus and at least a few metres ahead of Zaheer. Trent Bridge is Pakistan's ideal Test ground given their current attack - so long as they aren't up against England.
Full postPrevious experience desirable
In the course of his entertaining tour round the captaincies of national cricket teams, Michael Jeh asked for my thoughts on the England captaincy, a request from my vulpine friend to which I'll gladly accede because I've been meaning to write a
Mike Holmans
25-Feb-2013
In the course of his entertaining tour round the captaincies of national cricket teams, Michael Jeh asked for my thoughts on the England captaincy, a request from my vulpine friend to which I'll gladly accede because I've been meaning to write a bit about Andrew Strauss for a couple of months.
One of the reasons I think Strauss has been quite a success is that he is in a way a traditionally-selected captain, which some of his immediate predecessors certainly were not.
The English view has always been that the captaincy is just as much a specialist position as opening the batting or bowling leg-spin, and that it makes more difference to the performance of the team to have the right man in place than for any of the other positions. With the possible exception of the mid-1950s, England have not had a team packed with superb players since before WW1. There have been times, though, when they have achieved much better results than they looked on paper to deserve - and those times have been when they have had fine captains.
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