The Buzz
Bolt to Gayle, OUT
Brydon Coverdale
25-Feb-2013
West Indies cricket’s loss has clearly been athletics’ gain. Usain Bolt was said to be a handy cricketer before he concentrated on sprinting and during a charity match on Sunday he proved just how capable he was. Bolt not only struck Chris Gayle for a straight six but, as this Youtube video shows, he went on to bowl Gayle after welcoming him to the crease with a rising bouncer.
Reuters reported that Bolt brought the crowd to their feet when, “taking a long run up and bowling at a respectable pace, [he] had given Gayle a traditional West Indian welcome with his first ball". "I told Chris to watch out I was going to give him one but he didn't really believe it," Bolt said after the game.
Full postBolt to redefine the quick single
Brydon Coverdale
25-Feb-2013
It’s a run-out waiting to happen. Usain Bolt has agreed to strap on the pads this Sunday and take part in a mini-tournament in Jamaica featuring Chris Gayle and a host of past and present West Indies players. Bolt’s love of cricket is well-known and it’ll be a brave batsman who takes him on in the field for a sneaky single.
"In terms of sport, cricket is my first love," Bolt said. "I grew up watching cricketers like Courtney Walsh take the West Indies to new heights - and I am a big admirer of Chris Gayle for his power batting and calm attitude; he is my favourite player right now. So, to have the chance to play with these guys is a dream come true for me."
Full postAshes bat hits burglars for six
There are many uses for a cricket bat, as Daniel Brookes found out when he attempted to rob a house in the village of Alderley Edge in the English county of Cheshire
Jamie Alter
25-Feb-2013
There are many uses for a cricket bat, as Daniel Brookes found out when he attempted to rob a house in the village of Alderley Edge in the English county of Cheshire. Thea Taylor, a mother of two, was woken from her sleep in the early hours of the morning by the sound of intruders and grabbed the nearest thing - a bat used in the Ashes and signed by members of the England squad. Wielding the bat like a lightsabre, Taylor chased the intruder out of her house. An alert passerby noted down the getaway vehicles license plates and the perpetrator was duly apprehended by the local authorities.
The bat belonged to Taylor's husband after he bid for it in a charity auction. "I can't remember how much we paid for it but it is definitely now my lucky bat and worth its weight in gold," said Taylor, whose batsmanship so impressed a recorder judge that she issued her a Crown Court Commendation for chasing Brookes out of the house.
Brookes' lawyer was left with little more to say than the choice made by the defendant, when confronted by a lady with a cricket bat, was to run, and not retaliate.
Burglars be forewarned - anyone entering Taylor's house without permission stands to become the subject of a hook shot to the head.
Full postThe Don's stylish signature
Few could match Sir Donald Bradman’s batting but it looks like his signature - as valuable, in monetary terms, on the auction floor - is far easier to copy
Akhila Ranganna
25-Feb-2013
Few could match Sir Donald Bradman’s batting but it looks like his signature - as valuable, in monetary terms, on the auction floor - is far easier to copy. Some signatures of The Don sold by former England cricketer Dermott Reeve, who once owned a memorabilia shop, are under scrutiny by the Bradman Foundation because they are deemed too messy to be genuine. Bradman “was a very careful writer; he had beautiful handwriting”, the Bradman Museum’s marketing manager Joanne Crowley told AFP , so the "messy" signatures are being checked by a leading expert. "This is not about trying to discredit Mr Reeve, it's about trying to protect Sir Donald Bradman's name and intellectual property." Unreliable Bradman memorabilia was becoming prolific, even in shops near the museum in Bowral, Bradman's hometown near Sydney. "It's like a Louis Vuitton handbag or a Gucci wallet - there are knock-offs everywhere," she said.
Full postBhutan’s stamp of approval
Buddhism, monasteries and trekking are what you’d associate with Bhutan
Akhila Ranganna
25-Feb-2013
Buddhism, monasteries and trekking are what you’d associate with Bhutan. And now cricket - Bhutan Post, to commemorate a century of the monarchy, has released four stamps based on cricket. While three feature local players and coaches, one of the stamps has a picture of Roger Binny, the former India cricketer, in situ at his place of work. Binny spent four years in Bhutan from 2004-2008 as the Development Officer of the Asian Cricket Council and was flabbergasted to see his work being committed to perpetuity. “I never knew about something like that,” Binny - now Bengal coach - told Hindustan Times. “It’s a great honour. I cherished the four years I had been there.” The country’s famous Gross National Happiness has just gone up a bit more.
Full postHow soon a Russian Premier League?
While the Chinese have embraced cricket and espouse aspirations of beating India in a Test, their geopolitical rivals to the north are yet to come to grips with the strange sport
Siddhartha Talya
25-Feb-2013
While the Chinese have embraced cricket and espouse aspirations of beating India in a Test, their geopolitical rivals to the north are yet to come to grips with the strange sport. However, members of the Indian diaspora in Russia, like in most other countries where cricket is searching for a fan base, are again proving to be the game’s most passionate exporters. Ashvani Chopra, a businessman of Indian origin, who presides over Russia’s United Cricket League (RUCL), says the game is taking off in the country. In fact, the RUCL is conducting an annual championship with seven clubs, one of which consists of players with Russian citizenship.
"We started playing here in 1995 just for fun. In 2001 we conducted a small tournament, in which three teams - Australia, India and the selection of the rest of the world - were playing,” Chopra told AFP. "The tournament was a success and it became the reference point of our league."
And the commitment to grooming local talent is high on the agenda. "We dream of creating a Russian national team," Chopra said. "We decided that every club should have at least one local player in their line-up. From now on it's an indispensable condition for every one of the league's clubs."
But there are problems aplenty, the most immediate of which is the lack of equipment. "It's impossible to find cricket bats or the correct balls here in Moscow," Chopra said. "We have to bring all this stuff from home to play here. But we're ready to overcome any difficulties in the name of the game. Nothing can stop us. For all of us cricket is the biggest passion."
Full postThe secret behind Langer's intensity?
When Jock Campbell, physical trainer of the Australian team led by Steve Waugh, was asked who the most intense player in that team was, his answer was simple - Justin Langer
Akhila Ranganna
25-Feb-2013
When Jock Campbell, physical trainer of the Australian team led by Steve Waugh, was asked who the most intense player in that team was, his answer was simple - Justin Langer. And one of the reasons behind that intensity could just be the Bushido Cross. This honour is awarded to Black Belt holders from the Zen Do Kai (ZDK) School founded by Bob Jones in Melbourne. Zen Do Kai is a martial art form that draws influences from other fighting forms such as Brazilian jiu-jitsu, boxing, karate, eskrima, judo, and muay thai.
Introduced to ZDK at the age of 16, dealing with a broken nose as a result of sparring with his mentor John Andrew, soon became commonplace for Langer. “ZDK taught me discipline, to respect elders and when carried over to cricket, helped me concentrate,” Langer told the Hindu. Small wonder then that the fiercest bouncers on the cricket field were dealt with aplomb.
Full postMonks, music and money
As cricket strives to increasingly become a global sport, so do the opening ceremonies of its marquee events
Akhila Ranganna
25-Feb-2013
As cricket strives to increasingly become a global sport, so do the opening ceremonies of its marquee events. The launch of the Champions League Twenty20 at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore on October 8 will showcase the martial-art skills of China’s shaolin monks and Kerela’s kalaripayattu artists in what promises to be a glitzy and high-budget affair. The 30-minute ceremony will also feature Grammy winners Chaka Khan and Shaggy, along with well-known pop artist Jamelia. Also in the mix are Japanese drummers and dancers wearing yards of silks that will unfurl into the team flags. The CEO of the Champions League Twenty20 Sundar Raman said it would be at par with some of the best ceremonies seen on TV.
Full postGentlemen, let's break for tea ... and sandwiches
An umpire’s life is tough: they stand for hours watching ball after ball, are subjected to withering stares by players when appeals are turned down or upheld, criticised for bad decisions but not praised for any good ones and now face the
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
An umpire’s life is tough: they stand for hours watching ball after ball, are subjected to withering stares by players when appeals are turned down or upheld, criticised for bad decisions but not praised for any good ones and now face the indignity of technology. But what seems to be the unkindest cut of all is the miserly duration of the tea break, a grouse first-class umpires in England plan to raise before the ECB. Umpires, they will point out, are the last to leave the ground at a session break and first to return at resumption of play so they don’t get enough time to put their feet up, sip that Earl Grey and munch on soggy cucumber sandwiches.
Jack Simmons, the chairman of ECB’s cricket committee, said extending the break by ten minutes would not be a problem. “The umpires have never asked for anything in the past to my knowledge and I am aware that they have less time off the field than the players,” Simmons told The Times. “Extending the intervals by five or ten minutes would not go amiss and it would also suit the county chief executives, as spectators would have more time to eat at their bars and restaurants and be less inclined to bring sandwiches.”
Full postBresnan is all a twitter with anger
Another international cricketer has got in trouble over Twitter
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
Another international cricketer has got in trouble over Twitter. Tim Bresnan, the England allrounder, launched into an angry response towards a follower who created an unflattering image of the cricketer and was forced to apologise to team management.
Bresnan, who joins Graeme Swann and James Anderson as England players ‘twittering’, had bantered with his team-mates, but took serious offence to the image posted by someone he didn’t know.
“Don’t mind my mates dishing it out,” he wrote, “but who the *** are you. Crawl out of your basement. U ****.”
Swann, the joker in England’s team, clearly found the whole thing very amusing and was seen pulling at Bresnan’s pants during training. However, England coach Andy Flower said players had a responsibility to behave. "It is pretty simple if you are on a public site like that - you have to behave yourself," he said.
Full post