The Surfer

Brendon McCullum called it a "huge loss" and while most would agree and argue New Zealand's chances without Vettori are the same as Mark Todd's without Campino, it could be a chance for Central Districts' Tarun Nethula to shine. If selected, the test would be the Indian-born Nethula's first.

The greater the investment in a player, the greater is the temptation to give him one more chance to come good and make up for all the failures. It is both a practical response as well as an ego-salving one for the selectors who may be loath to admit they were mistaken in the first place.

If a selection is honest, made on cricketing grounds and not influenced by the usual Indian temptations, then selectors must be allowed to go with their instincts. Richie Benaud, for example, who made his debut in 1952, was in the team for six years before he emerged as the leg spinner and all rounder he was to become. In fact, it was four years before he had his first five-wicket haul. But there was never any question over his talent; it was only a matter of time.

It was the selection that caused a sensation and ended up hastening the demise of Michael Vaughan as England captain. Now, four years after he was plucked from obscurity to appear on the biggest stage, Darren Pattinson can finally reflect on how he went from Melbourne club cricket to playing against South Africa at Headingley.

A steadier opening stand is among the few improvements SA could make going into the second Test against England at Headingley in Leeds on Thursday. But they will be loath to tamper with their juggernaut of a combination and it remains unclear who could fill what is not yet a vacancy.

That most of the Bombay Test stars from 50s to 70s came from these two clubs is a tribute to the spirit of the game. Dadar Union and Shivaji Park Gymkhana represent an era that seems long lost. It was a time when people played for the sake of the game. With authentic sportsmanship, they played cricket like a sport, not business. Perhaps the adage ‘Competition results in excellence’ was written while watching a match between these two clubs.

England have used a ball that was called "Duke" for several decades, but only recently has this ball been changed to be something that is quite different to what it used to be. Since 2007, something has been done to it to make it reverse swing a lot quicker than any other ball. While other balls might reverse swing after 60 or 70 overs, if prepared expertly and with exactly the right kind of bowlers, the Duke ball will reverse swing after just 20 or 30 overs - a massive difference indeed.

The "new Duke" is a lot heavier. It comes off the bat more quickly. Thus, even if the pitch isn't bouncing very much, off the bat it will bounce a lot anyway. Edges fly higher and quicker. England, who have no natural home ground advantage, have manufactured one through having a very, very different ball.

Yes, he's only been on the ground for a year, but you would have thought a “cricket guru” like him would have started to generate some marked improvements in his wide-reaching director of cricket role. But no, he hasn't. Well, not that anyone can see anyway. When he started last year, the Black Caps were ranked eighth in the world in test cricket and seventh in one-dayers. Little more than a year later, and they now sit seventh in test cricket and eighth in one-dayers.

Eliminating those mental microsleeps; clearing the mind of all else and focusing on nothing other than the next delivery can mean the difference between victory and defeat. Wearing the opposition bowlers down through sheer will and concentration may not be glamorous, but it's means to a far more fruitful end. And the New Zealanders only need cast their eyes across the Atlantic to South Africa's batting epic in their first Test against England to see it can be done.

Take a peek at New Zealand, which for some time has been drifting untethered towards a long dark sky of indifference and irrelevance.In the last decade, they have won just four Test series against anyone other than Bangladesh and Zimbabwe and two if the West Indies are not included. So if they do lose this series, it has the makings of a very significant landmark in a continuing fall.

As soon as he retires from that sport, the general popularity slowly starts to decrease due to short public memory. From the limelight, he suddenly finds himself one among many normal people. It is also a very difficult period for him to make a career choice again in his life as he is still is in his mid-thirties. He has to reset his goals and take a decision as to whether he should be associated with the sport. Most players take up coaching if they are qualified enough to acquire the mandatory basic courses. If they are popular with the administrators they could get lucrative posts of selectors, referees etc.

However at this point, he is not generally aware of the kind of profile an administrator has to have to turn out to be good at it. Since the posts of president and secretary are generally the most desired ones, and are appointed through elections, a former player has to go begging for votes. Thus at the very first step, he starts compromising on his self esteem. One also has to be very particular of the protocol to soothe big egos.

The question being bandied about in press circles in England is whether Strauss would be the third England captain in a row to vacate the hot seat following a Test series against South Africa. From an English point of view, this is not helpful.

Hussain and Vaughan's situations were remarkably similar. Both were coming to the end of their respective careers as leaders and players when they took on South Africa. Both had ready-made successors in the ranks to take over. Hussein had Vaughan and Vaughan of course had Strauss. The only difference in the current situation is that Strauss is not as far gone as a player as the other two were before losing the captaincy.