The Surfer
Collingwood, the anti-Gower
Paul Collingwood's robustness, his natural inclination to play off the back foot and the lack of flashiness in his batting makes him the typical north-England cricketer, writes Harry Pearson in his blog in the Guardian
Siddhartha Talya
25-Feb-2013
Paul Collingwood's robustness, his natural inclination to play off the back foot and the lack of flashiness in his batting makes him the typical north-England cricketer, writes Harry Pearson in his blog in the Guardian. He contrasts his style of play with David Gower, the characteristic southerner, with a cavalier approach to the game and a penchant for free-flowing strokeplay.
My dad approves of Collingwood's sensible haircut and the fact he has no visible tattoos or body-piercings. He likes him because he is strong off the back foot. Being strong off the back foot suggests a man who has not been mollycoddled in his youth. Batsmen who have spent their formative years playing on good, true wickets get on the front foot at every opportunity. Those who have been brought up playing on nasty, deceitful wickets prefer to wait and see what happens. They don't take things for granted. They know that every once in a while the ball will jump up unexpectedly and slap them in the chops. Just like life.
Also in the Guardian, former England coach Duncan Fletcher is all praise for Jonathan Trott. There will be the inevitable setbacks, he writes, but the batsman stands to gain from the experience of Collingwood, who set a perfect example of a player overcoming the hurdles to emerge successful again.
The key now for Trott is that he readies himself for the backlash. As he gets more exposure, other sides will be learning more about his weaknesses. South Africa are already going to be coming back stronger and sharper than they were in their last game. There was a sameness about their bowling at Centurion. The returns of Morne Morkel and Wayne Parnell are going to give more variety to their attack, adding more bounce and more swing, as well as a left-arm option. These will be new challenges for Trott to tackle.
The business of brand Tendulkar
Desh Gaurav Sekhri, a sports attorney, writes on sportzpower.net that the emergence of Tendulkar has radically changed the way sports marketing and management is perceived in India
Cricinfo
25-Feb-2013
Desh Gaurav Sekhri, a sports attorney, writes on sportzpower.net that the emergence of Tendulkar has radically changed the way sports marketing and management is perceived in India.
Full postSports Management as an industry was born on the golf course when Mark McCormack of IMG finalised a handshake deal with Arnold Palmer, the beloved and successful U.S. Professional Golfer ... A parallel could be drawn for Tendulkar and the late Mark Mascarenhas who started World-Tel with Tendulkar as the keystone client ... Tendulkar was and is, It. He was the best the world had to offer, and unlike some other clear-cut top-ranked athletes, such as Sampras or Federer, or David Duval ... Tendulkar was and is of a different mould. He isn’t a colorful personality like a Michael Phelps, or a LeBron James, or a Shane Warne. He is quiet, calm, humble, and wholesome. This is why in a country that lives by societal norms, a blend of fierce competitiveness, excellence in the face of failure, yet a family man who blunted sledges with cover drives, and reeked at times of goodness, is the man who forever will define what a Brand is.
Oh, for some life in the track
Mike Atherton joins the chorus demanding the end of lifeless pitches
Cricinfo
25-Feb-2013
Mike Atherton joins the chorus demanding the end of lifeless pitches. He writes in the Times that the most dramatic moment in cricket - the fall of a wicket - is something the game is forgetting all too quickly.
Full postWhen the game offers no result — no chance of a result, more importantly — no fluctuating fortunes, no interest and no drama, what else but dry statistics is there to talk about?
What the ICC’s press release should have said, of course, was that the umpires and the match referee had marked the Ahmedabad pitch down as unacceptably poor and that the groundsman’s penalty would be a period without international cricket.
Sachin Tendulkar: is he over-rated?
A relatively brief post on Australian sports opinion website the Roar that claims to bust the Tendulkar myth is far more read-worthy for its comments (in particular, the statistical analysis by a reader Philip Anthony).
Cricinfo
25-Feb-2013
A relatively brief post on Australian sports opinion website the Roar that claims to bust the Tendulkar myth is far more read-worthy for its comments (in particular, the statistical analysis by a reader Philip Anthony).
Full postCollingwood or Franks: Who was your money on?
Andy Bull talks of the dramatic divergence in career paths for Nottinghamshire's Paul Franks and Paul Collingwood since 2000
Cricinfo
25-Feb-2013
Andy Bull talks of the dramatic divergence in career paths for Nottinghamshire's Paul Franks and Paul Collingwood since 2000. Franks was a hugely talented quick bowler who was also a capable bat and seemed set for a long career with England after interning with the Under-19 and A squads while Collingwood was struggling to make runs. Franks, however, played just one ODI while Collingwood has become the most capped of England's players. Read more in the Guardian.
Full postKevin Pietersen gives England fresh angle
Shane Warne compares England’s challenge in South Africa to the predicament faced by tennis players when they play Roger Federer
George Binoy
25-Feb-2013
Shane Warne compares England’s challenge in South Africa to the predicament faced by tennis players when they play Roger Federer. Writing in the Times, Warne backs the Kevin Pietersen brand of inventiveness to provide England with a surprise element against the hosts – much like an aggressive serve and volley game that could upset Federer’s gameplan.
I’m no tennis expert. But there is a great comparison here to playing cricket against South Africa. Hang back and play an orthodox game against Federer, and he’ll eat you alive. Try something adventurous, back yourself, and you never know. It’s the same with the South Africans.
I know he’s [Pietersen’s] not the captain anymore, but he has so much to offer Andrew Strauss with his left-field ideas to drag South Africa out of their comfort zones. It will not be enough for England to win the Test series simply by doing the basics well.
Full postChanders: Not easy on the eye, or the bowling
In the Sydney Morning Herald Peter Roebuck traces the rise of Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who has been the cornerstone of West Indies' middle-order over the past few years
Cricinfo
25-Feb-2013
In the Sydney Morning Herald Peter Roebuck traces the rise of Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who has been the cornerstone of West Indies' middle-order over the past few years.
Full postHe bats like a puppet, every part of his body in motion: arms, wrists, legs, nothing static. He can look out of his depth, a man of rubber in a time of steel, a skinny fellow in an age of muscle.
Bowlers think they will get him out in a minute, and then the minutes turn into hours and sometimes days and still the modest man from the fishing village continues to pull in his haul. In the end, everyone looks at the scoreboard and realises he has done it again.
'Birmingham is where my heart is now'
Jonathon Trott’s South African affiliations may have hogged the pre-series headlines, but the allegiance of England’s latest star lies firmly with his adopted home
George Binoy
25-Feb-2013
Jonathon Trott’s South African affiliations may have hogged the pre-series headlines, but the allegiance of England’s latest star lies firmly with his adopted home. He expressed his loyalties clearly to The Independent.
The last few times I have been here [South Africa] I couldn't wait to get back to England. A lot of people have asked if I'd come back here when I retire, but there's no way. I am very happy in Birmingham. Coming back here is a holiday now …
I can't really control the pubic. All I can do is put in good performances and gain the respect of my team-mates, the South African public and the English public. I don't put energy into stuff I can't control. It doesn't affect the way you bat. If you let it get to you it will.
Full postSouth Africa need to match words with action
South Africa have dominated the pre-series verbal exchanges but need to match that with quality cricket, even more so now as they are without the services of Jacques Kallis for the ODI series, writes Lawrence Booth in his blog Top Spin in the
Siddhartha Talya
25-Feb-2013
South Africa have dominated the pre-series verbal exchanges but need to match that with quality cricket, even more so now as they are without the services of Jacques Kallis for the ODI series, writes Lawrence Booth in his blog Top Spin in the Daily Mail.
The problem with dishing out verbals – and Mickey Arthur and Graeme Smith have served theirs with extra relish – is that they can be used in evidence later on. It also helps to have the armoury to put the battle-cry into effect. Steve Waugh remembers bouncing West Indies No 11 Patrick Patterson with his little medium-pacers in a Test at Melbourne, only for the grease-lightning fast Patterson to retaliate by skittling the Aussies for 114.
Marveling at a miked-up McGrath
In the Age , Martin Blake writes that the most fascinating piece of sports theatre on television over the weekend was the miking up of Australia's legends in the All-Star Twenty20 match - specifically the insight into the bowling plans of Glenn
Brydon Coverdale
25-Feb-2013
In the Age, Martin Blake writes that the most fascinating piece of sports theatre on television over the weekend was the miking up of Australia's legends in the All-Star Twenty20 match - specifically the insight into the bowling plans of Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne.
Here is McGrath bowling seam-up with the new ball, chiding himself about only reaching 110 km/h speeds, but still ridiculously miserly. McGrath is approaching 40, and has played two Twenty20 games in the past six months, but he could bowl stump-to-stump in his sleep.
Here's where the brains kick in. McGrath bowls a couple of inswingers to the left-handed David Warner, cramping him for room. Then he flags that he will bowl a little slider, running the fingers down the seam and angling it across Warner. He tips that Warne, standing at slip, will get himself a catch. On cue, Warner nicks it. McGrath only gets one aspect wrong. The catch flies to Gilchrist behind the stumps. Gilchrist, who also is miked up and who has heard the plan hatched, is exultant.
Peter Roebuck in the Sydney Morning Herald enjoyed Shane Warne's battle with Michael Clarke and McGrath's surgical removal of Warner.
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