The Surfer
Lara's neice grabbed
Brian Lara's niece was abducted during a gunpoint car-jacking and police believe when the robbers found out who she was they tried to get a ransom.
Jamie Alter
25-Feb-2013
Brian Lara's niece was abducted during a gunpoint car-jacking and police believe when the robbers found out who she was they tried to get a ransom.
Police found Adanna Lara, 21, gagged and locked in a room with her hands tied behind her back .
Read more in the Trinidad Express.
Full postGive Prior a proper run to make or ruin his reputation
A round-up of the best the England papers have to offer:
Cricinfo
25-Feb-2013
A round-up of the best the England papers have to offer:
Michael Atherton writes in the Sunday Telegraph that England should stick with Matt Prior
... the harshness of the criticism has been surprising. Prior is in the infancy of his international career and is surely allowed a bad day or two. After seven Test matches he averages over 40 and for the most part this summer his glove-work has been sound. This is surely no time to sharpen the guillotine or to turn back the clock to names already discarded.
While the Observer's Vic Marks feels that despite a likely series defeat to India, England shouldn't go in for wholesale changes
Full postThe tip of an ugly iceberg
On caribbeancricket.com , Peter Montgomery makes a stinging attack on the West Indies team’s management and the way the players have been treated.
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
On caribbeancricket.com, Peter Montgomery makes a stinging attack on the West Indies team’s management and the way the players have been treated.
[Bennett] King has left the scene but the work environment within the team has not gotten any better under his right hand man and now head coach David Moore. If anything it has worsened considerably and is now fully endorsed by the team manager and the WICB.
Montgomery claims that players were abused and intimidated and that the training and match preparations during the recently-concluded England tour were a shambles.
The stories of the players, confirmed separately by other players, are so remarkable, they are shocking. It is as if the WICB has begun to run an almost slave-like operation. The players have no say, are consulted on nothing and are lorded upon without any recourse to objection. It is no surprise that Dinanath Ramnarine had to be as vigilant and militant as he has had to be. The man is fighting against the plantation mentality still firmly entrenched at the WICB.
Man whose substance was greater than his spin
Ashley Giles' retirement from cricket was announced during the first day of the Oval Test, almost two years since his efforts on the same ground helped England to win the 2005 Ashes
Andrew Miller
25-Feb-2013
Ashley Giles' retirement from cricket was announced during the first day of the Oval Test, almost two years since his efforts on the same ground helped England to win the 2005 Ashes. That match turned out to be his final Test appearance, but in the opinion of Simon Barnes in The Times, Giles is gone but should never be forgotten.
The great thing about Giles is that he became the best cricketer he possibly could have been. He fulfilled the talents he had to their uttermost degree, and how many geniuses can you say that about? He made the most of what he had and no man should be despised for that. It’s what we all try to do, whether we are Picasso or a painter and decorator.
Pressure on Prior
Matt Prior is not having a Test to remember at The Oval
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
Matt Prior is not having a Test to remember at The Oval. On the first two days he dropped Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman, while also letting through the small matter of 33 byes. In the last few Tests the runs have dried up, too, and coupled with the flak he received after the Trent Bridge match the honeymoon period is well and truly over. In The Times Simon Barnes says the England selectors only have themselves to blame as they continue to search for keepers who bat first and catch second.
But the fact is, Prior is not a very good Test-match wicketkeeper to start with and he has had two days when he has slipped well below his best. So, to look at it logically, he has to bat and bat; show us what he is best at. Which is not keeping wicket. That’s not what he was picked for.
Going out on a high
For the second time in the series Sachin Tendulkar fell within sight of a century and appears destined to end what is likely to be is final series in England without a hundred
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
For the second time in the series Sachin Tendulkar fell within sight of a century and appears destined to end what is likely to be is final series in England without a hundred. His 82 was a tough, grinding innings but served India's purpose well. In The Guardian Steve James says there were still plenty of glimpses of vintage Tendulkar and we should enjoy them while we can.
From the two balls previous to his demise he had hit boundaries which carried sufficient grace, precision and command to remind us of Tendulkar in his pomp. For a moment the grind of before - and the fortune of Matt Prior's drop with the Indian on 20 on Thursday - disappeared and the clock ticked back to a time when Tendulkar always batted with such authority and verve.
Victoria search for more green and gold
The under-represented Victoria have grand visions of lifting the number of representatives in Australia’s Test and one-day teams, Chloe Saltau writes in the Age .
Peter English
25-Feb-2013
The under-represented Victoria have grand visions of lifting the number of representatives in Australia’s Test and one-day teams, Chloe Saltau writes in the Age.
Brad Hodge and Cameron White are the only Bushrangers in possession of Cricket Australia contracts for the 2007-08 season, and since the retirement of Shane Warne, Victoria does not have a regular representative in the Test side. Under new chief executive and former Australian swing bowler, Tony Dodemaide, Cricket Victoria is taking steps to deal with the issue that has been a source of constant frustration to players, administrators and coaches.
Watson exposed on fake MySpace profile
Shane Watson has become the victim of a fake MySpace entry and the Australian Cricketers’ Association is upset, Malcolm Conn reports in the Australian .
Peter English
25-Feb-2013
Shane Watson has become the victim of a fake MySpace entry and the Australian Cricketers’ Association is upset, Malcolm Conn reports in the Australian.
Under Shane's Blurbs on the site, it says: "I'm Shane Watson, but you probably recognise me cause I'm hot. I like to model … I like to play cricket, but I'm usually injured." The ACA chief executive Paul Marsh claimed the false entries on MySpace were a "pathetic exploitation by people who have nothing better to do with their time".
Zaheer Khan looks a complete bowler
Zaheer Khan’s performance at Trent Bridge showed that he finally may be the spearhead India needs
Sriram Veera
25-Feb-2013
Zaheer Khan’s performance at Trent Bridge showed that he finally may be the spearhead India needs. His numbers since his return in South Africa are instructive, writes S Ram Mahesh in the Sportstar.
Full postStar who ran himself out
With Sachin Tendulkar likely to play his last Test match in England, at The Oval, Derek Pringle spares a thought for a player who may well have upstaged him at the very beginning - Vinod Kambli
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
With Sachin Tendulkar likely to play his last Test match in England, at The Oval, Derek Pringle spares a thought for a player who may well have upstaged him at the very beginning - Vinod Kambli. Kambli's story, particularly when placed beside that of his childhood friend, is a modern tale of how quickly sport's shining paths can lead to a dead end once the small details are ignored.
In the team meeting beforehand, one of England's pace bowlers had piped up that he could get him out with an orange. When Kambli reached 200 in front of an ecstatic home crowd in Mumbai, Robin Smith turned to the bowler in question and said - "don't you think it's time you pulled out that bloody orange."
Read the full piece in the Telegraph.
Full post