The Surfer
Doctor ECB
Put two doctors in the same room and you’ll get a breakdown in opinion
Will
25-Feb-2013
Put two doctors in the same room and you’ll get a breakdown in opinion. Put two doctors in a room with an England cricketer and you’ll get a statement from the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) saying everything is fine, then the player breaks down.
An excellent and forthright piece from Simon Wilde in today's Sunday Times
Full postThe village hero
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
The story of Munaf Patel's rise from rustic surroundings in a remote village is remarkably similar to that of the protagonist of the film Iqbal, which released last year. Atreyo Mukhopadhyay of The Hindustan Times caught up with Munaf, who spoke of his early battle with poverty. Also read Sriram Veera's Lowdown on Munaf.
Full post"I knew I could play at a higher level but had no idea of how to go about it. I didn’t know what Ranji Trophy or Duleep Trophy were. I started thinking of playing for India after moving to Mumbai"
Imran's journey
From tearaway fast bowler to inspirational captain, from international playboy to domestic politician, Imran Khan has been many things to many people
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
From tearaway fast bowler to inspirational captain, from international playboy to domestic politician, Imran Khan has been many things to many people. Tim Adams of The Observer sought out Imran in his house near Islamabad, and found him in the mood for a chat. They talk about cricket, about politics, but a domesticated Imran even reveals:
Full postI have fruit trees. Cows for fresh milk, yoghurt. My own wheat. I'm basically self-sufficient. I have made my boys a little cricket ground.
Lively pitches - the need of the hour
We seem to be living in an era of stalemates - no better example than the first three Tests in the West Indies
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
We seem to be living in an era of stalemates - no better example than the first three Tests in the West Indies. Peter Roebuck joins Brian Lara's plea for faster pitches to protect an endangered species known as fast bowlers. Watching an inept batsman against the moving ball doesn't seem to be the most ideal form of entertainment nowadays. Blame it on television. Read the full piece in The Hindu.
Full postAlas an eagerly awaited confrontation in the Caribbean has been reduced to a standstill by the lifelessness of the pitches. Throughout they have been as dreary as a plate of meat and two vegetarian dishes served by an English cook.
Is a cricket star born?
Another cricket talent hunt is going ahead in India
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
Another cricket talent hunt is going ahead in India. Hot on the heels of Scorpion Speedster, which aimed to find a fast bowler, is Cricket Star. This time the reward (if you can call it that) will be a professional contract with Leicestershire.
The deal has marketing wheeze written all over it, as Niranjan Shah, the BCCI secretary, appeared to confirm. When asked why the board had linked up with Investors In Cricket, the company who are promoting the competition, Shah said: "They are paying us." Can’t argue with that, really. But watch out England and Pakistan – plans are afoot to roll out the competition to these countries, too.
Full postSplitting them up
Spiltting the captaincy duties between Andrew Strauss and Andrew Flintoff could work for England, just as it did for Australia, writes Mike Selvey in The Guardian
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
Spiltting the captaincy duties between Andrew Strauss and Andrew Flintoff could work for England, just as it did for Australia, writes Mike Selvey in The Guardian.
For the past 10 months the England team, like Ray Charles with Georgia, have had Michael Vaughan on their minds. His gammy knee has allowed the fellow still referred to as the England captain to play in only two of the last nine Tests and none of the one-dayers since last summer, but no mind. He is still a spectre hanging over the dressing room.
Beachboys and bushmen
How do South Africa's busy international cricketers spend the off-season
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
How do South Africa's busy international cricketers spend the off-season? In the bush, on the beach, and all in white, it would seem. Telford Vice plays Roving Reporter in Supercricket.
Calls to the cell phones of Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher on Wednesday went unanswered, probably because they were together on a golf course somewhere.
Press lay into 'Sri-diculous' England
A year ago it seemed that all was well in England
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
A year ago it seemed that all was well in England. But after yesterday’s public humiliation the newspaper headlines were full of pictures of angst-ridden spectators and “is this the end” articles. Yes, Tim Henman crashed out of Wimbledon in the second round. That, and the media obsession with England’s footballers … well, their wives more like … was all that kept yet another drubbing for the one-day side off the back pages. The simple truth is that, at the moment, few in England really care. They will, of course, if this dire form rolls on into the winter.
In The Daily Telegraph, Derek Pringle admitted that he was at a loss as to a way to turn things round:
“With a whitewash at home only one match away, a malaise has set in for which the only cure is a return to winning ways, though quite how that might be achieved is not immediately apparent.”
It's simply not cricket, Joey
The Australian has greeted news that rugby league star Andrew Johns will play for New South Wales in Twenty20 matches next season with less than delight.
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
The Australian has greeted news that rugby league star Andrew Johns will play for New South Wales in Twenty20 matches next season with less than delight.
“Employing Johns' profile as a rugby league player is a bizarre way of convincing the public that Twenty20 has long-term potential. It does the opposite, confirming Twenty20 is all about gimmicks and short-term novelties that make it only fractionally removed from pick-up games in parks.”
And fast bowler Shaun Tait was another who appeared unimpressed, with a blunt message to Johns:
“You're fair game. If the game's for points then it's hell for leather isn't it? If he is happy to play he has to be happy to take the heat."
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