The Surfer
Hail the spinner
Few cricket coaches in this country know anything about finger spin let alone the mysteries of wrist spin as practised by the likes of Murali and Shane Warne
Sriram Veera
25-Feb-2013
Few cricket coaches in this country know anything about finger spin let alone the mysteries of wrist spin as practised by the likes of Murali and Shane Warne. The touchstone of knowledge is the ability to teach. If the knowledge of spin bowling is absent in our coaches who will impart it to the young?
I cannot agree with the modern tendency to crowd our schools’ cricket fixtures with so much limited over cricket.
Ray White, former UCB president, analyses the reasons why spin bowling is a dying art in South Africa.
Full postEngland's World Cup squad?
"We have picked this squad as if we had to play the World Cup next week," says David Graveney, the chairman of selectors.
Nishi Narayanan
25-Feb-2013
"We have picked this squad as if we had to play the World Cup next week," says David Graveney, the chairman of selectors.
But David Hopps writes in The Guardian that the worthlessness of England's Four Year Plan is now abundantly clear.
England have repeatedly claimed to be building for the next World Cup. The claim was derided then - the secret, the selectors were told, was to allow a side to evolve gradually- and yesterday the worthlessness of England's Four-Year Plan became abundantly clear. To make mass changes with so many players missing is folly.
Full postMCC museum gets Time Out recognition
Will
25-Feb-2013
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The MCC museum at Lord's has been given the thumbs up from this week's Time Out magazine.
t is the top-placed sports museum in the 'Time Out' review and, overall, it is rated fourth out of the 50 museums featured in the new edition - which is published today (Wednesday 7th June).
Readers of the magazine, the capital's leading leisure and entertainment guide, are encouraged to visit the Museum to see its extraordinary collection of cricket art and artefacts - including the world-renowned Ashes urn and the famous 'stuffed sparrow' from 1936.
Merlyn's maker meets Warne
Will
25-Feb-2013
Matthew Pryor, son of Henry - inventor of Merlyn, the spin machine which England used to combat Shane Warne (partially successful) and Muttiah Muralitharan (not at all successful) - was at The Rosebowl yesterday for the launch of Shane Warne's new business venture: PokerCricket.
He faced Warne in the nets for the first time, an interesting experience having only faced Warne's mechanical-double in the past. Our own Jenny Thompson was also at the day, and also faced Warne - the success of which we are yet to be privy to, but expect to hear about it on Cricinfo soon.
Full postChappell's own report card
In an exclusive interview to Ajay S Shankar of The Indian Express , Greg Chappell reviews his first year at the helm as coach of the Indian team, his relationship with Rahul Dravid, his plans for Sachin Tendulkar, and a note of the praise for the
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
In an exclusive interview to Ajay S Shankar of The Indian Express, Greg Chappell reviews his first year at the helm as coach of the Indian team, his relationship with Rahul Dravid, his plans for Sachin Tendulkar, and a note of the praise for the Indian selection committee.
I didn’t expect things to continue going upward the whole time. We were always going to have a few setbacks along the way. Particularly, as this year we have three overseas tours. There are always going to be some tough moments in that period.But in some ways, it might be a blessing in disguise, it has pointed out a few things.
All out for India
One of Sport Relief's projects, All Out for India, is to be televised on BBC One tonight and tomorrow and 9pm
Will
25-Feb-2013
One of Sport Relief's projects, All Out for India, is to be televised on BBC One tonight and tomorrow and 9pm. The event, involving thirteen celebrities - including Chris Evans and Phil Tufnell - took place in March. More info can be found at their site
Full postLara emerges with little credit
The row over the “catch” taken by Daren Ganga to remove MS Dhoni which tarnished the final session of the fourth day’s play at Antigua’s Recreation Ground was the talk of the Caribbean’s newspapers on Tuesday, with Brian Lara's antics taking
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
The row over the “catch” taken by Daren Ganga to remove MS Dhoni which tarnished the final session of the fourth day’s play at Antigua’s Recreation Ground was the talk of the Caribbean’s newspapers on Tuesday, with Brian Lara's antics taking centre stage.
Haydn Gill in the Barbados Nation lead the way.
“As the replays proved inconclusive, the decision was made in favour of the batsman. Lara appeared to ask for a further review, and when the verdict went against West Indies, he had a few words with Dhoni.”
Murali: A triumph over adversity
The morning after Muttiah Muralitharan spun England to a comprehensive defeat at Trent Bridge, the daily newspapers in the UK were full of praise for the Sri Lankans while expressing concern at England’s complete failure to come to press home
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
The morning after Muttiah Muralitharan spun England to a comprehensive defeat at Trent Bridge, the daily newspapers in the UK were full of praise for the Sri Lankans while expressing concern at England’s complete failure to come to press home advantages they had in all three Tests. The only solace for Duncan Fletcher was that unlike last summer, when cricket relegated football to the inside pages, the impending World Cup means that news of England’s gloom remains buried deep inside most papers.
The best summary of Muralitharan comes in The Guardian, which takes the unusual step of devoting part of its main editorial to praising the man and his wider achievements.
"For a lesson in how to triumph over adversity, the world of sport has provided few finer examples than Sri Lanka's priceless cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan. No player has been more scrutinised and microscopically examined than Murali, nor so carelessly disparaged, the victim of what politicians call spin of different sort. In any other profession, Muralitharan's ability to rise above the disability of an elbow that cannot entirely straighten would have been cause for praise. In cricket, instead, it has brought repeated allegations that his action is illegal, forcing him to undergo repeated biomechanic tests to prove his innocence. Those who care to study the findings of those tests can only accept that what they see is largely the result of an optical illusion."
Mystery pitch
We’ve all heard of mystery spinners, but what about mystery pitches
ESPNcricinfo staff
25-Feb-2013
We’ve all heard of mystery spinners, but what about mystery pitches? Residents of the Mallee in Victoria are puzzled by the discovery of a concrete pitch and are hoping to find out more – and they even wonder if there may be others like it, too. Discover more here.
Full postCash factor threatens Trent Bridge
Martin Williamson
25-Feb-2013
Watching the first three days of the Trent Bridge Test was about as perfect as it could get … sunshine, absorbing cricket and all in a lovely setting. But despite all the money spent on developing the venue, Nottingham’s future as a major centre for Test cricket is not assured after 2011 when its staging agreement with the ECB runs out.
In The Times, Richard Hobson reports that in the ECB’s new world of cash is king, however good the ground and facilities, money is what counts. And Nottingham, being the smallest of the traditional venues, is in a tight spot.
Full post