The Surfer
Flintoff would make a good captain
Geoff Boycott says in The Daily Telegraph that Andrew Flintoff has 'an intuitive feel for the job' and would do a 'fantastic job' if and when Michael Vaughan retires.
Will
25-Feb-2013
Geoff Boycott says in The Daily Telegraph that Andrew Flintoff has 'an intuitive feel for the job' and would do a 'fantastic job' if and when Michael Vaughan retires.
I disagree with Vaughan that Flintoff cannot captain the side on a regular basis. I rate Michael as the best captain in the world at the moment and, if he recovers from his knee injury, he will take over. If he doesn't then Flintoff will do a fantastic job.
There is a theory that all-rounders don't make the best captains, but I don't subscribe to it. Garry Sobers, one of the greatest cricketers ever, was a successful captain of the West Indies.
Imran Khan, the best leader of men I have ever seen, lifted Pakistan to great heights, and Richie Benaud, whose opinion I respect, reckons that Keith Miller was the best captain he ever played under at New South Wales.
Full postIs ‘Pommy bastard’ racist?
After the ICC’s report about racism in Australian crowds, Trevor Marshallsea writes in the Sydney Morning Herald about whether spectators will be able to call next year’s tourists “Pommy bastards” .
Peter English
25-Feb-2013
After the ICC’s report about racism in Australian crowds, Trevor Marshallsea writes in the Sydney Morning Herald about whether spectators will be able to call next year’s tourists “Pommy bastards”.
It seems the answer depends on who you ask, or perhaps on when you ask it … As James Sutherland [Cricket Australia’s chief executive] fielded questions, he was asked whether spectators might be ejected from grounds for shouting "Pommy bastard" at an English player. "I would have thought so, yeah. I would have thought if it is regarded as a racist comment, then yes," said Mr Sutherland, later adding: "We need to be very sensitive to it."
However, The Surfer is not convinced Bill Woodfull, the gentlemanly captain, was the source of the quote to Douglas Jardine at the end of the story.
Robert Craddock reports in The Courier-Mail Cricket Australia is expected to push for tough new fines to fix the crowd problem.
Full postLet him be, let him choose
Kadambari Murali writes about the reason she fell in love with cricket, and hopes Tendulkar gets a chance to choose his time of exit.
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
Kadambari Murali writes about the reason she fell in love with cricket, and hopes Tendulkar gets a chance to choose his time of exit.
In a world of greys and blacks and whites, of people who seemed older, more forbidding, Tendulkar was a breath of fresh air - he filled in all the colours. We lived our lives vicariously, through his life. When he did well, we did well; when he didn't, we cried.
Call to 'raise the alarm'
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
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India’s 212-run loss to a rejuvenated England in the series-leveler at Mumbai has elicited a slew of criticism from the Indian press. While not entirely overwhelming, the response from media highlighted the obvious: that India have yet again failed to deliver in a telling Test match situation.
Many criticised Rahul Dravid’s decision to field first; some lamented the inclusion of five bowlers; others found India’s constant experimentation hard to digest; but most slammed the teams’ weakness to fight back under pressure.
Harsha Bhogle, in his column for the Indian Express, said that Rahul Dravid will remember his 100th Test for all the wrong reasons.
Full postThe hidden future
It is often said that the future stars of English cricket are hidden away in the strong leagues which are filled with talented Asian players
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
It is often said that the future stars of English cricket are hidden away in the strong leagues which are filled with talented Asian players. However, many of these players never progress through the ranks. But Yorkshire are now making a major effort to tap into the pool of talent as David Conn reports in The Guardian
Full postTalented players of Pakistani origin played their way gradually in large numbers into the historic clubs of the Bradford League, arguably the country's strongest amateur competition - which starts up again in two weeks' time - but none was picked up by Yorkshire. Painfully few watch county cricket at Headingley.
Now you can read this
Simon Barnes told the readers of The Times not to pick up the paper this morning
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
Simon Barnes told the readers of The Times not to pick up the paper this morning. Instead they should go and find a TV to watch the final day at Mumbai. England could be about to produce a very special win. Well, they've done it, so now you can read about how Andrew Flintoff's very un-Freddie style innings set it all up.
Full postLord, but it was hard yesterday. It was impossible to tell whether England were playing with masterly restraint or poking and prodding away the chance of a cricketing lifetime. I’ll tell you which at about elevenses today; when it’s time for a chocolate digestive and a cup of tea, England will know whether they were wise or foolish virgins yesterday.
Waiting for the Caribbean flair
Some day, it'll just not be worth it
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
Some day, it'll just not be worth it. The huge amount of ink spilt to make sense of it all will have been archived into obscurity, the heart would have numbed, the pages devoted to the West Indies' decline will be buried in newsprint devoted to modern cricket's instant dramas.Nandita Sridhar in The Sportstar sums up the sorry plight of West Indies,at the same time longing for a romantic turnaround.
Water, water, not everywhere
It may be hard to believe, with temperatures in the UK barely breaking freezing point, but the new season is just around the corner
Andrew McGlashan
25-Feb-2013
It may be hard to believe, with temperatures in the UK barely breaking freezing point, but the new season is just around the corner. However, some county grounds are facing a problem because, even though the winter has been cold it has been very dry. Hosepipe bans are soon coming into force and the water restrictions could hit some counties, like Sussex, as reported in the The Argus
Full postThe making of The Wall
Vedam Jaishankar, Rahul Dravid's biographer, writes about Dravid's formative years in cricket,higlighting his ability to convert disadvantages to opportunities.Read the full piece in Rediff .
Kanishkaa Balachandran
25-Feb-2013
Vedam Jaishankar, Rahul Dravid's biographer, writes about Dravid's formative years in cricket,higlighting his ability to convert disadvantages to opportunities.Read the full piece in Rediff.
When a chit of a boy, just 13 years of age, and with parents in tow, hesitantly walked into St Joseph's Boys School principal Fr Dennis Coelho's office two decades ago to seek permission to skip classes for a few days, little did any of them guess that they were at the crossroads of history.
Trashing Tendulkar isn't cricket
Not many would have imagined there would come a day when Sachin Tendulkar was booed out of his home ground at Mumbai.
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
Not many would have imagined there would come a day when Sachin Tendulkar was booed out of his home ground at Mumbai.
Many sports lovers have lost the capacity to look at the larger picture and understand events in a historical perspective, writes Nirmal Shekar
Also read Sambit Bal's piece on Cricinfo on Tendulkar's recent Test struggles.
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