Tour Diary
Grace Road ... feels like home
It's an Asian carnival at Grace Road, what with Leicester having such a large population of both Indians and Sri Lankans
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
It's an Asian carnival at Grace Road, what with Leicester having such a large population of both Indians and Sri Lankans. A number of fans carried along trumpets, creating one heck of a noise through the day. One journalist, irritated with the extent of the noise, shouted out: "This is not India or Sri Lanka, behave as if you're in England."
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The fire-prevention authorities are here. Making the most of a packed house, they're giving out smoke detectors and pamphlets, stressing the importance of guarding against fire. The brochures are in three different languages – English, Urdu and Gujarati – and have been made specifically for Asian week. Around five feet away, a couple of young men light their cigarettes. Thankfully the alarms aren't on.
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Full postNegative questions in positive times
Robin's argument might run thus: we've thumped England in a Test after being given no chance and here I am answering questions about our shoddiness in the field.
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
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Sukhvir Singh, a promising pace bowler who recently won the Cricket Star reality show in India, is currently in Leicester. He's part of the second XI team at the county and bowled to the Indians at the nets today. Such distances people travel to bowl at their heroes!
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Full postWhen Basher made way for Sobers
The spirit of Garry Sobers lingers on at Trent Bridge but he has someone to thank for his stint at Nottinghamshire
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
The spirit of Garry Sobers lingers on at Trent Bridge but he has someone to thank for his stint at Nottinghamshire.
It was in 1968 that Basher Hassan, a talented batsman from Kenya, had qualified to play for Notts, only to hear that he would have to make way for Sobers. Born in Nairobi, Basher impressed members of an England touring team in 1963. After monitoring his progress for two years, members of Notts CC decided to sign him as an overseas player but told him to first qualify, after playing in the leagues.
Full postThe temerity of Ashley Giles
You know it's time somebody presented Ashley Giles with a dictionary when he stomps around the media centre demanding to know meanings of words like temerity and irony.
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
You know it's time somebody presented Ashley Giles with a dictionary when he stomps around the media centre demanding to know meanings of words like temerity and irony. The sequence of events was roughly in this order: Giles, in an interview during this Test, talks about Tendulkar's declining powers, Tendulkar compiles 91 before being wrongly adjudged lbw, David Hopps, a cricket writer with the Guardian newspaper, writes a piece on Tendulkar-mania, and slips in a line that reads, " … Ashley Giles, who had the temerity at the weekend to remark that Tendulkar's batting prowess had waned a little ...."
Giles obviously didn't get the irony. In fact, when Hopps tried to explain the context, he shot back: "What is irony?” His main contention was "temerity", which he felt was too extreme a word. A serious argument soon turned ugly: Giles demanded an explanation, Hopps told him to stop being "paranoid", delightful verbals bounced off the walls before Hopps thought it best to take a walk around the ground to cool off.
Full postOnce an opener, now an umpire
Former England opener Tim Robinson, who’s currently a first-class umpire, can’t get enough of the action.
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
It’s been an eventful few weeks for umpires during this series. At Lord’s they were too busy sending batsmen back; at Trent Bridge they’ve generously allowed batsmen some leeway until today, when they reverted to type. Former England opener Tim Robinson, who’s currently a first-class umpire, can’t get enough of the action.
Robinson’s debut was in the Bombay Test of 1984-85, a match remembered as much for Laxman Sivaramakrishnan’s googlies as the contentious umpiring decisions. In fact Robinson’s dismissal in the second innings, lbw to Kapil Dev, was one of the talking points of the match. He recalls being angry at the time but empathises with the umpire now that he's one himself.
Just a little while before this diary landed up on Robinson's lap, umpire Simon Taufel has sent back Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly, both to questionable decisions. Robinson, who’s aspiring to be included in the ICC panel, twitches when asked about them. Here he is working his way onto the Elite Panel, and here are these spectators cursing the umpires out in the middle.
Full postA cameraman with the best seat in the house
Mike Hutton comes to the cricket every day but ends up sitting alone
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
Mike Hutton comes to the cricket every day but ends up sitting alone. He’s only a “moderate” cricket fan, whose “main sport” is tennis, but he has a job to do and that requires him to come to cricket grounds. He needs to cover himself more than the others – today he was clothed in four layers of shirts and three layers of trousers – to combat the weather.
Hutton, who is a SKY Sports cameraman, watches the game from 200 feet above ground level, capturing the moments of a Test for television. It’s a view that’s used to show fielding positions and close run-out calls. Hutton can also view all the replays the other cameras have captured at a click of a button.
Hutton, 55, has been doing the job for a number of years now but he continues to enjoy every moment of it. “It’s the best seat in the house because I feel very much part of the action.” Any disadvantages? “It’s a bit cold up there, and you’re very much alone.”
Full postA good toss to lose and Rocky's knock out
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan talks to Graham Gooch about Mohammad Azharuddin's decision to put England in at Lord's in 1990
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
It's 17 years since Graham Gooch tortured India with the 333 at Lord's. It's also 17 years since Mohammad Azharuddin stuck England in at Lord's in what went down as a shocker. Gooch, though, is more sympathetic: "The toss is always difficult. You had a situation today in Trent Bridge where either captain might have thought that I am happy to lose the toss and let the other guy make the decision. It was difficult to know what to do. Normally, you bat first at Lord’s because the wicket is at its slowest on the first day.
"The ball will swing around in the first session of any Test match. It was a brave decision by Azharuddin to bowl first – not one which was met with absolute popularity from coach Bishan Bedi. He told me that he agreed with Azharuddin at the nets that he was going to bat first. But obviously, he changed his mind on the walk across the ground to the pavilion.
Full post'The day I was sacked'
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
Craig Smith, the former South African physio, is at Trent Bridge. Currently working with Nottinghamshire, Smith remembers his 11-year stint with South Africa but also narrates the way it all ended: "I got sacked as physio the same day that Hansie Cronje died [on June 1, 2002]. I got a call and was told that both me and Graham Ford were not needed anymore. An hour later I heard of Cronje's death. It was really hard but one needed to move on."
Smith then came over to England and enjoyed a short stay at Lancashire before moving over to Notts. "I had a chat with Tim Robinson, the former England opener, and he helped me move here." The last four years at Notts have been fruitful for Smith, the highpoint being the County Championship medal in 2005.
Full postMonty the diligent university student
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
You can imagine Monty Panesar in a class, diligent and attentive, grasping concepts eagerly and pumping his fists when he cracked a problem. At the IT department of the University of Loughborough Christian Dawson, a senior lecturer, remembers Monty from the batch of 2005 and terms him "quiet, yet hardworking".
It's tough locating Dawson and one needs to weave through the labyrinthine university corridors. He is a bit confused about the spelling, though he remembers him well, and struggles initially to find his records on the database. "Yeah, here he is," he says, “he's done pretty well for himself, hasn't he?"
Full postGood weather for cricket
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan ponders the many possibilties that rain and light offer cricket
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
25-Feb-2013
Sitting and watching the gentle pitter-patter today resulted in some interesting conversations in the press box. The first question on everyone's minds was when will that big black cloud arrive? Rain was expected, around half past one said the morning forecasts, but there was always a big 'If' that kept slipping into all discussions. The sun didn't peep out even once and it was just a matter of time before the heavens opened up. India might have been reminded of the fourth day of the Lahore Test, in January 2006, when a consistently murky day produced a Sehwag-inspired batting fiesta.
"If it rains heavily, it may not be that good for India," said a few, "because the skies may clear up and play would surely get underway." We knew by now how good the drainage system at Lord's was; even a thunderstorm might not have mattered. Also, a bit of rain could leave the conditions extremely tough for batting, with the retained atmospheric moisture helping the swing bowlers.
It meant that India's best chance was to get a consistently cloudy day with the light dimming. It would also help if there was some mild drizzle around so that the umpires wouldn't think of re-starting play. At 3:30 in the afternoon all those eventualities combined in a perfect union. For close to four hours hardly anything changed: the drizzle occasionally got heavier, the light sometimes got a bit brighter but all the elements held on together, in a celestial balance, to allow no further play.
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