In this article, we take a look at arguably five of the best and most exciting one-day internationals to have taken place post World Cup 96. Though we have had many closer games in the period described, the matches that are mentioned here hold great significance historically, have had jam-packed housefull crowds, and have indeed been the most widely anticipated games in this period. What's more-they include the big teams in big tournaments, and have all gone down to the last over and ended with the narrowest of margins, to the extent of two of them being tied. Here's a look at them:
(1) Australia v/s South Africa-2nd Semi Final-World Cup 1999-17 June 1999 at Edgbaston, Birmingham: This one will always be mentioned as one of the greatest games to have taken place in the history of the game. And this one had it all-impeccable fast-bowling by Pollock and Donald, grittiness shown by Steve Waugh in the middle, and Bevan continuing to save Australia's boat from sinking as ever, to bamboozling leg-breaks by Shane Warne, a threatening partnership by Kallis and Jonty Rhodes, some really sloppy and some really extraordinary fielding by the Aussies, astonishingly fearless hitting by Klusner towards the end, and one of the most disastrous moments(nothing to do with violence, and on the field, of course) in cricketing history. And that moment has got more to do with handling of nerves, rather than cricketing expertise. What is most important in every story is the climax, and here was the last over, with South Africa needing nine to win off six balls, with Lance Klusner at the crease, who was looking to simply thrash Australia out of the tournament with his almost baseball-style hitting. After starting the over with two tremendous boundaries through the covers, whose technique cannot be described in cricketing books, all his team needed was one run of the last four balls, with the player of the tournament at the crease. Had he not known that South Africa were their smallest ever step away from making it to a World Cup final, he might have carried on his merry way, and simply thrashed another one, but the weight of a nation's dream was something he perhaps might not have been able to bear, which resulted in forcing him to just nudge the ball to one of the close-in fielders(all of them had been brought in) and run, even after his partner at the other end-Allan Donald, almost being run out on the third ball of the over. Great coordination by Mark Waugh at mid-off, Damien Fleming's underarm throw to Gilchrist who calmly just dislodged the stumps, helped in the game resulting in the first ever tie in a World Cup knockout match. And Australia made it through because of having finished the super sixes on a higher note, and luck favouring them in the World Cup semis as ever, and even going on to win the cup, and remain world champions for even the two succeeding world cups, and South Africa not being able to get any closer till date.
(2) England v/s India-Final-Natwest Series 2002-13 July 2002 at Lord's: With India being the land of spices, the fact that the Indian public loves masala movies, does not come as a surprise to any. And a hint of that masala in a cricket match just makes it all the more lovable. After nineteen long years of finishing the West Indies' world domination at a world cup final at this very venue, the Indians were back again, this time under the captaincy of their most inspirational Dada-Sourav Ganguly. While England's innings can be compared to not much more than one-way traffic, India's innings was what suggested of the same-a masala movie, much like Manmohan Desai's Amar Akbar Anthony in 1977. A target of 326 runs would be the second-highest ever chased, and not one that could be believed to be chased easily back then, though Ganguly had himself made it possible four years back in a final against Pakistan in Dhaka. And leaving behind the tag of being jinxed in tournament finals for months now, he along with Sehwag at the top of the order, made sure that India got to a flying start, getting to the hundred for no loss in just thirteen overs. But what followed was something that happens very often in one-day cricket when teams get to such flying starts-a collapse. And such was the collapse that India lost all of their top five, all the big guns, in the space of just forty runs. But to India's own surprise, deep down their order, stood two young men who were not willing to give up, and with a 221-run partnership, carried on with the chase in emphatic fashion, and even Yuvraj's wicket could not change the course of things, with Harbhajan being able to assist Kaif in just the right manner. But Harbhajan's wicket in the forty-eighth over brought about a double break, as Kumble followed in just two more balls. A sensible partnership, and two boundaries by Kaif in the penultimate over ensured that India did not need too many runs in the final over. Flintoff, who bowled the final over, could not do much, as Zaheer hit it straight to the covers and ran, but the throw was towards the end to where Kaif ran, who always tries to run like a Cheetah, and an overthrow resulting in the pair completing the winning runs, the Indian contingent of the crowd going wild, and Dada taking off his shirt and dancing, something that has achieved cult status and infamously become Dada's trademark.
ODI-Ind tour of Pak-13 March 2004 at National Stadium, Karachi: India were touring Pakistan after fifteen years. The crowd roared loud the moment Shoaib Akhtar ran in to bowl the first ball to Virender Sehwag. And with Shoaib getting the better of Sachin yet again, after a steady start on a batsman-friendly track, the series could not have got on to a better start, Dada was not afraid to smash the loose ones into the crowd, and Rahul, who had played a fine innings, could not manage to become the first Indian to score a one-day hundred in Pakistan, after playing on to a slower ball from Shoaib, while missing out on a century by just a solitary run. India managed to reach what looked to be a match winning total of 349, but Inzamam threw caution to the winds, with good assistance by Yousuf, and looked to take the game away from India, with just 72 needed with seven wickets remaining, at a required rate which wasn't very much higher than what was required initially. And though none of Razzaq and company could manage to be the perfect finisher, with India getting regular breakthroughs, runs kept coming, and that too to the extent that a six was needed for Pakistan to win from the final ball. And the situation became the same as it was some sixteen years ago, when Javed Miandad was at the crease, but back then a four would have done, this time, a sure-shot sixer was necessary, and at the crease was Moin Khan, Pakistan's veteran wicket-keeper for fourteen years now. And the man signalling from the dressing room was none other than Miandad himself, this time as coach. Only Moin Khan later, and Miandad himself, would know what he was signalling, but Ashish Nehra managed to bowl a full toss that was just slightly lower than the one Chetan Sharma bowled in Sharjah, and Moin's timing was not as perfect as Javed Bhai's, and hold out to Zaheer at mid-off(still wonder why Ganguly placed him within the circle), and India won the epic contest by five runs.
(4) England v/s Australia-Final-Natwest Series 2005-2 July 2005 at Lord's: A final at Lord's, the true Mecca of cricket, is something any die-hard cricket fan would long for, and this one has been the last of the lot so far(though the ICC World T20 2009 final was staged here). And what a game of cricket it was. Both the sides were fielding their best sides for the summer, with world-renowned opening partnerships on both sides, some of the world's most talented seamers and fast bowlers, and one spinner who could bat on either side, and strong batting line-ups through the middle, that had done well in the tournament. On a typical London morning, cloudy, grey, cold and overcast, the home side chose to field without any hesitation. But with Gilchrist's attacking strokeplay upfront, Australia got to their fifty in just the seventh over, but Hayden's wicket at that stage, sparked a top-order collapse, which left the world champions reeling at 93 for five. Symonds and newcomer Hussey came to the rescue, but before Symonds could open up to his natural game-which actually took him seventy-odd balls-he was gone, for just twenty-nine, but Hussey's responsible unbeaten innings ensured Australia would get as close to two hundred as possible, but in the end, fell just short by four runs. England could not have asked for a lower target on any days against the Aussies. But Australia's match-winning opening-bowling pair of Lee and McGrath rose to the occasion on a Saturday afternoon under conditions that assisted seam bowling. They removed the top five within no time, and England were down, and almost out at thirty-three for five. But Paul Collingwood and young Geraint Jones decided to fight it out. The required rate wasn't going to be a major problem with a less-than-moderate target, and they realized it, and went on with the chase calmly. Young Jones played attacking strokes in between, and regularly swept Hogg, and as described by one of the commentators, picked some unusual areas of the field to score boundaries. But the pair had managed to take their team to a situation where the target looked within reach, and even after the two of them got out, the tail could manage to take the game to the last over, and even after McGrath ran old man Goughie out, England needed three off the last ball, and Ponting set up the field perfectly for the last ball, Glenn bowled almost the perfect yorker, but no the perfect one, as it hit Ashley Giles' pads marginally outside off, and went off slowly to the short third man position, and the panic of saving the match from being a tie, resulted in a fumble, and by the time the man backing up threw the ball back to Gilchrist, the second run had been completed, and yet another amazing tie was registered in cricketing history.
(5)South Africa v/s Australia-5th ODI-Aus tour of RSA-12 March 2006 at New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg: If the creators of the game, back in the sixteenth century, would have thought about 872 runs being scored in a day, even with the assistance of seventeen men, and some thirty-nine extra runs, they would have certainly been thinking about jet age. But on the twelfth of march 2006, exactly the same happened. This game has not only contributed to the record books for more than one reason, it also holds great significance in the popularization of twenty-over cricket, or "pyjama cricket" in the twenty-first century. Not that this game had anything to do with a twenty-over game, but it made people believe that huge scores can be achieved in limited number of overs, any required rate can be achieve, if you have the will power and the application, and took cricket's definition perhaps a bit away from just "the gentleman's game". Because the men who were responsible for the deviation of this definition, might be gentlemen in real life, but the kind of antics they performed on the field, it never looked so. Well, the Wanderers has always been a batting paradise, and with a sunny Sunday here, no batsman in the world could ask for better batting conditions. And good, hard wickets always encourage orthodoxy, and purists or batting specialists would always relish stroke-making on such wickets, but then you know, twenty-six sixes, and most of them coming off bowlers who would bowl at handsome speeds of well over at least 130 kilometres per hour, has definitely got to do with more than just the conditions, and a lot to do with the spirit-that remained all day long. The kind of temperament with which especially Ponting and Gibbs batted, cannot be matched on most days, but with able assistance of others like Katich, Gilchrist, Hussey and Greame Smith, it had to be a feast for the quite hungry weekend crowd in Johannesburg. Good enough cameos from Symonds and Johann wan der Wath added just the spice that was required. Bracken's five-wicket haul on the day, must have been long forgotten, but it was a memorable day for the home team's veteran wicket-keeper, and arguably the best the world has ever seen with the gloves-Mark Boucher, who's batting skills were not much talked about, but on the day, he proved how good a finisher he is, on any day. The bowlers need not be blamed, and Mick Lewis got more stick than he deserved, spare a thought for the poor guy, and imagine, one of the greatest games of cricket ever played, ruining his career-Murali was taken apart for 99 earlier in the year-but then, other than just hard work, destiny can't be denied, and let's just remember the match for all the good things that happened-it will always be mentioned in the history of cricket's evolution over the years, and we just hope it goes a long way in the discovery of newer aspects and skills for the better of the same.
Wednesday 20 July 2011
Tuesday 12 July 2011
Another English summer awaits the champions!
Come the twenty-first of July, and we are about to witness another romantic saga-India's tour to England, after four long years. If the English tour back in 2007 was sensational, this one's got to be even better, I promise. And there is enough evidence that just suggests the same.
India have just won another overseas test series-something that was quite rare some fifteen years ago-but their far from ordinary performances overseas in the past decade and a half have helped them get rid of their "tigers at home and mice away" tag. And England, especially at home, look stronger than they did India was about to tour them in '07, and sort of invincible now, after having beaten Sri Lanka in the test as well as the one-day series. Two ashes victories-both at home and away, under Andrew Strauss's captaincy, will definitely help to rope in more percentage of English fans, than the ones that turned up last time around. But the fact that India have never lost any test series under Dhoni's captaincy, makes the odds more even. After a long time, we will get to see a test series where none of the teams start as favourites.
There is a lot of history surrounding the intense rivalry between the two sides, who have over the years fought passionately, and equally gracefully, to attain supremacy over one another. And since the turn of the millennium, we haven't had any whitewashes, and no test series has ended with a margin of more than one test match being won by the winning team. And though India are the one-day champions, England have always looked to challenge India in the bilateral ODI series, having won the last two against India at home. However, we are going to have test cricket for an entire month now, so let's just have a look at how the two sides are looking at the moment.
The opening partnership of Stauss and Cook has been impeccable to say the least, and will be a matter of concern for the visitors. The middle order looks settled with Pietersen, Bell, Prior and Morgan, and with Trott trotting runs the way he is, we can expect some individual milestones being reached here. Greamme Swann is at the moment, no doubt, the best spinner in the world, and has been taking care of the spin department single-handedly for a long time now. Anderson and Broad have been a match-winning pair for seasons now, and with good assistance from a third seamer like Tremlett, there lies a challenge for the strongest of batting line-ups.
How India will fare at the start of the test series, however, is something that is a bit of a bother right now. The middle order is in good form with Rahul and VVS already having displayed shades of their class in the Carribean, Suresh Raina with a couple of fine knocks will start as India's no.6, Dhoni also having regained a bit of his touch in the Roseau test, and Sachin does not often take long to settle down, even after missing the game for long amounts of time. Zaheer, who would have had a good amount of rest after the IPL, will have good support from Ishant and Praveen, who struck repeatedly in conditions that were not assisting the seamers too much in the Carribean. However, the departments where India might just struggle with, first up, are the opening slot-with Sehwag missing out at Lord's at least, and Harbhajan's poor form, even on spin-friendly tracks, let alone English conditions, that do not offer too much assistance to the spinners. And if they just get over their frenzy of finding it hard to dismiss the tail, there's nothing like it.
However, with both sides going in with full strength squads and plenty of experience, expect nothing short of a smashing season of cricket ahead!
India have just won another overseas test series-something that was quite rare some fifteen years ago-but their far from ordinary performances overseas in the past decade and a half have helped them get rid of their "tigers at home and mice away" tag. And England, especially at home, look stronger than they did India was about to tour them in '07, and sort of invincible now, after having beaten Sri Lanka in the test as well as the one-day series. Two ashes victories-both at home and away, under Andrew Strauss's captaincy, will definitely help to rope in more percentage of English fans, than the ones that turned up last time around. But the fact that India have never lost any test series under Dhoni's captaincy, makes the odds more even. After a long time, we will get to see a test series where none of the teams start as favourites.
There is a lot of history surrounding the intense rivalry between the two sides, who have over the years fought passionately, and equally gracefully, to attain supremacy over one another. And since the turn of the millennium, we haven't had any whitewashes, and no test series has ended with a margin of more than one test match being won by the winning team. And though India are the one-day champions, England have always looked to challenge India in the bilateral ODI series, having won the last two against India at home. However, we are going to have test cricket for an entire month now, so let's just have a look at how the two sides are looking at the moment.
The opening partnership of Stauss and Cook has been impeccable to say the least, and will be a matter of concern for the visitors. The middle order looks settled with Pietersen, Bell, Prior and Morgan, and with Trott trotting runs the way he is, we can expect some individual milestones being reached here. Greamme Swann is at the moment, no doubt, the best spinner in the world, and has been taking care of the spin department single-handedly for a long time now. Anderson and Broad have been a match-winning pair for seasons now, and with good assistance from a third seamer like Tremlett, there lies a challenge for the strongest of batting line-ups.
How India will fare at the start of the test series, however, is something that is a bit of a bother right now. The middle order is in good form with Rahul and VVS already having displayed shades of their class in the Carribean, Suresh Raina with a couple of fine knocks will start as India's no.6, Dhoni also having regained a bit of his touch in the Roseau test, and Sachin does not often take long to settle down, even after missing the game for long amounts of time. Zaheer, who would have had a good amount of rest after the IPL, will have good support from Ishant and Praveen, who struck repeatedly in conditions that were not assisting the seamers too much in the Carribean. However, the departments where India might just struggle with, first up, are the opening slot-with Sehwag missing out at Lord's at least, and Harbhajan's poor form, even on spin-friendly tracks, let alone English conditions, that do not offer too much assistance to the spinners. And if they just get over their frenzy of finding it hard to dismiss the tail, there's nothing like it.
However, with both sides going in with full strength squads and plenty of experience, expect nothing short of a smashing season of cricket ahead!
Monday 11 July 2011
Cometh the hour, cometh the man!!!!
Well, the title of this article might be very common, and might have been used very often, but the man who I am associating it with, right now, is someone who is very unique-Yuvraj Singh!
And if there is someone in Indian cricket(if not world cricket) for whom this phrase can be used most naturally, it's just got to be him. The reason why I choose him as the man for the hour is the fact that he has played some of the most unbelievable and amazing innings in the most testing of situations in the biggest of tournaments for India. And to prove the point further, featured below is a list of some of the most crucial innings of Yuvraj's career in One-dayers, Twenty20's and at the highest level of the game as well(as of 11th July, 2011).
(1) 84 v Australia at Nairobi(Gym) on 7 October 2000(1st Quarter Final-ICC Knockout 2000-ODI): Coming out to bat for the first time ever at the international level, that too against the world champions in a quarter final of one of cricket's biggest tournaments, with India having lost the big three-Sourav, Sachin and Rahul-with just 90 on the board, young Yuvi grabbed this opportunity hands on. Smashing the ball to all parts of the ground, the way he constructed his innings, did not, for a moment suggest that this was his first innings at the world stage. A strokeful innings containing twelve boundaries was almost the dream start any cricketer would have wanted in such a situation, and had he got to a hundred, which he was not very far away from, he could not have asked for more. But nevertheless, this established his place in India's batting line-up straightaway, and showcased his talent in front of the world. The end result-India winning the match, and going through to the semis.
(2) 69 v England at Lord's on 13 July 2002(Final-Natwest Series 2002-ODI): When he came out to bat, Indian supporters were not really expecting a lot from him, and all eyes were on the other end, where their last hope, Sachin Tendulkar, was trying to get India out of the mess they found themselves in, after a disastrous middle-order collapse. But when Sachin was gone, in the space of 16 runs, most Indians would have lost all hope, and surrendered to the fact that India was going to loose yet another final, in front of a packed Lord's crowd, where India had historically defeated West Indies in the World Cup final nineteen years ago. But Yuvraj at no.6, and Kaif, at no.7, had another plans. They carried on from where Sourav and Sehwag had left, and made sure that the required rate, while chasing what was then the second-highest target ever achieved, was never out of reach. A mistimed paddle-sweep off Collingwood, after a 121-run partnership with Mohammed Kaif, was something that Yuvraj rued for a long time, and breathed only when India were through at the end, and Sourav Ganguly a.k.a. Dada, had already taken his shirt off(a perfect response to what Flintoff did at Wankhede at the end of the bilateral series at the start of the year), and waved it all around the Lord's balcony.
(3) 58 v England at Durban on 19 September 2007(21st Match, Group E-ICC World T20 2007): More than anything else, this match would always be remembered for Yuvraj's six sixes off the penultimate over of India's innings, bowled by Stuart Broad. Not only was it a world record, but also made sure that India got a score well above 200, and batted England out of the game. This was a turning point in India's journey through the inaugral Twenty20 World Cup, and things turned India's way indeed afterwards, and gave India's batting and energy the necessary momentum they needed to beat big sides in big matches further on in the tournament.
(4) 70 v Australia at Durban on 22 September 2007(2nd Semi Final-ICC World T20 2007): With the form the world-renowned opening partnership of Gilchrist-Hayden was in the tournament, India had to score a more-than challenging total on a batting paradise(of course, there was good amount of movement and bounce on the surface) at Durban. And with India at 60 for 2 after the first ten overs, Yuvraj was the only man who could make that possible, and he did respond, and what a response-70 off just 29 balls, smashing Brett Lee and company all around, he was looking to smash the thirtieth ball out of the ground as well, but hold out to Michael Hussey in the deep, but with the help of some sensible hitting with Dhoni at the end, took India to what proved to be a match-winning total of 188, even with Haydos carrying on with his smashing form.
(5) 169 v Pakistan at Bangalore(1st Innings) from 8-12 Dec 2007(3rd Test-Pak tour of India, 2007-08): India had not won a test series at home against Pakistan in 28 years, but good work in the first two tests from Kumble and company had created a good chance to clinch this series, and saving the last test would have been good enough. With Sachin and Dhoni not available for the last test, Yuvraj and Dinesh Karthik came is an replacements in the batting order. With India batting first on a December sunday morning, Yasir Arafat on his test debut, along with help from in-and-out of the side Mohammed Sami, had reduced India to 61 for 4, with Sourav, who was in cracking form in the series, at the other end, to assist Yuvraj, who was playing a test match after a long time, but in stunning limited-overs form in the meanwhile. And this would have been one of the reasons that helped him counter-attack, and what a counter-attack this proved to be. A three-hundred run partnership, in which Yuvraj played some really stunning shots, one of the highlights being a backfoot-punch way over mid-off, and as always, there were no signs of nerves. Though he missed out on a chance to capatalize in the second innings on his birthday, thanks to a miserable caught-behind decision, his two wickets, alongside Kumble's five towards the end of the day, encouraged thoughts of a possible 2-0 series win, but even bad light, that eventually resulted in a draw, ensured India finally beat Pakistan at home with a series win after a long draught.
(6) 85* v England at Chennai(2nd Innings) from 11-15 Dec 2008(1st Test-Eng tour of India, 2008-09): After two-three weeks of nightmare, following terrorist attacks in Mumbai the preceding month, cricket was finally back. And Sourav's retirement after the Australia series, finally offered Yuvraj a chance to cement his place in the test side. After failing in the first innings, a judicious declaration by England in the second innings, asking India to chase a record target of 387 at home, followed by a smashing start given by Sehwag in India's second innings, and the fourth wicket falling with the score at 224, gave Yuvraj the perfect platform to show his test-match skills, and he did just that, and would have easily scored his hundred, because at one stage, when he was already eighty-something, he was ahead of Sachin's score. But he decided to underplay at that stage, playing solid forward defence, and allowing his senior partner to get to a hundred, as well as the winning runs, which would act as a double-tribute to Mumbai, where the great Mr. Tendulkar hails from.
(7) 60* v Sri Lanka at Mohali on 12 December 2009(2nd T20I, Sri Lanka tour of India-2009-10): This innings might not be of great significance from a tournament perspective, but historically, this is to-date, the highest target achieved in T20 international's. And an all-round performance, with three wickets while bowling first to Sri Lanka, on his home ground, and that too, on his 28th birthday, and a man-of-the-match award, was just icing on the cake. Considering the fact that those sixty runs came off just 25 balls, clearly suggests that the birthday boy was in the party mood, and was not holding back one bit.
(8) 57* v Australia at Ahmedabad on 24 March 2011(2nd Quarter Final-ICC World Cup 2011): Well, I would rate this one above all of his previous innings, and even the ones mentioned above. Because this came in the quarter-finals of the World Cup, against the World Champions, who had won the previous three world cups alongwith the 1987 win in the subcontinent to make it four, and were looking pretty much on course to make it five, with India at 187 for five, while chasing a target of 261. With Dhoni gone, the equation was pretty straight forward-74 runs needed off 75 balls, and at the other end was Suresh Raina-Dhoni's big gamble at such a crucial stage of the tournament. Mitchell Johnson was bowling good lines to Yuvraj, who was looking to struggle initially, and the attack also consisted of two of the fastest bowlers in the world-Lee and Tait. The opposition captain was someone who had already won two of the previous editions of the world cup, and was famous for choking sides while defending totals, with his tactful conduct. But Raina's great body language, which did not suggest any signs of nerves, would have definitely helped Yuvraj to get over any fear, and a strokeful unbeaten partnership of 74 runs, ensured that they would not have to even bother their tail, and achieved the target with 15 balls to spare. A good hand of 21 not out in the final, while chasing an even bigger total, finally helped India to the World Cup trophy after 28 long years.
And if there is someone in Indian cricket(if not world cricket) for whom this phrase can be used most naturally, it's just got to be him. The reason why I choose him as the man for the hour is the fact that he has played some of the most unbelievable and amazing innings in the most testing of situations in the biggest of tournaments for India. And to prove the point further, featured below is a list of some of the most crucial innings of Yuvraj's career in One-dayers, Twenty20's and at the highest level of the game as well(as of 11th July, 2011).
(1) 84 v Australia at Nairobi(Gym) on 7 October 2000(1st Quarter Final-ICC Knockout 2000-ODI): Coming out to bat for the first time ever at the international level, that too against the world champions in a quarter final of one of cricket's biggest tournaments, with India having lost the big three-Sourav, Sachin and Rahul-with just 90 on the board, young Yuvi grabbed this opportunity hands on. Smashing the ball to all parts of the ground, the way he constructed his innings, did not, for a moment suggest that this was his first innings at the world stage. A strokeful innings containing twelve boundaries was almost the dream start any cricketer would have wanted in such a situation, and had he got to a hundred, which he was not very far away from, he could not have asked for more. But nevertheless, this established his place in India's batting line-up straightaway, and showcased his talent in front of the world. The end result-India winning the match, and going through to the semis.
(2) 69 v England at Lord's on 13 July 2002(Final-Natwest Series 2002-ODI): When he came out to bat, Indian supporters were not really expecting a lot from him, and all eyes were on the other end, where their last hope, Sachin Tendulkar, was trying to get India out of the mess they found themselves in, after a disastrous middle-order collapse. But when Sachin was gone, in the space of 16 runs, most Indians would have lost all hope, and surrendered to the fact that India was going to loose yet another final, in front of a packed Lord's crowd, where India had historically defeated West Indies in the World Cup final nineteen years ago. But Yuvraj at no.6, and Kaif, at no.7, had another plans. They carried on from where Sourav and Sehwag had left, and made sure that the required rate, while chasing what was then the second-highest target ever achieved, was never out of reach. A mistimed paddle-sweep off Collingwood, after a 121-run partnership with Mohammed Kaif, was something that Yuvraj rued for a long time, and breathed only when India were through at the end, and Sourav Ganguly a.k.a. Dada, had already taken his shirt off(a perfect response to what Flintoff did at Wankhede at the end of the bilateral series at the start of the year), and waved it all around the Lord's balcony.
(3) 58 v England at Durban on 19 September 2007(21st Match, Group E-ICC World T20 2007): More than anything else, this match would always be remembered for Yuvraj's six sixes off the penultimate over of India's innings, bowled by Stuart Broad. Not only was it a world record, but also made sure that India got a score well above 200, and batted England out of the game. This was a turning point in India's journey through the inaugral Twenty20 World Cup, and things turned India's way indeed afterwards, and gave India's batting and energy the necessary momentum they needed to beat big sides in big matches further on in the tournament.
(4) 70 v Australia at Durban on 22 September 2007(2nd Semi Final-ICC World T20 2007): With the form the world-renowned opening partnership of Gilchrist-Hayden was in the tournament, India had to score a more-than challenging total on a batting paradise(of course, there was good amount of movement and bounce on the surface) at Durban. And with India at 60 for 2 after the first ten overs, Yuvraj was the only man who could make that possible, and he did respond, and what a response-70 off just 29 balls, smashing Brett Lee and company all around, he was looking to smash the thirtieth ball out of the ground as well, but hold out to Michael Hussey in the deep, but with the help of some sensible hitting with Dhoni at the end, took India to what proved to be a match-winning total of 188, even with Haydos carrying on with his smashing form.
(5) 169 v Pakistan at Bangalore(1st Innings) from 8-12 Dec 2007(3rd Test-Pak tour of India, 2007-08): India had not won a test series at home against Pakistan in 28 years, but good work in the first two tests from Kumble and company had created a good chance to clinch this series, and saving the last test would have been good enough. With Sachin and Dhoni not available for the last test, Yuvraj and Dinesh Karthik came is an replacements in the batting order. With India batting first on a December sunday morning, Yasir Arafat on his test debut, along with help from in-and-out of the side Mohammed Sami, had reduced India to 61 for 4, with Sourav, who was in cracking form in the series, at the other end, to assist Yuvraj, who was playing a test match after a long time, but in stunning limited-overs form in the meanwhile. And this would have been one of the reasons that helped him counter-attack, and what a counter-attack this proved to be. A three-hundred run partnership, in which Yuvraj played some really stunning shots, one of the highlights being a backfoot-punch way over mid-off, and as always, there were no signs of nerves. Though he missed out on a chance to capatalize in the second innings on his birthday, thanks to a miserable caught-behind decision, his two wickets, alongside Kumble's five towards the end of the day, encouraged thoughts of a possible 2-0 series win, but even bad light, that eventually resulted in a draw, ensured India finally beat Pakistan at home with a series win after a long draught.
(6) 85* v England at Chennai(2nd Innings) from 11-15 Dec 2008(1st Test-Eng tour of India, 2008-09): After two-three weeks of nightmare, following terrorist attacks in Mumbai the preceding month, cricket was finally back. And Sourav's retirement after the Australia series, finally offered Yuvraj a chance to cement his place in the test side. After failing in the first innings, a judicious declaration by England in the second innings, asking India to chase a record target of 387 at home, followed by a smashing start given by Sehwag in India's second innings, and the fourth wicket falling with the score at 224, gave Yuvraj the perfect platform to show his test-match skills, and he did just that, and would have easily scored his hundred, because at one stage, when he was already eighty-something, he was ahead of Sachin's score. But he decided to underplay at that stage, playing solid forward defence, and allowing his senior partner to get to a hundred, as well as the winning runs, which would act as a double-tribute to Mumbai, where the great Mr. Tendulkar hails from.
(7) 60* v Sri Lanka at Mohali on 12 December 2009(2nd T20I, Sri Lanka tour of India-2009-10): This innings might not be of great significance from a tournament perspective, but historically, this is to-date, the highest target achieved in T20 international's. And an all-round performance, with three wickets while bowling first to Sri Lanka, on his home ground, and that too, on his 28th birthday, and a man-of-the-match award, was just icing on the cake. Considering the fact that those sixty runs came off just 25 balls, clearly suggests that the birthday boy was in the party mood, and was not holding back one bit.
(8) 57* v Australia at Ahmedabad on 24 March 2011(2nd Quarter Final-ICC World Cup 2011): Well, I would rate this one above all of his previous innings, and even the ones mentioned above. Because this came in the quarter-finals of the World Cup, against the World Champions, who had won the previous three world cups alongwith the 1987 win in the subcontinent to make it four, and were looking pretty much on course to make it five, with India at 187 for five, while chasing a target of 261. With Dhoni gone, the equation was pretty straight forward-74 runs needed off 75 balls, and at the other end was Suresh Raina-Dhoni's big gamble at such a crucial stage of the tournament. Mitchell Johnson was bowling good lines to Yuvraj, who was looking to struggle initially, and the attack also consisted of two of the fastest bowlers in the world-Lee and Tait. The opposition captain was someone who had already won two of the previous editions of the world cup, and was famous for choking sides while defending totals, with his tactful conduct. But Raina's great body language, which did not suggest any signs of nerves, would have definitely helped Yuvraj to get over any fear, and a strokeful unbeaten partnership of 74 runs, ensured that they would not have to even bother their tail, and achieved the target with 15 balls to spare. A good hand of 21 not out in the final, while chasing an even bigger total, finally helped India to the World Cup trophy after 28 long years.
Sunday 3 July 2011
Dhoni's got to be more attacking
The World Cup is now over, and so is the IPL. And fairly enough, Mahendra Singh Dhoni has got the credit he deserves, from the fans and media alike. India, in cricket, at the moment, are on the top of the world. And it is Dhoni indeed, who presently holds the key to this wonderful unit which has achieved so much in the last decade and a half. But something somewhere is seriously lacking-and you won't just call it complacency after winning the World Cup-it was there even before, and has been there ever since he was tagged as the responsible leader rather than the explosive big-hitting, though rather unorthodox, but almost instant hit formula of India's ever so famous batting order.
His attacking nature was why he was preferred over many other wicket-keepers on the domestic scene, replaced VVS Laxman in India's one-day side, and forced the wicket-keeper's gloves off Rahul Dravid, for what has been more than six years now. And inarguably, he has been India's best wicket-keeper batsmen by far, and one of the best the world has ever seen-that is at least what his record suggests. But it has become far more calculative with the course of time, his game that is, and to be honest, the calculation even goes wrong sometimes-it is one of the proven side-effects of being too calculative in sport.
He is the captain, he knows how to bat much better than many others in thie game, and has the luxury to choose the number he wants to bat at. So why not bat at no.3 at times when the team needs a bit of momentum upfront, when the side is in a bit of a bother, when India need a match winner to go and blast out, and play an innings far away from ordinary, and change the course of the game. And even if he does, he should do it more often, sense the perfect occassion when the situation demands him to do so, and do it more often when the designated batsman at that position, be it test or one-day, is struggling, and not when the team is in a comfortable position, and has already had a perfect opening partnership.
And when it comes to decision making, there is still a bit that suggests that he needs to be more aggressive, rather than trying to be in an oversecured position first, and then going for the kill. One of the major features of Ponting captaincy in Australia's world domination era was the fact that the approach was attacking right through, at any stage of the came, and that was what automatically created a secure position. And that is exactly what Dhoni should do with his side. A fine example of such a situation where he failed to do so, was in India's second test against the West Indies at Barbados, that concluded yesterday. It's not exactly about the declaration, it's more about India's defensive-though not over-defensive(by test standards) approach on the fourth day, which was evident of instructions from the team management, and if they thought that was the only way out, Dhoni should have come in earlier, and at least tried to change things-if you already have the reputation of doing so, so why not now? The fact that Australia in their domination period of test cricket, won most of their matches, and draws were very few and far between. And in the one-dayers, by now, he must have realized when to take the batting powerplay, especially after India's middle-order failure in their World Cup fixture against South Africa at Nagpur.
All he needs to do is to go all out to achieve greatness, and he and his team will achieve all that they have ever dreamed of!
His attacking nature was why he was preferred over many other wicket-keepers on the domestic scene, replaced VVS Laxman in India's one-day side, and forced the wicket-keeper's gloves off Rahul Dravid, for what has been more than six years now. And inarguably, he has been India's best wicket-keeper batsmen by far, and one of the best the world has ever seen-that is at least what his record suggests. But it has become far more calculative with the course of time, his game that is, and to be honest, the calculation even goes wrong sometimes-it is one of the proven side-effects of being too calculative in sport.
He is the captain, he knows how to bat much better than many others in thie game, and has the luxury to choose the number he wants to bat at. So why not bat at no.3 at times when the team needs a bit of momentum upfront, when the side is in a bit of a bother, when India need a match winner to go and blast out, and play an innings far away from ordinary, and change the course of the game. And even if he does, he should do it more often, sense the perfect occassion when the situation demands him to do so, and do it more often when the designated batsman at that position, be it test or one-day, is struggling, and not when the team is in a comfortable position, and has already had a perfect opening partnership.
And when it comes to decision making, there is still a bit that suggests that he needs to be more aggressive, rather than trying to be in an oversecured position first, and then going for the kill. One of the major features of Ponting captaincy in Australia's world domination era was the fact that the approach was attacking right through, at any stage of the came, and that was what automatically created a secure position. And that is exactly what Dhoni should do with his side. A fine example of such a situation where he failed to do so, was in India's second test against the West Indies at Barbados, that concluded yesterday. It's not exactly about the declaration, it's more about India's defensive-though not over-defensive(by test standards) approach on the fourth day, which was evident of instructions from the team management, and if they thought that was the only way out, Dhoni should have come in earlier, and at least tried to change things-if you already have the reputation of doing so, so why not now? The fact that Australia in their domination period of test cricket, won most of their matches, and draws were very few and far between. And in the one-dayers, by now, he must have realized when to take the batting powerplay, especially after India's middle-order failure in their World Cup fixture against South Africa at Nagpur.
All he needs to do is to go all out to achieve greatness, and he and his team will achieve all that they have ever dreamed of!
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