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Cheteshwar Pujara has shown he is willing and able to take Rahul Dravid’s position in India’s Test batting line-up

Nagraj Gollapudi23-Aug-2012In his second Test, in 2010 in Durban, Cheteshwar Pujara hastened to play a pull off Lonwabo Tsotsobe even as the ball rushed on to him and kept rising. Mark Boucher caught the top edge and Pujara trudged back, dismissed for 19. Later, when he sat brooding in the dressing room, Rahul Dravid walked up and asked if he normally played such shots. “Not really,” Pujara said, knowing the ball was not there to be hit, especially since it was outside off stump.”[Dravid] told me I should play my natural game rather than playing too many shots, because if you are not good at something, then it is not worth playing that shot,” Pujara says. “You should play to your strength, which is to hang around and play the shots to a loose ball, and not against a ball that is not there to be hit.”Pujara had learned an important lesson. “I felt it was not the right place, right time and not even the right format to play such a shot. We were playing on the fast pitches in South Africa, not the slower surfaces in India. I told myself I had to learn to play according to situation.” He started to leave the ball more, and that felt natural.At some point this week, Pujara might step into the No. 3 or No. 5 slots now vacant following the retirements of Dravid and VVS Laxman. Virat Kohli will occupy one of the two positions; Pujara will vie with Ajinkya Rahane and S Badrinath for the second. During training on the two days leading up to the first Test against New Zealand in Hyderabad, Pujara batted at No. 3.He wants to make a mark on his return from injury and is unfussy about where he bats. “It is a team game, so most of the time you have to see the comfort of the team, not your own. As a batsman I need to be flexible. I am a youngster making a comeback, not someone settled in the batting order. So I should not be demanding. Once I prove myself at a particular position, then I can say I would like to bat at this and this number.”Mentally adept and patient, Pujara built his reputation by grinding down opponents in Ranji Trophy cricket for Saurashtra, for whom he bats at No. 4. In his first few years he found himself coming in with the new ball barely having lost its shine, as a weak Saurashtra top order faltered frequently. Although he hasn’t had to come to his side’s rescue too often in the last two years, Pujara has grown accustomed to the challenges of a top-order batsman.”There is not much difference batting at No. 3 or 4, as I found out in my time at Saurashtra, where we used to be two down before ten overs.” Pujara is aware of the demands of batting up the order, but he likes it better than the alternative. “It is a challenge, but in another way it is good. That is because you are not under pressure when you bat on top. If you are batting lower down, if you are in a good position then it is fine. But if you are 100 for 3 or 4, the bowlers are on top. The pressure is on you to get runs then. But if you are No. 3, you still can play safe and play your natural game, unlike when you are batting at No. 5 or 6, where you are left to bat with the tail.”Pujara is the sort of batsman who likes to spend time at the crease, tiring bowlers down and punishing loose deliveries. To him the biggest advantage of batting high up is that he likes to feel bat on ball, which he can do against the new ball. “Especially in Indian conditions, the old ball does not come on to the bat on slow surfaces. So if you get in early you can feel the new ball coming nicely on to the bat, and at times you can play strokes.”Batting at No. 3 is often nearly the same as being an opener. Having opened and walked in as one-down for Indian Oil Corporation in the Mumbai corporate cricket league, Pujara is confident he has the right skills and mindset.He didn’t do too badly on the India A tour of the West Indies in June this year. In the first innings of the Barbados match, Pujara came to bat at 1 for 2 and scored a crucial half-century. In the second, he made an unbeaten 96 after walking in at 21 for 3 (nightwatchman Rahul Sharma had been sent in ahead of him before stumps on day three).”The wicket was really bad, with a few balls bouncing from the good-length spot, making it impossible to bat. I got beaten a few times on the penultimate evening.” On day four, India A were reduced to 115 for 8, but Pujara stood strong, and in the company of Shami Ahmed he took his team to a narrow win. In all three first-class matches on the tour, India lost their first two wickets in the first five overs more often than not. Rahane, who opens for Mumbai in first-class cricket, was tried at No. 3 but failed.Pujara displayed a similar calm on his Test debut too, when he scored 72 against Australia in Bangalore, after being promoted up the order to No. 3. However, he played only two more Tests, after which an injury sustained during the 2011 IPL forced him to undergo surgery.Aakash Chopra on why Pujara should bat one-down

Pujara has had only one good Test innings for India, in Bangalore against Australia. He struggled in South Africa, so there are scars that need to be erased. We all like to brush such things aside, but ask any international cricketer who has done well, failed and come back: the biggest challenge is to get accepted again. There are probably more questions now that he has to answer than when he made his debut. This is the mental hurdle he will have to clear.
Pujara has the right temperament to play for long hours with patience, but he is not your regular free-scoring player. So I feel he is best suited for No. 3, and not lower down the order, where, at times, you need to score runs at a fair clip. Playing fearless cricket does not come naturally to a youngster like Pujara. That may be easier for Suresh Raina, but not Pujara, who might find it daunting if he was asked to bat at No. 5 or 6.
If he does bat at No. 3, it’s good to try him out against New Zealand at home, because their bowling attack might not pose enough tough questions for Pujara. He has to be ready to cope with that pressure when England visit at the end of the year. When you are batting at No. 3, you have think and construct your innings like an opener, and against the likes of James Anderson, Steve Finn and Stuart Broad, all tall, clever fast bowlers, Pujara will need to be playing at his best. England will be his real challenge.
Easy runs are never available in international cricket. Those boundaries that come easily in domestic cricket don’t come every over or two in Tests. But Pujara is primed to win that battle because he knows how to bat time.
Being yourself at the international level is difficult, more so for a youngster. At times you tend to believe you need to do things differently to succeed. In Pujara’s case, he needs to do exactly what he does in domestic cricket and be patient.

His hunger to play didn’t subside as he watched from the sidelines. During this year’s IPL, while he did not play many matches, Pujara enjoyed picking the brains of his Royal Challengers Bangalore team-mate AB de Villiers. “He told me he tries to play the ball as late as possible, which allows him to see it till it hits the bat,” Pujara says. “That is helping me a lot: you allow the ball to come to you rather than you reach for it.”He also got some valuable advice from his father, who suggested his son was trying too hard to get his backlift straight, which was making his arms stiff and affecting his strokes. “He asked me to look at my videos when I played with soft hands where the backlift was more natural,” Pujara says.He also keeps in mind what Gary Kirsten, the former India coach, told him – while giving throwdowns during the Australia series – was the essential difference between international and domestic cricket. “He said, in international cricket you need to hang around because you get more good balls than loose ones, while in domestic cricket it is the other way around.”If he bats at No. 3, Pujara will be the important link between the opening pair of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir and middle-order mainstay Sachin Tendulkar. If he bats at No. 5, the fall of early wickets could put pressure on him to stabilise the innings while also anchoring the lower order. He is not intimidated by either prospect, saying he’ll learn while batting with senior batsmen. “You learn about their games and how they understand the situation by talking in between overs.”When Tendulkar came in to bat [on Pujara’s debut in Bangalore], I was already in my 30s. I knew I would not get out and instead [would] take the team home. Legends like him read the bowlers very well and know the lines and lengths the bowler has in mind – something I might not be able to perceive. So if anything, it only helps to bat alongside senior batsmen.”Pujara missed the home series against West Indies and the tour of Australia and says he has been working hard on making a comeback. “It has been delayed because there were not many games, but I did whatever I could in the domestic format and with India A. But I do not want to rush. I am going to be calm and play my natural game.”Twenty-four now, he leads a disciplined lifestyle, sleeping early and waking up even earlier most days in his hometown of Rajkot to train for long hours. That has been his regimen for most of his life.He was hurt at talk that his list of injuries seems never-ending, but says he remains driven. “This is the moment I have worked hard for. There is hunger, passion, and I am back to playing at the highest level. It is once again a debut game for me.”The biggest challenge, Pujara says, will be to try to fill the shoes of Dravid and Laxman. There is pressure, he says, but not overwhelming. “It is an opportunity for all the youngsters to prove ourselves. If you work in the right direction, the chances are more that you will succeed.”

Who will win the Champions Trophy? How will the top players fare? Ricky Ponting answers

05-Nov-2012Who do you expect to be the star players at the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy?
The South African team, at the moment, are right up there. Amla is probably the best batsman in both Test and ODI forms. He’s played well in English conditions in the last few months and could have a massive tournament. Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina – although English conditions might not suit the Indian players – are hugely talented and could have a massive impact. Sangakkara is just getting better and better with each year that goes by. The last few years he’s been outstanding, and has done well in English conditions in the past. Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott stand out for England. Trott is just so consistent at what he does, and Bell, when he’s playing well particularly at the top, could be looking to bat through and make big hundreds.And the Australians?
Shane Watson’s going well now and, along with Michael Clarke, will be the two guys leading the way batting wise for Australia. And our young quicks should have a good time if they get favourable conditions – Pattinson, Starc and Cummins – they could play a huge part, all those guys are bowling close to 150kph and swinging the ball, so will be very dangerous. I’ve never seen a more exciting group of young fast bowlers in Australia since I’ve been playing. When you add in Siddle and Hilfenhaus, it’s a great attack. There’s another kid playing in the Champions League at the moment for New South Wales, Josh Hazlewood, who’s a very good bowler. The talent and stocks are very, very good. A couple are still finding their feet at the international level, but next summer and beyond, you’ll see these guys performing as very good bowlers.How do you rate Australia’s chances at the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy?
They’ve got as good a chance as any team, no doubt about it. I know they were very disappointed with results and their form in the UK recently, but England played very well and we were coming off a break from the off season. Come next summer, the boys will be ready to go. I’d single out Australia, South Africa, England, and New Zealand as being the main contenders, considering the conditions. New Zealand always seem to find a way to make the quarters and semis in big tournaments. England face Australia in Group A at Edgbaston. A good chance to gain the upper hand before the Ashes, perhaps?
I don’t think either team will be focusing on the Ashes – when you’re in the Champions Trophy, they’ll be focused on that. You can guarantee both teams will be out there to play the way they always play – with great rivalry and great respect for each other.Do you expect England and Australia to progress from Group A as opposed to New Zealand and Sri Lanka?
Tough pool, that one. England should know the conditions like the back of their hand, so yes, Australia and England should be the two favourites to progress, but in ODIs you just never know. New Zealand always find a way to progress!Who do you think will progress from Group B, among India, Pakistan, South Africa and West Indies?
South Africa and India.Did you enjoy playing cricket in England?
I loved every opportunity to play in UK. It’s the one tour – whether it’s Ashes or not – that all young Australians want to be a part of. The history, the grounds… even little things like travelling around on the coach for a few weeks or months at a time is a great way to see the place and also to learn a lot about team-mates and friends whilst you’re away. Hands down, England is my favourite place in the world to tour and play cricket.What about the three Champions Trophy grounds – The Oval, Edgbaston and Cardiff?
I’ve got lots of good and bad memories of playing at The Oval – we’ve won, we’ve lost and drawn when we’ve needed to win, but it’s such a great place to play. Great ground, very good wicket to bat on, very fast outfield and a just a great vibe of playing in London.Edgbaston is probably the ground I’ve played the least at in England – last time round in the Champions Trophy in 2004, England beat us in the semi-final.I’ve not got too many fond memories of playing in Cardiff. We should have won the 2009 Ashes Test and we lost the ODI game against England comfortably, and lost to Bangladesh there too a few years before that. The ground is totally different to when I started playing in the UK, but when we played the games there in 2009, it was fantastic and had great crowds there.And could it be a big year for you personally, in 2013?
I’m not looking forward too far yet. I’ve got a few Tests left to play in 2012 first, and that’s what I’m focused on. Hopefully, I can continue to do enough to help Australia climb back up that tree to world No. 1.You enjoyed a short but successful spell at Somerset. Can you envisage another spell in county cricket in England at some stage?
Never say never. I really enjoyed my brief stint at Somerset. I arrived at the club and things weren’t going to plan. They hadn’t won a game in a long time. I got there and we managed to string a few wins together. I’m a cricket lover and cricket tragic, and to get a feel for what county guys do day in day out was a lot of fun. It’s a great club full of great people.

English cricket isn’t in a crisis

Cricinfo25-Feb-2013Andrew Hughes, United Kingdom
Now, I have to confess that I started to watch England play cricket in the mid eighties so for me, the word crisis has rather lost its sting over the years. Indeed, to connoisseurs of spicy English cricket calamity, this latest pickle is rather tame. A captain who wasn’t very good has been replaced by a better one. Even Eyeore would struggle to work that one up into a crisis.But the c-word just will not go away. Why? Because though your average Englishman will always prefer gossip to investigation, he doesn’t like to admit it. This gives editors a problem. They solve it in the same way governments do when they want to throw large numbers of the populace into jail: by invoking a state of emergency. Old man crisis is brought out of retirement and under his puritanical gaze, we are free to carry on indulging in the soap opera that is the England cricket team. Is Daisy friends with Freddie? Is KP talking to Harmy? It’s all jolly good fun.Of course, should a chap be so uncouth as to suggest, after coughing politely, that the real problem we have is that the vast majority of players in the English game aren’t actually very good, he would be greeted with a stony silence. It would be the journalistic equivalent of telling a knock-knock joke at a funeral.Another English trait is our habit of slandering, mocking and generally abusing our leaders, regardless of their merits. The mendacity or incompetence of anyone in power is a given; they represent inanimate effigies that we can safely lay into over our lattes and bacon sarnies. In itself this trait is harmless, the information age equivalent of the man employed to sit behind Caesar and remind him that he was mortal.But we also have an unrealistically strong faith in the democratic system. Not happy about the state of English cricket? Don’t worry, there’s going to be an election. Get rid of tatty old Giles Clarke and get the new bloke in. Then things will be fine. Democracy of course, can be a blunt but powerful instrument, a savage hammer of justice falling heavily on the incumbent and tearing down the established structure.Unfortunately, the hammer used in ECB elections is made of foam. The upcoming contest for the leadership of English cricket is about as significant as two ducks squabbling over a piece of bread. In the red corner is Giles Clarke, a successful businessman and passionate defender of county cricket. In the other red corner is Lord Marland, a passionate defender of county cricket and successful businessman. Which of them will prevail? A nation is on tenterhooks.English cricket isn’t in a crisis. It’s in a coma. A one hundred and fifty year coma, to be precise; a deep and enduring state of unconsciousness in which we may occasionally bat an eyelid, but soon sink back into silent, uncomplaining numbness.Our game is organised in a way that would warm the cockles of Al Capone’s heart. Huge sums of money are extorted from a profitable national team in order to prop up a loss-making domestic game that no-one watches and which serves no discernable purpose. Meanwhile, members of the public who have the audacity to want to watch their national team must either pay £100 a time for the privilege of squeezing into poky little stadiums like Lord’s or shell out £500 a year for a Sky subscription.The eighteen first class counties run our game in a thoroughly English way, that is, ruthlessly, but out of sight, whilst being able to pretend that they have nothing to do with it. Think of the ECB as a large polished table, around which sit eighteen super villains, from Dr No to Darth Vader. From time to time they pick a new puppet to do their bidding. So who will it be this time? Clarke or Marland? Who cares.

And how the BCCI control the food intake of their players via spectators

Andy Zaltzman25-Feb-2013An intensely-fought first day in Mumbai even with India 266 for 6, and honours provisionally judged as “even, veering towards India” by the Confectionery Stall Momentumometer, a high-tech device which I have constructed in my hotel room, consisting of five budgerigars dressed in cricket kit, listening to commentary of the match on a bird-proof radio, and flapping up and down a miniature see-saw between porcelain figurines of Churchill and Gandhi.This is, I must emphasise, a provisional verdict. I forgot to feed the birds yesterday morning and when I returned after close of play they were pecking vigorously at both of the great men’s noses. (Here endeth the lie. Amen.) Whether or not honours are indeed even will not be known until later in the match. A first-day total of 266 for 6 might prove to be woefully inadequate, match-winningly massive, or precisely par for the pitch. I suspect it will prove above par for this particular pitch. The guilty verdicts returned in so many of England’s recent trials by tweak, and the presence of three Test novices in what had until recently been an almost immovable upper order, suggests that India hold the upper hand.However, they are not holding that upper hand in such a tight grip that it could not escape and slap them firmly in the chops. If Alastair Cook and Matt Prior play as they did in the first Test, if Jonathan Trott plays as he did in Galle, if Kevin Pietersen has one of his eenie-meenie-miney-mo good days, or even one of his randomly-allocated spell-bindingly amazing days, or if Monty Panesar finally builds on the promise of that sweep shot for six he hit off Murali in 2006, then the left-armer’s four excellent wickets could prove to have given England decisive control of the game. Time, the secretive and temperamental little witch, will tell. And she will start telling this morning.Yesterday’s play was notable principally for the continued emergence of a new Indian cricketing superstar in front of an increasingly adoring public, the stirring but one-Test-overdue return of Panesar (still entrenched as England’s second most successful spinner of the last 30 years behind Graeme Swann, after Samit Patel’s failure in Ahmedabad to magically transform from the useful county support bowler he has always been into the new Hedley Verity), and an innings of striking class by India’s No. 8 R Ashwin.Rather unfairly from an English point-of-view, Ashwin scored a rapid, momentum-shifting and often majestic 60 not out, batting like a laboratory Frankensteining of Wally Hammond, Mark Waugh and VVS Laxman, rather than like fellow Test No.8s such as Andy Caddick, Mohammad Sami, and Ajit Agarkar (who, excluding his bolt-from-the-extremely-blue Lord’s century, averaged 6.8 in 22 innings as a number at 8). One cover drive he eased melodiously to the boundary should have prompted the ICC to instantly revoke his licence to bat at 8.Cheteshwar Pujara was again the critical force in the day’s play. He has swiftly batted himself into (a) the hearts of the Indian nation, (b) statistical nirvana, and (c) the nightmares of the England bowlers and supporters. He again displayed flawless technique, 360-degree run-scoring options, the ice-cold temperament of a multi-award-winning penguin, and a deep-seated desire to avoid spending any more time than is absolutely necessary with his team-mates. There must be ructions in the Indian camp. Or perhaps Yuvraj Singh has started learning the trumpet. Maybe Gautam Gambhir has developed a new in-match superstition of reciting the lyrics of Celine Dion songs through a loud-hailer. It is conceivable that Pujara is terrified of Zaheer’ Khan’s lucky crocodile. I am speculating, but Pujara clearly hates being in the dressing room.He also displayed a perfect reading of the match situation in the pacing of his innings, cautious from the early loss of Gambhir to the dismissal of Sachin Tendulkar (17 off 57 balls, 13 in singles), more aggressive in a stand of 58 with Virat Kohli as he prevented the innings stagnating (39 off 65, 11 in singles), before anchoring the innings after Kohli and Yuvraj fell quickly, scoring 58 off the last 157 balls he faced, 30 of which came in singles. His judgement of when to attack and when to defend, and whether to play forward or back, was matched by the decisiveness with which he put those decisions into action.England mostly bowled well throughout the day, but forced barely a handful of errors from him, and were driven to some extremely creative thinking. When you have bowled more than 100 overs to one batsman without dismissing him, you must embrace innovation, and try to discomfort him with unorthodoxies and the unexpected.England almost achieved this successfully when Pujara had scored 94, when a planned training-ground move came close to paying spectacular dividends. A shortish ball goaded the impregnable Rajkot Rock into playing a well-executed pull shot, rolling his wrists in accordance with the holy scriptures of the MCC Coaching Manual, sending the ball downwards towards the ground. Lying there in wait was short-leg’s foot. The ball flew up, as minutely planned by the England strategists, and was caught – but replays showed it had bounced fractionally before striking Cook’s foot. A ricochet off the boot was clearly the most likely means of dismissing a man who, at that point, had negotiated 668 balls in the series undismissed and seldom troubled. Tragically for England, the foot was an agonising few millimetres away from being perfectly placed, and their strategic masterplan was foiled.The giant TV screen duly announced that Pujara was not out, the crowd roared like a stadium of Elvis fans after their giant TV screen announced that The King was not dead after all but had been tied up trying to get his internet dongle to work for the last 45 years. Trott politely enquired to umpires Aleem Dar and Tony Hill as to why it was not out. The two officials explained to the England No. 3 that the batsman cannot be out if the ball touches the ground before being caught. Trott responded, “Oh yes, you’re right, I remember now, you told me that in Ahmedabad, didn’t you? I’ll write it down this time.”● Yesterday was my first experience of watching Test cricket live outside the UK, and it was tremendous enjoyable, a compelling day of hard-fought high-skill cut-and-thrust, played out in front of a crowd that was enthusiastic and of a reasonable size. Once I had managed to get into the stadium. I queued for over an hour ‒ in a not especially heavily-populated queue ‒ to be processed through the almost surreally inefficient ground security, which, to be entirely fair to it, did succeed in its principal task of making sure that no one had any of their own drinks or snacks in the ground.I finally took my seat a couple of minutes before the start of play, in an almost empty stadium. Do people start queuing a week before an IPL game here? At least I, and the rest of the lucky few who had negotiated Gate C in time for the start of play, could settle down to watch Gambhir play brilliantly for one ball, safe in the comforting knowledge that no-one would be able to disrupt play by, for example, crunching on a crisp by the deep midwicket boundary and causing third slip to flunk a crucial catch, or slurping a glug of water too loudly in the top tier of the Sachin Tendulkar Stand just as the great man himself was taking guard and trying to hear the umpire telling him which way to move his bat.Drinks are available in the ground, but they are specially-formulated “quiet drinks”, which are scientifically unslurpable by anyone without a full proboscis. So they are fine.I know there have been instances in the past where a nice, tasty snack has been wrongly used as a nice, tasty projectile, and that, given the less-than-gymnastic qualities of some of the Indian fielders, the BCCI are anxious to control their players’ food intake. (In the past, the PCB had terrible trouble with the supernaturally classy but not-entirely-svelte Inzamam-ul-Haq, who was known to consume up to 8000 calories in a session just by grazing crowd-thrown nibbles in the outfield.) But is confiscating all food really necessary? Particularly when one of the foodstuffs most readily available in the ground is the samosa, the “easily-flingable” triangular snack with “superb ballistic qualities”, according to International Food Fighting Monthly magazine.”Perfectly shaped to fit between the thumb and forefinger,” continues the esteemed publication, “the samosa is ideal for both beginners and experienced food-fighters. It is widely used by professionals in the big-money American NFFL, and is a critical component in the arsenal of any serious mealtime pugilist, its aerodynamic crust enabling precision hurl-control, and its succulent payload of finely-chopped meat and/or vegetables rewarding the skilled comestible-combatant with a potentially bout-winning splatter-radius.”Cameras were also prohibited. But not mobile phones. Most of which contain a camera. Clearly, it is not that the authorities want to prevent paying spectators from having their own personal photographic memento of their day at the Test match. It is just that they want those photographs to be not particularly good. Unless the spectator has a high-spec camera-phone, in which case they have clearly earned the right to snap away like the Patrick Eagars they have always dreamed of being.

That he was out drinking with senior players and was targeted by David Warner’s misfiring aim proves Joe Root is firmly a part of Team England

George Dobell12-Jun-2013It was always likely that the first blows of an Ashes year would be thrown in Birmingham over the weekend, but few could have predicted England would have prevailed so overwhelmingly.It was not just a comfortable victory in the Champions Trophy. It was not just the faintly ridiculous image of David Warner, the Australian opener, reacting so humourlessly to a novelty wig that he threw an unprovoked punch at an England player so fresh-faced and innocent looking that it was hard to avoid the vision of Warner as a buffoon who can’t handle his drink or the pressures of international cricket. And it was not just that Warner had done it so hopelessly. Warner, it seems, doesn’t just float like a butterfly, he stings and bats like one, too.It was not even that “Wig-gate” is a PR disaster for Australia. While the England camp have handled the incident with the ease of a Mitchell Johnson half-volley on leg stump – the perfectly worded statement from the ECB made their stance clear: they were innocent, the matter was closed and Australia have a mess to resolve.No, perhaps the most pleasing aspect from an England perspective is that is underlines Joe Root’s position at the heart of the England team.The Malvolios among us may disagree, but it bodes well for England that Root was out with his team-mates celebrating a victory. There were times on the tour to India when Root looked somewhat ill at ease in the England set-up; a man apart, spending his time at the party in the kitchen.But all that changed after his smooth debut in Nagpur. It wasn’t that the England squad were any more welcoming – that had never been an issue – more that Root finally knew he belonged in that company. He has grown in stature with every performance since. News that he is comfortable and popular enough to socialise with older colleagues should be welcomed. It is, in part, in such moments that bonding takes place and it is, in part, such moments that help young men mature and develop.England’s players were not disregarding any curfew, they had not over-indulged and they did not provoke or retaliate. Neither side, or third-party witnesses, refute any of that. Indeed, Root’s decision not to involve the police might be considered rather magnanimous. There is surely a time to allow sportsmen the opportunity to enjoy the sort of evening out that young men their age take for granted. Those who suggest that the midst of a major tournament may not be that time should take a look at England’s schedule: they are pretty much always on the brink of or in the midst of another major series.Alastair Cook made it clear he had no issues with the players enjoying a night out “within certain parameters we set as a team”.

Steven Finn is understood to have been understandably disappointed to be dropped against Australia but sometimes a little setback is just the stimulus required to encourage improvement.

“We didn’t have training for a couple of days,” Cook said. “If there’s a back-to-back game it’s a very different issue. We had a couple of days off and then a couple of days’ training. You don’t often get those positions in a tournament and it’s very important that sometimes you do let your hair down because to celebrate wins also builds team spirit.”We’ve investigated the matter and we believe we haven’t done anything wrong. Clearly our conduct, as international players, is vitally important. We are aware of the position we hold and how lucky and responsible we are to be wearing the England shirt. It’s a matter which we’ve taken seriously.”But Root’s central role within the England team extends far beyond the social. Not only has he nailed down a place in the Test side, but he has done a pretty decent job of securing a place in the ODI team too. His ability to adapt as a middle-order batsman has been the most noticeable aspect of his cricket, but his developing spin bowling has added a depth to the side that could prove crucial before the end of the Champions Trophy.With the pitches in this event providing far more help to spin bowlers than most had anticipated, the balance of England’s side has had to alter. The plan to field five specialist bowlers – four seamers and a spinner – has been shelved and instead England have selected allrounder Ravi Bopara with a view to strengthening and emboldening the batting. Bopara’s latest comeback has been quietly impressive.There must now be a temptation to play both Graeme Swann, now recovered from his back injury, and James Tredwell alongside just two specialist seamers. The two offspinners would surely enjoy the conditions. But that might also lengthen England’s tail and reduce their ability to damage opposition with their seamers’ ability to reverse swing the white ball.Root may well be the solution. He has taken important wickets in the last couple of ODIs and is quickly emerging as a spinner who can be entrusted with a meaningful number of overs in such conditions. He is not anywhere near the class of Tredwell as yet, but he is a decent compromise to the balance problem and, alongside Bopara, might now be considered something of an allrounder.With the sides using a new pitch against Sri Lanka at The Oval, it seems unlikely there will be the extravagant assistance available for spinners we have seen elsewhere, so England may well resist the temptation to play Tredwell, Root and Swann if all 15 of their squad are available.But that may not be the case. With Tim Bresnan’s wife now well overdue with their child, his availability could become an issue at any moment. Both Tredwell and Steven Finn are potential replacements for Bresnan, with Finn the more likely in the conditions expected at The Oval.Finn is understood to have been understandably disappointed to be dropped against Australia but that is not such a bad thing. Sometimes a little setback is just the stimulus required to encourage improvement. Besides, such competition for places is valuable. After a year of coasting, Stuart Broad is performing with pleasing intensity.It is pleasing, too, that England have demonstrated something of a Plan B. Their original plans for the tournament – to damage their opposition with the new ball – may have had to change after it became apparent the white balls will offer little conventional swing, but the ability to reverse swing the ball has proved valuable. The debate will rage about England’s strategy with the bat but, if England beat Sri Lanka, they are in the semi-finals.

A charming collection of essays that bring out several interesting facts, prompting a reader to research deeper into the subject

Suresh Menon18-Aug-2013Henry Ford might have thought that history was bunk, but here’s evidence that it can be fun. Most histories of sport tend to suffer from two handicaps: they tend to be centred around one region and thus miss the bigger picture or they are overly sombre and ignore the fact that sport is fun, and that digressions and distractions only add to its tale.When you set out to write a history in 100 objects (which means in effect, 100 essays), you acknowledge that being comprehensive is not part of the package, but what you gain – as this book does – is a lightness of touch, and a non-linearity that can be quite charming. You can dip into it anywhere and be guaranteed of an unexpected fact or a startling connection that traditional histories miss. is entertaining, the tone disguising the research involved. Some of the conclusions are provocative enough to send the reader rushing to a deeper study of the subject, which is as it should be. It is a book both for the specialist and the casual reader, especially when you consider that the latter is unlikely to read the tomes by Altham and Swanton or Rowland Bowen, or even more recent histories of the game.Despite (or perhaps because of) answers to the essential questions of origin and evolution of cricket lacking in historical authenticity, and thus our having to make do with the most likely theories and intelligent guesswork, the game is well served by its myths and legends, which have gained by repetition. Such words and phrases as “Hambledon”, “Nyren”, “Bat and Ball”, “Fredrick Louis”, “Christina Willes” and others evoke a set of responses that have solidified over the years, thanks to history books.In bringing these and other elements together and spreading the net beyond Hampshire and Lord’s and the MCC, the author has attempted to reflect the global nature of the game, which originated in England but is claimed by other countries as their own too.Thus you will find here Lord Hawke as well as Sachin Tendulkar, WG Grace as well as Hanif Mohammad, Lord’s as well as Eden Gardens, the first-ever international (US v Canada, 1844) as well as the IPL. Written in a chatty, informal style this is a history of the game for those who hate reading about the history of games.In keeping with the tone, chapter headings are not generic. Under “Sitar”, there is the story of Hanif – I couldn’t find a connection other than the exaggerated stereotype that everybody in the subcontinent is either a sitar player or has elephants as pets. Under the Beatles’ single “Love Me Do” is the story of the end of the professional-amateur divide in English cricket. The connection? The year, 1962. Under “Protractor” is the story of Muttiah Muralitharan, possibly because of a throwaway line in the essay about the bowler’s skill – “Pass that protractor, this could get complicated…”There is, too, the story of Charles Darwin arriving on the in New Zealand and being unimpressed until he saw a cricket match, which evoked England and cheered him up. The strength of the book is in details like that.A History of Cricket in 100 Objects
by Gavin Mortimer
Serpent’s Tail
&pound12.99, 317 pages (hardback)

Also, six-for losers, fastest keeper to 100 dismissals, Clifford Roach’s unbreakable records, and keeper-captain feats

Steven Lynch03-Dec-2013Virat Kohli reached 5000 one-day internationals recently. Did he get there faster than anyone else? asked Mukesh Subhan from Kolkata
Virat Kohli reached 5000 runs in his 120th one-day international – the first one against West Indies, in Kochi on November 21 – to equal the record set by Brian Lara. Gordon Greenidge got there in 122 matches. Kohli did just shade Lara in terms of innings batted (118 to 114), but has to share top billing there with another great West Indian: Viv Richards also reached 5000 in 114 innings (from 126 matches). Kohli’s first 5000 ODI runs included a record 17 centuries – Saeed Anwar made 14 – while only Richards (53.01) and Michael Bevan (56.25) averaged more after the innings in which they passed 5000 than Kohli’s 52.14. Michael Hussey and MS Dhoni also averaged over 50 at that point of their careers.In the first Ashes Test, 32 of the 37 wickets to fall were out caught. Is this some kind of record? asked Naushad Kazi from South Africa
It is very close to the Test record, which stands at 33 batsmen out caught (out of 36) in the match between Australia and India in Perth in February 1992. One of the rare wickets that wasn’t caught in that match – Mark Taylor lbw – was Kapil Dev’s 400th in Test cricket. The Ashes opener in Brisbane was the fifth Test match to feature 32 caught dismissals. In one of those – New Zealand v Pakistan in Auckland in 1993-94 – only 35 wickets went down, as against 37 in Brisbane (and all 40 in the other three instances). For the full list, click here.Dale Steyn took six wickets the other day but ended up losing. Were these the best figures by anyone on the losing side in a one-day international? asked Ricky Dooley from Egypt
Dale Steyn took 6 for 39 for South Africa against Pakistan in Port Elizabeth last week. This was actually the ninth time a bowler had taken six wickets in an ODI in vain: three of the hauls were cheaper than Steyn’s, with the list being topped by Imran Khan. He took 6 for 14 against India in Sharjah in March 1985 – but Pakistan still ended up losing. Mainly thanks to Imran, India were bowled out for 125 – but Pakistan were then skittled for 87 themselves. Shane Bond (6 for 23 for New Zealand v Australia in Port Elizabeth in the 2003 World Cup) and Shaun Pollock (6 for 35 for South Africa v West Indies in East London in 1998-99) also had cheaper six-fors in losing causes, while the others to have achieved this bittersweet feat are Ajit Agarkar (6 for 42 for India v Australia in Melbourne in 2003-04), Chris Woakes (6 for 45 for England v Australia in Brisbane in 2010-11), Tony Gray (6 for 50 for West Indies v Australia in Port-of-Spain in 1990-91), Christopher Mpofu (6 for 52 for Zimbabwe v Kenya in Nairobi in 2008-09) and Ashish Nehra (6 for 59 for India v Sri Lanka in Colombo in 2005).Who was the fastest wicketkeeper to make 100 dismissals in Tests, and ODIs? asked Tom Metcalfe from London
Australia’s Adam Gilchrist reached a century of dismissals in just 22 Tests, one quicker than Mark Boucher of South Africa. Another Australian, Wally Grout, reached 100 dismissals in 24 Tests, as did Boucher’s South African predecessor Dave Richardson – his first hundred, uniquely, containing no stumpings at all. Boucher and Gilchrist lie third and fourth on the one-day list: the fastest to 100 dismissals in ODIs is Brad Haddin, who got there in his 61st match, one quicker than Ridley Jacobs. Boucher got there in 65 matches, Gilchrist in 67, and Kumar Sangakkara and Denesh Ramdin in 68.Which three unbreakable records did Clifford Roach establish in 1930? asked James Piper from England
Clifford Roach, a right-hand batsman from Trinidad, was the first man to score a Test century for West Indies, with 122 against England in Bridgetown in January 1930 (George Headley made 176 in the second innings). Two matches later, Roach added West Indies’ first double-century: 209 in Georgetown. I think the other record came in the fourth and final Test of that series, in Kingston. It’s not quite unbreakable, although the chances of it being surpassed are indeed tiny! In the second innings at Sabina Park, Roach was caught by 50-year-old George Gunn off the bowling of Wilfred Rhodes, who was 52. Their combined ages (including the odd months) added up to more than 103 years, which remains the Test record for a single dismissal.Is MS Dhoni the first man to captain in 150 one-day internationals while keeping wicket? asked Cherise Asha Clarke from Trinidad & Tobago
Well, the answer is an emphatic yes: the second match against West Indies in Visakhapatnam last week was MS Dhoni’s 150th one-day international as India’s captain and designated wicketkeeper (only five non-keepers have done more: Ricky Ponting leads the way with 230). In fact, no other wicketkeeper has captained in as many as 50 ODIs – Andy Flower led in 46, Kumar Sangakkara in 45, and Alec Stewart in 39. Lee Germon played 37 ODIs for New Zealand, and was captain and wicketkeeper in 36 of them.

His career may have been in the balance but, just as he did alongside AB de Villiers six years ago, JP Duminy produced an important innings when it mattered

Firdose Moonda in Port Elizabeth21-Feb-20140:00

Cullinan: Parnell could be the difference

JP Duminy probably should not have played this Test match. Before it, he was holding down his place in the side as a part-time bowler. If that sounds too harsh, consider that his previous seven innings yielded just 77 runs.This story should probably not be about JP Duminy. AB de Villiers was the man that took over the South Africa recovery and stood it up. He was the one whose carefree calm made batting look smooth on a pitch where the ball appeared stuck to the surface at times. He was the one who cheekily beat the four short midwicket fielders Michael Clarke had planted to wait for the mistimed pull by going over the quartet when he smacked Peter Siddle for six.De Villiers’ is probably the century you will remember from this innings, Duminy’s is the one you should not forget. It was only the third of his career but it could turn out to be the one that saves it.There could not have been a clearer sign that it needed resuscitating when, after Dean Elgar was dismissed on the first afternoon, it was not Duminy but the debutant Quinton de Kock who strode in at No. 6. Duminy occupied that position in his last three Tests. Even though Duminy has batted at No. 7, with Jacques Kallis’ retirement sending South Africa back to a more regular six specialist batsmen structure, it was thought the No. 6 spot was Duminy’s to keep.’There were a few butterfies’ – Duminy

JP Duminy admitted some nerves when he walked out to the crease, knowing he was under pressure to keep his place in the Test XI. Duminy and AB de Villiers put on 149 runs for the sixth wicket and both scored centuries, Duminy ending a lean run of 13 innings without a Test hundred.
“There were a few butterflies around. It was a big day for the team and a big day for me personally. The most important thing was that we built a partnership,” he said. “When the band is screaming ‘JP jou lekker ding’, it raises a few goosebumps.”
But after all that, Duminy’s day hit a downer when he dropped Nathan Lyon in the last over of the day. “It probably does take the shine of my innings,” he said. “Especially coming off such a high after the way the day unfolded. Hopefully we will catch them tomorrow.
“We knew that the bounce was only going to be with the new ball and we would have to capitalise. Tomorrow, for the first 10 overs there may be a bit of carry but after that we have to box smartly.”
Duminy spent enough time on the surface to have worked out the best way to succeed on it. “The key was to stay patient and stick to your gameplans. Against Lyon, my gameplan was to try and sweep him and that worked really well,” he said.

His demotion was a not-so-subtle hint that if runs did not come soon, he could go the same way as Robin Peterson. And his replacement, de Kock, was being teed up ahead of him.What would have been more immediate in Duminy’s mind was that, as he walked out to bat, South Africa had lost two wickets in the space of half an hour. A difficult day in which scoring had been laboured could have been handed to Australia had another wicket fallen at that point. Duminy’s defence had to be almost as strong as it was when he faced Australia on debut in Perth six years ago.Then, South Africa were chasing history. Kallis had been dismissed and the match was in the balance. Duminy was up against Mitchell Johnson and Siddle. He faced 24 balls that evening for just six runs. Now, South Africa are trying to build on the history they have already created. Duminy was up against Australia’s slower bowlers in fading light. He faced 15 fairly innocuous deliveries for 2 and he may have resumed even more nervous than he was at the WACA.In both situations, Duminy had de Villiers on the other end. That year, 2008, de Villiers was in one of the best streaks of his career. It was the calendar year in which he scored the most runs, 1061. This time, de Villiers has just played a 12th consecutive Test in which he has scored at least a fifty, surpassing a record held by Viv Richards, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag. An in-form de Villiers is worth more to South Africa than just the runs he produces because, as he showed with Duminy then and now, he can usher another player to do the same.With de Villiers well settled, Duminy had the time to play himself in without the pressure to do it quickly. He didn’t even need too much of it. After looking in good touch before throwing it away against Australia last week, Duminy picked up from that this morning. He played Johnson with absolute assurance, even though Johnson had the new ball in hand, and sent his third over for 12 runs, which included a delicate touch on the leg side and the pull shot.Australia did not use the second new ball as well as they did the first and could not suffocate South Africa in the same way. Although the surface continued to offer almost nothing at all, their disciplines were looser and they allowed de Villiers and Duminy to score at 4.5 runs an over for the first half hour, after they had battled to get the run rate above three throughout the first day.The seamers were getting tired, understandably so. When they went to lunch wicketless, it was the first time since the Old Trafford Test last August that their bowlers had not struck in a session. After the break, that stretched to the longest they’d been in the field since March last year, against India in Hyderabad, longer than in two Ashes series and more than double the time they spent on the park in either innings in Centurion. It was starting to take its toll on them and work to Duminy’s benefit.JP Duminy made only his third Test century in a career spanning more than five years•Getty ImagesTo preserve his quicks, Clarke brought himself on, as well as using David Warner and Steven Smith. Sometimes using the lesser bowlers can cause a lapse in concentration but Duminy, being one himself, did not allow that to happen. He showed the same care against every bowler he was up against and showed his capability against the slower bowlers, with the sweep shot one of his best.It was only fitting that was the stroke he played to bring up his century. It was powerfully played in front of square and greeted with a smile that told a story of relief. Duminy was still on one knee when the ball crossed the boundary. He looked down at his bat as if to thank it for serving him well in his hour of need and gave it a reaffirming shake, like he was taking someone by the hand.Wayne Parnell was standing mid-pitch, applauding. Clarke, at first slip, was doing the same. The band were in full cry with “JP, jou lekker ding” ringing around St George’s Park. Duminy stayed in that position until he realised he would have to get up. When he did it wasn’t with a leap or an air punch. It was simply without the burden of being stuck in a rut.He acknowledged everyone there was to recognise and then continued with the same seriousness, knowing the job was not done. His irritation when Parnell flashed at one the ball before tea and was caught behind illustrated that Duminy was still focused on batting South Africa into a position where they had a safety net.He didn’t do it for much longer. In the second over after tea, he was out reverse-sweeping off Lyon. But he did do it to the point where South Africa would have felt comfortable, to within three runs of their eventual total of 423. Earlier this week, Russell Domingo called Duminy a “class act”, who South Africa will persist with because “he has done it before against Australia”. Now he has done it again and at time when it mattered just as much as it did in 2008.

Plays of the day from the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals

Devashish Fuloria29-Apr-2014The over
Rajasthan Royals had made slow progress to be 25 for 1 at the end of five overs before receiving a boost in the sixth – the last over of the Powerplay – as Morne Morkel leaked 20 runs. But apart from a wide delivery that cost his team three runs, he didn’t do much wrong. Morkel’s second delivery was slogged through mid-on by Sanju Samson without much timing, the third went to the fine-leg boundary off the inside half of the bat, the fifth was top-edged to fine-leg boundary again and the last teased the fielder to the midwicket boundary.The replacement
Shakib Al Hasan was included over Chris Lynn for his value as a wily bowler and he bowled an economical spell of 4-0-23-1. But fielding is where Knight Riders would have missed Lynn. The other night, he took a screamer at the boundary to win them a match. A similar chance flew off Ajinkya Rahane’s bat towards Shakib at deep midwicket. Unfortunately, Shakib misjudged it completely, first running in, then, only managing to get a hand. Had he jumped, he could have taken the catch. The shot went for six runs.The boundary
Hitting a four is a non-event for most top-order batsmen. But not if you are Gautam Gambhir. Since April 4, he had played five matches – four of them in this IPL – and had just a single run. The wait for a boundary – for any runs really – must have been excruciating for Gambhir. He came close to getting there in the first over of the Knight Riders’ innings as he pulled Stuart Binny to deep square leg and made it eventually in the second over, to his relief, punching one through point. The first one was followed by a confident one in the third over – a one-bounce four through midwicket – and finally the monkey was off his back.The referral
Jacques Kallis quickly put his bat under his shoulder and walked off after getting a faint inside edge to the wicketkeeper off a Shane Watson delivery. He didn’t wait for the umpire to raise his finger. Fortunately for him, he got immediate return on his ‘being honest’ policy as the replays showed the bowler had overstepped.The knock
In an age where the fielders and bowlers appeal for anything close, it was strange to hear silence follow a loud woody knock as the ball flew past the outside edge of Kallis’ bat. The wicketkeeper had his hands on his head, the slip fielder had the same expression and the bowler too had despair writ on his face. The sound was heard loud and clear in the replays too with the only thing being close to the ball being the bat.

Sanjay Manjrekar analyses the strengths and weaknesses of India’s top-order contenders touring England

Sanjay Manjrekar05-Jul-2014In spite of not having a sound technique, Shikhar Dhawan has shown some discipline with the way he batted in New Zealand. Avoiding driving the ball early on and being cautious while playing the short ball will work well for him in England.When M Vijay plays Test cricket, he becomes more of a defensive opening batsman, which helped him succeed to an extent in South Africa. The willingness to leave balls alone outside the off stump has been serving him well. His front-foot movement is circumspect, but avoiding playing the ball on the up at the start of his innings should help him notch a couple of substantial innings on the tour.Making a comeback is never easy, but Gautam Gambhir can take heart from the fact that he’s got hard-earned runs on overseas tours. Judging the length accurately to leave balls outside the off stump well should help him preserve his wicket and gain confidence as his innings progresses. With his experience as an opener and ability to play spin well, he could get a look-in in the middle order if circumstances prevail.Decisive footwork, playing the ball with soft hands, and tremendous concentration levels have helped shaped Cheteshwar Pujara’s career thus far. Lack of pace in English conditions could hamper his ability to rotate strike, which he should look to improve upon. With no glaring weakness in technique and a huge appetite for runs, there is no reason why Pujara should not succeed in England.