The inaugural World Cup match of the Twenty20 began on the 11th September in South Africa and with the match the two groups with opposing views grew further apart. The Twenty20 matches are a new format of the game that consists of matches with twenty overs per innings. Indian cricket till date had been ruled by the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) and now the ICL (Indian cricket League) has already started giving it some tough competition. The Indian cricket fans are also divided in their support of these two governing bodies and would like to wait and watch the outcome of the clash between the titans.
The World Cup being played out in South Africa therefore holds a crucial key to the fate of ICL in the times to come.Indian cricket has indeed come a long way from the time when it was first played only as a gentleman’s game among friends and club members. Now Indian cricketers are considered among the top players in the world and in spite of some disastrous performances on the field, no one can deny the superior skills of the players. Indian cricket fans are also a class apart from their counterparts who belong to other nations. In India, the game of cricket is no longer just a sports, it has indeed achieved the status of a religion where the players are worshiped as the idols. However the temperament of the Indian cricket fans can be quite unpredictable and their favors sway along with the outcome of a particular match. The Indian team is welcomed home with garlands when they return after winning a match. The loss of a match or a really bad performance in a particular series can find the Indian cricket fans burning images and cut outs of their cricketing idols. The Indian team therefore always remains wary about the fan emotions because it is ever fluctuating. Like any other cricket enthusiast even the Indian cricket fan has strong opinions and views about the game.
Ask any cricket fan on the street and chances are that he would confidently come up with a likely strategy that should be adopted by the cricket team to win matches. A visit to any cricket forum on online websites would give you an authentic glimpse into the world of Indian cricket fans as the ongoing discussions could range from the game strategies to the favorite movie of Sourav Ganguly.Even the Indian cricket team for women has achieved excellence and the world’s fastest bowler is from India. Cricket has undoubtedly become the country’s national sports although unofficially. The busy streets that bear a deserted look every time India is playing an important match, points out the passion which a cricket match can generate among the cricket fans. As heated discussions over cricket continue for hours over cups of tea and snacks, it is evident that the obsession with the game is slated to continue and intensify with the passage of time.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Thursday, September 27, 2007
ICC World Twenty20 final: India vs Pakistan - the mother of all matches
24 SEPTEMBER 2007 is one of the most important days in the history of cricket, as the first final of ICC World Twenty20 is going to be held on this day. On Monday, two of the titans, India and Pakistan are going to meet at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg in South Africa. It is really interesting that both these team made it to the finals of World Twenty20, just six months after first-round exits from the World Cup 2007 in West Indies. However, forgetting their World Cup 2007 failure as a distant nightmare, India and Pakistan turned the tables in the inaugural World Twenty20 Cup. Initially, it was not clear if India and Pakistan would be able to reach to the finals of World Twenty20, as other teams like Australia, New Zealand and host South Africa were also hot favourites. The young Indian team landed in South Africa without their big guns - Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Zaheer Khan. Interestingly, the average age of the players is below 24 years. Here I would specially like to mention that India team’s achievement is remarkable, as they do not have a special coach for the tournament. The strong determination of players and teamwork took them to finals. On the other hand, the Pakistan team, which passed through a dismal phase after death of former coach Bob Woolmer in Jamaica, are also having a comparatively less-experienced team. Middle-order batsman Mohammad Yousuf and all-rounder Abdul Razzaq, who had a contract rift with the PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) could not make their place in the team and controversial strike bowler Shoaib Akhtar, who hit the teammate Mohammad Asif, was sent home from South Africa. Despite such ups and downs, both India and Pakistan played exceptional cricket in South Africa. Apart from a single defeat against New Zealand in the first match of Super 8s, the Indian team performed very well all through the tournament. The India team, under supervision of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, defeated Pakistan in the first round, in a ’bowl out’ by 3-0, after a tied game. Later they beat England and the host South Africa, in must win matches in the Super 8s. Meanwhile, the other finalist Pakistan, under the captaincy of Shoaib Malik lost only one game against India but won the rest of their matches in the tournament against Scotland, Sri Lanka, Australia and Bangladesh in the Super 8s stage. In the first semi-final, Pakistan beat New Zealand and in the second semi-final, India scored a fine 15 runs win over World Champions Australia. Just after the wins of their respective teams, the cricket fans of the Indian sub-continent started to celebrate by bursting crackers and by other means. On Saturday, after India’s win over Australia in the semi-final of World Twenty20 Cup, captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said, "It’s the biggest stage and the biggest match you can play, it’s a match that needs to be played with intensity and I think we are ready to do that." While vice-captain Yuvraj Singh, who made a quick 70 off 30 balls and was declared man of the match on Saturday, said, “India versus Pakistan is a dream final, the whole world is going to be watching." Indian and Pakistani cricket fans are praying for their respective teams. Who would win, will become clear before 9 pm today. We do not know what will happen, but Indian team is surely looking for the title, in the shorter and newest version of game. This may happen, as the Indian team has learned how to win matches. We can expect our batsmen - Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Rohit Sharma to come up with good innings and bowlers - RP Singh, Sreesanth, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh and Joginder Sharma to return with magical figures. Moreover, it is a great moment for all Indians and we hope that Indian team will repeat the magic of World Cup 1983. It is a truth that team India has a ‘final phobia’ and that has taken away victory from India’s hands several times in the past. However, in this World Twenty20 Cup, team India is looking different, their excellent performances and fighting spirit will surely make them champions. Till the start of the game we can only say- “come on India! Come on Dhoni’s army! We want the first World Twenty20 Cup from you guys. Just stand up, gather your potential and score a sensational win over our neighbour Pakistan.” India Squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Yuvraj Singh (Vice-captain), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Rohit Sharma, Joginder Sharma, Irfan Pathan, Rudra Pratap Singh, S Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, Yusuf Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Ajit Agarkar and Dinesh Karthik.Pakistan Squad: Shoaib Malik (Captain), Salman Butt (Vice-captain), Imran Nazir, Younis Khan, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Asif, Sohail Tanvir, Shahid Afridi, Fawad Alam, Umar Gul, Mohammad Hafeez, Misbah-ul-Haq, Yasir Arafat, Iftikhar Anjum and Abdur Rehman.Match Schedule: at 1730 IST.Match Venue: The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa.Match Trivia: India has never lost any game against Pakistan in a World Cup.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Understand Cricket Better
Cricket is one of the most popular games that has a huge fan following. This can be witnessed from the craze that gets created when some cricket tournament or some cricket match is about to begin. People go crazy trying to schedule things before hand so that they can be free when the match is on and nothing can stop them from enjoying the match and flowing with the emotions of the game, the cricketers and the huge number of fans sitting almost everywhere all across the globe. Cricket fans all across want to know the overall performance of their cricket idols and the statistics of the overall performance of their favorite teams. In fact, cricket is one of the most popular games that generate a huge number of statistics.
Maintaining cricket stats is not an easy task. To maintain cricket stats, the statistics of each player or cricketer are recorded during a match and aggregated over a career. On the professional level, cricket stats for Test cricket, one-day internationals, and first-class cricket are generally recorded separately. However, since Test matches are one of the forms of first-class cricket itself, a player's first-class cricket stats will precisely include his Test match statistics. Again, these days’ cricket stats are also maintained for List A limited over matches. Leading Test nations play these matches which are normally limited over games played domestically at the national level.
Since one-day internationals are a form of List A limited over matches, a player's List A cricket stats will automatically include his ODI match statistics. In fact, by going through the accurate cricket stats of players, one can cite the ability and the capabilities of the player. Cricket fans lay a lot of importance on cricket stats because cricket stats help in understanding the real standing of the player in the international cricket front and one can easily quote the cricketer’s cricketing abilities. When a cricket match is on, one can come across various sources from where they can come to know the score and the condition of the match. This has to be done only when one misses out on a cricket match due to some or the other reason. The sources can actually be anything. It can be a radio commentary, information on the internet or information through news channel, the cricket stats that are recorded from these sources are accurate and give out the exact information. A cricket match is a very serious thing for cricket fans. In addition, cricket stats help them to know the exact condition of the players and the teams that are playing a match. In fact, cricket stats can talk about varied elements related to the game of cricket. Cricket stats can be gathered from many sources; but for fans the best and the most appropriate sources are newspapers, magazines and online sites that are thoroughly dedicated to the game of cricket. The advantage of looking up for cricket stats from these sources are that one can store these cricket stats record for as long as they want. They can cut out the cricket stats from newspapers; download the stats from online sites. Basically, these sources help in maintaining the records. Just like the game itself, cricket stats too have an important part to play and this is something that can be understood by dedicated cricket fans only.
Maintaining cricket stats is not an easy task. To maintain cricket stats, the statistics of each player or cricketer are recorded during a match and aggregated over a career. On the professional level, cricket stats for Test cricket, one-day internationals, and first-class cricket are generally recorded separately. However, since Test matches are one of the forms of first-class cricket itself, a player's first-class cricket stats will precisely include his Test match statistics. Again, these days’ cricket stats are also maintained for List A limited over matches. Leading Test nations play these matches which are normally limited over games played domestically at the national level.
Since one-day internationals are a form of List A limited over matches, a player's List A cricket stats will automatically include his ODI match statistics. In fact, by going through the accurate cricket stats of players, one can cite the ability and the capabilities of the player. Cricket fans lay a lot of importance on cricket stats because cricket stats help in understanding the real standing of the player in the international cricket front and one can easily quote the cricketer’s cricketing abilities. When a cricket match is on, one can come across various sources from where they can come to know the score and the condition of the match. This has to be done only when one misses out on a cricket match due to some or the other reason. The sources can actually be anything. It can be a radio commentary, information on the internet or information through news channel, the cricket stats that are recorded from these sources are accurate and give out the exact information. A cricket match is a very serious thing for cricket fans. In addition, cricket stats help them to know the exact condition of the players and the teams that are playing a match. In fact, cricket stats can talk about varied elements related to the game of cricket. Cricket stats can be gathered from many sources; but for fans the best and the most appropriate sources are newspapers, magazines and online sites that are thoroughly dedicated to the game of cricket. The advantage of looking up for cricket stats from these sources are that one can store these cricket stats record for as long as they want. They can cut out the cricket stats from newspapers; download the stats from online sites. Basically, these sources help in maintaining the records. Just like the game itself, cricket stats too have an important part to play and this is something that can be understood by dedicated cricket fans only.
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
India national cricket team
The Indian cricket team is an international cricket team representing India. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the cricket governing body in India. The Indian Cricket Team is currently the highest paid national sports team in the world (in terms of sponsorship).[1]
Though the first match in India was recorded in 1721, when a group of sailors gathered to play in Western India, India's national cricket team didn't play their first Test match until 25 June 1932 at Lord's, becoming the sixth Test playing team. Traditionally much stronger at home than abroad, India proved weaker than Australia and England, winning only 35 of the 196 matches they played in their first fifty years.[2] The team gained strength near the end of the 50-year period with the emergence of players such as Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev and the Indian spin quartet. The Indian team has continued to be highly ranked since then in both Test cricket and One-Day Internationals. The team won the Cricket World Cup in 1983 and was runners-up in 2003. The current team contains many of the world's leading players, including Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble, who hold numerous cricketing world records.[1][3] As of November 2006, the team is ranked fourth in the ICC Test Championship[4] and in sixth place in the ICC ODI Championship[5] In December 2006, it played and won its first ever Twenty20 international in South Africa, becoming the most recent Test team to play 20-20 cricket. The team was ousted from the 2007 Cricket World Cup tournament in the group stages following an abysmal performance.
Though the first match in India was recorded in 1721, when a group of sailors gathered to play in Western India, India's national cricket team didn't play their first Test match until 25 June 1932 at Lord's, becoming the sixth Test playing team. Traditionally much stronger at home than abroad, India proved weaker than Australia and England, winning only 35 of the 196 matches they played in their first fifty years.[2] The team gained strength near the end of the 50-year period with the emergence of players such as Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev and the Indian spin quartet. The Indian team has continued to be highly ranked since then in both Test cricket and One-Day Internationals. The team won the Cricket World Cup in 1983 and was runners-up in 2003. The current team contains many of the world's leading players, including Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble, who hold numerous cricketing world records.[1][3] As of November 2006, the team is ranked fourth in the ICC Test Championship[4] and in sixth place in the ICC ODI Championship[5] In December 2006, it played and won its first ever Twenty20 international in South Africa, becoming the most recent Test team to play 20-20 cricket. The team was ousted from the 2007 Cricket World Cup tournament in the group stages following an abysmal performance.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
An introduction to Test Match
Test match cricket is the longest type in cricket sports and regarded by players and serious cricket fans as the ultimate test of playing ability when compared to one-day international cricket. Test matches are played only among national representative team chosen from the best players within a particular nation. Test cricket match is played for about five days, with three sessions of two hours spread with a 40-minute break for lunch and 20-minutes break for afternoon tea per day.
Match Conduct
A team winning the toss of the coin (for the purposes of this explanation, they would be termed "team A", with their opponents recognized as "team B") decides whether to bat or bowl first, and bats also until every batter is released or they prefer to stop batting (known as "declaration"). There is no limit to how long they could bat provided there stay at least two batsmen with no one dismissed. The teams then exchange roles, with team B batting and team A bowling plus fielding). If the cricket bats man B are dismissed with a score 200 runs or more behind team A, team A has the option whether to make team B bat again for their "second innings" (known as "enforcing the follow-on"), or bat itself to gain a bigger lead.
If the follow-on is imposed, team B bats till they are dismissed or declare. If team B's total gained score from both its innings is less than team A's score from the first innings, team A takes the cup home. If this is not the case, team A should bat in its second innings to try to score more than team B. If it succeeds in the available time, team A wins. If it is dismissed before this happens, team B wins (though this is extremely unusual - teams who implement the follow-on very hardly ever lose). If time runs out before either of the above occurs, the game is considered to be a draw.
Match Conduct
A team winning the toss of the coin (for the purposes of this explanation, they would be termed "team A", with their opponents recognized as "team B") decides whether to bat or bowl first, and bats also until every batter is released or they prefer to stop batting (known as "declaration"). There is no limit to how long they could bat provided there stay at least two batsmen with no one dismissed. The teams then exchange roles, with team B batting and team A bowling plus fielding). If the cricket bats man B are dismissed with a score 200 runs or more behind team A, team A has the option whether to make team B bat again for their "second innings" (known as "enforcing the follow-on"), or bat itself to gain a bigger lead.
If the follow-on is imposed, team B bats till they are dismissed or declare. If team B's total gained score from both its innings is less than team A's score from the first innings, team A takes the cup home. If this is not the case, team A should bat in its second innings to try to score more than team B. If it succeeds in the available time, team A wins. If it is dismissed before this happens, team B wins (though this is extremely unusual - teams who implement the follow-on very hardly ever lose). If time runs out before either of the above occurs, the game is considered to be a draw.
Monday, April 16, 2007
Cricket World Cup Updates Is A Must Have For All Fans
World cup 2007 has thrown up plenty of surprises and the weird thing is that most of these things have been associated with the off field things connected with the game. The so called minnows upsetting the big teams have always been a feature of world cups, but this time it was not only upsets which were causes by minnows but they seem to be on a giant killing spree. If you are a serous cricket fan and have been following the cricket world cup updates regularly, you will surely be acquainted with the latest which is happening in the West Indies. Many fans are disappointed that their favorite teams are out of the championship, but nonetheless they keep in tune with the latest though the cricket world cup updates. For them it is not only about their team playing, but about the game of cricket.
In countries of the world, where the game is followed there is no dearth for fans about the source through which they can come to know about the latest cricket updates. For many fans that live in countries with different time zones then the West Indies, catching up with the live telecast for the matches on television may not be an easy thing to do. However they do not have to worry as they will have easy access to all other sources of latest cricket world cup updates from different medium. Newspapers are the easiest source to get all the information about happening in the cricket world. In fact most newspapers in countries where cricket is followed have a special page or column that talks about the latest cricket world cup updates.
The web is another source through which one can get to know about the latest cricket world cup updates. This is a perfect medium for those fans that are crazy about the game, but do not have enough time to see the live telecast and read the newspapers every time. All they need is an internet enabled computer which will help them to stay updated with the latest cricket world cup updates and help them to know what is happening. It is not that through cricket world cup updates fans can only come to know about the results of the matches that are being played or have been played, but also about all the aspects that is happening on the field of cricket. Fans simply want to be updated about everything that is happening during the world cup.
The competition is heating up in the world cup and it is just a matter of few games before the winners of the 2007 world cup will be known to everyone. This makes watching and knowing the latest cricket world cup updates all the more interesting for fans. Well which fan would not like to know about the winners and also know about anything else that is taking place on the field? Fans must make sure that the medium through which they have access to different types of news must be a reliable source so that they are not bombarded with just any type of news instead of news and cricket world cup updates that are genuine and really matters to fans.
In countries of the world, where the game is followed there is no dearth for fans about the source through which they can come to know about the latest cricket updates. For many fans that live in countries with different time zones then the West Indies, catching up with the live telecast for the matches on television may not be an easy thing to do. However they do not have to worry as they will have easy access to all other sources of latest cricket world cup updates from different medium. Newspapers are the easiest source to get all the information about happening in the cricket world. In fact most newspapers in countries where cricket is followed have a special page or column that talks about the latest cricket world cup updates.
The web is another source through which one can get to know about the latest cricket world cup updates. This is a perfect medium for those fans that are crazy about the game, but do not have enough time to see the live telecast and read the newspapers every time. All they need is an internet enabled computer which will help them to stay updated with the latest cricket world cup updates and help them to know what is happening. It is not that through cricket world cup updates fans can only come to know about the results of the matches that are being played or have been played, but also about all the aspects that is happening on the field of cricket. Fans simply want to be updated about everything that is happening during the world cup.
The competition is heating up in the world cup and it is just a matter of few games before the winners of the 2007 world cup will be known to everyone. This makes watching and knowing the latest cricket world cup updates all the more interesting for fans. Well which fan would not like to know about the winners and also know about anything else that is taking place on the field? Fans must make sure that the medium through which they have access to different types of news must be a reliable source so that they are not bombarded with just any type of news instead of news and cricket world cup updates that are genuine and really matters to fans.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Wicket Keeping Success Tips
The wicket keeper is an essential and key part of the cricket team. Every team needs a reliable wicket keeper. As well as taking catches, stumping the batsmen and taking run outs, the wicket keeper is one of the team’s most important players: motivating and inspiring the bowlers and fielders to raise their game and WIN.
To be a wicket keeper you need fast reactions and precise judgement as you have very little time to react to such things as fast deliveries especially if there are changes and deviations in the balls line due to variations in swing, movement off the pitch and edges.You need to be alert and have high levels of concentration. Like a top batsmen you want to be able to ‘switch on and off’ your concentration between deliveries and overs to avoid getting mentally tired, as it’s impossible to fully concentrate non-stop for hours at a time.
High levels of fitness and flexibility are also very important for a wicket keeper as it can be very tiring because you are effectively doing hundreds of squats and diving around the field. So stay fit, warm up and down and stretch thoroughly to remain in peak condition and avoid injury.Equipment for wicket keeping-Wicket keeping gloves (and inner gloves),-Box,-Wicket keeping pads,-Helmet.Basic technique: Wicket keeping stanceYou can stand up to spin bowlers and slower paced bowlers. The wicket keepers stance is quite straight forward, you need to stand about one step behind the stumps, making sure no part of your body or equipment is in front of the line of the stumps.Crouch down with your left foot (reverse for left hand batsmen) inline with middle stump, therefore on you are crouched a little on off side.
Try to keep your head still and eyes level during the delivery to help you judge the pace and line. You should be balanced and relaxed with your weight slightly forward on the balls of your feet. Be alert and ready to react to the delivery.Catching the ballWhen you are catching the ball, aim to get your head/eyes above the line of the ball and your body behind the line of the ball. As the ball rises from the pitch, rise from the crouching position with the ball, so you mirror the height of the ball. Watch the ball into your hands and catch it with your fingers pointing downwards. You’ll need to cushion the impact of the ball hitting your gloves when catching by ‘giving’ with your hands. If the ball continues to rise as it reaches you, step with your outside foot backwards and across, rotating your body outwards, taking the ball on one side of the body. To catch a ball delivered on the off side or leg side, move your feet and body across immediately to get your head back into line with the delivery. (Move the outside foot first and follow with the inside.)
Rise with the ball as discussed above and ‘give’ with hands to reduce the impact.If you are standing back which you should be to medium and fast bowlers take your stance as discussed above, however stand in a position so that the ball is taken once it begins to drop.Sometimes you may have to dive to take wide deliveries or thick edges, always try to take the ball in two hands if possible, roll after the dive if you can to reduce the impact of landing and changes of injury.StumpingYou can attemp a stumping if the batsman is out of the crease after you have caught the delivery. Once you’ve taken the ball move your body weight towards stumps and move hands fast to break the wickets.
To be a wicket keeper you need fast reactions and precise judgement as you have very little time to react to such things as fast deliveries especially if there are changes and deviations in the balls line due to variations in swing, movement off the pitch and edges.You need to be alert and have high levels of concentration. Like a top batsmen you want to be able to ‘switch on and off’ your concentration between deliveries and overs to avoid getting mentally tired, as it’s impossible to fully concentrate non-stop for hours at a time.
High levels of fitness and flexibility are also very important for a wicket keeper as it can be very tiring because you are effectively doing hundreds of squats and diving around the field. So stay fit, warm up and down and stretch thoroughly to remain in peak condition and avoid injury.Equipment for wicket keeping-Wicket keeping gloves (and inner gloves),-Box,-Wicket keeping pads,-Helmet.Basic technique: Wicket keeping stanceYou can stand up to spin bowlers and slower paced bowlers. The wicket keepers stance is quite straight forward, you need to stand about one step behind the stumps, making sure no part of your body or equipment is in front of the line of the stumps.Crouch down with your left foot (reverse for left hand batsmen) inline with middle stump, therefore on you are crouched a little on off side.
Try to keep your head still and eyes level during the delivery to help you judge the pace and line. You should be balanced and relaxed with your weight slightly forward on the balls of your feet. Be alert and ready to react to the delivery.Catching the ballWhen you are catching the ball, aim to get your head/eyes above the line of the ball and your body behind the line of the ball. As the ball rises from the pitch, rise from the crouching position with the ball, so you mirror the height of the ball. Watch the ball into your hands and catch it with your fingers pointing downwards. You’ll need to cushion the impact of the ball hitting your gloves when catching by ‘giving’ with your hands. If the ball continues to rise as it reaches you, step with your outside foot backwards and across, rotating your body outwards, taking the ball on one side of the body. To catch a ball delivered on the off side or leg side, move your feet and body across immediately to get your head back into line with the delivery. (Move the outside foot first and follow with the inside.)
Rise with the ball as discussed above and ‘give’ with hands to reduce the impact.If you are standing back which you should be to medium and fast bowlers take your stance as discussed above, however stand in a position so that the ball is taken once it begins to drop.Sometimes you may have to dive to take wide deliveries or thick edges, always try to take the ball in two hands if possible, roll after the dive if you can to reduce the impact of landing and changes of injury.StumpingYou can attemp a stumping if the batsman is out of the crease after you have caught the delivery. Once you’ve taken the ball move your body weight towards stumps and move hands fast to break the wickets.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)