England Cricket Tour: Dhoni as captain

Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be leading the Indian Test side for a full series for the first time. The doubts hanging over the England cricket tour has been cleared after Reg Dickason cleared Chennai for the first test match. The England cricket players had arrived in Chennai yesterday for the match commencing on 11 December 2008.

Full Strength England Cricket Team
It is satisfying to know that England has arrived in full strength, in spite of fears earlier that some players might opt out. You could not blame them if any of them have chosen not to visit India after the Mumbai terror attacks. But, the England cricket players have shown faith in the security arrangements by Indian authorities.

Hope all the doubts about security will be away from the minds of the cricket players and they will start to concentrate on the game of cricket. England had been outplayed in the ODI series 5-0, but they have to come back in the test match series.

Indian Cricket Team Selection
The following is the 15-member Indian squad for the test match:

Virender Sehwag,
Gautam Gambhir,
M Vijay,
Rahul Dravid,
Sachin Tendulkar,
VVS Laxman,
Yuvraj Singh,
S Badrinath,
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain & wicket-keeper),
Harbhajan Singh,
Amit Mishra,
Pragyan Ojha,
Zaheer Khan,
Ishant Sharma,
Munaf Patel

Gambhir comes back after serving the one-match ban. Yuvraj Singh and Pragyan Ojha take the places of Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble, the veterans who retired after the Australia cricket series. It is a pity that Rohit Sharma could not find a place in the test squad. No one doubts his skills. But, he needs to show consistency that has failed him consistently. Two of Tamil Nadu batsmen, M Vijay and S Badrinath, find their names in the squad. They are unlikely to play in the test match unless someone else is injured. How great it would be for Vijay and Badri to play in front of their home crowd? Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma will be opening the bowling with Munaf Patel as the standby seamer. Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra are likely to play as spinners, with Pragyan Ojha as standby spinner.

Time for Cricket
Chennai is full of police and security had been taken very seriously. The climate is the only thing that could stop an entertainer in Chennai. It is rather gloomy conditions in Chennai for the past one month or so. But, the enthusiastic Chennai crowd is already clearing the tickets for the test match. Let us hope to see an entertaining cricket match with twists and turns that are purely associated with test matches.

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England Cricket Tour to India

England cricket tour is still hanging in the balance, even though the reactions suggest the tour might go ahead. The general feeling points that the security consultant Reg Dickason is comfortable with the arrangements in Chennai. Dickason is scheduled to visit Mohali later and he will also hold meetings with Hugh Morris, the managing director of England cricket, and Sean Morris, the chief executive of England's Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA).

I personally feel that the tour must go on. While I respect the individual cricket player's decision, I think no place is in the world is safe now. Is United States of America safe? The act of terrorism on twin towers, known as 911 now, is not forgotten yet. Is London safe? The serial bombings in the underground trains will put that conclusion to doubt. Is Chennai safe? It was considered to be a "Peace Park" until the former Primer Minister of India, Rajiv Gandhi, was assasinated by a suicide bomber.

I am not concluding that safety and security should be compromised. We should not give place to complacency. But, at the same time, we should not let the terrorists achieve what they want. The terrorists want to implant the seeds of fear and insecurity among the citizens. If we allow that to happen, we are completely lost.

The Indian Government and the Indian cricket board should ensure all necessary safety precautions are taken and nothing should be left unattended. If this is going to cause some inconvenience to the general public, they will understand it is for their own good. Let us all stand united in this effort to resurrect the image of India.

I appreciate Andrew Strauss, the England opener, for showing his faith and expressing openly that the England cricket tour must go on. If other England cricket players understand his feelings, probably they too will feel comfortable.

The Indian cricket team is expected to be chosen today. Mahendra Singh Dhoni will lead a full series for the first time. Yuvraj Singh is expected to come in place of the retired Sourav Ganguly. Gambhir is also expected to return to his opener's slot after serving out the one-match ban imposed during the Australia test match series.

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England Cricket Tour

The recent England cricket tour was terminated half-way by the devastating act of terrorism in Mumbai. The England cricket players left India after the terrorists attack took India and the whole world by grief. The England cricketers were then playing the 7-match ODI series against India. When the worst struck Mumbai, the commercial capital of India, the Indian cricket team was well ahead in the series by taking an unassailable lead of 5-0 in the ODI series.

With terrorism taking front seat, sports had no relevance whatsoever in the whole picture. Rightly, the England cricket tour was suspended and the players returned back to England. As such, the last two one-day matches had been called off. The future of the test series was well in doubt.

BCCI propose Chennai and Mohali
It seems now that BCCI (Board of Cricket Control in India) has proposed alternate venues for the England Cricket Board to consider. Chennai and Mohali are proposed in place of Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The test matches are expected to be played during Dec 11-15 and Dec 19-23 respectively.

Will England send a strong cricket squad?
England might send a weakened squad if players are not convinced of the security situation in India. Steve Harmison expressed his horror thinking about the rooms he stayed in Mumbai, the restaurant he took food and the corridor where he was freely walking just 10 days before the terrorists attack. If what Steve Harmison said has to be taken as a sample, you would feel that England will be a second-string side if the tour goes ahead.

Security is of topmost priority and cricket can wait. India should take a step forward and ensure the safety of the citizens and foreigners. We will support her in the efforts to ensure a No-No to terrorism.

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Yuvraj Singh loves England

It is surprising to note that some of the cricket players like certain opponents. They choose to hog the limelight in a particular series, and then go into hiding, only to come back strongly against the same opponents. It is nothing to do with the strength of the opposition. You call it luck, coincidence or by whatever name. But, there is enough proof of such interesting occurrences in the game of cricket.

Mystery Players
Players like Sachin and Dravid have performed consistently well against almost all the countries. It is known to everyone how much VVS Laxman loves Australia. He reserves his best for the Australians. The same kind of mystery had been exhibited by Shivnarine Chanderpaul against India. In recent times, we witnessed how Misbah-ul-Haq loved playing against the Indians. Yuvraj Singh shows a similar liking for England.

Emerging Yuvraj
Nobody would forget the match-winning partnership between Yuvraj Singh and Kaif in the Natwest Series 2002 in England. India was chasing a huge target of 326 runs to win the Natwest trophy. Yuvraj Singh scored 69 runs, Kaif made 87 not out and were featured in a partnership of 121 runs. It was a day when a new team of youngsters came into the fore under the aggressive captaincy of Sourav Ganguly. The match is remembered for Sourav Ganguly’s theatrical skills, removing his shirt in celebration of the victory.

Majestic Yuvraj
Yuvraj Singh’s six sixes off Stuart Broad in the Twenty20 World cup, held in South Africa, will ever be remembered for brute force. It also landed him the Twenty20 International Performance of the Year Award.

Current Form
The two hundreds in the first two matches of the ongoing India-England series further highlight his liking for the opposition. It is no wonder he won the player of the award on both occasions. In the second match, he even topped the bowling honours.

Conquering England
His batting average of 55.78 against England stands far ahead of his overall average of 37.19 in ODIs. His bowling average of 30.17 also stands better than the overall average of 39.41.

Hope he continues his form in the series and India will clinch the series comfortably. Kevin Pietersen, skipper of England cricket team, has to find a way to stop Yuvraj Singh if they like to pose any real challenge in this series.

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ECB Rejects BCCI's Request

A couple of days ago, BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) made a request to ECB (England and Wales Cricket Board) to postpone the first Test match between England and India by a day. The first test is scheduled to commence on 11 December 2008, following the ongoing seven match ODI-series.

Why did BCCI request to postpone the match?
The reason for the postponement is to give sufficient time for Mahendra Singh Dhoni to fly from Chennai to Ahmedabad. Dhoni, captain of Chennai Super Kings in IPL (Indian Premier League), will play in the Champions Twenty20 League 2008 from 3 Dec to 10 Dec. If Chennai Super Kings reaches the final to be played on 10 December, Dhoni will not be able to play either the Champions League final on 10 Dec or the first test match commencing on 11 Dec.

Interestingly, Dhoni is the only player to be affected from either sides playing the test match. The Champions Twenty20 league involves eight teams namely, Chennai Super Kings, Dolphins, Middlesex, Rajasthan Royals, Sialkot Stallions, Titans, Victoria and Western Australia.

Well done, ECB!
It is understood that ECB has rejected BCCI's request. I am glad that ECB had not given into BCCI. How crazy on the part of BCCI to request to change a match which is just three weeks away? What will happen to the travel plans of thousands of fans, journalists, commentators and officials? Why not just drop Dhoni from the Champions League final, if Chennai Super Kings reaches the final? Alternatively, why not let someone else lead the team in the first test match? At least Dhoni will get a well deserved break from cricket.

Why so much cricket? Give me a break man!
It is such a pity that BCCI could not plan its schedule ahead. It is not just about maximizing the schedule. The planning of the calendar should involve sufficient rest for players and enough time for fans to get some interest in the upcoming series. There was just three days between the end of Australia series and the beginning of England series. I wrote about this many times, but cannot stop myself complaining. Every series needs some hype, excitement and expectations before full commencement of the series. This will keep the interest of the game as well as the well-being of the cricketers intact.

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Test Cricket beats ODI

I have written sometime ago that Cricket is boring. In fact, I should rewrite that article that ODI cricket is boring. If the recent test series against Australia and the first two ODI matches against England are any indication, then I can conclude that Test cricket is here to stay. And ODI format will make way for Twenty20 format.

Test Cricket is Interesting
Just recall the four test matches between India and Australia. We saw gripping contest between two teams, one that could not accept defeat and another one fighting to go on top of the table. Every match had its own twists and turns, that made each day of the test match interesting to watch. The first match went to the last day and Indians forced a draw. The second match saw how clinically a victory could be achieved against the World Champions. The third match saw a see-saw battle and ended in a draw. The final match once again stretched to the last day and probably India won the match as Australia decided to go for the kill on the last day. Interesting twenty days of cricket.

ODI is Boring
Just look at the two ODIs so far concluded against England. The first match was a no-contest once Yuvraj Singh and Sehwag hammered the bowlers. The match was all but over at mid-stage. Its merely a formality to be completed for Dhoni's men. Eventually they bowled out England for 229 runs and won the contest by a whopping margin of 158 runs. If anyone expected a better contest in the second ODI, it all lasted only for the first ten overs. From then on, it was India's way all along. England fell short again, this time by a margin of 54 runs. Will we able to see a better contest in the coming matches?

Future of Cricket
ICC is trying everything to bring back interest to the ODI format. Supersub rule, changes to powerplays, mandatory ball changes, ... Nothing seem to work so far. If nothing happens drastically in favour of ODIs, I expect Twenty20 to take over as the preferred shorter version. With the successful emergence of IPL and other Twenty20 leagues everywhere, it is only logical to conclude that Test Cricket and Twenty20 will see the end of ODIs. The format that ruled the game of cricket for close to 25 years might come to an end soon.

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