May 18, 2011 issue
Cricket
1st Test win over Pakistan!
Tony McWatt
The worst thing that could have happened to the prospects for a brighter future for West Indies cricket occurred over this past, May 12-14 weekend. West Indies not only won the Guyana 1st Test against Pakistan, but also did so on the strength of an outstanding second innings bowling performance by their captain Darren Sammy.
His captaincy under intense scrutiny for his inability to command a place in the team, Sammy responded with second innings figures of 5-29 off 17 overs.
His leadership of the West Indies to their first Test win in almost two years coupled with his bowling would have earned him a reprieve from the critics. Unfortunately for the prospects of an immediate brighter future for West Indies cricket, it may have also extended not only his undeserving tenure of the captaincy, but also his place in the team at the expense of a far more deserving player.
As outstanding as Sammy's second innings bowling may have been, it played a decisive second fiddle to the real hero of the West Indies effort, the rampaging Ravi Rampaul. Looking very trim and fit, Rampaul bowled consistently around the high eighties to ninety MPH mark. He finished with the impressive figures of 4-48 in the second innings, to add to the 3-27 he had taken in the first.
Rampaul's immaculate control with the new ball and impressive reverse swing when it became old, were a delight to watch. Combined with the first innings heroics of 4-68 by Davendra Bishoo, playing in his very first Test and ideally in front his Guyanese home crowd, it was Rampaul's bowling that ultimately gave the West Indies the edge needed to produce the victory.
For his part, Sammy's second innings bowling was undoubtedly influenced by the bowler friendly condition of the Guyanese Providence Stadium pitch. The inconsistency of the bounce from the very first day, some balls keeping very low, others going through to the keeper at waist level or at head height when the pacers pounded it in, made batting a nightmare. The recorded scores of 226 and 152 for the West Indies and 160 and 178 by Pakistan, were evidence of the difficulty batsmen on both sides faced measuring up to the demanding conditions of the pitch.
As all the very knowledgeable television commentators - Ian Bishop, Tony Cozier, Jeffrey Dujon, Michael Holding and Pakistan's Ramiz Raja - remarked, the Providence pitch was ideally suited to Sammy's type of bowling. Sensible enough to appreciate the gift horse that had been granted by the groundsmen, he never once looked it in the mouth. Instead he exploited the conditions beautifully. He simply bowled straight at just above gentle medium pace and allowed the wicket to do the rest.
Sammy's success was also due to the inexperience of the Pakistani batting lineup, unfortunately deprived as it was of its most senior player Younis Khan. A veteran of 67 Tests and the undisputed leader of Pakistan's batting, Younis was forced to return home at the very start of the Tour, a decision made necessary following his receipt of the very sad news of the untimely death of his elder brother in Germany.
Younis' departure not only deprived the Pakistanis of the only player who had previously played in the West Indies, it also created a gaping hole in the experience of their squad. Their most senior remaining player was Umar Gul, the leading pacer and spearhead of the bowling attack, having played only thirty-five Tests. Of the batsmen, skipper Misbah-ul-Haq, a "veteran" of 24 Tests, was left in Younis' absence as their most experienced batsman.
The outstanding performances of Ravi Rampaul in spearheading the West Indies victory, heralds the possibilities of a much brighter future for Caribbean cricket. With Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach, Andre Russell immediately available and Jerome Taylor set to return in a few weeks at the conclusion of the Indian Professional League (IPL) Season, Rampaul's emergence as an out-an-out quickie means that the West Indies now have five bowlers capable of sustaining speeds around 90 MPH. Not since the glory days of the legendary four-pronged pace attack of Roberts, Holding, Garner and Croft, have they had the luxury of such an impressive and potentially penetrative armory.
To add icing to what's now shaping up to be a delightfully delicious cake for Windies cricket lovers and fans, is the emergence of Davendra Bishoo as a leg-spinner of world class potential. Having played only his first Test and eight One Day Internationals to date since being drafted into the squad during the recent World Cup, Bishoo has impressed all with his abilities.
Variations of flight, impressive control and prodigious spin have been the hallmarks of his performances so far. His practice of his craft has earned the respect of all. The early indications are that in this young twenty-five year old leggie, the West Indies may very well have found a match winner.
With the left-arm spinner Suleiman Benn also available for selection, the possession of Bishoo and the five aforementioned quickies now means that West Indies at last have a bowling arsenal capable of taking the 20-wickets required for victory in Tests, under any conditions. The fly in the ointment is the automatic inclusion of the normally undeserving Sammy, given his position as captain, as one of the bowlers in any final eleven.
As it did with such disastrous consequences throughout the World Cup, Sammy's automatic inclusion upsets the natural balance of the team in that it's always at the expense of either a batsman or a more deserving bowler. Even in the Guyana 1st Test, the choice for the final place on the starting eleven was between Ravi Rampaul and Fidel Edwards.
On the strength of his impressive performances during the preceding One Day International Series between the two teams, Rampaul fully deserved his pick. The unfortunate necessity however, was that Edwards, with 122 wickets including 8 five wicket hauls to his name from the 43 Tests he has played and easily when at his best by far the quickest of the West Indies bowlers, had to sit on the bench while Sammy played.
Under normal circumstances any captain or coach given a choice of having to decide between a bowler with Edwards' impressive credentials and performance record and those of Sammy's, 29 wickets from 11 matches prior to the Test, would have chosen the former. Unfortunately for Edwards and indeed the West Indies, Sammy's tenure as captain effectively eliminated the availability of any such choice.
The contractual expiration date of Sammy's appointment as West Indies captain is at the conclusion of the Indian Tour. As much as they would wish their team every success in the one remaining Test against Pakistan and three scheduled versus the Indians, every well meaning West Indian fan will be secretly hoping for a non-repeat of Sammy's Guyana performance. Hopefully by the end of that time his inadequacies would have been sufficiently exposed to warrant the termination of his tenure as captain of the West Indies senior squad. If not West Indies will likely find themselves always playing Tests a bowler or batsman short of their best available eleven.
Under-fire West Indies captain Darren Sammy took a leading role in bowling his side to a memorable, 40-run victory over Pakistan in the first Test on Sunday.
Sammy captured five wickets for 29 runs from 17 overs, as Pakistan, chasing 219 for victory, were bowled out for 178 about 45 minutes after lunch on the fourth day.
Ravi Rampaul gave Sammy admirable support in the demolition of the Pakistan batting with four for 48 from 21 overs.
Sammy, whose place in the side, and position of captain had been under a cloud going into the match, had the privilege of formalising the result, when he bowled Saeed Ajmal for three.
West Indies took a 1-0 lead in the two-match series, killing Pakistan's dreams of their first-ever Test series victory on Caribbean soil.
The second Test at Warner Park in the St. Kitts capital of Basseterre opens on Friday.
The result also ended a sequence of 17 straight Tests for West Indies without a victory, stretching back to February 2009, when they crushed England by an innings and 23 runs at Sabina Park in Jamaica.
Match Summary: 1st Test: West Indies v Pakistan at Providence, Guyana - May 12-15, 2011
West Indies 226 and 152; Pakistan 160 and 178
West Indies won by 40 runs
International Cricket Council (ICC) chief executive Haroon Lorgat has considered the use of 'sting' operations to trap players prepared to fix matches.
The South African administrator said the use of a "mystery shopper" could help weed out possible fixers as the global governing body tries to eradicate corruption from top-flight international cricket.
"I thought when this issue came up last year that perhaps we could have a 'mystery shopper'," Lorgat told the BBC's Hardtalk programme.
"In other words, some people posing as bookmakers approach players and see if those players report along with our codes of conduct."
However, Lorgat admitted the proposal had met with strong resistance.
"We would have to get the players' federations consenting to it and they of course opposed it and were not happy, they considered it a form of entrapment," he said.
Another plan would give the ICC access to players' bank accounts and assets so that they could be monitored, but Lorgat conceded that had less chance of being enacted than his 'sting' scheme.
"It is a bit more complex than that, there are human rights issues and legalities to understand properly," he said.
Three memmbers of the Pakistan team – former Test captain Salman Butt and bowlers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir – were all banned by the ICC for a minimum of five years each for their involvement in a spot-fixing scam during last year's tour of England. The trio now face criminal prosecution in England.
But the scandal, which involved the bowling of deliberate no-balls during the Lord's Test, only came to light as a result of a 'sting' operation carried out by Britain's News of the World tabloid.
Many pundits said the fact it took a newspaper, rather than the ICC's own anti-corruption and security unit, to expose the affair was an embarrassment for the global governing body.
That was a point the ICC denied at the time but Lorgat told the BBC: "We are doing a review of our whole process and all of our systems right now.
"We have engaged an independent firm to conduct that review and I'm hopeful that some constructive recommendations will come up that will enhance or improve the way we are currently tackling the issue."
ODIs on Caribbean tour
Gautam Gambhir will lead India in the Twenty20 game, followed by the one-day series in the West Indies next month, after skipper MS Dhoni and two key players decided to take a break from non-stop cricket since December.
Election was the buzzword in Tamil Nadu on Friday, barring the hotel here where the national selection panel met for the first time since India's triumphant World Cup campaign. Present was new coach Duncan Fletcher.
There were no real surprises as chief selector K Sriklkanth and his committee preferred prolific domestic performers to substitute the jaded World Cup stars for the lone T20 International and five ODIs in the Caribbean.
The only decision that could raise a few eyebrows is skipper MS Dhoni's decision to opt out of the limited overs leg, along with Zaheer Khan and Sachin Tendulkar.
Till Dhoni joined the selectors for the meeting, even the selectors were in a "will he? Won't he?" dilemma. But the skipper, who deserves a break, announced his decision at the outset of the meeting that lasted around 45 minutes.
With Dhoni opting out, it was clear Gautam Gambhir would don the captain's role for the second series in less than six months. The last time Gambhir led the side —against NZ at home late last year when Dhoni was rested — India whitewashed the Kiwis 5-0.
It won't be such an easy task this time around with West Indies set to field their strongest possible team at home, against the Indian team sans five seniors.
Srikkanth sounded optimistic as ever after the meeting. "I remember that it was the same place, the same hotel where we selected the World Cup team," he said. "And we won the World Cup. I am confident we will win the series."
While choosing a 16-member squad, the selectors have replaced Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag and Ashish Nehra (both injured), S Sreesanth, Piyush Chawla (both dropped) and Dhoni with Rohit Sharma, S Badrinath, Praveen Kumar, Vinay Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra and Wriddhiman Saha.
As a result, Parthiv Patel is set to open the innings with Gambhir in all the six games. The limited overs series starts with the T20I on June 4.
Mumbai Indians's Harbhajan Singh and Andrew Symonds
The tough approach they take towards their opponents are the hallmarks of the respective playing styles of Harbhajan Singh and Andrew Symonds. So when the relationship between these two cricketers soured, it made for a rivalry that many dreaded. However, the situation is a lot better now, as the duo have long forgotten that old battle. In fact, they can't stop raving about each other. This amiable situation is all thanks to the great Sachin Tendulkar.
'Bhajji' now calls 'Symmo' a great human being, and the Aussie thinks the former is a balanced individual. Three years after the 'monkeygate' incident in Australia, the duo has finally arrived at a truce.
Harbhajan Singh: Many things happen on the field, but they should remain there. I am happy that we are back to being friends. Symonds is a great guy. We both play for Mumbai, and I am enjoying that a lot. I would say it's the media who had made a mountain out of a molehill. We have always been buddies, and I really don't feel like going into the past and thinking about what happened. We (cricketers) take all such on-field exchanges in our stride and don't let that hamper our friendship. I don't carry any such baggage. Yes, Sachin pa has been a great support. He helped in resolving the issue. We were being projected as great enemies, and I remember how the crowds would react as I went to bowl to Symonds, but it's fine now. I would want to make it clear that we have always been great pals, and it does not feel right to be branded as 'enemies'.
Andrew Symonds: What fight? See, the issue was hyped for no reason. Bhajji is a great boy and is extremely talented. He has the ability to turn the match around in his team's favour. We share a great relationship and talk quite often. It's all good and I really would not like to get into the nitty-gritty. I am upfront as a rule. Harbhajan is very focused and continuously works to improve his game. I appreciate that. The reason why it took time to forge a friendship was because we were not playing together. Now, when we are playing for the same team, we are like family. In cricket, where the pressure is too much, one can end up entering verbal duels, but that doesn't mean it has to go on and on. If he calls me a great person, I feel good. We will be keeping in touch for sure.
Gayle and Sehwag
By Aakash Chopra
Though Gayle and Sehwag are both big-hitters, match-winners, and brutal on all bowling attacks, you wouldn't quite think their batting styles are comparable. Let's give it a shot, though.
Footwork
Most batsmen have a trigger movement before the bowler delivers the ball. It could be a slight shuffle across, a small press or something else that helps you get moving before the ball is delivered, which in turn helps you get into position quickly. But both Gayle and Sehwag stay completely still till as late as possible before a delivery.
The quicker the bowler, the more crucial these movements, for you don't want to be late for the ball. But these movements can also give away a batsman's preferences in terms of strokes and scoring areas. For instance, if he goes back and across, chances are he's looking for a full ball and transferring his weight on to the back leg. The only movement from that position will be a forward press. Likewise, if he plants his foot in front, he prefers short-pitched deliveries.
But these apply only to lesser mortals; great batsmen can do without. Both Gayle and Sehwag move only when the ball leaves the hand of the bowler, and hence give nothing away. In fact, even when they do move, their movements are restricted to the minimum.
The lack of foot movement may have its pitfalls but their quick hands make up. When you can't reach the delivery with your feet, the chances of missing it increase, but both these batsmen have mastered the art of throwing their arms at the ball. And the minimal movement ensures they rarely find themselves in awkward positions that might lead to their playing off-position shots.
Sharp eyes
Gayle's and Sehwag's batting seems to be based on the simple technique of see ball, hit ball. This approach can only be effective if you do the first part right. While most good players pick the line and length quickly, what separates these two from the rest is their ability to pick slower balls and other variations with ease. Love Ablish, the Kings XI Punjab medium-pacer, changes his pace and disguises his deliveries well, but he couldn't fox Gayle who delayed his downswing a fraction to send the ball over the ropes.
Ashish Nehra once told me that there are only two batsmen in the Indian team, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag, who, when countering sudden changes in pace, don't turn their aggressive stroke into a defensive prod. Instead they wait a fraction longer and at times even convert a defensive prod into a lofted drive. Most batsmen would be too early on the shot while facing a well-disguised slower one, but not these two.
Hitting from the crease
What makes Gayle and Sehwag even more dangerous is that they don't need to go down the track or generate bbody momentum to send a spinner for six. While Gayle prefers to give the fast bowlers the charge every now and then, like Sehwag he stays put in the crease when facing spinners. Both trust the downswing in their back-lifts to generate enough power, and it rarely ever fails them.
Astute brains
Since their batting looks simple and uncomplicated, most people discount the tactical shrewdness of these two. If the ball moves prodigiously at the start, they are happy to bide time. Even in Twenty20 games, like they did against Punjab and Deccan Chargers respectively, where they allowed the early swing to fade away before exploding.
Gayle and Sehwag always target certain bowlers in the opposition and play strokes that may look ambitious but are percentage shots. They also trick bowlers by wildly heaving at and missing deliveries intentionally. Once, in a domestic game on a poor surface, Sehwag stepped down the track and played a rather ambitious shot, only to miss the ball by a mile. It looked suicidal but he had a plan in mind. He charged the bowler because he wanted to force him to shorten his length, which he did the following ball, to be dispatched to the fence. Gayle does the same against many quick bowlers only to sit deep inside the crease on the following ball. There are astute cricket brains working behind those rather calm facades.
Both Gayle and Sehwag may have two Test triple-centuries to their names, but their recent performances in Twenty20 have been just as pleasurable to watch. Unless, of course, you are the hapless prey in their sights.