Now, surely Eoin Morgan has to be given a go at test cricket…
Ten days or so ago, I wrote a post asking whether Eoin Morgan should be in the England test side.
After his wonderful century yesterday, he is almost banging the door to Chief Selector Geoff Miller’s hotel room in. Without him England would have faced the supposed ignominy of losing to Bangladesh for the first time, although clearly Shakib Al Hasan’s side are getting better with every game.
Yet Morgan is still not in the test squad despite a number of quite brilliant innings for England in T20I and ODIs in recent months. He has clearly demonstrated quality, composure, adaptability and timing , and like KP showed in the ODI series in South Africa in 2005, Morgan has shown that he has a special talent. Continue reading Pick Eoin Morgan! →
It was certainly interesting to read Peter Roebuck’s article on the problems of political influence in Zimbabwean cricket the other day, in light of Australia’s decision to elect former Prime Minister John Howard as it’s representative at the ICC. As far as Peter is concerned, political interference in the Zimbabwe Cricket board has resulted in a plethora of hideous ramifications for that country’s players and overall cricket system. Now, no one is suggesting that John Howard in any way represents a similar threat to the Australian Cricket Board or the ICC, particularly when he will become President in 2012, but politics and sport generally do not mix well, and thus we can certainly take Zimbabwe as a cautionary tale.
Continue reading John Howard – El Presidento →
Can We Declare Sachin the Best Batsman Ever and Place Him in Higher Esteem than Don Bradman?
We can certainly consider it…
“Better than Brian Lara and Ricky Ponting, the other two great players of my era. Better than Sir Viv Richards, Sunil Gavaskar and Allan Border. And I would even say better than Sir Don Bradman himself.”
Nasser Hussain
Four days on and the main subject of discussion amongst cricket commentators, bloggers and fans alike is Sachin Tendulkar’s momentous feat of scoring a double hundred in a one day international. The Little Master’s 93rd international hundred has reignited debate as to his position in the batting pantheon with the inevitable question being whether he is greater than The Don himself. Passions are certainly running high and opinion seems to be fairly evenly split.
Last summer, like many other cricket lovers before me, I wrote an article naming who in my opinion were the top 20 batsman of all time (see greatest batsman of all time positions 11-20 and the greatest batsmen of all time positions 10-1 here). As an amateur historian, I combined the knowledge gained from 30 years as a cricket follower, plus research encompassing both primary and secondary sources before arriving at my choice. I added several caveats explaining that it is extremely difficult to compare batsmen from different eras and that the game had changed and evolved throughout its wonderful history. I also based my choices primarily on test cricket given that the first ODI was in 1971 and that tests always have been the best barometer of a batsman’s true quality.
Bradman came top of my list with Tendulkar 11th, which naturally provoked a lot of criticism and ire from those that read it both in and outside India; especially as I had ranked both Ponting and Lara higher than the Little Master. Whilst I believe I was right in most of the choices within my top 20, I believe I may have erred somewhat in placing Tendulkar outside the top 10. Let me explain… Continue reading Is Sachin Tendulkar the Best Batsman Ever? →
Security issues are part of modern life. IPL3 is no different.
Evolving Eras of Cricket
Cricket can arguably be split into eras of historical or social importance that have defined the playing, administrating and commercialisation of our celebrated and loved sport. There was a period in cricket’s history as a sinful and riotous game, the sport was rebranded by the Victorians to become a gentleman’ s game and later, an era of professionals and amateurs. Packer commercialisation, West Indian domination. Australian ruthlessness on the pitch, Indian hegemony off it. We must ask what era we are currently in; perhaps we are entering an age of freelancing cricketers, T20, franchises, celebrity, an era of Lalit Modi? Continue reading IPL Preview: A Question of Security →
Watch the New Zealand vs Australia T20 Highlights right after they happen on World Cricket Watch. Watch the highlights of this two match series kicking off in Wellington on Friday and finishing off at Christchurch on Sunday.
New Zealand vs Australia 2nd T20 Highlights
New Zealand 214 for 6 (McCullum 116*) tied with Australia 214 for 4 (Clarke 67, White 64*). New Zealand won after Super Over
Part 2
Watch India vs South Africa ODI Highlights
So the Test series ended 1 a piece with some scintillating cricket. What a travesty it was only a two match series. Without dwelling on it, it’s time for the ODI series. Let’s see what these one day juggernauts can do. Watch India vs South Africa ODI Highlights right after they happen with World Cricket Watch.
India vs South Africa 3rd ODI Highlights
This week we start by paying homage to Sachin Tendulkar after his latest notable feat. We also suggest that England has finally found a worthy replacement for Marcus Trescothick in the limited overs game, report on a rare victory for Pakistan and ask how good the Australians are after their unbeaten summer. There are also stories on Otis Gibson, JP Duminy’s decline, a new Afghan star and the IPL, before we name our ideal England T20 line-up.
The Reverse Sweep is an irreverent round-up of the week that was in cricket. For further insight into this wonderful game of ours please visit my blog also entitled The Reverse Sweep, or follow me on Twitter @TheReverseSweep.
A few words on Sachin Tendulkar… Continue reading The Reverse Sweep →
Now, surely Eoin Morgan has to be given a go at test cricket…
