Isaac Schrödinger

Oh, The Oppression!

I feel so sorry for Indian men:

"All the organisers are doing by making scantily-clad white women dance in front of huge crowds is to stoke the base voyeuristic and sexual insecurities of the Indian male. It is revolting, appalling and shows the game in very poor light."

Cricket historian Ramachandra Guha on the cheer girls in the IPL

That's in India. Imagine if someone were to suggest that these babes visit the friendly neighbor to provide some entertainment ...

Update
My apologies to readers for not providing any informative, um, links.

Here's one:

More here; an interesting excerpt:

"The Cheerleaders? Oh, they are hot, they are rocking. I want their numbers. Can you do that for me?" quips 21-year-old Goney Kakwani. He and his friends have imitated, screamed at and pretty much stared at the cheerleaders all night. Dozens of empty beer cups sit at their feet.

But challenged as to whether he would want to see Indian cheerleaders dressing like the American cheerleaders, dancing like the American cheerleaders, he sobers up a bit.

"Indians should be Indians. Indian beauty is like — they wear beautiful clothes. They can wear their clothes. They don't have to wear anybody else's clothes."

Hmm.

What Could Have Been

Commentary on the banning of Shoaib Akhtar:

He had the hostility of Walsh but he lacked his honesty towards the game, he had the guile of Akram but he lacked his grit, he had the curving swing of Younis but he lacked his commitment.

I still remember the truly massive hype surrounding his entry into international cricket in the late 90s. He had the opportunity to learn from the masters -- Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis. He could have been the greatest bowler of his era. Instead, he'll be remembered as a disappointing, uncouth character who likely cheated.

The Man Who Likes Big Hundreds

It was a wretched day for South African bowlers. Virender Sehwag destroyed them and reached a score of 309 -- he equaled the highest score by an Indian batsman which, by the way, is his own record!

His last ten hundreds have all been 150-plus knocks, a trot unlike any other batsman in Test history. He joined Brian Lara and Don Bradman as the only two batsmen to cross 300 twice. He may not be mentioned in the same league as those two legends - not as yet - but like them he remains a man apart.

He's still not out. So, tomorrow, new records will most certainly be created.

Einstein of India

Cricinfo:

There have been some memorable names in cricket - perhaps none more so than Hogsflesh - but there's one at the Under-19 World Cup that runs it close. Napoleon Einstein, an offspinner from Tamil Nadu, is part of the Indian squad.

I concede that my pseudonym is no match.

No Love for Singh

The Aussies aren't fond of him:

Matthew Hayden has stirred already troubled waters by calling Harbhajan Singh an "obnoxious weed", a comment that will only serve to deepen the animosity between the two sides that has surfaced during India's tour.

This I find funny:

The pair clashed during Sunday's CB Series game at the SCG when the Indians complained that Hayden had called Harbhajan a "mad boy".

Oooh.

Balance, Grace, Power, Technique.

For almost four hours this teenager, brought up on low, slow Indian wickets, had defied four bristling Australian pacemen on the fastest, bounciest pitch in the world with a mixture of grace and power his opponents found hard to fathom in one so young.

Merv Hughes cracked open a beer and turned to his captain, Allan Border, the tough, proud Australian who within a couple of years would become the most prolific batsman in Test cricket.

"This little prick's going to get more runs than you, AB."

Hughes was right.

World Cup Final of the Century

Pakistan vs. India in the first final of Twenty20 cricket in two days.

These Asian superpowers, shockingly, got knocked out in the first round of the ODI World Cup earlier this year. Oh, look at them now: they've made to the ultimate, explosive* showdown.

* Here's hoping that actual explosives are not involved.

Update
I can't help but steal this gif from Metroblogging Lahore.

A New Era?

Sambit Bal:

Pakistan have almost qualified for the semi-final, and it came on the back of a performance so controlled and clinical that it could have belonged to the team they beat. Australia, judging from what Adam Gilchrist had to say at the post-match press conference, are yet to embrace this format wholeheartedly and they are far from invincible in this form, but there was nothing remotely flukeish about Pakistan's win. They out-bowled, out-batted, and would you believe it, out-fielded Australia.

They played so .... well, I'll let Bal articulate it:

There was a coolness to their victory which was almost un-Pakistani.

That says quite a lot.

Is Cricket Getting Sexier?

It seems like it:

In order to cater for the need to globalise the game, the next ICC World Twenty20 should be expanded from 12 to 16 teams. Because the games are so condensed, even an expanded Twenty20 competition with a best-of-three final series could be completed in around two and a half weeks, a far cry from the nearly two-month long World Cup that everyone had to endure in the Caribbean.

Twenty20 is here to stay.

Prima Donna Defined

Cricinfo:

Shoaib Akthar said he made a mistake "in the heat of the moment" when he hit Mohammad Asif and has apologised to him and his Pakistan teammates for the dressing-room scuffle that saw him being sent home from South Africa.

You know how it is. You're arguing with someone and then the next moment you unintentionally hit that person with a bat. It happens.

He likened the incident to the headbutt by the French footballer, Zinedine Zidane, in the final of the World Cup in Germany last year and said what happened was not intentional.

Yeah.

He might not be playing cricket for a while but the sex machine can still strut it!

Update
This is precious:

"The incident began with a verbal spat between me and Afridi, who used foul language," Akhtar said, "and Asif intervened and in anger I hit Asif with a bat."

You see, Afridi is to blame for this entire mess.

Afridi, however, denied that he had provoked Shoaib and was surprised at the accusations.

One of them has to be clearly lying.

Asif from Punjab

Cricinfo interviews one of the most talented bowlers in the world:

"When I close my eyes at the top of my mark, I can just see exactly where the ball pitches, how it swings in, and hits the top of the off stump," he told Cricinfo in a chat recently. You believe him. Batsmen who didn't, have suffered.

12 in 10

This time line makes the Pakistani political sphere look stable.

Aussies Supreme

Ian Chappell presents a most true view of the modern cricket world.

The Decay Reaches Cricket

Michael Jennings:

Guy Herbert this morning posted a piece commenting on Australian Prime Minister John Howard's decision to "ban" the Australian cricket team from touring Zimbabwe later this year. I generally have little time for Mr Howard, but in this case I can't personally be very harsh on him. What clearly happened is that the Australian Cricket Board (which these days prefers to call itself "Cricket Australia" begged him at length the make such an announcement, and he eventually gave in despite considerable resistence, and because from his perspective the alternatives were probably worse.

Jennings talks about the political and economic reasons behind this decision. He also ties in the murder of Bob Woolmer (Pakistan's coach) and how the deterioration of society heavily affects the spirit of the sport.

Aussie Supremacy

Statistics that show off Australian dominance in the just concluded World Cup.

F. A. R. C. E.

Bloody buffoons:

The match referee Jeff Crowe took the blame for the farcical finish to the World Cup final which saw Australia celebrate victory twice and forced Sri Lanka to bat in pitch-black darkness. But he suggested the third umpire Rudi Koertzen may have initiated the process leading to chaotic scenes at the climax of the game.

Crowe, despite heading up a team of officials which included the umpire Steve Bucknor, standing in a record fifth World Cup final, managed to overlook a basic playing condition which states that once 20 overs have been bowled in both innings enough cricket has been played to create a match. A result can then be declared under the Duckworth-Lewis system for rain-affected games.

I know that freakin' rule! How could the referee confuse that! The whole point of the D/L method is to have a result in a game even if 60% of the total overs are lost due to whatever reason. The fact that "the experts" messed up in the World Cup final is hugely embarrassing.

Ponting joked: "If the umpires don't know, I don't know. It appeared we had a premature celebration for the best part of ten minutes. I thought Aleem was having a bit of a joke with us when he said it looks like we'd have to come back tomorrow and play three overs. I said: 'Mate, we've played the 20 overs, we've actually finished the game.'"

Quite right.

ICC World Cup - Final

The match is reduced to 38 overs each due to rain.

Australia won the toss and elected to bat. Gilchrist and Hayden offer a dream start: Aussies 112/0 in 17 overs. Gilchrist has now scored a half-century in three successive World Cup finals -- now that's an awesome component of any CV.

Hayden is scoring at a slow rate and playing the anchor; allowing Gilchrist to smash the hapless Sri Lankans. Only Murali is being treated with caution. The others are leaking sixes.

Damn. Murali just got hit for a six. Australia on the rampage: 135 runs off 19 overs. Sri Lanka need a wicket now.

Century for Gilchrist off 72 balls. Eight 4s, six 6s. He scored two runs combined in the last two matches. Now, he roars back on the greatest stage. In fact, this is his first World Cup hundred!

OUT. Hayden is gone for a 55-ball 38. He is the top scorer of this World Cup with 659 glorious runs. He gets my vote for Man of the Tournament.

OUT. Gilchrist leaves after scoring a 104-ball 149. Australia at 227/2 with 7 overs remaining. A total of 300+ runs is likely. Ponting and Symonds are at the crease for the late carnage.

Sri Lanka need 282 runs to win. Australia had 172 from 23 overs. They managed another 109 from the last 15 -- an under par finish to the innings. Still, their total is formidable. Had Australia been given 50 overs, they would have managed 370 runs with their run rate.

Pressure is piling up on Sri Lanka. 42/1 off 10 overs.

OH NO, RAIN. After 24.5 overs of the Sri Lankan innings, the umpires decide to stop. If the day ends without further play, then Australia will rightly win by the Duckworth/Lewis method.

Still, this sucks.

THEY'RE BACK! The Lankans lost two overs. They now need a spectacular 119 runs from 11 overs to win.

157/4. Sri Lanka need 112 runs from 60 balls. If they win, then it'll be the finest run chase in a World Cup final. If they lose, then Australia will become the greatest ODI side in history -- winning three World Cups in a row!

The Australians are victorious by 53 runs. They've defeated all three former Asian champions in three tournament finals. (Pakistan: 1999, India: 2003, Sri Lanka: today.) Not a single team beat them in their campaigns in 2003 and 2007 -- an unprecedented feat.

Of course, Gilchrist is the Man of the Match. Glenn McGrath retires from cricket by winning the Player of the Tournament award. What a fitting end to a truly peerless and glorious career.

The Aussies go home contented. They are, no question, the unmatched superpower of cricket.

The Great Pigeon

Steve Waugh tells us a few things about Glenn McGrath.

ICC World Cup - 2nd Semi-Final

Australia humiliate South Africa by 7 wickets.

The Aussies have now gone on to the World Cup final four times in a row -- a new record. They won on the last two occasions. If they win on Saturday, they'll become the first team to earn three successive trophies.

The upcoming final is a re-match of the 1996 final: Australia vs. Sri Lanka.

Update
The 149 runs by South Africa today was the lowest total by SA in any World Cup match. They saved their worst for the semi-final.

"Crazy Cricket":

Former batsman Adam Bacher said the gap between the two teams was almost embarrassing. "It was boys against men," he said on public television. "They taught us a cricket lesson."

Ouch!

ICC World Cup - 1st Semi Final

Sri Lanka defeats New Zealand.

So, for the fifth time in a row, an Asian team makes it to the final.

1992: Pakistan (won)
1996: Sri Lanka (won)
1999: Pakistan (lost)
2003: India (lost)
2007: Sri Lanka

Sadly for New Zealand, it was the fifth time they've reached the semi-finals and not gone any further.

The second semi-final is tomorrow. The out-of-sorts South Africans take on the all-conquering Australians -- still undefeated in the World Cups of this century.

World Champions

Cricinfo: "More Australian talent on display in Barbados".

Mmm-hmm.

The Other Pakistani Religion

Younis Khan declines to lead the Pakistani cricket team:

Younis admitted that widespread criticism of the national side since their shock exit had been tough to digest, and affected his decision. "I am still hurt and upset at the sort of hostile reception we have got since returning from the World Cup. I have always given 100 percent for my country. But when your family gets threatening calls and our effigies are burnt and our pictures put on donkeys, then I can't lead the team in such circumstances."

I don't see why any sane man would.

ODI no. 2565

The Australian juggernaut rolls over England.

The sorry Brits went down by 7 wickets. Pietersen scored a fighting century but the rest of the team scored 125 runs combined.

The Australians have now gone undefeated in 24 consecutive World Cup matches. They are one slick ODI-winning machine.

Very Embarrassing

Bangladesh defeat South Africa:

How many times in your life will you watch the No. 1 side in the world comprehensively outclassed by one ranked eight places lower? This match, three weeks on from that epic triumph against India at Port-of-Spain, will linger long in the memory for the manner in which a young and vibrant side embarrassed one that appeared to rest on its laurels.

The South Africans will likely have to win all their remaining matches to make the semi-finals. Oh, they're no longer ranked number one -- Australia deserves that spot.

Too Much Islam?

Cricinfo:

PJ Mir, Pakistan's media manager during the World Cup, has blamed the influence of religion in the dressing room for Pakistan's disastrous performance in the Caribbean.

Speaking to reporters after his appearance at the performance evaluation committee looking into Pakistan's shambolic display, Mir said, "I could not disclose this fact before, but today I inform the media that most of the members had no focus on cricket. Their fixation was on preaching, affecting the team's preparations."

Devil's Advocate: Hey, the outcomes of the games were in the hands of Allah. So, really, what's the point of planning and preparation?

4 in 4 For The First Time

Cricinfo:

South Africa needed a meagre four runs to win with five wickets in hand when Malinga finished batsmen as if swatting flies. He fooled Shaun Pollock with a beauty of a slower ball before hurrying Andrew Hall with a juddering yorker that looped up to cover. The first ball of the next over produced the hat-trick, the fifth in World Cups, when the set Jacques Kallis nicked to the wicketkeeper before a brute of a yorker zoomed past Makhaya Ntini.

No bowler in one-day history has managed four in four - Saqlain Mushtaq has managed four in five - and Malinga took Sri Lanka to the brink of an outrageous day-light robbery.

We would have got the choking of the decade had the last South African wicket fallen.

An Awesome Statistic

Australia thrashed the West Indies in their backyard.

Andrew Miller reports:

"They look like a team that have come here for one purpose," Lara said, breathing a quiet sigh of relief that his players would not have to face them again in their bid for a semi-final slot. Australia have now won 22 of their last 23 matches in World Cup competitions dating back to 1999 - a run that has been interrupted only by that famous tie at Edgbaston.

Think about that. The Aussies have not lost their past 23 matches in a World Cup tournament. What makes that fact even more impressive is that all those games were played outside Australia! That is truly unrivaled domination.

The Champions are a lock for the semi-finals. If they go on to win those two important games, then they'll become the first team to win three World Cups in a row.

ICC No Like YouTube

Cricinfo:

The ICC [International Cricket Council] has ordered YouTube, the online video-sharing website, to remove World Cup clips claiming copyright infringement. The ICC and the rights holder to the event, the Global Cricket Corporation, took the action after hundreds of World Cup clips appeared on the site.

Andrew Miller:

It is an astoundingly short-sighted decision by a ruling body that has once again shown it is completely lacking in a sense of priorities. God knows that cricket could do with some good publicity at present. Only 24 hours ago, the ICC's Lawyer-in-Chief, Malcolm Speed, was telling Cricinfo how wonderful the match between Australia and South Africa at St Kitts was turning out to be. "Let's all just watch the cricket," he suggested when queried about the latest murmurings about Bob Woolmer's death. Mal, we'd love to. But 75% of your global audience have no means of tuning in.

Reader feedback is also quite negative.

ODI no. 2552

The champions show what they're made of. The Aussies defeat the South Africans by 83 massive runs.

One of most impressive feats in the game was the century scored by Hayden. He hit a magnificent 68-ball 101. Had the rest of the Australians matched his strike rate, the team would have notched up 444 runs!

Still, it's a rare feat for every single player to have a strike rate of a 100 or more in an ODI innings. This was the area in which the South Africans failed. They needed big runs in every over; Kallis couldn't manage and thus they lost.

It's possible that these two teams will meet again very soon. Perhaps, in the semi-final or ... the final.

Click here to read the bulletin by Anand Vasu.

A Billion People Disappointed

ODI no. 2550: Sri Lanka defeat India.

If Bangladesh beat Bermuda, then India will be knocked out of the World Cup. Since 1979, at least one of the two Asian superpowers has progressed to the next stage of the big tournament. So, it'll be quite incredible to see both Pakistan and India get eliminated in the first round.

Too bad.

The match, however, that I have been waiting for will take place tomorrow. The defending champions (ranked second in the world today) will take on the top ranked team: Australia vs. South Africa.

Woolmer Was Murdered

Cricinfo:

Police are searching for the killer - or killers - of Bob Woolmer after revealing he was strangled in his hotel room on Sunday. During a press conference in Jamaica police confirmed Woolmer was murdered - he showed few signs of struggling with his attackers - and there were no suspects.

"The pathologist's report states that Mr Woolmer's death was due to asphyxiation as a result of manual strangulation," Karl Angell, the police spokesman, said. "In these circumstances, the matter of Mr Woolmer's death is now being treated by the Jamaica police as a case of murder."

MSNBC has this as one of its top stories right now.

Woolmer’s death had prompted much speculation among followers of cricket, a sport that breaks for tea and makes baseball seem fast-paced, but generates tremendous passion in Britain and its former colonies.

An outspoken Pakistani player speculated that gambling interests had it in for Woolmer. The coach’s widow said he was depressed about losing the game, but would never have committed suicide. She said an irate fan might have killed her husband.

That seems to be a likely scenario: an angry Pakistani fan killed Woolmer after Pakistan was knocked out of the World Cup.

For many in the subcontinent, cricket is equivalent to a religion.

End of an Era

There is truth in this:

As an Indian fan, I had always been jealous of the immense all-round talent that the Pakistani team possessed from the mid 80s to the early 2000s. But the thing I had envied the most was their ability to win from the tightest situations possible: it was common knowledge that greater the challenge, more dangerous the Pakistanis became. A Manzoor Elahi would come from nowhere and take a match away, a then-insignificant player like Salim Malik would announce his arrival with an innings of blinding power in a cause all but totally lost, a débutante like Inzamam ul Haq could turn defeat into victory in the biggest stage possible.

Not any more though.

It seems that the South Africans have the fire now.

Let's see if it takes them to the ultimate glory this year.

The Death of Woolmer

Cricinfo:

Pervez Mir, the Pakistan Cricket Board spokesman, told AFP: "The police suspect that Woolmer may have been murdered. They have started an investigation."

Good luck to the next coach (whoever he may be).

No Pity For Pakistan

Osman Samiuddin from Cricinfo:

First, an apology to the Irish: what follows is meant in no way to take anything away from what must be one of that immensely warm, tiny nation's greatest sporting achievements. They outplayed Pakistan with bat, ball, mind, body, soul and all else that goes into the winning of cricket matches.

More:

And we apologise to you for our captain Inzamam-ul-Haq's disgraceful yet revealing post-match comment that kismet was not with Pakistan; kismet or fate, Inzamam, had nothing to do with it and to say it did degrades a mighty performance.

Gotta love that fatalism!

[...] by losing to Ireland, by getting knocked out of the World Cup barely five days after it began, throwing out of the window in five days what was supposed to have been three years of preparation and somehow contriving to make even the doomed World Cup class of 2003 appear champions, is cause enough to churn out that most hackneyed of literary cliches - the cricket obituary.

Related articles
Cricinfo: Lowest point in Pakistan cricket, say former players.
Kamran Abbasi: Shamed by the shamrock: an open letter.

Update
I just got back from work and found that Rezwan had left a comment about ... the death of Pakistan's cricket coach!

Bob Woolmer died at the age of 58.

• An eventful life, a premature end.
• Thanks Bob, you did make a big difference.
• The tragedy of Bob Woolmer.
• Tributes from around the world.

ODI no. 2539

What an incredible Saint Patrick's Day for the Irish in ... the West Indies.

The Irish defeated the Pakistanis in the Cricket World Cup -- they've eliminated Pakistan from the tournament!

In other news: Bangladesh beat India (ODI no. 2538). Oh how far the Asian superpowers have fallen!

ODI no. 2535

A tie in a cricket match is very rare. Today, we got one of them.

Zimbabwe had lost four wickets for nine in 15 balls in one of the most sensational World Cup chokes.

The team that "won" the game: Ireland.

ODI no. 2531

World Cup: West Indies vs. Pakistan.

West Indies scored 241 runs in their 50 overs for the loss of 9 wickets.

The Pakistanis are at 17/2; they shouldn't even bother with the top order -- just send in the middle order to start the innings.

Update
The Pakistanis unveiled a most depressing batting performance. Only one person scored a fifty and the entire team was bowled out for 187 runs. The strike rates were way too low for an ODI game. Only Malik (62) played sensibly...he simply didn't get any support.

The Pakistanis don't have the firepower to advance in this tournament. To be fair, Shahid Afridi, out of this game because of disciplinary action, can tip the scales in their favor.

One of the Greats

Cricinfo:

His favourite opponents are New Zealand, whom he has pummelled for 37 runs at a rate of more than one a match (31 games). Against South Africa, he has managed only 12 runs in 39 games.

That's quite humorous.

Chokers Almost Choked

South Africa -- ranked #1 in the cricket world -- was reduced to 91 for 8 by ... Ireland -- a team that doesn't even figure into the rankings!

GB Hits a Six!

Indian cricket has come a long way since the days of Kapil Dev.

Rawalpindi Express Derailed

A scathing opinion on Akhtar -- the fastest bowler in cricket:

THANK goodness Shoaib Akhtar has been ruled out of the World Cup. He will not be missed. He does not belong on a cricket field anywhere, let alone representing his country in the game's most prestigious event. An impostor whose reputation relies on a handful of bursts spread over a career lasting a decade, he has been more trouble than he is worth.

Perhaps, this is the end of a roller coaster career.

Last week Akhtar flew to London, ostensibly to see specialists about various ailing limbs. Sceptics claimed he was merely avoiding further official examinations. He could not afford to be caught again and reputedly want to check his levels. A lifetime ban awaits second offenders. Private tests must have confirmed his fears. The nandrolone had lingered. Evidently, Asif faced the same predicament. It's amazing that both men should be forced to withdraw at the same time. Akhtar says his injuries have not healed enough to allow him to play. His mother may believe him.

Ouch.

Pakistan Ravaged

Idiots!

As had been expected for some time now, Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif were finally ruled out of Pakistan's World Cup squad, though the decision, farcically, came minutes before the team's departure to the Caribbean. Asif is down with an elbow injury while Shoaib is nursing a crocked knee.

Yeah, sure, that's the reason. Both of these clowns tested positive for Nandrolone last year. The levels of that substance in their bodies is still too high--no point risking a life ban.

Better to wait till the last moment and skip the World Cup tournament!

It now means that Pakistan go into cricket's premier event without three key components of their team, after Razzaq was also ruled out of the tournament this week with a serious knee injury. Additionally, they will be without allrounder Shahid Afridi - owing to a four-match ban imposed by the ICC for misconduct in South Africa - for their first two games, including a tough opening game on March 13 against the hosts.

Yup, the Pakistanis will be playing some of the most important games in history without four key players. Sooner or later, teams like Australia, South Africa, India and England are going to thrash them.

Nothing More Than a Mirage

Pakistan will be hosting the Women's World Cup qualifiers in November.

"The decision proves that women's cricket is progressing in our country and through this event we would promote a softer and moderate image of Pakistan," said Shamsa Hashmi, secretary of the Pakistan Cricket Board women's wing.

More of this "softer and moderate image":

But she added: "Males can come to watch only as part of families of those that are playing."

Who knows what those horny Pakistani men are capable of with all that succulent uncovered meat on display--good idea to ban 'em!

The Whipping Never Ends

No respite for the English cricket team.

Link via an email from Muslihoon.

The Best in the World

Cricinfo rates the Aussies who annihilated England 5-0.

Hollywood Retiring

Cricinfo has the news:

Shane Warne, the most successful bowler in Test history, will retire after the final match of the Ashes series in Sydney. Warne told a news conference at the MCG he was ready to end his 15-year international career, but not before a push for a 5-0 result against England.

Two more matches to go.

More: excerpts from Australian media.

The Ashes Return To Australia

Link:

The Ashes is a Test cricket series, played between England and Australia - it is international cricket's oldest and most celebrated rivalry dating back to 1882.

England won last year after losing for the previous eighteen.

This year, the Brits went to Australia to defend the Ashes. They started the 5-match series last month. The Aussies crushed them in the first three games to regain the Ashes.

English Cricket, R.I.P.

Update
Ricky Ponting wants to annihilate England 5-0. Oh, sweet revenge.

Andrew Miller:

In the end, resistance was futile. England's 463-day Ashes reign, the shortest in history, came to an end just two balls into the second session of the 15th day of this contest.

Ouch.

Australia is, once again, the team to beat. If they win the World Cup in a few months (which will make it a record three-in-a-row), then this generation will qualify as the greatest in history.

Ricky's Revenge

What I said on Sunday:

It's true that the Brits put up a fight and ended up with a massive score in their first innings but they'll have to at the very least draw the match. I don't think they can recover if they lose this one.

They lost the second match. They're now 2-0. Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain, has already scored a mammoth 447 runs and the series is not even half over. He will continue with the simple and effective strategy of, almost single-handedly, burying England under a mountain of runs.

England is toast.

The Ashes Reloaded

Brian Micklethwait on Test no. 1819:

The trick with sport is to enjoy it when it goes well, and when it goes badly, then it is only a game.

So, let me and all English cricket fans enjoy this, while it lasts.

Micklethwait doesn't seem very optimistic. It's true that the Brits put up a fight and ended up with a massive score in their first innings but they'll have to at the very least draw the match. I don't think they can recover if they lose this one.

For me, it's amazing to watch read about the sheer force of Ricky Ponting. He has had a glorious year and in only three innings of this series he has scored 361 runs and counting. England must defeat Ponting if they wish to retain the Ashes.

Test no. 1818

Mohammad Yousuf has smashed one of the most spectacular individual records in Test cricket. He has scored more than 1710 runs in a calendar year--a record which was set by the mighty Viv Richards in 1976.

He has rewritten the history books on these matters as well:

• Only the third person in history to hit five centuries in five Tests. (The other two: J. Kallis and Sir Donald Bradman.)
• Most centuries in a year: eight, on track for a ninth! [He gets it and in doing so becomes the sixth Pakistani to score two hundreds in a Test.]
• Most runs in a three-match series by a Pakistani.

2006 will be known as The Year of Yousuf.

Think about this: Yousuf scored nine centuries in a year, scored more runs than anyone else and finished with an average of... 99.33. The Don had a better average over his entire career. That gives you some measure of that immense man.

Test no. 1816 and 1817

Pakistan vs. West Indies. (#1816)

It's the 5th day of the Test and the game is heading for a draw. However, the match will be remembered for an impressive stat: Mohammad Yousuf became the third person in Test cricket history to score seven centuries in a calendar year. In addition, his average for 2006 is nearing 100!

He is definitely going to be one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year.

Update
Un-freakin'-believable.

Just a few minutes after Yousuf scored his seventh century of 2006, another great batsman of the era smashed his seventh ton of the year!

Ricky Ponting is grounding the Brits into powder.

ODI no. 2448

India vs. South Africa.

SA batted first. Kallis hit an impressive 119 not out. In response, the entire Indian team scored 91 runs.

Ouch! Man, the Desis got mauled.

Ashes Sledges

Cricket is a gentleman's game? Just read this:

Rod Marsh, late Seventies: “How's your wife and my kids?”
Ian Botham: “The wife's fine – the kids are retarded.”

Ouch.

Gul Returns

Cricinfo:

And though it doesn't happen as much as it should - especially when a batsman scores a near double century - for once a bowler got the match award and richly deserving Gul was too.

Two years ago, Umar Gul won the match award for his spectacular performance against India in Lahore. He seemed to be the next awesome bowler from Pakistan. Unfortunately, shortly afterwards, his back had three stress fractures. He was off cricket for a year. He has been back for a while and now he's at his peak, and his love affair with Lahore continues.

The Pakistani Icarus

Kamran Abbasi:

The sight of Shoaib spreading his wings in celebration of a kill will become the stuff of legend, a DVD classic, a spook story that mothers will tell their would-be superstar children: "Lose touch with your humility, your senses, and your mortality, and you will end up like him, the man from Rawalpindi, whose pride knew no bounds and whose stupidity knew no limits."

Ouch! And that's just from the first paragraph.

A Shattered Institution

Pakistani cricket has been shaken violently over the past few months. A team that had placed itself as one of the top contenders for the World Cup in 2007 is now without its best bowlers.

In the second half of 2006, so far:

• The Pakistanis are penalized for ball tampering in England.
• They, then, refuse to take the field which results in the first Test forfeiture in history.
• The captain of the Pakistani team is suspended.
• Then, shockingly, Younis Khan publically refuses to captain Pakistan.
• The captaincy is given to Mohammad Yousuf; Abdul Razzaq is made vice captain of the team.
• The head of the Pakistan Cricket Board resigns.
• Mushtaq Ahmed, the assistant coach, is fired.
• Mohammad Yousuf is made vice captain.
• Who is the captain now? Younis Khan!
• The best bowlers of Pakistan test positive for a banned substance just six months before the World Cup.
• These bowlers are banned; Akhtar for two years, Asif for one.

Osman Samiuddin offers his take on the verdict of the drugs tribunal.

What a shame. The fastest bowler in cricket history is found guilty of using a banned substance. Akhtar's erratic career is likely over.

There is one possible positive. Inzamam will soon return to a team that seriously needs a strong leader. Let's see if he delivers.

The all-rounders of Pakistan will bear a tremendous burden in the coming months. Afridi, Malik and Razzaq will have to perform at their best.

The Aussie Annihilator

A nice article about the most dominant opener of the modern era.

The last bit here is quite funny:

Having broken a finger in an early-season fielding mishap, Hayden visited his parents in Kingaroy, only to be attacked by the family dog when he went for a run, gashing his leg.

"I'm just waiting for something to fall out of the sky and land on me," he joked.

"Everything is going great. The kids are good. Kel's pregnant again - another productive off-season."

A photo of Matthew Hayden and his son, Josh Hayden, from last Christmas:

No Desi Masala

The Australian juggernaut rolls on:

The combination of India and Champions Trophy has been a nightmare for Australia twice in the past, but Ricky Ponting and co. finally ended that jinx, thrashing India by six wickets to emphatically move into the semi-finals of the tournament.

Bad news for the Asian subcontinent:

India, meanwhile, followed Sri Lanka and Pakistan in exiting the tournament, making it the first time since the 1975 World Cup that no team from the subcontinent has made it to the semi-finals of a major one-day championship.

Ouch. The next World Cup is less than six months away.

A Spectacular Victory

Cricinfo on Pakistan:

To win without their two frontline pace bowlers and their captain, against a super-confident Sri Lanka team that was fully acclimatised to the conditions, was a magnificent performance. Just how much momentum it has given them it remains to be seen, but every other team in the tournament knows that a buoyant and unified Pakistan side is a very dangerous beast.

Quite right--cornered tigers and all that.

Another thing that most teams would love is the depth in batting. Pakistan had lost six wickets in the match, yet they still had two batsmen (allrounders) at the crease who scored the winning runs.

Most teams struggle to find a single allrounder. Those that have two are considered lucky. Pakistan has three(!) allrounders, all of whom are ranked in the top ten in ODIs. This will be the key for future success.

Update
"A deeply stirring spectacle" by Osman Samiuddin.