Please Don't Hype Rishabh Pant!

Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant has rewritten the history of another Indian cricket great Yuvraj Singh. No doubt about that, and cricketers and fans now call him the miracle player. While Yuvraj fought and conquered a rare form of cancer and made a brave comeback to cricket, Rishabh fought and conquered a near-fatal car accident in 2022 and made an astounding comeback to cricket in 2024. Not only did he come back but has been playing tremendous cricket in the IPL-2024 and then now in the first Test against Bangladesh with a superlative attacking century, apart from keeping wickets.

Amid the well-deserved international acclaim came the comparison with MS Dhoni--some cricketers saying he has broken Dhoni's record in terms of the number of Test centuries in less than half of the matches Dhoni took to score. Veteran wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik has righteously pointed out that comparison with the legend is unwarranted at this stage. We fully endorse his view and request all to desist from hyping this terrific young player and just allow him to go on playing spectacular cricket on the field. Despite his achievements he's still a learner, in view of his tremendous potential for the future of cricket. Breaking a few records doesn't make one great, it's the test through the years that finally puts him/her in the top position. MS was not just a wicketkeeper, he was the Team India captain, establishing Indian cricket in the new aggressive order, the Finisher made India win many matches/Series and those invaluable knocks need not necessarily include tons. To be very specific, Pant will take much more time to match Dhoni's wicketkeeping abilities and reflexes. In short, such comparisons are totally not the need of the hour.

Besides, we have to examine what happened in the past. Rishabh had begun very well in 2017-18, particularly in the away Tests in England, and he was so overhyped that he got selected for Team India in the World Cup-2019 when a blazing Shikhar Dhawan unfortunately got injured, and despite India having the most experienced keeper-batsman-captain in the team. And what happened? The puzzled selectors had to look the other way as Team India happened to accumulate as many as four wicketkeepers in the playing eleven, leading to disastrous consequences.

Shortly afterwards when Dhoni cleared the way for the overhyped, the same began to falter on the field and the search for a wicketkeeper continued unabated. During 2021-22 Rishabh Pant roared back to form with incredible Test performances against Australia in Australia. And he got back to being hyped again in the media. What happened next? He nearly finished his cricket career in a car accident. That he's come back in full bloom, as we said earlier, makes him a great resilient spirited human being, and definitely not a subject for the hype.

Incredible, miraculous, performing human beings do emerge on earth, but their path is always fraught with dangers thanks to fellow beings' envy, jealousy, egos and of course, over-attention amounting to hype, because of all of which misfortunes keep on happening to them.

Therefore, leave Rishabh Pant alone with his aims and dreams, and allow him to go on mesmerizing us with his spectacular antics on the field, thus bringing glory to the country and to the beautiful game of cricket. We wish him a tremendous future ahead!

Cricket: The First Ever Pink Ball Test A Superhit? And India’s Got Pacers!

Photo: indiatoday.in

Indian cricket fans crowding the Eden Gardens stadium reportedly encouraged Bangladesh players to try prolong the first ever Pink Test a little more; because it was all over in two days and 47 minutes frustrating the general expectation that the match would last at least three days. 45-60 thousand spectators thronged the stadium on the first two days each and even on the third morning when it was apparently clear that India would wrap up the match any moment more than 25000 were present. Such attendance is unprecedented for a five-day Test match ever played in India. Therefore, in terms of pulling people from all strata of society to the stadium the first ever D/N Pink Test is a superhit. However, in Kolkata, the Mecca of Indian Cricket with the famous Eden, enthusiastic crowds are always there for at least two kinds of sports—football and cricket. Given that, one cannot still take away the ‘superhit’ tag, and the fact that the match made Sourav Ganguly, BCCI President, the happiest person on earth whose decision it was to host the event and who said afterwards that more D/N Tests would be played across different centres in India, and if conditions are met India would definitely play Pink Ball Tests against Australia in Australia. A good beginning or history is thus made, and it seems to augur well for the classical format of the game.

The scenario is a little different in terms of competition. It was an overwhelmingly one-sided match in favor of India who registered their fourth consecutive innings victory—the 7^thTest win on the trot—and it was the shortest ever domestic Test played. India swamped Bangladesh 2-0 in the series, both being innings victories. This one-sidedness somewhat poured icy water on the hot suspense built over the behaviour of the pink ball. It’d take more competition to show its true colors; for example, a Pink Test against Australia or England or New Zealand would bring out the real test for the pink ball under floodlights in India. At the moment it can be said that the pink ball seems to be more lethal than the red ball when the ball is new. The much speculated ‘twilight’ behaviour of the pink ball is yet to be confirmed; India batsmen didn’t show any palpable discomfort during such a period and Bangladesh counterparts fared miserably in all sessions—day, twilight or night.

One redeeming feature of Indian cricket that has been emerging in the last 2 years or so gets highlighted again, and in view of this writer it could spell a paradigm shift of focus in near future. It’s, of course, the Indian pacers or genuine fast bowlers who have started taking more wickets even on Indian so-called slow pitches. The Pink Ball Test was played without the services of Jasprit Bumrah, considered to be the best, and yet he Indian pace-battery of Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav destroyed Bangladesh in both the Tests sharing almost all the wickets between them. The second Test becomes the first ever domestic Test where the spinners failed to take a single wicket while in the first Test R Ashwin managed 5 wickets—2 in the first innings and 3 in the second. Ishant Sharma bagged the Player-of-the-Series award—a rare feat considering the fact that on most occasions the Indian class batsmen or spinners at times used to get the honors, and in spite of a brilliant Virat Kohli notching up his 27^th Test century in this particular match. Several international cricket experts have praised the Indian pace attack calling it the best at the moment. More significantly, green-top pitches are being prepared nowadays in India which sounds incredible considering the long-standing trend of preparing ‘turning’ pitches for domestic Test series. Sourav Ganguly who reportedly sat out of a Test against South Africa in Nagpur once when a green pitch emerged in spite of his specific instructions now promises to lead this ‘paradigm shift’. This augurs very well for Indian Cricket, and the already-bettered away performances stand to improve further.

Cricket—Balls Over The Years As Kolkata Gets Ready For The Pink Test!

While the game of cricket originated in England in the late 16^th century and developed globally from the 19^th century the red ball has been used traditionally—since at least the early 19^th century. International cricket matches have been played since 1844 and Test Cricket from 1877. The color change in cricket began only towards the late 20^th century; however, the traditional red ball has continued to be used till today—in test and first-class cricket matches or completions. With the changes in the format of the game the colors of the ball started changing along with the traditional white dress of the cricketers on the field becoming colored.

The ‘red’ became ‘white’ in 1977 when Karry Packer introduced World Series Cricket (WSC) in Australia—as a breakaway ‘commercial’ league. It also included colored clothing for different players from different teams, use of floodlights and white balls. The erstwhile ‘day’ one-day international (ODI) matches became day-night, and it was the visibility or sighting of the ball in the night that brought in the white ball which offers better vision for the batsman  and it is supposedly batter-friendly with less swing and seam than the red ball. The first ICC Cricket World Cup was played in 1975, but the real craze for the limited-overs one-day format began only after the WSC. Thanks to its ‘commercial’ success the white ball use became extensively official and nowadays even ‘day’ ODIs are played with the white ball. Problems associated with the white ball are mainly that it gets dirty pretty quick, and therefore sighting under lights becomes difficult. This problem was resolved with the introduction of two news balls per innings from either end.

The first ever experiment with the pink ball happened in England in 2009, and since then it has been used there and in Australia—of course, in a limited way. Soon afterwards, the pink ball was officially recommended for day-night Test matches. The first Pink Test was hosted by Australia against New Zealand in November, 2015 which the former won in three days with the pacers dominating the proceedings. Since then, cricket boards and players have been debating over its use, particularly in India. After Sourav Ganguly took over charge as President of the BCCI, the historic decision to host a Pink Test in India was taken.

So then, the first ever Test cricket match with the pink ball sets off from tomorrow, the 22^ndof November, 2019 at the majestic Eden Gardens, Kolkata between India and Bangladesh. Celebrities, political leaders, cricket experts and ex-players from across the globe are expected to take part in large numbers. The players from both the sides have started practicing under the Eden floodlights 3-4 days in advance. The two most excited persons on this venture are obviously—BCCI President Sourav Ganguly and India skipper Virat Kohli.

For the first time ever too, if this is healthy for Test Cricket or not only time can tell, a traditionally-quiet five-day Test match in India has become a tremendously hyped event. Lovers of the game are very curious to witness this historic beginning, and there are reports galore in the City of Joy that tickets for the huge stadium are in great scarcity and that tickets are being sold in the black market at astronomical prices. Numerous cricket fans are coming back utterly disappointed and frustrated after a futile search for tickets at the stadium offices. Complaints are afloat that tickets are being manipulated by cricket mandarins and there are even no proper notifications for online sale of tickets. Well, with the kind of cricket following in India, particularly in Kolkata, this is nothing but natural.

Eden Gardens...Ready!

Interestingly, people are looking for tickets only for the first three day-nights. Bangladesh, at the moment, looks to be down and out after India’s innings win in Indore in the first Test. With Indian pacers, Shami prominently, in top form, the much-touted green pitch at Eden Gardens may prove too much for the visitors without the services of Shakib and Tamim. Like the first pink test in 2015 most expect it to be over in three days, in India’s favor. General curiosity peaks anticipating the possible behavior of the pink ball under lights, during the twilight period, with the wintry dew and the scoring potential of the batsmen. Play is to begin at 1 pm daily with lunch break at 3; second session from 3.40 to 5.40 pm with a break for tea and the last session from 6 to 8 pm. Kolkata becomes dark just after 5 pm at the onset of the winter now.

All set...make way for the Pink...!

T20 Cricket: Fans Defy Delhi Pollution, Bangladesh Tigers Register First Ever Win Against India!

About 25000 cricket fans defied severe levels of pollution and thronged the Arun Jaitley stadium in Delhi on the evening of 3^rd November, 2019. Their love for the game and eagerness to support their team prevailed over pollution; as it were, to vindicate BCCI President Sourav Ganguly’s decision to go ahead with the match. The efforts taken by the authorities try cut down the pollution level around the stadium were eye-catching; in the sense that no such devotion is as yet to be seen to save the common people of the national capital from AQI levels that reached over 500-mark in some places. Well, this is cricket in India—and the money involved with the game!

Now over to the cricket played. The defying fans were ultimately disappointed with their home team’s efforts, and Bangladesh somewhat easily won the first T20I match by 7 wickets. In nine T20I marches played so far between the two sides this was the first ever win for Bangladesh, and that too in India. The joy of the conquering Tigers, obviously, knew no bounds, and they deserved to win in the final analysis, overwhelming India in all the departments of batting, bowling and fielding. Winning the toss was a distinct advantage for the visitors; however, their bowling was far more disciplined with their captain trying as many as 8 bowlers and keeping India in check from the beginning. Their win is more significant due to the fact that two seasoned players—former skipper Shakib Al Hasan who was banned by the ICC for two years from all cricket, later one year pardoned, for breaching the anti-corruption code which will prevent him from playing the ICC T20 World Cup to be played in Australia from 18^th October, 2020, and Tamim Iqbal who pulled out for personal reasons—were not in the team. For India, Rohit Sharma captained as Virat Kohli was rested for the T20 series. 

For the cricket lovers the Indian experimentation proved to be a bigger set-back than the pollution. We had seen earlier how the Indian cricket management indulged in mindless experiments with the playing eleven for two years prior to the ICC Cricket World Cup-2019 that finally saw Indian losing to New Zealand in the semi-final. With the ICC T20 World Cup coming up next year this kind of experimentation (more of this in my next piece coming up ‘IPL; A Liability or Asset?’ in this space soon) is well anticipated. However, fielding a totally inexperienced team, particularly in the bowling department, against a formidable side like Bangladesh, was a fatal mistake that cost Team India the match. We can only hope that the ‘experimentation’ doesn’t go mad trying just anybody considering only their IPL record. And most of all, we must congratulate Bangladesh for their brave victory against India in India. The competitive spirit is set to get heated up in the next two T20I matches between the two countries.

New Rivalries: Cricket Vs Delhi Smog; Dada Vs Dew!

New cricket rivalries are emerging at the moment in India, immediately after former India captain Sourav Ganguly took charge as President, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on 23^rd October, 2019. All cricket lovers including cricket commentators and top players welcomed taking over charge by Ganguly, mainly because for the first time a real cricketer—and an aggressive one too—has occupied the most important position. True to his nature, Sourav has already started planning for a productive era of Indian cricket; he met the present India captain Virat Kohli too. In the course of this he took two crucial decisions which are loaded with suspense and tension.

India-Bangladesh Series-2019 is set to start with a T20I match to be played in Delhi on 3^rdNovember and there was a hue and cry over it due to the pollution levels in the national capital spiking to severe levels, particularly after Diwali celebrations and the continued stubble burning in the countryside. Cricketer turned politician Gautam Gambhir recently commented that pollution is far more serious than a cricket match; many others including environmentalists also objected on the ground that continued exposure of the cricketers to the ‘severe’ Air Quality Index (AQI) might cause serious damage to their health. Sourav Ganguly took the first decision—that now it was too late to shift the match to other venues. Players have already started practice in Delhi’s Arun Jaitley stadium (Firoz Shah Kotla ground renamed after the demise of the great leader), and it is reported that more masks are on the way for Bangladesh.

Delhi pollution repeatedly interrupted play during a Test match in Delhi in December, 2017 between India and Sri Lanka, and it was the first instance of such a kind, internationally. Sri Lanka players wore masks on the field and reportedly vomited again and again due to the pollution. Therefore, what is going to be the scenario on the evening of 3^rd November remains tense and suspenseful.

Sourav Ganguly’s second decision was more historic and bold. He ushered in day-and-night Test cricket for the first time in India, which was pending for quite some time, after convincing BCCI officials, the India captain and Bangladesh cricket. So then, the first ever day-and-night Test match between India and Bangladesh is to be played from 22^nd November, 2019 at the majestic Eden Gardens, Kolkata, Sourav’s hometown where he is popularly known as ‘Dada’. Now, since it is the start of winter in most parts of India the dew factor is going to be crucial, particularly for the bowlers. It will be a new rivalry between Dada and Dew, and what is going to unfold during those five days is also laden with suspense and concern.

This Series between dominant India, after their Test white wash against South Africa and a highly competitive Bangladesh side is, therefore, being looked upon by all with tremendous interest and worries. Immediately, we are looking at the first T20I in Delhi where the AQI is still over the 400 ‘severe’ mark at the moment. Pollution forecasts are also not so reassuring for the coming days. We can only hope competitive cricket happen without causing any harm to the cricketers and excited fans and spectators. Would ‘Dadagiri’ be able to prevail over the new cricket rivalries? Let’s wait and watch.

P.S: As on 01.11.19, health emergency declared in Delhi, all schools closed till 5th November, all construction work stopped till 5th November, some industries also closed. And of course, BCCI refuses to consider changing the venue for the T20I match.

India Asian Champions Again, Lift Unimoni Asia Cup-2018!

It is only logical that the unbeaten team of the Unimoni Asia Cup tournament become the eventual champions. India was the only team that remained unbeaten and in the Final tonight became the worthy champions beating an upbeat Bangladesh by 3 wickets. However, the highly competitive match was not without its moments of worries or even scares. First, it was a risky toss to win owing to India’s decision to field first, because in the slow pitches of UAE a total around 250 often proved to be insurmountable. Second, Bangladesh did show the promise of running away with the match while batting. Third, in the Indian innings loss of Dhawan and Rayadu early and the departure of Rohit while in full flow raised scares for an Indian conquest. And then the fall of Dhoni at the score 160/5 put the onus of a victory on the bowlers again.

Put into bat Bangladesh started a brilliant opening partnership of 120 runs in just 20 overs and looked set for a total of over 250 runs. However, all the Indian spinners including Kedar Jadhav got into an action mode accounting for a flurry of wickets in the next few overs. Opener Liton Das batted till the 40^thover for his superlative century (121). Unfortunately for Bangladesh there were only two innings of substance from Mehidy Hasan (32) and Soumya Sarkar (33). The unlucky hero of the match against Pakistan Mushfiqur Rahim also fell cheaply. India seemed to be happy with the final Bangladesh target of 223 runs, the target looked immensely achievable by a team in top form.

The Indian innings was marked by ups and downs of the epic variety. At one time they looked to be winning easily and at another time suspense creeping in. The match turned into a thriller after MS Dhoni was the 5^th wicket to fall at the score of 160 still needing 63 runs to win. However, there was no worry as far as the remaining overs were concerned. Kedar Jadhav and Ravindra Jadeja just needed to stick on. To add to the tension building up Jadhav had to retire hurt. Bangladesh pacers Mustafizur, Mashrafe and Rubel got really charged up firing all cylinders. Finally the Asian champions prevailed overwhelming the target in the last over, in fact the last ball, thanks to good work by Jadeja, Bhubaneshwar Kumar and Jadhav again. The Scorecard:

Interestingly in the tournament the teams that ran closest to beating India were Hong Kong—the newest entry in the Asian cricket arena, and the resurgent Afghanistan. Of course, the curious Indian experiments were largely esponsible for this scenario. The main contenders for the title, Pakistan and Bangladesh, were defeated by India in extremely one-sided matches, twice each. The Final was hard-fought going down the wire. 

India begin their campaign against the visiting West Indies next month with matches in all three formats when the regular captain Virat Kohli is expected to lead the team again.

Unimoni Asia Cup-2018: No India-Pakistan Final, It’s Vs Bangladesh!

In the last Super Four match of the Unimoni Asia Cup-2018 played in Abu Dhabi tonight Bangladesh played like tigers overcoming a spirited-in-splits Pakistan by 37 runs. It was a virtual semi-final with the winner set to meet India in the Final to be played in Dubai on Friday, 28^thSeptember, 2018. Seemingly Pakistan could never recover psychologically from the dumps inflicted by arch-rivals India, not once but two times. Their batting was lackadaisical and painfully slow this time too. More importantly for millions of fans all over the globe, a possible third encounter between India and Pakistan in the tournament was snuffed out. 

  

Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat first. After a shaky start they finally managed to put up a competitive 240-run target for Pakistan thanks to a glorious but unlucky innings of 99 by Musfiqur Rahim and a dashing 60 by Mohammad Mithun. Pakistan bowled them out in 48.5 overs. In reply Pakistan also tottered at the start losing three wickets quickly. Then Shoaib Malik and Imamul Haq steadied the innings. Malik was dismissed by a brilliant one-handed catch by Mashrafe off Rubel ending that partnership and Pakistan was reduced to 87 for 4 wickets. Very soon they were 95 for 5, and when it seemed to be a point of no return Pakistan staged a fighting comeback thanks to a solid partnership between the lone man standing Imam and Asif. Although Bangladesh catching was brilliant throughout Asif’s dropped catch by the wicket keeper could have proved to be a turning point, but a short while after Asif was consumed by Mehidy Hasan and the match was in the balance again with the asking rate going above 7 per over. Bangladesh sealed the match and almost earned a berth in the Final against India by capturing the prized scalp of Imamul Haq (83) at 167 for 7. Bangladesh bowlers, both pacers and spinners, delivered an intense performance and suffocated Pakistan batsmen effectively. Pacer Mustafizur Rahman took four Pak wickets. Finally it was all over for Pakistan ending a sorry tale at 202 for 9 in 50 overs.  

Last night India, as habituated to it, experimented with fire (read Afghanistan) again, and nearly lost the match. Realistically speaking, it’s no use blaming only the team management and coach. You can call it the experimental mindset. Even legendary or famous ex-cricketers or experts and prominent sports journalists ask for ‘experiments’ whenever possible and constantly push for their favourite cricketers for a ‘look-in’ in the national squad. In most of such experiments India suffer defeats or near escapes from defeats. Irrespective of whether a match is inconsequential or not a loss is a loss and it never helps a team in future assignments. India rested five top players, and Mahendra Singh Dhoni came out for the toss giving his fans ecstatic moments. Perhaps it was well thought out plan to make Dhoni stand-in captain for an already stand-in captain and thus giving him the 200^th opportunity to lead India in an ODI. 

In the absence of three Indian strike-bowlers Afghanistan had it relatively easy and raced to 252 in 50 overs opting to bat first. Opener Mohammad Shahzad hit his fifth ton in a brilliant innings of flamboyance and belligerence—a century that can match the highest professional standard of international cricket. On the slow UAE surfaces chasing a 250+ total has always been tricky, and India without the high-scoring openers was in a spot of bother. However, Lokesh Rahul and Ambati Rayadu had mounted a 100+ run partnership, and just when India seemed to be cruising the middle order collapsed, of course, with at least two doubtful umpiring decisions. Unfortunately India had no DRS review left after Rahul, surely playing only this match, wasted one in his clear out decision. The match went down to the wire, and in the last over India needed 7 runs with 9 wickets gone. Jadeja almost made sure with just a run needed off the last two balls, but he lofted the penultimate ball to get caught at midwicket and the thriller ended in a tie making Afghanistan burst into a tizzy of excitement and joy.

Letting the syndrome of experiment rest for the moment we must say that Afghanistan played valiantly in the tournament and really deserved more. They topped Group B at the league stage beating both Bangladesh and Sri Lanka convincingly, and in Super Four they lost narrowly to Bangladesh and Pakistan getting knocked out in the process. And Afghanistan tied India in an inconsequential but an unforgettable match, unforgettable particularly for them. Afghanistan is sure to create a commotion in the 2019 World Cup.

Now, all set for the Friday Final at Dubai International cricket stadium. Hope India do not resort to experiment again!

Cricket: Asia Cup-2018 Begins, Bangladesh Crush Sri Lanka in Inaugural Match!

The 14^th edition of Asia Cup of One Day Internationals (ODI) between cricket playing nations of Asia began tonight, the 15^th of September, 2018 in United Arab Emirates. UAE hosts this tournament for the third time due to well-known reasons. In the inaugural match played at the Dubai International stadium Bangladesh crushed Sri Lanka by 137 runs. Bangladesh, batting first, innings was built mainly on a superlative 144 runs by Musfiqur Rahim who was the last man out setting a competitive target of 261 runs. Sri Lanka began very shakily and kept on losing wickets at regular intervals including a  run-out, the whole team finally getting bowled out for a mere 124 . With its string of successes in last two years Bangladesh has become the team to watch out for in this two-week tournament. It was nice to see Lasith Malinga back in the Sri Lanka team and also among wickets again.

Asia Cup this year has six teams with Hong Kong joining the five full ODI members—India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. The tournament, normally played in the round robin format, this time is having two groups and a Super Four. Group A consists of India, Pakistan and Hong Kong while Group B has Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. Winners and runners-up teams of each group will go to the Super Four stage on the basis of points at the group stage and in Super Four all four nations will play each other with the top two teams qualifying for the Final. There will be two venues—Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Omission of Sharjah is perplexing which is also pointed out by Sunil Gavaskar.

After a long while cricket lovers are set to enjoy encounters between the eternal archrivals India and Pakistan. This rivalry becomes far more interesting with the former ace pacer Imran Khan becoming the Prime Minister of Pakistan. The two nations are set to meet on 19^th September in Dubai for the group match. Supposing both teams proceed to the Super Four stage which is the most likely scenario they will meet for the second time sometime after 20^thSeptember. If both teams turn out to be the top two teams in Super Four they will meet for the third time in the Final on 28^th September. Cricket lovers will really relish that possibility. Of course, as we have pointed out earlier, Bangladesh would be a tough team to overcome and Sri Lanka could come roaring back any time.  

India has a new captain Rohit Sharma for the tournament as Virat Kohli was rested after the Test disaster against England. India, the defending champions, has been consistently proving its dominance in the shorter format and the absence of Kohli is not likely to impact team performance adversely. Of course, performance of MS Dhoni is going to be a crucial factor with wicket keeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik also featuring in the team. Selection blues in Team India visibly affected team performance in the England tour, and therefore team management has to be very careful about the final eleven in each match with a lot of options available. The omission of Rishav Pant seems illogical, because he went from the IPL straight to the Tests.

With more teams, interesting format and the extravaganza spreading over two weeks Asia Cup-2018 promises to be absorbing and exciting.

All details about the tournament:

Cricket: No Alternative But To Make Rahane Lead Second-String Team India For Zimbabwe Tour!

Finally all the IPL-weary Indian cricket superstars have to be rested, especially after the full-strength Team India failed to deliver in the just concluded Bangladesh tour losing the ODI series 1-2. The rested players are ODI captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Test captain Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina and spinner R Ashwin. With Dhoni not around some decisions became easier to take. Like dropping Ravindra Jadeja, bringing in Harbhajan Singh to the one day team after he made a comeback to the Test team in Bangladesh and selecting the captain for the second-string Team India for the tour of Zimbabwe starting 10th July. The tour consists of three one day internationals (ODI) and two T20 matches. This made-easy squad was announced by the BCCI national selectors in New Delhi today. 

Of course, having rested all the 'worthy' cricketers there was nobody 'worthy' enough to lead the team except for Ajinkya Rahane whose 'quality' is conveniently discovered now. After the humiliating defeat in the first Test against Bangladesh this very captain-now player was dropped for the second Test. This writer criticized the move mentioning his quality as a reliable batsman in these pages. But now, with no alternative available, the same player is named captain. Well, this is always a toss between the musts and the expendables that the Indian cricket Board exercises for team selection. And mind you, the BCCI has the 'wisdom' to justify the move of a forced second-string Team India on the ground of so-called preparations for the ICC World T20-2016. Their 'young blood' argument falls flat on so many occasions, yet they continue taking guard on the same. Maybe the Lalit Modi revelations regarding three star Indian cricketers may have some influence on the decisions notwithstanding the fact that the BCCI has given them all a clean chit. With the kind of storm Lalit Modi is creating all over the country anything seems to be plausible. 

Robin Uthappa, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey, Sandeep Sharma, Krn Sharma and Manoj Tiwary manage to get selected now. Now Murali Vijay too manages to come back to the team. His super form was immaterial when selection for the World Cup-2015 was made. Anyway, let us see what this team does in Zimbabwe after the tour was revived. 

The Indian Squad: Ajinkya Rahane (capt), M Vijay, Ambati Rayudu, Manoj Tiwary, Kedar Jadhav, Robin Uthappa, Manish Pandey, Harbhajan Singh, Axar Patel, Karn Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, Stuart Binny, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma.

Cricket: Bangladesh Win First Ever ODI Series Against India!

Bangladesh have made history on the night of 21^st June, 2015 at Mirpur in Dhaka. On the first International Yoga Day they have made their golden day in cricket. They have won the first ever One Day International (ODI) cricket series against mighty India. Not only won, they have outplayed, mauled and humiliated India in all departments of the game and in every cricketing way possible. Bangladesh defeated India by 6 wickets with 9 overs to spare of the 47 allotted through D/L method due to rain interruption in the second ODI against India last evening. In the first ODI they won by 79 runs thus outclassing India in the series and taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the 3-match series. For the first time the erstwhile ‘minnows’ have beaten India in two back to back ODIs. The sensational débutante of the first ODI, Mustafizur Rahman took an incredible haul of 11 wickets and became the first bowler in the world to do so in his first two one day internationals. And, Bangladesh have qualified for the ICC Champions Trophy to be played in England in 2017. What is more significant is that they have deserved this fully—displaying tremendous cricketing abilities. From here they can only go up and up in the ladder of world cricket.

Whatever chance Team India had of regrouping and giving it back to Bangladesh in this do or die encounter was nipped in the bud when Team management ‘changed’ the team. The primary reason why India lost in the first ODI was the casual and complacent approach of mainly the superstars. But the management, as usual, ‘managed’ to axe only the expendables—Ajinkya Rahane who could have been invaluable on his day and bringing in an IPL expert Ambati Rayudu; Umesh Yadav who could have been lethal with his pace and bringing in another IPL expert Dhawal Kulkarni and Mohit Sharma who could have been encouraged to find his line and length and brining in Axa Patel who perhaps had nothing to prove except being close to the Indian captain.  Yet again, the superstars performed in almost the same way as before while the ‘changes’ hardly changed anything. Nobody in the management seems to be aware of the fact that Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni and to a lesser extent Rohit Sharma continue to be out of form and unpredictable.

This series calls for a lot of introspection for Indian cricket. In fact except for the bright interlude in the World Cup-2015 Team India has not been performing to its potential. It has reached the climax now. If the usual complaint of ‘too much cricket’ is to be held valid then the two-moth long IPL tournament comes into deep focus. Maybe the Indian cricketers were too tired after giving in everything for the dollars of the IPL. And for Mahendra Singh Dhoni, undoubtedly the most successful and positive Indian captain, this could finally be the end of the road as far as at least captaincy is concerned. He had already escaped from Test captaincy and nothing is clicking for him at the moment. His batting form continues to be dismal, his wicket keeping not being of top class and his captaincy is coming to be questioned most frequently. His ‘protection’ within the cricket Board also seems to be gone. However, for a cricketer of his class he should decide fast before being unceremoniously axed. 

Cricket: Bangladesh Thrash India, Captain 'Cool' Loses It!

Bangladesh proved it precisely and clinically--that their cricketers are a spirited and hugely improved lot, that they beating Pakistan squarely was not a fluke, that they running India close to elimination from the World Cup-2015 was not an aberration, and that they have now avenged their exit from the World Cup effectively, so-called it might be though. They had excelled in every department of the game in the first One Day International match against India in Dhaka last evening thrashing and humiliating India by 79 runs. Winning the toss and electing to bat first they raced to a big score right away, despite being put into a tight corner at least twice by India. The Indian pacers were made fun of and only some spinning ability prevented them from reaching even 400. There were no big individual scores, it being a total and spirited team effort. 

It seemed the Indian cricket superstars did not take them seriously enough. Even after conceding 307 runs Indian batsmen had a rather casual approach while chasing. A tight and beautiful pace bowling by the Bangladesh pacers beat both openers again and again, just missing the outside edge. Within first four overs both the openers could have been out. However, India did manage to have sound opening stand of 95 for no loss. Just then, Shikhar Dhawan had a lazy heave getting out caught behind. That started the slide of 'star' batsmen falling to casual shots. This is not to say that Bangladesh bowlers namely Taskin or Mustafizur were bowling loose. This is to say that the so-called quality batting of India had the potential to face up to it effectively. For once the Indian Cricket Board (BCCI) made a correct decision sending a full-strength Indian squad, but the players could not muster the humility to treat them as at least equals. Mustafizur Rahman, making his ODI debut, had a brilliant haul of five wickets while keeper Mushfiqur Rahim held five great catches behind. At times Bangladesh tried a little too hard and was momentarily allowing the game to go the Indian way. 

When you make unnecessary mistakes you rue it very badly later, and get angry too. That was what probably happened to captain 'Cool' MS Dhoni. Seeing the match going away supposedly to a 'minnow' and that too due to his team's complacency he lost his cool and deliberately shoved Mustafizur on the way to a run. No doubt, Mustafizur cultivated a habit of standing on the batsman's way quite a few times in the match. But that did not permit the Indian captain to behave the way he did. This thrashing should act as an experience and also a warning for Team India in the following matches against Bangladesh, and perhaps in all their encounters against supposedly weaker sides. 

The Scorecard: 

Cricket: Rains Engineer A Draw For The India-Bangladesh One-Off Test!

It rained every day of the five days of the one-off Test match between India and Bangladesh at Fatullah. The second day's play was completely washed out and rains accounted for the loss of about 248 overs of the match, mind you, everyday you are supposed to play out 90 overs. This shows the poor planning of bilateral cricket series between the Asian neighbors. It was scheduled at a time when the South-West Monsoon hit India and advanced to most parts of the country. Besides, it was the only match that could be fitted into the madness. Now what will happen to the 3 one day internationals, nobody could guess. The first one is scheduled to start on June 18 in Dhaka. 

Ashwin With Virat

The test, in its realized portions, went the way it was expected with India dominating in all fields of the game. Winning the toss and electing to bat first India had to fight primarily its main opponent--the rains--than the Bangladesh bowlers. India lost the first wicket only after scoring in excess of 250 runs. Both of the openers scored big centuries each--Shikhar Dhawan 173 and Murali Vijay 150. Thanks to rain India had to go on playing till the end of the third day making 462 for 6 wickets. On the morning of the fourth day India declared and afterwards Bangladesh struggled and struggled. The rain curtailed fourth day saw them still at 111 for 3 with Indian spinner R Ashwin in top form. The recalled spinner Harbhajan Singh too bowled tight. Therefore, if at least a full day's play was available on the final day, there was no harm in fancying an Indian victory. 

However, when heavy overnight rains washed out first session's play today, a draw was inevitable. Even then, India put Bangladesh in some nail-biting moments by getting the hosts all out for a mere 256, lasting only for just 65.5 overs, and enforcing the follow-on. We cannot blame Virat Kohli now for not preventing Team India slipping down to No.4 in the ICC Test rankings. R Ashwin took 5 wickets and Harbhajan Singh 3 in the Bangladesh first innings. Bangladesh would really feel disappointed at not being able to avoid the follow-on, particularly after all the spice and expectations about their spirited performance. Mominul Haque too could not get his 12th consecutive Test fifty to equal AB de Villiers' record. Anyway, Bangladesh still has a lot to show in the three ODIs, rains permitting, of course. 

The Scorecard:

Cricket: India Vs Bangladesh One-Off Test Begins Tomorrow!

Mushfiqur Rahim 

The one-off Test match between India and Bangladesh begins tomorrow at Fatullah near Dhaka. Two points would make this match quite interesting. First, as we have mentioned earlier the host team cannot be taken lightly any more, at least in One-Day Internationals, after its strong performances in the World Cup-2015 and the recent series against Pakistan. Second, the bitter aftermath of the World Cup quarter final in March this year between the two teams sort of makes this a ‘revenge’ match for Bangladesh players and fans.

Virat Kohli

There were views about bad umpiring decisions that led to the rather untenable view that India robbed Bangladesh of a World Cup semi-final berth—the margin of defeat and the form of Team India at that time are pointers that India would not have lost the match under any circumstances. The ‘views’ were so strong that Mustafa Kamal who alleged Indian bias resigned as the President of the ICC. Anyway, cricket Tests nowadays need such ‘spices’ to make up for its diminishing appeal. Of course, players from both teams feel that this would not affect their relations as they moved ahead and past is past.

Indian Strategy With Ravi Shastri?

Virat Kohli will lead the Indian team for this Test while Mushfiqur Rahim leads Bangladesh amidst reports that the latter may not keep wickets due to an injury. Team India is full strength with the addition of the great spinner having 413 scalps, Harbhajan Singh who was recalled thanks to his spirited performances recently. India have won six of the seven Tests played so far against Bangladesh and they start as favourites. For Bangladesh batsman Mominul Haque would be eager to match South Africa’s AB de Villiers’ world record of scoring a half century in 12 consecutive Tests by getting just one more fifty. It is certain that the home team would give a tough fight and Virat’s captaincy would be really tested.

After this solitary Test there will be three ODIs on June 18, 21 and 24 during this short India tour of Bangladesh. Mahendra Singh Dhoni will lead the team in the one-day matches. Some good cricket can be safely expected.

The Teams:

Bangladesh: (From) Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Mominul Haque, Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Litton Das, Nasir Hossain, Shuvagata Hom, Abul Hasan, Jubair Hossain, Taijul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Mohammad Shahid.

India: (From) Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh, Karn Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Ishant Sharma.

Cricket: Bangladesh Can No Longer Be Taken Lightly, Full Indian Squads Announced!

Bangladesh has ceased to be a minnow for most of the Test playing nations after their consistent display in the recently concluded World Cup hosted by Australia and New Zealand. Bangladesh almost reached the semi-finals of World Cup-2015 beating several teams including England in their march forward. Of course, Team India stopped them in the quarter finals, but not at all in an easy manner with the aftermath of the match really getting bitter.  Then in the recent tour of Bangladesh by Pakistan the hosts created history by winning the ODI Series roundly and convincingly. Therefore, requests from several key cricketers of Team India for a ‘much needed’ rest was not paid attention to by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and full-strength Team India squads were deemed fit.

Selection Committee of the BCCI today in Mumbai announced the Indian squads for the one-off Test and three one-day-internationals (ODI) for the upcoming India Tour of Bangladesh in June, 2015. Virat Kohli is there to captain the team for the solitary Test match and he has all his star cricketers. In addition, off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has been recalled after two years in wilderness for the Test team maybe because of his impressive performance in the on-going IPL extravaganza. Mahendra Singh Dhoni is also retained after his famous 'escape to Test retirement' as the captain for the ODI team with pacer Dhawa lKulkarni replacing an injured Mohammed Shami and all his regular guys to play with. Dhawal’s selection could also be directly related to his performance in the IPL-8. Harbhajan  plays for Mumbai Indians who have reached the final of IPL-8 after a sequel of charged-up performances and Kulkarni for Rajasthan Royals that has finally crashed out in the Eliminator. The Selection Committee meeting was chaired by Sandeep Patil.

The sooner the ‘minnows’ tag gets out of circulation the better it would be for world cricket as all bilateral series and international tournaments will be more closely fought and fiercely competitive, and we may not have to contend with some predictable one-sided affairs. For now, Bangladesh is set for an inspired performance against India and they would definitely like to avenge their bitter exit from the World Cup-2015. All these factors are certain to make the cricket fans happier and a lot more excited. 

ICC Cricket World Cup: Pakistan, West Indies In Quarterfinals!

Jonathan Carter For West Indies

Pakistan and West Indies rose to the occasion and ensured their places in the knockout stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup-2015. Notwithstanding the minnows both teams were facing they had to take the games seriously. In the first match West Indies without Gayle did win with a big margin as required for a better net run-rate against UAE. Chasing a modest target of 176 at Napier today West Indies won by 6 wickets with nearly 20 overs to spare making it almost impossible for the loser of the other match between Pakistan and Ireland to come up on better net run-rate and their place in the Quarterfinals was ensured except for a tie or no result in the other match.

Sarfraz Ahmed's Century For Pakistan

Pakistan bowling that has been responsible for the team’s great comeback stuck to their job and restricted Ireland to 237 in 50 overs despite a century by Porterfield (107 off 131 balls). Pakistan without Younis Khan did not take any chances in the chase and went steady with the only objective of a win. Their batting clicked too with Sarfraz Ahmed making the first hundred for Pakistan in this World Cup and it was also his maiden century in 38 one day internationals (101 not out off 121 balls). Finally Pakistan overwhelmed a promising Ireland by 7 wickets with nearly 4 overs to spare.

The much awaited spots in Pool-B are now final—1.India, 2.South Africa, 3.Pakistan and 4.West Indies. Accordingly the Quarterfinal line-up is clear: 

1.      March 18, Wednesday, Sydney               South Afria Vs Sri Lanka

2.      March 19, Thursday, Melbourne            India Vs Bangladesh

3.      March 20, Friday, Adelaide                    Australia Vs Pakistan

4.      March 21, Saturday, Wellington             New Zealand Vs West Indies 

Just thinking it would have been a mouth-watering prospect if the knockout stage was played as Super Eight Round Robin. I still maintain that this will be the right format for such a world event followed by billions of fans. See the irony now, the hard-fought dream of any team for reaching the next stage could be terminated with just one loss.

The winners of Quarterfinals 1 and 4 will meet in the semifinal in Auckland on 24^th March. This means South Africa or Sri Lanka will meet either New Zealand or West Indies. The winners of Quarterfinals 2 and 3, that is to say, either India or Bangladesh with meet Pakistan or Australia on 26^th March in Sydney. This again means India and Pakistan can possibly meet each other only in the semifinal like last time and that an India-Australia final on 29^th March in Melbourne is also ruled out. New Zealand or South Africa or Sri Lanka or even West Indies are set to test their chances of reaching the final as the other team. Stay tuned. 

Results& Fixtures of ICC Cricket World Cup-2015: