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Justin Langer may have oozed security as an Australian opener but off the pitch it was a different story

Tanya Aldred27-Feb-2011This is an honest and earnest book. Unfortunately it is not up to date enough to detail Langer’s work as Australia’s batting coach. But, in the spirit of goodwill, we will ignore Boxing Day at the MCG.Langer was the grafter of those amazing Australian sides, the roast parsnip among the blazing Christmas puddings. He was also astute and observant and hypercritical. No Australian has scored more first-class runs.The interest here lies in the meticulous detail, some about what went on inside his own head, some about his opponents, team-mates and life in the baggy green. He, or his ghost, Robert Wainwright, can write. The descriptions are vivid. Diary entries most of us would have burnt and emotional behaviour most of us would rather forget make it into print.A few more pictures, fewer words and an index would have made it an easier read but Langer has never chosen the simple route in life. Failure on the pitch meant soul-searching off it, which led to heavier weights, longer swims and yet more self-help books.He conjures up a selection of delightful vignettes: Matthew Hayden taking a coffee machine, toasted sandwich maker, bread maker, camp cooking stove, saucepans, frying pan, tongs and Marks and Spencer’s pasta on a tour of India; an eating competition with Mike Gatting involving treacle sponge and hot custard; a hubristic defiling of an England dressing room. He does not much care what people think: how many professional sportsmen have started a chapter with the words, “I love roses”?There are a few asides by Langer’s wife Sue, who seems a lovely woman with a fortitude that enables her to bring up four babies almost single-handedly. Against that an unremitting macho-ness is completely alien, at least to me. Thoughtful pen portraits of team-mates are peppered with lines about fighting: (Ricky Ponting) “There must have been a dozen times after Test match victories when we wrestled like kids in the schoolyard, tearing each other’s shirts, kidney punching and pinching the other’s triceps muscles until they bled”; (Simon Katich) “I wouldn’t like to fight Kato. He is tough as nails”; (Andrew Symonds) “Another one I wouldn’t like to fight.”And what is it about sportsmen and nakedness? Among other adventures we read about a late-night singalong at the SCG in nothing but jockstraps and baggy greens and Hayden draped only in the Australian flag on the roof of the cable car as it travelled down Cape Town’s Table Mountain.The intensity and self-doubt that Langer felt about everything, and which almost crippled his ability to play, marked him out as the ideal leader of the song the Australians sing after each Test victory, “Under the Southern Cross I Stand”. Langer adored this role above any other and interviews with each of the six other songmasters punctuate the book. He even introduces the concept to Somerset when he becomes captain (the players chose “The Blackbird” by The Wurzels).It is difficult to imagine what Rodney Marsh would have made of that but Langer is happy to run with it. His belief in the power of song is inextinguishable. Perhaps the hurdy-gurdy is something the current Australian side might consider.Keeping My Head: A Life in Cricket
by Justin Langer
Allen & Unwin, hb
349pp, £19.99

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the IPL game between Pune Warriors and Deccan Chargers in Mumbai

Firdose Moonda16-May-2011The anti-climax
The crowd waited in anticipation for Sourav Ganguly to turn out for the home side and when he came to bat at No.3, he was greeted with the usual, massive cheer. After seeing off four dot balls from Daniel Christian, the pressure was building for Ganguly to make an impact, but he did the exact opposite. He limply hung his bat out to drive to the covers and made just enough contact with the ball to send it straight to a fielder. Pragyan Ojha took a simple catch and the great was out for a duck.The towel that caused trouble
Yuvraj Singh seemed fairly distracted through his innings, and rightly so with the number of wickets falling at the other end. As Dale Steyn was about to run in to bowl his second ball to Yuvraj, the batsman pulled away and indicated something was bothering him. He waved at the sightscreen, sending Steyn on a fact-finding mission and the fast bowler ran all the way only to see that a cameraman was causing all the trouble. Steyn asked him to move out of the way and even as he shuffled to the left, Yuvraj made gestures that all was not well.Steyn eventually figured out that it wasn’t the cameraman himself, but a white towel that was resting on top of his camera that was giving Yuvraj problems and it was duly removed. That it wasn’t really in Yuvraj’s line of sight is another matter.The captain’s final act
Kumar Sangakkara lived up to his reputation of being classy and gentlemanlike when he walked after being caught behind by Robin Uthappa off the bowling of Rahul Sharma. The former Sri Lanka captain got an under edge, quite a thick one. While Uthappa was appealing vociferously, Sangakkara had already tucked his bat under his arm and was leaving the crease. Sharma saluted him on his way off. Sangakkara was playing in his last match of this IPL season and signed off in style, and with a win.The South African battle
Wayne Parnell won the contest with JP Duminy after he denied his South African team-mate the chance to finish off the match for Deccan. Parnell was tasked with bowling the final two overs and was determined to show his skills at the death. He kept it wicket to wicket and quick and in the process sent Duminy on his way. He fired in the fourth ball, too straight for Duminy to play properly, especially since he took his eye off it at the last moment. He played a nothing shot and the leg stump was pegged back. Parnell gave him an exuberant send off, knowing that the game was beyond Pune’s reach.

After sparse crowds marred India’s home ODI series against England and the first two Tests against West Indies, the fourth day at the Wankhede is a sell-out

N Hunter24-Nov-2011″ (what a nice sound of ball hitting bat),” remarked a teenager standing in the uppermost tier of the North Stand. The afternoon sun was on the wane now, the daylight had softened and the shadows were lengthening on the field. VVS Laxman had turned his wrists to slap Darren Sammy between the man at short midwicket and the one at midwicket, who stood in awe as the ball slipped past him like a butterfly, quietly, for a four. It was a high-quality stroke and Laxman received hearty appreciation from the 20,200-strong crowd that had been in their seats from early in the morning.The teenager’s comment was one usually muttered by coaches and students during training. The quality of the noise signifies the richness of a stroke. Finer points these. And so, to hear the youngster utter those words made it clear that the cricket fan – a breed feared to be endangered based on thin crowds seen at Test matches around the world – is still healthy and, critically, young. That might just ensure Test cricket has a future.The spectator-numbers at the Test match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai have been impressive, and with Sachin Tendulkar 38 runs short of becoming the first batsman to score 100 international centuries, the best turnout is expected tomorrow.On the first day the turnout was 12,300, with 8000 daily tickets sold. On Wednesday, as the West Indies batsmen batted out a second straight day, the number dipped to 11,000, out of which 7300 were daily tickets. But today, as India came out to bat, the number had risen to 12,000 daily tickets sold.The clamour for tickets became so intense by noon that the Mumbai police had to resort to a mild lathi charge to disperse the fast-increasing crowd. So how did Test cricket suddenly become a box-office hit? The obvious and primary reason for the huge numbers was Tendulkar. But he was also playing in the first two Tests of this series, in Delhi and Kolkata, and the crowd in both cities had been sparse.At Feroz Shah Kotla, a complicated sales-system of tickets sent fans back home disgruntled. Prices were reasonable: the cheapest daily ticket was priced at Rs 100, while a five-day ticket for the best seat in the ground, in the South Club House at the ITC End, was Rs 4000. But on the first day, the ticket-office at the Kotla was closed without explanation and only 11,000 fans were in a stadium that has a capacity to seat around 45,000. Things appeared even more confusing on the second day, with chaotic scenes at the point of sale: the branch of a nationalised bank located on a nearby road. Still, only an estimated 14,000 fans turned up.At Eden Gardens, tickets were available at windows around the ground with five-day ones priced at Rs 500, Rs 1000 and Rs 1500, and daily tickets at Rs 50, Rs 100 and Rs 150. Yet Rahul Dravid, Laxman and MS Dhoni made centuries and raised bats to a virtually empty stadium.

Daily tickets for the Test were priced as low as Rs 50 (East Stand) and season tickets for vantage viewing points like the North Stand (behind the bowler’s arm) and the Vithal Divecha Pavilion (midwicket) were slashed to Rs 500 and Rs 600 respectively

The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) had made an announcement in advance offering large discounts to the fans. Daily tickets for the Test were priced as low as Rs 50 (East Stand) and season tickets for vantage viewing points like the North Stand (behind the bowler’s arm) and the Vithal Divecha Pavilion (midwicket) were slashed to Rs 500 and Rs 600 respectively. The ticket windows were near the ground, making it easier for fans to purchase them. There are a lot of colleges around the ground, and the dirt-cheap price of a daily ticket drew large groups of students. The MCA had learned its lesson after only 13,000 fans filled the 33,000-seater stadium during the one-day match against England in October, for which tickets were steeply priced.The ticketing strategy was successful. North Stand, the most popular avenue to watch cricket at the Wankhede, was full to the brim, and played the drummer’s role as fans beat the hand-railings with empty water bottles to drive away the afternoon reverie. Though they were not as loud, the full-houses at the Vijay Merchant and Sunil Gavaskar pavilions (on either side of the square) chanted the India batsmen’s names with religious fervour. Only the Garware Pavilion was dressed scantily, with barely a few hundred people scattered around. Apparently, the Garware Club, which owns the stand, has been involved in a dispute with the MCA, and hence its members decided to opt out. A shame really, considering nearly 4000 tickets could have been put on public sale.Luckily, those who were present showed how much time they had for good cricket. A young boy of seven, wearing the India blue, stood for long periods holding a banner that read: “We want 3-0, India.”In Mumbai, at Tendulkar’s home ground, with cricket’s most-famous player on the cusp of an unprecedented feat, the youngster decided to raise support for a whitewash, a phenomenon that occurs as rarely in Test cricket as the opportunity to shake Tendulkar’s hand. What was also interesting was that the fans did not just cheer Tendulkar. VVS Laxman’s initials formed a perfect rhythm when chanted, as he walked to the centre to delirious chants of “VVS, VVS, VVS.” When Rahul Dravid lunged to punch a perfect cover drive to reach 13,000 Test runs, the shouts of “Dravid, Dravid” were as loud as those of “Sachin, Sachin” had been.Test matches do not just require endurance from the players but from fans as well. Day in, day out, their emotions, their fervour, their noise, at times, spills out onto the ground, acting as a shot in the arm for the home team’s players or a painful blow for the visitors. The history of cricket is full of pages where a dormant session has been brought to life by the vibrancy of the crowd. Today, you could sense Darren Sammy, a leader who wears his heart on his sleeve, hungry to have a face-off with the vociferous Mumbai crowd. He looked up for the challenge but each time his bowlers and fielders faltered, which was quite frequently, the crowd’s noise only grew louder. That only made Sammy more desperate.Was today’s big turnout an aberration? We can only answer that when Mumbai hosts its next Test. For the moment, the crowds are marching toward the Wankhede. And Friday is already sold out.

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the second day of the second Test between Pakistan and England in Abu Dhabi

George Dobell in Abu Dhabi26-Jan-2012Moment of the day

Jonathan Trott had just 22 and his partnership with Alastair Cook was worth 44, when Saeed Ajmal spun an off-break sharply and caught the batsmen in the crease. The lbw appeal was turned down and, after a quick chat, Pakistan decided not to use one of their reviews. Had they done so, Trott would have been out. To rub salt in the wound, Pakistan later wasted two reviews – also against Trott – for further lbw appeals that were declined. Trott and Cook went on to add 139.Decision of the day

It is not often the most impressive moment of an innings comes in the moment of dismissal. In Cook’s 94, perhaps it did. Make no mistake, Cook was rightly adjudged lbw. But there are many international batsmen – one or two who share the same dressing room – who would have struggled to show the restraint demonstrated by Cook and would have insisted on calling – and wasting – a review. To show such selflessness six short of a century speaks volumes for Cook’s character.Strike of the day

Resuming on 256 for 7, Pakistan still had the opportunity to stretch their first innings score past 300. As it was their last three wickets lasted 16 balls. The key wicket was Misbah-ul-Haq. After his innings the previous day, Misbah was only half forward to another fine delivery from Stuart Broad that nipped back off the seam and would have gone on to hit middle stump. It was the 13th time since his recall to the side that Misbah had passed 50. Only once has he gone on to register a century.Near miss of the day

The first ball Saeed Ajmal bowled to Trott was a perfect
doosra: it spun away sharply and left the batsman groping at fresh air. Put simply it was too good to edge. Perhaps had Ajmal bowled the same delivery in Dubai, where there was less turn and his doosra seemed to skid on, he would have found the edge.Ball of the day

The partnership between Trott and Cook added 139 runs in 50.4 overs in increasing comfort when Abdur Rehman produced a beautiful delivery that drifted into Trott, pitched on middle and turned to clip the top of the off stump. Perhaps Trott might have negated the spin had he played further forward but it was a tremendous ball from an underrated bowler.

Dread, romance and cricket come together in this novel set in the time of the Taliban

Sharda Ugra16-Jun-2012The Afghanistan cricket team – yippee, we will be seeing them again in the World T20 in Sri Lanka – brings to a somewhat tired global community the fresh, bracing air of the mountains. The names Stanikzai, Mangal, Zadran, Hotak represent an unfamiliar part of the cricket world. Every man has a careering life story – taking to the game in refugee camps, learning from tolerant mates, teachers, coaches.is not kind of an Afghan cricket story. Its dominant mood is dread and gloom – which press down on the reader through to its final chapter. Its characters are trapped in a Kabul living under the heavy fist of the Taliban, from 1996 to 2000.Well before its story begins, two factors draw the reader into the book. The title, of course: cricket was the only sport approved of by the Taliban. In the book, Zorak Wahidi, the minister for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (aka Mr Bad Guy) explains that it occupies wads of time and “is modest in its clothing”. The real Taliban’s religious police did actually operate under the title of the Ministry for the Propogation of Virtue and the Suppression of Vice. Afghanistan applied for ICC membership in 2000, which was granted in 2001, after the Talibs had been driven out of Kabul.The second lure of the book has to be its beautiful cover photograph, of two women in the famous billowing blue “shuttlecock” burqas striding away from the camera, with them a girl of no more than ten, head uncovered, glancing over her shoulder. ‘s story is driven by its female protagonist Rukhsana, enduring a regime that believes women belong to “the home and the grave”.Rukhsana learnt to play cricket when living in Delhi. If she can teach her brothers and cousins the rudiments of the game in less than a month, they will have tickets to freedom: the team that wins Afghanistan’s first cricket competition will go to Pakistan with the Taliban’s blessings. A proposal of marriage from fifty-something Wahidi and Rukhsana knows she will have to make a run for it herself. In order to step outside and teach cricket, she disguises herself with a false beard (and some useful protective gear).Timeri Murari, a Chennai-based writer, spent some time in Kabul talking to those who lived under the Taliban, and through Rukhsana he details the wounded, up-ended lives of women and men. In an atmosphere of fear, cricket becomes a bastion of utter fairness, a standpoint for democracy and a romantic idyll.The threat of Wahidi and his cronies, particularly his menacing brother Droon, is on every page. Rukhsana’s lingering love interest from her years in Delhi makes a sudden, mawkish appearance to play in the life-or-death cricket match. (No more spoilers here.)Much of the cricket is all Victorian nobility, with an ICC observer called Markwick turning up in his MCC hat and tie. When Droon threatens to pulp Rukhsana’s brother, Markwick acts in character. “We’re playing cricket,” he said, in the stern voice of a schoolmaster…” we are told. “We must start the game. It’s half-past two.” is more about the Taliban than cricket. Its main characters are not layered, and the language can turn clunky, with “searing love” and “simple meals”, but Talib-ruled Kabul is sketched in careful and terrifying detail and the story moves along quickly. You find yourself willing the Taliban CC on to escape en masse. Besides, it will make a hell of a movie.The Taliban Cricket Club
by Timeri N Murari
Aleph Book Company
pp336, Rs 595

Ask a Mumbai fan. He’ll tell you

Lloyd Mascarenhas07-May-2012Choice of game
Two of the biggest teams playing at a stadium I hadn’t seen before, on a Sunday evening in Mumbai, were enough reasons to book tickets as soon as they were available online. As May 6 arrived, I set out to the stadium with my fiancée, who is a die-hard Chennai Super Kings fan. As much as there was a match in the stadium, there was one between us, wearing our respective jerseys and chanting our team names.Team supported
I was born and brought up in Mumbai, hence the loyalties lie there. And since Sachin Tendulkar plays for the Mumbai Indians, it simply affirmed my choice. Last year Mumbai nearly* made it to the IPL final and won the Champions League, so winning the 2012 IPL would be a dream for die-hard fans like me who travel from one end of the city to another to watch them in action.Key performer
In a star-studded game, a relatively unknown player called Dwayne Smith took Mumbai over the line. The 14 runs of final three balls threw the crowd into a frenzy, and I think every Mumbai supporter will be hitting Google to know some more about this new sensation.One thing I’d have changed
On a hot Mumbai afternoon, a 4pm start only adds to the misery of the spectators and players. Such games are best played at night, starting at 8pm.Face-off I relished
Tendulkar v the Chennai bowlers and Malinga v Dhoni.Wow moment
A toss-up between the spectacular catch taken by Francois du Plessis to dismiss Tendulkar and the runs scored off the final three balls by Smith.Accessories
When in Mumbai and supporting Mumbai, get the Mumbai jersey and feel at home with 34,000 other supporters. I blew the horn and waved the Mumbai flag too. It was quite a sight to see over 30,000 flags being waved when Tendulkar got to his half-century.Crowd meter
The atmosphere was electric. The “Malingaaa” chant rose across the stadium when he’d run in to bowl, and the roars when Tendulkar walked out on to the field to bat would have turned a few people deaf for the next ten minutes. The Mexican waves also made the occasion feel special.Close encounter
Malinga can be titled the “Son of Mumbai” because every time he walked close to the midwicket boundary, and waved and smiled, the crowd would begin chanting “Malingaaa…. Malingaaa…. Malingaaa”.Shot of the day
Rohit Sharma’s straight six that hit the sight-screen was magnificent to watch.Entertainment
DJ Clement the official DJ for the Mumbai team kept the crowd dancing and swaying to foot-tapping house music prior to the match. Once the match began they switched to popular Bollywood tracks. In between overs, the stadium looked like a venue for a live concert. During the strategic time-out 15 young lads did an amazing b-boying act which drew applause from every soul in the stadium.Twenty20s v ODIs
T20s are convenient, compact and appeal to everyone. A good percentage of the stadium was made up by women and children, and that’s the diversity T20 has brought to cricket. I hope to watch another IPL match with my mom and sister because I am sure they’ll love it.Banner of the day
A five-year-old girl was holding up a “Raina will you marry me” poster. It had everyone in our stand in splits, and goes to show the fascination for our Indian cricketers starts early.TV v stadium
Watching a live match, and especially an IPL match, has to be on your list of “Ten things to do before you die”.Overall
It has to be a thrilling experience when you get to watch nearly 350 runs scored, 17 wickets fall, and a four off the last ball to win. Add to that some great shots, great catches and an exciting atmosphere.Marks out of ten
9, for a great show, a fantastic stadium under lights, and a last-ball. An 8pm start would have made it 10.*May 7, 2012, 0830GMT: It was incorrectly stated that Mumbai made it to the IPL final in 2011. This has been changed

ESPNcricinfo’s George Binoy picks his team of the Under-19 World Cup

George Binoy in Townsville27-Aug-2012
1. Unmukt Chand (India)
After one half-century and a couple of starts on difficult pitches, Unmukt’s performances had been average during India’s progress to the final. However, on the grandest stage an Under-19 player can have, he delivered a breath-taking innings, his century helping India pull off the highest successful chase at Tony Ireland Stadium to become World Champions.2. Babar Azam (Pakistan)
Began the tournament with 75 against Afghanistan and a century against Scotland to help his team top their group. Made the curious decision of batting first on a tricky pitch in the quarter-final but was good enough to score a half-century against India as his team-mates collapsed around him. Was Pakistan’s top-scorer in a play-off semi-final against West Indies as well.3. Quinton de Kock (wk) (South Africa)
Blitzed 95 and a century against Namibia and Bangladesh to finish top of the run-charts in the group stages, but had consecutive failures in the quarter and semi-finals. Finished the World Cup with a half-century against New Zealand as South Africa won the third-place play-off. Made the best XI because, with 18 dismissals, de Kock was the best wicketkeeper-batsman on show in Queensland.4. Anamul Haque (Bangladesh)
The highest run-scorer in the World Cup, Anamul began with a hundred that would relegate Sri Lanka to the plate competition and ended with another hundred, against Pakistan, which helped Bangladesh finish seventh out of 16 teams. He scored a half-century against England’s potent attack as well, and had starts in two other innings. Wasn’t tested on the tough pitches at Tony Ireland Stadium, but received praise from his former coach Stuart Law.5. William Bosisto (capt) (Australia)
Player of the Tournament. Unbeaten in five out of six innings, his only dismissal was a run-out against South Africa. Made important contributions in chases against England, Ireland, Bangladesh and South Africa, often shoring up a top-order wobble. Saved his best for the final, his 87 taking Australia to a competitive total. Had the coolest head in the competition. Bosisto’s only slip-up was dropping Unmukt in the last ten overs of a tense chase in the final.6. Kyle Mayers (West Indies)
One of three players to have scored over 100 runs and taken more than ten wickets in the tournament, Mayers batted at No. 6 and bowled second change for West Indies. He was their highest wicket-taker and conceded fewer than four runs an over, hitting the bats hard with his pace and bounce. As a batsman, he had the ability to play in several gears, showing patience against India and attacking against Zimbabwe.7. Ashton Turner (Australia)
Finished as Australia’s leading wicket-taker by bowling an attacking brand of offspin. Turner got the ball to bounce and spin from an aggressive line just outside off stump. A useful batsman at No. 7 as well, contributing valuable runs in the quarter-final against Bangladesh and in the final against India.England’s Reece Topley was the most complete bowler at the World Cup•ICC/Getty8. George Dockrell (Ireland)
The left-arm spinner who could not be attacked is the only player from the plate competition in the XI. Dockrell’s tournament figures were 60-22-122-10. He had astonishingly economical figures against strong opposition as well – 0 for 22 and 1 for 10 in full spells against England and Australia. Against Namibia, he had 10-5-8-1. His economy-rate of 2.05 made him impossible to not pick.9. Ronsford Beaton (West Indies)
His stats may not be the best but Beaton was a tough quick to face. He hit speeds of 145 kph and was a constant threat with his lines and length. Began with a match-winning 3 for 33 against India and also took 3 for 47 in the quarter-final against New Zealand. In that match, Beaton conceded only four in the penultimate over of the chase, leaving Justin Greaves 18 to defend in the 50th, which he failed to do.10. Sandeep Sharma (India)
Had supreme command over the new ball and could swing it prodigiously in both directions with exceptional control. His inswingers with a right-hander’s nightmare and, for the left-hand batsmen, the same deliveries were un-leaveable. They would begin around leg and finish just outside off. Could be relied on to provide an early breakthrough nearly as regularly as the sun rises.11. Reece Topley (England)
The most complete bowler at the World Cup. Tall, fast and skilled, Topley was dangerous with both new and old ball. His attacking lengths – good length and straight – made it difficult to score off him and he had an economy-rate of 3.17. Finished as the top wicket-taker and provided one of the most memorable moments of the tournament with his second ball – breaking Jimmy Peirson’s middle stump in half.

Bangladesh’s victory in the final ODI was a sum of having come out on top in six crucial situations

Mohammad Isam09-Dec-2012Bangladesh had to win six mini-battles in the deciding game against West Indies. These small victories added up to deliver a special night for Abdur Razzak and captain Mushfiqur Rahim. These moments also made a hero out of Nasir Hossain, who wanted to be a hero since the time he was having lunch with Saqlain Mushtaq, the Bangladesh bowling consultant. Above all these individual triumphs lies a team performance that is perhaps Bangladesh’s finest to date because it was also their hardest-fought.The 3-2 win in the ODI series has come against a side whose captain had stated, before the series, his intention to win 5-0. When West Indies manager, and former captain, Richie Richardson said matter-of-factly that they would like to win everything in Bangladesh, it didn’t sound unrealistic. West Indies’ last assignment prior to the tour was the World Twenty20 which they had won in grand style, and never has a reigning champion side come to Bangladesh and not won something.West Indies won the Test series 2-0, and as the ODI series neared Bangladesh hardly featured when the talk was about winning. What a 5-0 win would mean for the West Indies’ ODI rankings was everyone’s concern. The absence of Shakib Al Hasan was seen as the major blow that the home team could never recover from, so much so that ideas of 400-plus scores were also thrown around.Instead, Bangladesh fought, and fought till the very end. Even the winning runs had to be hit twice, as Elias Sunny forgot to complete the run when Nasir had first struck the ball into the gap. The batsman had to redo the winning shot the next ball, carving the ball over point, which was Bangladesh’s sixth comeback. The five earlier ones made sure it got to this stage.The first obstacle was Chris Gayle. Despite the lack of runs this series, he remained a threat until he chopped the ball to Nasir at point, who took a low catch in the eighth over. The wicket came about in the only way Bangladesh could have dismissed Gayle, by building pressure through dot balls; his ODI series with an aggregate that is his third-lowest in a five-match series.From 17 for 3, West Indies recovered significantly. Kieron Pollard settled into the crease by hitting sixes and the spinners strayed. Mominul Haque finally slipped one through Pollard, giving Bangladesh their second win of the afternoon.That dismissal, however, was not going to end Bangladesh’s woes. But they denied West Indies a second chance, as Mahmudullah and Shafiul Islam picked up two wickets each, helping restrict the opposition to 217.Bangladesh winning battles with their bowling was not unexpected, given their current form. The turnaround they forced after Pollard had decimated the spinners was worth watching. They had to use new angles and a lot of variations to keep the West Indies tail from wagging.When it came to batting, Bangladesh suffered their second top-order collapse in as many games. Their mindset seemed muddled, and it was evident in their footwork. Tamim Iqbal got away with a couple of boundaries before he was cleaned up by Kemar Roach. Roach also beat Anamul Haque and Jahurul Islam with pace. Recovery from these early blows would be Bangladesh’s biggest struggle of the series.Mushfiqur and Mahmudullah decided to counter-attack, like Pollard had, and bring up the run-rate to a point from which picking up wickets in a clutter was the only way out for West Indies. The pair added 91 runs at 7.18 per over, Bangladesh using the advantage of having an in-form Mahmudullah promoted to No. 5 for only the second time in his career.Both the captain and vice-captain, however, fell within 20 balls of each other, leaving three youngsters the task of seeing Bangladesh home. Nasir, Mominul and Sohag Gazi then won Bangladesh yet another mini-battle, adding 53 for the sixth wicket and a further 28 for the seventh to take them just one hit away from victory.In a way, this was Bangladesh’s third final of 2012, after the Asia Cup final and the final day of the Dhaka Test. Having lost the previous two, questions were raised throughout the year about their ability to go all the way. The win against West Indies is a reward for the battles they fought, the small wins, even the two defeats. It is for now their most cherished trophy.

Why Australia may as well not bother showing up next year

Andy Zaltzman25-Feb-2013BREAKING… England were last night celebrating victory in the 2013 Ashes in their Nagpur hotel, after a panel of international historians declared that their triumph over Australia next summer is now an immutable certainty.The UN Sporting Precedent Committee in New York has ruled that there are sufficient parallels between England’s 1984-85 series win in India, which presaged a 3-1 Ashes win for David Gower’s men in the ensuing summer, and this current tour, that “they might as well start the post-mortems in Melbourne now”.Professor BS Kalhuke, the committee’s chair, explained: “England crashed to a heavy defeat in the first Test after being scuttled by Sivaramakrishnan, a spinner who became progressively less effective the longer the series went on. They bounced back with a thumping second-Test victory after dismissing the home team for just over 300, scoring just over 400 themselves, before chasing down a small target with loads of wickets in hand.”High-fiving himself enthusiastically, Kalhuke, emeritus professor of sporting coincidence at the Nantucket Institute of Unarguable Facts, continued: “England then won the penultimate Test of the series to go 2-1 up, after again dismissing the Indians relatively cheaply, then posting a big lead with all of their top four passing 50, exactly as they have just done at Eden Gardens. They won that penultimate Test 28 years ago by knocking off a target of less than 50. So all things considered, you can start booking the open-topped buses for 26th August, the day after England clinch the urn at The Oval once more with a left-handed batsman as captain.”Pressed by journalists about aspects of the 1984-85 series that do not provide exact parallels to the 2012-13 version, and the potential for all these parallels to be rendered invalid by the final Test not ending in a draw, Prof Kalhuke pointed out that the last match of the mid-eighties rubber was played in a city ending in the letters p-u-r ‒ Kanpur then, Nagpur this time. “If that game is not a draw, then I will have a tattoo on my face of the words ‘Ravi Shastri was the most exciting cricketer of all time.'”He then stuck his fingers in his ears and pretended he was deaf to avoid answering further queries, before running away at high speed, shouting something about Alastair Cook being a left-handed opener making big scores in India, making him the new Graeme Fowler. “Cook will never play for England again after this series, mark my words,” screamed Kalhuke as he bundled himself into the boot of his car.England captain Alastair Cook was unavailable for comment, but, had he been available for comment, and commented, he would have commented: “Yes, yes, yes. A third successive Ashes win for the first time since the 1970s – that’s an awesome achievement. I’m not fussed about being the new Graeme Fowler. This is about the team, not me.”Cook continued: “Our whole strategy on this tour of India was geared towards mirroring the 1984-85 series here as closely as possible, so we are delighted with how things have gone. Leaving Monty out of the first Test in Ahmedabad was a masterstroke, as we knew the Indians were very vulnerable with bat, ball and in the field after their results and performances last year, so had to make sure we got the result we needed to set up the entire pattern of the series. It worked a treat.”Australian skipper Michael Clarke tearfully acknowledged that England would be the better side in next summer’s showdown. “Ah, look,” he wept to a press conference in Sydney, Baggygreenland, “I will not discuss my position as Australian captain now, eight months before we lose the series. There’s no disgrace in losing to a team that will have just secured a come-from-behind 2-1 win in India, particularly when that defeat is made inevitable by a few historical coincidences. We’ll head to England having just lost a home series to the world’s top-ranked team, just as we did in 1985, so frankly we might as well just accept what’s coming to us. Well played, England. Enjoy your moment. But remember, you’re going to get whitewashed in West Indies early next year and you will not win a single Ashes series from 2017 to 2033.”

Plays of the day from the first day of the Delhi Test between India and Australia

Brydon Coverdale22-Mar-2013Appeal of the day
When Pragyan Ojha bowled the first ball of the 26th over to Shane Watson, the Indians were confident they had a wicket. They just couldn’t decide whether it was caught behind or stumped. Watson pushed forward and got his bat near the ball, and when it was safely in Dhoni’s gloves, the wicketkeeper whipped the bails off for good measure. Dhoni ran towards the standing umpire Richard Kettleborough to appeal for caught behind, on the way sending a similar query to Aleem Dar at square leg to check on the stumping. Kettleborough turned him down, at which point Dhoni made the TV replay signal towards Dar, who promptly asked for the third official to rule on the stumping.Although Dhoni was probably only ensuring the appeal had registered with Dar, his action could bring him attention from the match referee Ranjan Madugalle. The ICC’s playing conditions state: “Players may not appeal to the umpire to use the replay system – breach of this provision would constitute dissent, and the player could be liable for discipline under the ICC Code of Conduct.” For the record, Watson was adjudged not out.Ball of the day
R Ashwin’s carrom ball has claimed a few Australian wickets during this series, but the trick never gets old. This time the victim was Mitchell Johnson, who had not been exposed to Ashwin on this tour as it was his first match of the series. With the offspinner Ashwin coming over the wicket, and angling a ball across to pitch on off-stump, the left-handed Johnson could have been forgiven for shouldering arms, and expecting the ball to move further away. Instead, he saw it turn back towards him and hit the off stump. Johnson stood there for a few seconds, baffled by what had just transpired. The answer was simple: it was another wonderful piece of deception, from a highly talented bowler.Over of the day, part one
Phillip Hughes made some impressive strides in the second innings in Mohali, and he wanted to ensure those gains weren’t wasted in Delhi. His best chance to score quick runs was against the fast men, as he enjoys using the pace of the bowler. In the seventh over of the day, Hughes dispatched Bhuvneshwar Kumar for three wonderful boundaries, his timing and confidence growing with every shot. There was a square drive, a back-foot drive in front of point, and a drive down the ground between the bowler and mid-off. All of a sudden, Hughes was scoring at better than a run-a-ball, and the cracking pitch suddenly didn’t look as ominous.Over of the day, part two
The pitch did, however, cause Hughes some concerns a little later when Ishant Sharma got a ball to zip nastily off the surface from a good length, and Hughes was unable to get out of the way. Hughes had both feet in the air in an ungainly attempt at evasion, when the ball struck his helmet. Perhaps it put some doubts in his mind regarding the slow nature of the pitch, because three balls later, Hughes was stuck on the crease while defending tentatively, subsequently playing on, and giving Ishant his reward.