Breaking/Brief news
August 07, 2009
Where have we seen this one before?
Australia embark on high profile tour, with a squad light on bowling. Injuries impact the selection of the XI. Amidst much speculation about his inclusion, a former captain of the host country announces his retirement. While the series is on, one of the host country's main bowlers also announces his retirement.
Australia pretty much dominate the first test, but can't quite close things out. The cricket early on is gripping, but largely attritional with neither side apparently willing to risk defeat while pursuing victory. There are claims related to 'moral victory', 'momentum', etc. after the first test.
The Aussies are thrashed in the 2nd test, at a venue where until then, they'd lost only once in the ground's history.
Somewhere along the way, individual batting records were broken.
Australia's much-hyped & aggressive opener fails miserably.
This is so much 'deja-vu all over again'! Now all we need is an elbowing incident, a ban, some very
Labels: ashes, ashes 2009, aus v ind 2008, australia, deja vu, england
Thus spake Jagadish @ 12:42 am | Sledge/Read 1 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
| 
October 20, 2008
Deja vu all over again
It seems so surreal and there's so much deja vu around the last few days.
Blatantly obvious decisions going against the touring team (Sehwag today, a couple at Bangalore, Ganguly in the first innings at Mohali). Batsmen almost definitely out, but the ball was a no-ball (Sehwag today). Home team piling on the runs regardless. Opposing captain invokes 'spirit of cricket' by saying that the batsman should have walked when he had obviously nicked it (Sehwag today).
Touring team's players injured (Jaques, McGain & Clark) while the others who filled in (or those who would have otherwise potentially been replaced) aren't quite doing a good job (Hayden, White, Krejza). Touring captain is at his wits' end.
Of course, this could all be extremely premature. Australia could still get away from Mohali 0-0 (or even better 1-0) and go on to win the series.
But it does feel good when the boot is on the other foot!
Talking of boots, I guess no situation better typifies the familiar adage 'when you've got Australia by the unmentionables, you hold on'.
At stumps yesterday, Australia were 300 behind and India still having 10 wickets in hand. Now, Australia needs 516 to win over more than 4 sessions (135+ overs). The most runs ever made in the fourth innings of a test is 654, followed by New Zealand's 451 featuring Astle's blitz a few years ago.
Labels: aus v ind 2008, australia, australia by the balls cliche, deja vu, india, spirit of cricket
Thus spake Jagadish @ 1:14 pm | Sledge/Read 0 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
November 22, 2007
That déjà vu feeling!
Pakistan's top order has been 'blown away' on the first day of the Kotla test at Delhi.
Is this a mandatory happening in an Ind-Pak test series?
Labels: deja vu, india, pakistan
Thus spake Jagadish @ 1:01 pm | Sledge/Read 0 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
September 24, 2007
Deja vu for Adam Gilchrist, this time with foot in mouth
Adam Gilchrist walked in yet another World Cup semi-final, this time at the World Twenty20 championship. In a totally unexpected move on Saturday, he earned a few more brownie points and supporters when he decided to take a decision out of the umpire's hands by opting to walk after Sreesanth had demolished his stumps.
Sources close to Gilchrist confirmed that he did so to protect his reputation for walking and that he'd have done so even if Sreesanth had blown away the other two stumps as well. Gilchrist was quoted by the sources as having walked despite the distinct possibility that the Durban's windy weather had uprooted his middle-stump.
5.1 Sreesanth to Gilchrist, OUT, bowled em! Sreesanth pitches full on the stumps, Gilchrist doesnt move his feet an inch, instead choosing to fatefully play from deep in the crease, misses out on the attempted on-drive, and loses his middle stump! Big wicket for India!
 |  |
We came from four months off. India have been playing some cricket recently.The four month vacation didn't seem to have come into the picture when Australia demolished England or Sri Lanka. The Indian team (well most of those at this tournament) have been playing cricket continuously since June. That is not a good thing either!
Labels: deja vu, gilchrist, twenty20 world cup, walking
Thus spake Jagadish @ 2:08 pm | Sledge/Read 0 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
January 02, 2007
Deja vu all over again - part VI
This is just too much of a coincidence. Thrice in a year, India have squandered opportunities to win a crucial test match when a key player in the opposition has been absent.
First, when Inzamam (no less!), missed the Karachi test with a bad back, India messed up despite Irfan Pathan's dream start to the game.
A month later, with Steve Harmison missing out at Mumbai due to shin problems, India cocked up yet again. Of course, you could argue if Harmison was a key player for England, but it still sucked!
On Saturday, I got a lovely birthday present, with a spineless batting display (the 150 runs scored by South Africa's lower order in both innings proved so vital!), India allowed South Africa to draw level, like I'd warned, despite the absence of Jacques Kallis.
Labels: bombay, deja vu, durban, england, india, johannesburg, karachi, mumbai, pakistan, south africa, wankhede
Thus spake Jagadish @ 12:09 pm | Sledge/Read 3 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
December 26, 2006
Deja vu all over again? - part V
Your team's main bowler injures his ankle in a freak accident a few minutes before the toss of the second test of the series. Even then, you opt to bowl first.
Replace the word 'bowler' with 'batsman', 'ankle in a freak accident' with 'back' and 'bowl' with 'bat'. Graeme Smith has just opted to do exactly that.
I suppose we'll only know when the fat lady sings if his decision was right, especially given that the pitch and conditions would be assisting the bowlers for a while.
Zaheer Khan also gave us a deja vu moment, with a Steve Harmison-like wide way outside off-stump. It didn't go as far as second slip though. Perhaps thats an indictment of England's wicket-keeper and first slip!
Deja vu all over again history.
Labels: deja vu, graeme smith, india, kallis, south africa, zaheer khan
Thus spake Jagadish @ 1:36 pm | Sledge/Read 2 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
November 29, 2006
Deja vu all over again - part IV
Also known as "You are kidding me!"
Glenn McGrath did not bowl at practice today, apparently resting his sore heel. The last time Australia won the first test of an Ashes series, Glenn McGrath missed the second test at Edgbaston due to an ankle injury suffered before start of play.
The various similarities between Australia's wins at Lord's and Brisbane are already well documented: Australia won the toss, first innings bowling figures of 5/53 and 6/50 for McGrath, twin batting failures for Flintoff, England's first innings totals of 155 and 157, Pietersen's fighting knocks in the second innings and Australia's victory margins of 239 and 277 runs.
This is positively spooky.
Part 1 of 'Deja vu all over again' was Pakistan's woeful start at Karachi earlier this year. Part 2 was Sachin Tendulkar's return to cricket with a century. Part 3 was India making yet another specialist test opener, Wasim Jaffer, open in one-dayers.
Labels: deja vu
Thus spake Jagadish @ 11:30 pm | Sledge/Read 0 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
November 15, 2006
Deja vu all over again - part III
The last time a specialist test opener was made to play/open in one-dayers in South Africa by India, he scored 9 runs in 3 innings.
Is there a slim chance that Wasim Jaffer reads this post?
If you're wondering, part 1 of 'Deja vu all over again' was Pakistan's woeful start at Karachi earlier this year. Part 2 was Sachin Tendulkar's return to cricket with a century.
Labels: deja vu
Thus spake Jagadish @ 8:02 pm | Sledge/Read 0 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
September 14, 2006
Deja vu all over again
Sachin Tendulkar, returning from a shoulder injury, scored his 40th one-day international century (and 75th international hundred, factoring in 35 test hundreds) in India's first match of the DLF Cup against West Indies. Actually, come to think of it, 100(119) isn't exactly special, is it?
Except for a few differences, such as the number 40, the venue, the openers etc., this could easily have been mistaken for what transpired at Nagpur 11 months ago. Dravid wins toss, elects to bat. Pathan sent in at #3 and is a success. Sehwag not making an impact.
Of course, matching 350 is tough, given India are 4 down for 226 in the 41st over right now. But 300 should be on.
What will add to the similarities is if Tendulkar continues this season as he did last time. After he made 93 and 67*, he made 2, 11, 19, 39, 2, 2, 2 and 30 in his next 8 games before scoring 100 against Pakistan.
Previous deja vu: Karachi, India v Pakistan, Day one.
Update: India ended with 309/5. Tendulkar was unbeaten on 141(148). There has only been one previous occasion he's batted through the entire 50 overs: 186* v NZ. Honourable mention for 122* in 48.1 overs v Zimbabwe.
Labels: deja vu
Thus spake Jagadish @ 4:16 pm | Sledge/Read 8 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
January 29, 2006
Deja vu all over again?
India are off to a sensational start on the first day at Karachi. Irfan Pathan snapped up a hat-trick in the first over of the game. Pakistan are right now 39/6. But this could easily be a false dawn. Remember Calcutta 1999. Pakistan were tottering at 26/6 before Moin Khan, with a lot of help from Saleem Malik, Wasim Akram and a hopeless follow-up by India's bowlers not named Srinath and Prasad ensured that Pakistan got to paltry 185. India crashed from 140/2 to 223 all out thanks to those two balls from Shoaib Akhtar. Saeed Anwar capitalized on a dropped chance and made 188 even as Srinath bowled heroically. Set 279 to win, India had a century partnership for the opening wicket but the middle order crashed yet again. There was controversy when Tendulkar was ruled run out by a throw from long on (?) by Nadeem Khan even as Shoaib Akhtar came in the way. Ironically Tendulkar grounded his bat before the ball hit the stumps but when the ball hit the stumps, he and his bat were airborne, after colliding with Akhtar. The crowd vented their anger on Pakistan's players. Tendulkar came out to calm them down. But after India's collapse, the crowd could take no more and the final day was played out to empty stands.
Labels: deja vu
Thus spake Jagadish @ 11:21 am | Sledge/Read 1 sledge(s)
Did you like the post? [ Subscribe to the blog feed -
|
Links within entries open in a new window. Some of the links may now be broken/not take you to the expected report since the original content providers may have archived/removed the contents. Some of the sites linked may require registration/subscription.
All opinions expressed are those of the authors alone. The authors' respective employers (past, present or future) are in no way connected to the opinions expressed here.
All pictures, photographs used are copyrights of the original owners. We do not intend to infringe on any copyright. Pictures and photographs are used here to merely accentuate and enhance the content value to our readers.
|
|
|
|
