World Cup 2019: The Slog Overs

Finally, the long winding league phase comes to an end. And surprise, surprise we have our 4 semi-finalists revealed to us – India, Australia, England and New Zealand! A list which had been predicted within the first fortnight itself! But that is not to say that the dead rubbers were meaningless. The very last game changed the order of the semi-finals leading to change in many travel plans!

Sporting outcomes depend on very fine margins. If that shot from Carlos Brathwaite had reached its intended destination, New Zealand would have been out of the World Cup and Pakistan would have qualified! In the end New Zealand’s campaign faltered badly but they had enough initial momentum to nudge ahead of Pakistan. 

Pakistan’s campaign showcased their one quality – unpredictability. Or, in simple terms basically being Pakistan throughout! Everyday their supporters found new similarities with the 1992 campaign. They even supported other teams including India and New Zealand, while their own kept stumbling through. Finally ran into an impossible task with the Net Run Rates where their heavy defeats and narrow wins came back to haunt them. And then, finally the 1992 comparisons stopped!

But this is cricket fandom. So we move on to the next set of analogies. In the 2008 U19 World Cup, India beat New Zealand by 3 wickets in the semi-finals. The captains on the day – Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson. The same duo who will step on the field for the toss on July 9th.

South Africa, for the first time ended a World Cup campaign on a winning note, beating Australia and changing the semi-final lineups also. They have had two ties as well, and some rain involved. Maybe this is the luck they needed to turn around their future campaigns.

England’s stumble against Sri Lanka was the result which made the league phase interesting. But Sri Lanka couldn’t use that platform while England returned to their merry ways. Meanwhile, England reached semi-finals in 1992!

West Indies started with a win, ended with a win and had nothing else to show in between! Except that the signs of revival are very much there. Sheldon Cottrell has developed his own fan following with the Salute though!

Shakib-al Hassan had a sensational tournament. And in my opinion should be the Player of the World Cup. Bangladesh certainly are no pushovers. It has taken them (a lot of) time but they have arrived on the big stage. And it is the inspiration for all other newcomers and Associates.

Afghanistan were the fan favorite. Everyone would have liked to see them win a game or two. However, no one wanted to see them beat their own team though. However, the Afghan fairytale has hit a rough patch. Player indiscipline, administrative problems and fan trouble. Hope these are sorted out soon.

Australia are becoming the imposing machine again, but the ruthlessness is yet to fully come back. Wouldn’t have expected Australians of Waugh-Ponting-Clarke era to lose the last game!

And finally, India. After the weirdo game against England, easily dispatched Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Rohit Sharma has got 5 centuries in this edition with potentially two more innings to go. And yet still generates lot of social media hate, especially from the so-called fans who still do not realize that the red-ball and white-ball are two different ballgames entirely! Well, can’t do much about it.

We bid farewell to Chris Gayle, Shoaib Malik, Imran Tahir, JP Duminy and Ian Gould– in different forms. However, Ian Gould is the only one who has actually done his last game. Others might still be seen in different T20 leagues or even internationals!

So India vs New Zealand & England vs Australia. Let the Endgame commence!

World Cup 2019: The “Not Boring" Middle Overs

Once upon a time, not too long ago, ODI cricket was stagnating. At least the ICC thought so. Especially the so called “boring” middle overs. So, ICC kept tinkering with the format for years. Extra powerplay, mandatory ball changes, powerplay at the time of choosing, two balls, field restrictions changes etc. They also came up with T20 which did away with these “boring” middle overs altogether!

So here we are in the middle of the league stage. And this one has certainly not been boring. The rain has stayed away (mostly), there have been close games (a bunch of them) and even an upset! Another game could have gone in a different direction altogether if the last shot had been hit a fraction of a second later or before or with just a little more power. And in the most shocking turn of events, the bails have started falling off, when earlier they had stubbornly stayed put!

Afghanistan & South Africa are the first two teams to be knocked out of the competition. It’s been a disappointing run for both. Being out of contention they can turn up and play spoilsport for the others in the race for the Top 4.

India nearly got a shock against Afghanistan. New Zealand were almost stunned by West Indies. Bangladesh made a hearty chase of Australia’s 383. And England find themselves with the task having to win against the Top 3 after being tripped up by Malinga and company. 

Meanwhile Pakistan are playing in a different World Cup altogether. It seems that there are two different Pakistani teams which turn up for the game. Depending on which side has turned up the results can be (a) hammering England/ South Africa, or (b) getting thumped by India/West Indies. They do not even need a personnel change. But we never know which version has turned up till the game ends.

Race for Top 4: Getting slightly heated up with England losing to Sri Lanka. Australia, New Zealand and India should make it through. While England have to face all three in their remaining games. Sri Lanka & Pakistan are still with a good chance while Bangladesh & West Indies must wait for permutations and combinations to come up in their favour. If only, Carlos Brathwaite had managed to hit that six, the table would have been even more interesting!

The “middle overs” have certainly not been a boring one!

The Twenty16 Lineup

We are just a couple of days into 2017. And the cricketing action is already in full gear with South Africa-Sri Lanks Test matches, Big Bash League and Ranji Trophy semi-finals and that most intriguing off-field battle between Supreme Court and BCCI underway But before we move too far ahead, Slipstream Cricket continues its annual tradition of picking the year's cricketing moments to remember.

1. 6, 6, 6, 6 – Carlos Brathwaite – Remember the name

Cometh the hour, cometh the man. And Carlos Brathwaite certainly came big time. With 19 needed off the last over in the World T20 finals, Brathwaite hammers 4 consecutive sixes to win the game with 2 balls to spare. "Remember the name", boomed Ian Bishop from the commentary box.Ben Stokes certainly wouldn't be forgetting this one. 

2. Speech of the Year - Darren Sammy

The West Indies men and women had just won the T20 World Cups. Just weeks after their Under-19 team had also become World Champions. The skipper, Darren Sammy, chose this moment to bare his heart out to the world. It was quite a damning indictment of the West Indies Cricket Board. And this was the last time Sammy has played for the West Indies.

3. Going Out on a High - Brendon McCullum

The much loved Kiwi skipper decided to hang up his boots and give his back a rest from the wear and tear of international cricket. And did he bow out in style by smashing the record for the fastest century in Test cricket. It wasn't enough to prevent a defeat to the Aussies, but it was a fitting farewell to the man who really launched the IPL with his blazing bat.

4. Celebrations of the Year - Misbah-ul-Haq

He is now well past 40.Yet when he gets a century he celebrates by doing push-ups on the ground. We all know the end is nigh, but will Misbah to go on and on. After all he is the senior statesman the world cricket needs.

5. And they all fall down 

Win toss, bat first, score over 400 and still contrive to lose, by an innings. Happened only twice in over 2200 Tests till November 2016. In December, happened thrice, England twice and Pakistan once. The 3rd innings collapse became the new statement.

6. The Run Machine - Virat Kohli

Regardless of the format, Tests, ODI, T20I, IPL, the Virat Kohli run machine just kept chugging on. All tricky chases turned formulaic. India's batting revolved around one single man. And he kept delivering, time and again. The only batsman to have an average of 50+ in all three formats of the international game.

7. The Year of Comebacks

2016 started with Ashish Nehra opening the bowling for India after 4 years, somewhere in the middle Gautam Gambhir opened the batting after 3 years and capping off the year of comebacks, Parthiv Patel was keeping wickets for India in Tests after 8 years. And all of them doing a decent job. At this rate we might get to see Munaf Patel and RP Singh leading the Indian attack soon. 

8. The run-outs

The batsmen trying to sneak a run. The fielding team taking the ball and breaking the stumps just before he makes it to the ground. No better sight in cricket. And this year we had two memorable efforts - Dhoni preventing a last gasp Bangladeshi win and Temba Bavuma acrobatically running out David Warner.

9. Doing it all by yourself - Shania Lee-Swart

You see weird scorecards and then you see one person making 160 runs in a team total of 169. 

Isn't cricket supposed to be a team sport?

10. Contest of the Year

Unfortunately for the fans this wasn't played out on the field. The BCCI's attempts at revamping itself haven't satisfied the Supreme Court. The Board gave an inch when it was asked a mile. The shadow boxing continued all year long. Finally the Lodha committee had the last laugh, with the new year beginning with the suspension of current administration. Lets see how 2017 pans out in this legal battle.

11. 1009 Not Out

How does someone score 1009 runs in a single innings. Albeit it was school cricket, played in a smallish ground against a junior popgun attack, but Pranav Dhanawade managed to break the 1000 run barrier in a single innings. His later goings on haven't been exactly cricket though!

12. And for the 12th Man

Dwayne John Bravo took his DJ initals very seriously. And came up with the Champion song, where he put in his own name along with the likes of Nelson Mandela!!! Well it is his song. It did become the de facto celebration of the cricketing world.

That was cricketing year 2016. Now lets see what 2017 has in store for us!!!

Wishing all readers a very Happy New Year 2017 !!!

The 2016 T20 World Cup

Its less than a week since the final of the T20 World Cup and we have the IPL knocking on our TV screens. While we await the festivities to begin, there is just enough to time to recollect the lasting images from the World Cup.

1. Rally Around the West Indies

West Indies Won. And provided their own highlights reel for the tournament - Darren Sammy tearing into the Board during the final presentation, Samuels talking with his bat and mouth, Brathwaite hammering Stokes for 4 sixes and finally the Champion song. It was West Indies all over.  And they also won the Women's World Cup

2. Afghanistan

They are the fairy-tale story which keeps giving happiness to all cricket fans. They cruised into the main rounds easily knocking out Zimbabwe. Then proceeded to give a scare to everyone of their Super Stage opponents. They also collected a victory over eventual champions West Indies. Such was their exuberance that even Gayle joined in their victory celebrations. 

3. England failing to collect a famous defeat

England had a great World Cup, Just when they had one hand on the Cup, they were knocked off by the Brathwaite assault. A great turn-around for a team which failed to reach the ODI World Cup quarter-finals. And this time they didn't collect their now customary famous defeat as has become their habit in World events. Though they did come close against Afghanistan.

4. Virat Kohli & Joe Root

The men of the moment. Showing that even with classic cricketing shots you can still go at a strike rate of 150+. A batting delight for both the lovers of T20 madness and the purists. And as a bonus add their golden arms.

5. Sehwag & Shoaib

During their playing careers, Virender Sehwag & Shoaib Akhtar faced off against each other many a time. Encounters which provided many lasting images for the fans. And now they have formed an interesting partnership behind the microphones. The duo lighted up an increasingly dull commentary box. For the first time in many years, I actually preferred listening to Hindi commentary over English, especially when this duo was doing the commentary.

6. Upset of the tournament - Oman beating Ireland

Says a lot about (a) the progress made by the Irish in the cricketing circles and (b) the fickle nature of the T20 format with reducing gaps between the teams.  T20 is a more encompassing format and probably would spread the game further across the world while simultaneously killing Test cricket in many of the established arenas.

7. The Associate Dilemma

To simply put it, the ICC do not know what to do with the Associates. They want cricket to spread to generate more revenue sources. Currently the Associates are just a cost centre for them. And they certainly do not want them to cause any big upset (a la 2007 ODI World Cup) which destroys revenue from existing cash cows like India. So we have a token Associate participation now. 6 teams from the rest of the world qualify to play another Qualifiers. Dave Richardson has come up with a proposal to expand the Qualifier base, but at the same time has reduced the frequency of the World Cups.

8. Teams not turning up

• South Africa continued their tradition of flattering to deceive. This time around it was their bowling doing the choking act. 
• Sri Lanka were defending champions, yet hardly created a ripple. The retirement of Sanga & Mahela and Malinga's absence has really created a big void which can't just be filled up. 
• While New Zealand played attractive cricket, their campaign had a familiar ring to it - Innovative and ending in the semi-finals. 
• While Bangladesh have made large strides, they still need some tuning up at the World arena.

9. 11-Nil

The hype is still the same. The build-up is the same. And even the result is the same, And the Indian fans are not complaining.

10. Mitchell Johnson does not learn

Some habits die hard. Mitchell Johnson is now retired, but his sledging continues to hurt his own team . Wound up Kohli with his tweets prior to India-Australia game. [Not dissimilar to this]

11. The Champion Song

Cricket now has its own patented celebration, thanks to our own DJ - DJ Bravo.

Now the World Cup can rest while the IPL madness takes over.

Rally Around the West Indies

World T20 Finals: Last Over, 19 needed - Ben Stokes bowling to Carlos Brathwaite

6, 6, 6, 6 

The Champion song rang across the Eden Gardens as West Indies cricket soared. The men became the first team to win the T20 World Cup twice. Just hours earlier the women had won their maiden title. And a few weeks back the Under-19 team had won a world cup of their own. It was time for celebrations. Even the most partial cricket follower was soaking in the happy feeling of the West Indies’ victories. 

Everything seemed perfect in the West Indies Cricket world. Until their skipper, Darren Sammy dropped in a harsh reality check. In an emotional victory speech, he described the struggles his team had faced, mostly from their own board. 

"We started this journey … people were wondering whether we would play this tournament. We had a lot of issues, we felt disrespected by our board .... We had a new manager in this tournament in Rawl Lewis, he had never managed any team before. He came here, we were at a camp in Dubai, but we had no uniforms, no printed … he left Dubai, went to Kolkata, that's where he started. The trouble he went to, to get us in this uniform ……Lastly I really want to thank the heads of CARICOM, throughout this tournament they have been supporting the team, we've got emails, we've got phone calls,… and I'm yet to hear from our own cricket board. That is very disappointing......For today, I'm going to celebrate with these 15 men and coaching staff. I don't know when I'm going to be playing with these guys again because we don't get selected for one-day cricket. We don't know when we're going to be playing T20. So this win, I want to thank you my team, I want to thank you coaching staff … everybody know West Indies are champion!" [Full Text]

Disrespected by Board! A manager who has never managed before! No uniforms!
Pretty damning words! Says a lot about the state of West Indies cricket. Pay disputes are now part and parcel of the West Indies story. As are weird selections. Players choose to play franchisee cricket over playing for West Indies. There has even been a tour pull-out, of all places, India, one country whose board you do not want to mess with. There have been farcical tours where players have been picked on the basis of who agreed to toe the Board’s line. Ironically, Sammy himself was first picked in such a series. He was appointed captain because he was considered an establishment man and now has fired the biggest salvo against his board at the biggest stage of them all. Ah! The irony of it all. (He has become WICB’s own Frankenstein monster).

Some would say it’s the players who are to blame. They have given into greed and play only for money. They are a bunch of mercenaries who only turn up for West Indies when they do not have any other paymaster. Could be true. But if the incentive to play for a franchisee is more than that for a country then the administrators also have to take the blame. After all this is a board which sold out its team to a fraud billionaire, imposes weird selection criterion for its best talents. At the same time manages to anger the most powerful cricket board. The pay disputes have gone on for too long to be just a player issue now. 

On the field, the West Indies players are the most sought after in the T20 franchisee world because they are match-winners and more importantly are always available. But as a team, hardly anyone is interested in a series with West Indies. [Aside – how can so many T20 leagues avoid clashing with each other, while international assignments do?] 

If the Board head honchos had any sense of shame, they would have resigned after Sammy’s outbursts. But then that’s too much to expect from any administrator across sports in any part of the world. They need to be hounded out (a la Blatter or Srinivasan). All they have offered is talks with the key players on their future after the IPL (After all in West Indies cricket, a T20 league always takes priority over all other matters). 

West Indies cricket has always lacked money but has been full of individual flair and passion. Since their inception, their players have played for other teams. Earlier it used to be for the counties and league cricket in England and Australia, and then for Packer. So the current lot is just continuing the trend of their predecessors. Only they have more options now. How the Board manages the money pumping in from the CPL is a bigger question. And that will be the key to deciding the future of their cricket, specially in the longer formats.

The wins prove that West Indies still has talent and more is coming up. Yet how much of it will keep playing for West Indies is a big question. Something which needs to be sorted out together by the Board and the players. Otherwise the end is nigh for West Indies cricket. 

Sammy's speech was the best thing to happen for West Indies cricket. It carried more punch than the 4 Carlos Brathwaite sixes combined. And it seems to have reignited the Fire in Babylon. 

While we wait for the next salvo in this war, here is to the Champions. After all everyone knows that Sammy and his men are Champyons!!!