< 1 minute readHere’s a comparison. The Rugby World Cup finished last Saturday. England played in the final. Their next international fixture will be on the second of February. England’s final match in the Cricket World Cup was on the 21st of April, against the West Indies. Their next international fixture, a Test
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Will Indian Twenty20 wins help kill 50-over cricket?
< 1 minute readSurvival of the fittest. Cricket has mutated again. While an early mutation, 50-over cricket, lives happily side-by-side with Test cricket, there aren’t enough natural resources to support both as well as Twenty20. In a few years time, one of these forms might have gone the way of the dodo. If
Continue readingMurali Kartik has a good day
< 1 minute readIndia beat Australia in a dead match at the end of an overlong one-day series about as far away from a World Cup as it’s possible to be. Could we have some Test cricket now, please? Murali Kartik took 6-27, which are pretty astonishing one-day figures. He then hit 21
Continue readingMatthew Hayden leads the way – in the wrong direction
< 1 minute readGroups for whom Matthew Hayden is a standard-bearer: Modern opening batsmen who don’t have to face proper bowling Bears who eat faces Pious turds India beat Australia in the third one-day international at Chandigarh. However, they couldn’t stop Matthew Hayden from top-scoring with 92. Hayden’s one-day record since he returned
Continue readingBrad Haddin shows it won’t be that big a deal when Adam Gilchrist retires, when it really should be
2 minute readOn Saturday, Brad Haddin played his first international match since February after Australia’s batsmen suddenly decided they didn’t want to bat in India and feigned any number of injuries. Haddin hit 69 then, although India’s innings was washed-out. Today, Haddin hit 87 not out off 69 balls and Australia won
Continue readingIndia win Twenty20 World Cup
< 1 minute readHow can a mere 40 overs of cricket contain so many twists and turns? The last three or four overs in particular were dramatic dynamite. Commentators would say ‘Pakistan are almost certain to win now,’ one ball, yet find themsleves saying it was ‘India’s game to lose,’ the next. It
Continue readingTwenty20 World Cup final, India v Pakistan
< 1 minute readIf the proper World Cup was pretty rubbish with lots of things going wrong, the Twenty20 World Cup has pretty much addressed each of these issues. There’ve been crowds, excitement, few dead matches and they’ve even managed to get the final that all cricket tournaments want – India v Pakistan.
Continue readingYuvraj Singh: How much better could he be?
< 1 minute readThe answer, of course, is none. None better. India were doing precisely nothing when he came to the crease in the Twenty20 World Cup semi-final against Australia. They were 41-2 after eight overs. ‘It’s too hard’ they seemed to be saying. ‘We can’t lay bat on ball’. ‘What?’ said Yuvraj
Continue readingAnother choketastic performance from South Africa
2 minute readWe’re not gloating. England rarely even give themselves a chance to choke. No dramatic knock-outs for England. England exit tournaments quite serenely, moving from ‘performing badly’ to ‘up against it’ then ‘as good as out’ before finally reaching ‘qualification a mathematical impossibility’ – at which point they board a plane
Continue readingVideo of Yuvraj Singh hitting six sixes in an over
< 1 minute readYuvraj Singh starts the over on 14. He ends it with 50. Herschelle Gibbs managed six sixes in an over in the 50 over World Cup earlier in the year. His efforts were full-blooded across the line slogs. Yuvraj Singh’s were just timed. Just watch the delicate flick for the
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