Stats analysis of Matthew Hayden’s career

S Rajesh13-Jan-2009A batting average of 50 is generally considered the benchmark for greatness, and Matthew Hayden finished his Test career just above that mark. Despite a slump that reduced that average by nearly three runs in four months, Hayden still ended with a mean of 50.73, making him one of six Australians to score more than 5000 Test runs at a 50-plus average. In terms of aggregate, his 8625 is in fourth position, bettered only by Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and Allan Border.The start and end to his career were similar – he averaged around 24 in his first 13 and last nine Tests – but in between he was amazingly prolific, with 29 centuries in 145 innings, and an outstanding average of more than 58.

Hayden’s career in three parts

PeriodInningsRunsAverage100s/ 50sFirst 13 Tests2253624.361/ 2Next 81 Tests145770658.3729/ 25Last nine Tests1738323.930/ 2Career184862550.7330/ 29Hayden’s remarkable run began in that unforgettable tour of India, when he scored 549 and averaged 109.80. Since then, his year-end average didn’t dip below 43 for seven successive years, before dipping to 32.47 in 2008. During this seven-year period, from February 2001 to January 2008, he was the leading run-scorer in Test cricket, with 7706 runs in 81 matches. The average, at 58.37, wasn’t bad either.

Best batsmen between Feb 1, 2001 and Jan 31, 2008 (at least 3000 runs)

BatsmanTestsRunsAverage100s/ 50sJacques Kallis69672967.9622/ 34Ricky Ponting77730164.0427/ 27Mohammad Yousuf52503463.7218/ 17Kumar Sangakkara65571459.5216/ 22Brian Lara56582058.7819/ 18Matthew Hayden81770658.3729/ 25His imposing presence and sheer aggression at the crease were unique, but Hayden backed his style with plenty of substance. Many of his colleagues are calling him Australia’s greatest opener, and while that might be arguable, Hayden has the numbers to support that argument. Among Australian openers who scored at least 2500 runs, only one – Bob Simpson – had a higher average. Critics might question the quality of bowling attacks around the world, but Hayden did the job in most conditions, against most opposition line-ups. His average dipped below 40 against only one team – New Zealand – though he did have his problems tackling the conditions in South Africa and England. (Click here for his career summary.)

Leading Australian openers (at least 2500 runs)

BatsmanTestsRunsAverage100s/ 50sBob Simpson38366455.518/ 19Matthew Hayden103862550.7330/ 29Justin Langer65511248.2216/ 18Bill Lawry67523447.1513/ 27Arthur Morris45338145.6811/ 12David Boon36261445.068/ 10Mark Taylor104752543.4919/ 40Michael Slater74531242.8314/ 21Increase the cut-off to 5000 runs, and throw open the competition to openers from all teams, and Hayden’s numbers still compare favourably – he is one of only six openers to score more than 5000 runs and average more than 50.

Leading openers in world cricket (at least 5000 runs)

BatsmanTestsRunsAverage100s/ 50sLen Hutton76672156.4719/ 31Jack Hobbs58513056.3714/ 27Virender Sehwag61523852.3814/ 16Graeme Smith72603652.0318/ 22Matthew Hayden103862550.7330/ 29Sunil Gavaskar119960750.2933/ 42Justin Langer65511248.2216/ 18Geoff Boycott107809148.1622/ 42Herschelle Gibbs68524247.2214/ 21Bill Lawry67523447.1513/ 27Gordon Greenidge107748845.1019/ 34Graham Gooch100781143.8818/ 41With Justin Langer, Hayden formed one of the greatest opening pairs of all time. In terms of partnership runs, only Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes got more, but their average was more than four runs lower than the Australian pair. Hayden and Langer got 3567 of those partnership runs in matches that Australia won, which is a record for any opening pair.

Most prolific opening pairs in Tests

PairInningsRunsAverage stand100/ 50 p’shipsGreenidge-Haynes148648247.3116/ 26Hayden-Langer113565551.8814/ 24Atapattu-Jayasuriya118446940.269/ 24Slater-Taylor78388751.1410/ 16Lawry-Simpson62359660.949/ 18Hobbs-Sutcliffe38324987.8115/ 10Chauhan-Gavaskar59301053.7510/ 10Hayden began his love affair with the subcontinent way back in 2001, and the relationship has stood the test of time. After that watershed series, Hayden also scored hundreds in Sri Lanka and in Sharjah (in a Test against Pakistan). Of the four centuries he has scored in this continent, at least three can be counted among his best innings. Among Australians, Hayden’s record in Asia is bettered only by Border, who scored 1799 runs at 54.51 in 22 matches.

Best Australian batsmen in Asia(at least 1000 runs)

BatsmanTestsRunsAverage100s/ 50sAllan Border22179954.516/ 8Matthew Hayden19166350.394/ 8Mark Taylor13102048.572/ 3Ricky Ponting24154141.645/ 7Steve Waugh23120541.553/ 5Unlike many batsmen who prefer batting in the first innings of a Test, Hayden’s stats are marginally better in the second (an average of 51.82 as against 50.02 in the first). Among Australian batsmen who’ve scored at least 2000 second-innings runs, Hayden’s average is third, next only to Don Bradman and Border.The ODI star
Hayden’s Test record is admittedly more imposing, but he was an outstanding performer in the shorter version too, with 6131 runs at 44.10 – the seventh highest in terms of runs for Australia, and third-highest in terms of averages among Australians with at least 2500 runs, next only to Michael Bevan and Dean Jones. Hayden’s partnership with Adam Gilchrist was worth 4503 runs, the most by any opening pair.Hayden’s big-match temperament shone through in the World Cups and in tournament finals: in 21 World Cup innings he averaged 51.94, and the story was similar in tournament finals – an average of 50.66, with seven fifty-plus scores in 17 innings. His World Cup tally is fourth among all Australians, while his average in tournament finals is highest among Australians who scored at least 750 runs in such matches.

Bangalore may see this win as a turning point – it lifted them off the bottom of the table – but the result can’t paper over the obvious flaws in the way they play

Karna S29-Apr-2009The game ended in the last over but it didn’t have to come to that. The target wasn’t huge but Bangalore stumbled after a good start and the match hurtled towards a somewhat artificially created close finish. Bangalore may see this win as a turning point – it lifted them off the bottom of the table – but the result can’t paper over the obvious flaws in the way they play.The team, it seems, is aware of those flaws – coach Ray Jennings had, on Tuesday, spoken to Cricinfo at length about some of the problems that were on view today.Most important, perhaps, and what almost cost them this match, is the batsmen’s shot selection. They needed 75 off 60 – with all wickets intact – when things went awry. The plan must have been for young Shreevats Goswami to go after the bowling while Jacques Kallis stayed till the end. Goswami, who’d done a fine job despite struggling with Ishant Sharma’s bounce, fell to a slog sweep and Kallis the next over fell to a mistimed pull.Kevin Pietersen and Virat Kohli tried to steady the chase and when Kohli hit Brad Hodge for a six, they needed a very gettable 34 off 27. Kohli then did what his coach despairs about: he tried a cute dab to third man but ended up edging it behind. In so doing, he underlined Jennings’ opinion of him. “Kohli sometimes thinks he is better than the game,” Jennings had said. “He is a very talented kid but needs to understand he has to put in performances on the field.”Bangalore still had their skipper, Pietersen, in the middle. It was his chance to finish the tournament on a high before leaving for England. He’d done the hard stuff: earned his teammates’ trust, taken them out for dinner meetings and even learned a smattering of Hindi. And, earlier today, even taken a wicket off the first ball of the match. Everything but scoring runs. His dismissals have usually been tame and, worse, robbed his team of momentum. Today, the pressure told on him. A gently flighted delivery from Hodge, Pietersen tried a chip stroke but could only push it weakly to long-on.At that stage they needed 33 from 24 and had six wickets in hand, but Bangalore weren’t done. After a brief period of stability, Roelof Van der Merwe went for a wild slog but edged it to the keeper (debutant Morne van Wyk’s fourth catch of the innings, which itself tells a tale). It was left to Mark Boucher to hold his nerve and steer them through with a ball to spare.The batting – especially of Pietersen and Kallis – seemed to confirm Jennings’ theory. “Our international cricketers are letting the team down. They have not produced the goods. To me they should be our leaders in runs and wickets. But here we have a situation where Dravid has been streets ahead of them all. He will be back with us in a few days so I looking forward to having him in the side again.”If this win does mark a turning point for Bangalore, it will be a reward for the effort they have put in, something that has pleased their famously tough coach. On Tuesday they had two practice games, morning and afternoon. They’ve cut down on the partying.The final word, though, to Kolkata Knight Riders, the new occupants of the foot of the table. At the end of the game, a distraught captain Brendon McCullum was frank in his assessment of his team – nothing was going right for the team, he said. However, he did show he had his wits about him. As the press conference ended, someone handed him an envelope; he peered into it, saying, “Any ideas in there for us?”He can take a leaf out of Jennings’ book. There are ideas and theories galore there.

Stats preview to the third Test between Australia and South Africa in Sydney

Siddhartha Talya01-Jan-2009The SCG in recent years has played host to several dead rubbers – six out of 11 since 2000 – with visiting teams having to undertake the unfortunate task of looking for a consolation win after losing the series prior to the New Year’s Test. However, the tables have turned, and Australia, who have a fabulous record in Sydney – winning nine out of 11 Tests since 2000 – are now in a situation of trying to salvage what they can out of a disappointing series defeat.Each of Australia’s victories here in the last eight years have been comprehensive, including a ten-wicket win against South Africa in 2002 and another eight-wicket victory following a brave declaration by Graeme Smith in 2006. Their only defeat came against England in 2003 after leading the series 4-0. But past history has meant little in this series; with a 2-0 lead, South Africa – who have won in Sydney before, a nerve-wracking five-run victory in 1994 – have the form, confidence, and the momentum to blight the home team’s enviable record.

Australia and South Africa at the SCG

Team	Tests	Won	Lost	Drawn
Australia (Overall)	96	52	27	17
South Africa (Overall)	10	1	7	2
Australia (Since 2000)	11	9	1	1
South Africa (Since 2000)	2	0	2	0

Australia’s batsmen, particularly Matthew Hayden and Michael Hussey, had a disappointing time in 2008. Hayden has scored 892 runs at an average of 55.75 at the SCG, but managed just 552 at 32.47 in 2008. Barring his tremendous start to that year – he scored back-to-back hundreds against India in Sydney and Adelaide – he averaged just 22.35 in 15 innings, and 11.75 in four this series. Hussey’s average has slipped to under 60 – from 80.58 at the end of 2007 – and his wicket was priced at 37.50 runs last year as opposed to over 70 in the previous three. His three Tests in Sydney, however, have yielded 268 runs at 89.33.Ricky Ponting and Simon Katich are the only Australian batsmen in the current squad whose recent form remains consistent with their performances in Sydney – Ponting was Australia’s highest run-getter last year, and is their most prolific run-scorer at the SCG, while Katich averaged 56.72 in 2008, and 64 at the venue. Michael Clarke has struggled with the bat in Sydney, but Australia will dearly miss the services of Andrew Symonds – ruled out due to injury – as he averages a staggering 94.33 in three Tests there.

Performance of Australian batsmen

Player	Runs and Average at SCG	Runs and Average in 2008
Ricky Ponting	1282 at 75.41	1182 at 47.28
Matthew Hayden	892 at 55.75	552 at 32.47
Andrew Symonds	283 at 94.33	762 at 50.80
Michael Hussey	268 at 89.33	900 at 37.50
Simon Katich	256 at 64.00	1021 at 56.72
Michael Clarke	91 at 15.16	1063 at 50.61

Some of South Africa’s batsmen have had experience of playing at the SCG, with Jacques Kallis – he needs just 53 more to get to 10,000 runs in Tests – leading the list among players in the current squad with an average of 52 in three Tests. Ashwell Prince, if selected in the XI, will be encouraged by his century in his only Test in Sydney in 2006. AB de Villiers had a forgettable outing the same year, and Mark Boucher doesn’t have much to show for his efforts in Sydney. However, the South African batsmen have enjoyed a tremendous 2008 – four of them scored over a 1000 runs.With Brett Lee, who has taken 38 wickets in nine matches at the SCG, ruled out of the Test and the subsequent tour of South Africa, Mitchell Johnson takes over the task of leading an inexperienced bowling attack. Both Johnson and Dale Steyn have been the spearheads for their respective teams in this series – Johnson has 13 wickets at 24.76 and Steyn has 14 at 22.57 – but South Africa’s other bowlers have fared far better in providing support to their dominant performer. Apart from Johnson, Australia have used seven bowlers who have taken 12 wickets at 79.67, while Kallis, Morne Morkel, Paul Harris, and Makhaya Ntini have 26 wickets between them at 37.69.However, Australia’s Nathan Hauritz, and Clarke, whose three wickets in seven balls helped Australia win a thrilling game against India in Sydney last year, can hope to deliver, as spinners have averaged better than fast bowlers – 38.84 compared to 39.88 – in 11 Tests at the SCG since 2000. They’ve taken more five-wicket hauls, though fast bowlers have taken more wickets.

Pace and Spin at the SCG since 2000

	Wickets	Average	Strike rate	5w/10w
Pace	188	39.88	67.4	4/2
Spin	135	38.84	67.8	7/1

Since 2000, Australia’s batsmen have enjoyed a significant 14-run advantage over visiting teams in terms of runs-per-wicket at the SCG. They average 47.29 while South Africa, in their two losses, have priced each wicket at 35.74. While the SCG figures are certainly in Australia’s favour, a highly successful 2008 with both bat and ball hands the advantage to South Africa.

2008 vs SCG record

	Runs per wicket in 2008	Runs per wicket at the SCG since 2000
South Africa batting	45.13	35.74
Australia batting	37.38	47.29
South Africa bowling	28.32	57.04
Australia bowling	37.73	33.33

Cricinfo looks into the crisis among the West Indies players which have led to a second-string team taking on Bangladesh in the first Test at St Vincent

Cricinfo staff09-Jul-2009
What are the origins of the issue?
Where as most countries found a balance, in the Caribbean nothing changed until West Indies Players Association (WIPA), originally a relatively informal players association, emerged as a more powerful and confrontational body under the leadership of Dinanath Ramnarine. An intelligent and educated former Test player, he felt he had been poorly treated by the establishment and was prepared to tackle an unprepared board head-on, often outmanoeuvring it with ease. The real trouble started when the WICB signed a new sponsorship deal with Digicel in July 2007. The players felt they did not get their fair share, and allied to a growing distrust of the board and egged on by the increasing profile of WIPA, they started on a series of divisive and moral-sapping disputes which rumble on to this day. The present stand-off is mainly over annual retainer contracts, which the West Indies players have been reluctant to sign since October 2008. WIPA has claimed that the players have played four tournaments in a row this year without the contracts while the WICB says the demands of the players are unjust.What are the repercussions?
The immediate effects have been a loss of sponsors, manifested in the fact last season there were no sponsors for domestic tournaments after Carib Beer decided not to renew its contract and replacements were not available.Who is to blame?
Both sides have been less than straightforward in their dealings with each other and traded charges with the other leading to several years of disinformation and mistrust. WIPA has alleged the WICB of reportedly failing to honour a number of assurances given, acting slowly, and allegedly trying to create divisions among the team. The players have been far too prone to withdraw their labour and go on strike, and also to make Digicel, as chief sponsor, the enemy and not the board. The players’ position is not helped by their actions coming against the backdrop of a string of poor on-field performances.What is the likely outcome?
In the short term, there is a strong probability of both parties patching up and the senior players returning to play during some point of the Bangladesh series. But that doesn’t achieve anything like we have seen in the past. The WICB is riddled with self-interest and has been led by a succession of flawed presidents. It needs a very strong leadership to dramatically overhaul its deep-rooted structure and to be prepared to tackle a number of serious problems. If that doesn’t happen, in the long term, it stands in danger of becoming an unattractive sponsorship proposition once Digicel’s contract ends in 2013. Furthermore, the dispute can only weaken the profile of West Indies cricket both locally and internationally.

The toss has played a huge role in deciding the fate of ODIs at the Premadasa Stadium

Siddhartha Talya14-Sep-2009India’s six-wicket win over New Zealand in the Compaq Cup was an aberration; their 139-run defeat in the next game against Sri Lanka restored normalcy. It’s not that India are a poor team – they are ranked No.3 in ODIs – but the result was consistent with the trend at the Premadasa Stadium.

• Sri Lanka won the toss and batted; 17 out of 23 times have teams done that at the Premadasa since 2005.
• They went on to amass a big score; in the same duration, the average runs-per-wicket of 30.71 in the first innings at the Premadasa is higher than any other venue in the country that has hosted more than one ODI.
• They bowled India out cheaply; the Premadasa has the lowest average runs-per-wicket – 20.97 – in the second innings among all venues in that span of time. (Minimum of eight matches at the venue)
• Sri Lanka won the toss, and they won the match; the win-loss ratio of 8.00 for teams (matches involving the top eight sides only) doing exactly that at the Premadasa is significantly higher than anywhere else.

Among international venues, the result of the toss has influenced the outcome of the game most at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and the Premadasa. If one were to consider the top eight teams, 84% of the matches at the Premadasa since 2005 have been won by the side winning the toss, while in Lahore, it’s 87%. If one were to narrow it down to teams winning the toss and batting, the figure for Premadasa rises to 88%.Apart from the conditions at the Premadasa, which favour batting early on and deteriorate later in the day, the captains would be prompted to bat by the sizeable margin of victories for the side batting first at the venue. India’s comprehensive loss in the dead rubber is a case in point, as they collapsed to their biggest defeat, in terms of runs, on Sri Lankan soil. The difference in the average runs-per-wicket between the side batting first and the side chasing, since 2005, is the biggest at the Premadasa, and by a fair margin (considering the top eight teams). The team batting first has a 12.08 run advantage here, while Newlands in Cape Town takes second place with 9.06. (Click here for average runs-per-wicket for each venue in the first innings and here in the second. Qualification of a minimum of eight matches since 2005.)

Difference in average runs-per-wicket (Qual- Top eight teams and minimum of 8 completed ODIs since ’05)

Venue	First innings	Second innings	Difference
Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka	33.05	20.97	12.08
Newlands, Cape Town, South Africa	31.86	22.80	9.06
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, Pakistan	37.77	29.22	8.55
AMI Stadium, Christchurch, New Zealand	37.70	31.10	6.60
Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand	35.80	29.23	6.57
Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, Australia	34.17	28.17	6
Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, UAE	31.29	30.30	0.99

The Premadasa boasts a turning track, but overall, it’s the seamers who’ve done better here. Angelo Mathews’ 6 for 20 underscored the assistance bowlers like him, with sly variations in pace and the ability to cut the ball both ways, can derive from the track. In the first innings, seamers outdo spinners comfortably, averaging 32.62 as opposed to 47.42. But in the second innings, the slow bowlers improve their stats remarkably. The difference in the bowling averages is reduced to 3.13 runs. (Click for overall stats for seamers and spinners, and for seamers in the second innings.)

Pace and Spin at the Premadasa since 2005 (Top eight teams)

Span	Pace (Wickets and average)	Economy rate	Strike rate	4w/5w	Spin (Wickets and Average)	Economy rate	Strike rate	4w/5w
Overall	184 at 26.39	4.84	32.7	5/5	94 at 34	4.58	44.5	2/0
1st innings	86 at 32.62	5.05	38.6	0/2	40 at 47.42	4.94	57.6	0/0
2nd innings	98 at 20.92	4.57	27.4	5/3	54 at 24.05	4.14	34.8	2/0

Stats preview of the third Test between Australia and West Indies in Perth

Siddhartha Talya15-Dec-2009How times have changed. The West Indies pace attacks of yesteryears had demolished what was a virtual fortress for Australia against other visiting teams, but the WACA in Perth, and West Indies, have undergone significant changes this decade. An innings defeat in 2000 brought an end to a run of five consecutive wins in Perth for West Indies, and the series itself – they were whitewashed 0-5 – was an indication of the chronic decline of Caribbean cricket.But Perth’s reputation as a haven for fast bowlers has been challenged over the last few years, with touring teams posing a greater threat to Australia. The hosts have lost their previous two games here, and South Africa’s chase of 414 last year to set up a historic series win was some evidence of how far the balance had shifted away from the bowlers. Apart from those two losses, the WACA has also staged two draws since 2000, more in terms of percentages than any other regular Test venue in the country.

Teams’ record at the WACA

TeamSpanPlayedWonLostDrawnW-l RatioAustraliaOverall3620972.22Since 200095222.50West IndiesOverall651-5The track at the WACA has grown increasingly favourable for batsmen in the last nine years, except for the second innings where there is a significant drop in the average runs per wicket. For venues that have hosted more than five Tests since 2000, the WACA has proved to be the best in the third and the fourth innings. The side batting first averages 38.09 since 2000, which marks a major increase from the years prior.

Average runs per wicket at the WACA

SpanOverallFirst inningsSecond inningsThird inningsFourth inningsAll Tests32.8533.4732.9932.1132.65Upto Dec 31, 199931.6432.0034.0529.6629.01Since Jan 1, 200036.4238.0929.8240.0240.08WACA no longer remains the most favoured venue for fast bowlers in the country. Since 2000, the Gabba in Brisbane has produced the most lively pitch, with 78% of wickets taken by fast bowlers as opposed to WACA’s 75.44%. Brisbane has also earned the major share of five-wicket hauls and a better strike-rate – 58.2 against 62.4.

Ground-wise performance of fast bowlers since Jan 2000

VenueTotal wicketsWickets by fast bowlersPercentageBowling AverageStrike-rate10w/5wGabba, Brisbane28622377.9732.6658.21/8WACA, Perth28521575.4434.7162.41/7MCG, Melbourne28419669.0131.9962.51/5Adelaide Oval, Adelaide31219763.1438.4172.20/6SCG, Sydney36621458.4739.4968.62/5West Indies haven’t played a Test at the WACA since 2000, but Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Brendan Nash have impressive performances against their names in this series. For Australia, Ricky Ponting leads the run-scoring charts at the ground among current players with 908 in 13 Tests, but Michael Clarke has a better average of 55.85 in four games. Brad Haddin scored 94 and 46 in the only Test he played here, while Simon Katich averaged 60 in the same game against South Africa. Among the bowlers, Mitchell Johnson is Australia’s best performer at the venue among the current players, with 16 wickets, including 11 in the loss against South Africa last year.In nine Tests since 2000, the side batting first has won four and lost three games at the WACA. Teams winning the toss have opted to bat on six out of nine occasions, and in each of the last four games. Given the trend of lower scores in the second innings, and the drastic improvement in batting conditions in the third and the fourth, the captains may be prompted to make a similar decision tomorrow.

Everything’s quick, but everyone’s chilled out – what’s not to like?

Sidharth Monga19-Nov-2010My abiding memory of Chittang (that’s what the locals call it) is from the basement restaurant of the “budget hotel” that I was staying in, the Tower Inn. It was the year 2007, and Bangladesh were basking in what had been a fairly successful World Cup campaign in the West Indies. Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan, 18 and 20 then, had left their posh team hotel and come to the basement of mine, to host a dinner for friends. Tamim says he likes the food there.It was a group of about 10, loud, enjoying the meal, looking no different from a bunch of young college – or even school – students, enjoying a meal out of their pocket money. Soon, out of nowhere, came cameras of Indian news channels. It was great television for them. They shot the food, they spoke to the players, they spoke to the friends. I noticed then that Shakib, two years the older, was embarrassed by it all, while Tamim seemed cool with it. Sure of himself, quietly confident, unflustered – much like his cricket, much like his beloved home, Chittagong.Unlike Dhaka, Chittagong likes to move fast, talk fast, in a dialect quite different from the Bengali spoken in Dhaka (Chittang, you see), but still maintains the coastal laidback air. Auto-rickshaw drivers operate as if in a video game. Strangers walk by you in Agrabad area, whispering in your ear, “Dollar, dollar”, offering to buy or sell foreign exchange. Go to the seaside, though, and there isn’t much to be bothered by.The two Bengali symbols, the (umbrella) and the (place for idle chatter), I saw aplenty. It’s easy to become part of the , as I realised during long a chat about nothing in particular with a senior local journalist, who would try to speak Hindi to make me feel included. That was 15 minutes after I arrived in the city.Chittagong is a city with a fair share of foreigners, Indians, Pakistanis, who didn’t quite respect the two partitions. There are “Hindu” restaurants. Tamim’s parents are from Patna, Akram Khan’s from Uttar Pradesh.

The press box here is ideal too: covered overhead, providing shelter from the sun, but open in front, not denying you the sounds of cricket: the nicks, the clean connections, the celebrations

I remember Chittagong as a beautiful city, Chittagong Hills on one side, and the Bay of Bengal on the other. And because I was there during a rainy spell, it all looked greener than usual. I remember often listening to two songs by State of Bengal, a British DJ of Bangladeshi origin: “Chittagong Chill” and “Flight IC 408”. They are fusion sounds – more electronic than Asian, but Asian enough to be a part of a compilation album called . I wondered if State of Bengal had Chittagong on his mind when he did, or named it, “Chittagong Chill”. Not least because it was a week of incessant rains, making the place, well, chilly, in May. “Flight IC 408” stayed with me for longer: it has clearly been an inspiration for an AR Rahman song and also been used as montage music by an Indian music channel. I recently searched the Air India website to find out that Flight IC 408 flies between Patna and Delhi, as opposed to the captain’s announcement in the song, which says they are ready to fly to Kolkata.Chittagong is a proud city, well known for the uprising against the British Raj and its resilience against the strong Pakistani forces in 1971. The cricket stadium used to honour one of the martyrs of the 1971 war, Bir Shrestho Ruhul Amin, before it was renamed the Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. I prefer this ground to Mirpur’s modern specimen, with its air-conditioned press box and commendable drainage system. This place is more intimate, gets you involved more, even though its proximity to the sea doesn’t quite help the drainage. The press box here is ideal too: covered overhead, providing shelter from the sun, but open in front, not denying you the sounds of cricket: the nicks, the clean connections, the celebrations. I don’t think I will forget how Mashrafe Mortaza bowled Wasim Jaffer with an inswinger (“because they always expect outswingers from me”) first ball of the Test, and went on a mad football-style run to celebrate.The locals, though, don’t seem to like the stadium that much. For starters there is very little shade for the crowds. At least there wasn’t much when I was there: they could have done renovations with the World Cup in mind. And they also seem to love the MA Aziz Stadium more, which is right in the middle of town and is the venue of Bangladesh’s first Test win.The clincher for me, though, is the view from the top tier of the new stadium. Not too far is the Bay of Bengal. The sea is often calm – at least it stayed so during my stay of more than a week, even when it rained almost every day. The sort of calm Jason Gillespie displayed during his double-century in the Test before. A “sleeping beauty emerging from mists and water”, Huen Tsang called Chittagong.

Plays of the Day from the fourth day of the first Test between India and New Zealand in Ahmedabad

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Nov-2010The escape of the day
The clock had just ticked past 4 pm when it happened. Jeetan Patel flighted one well outside the off stump, and VVS Laxman went down on his knee to drag it to the on side with a slog-sweep. The ball flew towards square-leg, where Tim McIntosh jumped. So did Patel, in anticipation of the catch. Laxman’s heart would have skipped a beat, but the ball flew just out of McIntosh’s reach. Laxman was on 19 then, and India 49 for 5. If he goes on to play yet another one of his special Test-saving knocks tomorrow, New Zealand might look back at this little episode.The smile of the day
When Kane Williamson became the youngest New Zealander to get a hundred on debut, you expected him to jump for joy. To pump a fist; perhaps even beat his chest. He did nothing. He simply removed his helmet and flashed a shy smile. It was his captain who was left to show some emotion: Daniel Vettori put his arms around the kid’s shoulder, hugged him, and patted on his back.The first simple dismissal of the day
2010 is turning out to be Gautam Gambhir’s annus horribilis. He averages 24.41 from seven games this year, and is fast becoming a walking wicket. Today, he left his first two deliveries alone outside off, but had a fatal poke at the third one. It’s an old failing. He was considered to be iffy outside off early in his career, a flaw he had corrected, but the habit seems to have returned.The second simple dismissal of the day
Suresh Raina must have been thinking about the bouncer because his feet were deep in the crease when Chris Martin bowled a full delivery. The ball swung away from Raina as he shaped to play to the left of the bowler. Edged and gone!The blow of the day
Sachin Tendulkar drove a length delivery past mid-off and that must have given him the confidence to go for a similar shot a few balls later. This one, though, swung in more even as Tendulkar shaped to drive it through extra cover. The ball darted towards the bat-pad gap, taking the inside edge, before crashing in to the stumps.The quote of the day
It came from Dhiraj Parsana. He has been copping heat for the last three and a half days over the state of the pitch. He must have thought the press, and perhaps even his own association, was going to bury him under a mound of criticism. Then Chris Martin happened. At the tea break, Parsana sauntered over to couple of journalists and said, “Dekha?! [Did you see?] What did I tell you? If you bend your back, there will be something in the pitch.”

Zimbabwe shocked the big boys with convincing wins but showed few signs that they were ready to return to Test cricket

Liam Brickhill25-Dec-2010After the genuine progress made in 2009, it was tentatively expected that 2010 would be a watershed year for Zimbabwe cricket. In certain respects it has lived up to that billing, and wins over West Indies, India and Sri Lanka suggested that all the hard work was beginning to pay off. A series win over Ireland also calmed a few nerves, but a winless tour of South Africa and the 3-1 drubbing by Bangladesh that followed confirmed Zimbabwe’s continuing limbo status: too good for the Associates but strugglers against the big boys.The year began on a positive note with the news that both Heath Streak and Grant Flower were chasing the job of coach of the national side. That position eventually went to Alan Butcher, Surrey’s coach until 2008, but Streak was retained as bowling coach and Flower signed on to work with the national team’s batsmen after his final season with Essex. The trickle of former players returning to domestic cricket continued, and with them came another wave of English county and former international players – many of whom played in the successful second edition of the Stanbic Bank Twenty20 competition.Brian Lara was the most notable signing, and although he played just three games for Southern Rocks, his participation lent a veneer of class to the week-long Twenty20 competition and helped spark increased local interest. News that he had signed a contract as batting consultant to the national team followed. However, it is widely thought Lara’s interest in Zimbabwe is merely as a stepping stone to the IPL, and the news that he had been paid an extravagant US$30,000 for his fleeting Twenty20 visit was greeted with incredulity.While good PR may help win influential friends as Zimbabwe seek a steady position in cricket’s mainstream, it doesn’t win cricket matches and there is a strong feeling that the money being spent on Lara could have been used on grassroots cricket, and that it is a decision that needs consideration.Central to those considerations will be Ozias Bvute, Zimbabwe Cricket’s managing director. Berated as a divisive influence during Zimbabwe’s decline, Bvute can now take plenty of credit for Zimbabwe’s improving image, as can sports minister David Coltart, a former human rights lawyer and one of the founding members of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, who has placed a particular focus on cricket. A feeling persists that Peter Chingoka, Zimbabwe cricket’s long-serving and controversial chairman, remains the obstacle preventing the resumption of full international cricketing ties, particularly with England. Bvute has thus taken a prominent role in the running of cricket, with Chingoka now firmly in the background. An injection of youth helped overhaul Zimbabwe Cricket’s media department, and where acrimony had once existed, a healthy working relationship with the cricketing media has been fostered.Perhaps the most valuable lesson learned this year is that, out of the direst straits of the last few years, it is possible for cricket in Zimbabwe to blossom once again – provided there is a collective will for it to do so. At times the players have shown real determination to improve their dismal reputation, and wins in the first two games of their West Indies tour suggested a corner had been turned after their capitulation for 44 all out to hand a one-day series win to Bangladesh in November 2009.

Zimbabwe cricket to be in robust health, particularly in the domestic game, which has gone from strength to strength under the new franchise system. A return to Tests is imminent, although Zimbabwe could well struggle to beat the likes of Bangladesh, New Zealand and West Indies for some time

Brendan Taylor, with three fifties and two hundreds – including a career-best 145 not out against South Africa in a losing cause – has had a year to be proud of and topped Zimbabwe’s ODI run-scoring tables. However, his success was tempered somewhat by the failure of his opening partner Hamilton Masakadza. A stand-out performer in 2009, when he scored 1087 runs in ODIs, Masakadza’s form fell away alarmingly and he ended 2010 with the ignominy of falling to more ducks in ODIs in the year than anyone else apart from Kenya’s James Ngoche, and was struggling to hold his place in the side.Masakadza and Taylor’s opening partnerships had been a major factor in Zimbabwe’s successes in their home tri-series against India and Sri Lanka, relieving the pressure on a brittle middle order. Zimbabwe’s spinners can also take a lot of the credit, and Prosper Utseya, Ray Price and Graeme Cremer will be a crucial part of the team’s World Cup plans.A return to Test cricket remains the ultimate goal for the Zimbabweans, and it was with this objective in mind that they originally fielded a team for the first-class Intercontinental Cup, which ran from July 2009 to December 2010. After wins over Kenya, Canada and Netherlands and draws against Ireland and Afghanistan – the eventual winners – Zimbabwe XI were in the running for a spot in the competition final. There is still no escaping the influence of politics in Zimbabwean sport, however, and after Scotland’s decision not to tour the country Zimbabwe forfeited their final game and fell out of contention. An unofficial Test series against New Zealand A in October also tested the mettle of Zimbabwe’s second string in the absence of the touring senior players. Zimbabwe will need to play many more matches of this sort as they look to find their feet once more in the cauldron of Test cricket.High point
In June, Zimbabwe enjoyed a fairytale run to their first final in a tri-series involving only Test-playing nations since the NatWest Series in 2000. The series signalled the return to Zimbabwe of top-level cricket – although India and Sri Lanka sent relatively inexperienced squads, which took some of the gloss off – and most importantly the hosts tasted victory and emerged from the tournament with a new sense of self-belief. They could not extend their run to the final, where they crashed to a nine-wicket defeat, but the successes set the positive tone for the year.Low point
The fragility of Zimbabwe’s development was in evidence just a month before their home tri-series success as they imploded in spectacular fashion against New Zealand at the World Twenty20, losing their last nine wickets for 26 runs to be all out for 84. Their collapse was made all the more unforgiveable as they had toured the West Indies just weeks before and should have been familiar with the conditions at the Providence Stadium, where they had recently won an ODI against West Indies.New kid on the block
Craig Ervine looked like just the sort of level-headed middle-order finisher Zimbabwe had been hoping for when he stroked an ice-cool unbeaten 67 on debut to seal the six-wicket win over India in May. Two single-figure scores followed that effort, but Ervine restored his reputation with innings of 145, 59 and 177 to set up Intercontinental Cup victories over Netherlands and Canada. A frustrating inability to turn good starts into substantial scores and an apparent weakness against spin appeared to have crept into his game as he registered five scores of between 14 and 24 against Ireland and South Africa, but Ervine cemented his position by topping the Zimbabwean batting table on a bowler-dominated trip to Bangladesh, with 134 runs at 44.66.Craig Ervine can steady Zimbabwe’s middle order•International Cricket CouncilFading star
Niggling injury and the pressure of captaincy had a disastrous effect on Elton Chigumbura’s form during the year. Replacing Utseya as leader after Zimbabwe returned from a dismal showing at the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, Chigumbura looked like the man for the job as Zimbabwe reached the finals of their home tri-series in June. That success masked his lack of potency with both bat and ball, and a mediocre season of county cricket with Northamptonshire didn’t seem to help. By the end of the year he was playing as a specialist batsman, and with an average of 19.78 with the bat and 140.00 with the ball as captain, were he not in charge he might be struggling to justify his place in the line-up.What 2011 holds
Zimbabwe cricket to be in robust health, particularly in the domestic game, which has gone from strength to strength under the new franchise system. A return to Tests is imminent, although Zimbabwe could well struggle to beat the likes of Bangladesh, New Zealand and West Indies for some time. Like the country itself, on the surface there is plenty to be positive about but there have been ominous stirrings from Robert Mugabe’s Zanu-PF party, with the old man suggesting that the unity government, under which a semblance of stability returned to the country, had run its course, and there’s a strong chance there could be fresh elections in 2011. Whether cricket can survive whatever political turmoil that brings could be the real test next year.

The story of Madhya Pradesh’s rise from the anonymity of the Plate League

Sriram Veera20-Dec-2010The last time Madhya Pradesh were in the Ranji Trophy Super League was in 2003-04. You would expect Devendra Bundela, the MP captain, to be thrilled to escape the anonymity of the Plate League but he says the journey has just begun. “We are happy of course but we are not satisfied,” Bundela told ESPNcricinfo. “Madhya Pradesh cricket deserves this. Our standard of cricket, at the grassroots and in our state side, is good enough to be competing in Super League.”What gives hope is the way they have systematically plugged the holes that sunk them down to Plate. In the turbulent phase, their seam attack was weak, and they struggled. “We wouldn’t get the new ball breakthroughs and the entire load used to fall upon our batsmen,” their coach Mukesh Sahni said. “The opposition always used to put us under pressure by piling up the runs. Now we have a balanced attack.” The seamers – TP Sudhindra (23 wickets), Anand Rajan (19), Amit Sharma (17), and Ishwar Pandey (9) – have taken the bulk of the wickets to change the fortunes of the team this season. Their batting, led by the captain Bundela (500 runs), Naman Ojha (545) and Mohnish Mishra (543), sparkled consistently and as a result, MP haven’t lost a single match this season.Another big factor was the change in the mindset during pressure games. While the monsoon season did them in last year – many games were washed out – MP have done well in the last few years, consistently turning up for the Plate semi-finals where they have choked. “The boys tended to panic at the big stage,” Sahni said. “Our main focus was to change that mindset. We played every match as a knockout this year. And when we landed up at the Plate semi-final, the boys didn’t feel any pressure.”The hunger to succeed fast-tracked the process of maturity. Sahni puts it thus: “The players were aware that if the team does well, only then their name will get recognised. They knew that the real recognition will come only in the Super League. That’s where the exposure lies and that’s where they can build their reputation.”It’s a sentiment shared by one of their high-scoring batsmen Mohnish. “When you perform in Plate, your performances can be ignored by selectors and media. Performance is counted only when you perform in Super League, and we were all driven by that ambition.”Another thing that helped the team mature was the exposure many players got by playing in ICL and IPL. Mohnish himself played in both, first for Delhi Giants in ICL before playing for Deccan Chargers in the IPL. “That toughened me a lot,” Mohnish said. “There are other players in our team who have played in these competitions, and those experiences helped us get hungry for more success.” It’s a nice instance of Twenty20 competitions helping a first-class team grow more ambitious and mentally stronger.With the motivation and talent in place at the start of the season, it came down to their preparation. MP started early in summer; the team went to Australia for league games that gave them tremendous confidence and exposure, they then won the Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 tournament which gave them momentum. Sahni picks out a game against Uttar Pradesh in Muhstaq Ali as a major catalyst. “They had scored about 190, and they had bowlers like RP Singh, Sudeep Tyagi and Piyush Chawla, but we chased it down. It gave us great momentum and confidence.”The coach and the captain, though, realise they have to put in more hard work to compete strongly in the Super League. “We have the talent and potential, and we need to get more disciplined in all the departments. We have played on sporting tracks, with help for seamers, and our spinners haven’t had much to do. We need to work on our spin, our fielding and in all departments.” Are MP here to stay in the Super League? If you believe their think-tank, they aren’t here just to survive but to compete. Only time will tell.