Steyn didn’t rate his performances in the 2006 Sri Lanka tour too highly. Today he showed what a master craftsman he has become since

Firdose Moonda in Galle18-Jul-2014The reason travel remains the best teacher is because it tends to debunk myths we are led to believe are universally accepted practice.In South Africa, throwing the gates open for free for all five days of a Test match is not the done thing because it is seen as devaluing cricket as a product rather promoting the game or trying to solve the problem of empty stadiums. In Sri Lanka, that has been happening for the last two years. In South Africa, a typical match-day groundstaff consists of a head curator and at most a dozen assistants. In Sri Lanka, it involves many more. And then there are the covers.In South Africa, there are a handful of protectors whose main purpose is to keep the pitch dry. In Sri Lanka, they are sponge mattresses concentrated on the 22 yards and metres of tarpaulin draped over the entire field.Steyn’s sub-continent tricks

Dale Steyn is able to summon the forces of swing, reverse-swing and speed even late in the day, when fatigue starts to set in for most. Apart from the high levels of stamina required for it – Steyn was once described by former fitness and fielding trainer Rob Walter as being among the best conditioned athletes in the team – there is another secret to his success.
“I’m lucky with the way that I bowl. I’m short and I am skiddy so the bouncer doesn’t quite get up and the lbw always comes into play,” Steyn explained. “I’m always attacking the stumps even if I don’t always hit the stumps like today. There’s still always a chance to find the edge of a bat. With every ball, there’s always a chance to get wickets.”
He admitted he is allowed to employ that form of ultra-aggression because of the job the rest of the attack does in creating a situation he can take advantage of. “We built up a little pressure before tea. There was banter about how the Sri Lankans were not really going anywhere. They had closed shop and I think that became frustrating to them,” Steyn said. “JP bowled really well and the rest of our bowlers built up enough pressure to be able to get the wickets that we took.”

They are designed that way because it tends to rain harder here than in South Africa, albeit sometimes in short bursts, the drainage is not as good here as in South Africa and there are what seem to be strict instructions not to let so much as a droplet onto the surface. Especially not against South Africa.The Galle groundstaff took immense care to keep the pitch as parched as possible. Not so much as a puff of white had appeared in the sky when they went on standby. The two snaked rows on either side of the field stood like men on the starting blocks of race, ready to charge as soon as needed, cover in hand. They obviously knew what they preparing for because that whisper of cloud turned into a full blown scream minutes later. The pitch heard none of it. It was safely sealed before the first rain drop had hit the ground.All that effort was supposed to frustrate and ultimately negate South Africa’s pace pack but they barely seemed to notice. For them and specifically for Dale Steyn, it was business as usual with the short ball – a delivery that is not supposed to be as effective in the subcontinent as it is in South Africa – and his inspired spell which combined variations in length with reverse-swing could yet prove decisive in the context of the series as a whole.South Africa’s first major incision was made moments after the brief shower. Before it arrived, Morne Morkel was peppering Kumar Sangakkara with back of a length deliveries, one of which hit him on the chest. The eight-minute break must have eased the pain and the memory because Sangakkara seemed to have forgotten about it when he returned and Morkel dished up another. Sangakkara went after it and played on. Sangakkara’s fury was Steyn’s cue to fire.New captain Hashim Amla spotted the right moment to bring Steyn back on and did. Mahela Jayawardene got a delivery which combined some of Steyn’s other impressive qualities: the ability to go fast, furious and full. It was quick, nipped in, almost yorker-length, directed at the stumps and the soon-to-be-retiree could not get to it before it thundered into his pad. The seconds between the appeal and Billy Bowden raising the crooked finger saw flashes beamed from Steyn’s angry eyes. But the moment the digit was visible, those gave way to pure delight. That was the wicket Steyn wanted because it closed a chapter, eight years after the book was first opened.Both Sangakkara and Jayawardene had been dismissed which meant that despite Sri Lanka’s solid start, there would be no repeat of the 624 runs they put on the last time South Africa played them in a Test series on the island. Steyn was the only bowler of the current attack to have featured in that match, which was also on his first tour away from home.Makhaya Ntini remembered Steyn travelled to Sri Lanka in 2006 with something to prove about pace both because he had built his reputation on it and because that was what young South African quicks were expected to do. In the first match, Steyn and everyone else were mere sideshows but in the second, Steyn took his first five-for on the road.Back then, he employed an aggressive strategy with a healthy helping of short balls – not the common recipe for success in Sri Lanka but one that produced the cake anyway – although Steyn admitted there may have been a sprinkling of good fortune involved. “I thought I was absolutely useless back then,” he said. “I was just bowling as quickly as I could. Now there is a lot more thinking and planning that’s involved.”That was evident in the spell after tea. South Africa had spent the closing stages of the second session containing as the ball got older to set Steyn up for an attack. He began with a series of short balls to test Thirimanne. He punched the first one to point. He shuffled across to fend off the second one. He was surprised by the pace and width of the third and almost lured into an edge.Steyn had sussed him out with that delivery and discovered which bait he would need to use. At the start of the next over, Steyn bowled it quick and got it to swing away. Thirimanne bit and de Kock collected the takings.Then Steyn had to start again. A new batsman required a new plan and he started by going full to Chandimal. He drew the outside edge with the second ball and tried to use the reverse swing he had found to sneak through defenses with the third. And the fourth. Chandimal got behind the fifth and sixth but refused to play the seventh, which was outside off. So Steyn went back to default. The eighth was short and Chandimal pulled – straight to short midwicket.With those two wickets Steyn had defied the conditions by using the short ball to snare batsman in the subcontinent. With the next one, he used the conditions to his advantage. He had seen evidence of reverse swing when he began his assault and used it to find Dilruwan Perera’s inside-edge and end a spell that was as magical as they are supposed to be. 5-2-8-3.That was not the doing of someone who craves nothing more than a need for speed. It was the work of a master craftsman who understands that talent and skill has to be paired with tactics and strategy to being success.Travel has taught Steyn something too but it also has not made him forget what he already knew. He is still fast, he is still furious and he still gets five-fors.

A stats review of the third ODI between Australia and Pakistan in Abu Dhabi

Bishen Jeswant12-Oct-20143 Number of times Australia have whitewashed Pakistan in an ODI series of three or more matches. Australia have now won five such ODI series while Pakistan have only won two.1 Number of runs by which Australia won this game, their narrowest win against Pakistan. Australia have won six ODIs by this margin, India being the only team that they have beaten twice.6 The number of times, since the beginning of 2002, that no runs have been conceded in the 50th over of an ODI innings. Apart from Glenn Maxwell in this match, the others to have done it are Allan Donald against Bangladesh, Daryl Tuffey against Pakistan, Inzamam-ul-Haq against Bangladesh, Ryan ten Doeschate against Bermuda, and Narsingh Deonarine against Zimbabwe. Andrew Hall bowled a maiden too, but gave away a leg bye against Sri Lanka in 2006.20 In the last 20 years there have been only three instances of Australia scoring fewer than 231 runs after batting all 50 overs against Pakistan.5 Number of times Pakistan have bowled no wides or no-balls in an innings of 40-plus overs. They bowled one wide and one no-ball in this game. The five extras that they conceded are their fourth lowest for an innings of 40-plus overs.9 Number of runs Australia scored during the batting Powerplay, between the 36th and 40th overs. Since the latest Powerplay rule change in October 2012, this aggregate is the second lowest between the 36th and 40th overs of an innings (not necessarily the Powerplay). The fewest runs scored in this period is seven, by Kenya against Afghanistan in October 2013.3 Number of times in the last three years that Pakistan’s openers have posted back-to-back 50-plus stands against a top-eight team. All of these have been in the UAE.42 Number of innings Shahid Afridi needed to score his first 1000 runs in ODI cricket, at an average of 25.15. In his last 42 innings, Afridi has scored 666 runs at an average of 19.02.2 Number of times Pakistan have lost to Australia despite four of their top five batsmen making 25-plus scores. The last time they did this was in 2012, when also they lost.

An injury denied medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma the chance to play for India A in Australia earlier this year. Having regained his fitness, he is looking to add to his pace in the domestic season

Amol Karhadkar20-Dec-2014In July this year, Punjab medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma was preparing himself for an important opportunity – India A’s tour to Australia. Two days before he was to join the India A squad, however, that opportunity closed due to a stress fracture in his back.At the time, Sandeep wasn’t sure he would be able to recover in time for the Ranji Trophy, which had been preceded by the limited-overs’ tournaments. A rehab programme devised by the physiotherapists at the National Cricket Academy helped him recover in time for the Vijay Hazare Trophy and he has already made a strong start to this domestic season. Sandeep, who insists he has regained full fitness, will be leading Punjab’s pace attack against Maharashtra in a Ranji Trophy Group B match, starting on Sunday.”It was frustrating. I knew I would miss Australia, CLT20, Duleep Trophy and possibly Vijay Hazare and Ranji Trophy as well. But I was fortunate to have recovered in time and make a mark in the one-dayers,” Sandeep told ESPNcricinfo, after a rigorous training session at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium at Gahunje, on the outskirts of Pune.”The injury that I had was one of the most common among fast bowlers, so I didn’t have much to worry about,” he said. “When you have proper information and guidance about maintaining your body – and I have been lucky since I have been going to the NCA since my Under-15 days – it becomes easier to know and look after your body. I have fully recovered and the injury has no bearing on my body anymore.”Sandeep’s strong show since his return has cleared any doubts over his fitness. His combined haul of 20 wickets in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Deodhar Trophy is currently the highest for any bowler during this season’s List A matches. He followed it up with a five-for in Punjab’s Ranji Trophy game against Vidarbha in Nagpur earlier this week.Over the last five years, Sandeep has emerged as one of the most talented pace bowlers in India. He was first noticed when, as a 17-year-old, he made it to India’s squad for the Under-19 World Cup in 2010. Two years later, he finished India’s victorious U-19 World Cup campaign as his team’s joint-highest wicket-taker. In between, he made his first-class debut for Punjab, in November 2011, a level of cricket that Sandeep says is, “far more superior and challenging than the U-19 standard”.He showed his prowess with a tally of 41 wickets in the 2012-13 season of the Ranji Trophy, and followed it up with another 36 in the last season. The IPL also provided him with exposure after he finished as the highest wicket-taker for Kings XI Punjab in the 2014 edition.Swing is his key weapon, but Sandeep realises that he needs to add a bit more pace to become a more effective bowler at the highest level. “I am working on it. Developing pace is priority. Over the last couple of years, I have managed to raise my speed from 120s to the 130s [kph]. I am 21 right now, my bones and muscles will be stronger in a couple of years. I have been following the schedule prepared by the trainer and have also started following a nutritionist’s programme,” he said.

Stats highlights from the second day of the fourth Test between India and Australia in Sydney

Bishen Jeswant07-Jan-20155 Australia batsmen with hundreds in four, or more, consecutive Tests. Steven Smith has hundreds in all four Tests this series. The other Australians to do this are Don Bradman (six), Jack Fingleton (four), Neil Harvey (four) and Matthew Hayden (four).2 Number of batsmen with centuries in every Test of a series comprising four or more matches. Prior to Smith in this series, Jacques Kallis scored four hundreds in a home series against West Indies in 2002-03.1 Number of times every batsman in Australia’s top six has made a 50-plus score. The batsmen who made 50-plus are Chris Rogers (95), David Warner (101), Shane Watson (81), Smith (117), Shaun Marsh (73) and Joe Burns (58). Overall, it has happened six times in Tests, four of those against India.24 Number of instances where four Indian bowlers conceded 100-plus runs in an innings. Apart from England (32), no other team has had four bowlers conceding 100-plus runs in the same innings more than 12 times.1 Number of previous instances in the last 84 years where two of Australia’s first three wickets have produced partnerships of 175-plus runs each. Australia’s first and third wickets produced 200 and 196 respectively during the first innings.2 Number of times a team has made 500 plus in every Test of a series comprising four or more Tests. Australia’s scores in this series are 7 for 517 (Adelaide), 505 (Brisbane), 530 (Melbourne) and 7 for 572 (Sydney). The only other team to do this was South Africa, against West Indies in 2003-04.7 Hundreds scored by No. 4 batsmen in this series, three by Smith, three by Virat Kohli and one by Michael Clarke – the most scored by No. 4 batsmen in any Test series.1 Number of Indian bowlers with five-wicket hauls this series. Mohammed Shami returned figures of 5 for 112 in the first innings. Even during India’s previous two tours to Australia only one bowler took a five-for, Umesh Yadav in 2011-12 and Anil Kumble in 2007-08. During the 2003-04 tour, Indian bowlers took five five-wicket hauls.

Sri Lanka may not be the better team, but they somehow just get the job done during World Cup knockouts. The same can’t be said of their quarter-final opponents, who are, as of 2015, yet to win a single such game

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Sydney16-Mar-2015Mahela Jayawardene has the stalling semi-final knock that became a Kingston mauling in 2007. Kumar Sangakkara has the nifty World T20 final fifty. Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara have their many tandem successes; trying batsmen with the new ball, tying them down with the old. Angelo Mathews, Lahiru Thirimanne, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Rangana Herath, Thisara Perera – they’ve all had star turns on big occasions. All can recall shots or balls or catches when nerves were held, opponents cornered, and matches turned.”It’s like a bank account,” Jayawardene said of the moments that have clinched Sri Lanka knockout games. “All those good performances, you’ve deposited. As a group, and as individuals we can always reflect back and know that there’s some things that you’ve achieved already. We think: ‘This is what I’ve done in those situations, mentally and physically.'”The knockouts is when Sri Lanka’s cricket has taken taut, menacing shape in the past two World Cups, in which they have played more sudden-death matches than any other side. In between, there have been two gallops to World T20 finals. So the belief at training is palpable. Some players have been away from home since mid-December, but they are not pining for Sri Lanka just yet. “We’ve got two more weeks here,” they say, “We’re just focused on that.”All through this World Cup, Sri Lanka have eschewed talk of dominating the competition and instead focused on “peaking”. Now that they are at the pointy end, they will reflect on the times they have collectively risen before.They might recall flying to the Caribbean unfancied in 2007, before losing to South Africa and only scraping past against England. They would scorch past New Zealand to that final. Adam Gilchrist and a great Australia team would have to summon something special to shoot them down.Sri Lanka may remember losing to Pakistan at home, in 2011, before heating up for a clobbering of England. So complete was their control over that chase of 230, Dilshan accidentally hit a four in the closing stages and apologised to his partner, who was running down a hundred. They would blow by New Zealand en route to the Wankhede again. Speckled through each recent marquee tournament are wins grasped from thin air, roaring fires summoned from embers from campaigns gone by.South Africa, their opponents, are a study in contrast. They have all the form, but little of the nerves or the know-how. It has been said that big-match pressure puts South African minds in a muddle, but so many tournaments has it been without a single knockout victory now, even the muddles have become tangled in a heap on their own. Their grand inconsistency has been dealt with inconsistently. Graeme Smith used to bristle when the word “chokers” was put to him in a question. AB de Villiers has confronted the tag head on, even sometimes applying the term when his team had simply been outplayed, instead of outwitted.Just in this tournament, while Sri Lanka have casually cast aside losses to two of the tournament favourites, essentially taking the view: “We just need to take care to get to the quarters, who we get is irrelevant,” South Africa have appeared particularly hurt at their two defeats.”I just want to sit in my room and feel sad,” de Villiers said after the 130-run loss to India. He suggested his team may “not be as good as we think we are” and were “not prepared to fight it out”, after the match against Pakistan. Then, not a week after having “nothing good to say about the team,” de Villiers delivered as high-flying a self-appraisal as has been heard all World Cup long. “I 100% believe we are the best team in the tournament here,” he said.The thing is, he could well be right. At the very least, they should outgun Sri Lanka. De Villiers has not scored as many runs as Kumar Sangakkara, but he is unarguably more dynamic. Hashim Amla hit two hundreds and averaged 86 in the most recent series between these teams, which South Africa comfortably won. In Morne Morkel, Kyle Abbott and Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn has pace support that often daunts opposition batsmen. Lasith Malinga decidedly does not. Even in spin – that great pride of Sri Lanka – South Africa have appeared more polished in this tournament. Imran Tahir’s 11 scalps have come at 23.36, far cheaper than Rangana Herath’s wickets. If his finger doesn’t heal, Herath may not even play at all.Reason suggests South Africa should coast into the semi-finals. They are fitter and faster in addition to being so skilled. But they are up against opponents who give no heed to reason. Sri Lanka have been a side that sparks suddenly and emphatically around a spell, or a run out, or a cameo.The Sydney quarter-final will not be the most-watched, nor does it feature the tournament’s new favourite teams. But it is not short on intrigue, because on Wednesday evening, one team will seek to ride high on their emotion, while another strives to keep a grip on theirs.

Either way, WG Grace generated more than his share of column centimetres, in his lifetime and beyond

Ivo Tennant22-Mar-2015Mr W. Grace, as called him before settling, somewhat arbitrarily, on the addition of his second initial and a medical prefix, died during World War I. It was said that one of his last acts was to shake his fist at a zeppelin flying close to his home in south London, a symbol of his autocracy and defiance. Whether or not he was the most prominent exponent of the finest and purest game, as Lord Harris declared, there can be little doubting that he still remains, 100 years after his death, the most recognisable of all cricketers.So an anthology is wholly deserved, even if his feats will be familiar to many followers of the game. The prime interest in Jonathan Rice’s collection of match reports and articles is in the reporting of the Victorian day. Do we learn more about his technique, his character, his utter dominance of the game? This was a period when was not known for its analysis, or “colour”, to use a more modern term. The accounts, nonetheless, are descriptive, and sometimes unintentionally amusing.Who is Jonathan Rice? Like his brother, Sir Tim, he is an unabashed cricket fan who has taken to editing anthologies. He sits on Kent’s committee and hence must bear some of the responsibility for the financial state of the club and consequent encroachment of housing on the St Lawrence, Canterbury, where WG played often and which he would not recognise today. He would, however, be familiar with Bank Holiday engineering work. Trouble on the railways meant that he did not take the field on the ground on one occasion until around lunchtime when “a hearty Kentish cheer greeted Mr W. Grace’s walk to the wickets”.WG became synonymous with the Victorians’ love of muscular Christianity. At the crease, although he was too heavily built to use his feet nimbly to slow bowling, he was, as AG Steel put it, “a master of playing with the left leg close to the bat”. He stood with his right leg on line with leg stump, his rigid right foot pointing slightly in front of the crease, his stance calculated to assist his placement of leg-side shots. Grace was the hero of Empire builders and the hero of .There was, though, as Rice points out, a strange equivocation in the Almanack’s view of him. While his brothers received almost uniformly good reports, the attitude to the “Champion” as called him, was grudging initially. It was apparent also that the social aspect of the cricket was as important as the scorecards. Grace was neither a professional nor an amateur: for the purposes of assisting the finances of the Marylebone Club, he was an amateur. In terms of his bank account, he was a pro – making far more money out of the game than any professional of his day.As to the reporting of the game, some of the phraseology is surprising. To have been “licked by a lob”, the fate of one hapless batsman, was a foretaste of how cricket would be covered in the popular prints. There is much rain and wintry weather and comment on Grace’s capacity for money-making. In a 1998 appreciation for , which is included here, Geoffrey Moorhouse wrote: “Nothing more exposed the humbug of Gents v Players than an examination of Grace’s financial rewards from the game.” Grace was, he opined, “sometimes a shameless cheat”.This is a sad summation, wholly at odds with Lord Harris’ view and not one, of course, that any cricket writer would have dared state during WG’s lifetime. Best, perhaps, to concentrate on the extraordinary achievements, the Victorian context, the interest he brought to the game and the financial benefits for MCC, as well as for the clubs where he played. The wonderful painting by Archibald Wortley that hangs at Lord’s, the cap, the beard, the cummerbund, the brown shoes and all, depicts a champion indeed.Wisden on Grace
Edited by Jonathan Rice
Bloomsbury, 2015
£20, 234 pages

The lack of batting depth has always been an issue with Royal Challengers Bangalore and has often held back as good a finisher as AB de Villiers. What he needs is more time at the wicket. And this time, his team is willing to offer him that

Nagraj Gollapudi in Kolkata10-Apr-2015Batless, AB de Villiers is restless, always moving around looking for work. Bat in hand, his body and head remain still, till he unleashes those vaunted strokes that leave you speechless.There was one of those at the Royal Challengers Bangalore nets on Friday evening. Sandeep Warrier, the Kerala fast bowler, delivered a yorker on de Villiers’ middle stump. It was a line de Villiers was expecting. Without moving his feet, he just cocked his wrists outwards to sort of chop the ball so hard that it sneaked under the side netting and nearly hit the foot of one of his team-mates had he not jumped in the nick of time. It was brutal. Such was its ferocity that even Allan Donald, Royal Challengers’ bowling coach, waved both hands in up-and-down motion to ask de Villiers to calm down.De Villiers had been batting for nearly half an hour. He pulled with vigour. He punched with power. He used those rubbery-wrists to manoeuvre the ball both sides of the wicket from angles many would not dare to even imagine. If Virat Kohli derives confidence form the way he is hitting the ball, de Villiers gets it from the range of strokes he can play. By grasping opposition plans and sending bowlers to all corners.Ask Morne Morkel, de Villiers’ South Africa team-mate, and his Kolkata Knight Riders rival on Saturday. “You can’t really plan against AB de Villiers,” Morkel says. Mainly because de Villiers has every shot in the book and more for which a bowler cannot plan. He can only think on his feet and hope it works out.”One thing about AB is, he reads the game quite well. As soon as you do all your field placements, he will sum it up and he will work a gameplan around that. We have all seen him over the last couple of years; all his reverse-sweeps and sweeps that he has played. It is hard to bowl to a guy who can not only hit a short ball for six, but also if you just miss a yorker.”So far in the IPL de Villiers has been one of the best finishers. In the last six overs of an innings, he has scored 968 runs at an average of 40.33 and a strike-rate of 195. Only three batsmen – MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Kieron Pollard – have scored more runs in the last six, but all at lower averages and strike-rates. Among batsmen who have scored at least 500 runs in the last six, his strike-rate is the best.Yet despite his exuberant strokeplay and finishing skills de Villiers remains somewhat of an unfulfilled promise. You often come out with a feeling that he could have done more. He averages 68.38 at a strike-rate of 148 in wins, but only 19.67 at 128 in losses. One thing that has gone against de Villiers has been that he has been given less time to express himself. He has mostly arrived in the final five to six overs when the job is specifically to attack.The absence of good batting depth, specifically quality Indian domestic batsmen, has always been an issue with Royal Challengers. They have this time checked that deficiency by hiring Dinesh Karthik. The wicketkeeper-batsman and de Villiers will form part of the middle order and can always play the role of the stabiliser in case the top order falters or can bolster the platform set by the likes of Chris Gayle and Kohli. What de Villiers needs is more time at the wicket. And his team this time is willing to offer him that.”I personally feel that this season you will probably see myself, Chris and AB expressing ourselves more than ever,” Kohli said. “We have good depth in our batting and we have got good resources this time, so we can start to bat freely. In the last two-three years we batted under more pressure as compared to other teams because we were top heavy. Some of the other teams were batting till No. 8 so the top guys could go and express themselves. But we had to mix caution and aggression.”This time, I won’t say that we will blindly go and swing the bat but you will probably see the guys more relaxed in expressing themselves more and be confident in what they want to execute and not have as many second thoughts as probably we would have had in the last couple of seasons.”Second thoughts are not part of de Villiers’ game. Ask the bowlers.

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Apr-2015He had JP Duminy for company, who brought up his own fifty to lead Daredevils to 132 for 2 in the 16th over.•BCCIDale Steyn, playing his first game of IPL 2015, bowled Duminy for 54 off 41 balls and ended with figures of 4-0-27-1•BCCIBhuvneshwar Kumar’s yorkers were on point as well. He conceded only one boundary in his four overs, but Daredevils still managed 167 for 4•BCCIShikhar Dhawan struck some crisp fours before he was bowled by Duminy…•BCCI… who had Warner caught and bowled two balls later to leave Sunrisers at 51 for 2•BCCIKL Rahul struck two sixes in his 24 but was bowled around his legs by Angelo Mathews•BCCIRavi Bopara made 41 off 30 balls to keep the chase alive, but his dismissal left Sunrisers at 128 for 5 in the 17th over•BCCIThe equation became 10 off the 20th when Mayank Agarwal pulled off a brilliant save that denied Sunrisers a six. Daredevils then held on for a four-run win•BCCI

Sri Lanka have routinely had the opposition’s head on the chopping block, only to stab themselves in the eye instead, then flop around, bleeding to death

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Galle20-Jun-2015Lord’s 2014 – Sri Lanka bowl first and claim the first four England wickets for 120. The score is 209 when the fifth falls. Yet, Joe Root and Matt Prior rally, put on 171 together, before the England tail plunges the knife deeper. The eventual first innings score is 575. The last five wickets had cost 366. Sri Lanka have effectively been batted out of the match.At Headingley a week later, Sri Lanka have England on the run. The hosts are chasing 350 for victory, but in no time, they are 57 for 5 with a full day yet to play. Sri Lanka toil on a worn pitch, Moeen Ali and the tail resisting them staunchly. In the end, Shaminda Eranga closes out the victory sensationally, with the penultimate ball of the game. But the bottom half of England’s XI had held out for more than 90 overs.Not long after, in Galle, South Africa are 266 for 5, with AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla and Faf du Plessis all dismissed. Again Sri Lanka concede rearguard runs. JP Duminy signs up Vernon Philander and No. 10 Morne Morkel for sidekicks. South Africa proceed to an excellent 455 for 9.At the SSC a week later, Sri Lanka have South Africa by the throat, but again the tail rallies, and Nos. 7, 8, 9 and 10 see out 212 balls combined in the second innings. The visitors have faced 111 overs, but have lost only 8 wickets on a dustbowl, by stumps. Match drawn.In Wellington in January this year, perhaps the most dispiriting slide of all. New Zealand are only 24 runs ahead when they lose their fifth wicket, in the third innings of the game. Thanks in part to several lazy drops, Kane Williamson and BJ Watling mount a record unbeaten 365 for the sixth wicket, and turn the match on its head. Sri Lanka bravely attempt to chase the target, but lose by 193 runs.On Saturday, after Pakistan had swept the rug from Sri Lanka’s feet then trussed them up in it, Sri Lanka coach Marvan Atapattu had this to say: “I don’t think we did too many things wrong. Some of the things the tailenders happened to work. Some of the big shots connected, and it’s one of those days. [Asad] Shafiq and the wicketkeeper [Sarfraz Ahmed] also batted really well to get hundreds from a situation where they were down and out. A lot of credit should go to them.”He’s half right. Pakistan began the day 182 runs adrift, with the last recognised pair at the crease, on a pitch already taking substantial turn, yet Sarfraz was as precise as he was fearless with his hacks, cuts and slashes. Shafiq was a sublime foil until Sarfraz’s ambition got the better of him. Then Shafiq marshalled the tail maturely, striking a fine balance between farming the strike and trusting his partners.Yet it seems strange that Sri Lanka appear oblivious to the fissures that have emerged in their own cricket. Opposition batsmen often play well. That happens in Test cricket. But Sri Lanka have routinely had the opposition’s head on the chopping block, only to stab themselves in the eye instead, then flop around, bleeding to death.There are days when Rangana Herath, in his mesmeric spells, inspires in his field the predatory instincts that made Sri Lanka a menace at home in the nineties. But too quickly, the mood dissipates. The close-in fielders had been like bull sharks encircling prey when five wickets had fallen on the third evening in Galle. On Saturday, it only took a few Sarfraz swipes to dull them to apathy. When Herath’s bite deserts him, fight seemingly leaves his team-mates.It doesn’t help that the attack itself is monochrome when Herath is flat. The slow bowlers are almost mirror images of one another – two finger spinners who turn the ball a bit, but excel at maintaining control. More diversity exists in the higher ranks of Sri Lanka’s domestic cricket. Tharindu Kaushal sits inert in the squad for this Test match, but he delivers offspin with his wrist and bowls a mean doosra (which as far as anyone can tell, is sent down with a straight arm). Chinaman Lakshan Sandakan waits in the shadows too, and legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay had a decent outing against Pakistan in the warm-up encounter.Nor is it helpful that Angelo Mathews – for all his fine qualities as a batsman and leader – remains a modest strategist. In his field placements you get the impression he’s a captain who wants to be aggressive, but to whom defence comes more easily. He trialled several unorthodox positions on day four, but the traps seemed too loosely set to work. It’s unfair to measure him against the likes of Brendon McCullum and Michael Clarke because Sri Lanka’s attack is inferior, yet he plays in a rich tradition of captains who have felled better teams, with meagre resources. Mostly, they have done so with creativity and innovation.Sri Lanka now face a tough final day to stay even in the series. But enough of a pattern has emerged in their fielding efforts now, to warrant introspection. All four oppositions they have played in the past 14 months have turned Tests with substantial lower-order gains. Some of them have done it more than once in a series.

Ricky Ponting talks about Mumbai Indians’ amazing turnaround, his relationship with Harbhajan Singh, and being part of perhaps the most star studded coaching line-up in cricket

Interview by Gaurav Kalra in Kolkata23-May-201519:49

“Coaching has got my competitive juices flowing once again”

Coach Ponting, how has the experience been?
It has been going well so far. We are in the IPL finals. After a really slow start, we have played some really good cricket and we needed to in order to qualify. Full credit to all the players; the coaches have worked exceptionally hard but it is the players who are out there getting the job done day after day. It has been a dramatic turnaround after the first six games. To have been the first team to qualify for the final is a great effort. I made it clear to the boys that I was here to win the IPL and not to qualify for the Champions League. We are in the finals now and it is about focusing, preparing well and making sure that we play our best game on Sunday.Is it easier to prepare for a big final compared to your opponents given that you have had four days to get ready for it?
It probably is. We had a little bit of rest with a couple of days off and had our first training day yesterday. We felt, towards the back end of the tournament, that when we are really busy, we got a little bit of momentum as we just kept playing. There is only a certain amount you can train when you are two months into a T20 tournament. It is more about tactics and mindset rather than the skills. We are playing Chennai and we played them in the last game. So, things won’t change too much. It is a matter of execution now.Is Chennai an opponent you would have preferred less given their success over the years, having been in six IPL finals in eight years?
Our last win was against Chennai. So, we have no worries about playing them. They are a very skilled and well-led team but we won against them in the 2013 final. We have to just look after what we are trying to achieve and have the best preparations and then go out there and play. They are a good team with not too many gaps from number 1 to 11 but we are a good team that can combat against them.Kolkata Knight Riders play to a template in Kolkata, which is to bat first and get their spinners into the game. Is that something you will work with too?
We need to look at the pitch first. It had a bit of grass last night when we trained. It is early stages of preparation and we will get a better understanding tonight. We played our first game of the tournament here and it was a really good wicket. It had a little bit of grass and the ball skidded on to the bat more than you normally see at the Eden Gardens. It did not spin much and our game plan will be based on the pitch. If you bat first, you have to leave it to the opening batsmen to assess the conditions and indicate it to the rest of the guys.That is something we have done really well so far. We have known what a good score is batting first and managed to put up some good totals in the first innings. The defensive side of our bowling has been particularly good with Lasith Malinga and Mitchell McClenaghan. Harbhajan Singh has been good as well. We are expecting it to be a good wicket.What is your method going into a big final as coach?
My method has been same throughout the tournament and I won’t change it in the finals. The last nine games we have played have been finals as we have had to win pretty much every game. We have lost one along the way but the build up for us has been positive. We have tried to take the game forward and be nice and aggressive. I like to be well organised and look into the opposition teams tactically and see their keys to success which we can try to break.I’m a hands-on coach and I like talking to the boys to give them focus. Shane Bond has been terrific with the bowlers and Robin Singh has been around for a long time and knows the players well and understands how we work. As a group of coaches, we have worked very well. The biggest challenge is yet to come.Can your experience of having played in and succeeded in big finals be passed on or is it something that the players have to experience themselves?
I can help with certain things that I say and what they can expect when they go out there in a big final. Having been there and done that along with some individual success as well, I think I have good little points that I can pass on to the team. The players have a good idea already as I have said a lot of things along the way about facing challenges and playing in big games. At the end of the day, it is not rocket science. You prefer to have players in your team that have done that before as that experience is undeniable and we have got some of those players. There are some really experienced players in this line up as well as in the Chennai line up. They are full of experience and it is going to be a good contest.

“It is more about tactics and mindset rather than the skills”

Did you find it difficult to assert yourself as head coach given the amount of big names in the support staff?
I found it easy as it was a matter of talking to the entire support staff and not just the coaches. I met them individually and told them about their roles and how I wanted them to operate. I have got complete trust in those guys and so far they have done really well. Shane Bond is in charge of the bowlers and I don’t interfere with his work. If he needs any help, I’m always there to provide suggestions.Jonty Rhodes is an experienced coach and you can’t fault Robin Singh as a coach having coached in the IPL and the Caribbean Premier League. I don’t interfere in their work but I keep an eye on everything that is going on. If I feel that they are being a little lazy and not preparing the guys as well as they should, I will let them know.Is it about letting everybody know that Ricky Ponting is the boss?
I don’t think so. Everybody is reporting to me and the final responsibility lies with me. It was the same when I was the captain of Australia. I tried to make sure that I had a good understanding with everybody that was operating around the team. I think it has worked out well and we have great respect for each other and we haven’t let each other down even for a minute.”Full credit to Anil [Kumble] and Sachin for knowing when to take a step back and waiting to be spoken to rather than trying to impose themselves on the group”•PTI What has your equation been with Sachin Tendulkar and Anil Kumble and what is their role in the team?
It is hard to define their roles. They are mentors and help out the guys if required. Sachin has been to a few of our team meetings and so has Anil but they have not been a constant around the team. We want to make sure that there are not too many voices going around and one message is passed to the team and individual players. It is important that the younger guys do not have too many messages going into their minds. They have enough going on in their minds as it is and it is important that they have a clear mind. The fewer voices, the better it is. Full credit to Anil and Sachin for knowing when to take a step back and waiting to be spoken to rather than trying to impose themselves on the group.Have you found it difficult to ask them to take a step back and let you run the team?
Not at all because if they have got the best interests of the team at heart, they will take a backward step rather than being too far forward. I have got no doubt that they have our best interests at heart. I have not found it difficult as that is one of the jobs I have as a coach to make sure that things are happening the way that I want them to happen around the team. It was a slow start and it took us a while to find the winning way and the winning attitude but all in all the last month has been very enjoyable.Has getting your marquee overseas players perform at their best been one of your more pleasing achievements?
You need that from your senior players in this tournament. I have been telling the group that the bigger the game the more important it is for the senior players to stand up. You will get a couple of big performances from the younger guys but you can’t expect them to be consistently good. You expect your senior players to be consistently good. Lendl Simmons and Parthiv Patel have been excellent at the top. Kieron Pollard is having his best IPL and his work ethic is terrific. His game sense has been better than before. Malinga started a bit slowly but he has put his hand up in the big games and McClenaghan has been a real find. I went really hard for him with the owners at the auction table.I knew what I was going to get with him and I had also spoken to Bond before the auctions. It is really funny how things have worked out for us because Aaron Finch and Corey Anderson were our first choice players and we were waiting on Cricket Australia to see if Josh Hazlewood would be joining us.Three of our four first choice overseas players are not with us but we have got good replacements. After the first four games, Rohit Sharma felt that we needed to strengthen our bowling and McClenaghan came in. He has been terrific since then though his last game against Chennai was not his best.I watched him closely at training yesterday and I’m sure he will have a big impact in the finals. I wanted to have a left armer who can extract pace and bounce out of the Mumbai wicket which is why we went for him. Mitchell Johnson had great success for us a couple of years back and I think that the left arm variation is crucial. He gives his hundred per cent every single time irrespective of the game situation and that is something that I love about him. He gives his all and has got us key breakthroughs. He has had a lot of catches put down off his bowling, 6 or 7 in a row. The balance in any cricket team is maintained by having good opening batsmen and good opening bowlers and we have had that.Do you think Indian cricket can invest in Rohit Sharma as a leader on the evidence of what you have seen in this tournament?
I do. He has gotten better as the tournament has gone along. We have had a lot of discussions and chats and we both are still learning as captain and coach. All of our players are also learning. You can see the growth in Rohit, especially in the second half of this tournament where he has had to make crucial decisions with the bowling changes and the strike bowlers. He has done well under pressure. He has played at different positions for the team, be it opening the batting or batting at number three and four. He has not had the smoothest of years but you would not know because he is quiet but he has the steely determination to be the best that he can be. If he continues to grow and keeps learning the way he is, I have no doubt that he captain at a higher level.Ricky Ponting and Harbhajan Singh share a laugh: who would have thought it possible in 2008?•Mumbai IndiansHow has the experience of working with Harbhajan Singh been, another player who you had a history with?
I think when I first came as captain in 2013 there was some animosity. It was upto both of us to stand up as men and break down that barrier. We wanted the best for the team and we did that. We had to put our differences behind us. At the end of the day, we are two really competitive people and I did not hold any grudges away from the field. Those sorts of battles are still going on with the modern players. I took a catch off his bowling in 2013 and we were embracing and hugging each other.I think that is one of the great things about the IPL; an Aussie having great faith in a Kiwi and two great on field rivals working together as coach and number one spin bowler. I think I was the first one to congratulate him on his selection to the Indian test squad for Bangladesh. There is healthy respect between the two of us.Would you look to get into coaching full-time in the future?
I have had a great time. I love the game and I love working with other people – trying to make them better technically or the way they think about the game. I think I have seen that through this tournament already. Some of the time that I’ve spent with the younger guys and then to see them go out and do it on the field, there is nothing better than that. You never say never as far as these big jobs are concerned. If the team starts winning a few IPL’s, people might start thinking of me as an international coach.The cricket runs in my blood and I want to do the best that I can do to enjoy that competitive feeling. You can’t go from being a high level of competitor to nothing and you need to have something in your life. Coaching in a tournament like this gets the competitive juices flowing again.