The Wicket Post

An open letter to Sreesanth

2013-05-18T13:14:00.003+05:30

Dear Sreesanth,

Where do I start this letter? I honestly have no idea. What can one say to a player who has been part of two World Cup winning squads, played numerous ODIs for India and has even represented the country in test cricket? Normally for such a player there'd be respect. But that's not what I'm feeling here.

I never truly was a fan of you, Sreesanth. You were one player who not only managed to irritate the opposition, the umpires and the match referees, but your own teammates and fans as well. But all that - all those controversies, fights, immature antics (if we may call your behavior that) - didn't matter much. Because at the end of the day, you were a cricketer with an Indian cap. And as a fan, I respected you for that one and only thing.

Any player who plays 27 tests for India deserves respect. No matter how poorly he fared in them. But you didn't exactly fare badly. There were moments of brilliance and you were without any doubt one of India's foremost talent in swing bowling. The victories in West Indies and South Africa were ones that you fashioned and people - people like me - who may not have been your fans, still adored you for it. And respected you.

But now it seems that even you don't respect yourself. That much is evident and clearly you were a talent that never knew your own worth. Had you known, you wouldn't have thrown it all away and I wouldn't be typing this.

I've plenty of memories of you, Sreesanth. Vivid ones too. The picture of you slamming Andre Nel back for a six and dancing, twirling your bat in the air or the catch you took at fine-leg and then proceeded to throw the ball back into the orbit in celebration as India won the Inaugural T20 World Cup are etched in memory. There are others too. One of you lifting the World Cup and lapping the Wankahede stadium, or crying in your pink Kings XI Punjab jersey in the IPL are memories of things that seemed like it happened just yesterday.

I remember the eccentric pounding of the ground when you got the wicket of Matthew Hayden in the 2007 T20 World Cup Semis, and the time when you trapped the great Brian Lara leg before in Antigua in 2006 with some exaggerated swing.

I can replay your bowling run up, the steady approach to the popping crease, the flailing away of your arms, the big leap of the delivery stride and the ball being released from your right hand, with your fingers at the seam. I can also replay the rituals, moments before the run-up, when you would take some deep breaths, mutter something under your breath, kiss the balls sometimes and look heavenwards before charging at the batsman. The stare at the batsmen after bowling the ball, attempting to throw the ball right back at the batsman when he hits it to you, the sledging that made Australians cringe and the eccentric, eccentric celebrations - all of that I've watched time and time again. Now these memories make me sad and make me want to forget them. Forget them so that you never happened.

I even had an opportunity to meet you once, face to face. In was sometime in September, 2010 and for a cricket fan like me, meeting someone like you who has represented India was everything. I'm sure you don't remember the incident but you talked to me for some 10 minutes and I remember walking away thinking that you were one of the nicest people I've met. You probably are. You even patiently posed for photos and signed in my cricket autograph book - 'keep smiling, Sreesanth'. I'm not smiling now.

I have that photo and the autograph. It was something I treasured. Not anymore.

When the spot-fixing story broke out, I wasn't surprised or shocked by it. Unfortunately that tells the current state of affairs of the game. But when I did see your name on the news, I was surprised. How can someone who has it all, someone who has experienced what millions in this country only dream about, someone whose job is what a billion hearts beat for do something so corrupt and vile? Greed is a big trap, and anybody can fall in it, but you were supposed to know better! Supposed to be better!

What you did was stupid. Idiotic. Ludicrous. And hopefully you realize that. Realize that by selling your integrity for a few lakhs as Judas sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, you've lost everything you had. Honor, respect, love and your dreams. Maybe you'll repent one day. But the game of cricket will never forgive you, and neither will I.

For everytimeI look back at the photo, or my autograph book (which incidentally has your signature next to the likes of Anil Kumble and Rahul Dravid), I'll feel the emotion of shame. And the next time I remember any one of your memories, it'd be with disappointment.

I don't wish to hear your name anymore, but alas I will. And I can only pray that there are no more sinister men like you who would sell their very soul for money.

You may wonder who I am writing all this. My name is irrelevant. But what I am is relevant. I am the person, you let down. An Indian fan and a follower of the gentleman's game called cricket.

Yours sincerely,
a follower of the gentleman's game called Cricket

Sunlight is the best disinfectant

2013-05-16T17:37:00.001+05:30

Sreesanth - one of the three caught for spot-fixing

"It's a dark day for cricket" has become a cliched phrase in the past few years with numerous match fixing allegations surfacing all over the world. About the same time last year, the Indian Premier League was shook by those allegations when India TV had carried out a sting operation that shed light to a few players being found guilty of spot-fixing. The same ghost has revisited the IPL a year later, as Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila have all been arrested earlier today by the Delhi Police on counts of spot-fixing and corruption. What makes this even worse is that Sreesanth is an international cricket who has represented India in tests and one can't help but use the cliched phrase - "It's a dark day for cricket" to describe this.

Plenty has occurred in the last 24 hours, with arrests made, emergency meetings convened, suspensions handed out, allegations of conspiracy thrown around, rumors flying everywhere, and shock, disgust and even some support pouring in. The crux of the story is that three Rajasthan Royals players - namely, Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila were all apprehended by the Delhi Police who have them in their custody. The three are alleged to have spot-fixed in this edition of the IPL, and the Delhi Police have said that they have enough evidences to prosecute the trio.

This is all shocking and the menace of fixing seems to be something embedded in our very culture of humanity. The three accused are of course innocent until proven guilty, but what these allegations have done is tarnished not only their names, their team's name, but also the Indian Premier League and the game of cricket itself. The three have shown that there are always those whose integrity is up for sale for the right amount and that the guardians of the game - BCCI must be vigilant. Even this incident wasn't brought forth by the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) of the International Cricket Council, or the BCCI or IPL, but by the Delhi Police who chanced upon it while investigating the Mumbai underworld connections and throws open the question - yet again - just how effective the measures to tackle such corruption are.

"One or two bad eggs cannot sully the game." - N. Srinivasan

However the way the BCCI and the Delhi Police have acted and reacted to this has been more than commendable. Often BCCI is criticized (and not without cause many times), but on days like today, the board has acted thoroughly professional in its handling of the case and must be commended. The quick emergency Governing Council meeting that suspended the players pending inquiry not only sent out a strong message that BCCI were serious about this but also that they were willing to take stringent actions if needed.

BCCI President N. Srinivasan has found himself more often than not portrayed as the tyrannical villain of Indian cricket, but today as the head of one the game's biggest governing body, he emerged as a leader who clearly wanted to tackle the problem head on as he addressed the public via a video-conference. He stated the situation and mentioned the steps that BCCI have taken and the process that they would follow in the future while extending support to all agencies related to the investigation.

"We have an anti-corruption code, anti-doping code. We have advised state units to take steps. But you see the people involved, they are Ranji players and one is a Test player that is what is shocking. We acted the moment we got information the Delhi police had arrested the three players. Apparently an FIR [first information report] has been filed but we haven't seen it. We have extended all co-operation to police and other agencies if they want any information from us.

"As far as these three cricketers are concerned, keeping in mind natural justice has to be preserved, we will take action as per our rules and procedures. As for other cricketers we have no information from the police. If information comes to the BCCI, we will act immediately.

"I am also equally sad, as all my colleagues are in the BCCI, that a player who played Tests for India is involved. But that does mean that the entire game is corrupt. I do not agree at all. I do not agree the IPL cannot continue. We will take all steps to root out this kind of corruption. To make a sweeping statement the IPL is untenable, I do not agree.

"We thought when we made an example last year that the message was clear and people would not indulge in such things. It is truly sad. We will take whatever steps necessary for people to understand this is a serious matter and they can get into trouble."

For a board that is generally known not to be open about its operations, it was wonderful to see the President come out and openly express his shock and displeasure and promise that the matter would be dealt with taking 'whatever steps necessary.'

The Delhi Police also acted in an unprecedented manner as Neeraj Kumar, the Delhi Police commissioner openly presented the case, the video evidence and the modus operandi of the entire operation. In a country where law enforcement generally works well behind the day light and evidences are presented only to the magistrates and judges, it was a revelation to see the Delhi Police taking such proactive steps. This case is a first in Indian history as an active Indian cricketer will be prosecuted for the first time.

So far BCCI and Delhi Police have done a commendable job and hopefully the actions and words aren't an eye wash, but rather the initial step in an effort to truly fight this menace and bring to justice the corrupt. While the remedy to stop fixing might not be simple, making an example of these three if found guilty would be a step in the right direction. Hopefully unlike the ICC which handed lenient bans to Asif, Amir and Butt, the BCCI can go better and hand a ban for life. As Dale Steyn tweet to Harsh Bhogle says spot-fixing is just as harmful as fixing and must be dealt harshly. And hopefully the BCCI does just that for the sake of the fans, future players and most of all the game itself.

The former Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in USA, Louis Brandeis once said that "sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants," and despite today being a dark day for cricket, some sunlight has been shed. Bringing corruption to light is the only way to disinfect it and today is just the start.

Prize for TWP Fantasy League Competition

2013-05-15T14:02:00.001+05:30

In collaboration with Cuponation, we'd like to announce the grand prize for the winner of the The Wicket Post Fantasy League Contest: IPL 2013. The winner gets the autobiography of one of India's greatest all-rounders in the last decade - Yuvraj Singh.

You can still join the league (8107) if you're not already in it.

In India every 7 out of 10 youngsters are drug addicts. Hence, Cuponation - India’s only couponing site to create awareness and promote a healthy lifestyle among youngsters and battle drugs in sports have launched a campaign - 'Get High on Sports, Not on Drugs'.

The fitness campaign “Get high on Sports, Not on Drugs” has taken some of the most prominent faces from the sports industry like Atul Wassan, Shiba Maggon, Sushil Kumar and Gagan Narang on board to urge youngsters to focus and live a fit life rather than becoming a drug addict.

You can find more about the campaign and Cuponation's sports deals here.They are also giving away a mountain bike this summer. Go ahead and like their Facebook page.

Sir Ravindra Jadeja facts

2013-04-11T00:09:00.002+05:30

The world has finally come to realize the full potential and awesomeness of Sir Ravindra Jadeja, that yesterday even Indian captain, MS Dhoni joined the banter on twitter tweeting a list of Sir Ravindra Jadeja facts.

Wen sir jadeja drives his jeep, his jeep remains still and road moves and wen he goes in to bat the pavillion moves to the wkt
— Mahendra Singh Dhoni (@msdhoni) April 9, 2013

Sir jadeja doesn't run to take the catch but the ball finds him and lands on his hand
— Mahendra Singh Dhoni (@msdhoni) April 9, 2013

Sir jadeja once wanted to make a silt mountain to play as a kid now v all call it mt. Everest
— Mahendra Singh Dhoni (@msdhoni) April 9, 2013

Whenever sir jadeja makes an error its an invention and on a daily basis v get plenty of those,all patent pending
— Mahendra Singh Dhoni (@msdhoni) April 9, 2013

Leaving for practice at 3pm but the stadium is coming so tht sir jadeja can practice
— Mahendra Singh Dhoni (@msdhoni) April 9, 2013

God realised RAJNI sir is getting old so he created sir ravindra jadeja
— Mahendra Singh Dhoni (@msdhoni) April 9, 2013

The IPL Carnival returns!

2013-04-03T16:23:00.000+05:30

IPL season 6 begins today and in the next 52 days, 76 matches will be played between 9 teams for one coveted trophy!

What does that mean? It means cheerleaders dancing, some explosive T20 cricket, and 52 days of nonstop partying!

The Indian summers are a harsh season but I certainly do love it because it is the season when the carnival comes back into town! It's the seasons in the sun!

The season when the sun is up, pretty girls are everywhere and cricket is played nonstop! God, I love Indian summers! #IPL
— Poshin David (@poshin_david) April 3, 2013

The Wicket Post is running a fantasy league contest this IPL, so if you're not in it already, here's your chance to join. Find all the details by clicking here.

Also check out the latest Wisden Extra on all things IPL 2013.

Chris Martin scores a century and other April first headlines

2013-04-01T14:19:00.002+05:30

Martin plays a shot

So today is April first and that means plenty of faking news and pranks are all over the internet. I'm not going to write a fake report here, but instead I'm going to take a look at some of the best headlines on April fool's day and a small snippet of the news.

Chris Martin scores a century - The Kiwi bowler who struggles to even hold a bat has managed to score a brilliant century today for New Zealand in what must be one of the greatest rear guard action in cricketing history. Batting at 11, he took New Zealand from 82 for 9 to a respectable 214 at stumps as he remained not out on 103. What makes the feat even more outstanding is that New Zealand don't even have a match today!

Shane Lee included in Australian Ashes squad - Shane Lee, the former Australian all-rounder has been included in the Australian squad for the Ashes in an effort to bolster the weak Australian team that was given a 4-0 lashing by India recently. Shane Warne commented that it was a regressive move by the selectors and if they needed help, they should have asked him. Mike Hussey is rumored to be contacted by the selection panel as well.

Sourav Ganguly is appointed as India's batting coach - Former Indian captain, Sourav Ganguly has been named as the new batting coach for the Indian team. Sunil Gavaskar said that the move is a positive one and that the young Indian team can learn from Ganguly. Ganguly who was known for playing the bouncers and short pitched deliveries would be vital in India's upcoming tour of South Africa.

"IPL gets boring after a while", says MS Dhoni - Indian captain and Chennai Super Kings captain said that the Indian Premier League isn't all it's hyped to be and that it gets boring after a while. He also said that he didn't think that Chennai were favorites this season and would be lucky reach the semis.

Stats reveal Stuart Broad better than Steyn - Statistics reveal that England's T20 captain and fast bowler Stuart Broad is a better bowler than South Africa's Dale Steyn raising questions over the ICC Bowlers Ranking system. Dennis Lillee agrees and said, "I always knew Broad was the better bowler. Steyn is just grossly over-rated."

Sachin Tendulkar retires - Sachin Tendulkar, considered by many as the greatest player the game has seen announced his retirement from all forms of cricket today from his residence in Mumbai. Rohit Sharma vows to fill in Tendulkar's shoes. Speculations are rife that sharing a dressing room with Rohit Sharma was the cause of Sachin's early call to retire. Sources close to the team tell that 'Sachin felt undervalued and didn't like living in Rohit's shadow.'

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Thoughts and prayers with Jesse Ryder

2013-03-28T14:12:00.003+05:30

The sporting world is in shock following news that Jesse Ryder is in an intensive care unit with a fractured skull after being assaulted near a bar.

Such terrible news and a tragedy. Thinking of Ryder, one is reminded of the late David Hookes of Australia. Hope that Ryder's story doesn't end the same way as Hookes' did.

Hookes' Wisden obituary says, "Natural, aggressive and irrepressible, " and watching Ryder bat one thought the very same. He was always a treat to watch when batting and I still remember his double century against India in 2009 at Napier where he smashed the bowlers to all parts of the ground.

Wish the big guy a speedy recovery.

The Wicket Post Fantasy League Contest: IPL 2013

2013-03-25T11:32:00.001+05:30

In just nine days time, the sun will start shining a little more bright, birds will chirp in the air, scantily clad girls will start dancing, and the cricket carnival (or mayhem as some call it), IPL returns! Like last year The Wicket Post is going to host a fantasy league contest and here's proudly presenting just that!

It's time put on your thinking hats and become the selector! Time to show off your cricketing gyan and your tryst with lady luck as you try to find that dream IPL team combination to top the 'The Wicket Post League'!!! So what are you waiting for? Go ahead and join the The Wicket Post. League!

The League Invitation Code is 8107.

Here's how to join the The Wicket Post League in 3 easy steps.

1.) Head over to IPL Fantasy League, (https://fantasy.iplt20.com/) and register yourself. You can log in using your Facebook account. If you have an existing account, you can use that and all you need to do is log in.
2.) Create your fantasy team.
3.) Click on the 'Join Leagues' button on the right.
4.) Enter the invitation code (8107) and you're in!

OR you can drop your mail ID in the comment column below and I'll email you the invite.

The scores will be updated weekly (every Sunday) on The Wicket Post.

If you have any problems you can always contact me at christopher[at]thewicketpost[dot]com. For any questions on how this fantasy league works, head over to the FAQ. Don't forget to tell your friends and spread the word.

You can catch all the IPL action right here at The Wicket Post.

T&C - *All decisions are final, and The Wicket Post holds all rights to withdraw any team or the competition itself. * Prizes are at the sole discretion of The Wicket Post. * All teams finishing above 20 in the league will get a honorable mention in the blog. * All rules can be changed at the discretion of The Wicket Post.

Is this Sachin Tendulkar's last test match for India?

2013-03-22T11:22:00.000+05:30

Imagine a world without Sachin Tendulkar. Seems almost impossible, doesn't it? Who else will fill in the legendary number 4 position of the Indian team if Tendulkar leaves? For over two decades, he has made that spot his own, carved his name in bold, and etched it in time. However one day it would be just his name there and not Sachin Tendulkar the five feet 4 inches of human flesh. And when is such a day that Tendulkar should leave the game?

He has already bid adieu to ODIs and T20Is and now it's just a matter of time before he says goodbye to tests and international cricket. But just how soon is it?

Now Tendulkar is a legend of the game without a doubt and surely would love to leave on a high. His ODI farewell wasn't exactly that and hence he would wish his final farewell from international cricket to be special. Now with India standing at the threshold of a historical 4-0 whitewash of the Australians at home, has that time come?

Tendulkar is the last remaining man from his era. The Dravids, the Kumbles, the Gangulys, the Laxmans – all who made their debut years after Tendulkar have moved on. Tendulkar is 40, and not getting any younger and as much as he would love to continue playing and fans continue watching him play, he eventually does have to draw a curtain on his illustrious career.

Tendulkar's retirement is sure to send shock-waves throughout the sporting fraternity and hence he would probably announce it near the end of the series and bow out discreetly as Michael Hussey did for Australia. Since it is Tendulkar, it won't be all that simple. However the stage is set for that.

Tendulkar can stay on for the South Africa tour and provide the much needed experience in the Indian middle order, or he can give up his place for a youngster to be blooded in one of the most difficult conditions for an Indian batsman. The transition phase of the Indian team has been rocky and turbulent, but there are young guns more than capable of taking the team forward and has the time come for Tendulkar to pass on his responsibilities?

He is currently on 198 tests and might want to reach that landmark 200, and maybe this series is not his last. Whatever the case, with the next home series in October 2014, surely this test is Sachin Tendulkar's last test match at home if not his final one for India.

Now a few years ago the thought of Tendulkar's retirement would have been impossible to imagine, but now with great difficulty some of us can indeed imagine it. Imagine it with great pain, loss and pride. And that imagined world after Sachin Tendulkar may come in just a few days time.

How not to field [Video]

2013-03-21T06:02:00.000+05:30

This is definitely not this

I don't know much about Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) other than that second grade actors from India participate in it watched and cheered by their heroines on screen and their respective fan clubs.

CCL is non-professional and though I've still haven't watched a single match of the CCL, I've been informed by friends who follow it that it indeed has some decent quality of cricket which considering the fact that most of these film stars who play in it played for their high school and college teams, it makes sense. But after watching the following video I'm doubting my friend's judgement.

Here's presenting to you 'How not to field',

The fielding team was Telugu Warriors and the lucky batting team was the Chennai Rhinos.

Australian Performance Analysis, India vs Australia, Mohali, 2013

2013-03-20T19:34:00.000+05:30

Clarke looks dejected as Australia lose the series

Another test match lost for Australia, and this time with it the series. The last month has been one of disaster both on and of the field for the Australian team and Mohali only further blackened it. The defeat at Mohali was comprehensive considering that India won in just 4 days, after the first day was washed away and also added to that is the fact that Australia had won the toss. Australia fielded a depleted side after homeworkgate and the depleted side held consistent with the results of the previous two tests. There's not many positives from the match and Australia would well try to forget it as they head to Delhi and try to salvage some pride.

Australian Player Performance Analysis - read as name: TWP performance score (1st innings; 2nd innings) (DND = did not bat, * = not out, pass = 4/10)

Ed Cowan: 6/10 - (86 runs; 8 runs)
Ed Cowan looked well in the first innings and put Australia on track with a solid start. It was a shame that the Australian team failed to capitalize on it, but nevertheless as an opening batsmen, he did his job and seemed to have finally got accustomed to the Indian conditions.

David Warner: 6/10 - (71 runs; 2 runs)
Warner with Cowan put Australia on a winning track on day one but that was soon wasted. He however in his usual aggressive best put the Indian bowlers under immense pressure and for once it was an Australian batsman dominating the spinners. His run out of Tendulkar gave India some anxious moments. His first innings knock was a treat to watch and come Delhi, Australia would be expecting him to fire again.

Michael Clarke: 1/10 - (0 run; 18 runs)
Clarke promoted himself to first drop in the first innings and I thought that this move was a very good move. However it wasn't one that paid off as he was out for duck. In the second innings braving an injured back he did his best to take Australia to safety but his tormentor in the series Jadeja got him yet again. This series has surely been Clarke's biggest challenge so far as a captain and though at times he's looked dejected and bemused, he has carried himself well.

Phil Hughes: 5/10 - (2 runs; 69 runs)

Hughes who had scored 23 runs in the series before this match, finally decided to show the world that he indeed can bat and in the second innings played a classy innings and prolonged the match. He was unlucky to be given out and must be ruing that. However he did show that he can bat against the spinners and repaid some of the trust the team management had placed on him and surely that's one of the few positives that Australia can take from this match.

Steven Smith: 7/10 - (92 runs & 1 wicket; 5 runs)

Steven Smith was one of Australia's saving grace in the match. He held the team during the first innings collapse and played a dashing innings of 92. He sure can bat and he showed that, taking it straight to the Indian spinners. His bowling however leaves plenty to be desired, and though his leg-spin did bag the Tendulkar wicket, it came at a cost of over 6 runs an over.

Matthew Wade: 3/10 - (21 runs; 30 runs)
Matthew Wade finally seemed to have understood the Indian conditions and looked much better both in front and behind the wicket. He would be mighty disappointed that he got out twice after getting starts but he did show some improvement and that's something positive.

Moises Henriques: 2/10 - (0 run & 1 wicket; 2 runs)
Henriques after that dream debut at Chennai seems to have tapered off. With the bat, he hardly troubled the scorers. He was no better with the ball though he did manage to pick up the wicket of a Indian tail end. Australia desperately needs its players to perform and Henriques would be hoping to set right Mohali at Delhi.

Starc - Australia's best batsman at Mohali

Mitchell Starc: 8/10 - (99 runs & 2 wicket; 35 runs)

Starc was Australia's best man and deserves every bit of credit. His attacking innings of 99 which is also incidentally his highest score in test was a knock that even a top order batsman would have been proud of. He was unlucky to not get a hundred which he very well deserved. However the importance of that innings cannot be underwhelmed and put Australia in the match. Likewise his knock in the second innings gave Australia a fighting chance to save the match. Maybe a few minutes more and who knows? His bowling struggled but he did end up with 2 wickets and enhanced his name as a lower order batsman.

Peter Siddle: 6/10 - (0 runs & 5 wickets; 13 runs & 1 wicket)

Siddle in the absence of Pattinson took over as the spearhead and bowled brilliantly throughout the test. If there was one bowler that the Indian batsmen didn't like facing, it was Siddle. His spell with the new ball turned the match on it's head and India who till then were cruising suddenly collapsed. He received very little support from others but on a personal front, he sure would be pleased by his performance.

Xavier Doherty: 2/10 - (5 runs & 18* runs & 1 wicket)

I have no idea how anyone considers Doherty as a spinner. He's one of those players who gets selected to make up 11 players in the team I suppose. The Indian batsmen however were somehow tested by him at times and he did bowl a decent line keeping his end tight, but is that enough at the test level?

Nathan Lyon: 3/10 - (9* runs & 1 wicket; 18 runs & 1 wicket)

Lyon looked more impressive than he did in his previous two matches and picked up two Indian batsmen. Australia have yet to find a replacement for Warne and they lack spinners of quality such as Hogg, but Lyon is the best that they have currently and even he is not good enough.

Overall team Australia's average - 4.5/10

Australia have plenty of problems with both their batting and bowling units but they are slowly adapting to the Indian conditions. It's a little too late, but their team averages are improving and compared to Chennai, they've managed to add one entire point to it. Will they be able to a point on the scoreline and make it 3-1 and salvage some pride at Delhi? That remains to be seen.

You can find the Indian analysis of the Mohali test here.

Check out the mini-session analysis of the match here.

Indian Performance Analysis, India vs Australia, Mohali, 2013

2013-03-19T12:25:00.000+05:30

The deed is done - India take an unassailable lead

The first day of the match might have been washed out due to rain, but that didn't matter much as India once again got the better of Australia and managed to win the test in the final few minutes of fifth day to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series [SCORECARD]. Australia deeply missed their stars who were dropped for the match for failing to follow team orders, and India made merry of that and the Australian batsmen's weakness against spin bowling. The Indian batting found a new hero in Shikhar Dhawan who went on to score the highest by an Indian on debut and set up India's win. It's not often a team which has lost the toss in a four day match that ends up as the winner and the fact that India did, tells you just how incredibly well they performed. India had plenty of memorable moments and here's a look at how each player in the team performed.

Indian Player Performance Analysis - read as name: TWP performance score (1st innings; 2nd innings) (DND = did not bat, * = not out, pass = 4/10)

Murali Vijay: 10/10 - (153 runs; 26 runs)
Murali Vijay brought up back to back scores of 150 plus. At Hyderabad Vijay played a stunning knock of 167, and at Mohali he scored 153 in the first innings and was involved in a massive 289 run partnership for the first wicket with Shikar Dhawan that set up the platform beautifully for India. Vijay played the second fiddle to Dhawan and was more than content in that role. He showed a composed and mature head and from his performance with the bat in the last two tests, it looks like Vijay has finally made the big leap to test level.

Shikhar Dhawan: 10/10 - (187 runs; DNB)
Sehwag was controversially shown the door, but no one seemed to miss the aggressive opener as his replacement played an innings that even Sehwag would have been incredibly proud of. Like Sehwag who made scored a century on his test debut, Dhawan did the same. However he went a few steps ahead and converted that century into a big one and in the process scored the highest on debut. Dhawan brought up his century in a single session and his entire knock took just 10 minutes over 4 hours. He faced only 174 deliveries for his 187 and at a strike rate of over hundred, he sent the Aussie fielders continuously towards the boundary to fetch back the ball. It was a brave innings and one played without any fear. Dhawan simply didn't show nerves or any anxiousness of this being his first test for India. He was right at home from the word go and go he did. It looks like he might miss the next test due to fitness issues, and if that happens, it'd be a huge blow for both Dhawan and India.

Cheteshwar Pujara: 4/10 - (1 run; 28 runs)

Pujara was unfortunately given out in the first innings courtesy of a blunder by Aleem Dar. Pujara looked good in the second innings, opening the innings for India. He was rock solid and played his shots to the loose balls send it scampering to the boundary till he played one shot across the line and got rapped plumb in front.

Sachin Tendulkar: 5/10 - (37 runs; 21 runs)

Sachin Tendulkar was at his brilliant self in both innings and played some breath taking strokes. Considering that it was such a pity he left so early in both innings, specially in the second when he could have seen the team home. Many wondered why he didn't come at first drop in the second innings as Dhawan wasn't to bat and I suppose it was just superstitious decision. Whatever it was, another Indian win with the master in the team. Also watching him bowl those couple of overs, it looks like his leggies are still very much alive!

Virat Kohli: 7/10 - (67* runs; 34 runs)

Kohli was quite unlucky in the first innings to be left stranded as the last man. His innings of 67 not out was vital considering that India were about to throw away the good work done by the openers by collapsing. Kohli held the innings together and got the vital first innings lead which played a huge role in the decision of the game. In the second innings he looked like he would see the team home, but that wasn't to be and he'd be mighty disappointed with that.

MS Dhoni: 5/10 - (4 runs; 18* runs)

Dhoni's name must be synonymous with drama. He did see India home smashing three consecutive boundaries in the dying stage of the match, but that was well after he let an easy victory drag till the very end. However it was great entertainment and captain cool seemed to have the situation well under control, and he certainly did.

Jadeja - the wonder boy of India

Ravindra Jadeja: 7/10 - (8 runs & 3 wickets; 8* runs & 3 wickets)

Ravindra Jadeja continued to torment the Aussie skipper, Michael Clarke and he got him both times in the test taking the tally to 5 out of 6 times. He picked up 6 wickets in the match and was largely instrumental in India's win. He's been a revelation! Playing just 4 tests, he already has 20 wickets to his name! I'm sure no one expected that. Not even his own mother! It's a treat watching Jadeja bowl and now if only his batting too becomes exemplary like his bowling.

Ravichandran Ashwin: 6/10 - (4 runs & 2 wickets; DNB & 2 wickets)

Ashwin wasn't all that effective, but nevertheless he did end up with 4 wickets and kept the Aussie batsmen under constant pressure. There's still certain elements of Ashwin's bowling that can be improved. His carom ball was right on the money in this test and that is one lethal weapon on tracks with a little bounce.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar: 5/10 - (18 runs; DNB & 3 wickets)

Bhuvneshwar Kumar set the match up for India at Hyderabad with quick early strikes on day one at Hyderabad and at Mohali those strikes came in the final session of Day four when he picked up three wickets. Kumar is a very good bowler who bowls within his limitations but he's not very consistent and as shown in the first innings can leak runs at an alarming rate.

Ishant Sharma: 5/10 - (0 runs & 3 wickets; DNB)
Ishant Sharma finally came good and in the first innings bowled his heart out and the 3 wickets shows his reward. Sharma playing in his 50th test, one must wonder whether he really has been that good a bowler or does India go to him as there is no other alternative?

Pragyan Ojha: 5.5/10 - (1 runs & 2 wickets; DNB & 2 wickets)
Harbhajan Singh was made to miss his home test and Ojha came in. Ojha's performance didn't set the world on fire but he did fulfill his role picking up 4 wickets in the match. Ojha was certainly very unlucky to be left out for the first two tests considering his recent performances and it will be interesting to see if it is whether Harbhajan or Ojha who gets the nod at Delhi.

Overall team India's average - 6.3/10

India's overall team average at 6.3 is the best so far in the three tests. They scored 5.4 at Hyderabad and 5.6 at Chennai and this huge difference tells just how incredibly well they performed at Mohali despite losing the toss and a day to rain. The Australian team being depleted also helped the cause. As the team heads to Delhi with an unassailable lead, it looks like 4-0 is well and truly on the cards.

Check out the mini-session analysis of the match here.

Does Fletcher's mediocre record justify extension as coach?

2013-03-16T00:26:00.001+05:30

Fletcher lucky to get an extension on his contract

The big news today in Indian cricket is that Duncan Fletcher has been handed another year as the coach of the Indian team. His two year contract signed in 2011, following India's World Cup victory is about to expire and the BCCI's move to rename Fletcher has caught almost everyone by surprise.

Looking at the numbers, under Duncan Fletcher India hasn't fared too poorly as the popular thought goes. Maybe India haven't done as well they would have liked, and the Fletcher's record isn't as good as his former, Gary Kirsten's, but he has held his own.

	Played	Won	Lost	Tie	Draw	N/R	Win percent.
Tests	23	8	10	0	2	0	34.78
ODIs	44	25	16	2	0	1	56.81
T20Is	17	9	8	0	0	0	52.94

However what the numbers fail to mention that is that most of that success has been largely due to India's dominance at home. India at home won over 60% of their games while on tours struggled to win half of that stat. And here is where Kirsten did better than Fletcher.

	Played	Won	Lost	Tie	Draw	N/R	Win percent.
Home	36	22	11	0	2	0	61.11
Away	37	12	21	1	2	1	32.43
Neutral	11	8	2	1	0	0	72.72

While even these numbers don't show Fletcher in all that bad light considering the factors that India generally haven't been very good visitors. Probably no team apart from South Africa has had success on away tours in the last 2 years. Also India during the time lost many of its legendary stars and the team has undergone and still is very much in a transitional phase.

Here's all the series India played under Fletcher,

Series/ Opposition	Format	Result
Tour of West Indies – 2011	T20I	Won (1-0)
	ODI	Won (3-2)
	Test	Won (1-0)
Tour of England – 2011	Test	Lost (0-4)
	T20I	Lost (0-1)
	ODI	Lost (0-3)
England in India	ODI	Won (5-0)
	T20I	Lost (0-1)
West Indies in India	Test	Won (2-0)
	ODI	Won (4-1)
Tour of Australia - 2012	Test	Lost (0-4)
	T20	Draw (1-1)
Tri-series with Aus & SL (Aus)	ODI	Knocked out before finals
Asia Cup	ODI	Knocked out before finals
Tour of South Africa	T20I	Lost (0-1)
Tour of Sri Lanka	ODI	Won (4-1)
	T20I	Won (1-0)
New Zealand in India	Test	Won (2-0)
	T20I	Lost (0-1)
T20 World Cup (Sri Lanka)	T20I	Knocked out before SF
England in India – 2012/13	Test	Lost (1-2)
	T20I	Draw (1-1)
Pakistan in India	T20I	Draw (1-1)
	ODI	Lost (2-1)
England in India - 2013	ODI	Won (3-2)
Australia in India*	Test	Leading (2-0)

* Ongoing series

I've marked all the aberrational series result in red and there are quite a few of them. India under Fletcher have failed in every major tournament and also in tests when up against the better teams such as England, and Australia. India's only test series victories are against West Indies and New Zealand - two teams who are clearly not the top 5 test playing nations and that's the only honor Fletcher has, and this is the worry. Fletcher's numbers while they may look good on the outside, contains plenty of red marks and I feel hasn't been a successful coach for India. So should his contract have been renewed?

I feel India should have looked elsewhere. It's good to have continuity specially when the team is going through a transition phase, but does that mean one sticks with a coach who has so far put up only mediocre results? Sports is all about cut throat competition and there's no place for mediocrity.

Aakash Chopra best summed it up saying,

"So all assumptions about Fletcher were grossly misplaced. He’s indeed contributed to this team’s performances. How do you judge a coach? By team performances and player development. Fletcher hasn’t impressed on both counts."

So the question now is, why is BCCI sticking with a coach who simply hasn't impressed? Guess that's not a question that's going to be answered. Bishan Singh Bedi on the topic said, "It’s their (BCCI’s) money, if they want to blow it, let them." And that is exactly what the board is doing much to the displeasure of fans.

It's a BCCI conspiracy says Pattinson after being dropped

2013-03-11T20:20:00.000+05:30

It's a BCCI conspiracy alleges Pattinson

The big uproar in the cricketing world has been the dropping of four Australian players (Shane Watson, James Pattinson, Mitchell Johnson and Usman Khawaja) for ignoring team orders. What were these all important team orders that they ignored? The four players failed to complete a team assignment assigned by their coach Mickey Arthur. The assignment asked the players to mention three points on how to improve their individual and team performances following the two disaster tests in India. The entire team failing the four completed the task and for that they've been shown the door.

So what have Australia done in the process? They have just denied themselves their vice-captain, two most experienced players in Indian conditions, their most successful bowler in the series so far, and a talented young player who was rumored to play at Mohali. In other words, trailing the series 2-0, the team management has managed to weaken itself.

The world of cricket reacted sharply at the over-reaction for such a small offense and here are just some of the voices over the issue.

"I'm stunned. I've never heard of this sort of thing before at top level in any sport. When you are losing there are niggling things there but they're grown men, it's not school boy stuff. It's not under-6s, this is Test cricket… there would have been a better way." - Mark Waugh

"Financially cricket is great these days, but I'm glad I played when it was enjoyable and cricket was all that mattered - wickets and runs." - Darren Gough

"From my experience report writing is not a player's strength, no surprise to hear some failing, need to focus more on field short comings?" - Tom Moody

"Adults we are, not schoolboys! Please let's act properly and make good decisions in India! Need these boys playing." - Darren Lehmann

Mitchell Johnson and Usman Khawaja, shocked told that they possibly couldn't do a presentation on how to improve their performances as they weren't playing in the first two tests. Shane Watson is said to be over-reacting to the over-reaction and considering his future, while Pattinson is nowhere to be seen. Sources close to him claim that he considers this to be a BCCI conspiracy.

Phil Hughes' homework. (click to enlarge)

Phil Hughes has come out and said that he sees this as a very big deal and that the right perpetrators of the crime have been nabbed. He also said that maybe the other four should have done what he did and copy a template and change the background color and submit it. "The homework took less than 5 minutes," he was quoted as saying, "I don't see why anyone couldn't have done it. I mean it took about the same time as one of my innings."

Watson's reacts seeing his disappointed parents.

Shane Warne has alleged this is just another huge mess with the Australian coach. "Why do we pick such whack jobs to be our coaches? First Buchanan, and now this? What Australia needs is direction." He also added that he was up for the job if an opening should occur.

In other news, Watson who failed to turn in his homework, today was most viciously told by Arthur today that he will not play in next test. He broke down in tears and his parents were telephoned. He returned to Australia to meet his parent's wrath and is now said to be taken to task for his behavior. His mother briefly said that she was very disappointed in Watson and that he always did his homework in school. "I'll have to talk to him and figure this out," she said.

-----

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Ravindra Jadeja's ball of the century!

2013-03-09T14:01:00.000+05:30

Sir Ravindra Jadeja, has played just three tests and has already made himself a super star. The 24 year old lad from Saurashtra is being hailed as the next big thing of Indian cricket and the media claim that he is here to stay!

In the Hyderabad test, Jadeja bowled an absolute beauty to Michael Clarke in the second innings and Sunny Gavaskar termed it the 'ball of the century'. The media has gone crazy over it and has been debating for the past few days whether Ravindra Jadeja really bowl the 'ball of the century'. Shane Warne is aghast at learning this and refused to appear on TV to even talk about the delivery. Ashley Giles meanwhile politely declined saying that he was sick to comment on it. So did Jadeja bowl the ball of the century? I'll let you be the judge of that.

In other news Lance Armstrong has named that Jadeja took performance enhancing drugs along with him and that is what gives him such incredible abilities to bowl such magical deliveries. He said, "how can someone so absolutely rubbish, be so great all the sudden? Just a few months ago he bowled the worst delivery in the history of cricket and now he does this (bowl the ball of the century)? Unacceptable. I'm sure Oprah would like to speak to Jadeja over this."

Here's Jadeja against England in December bowling what surely must be one of the worst deliveries in cricket. So did Jadeja take performance enhancing drugs as Armstrong says? Do we believe Armstrong's words? The BCCI President, N. Srinivasan has ordered an inquiry into the matter, after the IPL. He said that the inquiry had to wait as Jadeja was integral to CSK's plans for the upcoming IPL.

Also in the news, Ajay Jadeja has come out and said that Ravindra Jadeja is the younger brother he never had.

Indian Performance Analysis - India vs Australia, Hyderabad, 2013

2013-03-05T21:05:00.000+05:30

Che Pujara - the man India trusts

The story at Hyderabad was similar to the one at Chennai as the Australian batsmen once again capitulated against the Indian spinners, not just once but in both innings making it possible that the game was all over with still five sessions left [SCORECARD]. India won the match by a whopping innings and 135 runs (which is more than what Australia managed to score in its second innings) and things look bleak for the visitors as they now trail the series 2-0. For India it was putting on yet another grand show, and its bowling and batting both managed to do that. The three Indian spinners in Ashwin, Harbhajan and Jadeja worked well in tandem and Bhuveneshwar Kumar on day one bowled beautifully swinging the ball. The batting crashed in and managed to put on a huge 503 runs in the first innings thanks largely to the contributions of Vijay and Pujara who together were involved in a 270 partnership for the second wicket. Here's the analysis of the Indian performance.

Indian Player Performance Analysis - read as name: TWP performance score (1st innings; 2nd innings) (DND = did not bat, * = not out, pass = 4/10)

Murali Vijay: 10/10 - (167 runs; DNB)
In the previous analysis of India at Chennai, I had written - "...Vijay had a brilliant domestic season and much was expected from his playing at home, but I was skeptical (of his selection). He failed in both innings and though he is technically sound, I'm not entirely convinced that he's test material just yet." And wasn't I given a right treatment by Vijay for that skepticism! Vijay showed tremendous commitment and dedication in that knock where he batted for 473 minutes. He took his time to settle down and played the game at his own pace, and boy did he play! Vijay is one of those classy batsmen whose flicks and drives look so very elegant and also thanks to the IPL has another dimension where he can at will send the ball roaring over the fences and his 167 saw a mixture of that which was truly an astonishing sight for both the fans and viewers and also the Australian players who must have been a little confused. Vijay still has long way to go and this is just the first big step in the right direction.

Virender Sehwag: 1/10 - (6 runs; DNB)
Sehwag the destructive batsman was missing at Chennai. And he was also missing at Hyderabad and now there are talks of his axing for the next two tests. Sehwag has been going through a slump in form and it is a worrying sight when one of the world's most destructive batsmen and one of your experienced campaigners doesn't perform. The Indian selectors have a big problem in the hand and it will be interesting to see if they do the same justice to Sehwag as they did to Gautuam Gambhir.

Cheteshwar Pujara: 10/10 - (204 runs; DNB)

Wish there was someway I can break the scale and give Pujara a score of more than just 10. He was breathtakingly stunning at Hyderabad and played one of his greatest knocks in his short career so far. Perhaps his best. He was in an attacking mode all through the innings and put the sword to the Australian bowlers. What was even more amazing about the knock is that after tea on Day 2, Pujara was cramping and could hardly run, and braving the pain and often holding onto his thighs, he batted on putting up a magnificent platform with Vijay for India. At the presentation ceremony, Pujara after winning the Man of the Match award said, ‎"There was a bit of pressure on me. I just got married, and my wife was worried how I would perform." Well if he is as good at other things as he is with the bat, then his wife need not worry.

Sachin Tendulkar: 1/10 - (7 runs; DNB)

Sachin Tendulkar did not trouble the scorers much at Hyderabad, but he certainly grabbed the headlines by being dismissed in a bizarre way as the ball clipped or rather brushed the face of his bat and got caught down the leg-side. It was a strange way to get out and goes to show that even the great Sachin Tendulkar is a mortal after all.

Virat Kohli: 5/10 - (34 runs; DNB)

Kohli did get a start and he stood tall as India had a late innings collapse in the first innings, and must feel extremely unlucky as he got out to a sensational piece of fielding, but such is cricket and such is life.

MS Dhoni: 5/10 - (44 runs; DNB)
Dhoni was in a murderous mood from the moment he walked in and starting sending the Australian bowlers to all over the park. He eventually was out for 44 which came better than a run a ball and he set the mood on the third day as India were looking to build on the platform Pujara - Vijay had laid.

Ravindra Jadeja: 7/10 - (10 runs & 3 wickets; DNB & 3 wickets)
Ravindra Jadeja has come a very long way and now is very much a front-line spinner on Indian tracks. His left-arm gives Dhoni plenty of options and the variation means that the Australian batsmen have yet another problem to deal with on their hand. His bowling was very good once again and his three early strikes on day 4, helped India wrap up the match early. Jadeja is a lovely talent and the only place where he is wanting is his batting and it'd be good to see him perform there. It feels as if India is playing 5 bowlers, and he should rectify that soon. Other than that, he's one smart cookie.

Ravichandran Ashwin: 7/10 - (1 run & 1 wicket; DNB & 5 wickets)

Ashwin once again proved just why he is India's lead spinner and picked up yet another five wicket haul. The Australian batsmen don't seem to have an answer to the tall off-spinner and he does his job of picking up their wickets. They better learn to play him else he's just going to end up with a truck load of wickets to add to his tally from the next two tests.

It was all India at Hyderabad

Harbhajan Singh: 4/10 - (0 runs & 2 wickets; DNB)
Harbhajan Singh's return hasn't set the world on fire but he has been quietly going on about his job as a secondary spinner and backs up Ashwin well. He didn't pick up any wickets in the second innings, but he has done well enough to hold onto his place I feel.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar: 5.5/10 - (10 runs & 3 wickets; DNB)

On day one, Bhuvneshwar Kumar set the match up for India with a beautiful spell of swing bowling. His medium pace nipped about and cut through the Australian batsmen and he cleaned up both the openers before coming back to clean up Shane Watson. Kumar is someone with limited abilities in terms of pace and bounce, but he bowls well within himself and makes the most of his strengths. This is just the second match for him, but he does show promise.

Ishant Sharma: 3.5/10 - (2* runs; DNB & 1 wicket)
Though Ishant Sharma just picked up one wicket in the match, he did his job and supported the other bowlers. Fast bowling is difficult in Indian pitches and Sharma has done the job decently well.

Overall team India's average - 5.4/10

India's overall team average at 5.4 might be lower than the one at Chennai (5.6), but that's largely due to the two special performances of Vijay and Pujara and the two individually scored more than Australia's 10 wickets in the second innings and that tells a story by itself. India look more than a formidable side at home all the sudden and will be keen on wrapping up the series in the next match.

Check out the mini-session analysis of the match here.

Australian Performance Analysis, India vs Australia, Chennai, 2013

2013-02-28T19:06:00.001+05:30

Australian's weakness against spin was exposed at Chennai

Australia were given a very rude reminder of their batsmen's failure to play spin bowling and lost the first test match convincingly by 8 wickets (You can find the Indian analysis of the match here) and now go to Hyderabad with plenty of questions and headaches to figure out. The match was mostly about the Indians but the Australians did find some heroes in Michael Clarke, Moises Henriques and James Pattinson and will take heart from their performances. However there is much to be desired from both the bowling and batting of the Aussies and it is vital that they find their feat soon and adapt to the Indian conditions. Here's the performance analysis of the Australian performance at Chennai.

Australian Player Performance Analysis - read as name: TWP performance score (1st innings; 2nd innings) (DND = did not bat, * = not out, pass = 4/10)

Ed Cowan: 4/10 - (29 runs; 32 runs)
Ed Cowan is still looking to cement the opening role in the Australian team and he was one of the few Aussie batsmen who looked at relative ease when at the middle. He got starts in both innings and the fact that he threw them away must hurt him and it certainly hurt his team. He sure would be looking to make amends in the next test.

Shane Watson: 3/10 - (28 runs; 17 runs)
Shane Watson the all-rounder did not turn up in India. Instead Watson the batsman turned up due to injury and a recovery fitness program that keeps him away from bowling and Australia certainly missed his bowling and the change up variety he brings with his medium pace. Watson the batsman was aggressive and looked dangerous in the first innings but like so many others in his team he threw away a good start. In the second innings where he was promoted to open, he again got going with a flurry of boundaries before he fell. His footwork against spin is simply not there and he sure has work to do if he is to contribute to the Australian cause purely as a batsman.

David Warner: 5/10 - (59 runs; 23)
Warner in the first innings looked like he would take the game away from the Indians and played some breath-taking shots. Again with Warner as with the story of the Australian batting was his performance against spin bowling and his confidence simply wasn't there. His feet was stuck to the crease and looked all at sea.

Phil Hughes: 0/10 - (6 runs; 0 runs)
Hughes had a forgettable match and though in the second innings he must count to be unlucky to be dismissed by a ball that behaved radically off the pitch, there's still not many excuses that can be made for just 6 runs from 2 innings.

Michael Clarke: 8/10 - (130 runs; 31 runs)

The Australian captain who last year had perhaps his greatest in his career, took forward his grand form and scored a brilliant century. He was the one Australian batsman who played the Indian spinners with complete confidence and attacked them and made them submit to his demands. He stepped out to them, swept and cut when the bowled short and drove on the up when they pitched it up. It was great batting and the Australian batsmen around him would do good to watch the replay and learn from him. He was lucky, but that's just parcel of the game and despite all his best efforts, he couldn't stop the Indian victory.

Matthew Wade: 1/10 - (12 runs; 8 runs)
Matthew Wade didn't have the best of times either in front of the stumps or behind it. It takes a wicket-keeper a couple matches to get used to the low bounce of the Indian tracks and he'll eventually adapt to that as a keeper. But what about the utter lack of application against the spinners? Will he able to adapt his batting to that?

Henriques on debut saved Aussies the humiliation of an innings defeat

Moises Henriques: 8/10 - (68 runs & 1 wicket; 81* runs)
Henriques debut would have been everything he would have dreamed it to be. Well almost everything considering Australia didn't win. He was a revelation and on debut managed to pick up his first test wicket, and score fifties in both innings and helped Australia salvage some pride by taking the game to the last day and making India bat again. Watching him battle the Indian spinners in a mix of caution and aggression was an absolute treat and if this performance is anything to go by, Australia might have just uncovered a gem here.

Mitchell Starc: 0/10 - (3 runs; 8 runs)

Starc like the Indian fast bowlers returned with a big fat zero in the wicket columns and his failure to pick any wickets and support Pattinson's effort was one of the major reasons for India piling on 500 plus. Why Australia went into the match with four seamers on a spinner friendly track? No one knows the answer to that and it was sad to see the pacers toil under the Chennai sun for no spoils for their efforts.

Peter Siddle: 1/10 - (19 runs & 1 wicket; 2 runs)
Siddle like Starc was very much uninspired and their figures might resemble if not for the lone wicket that he managed to capture. The Australian bowling failed to make any impact and Siddle along with Starc provided Pattinson no support whatsoever and they have much to think and questions to ponder over the composition and their approach.

James Pattinson: 7/10 - (15* runs & 5 wickets; 11 runs & 1 wicket)

Pattinson bowled his heart out on the desert that was the Chennai track. He quite literally did just that as he gave it his all and returned from the match with 6 wickets and also as Australia's best bowler. He lacked any considerable amount of support from any of the other bowlers and worked as a lone man fighting the Indian batsman. Pattinson can take much heart from his performance and though his team lost, his performance is one that would give the visitors a reason to smile.

Nathan Lyon: 4/10 - (3 runs & 3 wickets; 11 runs & 1 wicket)

Lyon as the lone spinner in the side was made to bear a huge load and he did a decent job considering the various factors. He picked up 4 Indian wickets, but they did come at an heavy cost and he kept leaking at an hemorrhaging rate. In both the innings his economy was near 5 and the Indian batsmen who were brought up playing spin certainly found cannon fodder in him. He has much thinking to do and hopefully Australia will lessen his load and play another spinner in the next match.

Overall team Australia's average - 3.7/10

Australia have plenty of problems with both their batting and bowling units and the difference in the averages between the Indian team which was 5.6 and Australia's 3.7 speaks a story by itself.The Chennai test will be something that they'd want to forget. However it is vital that they learn the lessons from Chennai and play a better bowling composition and play spin with a little more confidence. The Australian batsmen will slowly adapt to the Indian conditions and will put up a stronger fight at Hyderabad.

Check out the mini-session analysis of the match here.

Who is Balakrishnan Vaali? [Sponsored Post]

2013-02-26T19:57:00.000+05:30

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Indian Performance Analysis, India vs Australia, Chennai, 2013

2013-02-26T12:54:00.000+05:30

Dhoni stood tall as he scored a double century!

The order of the venues might have been reversed for the Border-Gavaskar trophy, but the result went exactly as the hosts would have expected. The marquee series between two heavy weights who are looking for their next generation to take control kick-started in grand style on a typical Chennai dust bowl of a pitch that aided the spinners and puffed up dirt every time a ball or a boot landed on it. India won the match convincingly by 8 wickets [SCORECARD] and now go to Hyderabad one step closer to reclaiming the trophy from the Aussies. The match had some splendid and inspiring performances from both sides, and here's the performance analysis of the Indian performance.

Indian Player Performance Analysis - read as name: TWP performance score (1st innings; 2nd innings) (DND = did not bat, * = not out, pass = 4/10)

Murali Vijay: 1/10 - (10 runs; 6 runs)
Murali Vijay came into the team in the place of Gautam Gambhir who was dropped due to his loss of form and other reasons over his attitude. Vijay had a brilliant domestic season and much was expected from his playing at home, but I was skeptical. He failed in both innings and though he is technically sound, I'm not entirely convinced that he's test material just yet. He still has another chance to prove me wrong and hopefully he'll do that and get some runs under his belt.

Virender Sehwag: 3/10 - (2 runs; 19 runs)
Sehwag the destructive batsman was missing at Chennai. There was glimpses of that in the second innings as the ball kept flying of the edge of his bat, but it was just a small glimmer. He didn't make a big contribution in terms of runs, but he certainly made his presence felt standing at slip and plucking a couple of absolute beauties!

Cheteshwar Pujara: 5/10 - (44 runs; 8*)
Pujara once again showed that he has nerves of steel and in the first innings help steady the Indian ship after two early losses had them reeling at 12 for 2. He batted brilliantly and though he didn't convert his start into a big score, he certainly did his part as a number three batsman. However much more is expected from him than just scores of 40. It's good to see him take forward the form from the series against England.

Sachin Tendulkar: 7/10 - (81 runs; 13*)
Whatever talks of retirement that were around, Sachin Tendulkar sure did manage to silence it with a breath-taking innings. His partnership with Pujara in the first innings was particularly important and set up India's platform for the huge score. Sachin got off the mark in the first innings with three fours and in the second with two sixes, and it seems to be that the aggressive Sachin of the 90s and early 2000s is still in him. Watching him bat is one of the greatest sights in cricket and I can't help but think whether we've seen Sachin's last test match at Chepauk.

Virat Kohli: 8/10 - (107 runs; DNB)

Kohli who looked completely out of sorts in the English series until the last test, came good at Chennai scoring a well composed century. Kohli certainly likes the Australians and he mixed caution with aggression to tackle the Aussie bowlers. He was a treat to watch and though his innings were over shadowed by both Sachin's and Dhoni's, it remains as a vital contribution. It'd be great to see if he can carry on this form through the series.

MS Dhoni: 10/10 - (224 runs; DNB)
There are few in the world who can play the kind of innings Dhoni played and make it look so easy.His innings was the knock out blow for the Australians and he metaphorically and literally bullied the Australian bowling unit into submission. He treated Lyon with absolute disdain and kept depositing him into the stands. The innings is without doubt Dhoni's best test innings and it's also his highest and the highest by an Indian wicket-keeper.

Ravindra Jadeja: 6/10 - (16 runs & 2 wickets; DNB & 3 wickets)
It's not difficult to see why Dhoni wants Jadeja in the team. As an all-rounder, he gives more options to Dhoni and he certainly made use of them. Jadeja operated as the third spinner and a front-line bowler as both Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ishant Sharma took backseat on a spinners track that crumbled into a dust-bowl. Jadeja who generally doesn't get much spin but rather keeps bowling a tight line, got a few deliveries to rip off the surface and he certainly was more than a headache for the Aussie batsmen who already struggle with spin.

Ashwin turned on the heat at Chennai!

Ravichandran Ashwin: 10/10 - (3 runs & 7 wickets; DNB & 5 wickets)

It was a complete turn of fortunes for Ashwin from the England test series where he struggled to pick up even a single wicket. Playing at home, he certainly enjoyed the spinner friendly track and the crowd chanting out his name as he finished the match with 12 wickets - his best figures! He certainly must be a very happy man, putting on such a grand performance in front of his home crowd. It will be interesting to see how Ashwin fares in the next test.

Harbhajan Singh: 4/10 - (11 runs & 1 wicket; DNB & 2 wickets)
Harbhajan Singh's 100th test didn't turn out to be the fairy tale test he would have dreamed about, as he put on an average performance. I felt Harbhajan bowled beautifully but failed to fully exploit the track as Ashwin and Jadeja did. He looked a little lost in the first innings and his line and length erred but he came back well in the second. Will his place in the team in question, will this performance be enough to hold his spot for the next test?

Bhuvneshwar Kumar: 5/10 - (38 runs; DNB)

The test debutante bowled just 13 overs in the match (all of them in the first innings) and he looked uninspired. But then again in the context of the game where all pacers except James Pattinson struggled, it's not a huge worry. Kumar showed that he was no muck with the bat and his innings with Dhoni which resulted in 140 runs being added for the 8th wicket completely buried the Australians. It's not fair to judge his bowling on just 13 overs and so I'll overlook that.

Ishant Sharma: 3/10 - (4* runs; DNB)
Ishant Sharma like Bhuvneshwar Kumar was used little and he bowled just 20 overs in the entire match and likewise went wicketless. It was that kind of track and it is difficult to be hard on the pacers for not getting wickets. Ishant toiled hard, but got no returns.

Overall team India's average - 5.6/10

So India with this win go one up in Border-Gavaskar trophy and the onus will be on them to keep the momentum going. The bowling department looks good, with the spinners in good form and the middle order is solid with all the key batsmen among the runs. Australia are sure to come back with a better performance at Hyderabad and India will certainly face more competition, but if they can put up a similar performance, then they should be good.

Check out the mini-session analysis of the match here.

A new chapter begins in India - Australian rivalry

2013-02-21T19:57:00.004+05:30

A new look Australian team take on India tomorrow.

When India take on Australia tomorrow at Chennai, it will be a new beginnings for the two old rivals. Since the last time the two sides met, they have both lost a few key players - players who over the last decade and more had stood as proud representatives of their teams - to retirement and a few to injuries and selection policies. Australia are coming from one of their best performances at home in recent times and under Skipper Clarke they young team has rallied itself, while India on the other hand are facing another stern test with plenty of questions still to be answered after having lost the previous series against England at home. And hence for the old rivalry, this series will be a new chapter as two bold teams, filled with young blood take on each other.

The major difference in this clash between the two teams is the since the last time these two met, titans of the game on both sides have called it a day. VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Michael Hussey, Ricky Ponting are more than just mere names in their teams and hold a place of reverence in the India - Australian rivalry and now the teams must look beyond them for new heroes to carry on the baton. India already have found Cheteshwar Pujara who held his own in the series against England and managed to convince one and all that he has a long test career ahead of him, while the Aussies have David Warner who seems to have taken his aggressive T20 hitting abilities to another level in test cricket. There are also many on the sides of both teams who have just started their test career and still haven't cemented their places such as Ed Cowan and Murali Vijay and this series will be interesting to see how they fare. Also with a couple debuts bound to occur when Rahane and Henriques take field, the series will also kick-start a few test careers.

Another interesting thing is the bowling units of both the sides. Both of them have relatively young attacks though Australia's pace battery with Siddle, Pattinson and Starc look more than formidable and the challenge for them will be adapting to the Indian pitches with their lack of bounce and side ways movement. India too in the pace department have a few new faces with Zaheer Khan still missing. India's spin department will be headed by seasoned campaigner, Harbhajan Singh who will be playing his 100th test match tomorrow, becoming only the 10th Indian to achieve the feat and lot hangs on the Turbanator as he'll be expected to work magic as he did against the Australians in 2001. With Harbhajan's career in the balance, this series is certainly a new chapter in his career and he has the opportunity to settle the question over his future with a truck load of wickets. Lack of them might also answer the question.

With both the bowling attacks looking quite different, it certainly will be intriguing to see whether it is the pace battery or the spinners who win the battle. How the Australian batsmen adapt to the Indian spinners will be vital for their success and if the match against India A is anything to go by, then they have work to do.

Michael Clarke, last year had an annus mirabilis and he'd be keen to continue that form as he leads a very young team that other than Mitchel Johnson and himself have no other player having played at least 50 tests. The lack of experience is sure to be a huge disadvantage. India while they do have some youngsters, there are still a few seniors in Tendulkar, Sehwag, Harbhajan and Dhoni and the fortunes of these players will be vital. Sehwag specially is under pressure to perform and if he can get India off to a good start, then it's bound to settle the nerves of the inexperienced middle-order. MS Dhoni in recent times has come under plenty of flack over his leadership and though, this Australian team might not be as strong as the previous ones, he's bound to have his hands full.

Tomorrow a new chapter in the short but intense India - Australian rivalry will begin and it should make a grand spectacle to watch as present day history gets scripted.

The best love stories in cricket

2013-02-14T13:58:00.000+05:30

Sutcliffe & Hobbs - An English love story like no other

Today is Valentines day and on the day when roses, boxes of chocolates, fat teddy bears and kisses are exchanged, I take a look at some of the most memorable pairs in the history of cricket. No, I'm not talking about Michael Clarke and Lara Bingle, or Graeme Smith and super-model Morgan Deane or even Virat Kohli and his countless women. I'm talking about the a different kind of love story and here are the four I think that are timeless.

Herbert Sutcliffe and Sir Jack Hobbs

Traveling back in time to the short period between the two great world wars, we witness the amazing partnership between two of England's greatest openers. Of course there have been many such spectacular opening pairs but what sets these two apart is the sheer magnitude of their numbers. In the 6 years that they played together between 1924-1930, the two amassed together 3249 runs at an average of 87.81 with 15 century stands in just as much many as on 38 appearances. This was the period when batsmen wore little or no protection and played on relatively uncovered pitches and the stats are even more impressive considering those facts. Surely an impressive duo.

Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram

Is there a more lethal bowling combination than this? One might argue Ambrose and Walsh, or Donald and Pollock, or Thomson and Lillee, but the ability that these two Pakistani greats had with the old ball generating unbelievable amount of reverse swing makes them my top pick. The two picked up 476 wickets in tandem at a strike rate of just a little above 46 balls per wicket. Their average is best among bowling partnerships with over 300 wickets at 22.12 runs per wicket. Needless to say, Pakistan with these two held one of the most devastating bowling attack in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Even Bollywood couldn't have done this pair

Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly

The two Indians changed the face of Indian cricket and largely due to their great success in the ODI format where they scored 8227 runs together. Of those 6609 runs came from opening the batting and the duo hold the record for both. They also hold the record for most century partnerships with 26 which is 10 more than the second place. The pure dominance of this pair goes beyond just numbers and the influence that they had on Indian cricket and India is something that just can't be measured.

Glen McGrath and Shane Warne

This is perhaps one of the strangest partnership with a fast bowler and a leg spinner being so successful together but from 1993 - 2007 the two picked up more than 1000 wickets (1001 wickets) at an more than impressive average of 23.17 makes this pair not only stand at the very top of the mountain but also the best bowling pair in the world. The second place is occupied by another fast bowler - spinner combination in Vass and Muralitharan with 772 wickets, still over 200 wickets short of the mark. What's even more astonishing is that among the 104 matches that these two played together, Australia won 71 of them! It certainly won't be wrong to say that Australia's great domination was on the shoulders of these two.Will anyone reach the heights of success that McGrath and Warne did? It's highly improbable.

There have been plenty of other great memorable partnerships too, but none as great and long-lasting as these. Some of the great one night stands that come to mind would be Dravid and Laxman in Eden Gardens in 2001 when they scripted the greatest comeback since Lazarus, Sangakara and Jayawardene (a great couple themselves) who hold the record highest partnership in test cricket with 624 runs, and Yuvraj Singh and Stuart Broad. There are also a few others infamous ones such as the one between Lilllee and Miandad, Sreesanth and Harbhajan, Warne and Samuels, Symonds and the naked pitch invader, Sreesanth and the match referees, Steven Finn's knee and the stumps, Manoj Tiwary and the bench and so many others that make cricket truly a game of love.

In related news Indian cricketer, Chesteshwar Pujara began a new innings yesterday as he tied the marriage knot with his fiance Pooja Pabri. Here's wishing the couple a very blessed future and a happy valentines day to you, the reader.

Cricket from a different era

2013-02-11T21:06:00.001+05:30

Dilscoop - one of modern day cricket's innovations

Something that we often hear nowadays in the media and especially in cricket commentary is that cricket has come a long way. Whenever a batsman attempts an 'outrageous' shot, immediately the emphasis is that the innovation has been brought forth by the advent of Twenty20s and that such a shot was not only nonexistent a decade or so ago but also very much unimaginable.

The Dilscoop that Dilshan invented just a couple years ago in England or even the controversial switch hit which changes a right hand batsman to a left hand one and vice verse weren't played in the early 2000s and then the newest stroke in the book was the up and over ramp or cut shot of a fast bowler over the slip cordon through third man that Sachin Tendulkar played in the 2003 World Cup with much success. That stroke in the 1990s was almost non-existant with the exception of perhaps Sanath Jayasuria cutting the ball down third man and now the shot has become an almost traditional stroke as much as the sweep or the drive and it certainly won't be wrong to say that cricket was a different game then. An average of 30 was considered good and a score of 240 in ODIs was a good score regardless of the pitch. Cricket was definitely of a different era and those of us who have watched it back then can clearly see the transformation. But what about cricket that literally was in another era - say a century or so back? Just how different was it?

For one it was an era filled with sportsmanship and one of my favorite cricket stories is one involving Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi in an Oxford vs. Cambridge match where the best display of the game's gentleman spirit was witnessed as the Cambridge skipper, Robin Oakley decided not to run out his Oxford counter-part, the Nawab of Pataudi when he was stranded in the middle of the crease on 99. Pataudi was offered a lifeline and he made the most of it scoring a boundary of the next ball and to bring up his century and then the very next ball, he hit his own stumps and walked off hit-wicket. The story is almost unbelievable and cannot be imagined in present day circumstances but that was cricket a little less than a decade ago.

Ranji's famous leg-glance

Coming back to the aspect of how strokes in cricket have evolved, I was amazed that till the 1880s when another Indian royalty by the name of Prince Ranjitsinhji - the famous inventor of the leg glance - arrived on the scene, cricket was predominately an off-side game. Gideon Haigh in his article for Cricinfo where he calls the leg glance as the most influential innovation in cricket, mentions the then status qua of the game where only off-side play and drives were encouraged and more over so appreciated. Haigh writes,

"In Max Bonnell's new biography, he describes JJ Ferris' match-winning bowling at Lord's in 1888: eight wickets in 44 overs for 45 runs with only two leg-side fielders, at mid-on and long-on. It indicates, as Bonnell observes, "phenomenal control"; what it doesn't suggest is enormous initiative on the part of the batsmen.

Partly this was native English constipation. As a schoolboy at Repton at the time, CB Fry was told that "if one hit the ball in an unexpected direction on the on side, intentionally or otherwise, one apologized to the bowler… The opposing captain never, by any chance, put a fieldsman there; he expected you to drive on the off side like a gentleman."

So to score on the leg-side was considered ungentlemanly, and even worse showed that one's skills in batting was next to none as one couldn't observe 'phenomenal control' and drive like a man would. In other words it was a cowardly to play leg-side. Haigh presents us more blasts from the past and speaks of the Aussies and their approach to the English constipation of the game.

"And while Australians were not quite so hidebound, they had their own inhibitions, as Monty Noble recalled: "When I first wielded a bat it was considered distinctly bad cricket to pull on the on-side, where there were no fieldsmen, a ball pitched outside the off stump or on the wicket. It had, forsooth, to be played in the regular and approved manner either straight or to the off-side where there were nine and often ten obliging fielders waiting to gather it in. The batsman was supposed to wait until the bowler lost his accuracy and direction and at length pitched one outside the leg stump before it was polite to dispatch it for four to where no fieldsman lurked."

So again the story remained more or less the same. Simply put, it was considered outrageous to score runs in places where the fielders weren't placed as it wasn't fair and gentlemanly. Of course that sounds almost senile now, but back then it was the approved form of cricket until of course some Aussies who cared little about convention, traditions or gentlemanly approach, helped by one of the most astounding and stellar sights in English cricket then - Ranji threw the practice right out the window.

As much as the strokes and the way cricket is played nowadays might seem sacrilegious and probably out of the world to someone from the 1880s if he were to travel to present day through a time machine, the same can be said of someone from our present era visiting cricket during the reign of Queen Victoria. However it certainly would be a spectacle to witness cricket from a different era, wouldn't it?

An eye opener on blind cricket

2013-02-11T13:56:00.000+05:30

George Abraham

Blind cricket is something that really does not get much attention in the media and even when India won the Blind cricket T20 World Cup in December last year there were very few people who knew about it.

George Abraham, a passionate blind cricketer, founding Chairman of the World Blind Cricket Council (WBCC) and the Association for Cricket for the Blind in India (ACBI) in this video of his speech for Tedx at the Christ University talks about how blind cricket came to be and the many obstacles that he had to face in making it happen. The speech is a real eye opener and one that every cricket fan would find enlightened not only about blind cricket but also of the life that people with blindness have to live.

Captaincy and Clarke

2013-02-05T20:48:00.002+05:30

Clarke with his Allan Border medal

Michael Clarke made the headlines yesterday after he won the Allan Border medal following his annus mirabilis where he scored five centuries and averaged over 100. Without a doubt he deserved the medal for his individual high and now with four Allan Border medal, he equals Ricky Ponting's record. However this article is not about his achievements as a batsman in the team, but as a leader.

I always maintained that Clarke would be a good leader and he has been groomed for most of his career for the role that he is now doing, but the verdict was always out if Pup was mature enough, or whether he was serious enough, or whether he was this or that and countless other things, but now seeing Clarke - the man who seems to enjoy the idea of being at the helm and revel the idea of huge responsibilities on his shoulders, there's absolutely no doubt of that.

Clarke is in my opinion has the potential to be one of Australia's greatest captains and perhaps even one of cricket's influential leader. He inherited a side that no longer was the undisputed leaders of the game and dominant masters of (Paddy Power cricket betting markets) setting the standard as they had been for the last decade and Australian cricket in the last few years have undergone many troubling trials that resembled the confusion generally found in the subcontinent. The CA management and selectors committee were dragged into one controversy over another while the team was slowly breaking up as all its legends and stars who built an era of invincibility became ageing warriors slowly riding into the sun set and leaving the heavy task of winning and keeping the high standards that was under them on some very inexperienced shoulders. Unlike Ponting who got a squad full of talent and experience under him, Clarke got the very opposite and he was left to salvage the old glory days of Australia's prime and the fact that Clarke has rallied his young team around him and now stand number three in test cricket speaks volumes of his ability to inspire confidence into his troops and lead them to winning ways.

The maturity of Clarke was seen foremost when yesterday night at the awards ceremony speaking of his fourth Allan Border medal win said,

"It is an honour to win an individual award on a night like tonight but it's more about the team. I would love to see the Australian cricket team standing on a stage in the near future winning the best sporting team in this country or the best sporting team in the world. Something like that is my goal and I know it's the players' goal as well. It is nice to win another Allan Border Medal and just as special as the first time I won but I'd love to see the team up there winning awards more than individual players."

Great captains have always been people who think about the larger picture and the team and Clarke is doing the same. Great leaders create a culture where the team is always greater than the individual and Graeme Smith who recently led South Africa for the 100th test and Stephen Flemming - arguably cricket's greatest leader emphasis on that one point above everything and I'm sure that Clarke by the end of his career can be mentioned next to these two great leaders.

Another thing with Clarke is that he was groomed for leadership for most part of his career being Ponting's deputy and there was no doubt whether he'd be the captain or not. The doubt was whether he'd be a good captain. Not all leaders are groomed and some like Smith are just pushed into the role, but the advantages of grooming and the education it provides is priceless and teams like India, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand can learn much from this. The captaincy story in both Sri Lanka and New Zealand is in total confusion and that's what the lack of planning can result in. India have a few years to bring up young Virat Kohli who in many ways resembles the old Micheal Clarke of 2005 - young, flamboyant, and immature. India have a good skipper in MS Dhoni and Kohli can certainly learn much from him. We saw him him struggle in the recent India v England series and surely that probably would have been one of his most educating series. The next few seasons will harden him and slowly transform into what Clarke is now to Australia.

Captaincy in cricket unlike in many team sports such as football or hockey plays a very important role and can be the difference between a win and a loss in many cases and having a good man as a captain is what'll bring a team success and there is Clarke is the right man for the job and there's no question over that.

Everything you need to know about the 2013 IPL Auction

2013-01-31T20:00:00.002+05:30

It's that time of the year again when the IPL player auction takes place. This season it will be held in Chennai on February 3 when 101 players will go under the hammer as the 9 franchisees will bid for them and build their teams. Here's everything you need to know about the auction. And I mean everything!

The basic rules of the auction

Each franchisee has a salary cap on $12.5m for their 2013 squad.
The maximum squad strength can be 33 players, which includes a maximum of 11 overseas players.
Players not bought during the auction can be signed by the franchisees as replacements for injured payers.

Few points about the auction pool

No Pakistan players feature in the list of 101 players that will be auctioned
The list includes seven Indians (Sudeep Tyagi, Jaydev Unadkat, Pankaj Singh, RP Singh, Manpreet Gony , Abhishek Nayar, Wasim Jaffer)
The list also contains two Englishmen (Matt Prior, Ravi Bopara) and one Irish player (Kevin O'Brien)
Majority of the players in the auction pool are from Australia and South Africa with names from Sri Lanka and New Zealand also appearing.
Michael Clarke and Ricky Ponting fetch the highest reserve price of $ 400,000.
West Indies T20 World Cup winning captain, Darren Sammy ($100,000) features in the auction for the first time.

Who are the hot buys of the auction?

One thing the past IPL auctions have thought us is that nothing is predictable. There really is no such thing as a hot buy, since the franchisees have their own visions for their teams and their own plans and sometimes you see players such as Chris Gayle and Shahid Afridi who are known for their T20 skills overlooked as they were in previous editions. However one can relatively with some authority still classify certain players as hot picks and these are the players who I think will be the ones that will raise a few eyebrows and get people into a bidding frenzy.

Johan Botha (Reserve price $300,000): The South African all-rounder was released by Rajasthan Royals after a poor 2012 season but his all-round abilities are sure to be in big demand.
Michael Clarke ($400,000): Released by Pune, the Aussie skipper is another big draw, though his reserve price does raise some questions
Doug Bollinger ($200,000): He's been a star for Chennai and it was a surprise when he was released. Expect some very heavy bidding for the baby faced fats bowler.
Darren Sammy ($100,000): It might be his first auction, but he's sure to be on most of the want to buy lists.
Daniel Christian ($100,000): He hasn't had the best IPL experience, but his all-round abilities are surely in demand.
Dirk Nannes ($200,000): The ageing T20 specialist still is a force to be reckoned with.
RP Singh ($100,000): The Indian pacer hasn't been having the best of times the last two years, but his name his still on the top 5 wicket takers in the IPL and he's sure to catch a few eyes.
Abhishek Nayar ($100,000): The all-rounder was released after a dismal 2012 season, but after the out standing domestic season this year, he's bound to be a hot cake.

Watch out for...

Ricky Ponting ($400,000): It will be interesting to see if anyone picks up the aged Australian legend for the young men's game.
Martin Guptill ($100,000): He's probably New Zealand's second best batsman after Taylor and should be picked.
James Hopes ($100,000): He's played for 3 different IPL teams and might be playing in a 4th team this season.
Tino Best ($50,000): Who doesn't love this man? Not a popular pick, but keep an eye out for him.
Richard Levi ($50,000): After a blistering start to his career, he was immediately bagged by Mumbai but now that the smoke has settled, will anyone still go for this heavy hitter?
Ajantha Mendis ($50,000): Do IPL teams still think the mystery spinner is a mystery?

What to expect from the auction?
Expect the unexpected. Don't be surprised if the teams decided to overlook the obvious buy and go for some unknown player. Sometimes it is beyond comprehension and it probably is, but that's how these things work. Also don't expect the teams to go all out and bid for many players. They all would have set their eyes on a select few that will fill the holes they have in the team and it is this that the teams will be trying to fill. Plus remember they all have limit on the salary and also squad size.

How much money do the franchisees have for the auction?
Since all teams including the newly formed SunRisers Hyderabad have retained some players from their previous squads, they go into the auction with only limited spots available in the team and also with a limit on the caps. So much can each franchisee spend on the auction and how many can they buy?

SunRisers Hyderabad:

Present cost of squad: $5.5m. Salary cap remaining: $7m

Present squad - Indian players: 14, Overseas players: 6

Chennai Super Kings:
Present cost of squad: $9.3m, Salary cap remaining: $3.2m
Present squad - Indian players: 9, Overseas players: 6

Delhi Daredevils:
Present cost of squad: $10.8m, Salary cap remaining: $1.7m
Present squad - Indian players: 11, Overseas players: 7

Kings XI Punjab:
Present cost of squad: $5.3m, Salary cap remaining: $7.2m
Present squad - Indian players: 13, Overseas players: 6

Kolkata Knight Riders:
Present cost of squad: $10.4m, Salary cap remaining: $2.1m
Present squad - Indian players: 12, Overseas players: 10

Mumbai Indians:
Present cost of squad: $10.7m, Salary cap remaining: $1.8m
Present squad - Indian players: 20, Overseas players: 7

Pune Warriors India:
Present cost of squad: $8.5m, Salary cap remaining: $4m
Present squad - Indian players: 18, Overseas players: 6

Rajasthan Royals:
Present cost of squad: $4.1m, Salary cap remaining: $8.4m
Present squad - Indian players: 9, Overseas players: 4

Royal Challengers Bangalore:
Present cost of squad: $9.7m, Salary cap remaining: $2.8m
Present squad - Indian players: 14, Overseas players 6

You can find the complete list of the players going under the hammer here.