Just the other day I was on the sofa watching Roger Fedex Federer play Rafael Rafa Nadal in the Wimbledon final. It was such an intriguing battle. Every point won had as much a sense of glory as was the feeling of agony in every point lost. When Nadal was handed the winner’s trophy, it spurred an endless array of flashes. I just lay on the sofa imagining a similar scene involving an Indian cricketer. But the truth is that cricket doesn’t have the global viewership, the extensive media coverage and hype that sports like Tennis, Soccer and a few others command. There were similar scenes when Spaniard Iker Cassilas lifted the Euro 2008 trophy a week back. I was watching the game and it was so absorbing that I couldn’t even get up for a minute and go grab a bottle of water from the refrigerator. The game had been such action packed that even at half time I had to wait for a commercial break in the half time show.
The reason for the high intensity in these sports seems to be the shorter duration of the course of play. A day’s play in one day and test cricket spans over seven to eight hours and its impossible for players to have the intensity of soccer and tennis for such a long duration. An ardent fan of cricket like me would still sit and enjoy watching Murali at his fiercest, bowling maidens and a stern Dravid sweating out to see him off and pounce on others. But this is not what will attract new fans and new loyalties. With time people will only find it more and more difficult to go to the venues for a whole day to watch a one day match or a day of test cricket. Television broadcasts might still have good viewership but definitely not for the whole duration of the game.
The best route of entry for new countries and new fans into cricket is probably the Twenty20 format. Once they start liking this format then automatically they will like the other forms like the fifty over and test cricket. Every cricketer understands that test cricket is the toughest test of a cricketer’s abilities but their need to be followers to acknowledge and praise their accomplishments.
Another interesting fact I came across in a television talk show was that in England, even the test matches have packed houses which was attributed to the higher percentage of middle aged and old aged population who had more leisure time. India on the other hand is a young country and as it moves the demography will change and at some point of time it would in the same phase as the developed countries are in now. Probably that phase will see people having more leisure time and a day out watching cricket would be what they would opt to do. But till then to attract the countries like China, Japan, USA etc to cricket and globalize the sport what cricket needs is probably Twenty20.
Jayasuriya and Sehwag in form and on song, Ishant’s sheering pace and Murali’s bamboozling turners. What more a treat a cricket fan can ask for?
People are looking for an exciting end to a not so exciting cricket tournament. Sri Lanka seem to have played a master stroke resting Ajantha Mendis in the Super Four match against India. They will be hoping that he is able to dodge the Indians. But if Ajantha Mendis can bowl six different balls in an over, Virender Sehwag has more than six different shots for each ball.
The Karachi pitch wouldn’t offer much to the pacers and the onus to tilt the balance in the favor of their team will be on the batsmen. Teams would like to go with experience for this crucial match. Sri Lanka would look to play Kulasekara and Fernando along with Murali, Mendis and Vaas. Only other option they may look at is Thushara in place of Fernando or Kulasekara. India would probably opt for the younger among the Pathan brothers, Irfan. They would look to go with six batsmen, then Pathan and then the four bowlers. They are likely to keep out Chawla and play Ojha who has shown better control on line and length.
This match rendered inconsequential courtesy India’s win over Sri Lanka yesterday could see Pakistan give rest to couple of players and give some other players a chance. Shoaib Malik should take this opportunity and take rest to avoid worsening his health. That will mean another day at the helm for Misbah and he would try to impress a few. Pakistan may give Wahab Riaz another chance. Pakistan need to win this one because a loss here would pinch for a long time as they have a fifty day break from international cricket after this tournament.
For Bangladesh, each international game is as big and they would want to clinch a win here to silence those who question their test status. They must look to give Shahriar Nafees a chance in place of Nazimuddin. They need Abdur Razzak and Mashrafe Mortaza to do well and be confident for the future tournaments.
Look Out For
Salman Butt – He didn’t cash on the superb form he came into the tournament with. He would want to set record straight with a big score tomorrow.
Saeed Ajmal – He has a big turning Doosra and Bangladesh batters may find it too hot to handle. He needs to bring in an element of surprise by altering his line for the Doosra and turning it lesser but against Bangladesh he could be a handful.
Tamim Iqbal – He has all the talent in the world. All he needs a bit more maturity and a sense of responsibility. He would like to get a big score tomorrow and a weak Pakistani bowling line up will only make things easier.
Shahadat Hossain – He has worked up some pace in this tournament. If he bowls a on a tight leash, he could turn the heat on.
Probable starters:
Pakistan:Salman Butt, Shoaib Malik (C), Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Sarfraz Ahmed (WK), Saeed Ajmal, Sohail Tanvir, Rao Iftikhar, Abdur Rauf
Bangladesh: Tamim Iqbal, Shahriar Nafees, Raqibul Hasan, Mohammad Ashraful (C), Mushfiqur Rahim (WK), Alok Kapali, Mohammad Mahmudullah, Mehrab Hussain Jnr, Mashrafe Mortaza (VC), Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain
Verdict: Pakistan although depleted but should be enough for Bangladesh. Pakistan should cruise through; otherwise it will have to be Pakistan loosing the match rather than Bangladesh winning it.
This is a do or die match for India. They need to win this won or else their fate will fall in hands of Bangladesh. A loss here and Pakistan could run away with the second spot in the final with just a moderately big win over Bangladesh.
But the Indian team would do well not to think about this and concentrate on the game at hand. They could be further aided if Sri Lanka decide to rest some of their key players. India need to show some resilience while fielding and bowling and would do better with Ojha coming in place of Chawla. Dhoni might look to bowl first, as his batsmen have shown good form but India would be better served not trying this against Sri Lanka who have a little better bowling unit then others.
People have gone on criticizing the pitches but the fact is that the bowlers have made the pitches look even worse. Would the likes of Brett Lee, Zaheer Khan, Dale Steyn etc been the same here? In fact Vaas has bowled quite well. Others bowlers lack the experience and that’s why they have been taken to the cleaners. It is not about the runs they have conceded but the manner in which they have bowled.
Irfan Pathan and Praveen Kumar have a some experience and must take the responsibility on their shoulders and the fielders need to show a bit more commitment.
Look Out For
Virender Sehwag – After seeing the bowling form of most bowlers even 325 runs don’t seem enough. India will need Sehwag to fire big if they are to get past that score against Sri Lanka.
Pragyan Ojha – He bowls with a lot of control and could bag some crucial wickets if he lures the batters with flight.
Mahela Jayawardene – He hasn’t had much to do in this tournament thus far but will look to be in good form ahead of Sunday’s final.
Dilhara Fernando – He has some pace up his sleeve and probably has the most well disguised slower ball in the world. He would like to prove his critics wrong and cement a place in the side.
Pakistan have had the nag of playing poorly in the run up and then striking gold in the big clashes. This is what they did to India in the tri nation series. India would like to shut out Pakistan right here and they will have great help with Asif and Gul not in the side. The return of Irfan Pathan will bolster the Indian bowling and India may go in with five bowlers including two spinners. Watching Ojha and Chawla bowl in tandem is a mouth watering prospect. Pakistan on the other hand will be banking on the in form Malik and Younis to score big and Tanvir to provide some early breakthroughs.
Apart from Tanvir and Afridi who have accuracy up their sleeves, other Pakistani bowlers are likely to find going tough. They may rope in spinner Saeed Ajmal. Winning the toss will be a distinct advantage as the teams would love to bat first. But at the same time teams could falter aiming high.
Shoaib Malik needs his men to perform to save his job at the helm. As the Pakistan Board has been going about for years, a loss here could see Malik sacked.
Look Out For
Virender Sehwag – He has been adequately rested recently and the freshness has had a positive effect on his hunger. If he handles Tanvir carefully, he could score big.
Pragyan Ojha – He has more control than Piyush Chawla and he may be crucial in middle overs where most other bowlers have leaked runs.
Shoaib Malik – He is under pressure to perform and with Butt’s indifferent form Malik needs to hold fort and rotate strike and ask others to go for big hits.
Sohail Tanvir – Tanvir is a very different bowler in terms of his run up and bowling action and is generally not easy to score off even on placid tracks but with not much firepower elsewhere, Pakistan will be looking up to him for an early breakthrough.
Pakistan:Salman Butt, Shoaib Malik (C), Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Sarfraz Ahmed (WK), Saeed Ajmal, Sohail Tanvir, Rao Iftikhar, Wahab Riaz
Verdict: Pakistan will be hoping that they win the toss so the pressure isn’t directly on their weak bowling. Even if they bat first, it might prove a task too mighty.
