Jun

30

What was so Special about Michael Vaughan?

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Michael Vaughan has retired and everyone is talking about him.

Tributes have poured in from all corners with some praising his timing, others raving about his cover drive, and almost everyone talking of his greatness as a leader.
Geoff Boycott has even gone to the extent of ranking him alongside Mike Brearley, who many consider as the best England captain ever; if not the best international captain ever.
That got me wondering.
Was Vaughan really that good?
I don’t think he ever reached the same heights as a batsman as he did during the 2002-03 Ashes; nor did he lead England to any memorable series wins besides the 2005 Ashes (or is my memory failing me?).
Then what makes him so special?
His test record, 5719 runs at 41.44, is just about average; while his ODI record is nothing to talk about.
I’ve never thought of Vaughan as a great cricketer; seeing all that is being said about him made me question myself.
Was he really that great?
As a test captain, he ranks alongside the best.
Among all captains that have led in a minimum of 25 tests, Vaughan is among the top 10 in terms of percentage of test matches won.
In there he is in the great company of Brearley, Steve Waugh, Mark Taylor, and Viv Richards.
Though his record as a batsman isn’t one for him to be considered among the best, there is one area where he ranks among the greats.
His conversion rate.
With 18 centuries and 18 fifties, Vaughan converts 50s into 100s more often than most test batsmen.

Among batsmen with atleast 15 test centuries, only Bradman, Strauss, KP, Walcott, Azharuddin, and Hayden have a better conversion rate than he does.
No wonder everyone is raving about him.
I think my judgement was clouded due to what Shoaib Akhtar did to him in 2005.
The look on Vaughan’s face when he was deceived by that slower one was priceless.
Here’s the wicket (the 2nd one in the video); I couldn’t find one of his expression but for those who have seen it know what I am talking about.
That for me will remain the most memorable Michael Vaughan moment.
After that glorious 183 against Australia at Sydney ofcourse.

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Jun

30

The Pakistani Players were Hypnotized!

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When Shoaib Malik recently mentioned that the psychologist, who PCB had hired for the team’s camp before the World T20, had used hypnotism on the players, we all thought that Malik was being sarcastic.

Many also laughed at Malik thinking that he did not understand a psychologist’s job.
Now that Maqbool Babri, the renowned psychologist, has come out in the open, we find that Malik was in fact right about the hypnotism.
The psychologist, popularly known as Max Babri, recently spoke to The News. You can read the full interview here; following are some of the more interesting excerpts.
“I threw a challenge: I’d not charge a single penny if we lose … but I’d charge double the agreed amount if we win.”
Doctors working on a success fee only basis. I like the concept!
“On the second day of our session, I started hypnotizing them. Players were nudged into a trance and urged to understand and envisage themselves as the very best.”

So it is true. They were hypnotized!
And a trance? isn’t that some kind of dance? How does this work anyway?
I wonder if the team played the entire World T20 in a trance.
“They had a variety of issues from anger management.. sleep problems.. their unmitigated ambitions..”

Isn’t that true for all of us Pakistanis?
“A couple of days before the team’s departure, we did a ‘rock and roll’ excercise to show… “

Trance, rock and roll, those must have been some really interesting psychology sessions.
“Afridi is a very special person; he is expressive, talented, handsome, charming, and smart.”

How wonderful! Which aspect brings out the best in him as a cricketer?
“Hypnotism is just a therapy and it seeks to improve the confidence of the players. It is used every where in the world. It is not a drug.”

And he explains the therapeutic hypnotism he used on the players.
I don’t know if all this actually worked and played a part in Pakistan’s victorious World T20 campaign, but it surely impressed some of the cricketers. Such as Shoaib Malik.
Now for Max Babri to get his double pay check from the PCB!

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Jun

29

Pakistan & the Ajantha Mendis Threat

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The Pakistanis have landed in Colombo, where they play a 3-day game against a Sri Lankan XI from tomorrow, before they head to Galle for the 1st test next week.
The series that was left incomplete by some twisted men in Lahore, will now continue in the island over the next month.
After the IPL and the World T20, I am finally ready to end my affair with T20 cricket and shift all my focus and attention to the purest and longest version of the game.
Here I start by focusing on the potential threat, or rather the lack of, that Ajantha Mendis poses for Pakistan in the 3-test series.
The Ajantha Mendis threat doesn’t really exist for Pakistan.
Well prepared, planned, worked-out, thought-out or not; Pakistan has surely figured out how to cope against Mendis’ variations.
Moreso than any other team anyway.
The numbers are there for everyone to see and they tell the entire story.
The most telling statistic in that table is the economy rate – it shows that Pakistan scores almost 1 more run per over against Mendis in ODIs than other teams do.
That figure increases to 3 more runs per over in T20Is!
Definitely the Pakistanis are doing something right, something that other teams are not; there is no doubt that they have played Mendis better than their contemporaries.
But how?
Some say they treat him like a medium pacer, others say they pick him of the hand; what it is exactly that the Pakistanis are doing right, I have no idea!
It doesn’t matter really.
As long as they continue doing it right, Mendis will not be a threat to Pakistan – not in tests, not in ODIs, not in the T20I.
Hence, as I said. The Ajantha Mendis threat; it doesn’t exist for Pakistan.
Note:

I don’t buy the “flat track” story for the test against Pakistan, because in the same match, Kaneria bowled 46 overs for 3 wickets; Shoaib Malik bowled 36 for 2 wickets; while Mendis bowled 59 for his 1.

And what hindrance is a flat track anyway for a bowler with so many subtle variations?

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Jun

29

How Shahid Afridi spends his free time…

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I’m sure many of you wonder how all the different cricketers spend their time off the field, what they do in their free time, and so on.

We read about a lot of the off-field activities as well.

Such as Michael Vaughan and his real estate investments, Shane Warne and his nurses, Shoaib Akhtar and his genital warts, Imran Khan and his love child, Andrew Symonds and his “binge drinking”, to mention a few.

Shahid Afridi’s off-field activities, however, seem to be of a very different kind.

Afridi takes out his gun, calls his men, and goes into the mountains to look for his prey.

He spots his target up in the sky and points to it with a smile that shows that he likes what he is going to shoot.

His men seem to agree.

He then finds an open space, sits down, gets into position with his gun, takes aim, and fires!

Once the target is shot, he gets one of his men to fetch it and hold it up for the cameras.

Afridi poses with it, looking as pleased as he does when he gets his targets on the cricket field.

I wonder if the Afridi one-arm-raised salute comes out every time he connects with his fire.

Once he’s done with all his hunting, he resigns to his farm house, where he plays with snakes in his back yard.

See it all yourself to believe it.





Read more on How Shahid Afridi spends his free time……

Jun

28

India vs West Indies, 2nd ODI – Kingston, Jamaica – Video Highlights

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Cricket Video Highlights of India vs West Indies, 2nd ODI International to be played at Kingston, Jamaica in Caribbean. Watch Online all video highlights of ODI Matches to be played between India and West Indies.

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Jun

28

Pakistanis in Australia: Krejza gets a 100, Wahab picks 5, McKay picks 6!

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Pakistan A is on a tour to Australia for 2 tests, 3 ODIs, and a T20 game.
Did you know that?
The 1st 4-day test match started 3 days ago and is set for an interesting final day tomorrow with a potential declaration and a rivetting chase on the cards.
Sounds more interesting than the ODIs going on between India and the West Indies.
It will sound even more interesting when I tell you who top scored for Australia A in their 1st innings score of 399.
Jason Krejza!
Not only top scored, he scored a century – 101 of 160 deliveries with 4 sixes and 7 fours!
His first ever first class century.
His highest score in all forms of cricket before this was 65.
What were the Pakistanis doing letting a discarded Australian offie get to 101?
They had them down at 211-6 before Krejza joined Henriques (76) for a 7th wicket partnership of 120.
Wahab Riaz, who played a few ODIs for Pakistan last year, picked up a 5 wicket haul for the ‘A’ Pakistanis.
They then responded with 338 in their 1st innings with opener Azhar Ali top scoring with 78.
Azhar Ali has been one of the leading run scorers of the last two domestic seasons in Pakistan and has been on the fringes of Pakistan’s senior squad for a year now.
A good showing in Australia will do his case a lot of good.
Azhar got good support from Umar Akmal (54), Kamran’s younger brother, Fahad Iqbal (42), Faisal’s younger brother, and Sarfraz Ahmed (56), Pakistan’s backup wicketkeeper.
Fast bowler Clint McKay picked up 6 wickets.
I don’t know much about him, but he’s Victorian; I’m sure Jrod will have more information on him for us.
Australia A are on 128-6 in their 2nd innings and tomorrow is the final day – here’s the scorecard.

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Jun

28

Random Pakistan Cricket Fact #11

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Hanif Mohammad, the original “Little Master”, held the record for the highest score in first class cricket for 36 years before Brian Lara overtook it.


Hanif Mohammad scored 499 for Karachi against Bahawalpur in 1958; Brian Lara went past that record by scoring his unbeaten 501 for Warwickshire against Durham in 1994.
Lara’s record still stands and probably will for decades to come.
Hanif Mohammad also holds the record for the highest score by a Pakistan batsman in test cricket – 337 vs West Indies also scored in 1958.
Coincidentally, Lara also scored his 375 and 501* in the same calendar year.

Read more on Random Pakistan Cricket Fact #11…

Jun

27

How Times (read fans) Change

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2007: Younis returns home after the ODI World Cup


2009: Younis returns home after the World Twenty20

Jun

27

Younis Khan’s Candid Talk

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Younis Khan’s interview, which was aired on Geo last night, was being advertised as “a candid talk with Younis Khan” throughout the day.

And boy was he candid in his views!

Thank you Adeel (Life in Binary) for producing a transcript of the interview and emailing it to me.

On his retirement from T20 cricket

Younis went into a bit of philosophy here saying that he always looks into the mirror and thinks about what he wants. He said he has never been bothered about what people have to say; the fact that his critics thought he was not good enough for T20 cricket was not why he retired. He pointed out that he had decided about retiring before the World T20; particularly if Pakistan won and added that he was too old for the format.

When reminded he was only 31 (twice during the interview)

Younis laughed and said that 31 was only his official age on paper. He admitted he was only a year younger than Misbah (35) and that he was born in 1975.

See what I mean when I say he was candid!

How he lifted his team after the initial losses

Younis said that he made some statements in the media about T20 being fun and entertainment; he did that to ease the pressure of his players. He claimed he did not want to blame any player for the losses and put pressure on them, hence he put all the pressure on himself, because if the gun is fired it will be fired at the captain. He stressed that by making those statements he put himself in the line of fire.

I also felt this about his statements as the tournament progressed, and I did a couple of posts about that as well. It was a masterstroke as Saad Shafqat had pointed out. Though I do wonder what he would have said had Pakistan’s campaign not turned around. I guess we will never know!

About his Captaincy

Younis first said that he is the kind of person who wants complete control of things around him; he then described his captaincy in two phases – 1) when he stood in for Rashif Latif, Waqar Younis, or Inzamam; and 2) when he became full time captain.

About the 1st phase he said that every captain had their own way of doing things; when he stood in for captains he did not want to adopt ways that were different to theirs. He reminded everyone that in those times the public always took notice of him and at times called for change; he suggested that is how the public reacts and that in another 2 years they would want a change even from Younis Khan.

How true! Us fickle Pakistani fans!

About the 2nd phase, he mentioned that everyone thought he was a non-serious captain who was always smiling and laughing. He claimed that was his way of relaxing his players, calming them down, and not putting any undue pressure on them. He also pointed out that once the team was in the Super 8s, it was serious business, his smile disappeared, he adopted a more serious demeanour, he played with complete concentration, and that everbody knew then who the real authority was.

I believe the perfect example of that was witnessed when Pakistan won their semi final against South Africa. The look on Younis Khan’s face at that time clearly depicted what he has described above.

On getting closer to the players and distancing himself from the selectors

Younis did not deny this; he said that its the players who share everything with each other, live together, eat together, and play together. He added that the PCB administration and the selectors keep changing; its the players who remain the same, hence he had to make his loyalties clear and stick to the players he had faith in.

That he did. He wanted Shahzaib in, he got him. He wanted Khurram for the tests, he got him.

How he reacted to Abdul Qadir’s statement

He admitted that he can’t ignore statements like that and they do have an impact on the players and the team. He questioned why Qadir said something like that and said that his performance was his response to Qadir.

He added that Shoaib Malik was very disturbed by Qadir’s statement and that Malik came up to him wondering why Qadir had accused him of playing politics. Younis said that he told Malik to ignore it and concentrate on performing in the middle. He also mentioned that after Qadir’s statement he sat down with Misbah, Afridi, and Malik and told them that in order to shut people like Qadir up, they needed to gel together, play as a united team, and try and do their best.

Boy did they deliver!

On the claim that Intikhab Alam was not useful

Younis stressed that the captain should be the most powerful person in the team because he is the one who is in the line of fire; not any player, not the coach, not the support staff. He said that around the world the coaches and their support staff are considered helpers and not enforcers; and that is how it should be. He emphasized that the coach, manager, and assistants are there to help and serve the players and that the captain is the main man.

I completely agree with this. And lets face it, Pakistan has only delivered when everything has been under the control of the captain. Let him be the main man. Younis showed that during the World T20 and hopefully he will continue to do the same.

About the ICL Players

According to Younis, all the players who have left the ICL should be allowed to return; however, their top most priority should be to play for Pakistan. He said that Mohammad Yousuf should not have done what he did and that his focus should have been on playing for Pakistan irrespective of his differences with people.

He also expressed his dislike for Imran Nazir’s demand for assurity of gaining a central contract on cancelling his ICL one. He said players cannot hold the board for ransom and that if the player’s priority was playing for Pakistan, he should cancel his ICL contract, make himself available, and not make any demands.

He is all about honesty and about being clear isn’t he. Despite Yousuf coming back into his test side, Younis didn’t really care to be diplomatic. He said it how he saw it.

On the security situation in Pakistan

Younis was of the view that the PCB and the media should try and market Pakistan better than they had done in the past. He suggested inviting a World XI to Pakistan for a series of matches after a few months to assure people about the security in the country.

I am not too sure about this. I don’t think Pakistan is safe yet, and I don’t think inviting a World XI is the best of ideas. It may work a year or two down the line, but not when the Lahore attack on Sri Lanka is fresh in everyone’s memory.

About Ijaz Butt convincing him not to retire from T20 cricket

He claimed that till now Ijaz Butt had not said anything like that to him.

So then what was Butt sahab on about?

Who he thinks should be the next T20 captain

Younis said that his logic was that Pakistan should use this opportunity to groom a younger player for the position. He mentioned that he and Misbah were the same age (this was the 2nd time) and that the PCB should look to groom someone to take over for the time after them.

He was asked again who he thinks the captain should be; his response was that besides him, Misbah, Afridi, and Malik, were all capable of being captains and that the T20 captain should be one of them.

This was the first time Younis was diplomatic in the entire interview. There was no candidness here; we all know he is lobbying Afridi’s case with the PCB.

On the tour to Sri Lanka

Younis said that it will be a tough tour and that the public expectations will be high so his team will have to prove themselves.

Are your expectations high? Mine always are. I’m always optimistic about our cricket.

His 3 wishes

He wasn’t actually asked that but Younis concluded the interview by sharing 3 wishes that he has always had – 1) to win a world cup, 2) to beat Australia, and 3) to beat South Africa.

Well he has accomplished one of them, even if it was a T20 one; hopefully he will have a chance in 2011 for the ODI one as well.

Regarding Australia and South Africa, I’m sure he meant beating them in a test series; that will take some doing! His team will have two cracks at the Aussies soon – in Australia in December, and in England next summer.

Here’s hoping for more of his wishes coming true!

Note: A lot of what Younis Khan said was in Urdu and I have translated it when writing it down.

Read more on Younis Khan’s Candid Talk…

Jun

27

Yuvraj Singh’s 131

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So how many of you actually saw the innings?

I haven’t seen much reaction on this from the bloggers yet, besides Sam.
Actually I haven’t seen much reaction to the ODI either, which produced over 600 runs.
The BCC! guys had a few previews up for the series, which Megha has labelled as the Fake ODI series; but still not much about the actual match that was played today.
So my question again; how many of you actually watched the match?
I watched the toss; I watched Gambhir and Rohit Sharma lose their wickets; after a short break I caught a bit when Karthik and Yuvraj were both on 57; I also saw Karthik get out to a Misbah / Dilshan scoop shot.
Then after another break, I witnessed Yuvraj race away from 80 odd to 120 with some outstanding hits to and over the boundary.
Then I left to watch an atrocious new Bollywood movie.
I came back home to see Ramdin get out and the Windies lose the match by 20 runs.
The fact that I fit in a 3-hour long movie in between the cricket match, just shows how long it was.
Did you also feel that?
Was it too long?
Do people still care about ODIs?
Was this series really needed?
Did the “fatigued” Indian players really have to fly across the globe to play 4 ODIs?

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Jun

27

Pakistan Set for English Summer in 2010

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Pakistan’s much delayed test series against Australia will finally be played in England during the 2010 summer.
It is official.
I am not too sure whether the World T20 victory and the support Pakistan had during the tournament played a trigger in making this official or not; however, it doesn’t really make a difference what the trigger was.
I am just pleased that this decision has been reached.
I’m sure the rest of the Pakistan fans are too.
Competitive test cricket finally, against Australia finally, and in a place where Pakistan will surely have a lot of support.
It’s 2 tests and 2 twenty20 games against Australia.
But that’s not all.
Pakistan was already scheduled to tour England next summer for 4 tests, 5 ODIs and 2 T20Is against the hosts.
That series will now follow the one against Australia.
Next summer, Pakistan will truly make England their home.
6 tests, 5 ODIs, 4 T20Is.
And the best part about this is that I will be in England to witness it all.

Read more on Pakistan Set for English Summer in 2010…

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