gullycricketblog

Check, mate was a bugle call from that Grand Master. The batters turned pawns, and he the captor. My Tribe. And when someone from your tribe shatters the illusion of off-spinners being not intelligent and sharp, you owe him, or certainly I owe him an ode to an off-spinner, our tribe. My tribe has done the cricket world proud, time and again. Ash, Ash Wednesday, it was. Remarkably, a reflection perhaps of how off spinners have defied the notion of them being orchestrators of damp squibs. Or of repentance of my tribe as not to have set the score straight with their brains deceiving the brawn with flight. Your clarion call may have come out of the blue, denied you the solemn farewell, and may have invited thunderous denunciations. So, what? You will find succor to know that your tribe celebrates you – one of the hallowed sons of the tribe. Your display of cognitive superiority, mind-game thrillers, and the stamp of off-spinning authority on the field puts you there among the pantheons. Th...

Finding a long-lost friend is like finding a lost treasure, and as I was basking in the glory of finding such a treasure that shared the bench-strength of our inimitable Santhome School X1 that conquered all the trophies that possibly could have been lifted, in came the black and bleak India – England test series. The shambolic performance of the Indians had already left many a fan high and dry. This long-lost friend was himself a fantastic all-rounder, who could bowl those stinging leg-cutters with such panache that batsmen had to be told that one of their bails was missing. He could pelt the ball around, and could even graft his way to play the anchor role with the bat, as he did wield his willow to good purpose. His tigerish prowls on the outfields had even yielded better results for me as when I had to roll-over my arms to deliver those second-class off breaks. Such was his potentials, though he failed to make it big on the Indian cricketing scene. Our email conversations had i...

New Zealand was thrashed by the World toppers, the Indian side, as India registered an innings and 198 runs victory over the beleaguered New Zealand side. Ishant Sharma has finally struck gold with his bowling form, and his spell that fetched him 4-23 is sure to bolster the confidence of this lanky pace man right before a grueling South African series that lay ahead of the Indian team. From the time when Ishant started troubling Ponting till the present test series against New Zealand, Ishant has come a long way, though he has been struggling with his rhythm for quite some time. A timely haul of 4 wickets just before the high-pitched battle against the South Africans is a good sign for the Indians to take cue from the wonderful performance, and to put up a spirited show on the hard and bouncy tracks of South Africa. Ishant, with this spirited performance has also proved that he is no nine day wonder, and the pace man would do good to acquire words of wisdom form a work house who had pe...

Some batsmen devour the bowling attacks of a particular nation as the bowling never tires them out. They simply tuck into the bowling attacks and relish playing memorable innings that stand the test of time. One such an innings was the vintage display of 191 from Rahul Dravid against New Zealand at Nagpur. Notching up his 31st Test Hundred, Rahul Dravid has helped his side to an unassailable position, with an Indian victory not very far on the horizon. Rahul Dravid has had 6 centuries so far against the New Zealand side, as he is one of the batsmen who seem to be a thorn in the flesh of the New Zealand bowling. The Australians might feel the same with the case of the classy and elegant V.V.S Laxman, who never fails to torment the Australian bowlers with his classic stroke play. Rahul Dravid is to New Zealand as what Laxman is to Australia. The Australian and New Zealand bowlers still aren’t able to get to grips with these two, and the batsmen have only let them into sleepless nights ...

The Ashes 2010 is just about to begin with much fanfare, as a battered and bruised Australian side will be competing to conquer the lost glory, which has been eluding the side for quite some time. Australians had enjoyed a roller coaster ride with such relish, as they set records in a hurry beating Tom, Dick and Harry that came their way mercilessly. But now, they are just past masters as they face an uphill task of capturing the imaginations of the cricketing public at large. Has the hunter become the hunted? Has Ricky Ponting lost the verve and tenacity to handle his team? Has the Australian team lost the Ashes in their minds? Lot of pummeling queries haunts the Australian team and the team certainly is in disarray. England on the other hand has never seemed optimistic before the Ashes tour as they approach the Brisbane Test brimming with confidence, and the players are as fit as ten fiddles and are firing on all cylinders. Though the England team lacks match winners in the likes of ...

South Africa seemed to be sailing pretty, as they were well placed at 218 for one, after Graeme Smith had won the toss and elected to bat. With Hashim Amla (114) and debutant Alviro Petersen (100) exhibiting a sparkling batting display, South Africa seemed to be cruising along to reach a comfortable total to scuttle an Indian victory, and with it to re-conquer the Number 1 spot concerned with the ICC Test rankings. But Zaheer Khan and Harbajan Singh had different ideas altogether, as Zaheer sent both the centurions back to the pavilion with Harbajan scalping three victims. India, with the influence of the electrified atmosphere at the Eden Gardens that worked to is advantage reduced South Africa to 266 for 9, when stumps were drawn for the day. The pitch offering enough bounce produced a marked influence on Zaheer Khan, as he sent the off-stump of the South African captain, cart-wheeling, but, both Ishant and Zaheer failed to be consistent to produce a significant impact during the...

Both Dhoni, captain of the Indian team, and Smith, the South African captain on separate occasions have alluded to the IPL cricket, which according to them has lent a helping hand to the foreign teams to get adapted to the Indian conditions in a better way. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who represents the Chennai Super Kings for the IPL tourney opined that the South Africa’s first test win over India at Nagpur resulted from some fine batting display on the part of South Africa, and particularly batsmen handling the spin attack proved to be the decisive factor for South Africa to clinch the test match, which according to him was made possible due to the exposure to spin bowling as while playing in the IPL. Graeme Smith, on the other hand, who plays for the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, was quick to admit that the South African team had made a study of Indian cricketers from footages related to the Indian Premier League, ahead of the test that had commenced at the Eden Gardens. It becomes e...

After the humiliating defeat at the hands of the mighty Australians, the Pakistan Cricket Board is looking for a new coach for the Pakistan Cricket team, and there have been speculations indicating Greg Chappell to fill the spot as replacement for Intikhab Alam, the present Pakistan Cricket team coach. The PCB insiders have hinted that the pathetic performance of the team entwined with increasing indiscipline could catapult Greg Chappell to the post owing to his worthy credentials that reflect a tough taskmaster in Greg Chappell. Though no official word trumpeting the appointment of a foreign coach has been heard, the word from the horse’s mouth, as from Wasim Bari, the Chief Operating Officer of the PCB has provided clear notions as to the intentions of PCB, as the board stays open to all options for the nonce. Greg Chappell on the other hand expressed his keenness to don the mantle of a coach for the Pakistan Cricket team and to join the team as their official coach before the Pa...

Pakistan has a big task ahead at it now has to play to its potentials to avoid the 5-0 whitewash, which is the second ever in their annals, to register their first victory in this grueling tour. The first of the whitewash had come under the reign of Imran’s captaincy, when the West Indies were the opponents in 1988. Mohammad Yousuf and his men have tasted just the defeat since the test at Sydney. Though the Pakistan team was expected to bounce back in the ODIs, they haven’t done justice to the talent, despite shades of brilliant fight backs getting witnessed in all of the 4 ODIs, in which Australia has proved its dominance by trouncing the disparate Pakistan team. The batting has let the Pakistan team down, and the middle order hasn’t lived up to its expectations. The two ‘Y’s have just 145 runs scored between them which tells the story of Pakistan batting collapse in this series. The bowling has hit a new low as the bowlers barring Mohammed Asif haven’t found their rhythm, and the...

Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul David eclipsed Ponting-Hayden and Greenidge-Haynes alliance’s record for 100-run partnerships, as they registered the 17 th 100-run partnership at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium on the second day of the second test match between India and Bangladesh. Taking advantage of the early reprieves, the duo flayed the Bangladeshi attack to take India to a commanding total of 459 for five, with a sizeable lead of 226 to India’s credit. Though accolades lavishing praise on the two master craftsmen have poured from all quarters, the only concerning factor has come in the form of an injury to Rahul Dravid, when a delivery from Shahadat Hossain pounded him on the helmet causing him to retire back into the pavilion. Tendulkar taking his time to set in pierced the infield with some resplendent strokes, a whip off the bowling of Rubel being the pick of the lot. Rahul Dravid making use of his feet played some lovely inside-out drives as the partnership flourished to a tally of 2...

The IPL twenty 20 cricket 2010 is round the corner with the bidding spewing venomous exchanges between arch rivals India and Pakistan, as the battle for the championship begins with a bloodied warrior style of bidding, and is sure to witness more of such politically entwined unwarranted issues ruling the roost with cricket paling into insignificance. Has cricket lost the sheen, has it lost the gentlemanly characteristic so inherent of the game? Is Twenty 20 cricket the real savior to inject life back into the game of cricket? Dailies and other forms of newsprint have been filled to the gunwales with the eminent columnists propounding their views on the Twenty 20 cricket as well as about the role of this format in today’s cricket. But doubts still linger in the minds of many who have chosen to go with Imran Khan’s formula of ‘Temperament, Talent and Technique’ as being the surefire formula to test a batsman’s success, and the testing platform unarguably being test cricket. For such in...