As Murali runs through the NZ batting lineup in Bombay, it is sad to note that this might be his last game on Indian soil, unless SL make it past the knockout stage. At this point, it is likely that SL will play the mercurial English side in the Quarter Final, if India manage to defeat the hapless West Indies, and SA make expected short work of the spirited but out of their depth Bangladeshis. Pakistan should defeat Australia tomorrow, and if they do, it will be either England or India to face Sri Lanka.
A lot of the game's characters will leave after this tournament, including 2 absolute titans in Murali and Sachin. Yes, I am convinced that Sachin will quit ODIs after this world cup. He has not made any announcements, but it is obvious he cannot continue. He is already a liability in the field, and although his batting remains solid, it is only a matter of time before another injury surfaces. This would be the perfect exit for him, no matter where India end up in the tournament, because he has done his utmost to put them in a winning position nearly everytime he goes out to bat. All the pre-tournament hype from Dhoni about winning the cup for him also sounded a bit like "take the cup and go please" to me. The team needs to move on, and learn to live without his magic bat.
Shoaib also announced his retirement, and it is not a moment too soon. He is running on will and fumes at this point, and it is a sad sight to watch him limp back to his mark for every delivery, even though he manages to retain his 145kph pace nearly every ball, at least in his first spell. The mind has got to be tired though, and it shows on his face as he trundles in and tries to force another missile fast ball into the stumps.
NZ were looking good today until Sanga and Mathews took the game away from them, and then the batting crumbled just when they had a small enough target to chase. Murali's stats are amazing at this point - 7 - 0 20- 3 @ 2.85. Wow. Far and away the best spinner in the tournament, he stands so far above everyone else it is scary to think the loss to spin bowling after he hangs them up. Which brings me to another thought I had recently - being played on the subcontinent, this cup was supposed to be a spinners' paradise, and by and large they have responded well. Even the part timers like Afridi, Yuvraj and have looked effective, while some of the regulars have really impressed. While some of the regulars like Krejza for instance have looked useless, several youngsters like Dockrell for example, have really made use of the conditions and left a mark. The associates in fact seem to have better young spinners in their stables than the test playing nations.
A lot of the game's characters will leave after this tournament, including 2 absolute titans in Murali and Sachin. Yes, I am convinced that Sachin will quit ODIs after this world cup. He has not made any announcements, but it is obvious he cannot continue. He is already a liability in the field, and although his batting remains solid, it is only a matter of time before another injury surfaces. This would be the perfect exit for him, no matter where India end up in the tournament, because he has done his utmost to put them in a winning position nearly everytime he goes out to bat. All the pre-tournament hype from Dhoni about winning the cup for him also sounded a bit like "take the cup and go please" to me. The team needs to move on, and learn to live without his magic bat.
Shoaib also announced his retirement, and it is not a moment too soon. He is running on will and fumes at this point, and it is a sad sight to watch him limp back to his mark for every delivery, even though he manages to retain his 145kph pace nearly every ball, at least in his first spell. The mind has got to be tired though, and it shows on his face as he trundles in and tries to force another missile fast ball into the stumps.
NZ were looking good today until Sanga and Mathews took the game away from them, and then the batting crumbled just when they had a small enough target to chase. Murali's stats are amazing at this point - 7 - 0 20- 3 @ 2.85. Wow. Far and away the best spinner in the tournament, he stands so far above everyone else it is scary to think the loss to spin bowling after he hangs them up. Which brings me to another thought I had recently - being played on the subcontinent, this cup was supposed to be a spinners' paradise, and by and large they have responded well. Even the part timers like Afridi, Yuvraj and have looked effective, while some of the regulars have really impressed. While some of the regulars like Krejza for instance have looked useless, several youngsters like Dockrell for example, have really made use of the conditions and left a mark. The associates in fact seem to have better young spinners in their stables than the test playing nations.
No comments:
Post a Comment