Delhi Daredevils enter the third IPL with the same label as they did the past two – as the team to beat. That is, however, until they reach the semi-finals

Jamie Alter09-Mar-2010

Delhi Daredevils

Delhi have many explosive batsmen, but keep an eye on Dinesh Karthik•Associated Press

Delhi Daredevils enter the third IPL with the same label as they did the past two – as the team to beat. That is, however, until they reach the semi-finals. Two seasons, two semi-final games, two poor performances. The Delhi juggernaut is a formidable one at normal times, but when the stakes get higher, they have failed to bring out a facet that is only the preserve of champions. Simply put, in two semi-finals they failed to lift their game to an even higher level.Boasting the best batting order of the tournament, a very reliable wicketkeeper-batsman, the best Twenty20 spinner with an economical Indian ally, and an enviable new-ball attack, Delhi have everything going for them three days before the IPL starts. If Virender Sehwag and David Warner provide sheer belligerence with the bat, Tillakaratne Dilshan and AB de Villiers bring a mix of calculated big-hitting and superb running between the wickets. Gautam Gambhir can score at a clip without being half as audacious as these four names, while Dinesh Karthik holds up an unassuming lower middle order with his brand of Twenty20 batting.Dirk Nannes and Ashish Nehra proved a highly successful pair in South Africa and later in the Champions League Twenty20 in India and are fitting prelude to what follows. Daniel Vettori, when he links up with the team in the second half of the tournament, brings talent and experience and Rajat Bhatia, Pradeep Sangwan and Aavishkar Salvi are more than capable medium-pace options.

The buzz

The pitch at the Feroz Shah Kotla, which was severely criticised following the abandonment of the India-Sri Lanka ODI on December 27, has passed the scrutiny of Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, chairman of the IPL cricket committee. However, the surface remains an unknown quantity after it first came under scrutiny during the Champions League Twenty20 in October when the pitch was slow and offered uneven bounce. The venue has been banned from hosting internationals for 12 month but IPL games have been passed.Last week Delhi signed up Eric Simons, India’s bowling coach for the home series against South Africa, as an assistant coach. Simons, who will assist Greg Shipperd, fills the position left vacant by Australia’s David Saker, and will focus on working with the large bunch of young bowlers in the Delhi squad.

New faces

Delhi jumped at Wayne Parnell in this year’s auction and netted the young fast bowler for $610,000. That amount surprised Parnell, and has increased the pressure on him. Parnell fills the slot left vacant after Delhi bought out the contract of Glenn McGrath. The other acquisition is the New South Wales allrounder Moises Henriques, who was transferred from Kolkata Knight Riders, the former India offspinner Sarandep Singh, and the Punjab legspinner Sarabjit Ladda. These three are unlikely to see much playing time given the overseas player cap and Amit Mishra’s success as the prime spinner.

Watch out for

David Warner has been in brutal touch against New Zealand and West Indies during Australia’s successful summer, and his accomplishments for NSW during the Champions League Twenty20 in India last year prove he likes the conditions. Warner is wicked when at his left-handed best but also likes to change it up every now and then. Tellingly, Warner does not want to abandon the switch-hit, which he believes gives him the advantage of being able to hit with the turn regardless of whether an offspinner or a legspinner is operating.

Missing in action

Daniel Vettori will not be available until the end of New Zealand’s Test series against Australia ends on March 31, but franchises have a 48-hour window to name a swap so expect them to usher him back. Apart from that, each of their first-choice players is available for the entire tournament.

X factor

Dinesh Karthik. After a very powerful top five, Karthik settles into the middle order as a major asset for Delhi. A very skilled limited-overs player, Karthik is an asset in Twenty20 because of his ability to hit a long ball and lead a recovery at a brisk pace . He has never looked bogged down in Twenty20 and has most always been able to find the gaps even when wickets have been lost. Certain to play all Delhi’s matches due to his role as wicketkeeper, this is one player the opposition may happen to overlook because of the far more accomplished names the squad. But they do so at a big risk.

Strength

When the first five names on your team list are Sehwag, Gambhir, Dilshan, de Villiers, and Warner, sufficed to say batting is your strongest asset.

Weakness

Delhi are fast earning the unwanted tag of being club cricket’s South Africa in that they have a tendency to choke when it most matters. They made the semi-finals of both IPL seasons and failed to get that far in the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 held in India last year. The batting, fielding and bowling are top notch but it’s in the head and gut that this outfit needs to toughen up.

IPL 2009 – the key figures:

Final position: Semi-finalists
Top scorer: AB de Villiers with 465 runs at 51.66
Top wicket-taker: Ashish Nehra with 19 wickets at 18.21 and economy rate of 6.78
Best result: Ten-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab
Worst result: six-wicket loss with 14 balls remaining to eventual winners Deccan Chargers in the semi-finals
Highest team score: 189 v Chennai Super Kings
Lowest team score: 120 for 9 v Punjab

Prediction for 2010

Put your money on them making the semi-finals – and they could get third time lucky.

The former Victoria fast bowler, David Saker, has been named as England’s new bowling coach, after a lengthy search for a replacement for Ottis Gibson, who took charge of West Indies in February this year

Cricinfo staff08-Apr-2010The former Victoria fast bowler, David Saker, has been named as England’s new bowling coach, after a lengthy search for a replacement for Ottis Gibson, who took charge of West Indies in February this year. Saker joins the ECB following a six-year tenure as assistant coach of Victoria, the state he represented at first-class level on 49 occasions.In his role as Victoria assistant coach, Saker helped to guide the team to the past two Sheffield Shield titles, as well as four domestic Twenty20 tiles in the past five years. He served as head coach of the Delhi Daredevils during last year’s Champions League, following an assistant coach’s role with the franchise throughout the initial two seasons of the IPL.Saker, 43, debuted for Victoria in 1994 before going on to play 23 first-class matches for Tasmania from 2000-2004. He returned to Victoria in the role of assistant coach and co-ordinator of Cricket Victoria’s high performance unit, working closely with the likes of Australian internationals Peter Siddle, Dirk Nannes, Clint McKay and Andrew McDonald.It is expected that Saker will link up with the England team in time for the forthcoming ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean at the end of the month. “I’ve long held ambitions of coaching at international level so the prospect of working with the England team is something I’m very much looking forward to and excited by,” he said. “I’ve really enjoyed my time as assistant coach with the Bushrangers and I’m now aiming to take my coaching to the next level with the England team.Saker’s duties will include guiding the fortunes of the established frontline bowlers, Stuart Broad and James Anderson, as well as working on the development of young prospects such as Steven Finn, Ajmal Shahzad and Chris Woakes.”I believe I can offer the England bowlers a great deal and oversee their development at the highest level,” he said. “This role will be challenging but there’s no question I’m looking forward to working with the impressive crop of bowlers currently in and around the England team.”England’s head coach, Andy Flower, said: “David has a wealth of playing and coaching experience and will be a valuable addition to the England set-up. His record with Victoria in recent times is second to none and he has managed the development of a number of top-class fast bowlers.”We were sorry to see Ottis Gibson leave the position but we believe we’ve found an excellent successor and look forward to David joining us in the lead up to what will be an exciting and challenging year ahead.”Saker was selected from a shortlist of five candidates – including Allan Donald, who worked with the England team briefly in 2007; the former Australian fast bowler, Craig McDermott; Dougie Brown, the Warwickshire assistant coach, and Stuart Barnes, a bowling coach at Gloucestershire and the ECB academy. His appointment means that Bruce French, who works with England’s wicketkeepers, is the only regular member of the coaching staff with an English background.Hugh Morris, the managing director of England cricket, said: “We’re pleased to appoint David Saker as England fast bowling coach after an exhaustive recruitment process that included a number of world-class candidates. David’s credentials are exceptional and we believe we’ve secured an outstanding bowling coach who’ll take up a vital full-time role within the England team management.”

Bangladesh Cricket Board Academy hung on for a nervous draw against South Africa Academy in Chittagong, as the last two Bangladesh wickets batted out the last five overs to keep the visitors at bay

Cricinfo staff25-Apr-2010
ScorecardBangladesh Cricket Board Academy hung on for a nervous draw against South Africa Academy in Chittagong, as the last two Bangladesh wickets batted out the last five overs to keep the visitors at bay. South Africa had a chance to steal a win with two balls left in the game, but the last-wicket pair of Emon Ahmed and Subhasis Roy batted them out.Resuming on 145 for 3, chasing 395, Bangladesh were boosted by a 104-run stand for the fourth wicket between Mahmudul Hasan and Shuvagoto Hom. But the lack of partnerships after they were dislodged hurt their chances of fighting on. Keshav Maharaj, the left-arm spinner, started the slide by picking up two quick wickets, including Hasan for 55, before Gino Vries sent back Hom for 74. The South Africans won a series of lbws in their favour as the game slipped further away from the hosts. They lost their eighth wicket with five overs to play but held their nerve in the end.

Dwayne Smith has performed for Sussex but can’t secure a place with West Indies

Cricinfo staff02-Jun-2010In the midst of a career that started with Barbados almost a decade ago, lead to selection for West Indies, and on to stints with Sussex, Deccan Chargers, Mumbai Indians, and New South Wales it would seem that Dwayne Smith is a player in demand in the game’s shortest format.At 27, playing international cricket should be at the top of his priorities, but since his last appearance for West Indies in the tense, two-run loss to Zimbabwe in Guyana, Smith’s services have apparently not been required, and it is unclear when he may get a chance to boost his stalled international career.Asked by reporters what his standing with West Indies currently is, Smith could only reply: “If I knew I could tell you. I’m in the same position as you are. I’m still available but they’re not picking me. I haven’t heard anything yet so I’m still waiting to see what happens.”In the meantime, Smith has settled in at Sussex. So much so, in fact, that when his Kolpak status expired at the end of the 2009 season, he was signed as an overseas player for the county for 2010.”Here in England, for me, at Sussex, I love it here, especially when we play at home,” he said. “I have the crowd behind me, and the competition you have is probably at the same level [as the IPL], so it’s still good.”Although Sussex won their opening match of the Friends Provident t20, Smith failed in the game, falling to Murali Kartik for a first-ball duck and conceding 13 runs in his solitary over. But his contribution was vital to Sussex’s success in the format last year, and for the moment West Indies’ loss continues to be the county’s gain.

Makhaya Ntini feels he is uncertain of his standing in South Africa’s plans, having not heard from the selectors since he was dropped from the national side for the last two Tests of the England series over the winter

Cricinfo staff01-Jun-2010Makhaya Ntini feels he is uncertain of his standing in South Africa’s plans, having not heard from the selectors since he was dropped from the national side for the last two Tests of the England series in January.After being dropped he bounced back immediately, helping the Warriors win the MTN40 and the Standard Bank Pro20 and recently starring for Kent in the first division of the County Championship with 24 wickets in five games at 19.75.Ntini was hoping that a good outing in county cricket could prod the South Africa selectors into rethinking their decision but he told the Kent website that he is unclear of his position.”My main reason for coming was to show that I am still capable of doing a good job and was not going downhill,” he said.”I’m slightly disappointed because I’ve never been told by Cricket South Africa that they don’t need me – yet they didn’t come to watch me with Kent. I would like them to tell me what I should be working on and to help me get back in.”Ntini, 32, is a giant of South African cricket, having taken 390 Test wickets in 101 games, but there was a feeling that his best days were behind him after he was unable to finish the England tail off in the drawn first Test at Centurion in December and he performed badly the game after, which South Africa lost by an innings and 98 runs. Over the last two years Ntini has played 14 Tests and taken just 46 wickets at 36.02, which compares unfavourably with his overall average of 28.82.Yet Ntini insists the decision was harsh, saying “it is unfair to drop someone for failing in one Test match.” It was thought, at the time he was left out, that he would retire and join Middlesex but he instead vowed to earn back a place in the national side. He did not feature, however, in South Africa’s following series, against India, and was not included in their squad to tour West Indies.Instead South Africa opted for three inexperienced pacemen –
Ryan McLaren, Wayne Parnell and Lonwabo Tsotsobe – to back up the two new-ball bowlers Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel in the Test squad.

Yorkshire’s run of three consecutive Friends Provident t20 victories was ended by Leicestershire who beat them by six runs at Headingley

Cricinfo staff27-Jun-2010
Scorecard
Yorkshire’s run of three consecutive Friends Provident t20 victories was ended by Leicestershire who beat them by six runs at Headingley. Nathan Buck did most of the damage for the visitors by firing out the first three home batsmen in his first two overs with the new ball.Although Yorkshire never quite recovered from this early setback, the result was in doubt right to the final ball which Richard Pyrah needed to hit for six to tie the match. It was delivered by Leicestershire captain and former Yorkshire and England bowler Matthew Hoggard, and Pyrah lashed it high towards cow corner where it was calmly held by James Benning.Yorkshire ended on 169 for 8 as they chased a target of 176 and the Man of the Match was Leicestershire batsman James Taylor, who got his side out of trouble with a sparkling unbeaten 62 from 28 balls with three fours and four sixes.Buck’s second ball was looped by Adam Lyth to Wayne White at cover and his
sixth dismissed South African Herschelle Gibbs leg before wicket attempting
to sweep. His third victim was Anthony McGrath who was also lbw to one which nipped back, the 19-year-old fast bowler finishing with 3 for 20 in only his third match in the competition.Andrew Gale and Jacques Rudolph put on 53 for the fourth wicket to steady the ship but Rudolph was then lbw to Benning and it became 88 for 5 when Gale was run out, perhaps unfortunately, for 52 from 39 deliveries with five fours and a six. White hit the stumps with a direct hit but replays suggested that the bowler, Claude Henderson, may have first disturbed a bail.An enterprising knock from Jonny Bairstow renewed Yorkshire’s hope, and Ajmal Shahzad, released from the England one-day squad, cracked two consecutive sixes off Josh Cobb. In his solitary over, Cobb had already dismissed Bairstow and he also accounted for Shahzad who holed out to Taylor on the boundary edge.Winning the toss, Leicestershire were given an encouraging start by Brad Hodge and Benning who had added 55 together by the ninth over before Adil Rashid struck with the first of his four wickets which came at a cost of only 20 runs.He owed his first success to the athleticism of Lyth who caught Hodge’s
towering hit on the long-off boundary. Before his momentum took him over the line, Lyth tossed the ball into the air and caught it again when he came back inside the rope.Will Jefferson belted Rashid for six in the legspinner’s next over but then
immediately fell lbw sweeping and the bowler signed off with two wickets in his final over as Benning was bowled for 41 off 31 balls and Paul Nixon trapped in front.Taylor quickly retrieved the situation for Leicestershire and he was particularly effective moving well outside his off stump to hit to leg. He took consecutive boundaries off Tino Best and hooked and cut Shahzad for two sixes in one over before thrashing Steve Patterson for two sixes and a four in an over which cost 21.He was given solid support by White whose contribution to an unbroken 81 stand was 23 from 19 balls with a four and a six.

New Zealanders endured poor passages of play in the latter stages of either innings, but did enough to seal victory against Sri Lanka Board President’s XI in their first match on tour

Cricinfo staff04-Aug-2010
ScorecardNew Zealanders’ seamers had the home batsmen in trouble early on•AFP

New Zealanders endured poor passages of play in the latter stages of either innings, but did enough to seal victory against Sri Lanka Board President’s XI in their first match on tour. The win was easier than suggested by the eventual three-wicket margin, as Ross Taylor and Scott Styris struck fluent fifties before the visitors crossed the line with 72 balls to spare.BP XI elected to bat first, but did not account for their opponents’ inspired fast-bowling pack. Things began to go awry in the third over when Daryl Tuffey breached Mahela Udawatte’s defence with nine runs on the board. Dinesh Chandimal was run out for two in the next over, exposing the middle order. They did not fare too well as three wickets fell for the addition of just one run: Lahiru Thirimanne edged Tuffey behind, while Chamara Silva and Thilina Kandamby did likewise against Tim Southee and Jacob Oram respectively. The score read 34 for 5 in 12 overs and BP XI desperately needed a repair job.Kosala Kulasekara put his head down in the company of Milinda Siriwardana and they steadied the ship, adding 29 in 10.4 overs before Clint McKay got into the flow of things, getting the former to give Gareth Hopkins his fourth catch behind the wickets. With both teams having twelve players to choose from, BP XI were batting fairly deep and it worked in their favour. Farveez Maharoof kept Siriwardana company for a 64-run stand for the seventh wicket, off 93 balls. Just when they looked set to step up, New Zealanders managed to dismiss both batsmen before they could reach fifties.That the hosts had something to bowl at was down to the effort of Thisara Perera who stunned the bowlers with an impressive assault. Southee suffered the most damage, going for 64 while the rest of his colleagues finished with respectable figures. Perera smashed eight fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 39-ball 62, as the last 7.5 overs went for 81 runs. Seekkuge Prasanna gave him good support, lashing a six and two fours in his 18 as BP XI finished with 219.New Zealanders’ chase faced an early setback when Nuwan Pradeep got BJ Watling to nick one behind for four. However, Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor made light of his fall, adding 65 at better than a-run-a-ball. Guptill struck three fours in his 33-ball 26 before Prasanna struck him in front of the stumps. Thereafter Scott Styris laced into the bowling in an aggressive partnership with Taylor to put the result beyond doubt.Taylor played some pleasing shots, picking seven fours and a six before Kandamby sent him back after a partnership of 95 in 14.1 overs. Styris smashed two sixes and five fours, racing to 57 off 45 balls before he too fell to Kandamby’s wiles in the 30th over. New Zealanders had a few nervous moments, losing Grant Elliott and Hopkins, with 23 runs still to get. Oram however held one end up while Tuffey lashed four fours to ensure there was no upset.

Greg Chappell could go back to the future after being given an interview for the newly-created job on Australia’s national selection panel

Peter English16-Aug-2010Greg Chappell could go back to the future after being given an interview for the newly-created job on Australia’s national selection panel. Chappell, a former Test captain, was one of the men who installed Allan Border as leader in 1984, but he stood down in 1987-88 after becoming upset with the game’s administration structure.He is currently the head coach at the Centre of Excellence and his place on Cricket Australia’s list has been confirmed to Cricinfo. While the new full-time role comes with a spot on the selection panel, it also includes being a national talent manager and working with the states. Chappell does part of that already in his post at the Academy and as the Australia A coach.Andrew Hilditch, David Boon, Merv Hughes and Jamie Cox are the incumbents on the panel that will undergo a mild restructure. Over the past two years the Test team has dropped from first to fourth on the rankings, and could go to fifth if England, who currently lead 2-0, cleansweep Pakistan in their four-match series.The selection quartet works on a part-time basis, but Hilditch is not applying for the vacant job and said the redesign would not change his duties as chairman. “I look forward to having a full-time selector in the sense there are a lot of issues with workload management and our roster system and making sure we’re covering all the cricket,” Hilditch said earlier this month.”[The new appointment] will have a role on the panel like any other selector, but a very important role in talent management and managing the state talent managers. It’s a pretty big role straight away – a massive role. I think it’s a big development for Australian cricket and I’m very excited.”Chappell, 62, is due to be interviewed this week. He was appointed at the Centre of Excellence in 2008, a year after he finished an eventful term as India’s coach.

Kevin Pietersen’s bid to get in valuable batting time was frustrated by the rain at Bristol

14-Sep-2010
ScorecardKevin Pietersen’s bid to get in valuable batting time was frustrated by the rain at Bristol. Pietersen, on a short-term contract with Surrey following his departure from Hampshire, had hoped to get time at the crease ahead of the Ashes in the winter after being left out of England’s one-day series against Pakistan.But not a single ball was bowled on the second day of the County Championship match at Bristol where Surrey had been due to resume the second day on 112 for 3.Pietersen was left on 40 not out after steady rain fell throughout the morning and umpires Michael Gough and Steve Gale ordered an early lunch before abandoning any prospect of play early in the afternoon.

The Pakistan squad has returned home after completing one of the most acrimonious tours in history, with limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi calling the four-month trip to England the “most difficult” of his career

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-2010The Pakistan squad returned home after completing one of the most acrimonious tours in history, with limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi calling the four-month trip to England the “most difficult” of his career.”It was tough because of the controversies and became very difficult to cope with. Every time we went out of the hotel people passed remarks against us,” Afridi said on arrival in Karachi. “The best part of the whole tour was that the players showed unity even in difficult times and gave a good fight in the one-day series against England.”Pakistan’s coach, Waqar Younis, said the tour had taken a toll on the team’s support staff as well because of the effort needed to keep the players upbeat amid the barrage of allegations. “If you take into account the tour to Sri Lanka [for the Asia Cup] before we went to England, it was four months on the trot and the tour of England was difficult both on and off the field,” Waqar, who flew into Lahore, said.”We had success against Australia which was pleasing, but because of the controversies it was tough against England. You needed that extra effort to gee up the players when you see a report in the newspaper every other day.”Pakistan’s next international assignment is a home series against South Africa in the UAE in October-November. Afridi, who ended a four-year hiatus from Tests this year when he led Pakistan in the very first Test of the summer against Australia only to retire again from the format immediately after losing it, did not rule out another comeback for the Test leg of that tour. “I will think about it and if the team needs it, I may consider playing the Test series against South Africa,” he said.The tour of England had begun positively for Pakistan, with victories in the two Twenty20 internationals against Australia. Despite losing that first Test at Lord’s and Afridi’s retirement, Salman Butt took over the captaincy and led Pakistan to a series-leveling victory at Headingley. It was Pakistan’s first Test win over Australia in nearly 15 years.The Test series against England began poorly, with defeats at Trent Bridge and Edgbaston before Pakistan kept the contest alive with a victory at The Oval. During their defeat at Lord’s, however, the series was plunged into scandal when a British tabloid ran a story alleging that Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif were involved in spot-fixing by bowling deliberate no-balls.The players under scrutiny were questioned by the police and provisionally suspended by the ICC before the Twenty20 series between Pakistan and England began. Pakistan lost both Twenty20 matches, and the one-day series that followed was at 2-1 when the ICC announced that it was investigating the Oval ODI, which Pakistan had won, after receiving information from another tabloid that bookies were aware of certain scoring patterns that would take place before the match.It was decided that the last two ODIs would be played but, before the fourth game at Lord’s, the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt alleged that England’s players had thrown the third match as part of a wider conspiracy to “defraud Pakistan and Pakistan cricket”, plunging the tour deeper into controversy.The ECB reacted by issuing a strong statement deploring the allegations and said it would seek an apology from Butt or take legal action. There was also an altercation between Pakistan fast bowler Wahab Riaz and England batsman Jonathan Trott during a net session ahead of the Lord’s game.Pakistan eventually leveled the series 2-2 before England won at the Rose Bowl to take the series.