For all those FM listeners who love cricket and are bored with listening to film songs on your FM stations, there’s good news. You will very soon be able to hear the live teleacst of the matches of the World Cup cricket on your favorite FM channels. Music to ears? Indeed!! Continue reading ‘World Cup Cricket 2007 on FM radio..?’
A strong team on paper, the Lankan side is one unit opposition would not like to take lightly. A good mix of
experiance and youth, the team has players who have been a part of the World Cup winning squad of 1996! A solid batting order, good allrounders and some exciting fast bowlers makes this Lankan outfit a favorite in this World Cup. The batsmen are good players of spin bowling and on slow tracks of the Caribbean they could prove to be a handful both with their tall batting order and effective slow spin attack. Also, the side has two former captains and one stand in captain so there wont be any dearth of leadership and experiance!
Team
Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Marvan Atapattu, Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Russel Arnold, Chamara Silva, Farveez Maharoof, Chaminda Vaas, Dilhara Fernando, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Malinga Bandara.
Reserves: Chamara Kapugedera, Akalanka Ganegama, Upul Chandana, Ruchira Perera
Strengths: A good batting lineup, decent spin options and a mix of seam and fast bowlers
Weakness: Lack of depth in the bowling
Core
Mahela jayawardene
Captain of the Lankan side, he is one of the talented cricketers in the world of cricket. A stylish right hander, he can score on both sides of the wickets. A wristy player which is common of the batsmen from the subcontinent, he is also a good player of spin which makes him effective in the middle overs.
Sanath Jayasuriya
The ‘Marauder from Matara’ has had a reincarnation and this time he is back in a double effective manner. He was written off as a spent force till he showed sparks of belligerence in the recent New Zealand series, the same spark with which he launched his international cricket career. A flamboyant left hand batsman, he can literally cut the ball into two with his strokes! A strong cutter and puller of the ball, he also eyes the point and third man region for boundaires and sixes. He is most devastating when he gets room for he can dispatch the ball with ease and lots of power on both sides of the wicket!
Kumar Sangakkara
One of the mainstay of the Sri Lankan batting order, this
gifted left hander also donnes the gloves for the team. An aggressive player by nature, he can drop the anchor as and when the situation requires for the team. A solid player through off and leg, he has played some memorable innings for his team.
Muttiah Muralitharan
The wizard and ace spin bowler, his sheer presence in the side and on the field is a big morale booster for the team. With more than 500 wickets, he is a force to reckon on dry and slow tracks which offer help to spin bowling. Even on dead placid tracks, Murali with his unconventional action can turn the ball square and cause lots of discomfort to the best of batsmen from around the world. With the tracks in this World Cup looking to be on the slower side , this spinner will be one to watch out for!
Chaminda Vaas
For me, he is the unsung hero for Sri Lanka, who has shouldered the bowling attack for his country for more than a decade now. A fine swing bowler, his left arm seam bowling has dismissed many batsmen leg before the wicket. With the passage of time, he has also mastered the art of reverse swing which makes him dangerous in the death overs!
Lasith Malinga
He is a ‘Viper’ who imparts sting to the Sri Lankan bowling attack with his searing fast pace bowling. Malinga has a rather
unconventional sling action which gives his deliveries pace and swing. He has an effective fullish yorker ball with which he has castled many batsmen around the world. His problem comes with control as he tends to be a bit erratic at times with no-balls and wides. But all said and done, when Malinga’s around he means business!
The team from Emrald Island is a solid team on paper and on the field. The recent series defeat to India might have dampened the teams efforts and hopes but the team has the tenacity to bounce back. It won’t be long before the side gets its act together and once its bearing are in place, oppositions look for cover!
The warm up games before the main fixtures at the World Cup got underway with a couple of predictable results along with a shocking outcome.
Australia defeated Zimbabwe by 106 runs. They set a target
of 291 to Zimbabwe with Michael Clarke scoring a brisk 82 from 81 deliveries and Shane Watson also making a useful contribution of 81 from 89 balls. The disturbing element was the three quick wickets of important batsmen Ponting, Hussey and Hodge for paltry scores that could have caused some concern to the coach.
The Zimbabwe then made the Aussies grind in the slow and placid conditions as the Aussies used 8 bowlers but still could not get the Zimbabwe team out!
A psychological victory for the Zimbabwe team which has a bunch of inexperienced players as compared to the Aussies!
In another match, Bangladesh stunned the Kiwis by beating them by two wickets. New Zealand set a target of 227 to chase which the Bangladesh team achieved with two wickets, thanks to two sixes by Mortaza off Franklin in the penultimate over! The defeat is a wake up call for the Kiwis who as I mentioned before can not only surprise the opposition but also themselves with some mercurial performances!
India beat Holland in another warm up game by 182 runs as the Dutch crumbled for 118 chasing India’s mammoth total of 300. For the fans though there was’nt much to cheer as its
top order failed to sizzle. Sehwag reached double figures but failed to convert the start and frittered away an opportunity to get some match practice! Sourav Dada looks out of sorts and also without match practice as he made an excruciating 19 before falling prey to some tight bowling. Even Uthappa failed to carry the start he got and was out in the mid twenties.
It was then the same old story of rebuilding with Tendulkar and Dravid doing a yeoman’s job with a solid partnership. Little fireworks in the end and India ended with 300 on the board. At one point though it looked that the team would cross the 300 mark with ease but some tight medium bowling and the slow nature of the track restricted the Indians scoring rate.
Noteworthy is the fact the despite the absence of a fast bowler in the side, the Dutch team was successful in pinning the Indian batsmen who seemed to be bogged like a ship anchored in the a harbor!
The warm up matches have provided a certain wake up call for the teams and the fast learners would make the most from these matches.
A few years back, the arrival of SMS changed the world of communication. One could send his / her thoughts using text over the mobile phone. Well, now all that is history because SMS could very soon be replaced with IMS or Instant Short Messaging.
IMS would be nothing but chatting over the mobile ohone 24 hours a day and all that would be required is a GPRS enabled mobile phone! Sounds intersting ..then here’s more ! Continue reading ‘SMS’s past.. IMS’s the future..??’
The two time World Champions of Cricket are a team in the making. The team has staged a recovery after the void that was created with the exit of some legends from their team like
Walsh, Ambrose and others. Though not quite the same force that made the opposition weak in the legs due to some fiery pace bowling and flamboyant batting display, this present side looks better than what it was a few years back. A good combination of young players like Dwayne Bravo, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Dwayne Smith and experienced campaigners like Chanderpaul and Lara has made it a strong side.
Team
Brian Lara (captain), Ramnaresh Sarwan, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Smith, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dwayne Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Ian Bradshaw, Corey Collymore, Jerome Taylor, Denesh Ramdin, Devon Smith, Lendl Simmons, Daren Powell, Kieron Pollard.
Strengths- Strong batting Order
Weakness- Lack of variety in pace attack and the absence of a quality spinner
Core
Brian Lara
The name says it all! Captain Brian Lara would have to lead
from the front to help his team recover the lost glory of the 70’s and 80’s. With his wide array of shots, aggression and experience he can ‘tame’ any bowling attack. Lara presence in the middle order lends solidity and helps other players rally around him. A master craftsmen he can accelerate or anchor the innings depending on the situation. Certainly a great batsman!
Chris Gayle
He sure brings a breath of fresh ‘Gayle’ to the West Indian batting which at one point took the world by storm with some knockout aggressive batting from Clive Lloyd, Vivian Richards, Desmond Haynes and others. The team after a long time has seen a formidable opening batsman who looks to belt the
attack to all parts of the ground with his timing and forceful strokes. Not a great mover of his feet, he still is capable of tearing any opposition with this ‘lack’ which at times costs him his wicket. A handy part time spinner, his inclusion in the West Indies side certainly boosts the team’s hopes of conquering the World Cup!
Shivnarine Chanderpaul
An unorthodox left-handed batsman, he might not be the
prettiest of batsman to watch while batting but he sure is effective to the core! Chanderpaul has played at different slots in the batting order and has loads of experience behind his back. Presently he is set to open with Gayle and blast his way at the top of the order, he affirms that ‘dynamite comes in small packets’!
Ramnaresh Sarwan
One of the most gifted batsman in the West Indian lineup, he is also got the perfect technique and temperament to weather any storm. He comes in the middle order and can acclimatize to any condition or situation easily with his range of strokes.
Dwayne Bravo
The find of the West Indian team in the recent past, this
young cricketer has proved himself at all levels of the game. A good batsman and more than a handy bowler, his exuberance and talent makes him a rookie for the West Indian team. No wonder Lara backs this youngster as the future of Windies Cricket.
The hosts will present a good challenge in this tournament 
but to expect what their predecessors
presented the world with i.e. flamboyance, aggression and grace, would be unfair. Although the team has the ingredients required for a good outfit, it misses the penetration in the bowling department which has only one quick fast bowler- Jerome Taylor. This in the light of the Calypso cricket’s past when it had the like of Garner, Roberts, Holding
and Marshall looks a bit jaded but still makes the team a good side which can compete with any other team under any conditions. Not to forget is the home advantage which the team would enjoy!
