Thursday 30 April 2009

England Squad Announcement

Andrew Strauss (capt), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Alastair Cook, Graham Onions, Monty Panesar, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior, Graeme Swann

I’m quietly encouraged by the first squad announced under Andy Flower, the line up shows some joined up thinking, and demonstrates a willingness to take a look at new options rather than just going back to the same old tired names.

Michael Vaughan, Steve Harmison and Ian Bell now know they’re not just going to spend a little penance in the domestic scene, and walk back into the side. Good. Maybe taking them out of their comfort zone will encourage them to push on... or push off – a positive move either way.

Yes, Bell’s made big runs for Warwickshire so far this season, but the question has never been about his ability and a couple of impressive knocks in the safety of the County Championship haven’t changed his mental flaws on the biggest stage. Equally while I’m sure Vaughan is ‘hitting it brilliantly in the nets’, neither he nor Harmison have the numbers behind them to justify a call up.

Now it looks like Ravi Bopara will bat at three – for at least the test series against the West Indies. I really like Bopara as a player, but I think it’s a bit unfair on him. Number three is the pivotal position in the batting order, and is usually filled by one of the most senior, reliable batsmen. Bopara’s played four test matches.

Someone else should be stepping up to the plate, KP, Collingwood, Strauss and Cook are all experienced, but in the case of Colly & KP in particular are just too comfortable in their current position. So much like Shah, and to a lesser extent Bell before him – the most vulnerable batsman in the order is given the most effective role. I hope he succeeds, but don’t think he’s being given the best chance to.

It’s hard to argue with the logic of any of the other selections; the man in possession Owais Shah hasn’t even played a game in the IPL, so has no form whatsoever – and doesn’t have weight of runs from the West Indies series to retain his place; and Graham Onions celebrated his call up by ripping through Somerset, taking 6-31, so at the very least we’re picking a man in form. Bresnan has been on the scene for a while now and probably deserves his shot.

I’m not wholly convinced either Onions or Bresnan will go on to enjoy successful Test careers, but I’m pleased that we’re going to get a chance to find out.

Wednesday 22 April 2009

County predictions '09

Now that the county season is under way, time to risk making a fool of myself with a few predictions for the coming months.

Starting with Notts, and obvious bias aside, they look as strong as anyone again – stronger if they can get their first eleven out. A bowling attack permeated from Stuart Broad, Charlie Shreck, Ryan Sidebottom, Darren Pattinson, Mark Ealham, Andre Adams and Graeme Swann is more than capable of sustaining a County Championship title challenge. That said, I can hardly see Broad or Swann in particular pulling on a Notts shirt all summer, although it currently looks likely we’ll be seeing more of Sido this year.

Notts’ trophy chances then will be down to scoring enough runs, where a lot will rest on Adam Voges (especially with Samit Patel likely to be spending chunks of the season on international duty), who wasn’t quite able to fill the admittedly huge shoes of David Hussey last year. With a plethora of allrounders, Notts bat deeper than anyone else in the championship – if we can get the openers to pull their weight I see a strong push for the title.

We’ll also expect to be very competitive in all of the one day competitions, whether Ali Brown turns out to be a masterstroke or wishful thinking, the combination of experience, the variety of options and a smattering of class will serve the Outlaws well in pyjama cricket.


County Championship Div one
Between Notts and Durham again, the two teams with the best bowling attacks. I’m going to stick my neck out and plump for Mick Newell’s men to take the title back to Trent Bridge.
Sussex, missing Chris Adams and Mushtaq, and with Murray Goodwin ageing, to go down with Hampshire.

County Championship Div two
There are some big guns in this year’s second division after the relegation of Surrey and Kent last year, but they won’t have it all their own way in the push for promotion. Surrey just keep aging and I don’t see them getting straight back up. Middlesex have a very talented young batting line up with the likes of Malan, Godelman and Morgan, alongside established pros like Owais Shah, I think they’ll score enough runs to underpin their title challenge. Essex will continue to improve, and Kent’s band of mercenaries should be strong, but outside of those three I don’t see much quality cricket being played in the second division. Middlesex as champions, and Kent to be promoted.

Friends Provident Trophy
The early season qualifiers will suit those teams too not affected by IPL/Twenty20 call ups, and with strong seam attacks. I quite fancy Somerset to go well with Trescothick, Langer and Kieswetter spearheading the batting. I’ll plump for them to beat Durham in the final.

Twenty20
Essex have got some terrific boundary hitters in Ravi Bopara and Graham Napier, and have a young, united squad. I also like Notts’ chances in the short format under Chris Read’s captaincy and with a team stuffed full of allrounders. Notts, Essex, Worcestershire and Kent to make finals day... and if pushed Essex to take the title.

Pro40
Who knows? Sorry, it’s just too early to pick a winner.

Saturday 18 April 2009

Hoping Flower Blooms for England

As expected then, Andy Flower is the new coach, or ‘team director’, and it’s a move that I’m reasonably happy with. He might not be the best man for the job, but he definitely seems like the best available.

Despite losing the series in the West Indies, Flower managed to come out of the tour in credit, backed up by improved one day international performances. The players seem to like and respect him, which is half the battle at international level, where, as Shane Warne keeps pointing out, the actual coaching players require should be minimal.

What’s beyond doubt is that Flower was a superb batsman, and his actions alongside Henry Olonga protesting about the state of Zimbabwe during the 2003 World Cup mark him out as a man of courage and integrity.

In many ways the ECB have managed to fall on their feet following their utter mismanagement of the Kevin Pietersen captaincy debacle. With Strauss and Flower in place of Moores and Pietersen I’m pretty comfortable that we’ve somehow managed to end up with the better operator in each position.

The bigger worry moving forward is the lack of candidates for the role. Most of the big name coaches around the world, the likes of Tom Moody, Mickey Arthur and Gary Kirsten all ruled themselves out of the running before even interviewing. The top job in English cricket should be one of the most coveted positions in world cricket, but I fear the continued abject management at the highest level of the game is putting off the elite coaches.

I wish Andy Flower all the success in the world as England coach, but would love to see a new generation of English coaches coming through when the time comes to replace him. The likes of Ashley Giles, Graham Thorpe and Matthew Maynard are all in the early stages of their domestic coaching careers it would be great to have their home-grown hats in the ring in a few years time.

Tuesday 7 April 2009

England player rater

England have just returned home from the West Indies, where the test series defeat was countered somewhat by victory in the one day series, but how did England’s players stack up... just in, here’s the top 20.


20. Ian Bell
1 test, 32 runs @ 16.00
Looked frightened by his own shadow in his only test match when he probably shouldn’t have been selected in the first place. Time for a season away from the spotlight at Warwickshire.



19. Ryan Sidebottom
3 tests, 32 runs @ 32.00, 2 wickets @ 181.00
Turned up injured, picked injured, his pace was well down and to be honest he never really looked like taking any wickets. Fingers crossed he get his body right for the Ashes, as on form his variety will be valuable.


18. Amjad Khan
1 test, 1 wicket @ 122.00,
1 Twenty20, 2 wickets @ 17.00, 2 runs

Very erratic test debut some good balls interspersed with a lot of rubbish, and not especially trusted by his captain on the final day. Decent pace, but I’m not convinced he’s an international class player.



17. Gareth Batty
3 ODIs, 24 runs @ 12.00, 1 wicket @ 72.00
1 Twenty20, 4 runs, and no wickets for 17

An erroneous selection, Batty’s not the man for the present, and certainly not the man for the future. Surely Rashid should have been given a go. Performed adequately but no more.



16. Steve Davies
1 Twenty20, 27 runs
Batted well in his one opportunity opening the innings in the Twenty20. Davies scored his 27 runs off just 21 deliveries – I actually think he may be a better option in one-dayers than Prior.



15. Monty Panesar
3 Tests, 0 runs @ 0.00, 5 wickets @ 54.00
Monty responded well to a bad start and being dropped, and finally bowled superbly on the final afternoon at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad nearly contributing to a fine win. May well benefit from the added competition Graeme Swann offers.



14. Little Timmy Ambrose
1 Test, 76 runs
Came in when Prior popped off home to see his new baby and couldn’t be faulted on his performance, scoring 76 in his only innings, and keeping wicket well. A little unfortunate to lose his place once Prior decided he wanted to play again.


13. Owais Shah
4 Tests, 133 runs @ 22.16,
1 Twenty20, 6 runs
5 ODIs, 107 runs @ 26.75
Finally given the chance many had been calling for when Bell was dropped after the first test and although it wasn’t in his natural home at number five or six he was disappointing. Great batting tracks and an average attack should have offered more than a batting average of 22. Unfortunately Shah our best ODI batsman of the last couple of years took his test form into the 50 over game.



12. Steve Harmison
2 Tests, 4 wickets @ 36.75, 14 runs @ 7.00
4 ODIs, 0 wickets for 139 runs
Hurt somewhat by seeming to be picked on all of the wrong tracks Harmy still doesn’t look like an experienced pack leading fast bowler. Took a pasting at times in the one-dayers, down on pace an inspiration, he’s not even half the bowler he was on the last tour and to be honest I just wouldn’t trust him to play for England again.



11. Dmitri Mascarenhas
1 Twenty20, 0 runs, 0 wickets for 17 runs
5 ODIs, 65 runs @ 21.66, 5 wickets @ 30.40
Pretty average figures from an average player, bowled a little better than I expected, batted a little bit worse – at strike rate of 57 is dire for a big hitting lower order player



10. Matt Prior
4 Tests, 310 runs @ 77.50
5 ODIs, 74 runs @ 37.00
Topped the test match batting averages where he performed very well with the bat, but his keeping remains poor at best, catches dropped, and nearly a world record number of byes conceded in the Trinidad test match, and many more in the ODIs, which could prove very costly in tight games. He also doesn’t convince as a limited overs batsman not scoring as quickly as he should through a lack of inventiveness in shot making.



9. Andrew Flintoff
3 Tests, 67 runs @ 16.75, 5 wickets @ 30.20
3 ODIs, 3 runs @ 1.50, 6 wickets @ 16.00
Mixed as he always seems to be these days, inspired for his decisive bowling performance in the final ODI in St. Lucia, he never bowled less than well, although generally not quite hitting the heights. Batting form more impeded by his on-off injury problems.



8. Kevin Pietersen
5 Tests, 406 runs @ 58.00
1 Twenty20, 12 runs
5 ODIs, 80 runs @ 20.00

Not quite himself after losing the captaincy, started with a typically belligerent 97 in the first test, and hit an important century in Trinidad, there apart too often out to poor shots, and not looking quite as self assured as usual. Well below par in the ODIs when apparently he was thinking of home. Needs to find his spark again in time for Australia.



7. Stuart Broad
5 Tests, 94 runs @ 18.80, 12 wickets @ 30.58
1 Twenty20, 2 runs and 1 for 26
5 ODIs, 11 runs @ 3.66, 8 wickets @ 26.75

Broad has continued his rapid improvement as an international cricketer, with the injuries suffered among the seamers he stepped up to a senior role, leading the pack alongside Anderson and growing as a wicket taking threat. Remains a quality one day bowler, although didn’t get going with the bat.



6. Ravi Bopara
1 Test, 104 runs
1 Twenty20, 13 runs
5 ODIs, 146 runs @ 29.20
Quality hundred in his one test match in Barbados, full of great attacking shots to the leg side, and was a little unlucky to miss out when the extra bowler was selected for the final game. Bopara also showed promise opening in the fifty over games without getting the big score. He’s got the ability to clear the infield in the early overs, I’d tell him now he’s opening the batting through to the next world cup.



5. Alastair Cook
5 Tests, 384 runs @ 54.85
Broke that hoodoo by finally turning a half century into a hundred at Barbados and batted well throughout the test series forming a very reliable opening partnership with his Captain. Sure to me a major fixture in the side for years to come, maybe at number three though?



4. Graeme Swann
3 Tests, 31 runs, 19 wickets @ 24.05
Established himself as the number one spinner in the side following on from out bowling Panesar in India. Missed out on the first test, but after that bowled with control and variation, finishing as the leading wicket taker on either side. Also looks like a good character especially on a long tour.



3. Jimmy Anderson
4 Tests, 24 runs @ 12.00, 9 wickets @ 38.00
1 Twenty20, 1 wicket for 19 runs
5 ODIs, 8 runs, 9 wickets @ 21.11
His test stats don’t quite justify this ranking on their own, but I think he bowled superbly throughout. Ando’s always bowled wicket taking deliveries but his consistency has improved, and he’s also bowling at a really good pace now. Batting has improved and he’s turned himself into a reliable nightwatchman – even when he shouldn’t be used in that role.



2. Paul Collingwood
5 Tests, 430 runs @ 61.42, 0 wickets for 73 runs
1 Twenty20, 14 runs, 0 wickets for 8 runs
5 ODIs, 111 runs @ 37.00, 5 wickets @ 22.80

Confession time, I was wrong – before the tour I was advocating dropping Colly, but he’s been absolutely superb. As always never looking too pretty, but bloody effective, and always there when he’s needed. Two hundreds in four completed tests speaks for itself, and he’s still as absolutely essential member of the limited overs side – taking useful wickets, and topping the scoring rate charts (of anyone facing more than 20 balls) at 88.80.



1. Andrew Strauss
5 Tests, 541 runs @ 67.62
1 Twenty20, 22 runs
5 ODIs, 204 runs @ 51.00

No surprises that the skipper is in at number one. Handed a hospital pass by the Pietersen / Moores debacle before the tour, he handled himself brilliantly throughout, and the captaincy clearly helps his batting. Four hundreds in all forms of cricket, Strauss led from the front and actually played more fluently than for years, culminating in some one day innings as welcome as they were unexpected. A world class tour, where my only criticism is a tendency for slightly negative captaincy in the test matches.

Thursday 2 April 2009

KP the Capitalist is trapped in the wrong sport

Much has been written about Kevin Pietersen this week, for all that KP is someone on the edge of greatness, and the best English player of his generation - he’s clearly unhappy and a difficult character to manage. The problem is he’s a fantastic talent doomed to play the wrong sport.

One of the things that makes cricket unique is that it’s essentially an individual’s sport played by teams. Like no other team game, personal contributions are there to be analysed and judged in black and white, runs and wickets are the only currency that matters and the scorecard never lies.

Consider rugby and football, our two other dominant team sports, in the Six Nations tournament just finished, 53% of the points scored came from the boots of the elected place kickers, but the opportunities for Ronan O’Gara or Toby Flood to score only came from another member of the team crossing for a try, or teammates forcing an error from the opposition and winning a penalty within kicking distance. Yes, kickers do get their fair share of glamour, but some of the most celebrated of all players barely scored a point for their country.

Martin Johnson is one of the greatest sportsmen England has produced in any discipline, and yet in 92 tests for England and the Lions he scored only two tries – a paltry ten points – but we all appreciate what Johnno brought to the cause.

Rugby’s probably the ultimate team sport; the best teams attack and defend as a collective. One man comes up with the ball when a pack drives over the try line, but it’s the collective effort, will and strength of the group that’s responsible for the score – not to mention those involved in the previous phases of the move that earned the territorial advantage in the first place. There’s nothing equivalent in cricket – sure occasionally a fielder will pull off a sensational catch to gift a bowler a wicket – but essentially you’re on your own.

Ideologically speaking rugby is the Communist sport – a fantastic irony that the stockbrokers, bankers and farmers that play the game will surely appreciate. Which makes individual games like golf or tennis Capitalism, where the success of the victors can only be achieved at the expense of others. Cricket falls somewhere in the middle; maybe its New Labours fabled ‘the third way’ - but let’s hope not.

Similarly in football, games are won and lost on goals scored, and although strikers are generally the highest paid and most celebrated individuals on a team, they’d struggle to function without the support of the rest of a team. And no-one doubts the contributions of defensive players like Nemanja Vidic or Claude Makelele for example – although it’s only in recent years that the Carling Opta boffins have started collating statistics on tackle or passing percentages, to ‘rate’ their performances. Anyone who was watched players such as these, or those like Fabregas and Xaxi for Arsenal and Barcelona respectively will appreciate their game offers so much more to the side than the scorebook reveals, the heartbeat of the team they dictate the style, pace and movement of the collective.

So back to KP’s, he is fantastically dedicated to cricket, and to squeezing every last drop reward out of his physical ability. By all accounts he practises harder than anyone else, improving his own game and pushing it to new heights – the addition of the switch hit to his repertoire being a perfect example.

So as an individual within the England team he delivers to a remarkable degree, but after that I think he struggles. He clearly gets frustrated by the limitations of those around him who aren’t as dedicated, single minded or talented as he is. Throughout Pietersen’s career he’s consistently moved on to pursue his goals, from leaving South Africa behind and moving to Nottinghamshire to fulfil his ambitions, to ditching Notts in favour of his buddy Warne and the money offered by Hampshire, and then more recently manoeuvring to have Peter Moores replaced as England coach. He lets nothing or nobody get in the way of his individual success. Only now he’s reached the pinnacle there’s nowhere to go, nothing to rail against.

In this respect Pietersen would be much more suited to an individual sport like golf. He reminds me hugely of Tiger Woods or Nick Faldo; displaying absolute dedication to mind, body and technique to attain the greatest heights; not bothered about upsetting people on the way to achieve their goals; absolutely unafraid of speaking their mind to rivals or the press; and not great team players – witness Tiger’s relative struggle in the team restrictions of the Ryder Cup (although curiously not for Faldo at least as a player).

It’s that individual format that would allow Pietersen to flourish, reliant solely on himself rather than having anyone else to rely on or hold him back, although at least cricket still affords him the opportunity for the individual glory and personal records that he craves.