As a selector and national talent manager, Greg Chappell has his work cut out in steering Australia out of their current trough

Interview by Daniel Brettig13-May-2011How do you reflect on your first season in the role of national talent manager and national selector?
I certainly looked forward to the challenge, having been involved with the Centre of Excellence the previous two years. I had a pretty good idea of what our talent pool was like and what we had to look forward to, so from that point of view it was an exciting opportunity, I suppose. The unknown [factors] were around the new role as national talent manager, trying to establish the network below the national selection panel. I suppose the last 12 months have been about trying to put in place that talent management network, and I think by and large that’s gone well. I believe we’ve got some really good people involved in those roles in the states, which probably made it more systematic.How has the selection job evolved since you finished your first stint in 1988?
It’s very different in that we have professional first-class cricket now as opposed to the 80s, when I was originally involved. Being a full-time selector obviously makes it different. There’s a few more layers in the system these days, and my role on the national selection panel has a very large youth component to it. I am full-time and I am working with people in the states and the Centre of Excellence. There’s a bit more depth to it and a bit more day-to-day responsibility than just turning up to selection meetings and picking teams. But the process hasn’t changed that much.How are the lines of communication between the selectors and the players?
I think it’s in a good place. Can it be in a better place? Probably. You’re always looking to improve those relations, and particularly the communications. Most players like to know where they stand. Some of the more established perhaps feel pretty confident and comfortable with where they’re at, but there might be players on the fringe of the team or just new to the surroundings who probably need a bit more comfort and discussion about the position, the role and all the expectations.The players are always saying they’d like open and honest appraisals of where they’re at. Trying to achieve that is a constant exercise, but receiving bad news is never easy, delivering bad news is never easy. The chairman of selectors is the one who has to deliver that news and it isn’t always well received, obviously.At the moment hard decisions and tough conversations are not easy to avoid. Do you think that has been difficult for those experienced players who lived through the previous era of great success?
Yeah, maybe. I don’t think it’s ever easy to get to the stage of your career where the end is closer than it once was. So dealing with all of that is the challenge we as a selection panel have to deal with.At selection time, Andrew [Hilditch] deals with the media and the players. I have more of a day-to-day role after those major events. I’m obviously more available than Andrew is, and I am constantly conscious of [having to be] not at cross-purposes with the selection process and what the chairman’s talked about. Trying to make sure the messages are consistent, concise and up to date is the critical thing.One of the early signs that you would bring something different to the panel was the pre-Ashes suggestion to Ricky Ponting that he should move down to No. 4 in the batting order. How do you view that dialogue now?
It was throwing around options and ideas really. We were just looking at the best way to use our resources. A lot of discussions go on about a whole range of things. Some come to fruition, some don’t.There’s no doubt the Australian team is at a low point in the cycle, if you believe in cycles. How can the team break out of that?
I think if you get caught up in the moment and the emotion of the moment, if you get caught up in wins and losses, you can confuse yourself. The fact of the matter is, players take time to develop. The players coming out of our youth programme into first-class cricket – I think the talent levels are pretty solid and reasonably consistent with what’s gone before. You do have periods of extended success like we’ve had in recent times, but nothing lasts forever and no one team stays up forever. The challenge is to try to ride out the troughs and the peaks.What we want to try to avoid is being in a long trough, so that exercises everybody’s mind, not least the national selectors, as to what the tactics and the strategies are to come out of it. You constantly look to produce the best team you can. Put combinations together because teams are about combinations, whether it is opening batsmen or opening bowlers, spin bowlers…You look at opening batsmen, there is often consideration to left-hand and right-hand combinations, but we had a great left-hand combination of Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer for some time. They played differently. One was a tall, strong front-foot player, the other one was shorter, more compact and a very good back-foot player. So that combination worked very well because bowlers had to constantly adjust their length.You’re looking to put out combinations that give you a chance, and if you can find some outstanding match-winning players, that’s great, but if you haven’t got them, you do the best you can with the combinations you can put together. That’s the challenge for us over the next few years. We can see we have got some potential champions on the horizon, but it’s going to take time for them to get to the point where they’re going to be ready to play for Australia. In the meantime you’re looking for the best combinations you can get.

“I think if you get caught up in the moment and the emotion of the moment, if you get caught up in wins and losses, you can confuse yourself”

The nature of Australia’s domestic structure, and particularly the introduction of age restrictions in the second XI competition or Futures League, has faced heavy criticism. Do you think the system is working as it should be?
I think it is developing in the right direction. Not to say it can’t be reviewed – it is being reviewed, and no doubt there’ll be more discussion before decisions are made on the future of the Futures League. For what it was brought in to do, I think it’s been quite successful. We had a situation where the average age of state-contracted players gradually crept up, and I think there was a feeling that that was not in the long-term interest of Australian cricket.We have six state teams, we have 100-odd players on contract, but only 66 can play at any given time, and we need to have a reasonable number of those players as potential match-winning players for Australia. If we have only got one or two in each state who are in that bracket of being young, talented and potentially match-winning, we’ve only got about six to pick from. If we have got five per team we have got 30 to pick from.I understand the argument that you need hard-headed players, and I agree, you do need players who make the competition as strong as possible, who can either directly or indirectly teach the future generation what the game’s all about. But equally you’ve got to have available to you potential players for the future. So the restrictions on the age are about giving the next generation chances to bat in the top four, to be opening bowlers or spin bowlers, to learn what it’s all about. The less spots you have available, the less opportunities there are to develop, and to face the challenges they need.I think a lot of the criticism comes from particularly players who are in the over-23 bracket. While it’s understandable that they are going to have that view, it’s very important there are people in the organisations and in CA who look at the big picture. We can’t afford to have states focused on silverware at the domestic level. It’s not about silverware; it’s about development and silverware. If the focus is on winning competitions at that level, it’s going to impact what happens at the top level. So we’re trying to get a process in place that seamlessly takes people from youth programmes into our adult programmes, giving them the challenges they need, recognising the players have attributes that will be useful to Australia down the track, and as quickly as possible getting them to play for Australia.First-class pitches have also been a recurring theme, and the CA playing conditions committee that meets at the end of May is sure to discuss the prevalence of “result wickets”.
I’m on the committee, so I’ll get a say when the time comes. We want a variety of wickets in Australia. I think the great strength of Australian cricket through its history is that each centre has had slightly different conditions and therefore players are more likely to be able to adapt to the variety of conditions that are available or encountered internationally. There is some criticism that a few states have tried to produce result wickets to help them win silverware. Now I certainly don’t agree with that. What we want is the best cricket wicket available in each centre – hopefully wickets that challenge batsmen and bowlers alike, and help us produce players who are going to have a better chance of being successful at international level. If we’re making cheap runs or taking cheap wickets it’s not going to help Australian cricket in the long term.Can the rise of Twenty20 as another source of money divert Australian cricket’s focus?
Yes, it can. I think Twenty20 is good; the changes to the Big Bash League have the potential to be very positive for Australian cricket. Dealing with the challenges that it presents will be important at many levels – at a state level and at the national level. Being an employee of CA, and a member of the NSP, I have a focus on Australian cricket. There’s no doubt that the money available with Big Bash leading into the Champions League means that the franchises, the states as owners of the franchises, have some focus in that area, which just means that all our other competitions and how they are run… the focus on those competitions is going to be even more important than in the past.The Centre of Excellence in Brisbane is another target for critics for varying reasons. There appears to be quite a divergence of views as to what it is there for?
It’s a constantly evolving thing and it’s often difficult to satisfy every stakeholder. But I don’t think there should be any argument on what our focus is. The strategic plan for CA is to be the No. 1 in all formats of the game. If that’s our focus then doing what is best from the national point of view is important, and the Centre of Excellence is very much part of the pathway from youth cricket through domestic cricket to international cricket. The Centre of Excellence was moved from Adelaide to Brisbane because it is a winter project. It’s an opportunity to have identified players from our youth programmes and our domestic first-class programmes get some further development in the off season.I think half the time the sort of criticism I hear is that a lot of money goes into it and that money might be better spent in the states. If it was just about producing state players, maybe it would be, but you’re looking to develop international players. From a CA point of view the Centre of Excellence is a very important part of that development process. I think there’s a level of comfort around that that says it will continue. Can it get better? Can it do a better job? Probably. And we’ll be aiming to do that.”Hopefully [the state] wickets will produce the batsmen and the bowlers who have a better chance of being successful at international level. If we’re making cheap runs or taking cheap wickets it’s not going to help Australian cricket in the long term”•Getty ImagesAustralia’s Under 19s recently played a series against West Indies in Dubai and lost. How do you view those talent stocks?
I think it’s pretty healthy. Again there’s a lot of discussion about what our youth programme should look like. I don’t think we’re far away from what we want. If you make youth cricket a destination, it’s going to impact negatively on what you can produce at the international senior level. The U-19s programme isn’t about winning games, it’s about developing players. History tells us most of them won’t become outstanding senior cricketers. That’s just a fact. A lot of them will choose to do other things, but for the two or three or four or five, however many in each intake, who will choose cricket as a career and will be potential Australian cricketers, it is a fantastic opportunity.Two or three of our best bowlers were unavailable for the series. The management of the tour made the decision to give everybody opportunities rather than to play the best team or try to win games, so the teams were changed around and opportunities were created. For instance, we won the toss, batted first and won the first one-day game. In the second one-day game, we probably had a better chance of winning the game batting first, but the management chose to bat second to experience the challenges of batting second under those conditions. It’s always nice to win, but if you judge everything by wins and losses alone, you’re likely to make a lot of mistakes.Australia have tours of Sri Lanka and South Africa this year. The team haven’t been subjected to back-to-back overseas Test tours since the fateful summer of 1969-70.
If you want to look at it in that light, it is, yes, but if you want to look at it as an opportunity for us to get better, I think it’s a great opportunity. There will be different challenges on each tour; much like 1969-70, there will be very different conditions on the two parts of the tour, so it will be a challenge. The good news for this generation is they won’t have to go back to back from one set of conditions to the other; the Champions League will intervene, so the opportunity will be there to pick specialist groups for the two tours.In India Duncan Fletcher has been appointed national coach. Given your experiences over there how do you think he’ll fare?
I think it’s an interesting appointment. He’s a very experienced coach. I think he’ll bring a lot to the job. Coaching at that level is a challenge in any environment. We know how fanatical India is about the game of cricket, with the population and the media population, that brings with it different challenges. Duncan’s been a proven coach and has experienced India from the other side, so he’ll be as ready as anyone.If he sees out his contract he’ll likely have to manage some quite high-profile retirements, too.
Cricket teams are always in a state of flux. I don’t think you’ve ever got a finished product – you’re always dealing with the need to regenerate it at one level or another. Duncan’s been through all that sort of stuff. He will be as experienced as anyone could be to handle that.

Mahela Jayawardene, who reached the 10,000-run landmark in ODIs, may not have the best stats but his class and quality have been evident in big matches

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan18-Nov-2011Since the 1996 World Cup triumph, Sri Lanka have been one of the most consistent ODI teams reaching one World Cup semi-final and two more finals. They owe much of their success in the format to an array of outstanding fast-scoring batsmen starting with Aravinda de Silva and Sanath Jayasuriya. In the last decade, Sri Lanka’s batting stats have been dominated by the classy Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. Jayawardene, who today became the second Sri Lanka batsman after Jayasuriya and the ninth overall to cross 10,000 runs in ODIs, is also Sri Lanka’s highest run-getter in Tests. After making his debut in 1998, Jayawardene has played much of his career in the middle order. Although he has continued to average in the mid thirties, a recent resurgence in form in the last two years has seen his average rise to around 45 since the beginning of 2010.A comparison of the six Sri Lanka batsmen to cross 7000 runs is an interesting exercise. Jayasuriya and de Silva were extremely attacking players who came to the fore in the 1996 World Cup. Both of them scored their runs at a fast clip with Jayasuriya in particular boasting a strike rate in excess of 90. Marvan Atapattu, who opened the innings with Jayasuriya for much of his career, was the ideal foil to the aggressive left-hander. Atapattu, who has the second-highest average among the players in the 7000-run group, had a low strike rate of just over 67. Jayawardene and Sangakkara, who have been the core batsmen in the Sri Lankan line-up for the last six years, also have averages in a similar range with the former having a slightly higher strike rate.

Sri Lanka batsmen with 7000-plus runs in ODIs

BatsmanMatchesRunsAverageSR100/50Sanath Jayasuriya*4451343032.3691.2128/68Mahela Jayawardene*3551000433.4577.6615/61Kumar Sangakkara*303955037.7475.3611/65Aravinda de Silva308928434.9081.1311/64Marvan Atapattu268852937.5767.1211/59Arjuna Ranatunga269745635.8477.914/49Jayawardene averages nearly 57 in the last two World Cups, but this masks the horror shows in the 1999 and 2003 tournaments. In those two World Cups, Jayawardene scored just 123 runs in 11 innings and hit rock bottom in the 2003 World Cup when he managed just 21 runs in seven innings. However, in the 2007 World Cup, he demonstrated excellent consistency and scored a brilliant match-winning century in the semi-final against New Zealand. In the 2011 tournament that was played in the subcontinent, Jayawardene produced a masterly display in the final against India but Sri Lanka were unable to defend a competitive score. Overall, in global tournaments, Jayawardene averages higher than he has in bilateral series. In the Australian tri series, he has been below par scoring just one century in 36 matches at an average under 34. On a whole though, his performances in tournament semi-finals and finals have generally been good with an average of 39.19 with two centuries and eight half-centuries.

Jayawardene’s ODI stats by series

Type of series/tournamentMatchesRunsAverageSR100/50Bilateral series153403531.7775.186/22Tri series (Australia)36112133.9680.181/10World Cup/Champions Trophy51154937.7886.433/9Asia Cup2046831.2086.660/5Tournament finals/semi-finals31101939.1983.312/8Jayawardene, predominantly a middle-order batsman, has opened the innings ten times performing particularly well. As an opener, he has scored more than 600 runs at an average of 61.80 with three centuries. His strike rate of 93.49 is also well above his career mark of 77.68. In the early part of his career, he played in the lower middle order (No. 5-8) and struggled with his average hovering around the 25 mark. However, Jayawardene has proved to be most prolific at No.4. He has batted 178 times at No.4 scoring nearly 60% of his career runs at an average of 35.88 with seven centuries and 41 fifties.

Jayawardene’s ODI record by batting position

Batting positionInningsRunsAverageSR100/501-21061861.8093.493/2345137335.2080.153/64178570535.8876.347/41566158426.4074.781/96-83472423.3479.030/0Like most Sri Lanka batsmen, Jayawardene has found the going tough in matches played outside home. While he averages just 31.80 in ODIs in Australia, his struggles have been exemplified in South Africa and New Zealand where he has averaged 21.52 and 17.45 respectively. He has done well in India and Sri Lanka scoring seven of his 15 centuries in the two countries. Surprisingly, Jayawardene has found the going tough in Bangladesh and Zimbabwe too averaging just 31.40 and 18.08. However, he has tasted success in matches in England where he averages 43.80 with three centuries.

Jayawardene’s record in various countries (other than Bangladesh and Zimbabwe)

Host countryMatchesRunsAverageSR100/50Australia39114531.8079.341/10England2392043.8084.093/3India29104938.8583.323/4New Zealand1519217.4557.140/0Pakistan1638425.6079.330/2South Africa2749521.5272.050/4Sri Lanka119322935.4876.044/22UAE31108938.8979.722/6West Indies1766147.2180.901/5Although Jayawardene is one of only nine batsmen to amass 10,000 runs in ODIs, his average is not on par with most others in the group. Sachin Tendulkar, who is far ahead of all batsmen in terms of runs and centuries, has an even distribution of centuries and a comparable average home and away. Ricky Ponting, the second-highest run-getter, has an excellent average of 44.13 in away games. Inzamam-ul-Haq’s home and away numbers indicate a very large disparity. While he averages 56.80 at home, he has managed only 36.86 in away matches. His centuries-to-fifties ratio is also very low (10:83) as compared to most others in the group. Jayawardene, in contrast to the others, averages just over 35 in home matches and 32.64 in away matches. His strike rate at No.4 (76.34) is marginally better than the overall strike rate for that position in ODIs since 2000 (75.41).*

Batting stats for batsmen with 10,000 runs in ODIs*

BatsmanMatches/Runs (home)Avg/SR (home)100/50 (home)Matches/Runs (a/n)Avg/SR (a/n)100/50 (a/n)Sachin Tendulkar164/697648.11/88.4020/38289/1113543.49/85.0728/57Ricky Ponting148/538840.51/79.8613/32222/829844.13/81.0817/50Sanath Jayasuriya128/388033.73/88.957/24317/955031.83/92.1721/44Inzamam-ul-Haq75/267456.89/80.764/17303/906536.26/72.516/66Jacques Kallis136/499347.55/74.936/38181/637943.99/71.3511/46Sourav Ganguly78/311044.42/77.454/24233/825339.86/72.3818/48Rahul Dravid97/340643.11/78.536/24247/748337.60/68.356/59Brian Lara91/322444.16/79.056/20208/718139.02/79.7113/43Mahela Jayawardene119/322935.48/76.044/22236/677532.57/78.4511/39

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the first day of the lone Test between Zimbabwe and Pakistan in Bulawayo

Firdose Moonda in Bulawayo01-Sep-2011Gamble of the day

Before the match had actually begun, the first notable decision of this contest was made. Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss and decided to put Zimbabwe in to bat on a pitch that promised runs. Perhaps he thought that the only way Pakistan would be able to get wickets was by making use of any early advantage on offer as a result of the generously green pitch. He was wrong. Zimbabwe’s bowling coach, Heath Streak, who is from Bulawayo, said he had played on pitches here with more grass than this one, but even then the ball refused to do much. Yes, he was surprised Pakistan had opted to field, since Bulawayo is known as a bat-first surface.Drive of the day
Vusi Sibanda prefers to pull and showed it early in the day, but someone should tell him that his driving could be even better appreciated. His first runs came with an exquisite shot down the ground, between the bowler and mid-on, off a Sohail Khan delivery that was just too straight. The shot was beautiful and the placement perfect, but it was the way in which Sibanda executed it that was most spectacular. His positioning of the front foot was authoritative and he finished off with his elbows held high to demonstrate a solid follow through. Drop of the day

Pakistan and dropped catches go together like Zimbabwe and blue skies, but with two edges not carrying to the slips, they couldn’t be blamed for having butter fingers this time. That is, until Sohail Khan put down one of the easiest chances he will ever get. Mawoyo was being frustrated by Junaid Khan, who had bowled four maiden overs in succession after lunch, by varying his lengths and making difficult to get him away. During his fifth over, Mawoyo tried to hook but got a top edge that gave Sohail at long leg at least ten seconds to judge the path of the ball and get under it. He did all of that and then let the ball slip through his fingers. It turned out to be a costly blunder, with Mawoyo anchoring the Zimbabwe innings.Lucky escape of the day
Brendan Taylor did not mince his words when he said that there was some doubt over whether Craig Ervine should be in the team, indicating the pressure in on the batsman to show he deserves his place in the side. At training on Wednesday, Ervine was called aside to have a private chat with coach Alan Butcher, which lasted about 25 minutes. With his place in the side precarious, he made a bad judgement first ball of his innings, allowing a ball on the pads to thud into his thigh pad instead of steering it to fine leg. The ball took the edge of the pad and rolled towards the stumps, almost hitting them, but fortune saved Ervine.Surprise of the day
After 82 overs of hard grind, Pakistan probably weren’t sure if they should take the new ball or continue with the spinners and the old one. Eventually, they decided to do a bit of both. The new nut was given to Mohammad Hafeez, who had done the job for Pakistan in the West Indies earlier this year. On those occasions, he made Devon Smith his bunny, but he had no such luck this time.

He may well be a work in progress, but for Rajasthan, Rituraj is working just fine for the moment

Sharda Ugra at the Bansi Lal Stadium13-Jan-2012Rituraj Singh has found the best way to emerge from the fringes and demand the spotlight be turned in his direction. In his debut first-class season for Rajasthan, Rituraj has taken 22 wickets in his first three matches, his 12-80 in the semi-final against Haryana at the Bansi Lal Stadium in Lahli earning him his second Man-of-the-Match award. This time though, Rajasthan must find a way to ensure that the immediate consequence of this award does not end up like the first one had.In Rajasthan’s final Elite group match versus Orissa in Jaipur, Rituraj’s 6-75 in the second innings helped Rajasthan earn both an outright victory and the extra bonus point they needed to have any chance of progressing into the knockout round. Even though that was achieved, Rituraj was dropped for the next game, the quarter-final against Hyderabad. The need to play two spinners in Uppal meant that legspinner Vivek Yadav had to be brought into the eleven along with senior bowlers Pankaj Singh, Sumit Mathur and slow left-armer Gajendra Singh.Rituraj’s return to the playing XI however was inevitable given the conditions around Rajasthan’s semi-final against Haryana. It was to be held in the depths of north India’s winter in Lahli, outside Rohtak, on a new strip being put to use for the game. A swing bowler whose biggest strength is his accuracy and parsimony could not have asked for better conditions and Rituraj led Rajasthan’s bowling in the final again.Sent in to bat, Rajasthan were all out for 89, on day one, but it was Rituraj who brought them back into the match, making maximum use of the moisture in the wicket, a wobbling ball and a north-south breeze. “I could have gotten carried away at a time like this,” Rituraj said after the Rajasthan victory, “but my captain and my coach stood in front of me telling me what to do and what not to do.” The message was a simple one with a few “controllables” about good areas thrown in, and Rituraj turned out both obedient and composed.In the first innings he dismissed both openers and his third wicket, bowling Prateek Pawar, was his favourite, “It’s a bowler’s dream ball, pitching in line and hitting the top of off stump.” Haryana were all out for 97 the next morning, with Rituraj taking 7-45. With Haryana set 195 to win, Rituraj broke the innings open yet again, with Rahul Dewan’s wicket, finishing with 5-37.He said later, “It was a good performance by all of us but it’s done. It’s history. For me the best way to treat this performance is that it’s just one step for me.”Twenty-one and enrolled in a B.Com degree course in his hometown Jaipur, Rituraj has taken many small steps on his way to the Ranji final. He began playing cricket at the age of 7 with the man he calls coach and mentor Anil Sinha. He has been at the MRF Pace foundation for the last two years and has played in the national under-22 competition. “Two five wicket hauls” he says proudly.Late last year, Rituraj, along with Ronit More, was sent as part of MRF’s exchange programme with the Australian Institute of Sport to be a part of the AIS team for the 2011 Emerging Players Tournament in Australia.Kanitkar said that Rituraj’s perfomances in the Under-22 had been noticed. The emergence of Deepak Chahar last year meant Rituraj had to wait for his first-class debut. “This year Deepak has been injured and Rituraj has come out and proved himself at this level.” The encouragement given to seaming wickets in Rajasthan has ensured that there is a steady feeder line of fast bowlers coming through, and with Meyrick Pringle of South Africa being signed on as their bowling coach.Rituraj’s 22 wickets this season have come at an average of 14.31, figures that in the 1990s would largely have belonged to a spin-bowling teen prodigy. He could even pass off as one. Just under 5 feet 9 inches and whippet-like, Rituraj is a complete physical opposite of his bowling companions Pankaj Singh or Sumit Mathur or indeed most new generation Indian quick bowlers. But his repertoire will always require more flexibility rather than bulk. His bowling begins with a tearing sprint to the wicket and the ball is delivered with a whirlwind of the arms. He may well be a work in progress, but for Rajasthan, Rituraj is working just fine for the moment.

His contribution to English cricket has been immense, and he had a prolific home season; but whether it his brash image or his tense relationship with Andy Flower, two poor Tests are enough to put his spot in jeopardy

George Dobell in Abu Dhabi 30-Jan-2012It seems the vultures are circling. Those who have been waiting for Kevin Pietersen to stumble are ready to strike. They smell blood.The antipathy towards Pietersen is, in many ways, hard to understand. Perhaps it derives, in part, from his South African heritage. Pietersen has a British parent, a British wife and a British child, but that seems not to be enough for some. Despite living in a mobile, multi-cultural nation, there are some that resent the fact that he was born and raised overseas.His career record seems not to appease, either. Before Pietersen made his international debut, England had not won the Ashes for nearly two decades and had never won a global event. He played an enormous role in rectifying those blemishes.In 2005, it was Pietersen’s century at The Oval that ensured England held on to win that watershed series. Then he helped England to the World Twenty20 title in the Caribbean in 2010, batting quite superbly and winning the Man-of-the-Tournament award. He has scored 26 international centuries and only Don Bradman scored more runs in his first 25 Tests. Pietersen’s contribution to England cricket has been immense.And he is only 31. He should be coming into his prime.But that is the problem with Pietersen: from everyone who is given much, much will be demanded. And Pietersen was given plenty. He has, at times, shown he is capable of greatness, so these forays into mediocrity are all the more frustrating.There is no concealing the fact that Pietersen is enduring a poor tour of the UAE. He has looked all at sea against spin, has given his wicket away foolishly against seam and missed a relatively simple run-out that could have turned the second Test. He is averaging 4.25 in the Test series, either lunging forward desperately, hitting across the line in panic or guiding the ball to the fielders recklessly.Yet, just three Tests ago, Pietersen thumped a century against India. In the ten Tests before that, he made two double centuries. Strip away the disappointment and hyperbole and he has simply endured two bad games in succession. It doesn’t seem so bad, does it?It would not be true to say he is a poor player of spin, either. Pietersen enjoyed success against Shane Warne and Muttiah Muralitharan. He has, at times, flourished against the best there have been.He has earned – like Ian Bell and Andrew Strauss – the right for some patience. Quite rightly, none of them will be dropped in the immediate future, but all three of them face a significant challenge if they are to sustain their Test careers till the end of 2012. Three tours on Asian pitches may well make them or break them. Reputations count for little.How much patience Pietersen will receive remains to be seen. His relationship with Andy Flower is not the warmest – their differences over the Peter Moores affair were too deep to heal completely – and Pietersen’s sometimes abrasive manner will only be tolerated while he is performing. It is hard to imagine he will be extended the same lengthy opportunities to justify his selection as Paul Collingwood enjoyed.Perhaps that is the problem. Pietersen may appear cocky and brash, but like most who wear the cloak of confidence quite so obtrusively, it conceals insecurity. Pietersen, like everyone else, needs to feel needed and supported and valued. Flower, for all his excellence, might not have the relationship with Pietersen that allows such a rapport. Flower has done wonders for English cricket, but he has not yet coaxed the very best from Pietersen. It may prove to be his only failure.That is not to say that Pietersen’s problems are Flower’s fault. Pietersen must take the responsibility for his failings just as he must take the credit for his success. But England would be stronger for a fully firing Pietersen and Flower has yet to find a way to make that happen.Flower was diplomatic but non-committal when asked about Pietersen on Sunday. “Kevin is now challenged by not scoring any runs in the first two Tests, definitely,” Flower said. “But he has a record of working things out. He’s a world-class player who has done a lot of great things with a bat in his hand and has helped England win a lot of games. I don’t think you should undervalue some of the things he’s done recently for us.”There was, however, just a hint of the frustration Flower feels when he commented about Pietersen’s plans: “You’re not going to learn much about Test batting in the IPL.”There was another interesting moment in a press conference with Flower after the first Test. Asked about Pietersen, he replied, “He has two more chances.” At the time most of the media took that to mean on this tour. In retrospect, it might not have meant that at all.If that is the case, then Pietersen has one more chance to prove what a fine player he can be. If he fails, he will be relying on good will to save him. And that is a resource he may find to be in scarce supply.

Century on Test debut or not, Kirk Edwards knows it doesn’t come easy at the highest level

Nagraj Gollapudi18-May-2012He watched Shivnarine Chanderpaul bat without a helmet, effortlessly flicking, driving and caressing the ball with dexterous wrists against the bowling machine, which had been set at the 85-mph mark. When his turn came, though, Kirk Edwards failed to read the line and the swing and was all at sea, ending up hacking at the air, frustrated.It was the day before West Indies’ second tour match against the England Lions in Northampton. The visitors had been forced by the weather to train indoors. When Edwards’ problems persisted, fellow Barbadian, and schoolmate, Kemar Roach pointed out that he was playing down the wrong line and at times too far away from his body.”Roachy is a good help,” Edwards said. “He is a bowler. He knows when I am doing things that I don’t usually do when I am batting, so he is able to spot that and say, ‘Kirk, that is not your game.’ Sometimes a reminder is good,” Edwards said, when we met after the two-hour training session, by the end of which he had finally begun to hit the ball the way he wanted to.A reason for the rust was Edwards’ having missed the final two Tests against Australia at home in April due to an injury to his left knee. In England, rain and cold weather ruled out any outdoor practice sessions; just 34 overs were bowled in West Indies’ first tour match, against Sussex.”I was just shaking off from the rest and injury,” he said. “A little bit of frustration creeps in but I am not too worried about that.” He must, though, now be starting to be concerned at a tally of 13 runs from four innings on the tour so far, including 1 in the first innings of the Lord’s Test, when he found himself stuck in his crease and then played across to a straight delivery to be out leg-before.Rough patch notwithstanding, Edwards, who was appointed vice-captain to Darren Sammy for the England tour, has been among West Indies’ more consistent batsmen from the time he scored a Test century on debut against India at home last year. Before the Lord’s Test, Edwards had played seven Tests with two hundreds and two near-misses – 86 both times. He was one of only two players in the current West Indies side to average 50-plus before the Lord’s Test.As a boy he would go to Kensington Oval in Bridgetown to watch West Indies squads train. He even worked in the stands as a vendor some days. The dream of wearing the maroon cap took seed then. Edwards was clear when growing up that he wanted to make his mark at the Test level, and knew it wouldn’t come easy. He had seen and heard stories of how hard it was get into the West Indies dressing room and keep your place, from “big brother” Corey Collymore, the former West Indies fast bowler, who is his mentor to this day.He was at the Oval in 1999, for the third Test against Australia, working the sight screen after each over as West Indies scrapped to a thrilling victory. “Sherwin Campbell set up the match nicely with a century in the first innings and then Brian Lara scored 153 to beat Australia. It was a great game,” Edwards remembered. “Every ball, every moment, was vital. And for me, watching that only strengthened my resolve.”Back then “Cool Carl” Hooper was Edwards’ favourite batsman. “I liked the fact that he had time to play the ball. He never showed fear, always attacked the opposition. Whenever the team needed something, he always went for it.”It was Everton Weekes who originally spotted Edwards at an Under-13 cricket camp. “Some of the coaches did not think much of me and thought I should bat down the order at nine, but Sir Everton insisted I bat at the top. Ever since then, I have batted at No. 3.” It was the break that opened his career up for him. Today he is the captain of the Barbados team. Last year, after impressive performances across various series, he was voted the country’s best sports personality.Toby Radford, the West Indies batting coach, thinks Edwards is a good learner on the job. “I think if you take an England tour with the seaming and swinging ball, it’s been about adjusting to moving the feet to nullify any swing. In the Caribbean, where the pitches tend to be a bit flatter and slower at the moment, you can have a short stride and play on the up. Here it’s early season, and you will need to get closer to the ball. I think this will be one of the things he will be focusing on,” Radford said.

As a boy Edwards would go to Kensington Oval in Bridgetown to watch West Indies squads train. He even worked in the stands as a vendor some days. The dream of wearing the maroon cap took seed then

As for the hunger to perform in the five-day game, Edwards would seem to have plenty, in contrast to some of his fellow West Indians. “Twenty20 is a recent game,” he said. “Yes, it has a lot of financial benefit – guys need money, otherwise you are not able to buy stuff. But Test cricket is the ultimate game. I love challenges. And right now that is where I put my focus.”Last year he was quick to take the opportunity to speak to some of the best batsmen in the format – Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman – when West Indies played India at home and then away. When Tendulkar walked up to Edwards at the end of West Indies’ India tour and told him that he had “enjoyed” watching him bat, his motivation levels spiked. “That was another moment that made me feel good,” Edwards said.His best friend in the Indian dressing room, though, is Virat Kohli. They got talking when India toured the Caribbean last year, and keep in touch. “He is like a young coach at the moment,” Edwards said with a smile. It doesn’t matter to him that Kohli is four years younger. “We have a good relationship. He knows his game. He knows batting.”England, the world’s Test No.1 side, with the best bowling line-up in their conditions, are always an intimidating ask, as was evident on the first day at Lord’s. “The harder the battle, the sweeter the victory,” Edwards said before the series. “Yes, there is a lot more to play for here. But it is a different challenge. You just have to adapt or suffer. That is how I see it.”Last year Collymore lent Edwards Steve Waugh’s mammoth and then had to beg to get it back because Edwards liked it so much, he held on to it to read a few times over. Today Edwards is out of his own comfort zone after having had a smooth ride in his first ten months. Hopefully he has taken Waugh’s philosophy to heart and will be able to navigate the bumps and bends on the road of international cricket without losing his way.

Adrian Barath’s talent has never been in doubt but he is still learning how to build an innings at Test level

Nagraj Gollapudi17-May-2012Chris Gayle’s absence from the dressing room has been the biggest talking point around West Indies cricket for a year now. It only got bigger as Gayle hit a blistering 128 off 62 deliveries playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL. Again the question was asked: Why on earth is he not wearing the maroon cap at Lord’s instead of pulling on a tacky gold helmet in an Indian domestic Twenty20 tournament?Rather than debate the Gayle situation, however, it might be more rewarding to divert the attention to the diminutive Adrian Barath, a man who began his Test career opening alongside Gayle. Barath was the second highest scorer for West Indies on an eventful day at Lord’s and was instrumental in the tourists finishing on a much brighter note than had been forecast in the morning papers.But as much as it was valuable, Barath could look at his 42, the sixth-highest score of his 13-Test career, in two ways: either as a small victory for self-belief or another waste of effort. Having worked hard to put in place the pillars to raise a solid platform, for both himself and the team, he again dismantled it with his own hands in a heady moment.Despite his failures in the Test series against Australia in April, when he made 65 runs across six innings, Barath got the nod for the England tour based on the selectors’ faith in his talent. So when he made his maiden walk from the Long Room, past the members, on to the Lord’s pitch, Barath probably sensed the weight of expectation.It was an overcast morning, nippy, too, as Andrew Strauss threw the new ball to James Anderson. Barath, to his credit, started off impressively. He played from deep in the crease, with a straight bat and still head, characteristics of a good batsman. His first five fours, coming in the first hour, were off the middle of the bat.The first time he was lured into playing a false shot was when Tim Bresnan seamed the ball away from him. Barath, who had lunged forward to play the stroke, understood immediately he should have left the ball. It was an interesting phase in the first session. Bresnan’s first four overs were all maidens. Barath had faced the last two, but part from that one moment of distraction, he stayed put resolutely.Not that he was in the cage all the time. In the following over, bowled by Stuart Broad, he leaned forward to an over-pitched delivery to punch a handsome cover drive for his sixth boundary of the morning. In Broad’s next over, Barath’s outside edges twice ran to the third-man boundary to bring up the West Indies’ fifty.Barath grew more confident by the minute against Broad, with an inside-out cover drive adding another four to his tally. Michael Holding, the former West Indies bowler, remained unimpressed by Barath’s footwork, however, especially his back leg sliding towards the leg side. It would prove to be a telling remark.In the third over after lunch, having survived a close lbw call against Broad, Barath went for an unnecessary drive, away from his body, which was gathered well, albeit on the second attempt, by Anderson in the gully.That mistake denied Barath fifty; it also nipped in the bud a steadily developing partnership between him and Bravo. Barath would have cursed himself as he looked on at the world No. 1 Test batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul gathering runs with gusto and patience. It is an easy word “patience”, but it can come in many ways. For Chanderpaul, patience is not always about leaving the ball. What makes him equally dangerous is the ease with which he steals singles, frustratingly for the opposition, as Broad admitted later.

“While playing himself in he knocks the ball around and picks up singles, and before you know it he is 20 or 30. That is the sort of approach the young guys have to learn”Adrian Barath on Shivnarine Chanderpaul

Barath, too, left a lot of deliveries, while he defended stoutly against those few that were at the stumps. But he gathered just six singles in his 101-ball stay. He admitted that was the difference in Chanderpaul’s innings. “It was fabulous to look at. The way he goes about his innings, the way he gets set,” Barath said. “While he is playing himself in, he still knocks the ball around and picks up singles, twos and so on and before you know it he is 20 or 30. That is the sort of approach the young guys have to look at and learn. Ninety percent of his game is mental. He does not want to come and blast the bowling around. It is waiting for the deliveries, and having the patience. He has the right set-up to make runs in these conditions. Everyone can take a page out of his book.”Barath’s talent was never in doubt after he made a mature 104 out of a team total of 187 against Australia at the Gabba on debut. West Indies were following-on in that match and lost it by an innings and 65 runs. It was an outstanding performance from the then 19-year-old Barath, who his hero and fellow Trinidadian Brian Lara had described as the next Sachin Tendulkar. It was a brave statement from the West Indies legend.On Thursday, Barath returned to Lord’s, where Lara brought the 17-year-old as a guest in 2007 to acquaint him with the home of cricket. Five years later, the significance of that event might have dawned upon Barath.Barath admitted he missed out “big, big time” by not batting for the rest of the day on this cherished ground, where even Lara failed to put his name on the honour’s board. Lara met Barath on Wednesday and impressed upon the youngster the need to let the ball come to him. “He told me to focus on my scoring areas. He told me to let the bowlers bowl to my scoring areas,” Barath said. Lara returned at lunch to inform Barath that he was batting nicely and he should carry on the good work. Except Barath lost patience.

Well prepared though they were, Australia’s quest reflected the thinness in their batting and spin bowling – limitations that will need to be rectified

Daniel Brettig06-Oct-2012Jonty Rhodes once said of Shane Warne’s flipper that while the bowler’s thumb position meant he could often tell it was coming, he still found the ball extremely difficult to play. Australia could not possibly have been better prepared for their tilt at the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, but for all the planning and forethought that went into it, their campaign still fell to pieces with alarming haste.Pakistan dusted off a month-old blue print for beating George Bailey’s side in their last Super Eights match, and West Indies improved upon it with startling effectiveness in the semi-final. All through a strong run to that point, Australia had never quite overturned the widely held view that their batting was suspect beyond the top three of Shane Watson, David Warner and Michael Hussey.Watson and Warner had given their side the veneer of invincibility during the earlier matches, pummelling a series of opposition attacks when presented with middling targets. But as the Premadasa Stadium pitches grew tired and opponents adapted to Australia’s tactics, the early sheen gave way to a greater number of errors and a creeping fatigue – mental as much as physical.This was surprising, for no Australian T20 team has been so comprehensively drilled for a particular task. From the moment the national selector John Inverarity named Bailey as the new T20 captain in January, and also included the ageing wrist spinner Brad Hogg, it was clear the team’s objective was no longer developmental or promotional in nature. Here was a team chosen to win the World T20 trophy, nothing more and nothing less.In contrast to previous squads, Bailey’s was given plenty of time to work together, playing series against India, West Indies and Pakistan while also spending time in camp. Inverarity had charged the team’s leaders “to drive a focused, disciplined and fiercely determined culture in this team”. Culture has become a key word in Australian cricket, and consistent team selections were geared towards creating the most united group possible for Sri Lanka. There was extra scouting work done too, as the coach Mickey Arthur stayed home from part of the preceding tour of the UAE to plan for Sri Lanka.Initially it worked, as Ireland, West Indies, India and South Africa were swatted away with impressive might. Arthur’s pre-tournament conclusion that the Premadasa pitches would start with some life proved well founded. Rested from the UAE series, Watson was at the centre of it all, claiming four Man-of-the-Match awards in succession. Xavier Doherty came in for Dan Christian against South Africa and immediately had an impact, burgling three wickets while keeping the runs down.Yet the margins of these victories may ultimately have hurt Australia as much as they helped. A powerful top order flourished but did no more than required if the tournament was to be won. The less credentialled batsmen beneath had little to do, and little chance to prove to themselves that they were up to the task if a match became tight. The bowlers did well, Mitchell Starc especially, but invariably held the momentum after early wickets fell. When Pakistan and the West Indies both formed partnerships there did not seem an Australian bowler capable of twisting the match with a double break.

Bailey led the side neatly enough, and showed flashes of batting that indicated his place was more deserved than some thought. But he felt the strain of leading his country in his first year as an international cricketer, his trademark smile becoming wryer with each match.

So when the contests came, there was a flatness to the way Australia performed at the pointy end, a certain sharpness missing. This was best illustrated in the field, where a previously zippy unit moved sluggishly in the final two games, perhaps lacking Christian’s vim. There was a costly dropped catch by Glenn Maxwell from the edge of Nasir Jamshed against Pakistan, and a handful of other misfields. Against West Indies, the fielders watched 14 sixes sail over their heads, but the brothers Hussey also allowed a pair of shots burst through their fingers to the boundary.As Bailey, Arthur or Inverarity must have known, such lapses could not be afforded by a team lacking the depth of talent available to some other sides. Beyond Watson, Warner, Hussey and Starc, few of Australia’s other players would have commanded places in the T20 teams named by the opposing nations. Maxwell’s selection for the tournament was a bold gamble, showing confidence in a young allrounder with enormous belief in his own ability. But “the big show”, as teammates dubbed Maxwell, was ultimately a sideshow, playing a poor game against Pakistan to lose his place for the semi.It may have been a failure of nerve if anything to recall David Hussey in Maxwell’s place. Possessing a rich domestic T20 record and a vast array of experience, he was left out until the last possible moment, as Bailey and Arthur judged Dan Christian, Cameron White and Maxwell to be better options. At times Bailey in particular was annoyed by the level of interest in Hussey’s absence from the XI. Finally he was called on for the semi-final, and as it turned out he was ineffectual, expensive with the ball and bouncer-shy with the bat.Bailey led the side neatly enough, and showed flashes of batting that indicated his place was more deserved than some thought. But he felt the strain of leading his country in his first year as an international cricketer, his trademark smile becoming wryer with each match. He also placed too much faith in his longtime Tasmania teammate and friend Doherty against West Indies, handing him a final over that felt predestined to end in carnage against Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard.Ultimately, the failure of Australia’s quest reflected the limitations of their players. The nation’s pace bowling resources are strong, but there is a thinness to the batting and spin bowling that needs somehow to be rectified. Otherwise all the planning in the world will not prevent Australia from puzzling at future ICC events, as Rhodes once did, about how familiarity does not guarantee success.

One Twenty20 tournament has rolled into another with barely time for the players to stop and think. For Mahela Jayawardene that has meant getting over defeat pretty quickly

Firdose Moonda12-Oct-2012If anyone should have a 20-over cricket hangover, that person is Mahela Jayawardene.Like Graeme Smith at the 2011 World Cup, the World T20 took almost everything out of him. Sri Lanka slumped to their fourth defeat in the last five ICC event finals. Their wait for silverware has stretched to 16 years, longer than South Africa’s 14, and Jayawardene was rightfully worn out.Less than a week has passed since then and Jayawardene is in South Africa, ready to play another 20-over tournament. It is one of slightly less consequence than a World Twenty20 but a pressured situation nonetheless and if he appears a little tired it will probably be because he is.”It was tough to lose the fourth one. It took me a couple of days to get through it and get over the flashbacks,” he admitted, but said he is looking forward to the change of scenery. “It’s probably a good thing that I am getting back into it with a different set of players.”It will not be a different role for Jayawardene, though. Although he has stepped down as Sri Lanka’s T20 captain because, he “felt it was part of a bigger picture and we need to try and groom a young leader,” he will captain Delhi and is happy to do it. “This is obviously a different challenge. I was asked to do it and I felt since I captained Kochi and a few matches for Kings XI that I would do it this time.”Jayawardene has taken over from Virender Sehwag, who asked to be relieved of his duties so he could concentrate on his batting, but he still expects Sehwag to play a significant behind the scenes leadership role. “He is brilliant with the younger players. Those guys look up to him and he knows that so he always helps them,” Jayawardene said. “It’s great to have him in the dressing room.”Singling out certain players for roles is what Jayawardene thinks led to Delhi’s run of form in IPL5. They led the points table for a long period and were spurred on by the success of their pace attack on a home surface that was specially prepared to suit them. A feature of their bowling was the blossoming of Morne Morkel, who is known to be erratic at times.Instead of changing something tactically or technically, Jayawardene said Morkel performed well because he was made to be more accountable. “He became the main strike bowler, so there was some added responsibility on him,” Jayawardene said. “We gave him a very free hand and told him to be aggressive and pick up wickets.”Through that, Morkel grew in confidence and coach Eric Simons said he saw Morkel developing. “His lengths were important, he bowled a fuller length, but it was also important to have a plan that worked for him. We made sure we worked with his strengths as well.”Delhi are hopeful that Morkel will be a special weapon for them in South African conditions. “Bowlers will have a little more say than in other T20 competitions,” Simons said. While Delhi’s reliance on seam let them down in the knockout stages of the IPL, they do not expect the same thing here. “We will be hunting as a pack,” Jayawardene said “If you look at our bowling group, we’ve done well together. We’ve got Morne and then Irfan Pathan, who is probably the most improved bowler in the international cricket.”Jayawardene will also have a front row seat as Morkel is reunited with Kevin Pietersen for the first time since the England tour, but said the pair were getting along fine. “Those two were inseparable at breakfast this morning. We all had a laugh about it. What happened in England is in the past.”Although Delhi have strategised as much as any other team, Simons said they have been careful not to over-think things, because of the nature of the format. “The T20 game is still evolving,” he said. “People are still learning to play it and teams are still trying to find the right formula. There are no rules in terms of the ideas and thinking. We have to think out of the box but not lose the basics of the game. It’s exciting because of that.”Maintaining the fun elements of the game is what Delhi have been focused on, especially because Simons regards 20-over tournaments as “emotionally draining times.” He need only look to his captain, Jayawardene, for confirmation of that.

ESPNcricinfo presents the plays of the day from the Group C game between South Africa and Zimbabwe in Hambantota

Andrew Fernando in Hambantota20-Sep-2012The delivery
Many of Zimbabwe’s batsmen were inept against South Africa’s pace, but although Vusi Sibanda’s attempted straight drive to Morne Morkel in the second over wasn’t a great example of the shot, Sibanda can at least be comforted by the fact that he was dismissed by a ball that would have had most batsmen struggling to make contact. Morkel fired a full delivery down at 145 kph, and got it to tail in a touch in the air, before pitching and jagging in dramatically. Sibanda’s whoosh found only air, and the ball zipped between bat and pad to flick the off stump.The double-strike
Craig Ervine and Stuart Matsikenyeri had cobbled together the beginnings of a recovery, grinding forward Zimbabwe’s total to 51 after coming together at 16 for 3, but in two balls, Jacques Kallis crippled the rebuild and restored Zimbabwe’s slide. With the score moving at less than six an over, Matsikenyeri attempted an expansive stroke, bouncing down the pitch to Kallis’ fourth ball, but although he managed to connect, he slapped it straight to short cover. Kallis then removed Elton Chigumbura next ball, when the batsman played around an unremarkable full delivery that struck him flush in front of middle and off.The catch
South Africa had appealed twice for caught-behinds down the leg side and had already snared a victim that way, but when another short ball deflected off the batsman’s glove in the 17th over, the deviation seemed to be too great for the wicketkeeper to haul the catch in. AB de Villiers, though, threw himself full tilt to his less-favoured side and pouched the ball left-handed, close to where a leg-slip might have stood.The shot
In a Zimbabwe innings notable for its timidity, Ervine was the only batsman who showed the application and verve that would have seen Zimbabwe provide more of a challenge to South Africa. Ervine trotted down the pitch to the first ball he faced from Robin Peterson, but when that didn’t work, played a terrific reverse-sweep next ball, splitting the fielders at backward point and sweeper to find the boundary.