THE ASHES

The Ashes - This is what cricket fans had to say on Cricinfo... And i m loving it!! :D :)

Posted by Ajay Singh on (December 26 2010, 14:27 PM GMT)
d Best Boxing Day start, Ever. HAT'S OFF, 2 TREMLETT & ANDERSON:)

Posted by suresh_sksj on (December 26 2010, 13:35 PM GMT)
Chappell...your UNDER ARM STINKS.....even after 29 yrs of that famous under-arm delivery that you asked Trevor to "Deliver" to NZ.......TILL NOW YOUR UNER-ARM STINKS....guess you cant ask Ricky to deliver an Under-Arm to Eng now....beacuse Eng are on cloud... 9 and too high for your Under-Arm

Posted by Junaid Asif on (December 26 2010, 11:59 AM GMT)
good bye ponting. next test will b ur last

Posted by PYC1959 on (December 26 2010, 09:27 AM GMT)
Get rid of Chappell and Hilditch as selectors, they have NO idea. There is so much talent in Australia and they come up with Smith and Hughes for the biggest series in Cricket........................... Chappell you proved you were a failiure in India and you ...are proving it once again.

Posted by suresh_sksj on (December 26 2010, 08:54 AM GMT)
Ricky...a broken captain, a broken batsman, a broken player, a broken bloke, a broken leader, a broken person, a broken mate, a broken team, with a broken finger......checkmate....mate....all over for you....just call it quits....

Posted by adamgilly on (December 26 2010, 08:41 AM GMT)
shame!!!!!! shame!!!!!!!! SHAME!!!!!!!!!!!! will someone show courage to sack aged uncle ponting.......... brainless cricketer....... hopeless batsman..........may be we will see first instance in crkt history when both captain and vice captain are dropped.............hope that happens........

Posted by praume2001 on (December 26 2010, 07:18 AM GMT)
guru greg chappel is doing to Australia wht he did to India...u Aussies deserve this... U made lot of fun laughin on others all these years...now its ur time to face the music... and the whole world knows...Aussies r the worst loosers... well i hv one suggestion... y dont u guys call Bangladesh team next year boxing day test... but still i m not sure whether u will win or not... hahahahaaha...

Posted by vee_7 on (December 26 2010, 07:17 AM GMT)
ashes gone, abt time for ponting to go... he never was a good captain, just that he was so lucky to have such a consistent flow of such talented players...i think warne would have been the perfect captain to follow steve waugh... if warne can achieve what he achieved with rajasthan royals with a bunch of not so talented players & just by inspiring them, just imagine what he could have done with an aus team with such awesomely talented super players... looking at ponting does not install any confidence... how can he inspire anyone when cant inspire himself... enough of calling ponting as the best captain right now... he is not even the best in australia...

Posted by Mukul Kabir on (December 26 2010, 05:11 AM GMT)
Just recappi...ng: Pointing (the guy with big mouth and small bat) predicted 5:0 in favor of Australia.

Posted by on (December 26 2010, 05:05 AM GMT)
Maybe asking for a juiced up wicket has backfired.

Posted by Achuthan Raman Chari on (December 26 2010, 04:21 AM GMT)
yipeeeee.. tak dat australia!!

Posted by Ks Raghu on (December 26 2010, 01:39 AM GMT)
Ponting has done the first damage - Gettin out cheaply yet again. His second installment - damage as captain is due.

Brilliant!! :P :)

INDIA AND THE NO.1 TEST STATUS

Sometimes, expecting a sunny day ahead, it feels miserable when one reaches the office drenched in rain! Indians ought to be feeling the same way after NZ, by no means a strong test side, surprised many with their performance in the first half of the ongoing tournament. For NZ, though, the situation is as unexpected as a call from your ungrateful boss breaking you the delightful news of a promotion and a salary hike!

In my view, such a unidimensional team has never occupied the No.1 status as a test side in the history of cricket. To start with, India has not been able to produce a genuine all rounder since Kapil Dev. The No.5 batting spot has been a concern ever since Saurav Ganguly hung his boots. Barring Anil Kumble, the only consistent Indian bowler in the past decade and Zaheer and Harbhajan to some extent, India has always been marred by a dearth in the bowling department, resorting to the part timers (mainly spinners) to provide support to them in the absence of an able fourth and fifth bowling option. Neither has India been fortunate enough to enjoy the luxury of having a tear away fast bowler such as a Brett Lee.

India, relying thoroughly on its consistent batting performances, has made its way to the top helped by some uninspiring bowling. Indian bowling performances over the past decade have just been like lightning in an otherwise dark sky! They have been inconsistent to say the least, looking like tigers ready to pounce on their prey on one day and looking utterly helpless and lost on the other. No wonder that the Indians were denied a win in this series as batting collapses were triggered by the Kiwi medium pacers in the ongoing test series. Though in terms of being a complete team, Indian current test side shall always be an arguable No.1 side, Sachin,Dravid and Laxman are great legends and unparalleled jewels of the game and perhaps, the team for which they play deserves the No.1 status. The magical feeling one experiences when watching Dravid and Sachin bat together for India shall certainly be missed in the future. Hence, let us sit back and enjoy what shall be remembered as the golden era of Indian test cricket.

AN UNAPPEALING SERIES

In the times when the image of test cricket is already languishing, a contest between the number one ranked test side with the sliding and disarrayed Kiwis is vastly improbable to generate any interest among the viewers. Its just like pitching Ashish Nehra against Matthew Hayden in a boxing ring! The New Zeland team, which was recently bulldozed and humiliated by the minnows of world cricket (Bangladesh) is hardly anticipated to provide any resistance to the Indian team, which boasts of a virtually invincible batting line up. The likes of Chris Martin, Tim Southee, Jeetan Patel and Andy McKay are highly unlikely to trouble the legends of the game, v.i.z, Dravid,Tendulkar and Laxman.

From an Indian point of view, this series provides a beneficial prospect for someone like Gambhir and Dravid to spend some time in the middle and be back among the runs. It also provides Sreesanth, known more for his over aggressive and uncontrollable behaviour than his bowling these days, with a good opportunity to prove his worth.The disappointing aspect has been the persistence the Indian selectors have shown with Dhoni, who could well have been rested for this series keeping in view the South African tour and the world cup. Also, considering the fact that Dhoni injured his fingers in the last series against Australia, the time was apt to rest him as he is one of those whom India want to see fit and charging with the world cup around.

From the Kiwis point of view, Williamson shall be looking to come good by scoring heavily and justifying the faith of the selectors in him. Its a lovely chance for the Kiwi bowlers to test themselves against the famed Indian line up in trying and slow conditions. For NZ to provide a stiff competition to India, their batsmen have to apply themselves posting huge scores on the board and Jesse Ryder, back from a rehabilitation process, is expected to be the mainstay along with Ross Taylor. Considering the phenomenal plan execution and ample patience that Ryder displayed on his last tour to India, he is one batsman Indians would want to get rid of quickly. In Mc Cullum, they have one of the most devastating batsman when on song and in Daniel Vettori, they have an all rounder who is resilience personified. Indians shall certainly set a big foot wrong if they decide to take the series lightly. Cricket is a funny game and no one knows what the outcome of the series shall be but in this festive season, cricket, for once, has taken a back seat in our cricket crazy nation.