South Africa made sure they wouldn’t lose this Test by not declaring in their second innings, but in the process might have missed out on winning it too

Firdose Moonda at Newlands06-Jan-2011As the sun began to disappear behind Table Mountain and the curtain began to fall on the fourth day of the deciding Test between South Africa and India, one question hovered over Newlands: When would South Africa declare? When they reached 270 and still had about 100 overs to bowl India out? When Jacques Kallis reached his second hundred of the match? When the lead had swelled to 300? The answer ended up being never, because South Africa waited to be bowled out for 341, setting India a target that, if reached, would have been a record at Newlands.Like a child reaching for its security blanket in times of anxiety, South Africa wanted to be in as comfortable a position as they could. Their first priority was not to lose the series. That might have been anyone’s reaction, when at 130 for 6, it looked as though defeat, albeit to the world’s number one Test side, was imminent. “We really had our backs to the wall then,” Graeme Smith said, which may have explained why they didn’t want to stop building their wall of resistance until the bricks had run out.It was sensible in that it guaranteed two results, a South Africa win or a draw because India had been set a total that they would not be interested in chasing. In terms of a safety net, it was a good one, but in terms of applying the principles of an aggressive mindset, something team psychologist Dr Henning Gericke swears by, it was flawed. Gericke told ESPNCricinfo before the Test that South Africa had to learn to “take more risks and not be afraid to try things.” Dangling a carrot like a target of 280 in front of India would have been a gamble but it would have sporting. It would have showed intent and positivity and it would have made for a more testing end to what’s been an enthralling series.The statistics were all in South Africa’s favour. A team had only chased more than 300 once at Newlands. Not any team, but Australia at the height of their powers in 2002. South Africa have only failed to defend a target over 250 at home under Smith once (against Australia in Johannesburg in 2006) and India are historically poor chasers.Still, something in Smith’s mind wanted safety above all else. At the post match press conference he gave a little insight into what that might have been. “You are looking for your spinner to contribute more and more as the game goes on,” Smith said, “Harbhajan did it for them yesterday,” Paul Harris battled to be effective on the Newlands pitch, because, despite the bounce, he would only be able to find turn in the rough, and for that he would have needed to be a different bowler as Harbhajan himself said after day four. “I don’t think he will have an impact. He would have to be a right arm-offspinner to find the rough.”Harris has proved himself invaluable in containing roles, he often gets key wickets during crucial passages of play, but he is self-admittedly not an attacking spin bowler. His value for the team comes in other areas, for example, he only gave away 29 runs in his 30 overs on the final day and he is part of the brains trust of the team, but he is not a bowler who is known for being aggressive. South Africa have been happy with a containing spinner in their side but have shown signs of wanting a more attacking one, and with Imran Tahir becoming eligible to play for them, they may have found one. This Test match highlighted why, at times, they will need one.For large portions of the day’s play, South Africa had five men around the bat and set attacking fields. It wasn’t enough to bag them wickets because, besides being one bowler short, there was little support for Dale Steyn. Morne Morkel, who was exceptional in Centurion, has been inconsistent since then, and Lonwabo Tsotsobe was unlucky, as catches were dropped off his bowling in all three Tests. While Tsotsobe did manage a few important scalps, his name is still not glued to the position of third seamer.While the series highlighted more about the bowling than it did about the batting, the aspect of South Africa’s game it really put under a microscope was the mental one. South Africa are a team that can perform superbly to plans, as they showed in Centurion. They panic when things get beyond their control as they did in Durban, and they have not yet reached the point where they are willing to play the brand of brave cricket to which they once claimed to be dedicated. That courage is not the type that sees Jacques Kallis bat for hours with a pain in his rib that made him feel like he had been “stabbed” in that area, it’s not the type that sees Smith walk out to bat with a broken hand, it’s not the type that overcomes physical pain at all. It’s the courage to overcome a mental hurdle, the one that says “we need to be safe” and to take a chance on the unknown.

Baroda, a side in a rebuilding phase, roped in talented youngsters, and the seniors led from the front to take the team to the final. ESPNcricinfo looks at their journey thus far

Sriram Veera10-Jan-2011Round 1, v Orissa in Cuttack

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It was a disastrous start for Baroda. Basanth Mohanty grabbed a five-for to knock them over for 148 before Orissa snatched a 204-run lead. Faced with the prospect of a defeat, Ambati Rayudu led Baroda’s recovery with an explosive 200 that included 27 fours and three sixes. Baroda managed a draw and left the game with a point.Round 2, v Haryana in Rohtak

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Baroda roared back into the campaign with a commanding innings-win over Haryana. They chose to bowl , and Munaf Patal and Bhargav Bhatt, the left-arm spinner, shared seven wickets to bowl out Haryana for 127. Yusuf Pathan hit a blistering 195 from 138 deliveries, and Connor Williams hit a sedate 114 to propel Baroda to a 343-run lead. Bhatt, who went on to become the leading wicket-taking spinner in the tournament, picked up seven wickets in the second innings to bowl Baroda to a crushing win.Round 3, v Uttar Pradesh in Vadodara

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Baroda suffered a reverse in a closely-fought encounter with Uttar Pradesh. They chose to bowl and Yusuf and Munaf shared nine wickets to shoot out UP for 190 before Rayudu’s 91 gave them a 119-run lead. Yusuf picked another five-for in the second. Baroda were set a target of 176 but were routed by Sudeep Tyagi and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Baroda had reached 89 for 2 at one stage, and 131 for 5 soon, but collapsed to be bowled out for 143, the last four wickets falling without adding a run.Round 4, v Punjab in Vadodara

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Baroda bounced back by thumping Punjab by an innings and 55 runs. There was no centurion but nearly the entire top order contributed to push Baroda to 416. Punjab then collapsed twice, 243 in the first innings and 118 and in the second, as Bhatt yet again sparkled with a six-wicket match haul.Round 5, v Karnataka in Mysore
Karnataka 257 (Vohra 4-65) and 391 for 8 decl (Verma 80) drew with Baroda 169 (Joshi 4-31) and 151 for 3
ScorecardThey took just a solitary point against Karnataka, who bounced back after falling for 257 in the first innings. Baroda were without Yusuf and Sunil Joshi ensured Karnataka took an 88-run lead with a four-wicket haul. Karnataka then racked up 391 and Baroda played out 55 overs to draw the game.Round 6, v Himachal Pradesh in Vadodara
Baroda 350 (Pinal 132) beat Himachal Pradesh 119 (Bhatt 5-40) and 214 ( Yusuf 6-74) by an innings and 17 runs
ScorecardBaroda yet again came roaring back with an innings win. Bhatt was once more the ringleader as he took five wickets to roll out Himachal Pradesh for 119 in the first innings. Pinal Shah starred with a measured 132 as Baroda gained a 231-run lead before Yusuf snatched six wickets in a facile win.Quarter-final v Railways in Vadodara

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Railways surprised Baroda by sending Murali Karthik as an opener, and he top-scored with 57 but Munaf picked up four wickets to bowl out the visitors for 248. Kedar Devdhar, a young find of the season, starred with 122 as Baroda ran away to a 168-run lead. Prashant Awasthi led Railways’ recovery in the second innings with a hundred but could only set up a target of 199 runs. Baroda lost only three wickets and played out 60 overs to advance to the final four.Semi-final v Karnataka in Vadodara
Baroda 153 (Pinal 83, Joshi 6-58) and 44 for 3 beat Karnataka 107 (Vahora 5-34) and 88 (Bhatt 5-30, Swapnil 5-20) by seven wickets
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On an under-prepared track, Baroda beat Karnataka in a little over four sessions of play in a dramatic, and controversial, semi-final. Vahora grabbed a five-for after Baroda chose to bowl and bowled out Karnataka for 107 in 44.2 overs. Pinal played a captain’s knock to top-score with a priceless 83 as Baroda took a 46-run lead. Karnataka collapsed for 88 in the second innings in just 32.2 overs; the spinners Bhatt and Swapnil Singh picked five wickets apiece. Baroda rushed to a famous win in 12.1 overs to enter the final.

Interesting one-liners churned out by players, past and present, on all that happened (and should have happened) at the World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Apr-2011AFP”He is the Obama of cricket.”

Feb 1, 2011″We’re going to a World Cup, and World Cups are incredible events. We’ve had an incredible 12 months, [winning would] cap off the most remarkable 12 months in English cricket history.”

Feb 9, 2011″If you want to irritate someone that should be the opposition and not your side.”

Feb 18, 2011″There’s going to be a lot of sign language involved.”

Feb 26, 2011″I could’ve stopped ’em better with my coat.”

Feb 27, 2011″Stop whatever you’re doing and turn on the England-Ireland match!”

Mar 2, 2011″I didn’t last long enough to get sledged.”

Mar 2, 2011″It would be nice to get me and my brother up there, two very good-looking men.”

Mar 3, 2011Kamran Akmal’s wicketkeeping didn’t impress too many, least of all Geoffrey Boycott•AFP”Some bookmakers had Ireland at 400-1 at one stage. I wish I’d not kept my money in pocket.”

Mar 3, 2011″We don’t want to play Tests. We don’t want to do anything. The World Cup is over for us. This is it.”

Mar 3, 2011″I saw only two murders in the theatre, but ended up watching many more during the Ireland-England game.”
Saat Khoon Maaf
Mar 4, 2011″It’s a bit confusing. I don’t know, don’t understand it much.”

Mar 7, 2011″If his batting was as good as Don Bradman’s, he couldn’t score enough runs to make up for what he costs them with his keeping.”

Mar 8, 2011″Currently sitting in a corner, rocking back and forth, having Indian nightmare. Poor bowlers, it’s not fair.”

Mar 12, 2011″You don’t play for the crowd, you play for the country.”

Mar 12, 2011″You may put hybrid fuel in the car but the cylinder, the engine, everything, needs to be like that.”

Mar 11, 2011″It felt like playing football with both hands tied behind my back.”

Mar 14, 2011″Following England in this World Cup is a bit like following Newcastle United – you never know what you’re going to get. One minute we’re beating South Africa, the next we’re losing to Ireland and Bangladesh.”

Mar 15, 2011″Don’t ask. Very irresponsible shot as captain. On a stage like that.”

Mar 19, 2011″I’ve been saying this for more than 21 years to Afridi. He has to learn.”

Mar 19, 2011″It was the best ball of my cricket career. It was one of those moments in life you dream of. I wasn’t sure how to celebrate.”

Mar 20, 2011″We hope you lose tomorrow, daddy. Then you can come home.”

Mar 21, 2011″For the first time in my life there have been claps in a press conference. I am sure this is a special moment for me, guys.”

March 24, 2011The dewy conditions in Bangladesh didn’t go down too well with Graeme Swann•Getty Images”I told Gautam: I am not Virender Sehwag, I can’t run like that.”

Mar 24, 2011″Thankfully, I am six foot six, and I replaced Kane Williamson who, I think, is four foot six.”

Mar 25, 2011″The rave across the street has finished and my windows have stopped shaking but it seems they have moved the party into our hotel. If it’s still going in a couple of hours I might stick a pair of jeans on and hit the dance floor.”

Mar 25, 2011″The monkey’s almost become a gorilla now and until we win an ICC event it’s always going to be there I’m afraid.”

Mar 31, 2011″Tendulkar has carried the burden of the nation for 21 years. It is time we carried him on our shoulders.”

Apr 2, 2011

One of India’s brightest young talents looks back on what he regards as the key formative experience of his career, how he got his act together, and the West Indies tour

Interview by Sriram Veera16-Jul-2011How has the experience with the longer format been so far?
It’s been a great learning experience for me. I didn’t see any Test matches before this with the team. Coming in straight away from the one-dayers and the IPL, there was only a two-day gap, and I had only one practice session with the team, and straightaway into Test cricket. That makes a big difference, because the more you stay in the team – on the sidelines – and the more you see the senior players play and perform in different situations, you get a fair idea of Test cricket.In a way it is good for me. Because this is not the end of the world for me. I am really happy that I got to learn this way rather than sitting out. I am getting to understand what kind of mindset you need to have in Test cricket.Plenty of people are surprised that you haven’t started too well in Test cricket.
When I came in as a youngster, initially when I started to play one-dayers I didn’t think that I had to make such an image where people are always expecting me to score runs whenever I come out to bat. My only aim was to go out there, play every match and try to do the best I can. It is still the same. People’s reactions change with time, because they expect a lot from you, and when you don’t do well they get disappointed, and they’ll say all sorts of things. And that is because they want you to do well. That is because they see that you can be a future batsman for India.It is disappointing from a player’s perspective as well, but it is part of everyone’s career. It happens. This kind of phase happened to me in Dambulla last year, where in seven innings I didn’t score many runs. I was still preparing very well, batting well in the nets, leaving balls outside the off stump really well, but in the match I would get out fishing outside off. It is frustrating when you prepare well and you don’t score runs.From that phase, I learnt not to be hard to be on myself. I know that runs are going to come if I keep working hard. You just can’t score in every innings or every series. It’s all about being focused, it’s about doing the same things you do and not being too desperate to perform and putting yourself under pressure. If you are doing well over a period of time, even one [poor] innings makes you feel bad. This kind of phase is good for me.Were you surprised with the problems you had with the short ball in the Test series? You haven’t shown a weakness against it in one-day cricket.
If in one innings you get out to a short ball, people start thinking that you can’t play it well. I don’t think in the last year of international cricket I have been bounced out in any one-day match. If some bowler is bowling quick, over 90mph, then even the best batsmen can be troubled by a good spell. International cricket is all about being tested. It is about taking it in a positive way. The bowler is also a pedigreed one, and he can bowl a good short-pitched spell and get the better of you. [Fidel Edwards] was bowling really well. The odd ball you tend to misjudge. But you can see that happening to the best of batsmen as well. You don’t get every short ball to hit; they leave a lot, while you might get a top edge and get a boundary. I am not worried about playing the short ball, because I know I have a very good mindset when I go out to bat.Did the fact that you were playing Test cricket inhibit you against the short-ball?
You can say that. I wasn’t sure of the exact mindset you should have when you go into a Test match. So I probably became too defensive when I played my first Test match. Short balls in one-day cricket, I have never thought of just defending. Once you start thinking about leaving and defending the short ball, that’s when you get into trouble. If you are looking to play the short ball and looking to score off it, then you can leave it really well. Which I did in the other two [one-day] games, because my intent was to get runs off it, and I played the short ball really well.You might get out to a short ball, but that doesn’t mean you are weak against it. Every batsman in the world has been dismissed by one. It’s all about going into the next game and if he pitches it short again, you try to hit it over the rope and just say to yourself: it was an error of judgement the last time.You can judge when a batsman is not playing the short ball well: when someone’s bowling short to you for a while and even the ball that is pitched up, you go back to it. But that did not happen to me in Jamaica. I was pretty much going forward and defending the balls pitched up to me. It was just a mental shift that I became too defensive in the first game.Did you think you wasted good opportunities to score in the next two Tests?
I was really disappointed. The way I got out in a couple of innings – caught down the leg side, that really gets to you. But I don’t want to be too hard on myself. It’s just a matter of things going my way. I know I am batting well. Even in this innings [in Dominica] I got to 30 and was caught down the leg side. One innings can turn things around for you. I’m working really hard for that, but I don’t want to be over-desperate.

“It was a personal decision for me to stand and say that cricket is all I have in life, there’s nothing I need to do other than cricket. I didn’t want people to say that he was one of those players who had talent and could have played for India”

Having played over 50 ODI games, and already been a World Cup winner, what kind of nerves did you go into your Test debut with?
I spoke to all the seniors in the team. You said that I played over 50 ODIs and won the World Cup, but my aim when I started playing was to play Test cricket. It didn’t get bigger than that for me. This was the biggest moment for me. I was nervous, for sure, but I took the confidence of having done well in international cricket with me.I probably started thinking too much about Test cricket, thinking it’s a huge, huge change. Maybe I shouldn’t have and should have been more relaxed. But that tends to happen when you are playing your first game, and especially when you go in five minutes before lunch and you edge the first ball you fish at.I’m looking at the bigger picture. It’s not like I wanted to play three Tests and sit at home and think, “Whatever happens happens from here.” It’s good in a way that I couldn’t do well after having a good run for a year and a half. I can go back and work hard on whatever I need to and just come back stronger.I know people who are happy that you failed here so that you will come back a better player – just like you did in your ODI career after suffering from that bad-boy image to start with. Do you agree with that perception?
As a young player, when you have been doing well consistently for a long period of time, complacency can creep in. I am not saying it has, but you don’t even realise when it happens. Small things you start ignoring – like, “I can just miss this practice session today, it’s optional.” You might have been hitting balls in optional practice sessions for one and a half years before that, but suddenly you decide to give them a miss. I won’t say it has happened to me. Because every one-day game that I have played for India, I am always motivated to do well. I bat at No. 3, and my job is to take the team through. That has helped me a long way in getting mature as well. It is right that this kind of thing happened, then you don’t get complacent or casual. If I had done well in this series then I would have gone back, even if I wasn’t selected for England series, I would have been sitting at home just being relaxed.
You have spoken a lot about the mistakes you made in the past. You are 22. How difficult is it for someone your age to handle the fame?

Lot of people just saw whatever I was doing wrong. No one really considered the fact that I had lost someone really important in my life. It was really difficult for me to concentrate on what was going on. I was only 17 or 18 then, and as a young kid you need your father to be guiding you and motivating you. But I lost him and it was a tragic moment for me and my family.Rather than give me support, everyone started criticising me for what I was doing wrong rather than making me understand I could do the right thing. And I wasn’t getting direct advice from people; I would read about it in the papers or hear on TV. That would disturb me more because I really needed some support. My family was at one side, trying to recover, and they couldn’t understand what was going on with me. I was away playing Under-19 tours straightaway. Away from family. The other players obviously cannot spend all their time with you, consoling you, as they have their cricket to play.It was a very difficult phase for me. It took a lot of time for me to realise, and once I did it was a complete turnaround. I realised that I was going the wrong way, and I needed to rectify whatever was written or said about me, especially because it was being said over a long period of time. At first I didn’t accept [that I was doing wrong]. Because I had my cricket to play and a personal tragedy to deal with. I did a lot of things I shouldn’t have done. Just being totally careless off the field and not conducting myself well. Letting people say things about me.You spoke about mistakes off the field. But did it ever affect your cricket, the way you trained?
No, not at all. Never at any point did I feel like missing a training session. I was very keen on improving as a cricketer and as an international player. I was very new and didn’t know how to take singles in the first series I played. And Gary [Kirsten] and I discussed that initially and he told me how important it was to take singles in international cricket.”Dhoni plays with the batsman’s mind, and I learn a lot from what he does on the field”•Associated PressI was keen on improving little things that could help me, but as I said, off the field what I was doing wasn’t right. If seniors are supporting you that means they want you to be comfortable in the team’s atmosphere. As a youngster coming into the team and thinking that you are part of the group that’s being nice to you, thinking that I could hang out with them and say anything to them at any point of time was wrong on my part. You need to know your limitations and you need to learn from them. Later on, when you become a regular part of the team, you naturally hang out with them and get to learn a lot. But initially it was wrong on my part for being casual in my relationships with them.Did your family every pull you up and ask you to sort out your off-field issues?
To a certain extent, I didn’t let all those things go to my family. It was a huge tragedy they were dealing with for a long period of time. I didn’t want my mother to find out. My brother and my coach knew, so they tried to help me. They kept telling me that something has to be wrong somewhere. But I didn’t accept it, my mind was so into what was going on. I didn’t let my mom know about all that. I didn’t want her to feel bad about one more thing. I had just played for India. At the end of the day, it was my decision to step up and say, “I am going wrong, I need to correct myself and go the right way.”What changes did you make?
I spent twice as much time on the field. I didn’t feel like hanging out with friends or going for a party for one and a half years. And never on an evening did I feel like I have had enough of hard work and I need to party, I deserve one night with my friends. For one and a half years straight, I was just spending time working in the gym or in the field, practising. I would come back and lie down, thinking that I should get 10 hours of sleep, I should get proper sleep for my body. I taught myself to think that way – just love each and every minute on the field. And I started to enjoy my batting much more and felt very confident about myself. It was all about cutting out all the other distractions I had and just focusing on cricket full time. My only aim was to get back into the team.Was there a rock-bottom moment during that phase, where you decided it was time for a change?
I was part of the one-day series against England in late 2008. After that I was left out of the team, and I really didn’t understand why. Probably because of my conduct off the field. Then I realised how big an impact it had on the way people saw me. “He’s arrogant, a brash kid, and just says anything that comes to his mind.” There were selections for the New Zealand tour for one-dayers and I had done well in the first series I played. I was driving home and a reporter told me I was not in the squad. I was in total shock. I stopped the car, and I couldn’t believe it. That was when I started thinking, “This is a major issue and I need to look into it.”And I was again not selected for West Indies [2009 ODIs]. I had scored about five hundreds in seven games in domestic cricket in one-dayers. At the time I was disappointed, but now I’m really glad that these things happened to me. They never let me relax, never let me lose my focus. If I had been selected on those tours, and not played, I would have been in a different kind of mindset. Not being selected, doing well in domestic cricket – that made me do even better in domestic cricket and India A matches, and that helped me grow as a player, and unknowingly my mindset just changed as a batsman. I wasn’t getting selected but I was improving on the sidelines. I didn’t realise it at all, because my only aim was to score runs, and I kept improving as I scored. It was a good knock on the head for me, and helped me sort things out at that time.Who were the people who helped you during that phase?
My brother, my family, my coach – all these people helped me a lot. Whatever I was doing, they motivated me.It was a personal decision for me to stand and say that cricket is all I have in life, there’s nothing I need to do other than cricket. If I want to achieve whatever I thought as a kid, I need to work hard and not let it go to waste. I didn’t want people to say that who he was one of those players who had talent and could have played for India.Was it difficult to get rid of the distractions that you talk about?
It is difficult as a youngster. It was a really strong decision on my part. I could easily still have hung out with my friends, partied and compromised on my training, not getting proper sleep and just being lazy in the practice sessions. It was a hard decision but it paid off in a much bigger and better way. You know, the joy of doing well as a batsman for your country is much more than that little joy of going for a party and enjoying music. It is a completely different high, and I get high by performances. That’s what I enjoy now. Every now and then, now that you know what you are doing, it’s okay to hang out with friends. Even now if I have to cut off all those things, I will, for six months straight.Why do you think you couldn’t bring your confidence from ODI cricket into your early Test matches?
I should have taken all that confidence into the first Test, and I should have gone in with the same approach, not thinking of this as a big switch and [going] over-defensive like I did, not being myself. I put myself under pressure by my own thinking, not by them bowling too well or the match scenario. As I said, I am a mindset player, so once I put even a little bit of doubt in my mind, whether I should play or leave that ball, I stop feeling comfortable.

“My mom tells me not to swear on the field. And obviously I get really embarrassed whenever she asks me. I don’t tell her anything; I just ask her to give me food at that point”

I looked at Rahul ‘s [Dravid] innings and I looked at Laxman as well. They have their own strengths. Rahul has such a strong defence and it’s bloody difficult to get him out. That’s his strength. For me, the best form of defence would be attack. I like playing shots, I am a stroke-player. I probably mixed all those things in my mind [and thought:] these guys play a lot of balls to get whatever score they get, I probably should start doing that. Now I realise that in a Test match you can get 50 runs in 60 balls or 70 balls, or a hundred in 120 balls.One full over in the evening in Jamaica, Edwards bowled bouncers. The next day you came back and he gave you the same treatment. Didn’t you want to change your approach overnight?
In one-day cricket my only aim is to score. When I have that mindset, I can leave bouncers at any speed. I got mixed up; the thinking of being defensive pulled me back. I was still pretty confused about whether I should hook or leave when I went back. My positive intent wanted me to score, but that feeling of having to face 150 balls for my 30-40 runs was pulling me back. That was one mistake I made. Now as I said, I am feeling much more confident. Just like I play in domestic cricket, I play to my strengths, defend well and hit the boundary balls for four. That’s my strength. In 100 runs I might have 15 or 16 fours, which is my strength. In Test cricket, probably I have to be slightly more patient and wait for the boundary balls.As a young player, when you are trying to get rid of the distractions in your life, how difficult is it to resist the temptations that are provided to you during the IPL?
I had a point to prove in the IPL. All these distractions and temptations you talk about… you cannot just sit in your room at the end of the match and focus on the next match. It’s all about team bonding and enjoying as a team after you win. And being focused all the time. You don’t have to get complacent.I wanted to prove a point there. I wanted to prove that I was a good Twenty20 player. That’s what really motivated me in this IPL as well. I can play any format of the game. Once you have a set goal in your head, and you want to prove to yourself, I don’t think anything can stop you.You talk about expectations from yourself and the fans. Harbhajan Singh told us that in three years you will be Indian captain. How do you handle that sort of expectation?
Wherever I play and whatever format I play, I want people to say that he deserves his place. I feel much more confident when I have earned my place. That’s what motivated me to do really well in the one-dayers, and probably because of that and how well I have done in the last one year, it has changed the thinking of my team-mates towards me – the way they expect performances from me now, and I expect from me too now. You want to establish yourself. You want to be spoken of as someone the opposition needs to get out rather than say that we’ll just bowl good areas and get him out.I really don’t think about [captaincy] right now. If people think you are capable at that point of time, they let you know or you tend to get an idea. As a youngster if my team-mates are saying all these things about me, then I feel good. And I take that confidence into my cricket. But I don’t think about that captaincy thing at all. Obviously it makes me much more responsible, that they think of me like that. I take that responsibility as a positive into my cricket – to take the team through whenever I go out to bat.Do you observe Dhoni closely on the field, and try to, in a way, prepare yourself for potential captaincy?
Yeah, I enjoy captaincy and I keep learning on the field from whatever Mahi does. He is a great captain, of course. Sometimes you don’t understand his field placements, but it ends up being successful because he has put some thought behind that. I analyse the reason – if the game is going slow, what kind of field he sets, and what he does when we are attacking. He plays with the batsman’s mind, and I learn a lot from what he does on the field. I enjoy captaincy. I captained Under-19, IPL and Ranji Trophy as well. I keep thinking of new ways of confusing the batsman, playing with his mind. I am a batsman myself. I know when an opposition captain is trying to play with my mind – like setting a field for a bouncer and getting his bowler to bowl full outside the off stump.Have you always been a good speaker at press conferences?
I wasn’t very good in academics, but I could have been if I could have studied well. I was a smart kid. I obviously didn’t have the time, as I was doing Under-19 tours. All my first six Under-19 tours were abroad, so I was always fond of English. I used to love the subject, and I used to love interacting with the teachers and having discussions with them about what was happening in class. Probably I picked it up from there.”I know that my attitude towards cricket is right at this point”•Getty ImagesI like to talk to people when I go to different countries and learn from them, and build relationships with them. You tend to become more confident if you have a discussion with someone. It’s all about starting to be more comfortable with talking to people.The other day Dhoni was lauding your mimicry and Munaf Patel was telling us about your prowess with scissors while showing off his latest haircut.
When you start doing well and your team-mates start appreciating you, they start accepting you for whatever you do in the dressing room. As a youngster you are really careful and nervous doing stuff around seniors, but once they get comfortable with you, you know when they accept you as someone they look at as a regular in the team. I started feeling that way after the New Zealand series. I started to feel a part of the team, and that was majorly because I was playing No. 3. That made me feel a bigger part of the team. The fact that I am batting at No. 3 in that line-up, it means they trust me and believe in me to take the team through. And they see me as a responsible person, and that gave me a lot of confidence. I always thank Gary and Mahi for giving me that chance at No. 3. It is a big risk, giving a youngster a chance there consistently, because you never know how it’s going to pay off.Did Dhoni say anything to you after the Test series?
He told me during the second Test: “You have one more match, just learn as much as you can from these matches and go home.” He said, “The more you learn, the more improved a player you will come back as when you play Tests again.” He told me not to get too disappointed or too low with yourself [and do things like] sit alone and not with everyone else. Go home with all the learning and feel good about the taste of Test cricket that you have gotten here. Some people score centuries on debut, some people don’t.Are you someone who plans long-term?
Never. I just take it one match at a time. When you go to play a big series, if you keep thinking, “These are the kind of bowlers I am going to face and I have these many innings to face those spells,” that confuses your mind a lot more. Rather than going into every match with a fresh mind and going through with it and moving onto the next one. I don’t set future goals for myself – not in life nor in cricket. I just live everything as it comes, and it probably helps me be more relaxed and in a better frame of mind to perform.For someone with so much pride in his performances, do you have certain goals you want to achieve 10-15 years from now?
One thing I really want to achieve is that people should look at me as a responsible Indian batsman in the future. Or someone who always helped the team through and did well in difficult situations. As a youngster I used to watch all these matches and whenever India used to be in trouble, I used to imagine myself going in there and saving the day. And I feel good even if I think about it in the future. Like in a Test match there is a difficult situation, say 60 for 6, and we are chasing a total and I end up doing it with tailenders. I take a lot of motivation from Laxman , the way he has taken the team from a lot of dire situations to victory.That happens to me a lot in ODIs. I can remember one match in Port Elizabeth against South Africa. It was 142 for 6 when it started raining, and I was batting on 87. I believed we could win, and Bhajju [Harbhajan] came in to bat and I told him that we can win this match, we should just build a partnership. We needed eight and a half-odd runs per over, but I was feeling really confident that if I ended up winning this match for the team, I would have reached that next level. You get that good feeling. It is important to have that match-winning feeling at that time. Not like, it’s 80 for 6 and I am the only batsman left, and let me get some runs as the team is not going to win anyway. My thinking is always to take the team through, even if there are only two wickets left.I know that my attitude towards cricket is right at this point, as far as wanting to do really well is concerned. And I look at the bigger picture always. I don’t feel any doubts about my commitment towards my game.Why are your celebrations full of invective? A lot of people wonder why you can never be happy on the field.
I have learnt that when you achieve something, it’s to be happy about. I don’t have to be angry. One innings where I scored a century and I was really aggressive was against Australia at Vizag. That game was after that Dambulla patch. I knew I was going to be left out if I didn’t score in another two-three games, and people would start criticising me for not being able to play on fast wickets. I was really pumped up and I ended up scoring a hundred. So I couldn’t stop myself. After that, whenever I have scored a hundred, I have been happy.

“If you are playing down the order early in your career, you don’t really get to understand your game in those 10-15 overs you get to play. Two, three years after that, once you start batting up the order, you learn more. I am lucky that way to start off at No. 3 right now. I learn a lot about my game”

But I discussed it with Gary as well. He told me, “On the field you don’t have to change yourself. Because being aggressive is what helps you play your A game and helps you do your best.” I do joke around with players in between. But whenever it’s a tense situation I am at my best when I’m very aggressive. I don’t want to change that. Even when I go out to bat, I love to be in the face of the bowler – that’s what helps me be at my best. The bowler must feel that I am here to perform and not just survive. If he’s giving something to you, you shouldn’t be shy to give it back with the bat, and if it’s too much, you should always believe in giving it back [verbally]. There is no point getting bogged down by some people thinking they are superior to you and they can just say anything and walk away. Like you know how teams speak with Indian teams on the field. And all the youngsters in the Indian team now like to give it back, and the other team is in shock. And when they get it back, they don’t know how to handle it. And that’s been one reason for the success of the Indian team, just being in the face of the opposition and being more aggressive than the opposition.Does your mother ever ask you to keep it cool in the middle?
Yeah, my mom tells me not to swear on the field. And obviously I get really embarrassed whenever she asks me. It’s not a good word that comes out. I don’t tell her anything; I just ask her to give me food at that point.Speaking of confidence, when you bowl, your mannerisms are like a great bowler’s – the way you react and get disappointed. Did you model your action on Chris Harris?
I didn’t do anything about my bowling action. People think my action is so funny, and if I end up bowling a short ball, they will feel I am just having a walk in the park. But when I bowl I take it pretty seriously. In the IPL I always told them, “Give me the ball, I am not going to give more than eight runs an over.” I have that feeling that I cannot let the batsmen hit me. I want to improve my bowling so that I can help in ODIs, and maybe in Test cricket too, when the bowlers are tired.A lot of people say Virat Kohli got his discipline by playing under Anil Kumble.
People said a lot of things. Some people said I changed because of Ray Jennings, some said it was because of playing under Anil , but I just told you what the real deal was. Having all these people around was a great help. One thing [Kumble and I] had in common was being aggressive on the field. That’s why we linked up really well. And he didn’t mind me being aggressive on the field. He really enjoyed my aggression. It was great fun playing under him. He’s a legend of the game and it was obviously an honour playing under him.Tell us about your inside-out shot.
Oh, it’s a very natural shot. I used to love facing left-arm spinners, even in junior cricket. Just loved stepping out and hitting them over covers. It’s instinctive. You improvise that against fast bowlers as you grow as a batsman. Initially it was mainly against the spinners. It has always been one of my favourite shots.And your swat-flick shot.
Junior days, I used to play the flick very nicely. But this shot, I don’t know where I developed it from, honestly. It just became my strength. I started playing it well, and started generating a lot of power with it, and started hitting sixes. The bottom hand just started coming into play. Probably because of T20. Before, I used to play the flick in very conventional fashion. Now it’s become one of my powerful shots.What’s your favourite shot otherwise?
My cover-drive and on-drive to spinners against the turn.You said you had to learn to take singles. How does one do that?
Initially I had the impression about international cricket that it was difficult to score boundaries. So I used to wait for the boundary ball and just be like, “Oh, I have to put that away and not concentrate on taking singles.” After that, Gary and me had a long talk about it. [About how to] play around with the bowlers’ minds as well. Just keep pushing it around, tapping it and running, getting into line and playing it to square leg.There’s one interesting thing that Sachin [Tendulkar] told me in South Africa. It was a match against Pakistan, and I was trying to play everything that Umar Gul bowled towards third man. Not just keeping the bat there – I was trying to guide it with the line. But that wasn’t working because he was bowling a middle-stump line and all the balls were going to point, and I wasn’t getting any runs. So he told me that on fast pitches you can just keep your bat face and the bat tilted back towards the keeper and the ball will just run down off the face; you don’t have to open it. That really helped me. It felt really good that he observed something and he wanted me to improve on that.You come across as being someone who has known his game always.
See, the last one and a half years, I have played consistently at No. 3. So playing in the middle, around 30-35 overs every game, has made me understand my strengths and weaknesses. If you are playing down the order early in your career, you don’t really get to understand your game in those 10-15 overs you get to play. Two, three years after that, once you start batting up the order, you learn more. I am lucky that way to start off at No. 3 right now. I learn a lot about my game.Like that match against Bangladesh during the World Cup. If I had tried to play like Viru [Sehwag], I would have got out for 30, because he was hitting only sixes. I was playing my game, taking singles, the odd boundary, and in the end I scored with a 130 strike rate still. It’s all about understanding your game.He’s a legend of the game because of the way he’s played his game. So why try and match his game? Just be confident in your ability and play the way you have been playing and be in your own frame of mind and try and score like that. Don’t try and play some shots that they are playing. They have played over 200-300 matches.It’s very difficult to bat with Viru . It’s heartbreaking at times – you are struggling to get singles and he’s scoring boundaries at will at the other end. But it’s a great learning experience, and I have been fortunate.

Former selector Trevor Hohns is back in the frame. He talks about the challenge of bringing Australia’s once-formidable depth back up to speed

Interview by Daniel Brettig12-Aug-2011How do you view state cricket right now, relative to when you quit as chairman in 2006?

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the state system. Our state competition is an area we need to try to keep strong, obviously via the Shield competition, but then there’s the second XI. To me it all follows on: you need a strong second XI or Futures League competition. Hopefully that will keep your state sides strong. And if you’ve got a good, strong state competition, it means the national side should be strong, and that means states are producing players knocking on the door for national selection.Everyone knows that Australia has been going through a rebuilding process the last few years. Well, we’ve got to stop using that as an excuse and just get on with it, and the states need to play their part. They need to be producing and encouraging blokes to be good enough, or to try to get themselves good enough via performance to knock on the door for national selection.During your tenure young players really had to earn their way into state and international ranks, whereas now opportunities seem to be given far more easily.
A few years ago we had a fair amount of depth, which in the last few years has eroded a little bit. So I think everyone is trying to find a new crop and just trying to make that depth stronger all the time, whereas many years ago we were strong everywhere. We had a strong national side and the state competition was breeding players who were belting the door down for selection in the national side, and there just wasn’t the opportunity, whereas now there is plenty of opportunity, so young blokes should be able to see that, and they have got to hone their skills and be good enough to represent their country.A pathway has developed parallel to, but not necessarily in line with, club and state cricket, whereby talented juniors play under-age competitions, go to the Centre of Excellence, then play for Australia A, then for the national team. Is it better for them to earn their stripes in the Sheffield Shield?
You’d like to see them earn their stripes in state cricket and get experience, but I think it is just a legacy of the times we’re going through, where players are being identified younger, and because there are opportunities they’re getting pushed through to state and national level a lot quicker than they used to be, because of the problem with depth.After the Ashes you were quoted as saying you didn’t think the appetite was quite there anymore for state batsmen to sweat through a long innings.
I’m not sure it is necessarily the players’ fault. It is just the way the game’s being played these days. There is so much one-day cricket now and Twenty20 cricket, it is just the nature of the beast, I think, and the way that cricket is changing. So it’s nothing to do with the players not wanting to do it. I’m sure they do, but with all the one-day cricket they play, even at the younger, junior level, they’re really brought up on a lot of one-day cricket these days.The really good players can adapt to either form of the game, I think, and that’s what we’ve got to identify, those players who are good enough to do that. It’s not easy – that’s a selection process and a coaching process.

“To have 25 [players on the contracts list] seems a lot to me, and I think the players’ association and CA need to be a bit flexible on this. Where we go with it I don’t know”

Twenty20 is here to stay, the one-day format’s here to stay, so we’ve just got to bear with it and try to encourage or produce players that can change the way they play the game. Sure, one shorter form of the game might suit some players but that’s a selection and a coaching process.The Cricket Australia contracts system has faced plenty of scrutiny. A slightly different system existed when you were chairman, but the idea of a list of 25 is the same.

We had plenty of depth then, but I’m not sure that 25 is the right number. I must admit I was always saying that [as chairman], but that was the deal, that was done, and we had to work with it. To have 25 seems a lot to me, and I think the players’ association and CA need to be a bit flexible on this. Where we go with it I don’t know. You and I aren’t going to change that, it’s more a matter for CA and the players’ association, I believe. There are several lines of thought: whether it should be more incentive-based, or whether T20 cricket should have separate contracts, there’s several lines of thought, and I’m sure they’re going over all of those.Does there need to be a greater weighting of CA contracts towards Test cricket to keep it the pinnacle of the game and counterbalance T20 money?
I think so. I’ve been out of the loop for a little while now but I presume most players still want to represent their country in Test matches. Sure, the shorter version of the game, T20 and to a lesser extent one-day cricket, generate a lot of money, so that’s all got to be taken into account and there’s got to be a balance somewhere.Harking back to your final year or so as chairman – did you have discussions about avoiding the block of retirements that we subsequently saw in 2007? Australian cricket had successfully avoided that scenario since Greg Chappell, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh quit together in 1984.
Of course, we’d started to speak about that, and it was a matter of identifying and having back-up players in place, but then I was out of it after that [April 2006] and I don’t know what occurred, whether there was any discussion taking place between the selectors and the players at that stage to have a gradual easing out.Up until Steve Waugh fought to stay in the team for another year beyond 2003, the selection panel had more or less dictated when a long-term player would retire. The balance shifted more towards the players’ wishes after that, didn’t it?
That’s quite right, and sometimes that’s obviously via a discussion between the selectors and the player to organise it. But if they don’t see it that way, sometimes it is up to the selectors to tap them on the shoulder. You’ve got to do what you think is best for the Australian cricket team. It’s not a personal thing, it’s just you’ve got a job to do, and you’ve got to do it how you see it.You are about to work again with Greg Chappell, a former Queensland team-mate and now a very influential figure in Australian cricket. How do you see the dynamic between the two of you?
I think it’ll be fine. I haven’t had a great deal of talk with Greg just yet. I caught up with him the other day, so I don’t think there will be any issues whatsoever – it’ll be good to work with him.

Just the pick-me-up an India fan needs

Nikhil Jha18-Oct-2011Choice of game
This series has been billed as “payback” for the miseries India suffered in England. Being one of the many Indian fans who went through a phase of severe depression during the England tour, I decided watching the team win from the stands would serve as an antidote. Considering the performance in the first one-dayer in Hyderabad, I thought an easy victory was on the cards for India.I also desperately wanted to witness the debut of Varun Aaron, who is from my city Jamshedpur, but I guess that will have to wait now.Key performer
For most of the game it seemed Vinay Kumar would get the title, for his spirited bowling performance. Then Virat Kohli walked in at a slightly tricky situation, and played an innings full of confidence and swagger. He turned the victory into a cakewalk and, for me, played the most influential role in the game.One thing I’d have changed
The last time I had watched India play at Kotla, the match was abandoned due to poor condition of the pitch following a Sudeep Tyagi bouncer. The only thing I hoped was to get a full game, and I was relieved to witness that. I would have loved to see a close contest, something like the encounter in the World Cup, but will take the easy victory as the next best alternative.Face-off I relished
Given that both teams are devoid of regular star players, there were hardly any match- ups worth discussing, unless you are really excited about Kieswetter v Vinay Kumar. Kohli against Graeme Swann was a face-off I thought would be interesting, but the moment Kohli stepped out and hit that exquisite drive through the covers, there was only going to be one winner.Wow moment
In a relatively low-key and mostly uneventful match, there were few moments that really provided that “wow” factor. One that might qualify is the ball off which Vinay Kumar dismissed Craig Kieswetter, and the England scorecard read 0 for 2, leading to delirious celebrations in the crowd.Shot of the day
I enjoyed watching Kevin Pietersen hit a straight six off Ravindra Jadeja and Kohli drive Swann. But one shot that stood out was a cracking pull by Kohli off Jade Dernbach. It was like a statement to the English bowlers to leave the short-pitched stuff back in England. You could almost sense a Gerard Butler-like reaction from Kohli, with his bat pointing menacingly: “THIS IS INDIA!”Crowd meter
Many people, me included, only realised a week ago that Delhi was hosting a match. The stands started to fill towards evening once people got off work, and India started their innings. Still, I do not think it was more than 70% full.There were the odd attempts to start a Mexican Wave, and some feeble “India, India” chants. The fans around me were either busy on their phones, telling their acquaintances how to spot them on TV, even describing in detail the colour of their clothes, or taking photographs to display on Facebook.Fancy-dress index
One fan did a Ganguly, waving his shirt madly, hoping to feature on TV. I am not sure if his stunt worked.Banner of the day
The only ones I saw were pre-printed by sponsors. One of them read, “A few losses do not bother champions” while another read, “Men in Blue will stick England in glue”. Kindergarten stuff. Ironically, the second banner was torn in the middle and needed some glue itselfOverall
The comprehensive Indian victory served my purpose. I would have loved it if the stands had been packed, and there was a bit more excitement in the game.Marks out of 10
7 for an easy Indian win and an exquisite Kohli century.

The Indian captain talks about the emotional and pressure-laden World Cup win, switching off from the game, his future one-day plans, and more

Interview by Rajdeep Sardesai17-Dec-2011″It’s very difficult to control an emotion like that. I was controlling [myself], I wanted to quickly go up to the dressing room, and I saw two of my players crying and running to me. All of a sudden I started crying”•Getty Images This has been a remarkable year for you. Did you feel at the start of 2011 that by the end of the year you would be a World Cup champion? Honestly?
It was a difficult task ahead of us. Most of the people in India thought we would win the World Cup because we are hosting it. If you see the stats you see that the host country had never won the World Cup before this edition. There was a fair amount of pressure on the players but we were more worried about the fitness. We knew if the 15 that got selected, if all of them are available, and if they play to the kind of potential they have, we would win the World Cup. But it [the pressure] keeps on mounting.I still remember playing the Australia quarter-final. People thought that was the biggest game when it came to the World Cup. Then it was Pakistan in the semi-final. I remember travelling and people were like, “Win this game and we don’t care about the finals.” As soon as we won the semi-final, it was like, “You have to win this because it doesn’t matter what you’ve done. If you don’t win the final it won’t be really nice.” So I think there was pressure, which was the ultimate thing. I never saw the pressure on your face. All these months, even in bad times, in England, you didn’t seem to feel the pressure. What is it? Do you do yoga? Meditation? I often wonder if you practise Buddhism.
I don’t practise any of the above things. I love to be in the moment, I love to analyse things a bit. Very often what is important is to realise what went wrong, not only when you are losing a series or a game, but also when you are winning a series; when you need to realise which are the areas [you] need to work on. And especially, if you see the England series, losing players at crucial times – it never really went our way. Losing Zaheer Khan in the first game, Bhajji went out in the second, Gautam [Gambhir] getting injured in the first game, not being available in the second. All these things mattered. Of course we could have done slightly better. We were in positions in the Tests where the game was slightly in our favour, but without the explosive power you need to tame a side like England, it is a bit difficult. The moment we all lived for was to win the World Cup, and there was a moment when you hit a six to win the World Cup – you twirled your bat, and for the first time I saw emotion on your face. Was it just all those days and weeks where you had kept it under, that you said, “I have achieved it”? For the first time, I saw you really explode.
It was one of the biggest things for us as Indian cricketers, you know. We are playing at the top level. We all want to be part of a World Cup-winning side. The last time we won the proper 50-over version was 28 years back. So most of the people [in the] side wanted to win the World Cup, and as soon as we got into a position where we saw the World Cup coming into our dressing room, emotions started to flow. If you see, before the post-match presentation, almost every player cried… Did you cry?
Yes, I did. You don’t have footage of that. It’s very difficult to control an emotion like that. I was controlling [myself]. I wanted to quickly go up to the dressing room, and I saw two of my players crying and running to me. All of a sudden, I started crying, and I looked up and there was a huddle around me. It just so happened that you don’t have footage of it – you just see me coming up and doing that . And each and every one cried. You started off in Ranchi and you have achieved this. Has it been a difficult journey or has it been that you always felt… that you would be CNN-IBN Indian of the Year, win all these awards? That one day you would be the most recognised face in India. Has it been a difficult journey?
I love being in the present. When I was playing for my school, the only thing I wanted to do was get selected for the Under-16 or the Under-19 district teams. When I was selected for the district I would think about the next level, which was getting selected for the state side. I’m a person who lives very in the moment. Frankly, I never thought that I would represent my country one day. Now I’m leading my country, so it’s like a fairytale. I never thought I’d do all these things. I lived in the moment, I kept working hard. I never expected to get a call for the Indian cricket team in the very next meeting.

“I love to go back to Ranchi. I have three dogs at home. Even after losing a series or winning a series, they treat me the same way. Getting up quite late in the morning, going to clean my bikes, spending some time with my family, my parents and friends, going out for rides with my friends and having lunch or dinner at a roadside hotel – that’s my favourite time-pass”

I said, wherever they select me, whatever they select me for, I will go there and try to do my best and put pressure on the selectors to select me. So I was never disappointed when I didn’t get selected for India A or the India team. Do you owe this to someone? Is there one person that you would say is responsible for making MS Dhoni who he is today?
There are lots of people – because every small thing really counts. Of course, my parents never being against the sport. Time management was very important, and four to six was the time I used to play in winters. Summer, the days being longer, you could play for a bit longer. They never told me not to play or not to enjoy the sport. That was the crucial period, because if there was any stoppage from my parents, that would have been very difficult. So, parents, I think, are very special.And each and every friend who helped me go through the bad phases in life. You got married last year and became the world champion. What was more difficult? Winning the World Cup or getting married?
I think both of them are quite difficult to do. Because, all of a sudden you have someone in your life who lives with you 24 hours and you have to adjust to her and she needs to adjust to your kind of living. And I think the first six months goes by trying to understand each other a bit better. Being girlfriend and boyfriend, okay, you are [talking on] the phone for most of the time, but being together for 24 hours, you have to change your lifestyle. How do you handle this pressure of cricket? What do you do to keep away from this pressure? Do you just not think of cricket when you are not playing the game?
Well, that’s what I do. I like to stay away from the game when I am not playing it. Of course, there has hardly been any break between series. We have been kept busy.That is also a good thing. We go back home for seven or eight days, and after three-four days we realise, “Oh, we are missing something.” Cricket has been a big part of our life. And what do you do at home? I’ve often wondered how you relax at home.
I love to go back to Ranchi. I have three dogs at home. The best thing is that [whether I win a series or lose one], they treat me the same way. They greet me in the same way. That really relaxes me. Getting up quite late in the morning, going and trying to clean my bikes – I have quite a few of them in Ranchi – spending some time with my family, my parents and friends. Going out for rides with my friends and having lunch or dinner at a roadside hotel – that’s my favourite time-pass. These are the sort of things that really excite me.”Batting at No. 6 or No. 7, it’s a very crucial spot, and it’s very difficult to consistently do well. That’s why I have regard for Yuvraj Singh. Most of the time he has batted at No. 6 and consistently scored runs “•AFP Was there a moment in the World Cup that you realised as a captain that you can win the cup? When did you first feel “I have a team that can win this World Cup”? There were a few moments in the early rounds when it looked as if we might struggle a bit.
Well, we always had the kind of self-belief needed, because we have been playing good cricket in the last two- two and a half years, in either format. Our biggest worry was, like I said, the injuries list. With the kind of breaks that we have between two games, I thought we can manage with minor injuries. People having a few niggles can be 70-80% fit and be available for the next game. That was a worry, that if somebody gets injured in a big way, it can be a factor that could really restrict us in the World Cup. The shots you play are unique but there is one shot people call it the helicopter shot – did you practise it as a young boy in Jharkhand when you were 16? Or is this a shot you have evolved over the years or does it just come naturally to you?
I used to play a lot of tennis-ball cricket. [We would] play on a 16- to 18-yard wicket with a lawn-tennis ball, and most of the time the bowler tried to push in a yorker. That was the kind of shot you needed to hit for a six, because in tennis-ball, you don’t have to middle it. Even if you are using the bottom-most part of the bat and if you hit it quite well, it always goes over the boundary. You are making it sound very easy but to hit a a yorker for a six in the manner in which you do is not easy. So did you practise the shot in tennis-ball cricket or is it something you’ve become better at over the years?
I think I became better. I never practised it. I used to use it in the games. And not to forget, I’ve quite often hit my left ankle doing that. Over the years you get better and better and I’ve seen a few other people trying to copy it, you know, and hitting their left ankle, and I’m like, “Okay don’t worry, I also started like that.” You keep, you bat, you captain. Have you ever felt tired in 2011? That enough is enough, I’m going with my wife to Ladakh or somewhere for one month, away from cricket? Have you ever thought, “Let me take a break from this game for one month”?
At times you feel tired. Again, what’s important is that you can push your body. Unless you’re mentally tired, I don’t think you really need a break. And even if I was really tired, I don’t think I [have been] in a position where I could take a break, because our senior players were missing because of injuries or some other things that happened. If there are players, senior players, who are there to play in the next series, and then if you take a break, it is fair enough. But if you see the last few series, we have missed most of our senior players. So you have to see the strength that the team has. And if the team needs me most right now, I don’t mind playing a few more series before taking a break. You’ve achieved it all: you’ve won the World T20 title, you’ve won the Champions League, the IPL and now the World Cup. Is there one dream still left for you in the game? Is there some ambition, some Mount Everest you still want to conquer?
Well, why not do it all over again? If you don’t really have a dream, you can’t really push yourself, you don’t really know what the target is. I think it is very important to stay focused, have short-term goals, not look too much in the future, and try to win each and every series that is coming. Of course, you won’t be able to do that. But it is important that you prepare yourself in that way and try to give your best on the field.

“It’s very important to realise at the right time what you are good at, whether you’re good at cricket or any other sport or at studies. If you are good at studies and you want to play cricket, you may work harder than any other person but you may not achieve it. So it’s something you have to balance in life”

So 2015 is the next goal – the World Cup? The last one we won in ’83 and then for 28 years we waited – from Kapil Dev – for Mahendra Singh Dhoni to arrive. So is 2015 a goal? Or is it series by series, tournament by tournament, match by match?
It is series by series. If you see 2015, you know, still three, three and a half years to go. I don’t really know where I will stand. Everything needs to go off well, and then by close to 2013, I will have to take a call whether I can really 100% be available for the 2015 World Cup, because you don’t want a wicketkeeper in the side who has not played at least 100-odd games, at least close to 80-100 games, going into the World Cup. So that’s a call that needs to be taken. But if everything goes off well, 2013 end will be the time where we will have to carefully study the body and see what can be done. You seem to have mastered the art particularly of one-day cricket. Against England you didn’t even get out this year, match after match. Is that something you’ve worked out – that there is a way you play and you’ve decided that’s the way you’re going to play?
Batting at No. 6 or No. 7, it’s a very crucial spot, and it’s very difficult to consistently do well. That’s why I have regard for Yuvraj Singh. Most of the time he batted at No. 6 and consistently scored runs for the Indian team. I think it’s a crucial position, and also, what happens is, you give a youngster a chance to bat at No. 3 or No. 4 so he gets groomed under the senior cricketers. And there comes a time when I will say, “Okay, no, the next six months or half the year, I’d like to bat up the order and you guys come down the order and take the responsibility”. Because at the end of the day they will have to learn how to bat at No. 6 so that the coming youngster bats at No. 3 or 4. You’ve played with the likes of Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman, Yuvraj, Sehwag, Ganguly earlier, and yet you’ve gone on to captain them. Have you ever felt, “I’m captaining Sachin, all these big players”? You seemed a natural leader of men. Were you someone who was the boss, the gang leader from childhood? Have you always been a leader of people?
Never, really, because I was very a shy kid, and the first time I captained was very late in my career. Very late means I was playing maybe U-19 or something like that. And I never had a fair amount of exposure when it came to leadership.I felt it’s always important not to think whom you are leading. More important is what needs to be done, and to channelise the kind of resources you have to accomplish the target, to be successful at what you are supposed to achieve. There are thousands of youngsters who want to be Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who idolise you, who want to be like you. What would you like to tell those young people?
I think keeping it simple is very important. Of course, working hard, because I don’t feel there is any shortcut. You can have a bit of luck on your side. But it’s very important to realise at the right time what you are good at, whether you’re good at cricket or any other sport or at studies. If you are good at studies and you want to play cricket, you may work harder than any other person but you may not achieve it. So it’s something you have to balance in life, and be practical where you are good and then channelise your efforts in the right direction to be successful in life. We all have heroes. Does Mahendra Singh Dhoni have a hero, someone who inspires him?
Well, that’s a very difficult one. There’s someone like Sachin Tendulkar, who is a part of the side, whom most of the individual cricketers look up to. And not to forget Amitabh Bachchan, who has been the biggest thing when it comes to Bollywood, and he is known the world over. So if you look at him, still, at his age, he is working and being among the best. So these are the two people who are ideal role models, who have struggled through their phases in life and yet come out successful. The best thing is that they are very humble and grounded, which I think is very important to be a successful person.

Although Chris Gayle was already a much-feared batsman in the Twenty20 format even before 2011, his record since the beginning of 2011 is scarcely believable

Madhusudhan Ramakrishnan09-Jan-2012Chris Gayle has often professed his love for the Twenty20 format in the course of the last two years. Ever since he announced himself with a stunning century in the first World Twenty20 match against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2007, he has been one of the most feared players in this version. However, even by his lofty standards, in the last one year, he has been nothing short of extraordinary. In a format where it is almost impossible to maintain both a high average and strike rate, Gayle has done that with consummate ease for well over a year across multiple series. Gayle, who has not been selected by the West Indies team for a while now, has played in Twenty20 tournaments in India, Australia and Zimbabwe and scored over 1500 runs since the beginning of January 2011.Gayle has comfortably been the highest run-getter in Twenty20 games in the last year but the astonishing aspect of his run-scoring has been the fact that he has averaged 55.35 and maintained a remarkably high strike rate of 172.99. David Warner, the only other batsman to aggregate 1000 runs in the same period, has a lower average (42.17) and strike rate (136.84). Gayle, who has hit the most sixes (121), has the highest percentage of runs in boundaries as well (76.25). Shaun Marsh is next, with a boundary percentage of 63.48 followed by Warner (62.32). Despite such an aggressive approach, Gayle has made four centuries since January 2011 including two for Bangalore in IPL 2011.

Top Twenty20 run-getters since Jan 2011 *

BatsmanInningsRunsAverageSR100/504s/6sBoundary %Chris Gayle33155055.35172.994/11114/12176.25David Warner33118142.17136.843/7112/4962.82Virat Kohli2894140.91128.200/796/2959.29Owais Shah3190241.00134.620/573/3052.32Shaun Marsh2186047.77149.820/781/3763.48*Another stand-out aspect of Gayle’s dominance in the format has been his ability to perform successfully in different conditions. In IPL 2011, Gayle was the highest run-getter by far (608 runs at 67.55). He almost singlehandedly took Bangalore to the final, though he was unable to replicate his form in the final. In both IPL 2011 and the Champions League Twenty20 in India, Gayle scored at a strike rate of close to 180 and had a boundary percentage of nearly 80. Even in Australia, where the batting conditions are slightly tougher with bouncier tracks and bigger grounds, Gayle has hardly had a problem, apart from a six-ball duck against the Sydney Sixers. His strike rate and average in the Twenty20 Big Bash last season were 213.33 and 40.00 while his corresponding numbers this season have been 153.64 and 58.00.

Gayle in each series

SeriesInnsRunsSRAverageBoundary%IPL 2011 (India)12608183.0067.5580.92Champions League T20 2011 (India)6257178.3342.8379.37Big Bash League (Australia) 2011-125232153.6458.0069.82Twenty20 Big Bash 2010-11 (Australia)4160213.3340.0086.25Stanbic Bank 20 series (Zimbabwe)6293151.0358.6073.03Unlike many players, Gayle has not found batting in the second innings to be a serious challenge. Although his average in the first innings (67.33) is higher than that while chasing (46.37), his strike rates in both innings are fairly well matched. He has also scored two of his centuries while chasing and has maintained a boundary percentage of over 75 in both the first and second innings. His one notable failure while chasing came in the IPL final against when he was dismissed for a duck in the first over as Bangalore lost heavily chasing a target of 206.

Gayle’s record in the first and second innings

Innings numberNo of innsRunsAverageSR100/50Boundary%11380867.33183.212/676.7322074246.37163.072/575.74During this period, Gayle has superb numbers against all types of bowlers. Against right-arm pace bowlers, who have dismissed him the most times (15), Gayle has an average of 57.60 and a balls-per-dismissal figure of 32.60. His strike rate and boundary percentage against right-arm fast bowlers is also up there with his overall numbers. Against right-arm spin, though, his average and strike rate are both lower than against any other kind of bowling: the ball turning away from him seems the best bet against Gayle. In the IPL 2011 final, for instance, he was dismissed in the first over by R Ashwin, the Chennai Super Kings offspinner. Gayle has a high boundary-run percentage against them but has been dismissed much more often (balls-per-dismissal figure of 28.25) and averages lower (41.87). Left-arm bowlers have not quite been a threat for Gayle. Against both pace bowlers and spinners, he has a strike rate over 200 and has been dismissed only four times (all by pace bowlers).

Gayle against pace and spin since January 2011*

Bowler typeRunsDismissalsAverageBalls/dismissalSRBoundary%right-arm pace8641557.6032.60176.8375.00right-arm spin335841.8728.25148.1676.41left-arm pace184446.0022.00209.0083.69left-arm spin1400–225.6682.85*Breaking up the 20-over innings into four five-over periods, it turns out that Gayle’s average strike rate never goes below 160 in any of those periods. In the first five overs his average strike rate is 162.33 with a boundary-run percentage of 81.37. However, in the next two five-over periods, his strike rate goes up to 175.50 and 210.16. Although he has rarely managed to last the twenty overs, he does boast a strong performance in the final five-over period also. Warner, another successful opener in the last year, has a lower boundary percentage than Gayle across all four periods but has scored at a higher run-rate in the last five overs.

Top run-getters across five-over periods of an innings (Strike rate, boundary%) *

Batsman1-56-1011-1516-20Chris Gayle162.33, 81.37175.50, 75.49210.16, 75.64170.16, 64.22David Warner120.16, 68.90150.16, 58.89158.83, 60.91216.83, 62.22Virat Kohli104.33, 63.10119.33, 54.48130.33, 55.77198.50, 72.72Owais Shah113.33, 70.58108.16, 55.93149.50, 51.81167.50, 51.93Shaun Marsh114.83, 59.74178.66, 66.89178.66, 62.23184.00, 62.99*

Hambantota’s shiny new stadium may have been built at great cost but getting to it and finding accommodation in the vicinity is a struggle for the fans

Kanishkaa Balachandran21-Jul-2012There’s a lot to like about Hambantota. You can almost smell the paint off the markings on the broad roads; the ocean adds scenic variety to the bulk of the journey from Colombo; the fledgling harbour is a tourist attraction; the countryside is serene; signboards in Chinese spark curiosity; the Mahinda Rajapaksa stadium pops out of the horizon like a mirage, and a closer examination reveals an engineering marvel. A once economically backward district is undergoing a facelift, backed by the country’s president, who hails from there.The dream of Hambantota becoming the next big sporting hub may have been dealt a blow when the town lost the bid to host the 2018 Commonwealth Games – the bid itself could be considered, at best, exceedingly optimistic – but the overriding theme of the area seems to be that nothing is impossible.The district is thriving on investments that have been made. The new international airport in Mattala is expected to launch operations by the end of the year. There’s also talk of a monorail service connecting the airport to the stadium. The Chinese-built Hambantota port recently began commercial operations by unloading a fleet of 1000 cars from Chennai.The district is the constituency of Namal Rajapaksa, the president’s son. The various development projects, completed and ongoing, are spread out across the region, and it could be years before they are all complete. It was Namal’s dream to build the stadium in the village of Sooriyaweva, and through political will it was readied before the 2011 World Cup. Sooriyaweva, approximately 14km from Mattala, was chosen because it had tracts of government-owned land. Privately owned property would have been too costly for Sri Lanka Cricket to acquire.For the moment, cricket is the crowd-puller in the district. Six international matches have been played at the ground, starting with the 2011 World Cup. India are now in town. Come September, it will host three games of the ICC World Twenty20.Hambantota means business as far as cricket is concerned, but what remains out of cricket administrators’ control is attracting a diverse spectrum of fans from across the country and the world. A year since it began operations, it’s still very inconvenient for fans travelling from elsewhere. Development in the surrounds hasn’t kept pace with that of the stadium, and no dramatic change is expected in the coming months.The main difficulties for fans and journalists are accommodation and travel. The newly laid highway makes the journey to the ground comfortable, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s in the middle of nowhere. Civilisation appears only in pockets. The journey from Hambantota town, inland towards Sooriyaweva, is more than 25km, cutting across acres of farmland and wasteland. The nearest town, Embilipitiya, is 14km away.There are no hotels or guest houses near the ground, so fans have no option but to stay in places between ten and 30km away, like Tangalle, on the coast, Tissamaharama to the east, Kataragama north east, and Ambalantota. The district’s tourism website lists only two hotels under the Hambantota town area, one of which hosted the Sri Lanka and Pakistan teams recently. Construction of the swanky Shangri-La Hambantota began in February but it is expected to be completed only by 2014. Most of the hotels in the region are in the seaside town of Tangalle, at least an hour and a half from the stadium.The drive from Colombo, though now made easier by the Southern Expressway, is a minimum of five hours. It’s quite a trek for anyone wanting to watch cricket at Hambantota. Fans and media have to arrange their own transport, since there is no public transport to the venue and back. Lasantha, a management student living in Colombo, made it to the T20 games between Sri Lanka and Pakistan this June because his family owns a farmhouse in the district. Three British tourists, who had bought grandstand tickets, hired a cab from Tangalle, where they had been holidaying.The local media turnout for the two matches was poor. The post-match press conferences were attended by only a handful of journalists, much to the bemusement of the Pakistan T20 captain, Mohammad Hafeez, and the team manager.The players themselves haven’t had an easy time either. Last year, for the two ODIs against Australia, the home team stayed in Kataragama. One of the players said the long drive back to the hotel after midnight was particularly strenuous after a 50-over game.

The World T20 is expected to see bigger crowd figures, but a trip down south will remain an expensive proposition for the fans. Those hiring vans or cabs should keep the service for the return trip

The fastest, and most expensive, way to get to the ground is by air taxi. Sri Lankan Airlines operates services to various tourist locales around the country, but they’re not ideal for the budget traveller.Not surprisingly, planning my Hambantota leg of Pakistan’s tour took the most time and attention. My hotel, in Tissamaharama, was an hour and a half away from the ground. Though the hotel didn’t host any fans for this series, I was told that a few did stay in town during the World Cup.Hambantota isn’t the only cricket venue in the world that is located inconveniently. In India, state-of-the-art stadiums in Pune and Nagpur are situated outside town, creating difficulties for those who cannot afford to drive down.Despite the inconveniences, Hambantota’s matches have been well-attended overall. The World Cup games had the best crowds, but the T20s against Pakistan were also buzzing, especially around the grass embankments where the tickets were considerably cheaper than those in the grandstand, which had several empty seats. There seemed little to complain about in terms of the facilities. The food stalls and beer tents were more than sufficient. Flags and replica team jerseys were available. Army and security personnel were around to ensure nothing untoward happened.Where are the fans coming from? Many are farmers from the surrounding districts. Colonel Shanaka Ratnayake, who coordinated the construction of the stadium and now manages the venue, says the purpose of building the stadium was to decentralise cricket from urban centres like Colombo and to give people in far-flung areas the chance to watch live matches without having to travel too far.”This stadium covers four major districts – Hambantota, Monaragala, Matara and Ratnapura. People coming from these districts need to travel maximum one and a half hours to reach. Rather than travelling to Colombo, this is more economical for them,” says Ratnayake.How do they get there? “Most people here are farmers,” Ratnayake says. “Some of them arrange their own transport. There are private bus services. We also arrange night transport, after speaking to the government bus services. The Southern Province has a public and government transport society. I speak to the society head and arrange around ten to 15 buses. This is a free service as these buses are government-owned. People assemble at various bus depots in the district around two hours before the game and avail the service. They are dropped back after the game.”Ratnayake says many travelling fans plan short holidays around matches. Some spend an evening at the game before heading to places like Kataragama (a popular place of worship) or the national parks – Yala and Bundala.He points to the grass embankments, which can seat up to 7000 each. They are packed. Whether Sri Lanka win or lose, it’s a treat for the rural folk. After Sri Lanka’s defeat in the second T20, a group of teenage boys sang what sounded like a sad Sinhala ballad.However, the administrators must be worried by the lack of takers for the more expensive seats and corporate enclosures, which cost LKR4000 (nearly US$30) and above. Ratnayake says there are plans to cover the seated stands on either side, but nothing has been finalised.The World T20 is expected to see bigger crowd figures, but a trip down south will remain an expensive proposition for fans. Those hiring vans or cabs are best advised to keep the service for the return trip.Ocean view: the road down from Colombo skirts the coast•ESPNcricinfo LtdA lot has been invested for the sake of the fans, but at a price. The construction of this stadium and the one in Pallekele left Sri Lanka Cricket out of pocket, thereby holding up the national players’ salaries for several months. The venues were then handed over to the military – in Hambantota’s case, the army.Despite the enormous costs and spillover issues Sri Lanka Cricket has had to deal with, the board is happy with its investment in the region. “The stadium is in a dry zone, where it’s possible to play cricket for nine to ten months in the year. It has progressed well in the last year,” says board secretary Nishantha Ranatunga. “We need to understand the mentality of the people living in the area. Everyone should get an opportunity to watch cricket. This stadium is good for promoting outstation cricket.”For all its facilities, the stadium is yet to host a top-level domestic game, though it has held school games during the off season, and the region may start churning out quality players in the years to come.The ground may be a hit with the locals, but if the administrators want to put bums on all seats and recover some of the costs, support systems for the fans need to be in place. That isn’t going to happen overnight.

Plays of the Day from the fourth day of the second Test between Sri Lanka and England in Colombo

Andrew McGlashan in Colombo06-Apr-2012Plan of the day
England were being frustrated by the efforts of nightwatchman Dhammika Prasad who had withstood whatever James Anderson or Graeme Swann threw at him. Then a change of plan worked perfectly. The field was set for a short delivery from Steven Finn – with two men out in the deep and a short leg – so Prasad knew what was coming but still obligingly hooked straight to deep square. Finn gave him a little clap as he walked off.Chirping of the day

There was a bit of needle out in the middle as England hunted early breakthroughs. Anderson had plenty to say to Prasad, and followed through towards the batsman on a couple of occasions, but they were not the only words exchanged. Tillakaratne Dilshan was far from happy when he thought Alastair Cook had walked across a good length in his spikes. Dilshan spoke to the umpires and a few of the England players chipped back at Dilshan, presumably about him wanting a nightwatchman. In the end, the umpires asked the captain, Andrew Strauss, to have a word before anyone stepped over the line.Debate of the day

When Dilshan was given out against Swann he immediately called for a review. He was convinced he had not hit the ball but the replays – without the aid of Hot Spot – were inconclusive so Bruce Oxenford’s on-field decision stood after a very lengthy wait as Rod Tucker studied the pictures. Dilshan was fuming as he trudged off, but it was not a shocking decision.Bowling change of the day

Regardless of the role of DRS in Dilshan’s dismissal, it provided immediate reward for Swann who had been surprisingly overlooked straight after lunch as Samit Patel was given a spell from the Press Box End. Patel was not expensive but neither was he a huge threat. Swann wasted no time in making his mark and provided a constant danger.Drop of the day

The perfect start for England after tea would have been a quick wicket and they came within fingertips of getting one. Mahela Jayawardene came down the pitch at Patel, again given an early-session bowl, and aimed a lofted drive over mid-on but it did not come out of the middle. It flew towards Tim Bresnan who had to backpedal – as Kevin Pietersen did successfully on the second morning to catch Suraj Randiv – but he could not get the required airtime to pull in the catch. It was not an easy chance, but in conditions like this everything needed to be taken.Late surge of the day
With two overs to go, Swann was brought back for one before the close. What a crucial decision it proved. He induced a bottom edge onto leg stump from Thilan Samaraweera then, two balls, ripped one through Suraj Randiv (the second nightwatchman of the innings). Each time Swann exploded in celebration; he found the energy from somewhere. It was just the finish England wanted.