Umpiring standards need improvement

Indian skipper now takes a stand on improving the umpiring standards witnessing two major errors by Steve Davis and he said it would be much better if Umpiring standards should be improved rather than relying on the UDRS to eradicate the errors. If the quality of umpiring doesn’t improves then India might be forced to accept the UDRS.

India skipper along with Sachin Tendulkar considers UDRS to be a substitute for improving the umpiring quality as they also feel that the technology isn’t always foolproof as well. The way things went ugly in the first test, India might look forward for the system. Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh were also not in the favor of this system since it was used during the tour of Sri Lanka 2008 for the first time.

While since other countries like Australia, England, South Africa, West Indies and New Zealand have used the system and they are strictly in the favor of the system and UDRS has been approved for the coming 2011 World Cup. Let’s see the upcoming happenings and hope for the best.

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West Indies keen to restore their pride

Darren Sammy, new West Indies skipper expressed his views on restoring their lost pride with the up-coming series against Sri Lanka. Sammy was recently appointed as a skipper last month when Chris Gayle turned down WICB’s new contract deal along with the former vice-captain Dwayne Bravo who was replaced by Brendan Nash.

They have come to play, win and bring back the passion in West Indies cricket. Though the skipper agrees that his team is young and a little inexperienced but they have the passion and had gone through some good practice sessions which are definitely going to bring positive outcomes for them.

Sammy said that Cricket is more than just a game; it is an honor for him to be appointed as the new skipper and also added that he is sure that he would be able to handle the team well with assistance from his senior pro and former skipper Chris Gayle.

Sri Lanka came fresh from their long awaited victory over Australia, so they will be in their top form with high spirits but the Sri Lankan skipper said that his team won’t be taking West Indies lightly as it is a capable side and might bring some upsets for them. The tour will begins with the test series which will be a thrill to watch.

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Haider confirms threats and announces his retirement

Zulqarnain Haider has confirmed threats from unidentified person following their team’s one-wicket win over South Africa in the fourth ODI and was ordered to be in line for the next game as well. He is seeking some sort of protection in UK presently and announced his retirement from cricket. He also recently confirmed that he received threats in domestic cricket as well.

He said he is facing a lot of trouble because of the threats to him and his family. He planned his step to retire from cricket because of the recent threats from unknown person and to keep his family and himself safe. Lorgat reported saying in his official statement that ICC is willing to help out PCB and the players in this matter if the facts are indeed true but that could only be possible if Haider will be willing to engage with them, 

Haider also outlined a bit of details of his encounter with the person who approached him and gave threats without giving much details. When asked about the kind of threats he seemed confused to tell about it as he said his family is still in Pakistan and wanted to ensure their safety.

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Joyce will represent Ireland in this World Cup

Former England Opening Batsmen ED Joyce will now represent Ireland from the coming World Cup in February. He was granted special permissions from the ICC to play for Ireland.

While ex-New Zealand international player Hamish Marshall was denied from playing for Ireland till April next year. Both the Batsmen played their last international match for their own respective countries in the 2007 World Cup and they won’t be eligible to play for Ireland till next April under normal ICC norms. While Ireland asked for slight shortening of time period in view of strengthening their squad.

Joyce was granted permissions on special basis and on exceptional circumstance which also included his Irish background and his ties with Irish cricket from his childhood. He is thrilled to get the news and eagerly waiting for playing forward in the World Cup in India and he is already with the Irish team in India training in Pre-World Cup sessions.

Cricket Ireland will certainly be happy having such a talented player in their team which is going to boost their batting line-up and a much needed experience as well. 

Though Hamish missed out on the chance but will surely be available after the World Cup and will still be helping the team. Cricket Ireland thanked ICC and ECB for being so much co-operative and showing their generosity in the whole process.

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Sri Lanka climbs to second spot in ODI rankings

Sri Lanka gets past India in the recent ICC ODI rankings and is now the world no.2 team with 118 points. They were able to achieve this feat after their recent series victory over Australia with their fantastic performance in the series. But Australia is still unmoved from their top spot even after a seven match losing streak.

India will have to clean sweep the ODI series against New Zealand to regain their second spot with a 5-0 series win. While a 4-1 series will leave them a bit behind to Sri Lanka. Then they will have a chance in December in a series against West Indies to get back to their second spot.

Sri Lanka would be glad to get to second position with the happiness of winning a series in Australia so it would be a double treat for them. It is time for Australia to start thinking about their top spot as if both the teams will be playing this kind of good cricket then their top spot won’t be safe for long. 

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Kallis helped South Africa to grab series victory over Pakistan

South Africa at last clinched the series victory over Pakistan in the final game of the series, Kallis helped them with their way out in the final and a high scoring game with all the thrill and suspense. 

South Africa failed to win in the two games due to their sloppy fielding and bowling performance but they managed it all well in the final and the high pressure game. Pakistan’s preparations for the final couldn’t be more dramatic while their wicketkeeper went missing on the start of the game which meant that Umar Akmal had to keep the stumps.

South Africa won the toss and elected to bat, Hashim Amla along with Kallis provided them a flawless start which they wanted. Even though their skipper was sent off early in his innings but after that all seemed very much settled, Amla played an aggressive knock on the other hand Kallis was supporting his innings till the time Amla wasn’t dismissed by Shahid Afridi and after that he played the main role in a partnership of 121 runs with De Villiers. While none of the bowler was a trouble for them and they posted a healthy 317 runs on the board with Duminy making a quick-fire half century with sixty-four runs in last five overs along with Botha being handy with the bat as well.

When Pakistan came to bat they were already under pressure of chasing a huge target of 317 but Shahzaib Hasan and Mohammad Hafeez added 81 runs in the opening 12 overs to provide them with their best opening stand in the series so far. When Kallis came to bowl he was struck for 11 runs in his first over but recovered well by taking three wickets in his next three overs and brought Pakistan on back-foot. Later on Pakistan was still playing at around the required rate but the wickets were falling continuously which made it difficult for them and their innings ended in just 44.5 overs with a 260 runs total.

South Africa won with 58 runs and was a very comprehensive win in the end. The series was full of entertainment but Pakistan will have to re-think about their strategies after the series.

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