Category Uncategorized

At the precise moment Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, was saying sorry for the bizarre ending of the World Cup final the ICC hoarding behind him came unstuck from the wall, and almost hit his head. Sitting alongside Speed as he admitted that the events in Barbados the day before amounted to the biggest farce in the game’s history was the ICC’s general manager, David Richardson.”David and I are here on behalf of ICC, to say to the wider stakeholders of the game that we too are very sorry this incident occurred at the end of what, on any view, had been an outstanding day of cricket,” he said. “We very sincerely apologise for the error that was made.”It was an unnecessary error, a fundamental error. It was made under difficult circumstances at the end of the match, and it’s not a good image for the game. We would have far preferred if news highlights had been some of the great cricket played and some of the great decisions made by the umpires. It was unfortunate, a very sad way to finish the World Cup.”It was, however, left to Richardson, who is in charge of the game’s elite officials, to try to find an explanation for the monumental breakdown in communications that led five senior officials to impose a phantom regulation on a dead contest. Unsurprisingly, he couldn’t.”They are at a loss to try to explain,” Richardson said. “I can only say it’s similar to the situation where you are sitting at home and the answer to a quiz question on TV looks very simple, but you just lose your train of thought when you are in that heated, pressure situation. It only takes one guy to sow a seed of doubt in the other people’s minds.”What worries me, as the guy ultimately responsible for how match officials perform, is that we get ourselves into a pressure situation and we are not able to cope with it. That’s what it’s about, whether you are playing or officiating. Malcolm has said we are not going to over-react, but we are certainly going to take it very seriously and look at how it could have happened.”There will be no sackings or resignations as a result of this fiasco, and Speed said he had not had any reason to reassess his own position as chief executive. But the tone of an otherwise humble press conference changed markedly when the name of Darrell Hair was thrown into the ring.After the ball-tampering row erupted at The Oval last September, Hair was hung out to dry by his employers. He was removed from the elite panel and further humiliated through the release of personal correspondence between himself and Doug Cowie, the ICC’s umpires and referees manager. Though other issues followed, his primary crime had been to stick dogmatically to the [correct] letter of the law. If only Rudi Koertzen and his fellow officials had been as diligent in their reading of the rules.”The Darrell Hair issue is and was quite complicated and will be ultimately resolved in an employment tribunal in London later this year,” Speed said, with a crocodilian stiffening of his sinews. “Darrell Hair is still employed by ICC, his contract is being honoured. To put the two together, I think it’s drawing a long bow and unfair to these five officials who were involved in the incident yesterday.”Inevitably, Speed felt obliged to accentuate the positives of the tournament. “We’ve had cricket on the back pages and, unfortunately, on the front pages for seven weeks,” he said, still believing in the old adage that any publicity is good publicity. “Lots of people who had not been exposed to cricket have seen cricket and been aware this World Cup has been in full swing.”The cricket grounds we now have in the West Indies are outstanding, as good as any in the world. They have been built by the governments of the respective countries and they’ve looked at it as a long-term investment. In places like Guyana and Grenada they are very proud of what they’ve done and they should be proud of what they’ve done because they’re small countries with small populations that wanted to be involved in a world event.”What comes next, however, for these islands? The world event has been and gone, and in most cases the stadia were not remotely full. Admittedly several thousand temporary seats will be removed from most venues, but the burden of constant maintenance and the scrap for future marquee events could stretch the island’s fragile allegiances to breaking point.Speed did not see it like that. “West Indies cricket now has a terrific problem,” he said. “It now has this collection of five-star cricket grounds so when Australia comes here next year they’re going to have an almighty argument about where Australia play their Test matches and one-day internationals.” An almighty argument. Only the ICC could see that sort of a legacy as a positive.

“Some have played a lot of cricket and feel the effect of too much cricket, while others have just started” © Getty Images

Graeme Smith said it was the players’ “biggest worry”; Tim May, the Federation of International Cricketers Association, warned of the possibility of a player strike; while Sunil Gavasker was “shocked” at players complaining over their schedules. The topic of player burn-out has elicited extreme reactions but Sachin Tendulkar, expectedly, chose the middle path.”It differs from player to player,” he said while speaking at an Airtel-promotional event in Mumbai. “Some have played a lot of cricket and feel the effect of too much cricket, while others have just started. It is important that the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) strike a balance between too much cricket and too less. It is also important from the spectators point of view – they shouldn’t be deprived of cricket; at the same they shouldn’t get too less.”When probed further on the issue, especially Gavaskar’s view on the topic, Tendulkar chose the diplomatic route. “Everyone is entitled to his opinion. As far as I am concerned, I have been happy with my schedule. It is important to physically and mentally recharge yourself after every series. One must make sure there is a break after matches and series.”Tendulkar was also asked of Ricky Ponting’s fantastic run recently, fast catching up on his record 35 Test hundreds. “I played against Ponting in a few exhibition games in 1991-92 and knew he will be the guy to watch out for. Sunil Gavaskar’s record of 34 Test hundreds stood for 22 years and such benchmarks help the next generation – whether it is Ponting, Lara or myself. That is the best thing about records.”

Pakistan’s giant© Getty Images

The way he is, he shouldn’t be a batsman. He shouldn’t even be a sportsman. Where other batsmen stride to the crease, Inzamam-ul-Haq lopes and mopes to it, shoulders hunched. He drags his bat along with him like a scolded schoolboy would his satchel. Not for him the bravado entrance of a Mathew Hayden or a Virender Sehwag, chest out, brandishing the bat as weapon. Increasingly when he is dismissed, he loiters despondent for an eternity, not as protest but because of an acute awareness of its implications. Hayden and Sehwag can afford bluster; if they go, they have Ponting, Gilchrist, Sachin or Dravid. But if Inzamam falls, as John Wright’s fist-pumping celebration atKolkata in the second innings suggested, half the battle with Pakistan is often won.As with all his best innings, Inzamam’s 100th Test has crept up on us almost unnoticed. Only three Pakistanis – Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram and Salim Malik – have played in over 100 tests and it somehow seems right, bearing in mind the larger-than-life personality each possessed, that they achieved the landmark. With Inzamam, it sounds mildly implausible; 100 tests? Really? He will probably end up eclipsing Miandad as the greatest batsman Pakistan ever produced. How, given his inert demeanor, has he managed it?He stretches the traditional confrontation between ball and bat. Not till the very last moment, at which point the ball invariably looks like winning the battle, does he react. By that time, motionless almost apart from an incongruous shuffle here or there, the length is clear in his mind and it remains only for him to bring down his bat, with strength or otherwise, but always, always, with quick hands. Energy conservation is maximised and only as much as necessary is ever spent. You see it in his running and his fielding, especially in the short cover position he lately loves.

Recognise that slim boy-wonder?© Getty Images

It’s not so much a technique as an attitude and with it he has become the most important Pakistan batsman of his time, possibly ever. Two innings in the 1992 World Cup made him, and won it for Pakistan. His undefeated 58 decided the Karachi thriller against Australia in 1994-5, but it has been only since 2000, by which time both Miandad and Malik were gone, that his value has become clear. For much of the time since, Pakistan’s batting has disintegrated, while his, in inverse proportion, has flourished. The most wretched and vivid example of this dependence came at Multan in 2003, where but for his 138 not out, Pakistan’s batsmen would’ve contrived to lose to Bangladesh. In 41 tests since 2000 he has averaged nearly 57, with 12 centuries. How important is he to Pakistan? More than statistics will ever tell you, for they don’t tell you of the thin support and heavy load he has had to bear. Still, they are revealing. Of his 20 test centuries, 15 have contributed to Pakistan wins and he averages over 75 in all their wins since 2000.So what, you say? In a golden age for batting, does he really bear comparison with the greats? Lara, Sachin, Hayden, Ponting, Dravid after all have better figures, players who, when that ludicrous question of having someone bat for your life is asked, would rightly get picked before him. And he won’t be remembered in the same way a Lara or a Sachin will be. Where they have saved their very best for the best – Australia and South Africa of the nineties – Inzamam has average, even poor records against them. No, even though he may not lack their batsmanship, he lacks the drive, the ruthlessness, the sustained pursuit of excellence, the sheer force of will and personality which has marked their greatness.But of course he does; it is a result of the very attitude which pulls us to him in the first place. Despite his apparent insouciance and the pressures on him, his lumbering starts, his unsportsmanlike appearance, he has managed to achieve all that he has; 100 tests, over 7000 runs and an average threatening 50 and that is worth appreciating. Occasions such as his 123 at Karachi last year against the Indians, or his 86 at Mohali last week, when he outshone even the most stellar batting line-up of our time are worth cherishing. These are occasions when everything clicks, when his very casualness suddenly becomes hisredeeming feature and not a glaring hindrance. These are occasions where his genius emerges, where he fleetingly and slyly hints, rather than emphatically asserts, to being the best batsman in the game today.Osman Samiuddin is a cricket writer based in Karachi. He is following the Pakistan team on their tour of India.

Thilanga Sumathipala, Sri Lanka Cricket’s (SLC) president, faces further legal wrangles after Namal Balalla, the Colombo Additional Magistrate, announced this week that he had been discharged but not cleared. The magistrate has ordered Sumathipala to appear before court on January 8.Sumathipala is fighting a case filed by the CID under the Immigration and Emigration Act after being accused of aiding and abetting an underworld figure to obtain a British visa under a false passport. The investigation followed a series of serious allegations by a Sunday newspaper. If found guilty, Sumathipala faces a possible jail sentence.Sumathipala, who vehemently denies all the charges, had held a pressconference on Monday night to announce that he had been discharged.Sumathipala’s legal team had convinced a Poya Day court that the CIDpossessed insufficient evidence to pursue their case. He looked to haveemerged from the most difficult period of his life.But the manner in which the court was convened on a public holiday, without the presence of a representative from the Attorney General’s department or the CID, drew sharp criticism from the bar. Balalla rejected the submissions by the defence not to accept the plaint filed by the CID, arguing any evidence would be assessed in court on Jan 8.

The West Indies achieved a crushing 301-run win over Scotland in their group match in the ICC Under-19 World Cup in Dunedin today.The West Indians batted first and amassed 402/3. Donovan Pagon scored 176 off only 129 balls in an innings that included 21 fours and five sixes while Lendl Simmons was 121 not out off 120 balls and Alcindo Holder hit 56 not out off only 22 balls, including three fours and five sixes.Scotland had no response at all and were dismissed for 101 in 38.3 overs. Qasim Sheikh hit 37 off 77 balls for his side but that was the sum response among the Scots. Ryan Nurse took three wickets for 18 runs, Narsingh Deonarine took two for 12 and Ravindranath Rampaul took 2/28.Scotland should find more comfort in its match tomorrow against Kenya while the big match of the round is shaping on Wednesday between the Australians and the West Indies.

Jammu and Kashmir scored a facile 145-run victory over HimachalPradesh on the third and final day of their North Zone Under-14tournament match at the Kathua Sports Club in Kathua on Thursday. Withthis win, J&K took home eight points.J&K who won the toss on the opening day put up a fighting 243 runs onthe board. R Bhatt (46) top scored in an innings that witnessed thetop order making the bulk of the scoring. In reply, HP were bundledout for just 105 with S Bhalwal accounting for six dismissals. Onlythree of the HP batsmen, skipper Aditya Choudhary (20), M Soni (12)and A Chauhan (10) managed to reach double figures. The J&K secondinnings was a fair disaster. They were shot out in just 33.3 overs foronly 70 runs. Set to score 208 for a win, HP fared worse scoring just63. The innings folded up in 49.1 overs with the spoils being sharedall around.

David Warner will speak with the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland and hopes he can win over “the boss” as he has done the selectors and the board to become Steven Smith’s vice-captain.In the lead-up to the appointments of Smith and Warner, Sutherland had struck a notably lukewarm note about the vice-captain’s leadership credentials. “I don’t think that’s necessarily an obvious next step,” Sutherland had said in response to questions about whether Warner was an obvious candidate to be Smith’s vice-captain.It was Sutherland who spoke out most staunchly to decry Warner’s behaviour on the previous Ashes tour, describing the punch he swung at Joe Root as “a despicable thing” and offering stern warnings about the opening batsman’s future if he did not improve. Warner said he would speak with Sutherland at the next available opportunity and said he respected the chief executive’s opinion.”He’s our boss and I have to respect what he says,” Warner said. “But the board obviously approved me being vice-captain and I thank them for their support, trust and faith in myself to be under Steve and help Steve as much as I can with my knowledge of the game. We’ve still got a whole squad here and we see them all as leaders in their own right. James hasn’t been in touch. I’m sure I’ll get to speak to him at some stage.”It’s definitely a massive honour and a boyhood dream just to first to get your baggy green but to be recognised as a leader within the group and being named vice captain is obviously a massive thrill for myself and I know my family as well. Obviously it’s a tag that I’m going to have to live with day by day now. It’s an added responsibility and I’ll be doing everything I can to help Steve on the field and off the field.”I think the past 12-18 months I’ve shown how much I’ve matured. I’ve got a young family, I recently got married, I’m enjoying my off-field and I’m thoroughly enjoying my on-field performances as well. So for me it’s about me trying to help Steve as much as we can driving this team forward for the next five to 10 years.”Warner’s persona has been an evolving one, both on the field and away from the game. He has been working to find a middle ground between the aggressor and agent provocateur he has been in the past and the leader he must now become. He also spoke for how hard the team had worked and would continue to work under the new leadership duo.”I’ll still give the banter [within the squad]. Obviously in our team we sometimes we are serious, sometimes we do joke around a lot,” he said. “Each team needs a few characters and I see myself as being that character sometimes, and I will probably try and continue to be that funny person.”I think the way that I’ve been . . . a lot of my energy has gone on the field, and a lot of hard work has been going on in the nets as well. I don’t just speak for myself, I speak for the whole team. What people don’t see and don’t understand is how much preparation that goes into these tours. We have had a long tour. We’ve been on the road for a while. We went to the West Indies and we won there, we’ve come here and we’ve been disappointing.”But we’re giving 100% every time we walk out there. Every time we go to training our preparation is outstanding. You can’t fault anyone for their preparation … we’ve been beaten by a better team at the moment. We’ve got one Test to go and we’re going out there trying to prove what we’re actually capable of.”One thing Warner will not be able to do quite so often is get into verbal battles in the middle, and he said he would now be devoting far more of his energy to working alongside Smith in finding tactical solutions. “Now, with a bit more responsibility, I’ll be trying to help Steve as much as I can,” he said.”You’re going to see a lot more work put in on the field. It’s not about sledging. It’s about encouraging your bowlers and getting into the mind of the batters. We just have to be smart when we’re out there and to concentrate on what’s ahead, and that’s the game. That’s the most important thing.”I know what comes with being a captain, we’ve seen it in the past under our previous leaders – how much time it does take out of your day. So for me it’s about helping Steve to lead this team from the front and take some of those responsibilities off him. I think a lot of that will probably be done at training and off the field, so he can control what’s going on on the field.”

Wolves currently find themselves in the midst of somewhat of a crisis at right-back with both Nelson Semedo and Ki-Jana Hoever sidelined with thigh injuries.

Luckily it appears as though the former could be back in contention after the international break whilst there is still no clear time frame on the latter’s return to action.

The injuries have meant that usual left-back Jonny Otto has had to play out of position at right-wing-back, with manager Bruno Lage not having a third senior option.

However, the West Midlands club does have an exciting young right-back coming through the ranks in 18-year-old Harry Birtwistle.

In the Pipeline

Birtwistle, who is of both British and Singaporean descent, signed his first professional contract back in October and has seriously impressed for Wolves’ U23s.

The right-back has made a combined 19 appearances for the U23s in both the Premier League 2 and EFL Trophy, scoring three goals and assisting twice with Wolves U23s currently sat third in the Premier League 2 Division 2 table.

Last season, the 18-year-old made 23 appearances for the U18s, impressing regularly and thus being handed a chance for the U23s, an opportunity that’s certainly been grabbed with both hands.

When Birtwistle signed his contract five months ago, Scott Sellars, Wolves technical director, said: “Looking forward, Harry needs to keep performing for the under-23s to a high standard and, when January comes, we will assess where he is in his journey; whether he needs to go out on loan or stay here and work with the under-23s and first-team.”

There’s certainly a pathway to the first-team for the young Singaporean, as well as his teammates in the U23s squad, but if injuries continue to be an issue for Wolves’ wing-backs, a first-team call-up may not be far away.

In Semedo, the West Midlands club have found a decent replacement for Matt Doherty, who left Molineux in 2020 to join Tottenham, having joined Wolves in 2010 as an 18-year-old.

The Irishman made 302 appearances for the club, overseeing two promotions as well as an FA Cup semi-final and an impressive run to the quarter-finals of the Europa League.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Doherty’s time at Wolves can be an example to Birtwistle as to how hard work can eventually lead to first-team opportunities, with the 18-year-old certainly being one of the West Midlands club’s brightest youth prospects. Described as “rapid” by Tim Spiers, the youngster has previously professed that he’s modelling himself on PSG wing-back Achraf Hakimi after stepping further back in his position on the pitch.

Supporters will always have a particularly soft spot for players in the first-team who have come through the youth ranks, with Luke Cundle being a recent example. There’s no reason as to why the same can’t apply for the right-back.

In other news: Lage can find Wolves’ next Traore in rarely-seen teen who does “things out of nothing”

	Boyd Rankin is still recovering from a stress fracture © Getty Images

Ireland’s hopes of a third successive Intercontinental Cup win have suffered a blow with Boyd Rankin ruled out of next month’s match against UAE. He will also miss the three one-day internationals against Bangladesh.Rankin, who joined Warwickshire on a three-year deal from Derbyshire at the end of last season, suffered a stress fracture in his foot shortly before Christmas, and neither county or country want to risk him returning to action too soon. He is currently spending time with Allan Donald, Warwickshire’s bowling coach, on remodelling his action.”The injury has healed, and I have started back doing bowling drills with Allan Donald, adjusting a few things in my action just this week,” Rankin said. “It was decided between everyone that it would be too soon to be back bowling at full fitness for the Intercontinental Cup match and the ODIs in Bangladesh. I’m concerned that if I come back too soon it might not fully recover and I could break down again.”Phil Simmons, Ireland’s coach, said: “Hopefully with Allan working on remodelling Boyd’s action, we’ll get a fitter and more confident fast bowler.”However, Rankin’s loss is partly offset by the unexpected availability of opening bowler Dave Langford-Smith, who has had a change of heart after initially ruling himself out of contention for the first half of the year due to work commitments.”Dave’s work is going better than he anticipated and thankfully he is able to get the necessary time off,” Simmons said. Ireland take on the UAE in Abu Dhabi from March 6, and play three ODI’s in Bangladesh on March 18, 20 and 22.

Danish Kaneria will resume his commitments with Essex after missing the 2006 season © Getty Images

Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, will represent Essex during the 2007 season after gaining permission from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). He will be available for Essex’s opening Championship match against Derbyshire, at Chelmsford, starting on April 18.The Essex chief executive, David East, confirmed Kaneria’s availability for the whole season and added that be would be free to honour his commitments with Pakistan at any point during the summer. There were doubts about whether certain Pakistan players would be able to fulfill their county commitments after the PCB raised concerns of player injuries, especially to the fast bowlers, during Pakistan’s off season. Umar Gul has already been prevented from joining Gloucestershire.”We are delighted that Danish Kaneria can now join Essex for the start of the 2007 season,” East told the county’s website. “It’s been a challenging few weeks for us in terms of trying to clarify his availability and our thanks go to the Pakistan Cricket Board for their understanding and agreement to release their player.”This will be Kaneria’s third season with Essex since his debut in 2004. He missed the 2006 campaign as Pakistan were on their tour of England. He took 95 first-class wickets in 18 matches at an average of 28.18 during his first two seasons. He also played a crucial role in Essex’s National League success in 2005.