Is it already too late to sort out the balance of cricket’s formats? on May 8, 2023Nobody can be blamed for not fully envisaging the future but cricket deserves censure for not properly planning the paths of its different formats. Administrators had ample time and opportunity around the time T20 cricket came into being to draw up a stable blueprint for the game’s future. It should have included a way forward […]
The rise of T20 poses cricket a number of questions it must answer on April 10, 2023There’s no point in bemoaning the fact that the game is not like it was previously. If T20 is to shape the future, what lessons can cricket learn so that the game continues to grow in directions that weren’t previously visualised? In particular, what effect will the T20 phenomenon have on players, selectors, curators, and […]
It’s high time cricket regulated its pace of play on March 27, 2023I have often wondered, “Who really loves the game of cricket?” Is it the first-class player like myself, who had his pads and boots cleaned by the room steward, and whose matches are played on well-manicured fields with meticulously prepared pitches? Or is it those who play in the park on boiling-hot Saturdays, having pegged […]
If India keep Smith and Lyon quiet, they have the edge against Australia on January 30, 2023A consistent Australia will fancy their chances of winning the “final frontier” contest against India. This confidence is based on a settled batting line-up, a well-balanced pace attack capable of producing old-ball swing if the conditions prevail, and a successful spin bowler.Nevertheless this will be a tough challenge — also referred to in Australia as […]
England’s bowlers need to ditch containment for attack on June 6, 2022Finally someone in the England set-up has vocalised one of the team’s biggest failings. When their new coach, former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, emphasised to his bowlers, “Don’t focus too much on economy rates, I want wickets,” he was applying Test cricket common sense. To sum up Test cricket simply: a team’s batters need […]
Test cricket cannot flourish in the shadow of the T20 format on October 15, 2021There’s a Twenty20 World Cup to be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and then, after some spirited negotiations, hopefully a credible Ashes series in Australia. The difficult negotiations over the Ashes series were mostly brought about by the Covid pandemic, but more and more the T20 format is casting a dark shadow over […]
Did we really need The Hundred? on August 2, 2021Throughout my playing career I believed there were two possible solutions to a problem: a simple one and a complicated one. I also believed that to the benefit of Australia, England would regularly choose the complicated solution. They’ve done it again.To overcome the perceived problem of a public not fully conversant with cricket, they’ve concocted […]
300 cotton growers trained on use of best practices in crop production on March 27, 2021Central Cotton Research Institute had trained about 300 cotton growers on use of best crop management practices for achieving higher per-acre output during the coming season. In this regard, Central Cotton Research Institute in collaboration with Kashtkar Foundation had organized a day-long workshop, which was attended by a large number of farmers, scientists and exporters. […]
Don’t ban the bouncer, fix batting technique instead on December 21, 2020A Test match, especially one played between two skilful and evenly matched teams like Australia and India, is appropriately named. Each game is a searching test of the players’ skill, cricket intelligence and courage. In the first Test, at the Adelaide Oval, it also became a test of everyone’s patience while Cheteshwar Pujara was in […]
What made Don Bradman better than the rest? on October 12, 2020I was often asked an intriguing question during my playing days: “Why was Don Bradman so much better than any other batsman?” I didn’t have a satisfactory answer to the query. Nevertheless, I eradicated a couple of reasons for Bradman’s dominance. “It wasn’t his superior eyesight or reflexes,” I confidently said. Good reflexes and decent […]