The Cricket Thread

[diabloo]

Chasing 318 for victory, India end up 299 all out in 49.1 overs. Chasing 300 in Australia is always a difficult task. Good fight put up the young team. One more wicket in hand and India would have been victorious.

1. Time for little master to think about hanging the boots and exit gracefully. 7 consecutive failures is too much for a team to compensate.
2. Yuvraj, Rohit Sharma, Sehwag - all are in good touch. They should practise just staying at the wicket for first 20 deliveries.
3. For next game its time to get Suresh Raina in place of Rohit Sharma.
4. Sreesanth just sprayed the ball all around. He may not play the next game.

[normally_crazy]

Tendulkar has been in fine fettle in both forms of the game over the last couple of years, but just like the fourth innings has been a bit of a jinx for him in Tests, the run-chase has caught him cold in ODIs: over the last three years, Tendulkar averages a mere 26.94 in the 39 matches that India have chased, with 18 single-digit scores. During the same period, he has averaged 56.03 in the 32 innings when India have batted first, with four centuries and just seven scores of less than ten. The last time Tendulkar scored a century in a run-chase was nearly four years ago, when he stroked a glorious 141 in Rawalpindi against Pakistan.

The above is taken from this - Cricinfo Article

[pmbabu]

Originally Posted by normally_crazy

The above is taken from this - Cricinfo Article

More from the same article:

When the squad for the tournament was announced, there was plenty of concern about the lack of experience in the batting line-up, but ironically, it's the most experienced ones who have been letting the team down so far.

Yuvraj Singh played one exceptional innings against Sri Lanka in Melbourne, but that apart, he has scored 42 in five innings, while the opening act of Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag - both of whom were in smashing form during the Tests - has been even more disappointing: Tendulkar has a highest of 44 from seven innings, while Sehwag has an aggregate of 81 from five. They are the three superstars of the batting order yet they all have an average of less than 20 in the tournament.

While the pressure of the run-chase hasn't suited Tendulkar, it did little to rein in the flair of Gambhir, who has added consistency to his other virtues to make himself an indispensable member of the batting line-up. He scored fourth-innings hundreds in the semi-final and the final of the Ranji Trophy, and under the lights in Sydney showed once again that he doesn't mind the pressures of a target.

[suman]

It was good watching Gambhir & Uthappa yesterday; Rohit Sharma went early but no sweat - he's been pretty consistent so far.

The remaining "seniors" - well, what can one say. For a change though, it was good to see dogged determination & application even when the situation looked hopeless & the asking rate had climbed to 8.5 an over. Well done & I hope they fire on Tuesday else its curtains for us

[pmbabu]

The last time Sanjay Manjrekar mentioned Sachin Tendulkar in a negative context, the batsman took umbrage; wonder what he thinks about the commentator’s latest piece in the print edition of the Times of India, in which he calls Tendulkar the elephant in the dressing room no one is prepared to talk about. Sanjay builds his case on one set of stats: Tendulkar, batting second, is pretty much a spare wheel (Sanjay calls him ‘redundant’, as exemplified by an average of 62.10 when batting first, and a mere 26.00 batting second; the data is based on the last 51 ODIs, in which Tendulkar has batted first 24 times and second, 27 times.

Manjrekar says the batsman and the team management need to discuss and resolve the issue. And for once, he is not alone: Peter Roebuck suggests that Sachin should bat in the middle, in the interests both of his own performance, and of the team’s stability. You know matters are serious, though, when no less than Sunny Gavaskar (who goes into ecstasies about the ‘Little Champion’ if Sachin so much as sneezes out in the middle) suggests that Tendulkar should be protected against the moving ball by shifting him down to four, you know the elephant can’t be ignored any more.

From: Smoke Signals

[Spitfire]

So the team should be chosen after the toss?? How ridiculous. So choose Sachin if we bat first. What are the stats on other players - setting a target and chasing one?

Good show by "TEAM INDIA" and thats what matters. Ifs and buts are always going to be there.

From being called the Hope of India to (white) elephant its sad to be selfless as a player for your country. Now dont start about Ferrari's and tax saving if anyone of us were in his place we could have burned out long back.

Compare Sachin to other sport personalities who were thrown into the mad world at a age of 16 and survived.

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

Compare Sachin to other sport personalities who were thrown into the mad world at a age of 16 and survived.

Do we care whether he played for India in his diapers?

What matters is that he delivers when he plays for the country, without having to fall back on excuses such as 'played for India at 16', 'hope of the nation', 'unplayable ball', 'unable to convert big starts' etc

If he cannot deliver as before, he should stand down understanding that we are quite a forgiving lot and will never ask for a person of his stature to stand down. That would be the mark of a great person.

Else he will be the elephant in the dressing room that nobody wants to talk about.

[normally_crazy]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

So the team should be chosen after the toss?? How ridiculous. So choose Sachin if we bat first.

Spitfire,

We can always tell him to come in at No. 4. We can change the batting order after the toss as the team has to be announced before the toss.

Think about it - if Sachin is there in at No 4 , the rest of the players can bat freely knowing that the maestro is there at the other end. (for how long though is anyone's guess )

But as everyone knows - Sachin gets cranky and irritable when he is asked to bat to No 4 - why ??

I think he wants the maximum number of overs to bat so that he can go on creating records !! I am sorry but that is all I can assume looking at his reluctance to bat down the order. He is a great enough batsman to score at No 4 like he does at No 1 - think it even reduces the risk of him getting wrong LBW decisions.

[esteem_lover]

I am sure sachin & the captain have considered all your ideas, if they still persist with it, there must be a reason. I am sure sachin himself knows why.

[Surprise]

DNA - Sport - Skipper backs Sachin says he will fire - Daily News & Analysis

What can I say of him? He has scored over 16,000 runs. We’ve not faced 16,000 *****.”
That was Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s summing-up of Sachin Tendulkar, who has been uncharacteristically below par in the series. Just 126 runs in six matches is not the sort of figures one generally associates with Sachin

A day before the match against aussies on Sunday (24th Feb'07)

It's time for top order to fire: Dhoni - Sify.com

Dhoni said he was open to shuffle in the order if it was needed. And the axe could fall on Sehwag. "We have a few options, (Robin) Uthappa can open with Sachin but the way Gautam (Gambhir) has settled in at number three, I don't want to disturb him."

Originally Posted by normally_crazy

Spitfire,

He is a great enough batsman to score at No 4 like he does at No 1 - think it even reduces the risk of him getting wrong LBW decisions.

He needs to accept that offer by heart and come down at.4. Losing him at top of the order is a positive start for the opponents and puts pressure on our middle order batsmen. He might not get the same scoring opportunity as he opens, but for the benefit of the team he needs to come down.

[Spitfire]

I dont argue with the fact that Sachin is not performing and he does need to pick up his game. But why does every loss have to be due to him, maybe his failure pushes our team to defeat. Dont make it sound that he is the only one to be blamed.

I am sure when he goes out to play he wants to win the match for his country atleast give him that instead of assuming that he opens to create records. How many of you here who have played for either their state or club or company goes after records when playing. When we used to play it was only for the state other things be damned.

On that same note is Ishant Sharma and others trying to do good only to get more money? when they do well why is it for the country and when Sachin does well it is for himslef. Hypocracy?? you tell me?

[normally_crazy]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

I dont argue with the fact that Sachin is not performing and he does need to pick up his game. But why does every loss have to be due to him, maybe his failure pushes our team to defeat. Dont make it sound that he is the only one to be blamed.

No one has blamed Sachin alone for the loss. Yuvi and Viru are as much responsible as Sachin is.

I am sure when he goes out to play he wants to win the match for his country atleast give him that instead of assuming that he opens to create records.

We know he wants to win matches for his country but when he is struggling, why not change ? Some say Sachin not batting at the top of the order is victory for the opponents - so on that same note, if Sachin bats at No 1 and fails - that is not victory for the opposition ?

On that same note is Ishant Sharma and others trying to do good only to get more money? when they do well why is it for the country and when Sachin does well it is for himslef. Hypocracy?? you tell me?

Dude - when Sachin was an immediate success when he began his career, he also signed up advertising contracts with various companies - I guess he did not do it for free ! So why do you have a problem if Ishant performs well and is paid huge money to play or sell a product ? The bottom line is - NO ONE IS BOTHERED HOW MUCH YOU MAKE TILL YOU ARE PERFORMING.

It is a known fact that Sachin has fired in fits and starts after his 1998 Sharjah series win against the Aussies. A stray innings here and there which won India matches (a couple of important ones) - but never the important ones.

[pmbabu]

Originally Posted by Spitfire

So the team should be chosen after the toss?? How ridiculous. So choose Sachin if we bat first. What are the stats on other players - setting a target and chasing one?

Well, it is good to see the passion you have for SRT. But take a moment and see the figures in this link. NC already clarified that is about all the 3 seniors, the 3 superstars in the current ODI lineup.

Tendulkar on the backfoot

[LLL]

Well, it makes sense to me to have sachin bat down the order. For one, he wont be under immense pressure to go hammer and tongs after the bowling in first 15 overs. He wont also be exposed to moving ball, which is apparent from # of clean bolds in recent times. This can be a temp arrangement in australia..he can bat as a opener again when team plays in subcontinent.

If sachin can came in to bat around 20-25 overs mark and gets his eye in, he can get a hundred in remaining overs easily. I would like to see him cross the 20k runs mark rather than see him struggling continously as a opener.

[normally_crazy]

Originally Posted by LLL

He wont also be exposed to moving ball, which is apparent from # of clean bolds in recent times.

I agree - also LBW's

This can be a temp arrangement in australia..he can bat as a opener again when team plays in subcontinent.

Thats a brilliant suggestion !!

If sachin can came in to bat around 20-25 overs mark and gets his eye in, he can get a hundred in remaining overs easily.

Exactly what I was saying. He is a classy player and can (should) score from any batting position.

And the added advantage is - the younger guys get to play around him and they play without pressure and fear.