[diyguy]

DK pulled of a miracle no doubt and all kudos to him for the win, but I think he let it go down to the wire when it should have been easier. He tried taking a double of Shankar's strike in the final over 19.2 and also took a single on 19.3 to give the strike back to Shankar!!
He should have ensured to remain on strike and I believe this could have been finished easier.

[Oxy]

Loved to see the Bangladeshis choke again. I wonder which was the bigger choke, this or Bangalore (2016 T20 WC).

Also, our first choice LOI team finally looks settled now:

Rohit
Dhawan
Kohli
Rahul
Raina
DK
Pandya
Bhuvneshwar
Washington
Kuldeep
Bumrah

[PPS]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

I have also wondered for some time now why Karthik isn't in the white ball team regularly as even just a batsman.

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

In the first place, DK should've come before Vijay Shankar IMO to avoid even getting into such a tense situation.

Karthik has sat out most of the games in the last couple of months. He has been in good form in the past 2 domestic seasons from what i've heard. Its just that i feel the captain & team management has a certain set of favourite players who are given the long rope & given an extended run inspite of average performances. Out of sorts Shreyas Iyer was played ahead of Karthik in the SA one dayers!

Was perplexed as to why Vijay Shankar was batting ahead of Karthik yesterday. Rohit Sharma in the post match presentation admitted it was a strategy as he wanted to hold back Karthik for his experience towards the end overs, i think he was bluffing when he said that! As it is Karthik doesn't get much of a chance when the full strength team plays & now he's shunted down the order batting below a newcomer!

Not that I liked it, but can you tell me why you say Atrocious! I saw that sometimes they started the commercial break immediately after the catch is taken. But Ten sports, Sony Six also do that and I absolutely hate it.

Felt like i was watching the match in between commercials! DSport actually made SonySix look good.

[Chetan_Rao]

Isn't it the norm these days to go to commercial when the over's last delivery leaves the batsman's blade and come back when the first one of next over has left the bowler's hand?

How else are the poor advertisers going to get their money's worth? Who's interested in the game anyway

[NPV]

Originally Posted by diyguy

but I think he let it go down to the wire when it should have been easier. He tried taking a double of Shankar's strike in the final over 19.2 and also took a single on 19.3 to give the strike back to Shankar!!
He should have ensured to remain on strike and I believe this could have been finished easier.

That's a tad harsh on DK for what he actually achieved in that situation
In the first place, Vijay Shankar wasted 5 deliveries of the 18th over, missing the first 4 and then managing to scamper for a leg bye off the fifth! That put Manish Pandey and then Dinesh Karthik on a lot of pressure. Pandey holed out trying to score big off the last delivery of the 18th over. When DK came in, there really wasn't much hope, yes we could have gotten close and lost the game in the end. But the grittiness showed, calm and composed way in which DK played, really ensured victory from the jaws of defeat and it was in the end an unexpected victory due to his superlative shot making.

[diyguy]

Originally Posted by NPV

In the first place, Vijay Shankar wasted 5 deliveries of the 18th over, missing the first 4 and then managing to scamper for a leg bye off the fifth!.

I didn't mean to be harsh and to be honest, I only saw the game from 18.4 of the India innings. Having known that Shankar wasted those 5 deliveries, all the more reason for DK to retain strike , especially after those sixes DK hit in the 19th over. Don't mean to be an armchair critic but I thought he shouldn't have tried to give strike back to Shankar.

[nilanjanray]

Originally Posted by diyguy

DK pulled of a miracle no doubt and all kudos to him for the win, but I think he let it go down to the wire when it should have been easier. He tried taking a double of Shankar's strike in the final over 19.2 and also took a single on 19.3 to give the strike back to Shankar!!
He should have ensured to remain on strike and I believe this could have been finished easier.

Too much of #armchaircriticism, me thinks. DK pulled off a miracle. He was amazing. No ifs and buts. And there is always a huge gap between what could have been done in ideal circumstances, and what is possible in the heat of the moment.

[Sawyer]

On the other side, the women have done themselves no favours at all by their extremely poor showing against Australia. To be licked as they were in all matches, at home, tells that they are not quite there yet in terms of being world class. England and Australia are in a different league.

[Sawyer]

So Rabada gets away with it, a case of two wrongs making a right since Warner got away with it.

So do Bangladesh, with their antics.

The loser is the spirit of the game. But all the above points to TRPs driving everything with a reinforcement of the suspicion that these antics are being allowed as part of an orchestrated attempt to increase interest in the matches where the cricket by itself does not seem to be enough of a reason.

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

So Rabada gets away with it, a case of two wrongs making a right since Warner got away with it.

So do Bangladesh, with their antics.

The loser is the spirit of the game. But all the above points to TRPs driving everything with a reinforcement of the suspicion that these antics are being allowed as part of an orchestrated attempt to increase interest in the matches where the cricket by itself does not seem to be enough of a reason.

Rabada is still on the verge of a suspension though - If he manages to get one more demerit point I believe.

Bangladesh has been playing international cricket for close to 2 decades now, but hasn't shown any maturity as a team or as individuals. Apart from maybe Shakib, not one player has managed to accomplish anything or get talked about because if their performances. Instances like the Sri Lanka match just reinforce the fact that they're not up to international standards when it comes to any sport, let alone cricket.

They should probably still be playing with the likes of Ireland and Afghanistan, who in my opinion are putting up performances with real grit and are coming up the ladder in a deserved manner. The Banglas have started taking their international status for granted, which should be checked.

If they're not performing well, they should be dropped from the international circuit. If individuals can accumulate demerit points and can be banned from matches, teams should also go that way. A 6 - 12 month hiatus from international status would actually do Bangladesh good at this juncture.

[Eddy]

Wow, all of this basis one incident ? You think BD behave worse than the Aussies ?

nstances like the Sri Lanka match just reinforce the fact that they're not up to international standards when it comes to any sport, let alone cricket.

One, that incident does not demerit their cricketing achievements. Two, how could you pass on a judgement on them not being good enough in any sport ?

They should probably still be playing with the likes of Ireland and Afghanistan, who in my opinion are putting up performances with real grit and are coming up the ladder in a deserved manner.

Had their chance to qualify for the WC but blew it (unless all results go their way). Afghanistan especially is a gritty team which go weighed down by the pressure of being favourites in the WC qualifiers. I am sure they will become better.

If they're not performing well, they should be dropped from the international circuit.

That does happen. Teams lose test and ODI status and automatic qualification for WC basis their performance.

A 6 - 12 month hiatus from international status would actually do Bangladesh good at this juncture.

Basis what ?

Just to remind you - they were quarterfinalists in the last 50 over WC, have won ODI series at home against higher ranked teams and are currently #7 on in the ICC ODI ranking. They have a home victory against Aussies and an away win in SL in tests. The team is on an upward curve.

[Eddy]

Whatta match in Auckland !!! England reduced to 27 for 9. The last wicket adds 31 and they end up being 58 all out. Only two bowlers bowled for NZ.

This pink ball has made things interesting

[selfdrive]

Originally Posted by Eddy

Whatta match in Auckland !!! England reduced to 27 for 9. The last wicket adds 31 and they end up being 58 all out. Only two bowlers bowled for NZ.

This pink ball has made things interesting

Yes, it adds another strategical part to the game. But somehow I feel this needs to be introduced at the domestic level and A level tours first so that players get used to playing in different conditions. I don't know how some subcontinent players would cope with evening conditions at Auckland or say Headingley when they already find the daytime conditions a bridge too far.
There could be situations where captains may declare earlier in such tests just to make the best of evening conditions.

[Eddy]

Originally Posted by selfdrive

But somehow I feel this needs to be introduced at the domestic level and A level tours first so that players get used to playing in different conditions.
.

Actually sometimes it's good that things flow from top to bottom. Helps acceptance. And since no country has done it at the first class level in enough matches, all international teams stand at an equal footing.

I don't know how some subcontinent players would cope with evening conditions at Auckland or say Headingley when they already find the daytime conditions a bridge too far.

Can't say for the other subcontinent teams, but we cannot be worse than England, can we ?

There could be situations where captains may declare earlier in such tests just to make the best of evening conditions

Yep, another strategic call that'll make the game interesting.

[Geo_Ipe]

I shall try your point to point style of discussion!

Originally Posted by Eddy

Wow, all of this basis one incident ? You think BD behave worse than the Aussies ?

Maybe not! At least the Aussies play world class cricket!

One, that incident does not demerit their cricketing achievements. Two, how could you pass on a judgement on them not being good enough in any sport ?

I haven't seen any "Cricketing Achievement" worth mentioning by Bangladesh in the past 2 decades! Maybe they're ranked #7 now, but that's mostly due the rapid downfall of teams like West Indies and Sri Lanka, rather than their own achievements!

Their behaviour at the end of the 'Semi final' vs Sri Lanka was extremely appalling. That kind of behaviour does not belong to any international sport!

Had their chance to qualify for the WC but blew it (unless all results go their way). Afghanistan especially is a gritty team which go weighed down by the pressure of being favourites in the WC qualifiers. I am sure they will become better.

Just watched the Afghanistan vs Ireland WC qualifier. The Afghans bowled brilliantly, and held on with their weak batting lineup to reach their second World Cup! Kudos to them!

That does happen. Teams lose test and ODI status and automatic qualification for WC basis their performance.

I might be ignorant, but which team lost their Test status ever? Zimbabwe was 'temporarily suspended' - but that was more due to political reasons than cricketing reasons!

What I'm suggesting is like the Ranji Trophy system - where there are two leagues (Elite & Plate?). Or even like in football where there are tiers, and teams move up or down on the basis of their performance each season.

Just to remind you - they were quarterfinalists in the last 50 over WC, have won ODI series at home against higher ranked teams and are currently #7 on in the ICC ODI ranking. They have a home victory against Aussies and an away win in SL in tests. The team is on an upward curve.

Qaurter finalists in the ICC WC just means that they were in the top 8! That is nothing to write anywhere about for a team playing for more than 20 years! Especially when we're talking about a sport that is played only in 10 - 12 countries worldwide. Kenya played the semi final in the 2003 WC - and I don't see them anywhere in the circuit nowadays!

Even if they don't play well, I wouldn't have bothered! I'm someone who gives utmost importance to "The Spirit of the Game". Bangladesh unfortunately doesn't seem to!