Gilchrist announces his retirement

• Finest Wicket Keeper batsman I have ever seen.
  

He will be missed greatly. Saw some glimpses of his brilliance in Perth against India but bowled cheaply by Sehwag. Had he stayed in that innings, the result would have been different. He is the man of big occasions. So many times Gilly has given us a treat of aggressive batting.

As cricinfo notes - "Adam Gilchrist, who revolutionised the role of the wicketkeeper-batsman, Gilchrist played 96 Tests, the same number as Rod Marsh, and has collected 414 dismissals, currently one more than South Africa's Mark Boucher"

He has been instrumental in Australia's one day success. Coming as an opener and thrashing bowlers all over the place is his trademark style. His game against the short bowling is next to nobody in contemporary cricket. Gilchrist brought a limited-overs approach to Tests, becoming the first man to launch 100 sixes in the format, registering the most centuries by a wicketkeeper-batsman, and scoring at a phenomenal strike-rate in the low 80s.

He is truly the best keeper of his times or may be in the history of cricket. Peter Roebuck notes "Yet to characterise Gilchrist as a cavalier is to underestimate his craftsmanship and his contribution. Guarding the stumps was his primary duty, a role he carried out with an athleticism and skill that spoke of substantial skill and unfailing stamina. It was no easy task to replace as superb a gloveman as Ian Healy, into whose hands the ball nestled like a bird in a nest. Gilchrist met the challenge with aplomb, not so much ignoring the hisses that greeted him as turning them into cheers by sheer weight of performance and freshness of character."

Ind-Aus 4th Test. Day 1 and 2

Indian Team belongs to Australia now. They are comfortable playing here and are totally in control of the 4th test. So much that they are enjoying the conditions that Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh put up more than 100 runs for 8th wicket. Austrlian weakness in the bowling was wide exposed by Indians. Indians put up a fighting first innings total of 526, surpassing average 1st innings score at The Adelaide.

Earlier, Sachin's sublime innings came to an end after a fierce battle with the world's best bowler. I think it got to do with the blow he got on his knee from his own shot. But I loved the innings. It was one of those rare one's.

India got a glimpse of the fact that the bowling is not going to be easy here and getting 20 wickets to get a win would need something special from their bowlers. RP's injury can be a blow if he does not recover this morning. Bowling in the right areas and drying out the runs would be the key to frustrate Aussies and eventually get them out.

Australian Perspective on Indian team behavior.

This morning I read this insane piece of writing from cricket-blog. Here are few quotes from it.

'In this series against India we have witnessed something different and unusual. The visitors, with the worst disciplinary record in world cricket, have cried foul. After the Sydney Test, a comment by Kumble to the effect that only one side had been playing in the true spirit of the game, was seized on by the media.'

The whole world knows who are the brats of world cricket. My take on this, the fact that Kumble took a strong stance against the spirit with which Aussies played, was a bomb shell on the Aussie cricket. All the TV footage showed what Aussies were up to. The best was Clark standing after nicking one to 1st slip. Cannot stop laughing.

'Kumble succeeded in muddying the waters. It was no longer just poor umpiring. Somehow the poor behaviour of our cricketers contributed to the result. This was brilliantly conceived and executed.'

As far as muddying the waters is concerned, I don't think the whole world (except Aussie Team and few reporters) can be fooled by the statements and the TV footage. Yes, the composure shown by Kumble in all the press conference was commendable. Brad Hogg should have been slapped a ban, then it would have been 10 out of 10 execution. But we Indians are kind hearted.

'Previous successes had not been built around any overt goodwill toward opposition sides.'

True. Aussies don't know how to win matches by playing fair cricket and with true spirit. They killed the phrase "Gentleman's game" associated with cricket for so long. Yes, they became #1 team by doing so.

'Many Australians underestimate Indian people, seeing them as modest, humble, self-effacing types who are often mistreated and misunderstood. Underneath that exterior you will find many with devious cunning, ruthlessness, astute brains and acumen. Just ask Pacific islanders of countries with a large Indian population base.
'

Do you know anything called, "Intelligent"? I think that is what describes Indians best. For a sport being loved by every India and winning it, you have to be ruthless and cunning.

Suggested Reading who don't agree.

One of the very best..

Australians won yet another test match (14 in a row). Nobody expected wonders from SL. But there were questions around Australia's bowling attack that had a void created by departures of McGrath and Warne. To a certain extent it did get exposed but SL was not the team to exploit it. Well except one man - Kumar Sangakkara. I have not seen such a great knock by a sub-continent player in a long long time in Australia. In his blog some time back he did mention that bounce is not his problem and should not be for the team. He proved himself by playing amazing innings of 192 but rest of the team struggled to make a mark against Australian attack. Some glimpses of brilliance from seasoned batters like Marvan and Mahilla but that you can expect from greats in any series, any time.
Talking about Australian bowling, I think chinks have begun to emerge in this Aussie lineup. MacGill was a disappointing show and while Stuart Clark was very very economical, he is the slowest in the pace attack and sometimes tend to take things easy (he did against Lasith Malinga. He does not have a grit of a fast bowler. People are going to clobber him if he continues to bowl like this. He certainly did not have to same hunger as it was against England and South Africa, recently. Johnson had a good start but he too showed signs of fatigue in final innings when the bowlers struggled to keep Sangakkara in check and take last 2 wickets. You would expect McGrath or Warne to finish it off in no time. Johnson has a long way to go and has to learn art of swinging both ways. Get some tips from Akram boy.
Having said all this, it is a great time for India to tour down under and win a series. They have to lift there bowling and they are in contention. My two cents, just choke the flow of runs and you will get Oz wickets. Its just plain and simple.

Sri Lanka punched by Lee

Cricinfo - Lee spearheads a big Australia win Annotated

Brett Lee helped Australia beat not only Sri Lanka but also the unpredictable Brisbane weather as the hosts rattled out the last five wickets between rain breaks on the final day. Lee claimed 4 for 86 to confirm Australia's 1-0 lead ahead of the second Test in the two-match series, which starts in Hobart on Friday.

To me, secret of winning a test match is first innings lead and bowling that can dismiss the opponents twice. Well that is hell lot of a task but then we are talking about Test sides. They should be able to do it. Well Srilanka never looked to be doing any one of these at Gabba. Their batsman lacked that supreme touch and their bowling was let down by lack luster Dilhara and poor fielding.

Mallinga's exclusion over Dilhara was a blunder I guess. He would have enjoyed the conditions. Dilhara's performance was a disaster. He had no clue how to bowl and never settled in. Murali was let down by lack luster performances from other bowlers. Teams have to understand the importance of pressure from both the bowling ends. By the time, SL lost their openers in the second innings, it was all south from there.

Brett Lee was amazing and is now a standard on how to bowl fast but disciplined. This wicket was not super fast yet he bowled with aggression and immaculate line and length. Any bowler going down under should take some lesson from Lee's performance. You have to bowl long spells of tight line. Only that is what can trouble aussies. You have to choke the flow of runs. And don't fool your selves by bowling short balls at them. Just an occasional and well directed bouncer can do the trick. Waist height won't give you results.

SL's next game is in Bellerive Oval, which is a fantastic venue to watch a game of cricket. I hope they will not get disheartened too much and think of the fact that most teams meet the same result when they come to Australia. They should look forward to play aggressive cricket to win the match and level series. A 2 match series has a big advantage. Even a 2-0 result won't look too bad.

Test cricket back in Australia - SL vs AUS

I have been watching SL bowling to Australia. I have to say they are not following the basics.
Fast bowlers are not using the bounce and Murali is bowling occasional short balls. The very basic thing to do against Australia is to choke the flow of runs. Dilhara is too too expensive. Very interesting analysis going on with the Jaywardena's missed chance against Phill Jaques. But the real battle is going on between Ponting and Murali. Murali should look to bowl even slower. It might be a good idea to try Jayasuriya to slow things further.

Hayden has done it again - 2 in 2

Back to Back Centuries against tough teams in the world cup shows the class of a batsman and if have an opener like him then not only your win is certain but the opposition's morale is battered in the beginning itself. Then chances of recovery become None. Against WI, Hayden proved that he is any team's nightmare. He scored more than 150 runs and made sure that Australia posts a big score. His game is so complete that it is really difficult to bowl at him and if he is in form, he is impossible. His raw power and great technique is second to none in this world cup. Smaller grounds are making things easy for him. Australians are playing great cricket and it was evident in their bowling. They want to crush the opposition. If they continue to play like this, it will be 3 in 3 (World Cups) for them (a record they only can break).

clipped from content-usa.cricinfo.com

Australians are masters of the game!

What went wrong with India?? We missed Mandira Bedi's(lady) luck Looking right now at the way Aussies are batting against SA, I wonder what India lacks or has problem with? Well it is not only lack of passion or ageing team or poor captaincy or bad coach? Naaahh...Indians lack technique too. The game has changed so much and teams like Australia have adapted to it very well and now they are the pioneers. Mind you Australia was not the team to bring about the change of 100 runs in 15 overs. They didn't start this with openers like Mark greatbatch, Jayasuriya, Kallu or even Sachin tendulkar. Still they are able to adjust to that kind of game and produced openers like hayden and adam gilcrist. They did not stop there (where most others). Australia took the game to a new level where Players like Ponting coming at number 3 is even more dangerous. They had players like beven who had an average in 60's or 50's and a marvelous finisher, still had to retire to give way to youngsters. India is nowhere near the new level of the game. It needs major overhaul. On a laughing note, why not a fixed retirement age for cricketers?? 30 .. may be.

clipped from content-usa.cricinfo.com Michael Clarke launches a straight six during his bellegerent knock, Australia v South Africa, Group A, St Kitts, March 24, 2007

Ponting furious on Gavaskar's remarks

How can Ponting launch such a brutal attack against Sunil Gavaskar, who apart from a cricket great is also a critic and writes for lots Newspapers and cricket magazines. I think this is multi pronged attack on Indian cricket, selectors and captains. Why?? Ponting knows, India is a strong contender for the WC. Aussies are known for their unorthodox tactics off the field to put pressure on oppositions. Things had worked in the past but now people are smarter. This is just another useless Aussie tactic. I love Australia as a team but I hate their behavior on the field when they are frustrated and I think they have got away with this pretty cheaply so far.

clipped from content-usa.cricinfo.com Ponting targets Gavaskar over behaviour "There is not the slightest doubt that in the last decade or so the Aussies have been awesome in batting, bowling and fielding, which has taken them to the top of the cricketing ladder," Gavaskar, who regularly highlights Australia's poor behaviour, wrote in India Today, a national weekly. "But they have also been awful in the way they have sometimes behaved on the field much to the chagrin of the traditional fans of the game." Ricky Ponting said it was "high and mighty" of Sunil Gavaskar to complain about poor on-field behaviour as Australia's captain questioned his role in India's lack of recent Test success. Gavaskar said this week Australia's recent losses to England and New Zealand had "gladdened the hearts" of the game's followers. Ricky Ponting admits he has been reported "more than anybody" since becoming captain © Getty Images "We all know the way he played his cricket, don't we?,"

Australians have their tasks cut out.

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We're the team to beat - Ponting

Ricky Ponting is confident his squad can erase the "bit of negativity" gained during its five-match losing streak and retain the World Cup in the West Indies. As the squad prepared to leave for the Caribbean, Ponting hoped Australia would be the outright favourites when the tournament starts on March 11.

"I know we're going to be extremely hard to beat," Ponting said at the airport in Sydney. "We're drifting favourites but, once the cricket gets underway, hopefully you'll see some cricket that's going to mean that we still are the favourites going in."

Everybody is saying Australia is going through a down slide after 5 successive defeats. In my opinion, this could be the best thing happened to a team like Australia just before the world cup. They will come back hard at everybody. Expecte a better and stronger Australian team. My personal favorites are Indians but for a great team, Australians are the team to watch.