It is interesting that South African tours to India coincide with milestones in Wasim Jaffer’s career. Jaffer made his Test debut at Mumbai in the first Test of the 2000 series. The last Test that Jaffer played for India was the third Test at Kanpur in the 2008 series. And now, when the South Africans […] READ MORE
Author: Karthik Sampath
karthik_sampathThe Return of Shoaib Malik
The 2010 Pakistan tour of England is remembered for the inglorious exit of three of the Pakistan players — Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Asif and Salman Butt. Much before the tainted Lord’s Test that marked the end of the tour, there nearly ended midway in the series another Pakistani Test career. Unimpressive returns in the tours […] READ MORE
In Defence of Kohli’s Five-Bowler Strategy
Test defeats do not sit well with the Indian fan. Particularly if they happen in the subcontinent. More so when they are snatched from the jaws of victory. India had Sri Lanka at 95/5 in their second innings in the first test of the three-Test series, with Sri Lanka requiring another 97 runs to avoid […] READ MORE
England’s Enviable Depth and Balance
On the second morning of the third Ashes Test of 2015 at Edgbaston, after having bowled Australia out for a paltry 136 on the previous day, England, perched seemingly dominant at 133/3 on the previous evening, slumped to 190/7. A deficit of 54 (then) not withstanding, Australia were looking to blast their way back into […] READ MORE
Good, Can Be Better – The New One Day Cricket Rules
At the conclusion of the ICC Annual Conference in Barbados, the ICC has announced amendments to the ODI playing conditions. That the existing One Day cricket rules were in acute need of an overhaul was never in doubt but questions remain on how far the new rule changes will help in the redressal. The following […] READ MORE
When England Enjoyed One Day Cricket
When it comes to One Day cricket, there are two matters on which the cricketing world is now at a consensus. Namely, that the ODI rules are in serious need of a revamp, and that England are bad at One Day cricket. With the early exit from the 2015 Cricket World Cup having brought in […] READ MORE
The Nearly Men: Zimbabwe at the World Cup
At the conclusion of the league phase of the recent Cricket World Cup 2015, the focus of the cricketing world rested largely on three areas—England’s inglorious yet not entirely unexpected exit, the heartening performance of the Associates and, naturally, on the quarter-final match-ups to come. That left out of the spotlight the Republic of Zimbabwe, […] READ MORE
Last Strains of the Calypso: West Indies’ World Cup Hopes
Early in the afternoon of Feb 27, 2015, Jason Holder bowled a shortish ball on middle and off and Faf du Plessis clipped it to leg for a single, bringing to a close yet another tidy over from Holder. As Holder collected his cap from the umpire and walked off, he had a number of […] READ MORE
Getting the Cricket World Cup Format Right
In October 1998, a first-of-its-kind ICC cricket tournament was held in Bangladesh. After a solitary pre-quarterfinal to eliminate a (ninth) team, the world’s top eight teams were engaged in a knockout tussle over a week, with South Africa finally emerging triumphant. The tournament, which was also known as the ‘Mini World Cup’, was loved as […] READ MORE
