Breaking News: Cricket news and views around the world

[Tintin]

Orlando, Florida : An argument between several Indian men during a cricket match in Orlando led to an on-the-field shooting that seriously injured one of the players, according to police.

...

Officers said Singh apparently became involved in a fight and threatened Devan Bascom, 37, with a cricket bat. Police said Bascom then pulled a small semi-automatic gun and fired at Singh, hitting him at least once.

"The shooter was defending himself from an attack with a cricket bat which is simlar to a baseball bat but it's flat," Orange County sheriff's Sgt. Spike Hopkins said. "For this man to bring a firearm to a sporting event is odd but then again, he has the right to do so. He has a concealed weapons permit and if, in fact, he was protecting himself, he was authorized by law to do so."

http://www.local6.com/news/14505886/detail.html

[Nocturnal]

Cricket Taking cricket to the top Afp, Kathmandu Source A group of 18 professional and amateur British cricketers are trying to set a world record for holding the world's highest match at the foot of Mount Everest. "Three teams are planning to play six aside on the mountain, playing five overs each on the Gorak Shap glacier," Andrew Baud, spokesman for the Professional Cricketers Association, told AFP from London on Monday. The glacier-turned-cricket ground is at an altitude of 5,184 metres (17,000 feet), and just below base camp on the southern approach to Everest, the world's highest peak. "They are taking 40 spare balls up there I can imagine they will need them," Baud said. "At normal altitude it would take about an hour, but it can get as low as minus 13 degrees Celsius (nine degrees Fahrenheit) so it may take around two," he said, adding the record attempt was being made from Monday. There are five professional British county players in the teams and they are trying to raise funds for a fund that assists cricketers in times of hardship, Baud said. First conquered in 1953 by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, the 8,848-metre (29,198-foot) mountain has since been scaled about 3,000 times.

[Sovik]

Originally Posted by Tintin
http://www.local6.com/news/14505886/detail.html

crazy americanos

[Tintin]

In the Pura Cup match between Western Australia and Queensland (note - first class match), Luke Ronchi of WA completed his 50 in 40 balls, then reached his 100 in just 11 more balls. 106* in 54 balls, 6 fours, 11 sixes.

http://content-ind.cricinfo.com/aust...ry/319315.html

[MohammedC]

Originally Posted by Tintin
In the Pura Cup match between Western Australia and Queensland (note - first class match), Luke Ronchi of WA completed his 50 in 40 balls, then reached his 100 in just 11 more balls. 106* in 54 balls, 6 fours, 11 sixes.

http://content-ind.cricinfo.com/aust...ry/319315.html

When Gilchrist started to talking about retirement (Link). Brad Haddin thought here is my chance but Luke Ronchi wont make it a easy way in for Haddin

[MohammedC]

Broad was chasing the ball in the outfield in the morning session when he spotted a giant cobra snake a few yards outside the boundary ropes.
As soon as lunch was called, inquisitive England players rushed to the spot to get a glimpse of the deadly snake, which had wriggled itself into a hole in the club walls.
When play resumed after lunch, the snake was forgotten as the local batsmen went after the English bowling.

New Age BD


...and this is the creature that confronted them in the undergrowth


Matthew Hoggard and England team-mates go snake hunting during the lunch interval...

[MohammedC]

Gary Kirsten, the former South African opener, is the surprise front-runner to be India's next coach. While the Indian board said Kirsten was interviewed by the coach selection committee on Monday and a formal announcement on the new coach would be made in a week's time, senior officials were saying off the record that the appointment was a formality.
"It has been finalised," a senior board official told Cricinfo. "We just need some time to complete the formalities."

CricInfo

[Tintin]

Isa Guha, a 22-year-old Bengali born and brought up in the UK, was today named Player of the Match after taking nine wickets for 100 runs as the England women’s cricket team retained the Ashes by beating Australia at the Bradman Oval in Bowral by 6 wickets.

Asked whether Isa was English or Bengali, her father Barun thought for a moment before replying: “She is 75 per cent English, 25 per cent Bengali. She cannot speak Bengali but she understands Bengali. She loves to come to Calcutta, and meet all her relations. May be the next trip will be at Christmas.”

He said: “We brought her up like any other parents in India. We gave her all the help. We did what any Bengali parents would do. We kept an eye on her. English children do their own thing after 14 or 15.”

http://telegraphindia.com/1080219/js...ry_8921360.jsp

[Kabir]

She's probably Kolkata's Bengali.

Great stuff.

[Tintin]

Extract from Ed Smith's book :

Being outstanding seems to be getting harder. In baseball, the holy grail for batters is to average more than .400. No one has done that since Ted Williams in 1941, but if you look at the 50 years before then, eight players managed even better and hit .401.

This is the central paradox of sporting progress. If the standard of sport is improving, why do the greats of the past stand out more? Three reasons: better defence, more information and a higher base level of achievement.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/spo...cle3462618.ece

[JonBain]

Gary Kirsten, the former South African opener, is the surprise front-runner to be India's next coach.

The guy anybody should have as a first choice coach is Ray Jennings, currently South Africa's under 19 coach. Bangladesh looking for a good coach? You won't do better than this guy.

[MohammedC]

Durham v Yorkshire, Twenty20 Cup, Chester-le-Street
Chaos for Yorkshire as quarter-final postponed
Cricinfo staff
July 7, 2008
Yorkshire's Twenty20 Cup campaign was thrown into chaos on Monday when their crucial quarter-final clash against Durham was postponed moments before the start of play at Chester-le-Street, owing to accusations of ineligibility of their 17-year-old offspinner, Azeem Rafiq.
Rafiq, a former England Under-15 captain and the youngest to have played in the Twenty20 Cup, represented Yorkshire against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge on June 27, helping to lift Yorkshire into the quarter-finals. However, two hours before their match against Durham at Chester-le-Street, the ECB called off the match when it transpired that Rafiq, who came to Pakistan about seven years ago, was ineligible to play, raising concerns that their match against Nottinghamshire could be deemed invalid or replayed.


Read Full

[Eshen]

Foreign coach 'fad' infects Ranji circuit

Appointing foreign coaches in Indian domestic cricket -- a trend started by the Punjab Cricket Association which roped in former Pakistan captain Intikhab Alam four years ago -- has now become "a fashion", feel miffed home-grown coaches and former players.

The PCA, in 2004-05, appointed the Pakistani as their coach-cum-manager for its Ranji Trophy team which set the ball rolling as Maharashtra Cricket Association followed suit, bringing in Darren Holder, who had the experience of working under former Australia coach John Buchanan.

For the forthcoming Ranji season (2008-09), Maharashtra have already appointed Shaun Williams, an Aussie who was with Bangladesh, while the PCA plans to bring back the Hoshiarpur-born 67-year-old Alam, who had worked with Punjab during the 2004-05 and 2005-2006 seasons and guided the team to Ranji finals.

There is news that Shane Warne's mentor Terry Jenner might replace Vijay Dahiya, who had coached Delhi to the Ranji Trophy triumph. And former Indian coach Greg Chappell's association with the Rajasthan cricket is well-known.

As for the support staff, Bengal are hiring the services of Adrian Le Roux (the former South African trainer) while Baroda are planning to invite Australian team's fielding coach Mike Young.

Former India player, selector and coach, Anshuman Gaekwad criticised the trend of bringing "foreigners" when Indian coaches like Dahiya have performed well excelling in "man-management and creating an environment for players to play responsibly".

"It's a funny proposition. Indian coaches have an upper hand in terms of understanding the boys and adapting themselves. Whereas, by the time foreign coaches read the players, know their habits and learn to communicate with them properly, one year is elapsed," Gaekwad said.

"Indians have enough cricket experience to know the game and teach the skills. Hiring foreign hand has become some sort of a 'fashion' nowadays. I'm not averse to foreign coaches but what I don't understand is that the association is mulling to replace a coach (Vijay Dahiya) even when he has helped you earn a Ranji title. By getting foreign hands, they expect the coach to get them two Ranji trophies in a season or what," quipped the 55-year-old.

Full Article

** Shaun, good luck with Maharashtra.

[Anher]

Huh Shane Warne making his new career on Poker. He wanna be me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zr10d...eature=related

[MohammedC]

Ramprakash joins the 100 club
Cricinfo staff
August 2, 2008
Surrey 204 and 264 for 3 (Ramprakash 112*) drew with Yorkshire 414 for 9 dec
Scorecard


With a forcing cut off David Wainwright for four, Mark Ramprakash finally became the 25th man in history to score 100 first-class hundreds when he notched three figures for Surrey against Yorkshire.
The last player to achieve the milestone was Graeme Hick, in 1998, and the other 23 names include the grand figures of WG Grace, Don Bradman, Denis Compton and Wally Hammond. For all Ramprakash's remarkable form since 2006, he has struggled this season: his last hundred, the 99th of his career, came at the start of May against Sussex. Today's knock was his 11th innings since hovering on a mere 99 hundreds, during which agonising time his top-score was 48.
The wait is now over, however, as Ramprakash reached his third century of the season from 196 balls with nine fours and a six.
"When I started out I never dreamed about making that many hundreds but I'll certainly take it now," he said. "I feel honoured to join such a high calibre of names who have also achieved the feat. It's definitely something I'll cherish for the rest of my days. I'd like to dedicate this to my mum, dad, sister, wife and daughters.
"Without their love and support I could not have achieved this milestone."
Ramprakash starred in a second-wicket stand of 259 with Scott Newman and remained unbeaten on 112 as the match petered out into a dull, but far from insignificant, draw.

Source

[Sovik]

Originally Posted by MohammedC
Ramprakash joins the 100 club
Cricinfo staff
August 2, 2008
Surrey 204 and 264 for 3 (Ramprakash 112*) drew with Yorkshire 414 for 9 dec
Scorecard


Source

finally

[MohammedC]

Nash in line for West Indies debut
Cricinfo staff
August 12, 2008

Brendan Nash, the Australian-born batsman, has capped off a remarkable year by being named in West Indies' 14-man squad for next week's ODI tri-series in Canada. As expected, the side will be led by Chris Gayle after he withdrew his resignation as captain.
The squad also includes the uncapped Guyana middle-order batsman Leon Johnson, while the wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh is set for his first international action in nearly two years having replaced Denesh Ramdin. The most fascinating selection is that of Nash, 30, who relocated to the Caribbean a year ago.

http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/trise...ry/364849.html

An oz in Caribbean squad

[BD-Shardul]

Shoaib Akhter finally included in the PAK Champions Trophy Squad

[Kabir]

Originally Posted by BD-Shardul
Shoaib Akhter finally included in the PAK Champions Trophy Squad

I'm expecting a headline in near future that reads like:

"I can prove that my doctor injected that when I visited him last time saying that it's a medicine, says Shoaib when tested positive for drugs"

[ahaque]

Pakistan won't host New Zealand series

Cricinfo staff

August 13, 2008



New Zealand beat England in June, in what now looks set to be their last hit-out before the Champions Trophy © Getty Images




New Zealand's visit Pakistan for a three-match ODI series in the lead-up to the Champions Trophy has been cancelled, according to the PCB. New Zealand originally agreed to the tour, which would have given them a good chance to acclimatise ahead of the main eight-team event.

But New Zealand are one of the teams that have shown reluctance to visit Pakistan for the Champions Trophy due to security concerns. New Zealand Cricket told the PCB it would reassess the security situation before confirming or cancelling the three ODIs, but Shafqat Naghmi, the PCB chief operating officer, said time had all but run out.

"We have not received any positive reply from New Zealand Cricket and heavy rains in Punjab [province] where the three matches were planned did not make the series a possibility," he said.

The plan was to play three games in Multan and Faisalabad from August 24 to 30, which would have been their first visit to Pakistan in five years. The ICC is still trying to convince four countries, including New Zealand, that Pakistan will be a safe venue for the Champions Trophy.

© Cricinfo

[ahaque]

i think this is very sad

[MohammedC]

Marcus Trescothick has revealed that he sucked sweets to help keep the shine on the ball when playing for England.
The former England opener was part of the team that won the 2005 Ashes series against Australia when reverse swing was key to their success.
Cricket laws forbid the use of "any artificial substance", specifically to be applied to the surface of the ball.
"According to the laws this is illegal - but we won't outlaw sucking sweets," an ICC spokesman told BBC Sport.
Trescothick's international career is now over because of stress-related problems, but he was the man England nominated to look after the ball, not only in 2005, but also in the home series against Australia four years earlier.
"I was firmly established as the man in charge of looking after the ball when we were fielding," says the 32-year-old in his new autobiography.
"It was my job to keep the shine on the new ball for as long as possible with a bit of spit and a lot of polish - and through trial and error I finally settled on the best type of spit for the task at hand." He adds: "I had a go at Murray Mints and found they worked a treat."

Why is ICC letting him go easily

In 2004 India vice-captain Rahul Dravid was fined 50% of his match fee for ball-tampering during a one-day game against Zimbabwe in Brisbane in Australia.
Match referee Clive Lloyd charged Dravid under clause 2.10 of the ICC code of conduct. Third umpire Peter Parker is believed to have stepped in after cameras picked up fielder Dravid rubbing a cough lozenge on to the white ball.

????????????
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/7579005.stm

[MohammedC]

Xavier Marshall and Willet test positive

Xavier Marshall, the West Indies opening batsman, and Tonito Willett, from Leewards, have tested positive in the drug tests conducted during a two-week camp in Antigua in August. They were among the 32 players named in a provisional Stanford Superstars squad to face England in the Stanford 20/20 for 20, a winner-take-all US$20 million match on November 1.

http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/westi...ry/370219.html

Damn, This is a bad news for WI cricket. He was starting settle in the team. Recently he broke the six hitting record in an ODI played in Canada.

[Tigers_eye]

Originally Posted by MohammedC
Xavier Marshall and Willet test positive

Xavier Marshall, the West Indies opening batsman, and Tonito Willett, from Leewards, have tested positive in the drug tests conducted during a two-week camp in Antigua in August. They were among the 32 players named in a provisional Stanford Superstars squad to face England in the Stanford 20/20 for 20, a winner-take-all US$20 million match on November 1.

http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/westi...ry/370219.html

Damn, This is a bad news for WI cricket. He was starting settle in the team. Recently he broke the six hitting record in an ODI played in Canada.

Yup, now we all know how. Barry bonds, Mark M, Sammy Sosa showed him the way.

[cricman]

Originally Posted by Tigers_eye
Yup, now we all know how. Barry bonds, Mark M, Sammy Sosa showed him the way.

Not to be sterotypical or anything but Early 20's living in the West Indies, Bob Marley is an National Hero, I'd put some money that it was recreational drugs and not Performance Enhancing Drugs ... It takes 6 months to get Marijuana out of the bodies system and Drinking alot of water