Cricket Tournaments

England's Andrew Strauss in action against Australia 2009 Ashes npower Test Series Second Test First Day

After a nail-biting first test match the Ashes Series travels to Lord’s for the Second test match between England and Australia. Some of the key factors before the start of this match include the time wasting tactics used by the Englishmen in the first test match and Andrew Flintoff’s decision to retire from test cricket after the Ashes Series. The Australians will be aware of both these factors when they taken on England in this match to get the upper hand in the series. The pre match hype if not serious will play a key role in the outcome of this match as neither team will take each other lightly.

The Australians will know that they had England pinned right on the mat and missed securing victory by a narrow margin in Cardiff. They might go into the match a little disappointed with England happy to be on level terms. Only time will tell if these factors play a key role in the match. The conditions on field are excellent for the bowlers from both the teams as the wicket at Lord’s will offer the required pace and bounce. However, Lord’s has been a special place for the Aussies since the Englishmen have never got the better of them in this venue for the last 75 years of the Ashes series. Perhaps it is time to add a new chapter to the history of Lord’s this time round or will it be the same story as heard often while going through the pages of history.

Lord’s might be the venue where the English captain Andrew Strauss can get a huge score after missing out in the First test match. This is the ground where Strauss plays county cricket for Middlesex, so nothing is unknown to him regarding this venue. However, the Australians should not sleep on their record in this venue. The Englishmen have not fared badly on this wicket. Strauss himself has got an average of over 50 in his last few innings on this ground. The Australians will need to show similar kind of form as in the first test match to ensure that their record remains intact in this venue. The England squad will have five bowlers with a slight concern regarding Flintoff’s knee injury. Steve Harmison is there to make the squad incase Flintoff pulls out. Graham Onions might get a look in as the wicket of Lord’s might not be suitable for two spinners. The Australians are likely to send out the same squad into the field to get the better of England this time round.

Though drawn test matches happen more frequently in Lord’s but the bowlers should be happy that this pitch has a bit of juice in it to help the bowlers. The Cardiff wicket was a nightmarish situation for the English bowlers as they did not get any kind of assistance from the wicket. Neither did the Australian batsman lower their guard. In a match held in 2005, 17 wickets tumbled on the opening day on this wicket. Therefore, one should expect a lot of lively bounce and movement for the faster men in this match.

England manage to draw the first test against Australia in Ashes Series 2009

One can simply say that it was an amazing test match that just concluded between England and Australia at Cardiff. There could not have been a more perfect beginning to the Ashes series as Australia pushed hard for victory in the first test match and England managed to hold on to salvage a draw in spite of some very ordinary bowling performance in the test match by its bowlers. The Englishmen were totally outplayed in all the departments whether it be bowling, batting, or fielding. England narrowly managed to get a draw out of this test match due to some determined and courageous batting by Paul Collingwood, James Anderson, and the English spinning wizard Monty Panesar. With this result England managed to head for the second test of the Ashes series with everything to play for in the upcoming matches.

If one looks at the closing stages of the test match then it was a huge task for both Monty Panesar and James Anderson to save the game for England. However, both these English knights showed enough courage and determination to hold fort in the final overs of the day and help England escape with a draw. Both these players played solid cricket to stop the Aussie bowlers from getting the last wicket, thereby denying Australia victory in the first test match. Panesar saw off 35 balls and Anderson saw off 53 balls in the closing stages of the match to make sure that England could snatch a draw from the jaws of defeat staring right into their face. In this course of time England tried out various tactics by calling the 12th man and Physio on several occasions to make sure that the game slowed down. However, it was grit and determination of the last pair that saw England sail through to salvage this draw.

England started the first innings of the match by handing over the advantage to the Australian bowlers as they were reduced to 97 for 3 at lunch on the first day. However, some solid batting performances from thereon by Kevin Pietersen (52 runs) and Paul Collingwood (50 runs) ensured that England were going smoothly till the final session of the day. Australia struck back in the final session of day one to reduce England to 336 for 7 with just the tail left in the England first innings. The second day started off well as Graham Swann and James Anderson played with a positive frame of mind to ensure that the English tail wagged a little longer so that England could put a decent first innings score of 435 runs on board.

However, the best part of the match had ended for the Englishmen as the Australians took control. The match from Day 2 afternoon session onwards till Day 5 afternoon session belonged to the Aussies as they outplayed the Englishmen in all departments of the game. The Australian batsman butchered the English bowler as they hit them to all parts of the ground. There was arrogance in the way the Aussies played and scored runs freely as the English bowlers toiled hard to get them out. Without any major contributions from the spinning duo of Panesar and Swann, the English pace attack looked toothless on an excellent batting strip laid out in Cardiff.

The Australian batsman dictated terms to the English bowlers and showed their batsman the way to get big scores in test matches as they pilled up a huge total. The major contributions came from Katich, Pointing, North, Clarke, and Haddin as the Aussie run machine feasted on the lackluster English bowling attack.  The Aussie captain was simply outstanding in the match as he scored 150 runs to ensure that the Australians did not need to bat again. Notable contributions from Katich (122 runs), Clarke (83 runs), North (125 runs) and Haddin (121 runs) ensured that the Australians put up a mammoth 674 runs in the first innings before declaring on Day 4 with an overall lead of 239 runs. The Australian bowlers were warmed up to hit form in the second innings as the English batsman faltered on Day 5 of the test match. Had it not been for Collingwood, Panesar and Anderson, it would have been a sure shot victory for the Australians. However, the end result is that both the teams are tied at 0-0 for the series and would hope to turn the tables in the next test match.

The Australian captain Ricky Pointing faces a tough proposition this time round, as he will lead the Australian team perhaps for one last time to face the English men in their own soil. This is going to be one grueling encounter that will make test cricket come alive, as both the teams will fight for the crown of the Ashes. Things will not be that easy for the Australian team and hoping for a clean sweep of the series this time round may not be an easy task for them. The Australians will miss their premier fast bowler Bret Lee, who is out of this match due to an injury. However, there are many players in the both the teams who can make a difference to this match with some brilliant performances on their parts. The favorite as usual is the Australian team but do not leave out a rejuvenated England team who are looking at this opportunity to settle scores with the Aussies.

It is important to watch out for Kevin Pietersen, one player that the Aussies fear the most. Flintoff has recovered from his injury and is looking forward to a piece of the Aussie pie. Monty Panesar along with Graeme Swann adds that spinning edge to the English line up with a solid pace attack comprising of Anderson and Broad. Kevin Pietersen scored an impressive 963 runs at an average of 53.50 in the last Ashes series and will definitely be on the hit list of the Australian bowlers. However, his Achilles injury is threatening to derail the plans of England winning the Ashes this time round.

If there is one Australian bowler that the English batsman would want to avoid is the dangerous Mitchell Johnson. Perhaps, the most frightening bowler playing the game right now he has both pace and swing in his armor. His performance might be the Australia’s success in this Ashes series. The Australian batting line up is looking very strong with the likes of Pointing, Hughes, North, Hussey, and Clarke. Getting them out twice in a test match might be a tough proposition for the English bowlers. In addition, do not rule out the contributions of Hauritz and Hilfenhaus. They are extremely competent bowlers with the skills to derail the English batting lineup. Without Bret lee the Australian pace attack might look weak but never count them out.

The Cardiff wicket has been newly laid and that makes the venue unknown to both the teams. This is the first time that an International match will be played on this strip. Therefore, England might not get the advantage of the home conditions in the first test match. However, with the crowds out there to back the English men, there is definite advantage for them in their home soil. It is going to be an exciting match in front of a sell out crowd that is sure to enjoy every bit of action that will be dished out to them.

The 2009 Ashes series between England and Australia will start this morning as cricket looks to once again capture the imagination of the British public. Four years ago the two teams met to give us the greatest Ashes series of all time in a sporting contest that personified just why these two sides have such a long and respectable sporting history.

England come off the back of some impressive performances against a West Indies team and the Aussies start off in England having beaten South Africa in their own country. Despite the gap in quality between these two victories this could turn out to be a repeat of the 2005 series with every single match going right down to the wire.

The teams are very evenly matched and it appears that the side that bowls the better will win the series and the Ashes urn. Australia obviously do not have Glen McGrath and Shane Warne in their side any more, who between them bowled out in England five times by themselves in the last series to be held in England.

This is not easy to over come and is being put down as the main reason by many experts on the game as the factor that actually gives England a chance. England’s own bowling attack has the virtue of having now played together for a long period of time. There is no question that England have the better bowling options as they carry two world class spinners as well as players that can reverse swing the ball at great pace.

The batting line-ups of each side are very even and a lot will rest on the more experienced players in each side. Both England and Australia have four big names in their top six that can all go on and make big hundreds. If they do then every match should go down to the last day and will place all of the pressure on the bowlers to get everything right and earn their money.

A lot has been made of the fact that the first test match is being played in Cardiff and not at Lords as this is traditionally the case. There are two advantages already for England in this respect. Firstly, the Cardiff pitch should turn, this will allow England the freedom to name Monty Panesar and Graham Swann in their side whereas the Australians will probably only play Nathan Hauritz, a defensively minded off spinner.

Secondly, it has to be considered that whenever an Ashes series does start at Lords, England do tend to lose. It is important to get off to a good start in such a long series because it can give you vital momentum that you can carry forwards into the next match. Cardiff could work in England’s favour and it could give them a boost they need to believe that they can push on and win the series.

England should have thumped the West Indies when they played in the Caribbean but on too many occasions, seemingly certain wins were turned in to frustrating draws. If England can get their noses on front then it could be a long two months in this country for the Australians.

Team news is good for England who look set to name their strongest possible eleven. It has not been kept a secret that the pitch will turn and therefore Graham Onions could make way for Swann with Andrew Flintoff stepping back into the middle of the side. This will give England a nice balance and allow them to strengthen in more than one area. It also adds the important dimension of even more aggression that will be needed as there are no doubts over the fact that the Aussies are going to chirp away at all the English batsman that get to the crease.

For the Aussies they will be missing fast bowler Brett Lee. England will be more than happy about this. Lee has the ability to swing the ball at over 90mph and can cause all sorts of problems. Ask any Englishman in the side if they would rather he wasn’t playing and they’d all say yes.

Otherwise the Australian selection is hard to guess. Ricky Ponting has been keeping the cards close to his chest before the first game and it is expected that they will go in with three or four quicks and a spinner. However, you can never second guess the Aussies and it could well be the case that they have the next Shane Warne up their sleeve ready to bring out, a player who nobody would have heard of.

This would be a huge gamble though and it will probably be the case that the Aussies go in with only four bowlers and play an extra batsman. This would not be a stupid thing to do but it would automatically give a slight advantage to England who would fancy their chances of not being bowled out by a relatively one dimensional attack without Lee.

The toss is also crucial to England’s chances of winning the first game. As the pitch is expected to turn, it can also be expected that it will rapidly deteriorate, meaning that whoever wins the toss will bat first. You do not want to be batting on the last day in the last innings on a pitch that has unpredictable bounce and is turning square. From England’s point of view if they can get a good score on the board first up and then set the Aussies a massive target, it will allow Swann and Panesar to go mad and try to wreak some havoc in the later stages of the game.

It’s nice just to have the series back and it’s good that there is so much positive thinking surrounding the first test. A lot of people have already forgotten about the 5-0 thumping that was given to England in the last Ashes series and if the build up is any thing like the actual matches then we could all be on our way to buy box sets of the 2009 series as well.

Critics in cricket may argue the fact that WAGs are required to travel with international cricketers in some of their tours, but if you closely analyze the rigors of international cricket, it is now days a must. Cricket players on the international circuit travel and play non-stop cricket throughout the year. This takes a heavy toll on their mind and body particularly during long competitive tours. During that time, they do require the presence of their wives or girlfriends to provide them the required warmth and care, which is otherwise missing.

Cricket the gentleman’s game is not an army mission or merchant navy kind of job where a person needs to stay away from their family members for a long time. In fact, cricket offers a great opportunity for the intermingling of different cultures by introducing activities for WAGs while the cricketers play it hard on the field. Just imagine the wife of a Sri Lankan player having a conversation about her daily schedule with the wife of an Australian player. This is something unique that would bring a positive and important edge to cricket. It can lead to important cultural exchanges between the countries.

It is not essential that the WAGs can only be busy when the cricketers are around. They can go for a host of activities like organizing of fund raising ceremonies, exhibitions, and other similar activities, which can help raise funds to support charity work across the world. The respective cricket boards of each country can plan a schedule that offers enough activities for the WAGs to keep them busy during the tour. In between, they can even catch a glimpse of their man toiling hard on the field. The most important thing is that not all the WAGs are available for travel with the cricketers during their tour. Some may have personal commitments to work and their family life. Therefore, those WAGs who can commit to support their man during the tour should be provided special attention.

However, it does not necessarily mean that the attention from cricket will be diverted in any ways. In fact, the presence of the WAGs can help the cricketers relax and put their focus on cricket. All other distractions can be handled by these WAGs. The old days of cricketing culture, where the captain and the board members refused to allow WAGs to meet the cricketers is gone. No longer, do cricket boards around the world look at WAGs as something causing distraction. In fact, in this era of high intensity cricket, the WAGs are essential to offer moral and emotional support to the cricketers.

In this era of modern cricket, the cricket boards want to offer the newly married players or cricketing couples with a chance to be together. This is something, which is essential to create a strong bonding between the cricketers and their WAGs. No board wants to disappoint their promising young cricketing stars, who otherwise will have the tension of juggling around with two tasks such as playing cricket and managing their personal lives. This initiative by the boards to allow WAGs to be along with the cricketers provides a great deal of encouragement towards the welfare, stress management, and relationship development for the cricketers. They can now focus only on cricket whereas the board takes care of all other activities along with the WAGs.

It may not be possible to allow cricketers the opportunity to go for a vacation and fulfill their family commitments, as the international cricket calendar is jam packed with tours and competitions. In such a scenario, a cricketer may have tough time convincing the WAGs to stay committed to them. Therefore, it is essential to allow the WAGs an opportunity to be with their man and understand their daily schedule during a cricket tour or tournament. This brings in a lot of flexibility in the lives of the cricketers for the future cricketing activities. The WAGs can also spend some quality time touring the place and checking out its attractions. They can also spend time while going out for shopping and purchasing souvenirs from that place. Overall, the presence of WAGs stands out to be a good proposition for international cricket.

On 25th of June, perhaps England still be relishing their ICC World T20 Cup, Australian Women embittered their delight. In the inaugural Women NatWest T20 match England clashed with traditional rival Australia and England got defeated by 34 runs by Australia at Derbyshire’s County. Wounded Australia became growling tigress defeating England in very first NatWest T20 match.
Australia won the toss and elected to bat first, and Australian batswomen robust batting gave the Australians good start. During the power play it was tough for the England to seize Australian batswomen, on and off they kept on losing wickets. First to leave for the pavilion was Leah Poulton(33), then S Nitschke (32) both gave upstart with good runs on scoreboard to Australia. Then KL Rolton(43) and LK Ebasry(24) leaded the scoreboard to 151 runs. Australian batting was impressive and intelligent they used the space given by the bowler optimal.

England Bowled well to some extent but still absence of Brunt was being felt nevertheless NJ Shaw, HL Colvin and JL Gunn bowled good line and length and often there in swing and Yorker were dangerous and gave no room to Australians to go for the shoots hence they played defensive. Overall bowling performance was mixed but all and all it was average to standards. NJ Shaw, HL Colvin and JL Gunn took 1-1 vital wickets to hinder Australians to aggregate huge score.

When England came to bat the mixed emotions was evident on their faces, but frowning and doubting was consistent and it was apparent in their batting too. T20 Champions succumbed to pressure and failed to sustain their batting line up to beat Australia. From the initial overs wickets started falling and England didn’t have good start. The first dent came with the fall of wicket of SJ Taylor (1) it was huge wicket for Australians and then CM Edwards (10), SC Taylor (31), BL Morgan (20), LS Greenway (19) and BL Gunn (6) crumbled and England innings ended on 117 runs in full 20 overs falling short of 34 runs. England was not into its champion socks and they succumbed to pressure though some good and generous batting we saw from SC Taylor and Brent (23) but still they were too slow and sluggish. Boundaries were tough affair in front of Australian bowling and eventually England lost the match by 34 runs.

RM Farrell and EA Osborne bowling confined the England batswomen and didn’t give them vacuum to powerfully swing the bat. RM Farrell with her brilliant bowling just dumbstruck England and England yearned for the boundary. RM Farrell took 2 wickets off just 16 runs and a maiden over, EA Osborne also took 2 wickets. SJ Andrews and S Nitschke took 1-1 wickets.

England was not able to revise semifinal feat against Australians, Australians were too strong both with the bat and bowl. England had been intoxicated with their constant winning of cups but this match came as a realization.

T20 Women’s World Champions England lifted the cup on Sunday at Lord’s after defeating New Zealand in well deserved one-sided match. For the first time in the women’s match count of spectators reached more than 15,000. During the match we could feel the excitement, and the match was purely entertaining. Barely three months earlier England won ICC World Cup, with winning of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, England has proved themselves to be the dangerous side to play. Women’s proving their mettle in the gentleman’s game is something the cricket world are reckoning with. Women’s cricket is day by day with English girls winning the T20 world cup is becoming popular. Now we have the NatWest Women’s International Twenty20 in England between England and Australia; we could feel the thrill and excitement for the upcoming the NatWest Women’s International Twenty20.

England champion’s team remained unchanged for the summer series against challenging team Australia. Inaugural match of NatWest Women’s International T20 will be played at Derby on June 25, rest matches will be played on the following stadiums: Chelmsford, Stratford CC, Lord’s and Wormsley CC respectively. All the action, drama and entertainment will be televised live on Sky Sports.

England in the semifinal faced traditional rivals Australia, whom they beat in fateful and breathtaking match by 8 wickets still 3 balls spared. In awe-inspiring match, Australia scored 163 runs for 4 wickets; it was the second highest total of the tournament. English women hold her nerve and chased the huge score and defeated Australia in the match. With this win and winning of the World cups consecutively reinforces that England is the strongest, undisputable and uninterrupted champions. England prevail every match and it was evident in the final match against New Zealanders, who stood nowhere to English side and lost match adversely. England has beaten Australia many times; still Australia is stronger and can make a comeback with bang. But would it be an experience of déjà – vu for the English side by making Australia bent on it toes again.

Australia has enough strength and capabilities to prove they are stronger and match winners. We had seen them giving tough competition to England and other teams. Australians have been able to fear the opposition, we have often other teams always getting screwed up when they fire, sweating hell out of them. Australians batting is organized and reliable, though the bowling needs the extra attention. Australians needs to hold their nerve till the end and sustain consistently with focus and organization. Though Australians are wounded but wounded tigeress can be hostile and we could see better off them in the NatWest Women’s International T20 series.

Under the stewardship and captaincy of Charlotte Edwards English women has touched the peak of glory and would be expected much harder opposition. But Karen Rolton can infuse team with spirits making Australians roar and growl in the series while crushing the English raj.

The T20 Cricket has it roots in England where it was introduced for the first time in professional county cricket tournament. The shortened version of oneday cricket played for only 20 over each side has drawn audiences worldwide and is extremely popular as compared to other versions of cricket. This form of cricket was to provide a short version of the game to worldwide audiences. It was never meant to replace or degrade other forms like oneday and test match cricket. However, to ICC’s surprise, the governing body found that this form of cricket can help introduce the game to many more nations across the world.

The first International T20 match featured the likes of Australia and New Zealand played at the scenic Eden Park stadium in Auckland. The game has made rapid strides since then with the inaugural T20 World Cup Men’s competition being held in South Africa during September 2007. The competition played over duration of two weeks show very entertaining cricket from all the teams. It was the first time that T20 had made it this big and all the teams were uncertain about their performance in the tournament. The first bowl out in the history of T20 cricket was played between India and Pakistan in Durban after the teams were tied in the mandatory 20 over’s period.

Bangladesh proved once again that they are no longer the minnows in World Cricket with their shock defeat of the West Indies; Zimbabwe had also contributed their bit to make the tournament exciting by defeating the Australians in Cape Town. The group stages itself had laid the foundation for the tournament ahead. A young Indian team led by their inspirational captain MS Dhoni, steam rolled over England, South Africa, and title favorites Australia to set up the summit clash against arch rivals Pakistan. The final was an exciting affair with Misbah Ul Haq almost ensuring victory for Pakistan with a big six in the last over of the tournament. However, his miscalculated shot helped India achieve a dramatic 5-run victory over Pakistan and be crowned the T20 champions of the World.

The highlight of the tournament was an over in which Yuvraj Singh of India hammered Englishman Stuart Broad for six sixes of consecutive balls in that over. The most number of runs in the tournament was scored by Gautam Gambhir of India, while Umer Gul of Pakistan snapped up the maximum number of wickets. The Highest strike rate of 183.68 was achieved by Yuvraj Singh and the highest score in a T20 match was 117 scored by Chris Gayle of West Indies against South Africa. Daniel Vettori of New Zealand had the best economy rate amongst the bowlers conceding only 5.28 runs per over in a competition that favored the batsman. The highest score in a T20 match of the tournament was achieved by Sri Lanka when they amassed 260 against the minnows Kenya.

The second edition of the T20 World Cup is currently underway in England with 12 teams making it to the Men’s competition. The tournament is scheduled to be conducted after every two years except for West Indies hosting the tournament in 2010. The matches are being played in locations such as Lord’s, Trent Bridge, The Oval, and Taunton. The group stages have recently finished with Ireland and Netherlands being the surprise package of the tournament. The Dutch had raised their hopes of qualification into the Super 8 round of the tournament with an emphatic victory over England in one of the group games. However, Pakistan steam rolled them and ended all their dreams in the competition.

Ireland has been constantly improving since they first entered the big stage, a memorable win against Pakistan in the Oneday International World Cup held in West Indies, they also went on to beat Bangladesh to qualify for the Super 8 round of the competition. The in form teams of this tournament South Africa and Sri Lanka are playing solid cricket to keep their hopes alive of a summit clash, but West Indies, Pakistan, and New Zealand along with the Defending champions India will not make things easy for them. The last half of the tournament promises to be as exciting as the first half, which will throw many surprises and entertain the audiences with display of exciting cricket.