Cricket Tournaments

Subramaniam Badinath

Subramaniam Badinath came up with another brilliant performance as the Indian Premier League champions, the Chennai Super Kings went on to trounce the Champions from New Zealand by a mammoth 57 runs in what was the 3rd match of the tournament.

Having won the toss earlier in the day, MS Dhoni predictably chose to bat once again. Both captains seemed to have got what they wanted with Dhoni wanting to bat and How to bowl. The pitch looked a typical early season Durban wicket with a tinge of green on it and batsman having to be weary of the immediate new ball. The Chennai Super Kings went in with a similar team that one them the IPL earlier this year while the Central Stags were forced to do without the services of Ross Taylor and Jacob Oram.

Having said this, the Stags had the super kings on the mat early on in the match as the Super kings who decided to pick Hayden over hussey lost the former in the first over itself as hayden top edged a short delivery of Michael Mayson only to be caught at deep square leg. The Super kings were in trouble straight away as the wicket of Hayden was followed by that of Raina who fell to another ball and managed to fend it away to the waiting slip cordon.

Badrinath and Vijay managed to string a small partnership together before the latter flayed at one outside the off stump and was caught at slip. Dhoni threw in another surprise where he promoted Anirudh Srikkanth, son of former Indian opener K Srikkanth ahead of himself. Fortunately for the Super Kings the duo played sensible cricket aided by the bowling from the Stags as the total raced to 113 where Srikkanth was dismissed for an impressive 42 coming of just 29 deliveries. Local boy, Albie Morkel was promoted ahead of MS Dhoni once again and Morkel did not disappoint.

Morkel with his short cameo (26 of 15 balls) helped provide the impetus to the Super kings total thus aiding them get to a respectable total of 151 on a fast and seaming deck with the pitch offering some spungy bounce.

The bowling from the stags looked impressive early on in the piece but as the innings wore on the zip seamed to deteriorate. One could argue whether their choice of 4 seamers was the right one with a pitch offering some spungy bounce. Having said this, at the first look it looked a very green wicket.

Given a choice at the beginning of the match the Stags would have fancied themselves to get to a target of 152. However, that was not to be as the Stags were bundled out for a paltry 94.

Nothing seemed to be going right for the stags. There’s nothing much to comment on about their batting. A lack lustre display to say the least. However, a lot to talk about the bowling of the Super king bowlers. They were spot on, Bollinger up front was supported brilliantly by Albie Morkel who seems to have tinkered a wee bit with his action after inconsistent bowling displays early in his career. Dhoni keeping in mind the conditions refrained from using R Ashwin to open the bowling, something he did quite regularly in the IPL. The other off spinner, the legend, dint seem to look as if he was out of the game for a bit. Murali just went about work candidly, “going through the motions is what they would say” returning brilliant figures of 2 for 15 in his quota of 4 overs.

Laxmipathy Balaji was brilliant as he got seam movement of the wicket more than anything else and bagged another 3 for improving his Twenty 20 record all the time.

The problem with the Central districts is, the resources. As much as they would want to there’s not much that they can do with their team line up. The Super Kings played like champions, in a very professional manner and are huge threat to the opponents. A formidable side, loaded with former international greats and potential ones in the future.

The Central Districts have another huge match coming up, something that could decide how they go in the competition. They play the favourites of the tournament, the Victorian Bushrangers (Champions from the KFC BIG BASH Down under) in 3 days time and have a lot of work to do. The super kings on the other hand will be licking their fingers in anticipation as they go head to head with Wayamba. A loss for Wayamba and they could well be on their way out.

Lots to look forward to in the coming week. Another exciting week of sports.

Australian captain Ricky Ponting made an apt point at a press conference held prior to the start of the one-day series against India when he said that ‘seven games in a bilateral series are too many’. Even if we take away this one-day series, it can still be said that there has been an overdose of cricket in recent times. We first had IPL 2, which was immediately followed by the T20 World Cup, then the Champions Trophy and the Champions League T20. Three of these four tournaments were 20-20 versions of the game, so it was surprising that Ponting did not mention this aspect with reference to ‘too many’.

We all know where the money lies in the modern cricket. Even so, an excess of anything, no matter how successful it is, will only prove harmful in the longer run. The disappointing television ratings for the Champions League T20 is a case in point; a strong indicator that organizers of such tournaments should know where to draw the line. As it is, the 50-over version is under threat from a number of quarters, so why give it a chance to be criticized further by having such a long, drawn-out tournament.

Also it is clear that too much money is corrupting the game as well as players. We are now beginning to hear terms like freelancers in cricket too. The likes of Andrew Flintoff and Jacob Oram have sacrificed their Test careers to prolong their stay in the shorter format of the game. But are the players to be blamed for making the choice? Not really. It is the organizers and the various cricket boards who have come forward and made tournaments like IPL and Champions League a reality and opened up a new option for cricketers.

While there is no denying that they provide entertainment, the quantity of time it absorbs is just too huge for comfort. The players thus are being forced to make a choice between playing for their country and playing for a franchise. The injury-hit Oram was honest enough to admit that he was looking to secure his and his family’s future before he hangs his boots. And he has possibly set a precedent for other cricketers who are going through a similar dilemma.

Modern-day cricket has become like a daily TV soap, being played out day in and day out. Thus, there is a possible danger of it getting worn out over a period of time. Also, if players are seen more in ‘club’ teams as opposed to country colours, the patriotic factor will be lost over a period of time. And if the crowds begin to go away, the money too will automatically vanish. The thought might seem rather premature and audacious, but not the danger signals.