ICC World T20 2012: Australia vs West Indies or Shane Watson vs Chris Gayle?

October 5, 2012

Gayle_Vs_Watson

The Aussies take on the Caribbean army in the second semi-finals of the ICC World T20 2012. While the West Indies came into the tournament with the tag of favourites, Australia were uncharacteristically placed in the second half of the T20 international rankings. On paper, it promises to be a thriller with both sides boasting of some power players who can win games single-handedly. Australia have been a major force because of Shane Watson, but one can say that West Indies have put in a team effort so far.

In terms of the contest, a lot would depend on the performance of Chris Gayle and Watson. Both are the respective game-changers for their sides. Watson has delivered with both bat and ball – highlighting his value to this side. With the bat he has been absolutely brilliant and has been the key at the top. David Warner and Michael Hussey have batted around him – something that has shielded the middle order through the tournament.

In the last game against Pakistan, the early dismissals of Watson and Warner clearly exposed the middle-order. They weren’t able to recover from the early blows and had to settle for the minimum score required for qualification through to the semi-finals. The Pakistani spinners rattled the middle-order and gave them no chance of chasing the target. Michael Hussey was the only one who fought hard and looked decent to the spinners. That again emphasised how heavily the Australians rely on their top three.

Keeping that performance in perspective, it may make sense to bring back David Hussey. There are a few murmurs that he may return to the setup. He plays spin very well and the Indian Premier League (IPL) experience would hold him in good stead. The other important fact is that he is a genuine match-winner and has the ability to rally the innings to give it a proper direction. They certainly need someone with those abilities in a middle order that has been untested for majority of the tournament.

In the group stages, Watson completely dominated the West Indian attack, including the tricky Sunil Narine. Things are different now as the pitch at Colombo looks slower and Narine would become a huge factor on this wicket. If the West Indies can get Watson early, they can certainly put pressure on the Australian middle-order by unleashing Narine. He his back in wicket-taking form and could use the conditions well to his advantage.

The world expects a Gayle-storm in Colombo as it would provide wholesome entertainment. It is no surprise that he has continued his good form and the opposition would look at him as the biggest threat. More importantly, he seems to be someone who is enjoying his cricket and isn’t holding back from expressing himself. It isn’t just his batting that has lit up this tournament, but also some of his dance-moves have thrilled the spectators. At this crucial stage, West Indies need a big knock from him as a good performance from him can do wonders to their confidence as a unit.

It is imperative that West Indies maintain their performance levels and do not lessen the intensity. There are times when they are absolutely brilliant and the next moment they can be mediocre – something that can hand the advantage to the opposition. If they get a good start, they must continue to put pressure on Australia and not relax on the field.

A win for the West Indies could do wonders for cricket in the Caribbean. It may be a shot in the arm for the sport – one that is yearning to relive past glories. While the West Indian sides of the yesteryear dominated in the classical format, a successful T20 campaign can inspire a new generation. They have to get across Australia and if they do, the favoured home side awaits them in the final.



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Agencies
March 25,2020

Lausanne, Mar 25: The World Archery has hailed as a 'brave decision' the International Olympic Committee (IOC) move to postpone the 2020 Tokyo Olympics until next year due to coronavirus pandemic.

"We commend the conscientious and brave decision taken by Tokyo 2020 and the International Olympic Committee to delay this summer's Games in the face of an unprecedented challenge to humanity," Ugur Erdener, the World Archery president, said in an official statement.

The decision to postpone the Summer Olympics was confirmed by the IOC, on Tuesday, after the organising body for the event and Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe agreed to reschedule the quadrennial event in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This is not an easy situation, especially for the athletes who had been training hard for Tokyo 2020. I hope that everyone understands why this decision has been made and I urge archers around the world to retain hope and reset for this new timetable," he added.

The IOC has, however, said that the original name of Tokyo 2020 will remain intact irrespective of the fact that it will take place next year.

The Tokyo Olympic Games were slated to be held from July 24 to August 9.

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News Network
June 11,2020

New Delhi, Jun 11: BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has indicated that this year's IPL could be conducted in empty stadiums, insisting that all possible options are being explored to ensure that the suspended event does take place despite the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a letter to all the affiliated units sent late on Wednesday after the ICC Board meeting, Ganguly seemed confident of an IPL this year despite its current status of being indefinitely suspended because of the raging pandemic, which has claimed more than 8,000 lives in India.

"The BCCI is working on all possible options to ensure that we are able to stage IPL this year, even if it means playing the tournament in empty stadiums," Ganguly wrote.

"The fans, franchises, players, broadcasters, sponsors and all other stakeholders are keenly looking forward to the possibility of IPL being hosted this year.

"Recently, a lot of players both from India and other countries, participating in the IPL have shown keenness on being part of this year's IPL. We are optimistic and the BCCI will shortly decide on the future course of action on this," the former India captain said.

It is widely speculated that the IPL is eyeing the October event if the T20 World Cup scheduled to be held in Australia at that time is postponed. The ICC has deferred a decision on the World Cup's fate until next month.

Ganguly also said that the BCCI is working on the domestic schedule while exploring various formats which would make tournaments like Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy and Vijay Hazare "competitive and feasible".

"Moving ahead, the BCCI is in process of planning the domestic competitions for the next cricketing season. We are working on various options and formats in our endeavour to ensure that various domestic tournaments are held, they stay competitive and participation feasible," said the former India captain.

"The BCCI will come up with more details in next couple of weeks," he added.

He also informed that BCCI is preparing a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for resumption of cricket in all state units to ensure medical safety of those involved.

The president also informed that the BCCI has made "all efforts to release funds/grants to its various members."

"Associations which have made proper submission of their accounts and funds utilization certificates have already received their grants," he said.

The other units will also receive their grants once they submit relevant documents, the president assured while informing that vendors have also been paid.

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News Network
July 19,2020

Dubai, Jul 19: On hold for the past two months, the fate of this year's T20 World Cup will be up for a decisive round of deliberation when the ICC board meets virtually on Monday with the BCCI hoping for a postponement to ensure that the IPL can go ahead.

The global event is supposed to be held from October 18 to November 15 in Australia but the country's cricket board had, in May itself, expressed its inability to host amid a second surge of Covid-19 cases in the state of Victoria.

With India's case load also exceeding the 10 lakh mark, including more than 26,000 deaths, the IPL, if it is held, is likely to move to the UAE once the central government gives its go ahead.

"The first step was postponement of Asia Cup, which has happened. We can only start to move ahead with our plans after the ICC announces the postponement. They have been sitting on the decision even after Cricket Australia said that they are not too keen on hosting the event," a BCCI Apex Council member told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

This year's T20 World Cup will likely be held in Australia in 2022 as India doesn't want to swap its 2021 hosting rights with Cricket Australia as of now.

That Australia won't be hosting the mega event was clear after the cricket board told its players to prepare for a white-ball series against England scheduled for late September.

CA has even announced a 26-strong preliminary squad for that tour.

The ICC, on its part, has maintained that it wants to explore all possible "contingency" options before taking a call of such immense magnitude. And it is not unusual for the governing body to wait this long.

"Pakistan was supposed to host the Champions Trophy in 2009. After the terrorist attacks on the Sri Lankan team bus, everyone in their proper senses knew that PCB will never host a big event in distant future," said a source familiar with the functioning of the ICC.

"Yet, ICC deputed its employees in Pakistan for months when South Africa was already preparing to host the event. Everyone knew but a formal announcement of shift took months as threat assessment was part of protocol.

"The ICC couldn't have just postponed 9the T20 World Cup) immediately as initially, the top ministers of the Australian government expressed keenness to host," he added.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has also resigned itself to this outcome after vehemently opposing the Indian board.

The postponement of Asia Cup, which was supposed to be hosted by the PCB, to 2021 was a big blow to Ehsan Mani and his team.

"We have had a lot of discussions and the feeling is it (T20 World Cup) would not be possible this year. ICC has World Cups lined up in 2021 and 2023 so we have a gap year where we can adjust this event," Mani had recently said while talking to reporters in his country.

It has been learnt that PCB is contacting other boards in the hope of finalising some bilateral engagements as the national team has nothing lined up after its England tour.

Nomination process for Chairman's election:

The other issue that is likely to come up for discussion in Monday's meeting is the nomination process for the next independent chairman of the ICC after Shashank Manohar's resignation earlier this month.

It is learnt that there is no consensus on what should be the criteria in case multiple candidates join the fray.

"The board is not united on whether the usual 2/3rd majority to decide will be used (as its in case of policy decision) or the case of simple majority among the 17 board members," an ICC Board member said.

England and Wales Cricket Board's Colin Graves was considered the top contender with BCCI president Sourav Ganguly's name also being floated.

Ganguly's candidature will certainly depend on whether the Supreme Court waives off the cooling off period and allows him to continue as BCCI president beyond July 27 when he completes six years as an office-bearer in the Indian Board's state and national units.

When asked about the possibility of taking up the ICC job in a recent interview, the 48-year-old said he is young and and in no hurry for the position.

New Zealand's Gregor Barclay, Hong Kong's Imran Khawaja, who is currently the interim chairman, are also being talked about as potential candidates.

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