The Great Danish Hope.

The recent inclusion of Amjad Khan in the England squad for the remainder of the India tour is a bit of a milestone in English cricket. It is the first time they will have a Danish fast bowler within their ranks. In recent times, foreign-born players are nothing out of the ordinary in the England set-up, but a European-born player is something truly unique, particularly when one takes a closer look at Amjad’s journey to the summit.

Amjad Khan takes another wicket during a devastating spell for Kent.

In 1998 he became Denmark’s youngest player when he was picked against Ireland in the European Championships, and in the next game, against Scotland, he claimed an impressive 3 for 34. Still, his real big break come when Kent snapped him up and Amjad made his debut in 2001. He took 63 wickets the following summer and by the time he’d completed his residency qualification and earned a British passport in 2006, the England selectors were already watching.

Then disaster struck. A crippling knee injury meant he needed surgery on his cruciate ligament and was ruled out of the entire 2007 season. It seemed the injury would put a dent in his 93mph pace bowling and more importantly, his overall capabilities.

Less than two years later, the dream is back on track. He finds himself one stroke of luck away from Test debut, and that too after playing only six Championship matches last season as Kent nursed him back into first-class cricket. He claimed 21 wickets at an average of 20.61 in that time, and more importantly, showed he hadn’t lost the pace and swing that first caught the selectors’ eye.

In a country with only 45 registered cricket clubs, it is remarkable that a player of such capability has emerged. But not without years of sweat, blood and tears. His hard work and perseverance have landed him in a position few could have predicted.  And with his abilities on the field, he may be able to swing England’s fortunes on an already difficult tour.

At the very least, let’s hope other Danes will take Amjad’s example and take up a new sport for the summer.

©Doctor Cricket 2008

The game must go on…

The recent terror attacks in Mumbai have caused carnage and devastation across a proud nation. Every area of Indian interest has been hurt, even what most Indians fanaticise about most: Cricket.

The ongoing series between England and India lay tantalisingly close to dead, as cricketers evacuated the city and indeed the country. The final two ODIs have been cancelled and the remaining two test matches are anything but a certainty.

The Indian team, escorted by armed guards, walk away from the aborted matches.

The BCCI, desperate to salvage the tour, have unveiled a revised itinerary for the tour, with Mohali and Chennai named as the two test venues, replacing Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The first of these test matches is due to begin on the 9^th of December. The change of venue came after the ECB specifically requested a southern Indian venue, as this had the least threat perception from a security point of view. However, will 8 days to go, there has still been no official confirmation from the ECB that the tour is back on.

Another head-ache for the BCCI is the fact that the inaugural Champion’s League, recognised as the biggest domestic Twenty20 tournament in the world, has had to be postponed.

Lalit Modi, chairman of the Champion’s League Twenty20 commented:

“We held consultations among all the stakeholders, including the founding members, the participating teams and members of the Governing Council after the unfortunate terrorist attacks in Mumbai on Wednesday night. It was agreed that in the best interests of all concerned, the inaugural edition of the Champions League 2020 should be postponed,”

All of this is playing on the England team’s mind. To tour or not to tour? The ECB have made it clear that no-one will be forced to tour. If any individual player would prefer to stay behind, they will not be penalised. After all, recent events are the kind which inspire the kind of fear which makes one long for the relative safety of home.

The terrorist attack in Mumbai which began on Wednesday night, when militants attacked high-profile landmarks, including the iconic Taj Mahal Palace and the Tower Hotel, the Oberoi Tident Hotel, Metro Theatre has sent the entire nation into shock. Despondent people are praying for the victims and fear is making people stay in their homes or evacuate the city all-together. To compound matters, there is no escape from this tragic event. Cinemas have been closed down, Bollywood movies postponed and of course, cricket tournaments cancelled.

Tough decision to make.

One can only hope that England will make the right choice and tour India, even if with a second string team. If there is no cricket, it will be a symbolic victory for the terrorists. But not India, nor the world need concede defeat. We must stand up and continue to progress though our lives, without fear. If our hearts are filled with fear, the terrorists win. Of course, our deepest regrets and sympathies lie with the families of those who have suffered. Be we cannot go on suffering or e play into their hands.

Let’s get back on the cricket field, go to our local stadium and engage in global unity. For even in the face of disaster, we will not fear those who seek to weaken us.

©Doctor Cricket 2008

England’s Woes: Battling the Indian Juggernaut

When Kevin Pietersen was appointed England captain this summer, there was a wave of optimism in the country. Of course optimism is a very un-English trait. Fittingly then, the source of this was England’s first South African-born captain.

The new England Captain in action.

Pieterson’s appointment worked instant wonders for, what was then considered, an inconsistent team. They would win their first test match (albeit a dead rubber) and four of the following five ODIs. This wave of optimism grew with each win to the point where the legendary Ian Botham declared that England would whitewash Australia in the following season’s Ashes series.

He’d almost knowingly set himself up to be proved wrong.

It was understandable that England were heavy favourites to win the Stanford Super Series, with momentum and a better team (on paper at least). We all know what happened. We’ve all heard the excuses. It’s almost as if that loss was stricken from the record as preparations began for England’s Indian adventure.

India were an entirely different beast. Having comprehensively defeated Australia in both the ODI and Test series, they were being touted as the best team in the world. In spite of this, England fans were still optimistic. Remember, they had won all the “proper” cricket they’d played. Besides, they had a super-skipper under whom the team would be fearless. Under whom they would beat the mighty Australians and reclaim their place at the top of World Cricket (the World Cup and the World Twenty20 are meaningless apparently).

Four matches. Four losses. Reality begins to sink in.

England have a lot of work to do. It was MS Dhoni, India’s captain fantastic, who can add yet another series win to his already impressive captaincy record. The Indian monster continues to destroy everything in it’s path. Four matches won. Series won. Time to relax? Absolutely not.

Hard Times for Kevin Pietersen and Peter Moores

India’s coach Gary Kirsten has asked his team to look at the remaining contests as a three-match series. You can bet India want a 7-0 win against England. It would almost be symbolic of the way the BCCI has managed to roll over it’s English counterpart.

For the English, they enter yet another rebuilding phase. It is crucial to salvage as many consolation wins as possible to set the stage for a competitive test series. In the meantime, here’s hoping Ian Botham will hold back on making any further predictions until the time is right (ideally, after the match).

©Doctor Cricket 2008

The spectacle of the Indian Cricket League

On the 13^th of November, 83,000 cricket fans gathered into the little known Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad, India.  They did this to witness the first final of a tournament that had virtually no support from any recognised governing body within cricket, though  I’m sure this meant little to them.

The next two finals would see the crowd return, as well as millions of viewers around the World, some of who would never have given cricket a chance, tuned in to the excitement on offer.  Unique cricket shots were played. Incredible deliveries were bowled and the general standard of the game was very high.  And though the Lahore Badshahs, (ironically the only team not representing an Indian city) emerged victorious, the real winner was cricket.

The Lahore Badshahs celebrate as another wicket falls.

Yet the rest of the cricketing world feels justified in demonising this organisation. Why? Well because the Almighty Lalit Modi, with all the financial muscle of the BCCI and the IPL, has commanded it! Mr Modi’s influence is so great that the government of Bangladesh has banned the broadcast of any if the league’s matches. This is despite of the fact that the league now incorporates a team comprised entirely of Bangladeshis; the Dhaka Warriors.

It’s not just Mr Modi’s Asian allies that are standing by him. The Pakistan Cricket Board has banned many of it’s most talented players simply for participating in the “rebel” league. Imran Nazir, Abdul Razzaq and most recently, Mohammad Yousuf, the latter currently sits at number 3 on the World Test Rankings for batsmen and number 6 on the World ODI Rankings for batsmen. These are just a few players whose exodus has left the national team severely weakened. Even worse for Pakistan, their counterparts in the ICL, the Lahore Badshah’s seem to be playing more cricket and generating more interest amongst fans starved of Pakistani-cricket.

The most recent attack on the ICL has come in the form of the Lalit Modi’s position regarding a team’s eligibility for the lucrative Champions League. Basically, any team that fields an ICL player will automatically be deemed ineligible for qualification. This policy has resulted in teams like Kent (who themselves lost their automatic qualification due to this rule) terminating the contracts of their ICL players, meaning several players are now able to only ply their trade via the ICL.

Lalit Modi: man on a mission.

It’s worth remembering that the BCCI is responsible for 75% of international cricket’s revenue and it has used this to flex it’s muscles around the cricketing world. Their quest to destroy the ICL has not just been consigned to players. Media outlets around the world are banned from giving the league coverage. Even the mighty Cricinfo, the internet’s most celebrated Cricket Website, is not permitted to give the league prominent coverage. However, to their credit, they still give it more coverage than most.

What must go through a player’s mind when they sign with the ICL? They’re effectively signing up for a league which will have no-one’s backing, little advertising, almost no coverage and will result in them severing their ties with the remainder of the cricketing world. There’s no better answer to this than the example of Shane Bond. Having to play cricket for only 4 months and earning $1.5 million a year seems to be all the motivation he needs. I’m sure Mohammad Yousuf has landed himself a similar contract.

Needless to say, it’s all money well spent as the leagues fan base continues to grow and more and more people are drawn into the spectacle of the Indian Cricket League. Surely a tournament that offers its man-of-the match USD 10,000, a digital set-top-box, a trophy, a laptop, a pocket-PC and an electric scooter is worth a watch?

©Doctor Cricket 2008

Ireland – The Next Test Nation?

Earlier this month, in a virtually empty cricket ground in South Africa, something that could well be noted as a watershed moment in cricketing history occurred. Niall O’Brien’s cover drive for four secured a win for Ireland against Namibia in the final of the 2008 InterContinental Cup. This was their third consecutive victory in this tournament and capped off a golden period in Irish Cricket. But their victory in a tournament designed to give associate nations a chance to play first class cricket has once again posed a $64,000 question: Should Ireland be made a full ICC member and thereby become the 11th Test-playing Nation?

Let’s take a closer look at their case.

The Greatest Moment in Irish Cricket: A win against Pakistan at the 2007 World Cup.

Ireland’s incredible run began at the 2007 World Cup where they tied with Zimbabwe and scored impressive wins over Bangladesh and more notably Pakistan. The nature of the latter was so convincing, casual cricket fans would be forgiven for mistaking which team was the established nation and which the relative novice. There was an immediate impact on the cricketing world as their performances lifted them to 10^th place in the ICC ODI World Rankings.

Though they would struggle to maintain this form in tours to Bangladesh and Scotland, the team rebounded well by reaching the final of the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in Belfast, thereby ensuring a place at the cricket’s showpiece event in the shortest form of the game. They went on to consolidate their place as the leading associate by winning the European Cricket Championship for a third time and performing admirably in the limited-overs English domestic tournament.

However, such feats are not quite enough to carry Ireland to a permanent place competing with the big guns. Richard Done, the ICC High Performance Manager (whose job it is to develop the second tier of non-Test playing nations) pointed out that despite the fact Ireland has established itself as the leading associate nation, it needs to maintain this form for a longer period of time. He was even more specific about the requirements for Ireland to progress:

“To hit the radar, Ireland would also want to be winning next April’s World Cup qualifying tournament and then beat one or two of the full members in 2011 (in the tournament proper). There has to be sustainability too. It would be important to know that this team isn’t just a short-term boom — that there is a depth there in playing strength, and the youth development pathway is right”

Done also noted that sustainability off the field will be another key factor, with Ireland needing to be able to finance professional contracts, support administration, umpiring structures and even build a National Cricket Stadium.

How long before the Greens of One-Day Cricket are swapped for the Whites of Test-Cricket?

But for how long can they be held back. The under-19s team put in some impressive performances at the World Cup. The women’s team is also developing and there are signs of the game’s popularity increasing nationally. Their case get’s stronger and stronger.

All of a sudden, countries that had long been touted as future test nations, countries like Kenya, Holland, Canada and Scotland, have been pushed further to the back of the queue. Though Ireland aren’t quite there yet, they’re well on their way.

©Doctor Cricket 2008

The Importance of Speaking English

Picture the scenario:

The Pakistan team has just won a match. The post-match ceremony is in progress and the presenter invited the Pakistani captain onto the stage for a few thoughts on the game. This is the moment where millions of Pakistani-fans around the world begin to cringe.

Tony Greig : “Inzy, great win for the guys tonight. Were the conditions more suited to batting first?”

Inzamam-ul-Haq: “Thanks Tony. Boys did good. If we play good we can play well.”

The commentator will ask a question and receive an answer that in no way shape or form is connected with it. Fans around the world will wince as their cricketing representatives show themselves to be completely illiterate on the world stage.

Let me not just restrict this to Pakistan. Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and occasionally even the mighty India often find their players struggling through interviews where they’re unable to understand the most basic of English questions.

Why is this still an issue? More than 2 billion people around the world speak the language and in most major cricketing countries, it is a second or business language. So why are we subjected to such sub-standard vocabulary.

Rameez Raja commentates on the toss of an international cricket match.

In Pakistan’s case, cricket is integral to it’s international identity. What kind of a message does it send about it’s position in the world’s hierarchy when the representatives of its most famous export cannot string together a few coherent sentences.

If not for their countries, they must think of themselves. What will their life be like after cricket? Not speaking English will severely restrict their employment opportunities. They must look to the examples set by Rameez Raja and Imran Khan, the former being Pakistan’s premier cricket commentator and in both English and Urdu. But it seems for now, most are content to be spoon-fed by bilingual interviewers and willing to turn a blind eye to their own ignorance.

But there is no excuse. They spend months and month on the road, travelling. For god’s sake guys. Turn the Bollywood music off and listen to a “learn to speak English” CD.

Maybe I should just scrap my thoughts and launch Aatif’s English Speaking Academy in Lahore. Though one can only hope, I wont need to.

©Doctor Cricket 2008

Hong Kong Sixes – An Overlooked Goldmine.

On the 8^th/9^th November, 8 teams representing 7 countries will compete in one of crickets oldest tournaments. The Hong Kong Sixes is the longest-running, best established and single most high-profile sixes tournament in the World. It features a mixture of established and up and coming cricketers and crucially, takes place in outside of cricket’s traditional hotspots.

Yet it’s has barely registered on the cricketing radar.

A quick scan of the world wide web’s most prominent cricket websites shows that there has been little or no mention of this tournament. No previews, no team reports. Nothing. Nada. Zip.

Interesting. Let’s look a little more closely at this tournament.

First played in 1992, the tournament is fully sanctioned by the ICC and backed by all the major cricket boards. Major players to have featured in this tournament over the years include Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar, Wasim Akram, The Waugh Brothers, Viv Richards, Andrew Flintoff, Inzamam-ul-Haq…the list goes on. And it all takes place at Kowloon Cricket Club, situated at the heart of the ex-pat paradise.

The 2007 Champions: Sri Lanka.

So why aren’t people jumping on the bandwagon? Obviously in the age of US$20 million pay-offs, a prize pool of US$300,000 isn’t quite exciting enough for cricket commentators. Neither are the pulsating and audience-friendly 45 minute matches. And there’s no way sports fans with short attention spans would be enthralled by the real shortest format of the game.

This year’s tournament again features world-class players most notable England’s Matthew Hoggard, Sri Lanka’s Sanath Jayasuria and West Indies’ Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Here’s hoping the administrators of the game will give it more attention and view it for what it is: a potential goldmine.

©Doctor Cricket 2008