'How can baseball possibly compare to the intricacies of cricket?'
Our readers share their memories of the favourite excuses they've heard on a cricket field, discuss the Dubai Test and why cricket is better than an American counterpart
31-Oct-2015
As fast an Andy Roberts? • MiD DAY Infomedia Ltd
Reader: vasunet
Great article by Prof. Krishna. I saw Salgaoncar bowl for West Zone against Clive Lloyd's West Indies in 1974 in Pune. He got Roy Fredericks out first ball of the match off a perfect delivery - fast, high bounce and movement resulting in a catch to Gavaskar at first slip. None of the vaunted WI batsmen, including Greenidge, Rowe, Kallicharan, Richards and Lloyd, played him with any comfort and he got more wickets. Karsan Ghavri, who regularly played for India, bowled at the other end but Salgaoncar was more menacing. As a bunch of Pune kids we were probably biased but Andy Roberts bowled later in the day and we felt he was no faster than Salgaoncar!
Great article by Prof. Krishna. I saw Salgaoncar bowl for West Zone against Clive Lloyd's West Indies in 1974 in Pune. He got Roy Fredericks out first ball of the match off a perfect delivery - fast, high bounce and movement resulting in a catch to Gavaskar at first slip. None of the vaunted WI batsmen, including Greenidge, Rowe, Kallicharan, Richards and Lloyd, played him with any comfort and he got more wickets. Karsan Ghavri, who regularly played for India, bowled at the other end but Salgaoncar was more menacing. As a bunch of Pune kids we were probably biased but Andy Roberts bowled later in the day and we felt he was no faster than Salgaoncar!
Reader: CK2010
Great one Nicholas... reminds me some of the excuses i have heard. Once in a college game I had a friend who kept on dropping catches and after every dropped catch he used to come to me and ask me to check if he has fever before anyone could give him a hearing. On another occasion, a friend went out to bat and was clean bowled first-ball. Comes back and asks the batsman who had got out just before him as to which stump was his guard . The previous batsman said he had 2 Leg. So my friend says, "Oh! That's why i got out. I was standing on your guard thinking it was 1 Leg. You get so many of them." LOL.
Great one Nicholas... reminds me some of the excuses i have heard. Once in a college game I had a friend who kept on dropping catches and after every dropped catch he used to come to me and ask me to check if he has fever before anyone could give him a hearing. On another occasion, a friend went out to bat and was clean bowled first-ball. Comes back and asks the batsman who had got out just before him as to which stump was his guard . The previous batsman said he had 2 Leg. So my friend says, "Oh! That's why i got out. I was standing on your guard thinking it was 1 Leg. You get so many of them." LOL.
Reader: Matthew Malcolm
Love the article. But there is only one excuse in the end, I realised this years ago when I had pretty much exhausted all the options. The truth is I am a village cricketer, amateur and generally not particularly good although I have had my moments. This revelation comes with experience, but so does the bad knees, bad back and failing eyesight, which makes me even worse. So now I just say 'I was rubbish (or words to that effect)' and find somewhere to hide for a while, usually going out to umpire so I don't have to talk to anyone. You have to love local cricket, you know the sledging (albeit good natured) will be from your own team and you have to take the rough with the smooth. It is all part of the game and so are the thousands of dodgy excuses. My personal favourite was when one of our players failed to hold a catch because of a non-existent rabbit hole - he fell down just as the ball reached him. The teasing was merciless for weeks.
Love the article. But there is only one excuse in the end, I realised this years ago when I had pretty much exhausted all the options. The truth is I am a village cricketer, amateur and generally not particularly good although I have had my moments. This revelation comes with experience, but so does the bad knees, bad back and failing eyesight, which makes me even worse. So now I just say 'I was rubbish (or words to that effect)' and find somewhere to hide for a while, usually going out to umpire so I don't have to talk to anyone. You have to love local cricket, you know the sledging (albeit good natured) will be from your own team and you have to take the rough with the smooth. It is all part of the game and so are the thousands of dodgy excuses. My personal favourite was when one of our players failed to hold a catch because of a non-existent rabbit hole - he fell down just as the ball reached him. The teasing was merciless for weeks.
Reader: Prendleton
But sometimes the excuses are correct excuses. I have to come clean. Years ago I was playing for Weston-Super-Mare, bowling away swingers and hooping the ball about, taking wicket after wicket but this one batsman played with great skill with pad and leave. Then I hooped one away, it hit his pad and went on to second slip for an easy catch. He never hit it but the umpire fingered him. I always remember him sitting miserably at the bar with his pint after the match. I wanted to tell him the thing he knew - he had never hit the ball - but I didn't . Apologies for 26 years ago. Really sorry! Terribly guilty!
But sometimes the excuses are correct excuses. I have to come clean. Years ago I was playing for Weston-Super-Mare, bowling away swingers and hooping the ball about, taking wicket after wicket but this one batsman played with great skill with pad and leave. Then I hooped one away, it hit his pad and went on to second slip for an easy catch. He never hit it but the umpire fingered him. I always remember him sitting miserably at the bar with his pint after the match. I wanted to tell him the thing he knew - he had never hit the ball - but I didn't . Apologies for 26 years ago. Really sorry! Terribly guilty!
Reader: cloudmess
I thought Mike Hesson might be another of those schoolmasterly coaches with little understanding of the psychologies of international cricket. But he has done superbly well as NZ coach, creating a team who have been playing very attractive cricket while also conducting themselves with great dignity on and off the field. From this interview he seems a clear thinker, able to understand the remit of a coach, and to recognise that his job is to be a facilitator rather than a headmaster. The role of a coach is fascinating, not least that different styles can work. JB633 castigates Andy Flower for his stifling, micro-managing style, which was certainly true, but Flower also briefly turned England into an extremely successful side with his superb tactical insights. I still think England were unlucky to have Peter Moores twice, a headmaster-style coach only able to think in fuzzy sporting clichés (evident in any of his interviews) at international level.
I thought Mike Hesson might be another of those schoolmasterly coaches with little understanding of the psychologies of international cricket. But he has done superbly well as NZ coach, creating a team who have been playing very attractive cricket while also conducting themselves with great dignity on and off the field. From this interview he seems a clear thinker, able to understand the remit of a coach, and to recognise that his job is to be a facilitator rather than a headmaster. The role of a coach is fascinating, not least that different styles can work. JB633 castigates Andy Flower for his stifling, micro-managing style, which was certainly true, but Flower also briefly turned England into an extremely successful side with his superb tactical insights. I still think England were unlucky to have Peter Moores twice, a headmaster-style coach only able to think in fuzzy sporting clichés (evident in any of his interviews) at international level.
Reader: Pierrev
Good article. Very poetic! In the same breath, it's easy to blame T20 cricket for the shortfalls in Tests. The general consensus is West Indies are neglecting tests for T20, Just think what second-tier teams like Ireland or Netherlands would give to have Test cricket in their country. So the death of one is the bread of another. I'm very doubtful that WI will lose their Test status, even if they don't improve on their current stance towards the format. It would surprise me if it goes all the way to losing their Test status. Nevertheless, another team would be all but grateful to take their place. Is the absence of the WI at the next Champions Trophy maybe the beginning of the end? I'm not familiar as to why WI lost their love for Test cricket, as I say it's easy to blame T20, but is it not the players responsibility (ex-players also and those who still have a say in cricket) to keep Test cricket alive and well? When they fail to see the value in the game so will the people that follow them.
Good article. Very poetic! In the same breath, it's easy to blame T20 cricket for the shortfalls in Tests. The general consensus is West Indies are neglecting tests for T20, Just think what second-tier teams like Ireland or Netherlands would give to have Test cricket in their country. So the death of one is the bread of another. I'm very doubtful that WI will lose their Test status, even if they don't improve on their current stance towards the format. It would surprise me if it goes all the way to losing their Test status. Nevertheless, another team would be all but grateful to take their place. Is the absence of the WI at the next Champions Trophy maybe the beginning of the end? I'm not familiar as to why WI lost their love for Test cricket, as I say it's easy to blame T20, but is it not the players responsibility (ex-players also and those who still have a say in cricket) to keep Test cricket alive and well? When they fail to see the value in the game so will the people that follow them.
Reader: Smashed_for_six
Maybe I shouldn't allow myself to be provoked to a response, but how can baseball possibly compare to the intricacies of cricket? Baseball may require fantastic physical skills but are they really any more advanced than the skills of fast bowlers, wicketkeepers, top slippers and modern boundary riders, thanks to the development of T20? The real difference lies in the immense number of variables in cricket, often in the same game, which allow so much scope for players to show their character and skill. Look at your opponents and then factor in the pitch and weather conditions. Spin, seam, swing, reverse-swing. Perth, Headingley, Colombo, Abu Dhabi, Lord's. Do you whack it like Warner, or book in for B&B like Cook? Satisfying as T20 may be for some appetites, Test cricket is worthy of a dying man's last meal. PS. Let's hope West Indies get back on track. It's a poorer game without a strong WI Test team.
Maybe I shouldn't allow myself to be provoked to a response, but how can baseball possibly compare to the intricacies of cricket? Baseball may require fantastic physical skills but are they really any more advanced than the skills of fast bowlers, wicketkeepers, top slippers and modern boundary riders, thanks to the development of T20? The real difference lies in the immense number of variables in cricket, often in the same game, which allow so much scope for players to show their character and skill. Look at your opponents and then factor in the pitch and weather conditions. Spin, seam, swing, reverse-swing. Perth, Headingley, Colombo, Abu Dhabi, Lord's. Do you whack it like Warner, or book in for B&B like Cook? Satisfying as T20 may be for some appetites, Test cricket is worthy of a dying man's last meal. PS. Let's hope West Indies get back on track. It's a poorer game without a strong WI Test team.
Reader: ACrickLover
It is high time now to decide whether the host country has the right to prepare the pitches of their choice or not. I am really surprised to see why not all the cricket boards sit together and finalise this issue once for all.
It is high time now to decide whether the host country has the right to prepare the pitches of their choice or not. I am really surprised to see why not all the cricket boards sit together and finalise this issue once for all.
If the host country is allowed to prepare the pitches that suits them then let it be explicitly said so and then the curators of various pitches are bound to prepare the pitches according to the choice of the host country team captain or coach or manager or host cricket board etc. On the other hand, if it was decided not to prepare pitches to suit the host country then the curator should be strictly prohibited from taking any orders from host country captain or coach or board etc. But first all cricket boards should sit together and make a final decision on this aspect. In democracy the viewers/citizens should know what is the final decision and also know if any discussions that take place between the curators and the captain or coach or board etc.
Reader: harshthakor
The Test proves how much cricket is in the mind. England almost resurrected themselves from the grave and came within the brink of saving the match but in the end Pakistan's determination and tenacity overpowered them. In spite of the heroic resistance by Rashid and Wood, Pakistan fought till the very end, radiating the true spirit of Test cricket. It was this very combative spirit and will to win of Pakistan that prevented the English tail from snatching a draw .
The Test proves how much cricket is in the mind. England almost resurrected themselves from the grave and came within the brink of saving the match but in the end Pakistan's determination and tenacity overpowered them. In spite of the heroic resistance by Rashid and Wood, Pakistan fought till the very end, radiating the true spirit of Test cricket. It was this very combative spirit and will to win of Pakistan that prevented the English tail from snatching a draw .
Reader: Snick_To_Backward_Point
Firstly, congrats to Pakistan team for outplaying England. They were deserved winners.
Firstly, congrats to Pakistan team for outplaying England. They were deserved winners.
On England, I think Boycs says it all when he says this current England team has two world-class bowlers and two world-class batsmen. You can't have a team of 11 relying constantly on four players. If any of them have a bad game it's good night Vienna.
We're simply not good enough with this XI and giving failing players like Bell and Buttler endless chances to prove they're not done at international level isn't working. Taylor must come in and be given the sort of run that players like Buttler have been given. Taylor does have the potential to be world class imo.
Forgot to mention Wood who shows a lot of promise and if Rashid can apply himself the way he did today then that bodes well. Simply put, outside of swinging, juicy English pitches we're not good enough.
Compiled by Delisa D'Souza and Srikanth Ravishanker