West Indies’ disastrous 2021 ICC T20 World Cup campaign finally drew to a close today with an 8-wkt loss to Australia and a promised reboot from team captain Kieron Pollard. The ‘Men in Maroon’, Pollard admitted, came to Dubai with the intention of clobbering their way to success. The results, …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Pressure does buss pipe; Best considers the strain on Pollard’s troops
Today, I want to return to the subject of Chris Gayle’s angry public reaction to perceived provocation by Curtly Ambrose. Obliquely, not frontally. I want to suggest that, heated though it was, it may well conceal a submerged iceberg. We might properly begin with West Indian royalty. But it seems …
Read More »W/Cup addict comments: Amir, Smith, Warner and Roy; different strokes for different ICC folks?
Eight cricketers named Mohammad or Mohammed played in the round robin stage of the 2019 World Cup; none will be in the final. Two Jasons played in the group stage; one will play in Sunday’s Lord’s grand finale. The US$64,000 question is this: should he have been allowed to? At …
Read More »Bad mind fails Pakistan as Australia get home easily to move to second
If Pakistan’s Asif Ali were the cousin of T&T’s Inshan Ali or Zaheer Ali, Australia would today be fifth in the 2019 World Cup standings instead of second. The two points Aaron Finch’s team earned for their 41-run victory over Safaraz Ahmed’s side in Taunton yesterday lifted them to a …
Read More »Confessions of a World Cup addict: By any means necessary, Australia look to maintain title stronghold
Karma, they say, is a bitch. History’s reputation, as far as I am aware, is not quite so negative. But we are admonished not to ignore it; those who fail to heed its lessons, we are warned, are condemned to repeat it. Beaten by the West Indies in the first …
Read More »Media Monitor: The more thieves change in Australia cricket, the more they reverse the swing
“One seta friggin tief!” Amen, brother! More than 15 years ago in July 2001, Valentino Singh, former QRC cricket captain and later Guardian sports editor, headlined his regular Thinking Things Out column, “Best ‘cheats’ will continue to rule.” The “cheats” referred to were the Australian Test cricketers who, according to …
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