Before play started...: England two down and a few ahead - could declare to set up an interesting finish.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Not really anywhere. They were happy to play for the draw, and they got it.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Restricted the big runs in the morning meaning they had a shorter time to survive, which they did very comfortably.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Played incredibly negatively - delayed the declaration for far too long and shook hands when they were only one wicket away from the tail and a potential collapse. Poor.
Where did it all go right for England?: Another hundred for Cook, runs for KP, and some nice hits by Bell. Plus Trott proved he's a useful enough bowler to turn to as and when required.
Who won each session?: Morning - Just about England (but scored too slowly). Afternoon - Probably even. Evening - Nobody cared.
Who should have won the game?: England. Didn't play well enough today, and let the win slip away. But it would have been interesting had Dilshan and Jayawardene been able to stay on in the evening session on Day 3, as with tired ineffective bowlers, England could have conceded a fairly sizable first innings lead and it could have been a different story...
Shot of the day: Bell's guide down to third man. He was in awesome form. He even prompted me to declare him my favourite ever player (I later downgraded this to my favourite batsman to watch in the current England team. I was caught up in the emotion of the situation).
Ball of the day: "Rangana Herath's Ball of The Century" to KP. Probably the best ball he'll ever bowl - pitching well outside leg, and turning to hit the top of off-stump. Whatever's said about KP's troubles with SLA, I defy anyone to play that ball.
Man of the day: I don't know. Bell? The only England batsman to really understand the situation and bat accordingly.
Mug(s) of the day: Strauss's poor captaincy (I'll discuss that in a blog later) is saved by Matt Prior breaking a window. As such, the mug of the day is whoever put out the press releases; the first claiming that a glove bounced off a kit bag and onto a row of bats which smashed the window, and the second was that he tried to balance a bat on the windowsill, but he misbalanced it and shattered the window. Most likely, he just put his fist through it. Pretty much sums up England's day.
Showing posts with label Mahela Jayawardene. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mahela Jayawardene. Show all posts
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Monday, 6 June 2011
Day Three at Lord's
Before play started...: A lot of runs and not a great deal of wickets over the first two days
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Rain in the evening stopped them reaching England's score which could have made this game very interesting with two days left
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Plenty more runs before the rain
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Bowled better than Day 2, but still not to the required level.
Where did it all go right for England?: The bowling did improve (Finn especially) which is a slight bonus. The rain means that Sri Lanka are probably going to be unable to force a result.
Who won each session?: Morning and Afternoon - Sri Lanka. Evening - Rain.
Who's winning the game?: Sri Lanka are able to get a handy lead and despite the rain, we all know from last week what scoreboard pressure can do. England should bat through, but Sri Lanka are probably favourites at this stage.
Shot of the day: Jayawardene driving for four. Exquisite.
Ball of the day: Tremlett taking Sangakkara's wicket. Nice bit of bowling.
Man of the day: Tillakaratne Dilshan - kept going despite clearly being in immense physical pain to pull through for his team. Deserved the double hundred.
Mug(s) of the day: Weather. Rain isn't fun for anyone.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Rain in the evening stopped them reaching England's score which could have made this game very interesting with two days left
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: Plenty more runs before the rain
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Bowled better than Day 2, but still not to the required level.
Where did it all go right for England?: The bowling did improve (Finn especially) which is a slight bonus. The rain means that Sri Lanka are probably going to be unable to force a result.
Who won each session?: Morning and Afternoon - Sri Lanka. Evening - Rain.
Who's winning the game?: Sri Lanka are able to get a handy lead and despite the rain, we all know from last week what scoreboard pressure can do. England should bat through, but Sri Lanka are probably favourites at this stage.
Shot of the day: Jayawardene driving for four. Exquisite.
Ball of the day: Tremlett taking Sangakkara's wicket. Nice bit of bowling.
Man of the day: Tillakaratne Dilshan - kept going despite clearly being in immense physical pain to pull through for his team. Deserved the double hundred.
Mug(s) of the day: Weather. Rain isn't fun for anyone.
Friday, 27 May 2011
Day Two at Cardiff
Before play started...: A lot of rain yesterday. Runs for Dilshan and Paranavitana, before a couple of English wickets to keep them interested at the end.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Didn't look great with the ball at the end of the day.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: A lot of their guys made runs, and they made 400. Very good effort. And nipped Strauss out at the end.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Anderson aside didn't look too threatening, and didn't apply enough pressure in the field thanks to some sloppy bowling. Broad especially.
Where did it all go right for England?: Got Sri Lanka out (eventually), and 400 on this pitch is no huge disaster, as proved by Strauss and Cook looking very assured at the end. Apart from, well, Strauss getting out with about a minute to go.
Who won each session?: Morning - Evens. Afternoon - Sri Lanka. Evening - Probably England.
Who's winning the game?: You can't argue with runs on the board, and Sri Lanka will be happy to have them. But with England still looking more than likely to knock them down, plus the overs lost to the rain, the draw is still favourite.
Shot of the day: Perera lofting Broad back over his head. Not bad for a test debutant. Honourable mention to Cook hoicking Lakmal for four with the now copyrighted "Alastair Cook Slog-Sweep".
Ball of the day: Anderson to Mahela - softened him up with 5 on-the-money away-swingers before an in-nipper that he couldn't help but edge.
Man of the day: For making a nicely paced hundred, Prassana Jayawardene. The only Sri Lankan of the 4 to pass 50 to go on and convert, which took the Sri Lankans to a very useful 400.
Mug of the day: Broad. A frustrating day where he couldn't hit his lengths and didn't look all too threatening. Looked very undercooked and hardly a day to remember.
Where did it all go wrong for Sri Lanka?: Didn't look great with the ball at the end of the day.
Where did it all go right for Sri Lanka?: A lot of their guys made runs, and they made 400. Very good effort. And nipped Strauss out at the end.
Where did it all go wrong for England?: Anderson aside didn't look too threatening, and didn't apply enough pressure in the field thanks to some sloppy bowling. Broad especially.
Where did it all go right for England?: Got Sri Lanka out (eventually), and 400 on this pitch is no huge disaster, as proved by Strauss and Cook looking very assured at the end. Apart from, well, Strauss getting out with about a minute to go.
Who won each session?: Morning - Evens. Afternoon - Sri Lanka. Evening - Probably England.
Who's winning the game?: You can't argue with runs on the board, and Sri Lanka will be happy to have them. But with England still looking more than likely to knock them down, plus the overs lost to the rain, the draw is still favourite.
Shot of the day: Perera lofting Broad back over his head. Not bad for a test debutant. Honourable mention to Cook hoicking Lakmal for four with the now copyrighted "Alastair Cook Slog-Sweep".
Ball of the day: Anderson to Mahela - softened him up with 5 on-the-money away-swingers before an in-nipper that he couldn't help but edge.
Man of the day: For making a nicely paced hundred, Prassana Jayawardene. The only Sri Lankan of the 4 to pass 50 to go on and convert, which took the Sri Lankans to a very useful 400.
Mug of the day: Broad. A frustrating day where he couldn't hit his lengths and didn't look all too threatening. Looked very undercooked and hardly a day to remember.
Thursday, 26 May 2011
England v Sri Lanka Series Preview
OK, I may have left the series preview a little late, as everything that could have been written about this series has already been said. However, it's not like me to miss out on anything England related, so I'm throwing my hat into the ring with this effort.
From what's been written already, a lot of people are assuming England just need to turn up and the series win will be sorted. A lot of people are seriously underestimating this Sri Lankan side. Yes, there may be no Murali or Malinga, but there is an awful lot of strength there. Dilshan, Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene would walk straight into most people's World XI, and are a rather frightening prospect for England at 2, 3 and 4. Opening the innings with Dilshan will be the superbly named Tharanga Paranavitana, who may have a modest test record but already boasts two hundreds in two games this tour. Thilan Samaraweera is oft forgotten, but he averages 54 in tests. And new boy Dinesh Chandimal is scarily talented and could really announce himself this series. If all goes as expected, there are a lot of runs in this Sri Lankan side.
The bowling, however, may be a different story. The loss of Muralitheran and Malinga is well documented, and with a very inexperienced bowling line up playing in very foreign English conditions, taking 20 wickets could be a rather large challenge.
There's been a lot of hyping about England this series, with much of it probably undeserved. Yes, England have performed well over the past two years, but that should be tempered by remembering that England were taking on sides who were certainly not at their peak. Much of the Ashes success was due to keeping the "big players" quiet with carefully thought out plans, but with so many "big players" in that Sri Lankan top order, it could be a tall order. While England's attack does look strong, on the roads that Cardiff and the Rose Bowl have likely prepared in order to maximise revenue, taking enough wickets could too be a struggle.
In his two warm-up games as captain, Tillakaratne Dilshan certainly proved to be a bold and adventerous captain, and by leading his team to a win after following on agains the Lions, appears to have fostered a never-say-die attitude. Objectively, Sri Lanka have the stronger batting, but England have a better all-round team. My only concern would be that neither side will have enough to fire the others out twice, which will probably lead to some very high scoring draws. I would guess that only if a couple of people had blinders with the ball we would see results, and as England have the better bowlers (and because I'm biased) if I had to stick my neck out I'd go for an England win. But, my overall series preview in a nutshell would be that it will be much closer than people are expecting...
Random Match Predictions
1st Test: Cardiff - England by 73 runs (MOM Strauss)
2nd Test: Lord's - England by 3 wickets (MOM Bell)
3rd Test: Rose Bowl - Draw (MOM Sangakkara)
From what's been written already, a lot of people are assuming England just need to turn up and the series win will be sorted. A lot of people are seriously underestimating this Sri Lankan side. Yes, there may be no Murali or Malinga, but there is an awful lot of strength there. Dilshan, Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene would walk straight into most people's World XI, and are a rather frightening prospect for England at 2, 3 and 4. Opening the innings with Dilshan will be the superbly named Tharanga Paranavitana, who may have a modest test record but already boasts two hundreds in two games this tour. Thilan Samaraweera is oft forgotten, but he averages 54 in tests. And new boy Dinesh Chandimal is scarily talented and could really announce himself this series. If all goes as expected, there are a lot of runs in this Sri Lankan side.
The bowling, however, may be a different story. The loss of Muralitheran and Malinga is well documented, and with a very inexperienced bowling line up playing in very foreign English conditions, taking 20 wickets could be a rather large challenge.
There's been a lot of hyping about England this series, with much of it probably undeserved. Yes, England have performed well over the past two years, but that should be tempered by remembering that England were taking on sides who were certainly not at their peak. Much of the Ashes success was due to keeping the "big players" quiet with carefully thought out plans, but with so many "big players" in that Sri Lankan top order, it could be a tall order. While England's attack does look strong, on the roads that Cardiff and the Rose Bowl have likely prepared in order to maximise revenue, taking enough wickets could too be a struggle.
In his two warm-up games as captain, Tillakaratne Dilshan certainly proved to be a bold and adventerous captain, and by leading his team to a win after following on agains the Lions, appears to have fostered a never-say-die attitude. Objectively, Sri Lanka have the stronger batting, but England have a better all-round team. My only concern would be that neither side will have enough to fire the others out twice, which will probably lead to some very high scoring draws. I would guess that only if a couple of people had blinders with the ball we would see results, and as England have the better bowlers (and because I'm biased) if I had to stick my neck out I'd go for an England win. But, my overall series preview in a nutshell would be that it will be much closer than people are expecting...
Random Match Predictions
1st Test: Cardiff - England by 73 runs (MOM Strauss)
2nd Test: Lord's - England by 3 wickets (MOM Bell)
3rd Test: Rose Bowl - Draw (MOM Sangakkara)
Wednesday, 6 April 2011
The Idiot's Guide To The IPL - Part Three
Yesterday was the teams of Group A. Now it's Group B's turn.
Group B
Kolkata Knight Riders - Led by Sourav Ganguly for the first three years, the KKR disappointed massively, being the only team to never make the semi-finals. However, Ganguly wasn't retained for this year (or even picked up by any other team), and they'll now be led by Gautam Gambhir. The KKR have some excellent all-rounders in Shakib Al-Hasan, Jacques Kallis, Yusuf Pathan and Ryan ten Doeschate, as well as Eoin Morgan (and Gambhir himself) which will lead to a very strong batting line-up. The bowling will be led by experienced Brett Lee, and he'll work alongside young buck James Pattinson (brother of England legend Darren). Could have a chance if it all comes together, but will need the lesser known Indian players to really step up.
Kochi Tuskers Kerala - The other new franchise this year, Kochi have spent big to try and get off to a good start. They'll be captained by Mahela Jayawardene, and will trust in big guns Brendon McCullum, VVS Laxman and Muttiah Muralitheran. While they have recruited plenty of overseas names, not many of them are the big international stars seen in the other teams, but the KTK will hope they can elevate Kochi in a season where expectations appear fairly high.
Royal Challengers Bangalore - Like Kochi, the RCB have a smattering of big names but will have to rely on some lesser known Indians to lead them to success. Captained this year by Virat Kohli, they do have the big names of Dan Vettori, Tillekeratne Dilshan and Zaheer Khan alongside T20 specialists Dirk Nannes and Charl Langevelt, and could be in with a chance if they get off to a good start.
Rajasthan Royals - Shane Warne's inaugral winners of IPL1 have had their ups and downs ever since (poor seasons ultimately followed by expulsion, then reversal of that decision), and as always, the Royals are the underdogs who can thrive on their status. With Rahul Dravid, Shane Watson and Ross Taylor in the side the batting will be strong, and the Royals will have canny Johan Botha and Paul Collingwood in there as well. Warne aside, the trump card can be Shaun Tait. If he stays match fit he can be devastating. The Royals have had a habit of unearthing superb unknown Indians, and they will hope that this year is no different. They may have to rely on the local talent if they are to achieve anything this year.
Chennai Super Kings - The reigning champions are very strong, and are some people's favourites to take home the IPL crown again. Led by World Cup winning skipper MS Dhoni, there is strength throughout, with Suresh Raina and Mike Hussey as batsmen, all-rounders in Albie Morkel, Dwayne Bravo, Scott Styris and Faf du Plessis, and strong bowling in Doug Bollinger, Tim Southee, Nuwan Kulasekara and Ravichandran Ashwin. Could go a long way in the competition.
So there's the teams of Group B, following yesterday's appraisal of Group A. If you want my honest thoughts - Chennai and Mumbai are favourites, but a team like Pune or Kolkata could come from nowhere to shock a few. Check back tomorrow for some another Idiot's Guide to the IPL.
Group B
Kolkata Knight Riders - Led by Sourav Ganguly for the first three years, the KKR disappointed massively, being the only team to never make the semi-finals. However, Ganguly wasn't retained for this year (or even picked up by any other team), and they'll now be led by Gautam Gambhir. The KKR have some excellent all-rounders in Shakib Al-Hasan, Jacques Kallis, Yusuf Pathan and Ryan ten Doeschate, as well as Eoin Morgan (and Gambhir himself) which will lead to a very strong batting line-up. The bowling will be led by experienced Brett Lee, and he'll work alongside young buck James Pattinson (brother of England legend Darren). Could have a chance if it all comes together, but will need the lesser known Indian players to really step up.
Kochi Tuskers Kerala - The other new franchise this year, Kochi have spent big to try and get off to a good start. They'll be captained by Mahela Jayawardene, and will trust in big guns Brendon McCullum, VVS Laxman and Muttiah Muralitheran. While they have recruited plenty of overseas names, not many of them are the big international stars seen in the other teams, but the KTK will hope they can elevate Kochi in a season where expectations appear fairly high.
Royal Challengers Bangalore - Like Kochi, the RCB have a smattering of big names but will have to rely on some lesser known Indians to lead them to success. Captained this year by Virat Kohli, they do have the big names of Dan Vettori, Tillekeratne Dilshan and Zaheer Khan alongside T20 specialists Dirk Nannes and Charl Langevelt, and could be in with a chance if they get off to a good start.
Rajasthan Royals - Shane Warne's inaugral winners of IPL1 have had their ups and downs ever since (poor seasons ultimately followed by expulsion, then reversal of that decision), and as always, the Royals are the underdogs who can thrive on their status. With Rahul Dravid, Shane Watson and Ross Taylor in the side the batting will be strong, and the Royals will have canny Johan Botha and Paul Collingwood in there as well. Warne aside, the trump card can be Shaun Tait. If he stays match fit he can be devastating. The Royals have had a habit of unearthing superb unknown Indians, and they will hope that this year is no different. They may have to rely on the local talent if they are to achieve anything this year.
Chennai Super Kings - The reigning champions are very strong, and are some people's favourites to take home the IPL crown again. Led by World Cup winning skipper MS Dhoni, there is strength throughout, with Suresh Raina and Mike Hussey as batsmen, all-rounders in Albie Morkel, Dwayne Bravo, Scott Styris and Faf du Plessis, and strong bowling in Doug Bollinger, Tim Southee, Nuwan Kulasekara and Ravichandran Ashwin. Could go a long way in the competition.
So there's the teams of Group B, following yesterday's appraisal of Group A. If you want my honest thoughts - Chennai and Mumbai are favourites, but a team like Pune or Kolkata could come from nowhere to shock a few. Check back tomorrow for some another Idiot's Guide to the IPL.
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