March 31, 2006
Sanath Jayasuriya retires from TEST Cricket
Amidst recent criticisms and many dismal failures,Sri Lanka's highest run-scorer Sanath Jayasuriya has said he would retire from Test cricket next week to concentrate on the one-day game. Lately,Sanath was dropped in the middle of One Day series played in India.Sanath entered the Team as a bowler,turned into all-rounder and then a Specialist batsman.
He was instrumental in Sri Lanka's victory in the 1996 Cricket World Cup, where he was adjudged Man of the Tournament in recognition of his all-round contributions.One could say that Sanath was instrumental in exploiting the first 15 overs of One Day matches,when the fielders are inside the circle.
Off the records he is famous for ending the bowlers' career into ignominy.Manoj Prabhakar,indian bowler was slaughtered (4-0-47-0) in the 1995-96 World Cup match by Sanath and his partner.Later the bowler was dropped from team and he retired immediately.
Let us thank him for entertaining us for long time and reinventing batting...
Next posts:Videos of this great player.
March 29, 2006
ESPN Cricket-Sachin the LEGEND
Sachin Tendulkar in the ESPN Legend Series.
Great video for all the Cricket fans to see all the great moments...
Great video for all the Cricket fans to see all the great moments...
March 28, 2006
Bangla Tigers defeats Aussie Kangaroos.
In this historic match,Bangladesh defeats Australia surprisingly....Watch and Enjoy..
March 22, 2006
Sachin Tendullkar- ESPN Sports-Legend Series(2)
This video is second in the series of the Sachin's Episode in ESPN channel.
Language:Hindi
Enjoy
Language:Hindi
Enjoy
March 19, 2006
World Cup Cricket
Sachin hammering the ball in the world cup 1996..Tooooo Goooddd.
Sachin vs. All Bowlers
This video contains almost all the best shots played by Maestro Sachin Tendulkar...
I understand its not easy to compile all the shots as every shot played by him is unique and best...
I understand its not easy to compile all the shots as every shot played by him is unique and best...
March 18, 2006
South Africa wins the Greatest Match Ever
49.5 overs South Africa 438 for 9 (Gibbs 175, Smith 90, Boucher 50*) beat Australia 434 for 4 (Ponting 164, Hussey 81, Katich 79) by one wicket
South Africa has come out of the final mathch win phobia...!
At the same time it created history by scoring highest no:of runs made by any team...
Kudos Proteas..
Match Highlights Video:
Aussie Innings:
Proteas Innings:
South Africa has come out of the final mathch win phobia...!
At the same time it created history by scoring highest no:of runs made by any team...
Kudos Proteas..
Match Highlights Video:
Aussie Innings:
Proteas Innings:
What is Cricket???
Cricket is a team sport played between two teams of eleven players each. It is a bat-and-ball game played on a roughly elliptical grass field, in the centre of which is a hard, flat strip of ground 22 yards (20.12 m) long, called the pitch.
At each end of the pitch stand a set of three wooden stakes called stumps (traditionally made from the wood of the ash tree), which along with two smaller wooden crosspieces called bails, form the wickets . A player from one team (the bowler) propels a hard, fist-sized ball (which has a cork core wrapped in worsted yarn, and a leather cover) from one wicket towards the other. A player from the opposing team (the batsman) attempts to defend the wicket from the ball with a wooden cricket bat, traditionally made of willow. Another (the non-striker) stands in an inactive role near the bowler's wicket.
Cricket Field
If the batsman hits the ball with his bat, he may run to the other wicket, exchanging places with the non-striker. This scores a run. While the batting team attempts to score as many runs as it can, members of the bowling team gather the ball and return it to either wicket. If the ball strikes a wicket while the nearest batsman is still running, the batsman is out, or "dismissed." Batsmen can also be out by other means, such as failing to defend the bowled ball from hitting the wicket, or hitting a catch to a fielder.
Regardless of getting a batsman out or not, the bowler will deliver six consecutive valid deliveries to the batsman at the opposite end of the pitch. Each set of six deliveries is termed an over. At the completion of each over, the bowler will return to a fielding position and the bowling position is then taken by another member of the fielding team who delivers the next over from the opposite end of the pitch.
Once out, a batsman is replaced by the next batsman in the team. As there must always be two batsmen on the field, if and when the tenth batsman is out, the team's turn to bat or innings (always with a terminal "s" in cricket usage) is over, and the other team may bat while the first team takes the field. Depending on the specific rules of the match, one or two innings may be played, possibly with a fixed number of legally-bowled balls defining the end of an innings rather than ten batsmen having been dismissed. At the end of the match, the winner is the team that has scored the most runs. However, the game may run out of time before it is finished, in which case it is a draw, even if one team is overwhelmingly winning at that point. This is sometimes surprising to those not familiar with the game, but it does add interest to one-sided games by giving the inferior team the incentive to try to achieve a draw even if they cannot win.
Cricket has been an established team sport for several centuries. It originated in its modern form in England, and is popular mainly in the present and former members of the Commonwealth. In some countries in South Asia, including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, cricket is by far the most popular sport. Cricket is also a major sport in England and Wales, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Zimbabwe and the English-speaking countries of the Caribbean, which are known in cricketing parlance as the West Indies. It is also a prominent minor sport in countries as diverse as the Netherlands, Israel, Nepal, and Argentina (see also: International Cricket Council). 
The length of the game — a match can last six or more hours a day for up to five days in one form of the game — the numerous intervals for lunch and tea, and the rich terminology are notable aspects which can often confuse those not familiar with the sport. For its fans, the sport and the intense rivalries between top cricketing nations provide passionate entertainment and outstanding sporting achievements. It has even occasionally given rise to diplomatic outrage, the most infamous being the Bodyline series played between England and Australia.March 17, 2006
Sachin Tendular - Legend Video - ESPN Sports
This is the first video in the series of the Legend Series Compiled by the ESPN Sports....
Sourav Ganguly & Yousuf Video
Her You can see Sourav da telling to Yousuf about his well intended breaks in between the match.And also informing the Umpires to note the time taken by the batsman..
India Vs Pakistan
India Vs Pakistan
March 15, 2006
Silent Assassin
Even after KUMBLE retires, his distinguished legacy of walking the walk will endure, like his perfect 10 against Pakistan that glorious day at the Kotla
What began as the journey of a teenager with the soda bottle-bottom eyeglasses of a geek and the wispy beginnings of a fine moustache has reached a major station — 500 Test wickets. Along the way — from Allan Lamb to Steve Harmison — the glasses vanished, the fuzz on the upper lip met the razor, and a self-aware, fully-realised man emerged.
Sachin - The Bowler-Video
Maestro,Apna Boss Teaching the spinners how to bowl Googly...
and Moin Khan over here is shocked,beaten,bolwed,confused,shaken and also little afraid..
and Moin Khan over here is shocked,beaten,bolwed,confused,shaken and also little afraid..
March 14, 2006
Sachin helps Munaf to fulfill his dream
Here we have one more example of Boss's ability to identify quality players among the crowd.Munaf Patel,who now is being praised by Deniss Lilee,Waqar Younis and almost half of indians,was earlier spotted by Sachin way back in 2002/03 in the nets.
Ealier Munaf patel was playing for Gujarat Cricket and he was not qualified/allowed to play in Ranjit Match.Then Sachin has suggested him to play for Maharastra and then Munaf played for Maharastra and then everything is history...!
Earlier in the SriLanka series,Sachin suggested Coach and Captain to promote Irfhan Pathan as first-down batsman and then he has turned into all-rounder now.And compared to some legends as Freddie and Zulu....
Moral of the Story...
Cricket Duniyan ka Don Kaun? - Sachin
Source of the Information:
Sanjay Manjreakar Commentary during the 5th day of the Second Test of TVSCup at Mohali.
Ealier Munaf patel was playing for Gujarat Cricket and he was not qualified/allowed to play in Ranjit Match.Then Sachin has suggested him to play for Maharastra and then Munaf played for Maharastra and then everything is history...!
Earlier in the SriLanka series,Sachin suggested Coach and Captain to promote Irfhan Pathan as first-down batsman and then he has turned into all-rounder now.And compared to some legends as Freddie and Zulu....
Moral of the Story...
Cricket Duniyan ka Don Kaun? - Sachin
Source of the Information:
Sanjay Manjreakar Commentary during the 5th day of the Second Test of TVSCup at Mohali.
March 13, 2006
Criticism and Recent Performance
The case against Sachin Tendulkar's recent performances was summed up by no less than Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in its 2005 edition: "Apart from a glorious, nothing-to-lose 55 against Australia on a Mumbai terrortrack, watching Tendulkar became a colder experience: after his humbling 2003, he seemed to reject his bewitching fusion of majesty and human frailty in favour of a mechanical, robotic accumulation."
The criticism must be seen against the backdrop of Tendulkar's performance through the years 1994-1999, coinciding with his physical peak, at age 20 through 25. Tendulkar was told to open the batting at Auckland against New Zealand in 1994. He went on to make 82 runs off 49 balls. This was the beginning of a glorious period, culminating in the Australian tour of 1998-1999, following which Australian spinner Shane Warne ruefully joked that he was having nightmares about his Indian nemesis-Sachin Tendulkar.
Tendulkar's batting slumped in 1999. A chronic back problem flared up when Pakistan toured India in 1999, with India losing the historic Test at Chepauk despite a gritty century from Tendulkar himself. Worse was to come as Professor Ramesh Tendulkar, Sachin's father, died in the middle of the 1999 cricket World Cup. Tendulkar, appointed captain once again, then led India on a tour of Australia, where the visitors were blown away by the newly-crowned world champions.
Tendulkar lost the captaincy to Sourav Ganguly in 2000. He played a minor part in the Indo-Australian encounters of 2001, hailed as one of the greatest series in Test history. The batting heroics of V. V. S. Laxman and a rejuvenated Rahul Dravid carried the day for India at a memorable Test in Eden Gardens, along with the dramatic spin of Harbhajan Singh. The drawn series as India toured Australia in 2003-2004 again saw Dravid and Laxman coming to the fore, helped with superb bowling from Anil Kumble and Ajit Agarkar. Tendulkar could make his mark only in the last Test of the series, with a double century in Sydney.
Amidst criticism on his form, Tendulkar cameback in roaring fashion in the World Cup 2003 where India lost only to Australia in the whole tournament. Tendulkar then made 592 runs in 10 innings in the 2003 World Cup, helping India reach the finals. His World Cup campaign included 5 fifties and 1 century. A swashbuckling 98 against Pakistan helped ensure that India's arch-rivals were eliminated from the tournament.And he was adjudged "Man of the Tournament"
Tennis elbow then took its toll on Tendulkar. He was struggling to be fit for the home Test series against Australia. However, he overcame the injury, and displayed proof of it in fine fashion scoring a double hundred against Bangladesh.
Of late, as Wisden noted, Tendulkar has not been his old aggressive self. Expert opinion is divided on whether this is due to his increasing years or the lingering after-effects of injuries over 17 years at the highest level. On 10 December 2005, at Feroz Shah Kotla, he delighted his fans with a record-breaking 35th Test century, against the Sri Lankans. But doubts were raised once again when he averaged a mere 21 over three Test innings when India toured Pakistan in 2006. The subsequent criticism led former Pakistani opener Saeed Anwar to remind cricket fans that "form is temporary but class is permanent".
On 6 February 2006, Tendulkar scored his 39th ODI hundred, in a match against Pakistan. Tendulkar now has 16 more ODI tons than the man who is second on the list of ODI century-makers, Sourav Ganguly. He followed this up with a run-a-ball 42 in the second ODI against Pakistan on February 11 2006, and then a truly masterly 95 in hostile conditions on February 13 2006 in Lahore.
The criticism must be seen against the backdrop of Tendulkar's performance through the years 1994-1999, coinciding with his physical peak, at age 20 through 25. Tendulkar was told to open the batting at Auckland against New Zealand in 1994. He went on to make 82 runs off 49 balls. This was the beginning of a glorious period, culminating in the Australian tour of 1998-1999, following which Australian spinner Shane Warne ruefully joked that he was having nightmares about his Indian nemesis-Sachin Tendulkar.
Tendulkar's batting slumped in 1999. A chronic back problem flared up when Pakistan toured India in 1999, with India losing the historic Test at Chepauk despite a gritty century from Tendulkar himself. Worse was to come as Professor Ramesh Tendulkar, Sachin's father, died in the middle of the 1999 cricket World Cup. Tendulkar, appointed captain once again, then led India on a tour of Australia, where the visitors were blown away by the newly-crowned world champions.
Tendulkar lost the captaincy to Sourav Ganguly in 2000. He played a minor part in the Indo-Australian encounters of 2001, hailed as one of the greatest series in Test history. The batting heroics of V. V. S. Laxman and a rejuvenated Rahul Dravid carried the day for India at a memorable Test in Eden Gardens, along with the dramatic spin of Harbhajan Singh. The drawn series as India toured Australia in 2003-2004 again saw Dravid and Laxman coming to the fore, helped with superb bowling from Anil Kumble and Ajit Agarkar. Tendulkar could make his mark only in the last Test of the series, with a double century in Sydney.
Amidst criticism on his form, Tendulkar cameback in roaring fashion in the World Cup 2003 where India lost only to Australia in the whole tournament. Tendulkar then made 592 runs in 10 innings in the 2003 World Cup, helping India reach the finals. His World Cup campaign included 5 fifties and 1 century. A swashbuckling 98 against Pakistan helped ensure that India's arch-rivals were eliminated from the tournament.And he was adjudged "Man of the Tournament"
Tennis elbow then took its toll on Tendulkar. He was struggling to be fit for the home Test series against Australia. However, he overcame the injury, and displayed proof of it in fine fashion scoring a double hundred against Bangladesh.
Of late, as Wisden noted, Tendulkar has not been his old aggressive self. Expert opinion is divided on whether this is due to his increasing years or the lingering after-effects of injuries over 17 years at the highest level. On 10 December 2005, at Feroz Shah Kotla, he delighted his fans with a record-breaking 35th Test century, against the Sri Lankans. But doubts were raised once again when he averaged a mere 21 over three Test innings when India toured Pakistan in 2006. The subsequent criticism led former Pakistani opener Saeed Anwar to remind cricket fans that "form is temporary but class is permanent".
On 6 February 2006, Tendulkar scored his 39th ODI hundred, in a match against Pakistan. Tendulkar now has 16 more ODI tons than the man who is second on the list of ODI century-makers, Sourav Ganguly. He followed this up with a run-a-ball 42 in the second ODI against Pakistan on February 11 2006, and then a truly masterly 95 in hostile conditions on February 13 2006 in Lahore.
India defeats England Convincingly..!
Five-bowler theory was proved right: Dravid
India had a lot to thank for to its bowlers who set the game up for the side with their outstanding efforts, skipper Rahul Dravid said after the hosts sealed a nine-wicket victory over England in the second cricket test here today.
Dravid said the decision to go in with five bowlers was proved right and that England had set the trend by adopting the strategy to beat Australia at home last summer.
"England showed during Ashes (the advantages of going in with five bowlers). We also realise one has to be flexible and take a few chances. We backed ourselves well," he said.
Dravid, however, said the five-bowler combination would not necessarily be a fixed formula for future matches.
"I am not very sure whether we will go with five bowlers in Mumbai as well," he said.
"It all depends on the wicket, if it is similar to what we had against Australia (when India bowled them out for 93), we won't be needing five bowlers! "But yes, we have the option of going in with three seamers or three spinners. I think this option makes us a better team." Dravid said Anil Kumble and Munaf Patel deserved a pat on their back for the way they bowled in the match and also credited the win to the defiance of the tailenders in the first innings when India had their backs to the wall.
"Munaf was fantastic. His three wickets in quick succession this morning and Anil's haul in the first innings really set the game up for us," he said."Also, the way Irfan, Anil and Harbhajan batted when we had our backs to the wall -- it was very important in the context of the game," he said. Dravid said the margin of victory did not reflect how close the game had been.
"England were very competitive. We expected them to come hard on us. It wasn't easy (to get to this win). Nine wicket-win certainly does not reflect how close it was." Dravid said even though the first two days were affected by weather, he knew India would have a chance provided they batted and bowled well.
"After losing a couple of days to rain, it appeared draw was a likely result. But we knew if we can get slightly ahead and have the spinners bowl at them on the fourth and fifth days, we were in with a chance." On his knock of 95 in the first innings, he said, "it was one of my most satisfying knocks considering I was up against one of the best seam bowlings I have faced at home ever. Although I missed a century by five runs, it did not matter as we ended up on the winning side." Asked about Munaf Patel, he said the 22-year old from Gujarat "has been fantastic".
"He swung the ball, got good reverse swing as well. He had good pace, was accurate and posed quite a few problems to the batsmen." Dravid, who would be playing in his 100th Test in Mumbai, said, "it is a very special feeling to join a select list of players some of whom I have idolised and have had the privilege to play with.Nabi admitted candidly that initially he thought he was being considered for the Test squad but understood that perhaps it was too early for him to graduate to that level. "I have been touching 140 km per hour regularly in domestic circuit but I know I lack in discipline. I tend to get wayward and I am working hard on it.
"What is encouraging and a source of constant motivation for me is the fact that the current team management believes in giving chances to youngsters." Indeed, Chappell and Co. Have invested heavily in youth, especially as far as India's fast bowling department is concerned.
The fast bowling attack is led by Irfan Pathan who is just 21 and his new ball partners are all rookies -- S Sreesanth (23), Munaf Patel (22), R P Singh (20) and VRV Singh (21).
And hence if Nabi is eyeing his chances, he cannot be blamed for being impatient in realising his ambitions.
Also giving confidence to Nabi is the fact that although there are a number of swing bowlers in India, there is no genui ne fast bowler to do the damage upfront and that is where he could fit in.
"I have no qualms in saying I am a speed guy. Like Shoaib (akhtar) and Brett Lee, I also want to touch the 100 miles per hour mark." Nabi's dreams took shape in surroundings not ideal for cricket.Flintoff praised his young side for putting up a valiant performance against a formidable Indian spin attack. "It is a young team and they are learning. It is not easy to play Kumble and Harbhajan." Kumble, adjudged the man-of-the match for claiming nine wickets, said early wickets in the second innings put the pressure on England and they could never recover after that.
"Early wickets put some pressure and Munaf did the damage," he said.
Asked if he ever thought of reaching 500 wickets in Test cricket when he started his career, he said "not really. I just wanted to get wickets from the first Test. Never thought of reaching that far." Both the skipper had a special praise for the sporting wicket and crowd.
"The ground and wicket was fantastic. The crowd was fantastic as well," said Flintoff.
"It was a good wicket. It had good spin and turn and I thank the PCA for preparing such good wicket," Dravid said.
India had a lot to thank for to its bowlers who set the game up for the side with their outstanding efforts, skipper Rahul Dravid said after the hosts sealed a nine-wicket victory over England in the second cricket test here today.
Dravid said the decision to go in with five bowlers was proved right and that England had set the trend by adopting the strategy to beat Australia at home last summer.
"England showed during Ashes (the advantages of going in with five bowlers). We also realise one has to be flexible and take a few chances. We backed ourselves well," he said.
Dravid, however, said the five-bowler combination would not necessarily be a fixed formula for future matches.
"I am not very sure whether we will go with five bowlers in Mumbai as well," he said.
"It all depends on the wicket, if it is similar to what we had against Australia (when India bowled them out for 93), we won't be needing five bowlers! "But yes, we have the option of going in with three seamers or three spinners. I think this option makes us a better team." Dravid said Anil Kumble and Munaf Patel deserved a pat on their back for the way they bowled in the match and also credited the win to the defiance of the tailenders in the first innings when India had their backs to the wall.
"Munaf was fantastic. His three wickets in quick succession this morning and Anil's haul in the first innings really set the game up for us," he said."Also, the way Irfan, Anil and Harbhajan batted when we had our backs to the wall -- it was very important in the context of the game," he said. Dravid said the margin of victory did not reflect how close the game had been.
"England were very competitive. We expected them to come hard on us. It wasn't easy (to get to this win). Nine wicket-win certainly does not reflect how close it was." Dravid said even though the first two days were affected by weather, he knew India would have a chance provided they batted and bowled well.
"After losing a couple of days to rain, it appeared draw was a likely result. But we knew if we can get slightly ahead and have the spinners bowl at them on the fourth and fifth days, we were in with a chance." On his knock of 95 in the first innings, he said, "it was one of my most satisfying knocks considering I was up against one of the best seam bowlings I have faced at home ever. Although I missed a century by five runs, it did not matter as we ended up on the winning side." Asked about Munaf Patel, he said the 22-year old from Gujarat "has been fantastic".
"He swung the ball, got good reverse swing as well. He had good pace, was accurate and posed quite a few problems to the batsmen." Dravid, who would be playing in his 100th Test in Mumbai, said, "it is a very special feeling to join a select list of players some of whom I have idolised and have had the privilege to play with.Nabi admitted candidly that initially he thought he was being considered for the Test squad but understood that perhaps it was too early for him to graduate to that level. "I have been touching 140 km per hour regularly in domestic circuit but I know I lack in discipline. I tend to get wayward and I am working hard on it.
"What is encouraging and a source of constant motivation for me is the fact that the current team management believes in giving chances to youngsters." Indeed, Chappell and Co. Have invested heavily in youth, especially as far as India's fast bowling department is concerned.
The fast bowling attack is led by Irfan Pathan who is just 21 and his new ball partners are all rookies -- S Sreesanth (23), Munaf Patel (22), R P Singh (20) and VRV Singh (21).
And hence if Nabi is eyeing his chances, he cannot be blamed for being impatient in realising his ambitions.
Also giving confidence to Nabi is the fact that although there are a number of swing bowlers in India, there is no genui ne fast bowler to do the damage upfront and that is where he could fit in.
"I have no qualms in saying I am a speed guy. Like Shoaib (akhtar) and Brett Lee, I also want to touch the 100 miles per hour mark." Nabi's dreams took shape in surroundings not ideal for cricket.Flintoff praised his young side for putting up a valiant performance against a formidable Indian spin attack. "It is a young team and they are learning. It is not easy to play Kumble and Harbhajan." Kumble, adjudged the man-of-the match for claiming nine wickets, said early wickets in the second innings put the pressure on England and they could never recover after that.
"Early wickets put some pressure and Munaf did the damage," he said.
Asked if he ever thought of reaching 500 wickets in Test cricket when he started his career, he said "not really. I just wanted to get wickets from the first Test. Never thought of reaching that far." Both the skipper had a special praise for the sporting wicket and crowd.
"The ground and wicket was fantastic. The crowd was fantastic as well," said Flintoff.
"It was a good wicket. It had good spin and turn and I thank the PCA for preparing such good wicket," Dravid said.
March 12, 2006
Score Impossible
Score Impossible ..Oops Chaseable
South Africa has chased the World's Highest Score in the One-Day Cricket History.It is no exaggeration when I say probably its the most exciting match in the South African Cricket History and the most convincing.
After the draw of Semi-Finals in the World Cup-99,South African Team was in shadow and was in lots of trouble even after winning some games.
But this is the one which they can relish for life-time.And I am sure Shaun Pollock would be thinking about missing the match.
In the most extraordinary one-dayer ever, the home side's victory was achieved with one ball to spare and sparked wild celebrations on and off the Wanderers pitch.
Australian captain Ricky Ponting (164) and South African Herschelle Gibbs (175) scored over 150 in the fifth one-dayer and a total of 872 runs were scored. The previous record was 693 when India beat Pakistan by five runs in Karachi in March 2004.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Ponting reached his century off 73 balls. In all he faced 105 deliveries, hitting 13 fours and nine sixes. Gibbs then kept the home side up with the required scoring rate by blazing 175, including seven sixes, off 111 balls. Captain Graeme Smith also scored 90, putting on 187 for the second wicket with Gibbs. Gibbs's was the second highest score by a South African after Gary Kirsten's 188 not out against the United Arab Emirates at the 1996 World Cup. Ponting is the first Australian to reach 9,000 runs in one-day internationals and his innings was the third highest by an Australian.
The two batsmen were jointly awarded man of the match but Ponting declined it, saying Gibbs deserved the honour alone. "We played really well and got an unbelievably big total but Herschelle and the boys have just been too good," Ponting said. "Herschelle deserves it (the man of the match award) more than me after making 175 and being on the winning team."
Gibbs said: "I think I'm going to keep smiling for a while - I'll have no energy tomorrow.
"Cricket is getting bizarre these days with some of the scores made. We needed something like that from somebody and it happened to be my day today."
Australia Innings
Adam Gilchrist and Simon Katch launched Australia's innings with an aggressive stand of 97, ended in the 16th over before Gilchrist was dismissed by seamer Roger Telemachus.
South Africa has chased the World's Highest Score in the One-Day Cricket History.It is no exaggeration when I say probably its the most exciting match in the South African Cricket History and the most convincing.
After the draw of Semi-Finals in the World Cup-99,South African Team was in shadow and was in lots of trouble even after winning some games.
But this is the one which they can relish for life-time.And I am sure Shaun Pollock would be thinking about missing the match.
In the most extraordinary one-dayer ever, the home side's victory was achieved with one ball to spare and sparked wild celebrations on and off the Wanderers pitch.
Australian captain Ricky Ponting (164) and South African Herschelle Gibbs (175) scored over 150 in the fifth one-dayer and a total of 872 runs were scored. The previous record was 693 when India beat Pakistan by five runs in Karachi in March 2004.
After winning the toss and choosing to bat, Ponting reached his century off 73 balls. In all he faced 105 deliveries, hitting 13 fours and nine sixes. Gibbs then kept the home side up with the required scoring rate by blazing 175, including seven sixes, off 111 balls. Captain Graeme Smith also scored 90, putting on 187 for the second wicket with Gibbs. Gibbs's was the second highest score by a South African after Gary Kirsten's 188 not out against the United Arab Emirates at the 1996 World Cup. Ponting is the first Australian to reach 9,000 runs in one-day internationals and his innings was the third highest by an Australian.
The two batsmen were jointly awarded man of the match but Ponting declined it, saying Gibbs deserved the honour alone. "We played really well and got an unbelievably big total but Herschelle and the boys have just been too good," Ponting said. "Herschelle deserves it (the man of the match award) more than me after making 175 and being on the winning team."
Gibbs said: "I think I'm going to keep smiling for a while - I'll have no energy tomorrow.
"Cricket is getting bizarre these days with some of the scores made. We needed something like that from somebody and it happened to be my day today."
Australia Innings
Adam Gilchrist and Simon Katch launched Australia's innings with an aggressive stand of 97, ended in the 16th over before Gilchrist was dismissed by seamer Roger Telemachus.
Spirit of Jonty in Hall
Andrew Hall dived to his left at mid-on to scoop a stunning catch and remove Gilchrist for 55. Katich and Ponting piled on 119 runs for the second wicket until Katich cut a delivery from Makhaya Ntini and was caught by Telemachus at third man for 79.
Ponting and Michael Hussey shared 158 for the third wicket before Hussey, who scored 81, tried to heave a ball from Hall over long-on and was caught by Ntini. Ponting was dismissed in the 48th over when his lofted drive to a ball from Jacques Kallis was caught by Boeta Dippenaar.
South Africa Innings
Smith Leading the Team
Graeme Smith and Gibbs kept the home side on course with a lusty second-wicket stand of 187 off 128 balls, South Africa's highest partnership for any wicket against Australia.
It was ended in the 23rd over when Smith drove a catch off Michael Clarke to Hussey at deep midwicket to go for 90.
Gibbs dominated a stand of 94 in which AB de Villiers scored just 14, and the centurion went in the 32nd over when he drove one of Andrew Symonds' off-spinners down Brett Lee's throat at long-on.
That slowed South Africa's momentum, but number eight Johan van der Wath revived their hopes by scoring 35 off 18 balls while Mark Boucher rotated the strike intelligently.
Australia surged back by dismissing Van der Wath, Telemachus and Hall in the space of 18 deliveries to
reduce South Africa to 433 for nine with three balls left in the match.
Number 11 Ntini nudged Lee to backward point for a single, and Boucher, who ended on 50 not out, slammed the next ball through long-on for four to win the match.
"It's huge," said Smith. "We have got to come back down to earth. We're all over the moon and want to savour the moment."
Gibb's Marathon
Australian Mick Lewis's return of nought for 113 was the most expensive analysis in 50-over one-day internationals. Celebrating the Victory over Invincible Aussies
The previous record was the 0-99 Muttiah Muralitharan conceded for Sri Lanka against Australia in Sydney in February.
March 11, 2006
Early Days-Making of The Boss
Born in Mumbai (then Bombay) into a middle-class family, Sachin Tendulkar was named after his family's favourite music director Sachin Dev Burman. He went to Sharadashram Vidyamandir School where he started his cricketing career under coach Ramakant Achrekar. While at school, he was involved in a mammoth 664 run partnership in a Harris Shield game with friend and team mate Vinod Kambli. In 1988/1989, he scored 100 not-out in his first first-class match, for Bombay against Gujarat. Aged 15 years 232 days, he was by some distance the youngest player to score a century on debut.
Sachin played his first international match against Pakistan in Karachi, facing the likes of Wasim Akram, Imran Khan, Abdul Qadir, and Waqar Younis. He scored just 15 runs, being bowled by Waqar Younis, who also made his debut in that match. It was an inauspicious start, but Tendulkar followed it up with his maiden Test fifty a few days later at Faisalabad. However, he could not get a century in that series. His One-day International (ODI) debut on December 18 was equally disappointing, where he was dismissed without scoring a run, again by Waqar Younis. The series was followed by a non-descript tour of New Zealand in which he fell for 88 in a Test match, John Wright, who would later coach India, poaching the catch that prevented Tendulkar from becoming the youngest centurion in Test cricket. The long anticipated maiden Test century came in England's tour in 1990 but the other scores were not remarkable. Tendulkar truly came into his own in the 1991-1992 tour of Australia that included a brilliant century on the fast and bouncy track at Perth. He has been man of the match 11 times in Test matches and Man of the Series twice, both times in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
His first ODI century came on September 9, 1994 against Australia in Sri Lanka at Colombo. It had taken Tendulkar 79 ODIs to score a century.
Sachin Tendulkar is the only player to score a century while making his Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy and Irani Trophy debut.
Wisden named Tendulkar one of the Cricketers of the Year in 1997, the first calendar year in which he scored 1,000 Test runs. He repeated the feat in 1999, 2001, and 2002.
Tendulkar also holds the record for scoring 1,000 ODI runs in a calendar year. He has done it six times - 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2003. In 1998 he made 1,894 ODI runs, still the record for ODI runs by any batsman in any given calendar year.
March 06, 2006
Sachin Nails Inzy
Sachin Tendulkar delivers a ball,
Sachin Tendulkar nails Inzamam-ul-Haq for the second time in two matches,
Sachin Tendulkar nails Inzamam-ul-Haq for the second time in two matches,
March 01, 2006
Career Performance Graph
When he became the first batsman to score 50 hundreds in international cricket, Sachin Tendulkar established himself as the greatest of all Indian cricketers. Recognised by Sir Donald Bradman as his modern incarnation, Tendulkar has a skill - a genius - which only a handful have possessed. It was not a skill that he was simply born with, but one which was developed by his intelligence and an infinite capacity for taking pains. If there is a secret, it is that Tendulkar has the keenest of cricket minds. At times in a Test series he looks mortal. But he learns every lesson, picks up every cue, dominates the opposing attack sooner or later, and nearly always makes a hundred. His bravery was proved after he was hit on the head on his Test debut in Pakistan, when he was only 16; and his commitment to the Indian cause has never been in doubt. If captaincy - or rather the off-field management of men less skilled than himself - was beyond him at his first attempt, his reading of the game, and his manifold varieties of bowling, have shown the same acute intelligence. His cricket has been played in the right way too, always attacking, and because he knew that was the right way rather than because he was a child of the one-day age, as he himself modestly said. The awe of opponents was as great as that of crowds. But the finest compliment must be that bookmakers would not fix the odds - or a game - until Tendulkar was out.
Career Performance Graph
This graph details the Test Match performance of Sachin Tendulkar. The red bars indicate the player's test match innings, while the blue line shows the average of the ten most recent innings at that point. Note that this average cannot be calculated for the first nine innings. The blue dots indicate innings in which Tendulkar finished not-out.
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