Pakistan vs England

Golly, the second day of the second test in Paksitan had almost everything; controversial wickets, big-hitting, a player doing something so bad he was immediately slapped with a three-match ban, explosions - you name it, it was there.

Surprising then, given the quality of viewing on offer, that this piece of blogging should appear on the same day proclaiming "the strange death of test cricket". The piece might be about Indian cricket, but I suspect it could be applied right across the test playing world.

Pre-season knockabouts

As the domestic sides gear up for the start of the first-class competition, there are a number of trial matches going on around the country. Scott Styris and Kyle Mills impressed as Auckland played Northern Districts in a two-day match, while Jacob Oram was the star as Canterbury beat a High Performance XI at Lincoln.

The Postman returns

Gavin Larsen has begun writing a column on the Black Caps' website. His first offering is here, and resembles Gav's bowling - an innocuous little piece but right on the mark.

The Herald on Sunday

I flicked through my Sunday-Star Times this morning with something approaching despair. I thought last week's cricket supplement might herald the start of summer and the arrival of cricket on the sports pages. But no, this week all we get are twenty pages of rugby and a small piece about Chris Cairns hitting 50 in a club match. Sigh.

Still, if the Sunday Star-Times won't oblige us, then the Herald on Sunday will. In the Herald we can read Dylan Cleaver on the rise of Jesse Ryder and the fall of Hamish Marshall; an article proposing that Brendon McCullum be pushed up the batting order for the Hadlee-Chappell series given Hamish Marshall's terrible form; and Mark Richardson on, ummm, the grim form of poor old Hamish Marshall.

Roebuck on Zimbabwe

Combine one of our favourite cricket writers and one of our pet crusades and what do you get? A well-written piece calling for the heads of Zimbabwe Cricket thats what. Not that Roebuck's article is going to have any impact of course. If threats on the life of an international cricket captain won't get the ICC to act, an internet-bound diatribe is not going to do much.

Sundries

For a Pakistani perspective on the series against England, you could do far worse than visit the excellent Sundries.

Matt Hart's benefit

Northern Districts stalwart Matthew Hart is to have a benefit match in December and it is looking to be a star-studded event. I don't want to repeat myself - having given Hart a bit of a rave when he announced his retirement a few months ago - but he is one of those players who deserves recognition. Hart was one of the most promising players of his generation, but got caught up in the disastrous "dope-smoking" tour of South Africa in 1994/5. While Dion Nash and Stephen Fleming shrugged the scandal of the tour off and went on to great things, Hart seemed shell-shocked and his New Zealand career never recovered. That didn't stop Hart from playing cricket though, and he spent the next ten years with his head down and dedicating himself to his Northern Districts side. Between 1990 and 2005 Hart played 95 matches for ND and if anyone deserves a bulging Westpac Park on 16 December, then its him.

Zimbabwe

This excellent piece updates us on the state of cricket in troubled Zimbabwe. And it is not good. What does it take the ICC to act? As Martin Williamson says:

When a national captain is forced into hiding by threats made against his family by someone who has been brought in as some kind of enforcer by the national board, then it should concern the ICC. When all the provincial chairmen of a country produce a detailed document highlighting some serious governance and financial issues, then it should concern the ICC. When almost all the professional players of a Test-playing country are prepared to stand up and accuse their own board of intimidation and demand the resignation of the chairman and managing director, then it should concern the ICC.

Art and cricket

Oh dear, I picked up this link from Cricinfo. If you want to see what happens when an artist decides to cash in on the Ashes, go and have a look.

Roebuck on the Windies

Peter Roebuck has cast his rule over the West Indies side and has found them wanting, not merely as cricketers - but as men as well. It seems to be the month for cricket writers to be crotchety.

Injuries, injuries, injuries

Jake Oram and Andre Adams are both struggling to the be fit for the Chappell-Hadlee series, Oram with a bruised foot and Adams with a busted finger.

England vs Pakistan

What is it with England and exciting cricket lately? Its as if the '80s and '90s never happened. If the first test in Pakistan doesn't bring the crowds there back to test cricket, nothing will.

Taranaki's finest

Yep. It had to happen. Sooner or later the rest of the world was going to notice the yobbish behaviour in Taranaki. Here is how the Guardian's cricket correspondent reported the incident involving Aftab Habib:

...The Spin still remembers disturbing the right-on gentility of Guardian Towers by thumping the desk in disbelief when Aftab Habib, making his debut, was bowled by Chris Cairns to make it 40 for six (soon to become 45 for seven). Habib played once more for England, scoring 6 and 19 at Lord's before being dropped for ever with a Test average of 8.67 and a new-found reputation for gross negligence on and around off-stump.

Now news arrives that Habib was recently forced to retire during an innings because he was being sledged to hell and back. In itself, this is remarkable enough. But to discover that the incident took place during a club game in New Zealand is an indignity too far: if Margaret Thatcher felt sheepish after being roughed up in the Commons by Geoffrey Howe, imagine how Habib must feel after being driven from the field of play by a bunch of amateurs from a country where all the tough-nuts play rugby.

The three assailants reportedly believed Habib should have been given out caught behind, but when the umpire disagreed they surrounded the batsman and imparted their wisdom. "It was completely out of order," said Habib. "If I'd stayed batting, I felt it would have carried on because the umpires weren't dealing with it how I felt they should. And anyway, I should be established in the England middle order now, not squabbling with third-rate Kiwis." Well, he didn't say that last bit actually, but then he probably didn't need to.

Thanks Taranaki. Once again you have done your country proud.

Hooking kids on cricket

It is interesting to note that this initiative came from the Players' Association and not New Zealand Cricket. In principal the concept of taking international cricketers to talk to kids in low-decile schools is an entirely good idea, but it does make me wonder about the role of the Association. It seems a short step from the Players' Assocation doing promotional work like this, to the Players' Association controlling when and where players make any kind of "appearance". It would be tragedy if we were to end up with a situation like that in rugby and football, where all contact between players, the public and the media is heavily controlled and usually requires some kind of fee.

Tough journos

If you think Richard Boock can be harsh, you haven't seen Osman Samiuddin in action. Mohammad Yousuf (formally known as Yousuf Youhana) might have a test record which includes over 4000 runs, an average of 47 and 13 centuries, but that doesn't stop Osman from saying that he lacks substance and damning him with almost every word of this essay. Perhaps the lowest moment comes when he contrasts Yousuf's cameo ("and that is an insult to cameos the world over") in the thrilling first test against England with the determination shown in the same innings by ... Shoaib Akhtar.

Dan on top

Dan Vettori has told the Waikato Times that he wants to bat at the top of the New Zealand batting order. Sigh. Maybe as a pinch-hitter in the odd ODI Dan, but please, please, please can we have just one bowler who wants to concentrate on his blimmin' bowling?

Marshall's woes

If Richard Boock is the grumpy old man of New Zealand cricket, then the Black Caps website is the insanely cheery and optimistic fanboy. Hamish Marshall's problems must be heavy indeed if Black Caps are starting to diss him.

Another "Dad's Army" joke

Only this time the joke is Australia. Richard Boock will be pleased.

Oddly enough the author of this joke appears to be a bit of a grumpy old fuddy-duddy too. His hypothesis is that the Australian team is doomed (doomed, doomed!) because the state sides are all full of old lags hanging around because they get paid well and all the youngsters are off playing Aussie Rules instead.

The latter part of this argument is ironic, because Aussie Rules was originally designed as a game to keep cricketers fit during the winter (you will need to scroll down to "origins of the game").

Dan signs for Warwickshire

Dan Vettori has signed to spend the 2006 English season with the Mark Greatbatch coached Warwickshire. The interesting thing about this deal is that it covers the entire season - which makes it different from the contracts recently enjoyed by Scott Styris and Nathan Astle amongst others. Given the state of Dan's back, I am not entirely convinced this is a good thing.

Taranaki's shame

Blimmin' idiots. You'd think that of all the places in New Zealand, Taranaki - with its bloody history of inter-racial violence and hatred - would have learnt a little bit of tolerance and acceptance by now. If the local associations aren't going to act, I suggest that it is time New Zealand Cricket stepped in.