The Age Of Revolution

Ro's Review of the Season

2011-09-19T20:14:00.000+01:00

The summer is over, the cricket season finished. Well, unless you count the meaningless Twenty20s against West Indies at the end of this week, which not many people will. It's been a fabulous season to be and England fan, and a pretty awful season to be a Yorkshire fan, so I'll be looking back on the summer with mixed feelings.

On an international level, I couldn't have asked for any better. The glories of the test team have been written about plenty this summer, and it's true that if you'd told anyone at the start of the summer that India would be whitewashed in the test series you would have been laughed at. I think one of the defining qualities of the England team this summer has been their ability to never give up. From that first match in rainy Wales, where a Tremlett-led England bowled Sri Lanka out for 82 on the final day; the final ODI where Sri Lanka's last five wickets fell for 19 runs to hand England a series win; Prior and Broad recovering from 107-6 to build a match winning total in the first test against India; Broad and Swann carrying England to a respectable total in the second; the wicket of Tendulkar on 91 in the final test; and several occasions in the ODI series against India, my highlight being Jonny Bairstow's debut innings of 41 from 21 coming in when England were in trouble with 75 needed from 50 and two new batsmen at the crease. Much has been made of it being a golden summer for the batsmen, in particular Ian Bell and Alastair Cook, or how the bowling department has been so strong, but for me this has been one of the greatest qualities that the team has shown. There have been so many times I've seen them crumble under pressure, with Adelaide 2006 being one of the sorest memories, but now when I watch them I feel confident that someone will at some point step up and keep up the fight.

However, on the domestic scene, it probably couldn't have gone any worse for me. Yorkshire relegated, Lancashire county champions, and Surrey (who I wasn't keen on anyway before the Chris Adams 'incident') promoted and winners of the CB40. I won't be a completely bad loser, because both teams did play very well and deserved their wins and have promising young players who could do well for years to come, but I'm still pretty bitter. The highlight of the season for me was Leicestershire's victory in the Twenty20 Cup. A team written off from the beginning, bottom of division two in the County Championship and not being in the best shape financially, nobody expected them to get out of the group stage, let alone win the thing. But they had a team with spirit, and a strong mix of the talented young players (Taylor, Cobb), to the overseas pros (Razzaq, McDonald), experience (Hoggard, Jefferson) and the mighty Paul Nixon. They scraped through their first game on finals day through a super over, and were up against perennial runners-up Somerset. It looked like Somerset might shake off their record of coming second. It was not to be the case. An inspirational catch from Paul Nixon, in his last game in England, and some impressive bowling from Joshua Cobb was enough for a brilliant win and a brilliant story.

Yorkshire started brightly in the season with a heavy victory over Worcestershire. It didn't get any better from there. Big players such as Adil Rashid, Anthony McGrath and Ajmal Shahzad were out of form. Injuries hit as players reached their form of the previous season. Missing Rudolph and Bresnan made a big difference. The loss of the captain Gale towards the end of the season also had an impact even as much was lost, as although his captaincy wasn't always perfect, he led from the front with the bat. But for a lot of the time the team seemed to be lacking leadership from above. The Yorkshire chairman recently launched a scathing attack on the team this season, whilst implying that Martyn Moxon was for the most part free of blame for how the season turned out. Well yes, the players didn't perform to the standards they have set themselves in the past, but they aren't to blame for out of form players continually being picked ahead of those more deserving. Anthony McGrath is a case in point. He averaged 21.08 over the course of the season, and after not being at his best over the past few years, he can hardly be an automatic starter any more. Picking Gary Ballance earlier in the season may have helped get Yorkshire more batting points; as it was they didn't achieve the full amount in a single match.

Despite all the negatives, I do believe Yorkshire will be promoted next season, or at least I hope they will. This is largely the same team that came within touching distance of the County Championship in 2010 until that final day collapse to Kent, and the young players who have come into the team like Root and Ballance have been some of our best performers over the season. Re-signing Ryan Sidebottom has also been one of the success stories of Yorkshire's season. Sidebottom fulfilled his role as the senior pro brilliantly, and with Bresnan absent and the rest of the bowling attack struggling for form, he has been vital to the team. But for me the star of the season has been Jonny Bairstow. He has been one of the most reliable batsmen throughout the season and is ever improving. He has begun converting his fifties into big scores, improved behind the stumps and delivered eyecatching performances in one day cricket which have grabbed the attention of the England selectors. Less may be seen of him next year as his ODI debut will have him pencilled in for the England batting lineup, but he can play a big role for Yorkshire over the coming years. Bresnan gaining a central contract for England will also be a help - his wages will be freed up and money can hopefully spent on an overseas player, preferably Rudolph. So although it has been a terrible season for Yorkshire and lessons must be learnt, I still believe they can go straight back up. They have the talent to do so, they just can't let complacency be an issue for them.

So the summer draws to a close, and the winter rolls on. For England this includes an awful lot of ODIs and some tests in the new year which offer them a chance to defend their crown as the best team in the world. The real challenge will come next summer, when South Africa tour in what promises to be a tough contest. For Yorkshire, it could be another winter of discontent after the disaster of the summer. But for both teams I remain optimistic about how things will turn out. England are going from strength to strength and a tour of the subcontinent will prepare them well for the test series against India the following winter. As for Yorkshire, I still keep the faith that they can go straight back up, they just mustn't be complacent, pick the best team on merit rather than reputation and should aim to recapture their form from 2010.

Is this the real life? Or is this just fantasy?

2011-08-22T21:15:00.000+01:00

4-0 whitewash...top of the world rankings...they did it!

The previous day India had been bowled out in the first innings for 300, their highest score of the series. Dravid played an outstanding innings, carrying his bat with 146*. The rest of the batsmen didn't offer much support, only Mishra making it beyond 25. India had it all to do to save the gave the next day, especially with three of their best batsmen - Sehwag, Dravid and Laxman - out before the close of play. The legend Tendulkar had made it to the end of the day, still in search of the elusive 100th international century.

However, today, the last day of the series, they managed arguably their best session since arriving in England. Tendulkar and the nightwatchman Mishra batted through until lunch. It looked like India may be able to bat out a draw, and that Sachin would finally succeed and score that century everyone wanted to see. Mishra made it to 84 in the afternoon session, also looking like he was headed towards a century. But then he missed one from Swann that went on to hit the stumps. He had played so well up to this point that it came as a bit of a surprise. It was the beginning of the end for India.

Tendulkar, although not as fluent as he could be, was getting back to his best, looking like the player he is. He was giving chances however; England had dropped two catches he had offered. Then, on 91, he was struck on the pads by Bresnan. England appealed. Umpire Tucker raised his finger. England were ecstatic; India fans heartbroken. Sachin had come so close, and the crowd were waiting for history to be made. Hawkeye replays showed that, although if DRS was available it wouldn't have been overturned, the ball was just clipping the top of leg stump. A very brave decision indeed. It just wasn't to be for Tendulkar this time, though with the ODIs coming in the next few weeks he will have a good opportunity to reach his landmark.

India were now five down, and after such a long partnership between Tendulkar and Mishra being broken, England were on the up. Raina, after a duck in the first innings, was soon sent back with a pair. Replays showed he got an edge on his LBW but he could not review it. Broad struck twice in an over soon after to dismiss Dhoni and RP Singh. England were two wickets away from another innings victory and a 4-0 whitewash. Swann, so quiet all series on unfriendly pitches, finally was in perfect conditions and was looking as dangerous as ever. It was fitting that he took the last two wickets in a series when all bowlers have been successful. He soon picked them up: Gambhir for 3, Sreesanth for 6. He finished with figures of 6-106 to go with his three wickets in the first innings, and had won the match for England. India had gone from 262-3 to 283 all out, and England had proved why they were top of the world rankings.

So England have done it! At the start of the summer it seemed like a distant dream, and at the beginning of the series it looked like England were facing one of the biggest challenges of their careers. Nobody expected it to be this easy. India have had their troubles this series - injuries to key players such as Khan, Sehwag and Harbhajan certainly haven't helped them - but when compared to England it looks like some serious work needs to be done. Players have lacked fitness - perhaps playing in the IPL for the last few years has taken its toll. They've lacked match practice - a series in the West Indies just a couple of weeks before without some key players has tired some and left others unprepared. They needed more time in English conditions before the series to get used to the ball swinging and seaming around. The fielding looked in need of improvement, even accepting that older members in the team would not be so mobile. Dhoni's keeping hasn't been up to standard and can't have filled the players with confidence. And just to top it, the bowling - England have scored first innings totals of 474, 710, and 591 with a second innings score of 544 in the other test. Where England have almost endless strength in depth in this area, India have very little. Even in spin bowling, India's traditional strength, they were not up to standard - Harbhajan struggled whilst Mishra was ineffectual. Bad luck didn't help India, but neither did their preparation.

What next for England? Well, winning at home is one thing, but winning in the subcontinent is something else. To establish themselves as the number one team they will have to beat India in India, an opportunity they get next winter. This winter they will be playing Pakistan and Sri Lanka, who will provide them with the sort of conditions to expect for the challenge. Next year South Africa will be touring England, again giving them an opportunity to play against the second ranked (possibly first by this point) team in the world. South Africa have a bowling attack better suited to English conditions, and so it will be a tough test for England. Beating South Africa away will also be a tough challenge, although it will be a while until they tour there again. England can be very proud in their achievements so far, but must not rest. The chasers will become the chased and over the next year they will have to stay on the top of their game.

But all that's a long way away, so for now let's just celebrate the fact that England are officially the best test team in the world, and have just completed a brilliant and thoroughly deserved 4-0 series win. Yeah!

On Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, and the failures of the Indian batting lineup.

2011-08-20T21:31:00.001+01:00

All went smoothly in the test today for England, except perhaps the weather. Rain forced Andrew Strauss into making *shock horror* an attacking declaration (relatively speaking, they were still almost 600 runs ahead) and then India were five down by the end of the day. Pretty darn good then.

Ian Bell brought up his double century before too long in the morning, smoothly making it from 199 to 203 with a nice boundary. Three years ago, when he got his previous highest test score, it was 'typical Ian Bell' not to make it up to the double century, but he has improved so much as a player since then that it was never in any doubt. Back then he was the player who'd make runs when the team were doing well, looking pretty but crumbling under pressure. Now his technique is as pretty as ever - his classic late cut being particularly beautiful - but he has added the mindset needed to be a top player and to bat in tough situations, as well as appearing to have cracked the number three spot where he has underperformed in the past.

This brings me to Ravi Bopara, the 'old Ian Bell'. I like Bopara, I find him entertaining and he's fun to watch, but man he is frustrating. He definitely has the talent to succeed, and has been working hard to try and do so, but mentally it hasn't clicked for him yet. It's unfortunate that he's come into the team in a lose-lose situation - his main rival Eoin Morgan scored a century immediately before he came in to bat in the last test, and the man he's replacing is one of England's most successful batsmen of the past year. So if he fails, he can't win a place and if he scores runs, well everyone else in the team has before him. Today though, Morgan was out for one and so Bopara had a chance. After struggling at first - getting off strike with a streaky two - he did get better and made his way to 44* before rain triggered a declaration from Strauss. It may not be a world-beating innings - we've already had Pietersen and Bell before him - but it will show to him and the selectors that he can still compete at this level. He's unlikely to replace Morgan yet however, and will still be in close contention with James Taylor for the place as back up batsman. It's one thing to score runs when there's already 500 on the board but when you're struggling at 30-3 it's different. So it's a start, but he's still got a way to do to prove he deserves a regular spot, but more batting competition around the team can only be a good thing - just look at the pace attack.

Once again India's magnificent batting line up failed. Sehwag, still in desperate need of match practice, lasted longer than in the previous match, but only by five balls before falling to Anderson. Gambhir was out with concussion after nastily hitting his head attempting a catch yesterday, and so not available to bat. Laxman, normally a fighter, also fell early. Tendulkar seemed distracted throughout his innings, holding up play because of issues such as the reflection of a steward's badge. It was the sign of a man out of form. Maybe the 99 centuries is affecting him, it's such a huge landmark that may never be repeated, but he soon fell to Swann. Raina seemed to forget about scoring runs and just focused on not getting out. Not a good ploy. Swann dismissed him for a 29-ball duck. The nightwatchman Ishant Sharma also went before the end of the day. Dravid as ever remained fighting, still in on 57* on the end of the day. Dhoni was also in at the end after finding form in the past test through luck rather than anything. They are two batsmen to be showing any sign of form, so let's hope they can keep on battling for a while in this test for cricket's sake. Because the way things are going for England, it could easily be all over tomorrow.

Making hay whilst the sun shines

2011-08-19T20:29:00.000+01:00

Today I am a lot happier than yesterday. It may be to do with the weather; when it's dark, cold and rainy in the summer I get pretty miserable, but today the sun was shining, the cricket was on, and so I was in a much better mood. I may have just been inside at home all day, but hey, I've known for a long time that I don't have much of a social life.

So in the first hour of play it looked like the Indian team might, you know, be up for the fight today. By the end of the day it really wasn't so. But they started well, Sharma was bowling particularly well, and both Cook and Strauss went early on. Then Bell and Pietersen were together at the crease. And it stayed that way. For a long, long time. The two batsmen are a pair of entertainers, in their different ways. Bell, with the beautiful, perfect technique and Pietersen, this summer back to his switch-hitting best. A lot has been said in the press recently about the batsmen scoring 'daddy' hundreds, scores over 150, and they didn't fail to deliver after reaching their centuries. Pietersen was dismissed shortly before the close of play, but by this point - 350 runs since the last wicket, 175 coming from him - England were well on top and look well set for a series whitewash. Bell finished with the day with 181* and will be in a good position to beat his previous test best score of 199, and he deserves to after the way he's played.

Tomorrow I'd like to see England come out on the attack, they have naturally talented and aggressive batsmen to come in Morgan, Bopara and Prior who can really pile up the runs at a speed once settled. They've already amassed a large total at a quick rate and so if they bat for about another session they should be able to score around six hundred, and then make a declaration before too long. The pitch should do a bit for Swann which will be a bonus with all the pace bowlers fully firing. The game could still be affected by weather so I don't think it's a time to hang about really, just bat another session to make the Indians suffer and then go out and attack with the bowling attack. Whatever may happen though, it promises to be as an entertaining day as today has been.

Here comes the rain again...

2011-08-18T20:58:00.000+01:00

We've had a couple of nice days of weather, so naturally on the first day of the test the heavens open and not a lot really happens. And looking at the forecast for my area (a little bit north of London), there could be a fair bit on its way over the next few days as well. *sigh* Well hopefully it won't be that bad, the forecasts change from day to day, although thunderstorms for Sunday doesn't promise much. All I can do then is hope for the best, because the way India have been playing this series, it wouldn't surprise me if they still lost even if a lot of play was lost.

It's kind of a shame really that they haven't done better, even though I enjoy watching England being all dominant after having to suffer the reverse for much of my life. I know it's very English to be complaining even if you are number one and winning easily, but after all the series build up, the top two sides in the world playing each other, I'd have liked it to be a bit closer and more exciting. The Indians have struggled with injuries and a lack of match practice; if Zaheer had been fully fit for all four tests things could be different, and several batsmen have looked a few games from finding form. I mustn't complain though because I am so happy with the way things are going currently. Andy Flower deserves a medal for taking a team in disarray in 2009, being 51 all out against the West Indies, to top of the world and crushing their closest rival. Strauss and Flower seem like such a perfect pairing, and you can tell it's a real team effort with all the coaching staff and the players. I'm just so proud and pleased that the team I love is doing so well.

With the lack of international cricket going on today, my main focus has been on my county, Yorkshire. After doing very well with a young team last year, this year they have been struggling although they are still a talented group of players. They took the last five wickets of the innings fairly quickly to dismiss Sussex for just under 400, with Sidebottom taking five overall. Then Joe Root, playing his first full season, hit his maiden first class century to put Yorkshire in a decent position at the end of the day. Now's hoping for a positive result in our favour, which have been hard to come by this season.

And finally, congratulations to everybody who got their A Level results today. Whatever your next steps are, from university to work, I wish you the best of luck in your future.

Ro xx

Okay so I started another blog

2011-08-17T20:24:00.000+01:00

I've done one before. Hopefully I'm more interesting this time.

So basically it's summer, so I'm at home with not a lot to do. Instead of partying and socialising and stuff that normal young people apparently do in the holidays I tend to be at home on my computer on most nights, so I thought I'd start a blog to help relieve me of my boredom. I'm probably going to mostly write about cricket, because I find that the easiest thing for me to write about because there's always a lot going on that I have an opinion on and stuff. This will probably the home of longer posts than what I write on my tumblr, because I always worry that if I ramble on too long people won't know what I'm on about as not a great deal of people I know on there are interested in the sport, or even know it (although I find the ones that do seem to be more chatty, and very nice). And, well, I ramble a lot.

A little about me then. Well, my name is Rowena, and I'm currently studying for my A Levels. I am, as I said above, a cricket fanatic and I support England internationally and Yorkshire domestically. My main other interests are music and photography. I love finding new music to listen to of various genres, but mostly I listen to alternative rock/'indie' and folk. I play the guitar and I attempt to write songs on it (of varying quality), which I would record but I lack any equipment with which to do so. I'm currently doing a 'project365' which is where you take a photo on every day of the year, which is tough but fun and I'm pretty proud of it so far even if not all my photos are brilliant. My blog name is a reference to the band 'The Duckworth Lewis Method' who made an album of songs about cricket, and I stole the name of one for my title.

Hmm, yeah. I can't think of much else to say at the moment, though with the last test of the England vs India series coming up tomorrow I probably will write a fair bit this week. It may not last beyond then because I'm hopeless with internet accounts, but hopefully I'll come up with something interesting on here in the two weeks before I forget about it and it fades away to another lost corner of the web.

Ro x