Bangladesh soccer - An open letter to Kazi Salahuddin

Sir,

Cricket might be the premium sports at the moment in Bangladesh, but we are well aware of the fact that once upon a time, in our country, soccer used to rule the rooster. Various soccer tournaments used to trigger immense amount of excitement among the Bangladeshis and the jam-packed stadium was a symbol of Bangladesh’s interest about soccer.

Sadly, those days are nothing but a sweet memory now. In course of time, the sky high popularity of Bangladesh soccer has faded away and at present, cricket is the darling of the people of Bangladesh. Lack of proper management capabilities, inappropriate branding of our soccer and time and again pathetic results have led to the downfall of our soccer.

Even our cricket team’s results are not something praiseworthy but cricket has served as a fantastic medium to advertise Bangladesh in abroad – many people in abroad know Bangladesh because of our cricket team and because of gaining the coveted Test status our cricket have been able to attract the sponsors whereas, so far, the story of our soccer has been pathetic.

But I can’t say that the passion for soccer has ebbed away from Bangladesh yet. Young generation is extremely interested about soccer and they keep themselves updated about international soccer. Moreover, through Facebook, we come to know that our young generation is very much updated about our local soccer as well. But they are unable to quench their thirst as because our Soccer Leagues are very much irregular and gets a poor media coverage.       

But sir, after you took over as the role of Bangladesh Football Federation President, the football followers of Bangladesh have started to dream big. They believe that you will rekindle Bangladesh soccer’s glorious past.

Inviting Argentina and Nigeria to play in Bangladesh has been a very encouraging move by you and we people salute you for this. Such a move will give Bangladesh soccer a big boost.

Your move has made the soccer followers of Bangladesh very happy, especially the Argentine followers. But sir, what about the Brazilian supporters of Bangladesh?

You know very well that in Bangladesh, majority of the soccer followers are either Brazil or Argentina supporters. Being a die hard follower of the Selecao, I wholeheartedly welcome the Argentina soccer team, but in the deepest corners of my heart there is a wish – the wish to see the Samba Boys in action at Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka.

Sir, if Messi and his men can be invited here then why not Neymar and co? There are plenty of Brazilain supporters in Bangladesh who are very much eager to see their favourite Brazilian players in Dhaka.

I hope sir, one day; you will invite the Selecao in Dhaka as well. It’s a request from the Selecao fans.

Yours truly,

Faisal Caesar

A Bangladeshi and die hard fan of Selecao

England v India - England have bowlers who have the skills and fitness to revive ‘Chin Music’

In the recently-concluded Test series between India and England, more than the batting feats of Rahul Dravid, Kevin Pietersen or Ian Bell, it was the domination of ball over bat which was most heartening. There was a glimmer of hope that the era of pace and swing bowling will revive again.

After the retirements of Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Curtly Ambrose, Allan Donald and Courtney Walsh, cricket had lost its thrill. The focus had shifted to marauders like Adam Gilchrist and Virender Sehwag. It’s not that there were no fast men around, but sadly there is none in the mould of an Akram or Ambrose. Glenn McGrath dominated, but he was too mechanical and not the kind who would create adrenalin rush.

It was almost boring to watch runs scored in the last decade as bowlers went on the defensive. There had been the occasional blitz from Shoaib Akhtar, Steve Harmison and Andrew Flintoff, but such moments were fleeting. The last decade saw the death of the fast men.

While people in the last decade rejoiced in the splendour of stroke play, bowling seemed to have become more stereotyped and less glamorous pursuit. It was all about nagging in the “the corridor”, “the channel” and “getting it in the right areas” rather than letting it rip.

The overdose of limited-overs cricket had an adverse impact and then T20 just let the bowlers forced to cut down swing and pace. Bowling in Test and limited-over cricket is far different than those of Test and ODI batting.

Test cricket arena was sorely missing the likes of Akram and Ambrose.

The defensive mindset of fast bowlers in contemporary is irritating for connoisseurs of fast bowing like me. Akram or Ambrose, too, played ODI cricket, but they never compromised in executing skills. One was yearning to see quality swing and pace.

The arrival of Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif brought in much-needed joy to see the thrills of fast bowling. Balls pitched on length allied with movement made Asif a feared bowler while the bustling, energetic and charismatic qualities of Mohammad Amir occupied a special place in my heart. Amir had pace and he applied skill and brains. Both of them did not compromise on applying skills even in the limited version of the game and that’s why the duo was being hugely feared. Sadly, cricket lost them in unfortunate circumstances.

Dale Steyn, who has the ability to move the ball even on dead, is one to watch out. He is not someone who goes on the defensive. Then there is the slinger Lasith Malinga with deadly yorkers. What a terrific package he would have been if he continued playing Test cricket! Malinga’s absence just made Test cricket poorer.

Mitchell Johnson has pace, if not movement. But he lacks consistency. Shaun Tait generates pace, he cannot be relied upon for the longer versions.

Zaheer Khan has pace and movement, but lacks in fitness.

But England have bowlers who the skills and fitness to revive ‘Chin Music’. In the Test series against India, James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Tim Bresnan exhibited top quality pace and movement. India had Ishant Sharma and Praveen Kumar, but they did not have the attacking mindset of the English bowlers to capitalize on the helpful conditions.

The English bowlers unleashed the joy of pace bowling along with astonishing movement only because they didn’t compromise with a defensive mindset which most of the fast men do nowadays — the ill-effect of excessive T20 cricket.

Broad pitched it up and then swung with astonishing pace, while Anderson banged the ball short to send shiver down the Indian batsmen’s spine. Bresnan was the perfect foil for Broad and Anderson.

Credit must also go to Andrew Strauss who never told his bowlers to go defensive and set his fast bowlers set free to prey upon like hungry tigers.

Note: This article has been published in Cricket Country on 28/08/2011http://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/england-have-bowlers-who-have-the-skills-and-fitness-to-revive-chin-music-5058

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

We want back the Jogo Bonito!

The brilliant Brazilian side of 1982

The last time the world witnessed Brazil at their lethal best was way back in the World Cup 1982 in Spain. During the 70s Brazil were found struggling to fill the gaps of Pele, Gerson, Tostao and Cralos Alberto. Players like Rivelino and Jairzinho were still around, but they failed to enlighten the spirit of ‘Jogo Bonito’.

As the 80s approached, Brazil got back their lost mojo and dished out amazing soccer displays which were a treat for the football lovers. During the World Cup 1982 in Spain, Brazil were playing as a team from different planet. They were beautifully ruthless.

Tele Santana’s men had rekindled the spirit of Jogo Bonito - rhythmic, uncongealed and constantly interchanging midfield made up of Zico, Socrates and Falcão had mesmerized and bamboozled the best of defences in the tournament.

Tournament’s most balanced side, the Soviet Unions were halted by the magic of Socartes and Eder, a threatening Scotland had been beaten 4-1, New Zealand were thrashed 4-0 and the defending champions Argentina were botched 3-1, the last leading to a frustrated Diego Maradona getting himself sent off.

The death of Jogo Bonito

In the next encounter, Brazil needed only a draw against the tournament’s most disorganized side Italy. Italy were given no chance against that red-hot Brazilian side as because throughout the tournament till the second round stage, they were never at their best – a shaky defence, disorganized midfield and with a striker like Paolo Rossi, who had just returned after serving two-year ban, everybody’s question was how many goals this Italian side would digest against Brazil?  

But when the game had started, it was a different story altogether. Within five minutes that no-hopper striker Paolo Rossi had given Italy the lead. A classic Zico-Socrates combination helped Brazil to equalize, but in the 25^th minute, Rossi had given Italy the lead again courtesy of a defensive error made by Toninio Cerezo.

Throughout the second-half it was all about Brazil vs Italy’s 40-year old goalkeeper Dino Zoff. The Brazilian players continued to produce attack after attack, but all of them were halted by Dino Zoff. While Italy’s rough-and-tough defender Claudio Gentile was instrumental in keeping Zico quiet by applying the same which he applied against Maradona in the previous game. Still, Eder, Socrates, Junior and Falcao were a constant threat for Italy.

In the 68^th minute, Falcao leveled the score with a fierce drive from the outside of the box. What Brazil needed to do after that Falcao goal was nothing but defending, but Tele Santana’s Brazil emphasized more on attacking spectacular football. Paolo Rossi had scored his third and Brazil were out of the tournament triggering a massive shock wave.

That shocking defeat against Italy had scripted the death of Jogo Bonito. As Zico said, “the day football died”.    

Brazilian football started to change

  

Since then, the next generation of Brazilian coaches started to give more importance on effective but less spectacular football. Such a ploy proved productive as Brazil broke the hoodoo of World Cups and went on to win the 1994 and 2002 tournaments.

Gradually, Brazil’s traditional style of playing football has ebbed away and at present it has been overtaken by the European style. Brazil did produce players like Romario, Bebeto, Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho; but they were far away from exhibiting the Samba-style-of-football. On rare occasions, you could see them to light up a game with the brilliance of Samba, but in fact, the ‘Jogo Bonito’ was dead.

Playing in the European clubs has hampered Jogo Bonito?

One of the most important reasons behind this has been, Brazilians and many other Latin American teams now fly for Europe’s top clubs rather than featuring more in their domestic Leagues. Such moves are a must these days as because Europe offers more money, fame and world wide reorganization and if a player doesn’t play in Europe then he simply can’t develop himself as a champion in modern day football. The best examples are Romario, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi.

Even before getting matured, promising Brazilian and other Latin players fly for Europe and for which they simply fail to understand their philosophy of playing football. In course of time they find it tougher to emulate the traditional Samba style of playing football and in fact, that style remains as an occasional-flash only.

Don’t forget that, ten of Brazil’s 1982 starting eleven played in their own Leagues and because of that reason that Brazil team was able to exhibit extraordinary football which one can only dream of.

Legendary Socrates has said, “Even though it is often subconscious, we now try and copy European pragmatism. Our game has become more rational and tactically rigid”. He then added, “With the best Brazilian players signing up for European clubs at an earlier age than ever before, they find it easier to pick up the habits of a society that is more mature and settled”.

Should traveling to Europe be blamed?

Is traveling to Europe hampered Brazil’s traditional way of playing football? Should Brazil stop their players from traveling to Europe? If European style has hampered Jogo Bonito then how can Spain display such a beautiful way of playing football?

Certainly Spain are playing the way which Socrates and Zico used to play. The Spanish side is maintaining an ideal balance between their attacking and defensive motives. If Spain can then why can’t Brazil?

About the Brazilian coaches since 1982

I think the Brazilian coaches since 1982 have only focused on productive results only for the sake of spectacle. Lazaroni, the coach of Brazil team during the Italia 90 was a pragmatic one and Carlos Alberto Pereira and Luiz Felipe Scolari had been the same category of coaches, while Carlos Dunga had been heavily pragmatic and had taken Brazilian football’s true spirit into the grave yards.

After Dunga’s exit, Mano Menezes took over and it was expected that he will bring back Brazil’s lost art. But sadly, despite having a bunch of talented players, Mano is finding it tough to organize his men in an appropriate manner. He is a confused coach. He is not sure whether he will continue the European style of play or switch to Brazil’s traditional football.

Brazil football’s current state is pathetic

At present the Brazilian team is blessed with players like Neymar, Pato, Oscar, Ganso, Dani Alves, David Luiz and co who are outstanding talents and are destined to achieve greatness. With such players in a side, we fans expect that Brazil will relive the spirit of Jogo Bonito.

But sadly, it’s not happening. Brazil football’s current state is pathetic. They are a struggling side and finding it tough to carry on the legacy of their past masters. It’s all because Brazil lack a competent coach and as a coach, so far, Mano Menzes has been frustrating.

We want back the Jogo Bonito

But in my opinion, the best way is to dish out an ideal balance between European way and traditional Brazilian way – the one the Spanish side is playing at the moment (how low can you get! These days the Brazilians have to follow Spain). But the spectacular aspect of Brazilian football should be the heart and soul and it must be rekindled. And for this, Brazil need to recruit a competent coach. Mano Menzes is not the man.

We want back the Jogo Bonito!

Thank You

Faisal Caesar   

England v India - The English heroes

It was supposed to be the most competitive Test series of this year, but in the end it turned out to be an absolute nightmare for the current world champions and number one Test team in the world, India. The Indians were completely outclassed by England, and surely it’s none but England who deserves to be the number one Test team in the world.

Such an emphatic display was possible for England because of those players whose individual charisma outplayed India.

Stuart Broad

Stuart Broad is the ultimate English hero at present. Just before the start of this series, against Sri Lanka, he fared poorly, but the criterion of a champion is to hit back strongly when the chips are down and that’s what Broad did.

Captain Andrew Strauss had kept faith in him and wanted him to deliver the best with the ball. His stupendous bowling display had left the best batting line-up in the world in complete disarray.

He swung it will and that too with extravagant pace and this had been a joy to watch. Not only with the ball, but when the situation demanded, Broad contributed with the bat as well.

James Anderson

James Anderson had taken swing bowling it to a new level throughout the series. Like Broad, Anderson was highly deceptive. At times Anderson resembled like John Snow. It seemed that there were firecrackers in his delivery stride. Anderson and Broad were both devastating.

Kevin Pietersen

Kevin Pietersen’s bat had been quiet but a champion loves the biggest contest and at the right moment KP gave the sucker-punch with his bat. He innovative batting display had put a scar in the Indian bowlers’ mind while his strokes all round the park, majority of them coming from the middle of the bat, had dented the Indian bowlers’ confidence.

Jonathan Trott

On the other hand, Jonathan Trott’s Kallis like batting had been water shed in the English fairy tale. He would tap, tap and tap and then would go for the runs. He would poke, prod, nudge and collect runs from nowhere and this was what made the Indians impatient and frustrated.

Eoin Morgan

The modern day wonder Eoin Morgan is the crouching tiger. He would crouch and wait for the prey and then going to kill the line and length of the bowlers with astonishing innovations which put nails on the purists’ heads. Though not had been instrumental, but certainly had given some killer punches to the Indian psyche.

Tim Bresnan

Tim Bresnan was not in the scene, but when he entered, he just took the world by storm. At first his bowling, which was accurate and consisted swing, bamboozled the best batting line-up and then it was his willow which just sliced the Indian bowlers again to take their confidence at zero level. And like Broad, Bresnan had been instrumental in picking up the wickets at the right time.

Ian Bell

Ian Bell is having the form of a lifetime. His bat, these days, can never be found dull. But it is busy in essaying productive knocks for England and throughout the series he had been the most consistent run scorer for England. 

Matt Prior

Matt Prior seems to me the unsung hero, but have a look at his contribution with the bat in crunch situations! At Lord’s suddenly Isant’s tail was wagging, but Prior’s bat and Broad’s determination just mauled the Indians. Prior is the sting in the English tail. So had been Stuart Broad. Whenever the top order wobbled these two would bring out the best for England. Again, in terms of taking crucial catches, Prior had been out and out a class act.

Graeme Swann and Alastair Cook

Graeme Swann and Alastair Cook took long to blossom, but when they did come out of the shell, things were sweeter for England.  At Trent Bridge Cook’s knock was a mountain without any peaks, but it was the knock to dent the Indian bowling who in the second morning looked sharp. Not all innings need flair, but they need patience also to dent the opposition.

Swann came back at the Oval. His main focus had been line and length but he shun that and focused to turn it more and he had been rewarded as he snaked through the Indian defence and conveyed them a message that he is not Warne but he is Swann, Graeme Swann.

Andrew Strauss

But none can be a greater hero than the skipper Andrew Strauss, whose captaincy had been lively, spontaneous, attacking and full of imaginative and intelligent ideas. Strauss’ bat didn’t talk, but with his captaincy he always had the upper hand over his opponent.  

England are looking all set to dominate this decade. But they still have to prove many things, especially in the subcontinent. But at present, it’s time to rejoice the moment of glory.

All hail the English heroes!

Thank You

Faisal Caesar

Shakib Al Hasan's arrogance is hurting Bangladesh cricket, but.....

Over the last week, the hottest topic in town has been the arrogant behaviour of Bangladeshi youth icon Shakib Al Hasan. Bangladesh media is hinting at a change in captaincy which, according to me, isn’t the solution.

In 2009, the cricketing world discovered a smiling boy from Magura rising to the top of ICC ODI rankings and also claiming a place in the ICC Test bowling rankings. He displayed the character of a champion and the vision of a leader and in course of time brought success to Bangladesh cricket.

Shakib gave Bangladesh cricket the new idea of high-performance programme to be reinstated and his ideas about first-class structure were encouraging. He is a rare breed personality who doesn’t hesitate to be self-critical after getting a four-wicket haul or after scoring a half-century by saying he should have gone on to score a hundred. Shakib’s dynamism comes like a breath of fresh air to Bangladesh cricket – an icon for the next generation.

If there is one thing disturbing about Shakib it’s his off-field actions. Before the start of the Zimbabwe tour he was at loggerheads with the national team selectors and painted them as liars. During the tour, he disallowed the entry of the former captain and now one of the selectors, Habibul Bashar to enter into the dressing room. He got into a tussle with the selectors yet again when he disagreed to include Ashraful in the Test match. Though his own performance is good, he is unable to inspire his men as he is almost aloof.

At 24, Shakib has earned name, fame and money. But the trappings of success have gone into his immature head and made him arrogant. Consequently, it’s affecting the team’s performance.

Srinivasan Narayanan, a cerebral cricket connoisseur and a writer with cricketcountry, opined: “Asian cricket often encounters a double-edged weapon. Boards do not shy away from inducting very young players into international cricket. Yet they do not have a mentoring system in place which helps these young men to deal with success, failure, popularity and criticism and, in general, priorities and long-term approach. To me Shakib’s remark only indicates the absence of a good mentoring system. Address the root cause. In good time such incidents as this will get minimized if not eliminated altogether.”

I firmly agree with that. If Shakib’s arrogance is creating a problem for Bangladesh cricket then it’s not something that cannot be solved.

In Bangladesh cricket it was Habibul Bashar who started writing the essay of success in our country and he handled his success with utmost maturity. Shakib might have been arrogant towards him, but as a senior it is also the duty of seniors like Bashar to guide youngsters like Shakib to go on the right path. Confabulation, rather than confrontation, is the way to go about.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) must have a good monitoring system at the grass-root level that will teach young players how to handle the pitfalls of success. They should be exposed to the lives of exemplary cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar, Imran Khan, Clive Lloyd, Don Bradman and Gary Sobers. They need to be taught about the right attitude while representing the nation as a player.

Shakib is still the best man to lead the Bangladesh cricket team and Bangladesh must to everything to take remedial measures for Shaikb and the team to get on the winning track.

Note: This article has been published in Cricket Country on 22/08/2014 http://www.cricketcountry.com/articles/shakib-al-hasan-s-arrogance-hurting-bangladesh-cricket-but-4860

Thank You

Faisal Caesar

Mayhem on a flat Oval deck

England thought of preparing a flat deck at the Oval during the fifth Test in 1976 to neutralize Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Vanburn Holder, and Wayner Daniel. 

The Englishmen were battered and bruised in the previous Test matches and the only way to save the Blackwash was to frustrate the West Indian pace attack with a flat deck. 

But Windies Cricket, under Clive Lloyd, had decided to make England suffer for their controversial remark before the tour that would create a psychological impact for almost two decades. 

On a flat deck, Sir Vivian Richards had batted England out of the match, and when the West Indian pacers came out to bowl it was time to experience the nightmare of the Whispering Death - Michael Holding. 

On a dead track, Lloyd’s decision to go in with four pace bowlers was questioned by a lot of experts, who still were trying to get a grip on the 4-men pace attack. 

On Day 4 - Holding demonstrated that with the ball traveling with the speed of a rocket through the air, the condition of the deck hardly mattered - Holding's eight first innings wickets were either bowled or leg before.

When Holding knocked out Tony Greig, a horde of jubilant West Indian fans ran into the ground in a frenzy of celebration. 

“Before he came in they were bowling at a nice pace of about 85 mph, but when Tony came to the wicket it went up to about 90 and three bouncers and over. I’ve never been as pleased to see an England captain bowled," said Dennis Amiss. 

“I was 22 years old and just ran in and bowled. I didn’t even think about the conditions — you don’t at that age. I tried to bowl as accurately as possible because there was no way I could bowl a bouncer. I was getting good inswing and I kept the ball full. It was my best Test as far as figures are concerned, but I bowled better than that in different circumstances. At The Oval it was simple: bowl fast and bowl full,” Holding said.

Leading by 252, Lloyd decided not to enforce the follow-on thinking that Holding needed a rest, and Daniel was injured. 

Roy Fredericks and Gordon Greenidge, yet again, started murdering the English bowlers mercilessly, adding 182 in just 32 overs - the innings was declared. 

That was the famed period of play when Tony Greig approached the biggest West Indian section of the crowd, got on his knees, and with a gesture famously captured on camera, tendered an apology for his pre-series statement.

On Day 5 - England experienced a nightmare in a broad daylight! 

Holding was faster than Day 4 - as if a modern-day spaceship was traveling fast into the galaxies in search of new adventures. Even the speed of light would fail to hold a candle to the merciless and fearsome pace of Holding on the final day. 

Within the first few minutes on the final day, he had induced snicks from the openers and had knocked over the stumps of John Balderstone.

Once Peter Wiley had succumbed to Holder, captain Greig came in to bat for the last time in the series. And Holding knocked him out again - a fast yorker that sent the stump out of the ground! 

Alan Knott battled hard to reach his second fifty of the match before Holding sent his middle stump on a protracted cartwheel. 

The final nail in the coffin was drilled when the hapless Bob Willis, carrying a bat more to preserve tradition than score runs, was trapped plumb. Holding finished with 6 for 57, following his first innings haul of 8 for 92 — 14 wickets in the match, 9 of them bowled and 3 leg-before.

“I don’t remember them bowling any bouncers because of the pitch. Holding just bowled fast from the Vauxhall End and he bowled straight. It proved his rank as one of the greatest bowlers in Test cricket. It is hard to overestimate how well he bowled. It was fast. It was straight. It was accurate. It was awesome,” said Mike Selvey. 

Thank You

Faisal Caesar 

England v India - Indian Premier League is the culprit behind India's dismal show in England

Over the last ten years, one factor which is the reason behind India’s rise to the top has been their ability to fight amid stifling circumstances. But the spineless exhibition at Edgbaston has certainly dented the hopes and aspirations of billions of Indian fans and followers. 

What might be reason behind the men in blue’s such a dismal show in England so far? There might be various explanations. The Indian team was clearly out of focus and especially the batsmen were not in mood to play Test cricket.

But why the mood to play Test cricket was not there? The Indian team’s batting line-up is the best in the world. But still, why such a pathetic batting display?

In my opinion, the cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL) is the culprit behind the Indian batsmen’s poor show in England. How can you focus yourself to play Test cricket when your mind still haven’t recovered from that format of the game which is not cricket at all – it’s only a tool of entertainment.

 If we observe the Indian batsmen’s approach in the Test series so far, except for Dravid or Laxman, we can notice the eagerness to play too many strokes which were unnecessary when the situation didn’t demand. By and large, though, the notion of staying at the crease for a long haul and batting all day like Sunil Gavaskar didn’t seem to be a part of the Indian batsmen’s mental make-up. In contrast, the English batsmen shun flair and sticked to what Gavaskar or Boycott used to do during first session of the day’s play.

I was astonished to notice even the caliber of a player like Tendulkar’s feet didn’t move enough and he could hardly play on the back-foot whereas, Sachin is both comfortable on the front and back foot. Then why was Tendulkar struggling to play on the back foot?

To counter the movement of the ball soft hands and astute foot-works are needed and sadly other than Dravid hardly any Indian batsmen executed an appropriate batting temperament. There had been entertaining knocks, but those are for circus shows and do not fit in Test cricket.

The Indian batsmen were trapped in the IPL zone. In Twenty20 cricket one doesn’t need much technique or enough character to script an innings and even a loose-shot might fetch a boundary. So, such approaches dent the Test mood and sadly, the Indian team’s batsmen Test mood had been dented by the IPL.

Again, before a big series it is very important that the main players remain fresh and fit. After playing long tournaments like IPL most of the senior members of the Indian team got injured and it certainly did affect the team’s performance a lot. And when the morale is down no matter how much you try nothing happens. Directly, the injuries to Zaheer Khan and Sehwag are related to IPL. Again, there had been evidence of fatigue among the Indian players. How badly, the IPL has affected the Indian team!

The batting failure let the bowlers down who did give India some fine moments and then the fielders were simply like school kids whose lackluster approach made India to suffer. Even the captain was found out of focus and out of form. Dhoni’s focus was dented due to continuous playing of cricket without any rest and he seemed totally aloof from his men - World Cup and then the IPL without much rest after the World Cup and then the West Indies tour. After all, these players are not robots. 

You people will never point your finger towards the IPL. But this IPL is the actual culprit behind India’s dismal performance in England.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar

Zimbabwe v Bangladesh - The Tigers simply don't feel defeated

I didn't say earlier that Zimbabwe might surprise our team and certainly they did leave the Tigers stunned. 

The condition of Zimbabwe’s cricket had been shoddy. Political interventions had destabilized the country’s cricket and gradually it had lost all the glories which they earned through spirited performances till 2003. Due to the poor conditions of their cricket, in 2005, Zimbabwe took a leave from Test cricket to recharge their cricket. Gradually, they started to develop themselves as a Test team and certainly, they have returned with a bang!

Bangladesh were the opponents of Zimbabwe for the one-off Test match. The Tigers were in a much better shape than Zimbabwe and they were the favorites against the hosts. The Test against Zimbabwe was not supposed to be a stiffer challenge as because over the years, Bangladesh as a team have done well and quite a few successes had made this team a confident unit.

The Harare track was almost like the subcontinetal tracks and it suited more the visitors than hosts. But astonishingly, the Tigers have gifted heartaches. 

Bangladesh simply didn't play like a unit. They played without any plans. The Bangladeshi pace bowlers were wayward while the spinners lacked the bite to test the Zimbabwean batters. Shakib as a captain looked extremely down. I was not impressed with Shakib’s field setting as he allowed too easy many singles which helped the Zimbabweans to settle down. Shakib is a very attacking captain and a good thinker of the game, but surprisingly, it seemed that he was not enjoying out there in the middle. 

But the most horrendous show was put up by our batsmen. Their manner of dismissals had simply left me ashamed. Eleven years have passed and still our batsmen haven’t learned how to bat in test cricket. No nag to spend time at the crease, but more interested in slash-hard type batting which can never be the right option in test cricket.

In my opinion, our preparation for the Zimbabwe Test match had flaws. First of all we took the series lightly. Secondly, our star performers should have played longer version games more rather than cashing on T20 cricket. The bad effect of T20 cricket was evident among our batsmen.

Our cricketers simply don’t feel defeated by such defeats. They never learn from such defeats. This one-off Test match should not have been lost against a side who were much lesser experienced than us. But, the Zimbabweans have won the match only because of our lackluster approach.

In any form of the game there is no place of a lackluster attitude and in Test cricket the focus must always be superb. But sadly, our team remains Test cricket’s poorest students.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar

A session with Imran Khan can benefit Dhoni in a big way

The current Indian team is in troubled waters. The team is being plagued by injuries to their premium fast bowler Zaheer Khan, opening batsmen Gambhir and Virender Sehwag and the lack of form of their some of the frontline batsmen. Their No1 spinner, Harbhajan Singh, is going through a bad patch while the team’s captain is horribly out of form with lack of imagination and bite in his captaincy.

A captain must lead from the front. And it is very important for his men as it is his brilliance which inspires the others in his team. A beleaguered captain does no good for the team’s morale.

Dhoni’s form with the bat is also going through the horrors. In sharp contrast, Dhoni’s counterpart - Matt Prior - has been brilliant in that No 7 position and has shown how a team’s morale can be raised with some defining knocks. Dhoni's sequence in the last eight innings reads: 5, 16, 28, 74, 5, 2, 16 & 0.

One might say that Andrew Strauss’ form is no better than Dhoni, but still Strauss is making his team perform through imaginative leadership. In contrast, Dhoni’s captaincy is flawed. He seems lost and disconnected with. His body language looks that of a beaten man.

Dhoni could claim that the third day pitch was more benign and tailor-made for the batsmen, but some of his decision-making behind played a contributory role. Throughout a listless afternoon session, he persisted far too long with the off-colour Harbahjan.

Every sports person goes through lean patches. It’s a time like these that one must seek counsel from the right kind of people. I would like to see Dhoni have a talk with Imran Khan, a leader par excellence who always brought the best out of him in adverse circumstances.

Dhoni is still the finest captain to lead India and a session with the cerebral Imran may just be the tonic he needs to effect a turnaround.

Note: This article has been published in Cricket Country on 03/08/2011 A session with Imran Khan can benefit Dhoni in a big way

Thank You
Faisal Caesar 

Zimbabwe v Bangladesh - Zimbabwe might surprise Bangladesh!

The Zimbabwe tour has not started the way the touring sides wish to start. Normally, an experienced Test team is expected to start the tour on a winning note by essaying victories in the warm up games. But sadly, the Tigers have started the Zimbabwe tour by losing against a side – the Zimbabwe XI – who were weaker than them. Not the perfect way to start a tour where the Tigers are favourites to win.  

The headache of Shakib and Stuart law is the batting. In both innings the Bangladeshi batsmen had failed to deliver the goods. A long break from Test cricket and too much engagement with limited-overs cricket have been the excuses. But don’t forget that, Zimbabwe’s situation has been worse than any Test playing nation – they have returned to play Test cricket after a long hibernation. In that sense, it was them and not Bangladesh who should have suffered from lack of temperament. 

Bangladesh’s main problem is their lack of interest in occupying the crease. In Test cricket, spending more time at the crease is a must. Otherwise, it’s tough to exist in this topsy-turvy world of Test cricket. Sadly, Bangladesh still haven’t learned to occupy the crease despite spending eleven years in Test cricket.

Players like Mohammad Ashraful and Junaid Siddique have played longer version games against South Africa A while Imrul Kayes and Shahriar Nafees had been in fine form in the domestic games as well. But none of the above mentioned names exhibited any sort of Test temperament in the tour match. Above all, the captain Shakib Al Hasan still hasn’t overcome his poor batting form. The bad effect of Twenty20 cricket is still evident in his batting. Had Mushfiqur Rahim and Nasir Hossain not clicked in the first innings, the batting would have been a sorry tale!

The bowlers rescued Bangladesh in the first innings, but it was Zimbabwe who bounced back when it was needed the most. But to do well in Test cricket; batting, bowling and fielding must fire equally. Just depending on one section is never a surety for success.

Zimbabwe are returning to Test cricket after six years, while the Tigers are resuming Test cricket after 14 months.  In a sense Bangladesh are the favourites, but mind you, the Zimbabweans have prepared better for this one-off Test match better than their visitors.

While, the Tigers were busy playing limited-overs cricket, Zimbabwe polished themselves by playing four-day matches against teams like South Africa and Australia A teams. Yes, the results were not something extra-ordinary but there have been some encouraging individual performances both by the batsmen and bowlers and as a unit the Zimbabwe looked enough determined. As the Zimbabwe Alan Butcher argued that his team would click if both groups performed well during the course of a match and it was evident during the tour match.

Whereas, few members of the current Bangladesh team such as Nasir Hossain, Junaid Siddique and the recalled Mohammad Ashraful, have played a couple of unofficial Tests for Bangladesh A against South Africa A in April, Bangladesh's preparations have been limited to a long fitness camp and some two-day games against the Academy side before the tour. The Bangladeshi players were seen busy playing Twenty20 cricket.

Zimbabwe are not as strong as Bangladesh, but they have the ability to surprise the Tigers. Players like Brendan Taylor and Raymond Price are dangerous customers and can make the team gel together with their individual brilliance. Again, the Harare track will suit the home side more than the visitors.

Shakib Al Hasan sounded positive before leaving Bangladesh, but deep down he is well aware of the fact that his team is not well-prepared for Test cricket. Zimbabwe might not have a Shakib or Tamim but they have prepared well than the Tigers by spending more time playing longer-version cricket and have developed a Test temperament to challenge the Tigers.

I shall not be surprised if Zimbabwe leave us stunned with a dramatic win on their return to Test cricket.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar