Showing posts with label Mock. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mock. Show all posts

April 15, 2010

DLF IPL - Wahs at War




Wah are at War and it aint smelling like blueberry pies. Sooper Kings take on the Double D's today in a crucial encounter. The loser is not necessarily out and the winner not surely through as we said here. But surely both teams are desperate to win and will be happy with points in the bag rather than prayers on their lips. So it is simple, go out there and win 2 games and the next 2 and be crowned champs. CSK hv a neat record against DD, now going 3-2 head to head. So, that will mentally get them ready for the challenge. For DD Viru has been at ease against CSK and Chepauk is his one of his favorites undoubtedly. So, this is what the two teams must look to do.

CSK- It should be an easy outing for the Super Kings considering their current form. Finally after several FAILED experiments, the bowling department seems to have clicked. Though not attacking , but definetely better. Batting has always been their strength. Its good to see that the batting is not dependant on Haydos. Its good to see the young Indian guns firing. Murali-I can Fkn hit DLF Max too- Vijay has been a revelation. Suresh -IPL- Raina has been the backbone of the team in all the 3 editions. MSD, you never know, when he hits, it stays hit! If one of them clicks,its PARTY TIME for CSK! Last time when these two teams met, it was a run feast at the Feroz Shah Kotla. We all got to know the reason for the MEGA HYPE for Mongoose. Double Ds scored 185, thanks to Joginder-Golden Arm- Sharma. Haydos and his pet, Mongoose murdered the DD bowlers. The problem which CSK faced in the first half is now faced by DD. Their bowling looks weak after the exit of Nannes. It still seems an area of concern. Of late, their batting seems to be breaking too. Looks like they have their IPODs on when batting, they just dont listen to their partner's call. I hope they continue this way for CSK to make full use of it. Playing in Chennai doesn't really matter to any team because they cheer for everyone, even you and me. Its more like a neutral venue. I feel CSK should stick with the same winning combo. 3 spinners and 2 pacers looks perfect . Their main strategy is to remove the openers as quickly as possible. Gambhir has looked dangerous, but he will run himself out, no worries there. Nothing much to say about the rest of the batting, maybe Karthik will try to impress the crowd. CSK should bat first, it should be a belter of a pitch, score an assload of runs. Bowlers should make sure that Viru and Warner get back to the pavillion within the powerplay and the Double D's will succumb to the pressure automatically.

DareDevils - The Double D's are in woeful form and they know it. They haven't settled into a stable team combination and the absence of Dirty Dirk is proving crucial. Play to win, has to be the plan here. Probably bringing back Dilshan into the xi will help. He has been kept away for too long one feels. McDonald was given the treatment so we hope capt.GG learnt not to bowl his happy meals, in the last few overs like Raina did earlier captaining CSK. Viru has to get going and not towards the dug-out. DK just cannot bat at no.4 that is just insane! Probably go in with Warner, Dilshan, Collingwood and Vettori will make sense and bringing in Bhatia will provide some depth. Also if Viru can bowl a couple will surely help the cause as the wicket in Chennai is sure to assist the slower bowlers. Last time around Haydos unleashed the Goose. That shouldn't happen again, getting wickets early exposes the likes of Badri, Morkel and that should help DD buckle them and strangle them. It would be a good toss to lose. But, an important game to win.

April 8, 2010

Ton Tana Ton



Not so long ago we gave u this. And as Sachin would say "Go out there, get the start, reach the 50, pile on that 100." and Viru would add "don't you forget to score the triple." and here we are. It's the time to lift the bat and acknowledge the support we have had from all of you. The fire still burns and the desire to thrash some Sreesanth is more than ever. We have couple of other good stuff to share. Blokes at "World Cricket Watch" recently announced the 40 best cricket blogs around the world. No, we dint make the list but, they dint mention us in the recommendations. w00t!!

We are finally, thinking on taking the blog to newer levels and reach you all better. So, this is the official FB page on Wah! Cricket. And this is the FB group for all Wah! Cricket fans.
There's lots more in store that we are going to be busy with in the next few days. But, we'd seriously like to hear more from you, the readers, the followers, the fans, the bored visitor :) So, tell us via comments, or Facebook or Twitter what ever u feel like. As it's all happening @ Wah! Cricket.

March 3, 2010

Quick Updates: Oz Vs Kiwis ODI #1


Aussies may have been undefeated thru'out summer but, I have always wondered why the Aussies suck when they enter Kiwi-land. Its been happening for ages now. I think they are not able to cope up to the irregularly shaped rugby grounds or pitch or whatever ( just kiddin :P) Dan the Man was not in the playin XI and Rosco was the skipper today. Punter won the toss and chose to bat and the Ozzies were off to a flier. Watson scored a quick-fire 45. Everybody chipped in with 30 , 20 etc and ended up setting a target of 276 for the Kiwis. Mike Huss topscored with a run a ball 59. A target of less than 300 in NZ has always been defendable(at-least most of the times!). Ingram and Mc Kill'em got off to a good start sharing a 75 run partnership for the opening wicket. If only Baz realised it's a 50 overs a side game! Ross Taylor then steadied the ship scoring a valuable 70. Definitely a captain's knock! Suddenly in the early 40 overs, Kiwis lost some quick wickets. Oram's injury was a huge blow (for ppl who consider the Oram can still bat).

Scotty 2 Hotty put all his experience into play and the altercation Mitchy must have pumped him up more. He played some gutsy shots and made sure NZ reached home in time :) Not to miss Bond's 4's in the 49th over. Definitely it did settle the nerves in the Kiwi camp. Ross Taylor was adjudged the MOM, Scotty Virus could've bagged it though. So Kiwis are 1 up in the ODI series. Let's see if they can keep the momentum going throughout the series.

February 5, 2010

Double take – Power Plays


The limited overs version of cricket has witnessed so many changes in the past decade. One that has left a huge impact in the way the game is played is the introduction of “Power Plays”. Moving from the first 15 overs of mandatory field restriction, ODI’s now have split the field restrictions into 3 periods of play.

PP1- the mandatory 1-10 overs – 2 fielders allowed outside 30 yards circle and 2 fielders in catching positions (15 yards).
Bowling PP – taken by the fielding team – 5 overs – 3 fielders allowed outside outside 30 yards circle.
Batting PP – taken by the batting team – 5 overs – 3 fielders allowed outside outside 30 yards circle.

The introduction of this system was brought to add to the excitement of ODI’s which had become dull with teams playing aggressive only in the first 15 overs and last 10 overs. Dry period of play, meant not much aggression or risk was taken by the batting team in the 20th to 40th overs of play. So, these powerplays were introduced, where in the fielding team would dictate when the field would come up and the batsmen would have to go for the kill. This system dint work for long and thus, one PP was given to the fielding team captain and one to the batting team captain. They can decide to have 5 overs of PP at any point in the game (of course not at the same time). If both captains fail to take the powerplays before the 40th over. Then 41-45 will the bowling PP and 46-50 will be the batting PP by default. Most captains have struggled with the decision of inviting the PP. Almost every fielding team captain prefers to opt for the bowling PP as soon as the mandatory PP (1-10) ends i.e. 11th-15th over with their fast bowlers fresh and going strong. The batting PP however has raised many opposite views on when it needs to be taken to make the most of it.

Mock’s point
I have always wondered why most of the teams take their batting power-play after the 40th over. After seeing through the mid overs slowly, they suddenly take the PP in the 40+ overs. This leads to a series of wickets and in the end, the batting power-play proves fatal. I don't see any point of taking the power-play during the 43/44th over. Isn't it the time to go after the bowlers, irrespective of whether the power-play is on or not. For me the right time to take the power-play is during the 30-35 period when the batsmen are pretty set and this might give them the momentum while entering the slog overs. Again, when a batsman gets out during this power-play, the next batsman has some time for him to settle down and get an eye in. How many times have we seen wickets tumbling during the batting power-play and still the teams don’t seem to learn from it. So buck up teams, have a look at this post and “USE YOUR BRAINS” :)


Steam’s Counter

True to what Mock feels, the momentum is required going into the final overs and irrespective to the field and powerplay the batsmen have to slog towards the end. I guess most captains want to only make it easier for the hitters by having just 2 men in the deep rather than 5 patrolling the boundaries. This means the hitters have lesser pressure if at all they manage to clear the in-field. Also considering the batting team has lost 4/5 wkts in 25 overs of play. Taking the batting PP early is suicide, as the pressure to accelerate is on and the chance once gone will not return. It only makes sense to delay the powerplay and take measured risks. For instance the Indo-Pak game in the champions trophy match in 2009 when Dravid & Raina were really in control of the chase, India fumbled in taking the batting PP early. Raina fell in that phase of play and no one after him was able to keep the score ticking and wickets continued to fall. Dravid seemed helpless in the end and India lost the game as a result. To me the term “PowerPlay” only make sense if the bowling and batting PP’s are taken as a part of strategy rather than routine. Assessing your situation to achieve the best possible outcome regardless when it is customary to take it.

November 29, 2009

Bad N.E.W.S


Yes, its been difficult times already. Not even a month has passed when Mock n me started posting to u guys but, already we have hit roadblocks, dead bodies heck even got caught for drinking and driving. Yes, it is the BAD times, the most difficult perhaps, and like everyone else we too want to get thru this highly emotional and physically challenging period ASAP. We need you guys, your love, your money actually! So Mock has been hospitalised becos his male organisms were "mal"functioning. Hope, he can get things STRAIGHT soon. He needs ur wishes (n money like I said earlier) So, hang on guys we wont be posting much for few days. Its gonna be very very quiet, and rare posts of some good quality. I know I have not been able to dedicate myself totally to this but,(with just a few crappy B.B.O.T.D. posts) this makes me want to change and honestly I am trying. So, Mock or no Mock in the next few days I will decide on how to take this blog forward. So, never say goodbye. There's lots of quality cricket on, like Kenya wants to play Netherlands soon so, (I know u wudn know it) keep visiting for the latest.

Love,
Steam