Roar Guru
Joined July 2014
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England and India have deservedly made it to the final of the 14th edition of the ICC Under-19 World Cup, to be played at…
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The iconic Newlands in Cape Town, picturesquely situated with the Table Mountain serving as a breathtaking backdrop, holds a special significance in South African…
The men’s T20 World Cup is back after a long hiatus – it's been five and a half years since Carlos Brathwaite smoked those…
The seventh edition of the men’s T20 World Cup is finally upon us, with the much-awaited action set to get underway from October 17.…
Trinidad and Tobago observes its 59th Independence Day on August 31. To mark the occasion in a cricketing context, here’s an all-time Trinidadian Test…
The West Indies’ enthralling one-wicket win over Pakistan at Kingston was only the 15th such instance in more than 144 years of Test cricket.…
Having compiled an Antiguan international XI and a Guyanese Test XI, I will now attempt a Test XI with a unique twist: the inclusive…
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The much-awaited final of the inaugural World Test Championship between India and New Zealand is set to commence at the Rose Bowl in Southampton…
England’s international summer kicks off with a two-Test series against New Zealand commencing at Lord’s on June 2. This will be New Zealand’s 18th…
Alvin Kallicharran was one of the pivots of the West Indian batting line-up through the 1970s. In an international career from 1971-72 to 1980-81,…
Having played at the 1996 World Cup, the Netherlands failed to make the cut for the next edition in 1999. However, they had the…
International cricket in Guyana has been synonymous with Bourda in Georgetown for the best part of its cricketing history, and with the Providence Stadium…
The World Cup Super League resumes this Sunday, with Bangladesh hosting Sri Lanka. The three-match series assumes importance for both teams as they look…
Thisara Perera, who recently announced his retirement from international cricket, finished his ODI career with 2338 runs and 175 wickets. The Sri Lankan all-rounder…
Over the years, the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has had no dearth of extraordinary cricket and riveting drama. But what transpired in Brisbane on 19 January…
With Border-Gavaskar Trophy holders India pulling off a gripping draw at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the battle for the series is still alive going…
Like almost everything else, Test cricket has been hit by the unforeseen circumstances of 2020. The World Test Championship (WTC) saw several series postponed,…
The Test team I have picked for the year 2020 features five players from England, three from New Zealand, and one each from India,…
Very interesting post.
Here’s what I could decipher (player – sun sign – reason):
Ken Archer – Sagittarius – archer
Mark Ramprakash – Aries – (ram)prakash
Gary Ballance – Libra – scales ‘balance’
Graeme Pollock – Pisces – pollock is a fish
The Waughs – Gemini – twins
Clarence Pellew – Cancer – nickname Nip, a crab ‘nips’
Tony Dodemaide – Virgo – there’s a director named Tony Virgo
Ron Oxenham – Taurus – bull/ox
Barry Jarman – Aquarius – carrier of water in a ‘jar’
Craig McDermott – Capricorn – nickname Billy, i.e. goat
Nathan Lyon – Leo – ‘lion’
Brian Hastings – Scorpion – TV show Scorpion was based on Walter O’Brien (that’s all I could think of)
Explain my cryptic Zodiac XII
Yes, Lloyd and Butcher (who took 5/34 with his leg-spin against England at Port of Spain in 1967-68, his only five Test wickets) can share the workload.
Guyana's all-time Test XI
Cheers, Jon. Thanks for sharing, that was indeed an interesting read. Yes, King had to be there so as to partner Croft. Harper would be my 12th man.
Guyana's all-time Test XI
Cheers, Tiger. I’ve been enjoying your detailed pieces on Bangladeshi cricket history. Agreed about the bowling; Gibbs should be able to bowl for long. Hopefully Lloyd can manage the resources well!
Guyana's all-time Test XI
Rohit was certainly considered, but I felt Latham’s century in Colombo was a high-impact innings, which swung my vote in his favour.
Test cricket: 2019 in review
Yes, Rashid’s selection was bound to be contentious. As I said earlier, it was tough to leave Lyon out. But the impact of Rashid was highly significant, for he contributed towards Afghanistan’s maiden Test win and maiden Test win overseas. As for playing ‘weaker teams’, he took 11 wickets to topple Bangladesh in Bangladesh, which was an immense feat in my book. Moreover, one needs to do well against the opposition one is put up against, whether strong or weak.
The 2019 Test cricket team of the year
Yes, Shami was considered, but I felt Starc’s numbers warranted him a spot. It was tough to leave Lyon out, but at the same time, Rashid’s impact was hard to ignore.
The 2019 Test cricket team of the year
Indeed. Great spirit shown by the Barramundis. Here’s hoping they make more waves at the T20 World Cup.
The T20 World Cup Qualifier XI
This is a personal XI that I posted on my blog. It has four changes from the XI selected by the ICC, including Vanua.
The T20 World Cup Qualifier XI
Yes. The lack of Associates this time is frustrating. There ought to be at least 14 teams to constitute a World Cup in its true sense.
Associate nations at the World Cup: Part 2
Indeed. Zimbabwe nearly reached the semifinals of the 1999 World Cup, and also won a Test series in Pakistan in 1998-99. That team was as good as any on their day.
Associate nations at the World Cup: Part 2
Sri Lanka’s target was 507, and Sangakkara was ninth out at 364. So a Sri Lankan win was highly unlikely, irrespective of the umpiring gaffe.
Sri Lankan Test centurions in Australia
Indeed. Rudi Koertzen was the umpire in question.
Sri Lankan Test centurions in Australia
Yes, hope Sri Lanka can put up a better display at Canberra. The batting needs to fire collectively.
Sri Lankan Test centurions in Australia
Yes, as I mentioned at the outset, Cummins and de Villiers missed out very narrowly. Did not see any reason to drop either of Rabada, Abbas or Bumrah.
The 2018 Test team of the year
Yasir missed the England tour due to injury, so I thought it would have been unfair to drop him just because he played only overseas Test. Numbers-wise, he out-bowled Lyon.
The 2018 Test team of the year
Oops, should have got Ha’stings’.. missed a sitter there:)
Explain my cryptic Zodiac XII