The World Cup has been a wild ride- partly because of the referees, partly because of the nature of the game itself, and also because the Jabulani, which is the Official Soccer Ball of the 2010 World Cup has a tendency to veer off in strange directions- or so claim a number of goal keepers and now a NASA physicist. Watch the video below:
England and Australia had the honor of kicking off the one-day international phenomenon all the way back in 1971, and the same two teams met again in ODI # 3,000 in the first of a five-game series. As a sequel to the World Twenty20 final, and a preview of the upcoming Ashes series, more was riding on this series than you'd normally expect. And it was Andrew Strauss' men who drew first blood, sealing a comfortable victory over their arch-nemeses thanks to Eoin Morgan's sparkling century, and making some headway in putting to rest the 6-1 drubbing they received from Australia last year.
The Aussies made a good start batting first, Shane Watson being his typically muscular self, before top-edging a pull back to Stuart Broad for 33 off 26. At 52/1 in the 9th over, there wasn't much to worry about, but when Tim Paine chopped a Luke Wright delivery onto his stumps to make it 66/2, England felt themselves on top. Ricky Ponting and Cameron White, both extremely dangerous batsmen, fell in quick succession to leave Australia wobbling at 98/4 in the 22nd over. Michael Clarke and David Hussey put on a 70-run recovery, before Hussey walked (28) after feathering an edge to Craig Kieswetter off Michael Yardy. Clarke made a confidence-boosting 50 after failing to score in the tour games before this series, and put on 57 with James Hopes, who made a good 34 before falling in the first over of the batting powerplay. Another Australian recovery checked by England at 227/6 in the 45th over, but Nathan Hauritz biffed a good 22 off 17 balls to take the visitors to 267/6. Michael Clarke's 87 was the sole significant contribution to the Aussie total, as none of the other batsmen were able to capitalize on the starts they made.
In reply, Andrew Strauss looked good before Ryan Harris had him caught behind for just 10. Kevin Pietersen made his 100th appearance for England, but fell against the run of play after he and Craig Kieswetter put on 59 together. With his dismissal, England were 75/2 in the 13th over, on par with the required run rate. They went ahead with a 6 from Kieswetter, who became Josh Hazlewood's first ODI victim the next over. Bowled for 38, England slipped to 81/3, and became 97/4 when Paul Collingwood was smartly caught by a leaping James Hopes at mid-off for just 11. Australia sniffed a chance, but Luke Wright and Eoin Morgan steered England out of murky waters. Morgan reached his 50 from 45 balls, while Wright was trapped dead in front to Ryan Harris for a good 36 (192/5). Importantly for England, he and Morgan kept the run-rate moving forward, and Tim Bresnan proved his batting credentials with a gutsy 27 off 29. When he was bowled by a brilliant Harris delivery, England needed only 5 to win, and Morgan needed 1 for his century. Michael Yardy took a single, and Morgan smashed the next delivery down the ground to claim the first game in this series, and his third ODI century.
More than anything, Australia will rue their batting failures. Only Clarke's 87 was of any note, the next highest being James Hopes' 34. 267 isn't a bad score, by any means, and it would have been unassailable in 1971. In 2010, however, it took England only 46 overs to better it. Brilliant as though Morgan's century was, England had much the same problem - the next highest score was Kieswetter's 38. Ryan Harris was easily the best bowler of the day, being the most economical and accurate. This was definitely a great start by England to the series, but they know better than anyone (well, except Pakistan) that Australia are never defeated until the last ball is bowled, the last wicket falls, or the last run is scored. Eoin Morgan had the honors this time - who will step up for game #2?
Octopus Pie: There Are No Stars In Brooklyn- The first printed collection of the popular webcomic series, this dense collection puts together the first two years worth of stories. Great sense of humor, a solid sense of characterization, and fun fluid art make this something definitely worth picking up. Fans of Scott Pilgrim, North World, and just anything fun should check this out. Check out Meredith Gran’s site if you want to sample it, but try to help support the release of the book. Considering it’s only $17 for 252 pages, it’s a great package and Villard books did a nice printing job. A
X-Men: S.W.O.R.D., No Time To Breath SC- So if you aren’t current with X-Men continuity, specifically Astonishing X-Men, or with the Dark Reign period of Marvel, then this might be a little tricky to just jump into. However I feel it was just a solid script with a great sense of humor, so really if you just try it should be easy to jump into. Agent Brand has the daily task of preventing alien invasions of Earth, and after the Secret Invasion the new government regime is looking to replace her. Teamed with her boyfriend Hank McCoy aka the Beast, Lockheed the alien dragon, and the awesome bounty hunter Death’s Head, Agent Brand has to save her half brother, prevent multiple alien invasion, put down an insurrection among her ranks, and basically just survive over the course of a very long day. Kieron Gillen gives us a truly awesome story that doesn’t take itself too seriously while at the same time making everything awesomely serious with a great sense of scale to Brand’s job. Steve Sanders art might not grab everyone, but I felt it was the perfect fit for the story and great. Solid package for only $15.99. A-
Superman/Batman Finest Worlds SC- The Michael Green scripts can be a little forced at times, but the main reason I picked up this volume was for the Rags Morales and Rafael Albuquerque art. The first story dealing with the fathers of Superman and Batman meeting was alright, while the next story drawn by Albuquerque with the kiddie version of the JLA and their villains was cute. The last chunk of the book drawn by Morales dealing with Batman getting Superman’s powers was fun if a little predictable. The $14.99 price tag is pretty good for six issues, so well worth it if you like Morales as much as I do. There is a HC available as well for $19.99. B-
Amidst the fanfare, hype and drone from vuvuzelas emanating from South Africa now, a smaller tournament was quietly taking place in Sri Lanka. I say "quietly", because despite the baila rhythms and cheers from respectable crowds, you wouldn't have known that cricket's only regional international tournament crowned a new champion. While the eyes of the world were fixed on the action in South Africa, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh tussled for the 2010 Asia Cup. India won what turned out to be a surprisingly one-sided final, while Sri Lanka had to settle with three wins out of four games. Pakistan's games against India and Sri Lanka gave us some of the most exciting cricket we've seen in a while, and Bangladesh didn't fail to disappoint - again.
Pakistan - the cornered tigers had to leave the Asia Cup with only having beaten Bangladesh, but nail-biting encounters against the home team and eventual champions India acquitted them well. Shahid Afridi lead a team in turmoil, after much-publicized administrative & political interference and vitriolic in-fighting. And to his credit, he led from the front, his century against Sri Lanka almost winning the game for Pakistan. Shoaib Akhtar returned to action after years of injury and controversy, and while not at his faster-than-light best, bowled well and hinted that if he continues to cope with age and maturity, he can still be a force to be reckoned with. Despite only one win out of three games, Pakistan can head to their series against England and Australia on a cautious high, knowing that, yet again, they stood tall in the face of adversity.
Bangladesh - after they turned out decent (albeit losing) performances in the Test series in England, we hoped that Bangladesh would be good for more than just the token upset. As it turned out, we didn't even get that. They failed to cross 200 in either their Sri Lanka or India game, and when confronted with chasing 386 against Pakistan, closed shop and played for a draw. Tamim Iqbal impressed, as he usually does, but none of the other 10 players turned up. While their innings against Pakistan will be debated (slow deaths do the suffering ODI format no favors, but at least their batsmen got some practice, right?), their abject failures against Sri Lanka and India will cause headaches for administrators, from Dhaka to London. For every step forward, Bangladesh take three steps back.
Sri Lanka - even before the tournament started, the home team came in on a high: semi-finalists at the Twenty20 World Cup, broke new ground by playing the first international Twenty20 in the United States, and won the Micromax Cup in Zimbabwe. The exclusion of Sanath Jayasuria and Ajantha Mendis raised eyebrows, but Tillekeratne Dilshan returning to form was hard to argue with. No big scores were on offer from him, but his quick starts helped chase down a stiff target from Pakistan, and an easy one in the first game against India. Farveez Maharoof's hat-trick and five-for in that first game made him the best bowler in Sri Lanka for all of one game, being reduced to very ordinary status in the final against India. The fielding, which is usually one of Sri Lanka's strengths, also failed, and the latest chapter of the endless saga of Sri Lanka-India games ended with an Indian victory.
India - tired as though they must be of facing Sri Lanka, India now know they go to their Test series against Sri Lanka (who else?) as the Asian champions - but more importantly, continuing their reversal of the trend of choking in major tournament finals. After disappointing performances in the World Twenty20 and the Micromax Cup, India finally have a trophy in their cabinet. Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar weren't greatly missed, as the new crop of Indian players - Rohit Sharma, Dinesh Karthik and Murali Vijay - showed they had what it took to set and chase totals. India's pace bowling attack has been a cause for concern, but Praveen Kumar, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra (who dismissed four Sri Lankan batsmen in the final) made their claims to inherit the thrones vacated by Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad.
So after fifteen years, India finally get their hands back on the Asia Cup, while Sri Lanka have to content themselves with being pipped at the post yet again. They will lock horns again soon enough, and Pakistan and Bangladesh head to England for their respective series. Considering all the attention the FIFA World Cup is inevitably getting, would it have killed the International Cricket Council to have done more to promote the 2010 Asia Cup amidst a glut of other, unremarkable tournaments? Or did they figure that it would be a lost battle, and are saving their pennies for the 2011 World Cup? Either way, we have Pakistan to thank for two riveting games of cricket, while Bangladesh bored us with their surrender. India and Sri Lanka shared a victory over each other, Farveez Maharoof's hat-trick providing some spice to a dead rubber. But as it turned out, India won the game that mattered.
It was another India/Sri Lanka encounter, and another final between these two teams, but India reversed the recent trend by thumping the home team to lift the Asia Cup for the fifth time. In what was ultimately a one-sided contest, all of India's guns finally clicked simultaneously, and Sri Lanka were left to rue errant shot selection against a brilliant Indian seam attack, led by Ashish Nehra, who ripped through the upper middle order and never gave Sri Lanka a chance to chase down a challenging Indian total.
Batting first, India started well. Dinesh Karthik did most of the scoring, while Gautam Ghambir was run out going for a non-existent third to leave India at 38/1 in the 6th over. It didn't stop Karthik, who took 12 runs from the next over, as he and Virat Kohli continued. Kohli was caught behind off Malinga for a brisk 28, and Karthik murdered a teasing full toss from part-timer Thilina Kandamby, only to be caught at the deep square leg boundary by Mahela Jayawardene for 66. But the steady run-accumulation by the Indians put pressure on the Sri Lankans. Farveez Maharoof, the hero of the last game for Sri Lanka, conceded two boundaries in fielding errors, and lots of return throws were wild and allowed the Indian batsmen to take risky runs. Kandamby struck again to remove Dhoni, who fell to a good catch from Nuwan Kulasekera for 38. India were in tricky waters at 170/4, but more ordinary fielding allowed Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina to rebuild the innings with a 50-run partnership. Malinga accounted for Raina with a deadly yorker for 29, and Maharoof actually held onto a catch to get Sharma for 41, but Ravindra Jadeja survived what Hawk-eye thought was a straightforward shout from Muttiah Muralitharan to spur India to 268/6.
Things went wrong for Sri Lanka in the 1st over, as Tillekeratne Dilshan miscued a pull off Zaheer Khan to Harbhajan Singh for 0. Khan, Praveen Kumar and Ashish Nehra kept Upul Tharanga and Kumar Sangakkara tied up. Tharanga left one from Khan that nipped back in to pop the off-stump, and Mahela Jayawardene, Angelo Mathews and Sangakkara were dismissed in quick succession to knock the teeth out of the Sri Lankan chase. Only Chamara Kapugedera stuck around, but his 55 from 81 spoke more of the control the Indian bowlers exercised than it did anything about the Sri Lankan batting. He was unbeaten and watched the procession of wickets, which ended with Murali edging Ravindra Jadeja to Dhoni. Sri Lanka folded for 187, giving victory, and the Asia Cup, to India.
So after a disappointing run in limited-overs tournament (the Twenty20 World Cup and the Micromax Cup in Zimbabwe), India arrested the decline with a convincing victory over their island neighbors. Nobody made a big score, but batting partnerships of 38, 62, 46, 21, 50 and 32 meant that Sri Lanka had to fight for every wicket, a job that their lackluster fielding made difficult. The pace attack removed Sri Lanka's trump card in Dilshan, and ensured that the now-solid middle order of Sangakkara, Jayawardene and Mathews joined him. With the 2011 World Cup drawing closer, India will feel confident of a better showing than what they delivered in the 2007 tournament, but first they have another series against Sri Lanka to contend with. As Asia Cup champions, though, they probably won't mind.
Ghana, Black Stars is the only remaining African team left in the tournament and will be the home crowd favorite. As the Associated Press reports, the footballing hopes of a continent are resting on Ghana's shoulders. See the video.
Go Ghana. Win.
"Shame, eternal shame, nothing but shame."
The French are engaging in public flogging.
I read in a report this morning in Bloomberg that the President of the French Republic, Nicolas Sarkozy, is not happy with the performance of the French national team in the 2010 World Cup. And last week following, what all France has declared to be the teams "shameful performance," the French President said the government wants to review how the country’s sports federations are managed -- Suggesting that public flogging of the the national team officials is called for and is justified. The French Health Minister Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin, who lists sports within her portfolio, said in an interview on RTL radio last week that Jean-Pierre Escalettes, president of the French Football Federation, resignation was “unavoidable” -- Pointing at the top of the shameful mess, where the flogging should begin. Yesterday, the gentleman resigned.
FIFA’s President Sepp Blatter -- this is the little squirt, who after apologizing to England and Mexico -- should have apologized to the USA too -- for bad refereeing at the World Cup -- shrugged his shoulders and said it's a game -- This old coot said, yesterday, in so many words, that the government of France needs to back away from any involvement in the public flogging of the national team officials, for if the French government is deemed to be interfering with the country’s soccer federation, it risks the suspension of France’s national team from international competitions. French government officials have made no comment concerning the FIFA warning.
The French coach, Raymond Domenech, who is resigning, if he hasn't resigned, lost the respect of his players and of the French football supporters. At the end of France's final game, in the 2010 World Cup, against South Africa, Domenech refused to shake hands with opposing coach Carlos Alberto Parreira, who guided Brazil to the 1994 World Cup title. Shame!
French football fans expected better. France won the World Cup in 1998 and was the runner up for the Cup in 2006, was booted out of the 2010 games, by losing under this coach Domenech, to South Africa, to Mexico, and by drawing a weak tie with Uruguay. The French National team hasn't won in an international competition, since its 1-0 victory over Portugal in the 2006 World Cup.
Today, a French parliamentary committee is scheduled to call Escalettes and Domenech in for a few questions about the shameful events that went on at the 2010 World Cup. May the flogging continue.
"I deplore when you see the evident referees’ mistakes,” Mr. Blatter told reporters. “It has not been a five-star game for referees. I’m distressed by the evident referees’ mistakes.”
Well, he should apologize. Well he should deplore the evident mistakes. Well he should be distressed. And it about time that the old coots running the FIFA step into the 21st century. The USA team was penalized in its matches by refereeing errors, and so were England and Mexico. In England's crucial game with Germany, though the Germans went on to score 4 goals to 1, disallowing a goal to tie the game had an effect on the game's momentum and may have influenced the eventual outcome. Argentina, in their 3 goals to 1 match with Mexico was erroneously awarded a goal.
“I apologized to England and Mexico,” Blatter said. “The English said ‘thank you’ and accepted that you can win and you lose, and the Mexicans bowed their head and accepted it.”
I don't think a good number of England's football supporters have accepted the gentleman's apology.
India and Sri Lanka are undoubtedly tired of facing each other by now, but to be fair, their locking horns in the Asia Cup was unavoidable, and their facing each other twice - once in this dead rubber, and once in the final - was ironic. Familiarity bred no contempt, though, at least not for the first innings, which was a back and forth tussle before Ferveez Maharoof became the third Sri Lankan to take a ODI hat-trick, breaking the Indian lower-middle order and setting up an easy win for the hosts.
India made a good start batting first, putting up 58 for the first wicket in 11 overs, before Suraj Randiv took a brilliant catch to remove Gautam Ghambir off Angelo Mathews' bowling. Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik fell in quick succession to Maharoof and Rangana Herath respectively, both caught behind. Suresh Raina went LBW to Herath to leave India at the tricky position of 110/4 after 22 overs, but Rohit Sharma and Mahendra Singh Dhoni put on a 79-run partnership together to take India to 189/4 in the 37th over. Just when it looked like the ship had steadied and the Indians were ready for a death-overs onslaught, Dhoni was run out against the run of play by sharp work from Chamara Kapugera. One ball later, Ravindra Jadeja almost fell over in his crease to a straight ball from Maharoof. The next ball, Praveen Kumar chopped one onto his stumps, and Zaheer Khan was acrobatically caught behind the next delivery to give Maharoof his hat-trick. He wasn't done yet, bowling Ashok Dinda to get his second ODI five-wicket haul. Trying to keep strike, Rohit Sharma was the last wicket to fall, run out by a razor sharp throw from Mahela Jayawardene for 69, as India folded for 209 in only 42 overs.
Needing only 4.2 an over to win didn't stop Tillekeratne Dilshan from hitting his first three balls for 4, 4 and 6. He fell quickly to Zaheer Khan for 24, but Sri Lanka were already 38 in the 5th over. With the platform set, Sri Lanka moved on. Khan bowled a good line to induce an edge from Upul Tharanga (38), leaving Sri Lanka at 80/2 in the 13th over. The old shop of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene came together for a 104-run partnership. Sangakkara brought up his half-century, but was dismissed for 73 with only 26 left, caught by Khan off Praveen Kumar. When only 3 runs were needed to win off 76 balls, Jayawardene was almost caught at point, and Thilina Kandamby was almost run out by the return throw. That was about as good as it got for the Indians, since Jayawardene swept the next delivery to the midwicket boundary. It brought up his 50 and won Sri Lanka the game with 75 balls to go.
So in the dress rehearsal battle, Sri Lanka take the honors and go into the final on a significant high. They never looked under pressure, even when Sharma and Dhoni threatened to take India to a competitive total. With Maharoof's hat-trick, Sri Lanka have a plethora of fast bowling options to choose from, with Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekera returning for the final after being rested for this match. India will be concerned that only two of their batsmen made any significant scores, and the bowling - which, barring the rested Harbhajan Singh and Ashish Nehra, is the same that will face Sri Lanka in the final - failed to make an impact. With such a convincing result as this one, Sri Lanka can consider themselves favorites for their third consecutive Asia Cup victory.
