June 2010

  • India vs. Sri Lanka, Asia Cup, 2010

    By MichaelP03 on 6/28/10 2:07am
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    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.

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  • Bangladesh vs. Sri Lanka, Asia Cup

    By MichaelP03 on 6/22/10 12:35am
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    After meekly surrendering to India, Bangladesh were looking to rebound strongly against the 2010 Asia Cup hosts Sri Lanka. Easier said than done, though, as this was a Sri Lankan team coming off a high after holding their nerve against a rampant Shahid Afridi in the game against Pakistan. As it turned out, Sri Lanka's good form continued, and Bangladesh were left to rue not learning any lessons from their defeat to India.

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  • Sri Lanka vs. Pakistan, Asia Cup

    By MichaelP03 on 6/20/10 4:09am
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    With all the excitement of a football World Cup, cricket did itself proud on Tuesday, as the first game of the 2010 Asia Cup turned out to be a gripping back and forth encounter between hosts Sri Lanka and Pakistan. A masterclass from Shahid Afridi, scoring his fifth one-day international hundred, almost took Pakistan home, before some brilliant cricket from Sri Lanka wrestled the game back and gave them victory by the thin margin of 16 runs.

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  • The Death of Cricket

    By MichaelP03 on 6/14/10 10:13pm
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    Cricket has been eulogized since time immemorial. As one of the oldest established sports, it holds a hallowed, reverential place in the minds of billions of people across the globe. But this adulation is a jealous mistress; whatever bright idea seeks to improve on the game is immediately pounced on and devoured, like a hapless wildebeest that approaches a bask of crocodiles with a petition for peaceful coexistence. The verdict of this court of opinion is always the same: it's the death of cricket. 

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  • 2010 Asia Cup Preview, Part 1

    By MichaelP03 on 6/14/10 7:31pm
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    The 2010 Asia Cup is the first major international cricket tournament after the Twenty20 World Cup in the Caribbean, and for India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and hosts Sri Lanka, serves as a dress rehearsal/testing ground for the 2011 World Cup in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Focus now shifts to 50-over cricket and working on the lessons learned from the Micromax Cup in Zimbabwe.



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  • 2010 Asia Cup Preview, Part 2

    By MichaelP03 on 6/14/10 7:20pm
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    In Part 1 of my 2010 Asia Cup preview, I covered India, the team in transition, and Bangladesh, who will look to prove their worth against their subcontinent neighbors. In Part 2, we'll look at Sri Lanka, the host team of this year's Asia Cup, and Pakistan, a team who are their own worst enemy.

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  • Micromax Cup Review, Part 2

    By MichaelP03 on 6/11/10 7:43pm
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    Desperate for games, let alone victories, Zimbabwe would have been hoping for a decent performance when they hosted India and Sri Lanka in the 2010 Micromax Cup. But after playing good cricket in the Caribbean, the slow improvements in their coaching, management and domestic circles paid off, and how - for the first time in a decade, Zimbabwe qualified for their first multi-nation tournament final.

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  • Micromax Cup Review, Part 1

    By MichaelP03 on 6/11/10 7:39pm
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    After the Indian Premier League, the Twenty20 World Cup, the Asia Cup, even the two-game Pearls Cup in Florida, and before the Asia Cup, the 2010 Micromax Cup shouldn't have warranted much attention, but thanks to some surprising performances and even more surprising results, it did. While the end result of the tournament - a nine-wicket win by Sri Lanka - may not raise too many eyebrows, the bigger story was the significant improvement in Zimbabwe's cricket, how they played it and how positive they were about it. It's harsh to say, but the only real losers in this tournament were India, with two wins out of four games and none of their youngsters making a mark.

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  • Sri Lanka vs. Zimbabwe, Final, Harare

    By MichaelP03 on 6/11/10 7:34pm
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    Zimbabwe's Cinderella-like tournament had a rude awakening in the final game of the Micromax Cup, as they caved to the pressure exerted by the Sri Lankan bowlers. Despite the heavy loss, Zimbabwe will hold their heads up for having performed better than anyone expected them to. As for Sri Lanka, they will be relieved that notwithstanding the loss to Zimbabwe in the previous game, there was no embarrassment for them in store on the big day.

     

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