Cover Points : Kevin Pietersen

Switch hitting and Ten10 politics

dcsiva — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 16:20:00 GMT

The MCC are due to consider the legality of Kevin Pietersen's remarkable switch-hitting sixes against New Zealand. Looks like it was already on the agenda, but batsmen switching stance and grip will now be considered seriously:

Unlike bowlers, a batsman does not have to notify the umpires and bowler if they opt to reverse their batting style.
However, the shot raises a number of questions for umpires, including the lbw and leg-side no-ball laws.
But despite the controversy, Pietersen believed he has broken new ground with his stroke.
The first six flew over deep square leg boundary (for a left-hander) at Chester-le-Street, while the second bore more of a resemblence to a Marcus Trescothick slog sweep over the ropes at long-on.
"Reverse sweeps have been part of the game for however long, I am just fortunate that I can hit it a bit further," Pietersen said.

And the new challenge system for out decisions will be trialled during India's tour of Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, Sledgehammer argues that Twenty20 and ODIs augment Test cricket not push it aside:

Test cricket survived the onslaught of ODIs and Kerry Packer. In fact, it flourished once ICC and cricket boards made ODI cricket a victim of overplay and greed (roughly mid-90s and beyond). And Test cricket actually benefited from ODIs - players picked up the pace, and teams wanted positive results.

Will dreams of a West Indies victory against Australia. At lunch on the last day they are 316 for 5... And in Chennai, the DMK party have switched up in their own way, organising a Ten10 "Karunanidhi Gold Cup" with over a thousand teams playing.

Moneyed batting and philosophical cricket

dcsiva — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:57:00 GMT

Sanath Jayasuriya strikes again. Ottayan reports that Kevin Pietersen will sign up for next year's IPL for as much as 2 million pounds! The article Ottayan linked to suggests:

An ECB insider told Sportsmail that the final decision on all centrally-contracted players heading for the IPL will be in the hands of England coach Peter Moores but that, in Pietersen's case, they will not stand in his way.
That means the Hampshire batsman is likely to head to India virtually as soon as England return from their tour of the West Indies at the start of next April and play in the IPL for three weeks to a month before returning to prepare for the World Twenty20 tournament in England. After that will be the small matter of the Ashes.

And why would Pietersen be such a special case? The New York Times carries on its fascination with cricket in New York, writing about a novelist who in turn has written about cricket:

He has clung to cricket, he said recently, because it’s his “athletic mother tongue,” and to learn baseball, say, would be like taking up a foreign language. Even if he became proficient, he wouldn’t get the jokes or the poetry.
...
Mr. O’Neill’s new book, “Netherland” (Pantheon), identifies the Staten Island Cricket Club by name, though not any of its players, and there’s a long description of Walker Park, the club’s home ground since 1876, a bumpy, crabgrass-ridden expanse just a block from the Kill Van Kull. It’s bordered now by tennis courts, a baseball field, a children’s playground and, beyond a chain-link fence, some Victorian houses that are occasionally bombarded by cricket balls, little red meteors crashing through front windows or cratering into flower beds.

Finally, Samir Chopra calls for all and any philosophical treatises on cricket.

Media restrictions and more on the West Indies

dcsiva — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 14:20:00 GMT

BCCI relaxes some of the media restrictions for the IPL. Livemint frames the money issue at the heart of this:

Essentially, the underlying principle in both instances is the same. Seeking to maximize their revenues, the cricket authorities in both countries want to monetize every aspect of the game. On the face of it, say legal observers, this argument cannot be faulted. Especially since it is a privately organized event, for which entry is based only on tickets.

Yet, going down this path is questionable. For those unable to witness the event, especially those who cannot afford to pay for entry, the media, including print publications, is the only alternative. In other words, the public would lose out if the face-off is not resolved amicably. This would be a disaster given the cult following of cricket in the subcontinent in general and India in particular.

Ian Bishop suggests a possible turning point for the West Indies. And Sime looks forward to the Australia series:

Sarwan may be on the cusp of delivering on the potential, he has displayed glimpses of for so long......with the Aussies on the horizon.

Island Express highlights a lesson for India in a gritty Gayle performance:

Gayle is *** against Vaas and he knew it. But 1-0 down, he knuckled down, and did not give Vaas his wicket, and made a valuable 45 in the first innings, on what looked like a lively wicket, inspiring debutant and opening partner Chattegoon to do the same along the way.

And Mark covers the face off between Pietersen and Clarke. Jrod is more than a little sceptical of Pietersen.