Posted on 23rd July 2008 by vcode in Cricket News | Group C Match Reports
Sri Lanka vs India: Idea Cup Test Series.
The three test series between India and Sri Lanka gets underway at the SSC stadium in Colombo 23rd of July. India will be hoping to win their first test series against their neighbours in 15 years. The last time they won was way back in 1993, but at that time the Sri Lankans were just about finding their feet in international cricket.
Much has changed after that, as in Sri Lanka have gone from strength to strength, winning a world cup and then reaching the final of the last one. They also set a world record total in excess of 900 runs and that too against India. Also the world saw the rise of Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas who are very much still there and will be a huge threat to the Indian batting line up.
India in Srilanka 2008 Schedule – Player Profiles
Now in comes Ajantha Mendis who with his different grip and faster action has taken the world by storm and this will only be his true test. For the Indians have been known to play spin very well and these are not youngsters we are talking about, these are great players, vastly experienced and will play with a straight bat. Yes, India’s main strength is their batting line up and with the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, it is only expected to be so.
But the Indians will have to do better than they did in their only practice game if they are to challenge for the honours at the end of the series. Their bowling looks in better shape and was proved so when they did quite well in the practice game, with almost all front line spinners among the wickets.
For the Sri Lankans, their bowling looks weak as they really don’t have more than three decent bowlers but then again those three will do the bulk of the bowling. Apart from that, their batting seems to be totally dependent on Jayawardene and Sangakkara, but their only advantage is that they are at home.
Posted on 22nd July 2008 by vcode in Cricket News
THE KENYAN CRICKET TEAM
The Kenyan cricket team is the national cricket team of Kenya. The team are considered as the number one non-Test cricketing nation. They proved their skills by surprisingly proceeding up to the semi-final in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, which led for calls to grant Kenya Test status.
History
Kenya’s entry into international cricket came as part of the East African cricket team, a combined team representing Kenya in addition to Uganda and Tanzania. That team gained associate membership of the ICC in 1996. The Kenyan team did play the occasional game outside of that combination, including a drawn game against India in 1967. Kenya played their first first-class game in 1986, losing against Pakistan B. Their second first class game would be twelve years away, but in the interim, their cricket came on in leaps and bounds.
Performance
The team has been boosted over recent years with the batting of Steve Tikolo and Mourice Odumbe with the backup of other batsmen and bowlers, including spin bowler Aasif Karim, who holds the distinction of having captained his country both in international cricket and Davis Cup tennis. Their other famous upset was against West Indies during the 1996 Cricket World Cup.
Since the 2003 World Cup, Kenya’s progress towards eventual test status has been hampered by, among other factors, a lack of fixtures against the more established teams. Kenya went for a span of almost 18 months without playing an ODI after September 2004.
In February 2006, Kenya played an ODI series against Zimbabwe and did well to draw the series 2-2. It can be seen that the Kenyan Cricket Team’s recent performances have been of mixed fortunes. Kenya now need to play more matches in preparation for the 2007 World Cup.
Chances in the 2007 World Cup
After the 2003 World Cup, Kenyan cricket was plunged into a dark phase of controversies that seemed never ending. With match fixing allegations, payment disputes with senior players and striking, cricket suffered, however in 2005 the issue was resolved and with a new management at the helm of affairs, Kenya began their cricketing endeavors on a fresh note.
The team played a few matches and that made for some good preparation for the World Cup. They have to improve upon a lot if they wish to leave any impression in 2007 world cup. It might be a good exposure for the future of Kenyan cricket. They may play some good matches with their equals. However the Kenyan Team’s Chances in the 2007 World Cup seem bleak as the team is now left without a lot of their senior players who have either retired or been banned.