Cricket Blog

There is no other sport that I enjoy watching more than Cricket. Year
after year, cricket has proven that it’s the primary source of income for an online sportsbook. Many American sports such as MLB, NHL and NFL, the betting numbers don’t even come close to what cricket betting numbers are. So for football betting fans out there, it’s time
to get into cricket!

India beat Zimbabwe by 6 wickets, but not as convincingly as hoped. Hare are the full match highlights:

So India crashed out of the tri-nations tournament, courtesy of a thrashing by minnows Zimbabwe. That ain’t surprising to be quite honest. India went to the tournament with a second string team with only Suresh Raina as a regular player for a regular playing XI. Even his selection as a captain raised a few eyebrows from me. I believe that Virat Kohli is a better captain than Raina. He has the temperament and the maturity to lead an Indian team. These are attributes that have already been recognized by his RCB franchise in the IPL.

The major disappointment for me has been the attitude of the selectors in choosing this squad. India were ranked No 2 in ODIs. A lot more serious thought should have been placed to ensure that atleast we maintained that ranking. Far too many players were rested. Not that they didn’t deserve a rest, but it just wasn’t sensible policy to do away with ten of your regular players. That was overkill and the result is that we are now 1 down in the rankings. Even more disappointing has been the fact that we lost both of our matches to Zimbabwe. Convincingly.

With the Asia cup now our only hope of regaining the number 2 spot, I fear that we might plunge even further as a lot of players are coming back from a long rest. My observation says that Indian players tend to take their time getting into the groove. So I expect India to perform rather poorly in the Asia cup. I will be more than happy for Team India to prove me wrong on this occasion.

As was expected the Indian batting came a shocker at the crunch moments. Losing all three matches in the super eight stage is one thing, but losing to teams that are not in the same league as you is unforgivable.

India won both their league matches comfortably so there was reason for optimism. That the lost so comprehensively against Australia was a slap back to reality. The loss to the West Indies was just not acceptable. And yesterdays defeat to the Lankans was heart-breaking.

The Indian players now are the most experienced players in T20 cricket courtesy of the IPL. It is both a blessing and a course. It’s a double-edged sword. Yes, we get plenty of experience but at the same time the format is such that there is no time to regroup. No time to sit down and strategize. The IPL can partially be blamed for the tired performance if the team. But the real blame should be on the selectors.

That’s right. It is the selectors who chose this squad and barring the usual suspects everyone else’s selection should be under the microscope. Perhaps the BCCI should rest key players from the IPL when major tournaments are coming up. Too many questions and not enough solutions.

Watch full highlights here:

20 min on Youtube