14 Tuesday 31st May, 2011 Barcelona leaves Forget the mystery no doubt they are soccer’s best BY STEPHEN BRUNT applied pressure and of Mendis - it’s all There is, or at least Rooney made it pay, working there used to be, a kid’s toy give-and-goes with Michael called spirograph that, with Carrick and Ryan Giggs, a pen and a series of inter- before cleanly beating locking circles, allowed for Victor Valdes. just lettuce the creation of wildly intri- At that moment, it felt cate patterns of intersect- like game on and sitting BY DAVID LLOYD Still, Derby beats the lot: they’ve got the BMI ing straight lines. among the loud, emotional They reckon the Sri Lanka spinner Ajantha Baby Racecourse End and the Office Care City That’s the way crowd in the stadium at the Mendis has got four different variations. But as End. Evocative. Barcelona plays soccer, its end of the first half, it felt as far as I can tell, they all go straight on. Time to speed up! short, precise passes deliv- if those 45 minutes had been It reminds me of lettuce. You’ve got cos let- I’m on a crusade to speed the game up. They ered with perfect logic, competitive. But watching tuce, iceberg, Swiss chard and arugula - but at started three minutes late after tea and we even sometimes forward, some- the replay in the wee hours the end of the day, there’s no getting away from had a six-minute over from Farveez Maharoof. times backward or sideways of Sunday morning, it didn’t it: they’re all just lettuce. Ian Bell edged the last ball to fine-leg for four, and players moving con- look close at all and the sec- A miner miracle and everyone on the pitch - including the umpires stantly, always linking up. ond half, live or on televi- Since we’re in a part of the world that does a - stood gaping at the big screen. Get on with it! Looking on in wonder, it sion, was both a rout and a lot of work underground, I meant to tell you All eyes on Ian: Bell’s strokeplay was dis- feels less like mathematics clinic. about a story I heard after the Chilean miners tracted those out in the middle than art, especially when (Numbers rarely do jus- emerged from their ordeal. Double comeback the ball winds up at the feet tice describing a soccer “Is Jonathan Trott still in?” I know how they Word reaches me that Bishan Bedi and Dilip of the diminutive genius at match, but take a gander at felt. Doshi are dusting off their creams and eyeing up the centre of the ‘mandala’, these: Barcelona directed 16 It doesn’t stand up an international comeback. Both fellas used to Lionel Messi. shots on or at the net, Think of all the great Glamorgan players bowl left-arm spin back in the day, but it seems Crowning a champion at United three; Barcelona won down the years: Wilf Wooller, Don Shepherd, they’ve been watching videos of Kevin Pietersen Wembley After Barcelona’s six corners, United zero; Tony Lewis, Robert Croft. But the stands are bat and are keen to make India’s tour party later decisive 3-1 victory over Barcelona controlled the called things like the Pro-Copy Stand and the this summer. Manchester United on ball 68 per cent of the time). Biffa Stand. (Courtesy Mailonline) Four variations: Sri Lanka spinner Ajantha Mendis. Saturday night in the Messi was at the heart of Champions League final at it. He scored the winning Wembley Stadium, it was goal in the 54th minute, fac- Gayle left out of T-20, first two ODIs against India intensity cricket in Trinidad,” Kieron Pollard recalled young batsman Adrian Barath has been left out of the two squads, as At odds with the West Indies Pacer Kemar Roach has been he is still undergoing rehabilita- Cricket Board, explosive left hand rested for the lone Twenty20 and tion, the report added. batsman, former skipper, Chris the first two ODIs in Trinidad. “A decision on his return to Gayle was on Monday left out of Roach will, however, be available international cricket will be taken the squads announced for the lone for selection for the third ODI of following the assessment and it is Twenty20 and the first two one- the five-match series. hoped he will be available for the dayers against India, starting “It is expected that other play- Digicel Test Series, West Indies June 4, according to a report car- ers with heavy workloads will also versus India,” the WICB said. ried on a website, datelined, May be rested and rotated from time to Pacer Jerome Taylor, who like 30, 2011. time throughout the West Indies Gayle accused the WICB of leav- Lionel Messi “Chris Gayle will not be con- versus India Series 2011 and mov- ing him in a lurch during injury sidered for selection to the West ing forward,” the WICB said. problems, has also been left out of left to the men in charge to ing three defenders, none of Indies team before an intended The explosive batting duo of the squad. come up with the appropri- whom dared come at him. meeting with himself, the Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard “Jerome Taylor is required to ate superlatives. He pulled up and shot, Selection Committee, the WICB were declared “not eligible to rep- play a full season of regional “In my time as manager, catching van der Sar leaning Management and the West Indies resent the West Indies in Chris Gayle was the Player of the cricket in order to prove his fit- I would say they are the the wrong way. And Messi Team Management,” the WICB Twenty20 format as they did not Tournament in the IPL, but is not ness to compete adequately at best team we have faced,” created the chaos that led to said in a statement. take part in the last edition of the being considered for the West Indies international level before being said Sir Alex Ferguson, who David Villa scoring the third “The Selection Committee Caribbean Twenty20.” But both of side. considered for selection,” the started out at lowly East Barcelona goal 15 minutes views this meeting as necessary as WICB stated. Stirlingshire in 1974 and later, leaving Nani (who had a result of Gayle’s comments in a The 12-man Twenty20 group since arriving at Old just come on as a substi- widely publicised radio interview has uncapped left-arm seamer Trafford in 1986, has seen tute), standing alone and in Jamaica,” it added. Gayle, who Krishmar Santokie as the lone the ‘crème de la crème’ of bewildered as he ran by was recently ignored for the series new face. But apart from the 26- the world game close up. him, free, into the box. against Pakistan, has had a mas- year-old Santokie, there is no “Everyone acknowledges “I feel privileged,” sive war of words with the WICB, other change in the side that beat that and I accept that. No Guardiola said. “You always after claiming that he was left to Pakistan in St. Lucia in April. one has given us a hiding want to win, but the way we fend for himself, during recent Twenty20 squad: Darren like that.” won is what I am most injury problems. Sammy (capt), Lendl Simmons, “Lionel is the best play- proud of. This is the way we An angry WICB retorted by Andre Fletcher (wk), Darren er I have seen and probably want to play football.” saying that the batsman was well Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Danza the best I will ever see,” And this, right now, is looked after and it was he who Hyatt, Christopher Barnwell, said Barcelona manager, the gold standard. They are kept the board uninformed while Andre Russell, Ashley Nurse, Pep Guardiola, who at 40 obviously the best club in flying out to India to play in the Devendra Bishoo, Ravi Rampaul, isn’t old enough to remem- the world and the core of IPL for eventual runners-up Royal Krishmar Santokie. ber Pele, or Best, or Puskas, this Barcelona squad is also Challengers Bangalore. Squad for first two ODIs: but certainly saw the player the core of the Spanish The 31-year-old Gayle was the Darren Sammy (capt), Lendl to whom Messi is most national team that is the star of the recently-concluded Simmons, Kirk Edwards, Darren often compared - Diego reigning World Cup and Twenty20 League, finishing as the Bravo, Marlon Samuels, Maradona. European champion. top-scorer with 608 runs, including Kieron Pollard. (AP Photo) Ramnaresh Sarwan [ Images ], It’s not as if United did- There is talk of a couple of hundreds, but even them have made the squad for the Indies team, he must participate Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, n’t show up. Fresh from Guardiola moving on to new this destructive form could not first two ODIs. in the corresponding format of Carlton Baugh (wk), Andre winning a record 19th challenges – perhaps even find him a place in the two nation- “The WICB selection criteria the game at regional level,” the Russell, Anthony Martin, League Championship, it is succeeding Ferguson at Old al sides to be captained by Darren outlines that for a player to be eli- board explained. Although he has Devendra Bishoo, Ravi Rampaul. a great team, perhaps neck Trafford if Sir Alex opts to Sammy. gible for selection to the West been allowed to return to “low (Russ) and neck with Real Madrid retire – but right now as the second best in the there’s no end in sight to world, even if it’s not the Barça’s dominance.