Marillier scripts thrilling win for at Faridabad Santhosh S - 7 March 2002

Every number 10 batsman dreams of pulling off a shock win, of hitting up a storm in the latter stages of a run chase to elevate his team from the depths of despair to the dizzying heights of victory. On Thursday, Douglas Anthony Marillier lived out that dream in full-blooded glory.

With Zimbabwe chasing 275, Marillier played one of the most incredible one-day innings ever seen. They would have been rejoicing in , and all over Zimbabwe as Marillier scripted one of the most remarkable one-day wins of all time. He brazenly stole the thunder from a marauding Indian side at Faridabad on a pleasant Thursday evening, pulling off the unthinkable with two balls to spare and winning by just one .

Walking in to bat with Zimbabwe well and truly on the mat at 210/8 in the 45th over, Marillier made merry with some memorable shots to stand tall and strong on an unbeaten 56 off just 24 balls. What made his heroics all the more incredible was the fact that he ruthlessly punished the best of the bowlers on the day - . For a country that has had little to celebrate of late, this amazing win will be something to cherish for a long time to come.

Beating India on their home soil is not an easy task, although admittedly the fickle nature of one-day makes the job somewhat easier. But after the dismissals of and Alistair Campbell, Zimbabwe never looked like winning until Marillier took over with his unique style of strokeplay, scooping the ball over the wicket-keeper's head numerous times for four. The 23-year-old right-hander surely added a new term to the cricket vocabulary - "The Dougie shot."

Earlier in the day, won the toss and decided to bat first on a track that promised runs by the ton. (25 off 24 balls) and Ganguly gave India a brisk start before the former was caught off an inside edge by off . Ganguly and VVS Laxman then added 77 runs in 14.3 overs, the partnership being broken only when Ganguly (57 off 70 balls) was brilliantly by Taibu off Marillier. The Indian skipper, no doubt full of confidence after his Test , smashed two sixes and half-a-dozen boundaries in his commanding knock.

Rahul Dravid (23) was trapped in front of the wicket by (10-0- 31-1), easily the pick of Zimbabwe's bowlers. Laxman played his patented silken drives through cover and the wristy whips through mid-wicket, signs that India will interpret hopefully as a return to form. The stylish Hyderabadi batsman made 75 off 99 balls with five boundaries before mis-called during a run. Laxman ended up at Kaif's end, tragically run out.

India further lost their way as (0) and (6) departed in quick succession. It took a whirlwind knock from (40 off 19 balls) to propel India to a score of 274 in 50 overs. Agarkar played some rousing shots, punishing some wayward Zimbabwe bowling and carting the ball to all parts of the ground. He hit one mighty six off Streak over mid-wicket and also struck six fours in his quick-fire knock.

Kaif too played a good hand, scoring 39 off 45 deliveries. The two batsmen put together an unbeaten stand of 63 runs in just 6.2 overs.

Zimbabwe could not have gotten off to a worse start during their chase of 275. Zaheer Khan picked up the of (1) and pinch- hitter (7) early to send Zimbabwe reeling at 21/2. It was the old firm of Campbell and Flower that defied the Indian attack, the two senior batsmen adding 111 runs for the third wicket and putting the run chase back on track.

Flower was at his usual best, playing the smart sweep shots, the orthodox and the reverse. The senior Flower struck two huge sixes and eight boundaries to score 71 off just 72 balls before dragging a ball from back on to his stumps. Zaheer was brought back into the attack, and he duly sent back skipper (23) and Campbell (84 off 113 balls). Campbell was looking particularly dangerous, striking seven fours before being trapped lbw by Zaheer.

Zimbabwe found themselves in something of a quagmire when removed Grant Flower (2) and Heath Streak (1) in the space of four balls. The visitors were in a hopeless position in the 45th over on 210/8 before Marillier decided to come to the party. He proceeded to take 20 runs off Zaheer Khan's ninth over, improvising in stunning manner and using the scoop "Dougie" shot over the wicket-keeper's head to great effect. He also hit one huge six over square leg in the same over, easing the pressure considerably.

Marillier and Taibu put on 42 runs in just 3.2 overs, but a shocking decision by the umpire sent back Taibu, supposedly caught behind. Ajay Ratra's appeal aimed only to distract the umpire from calling an obvious wide, but it succeeded in getting rid of the batsman.

With 23 runs required off the last two overs, Marillier was at his best against Zaheer in the 49th over, playing repeatedly over the keeper's head for easy runs and making a mockery of the field placements. Zaheer's bowling figures stood completely wrecked, going from 8-2-15-4 to 10-2-47- 4.

Marillier struck two more boundaries in the 50th over, bowled by Kumble (9.4-0-70-1), to register the most astonishing of one-day wins. Marillier remained unbeaten after an explosive innings punctuated with 10 boundaries and the huge six. Gary Brent remained unbeaten on one, an admiring first-row spectator to the whirlwind that held centre-stage at the other end.

http://www.cricket.org/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2002/MAR/109276_ZIMININD_07MAR2002.html

Success will come if you are patient enough Santhosh S - 2 October 2001 "He is able who thinks he is able." -Buddha

He is an able man; he has claimed 350 Test wickets and 250 ODI wickets so far in international cricket. He bowls almost 60 overs in a Test match and one in every four is a maiden. He gives the ball enormous tweak and twirl that the ball spins so much and at times strikes like a King Cobra. He is the world's premier off spinner, Muttiah Muralitharan.

Murali has seen the highs and lows in his career, but has always believed in his ability to get wickets. He is indeed a humble human being with that twinkle in the eyes. This magician from Kandy in Sri Lanka, is definitely the most popular man in his country. Muralitharan's bowling is a delight to the connoisseur's eye, an inspiration to a whole generation.

In an exclusive interview to CricInfo, the master off spinner said, "My career is going on well at the moment, whatever I have been planning to achieve, is happening."

When asked about growing up as a cricketer in Sri Lanka, Muralitharan said, "In Sri Lanka the game is played everywhere, it is a popular game, even though rugby is also there. Everybody wants to play and there is a good structure in place, which includes the school system, where they play each other a lot."

There is something about the cricket that Sri Lankans play; there is a lot of flair, almost reminding one, of the calypso brand of cricket. Muralitharan believes that it is mostly because of the abundance of talent and the wonderful team spirit. "They play positive cricket and try to enjoy than putting pressure on themselves."

The king of reckons that the foundation of Sri Lankan cricket is strong. Lots of talent is spotted and nourished through the school system. Two hundred schools compete in three divisions, U19s and U17s play One- Day cricket, U15s and U13s play Two-Day cricket. "The competition and motivation is always there."

Muralitharan showered praises on his former skipper Arjuna Ranatunga, "Arjuna was the most talented player ever produced by Sri Lanka. He is the best that I have ever seen." Muralitharan says that Ranatunga helped the players a lot by sorting out their problems. As a skipper, Ranatunga always stood by his players and ensured that the team stood together.

Murali added, "He was a great captain. Whatever I am today is because of him, my career is because of him, he did so much for me. When I started and went through a rough patch, he helped me a lot." He paid rich tribute to Ranatunga, "If there are more captains like him, younger players will benefit a lot."

When the offie was asked about the controversy about his bowling action, he was quick to acknowledge the support he received from Ranatunga, Aravinda De Silva and Sri Lankan cricket board. "Arjuna said don't worry, I will take care of the matter, and you just go out and bowl."

Muralitharan keeps a positive outlook to his life always. When asked, what makes the Lankans play such attractive and enjoyable cricket amongst all the violence that goes on in the country, Murali said, "The war has been going on 20 years, you never know when it is going to stop. If it stops and there is peace in the country, it will be the best countries in South Asia."

Muralitharan reckons that things happen in life and one can't afford to worry too much about it. Life has to go on and one has to concentrate on its brighter side.

With all the money coming into the game in Sri Lanka the off spinner thinks that there will be more professionals and things will improve.

Muralitharan thinks that Saqlain Mushtaq is a very good bowler. "If you take a look at his record you will see that he has taken about 150 Test wickets, I think it is not bad for an off spinner." He didn't want to comment on Harbhajan Singh as he was too young and has yet to prove himself in the long run. "People can have success for a few months or a year or two, you have to continue and keep your head cool and keep on going. Harbhajan Singh has the talent and needs to use it."

The world's numero uno off spinner thinks that one can train a fast bowler, but spin bowling is a difficult art to learn. Muralitharan has had good success in South Africa in . He picked up 11 wickets in the Durban Test match, on a bouncy wicket.

When asked what advice he will give to Harbhajan Singh, he said, "It is a hard job try to take wickets in South Africa. The bounce helps the faster bowlers not the spinners, you have to turn the ball a lot in those conditions. The bounce is there and you can take wickets. If you couldn't turn then it will be a problem. So it will all depend on him, if he turns the ball, he will get wickets."

About his eight-wicket haul on the first day in the third Test match against India, Muralitharan thinks he made use of the early bounce and the fact that the Indian batsmen played some careless shots helped him.

Muralitharan is one of the most feared bowlers in international cricket. He reckons that bowling to all the five or six top batsmen in every team is a bit difficult. "There is the technology to help batsmen, they know what you are doing, you have to wait for the batsmen to make mistakes to capitalise."

The master revealed the secret behind his huge success as an off spinner, "You can't take wicket with every ball you bowl, you have to learn to be patient, success will come if you are patient enough."

http://www.cricket.org/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2001/OCT/651629_IND_02OCT2001.html

Darren Lehmann deserves no sympathy Santhosh S - 16 January 2003

The long hand of justice sometimes gets a bit too short, letting the guilty escape punishment. After 's racial attitude came to light, the onus was clearly on the Australian Cricket Board to send out a strong message – zero tolerance to racism.

Racism is not merely a mistake. It is a crime that should not go unpunished. A few weeks ago was fined 20% of his match fees for breaking the dressing room door. It remains to be seen what happens to Lehmann after the ICC's code of conduct charge.

The ACB's chief executive, James Sutherland, said that to emphasise the importance of players and officials complying with the code of conduct, the ACB has arranged for Lehmann to undergo counselling on this matter. "I have expressed to Darren the ACB's disappointment in the incident and organised immediate counselling for him," Sutherland said.

The question that begs an answer from both the ICC and ACB is whether Lehmann brought the game into disrepute. There is a lot of difference between an erratic character and one who commits a crime. The latter do not deserve counselling – `if you do the crime – do the time'.

Racism is a serious social problem. Only last month, Senator Trent Lott was engulfed in a political storm triggered by his racially offensive remarks, and forced to step down as US Senate Republican leader. Robert Mugabe and his administration are under fire from all corners for their violent land reforms, and for the singling out of white farmers in Zimbabwe.

No one should try to justify racism. It would be naïve to suggest that there are different degrees, and that Lehmann is a moderate compared to Lott or Mugabe. But can it not be argued that Lehmann has the seeds of a racist in him?

Moral hypocrisy is too prevalent in cricket these days. In November 2001, ICC match referee Mike Denness penalised five Indian players – including and - for bringing the game into disrepute. Sehwag was punished for `excessive appealing' – with a fine of 75% of his match fee and a one-Test ban. We are all too aware of the fracas that followed, but the fact of the matter is that Sehwag had to do his time.

Denness was quick to punish Sehwag, but missed the excessive appealing by South African skipper in the same game. The onus is not just on the ICC; the individual boards also have a responsibility to ensure that their players adhere to the basic values of this game – the gentlemen's game!

Earlier in 2001, West Indies wicket-keeper Ridley Jacobs was banned from playing in the second Test against Zimbabwe at Harare. The match referee, Denis Lindsay, found Jacobs guilty of a breach of the Players' and Team Officials' Code C2, namely: "Players and/or Team Officials shall at no time engage in conduct unbecoming to their status which could bring them or the game of cricket into disrepute." Jacobs brought the game to disrepute by claiming a stumping which was not completed.

On the other hand, it was good to see Steve Waugh extend his hand in gratitude to Mark Butcher after Butcher did not claim a catch. But it was the same Waugh who edged the ball to Foster before staring at the pitch as if nothing had happened! Goodwill should be reciprocated. Butcher is a rare class act. And it is that very spirit of honesty and principle that has made cricket a wonderful game to play and follow.

The game has had low points, like the Bodyline series and the under-arm ball. It has always suffered from , but these days there is an active effort to get rid of the sledging culture.

In the summer of 1986, admitted in his newspaper column that he had smoked marijuana. The then Test and County Cricket Board suspended him for three months, which helped India win the Test series in . The TCCB was very clear: Botham had set a bad example to young cricket fans.

In 2001 five South African players were fined and severely reprimanded for smoking marijuana while celebrating their victory over West Indies. The Commonwealth Cricket Academy in Adelaide teaches its young wards the virtues of good values and how to be a responsible citizen. So do most academies around the world.

All reasons why there is this voice I hear, which says: "Darren Lehmann's crime deserves no sympathy." http://www.cricket.org/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2003/JAN/122981_CI_16JAN2003.html

Parthiv Ajay Patel - the kid with a safe pair of hands Santhosh S - 9 June 2002

`If you hear a voice within you say "you cannot paint," then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.' --Vincent Van Gogh.

"Look at Ian Bell play the spinners, he is using the feet so well and getting to the ball before it can turn." These are the words of a fifteen-year-old boy, seated next to me in the press-box at the MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai, in January 2001. Do not look any further; the youngster is none other than .

Patel's appetite for the wonderful game of cricket was highly apparent as he kept talking to me about the technical strength and weakness of the opponents. He did not play a single match for India Under-19s against England Under-19s, spending time in the media enclosure to help out the scorers and journalists with the names of the junior players. He also had the job of getting vital statistics and information for the team coach – Roger Binny.

The young lad was full of beans, bubbling around and finding it very difficult to be away from the action. It was then I asked him about his heroics against in the Under-16 west zone encounter, opening the innings, Parthiv Patel had scored 101 runs off the Gujarat U16s total of 196 runs in the first innings. Following on, Gujarat made 297/5 to draw the match; Patel's contribution was an amazing unbeaten 201. Yes, the sheer quantum of runs spoke a lot about this kid's ability.

The excellent added a new dimension to this classy wicket-keeper with such soft hands. Patel's sharp eye for the finer details and his analytical ability did not go un-noticed, the West Zone selectors entrusted Patel with the captaincy in the Under-19s match against the visiting English colts. There was no doubt at all that this kid was being groomed for bigger things.

Soon, Patel was picked into the in , where he polished his wicket-keeping skills. There were three wicket- keepers in the academy at that time, the other two being Ajay Ratra and Deep Dasgupta. In the meanwhile, Patel led India Under-17s victorious campaign in the Asia Cup at Dhaka. Patel was on the fast track; he was rewarded with the prestigious Border-Gavaskar scholarship, which took him to a stint with the much-lauded Commonwealth Bank Cricket Academy in Adelaide. He was put through the rigours of modern training methods. The kid was completely in awe of Ian Chappell's lessons on how to deal with the media.

He picked up important lessons on wicket keeping from the Aussie legend Rodney Marsh, "Marsh taught me the importance of fast footwork and has given me some drills to go through. Unlike in India where wicket keepers are taught to gather the ball with the body right behind it, Marsh taught me to take the ball on either side the body so that you can cover till first slip, which allows the slips to be wider and cover more area."

Patel was learning fast and had to make a choice between spending time in the academy and playing for Gujarat. He chose the former, and it must be a bit ironical that he might play for India, much before he would actually play for Gujarat in the . Yes, this is a very rare case of a genius coming to the fore.

Patel was not even seventeen, when he was named to lead the Indian team in the junior World Cup that was played in New Zealand. Patel impressed everyone with his leadership skills as well as his wonderful work behind the stumps. Patel did not have a great time with the bat, after having to sacrifice the opening batsman's role, the youngster also was asked to curb his natural strokeplay in the first three games.

India juniors did not win the World Cup, but the young Patel had learnt a few valuable lessons. It was a bit of a surprise for everyone when he was named in the India `A' squad to tour South Africa. Before the squad left for South Africa, the team coach Yashpal Sharma had only good words about Patel, "He is a very good young cricketer and looks very confident. As a wicket-keeper, he is technically very good, and he is also a hard-hitting batsman."

Patel had a successful campaign in South Africa, taking 14 catches and three stumpings. It was in an one-day match against South Africa "A', playing as an opening batsman for the first time in the tour, he scored a quick fire 32 against the likes of Andre Nel, which suggested that the boy had it in him to take on the best of fast bowlers.

The selectors retained Patel in the squad that toured Sri Lanka recently. Patel played remarkably well as a batsman, finishing at the top of the batting averages. When he got an opportunity to open the innings in a limited over match against Sri Lanka `A', Patel smashed 71 runs in a winning effort at Dambulla. He did justice to his reputation as a competent wicket keeper by pouching 13 catches in the tour.

The tour of England with the national side would do a world of good to the youngster, who has made such long strides in the last couple of years, ever since he scored all those runs against Maharshtra Under-16s at Kholapur on 7th December 2000. Not at all bad for a youngster who took to cricket at the age of nine, inspired after watching Ian Healy's wicket keeping. Parthiv Patel is a little bundle of energy; no wonder his hero is the one and only .

It might all sound like a fairy tale, but, then, Patel has defied the time by believing in his own ability – and most importantly enjoying in what he does best – playing cricket. Now it is time to play with the big boys, and in a time when England struggles to figure out whether to give Bell a chance at the international level, Patel would go on adding to the legend that he almost is. http://www.cricket.org/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2002/JUN/014918_IND_09JUN2002.html