EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE DELHI THE HINDU 20 SPORT WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 18, 2019 EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Smriti in ICC teams Cricket has few geniuses, but many foxes and hedgehogs Perry is Women’s Cricketer and ODI Player of the Year with Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendul­ played forward and Sobers moved to dropped out of the national reckoning kar. The latter could do things with his left. But the ball took the edge and because of this. Saad bin Jung was a CRICKET entered the record books in the bat others could not even contem­ went the other way, and Sobers, as if wonderful batsman with a range of October, scoring a world re­ plate doing; so could the former. Not he had meant to do this all along, strokes who made centuries in diffi­ cord 148 not out off 61 balls understanding this has caused young changed direction and swung back cult conditions but did not play at the IANS against Sri Lanka — the high­ Rishabh Pant to declare “there is with a dancer’s grace to make the highest level. DUBAI est score by a woman in BETWEEN WICKETS nothing called a natural game” follow­ catch. Late career changes often convert The International Cricket T20Is. She reached her half­ ing his first half­century in one­day in­ “Genius!” said Gibbs who got up foxes into hedgehogs. Rohan Kanhai, Council (ICC) announced on century off 25 balls and her suresh menon ternationals at Chepauk. from his chair in admiration. Gibbs the brilliant West Indies stroke player Tuesday that Australia all­ maiden hundred came off The two categories, it must be ad­ must have been 80 then, and was still and nightmare of bowlers around the rounder Ellyse Perry has just 46 deliveries, the fastest “The fox,” wrote the ancient Greek mitted, are not absolute and there are excited by a catch taken some four de­ world is a good example. So too is been named the Women’s century ever by an Austra­ poet Archilochus, “knows many bound to be overlaps, even in the ca­ cades earlier. Gundappa Viswanath, who, as he Cricketer of the Year as well lian man or woman. things, but the hedgehog knows one reer of a single individual. But they “The man could do anything,” said aged, changed guard from leg to mid­ as the Women’s ODI Player Both Perry and Healy big thing.” This has been interpreted are convenient, and as likely to ex­ Dennis Lillee of Sobers. “Even dance dle, and played fewer extravagant, of the Year for 2019. She will have also been named in the in many ways. The British philosoph­ plain a writer or artist as a cricketer. like Fred Astaire.” aah!­making strokes. take home the Rachael Hey­ Women’s ODI and T20I er Isaiah Berlin used it as the central Both categories contain top The line between the fox and the Rishabh Pant has been an enigma hoe Flint Award, which was Teams of the Year, alongside theme of his essay on Tolstoy. players. Sobers, Tendulkar, Viv Ri­ hedgehog is not immovable. Nor is it in some ways — a wonderful striker of bagged by India’s Smriti fellow Australian captain Some psychologists have said that chards, Dravid, Sunil Gavaskar were left uncrossed through a batsman’s the ball with Test centuries in En­ Mandhana last year. Meg Lanning, who was foxes have different strategies for dif­ foxes while Virender Sehwag, Boy­ career. Some hedgehogs have been gland and Australia who hasn’t been Smriti grabbed a spot in named skipper of both sides. ferent problems and understand cott, Sanath Jayasuriya were hedge­ successful at the top level because of as successful in what might be consi­ both the ICC Women’s ODI The ICC Women’s ODI Team of nuance while hedgehogs reduce all hogs. their ability to reduce everything to dered his natural habitat, the white and T20I Teams of the Year. the Year (in batting order): problems to one overarching match their strength. “If the square ball game. It was an issue with Seh­ Smriti has played 51 ODIs Alyssa Healy (wk, Aus), principle. False debate cut is the only productive stroke you wag too in his early days in the shor­ and 66 T20Is, scoring 2,025 Smriti Mandhana (Ind), Tamsin So what does all this have to do The natural versus non­natural is a play, and you can square cut every ter formats. “Since I have played the and 1,451 runs respectively. Beaumont (Eng), Meg Lanning with cricket? It can be the starting false debate. This might have someth­ time the ball is pitched short, then international game,” Pant explained, Shikha Pandey, Jhulan (Aus, Capt.), Stafanie Taylor point of one of sport’s enduring dis­ ing to do with the limitation of the lan­ that’s all I ask of you,” a Chennai “ I have realised that there is nothing Goswami and Poonam Ya­ Smriti Mandhana. * FILE PHOTO (WI), Ellyse Perry (Aus), Jess cussions: the so­called natural player guage which has no specific words for coach once told one of his wards. At called ‘natural game’. You have to dav have also found a spot in Jonassen (Aus), Shikha Pandey versus the non­natural (for want of a the degrees between the absolutely the top level, Chetan Chauhan was an play according to the situation and ICC ODI Team of the Year 73.50 from 12 ODIs this year, (Ind), Jhulan Goswami (Ind), better word). It is easy to assume that untalented at one end of the spec­ opener whose most profitable stroke what the team needs. A good player is while Deepti Sharma and where she has also taken 21 Megan Schutt (Aus), Poonam naturals are consistent strikers of the trum and the genius at the other. The was the square cut. He formed a fine one who can mould his game accord­ Yadav (Ind). Radha Yadav made it to the wickets, including a national ball while non­naturals are defensive genius probably falls into both catego­ partnership with Gavaskar thanks to ing the situation.” ICC T20I Team of the Year. record 7/22. She became the ICC Women’s T20I Team of the and more concerned with where their ries; he is both fox for his range and this ability. This could be a working definition Year (in batting order): Healy first player to complete left elbow finishes rather than where hedgehog for his mastery. At the batting crease, choice can of a good player: one who changes his (Aus), Danielle Wyatt (Eng), 1,000 runs and 100 wickets Stellar year Lanning, Smriti, Lizelle Lee the ball does. I was once watching the video of an sometimes be terror. A batsman with game according to the situation. But a Perry has had a stellar year in T20I cricket. (RSA), Perry, Deepti Sharma Yet, a Geoff Boycott is as much a old Test match in England with the few strokes is often more successful great player is one who changes the across formats, with three Named as the T20I (Ind), Nida Dar (Pak), Schutt, natural as a Garry Sobers; what is nat­ West Indies bowler Lance Gibbs. Sob­ than one with many simply because situation with his game. In his transi­ hundreds, including one in Cricketer of the Year for the Shabnim Ismail (RSA), Radha ural to him is simply different from ers was fielding at silly point to the off the latter’s options call for better jud­ tion from the hedgehog to the fox, the Ashes Test. She averages second year running, Healy Yadav (Ind). what is natural to Sobers. Likewise spinner. The batsman, a left hander, gement. Gifted batsmen have Pant should not forget that. 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games: India’s hockey programme announced Kapil says he won’t meet Men to play New Zealand and women the Netherlands in their respective openers Ethics Officer DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD IANS to begin with a win. DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD cause in the Olympics every NEW DELHI “New Zealand have always India’s schedule and final phase matches team is equal and every team PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Indian men will take on New posed stiff competition for us Men: vs. New Zealand (July 25); vs. Australia (July 26); vs. Spain will come with an aim to win. NEW DELHI Zealand in their opening and I believe it can be a close (July 28); vs. Argentina (July 30); vs. Japan (July 31); Quarterfinals We need to focus on our­ BCCI ethics officer D.K. Jain (Aug. 2); Semifinals (Aug. 4); Gold and bronze medal matches has asked Kapil Dev and hockey match at the 2020 To­ game. (Aug. 6). selves and what we can do kyo Olympics while the wo­ “It is important to keep our Women: vs. The Netherlands (July 25); vs. Germany (July 27); vs. better on a given day. We are Aunshuman Gaekwad to men’s team will play Rio nerves in check as opening Great Britain (July 29); vs. Ireland (July 31); vs. South Africa (Aug. preparing well to ensure we appear in Mumbai later Games silver medallist the matches can be a bit over­ 1); Quarterfinals (Aug. 3); Semifinals (Aug. 5); Gold and bronze tick all the boxes in each of this month to explain con­ Netherlands on July 25 as the whelming, especially at a ma­ medal matches (Aug. 7) . our matches.” flict of interest allegations DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD draw for the quadrennial ex­ jor event like the Olympics.” Indian women are in Pool against them even though travaganza was announced in Indian men, clubbed with Argentina on July 30 and Ja­ and we cannot let our guard A along with the Netherlands, they have already resigned Tokyo on Tuesday.