Is the game of cricket dying in England?
I seem to think so.If you go through cricket’s popular forums like guardian site or cricinfo, you will notice that English fans constantly lament that there is no place to see cricket as it is behind expensive pay wall i.e. SKY TV and that how the expensive subscription required has forced live cricket out of reach of a vast majority of cricket fans. There is talk about clubs closing due to lack of players, of their children having no interest in cricket whatsoever.The sport England’s surveys have regularly stated that number of regular cricket players are constantly decreasing. The same thing was reiterated by ECB’s in house survey last year.If you watch any telecast of England’s game on TV, you will notice that a very largest proportion of crowd consist of middle aged or elderly people and there are very few kids. Contrast that with a high profile cricket game in India or even Australia. It means that new fans are not being created in spite of a healthy Base.The sponsors - If you ever notice the sponsors of ECB, you will notice that most of its sponsors are related to rich or older clientele. For example, Nat West which is a large upmarket bank, investec which is an asset management company or royal london which a insurer. There are no mass market sponsors like Coca Cola or Hyundai for that matter. Or brands related to kids like KFC or milo etc.
Why do we still need to play test cricket matches given that they are less popular and lack the thrill of T-20s?
No offence to anyone, but a true cricket lover will understand the essence of Test Cricket.I am a huge fan of this man who is known as “The Wall”. He is the great legendary batsman “Rahul Dravid”. I still feel sad how his cricketing career came to an end.Trying to slog the ball in the finals against MI due to the need of the hour, he found himself nowhere near the ball. And, the ball hit the wood shattering it down. The guy who stood sessions and days in front of the stumps defending it like a wall has an end like this.This is just an example to make you understand the importance of Test Cricket.Do you really think players like Rahul Dravid, Cheteshwar Pujara, VVS Laxman and Misbah-ul-Haq aren’t good cricketers?Do you think that they don’t have technique or timing?No, not at all. The only thing they lack is power hitting or quick scoring.But is cricket all about scoring 8 or 10 an over? Is it all about hitting sixes? I am not against T20 cricket. But there are certain things that only Test Cricket can produce.Its Test cricket that allows us to witness the master class of these batsman.Also, test cricket gives bowlers the chance to exhibit their skills and we won’t be able to see those beautiful reverse swinging deliveries.Test Cricket is a test of the player’s patience and how they are able to adapt to the changing conditions of the wicket.And, who said that its not thrilling. Still there are people who enjoy the Ashes Series much more than World Cups or Big Bash Or IPL.I still get up at 3 a.m in the morning to watch the Test being played in New Zealand as I am a citizen of India. And, will keep loving it throughout my life.Thanks for A2A User-13399631813728358031. Thanks for reading!
Where to find good cricket games online?
This cricket game is my favorite http://www.ug2.com/online-game/427/The-Ashes.html but where can i find more like this? Does anyone know of any good ones??
Which batsman has scored most runs against any country?
1. Don Bradman( Scored 5028 vs England)Topping the batting charts in another record criterion is once again the legend himself , Sir Donald Bradman!.Bradman scored approximately 72% of his runs against england and that just displays his affection for the english bowlers. Bradman scored 5208 runs against england in just 37 matches at an average of 89.78 . To make things absolutely unbelievable ,bradman scored as many as 19 centuries against England!2. Jack Hobbs ( Scored 3636 runs vs Australia )Sir Jack Hobbs , who is the record holder for the most number of first class centuries with 199, simply enjoyed playing against the Australians in the Ashes. Hobbs 3636 runs against the Australians came at an average of 54.26 with 12 centuries to his name.3. Sachin Tendulkar ( Scored 3630 runs vs Australia )The century Tendulkar got against the Aussies in his first tour of the nation in 1991/92 was just the beginning of the very special relationship between Tendulkar and the Australian bowlers. The Master Blaster from India, changed the perception of run making, had an aggregate of 3630 runs against the Aussies at an stunning average of 55 and also had 11 centuries associated with his name against the Australians. His knock at Perth in his maiden tour of Australia is still considered among his finest test innings till date.4. Allan Border ( Scored 3548 runs vs England )Allan Border, undoubtedly Australia's most illustrious test captain had a fruitful outing against england as he went on to accumulate 3548 runs at an average of 56.31. Border also led his side exceptionally well and enjoyed batting under the extra responsibility. His 8 tons against the England to were crucial for the Kangaroos.5. David Gower ( Scored 3269 runs vs Australia )David Gower one of England's finest batsman enjoyed playing against archrivals Australia as that got the best out of him. Gower, in 42 test matches scored 3269 runs against the highly respected Australian bowling attack, at an average of 44.78 . He also had 9 tons to his credit.
What are some of the most memorable cricket matches you have watched?
India chases, and wins, a thriller @ Karachi. Wills Challenge 1997/98.The ‘six’ that broke millions of Pakistani hearts.It was by off spin bowler RAJESH CHAUHAN.& it was against off spin bowler Saqlain Mushtaq mystery bowler of that era who would bowl six different deliveries in an over which can confuse the best batsman of that time also best known for pioneering the “doosra", a leg break delivery bowled with an off break action.Nothing gets bigger in cricket than an India-Pakistan contest. When you win it for your side, you are the ‘hero’ and no excuses are enough during losses.Cricketing myths -- India cannot chase stiff targets, India fails in the chase if Sachin Tendulkar is out early, and the Indian tail is prone to collapse, Saqlain Mushtaq is impossible to get away at the deathWhen Sourav Ganguly became the fifth player from the Indian side to be hit by a missile from the crowd, match referee Ranjan Madugalle decided enough was enough, and stopped the game. When play resumed India required 267 to win from 47 overs and it was Ganguly’s payback time.Ganguly’s 89 from 96 balls and partnership of 98 with fellow left-hander Vinod Kambli (53) helped India get to a comfortable position but a flurry of wickets and the scenario changed. Later, the sixth wicket stand of 62 between Robin Singh and wicketkeeper Saba Karim got India close to a win but Waqar turned things in the home team’s favor when he dismissed.Last over, India needed eight and the bowler was Saqlain Mushtaq. Chauhan, who is not known for willow wielding skills, was on strike and all Indian fans hoped for was a single, so that Robin got the strike. However the Madhya Pradesh cricketer had other plans. And this happened.Chauhan stepped out and cleared the ground. With the match in India’s clutches, two singles later, India had leveled the series 1-1.Chauhan got congratulatory messages from everyone and Saqlain would have got sleepless nights.Chauhan became a household name & it was this six which was shown in advertisement for cycle/bike brand which he promoted later. Eleven years before this game, that’s exactly how India’s Chetan Sharma may have felt when Javed Miandad struck the last ball six in the final at Sharjah. This time it was Pakistan’s time to experience the heartbreak. That’s what a victory and defeat does in an India-Pakistan encounter.
What are some mind-blowing facts about cricket?
1. Ireland is the only team in Cricket World Cup History to chase down 3 300+ target.(There are only 7 Occasions(3 in 2015) where a target of 300+ has been chased)i) Against Netherlands -2011ii) Against England-2011iii) Against West Indies-20152. Zaheer Khan and Trent Boult are the only Bowler in the world to bowl 3 consecutive maidens(First three overs) in a world cup matches. Figures for both the bowlers were: Zaheer Khan(vs Sri Lanka 2011 World Cup Final) 3-3-0-1Trent Boult(vs Bangladesh 2015 World Cup) 3-3-0-13. Sachin Tendulkar is the only Bowler to defend 6 runs or less runs in the last over of an ODI twice.He defended six runs for India against South Africa at Calcutta when he conceded 3 runs and the team won by 2 runs in 1993.In 1997, against Australia in Mohali he was asked to defend 6 runs. He took Australia's tenth wicket on the first ball.On both occasions, he was bowling his first over in the match!!!!!!!!!4. In 1996 world Cup India hosted 17 world cup Matches at 17 different venues5. 300+ scores in World Cups: 1975: 4 1979: 0 1983: 4 1987: 1 1992: 2 1996: 5 1999: 3 2003: 9 2007: 16 2011: 17 2015 (27/49): 196.There's only one person who witnessed Jim Laker and Anil Kumble taking 10 wickets in an inningsAs a 10-year-old Richard Stokes witnessed Jim Laker taking all 10 wickets in the 1956 Old Trafford Test against Australia. Forty-three years later he was in India watching the India vs Pakistan Test and saw Anil Kumble taking all the 10 wickets in an innings. These were the only two Tests Stokes has watched in his life.7. Ishant Sharma is responsible for all the three highest scores made by a batsman against India in the 21st centuryEdgbaston 2011 – Ishant Sharma drops Alastair Cook – scores 294 Sydney 2012 – Ishant Sharma drops Michael Clarke – scores 329* Wellington 2014 – Ishant Sharma drops B.McCullum – He scores 302