Men and the cup

8220;It is sad,8221; says the 26-year-old stylish batsman, 8220;if you are accomplished, you are labelled as no good for limited overs cricket.8221; But, he says, he has no regrets about being dropped from the one-day India squad earlier.8220;It was fair enough. You can8217;t expect things to go your way all the time,8221; he mused philosophically.

Reflecting on his bygone days, he says: 8220;I always backed myself. I had the ability but perhaps I was low on form. It can happen to anybody. What I did was I went back to Ranji Trophy and worked hard on my game. I believed I was good enough to succeed in one-day cricket. I was hoping my form would return and it did. 8220;It being sidelined from the Indian team affects you but I am wiser now. I know how to handle it. There is no point getting too carriedaway or worked up about what appears in print. In fact, I feel there were people writing good things about me when I was down. It kept me going.8221;

Finally, a place in the sun for Big Tom

Unassuming all-rounder Tom Moody, Australia8217;s batting and bowling hero yesterday, says it has been a long, hard fight to gain the respect of the cricketing establishment.

Moody, in and out of the Australian side for the past 12 years, was the side8217;s hero as Bangladesh were crushed by seven wickets, taking three wickets for 25 and then thrashing the fastest 50 in the history of the World Cup.

It was Moody8217;s first appearance in the World Cup and came after Australia had made a dismal start to the tournament with one win and two defeats. Faced with a bowling crisis, captain Steve Waugh called on his mister dependable, the six foot five inch player.

8220;It8217;s been a long hard slog to get back and get recognised particularly with the ideas that people have of a 33-year-old,8221; Moody said after his performance againstBangladesh, which won him the man of the match award.Moody, captain of Western Australia and a member of English county side Worcestershire since 1991, has played only eight Test matches and 64 one-dayers since he was a member of the squad that won the World Cup in 1987.