Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Twose, diligent student
NOTTINGHAM: England: New Zealand8217;s Roger Twose really put his head down as he prepared for New Zealand8217;s World Cup clash against India 8212; he sat a three-hour university exam in his hotel room.
What8217;s in a ball?
LONDON: Opposition captains have infuriated Pakistan by what has become dubbed the white ball tactic.8217;
Australia8217;s Steve Waugh and South Africa8217;s Hansie Cronje both found a convenient way of thwarting Pakistan8217;s famous reverse swing8217; late in the innings. After 40overs, they asked the umpires to change the white ball, claiming it had got dirty and was hard to spot in fading light. The umpires, with a duty to protect the batsmen8217;s safety, granted their request and introduced a brighter ball.
Pakistanis, however, argue they work hard on the ball throughout the innings, using strictly legal methods to polish and shine it and make one side heavier than the other, enabling their bowlers to find reverse swing in the crucial final overs.
Captain Wasim Akram has been caught on television vigorously arguing with the umpires. He will have noticed that Australia and South Africa have only complained about ball visibility while playing against Pakistan.
Party, party 8230;
LONDON: Zimbabwe may have been hammered by Australia and Pakistan in their last two outings, but you would never guess if you entered their dressing room afterwards. The Africans have established themselves as the happiest team in the World Cup 8212; and who throw the best parties.
Win, lose, ormatch abandoned 8212; the fun is always flowing in the Zimbabwean camp. 8220;We8217;re often still in our dressing room two hours after the game,8221; says vice-captain Andy Flower.
8220;We8217;re always happy to have a drink with the oppo8217; but not too many have stayed. So we invite our supporters to come in and have a beer with us instead.8221;
Donald defends Akhtar
LONDON: South African paceman Allan Donald has sprung to the defence of young rival Shoaib Akhtar of Pakistan.
Akhtar, the sensation of the World Cup after clocking 95mph deliveries, was accused of losing Pakistan their second-round match against South Africa with his wild bowling. But Donald said: 8220;I thought it was really unfair on Shoaib to be blamed for losing the game against us.8221;
Donald insists he is not bothered at figures showing that he is five miles per hour slower than Akhtar, arguing speed is not everything. 8220;It8217;s quite spectacular for the crowd to see someone like Shoaib bowling as fast as he can, but ultimately it8217;s not how fast youbowl, it8217;s the results you get. I don8217;t even notice the speed read-out.8221;
Indian fans sing, dance to the bitter end
TRENT BRIDGE: Around 6,000 Indian spectators still had their hearts in it here on Saturday. The body language of the 11 that mattered, how ever, suggested they were already thinking of home.
Mohammad Azharuddin8217;s side, playing for pride in their final fixture failed to defend that total as New Zealand got home in a dramatic finish. Nobody could accuse the Indians of not trying. But the keen competitive edge that has characterised their play in the Cup seemed To have evaporated. Their faces told the story.
A tired-looking Sachin Tendulkar, the best batsman in the world but whose tournament was undermined by the death of his father, winced when he was bowled middle stump.
Rahul Dravid, the top scorer of the tournament, shook his head all the way back to the pavilion when he was caught. He swiped with his bat at the ground but even that gesture seemed half-hearted.
SauravGanguly, whose 183 against Sri Lanka was the best individual score of the competition, just looked sour when Geoff Allott yorked him while skipper Mohammad Azharuddin, after putting on 90 for the fourth wicket, grimaced.But even the ultra-aggressive Debashis Mohanty was not quite himself as here he just looked exasperated as the fans, to their credit, kept on dancing and kept on chanting.
