Twelve years into his international career, South Africa’s wicketkeeper is still the epitome of fighting spirit and reliability under pressure

Jon Cardinelli15-Sep-2009His critics believe he is finished, but does Mark Boucher care? He has dragged South Africa back from the brink on countless occasions, and yet several hacks prefer to focus on his batting average. He is the most accomplished wicketkeeper in Test history, but there are still people calling for a change.Perhaps Boucher should care, but he doesn’t. Perhaps he should feel the need to prove the naysayers wrong, but if he did, he would forego the very quality that makes him special. Boucher is the pressure man, the player for the big occasion. He won’t average 50 or hit seven hundreds in a calendar year, but he’ll win you games. He’ll come across as arrogant in the post-match interview, the lemon-sucking expression accompanied by a curt response to a stupid question. But again, if he repressed this attitude, he’d lose all his clout.”I first worked with Mark when I was coaching at the Warriors,” recalls South Africa coach Mickey Arthur. “He captained the side and I always had faith in his cricketing brain. He was also the kind of leader who was never afraid to have his say, and as a player he was a true fighter.”Mark’s a tiger, and if I went to battle, there’s no one I’d rather have beside me. He’s fiercely loyal and will never turn down a challenge. He’s an invaluable member of our team.”The stats may not reflect Boucher’s value when he strolls to the crease, but Arthur admits there are other stat bars that tell a more accurate story, highlighting his game-winning ability.Boucher’s wicketkeeping virtues have never been in doubt. He has 475 scalps in Test cricket and 406 in ODIs – record figures that are set to rise as long as he’s fit and favoured. But it’s not just his work behind the stumps that has won him acclaim. His batting contributions played a significant part in his winning the South African Cricketer of the Year Award in 1998, 2000 and 2006. He was also named as one of ‘s five Cricketers of the Year in 2009.So what does he think about the criticism and the recent calls to step aside? The rise of AB de Villiers has prompted a fierce debate. De Villiers seems set to become one of the batting greats and has the ability to keep wicket. The ingrates reason that, closing in on 33, Boucher needs to make way for the future. But is comparing the two really comparing apples and apples?”I know it sounds like I’m trying to protect my position, but I just don’t think AB should play keeper,” Boucher says. “He’s too special a batter, and to put pressure on him from a keeping perspective is going to hamper his batting average.”Most players’ batting averages take a dip when they are asked to keep. Kumar Sangakkara wasn’t doing well when he was keeping, and I see his average has gone up since he stopped. AB needs to be averaging around 55 at Test level, but he’s not going to do that if he has to worry about keeping too.”Boucher’s viewpoint is shared by Arthur. There’s no plan to replace Boucher with de Villiers, and there’s no long-term plan to groom de Villiers as a successor when Boucher eventually calls it a day. “You can’t compare AB and Mark because their roles in the team are vastly different,” affirms Arthur. “Mark’s our best keeper, while AB is in the team as a top-order batsman.

“Mark’s a tiger, and if I went to battle there’s no one I’d rather have beside me. He’s fiercely loyal and will never turn down a challenge. He’s an invaluable member of our team”Mickey Arthur

“In an emergency, we would look to AB to keep wicket, but we don’t view him as a successor to Mark. Ultimately AB will bat at No. 4 in both versions of the game. We really want AB to become the best batsman on the planet. It would be unfair to burden him with the keeping responsibilities, as that could cause him to average 10 less than he should. When you have a player of that talent, you don’t want to hamper his ability to score.”We have identified two potential successors in the Dolphins’ Darren Smit and the Titans’ Heino Kuhn. Both are good keepers and have the ability to chip in with the bat.”Boucher averages less than 30 in both forms of the game, but when he does get going you have to wonder how good he would have been had he given keeping a miss. He has scored five Test centuries and 29 fifties, and his value in the ODI arena is well documented: he has 26 fifties and a sparkling 147 not out to his name. But since his 1997 debut, where he replaced Dave Richardson, it has always been about keeping first. Batting has been important, but only in the team context.”Mark is first and foremost a wicketkeeper,” says Arthur. “I think he has averaged less than he would have had he not worn the gloves, but that’s his role. That’s not to say we’ve ever doubted his ability. I can’t speak highly enough about what he has done for South African cricket.”In the Test set-up we usually go with six specialist batters, four specialist bowlers and our best wicketkeeper. From a batting perspective, Mark’s role is to marshal the tail.”In the one-day game Mark has become one of the best finishers in the world. At the end of an innings he can be devastating, whether he’s helping us set a formidable target or getting us past the opposition score. He’s capable of the big shots, but his experience is so crucial during those knocks. When he’s out in the middle, it helps other guys like Albie Morkel.”Boucher admits his personal goals are not that of a normal batter. When he walks down from the dressing room and onto the field, he’s thinking about how he can help South Africa. “I never look at averages and stats because they don’t really tell a story. Don’t get me wrong, I love scoring hundreds, but there are other things you look to achieve when you perform my kind of role.”I like to bat aggressively and take the bowling on, but I’m a team man. I’ll do what the team requires. My average may be a bit lower because of my responsibilities in the team context, but I’m a wicketkeeper-batsman, not a specialist batsman. My goals are not the same as those of an all-out batter.”I will never rest on my laurels and I will never voluntarily give my position away”•AFP”There are some knocks I’ll never forget, and those are the ones scored under pressure. In one of my first visits to India, we were in a difficult position and I came in and scored 27 not out to help win the game. That was like a century to me because of the conditions and context of the match.”That Test innings I played at Edgbaston last year was also very special. The series was on the line and although I didn’t score much [45 not out], I helped us towards that winning total.”If you are going to measure Boucher’s worth, you may as well do it in kilopascals. He has the ability to hit a cricket ball into the stands, but what sets him apart is how calm he is under pressure. “Everyone remembers guys like AB, Graeme Smith and Herschelle Gibbs for that 438 victory [in 2006], but Mark was the guy who got us home,” says Arthur. “The ODI win in Sydney this year was thanks to his batting performance, an important innings that allowed us to go to a defining 2-1 lead in the series. Mark’s a player capable of hundreds, but he’s also capable of playing those momentum-swinging knocks that sometimes prove [to be] the difference.”Fighting spirit is something that’s become synonymous with South African cricket. Jonty Rhodes, Allan Donald and Gary Kirsten are just three players who were renowned for it when Boucher first arrived on the scene, and Boucher credits them for contributing to his mental development. But deep steel, according to him, is something you cannot acquire. You either have it or you don’t.”I’ve played squash since I was very young and I think it has shaped my mentality as a cricketer. Squash is the type of game where you’re always fighting for the upper hand, and if you are down, you need to fight hard to come back. You need that fighting spirit to be a good squash player. You need to be a fighter if you’re going to deal with that pressure and rise above it. That’s what makes you a hardened sportsman, and I believe that’s what gave me the base to perform under big pressure in cricket.”Some people claim to enjoy the pressure. Some people ask me if I enjoy the pressure. Truth be told, I don’t think anybody enjoys it. It’s more about understanding it and understanding how to beat it. Some people will go into their shells when they’re under pressure, while others respond with an aggressive approach.”Richardson was 38 when he retired from international cricket, and while Boucher isn’t sure about matching that feat, he’s determined to soldier on for as long as he’s able. “I will never rest on my laurels and I will never voluntarily give my position away,” he says. “That may be the wrong thing to say, but I’m very competitive and I have plenty more years in me. I only think about my goals two years at a time. I definitely have another World Cup in me and I’ll decide where to after that.”My body’s still in good shape and I’ve never told anyone that I’m looking to retire. After the World Cup, I’ll be 35, but if I’ve still got a lot to give, why can’t I carry on for another few years?”

“I’ve played squash since I was very young and I think it has shaped my mentality as a cricketer. You need that fighting spirit to be a good squash player”Mark Boucher

Boucher had a limited opportunity when South Africa toured Australia back in 1997, but was awarded a full-time position when they travelled to England in 1998. For over a decade South Africa came close to beating England in England, while the same period witnessed a string of failures Down Under. There was a breakthrough in 2008, with South Africa following up a Test series win in England with an unprecedented triumph in Australia. Boucher was at the heart of both victories, and as a seasoned campaigner drew the most satisfaction from the results.”We’d come close before in England, but because Australia are our arch-rivals and so much is made of beating the best on their own track, the win against the Aussies meant the most. The Proteas have been referred to as a team that choke in big contests, so it was satisfying to prove to the world, and to the Aussies, who initially tagged us as chokers, that we can rise above the pressure.”Boucher has achieved more than most and is by no means finished. However, he’s not so arrogant as to believe he’ll play forever. A couple of goals remain before he eventually passes the baton. South Africa need to become the undisputed kings of Test cricket, and they need to atone for their past World Cup sins by capturing the crown in 2011.”The past two years have witnessed a turning point in South African cricket,” he says, as if the recent success is an appetiser for things to come. “In any winning team, the key to success is consistency over an extended period.”Look at the Springbok team that won the 2007 Rugby World Cup. They were together for four years before they won in France. It’s not only about building a family, but also about being dynamic and ensuring things continue to develop. That’s why Mickey’s done extremely well to bring people like Jeremy Snape and Duncan Fletcher into the mix. There’s no danger of stagnating.”I’m very excited to be a part of something so special. We’ve achieved so much over the past two years, but we haven’t fully reached our potential. We can get a lot better and as long as the leadership core remains intact, we will continue to achieve our goals in years to come.”

Virender Sehwag’s innings are exhilarating while Sachin Tendulkar’s batting is more calculated. Both of them played their part to lead India’s fightback

Sidharth Monga at the SSC28-Jul-2010Watching Virender Sehwag bat is a thrilling experience. From spectators to the players’ gallery to the bowler, even the umpires, he keeps everybody interested. Sachin Tendulkar kills that interest for the bowlers. At times, like today, India need both of them to do their thing on the same day. More so Tendulkar.It was a fascinating contest between Sehwag and Sehwag before he threw it all away. The fields were set to repeat his Nagpur and Galle dismissal. Third man, deep point and sweeper-cover were in “catching positions”. Angelo Mathews was bowling short, angling it away, almost trying to simulate what Chanaka Welegedara did in Galle. In reaction to that dismissal and the collapse that followed, Sehwag had said he would play the shot again in the series.Well, don’t believe those press conferences. Of course he lied. Of course he wouldn’t play that shot. Not in the air at any rate. But the possibilities remained. What if he gets annoyed again? What if he thinks “let me hit a six over those men on the off-side boundary”? In the four overs approaching stumps yesterday, and in five this morning, Sehwag kept leaving Mathews’ deliveries alone. He even smiled at the Sri Lankans, suggesting he knew what they were up to. He quelled that gnawing feeling he gets when runs don’t come by punching anything close enough to him through covers or through mid-on.Then Sri Lanka blocked those areas too. Sehwag started picking singles in response. There was a spell of play when he faced just 29 deliveries in 16 overs, hitting just one boundary, and still scoring 24 runs. M Vijay, the man with the majority of the strike then, did his part too. Sehwag was making up for the mistake in Galle, but then the sight of an offspinner proved to be too much.Sehwag had overcome all of Sri Lanka’s strategies until then. When they bowled full looking for swing, they were driven mercilessly. When they bowled short and wide, he didn’t go after them. When they bowled short into the body, he managed to keep them down. When they introduced Suraj Randiv, a rush of blood happened to the head, and Sehwag became only the third man in Test cricket to get stumped on 99.One of those three instances, with John Wright, led to an agonising defeat for New Zealand with a precious few minutes left in the Auckland Test of 1991-92. India haven’t quite averted that fate just as yet, but Tendulkar has made sure it is not the favoured result with two days to go.The thing with Tendulkar is, there aren’t many such formulae that work. You stop the fours, he can patiently work the singles. You stop the singles, he can easily find the gaps. You try to protect one side of the field, he can manoeuvre the ball into other parts. Bad shots, once he is set, are rare.Three wickets fell for eight runs then, in the minutes before lunch, but no procession followed after the break. Even as VVS Laxman kept looking to whip the spinners to the leg side, and kept getting leading edges, the bowlers kept meeting the middle of the bat at the other end.Randiv, who got the wickets of Sehwag and Rahul Dravid, summed up how difficult it was bowling to Tendulkar. He said it was difficult to get used to a particular line and length because Tendulkar would play almost identical deliveries off either foot. Then there was the paddle sweep. And when he went back, there were both the varieties of the cut. He also showed to Sehwag, off the same bowler, how the six should have been hit. Apart from that he hit 10 fours off Randiv, Sri Lanka’s most impressive bowler on the day.There was an odd nervy moment when the ball stopped on Tendulkar. One of them came early when he read an Ajantha Mendis googly, but ended up hitting it in the air towards silly mid-on. Another came when he looked to upper-cut Dilhara Fernando, but didn’t quite go through with the shot. Prasanna Jayawardene dropped him, and is still awaiting a second mistake.When Tendulkar reached the century, Sehwag was a relieved man, cheering from the balcony. “I am disappointed,” Sehwag said. “Not because I was out on 99 but because today’s day could have been very good for us if we were one or two down. We had a great opportunity to post a big total. But thanks to Sachin Tendulkar we are back in a good situation. If we play well tomorrow then we can avoid the follow-on and also bat the whole day.” It helps when, unlike in Galle, there is somebody to cover up for a rare mistake you make – that too on 109 and on 99.

It is argued that it is too simplistic to label Ishant Sharma an unlucky bowler who will get the proverbial rub of the green one day, but it might be too simplistic a view

Sidharth Monga at the Adelaide Oval24-Jan-2012One of these days Ishant Sharma is going to bowl worse than he is doing, and walk away with a five-for. That’s what his team-mates, and more importantly his opponents think. One of these days.Today wasn’t one of those days. Easily the best bowler on show today, Ishant produced three edges on a flat track, came close to getting leg-before calls, went past the bat on an almost equal number of occasions, got the ball to seam, bowled the odd cutter with a roll of the fingers, and went for just 52 in 20 overs on a day that India conceded 335 runs for just three wickets. But he still doesn’t have a wicket to show for it.It has been observed, not without merit, that perhaps he is not that unlucky after all. That – likable as he might be with his spirit in the nets, in the field, with the ball, and with the bat – there is a difference between studying hard and scoring marks in the exam. That he bowls just the good balls, not the wicket-taking balls, which would be a length slightly fuller – by about a foot – than he usually bowls. That his game has not evolved from the last time he first impressed, on the tour to Australia four years ago.Or, a little more uncharitably, that, as Shane Warne once observed of Monty Panesar, he has played not 45 Tests but the same Test 45 times. “Unlucky Ishant” has become almost a mock among the fans. Sometimes, though, what those who have been in the contests say matters more. This might be one of those cases.This is what Michael Hussey had to say of him before the start of this Test: “If anything, I think he has picked up a bit of pace from some of the spells that I’ve faced in the past. Particularly in Melbourne he was touching 150 for a couple of spells, and bowled with real pace. I think his pace is up, or has been up earlier in the series.”He’s bowled without luck really. Particularly in the first couple of Tests he beat the bat on numerous occasions, and there were a lot of balls where the rub of the green didn’t quite go his way. Sometimes that can almost shape your series. I know from a batting point of view if you can just get off to a good start, sometimes that can shape your series, and you feel like the rub of the green can go your way. I think he’s bowled really well, but some of those 50-50 things haven’t quite gone his way, and maybe that has flowed on for the rest of the series. I hope that continues for one more Test.”It sure has continued into the first day of one more Test. Australia are almost of the view that Yadav owes quite a few of his wickets to Ishant’s bowling at the other end. A foot fuller, and he could be getting those edges himself. That is why it is argued that it is too simplistic to label Ishant an unlucky bowler who will get the proverbial rub of the green one day. Forty-five Tests into his career, he should be able to bowl a better length without losing his wrist position behind the seam or the arm.Perhaps it is too simplistic to say that. For starters, Ishant has bowled a better – fuller – length over the last year and a half. It has got him results at times – in the West Indies, and at Lord’s – and at others it hasn’t. It’s not like Ishant hasn’t changed things. In his wilderness days, when out of the side, he tried to bowl like Zaheer Khan with catastrophic effects. After his comeback, he has been bowling fuller, but he cannot deviate too much from what his natural length is.It’s the delivery you can bowl blindfolded, a little like changing gears when driving a car. It’s the length that allows him to do things he does with the ball. It’s the ball that got Ricky Ponting’s edge when it held its line four years ago. It’s the length that just goes past the bat nowadays. On a day that Ponting scored a century, he was asked if he, as an opponent who has history with Ishant, thought Ishant has been threatening enough on this tour.”I actually thought in Melbourne and Sydney that he bowled particularly well,” Ponting said. “I thought he bowled better than his figures would have suggested. Even today he kept running in all day. Sometimes you bowl well and don’t take wickets. At other times you don’t bowl as well, and take wickets. It’s like batting … sometimes you feel like you are on top of your game, and just can’t score a run. Other times you feel completely out of nick, and just can’t get out. That’s the game.”The more valid criticism is that Ishant has not strung together such unfortunate days in a cluster. That every time he moves ahead, he soon moves a little backwards once more. It was a tough, long day for India today, but even at the end Ishant kept charging in. He bowled the fuller length and produced the edge, but there was no third slip to catch it. His reaction, that half-smile in defeat, is the image of his career. Does he also believe in his poor luck or will he come back tomorrow and challenge it, again, with 20 more overs of intensity?

Kraigg Brathwaite provided Australia with a reminder of how much steel West Indies have added since Darren Sammy and Ottis Gibson took charge of the side

Daniel Brettig at Kensington Oval07-Apr-2012Robert Samuels does not occupy a place of much glory in the long and undulating tale of West Indies cricket. The elder brother of Marlon, he played the last of six Tests in 1997, his contribution to the team as an opening batsman defined by the following nondescript digits: 372 runs at 37.20, one century. However Samuels accomplished one thing in that final Test, against Australia at the WACA Ground on a spiteful strip, patchworked by cracks. In an innings of 76 that lingered 332 minutes and 228 balls, he irritated the hosts and their champion bowlers Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne like very little before or since.Fifteen years later, on the first day of the series between Darren Sammy’s West Indians and Michael Clarke’s Australians in Bridgetown, another stodgy Caribbean opening batsman scraped and scrapped while his opponents vented their exasperation. Kraigg Brathwaite is playing his seventh Test, and none of the previous six have suggested he is anything other than a man battling above his station. Upon losing the toss and bowling first at Kensington Oval, Australia’s bowlers would have reckoned Brathwaite a possible avenue to their first wicket, certainly moreso than the more visibly talented Adrian Barath, who had announced himself with a coruscating debut century against Australia in Brisbane in 2009.Yet Brathwaite did not allow himself to be intimidated by the stature of the team he opposed, the bowlers who had humbled India or the slips cordon that included batsmen the calibre of Clarke, Ricky Ponting and Shane Watson. From the first ball he faced, Brathwaite shuffled sturdily into line, playing the majority of deliveries from the crease and leaving most directed wide of the stumps. He deflected singles here and there, and flicked a wayward offering from Ryan Harris to the fine-leg rope. If the tourists made a mistake in their new-ball tack it was to not bowl full enough, allowing Brathwaite’s crease-bound approach to work for instead of against him. But there was no gap to be found between bat and pad, and no throaty lbw appeals against a batsman who made sure to get his blade down swiftly to cover whatever movement could be found.Aiding the cause was an assured appearance by Kirk Edwards, the new vice-captain. Taking up a stance once used to good effect by Peter Willey against West Indies, he was as abstemious early on as Brathwaite, before unfurling his greater array of strokes with time. He attacked Nathan Lyon’s spin adeptly, and also played the odd handsome drive. Once he had departed, Darren Bravo showed welcome signs that his touch was returning, his elegance and poise at a level far in advance of anything Brathwaite could produce. But still he remained, poking, prodding and persevering.Brathwaite did offer his pursuers a few chances. On 10 he pushed a Peter Siddle delivery that held up off the pitch, and the bowler failed to gather an awkward chance in his follow through. Thirty-four runs later and Shane Watson procured an edge to one ball that Brathwaite chose not to leave, and Ponting’s right hand stretched too far to accept the catch, leaving his wrist to make a doomed interception. At 48 Brathwaite appeared to snick David Warner’s leg break to Michael Clarke at slip, but questions about whether a clear chance had been put down were silenced by the umpire Ian Gould’s signal of byes. Two balls later Brathwaite raised his half-century, and acknowledged the applause of a crowd that had enjoyed his application – if not always his execution.Australia’s fielders were not quite so enthusiastic in their acclaim, finding themselves in a position loathed by cricketers so long as the game has been played: confronted by a batsman of limited range but tremendous concentration, they have nothing to do but be patient. The dropped chances betrayed wavering focus, and only served to make Brathwaite’s stay all the more infuriating. Patience was a quality Clarke’s men did not require too often during a summer’s waltz past India at home, nor something they necessarily expected to have to employ against a team they have pummeled more often than not over the past 20 years. That state of affairs developed largely because few West Indian batsmen of similar limitations were inclined towards the sort of defiance offered by Samuels at the WACA, when he caused Australian tempers to fray, then tear.So pronounced was the irritation at Samuels that Australia’s diplomatic captain Mark Taylor was at the limits of his conciliatory powers to prevent Warne and McGrath from doing considerably worse than unload on Samuels with a constant stream of verbal barbs. Most of those revolved around the use of the term “loser” with various fruity adjectives thrown in. In their fury that someone as limited in strokeplay as Samuels had managed to survive for so long in enervating Perth heat, Warne and McGrath lost sight of the fact that they had few runs to defend, and that Brian Lara was at the other end. He and Samuels added 208 before they were done, and set the visitors on course to a face-saving victory at the end of an unhappy tour.Brathwaite is unlikely to have faced the same intensity of abuse that Samuels received, given that the game’s standards of on-field conduct are more closely monitored now than ever, by Cricket Australia as much as the ICC. And the Bridgetown pitch was about as friendly as Perth’s had been spiteful. But the pressures of the occasion, the first day of the series at the ground graced by so many luminaries of the region, made his contribution decidedly comparable. By the time he finally left the scene, touching Siddle behind for Matthew Wade’s first Test catch, Brathwaite had held up the visitors for 273 minutes and 199 balls, smoothing a path for those who followed.In doing so he provided Australia with a reminder of how much steel West Indies have added since Sammy and Ottis Gibson formed their present captain/coach axis, and his team-mates with an example of exactly what can be achieved with a doughty attitude. How the Caribbean team’s troubled progress over the past 15 years might have been different if more had offered the application of Samuels and Brathwaite is open to debate. How much its position in this match would have been weakened without Brathwaite’s stern occupation is not.

The South Africa quick on his injury setbacks, a difficult IPL 2024, turning down a CSA contract, and more

Melinda Farrell19-Jun-2024Anrich Nortje is used to feeling the heat on the field but he’s struggling with Antigua’s sultry days, which crank up the heat until a thunderstorm breaks, offering sweet – if brief – relief, before the sauna steams up once more.A day before South Africa’s first Super Eight match in the men’s T20 World Cup 2024, against USA, he’s staying inside the team hotel, nestled by the pale sands and calm turquoise waters of Antigua’s east coast.”This place is too hot,” he laughs. “There’s optional training and maybe a meeting or two left, but otherwise, maybe a little bit of a swim. But yeah, it’s just very hot so I’m trying to be fresh as possible for tomorrow.”Nortje has the added challenge of trying to keep a baby cool. He’s been joined on this tour by his wife, Michaela, along with his daughter, Amelia, who was born exactly 13 weeks earlier, just days before Nortje left South Africa for the IPL.Related

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In India, he faced heat of another kind, a batting paradise of a tournament where bowlers saw their economy rates balloon, none more so than Nortje. In six matches for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2024, he took seven wickets from 22 overs at an average of 42 and economy of 13.36. But he is circumspect in reflecting on the tournament, which was a major stepping stone in his return from a back injury which sidelined him for more than five months.”It was about finding ways to get better over there,” Nortje said. “And the training after the games was good, working with the coaches there at Delhi, with [bowling coach] James Hopes. I wasn’t worried much about what the scoreboard did at that stage.”Nortje’s cheerful and smiling demeanour is a stark contrast to his reputation as one of the world’s most ferocious fast bowlers, capable of melting speed guns with deliveries in the mid-150kph range. But it kept him grounded when dealing with the latest and most severe of the string of injuries that are a result of pushing his body to the limit.”It’s definitely been tough on everyone, but the time off was great. Starting again was about getting to the right intensity. The medical team did a really good job to assure me that everything was fine with the stress fractures. I played a few games back home, trying to push as much as possible, as soon as possible, and when I was cleared to go ahead, full out.”The lower back stress fractures struck last September, just before South Africa’s ODI World Cup campaign in India. Before he was ruled out of the squad, Nortje was considered one of the team’s key strike weapons, as he had been in all formats since making his international debut in 2019. That year, too, he was also ruled out of the World Cup in England due to a shoulder injury.The times between injuries have been spectacular. From June 2021 to the end of IPL 2023, Nortje took 86 wickets in 61 T20 matches at an average of 18.83, easily the best of 42 fast bowlers to take 75 or more wickets in the same period. If you include spinners, only Wanindu Hasaranga had better returns with 145 wickets at 18.03. His combination of searing pace and venomous late swing made him one of the hottest T20 properties in the world.Nortje took 7 wickets from 22 overs at an average of 42 and economy of 13.36 in IPL 2024•BCCIBut this latest layoff forced Nortje to make a difficult decision, opting to forego the security of a contract with Cricket South Africa (CSA) in order to maintain control over the amount of international cricket he plays. He is keen to make it clear that he had, and has, the support of CSA.”It was my decision. It was just to see how my body goes. I hadn’t had a stress fracture since 2010 and I just had a little bit of ‘nervy’ in the back, so I just wanted to take the time to play when I can, play when I know I’m ready, rather than having to play every series or every whatever is coming up.”So to make that decision on my own according to my body has been good so far. Still happy with the decision, and it’s more just for me to have the calmness and to know that, if I need a break for a week, if I need a break for a month, then I can do that.”The most immediate thing that has a question mark around would probably be the one-dayers, having a Champions Trophy coming up at the start of next year. So that would be the big question mark on how we’re going to go about that. So far, things have been going good, but they’re still chats that I need to have with Cricket South Africa, which I haven’t had. I haven’t really made a decision on what’s going to happen with one-day cricket in the next few months. So we’ll take that as it comes. But for now, it’s obviously focusing on the World Cup and trying to get through this and bring the trophy back home.”Nortje’s impact on South Africa’s success in the T20 World Cup illustrates why CSA is happy to accommodate him. He is their leading wicket-taker of the tournament, and joint second overall, with nine throughout the group stage, conceding just 70 runs at an average of 10.66 and an economy rate of 4.37. The contrast to his returns in the IPL is striking.Nortje pulled his lengths back in the US, where South Africa have played all their matches until now. In fact, 59.38% of his deliveries have been short or short-of-length balls compared to 38.64% at the IPL. Those shorter deliveries have accounted for six of his wickets at an average of 7.83.

“Every game is a big game, but once you start worrying about the next game I think you lose a little bit of focus on what you have to do now. We’re in it to win it”Nortje and South Africa’s focus is crystal clear

This was not so much a preconceived plan as it was a response to pitches that offered plentiful assistance off the surface.”So far, the wickets have been sort of try and build your best delivery, with what we’ve had in the last few weeks. It’s obviously been low scores, but still just trying to put the ball in the right place.”It’s just a case of what’s working on the day. We played three games in New York, so I suppose it was probably copy-paste for those three games, but now it’s changing every game again, with different venues most of the time. So you try and find out and see what’s happening in the first few overs, and then try and adapt to that. I’m sure the lengths will be different, but it’s not really about going out before the game and saying, this is the length, or that’s the length, just about finding it.”If South Africa make the semi-final, their unwelcome tag of never yet playing in any men’s World Cup final will inevitably surface, but Nortje is not phased by any historic hoodoo.”We do know that it is a World Cup and it is a big occasion. I don’t think anyone is downplaying that. It’s not just another game. Every game is a big game, but once you start worrying about the next game I think you lose a little bit of focus on what you have to do now. We’re in it to win it. We’re really focused and well prepped to go all the way.”And for Nortje, that means the handbrake is off.”I don’t think there’s any holding back. The stress fracture, all of that from the injury, has been fully healed. I’m very happy with that, and it’s just about what we need to do to win and whatever I have to do to get to that stage, I’ll do it.”

Finally a Lankan game at the G. Bring on the bands and the lively fans

Priyan Weerasinghe03-Mar-2012Choice of game
Funny how Cricket Australia allocates grounds to games. Matches at the MCG involving Sri Lanka tend to attract almost the entire large Sri Lankan community living in Melbourne. So CA, in its wisdom, had Sri Lanka playing just one match in Melbourne this CB series, that too the one before the finals. Having attended all the matches involving Sri Lanka on this ground since 1995, I was going to be there, rain, hail or shine, dead rubber or not.Team supported
Sri Lanka.Key performer
Hussey, D (David/Dangerous). He held the Australian innings together and brought the home side (although Lankans may argue that they are the home side at the “G”) to the brink of victory in a pulsating match. He holed out trying to hit the ball out of the park in the final over with just 10 runs to get. Game over, bye bye and thanks for coming, India. Sri Lanka in the finals, and on to Brisbane on Sunday.Honourable mentions for Lasith Malinga for coming back so strongly after the shellacking he received from Virat Kohli in Hobart, and for Dinesh Chandimal for another splendid half-century.One thing I’d have changed about the day
Overzealous administration. My friends were allowed to bring a Lankan Papare band inside the stadium, but were then given last-minute notice of dimensions for “acceptable” drums, which meant that the bass drum could not be used. Problem resolved after much negotiation and a promise to not bring the same drum to the Boxing Day Test at year-end, when Sri Lanka will play their first Test here since the infamous Murali-Hair incident in 1995.Face-off I relished
James Pattinson v Tillakaratne Dilshan. Aggressor v Aggressive. This round was won convincingly by the young tyro. He pitched one just outside off and surprised Dilshan with the bounce to get a catch to the keeper.Wow moment
The old man Hussey, M (Mike/Man) can still take breath-taking catches to match the best of them. Here, he took a running catch on the rope from a lusty Thisara Perera hit, realised his momentum would carry him over the line, threw the ball back in and stepped in to catch it again. Take a bow, Mr Cricket! And join the circus in your retirement.Close encounter
After the aforementioned pulsating finish, most Lankan fans stayed in their seats (Okay, they were standing on them) to celebrate the win. In a pleasant and surprising gesture, a few Sri Lankan players fanned into various parts of the ground with bags of soft balls, throwing them into the crowd. Dilshan and Dammika Prasad (reserve) both made their way to my section. Dilshan does have a great arm, even with a soft ball.Shot of the day
Pity his innings didn’t last long, but Mahela Jayawardene started the day at a cracking pace, hitting a luscious cover drive off Ben Hilfenhaus’ second ball. The swing of the bat was something to behold. Two balls later, he was out taking a risky single.Crowd meter
There were 29,000 people at the ground (it’s only the MCG’s vastness that can make such an attendance look decidedly paltry). The crowd made up for it with good cheer and even better voice. Over 80% of the support was for Sri Lanka, with the stands a sea of blue and yellow, and Lion flags waving in all directions. The costumes were clever and banners witty.Entertainment
Downstairs in the Great Southern Stand was scene of the action off the pitch, with two papare bands in adjoining aisles providing non-stop music. I was sitting with one of the bands, and the commitment of these volunteer band members to keep the music going for the 100 overs is amazing to watch from close quarters. They would certainly rival the players for hard work and team ethic. Many supporters were providing solid and liquid sustenance to keep the band going.Fancy-dress index
There were the regular attendance of Kangaroos, Lions and ATM machines (to garner support from the sponsor of the series and win tickets to the West Indies), but the prize in most eyes went to the young man dressed like a village damsel in Sri Lanka.As for the bunch of Aussies in nappies, not sure what they were thinking or what inspired their fancy. They did however manage to stay the course of the game without bathroom breaks, so those large adult nappies must surely have served their purpose.Overall
It was a great game and a fitting finale to the series prior to the finals. In a match that ebbed and flowed, with both teams seizing the opportunities and handing them back, it was a high-quality contest with a thrilling finish. Sri Lanka bounced back very strongly following the thumping they received from India in the previous game, and will take a lot of confidence to the finals from having beaten Australia three times already in this series.Australia, on the other hand, will take heart from the fact that they ran the Lankans so close without Michael Clarke in the team. The bouncy Brisbane wicket will give them a better “home ground” advantage than the G and it partisan, mostly Lankan crowd.

Sri Lanka will hope his form and class doesn’t taper off, like it did for some of the promising young batters in the last 10 years

Andrew Fidel Fernando28-Jan-2025To start with, the whole idea just feels off. A sober stock-take on the career of Kamindu Mendis at the beginning of only his second serious Test year? Yah, who asked for this?So much more fun to be stuck in that Kamindu Mendis fever dream. An average of 74 after 17 Test innings? Uff! Five hundreds out of nine 50-plus scores? Yes please. All 1110 of his runs from No. 5 or lower? That’s the stuff. And have you seen how this brother flicks even the fastest Test bowlers through the air over square leg? Right off his toes, sometimes all the way for six.But there are potentially universes where worse things happen. In one of the more cursed timelines, there might exist a pre-series column focusing on Kamindu, in which there is significant bringing back to reality, a ruining of the vibe, a killing of the buzz.Related

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Such a column might point out that Kamindu had his first less-than-stellar series in South Africa, where he averaged an unusually human 26.50 across four innings. He got some excellent deliveries from South Africa’s quicks, but there did also seem to be a tiny weakness to the shorter ball in the channel, angling across him from the right-arm seamers.There could also be warnings. Kamindu is not the first Sri Lankan batter to emerge in the last 10 years from whom greatness was expected. Many of those expectations haven’t quite panned out, with several batters unable to consolidate careers after starting well, and others plataeuing earlier than expected. There is the not wanting to thrust the mantle of greatness on him too early, but also the hard facts of middle-order runs needing to be scored if Sri Lanka are to improve, and Kamindu being pretty well-placed to score them.Or perhaps that column would draw attention to the greatest buzzkill subject of all – the Test schedule. Tests, the only format in which Kamindu has truly excelled at international level, are in short supply for Sri Lanka this year. Following this two-match series against Australia, there is a two-Test series against Bangladesh mid-year, and then nothing on the books until the middle of 2026, when Sri Lanka travel to the West Indies. Sri Lanka’s next World Test Championship cycle features exactly 12 Tests – the minimum required.(In the second Test of this Australia series, Dimuth Karunaratne is set to play his 100th Test. It may ultimately not matter how consistently Kamindu scores big runs, it seems unlikely he can play 100 Tests if Sri Lanka average only six matches a year.)Such a column might conclude that although Kamindu has had the best possible start to his Test career, the year ahead may be the definitive one for him. For starters, anyone who has had a year like Kamindu’s 2024 will now have had their technique pored over by opposition analysts and coaches. Bowlers will come with theories on how to get him out. Too often in the last 10 years, opposition bowlers have been right about young Sri Lanka batters.Beyond this, another exam. With Sri Lanka’s Test schedule likely to dwindle, there is also now the heat to become a more productive limited-overs player. Kamindu’s domestic T20 career in particular suggests that he has the range and skill to become a success in white-ball cricket, but he is yet to crack the shorter formats in international cricket.It is not often that a batter who has scored more than a thousand Test runs in the previous calendar year has this many hurdles still to overcome. But cricket’s sands are shifting, and these are the breaks.On Kamindu’s side is his obvious talent for expanding his game. But also, the fact that the next challenge is one he should relish – playing two Tests in his home town, in the format he has already made a name for himself in. He also averages 123.33 in Galle, after three Tests there.But Australia’s tall fast bowlers will have watched the footage from South Africa, and will try him where they think he is weak. And this next step is where many Sri Lanka batters have stumbled.Or so at least that column would say.

В сервисе Steam появилась новая порция игр, которые можно скачать бесплатно. В свежую подборку попали пять игр, одна из которых получила 82% положительных отзывов.

E.T.E — анимешный гача-экшен про девушек в экзоскелетах про войну против компании Noah Technology, которая попыталась монополизировать ресурсы Земли. Страница в Steam.

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Neuro Nightmare — хоррор от первого лица, где игроку нужно найти выход из закрытой школы-интерната, где обитает нечто зловещее. Страница в Steam.

Green Thing From The Planet Jupiter — кооперативная игра, рассчитанная на двоих. Один игрок берёт под управление инопланетного инженера, который должен найти детали для ремонта своего корабля. Второй геймер становится кошкой, которая должна помешать пришельцу. Страница в Steam.

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Liverpool are facing the extremely real possibility of parting ways with Mohamed Salah in January.

The Egyptian forward’s post-match outburst at Leeds United last weekend outlined in no uncertain terms his view toward being cast to the bench in recent matches. FSG and Arne Slot want to keep the 33-year-old, who extended a new £400k-per-week contract only in April after months of speculation. However, there is an acceptance that the situation may become untenable.

Salah has been Liverpool’s main man in the Premier League for many years. He is an all-time great. But he is also approaching the autumn of his prime years, and there’s no question that he has been well out of sorts this term, five goals and three assists across 19 fixtures.

Salah is off to AFCON after Liverpool host Brighton this weekend, a game that may not see the right winger grace the field. It may be farewell.

Liverpool's plans to replace Salah

Regardless of this developing Salah conundrum, Liverpool plan to sign a wide forward in 2026. Cody Gakpo has flattered to deceive on the left, and Luis Diaz was not directly replaced after his summer sale to Bayern Munich.

Liverpool also need a centre-back, but the urgency for a prolific winger is clearly getting more intense, and that’s why the Merseysiders have been confirmed to be leading the race for Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo, who has a £65m release clause in his contract that becomes active in January.

According to Caught Offside, Liverpool have agreed personal terms with the 25-year-old ahead of the winter window, though there is no confirmation over Semenyo’s movements as Manchester City press too.

This is boiling down to something of a jousting match between the English heavyweights, and it’s a battle FSG cannot afford to lose, with the versatile forward having the potential to be Liverpool’s new version of Luis Suarez.

Why Semenyo would be Liverpool's new Suarez

Semenyo, clearly, is not a similar player to Suarez, one of the greatest central strikers of his generation. But the Ghana international is a potent attacking threat and he has been named the “best winger in the country” by pundit Chris Waddle after posting six goals and three assists for Bournemouth this season.

Recognised by teammate Justin Kluivert for being a “world-class” player, so consistent in the final third, Semenyo is clearly itching to take the next step in his career and establish himself for a European heavyweight, and in this, he could make a talismanic introduction in the same vein as Suarez back in January 2011.

Let’s explain. Suarez arrived from Ajax as a raw and talented number nine, but few felt he had what it took to step into Fernando Torres’ boots. The iconic Spaniard forced his way out of Liverpool and signed for Chelsea in a contentious, record-breaking transfer. There he flattered to deceive.

Semenyo could echo this, arriving halfway through the campaign and making headway in Salah’s stead. The circumstances differ, but the Egyptian King is a heralded figure, and he will need someone capable to come in and take his spot, firing Liverpool back into the ascendancy.

Matches (starts)

13 (12)

11 (11)

Goals

4

6

Assists

2

3

Shots (on target)*

2.5 (0.8)

2.4 (1.4)

Big chances missed

6

5

Accurate passes*

21.5 (75%)

19.8 (78%)

Chances created*

2.2

1.0

Succ. dribbles*

0.8

1.6

Tackles*

0.2

1.7

Duels won*

2.3

6.5

Could Semenyo reach the same Suarez-esque level? It is impossible to say, though, how often have we seen a talented star need that level-up at a prominent outfit to unlock the extent of their potential?

The Uruguayan was one of the best in the world, but he started somewhere, and Salah did too, with the winger struggling at Chelsea before making his name in Italy with Fiorentina and then Roma. It was at Liverpool, though, that he became a superstar.

Liverpool football club have an incredible ability to come together during tough patches. It’s never quiet down Anfield Road, and while the Suarez sale felt like the beginning of the end times way back when, it actually precipitated the club’s golden period of modern times.

Jurgen Klopp enjoyed years of illustrious success with Salah as his talisman, but now, the Reds are into a new era, and though the circumstances are unsavoury, the veteran will not be plying his trade for the club forever.

Semenyo would be a fantastic mid-season addition, marking a continuation of Liverpool’s ability to keep on going. When Torres forced his way out, Suarez replaced him and played some of the finest football England has ever seen.

Now, it’s happening again. Semenyo hasn’t reached the top yet, but he has the potential to do so.

He could be captain after Van Dijk: £35m star very keen on joining Liverpool

Liverpool clearly need to fix some defensive problems after a wretched start to the season.

1 ByAngus Sinclair 2 days ago

Jazz Chisholm isn't backing down from his bold statement after Game 2 of the ALDS, but he is clarifying it.

After the Kansas City Royals beat the New York Yankees on Monday night, Chisholm claimed the Royals "got lucky" and said the Yankees would win the series.

"It still feels the same, that we're gonna win it, you know?" Chisolm said. "I don't feel like anybody feels any different, you know? We're gonna go out there and do our thing still. We still don't feel like any team is better than us. Like you said, we had a lot of missed opportunities tonight. So, they just got lucky."

On Tuesday he followed those comments up, not by downplaying them, but by clarifying his intent.

Chisholm took to X (formerly Twitter) and posted, "If you don't believe you gonna win it you won't ! So you better speak this shii into existence and believe! #LFG"

Again, not a backtrack, but that attitude feels different than his comments from Monday night.

The Royals and Yankees face off in Game 3 of the ALDS in Kansas City at 7:08 p.m. ET.