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South Africa ensured their challenged still remained alive after beating New Zealand by 5 wickets in their ICC Champions Trophy match at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Thursday

The intensity from the Proteas was visible immediately as they took the park and they knew they had to start well. The New Zealand bastmen were looking to put pressure on the South African bowlers but couldn’t execute that strategy due to tight bowling from Dale Steyn and Wayne Parnell.

That was backed up by a good spell from Jacques Kallis and New Zealand then went after Wayne Parnell. I thought Graeme Smith bowled Parnell for too long, when he could have used Albie Morkel, but as he often does, Parnell picked up wickets.

It meant the South African spinners could bowl to the middle order and New Zealand couldn’t get any momentum. Roelof van der Merwe in particular bowled extremely well.

The regular loss of wickets meant New Zealand couldn’t attack too much, and were saving their assault for the final 10 overs. Their power play started off well, but crucial wickets halted their innings which came up 20-30 runs short at 214 all out.

South Africa’s run chase started off with Graeme Smith leaving early, and Jacques Kallis coming out on the offensive. A 52 run stand between Kallis and Amla at a a decent rate laid the foundation for de Villiers to bat reasonably freely during the middle of the innings and guide South Africa home.

AB de Villiers scored an unbeaten 70 off 76 deliveries and struck the winning runs as South Africa reached their total with 53 balls remaining.

South Africa’s final match in the group stages of the competition is against England on Sunday at Centurion. They wil need to win to ensure they go through to the semi-finals, and New Zealand now need to hope they can beat Sri Lanka, or England can upset Sri Lanka if they are to progress.

After Tuesday’s loss to Sri Lanka, South African cricket captain Graeme Smith and Mickey Arthur have been formulating their strategy to remain a contendor in this year’s ICC Champions Trophy.

Whilst obviously disappointed with the effort against Sri Lanka, Graeme Smith knows he also came up against a player who simply performed brilliantly on the day in Tillakaratne Dilshan.

Whilst not wanting to let opposition sides get away again, Smith and Arthur have instead decided to persevere with a strategy and mindset that have bought them success over the last few years. It’s why there is very little panic in the Proteas camp, but a deadly determination to execute their game plan with more accuracy.

For that reason I believe the Proteas will bounce back hard, in front of their home fans. They have a strong all round game, and small improvements by their many world class players will translate a into massive difference as a unit.

Whilst New Zealand has a useful bowling lineup, it’s their batting that looks quite weak. I’d back the quality of the South African batting lineup to score more runs than the Kiwis, and win reasonably comfortably.

Proteas singing Nkosi Sikeleli at start of Champions trophy match with Sri Lanka

However from that point on the Sri Lankans dominated proceedings. Tillakaratne Dilshan blazed a magnificent 106 off just 92 deliveries. His record second wicket partnership of 158 off just 104 balls with Kumar Sangakarra paved the way for a big Sri Lankan total.

Dilshan batted superbly, chancing his arm on accassion but being rewarded for his bravery and willingness to play shots. The Proteas offered very little to combat him, and were unable to string together more than 1 or 2 overs to try and build any pressure.

When Dilshan and Sangakarra departed there were still 20 overs remaining and Mahela Jayawardene and Samaraweera then rebuilt the innings nicely and ensured Sri Lanka didn’t lose any momentum. Jayawardene had been struggling for form in the one day game, but scored a great 77 off only 61 deliveries.

A score of 319 was always going to be tough batting in the second innings. Graeme Smith must have been extremely disappointed with that result after he won the toss and put Sri Lanka in to bat. Why he didn’t make use of the best batting conditions first is beyond me, however the Proteas do like to chase targets.

After  the early loss of Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis rebuilt the innings together with Graeme Smith. a 81 run partnership at about run a ball helped put South Africa in a competitive position before wickets fell at regular intervals.

Ajantha Mendis was particularly good, and won his duel with the South African batsmen. Both Graeme Smith and JP Duminy failing to read his deliveries and seeing their stumps knocked over.

This result places immense pressure on the Proteas who now have to win every game. It also means they are likely to have a semi-final at the Wanderers in Johannesburg if they get that far. They will need to bounce back strongly, otherwise it’ll be just another failure at an ICC tournament.

The ICC champions trophy gets underway on Tuesday with hosts South Africa taking on the Sri Lankans.

Both sides have had good warm-up matches and the conditions are proving to be an unknown factor as cricket is not normally played in South Africa during September. They may be more like conditions in the sub-continent with a lower, slower pitch than we are used to seeing at Centurion.

Whilst one would expect that would favour the Sri Lankan spinners where they have two world-class match-winning spinners in Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis, don’t discount South Africa’s spin trio of Johna Botha, Roelof va der Merwe and JP Duminy who have come on in leaps and bounds over the last 12 months.

The strength of this Protea’s side is their consistency and focus. Dale Steyn has come out and said he believes that if the Protea’s play to their ability, no team can match them. They’ve been working extremely hard and their lack of game time is of little concern. If they start well, they’ll only get better and better as the tournament progresses.

Graeme Smith has said they can handle the pressure, and their experience at the 20/20 world cup in England can only have helped their mental game. However if they start badly, or even lose their opening game, the pressure will increase exponentially and really test their mettle.

I’m picking South Africa to start well in front of their home crowd, at a ground where they have not lost a ODI in over 5 years. Unless Sri Lanka can produce something special from one of their star performers, they’ll struggle to match the overall depth of a Protea’s unit that has no real physical weaknesses.

The ICC Champions trophy takes place in South Africa starting on the 22nd September.

It involves the top 8 sides in the one day game and consists of two pools of 4. From these 2 pools, 2 sides move into the semis and then the final.

South Africa are scheduled to play their pool matches at Supersport park, Centurion. They have not lost a one day international there in 5 years. In fact they have won 71% of the games they have played there. It’s a ground they are familiar with and enjoy. Opposition watch out.

The other venue being used is the Wanderers stadium in Johannesburg. Both venues are on the highveld, so expect plenty of sixes with the slightly thinner atmosphere.

The proteas will be well rested, have had some intense training sessions, and will be very keen to finally win their second ICC competition after their lone success n 1998. They must be favoured with an experienced squad on their home turf.

The Australians have had mixed success in recent times, but coming off a one-sided series against England, they’ll have the Aussie arrogance and expectation back. They remain extremely dangerous, and if they gather any early momentum, the opposition should be very wary.

Other potential semi-finalists include the big guns from the sub-continent. India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have all been playing very well lately and will be dangerous. India without Sehwag at the top of the order may struggle in the batting, but all three of these sides have minimal weaknesses.

The dark horse may be New Zealand, who have won this tournament before in 2000/01. Their biggest weakness appears to be their largely inexperienced batting lineup. England and the West Indies look set to make up the numbers at this stage, and they’d have to play out of their skins to even make the semis.

I’m looking forward to a strongly contested competition, but finally I think it’s time for the Proteas to become a dominant force in major competitions. A victory here will show they deserve to be ranked as the number 1 side.

Not one South African features in the short list of the LG ICC awards for 2009, a measure of the outstanding players.

It’s a kick in the face, and hard to believe that the number 1 ranked test side, and recently number 1 ranked one day side (Australia have an equal number of points, but have moved ahead on a mathematical difference for now) cannot have 1 player or official up for nomination.

Whilst there are some very good players nominated from other countries who deserve their nominations, the strength of the Proteas has been their team performances. As a unit they’ve excelled, which may be a reason why the ICC found it hard to single out members of their squad for individual recognition.

However a side cannot become number 1 without stand out performances from individuals, and Graeme Smith, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Dale Steyn, Roelof van der Merwe, Johan Botha and Wayne Parnell are players who stood out for me, and deserving of higher accolades.

Here are the shortlisted nominees:

Cricketer of the Year

Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Ind)
Gautam Gambhir (Ind)
Mitchell Johnson (Aus)
Andrew Strauss (Eng)

Test Player of the Year

Gautam Gambhir (Ind)
Mitchell Johnson (Aus)
Thilan Samaraweera (SL)
Andrew Strauss (Eng)

ODI Player of the Year

Shivnarine Chanderpaul (WI)
Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Ind)
Virender Sehwag (Ind)
Yuvraj Singh (Ind)

Emerging Player

Ben Hilfenhaus (Aus)
Graham Onions (Eng)
Jesse Ryder (NZ)
Peter Siddle (Aus)

Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year

Rizwan Cheema (Can)
Ryan ten Doeschate (Ned)
William Porterfield (Ire)
Edgar Schiferli (Ned)

Twenty20 International Performance of the Year

Shahid Afridi (Pak) for scoring 51 off 34 balls and taking 2-16 against South Africa during the ICC WT20 semi-final in Nottingham on 18 June
Tillakaratne Dilshan (SL) for scoring 96 not out off 57 balls against the West Indies in the semi-final of the ICC WT20 at The Oval on 19 June
Chris Gayle (WI) – for hitting 88 off 50 balls against Australia during the ICC WT20 at The Oval on 6 June
Umar Gul (Pak) for taking 5-6 against New Zealand during the ICC WT20 at The Oval on 13 June

Women’s Cricketer of the Year

Charlotte Edwards (Eng)
Shelley Nitschke (Aus)
Claire Taylor (Eng)

Umpire of the Year

Aleem Dar
Tony Hill
Asad Rauf
Simon Taufel

Spirit of Cricket
Australia
England
New Zealand
Sri Lanka

As the number 1 ranked test nation, I thought Graeme Smith and Dale Steyn were two stand out performers. Their omissions were hard to understand.

I am surprised to see Yuvraj Singh and Shivnarine Chandepaul in the ODI player of the year. Not 1 South African player made the long list of nominees, with some surprising names like Martin Guptil of New Zealand included. Nothing against Guptil, but was not even 1 South African player worthy of inclusion?

The one that ranks the highest for me was the spirit of cricket award. I would like to think South Africa have conducted themselves in a very humble, manner and shown themselves to be great role models for their country. They have always played in the spirit of the game, and to not see their nomination is a major worry.

I would like to think there is nothing sinister in these nominations. Publicly the Proteas have remained very focused on the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy to be played in South Africa. Privately they’ll have a little extra motivation to do well and show the ICC they have the best side, and the best players in the world!

The Proteas are now officially the best side in the world!

South Africa is now rated the top ranked side in both the Test ratings, and the One day ratings. For the first time since 2003 when the test rankings were formulated, Australia are disposed of their top position. They slip down as far as 4th position!

The Proteas have been ranked number 1 in the One day format of the game since February, when they comprehensively thrashed Australia in their one day series. But the Test series was closely fought, and Australia’s test series win kept them in top position and deservedly so. However South Africa have been the most consistent side since in the last 2-3 years, and Australia’s Ashes defeat to England has seen them slip from grace quite dramatically. They are now ranked behind South Africa, India and Sri Lanka. They’ll have a lot of work to do to get back into number 1 position!

To coincide with the domination of South Africa, the Springboks are also ranked number 1 in the world by the IRB world rankings. How good is that? I think South Africa are the first side to hold number 1 spot in both cricket and rugby.

It’s been a long time coming, but finally the Proteas are top. I believe they’ve got the players, the coaches and the desire to stay at the top, which is always harder than getting there.

May the good times keep on coming!

Graeme Smith has released his new book “A Captain’s diary” 

As the youngest ever Captain of the South African cricket side, Graeme Smith has grown into our most successful captain ever.

Whilst the road hasn’t always been smooth, the hardships and challenges have shaped Graeme into a tremendous leader and captain for his country. For the first time ever we have an exclusive account from Graeme during one of the most successful periods for the South African cricket side, including a historic tour against England, and Demolishing the Australians in their own back yard.

A Captain’s Diary records an extraordinary 18-month journey, from Karachi to Newlands via Lord’s, Leeds, Melbourne and Sydney. There are the dramatic moments on the field, behind the scenes revelations, and a recap of some of the lighter moments.

I can’t wait to read it and gain an insight into the man that is Graeme Smith, leader of the South African cricket side.

Is test cricket as we know still going to continue?

Please go to this article by Dann Khan to read what the ICC is proposing for test cricket. Dann has some great insights into the future of test cricket.

Everything seems to be getting shorter and shorter, the advent of 20/20 cricket designed to appeal to fans who cricket wouldn’t normally attract by the longer versions of the game. (It seems absurd to be calling one day internationals a longer form of the game!). However are we running the risk of changing the game as we know it? Already we can see that many cricketers simply don’t have the skill set or mind set to play test cricket, Bangladesh being a great example. They have talent, but they don’t like batting or bowling for very long before they either throw their wicket away or try something absurd!

Night cricket remains a possibility to attract viewers that may not have time during the day. Adam Gilchrist warns we are not ready for it yet, and I agree. There are “ball issues” but for me the problem is the limited venues where night cricket will be an option. It requires areas where the dew and conditions don’t change the conditions so much that the nature of the game is changed and favours one side. Other than Australia, I’m not sure any other country can provide this.

So the question remains, should we tamper with test cricket?

I think test cricket is dying. The purists who love the game will always remain, but cricket can’t exist with such small numbers of die hard fans. Not in this economic climate. I don’t like changing the fundamentals of the game but how about these ideas of mine?

1. Ensure 100 overs per day

I believe more results would help attracts viewers to the game. A draw can be fascinating, but it should be the exception not the norm. I am thus in favour of giving the players as much time as possible to produce a result. My first change would be to ensure the game consists of 100 overs per day.

How often do game almost produce a result in the last session of a test? Another 50 overs over the course of a game would be massive. Play could start half an hour earlier and lunch could be reduced to 20 minutes like the tea break. I’m sick of teams not bowling their 90 overs in a day too, so harsher penalties need to be enforced. Do players really need to run in from such a long distance sometimes!

2. Limit the first innings

What about a scenario where teams have a limited number of overs in their first innings? I know this takes away a fundamental aspect of test cricket, but how often do we see batter friendly pitches in the sub-continent where after 2-3 days the game is effectively a draw? What if we limited each teams first innings to 100 overs each. I have taken note of this and in most parts of the world, teams don’t last 100 overs in the first innings , so those that argue it would limit teams, and they’d have to change their game, that may not have to happen.

Also would it be exciting in the middle of a test to see a side running out of overs and having to up the ante to score runs! The second innings could remain unlimited. Thus we’d have a minimum of 3 days to complete the last 2 innings. If the first fielding side bowled the first side out before 100 overs, could they be credited those overs to their first innings?

3. Change the rules

Tidy up some of the rules. The 2 that really get me are wides and defensive fields.

To encourage more positive bowling, I think wides should be policed much better. The off side wide could stay much the same as the ODI and 20/20 currently operates, and the leg side wide could be relaxed slightly compared to those formats, to ensure leg side play can remain part of the game.

The second rule I’d change is the fielding restrictions. I am not a fan of seeing captains place most of the fielders on the boundary of 3/4 of the way back to stop boundaries being scored when a team is attacking. I think there should be a limit. Maybe they need a circle like the shorter forms of the game and maybe there could be a limit such as 4 or 5 fielders outside the circle. It then makes run chases more exciting and doesn’t penalise a side who is attacking through their batting.

Those are my thoughts to ensure test cricket remains, gains popularity and creates a more exciting game whilst trying not to mess with the traditions of the game too much. What are your thoughts??

The final between Pakistan and Sri Lanka at Lords turned out to be a great day for Pakistani cricket, but was not the exciting final many wanted.

Pakistan won the toss and elected to bowl first. Their new ball bowlers executed their plans superbly and Sri Lank were in deep trouble at 2-2 in the second over and simply never recovered from their early loss. Jayasuriya started to get going, but fell to an inside edge just when a fightback looked possible. Then Jayawardene also went early and at 32-4, the Pakistanis had effectively limited Sri Lanka’s ability to take any risks.

Sangakkarra rebuilt the innings, firstly with Chamara Silva, and then with Angelo Matthews, but the Pakistanis would have been very happy with their bowling and fielding.

A score of 138-6, gave Sri Lanka a chance if they made some early inroads. However Karman Akmal got the Pakistani innings off to a good start and Sri Lanka had too much to do. Shahid Afridi then came in and finished the job off superbly. He is a great talent, and it was good to see him see the inning through to its conclusion comfortably at 139-2.

The Pakistanis thoroughly deserve their victory, and have shown how difficult they are to stop when they get some valuable momentum. If they could simply get this excited whenever they play, they be unstoppable. All in all it was a good tournament, with 20/20 cricket now here to stay. Hopefully it gives great confidence to some of the poorer performing teams of recent times such as Pakistan, the West Indies, England and New Zealand as all of them had good tournaments. It was refreshing to see Australia knocked out early and the challenge is for these other teams to take their 20/20 confidence into the longer formats of the game.