Why Should Kallis play in ICC Champions Trophy?

Kallis is regarded as one of the best all rounders in the world of cricket. Averaging around 56 in test cricket being one of the highest and picked 288 wickets is totally a magnificent accomplishments altogether. He gives his hundred percent for whom he played whether it's for Royal Challengers Banglore, Kolkata Knight Riders or its national side South Africa. But the big news is he is not playing in the last ICC Champions trophy. Although he has decided to miss the ICC Champions trophy but here are the things he can achieve if he play in the last ICC Champions trophy.

Most Runs in ICC Champions trophy: 

At the moment its Chris Gayle who has scored 695 runs in ICC Champions trophy whereas Jacques Kallis scored 653 runs in ICC Champions trophy. Considering the form of Gayle in IPL it is difficult to say that Kallis may beat his record. Looks like it will be Chris Gayle who will keep that record with him.

Most Wickets in ICC Champions Trophy:

Murlitharan who has picked 24 wickets and is the leading wicket taker in CT-13. Kallis is way down at fourth and has picked 20 wickets. He could achieve this by taking only 5 more in ICC Champions trophy. Chris Gayle can also jump up to the top in this contest as he has picked 17 wickets in ICC Champions trophy. Lasith Malinga can achieve this feat as he has 15 wickets of this champions trophy in his pocket. Also his chances are much brighter than that of Gayle since he is a front pacer + conditions suits pace bowler + he has the ability to attack on new comer right from the first ball. So his chances look bright.Other fast bowler who can achieve this are Anderson(10) and Broad(10). Saeed Ajmal(8) has the best average in Champions trophy and also regarded as the best spinner in the world. May be a spinner replace a spinner. 

Most Matches in ICC Champions Trophy:

Currently it is Jayasuriya(20) who has played the most matches in Champions trophy. This record was most easy to break as Kallis need only 3 matches to equal the recod of Jayasuriya and if South Africa would qualified for the semi final in the presence of Kallis. This record will easily be achieved by Jayawardane(18).

Well these records doesn't matter much but it would make him the best player of ICC Champions trophy (biggest tournament after ODI World Cup) from bat and ball which is really an honor altogether.

ICC Champions Trophy-2013 Groups and Fixture

ICC Champions trophy is the most awaited event of this year. The exciting thing about it is that it will be the last champions trophy to be played and every one is excited that who will uplift this trophy. The ICC Champions trophy is starting from June-6-2013. Top eight teams of ICC rankings are participating in this mini world cup.

Before the start of this tournament some warm-up matches will be played. Since England and New Zealand are playing against each other in English conditions so they will not play any of them. According to the fixtures Srilanka will play three warm-up matches and South Africa will be playing only one warm-up match. The other teams Pakistan,India, West Indies and Australia will play two warm-up matches. Some of the warm-up matches will be telecast live on Sports channel.

The warmup matches will definitely give some sort of help to sub-continent teams as they struggle playing in English conditions. The exciting fixture will be the match of Pakistan vs South Africa. Because they will be playing against each other in the group matches. And recently they have played against each other so it will create a healthy contest between these two teams. Though South Africa looks more consistent then Pakistan in the past. But in big tournaments Pakistan team looked more confident then South Africans.

Teams are divided in two groups. Both Groups look balance. In Group A England can give tough time in their conditions where as the past record of New Zealand and Australia in Champions trophy is also very good. In Group B South Africa looks the strongest of all whereas India and Pakistan are considered to be one of the best ODI teams in the world. West Indies in the recent past has become one of the toughest competitor. They have got many individuals who have played eminent role in IPL for their team like Gayle, Pollar, Bravo, Rampaul, Sunil Narine and Dwayne Smith and all of them are in the team so they will give a tough competition to others. To me Group-B is the toughest under recent performances of the teams whereas Group-A looks toughest if we consider team performances in past champions trophies.

The first Group match will be played between India and South Africa in Cardiff on June/6/2013 wheras another Group B match will be played on the very next day. There is no gap in the group matches. The top two teams of both the group will reach in to semi finals which will be played in Oval and Sophia Gardens. The final of this last ICC Champions trophy will be played on June/23/2013 in Birmingham.

Umer Gul Dozed New Zealand And South Africa

After a fabulous performance by Umer Gul against South Africa picking up five wickets and give only six runs.He has now become the highest wicket taker in T-20 international. He has shown this performance against New Zealand in World cup 2009 and restricting New Zealand at 99. Today South Africa were chasing a huge total of 196 against an experienced bowling lineup of Pakistan. Although they got a good start but when the bowl was handed to Umer Gul then he dozed South Africans.


And after winning against South Africa they move up to third position along India in ICC T-20 ranking. Although they lost their position in ICC test ranking few weeks ago after Pakistan were white washed by South African in test cricket.

So, South Africa won the test series by 3-0 and Pakistan won T-20 by 1-0. Now it comes to ODI's in which both the teams look balance against each other, not an easy task to choose the one out of the two like the way it was in Test and T-20.

Lets see how both the team comes up against each other in ODI format?
It will be a good ODI series between the two sides.

Pakistan team looking favorite for Sunday's fixture

The way South Africa looking favorite in the test series and has prove it, in the same manner Pakistan is looking favorite for the Sunday's t-20 fixture. Pakistan team whitewashed by SA in the test series which cost Pakistan team to jump to fifth position in ICC ranking.

South Africa on the other hand has adopted the strategy from England of having three different captains for three different formats. Faf Du Plessis will be leading the young t-20 side for South Africa while AB De Villiers will be leading the ODI side. For South Africa they are targeting to create a good T-20 side before next year T-20 world cup as they will be playing about 10-15 T-20 matches before the start of fifth T-20 world cup. So they have adopted a mixture of young and experienced players for this series. Although one match was abandoned due to heavy rain and the only Sunday's fixture is remaining to decide the series.

Zulfiqar Babar might have to wait for the next series as in a good spinning lineup of Pakistan, it becomes very difficult for anyone to get a chance. On the other hand Asad Ali is a good fast bowler who is only selected for the T-20 squad. He should be given the chance as against the normal lineup of South Africa you may take such kind of actions. And who knows he might be the next Waqar Younus of Pakistan, who on the same venue did the hat-trick against New Zealand. 

My Pak-11 for Sunday's fixture:
Ahmed Shehzad
Nasir Jamshed
Muhammad Hafeez
Umar Akmal
Shoaib Malik
Shahid Afridi
Kamran Akmal
Umer Gul
Asad Ali/ Wahab Riaz/Junaid Khan
Saeed Ajmal
Muhammad Irfan

South Africa Invincible in Centurion

Congrats to South Africa for winning the test series against Pakistan and more salute for their sixth consecutive test series win. In last series against NZ they white washed them by 2-0.  And considering the form of SA in Centurion they are invincible in the ground so another white wash may be possible. They have won almost all the test matches played here and lost the one against England due to Mr. Cronje. And the 3 were drawn which were against England too.

But slightly a sigh of relief for Pakistani batsman specially for openers that the pitch doesn't react the way it does at the Wanderers. But it could be a tiring test match for bowlers of Pakistan. Below, is the score card of SA 1st inning batting against India in Centurion.

 Though Pakistan bowling attack reacts brilliantly after their batting line up punches a faint total in the second test match. Saeed Ajmal was wonderful to watch picking up 10 wickets in the match. And considering this fresh performance they could show better then the above bowling figures of Indian bowlers. But SA will make sure that there will be nothing for spinners in the third test match. A/c to Misbah they were fifty runs short and if they do so they could beat them too. Unfortunately they lost the chance, which could be brightens if Junaid Khan and Taufeeq Umar were in the team 11. Now, there is nothing to lose for Pakistan in the series except avoiding a white wash. And for that they have to work hard to encrypt the history of Centurion Ground. And by the way Happy Birthday AB De Villiers.... :)

Doctor Of Spin: Saeed Ajmal Mesmerized Top Order of South Africa

Well like Wanderers, Cape town has got some thing to offered to the bowlers.But precisely for spin bowlers. Fast bowlers are though causing few problems with the new ball but as the bowl gets older there magic gets diminished. And at the same time the magic of spin starts and more precisely the "Doctor of Spin" Mr. Saeed Ajmal gets lethal to play. South Africa on the first day of second test took full advantage of the new ball but as the ball gets older they were looking ordinary bowlers in front of set batsman Younus and Asad.
Pakistan Fast bowlers disappoint yesterday with out causing any problems with the new ball and it was look like that Pakistan has got only one fast bowler who fits completely in the test match and he is Junaid Khan who is injured. Gul and Tanveer although being economical failed to pick any of the five wickets. Muhammad Irfan didn't pick a wicket.
Then the Doctor of Spin came in to action. The conditions of Cape town supports spinners and that's enough for the doctor to do operation, whole top order got mesmerized by Spin of Ajmal. People use to say that he has doosra which is the most difficult to play. But yesterday his normal spin was as lethal as his doosra.
Yesterday Saeed Ajmal not only confused the batsman of South Africa but also Umpire-Steve Davis. He gave Amla not out which was later on given out by DRS and the one of Kallis which was not out he gave it a caught out. Thanks to DRS for making the decision more justified. Although unjustice happen to Kallis.
Today, SA will resume there innings 139/5. Is there a chance of Ajmal for picking ten wickets? Well he pick the top 5 of the number one side and that's happen very few time in test cricket in South Africa against South Africa and by a Spinner.  

Pakistan Team Can Bounce Back In Second Test Match

After losing the first test match against South Africa, Pakistan team can bounce back in the second test. As Alviro Petersen said."If there is one ground where they can bounce back its Newlands." This means the conditions are not as tough as the Wanderers for Pakistan batting line-up and here you will find a different Pakistan team playing against mighty South Africans. The pitch suppose to support spinners so that will be a sigh of relief for Pakistani team as there weapon is suppose to be the spinners.

But also the important thing comes in front of us is the the wall of South African Batting line-up Jacques Kallis who has scored more than 2000 runs and his team leader Graeme Smith who has put a 1000 runs on this ground. And considering the bowling line up Steyn and Philander will be tough nut to crack on this pitch. So South Africa can't rely on the bowlers, what they need is a sound attack by their batsman.

For South Africans, the worry part will be the spin attack of Pakistan. As the pitch support the spin as mention above and SA will be facing a spinning attack which is currently the best in the world. So it will be a good contest between bat and ball.

 As far as Pakistan team is concern what they need to do is to put a respectable score on the board in the first inning which they were unable to do so in the first match and which was the major cause of their loss. The resistance of Asad Shafiq and Misbah against SA bowlers with the old ball was comprehensive in the first match's second inning. They need to tackle with the spell of fast bowlers of SA with new ball.If they do so they will be giving SA tough time in the test match. The chances of Muhammad Irfan has gone high to be selected after his performance in the practice match. But one more thing they need to understand is Irfan will not be as strange bowler for SA batsman as he was against Indian. His temperament will be the test if he debut against SA in test format.

Abu-Dhabi trick: Well it may sounds a bit gamble or may be a stupid combination in SA cricket ground. But if there is a support for spinners on the pitch then Misbah should go with 2 specialist spinners. Abdul Rehman is not a piece of cake, he can be more tricky then Ajmal for Amla and Kallis. Look how Monty Panesar performed better than Grame Swaan against Indian batting line up. More than that Hafeez can bowl with new ball also Younus Khan so the combination can be opted. A little bravery is required to pick Abdul Rehman.

Mean while the current form of SA is brilliant in all department and the last victory of SA has made the morals of Pakistan team down. But this is a chance for Pakistan team to bounce back in the series.

South Africa Test Squad Against Pakistan

Today, Pakistan cricket team flies for Johannesburg from Lahore. Pakistan test team captain Misbah-ul-haq is confident of performing well for a challenging series against number one side starting next month. According to him the role of spinners will be important in this tour. He also belief that players need to show extra effort in the field to make competition health.

Mean while South Africa announced their squad for three test matches against Pakistan which will be played in Johannesburg, Capetown and Centurion respectively. Philander is back after recovering his hamstring injury and is the part of test squad. He is doing a decent job in bowling depart and has made his mark quickly in international Cricket.

South Africa Test Squad Against Pakistan:

Graeme Smith (capt), Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Jacques Kallis, Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar, Rory Kleinveldt,Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Robin Peterson, Alviro Petersen, Vernon Philander, Jacques Rudolph.
 

 
 

Pakistan Test Squad Against South Africa

After beating their rivals on the ground, Its time now for Pakistan team to beat the number one test team in the world. South Africa is currently playing second test match against New-Zealand and will play against Pakistan in next month.
Pakistan Cricket board has announced the squad which will be leading by Misbah-ul-haq. Under his captaincy Pakistan had never lose a single test match.

Surprise Packages:

Akmal Brothers are axed:

This is some what a surprising to see after a long time not a single Akmal brother is included in the test squad. Adnan Akmal who has been a consistent keeper for Pakistan test team is not include. Sarfaraz Ahmed is chosen as a wicket keeper. Umar Akmal inclusion is not surprising in the test squad as he is not showing some great performances from his bat.

The Giant is selected for the test:

7'1" tall Muhammad Irfan who has shown a marvelous performance against India is selected in the test squad. Perhaps not pick so many wickets but was unplayable with the new ball. After the first ODI against India there was questions regarding his fitness in the depth over of the play. May be he was selected as he bowls extraordinary well with the new ball but his fitness could be the issue. He has to be chosen wisely for the team 11 in any of the test. And if selected he should take care of his fitness. More over after that there will be ODI's and T-20 matches. So his fitness will be the key. Other than that conditions of South Africa's pitches will support him greatly.

Nasir Jamshed's Inclusion:

Well he is a surprise in the sense that in the presence of Taufeeq Umar and Hafeez he is included. But his inclusion was actually because of his performance against India in ODI's. His performance was extra ordinary against India scoring two consecutive hundred. Probably the best batsman to face against South Africa from Pakistan at present considering his performance against India. He is also being compared with Saeed Anwar, very few times it happens when a Pakistani Batsman is being compared. But that all was against a bowling line up which is struggling greatly. He has to take care against bowlers like Philander, Steyn and Morkel. Also Kallis can create some problems with old ball. So all in all he will be facing against the best bowling attack in the world. Also if he is inducted may be we will see Hafeez playing down the order. And the biggest Problem for Pakistan in the test series will be their batting not the bowling. So he may be there to fix it.  

Pakistan team in this tour going with four fast bowlers and two spinners. And as the condition suggest they will be playing with 3+1 bowlers rather than 2+2 which they pursue in Dubai conditions. And they have got very proficient bowlers to attack South African batting line up. Also Muhammad Hafeez will be a great support to the bowling line-up. 

Pakistan team playing first test match after almost half a year. Besides, not playing since six months they are at spot 4 in ICC ranking of test. Still they need to play out of the skin to play and beat the best test cricket team in the world. 

Pakistan Test Squad Against South Africa:

Misbah-ul Haq (capt), Mohammad Hafeez, Azhar Ali, Nasir Jamshed, Asad Shafiq, Younis Khan, Faisal Iqbal, Taufiq Umar, Mohammad Irfan, Sarfraz Ahmed(WK), Umar Gul, Junaid Khan, Ehsan Adil, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Haris Sohail.