On the international scene quite a few highlights this week – the first being No Protea players were selected for the ICC test cricket team of the year… a selection panel led by Anil Kumble selected the team… so does everyone gets the context of this, the ICC have just chosen the equivalent of a Rugby Team of the Year and not picked an All Black…. #ICCFAIL
The much hyped Pink ball test took place in Adelaide between the Aussies and the Kiwi’s – the result favoured the Aussies, but the important take is that the exercise was labelled a huge success – personally I quite enjoyed it, the pink ball was much easier to follow on screen and the day night element brought boulers into the game too. The crowds filled the stadium in the evening and the game came to an exciting conclusion – the game is evolving which is always a good thing!
‘Cairns result hurts fixing fight’ “The acquittal of former New Zealand captain Chris Cairns on match-fixing-linked perjury charges are a serious blow for efforts to stamp out corruption within the game, the commentators said on Wednesday.
On Monday a London court cleared Cairns of perjury and perverting the course of justice after prosecutors failed to convince a jury of his guilt over the course of a nine-week trial.
New Zealand Herald journalist, Dylan Cleaver, who originally broke the story that the ICC’s anti-corruption unit was investigating Cairns, said the result was a triumph for the former all-rounder.
He said the treatment of witnesses such as current Black Caps skipper Brendon McCullum would have players questioning why they should come forward to report corruption.” Source Supersport website
India vs the Proteas was a series I was really excited about, but boy did it disappoint… India may have won the series, but cricket really lost the day here – I am all for the home ground advantage but it was taken to the extreme. The preparation of those wickets were never meant for the game to last 5 days. Just a reminder to India – 1976 West Indies vs India. Be warned, your next tour to South Africa will be a bruising affair!
