Monday, August 15, 2011

On song Zimbabwe look to seal series as Bangladesh aim to stay alive

With dominating performances in the Test and the two ODIs, Zimbabwe aim for a series win in the 3rd ODI at Harare while Bangladesh, who need to win every game to stay alive in the series, will look for a turnaround.

Bangladesh came with high hopes of beating Zimbabwe comfortably in the Test and the ODIs. The visitors proclaimed themselves favourites to overpower Zimbabwe. However, the Asian tigers have been nowhere close to that tag.

They were playing their first complete assignment post World Cup this year, having hosted Australia for 3 ODIs immediately after the mega event. The bowling struggled to make any impact on a bouncy pitch while the batsmen could not adjust to the bounce themselves. They relied a lot on their spinners to pick up wickets while the batting needed a solid start from Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes - sadly, both factors have not clicked at all.

Only two players have managed to stave off some respect for Bangladesh in this tour and those are their skipper Shakib Al Hasan and keeper Mushfiqur Rahim. Debutant Nasir Hossain did well in the second ODI. But apart from that, it has been a complete flop show by the batsmen.

The top order has simply not been able to get a good start and because of that, the middle order has struggled too. The bowling has not been great either, but to be fair, in both the ODIs played so far, the bowlers have not had much to defend. Shakib has been the leading run-getter for Bangladesh in this series with 79 runs while Rubel Hossain has been the only bowler for the Asian side who has taken more than a wicket in the two ODIs.

As far as Zimbabwe are concerned, this series has been nothing short of the word ‘perfect’. The batsmen have batted well and the bowlers have done their job too. Not to mention, the fielding has been excellent and the captaincy of Brendan Taylor - outstanding.

But, one name which has caught the eyes of many has been debutant Brian Vitori. The muscular lad has troubled all the Bangladeshi batsmen with his ability to generate bounce and has been the thorn in the visiting side. No wonder, that he is the leading wicket-taker with 10 wickets with no other bowler even remotely close.

As far as the batting is concerned. though everyone has done well, Vusi Sibanda has been the top scorer with half centuries in both innings. What has been impressive is the way the batters have handled spin. The top order has given good starts and the middle order has capitalized and partnerships have been given importance.

As the teams gear up for the final game at this particular venue, Zimbabwe look to seal the series at a ground where Bangladesh have found difficult to adjust. However, toss could play a crucial factor as the team batting first has not been able to adjust to the early morning moisture. But then, having said that, Zimbabwe had batted first in the Test.

The Castrol Index, though, gives Bangladesh a value of 124 while Zimbabwe earn only 99.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Australia look to drive the advantage as hosts aim to bounce back

With a solid display in the first ODI, Australia will look to press the charge in the second game while the Lankans aim to bounce back at Hambantota.

After a couple of humiliating losses in T20Is, Michael Clarke took charge of Australia and it seems to have worked wonders for them. They managed to trounce the hosts by 7 wickets in the first game and will be confident heading into the second ODI at Hambantota.

The Aussies were certainly low on morale before the last game but a commanding win could very well act as the tonic they needed. However, it was not a pleasant start for them, with the bowlers getting hammered to all parts. But then Mitchell Johnson decided to step up to the plate and wrecked through the opposition’s batting order, finishing with a career best ODI figures of 6/31 and in a way emerged as an unlikely hero for the visitors. Once the Kangaroos got the control of the game, they grabbed it by the throat and in a typical Aussie manner marched on to victory. Shane Watson continued with his good show and it was a welcome sight to watch Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke strike the purple patch. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Australia seem to have all the bases covered but just a little bit of brush-up is required with the new-ball attack. 

Though, Sri Lanka lost the last game but there is surely no need for them to press any panic button. The batting collapsed after a superb start as the middle-order looked complacent and tried to hit every delivery out of the park. Since then, nothing went their way with the bowlers also failing to impress. In their defense, they were defending a paltry total against a supreme and motivated batting line-up. The hosts would look for a much better performance in this game but have to keep guard against “casual play” which was evident last time around.

This is a high scoring venue as far as the first innings is concerned but interestingly the teams batting second have struggled to reach even the 150-run mark. Having said that, there are only a couple of ODIs played here and to judge it on those games will not be correct. But, if the teams decide to go by history, it could very well be a crucial toss.

Nevertheless, anticipate a heart-pounding contest between two evenly balanced sides. The Castrol Index sees Australia with a value of 184 while Sri Lanka are perched on 194.