The Hindu : Sport : Asia-Africa second ODI today

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Saturday, Jun 09, 2007
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Asia-Africa second ODI today

Vijay Parthasarathy

Wicket has much less grass than in Bangalore

COOLING OFF: Asia XI captain Mahela Jayawardene (left), Sourav Ganguly and Mohammed Yusuf sharing a lighter moment at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Friday. PHOTO: K. PICHUMANI

CHENNAI: Shaun Pollock's career-best 130 in the first match of the cricket series between Asia XI and Africa XI has breathed life into what many anticipated would be a dull series. It held out the hope of a contest after the first six African wickets fell cheaply.

A contest is precisely what this format, featuring a champion against the rest, has failed to provide. Individual genius has rarely gelled in cricket, and surprisingly, these matches have produced skewed results.

That is largely why, despite the novelty factor, the prospect of seeing Sourav Ganguly bat with Mahela Jayawardene, or Zaheer Khan complement Mohammed

Experiment

Asif does not seem to grip people. Dream teams — so popular in football and basketball — have not won over cricket fans.

The Rest of the World versus Australia series in 2005-06 was a one-sided flop; the experiment had proven successful for a tsunami benefit match pitting Asia against the Rest of the World — but that was for a cause, and it was in everyone's interests to put up a good show. Even so, often there are murmurs regarding the legitimacy of the international status of such games.

The level of play that an all-star professional outfit like Barcelona brings to football is starkly missing in the cricketing equivalent. Obviously, one major reason is great prestige in football is attached to club-level football, whereas in cricket these sort of games tend to be isolated events without too much at stake.

There has to be incentive for players to perform. Spectators like it best when the contest is a clearly drawn one between nations; it is in tournaments like the World Cup that their emotional investment is highest.

The players themselves remain professional but relaxed. Asia captain Mahela Jayawardene — one of the 2007 ICC World Cup's few standouts — pointed out at a press conference here on Friday that the international calendar was loaded, and there was no point in pressuring players.

For the record, the Africa captain, Justin Kemp, said that the wicket looked good. "It's a good batting wicket... there's much less grass than in Bangalore."

Whether Africa, having lost the first match, can bounce back in the second remains to be seen. The Board of Control for Cricket in India's meeting to decide the next coach will likely overshadow Saturday's match.

The ICC has not helped by scheduling two matches on consecutive days. Under the circumstances, it's doubtful if the sides can perform to the best of their collective ability.

The teams: Asia XI (probable): Sanath Jayasuriya, Virender Sehwag, Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Sourav Ganguly, Mohammad Yousuf, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Mashrafe Mortaza, Mohammad Rafique, Zaheer Khan, Mohammad Asif.

Africa XI (probable): AB de Villiers, Vusi Sibanda, Boeta Dippenaar, Steve Tikolo, Justin Kemp (captain), Mark Boucher, Thomas Odoyo, Shaun Pollock, Andrew Hall, Morne Morkel, Peter Ongondo.

Umpires: Tony Hill and Peter Parker. Third umpire: Amish Saheba.

Start of Play: 2.30 p.m.

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