Rob's Blog

Although it is a time to celebrate one-day cricket with the upcoming World Cup, Australia has had nothing to celebrate in the short version of the game lately. Maybe that is why they have decided to release a list of Australia’s greatest ODI team. The team was selected by a vote of Australia’s 163 ODI representatives since 1971. The team they came up with is: Adam Gilchrist (wk), Mark Waugh, Ricky Ponting, Dean Jones, Steve Waugh (captain), Michael Bevan, Andrew Symonds, Shane Warne, Brett Lee, Dennis Lillee, Glenn McGrath, Greg Chappell (12th man). With such a strong history in the game, it is no surprise that great players missed the cut, such as Allan Border, who led Australia to their first World Cup in 1987, and Michael Hussey, who currently averages 66.88 in his 61 matches. Two of the players listed, Lee and Symonds, are current players but will probably be missing in the upcoming World Cup due to injury, and will be sorely missed. The other players that are in the current squad are Gilchrist, Ponting and McGrath.

Related Pages: cricket, Cricket World Cup

Last night the Victorian Bushrangers took on the Tasmanian Tigers in the domestic cricket twenty20 final. We took the tram to the ground to take advantage of the free entry into the MCG with a MetCard. I don’t know why, but we made our way to the same spot we were in for the Australian game last night. This was my first live experience of a Twenty20 match. The first thing I noticed was that the boundary rope was set an extra 20 metres or so further inside the normal position. Why do they need to make it easier to score boundaries? It was a slog fest, as these games are expected to be, and although Tasmania did not make a huge score, it was a close and exciting finish. I like twenty20, but I wouldn’t go to watch skilful play. I would prefer to watch a Test or one day game, which takes the time for a player to show his skill and develop a game plan.

Related Pages: Cricket, Twenty20, MCG

My wife and I went to watch Australian versus England in the first one day match of the current series, played at the MCG. We thought we were lucky to find some of the last remaining seats amongst the crowd on the bottom level, hoping to enjoy a few rays of sunshine. Mistakenly, we had sat in the old Bay 13 section, where all rowdy supporters are seated. The first thing we noticed as a large security and police presence. On the scoreboard they listed unacceptable behaviour, but I did not read it as it was such a long list! I soon found out some of what was on the list, as people around us, one by one, were kicked out the ground for breaking the rules. One of the biggest problems was throwing beach balls. At first I thought that they were being a bit heavy handed – what damage can a beach ball do? After my wife was covered with spilt beer and such five times from guys jumping up to hit the balls, I joined the anti-beach ball club. We also saw around us people who had brought in alcohol, were smoking, and even one guy threw a tennis ball at a player fielding on the boundary, hitting him in the back. All these people were promptly sent home. To finish it off, in the last overs someone ran onto the field, not quite with all his gear off, and would have found himself given a $6000 fine. An expensive day at the cricket. All in all we heard that over 100 people were ejected from the stadium. What about the cricket? Well, after the break we moved to the quieter upper level, and were actually able to watch some of the game. Australia won as expected.

Related Pages: Cricket, MCG

Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, Pakistan’s premier fast bowlers, were found recently to have the muscle building steroid Nandrolone in their system after a random drug test by the Pakistan Cricket Board. Cricket is not just a gentleman’s game anymore – it is serious business. No sport at the elite level is immune to drug controversy. This is not the first instance of drug taking in cricket, though it is probably the biggest and worst. There have been several cases of marijuana use being highlighted, though the biggest previous story concerned Shane Warne, one of the greatest players of all time, who was suspended for a year after ‘his mum gave him a diuretic’ so that he could look good in front of the cameras. Let’s hope that if proven guilty that these Pakistani’s get the punishment they deserve. We don’t want the beautiful game of cricket being tainted with drugs like many other sports.

Related Pages: cricket, Shane Warne profile, doping in sports

My wife is expecting a baby in April next year, and one thought in my mind is whether to get he or she onto the waiting list for the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is an exclusive club - the waiting list is so long that it may take 20 years before you are offered a place. To get onto the waiting list, it currently costs a non-refundable $55. A lot can happen in 20 years. Once they offer you membership, if you don’t take it up you may forfeit your place. By then you may not even be interested in sport. If you do take up the offer of membership, it is going to cost you a small fortune to join and stay a member. The current entrance fee is $660.00 (which you pay in installments as you move through the various membership and age categories), and being a full member also cost $504 annually. If you are not at a stage to regularly go to matches or events at the ground, it is quite a bit to pay. In twenty years time, MCC membership will probably be very well sought after. My child can always so no, I see the $55 fee as a good price to pay to just give them the chance of membership.

Related Pages: Cricket, Aussie Rules, MCG

In the upcoming Australian cricket summer there will be three beach cricket internationals - between Australia, England and the West Indies. The matches will be played in temporary beach stadiums, in Coolangata Queensland, Scarborough Western Australia and Maroubra New South Wales. Each team will comprise six players, including some of the greats of world cricket. It will be great to see these guys in action again, and having a bit of fun too.

Australia: Allan Border (c), Dean Jones, Mark Waugh, Kim Hughes, Damien Fleming, Jeff Thomson, Dennis Lillee.
West Indies: Courtney Walsh (c), Desmond Haynes, Richie Richardson, Phil Simmons, Jimmy Adams, Curtley Ambrose, Joel Garner.
England: Graham Gooch (c), Robin Smith, Allan Lamb, Graeme Hick, Mark Ramprakash, Adam Hollioake, Darren Gough.

The rules for these matches with be similar to those we are used to when visiting the beach with some mates. To make it more interesting and entertaining for the crowds, the games will be played on plastic matting to give the ball some bounce, and a special beach cricket ball will be used that is loaded on one side to increase swing.

Related Pages: About Cricket, Beach Cricket,