Is Shane Watson greatest Australian all-rounder, ever?

By Adrian Meredith

MELBOURNE, Australia (TheSportsNEXT) December 16, 2012: There has been a lot of talk, especially amongst Australian fans, that Shane Watson isn't good enough to make the team, or they want him to bat at 7 or 8 - or lower.

So I'd like to look at just how good Shane Watson is, and why I rate him as Australia's best ever all-rounder.

Firstly, let's look at his statistics:

Test batting avg 36.92 bowling avg 29.20 ODI batting avg 41.48 SR 88.27 bowling avg 28.83 econ 4.80 T20 batting avg 30.62 SR 148.48 bowling avg 20.42 econ 7.19 FC batting avg 44.11 bowling avg 27.69

That equates to +7.72 in tests, +12.65 in ODIs, +10.20 in T20s, +16.42 in FC.

The first test of the quality all-rounder is that they have a higher batting average than bowling average. Shane Watson *easily* accomplishes this. The second test is that they bowl regularly - Watson has bowled in 90% of innings that he has played in, across all formats (which is why someone like Michael Clarke, who bowls less than 10% of the time, cannot be considered an all-rounder). The third test is that they take wickets regularly - Watson has 3 5 wicket innings in 36 test matches. The fourth test is that they score big runs regularly - Watson has scored 2 test centuries and 18 half centuries across 36 matches and 66 innings.

There is no question that, as it stands, Watson has performed better in T20s and ODIs than in tests. +12.65 in ODIs and +10.20 in T20s are a lot better than +7.72 in tests. Not to mention that his batting strike rate of 88.27 in ODIs and an amazing 148.48 in T20s are very impressive. But +7.72 is still pretty good. And his first class record, of +16.42, suggests that he can improve. +16.42 is up there with the best in the world.

Watson is also ranked amongst the best all-rounders in the world. In tests, Jacques Kallis is the indisputed number 1, but in ODIs and T20s Watson is either 1st or 2nd, sometimes behind Bangladesh's best ever player, Shakib al Hasan. And there is no shame in being behind Shakib!

Watson has won matches with the bat and won matches with the ball.

Now, let's compare with other great all-rounders in Australian cricket.

In the past 30 years, or in my living memory and the living memory of most people reading this, the following players have been tried in Australia as all-rounders:

Andrew Symonds - Did okay in ODIs and was good at times in T20s but really struggled in tests and was unable to take regular wickets. He rarely bowled, and when he did it was mainly just to support the regular bowlers. Not really an all-rounder but more a batsman who bowled a bit.

Greg Matthews - Was meant to be a bowler who could bat a bit but ended up with a test batting average of just over 40 and, unfortunately, his bowling average was about the same. Was carried most of the time and not particularly useful.

Steve Waugh - Believe it or not, Waugh started off as an all-rounder. He didn't bat particularly well and while his bowling was useful it wasn't great. He turned it around and ended up with a great batting average - largely because he stopped bowling. Injuries led to him often being unable to bowl. Not truly an all-rounder because he didn't bowl often enough.

Mark Waugh - Bowled a bit more often than Steve Waugh but mostly it was just to ease the workload of the regular bowlers. Didn't do enough to be considered a true all rounder - rather he was a batsman who bowled a bit.

Simon O'Donnell - Most well known for surviving cancer, and for tonking it, he wasn't a particularly good bowler and was a mediocre batsman, albeit one who could smash it a mile.

Now, going back a bit further, Australia did have proper all-rounders, so let's compare Watson to them as well:

Richie Benaud - Similar style to Andrew Symonds in that he batted and bowled and also bowled both pace and spin - though Symonds went one further by also being able to bowl both left and right handed. He is incorrectly recorded in the stats books as a spinner only - yet was well known to bowl part of an over pace and part of the over spin. His canny tactics (including changing bowling action) led to great results for the team but personally he averaged just 24 with the bat and 28 with the ball, or -4 overall! - far worse than Watson!

Alan Davison - Played at the same time as Benaud, some 50 years ago, who ended up with pretty good returns, though he wasn't really much of a batsman. He ended up with an average of 24 with the bat and just 20 with the ball, or +4 overall, superior to Benaud, but few regard him as superior to Benaud. He never scored a test century and never won Australia a game with his bat.

And then there is the one true contender to Watson's title as the greatest ever all-rounder in Australia:

Keith Miller - Averaged 36 with the bat and 22 with the ball, +14, ahead of Watson's +7, and he was +26 in FC cricket (48 and 22). He formed an opening bowling team in 55 tests, taking 3 wickets per test, and also batted at number 4. A true fast bowler, unlike Watson he didn't break down.

So why do I consider Watson to be superior to Miller?

It is easy to say that Watson is better than the others. But Miller is a tough one. But perhaps this is the thing - Miller didn't play all that often, just 55 tests, and hence didn't suffer the kinds of injuries that Watson did. He also didn't bowl all that often.

Look, maybe Miller is superior, but Watson single handedly won Australia 4 matches in a row in the recent World T20 and all but took them to the title.

If I just consider tests, sure, Miller is ahead. I'd like to think that Watson will improve. I think that Watson should finish with a test batting average of 50, or at least mid 40s, and a test bowling average of around 27 or 28 (i.e. about what it is now). But what sets Watson ahead is his ability in ODIs and T20s, where he has been amazing.

Even considering this, Watson is still a long way behind the two greatest of all time, Sobers and Kallis. He is even behind at least 3 of the 4 great all-rounders of the 1980s, in Hadlee, Imran Khan and Botham - though he may be ahead of Kapil Dev.

I can say without hesitation that Watson is the best all-rounder for over 50 years. At worst, he is the 2nd best of all time for Australia, behind Keith Miller. But I'd like to think that, considering ODIs and T20s, he is actually ahead.

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Meet Australian Next-Gen All-Rounders

By Adrian Meredith

MELBOURNE, Australia (TheSportsNEXT) November 10, 2012: Australia looked flat on day 1 of their cricket summer as South African batsmen made their bowlers look ordinary on first day of the Brisbane Test at Gabba on Friday and the home side missed services of all-rounder Shane Watson dearly.

But the question is does Australia have enough quality all-rounders in their stockpile of cricketers?

Following is the list of some of the best all-rounders in Australian cricket prepared by Adrian Meredith:

Shane Watson averages 37.54 batting and 28.91 bowling in tests, 41.48 and 28.82 in ODIs (with a strike rate of 88.27!) and 30.62 and 20.42 in T20s (with a strike rate of 148.48!). Domestically he averages 44.42 batting and 27.60 bowling in FC, 38.95 (SR 84.86) and 30.95 in ODDs and 33.42 (SR 145.16) and 22.63 in T20Ds! He is one of the best all-rounders in the world, and is comfortably the best all-rounder in Australian history - the next best is Richie Benaud. He is probably at his best in the ODI format, though his strike rate of 148.48 in T20s suggests that he is pretty darn dangerous in T20s too; but he is still very good in tests - averaging 9 points higher batting than bowling. His FC average of 44.42 suggests that his current test batting average of 37.54 is going to go up and he could end up with an average closer to 50 than 40. His main problem is that he suffers from injury a lot. His bowling can get poor at times; but if he is used as a shock bowler he can be deadly dangerous, bowling great yorkers and bouncers. He is also very good as a death bowler or power play bowler in ODIs - though not so good as an opening bowler. The injuries always come from his bowling though so his bowling workload has to be managed carefully. On a couple of occasions he left test matches early in the match, costing Australia the match, and he also batted poorly when batting lower down the order - but bats well batting up the order or opening.

Daniel Christian averages 20.83 (SR 86.80) batting and 31.05 bowling in ODIs and 6.00 batting and 24.00 bowling in T20Is. He is yet to play a test match; but probably should have in the current test - if not before! He averages 29.75 batting and 34.80 bowling in FC, 34.68 (SR 99.10) batting and 31.57 bowling in ODDs, and 20.40 (SR 132.29) batting and 25.36 bowling in T20Ds. His numbers are slightly worse, comparing batting to bowling, in all but his One Day Domestic figures, where he not only has a +3.23 comparison but strikes at an incredible 99.10 - incredible for a top order batsman! He has played a few times for Australia and has been involved in man of the match performances batting with the tail, or a few times has bowled Australia to victory too. His numbers don't yet look amazing at international level but they do look solid. His bowling is gentle medium pace, which on some tracks is going to be belted all around; but in other conditions it is deadly dangerous. My suspicion is that Brisbane, Adelaide and especially Hobart are going to be pitches that ideally suit his bowling, and the fact that South Africa wouldn't have seen much of his type of bowling would have made them very vulnerable. A very accurate bowler and reliable batsman, he plays a similar role to Watson, batting in the top order and is used as a shock bowler. He doesn't break down with injuries much though, making him the perfect backup for Watson. The selectors promised to put him in the side the next time Watson got injured; but for reasons only known to them, they went against their promise!

James Faulkner has only played one international match, a T20, where he didn't bat and bowled 2 overs for 18 runs without taking a wicket. Australia still won though. Otherwise, he averages 26.05 batting and 22.93 bowling in FC, 24.88 (SR 79.66) batting and 33.94 bowling in ODDs, 14.22 (SR 109.40) batting and 25.78 bowling in T20s. He is a powerful bowling unit, with a FC bowling average of 22.93, giving him one of the best bowling averages of any bowlers in Australia - a lot better than the likes of Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle - who are out playing in the test match! But his ODD and T20 records suggest that perhaps his FC record is inflated a bit - he may not be quite as good as that, ditto for his batting average of 26.05 in FC. He definitely fits the category of "bowling all rounder" though and in Australia's current set up there is no room for one of those. He could play opposite a batting all-rounder though, or play purely as a bowler, batting at number 8, with a bit of batting about him. At 22 years of age, if he keeps it up he looks certain to play many games for Australia in all 3 formats. He is a left armer too - though he is listed as medium pace - but I think he is a bit faster than that.

Andrew McDonald averages 21.40 batting and 33.33 bowling in his 4 test matches. Did you realise that he played test match cricket, and actually did quite well? He was largely responsible for Australia getting the number 1 ranking back from South Africa some 3 years ago - then was dumped in favour of Marcus North. What a mistake that was! At FC level he averages 39.76 batting and 28.64 bowling, a +11.12 rating - possibly the most impressive of anyone other than Watson! He averages 30.47 (SR 83.24) batting and 39.83 bowling in ODDs and 34.22 (SR 126.76) batting and 23.54 bowling in T20s. Oddly, he is +11.12 in FC, -9.36 in ODDs and +10.68 in T20s! In other words, he is great at both FC and T20s but sucks at one dayers! Why? Anyway, he has been in fantastic form since his test debut, especially at FC level, scoring centuries galore and taking wickets galore, but every time when he was just about to get a call up to the national team he got injured. He has batted as high as 4 for his state but often bats as low as 8 or 9 - usually he bats at 6 or 7 though. Interestingly, his FC batting average is better than Rob Quiney's, but he backs it up with a bowling average that is better than both Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle. Makes you wonder what the hell the selectors were thinking, doesn't it? Especially given that Rob Quiney and Andrew McDonald both play for the same state of Victoria - and are both about the same age!

Glenn Maxwell averages 41.33 (SR 113.76) batting and has taken 0 wickets in 10.4 overs at an economy of 5.70 in his 4 ODIs. He averages 13.00 (SR 102.63) batting and 45.00 bowling in his 7 T20Is. He averages 46.57 batting and 38.52 bowling at FC level. He averages 34.84 (SR 123.77) batting and 52.22 bowling at ODD level. He averages 20.90 (SR 140.26) batting and 35.81 bowling at T20 level. The fact that he averages a fair bit more than Rob Quiney and Ed Cowan - both in the test side as batsmen - and also bowls a bit - suggests that he, like McDonald, should have been ahead of them both purely as batsmen, let alone their bowling. Maxwell is a spin bowler, unlike most of the other all-rounders going around. He is new to the state set up, in only his 2nd full season, with about 1/2 a season before that behind him, so could get a lot better to surpass Watson or get a lot worse to be forgotten about. For now, though, he looks like a batsman who bowls a bit. Unfortunately, his bowling was ripped apart at international level - but his batting wasn't. He will nonetheless need to improve his bowling to be given another chance at international level. If he can keep up his FC batting average of 46.57 he could play in a test match purely as a batsman though.

Mitchell Marsh scored 8 not out off 5 balls in his only ODI, when he also took 1/19 from 4 overs, an economy of 4.75. He averages 24.50 (SR 140.00) batting and 41.00 bowling in his 3 T20Is. He averages 21.05 batting and 27.67 bowling at FC level. He averages 35.85 (SR 83.75) batting and 24.60 bowling at ODD level. He averages 35.80 (SR 115.98) batting and 23.94 bowling at T20 level. So he is -6.62 at FC, +11.25 at OD and +11.86 at T20 level - pretty impressive! His FC numbers leave a bit to be desired; but that is put down to a bit of frustration on his part. He has been in a fair bit of disciplinary trouble lately, not only turning up drunk to training but also in trouble in the recent CLT20, which has seen him pushed out of the Australian international set up; but he is just such an incredible talent that he can't be left out for too long. I suspect that his FC batting average will end up closer to 40 than 20, and may even get up to 50, by which time he will be given a test debut; but right now, largely due to disciplinary issues, he is a fair way out of the Australian team. He is a very canny bowler who knows how to trick batsmen out. He took a T20 hat trick at just 17 years of age in his first bowling performance at state level - a pretty impressive performance! He later captained the Australian Under 19 team to a Under 19 World Cup victory and is a good chance to end up being an Australian test captain at some time in the future - so long as he stops drinking, of course. His bowling is listed as medium pace but he can be a bit quicker than that.

Moises Henriques averages 9.00 (SR 60.00) batting and 84.00 bowling in his 2 ODIs, and averages 1.00 (SR 50.00) batting and didn't bowl in his only T20I. The stats look terrible but he only played 3 international matches, and perhaps those figures will improve in the future. He averages 31.07 batting and 27.67 bowling at FC level, 25.34 (SR 80.92) batting and 41.60 bowling at ODD level, and 21.20 (SR 123.74) batting and 28.97 bowling at T20 level. He is +3.40 in FC but a woeful -16.26 at OD level and still -7.77 at T20 level. While he has made his international debut and has potential, his figures suggest that right now he is a fair way from international level. He is only 25 years of age though and has a fair bit of time to improve - and he did have a fantastic CLT20. He is a fast medium bowler and a very good fielder who is versatile and is something of a favourite overseas, largely because of his performance in CLT20 and IPL. It remains a mystery why he got his international debut but it should act as incentive in case in the future he may genuinely deserve it.

Luke Butterworth averages 28.52 batting and 23.67 bowling at FC level, 22.74 (SR 80.34) batting and 37.22 bowling at ODD level, and 11.00 (SR 84.61) batting and 38.80 bowling at T20 level - not surprisingly he has only played 9 T20 games! His FC record is best, with +4.85, but with -14.48 at ODD and -27.80 at T20 levels, he is a fair way off international level. But purely as a bowler his bowling average at FC level is better than both Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus, and he could almost play test cricket purely as a bowler. At 29 years of age he has only played a smattering of games for his state, largely due to his inconsistency. He still isn't a regular at state level and he will most likely never play an international match. Just the same, a player that averages 28.52 batting and 23.67 bowling isn't the worst to have that is outside of the team! Think of Australia's all-rounder stocks in the past - if this was 20 years ago he'd be making his test debut!

There are also the likes of Steve Smith and Cameron White who were previously known as all-rounders but nowadays are mostly just batsmen. There is also Steve O'Keefe who at one stage was known as an all-rounder but is now mostly a bowler.

Pretty talented lot there! Makes you wonder why they chose to replace Shane Watson with a batsman - especially an ordinary one - when there was this kind of choices available in the all-rounder stakes. Of note, the oldest of these all-rounder options is only 31!

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Why Rob Quiney SHOULD NOT replace Shane Watson?

By Adrian Meredith

MELBOURNE, Australia (TheSportsNEXT) November 4, 2012: I can hardly believe it but the Australian cricket selectors have just picked Rob Quiney to replace Shane Watson in the test team, and he is tipped to be "very likely" to make his test debut!

Most people probably don't know who Rob Quiney is, so let me give you a quick refresher.

Rob Quiney is an ODI and limited overs specialist who generally replaces Chris Rogers in the team, as Victoria's opener, when they play ODI and T20 cricket, as Chris Rogers, while a much better first class batsman than Quiney, is not as quick between the wickets. Quiney averages a decent 38 in ODIs, at a healthy strike rate of 90, which should have seen him to be close to playing an ODI for Australia - indeed some were tipping him to make it this season. He also averages 38 in first class matches - when he plays, often due to other players being in the national set up - far, far below the national test team.

The rationale for his promotion was apparently on the back of him scoring a half century for Australia A against South Africa in the tour match - when the team total was almost 500 - for 7 declared - and South Africa scored heaps too. It wasn't a competitive match - it was batting practice. It was a 3 day match with nothing attached that wasn't serious.

Before that, Quiney has had a string of low scores in all formats this year - other than a century against Queensland earlier in the year.

We may as well just hand South Africa the series.

It is bad enough having to put up with Ed Cowan - who averages 40 in FC cricket and 29 in tests - but now we have to tolerate another out of form and poor quality batsman on top of him, someone who averages 38 in FC cricket! Neither are in form either!

If we were going for a batsman, it should have been a choice of George Bailey - who has done well in his ODI and T20 games and averages a decent 42 in FC matches - or David Hussey - who averages over 50 in FC matches, has amazing numbers, but isn't in consistently good form and is 35 years old. Usman Khawaja should have been an outside chance too - though he isn't in particularly good form and his test average is pretty poor.

We also could have gone in with an all-rounder, when it would be a choice of Dan Christian or Mitchell Marsh, which should have been a close contest except that Mitchell Marsh has had disciplinary problems lately; hence it should be Christian. Glenn Maxwell should have been an outside chance too, though his bowling has been shown to be substandard for internationals, and his batting isn't good enough.

So, overall, it should be a choice of Bailey vs Christian, depending on if they want a full on batsman or an all rounder.

Playing Quiney is insanity!

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Who should replace Shane Watson and Ricky Ponting?

By Adrian Meredith

MELBOURNE, Australia (TheSportsNEXT) November 4, 2012: Ricky Ponting is a risk of missing the first Test against South Africa due to injury - enough of a worry that he came off early in the most recent Sheffield Shield game.

Shane Watson, in comparison, has complained of a slight niggle - and is now at a huge risk of missing the 1st test - or if he does play, it could be purely as a batsman.

Before going into who will replace them, let's look at some facts about each:

Ricky Ponting:

Averages 52 in test cricket, only behind Michael Hussey in the current Australian team.

Has scored more test runs than anyone else in Australian history, and is behind only Sachin Tendulkar, in the world.

Has done very poorly in tests in the past 5 years or so, other than a few big scores recently that just barely means he is in the squad.

Has been dropped from both ODIs and T20s - permanently.

Is in fantastic form domestically in the past year, including a match winning score of 160 not out - and is averaging 100 in the current season.

Shane Watson:

Is Australia's best ever all-rounder in test cricket, ahead of Richie Benaud, Allan Davidson and Keith Miller

Is ranked 2nd, only behind Jacques Kallis, as the best all-rounder in tests in the world.

Is comfortably the best all-rounder in the world in both ODIs and T20s.

Won 4 man of the match awards in a row to start the World T20.

Breaks down with injury regularly, especially when bowling, especially in tests.

As a batsman, still averages almost 40, which is still ahead of Ed Cowan, who replaced him as opener.

Given this, we have a few points that should be accepted as true:

·  There is nobody on the sidelines who is a better player in better form than either Ricky Ponting or Shane Watson.

·  If Ricky Ponting can bat at all, he should play.

·  If Shane Watson plays purely as a batsman, he is still a better option than Ed Cowan - and in that case probably Cowan should be dropped and we play an all-rounder.

Batsmen in contention to replace Ricky Ponting:

David Hussey is the obvious choice, averaging 54 in first class cricket. His form seemed to be poor but then he just scored an even 100 in an ODI game last week - off a mere 75 balls. His recent FC form is poor but his class is good. His bowling probably isn't test level but it is a different kind of bowling and could provide relief for the fast men.

George Baileylooked the man most likely, averages just over 40 in first class cricket and has been maturing in his role as T20 captain and now a regular in the ODI side, playing above himself.

Usman Khawaja is a bit of a long shot but, unlike the other 2, he has played test cricket. He averaged only 29 from his 6 tests - but that is still better than Ed Cowan! And his FC average is better, at 42. He is in some kind of form - though nothing too exciting. It would probably be seen as too big a risk and a bit too much of a bolt from the blue to be likely - but they were going to put Peter Forrest into the test side last year and very nearly did!

All-rounders in contention to replace Shane Watson (or to replace Ed Cowan if Watson plays purely as a batsman):

Dan Christianlooks the man most likely, who has very nearly made his test debut about 10 times already in the past 2 years, and is still in fantastic form. He only averages 30 in FC cricket with the bat, and his bowling average is 34; but he is in really good form and has proved himself in both ODI and T20 level internationally. His bowling style is different and in the right conditions could be very hard to get away.

Mitchell Marshonly averages 21 with the bat in FC matches but averages 27 with the ball, and is a very tricky opponent. His bowling is significantly better than Christian's and he is borderline good enough for test level purely as a bowler; but he can bat in the top 6 and can be good. The problem is that his batting is a bit inconsistent and, with the recent headlines about his partying, he lacks discipline and probably isn't ready for test level yet. With the Australian selectors traditionally favouring discipline ahead of talent, it is unlikely that Mitch will get the nod. He is in form though.

Glenn Maxwell has come from out of nowhere to be in contention. He averages 45 with the bat and 38 with the ball in his 12 first class matches - the only one of the 3 who average better with the bat than the ball. He is also a spinner, unlike the other 2, meaning that they could then happily go in with all pace and have his spin as backup. Unfortunately, as proven in his ODI and T20 games, his bowling just isn't international quality, and his batting is somewhat erratic and inconsistent.

For me, I think that Ponting will ultimately play and that they will play Shane Watson purely as a batsman. They may drop Ed Cowan so that they can have an all-rounder, and if they do, I think that Dan Christian will play. But I think it would be a bit mean to do that and I can't see the selectors doing it.

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CLT20: Bowlers, Haddin help Sydney Sixers decimate Yorkshire

By Sheriff Michaels

An Imposing Victory Takes Sydney Sixers into Semi-Final of Champions League Twenty20 2012

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (TheSportsNEXT) October 16, 2012: A professional and dominating show by bowlers and blend of aggression and class by batsmen helped Australian Big Bash League’s Sydney Sixers to an astounding victory over England’s Yorkshire County Cricket Club in their Group B match of the Champions League Twenty20 2012 played at Newlands in Cape Town on Tuesday.

The victory also took the Sydney Sixers into Semi-Final of the Champions League Twenty20 2012 as they now have won both of their matches and Tuesday’s massive victory has boosted their net run-rate enough to make sure they end on top of the table.

A Captain's Knock by Brad Haddin

Sydney Sixers restricted the Yorkshire on 96 for nine from their 20 overs before overhauling the target for the loss of only two wickets with 67 balls to spare.

Yorkshire skipper Andrew Gale won the toss and decided to bat first to give his bowlers a good total to defend against a high-flying Sixers batting line-up.

However, it wasn’t to be! The crucial Group B match proved a show of the worst and the best by batsmen of the both sides as on a pitch where Yorkshire batsmen failed to find their feet, Sydney Sixers top order batsmen enjoyed the bouncy nature of the track and expressed their skills freely.

Yorkshire opening pair of skipper Andrew Gale (8 from 18 – 1 four) and Phil Jaques (21 from 19 – 4 fours) failed to produce a rollicking start as both were back in the hut with total at 30 runs from 6.2 overs.

Joe Root (15 from 24 – 3 fours, 1 six) and Adam Lyth (18 from 25 – 1 four) tried to stabilize the dwindling ship but they could never find that acceleration button in their armor and scoring rate remained under five runs per over for the best part of the innings with wickets falling consistently.

Gary Ballance (8 from 17), Adil Rashid (1 from 2), Dan Hodgson (7 from 7 – 1 four), and Azeem Rafiq (Duck) all failed to find boundary rather regularly and when Mitchell Starc clean-bowled Steven Patterson (2 from 3) it was all over for Yorkshire who were restricted to 96 for nine from their share of 20 overs.

Left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc captured three wickets for 22 runs while Pat Cummins and Shane Watson grabbed two wickets apiece for 22 and 27 runs, respectively. Josh Hazlewood also bowled tremendously well during a miser spell as he gave away only nine runs from his four overs for a wicket. Moises Henriques also looked good with figures of one for 10 from his two overs.

Shane Watson further augments his reputation

The 97-run target was never a challenging task for a team like Sydney Sixers, especially on a bouncy pitch at Newlands.

Although, Shane Watson (11 from 6 – 1 four, 1 six) failed to utilize the beautiful batting conditions, Michael Lumb (43 not out from 24 – 8 fours) and Brad Haddin (41 from 21 – 8 fours) pounced on the opportunity and added 78 runs for the second wicket from mere 42 balls to take Yorkshire completely out of contention.

The Sydney Sixers completed the target from fifth delivery of the eighth over which means they achieved their target with 67 balls to spare.

Brad Haddin was declared Man of the Match for his exhibition of a blend of class and aggression with the bat.

Yorkshire completely blown away!

Yorkshire skipper Andrew Gale said at the presentation ceremony, "150-160 would have been a good score. But we didn't get off to a good start, and we were chasing the game from thereon. We have learned valuable lessons from today, have three games left, and will hopefully reverse the result on Thursday."

Brad Haddin, who is also skipper of the Sydney Sixers, told the interviewer after receiving his Man of the Match award, “We had a few things we needed to work on after the first game. The best thing about the three fast bowlers was they bowled differently, presenting different challenges to the batsmen. I am pretty lucky they are all looking to have a go. We still got to get better and better as the tournament goes on."

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CLT20: Sydney Sixers outclass Chennai Super Kings by 14 runs

By Sheriff Michaels

Shane Watson plays gutsy knock for Sydney Sixers in Champions League Twenty20 2012.

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (TheSportsNEXT) October 14, 2012: An all-round performance by Moises Henriques helped Australia’s Sydney Sixers start their Champions League Twenty20 2012 campaign off to a confidence start on Sunday when they defeated IPL franchise Chennai Super Kings by 14 runs at New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.

Moises Henriques first smashed 23-ball unbeaten 49 runs with the help of three sixes and five boundaries before taking three wickets for just 23 runs from three overs to get hold of the Man of the Match award.

Sydney Sixers scored 185 for five from their 20 overs after skipper Chennai Super Kings Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and decided to field first, banking on his batting might to chase down anything under the sun.

Michael Lumb (18 from 16 – 1 four, 1 six) and ICC World Twenty20 2012’s Player of the Tournament Shane Watson (46 from 30 – 5 fours, 2 sixes) opened the batting for Sydney Sixers and scored quick-fired 50 runs from just 37 balls to set the foundation of a massive total.

Nic Maddinson (12 from 16 – 1 four) and Brad Haddin (20 from 18 – 1 four, 1 six) stabilized the innings in the middle overs but Steven Smith (26 from 17 – 3 fours) and Moises Henriques (49 not out from 23 – 5 fours, 3 sixes) went berserk in the final overs adding 70 runs from mere 39 balls.

Ravichandran Ashwin was the most successful bowler for the Chennai Super Kings as he captured two scalps for 32 runs while Ben Hilfenhaus (1/26) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/29) also bowled well. However, Doug Bollinger, who became the player with most caps in Champions League Twenty20 by playing 17^th match in the competition, went for 39 runs from his four overs.

Chasing 186 runs was always going to be a difficult task for any batting might in the world and it was no different story for the Chennai Super Kings as they lost opening batsman Murali Vijay (1 from 5) and Mike Hussey (16 from 19 – 2 fours) early in the innings.

South African Faf du Plessis (43 from 25 – 5 fours, 2 sixes) revived the challenge and along with Suresh Raina (57 from 33 – 8 fours, 2 sixes) set the foundation of a strong finish with the likes of MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, and Subramaniam Badrinath still waiting in the wings.

However, as soon as Subramaniam Badrinath (6 from 11) left the crease, things started to look shaky for the Chennai Super Kings as skipper MS Dhoni (8 from 8 – 1 four) completely looked out of color while Ravindra Jadeja (2 from 3) also failed to cope up with the challenge of ever-mounting asking run-rate.

Despite of a late flurry of boundaries by Ravichandran Ashwin (18 from 9 – 3 fours), the Chennai Super Kings were folded for 171 for nine from their 20 overs, thus falling 14 runs short of the total posted by Sydney Sixers.

Moises Henriques and Mitchell Starc grabbed three wickets each for 23 and 31 runs respectively while Pat Cummins (1/42), Shane Watson (1/31), and Steve O’Keefe (1/16) also captured one wicket apiece.

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My 2012 ICC World Twenty20 XI

By Adrian Meredith

Chris Gayle would be part of any World Twenty20 XI

VICTORIA, Australia (TheSportsNEXT) October 11, 2012: A lot has been written about the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 XI and former cricketers like Alec Stewart has also come up with his selection of the best players of the tournament. Time is now to check out my 2012 ICC World Twenty20 XI.

 

Shane Watson (Australia) won the player of the tournament award after getting 4 man of the match awards in the first 4 matches, before failing in the last 2. He ended up with 249 runs at an average of 49.80 and strike rate of 150.00, the most runs of anyone in the tournament. On top of that, he ended up with 11 wickets at an average of 16.00 and an economy of 7.33, second only to Ajantha Mendis for most wickets. Australia won all 4 matches that he was man of the match in - by a long way. They lost the last 2 matches, in which he failed. This says everything that you need to know about him, really. Nobody else won more than 2 man of the match awards.

Chris Gayle (West Indies) didn't do quite as well as Watson but was such a big prospect that he slots in due to his presence. He finished with 222 runs at 44.40 and a strike rate of 150.00, 4th on the run scoring list. He also took 3 wickets at an average of 26.33 and an economy 7.64, though he wasn't really known for his bowling. He was man of the match in the semi final and also won West Indies their Super 8 match against England. But it was his presence that made all the difference, as highlighted by the fear he brought to Australia in the semi final, just by being not out, even though he hadn't faced many balls, and that, even though he was out cheaply against Sri Lanka, he was still a major part of why West Indies won the final.

Brendon McCullum (New Zealand) (wicket keeper) really only had one good innings, but what an innings it was! 123 off 58 balls, the highest ever score in T20 internationals, and on top of that it was a match that let New Zealand into the Super 8 stage of the tournament, as, without his effort, Bangladesh probably would have won the match and qualified in their place. New Zealand nearly made it to the semi finals, were it not for their Super Over loss to West Indies in their final match. He only finished with 212 runs in total, at an average of 42.40 and a strike rate of 159.39, adding only 89 runs in the other 4 matches combined. He only took 1 catch from the 5 matches, a pretty poor return, but having finished 5th on the run scoring list for the tournament, he was good enough as a batsman alone.

Virat Kohli (India) can do no wrong and is in the best form of anyone in the entire world, in all 3 formats, over the last year. Sure so he didn't top the run scoring list, but he was still pretty high up there with 185 runs at an average of 46.25 and a strike rate of 122.51, which included a match winning 78 not out against Pakistan that all but qualified India for the semi final - if not for some lame captaincy decisions in their final Super 8 match, when the team failed to take risks. Having Kohli in the team is a must. Luke Wright may have scored more runs - and at a higher strike rate - but his 99 against Afghanistan doesn't count for much, and, other than that and a 76 against New Zealand (who themselves only won 1 game), he barely scored a run - while Kohli in comparison scored runs when it mattered.

Mahela Jayawardene (Sri Lanka) (captain) was consistent the whole way through, scoring 243 runs at an average of 40.50 and a strike rate of 116.26, to finish 2nd on the list of most runs scored. The strike rate was a little disappointed but he was important in saving matches for Sri Lanka, such as his match winning 65 not out against West Indies in the Super 8 stage. He scored over 30 in his last 5 matches in a row, though he did start off slowly in the first 2 matches. He was a really good captain too, surely the best captain in the entire tournament. I am sorry but Darren Sammy's decision to use Marlon Samuels to bowl the final over against New Zealand in their crucial final Super 8 match, and then in the Super Over, while they did win, were surely seriously stupid mistakes. Jayawardene made no such mistakes. He may have stepped down as captain after their loss in the final but really he did nothing wrong.

Marlon Samuels (West Indies) was the man of the match in the final, when he took West Indies from 4 runs per over after 11 overs to post a total of 137, which turned out to be match winning. He did pretty darn well in the semi final as well. Indeed, his 230 runs at an average of 38.33 and a strike rate of 132.94 was the 3rd highest in the tournament. He scored 50 in their first up loss to Australia, 50 in their Super 8 loss to Sri Lanka, and a match winning 78 against Sri Lanka in the final. He bowled a bit too but his bowling was decidedly ordinary, though West Indies did win the match when he bowled the final over - and the Super Over - against New Zealand - that qualified them for the semi final stage.

Ross Taylor (New Zealand) scored 147 runs at an average of 49.00 and a strike rate of 145.54, to hold things together for New Zealand for all but the first match, when Brendon McCullum scored his amazing 123. Taylor got 14 not out, 26, 23, 22 and 62 not out against West Indies, that all but won them the game. He scored quickly and was a real danger man, the one who could win it from anywhere and the one that they had to get out to have a chance of victory.

Mitchell Starc (Australia) took 10 wickets at an average of 16.40 and an economy of 6.83, to be 3rd on the wicket taking list, just behind fellow Australian Shane Watson. Starc was considered a fringe player just before the tournament, as the likes of Justin Patterson and Mitchell Johnson had been preferred but he showed just what advantage being coached by Wasim Akram is. He was the best fast bowler in the tournament, in conditions that suited spinners, not pacers.

Lakshmipathy Balaji (India) may have only played in 4 games, but he still managed 9 wickets at an average of 9.77 and an economy of 7.33 to be 4th on the wicket taking tally, and the 2nd highest of the fast bowlers. He had the lowest average and the most wickets per match. His tournament was highlighted by 3/22 against Pakistan and 3/37 against South Africa, both in the Super 8 stage. If only he had played against Australia perhaps India would have won and qualified for the semi finals.

Sunil Narine (West Indies) took 9 wickets at an average of 15.44 and an economy of 5.63, the lowest economy of anyone with more than 6 wickets. He started poorly but in the final 3 matches he took 3/20 in the crucial match against New Zealand to be the standout player, 2/17 in the semi final against Australia and 3/9 in the final against Sri Lanka. West Indies won all 3 of those matches, and only won one other match when he didn't do amazingly well. He was someone that struck fear into oppositions and had an outstanding tournament.

Ajantha Mendis (Sri Lanka) topped the wicket taking tally with 15 wickets at an average of 9.80 and an economy of 6.12, 4 wickets more than the next highest wicket taker, Shane Watson. Mendis even missed a match. One big criticism is that against New Zealand he did poorly (1/48) and against England was even worse (0/40) but in amongst that he had the best return in T20 international history (6/8 against Zimbabwe) and also took 4/12 against West Indies in the final, which all but won them the match. 2/12 against West Indies in the Super 8 stage was crucial too, while 2/27 against Pakistan was pretty decent too. As the story goes, he is unplayable if you aren't used to him but once you are he becomes easy to bat against. Nonetheless, some oppositions just can't handle him so he is very useful to have in the team.

12th man: Saeed Ajmal (Pakistan) wasn't far away but I felt that 3 specialist spin bowlers probably wasn't a good idea and I'd rather have a specialist batsman at number 7. Ajmal did reasonably well but was a bit behind Narine in the final analysis and Ajantha Mendis, while unpredictable, at his peak was simply the best. With Shane Watson bowling so well, I didn't feel the need to have 5 specialist bowlers, especially also given that Gayle and Samuels can bowl if needed, to give 7 bowling options (or 8 if you count Kohli); however, if we did need to have 5 specialist bowlers, or if we wanted 3 specialist spin bowlers, I would have had Saeed Ajmal as my 5th, and therefore Ajmal would be 12th man.

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