Mitch: The Fear Factor for the Poms

After winning the first commonwealth bank ashes test at Gabba, player of the match Mitchell Johnson said that the firing of bouncers will continue during the whole ashes series. Mitch warned that there will be no respite from the bombardment of the bouncers inflicted on England at Gabba.

Mitchell Johnson, who missed the Ashes selection earlier in this year, has made a sensational comeback into the Test side. His all-round performance during Gabba test played a key role in the 381 run victory at Gabba, which came after 9 test matches for Australia. The pacer kept the pressure on all the time on the Barmy Army with his speedy bouncers and short balls during both the innings. He picked up 9 wickets in the test (4-46 in the first inning, 5-42 in second inning) which caused England to collapse tamely. Almost all English batsmen found it difficult to handle Mitchell’s pace and bounce. He also contributed with bat 74 runs in the 1st innings and 39* in the second innings and his all-round contribution gave Australia a much needed win. Aussies also continued their record of being unbeaten at Gabba since last 25 years.

Veteran Khan can still do it

Zaheer Khan appears close to full fitness again and he should be included in India's Test squad for the upcoming tour of South Africa.

India's selectors have much to ponder and plenty of options as they assess who to take to South Africa as the two top-ranked Test nations get set to go head-to-head next month.

While all the attention has been fixed on Sachin Tendulkar's retirement, India must move on and eventually begin to focus on the tough task that is taking on South Africa on their own patch.

In addition, including pace bowler Khan will give them a better chance of coming away from the two-Test series with a victory as they look to overcome the cricket betting odds, as the home side are likely to be favourites to prevail.

There are doubts over whether the 35-year-old can still deliver on the biggest stages but, according to reports, he has been working very hard on his fitness in France and looks in good shape ahead of a possible inclusion in the squad.

England should be confident heading into the Ashes

As months have turned into weeks, and the weeks have turned into hours the tension, nerves and excitement have only become more intense in the lead up to the ashes. Despite Australia showing some signs that they have the ability to challenge England in the summer, overall the series win was relatively comfortable for the home side, winning 3-0 to ensure they retained the ashes yet again. As an England fan, any England victory, particularly in an ashes series, is something to savour, but I couldn’t help get the feeling after the five matches we hadn’t seen the best of what England had to offer. Moments of brilliance were book ended with relatively average cricket, from both teams. Players out of form, combined with slow pitches, resulted in ordinary test cricket. The five tests didn’t ignite the passion of the previous ashes series. The rivalry was still present but because the English were clear favourites, Australia just couldn’t keep up. The simple answer to why England didn’t play there best cricket is because they didn’t have to. This time against Australia however, they will need to perform.

(Photo credit: nic_r)

England’s batting looks promising. Cook and Trott piled on the runs in the last ashes series down under and there’s no reason why they can’t repeat their staggering performances again. The quicker, bouncier tracks should complement their batting styles and I think this is also true for the whole England batting line up. On the back of his recent performance, it’s likely that Michael Carberry will open the batting alongside Cook. Although relatively inexperienced at international level, he’s been around the domestic circuit enough times to form a wise head on his massive

Does England have players to call upon if injury strikes?

Injury concerns involving England skipper Alastair Cook and seamer Stuart Broad, although unlikely to keep them both out of the series, have raised the question of the quality of the back up players in the England side. With the series being the second half of two consecutive Ashes series, it is likely that injuries and rotation will play a considerable role which could have an impact on the end result. It is therefore more important than ever to have strength and depth in the squad.

England’s bowling unit is strong, the stand out performers of Broad and Anderson being well supported by Finn, Rankin and Tremlett. All tall, all fast and I have no issues with any of them making the starting eleven. Tremlett has proven himself before, having a successful tour of Australia in the 2011 series. It’s always a worry when a fast bowler has a career threatening injury, but Tremlett looks to have come back fitter and stronger, ready to play. Steven Finn, still young and learning his game, is a threatening fast bowler, even though he

ODI Series Finely Poised after India's Stunning Chase

India's brilliant run-chase in the second one-day international against Australia has lit the blue touch paper for the seven-match series that is now level at 1-1.  And, if the first two games are anything to go by, it is set to be a very entertaining few weeks between the two sides. Australia had won the first ODI in Pune by 72 runs after smashing 304 and they looked odds-on to make it 2-0 overall when they set India the daunting target of 360 to win the second clash in Jaipur.

The most expensive over ever !

Alauddin Babu of Bangladesh is now the unfortunate owner of the record for the most runs conceded in a single over in List A cricket. Playing for Abahani Limited against Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Limited in the Dhaka Premier League, he conceded 39 runs in a single over, thus shattering Daan Van Bunge's record of 36 runs (which still is the record for ODIs).

Sequence of events, as follows

Ball 1 - No Ball, Boundary [Total - 5 runs, 0 Balls]

Ball 2 - Wide [Total - 6 runs, 0 Balls]

Ball 3 - Six [Total - 12 runs, 1 Ball]

Ball 4 - Boundary [Total - 16 runs, 2 Balls]

Ball 5 - Six [Total - 22 runs, 3 Balls]

Ball 6 - Boundary [Total - 26 runs, 4 Balls]

Ball 7 - Six [Total - 32 runs, 5 Balls]

Ball 8 - Wide [Total - 33 runs, 5 Balls]

Ball 9 - Six [Total - 39 runs, Over Complete]

And the batsman who was at the receiving end of these pleasantries - Elton Chigumbura, the former Zimbabwean captain.

Enough information for any trivia contest.

Nishant Kumar for DieHard Cricket Fans

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