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Harmison’s
big leap Vaughan — a very likeable
Yorkshireman IN THE NEWS |
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Harmison’s big
leap Around Durham, he would have earned a name for himself as a young tearaway who, for a few seasons at least, frightened rather than dismissed batsmen. But he would never have got to Dhaka, Sydney or Jamaica. He would never have boasted figures of 12.3-8-12-7 at Sabina Park, and the West Indies would not have been dismissed for 47, the lowest Test total in their history. He would probably, indeed, have been about as famous as Troy Cooley. The Australian was once a genuinely quick but wild bowler. A bit, in fact, like the young Harmison. He played for Tasmania, on and off, for around 10 years, struggling with overstepping and injuries, before calling it a day in 1995. Ironically Cooley, as England bowling coach, is today feeding Harmison the biomechanical expertise, backed up by technological analysis, which he himself could have profited from. The results have been extraordinary. When Harmison first played for England less than two years ago, he was red-raw. His arms — ''long levers,'' Cooley calls them — swung to left and right, he had a ragged jump at the crease and was not strong enough to stop his pelvis tilting as he landed. He failed to cock his wrist and the ball sprayed everywhere. ''He had a bit of a balance problem,'' said Cooley. ''At his size, you need to be stable.'' The unstable Harmison was dropped after one game. On his return, he was soon being presented as a figure of fun for scatter-gunning eight wides in a single over in a tour match in Australia in 2002-3. Cooley, however, who would soon replace Graham Dilley as England's bowling coach, was excited. ''Yes, I definitely saw he had something special — I mean, he is six feet five inches tall. When you add the length of his arm, the ball is coming down from out of the clouds. ''And he was getting it right occasionally.'' During the Ashes, Harmison's nine wickets cost 50.55 runs each but he managed to hurry up a few Australians, something no Englishman had done in a while, with his natural pace and bounce. A year later, now teamed up with Cooley, things really began to click. In his first 11 Tests, Harmison had taken 32 wickets at a less-than-convincing 35.50. ''He worked really hard on his core conditioning and leg strength,'' Cooley said. ''It was a key issue. Without that, he couldn't hold the rest of the changes we wanted to drip-feed into him. The transformation is best reflected in the statistics. Harmison mark two has taken 53 wickets at 16.69 runs apiece in his last eight matches. There have been three man-of-the-match awards and two prizes for man of the series. And a move from nowhere to second in the world rankings. In the West Indies, they saw a Curtly Ambrose look-alike. New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming talked of a mixture of Glenn McGrath's consistency and Brett Lee's explosive pace. Cooley, however, avoids comparisons. ''Who does he remind me of? Stephen Harmison. He's unique.'' His success, he says, is down to Harmison’s own hard work and ability to adapt. But yes, the coaching and the technology have probably helped. “I’m a great believer that the cream rises to the top. Without the knowledge we can give him, Steve may still have found another way to make it.” —
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Vaughan — a very likeable
Yorkshireman The cricket world could not have wished anyone good luck with greater intensity since Michael Vaughan is one of the game’s nice guys. He is a genuinely likeable Yorkshireman which is saying a lot because many of those from the north of England who wore flannels have been known to be a temperamental lot. Opinionated tykes like Fred Trueman and Geoff Boycott have been such vocal and visible representatives who moved on from the field to the media box that it takes a Vaughan or two to change our view of the cricketers from the county of the white rose. In fact, Vaughan must surely be rated the most sweet-tempered captain in contemporary cricket. Just one look at all the others and you know why the Yorkshireman, actually born south of the border in Lancashire and who lived there for the first nine years of his life, is so high up the totem pole as far as good-natured men gracing the game goes. He sat out the Lord’s Test for injury and just take in what his replacement had to say - ‘’Generally the people out on the pitch are the ones who know how to play the game, not the people who are writing about it.’’ That was Marcus Trescothick on cricket journalists when queried why he didn’t take the second new ball in the New Zealand innings at Lords. He is eternally at mid off guiding his bowlers with a smile on his face and a hand ready to pat them on the back for their effort. When England paid back West Indian batsmen in their own currency in the Caribbean, Vaughan’s was very much the guiding hand. But he never comes through like the in-your-face kind of captain that the world seems to be full of them these days. Just consider our home grown Sourav Ganguly who is quite the raffish, curling upper lip kind of man in charge of teams chasing the No 1 spot in the rankings. No doubt he is successful though he may veer towards the Ayrton Senna philosophy of nice men don’t finish first. And then there is Brian Lara, so restless wearing a crown it looks as if he is actually donning a cap with a skull and crossbones sewn on it rather than the symbol of a sports team drawn from a host of islands known for their life-loving ways. Ricky Ponting is still the flavour of the season. He has not known defeat yet, savouring only triumph in three Tests on inheriting the world’s best Test side after beating the rest of the world in cricket’s showpiece event. But he was presumed by many to be guilty of giving Chris Cairns an ugly verbal send off in the World Cup. Stephen Fleming is commonly acknowledged to be the most cerebral of Test captains, especially since Steve Waugh has handed in his contract. But the Kiwi too was pronounced guilty of deliberately using anger-provoking tactics to unsettle his South African counterpart Graeme Smith who himself is not above spoiling for a fight or two. In this pantheon of modern captains, Inzamam-ul Haq is to be placed on the nicer side of things even if he is the mumbling type who is hardly in control of his team and who openly hints that his fastest bowler is the conspiring type who is not always willing to give of himself fully to the team cause. —
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IN THE
NEWS The stocky teenager stole the limelight from his more illustrious seniors. It took just nine days for him to transform from a promising teenager to England's main striker. Before anyone knew the weight of England's Euro campaign came to rest squarely on his talented shoulders. Rooney is the rage in football-crazy England. Wimbledon champion Serena Williams also confessed to being swept by the 'Rooneymania' currently gripping Britain. Comparisons have already started. The next Pele? It is too early to say but England have sure unearthed a gem. |
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Why ignore sports stars? I admire the guts of ‘Flying Sikh’ Milkha Singh and appreciate the feelings of film star Aamir Khan who said that only top players should have been given the honour of carrying the Olympic torch in New Delhi. Film stars and models are welcome but sports stars like PT Usha who brought glory to their motherland should not have been ignored. The planning must have been done much in advance and it is indeed surprising why timely intimation was not sent to top sportspersons like PT Usha. —
UJAGAR SINGH,
Chandigarh Zimbabwe cricket The recent opinion of Heath Streak to ban cricket in Zimbabwe reflects the upheaval in the country’s cricket circles. Six leading players rebelled and as a result the game suffered. The ICC tried to intervene but the Zimbabwe Cricket Board did not respond positively. As the ICC is thinking of globalising cricket, it is indeed sad to see the game dying in Zimbabwe who attained Test status about 10 years ago. The ICC must come out with strong measures before it is too late. —
PROF YL CHOPRA,
Bathinda India win The Indian cricket team added another feather to their cap by defeating Pakistan in the ODI and Test series on Pakistan soil. Bowlers Irfan Pathan and Balaji along with seasoned campaigner Kumble did not allow the Pakistanis to heave a sigh of relief throughout the tour. In batting, Dravid, Yuvraj and Sehwag compiled huge scores individually. The success of the Indian team is significant keeping in view the enormous pressure and security concerns. —
Naresh Popli, Chandigarh Undue importance Undue importance was given to the tour of the Indian cricket team to Pakistan. The media also highlighted the tour through news reports and discussions. —
Anjali Talwar, Panchkula |
If Steve Harmison had been born a few years earlier, he would probably have disappeared without trace.
An England captain dashing down the motorway in the middle of a Test match thinking up names for his first born (daughter Grace) is a first of sorts. A moving moment in an otherwise extremely cynical world! 
Wayne Rooney has accomplished what more famous players failed to do. He managed to upstage David Beckham and catch the fancy not only of England but the whole world.