Muralitharan prepares for final bow

One of the world's greatest and most controversial cricketers, Muttiah Muralitharan, is finally set to bring the curtain down on an illustrious Test career.

Why the greatest? Well the stats speak for themselves: A world record 792 test victims from 132 matches at an average of less than 23. He picked up a further 515 in the one day games with an average of just over 23 and he has even had time to squeeze in 13 wickets in 11 T20 matches at an average of less than 21.

Whatever the pitch, whatever the venue and whatever the game, Muralitharan has been the man every Sri Lanka captain has called on in a crisis - and he more often than not delivered. He certainly helped the side upset the Test cricket odds on a few occasions.

Why controversial? Because of the long standing debate about throwing was ripped open again each time a fussy umpire questioned his unusual action.

A deformed elbow was part of the reason but he also had exceptionally flexible wrists and a shoulder that rotated as rapidly as a fast bowler's at the time of delivery. This allowed him to achieve an exceptional level of spin. His killer delivery though was the doosra - the one that went the other way or held its line.

All of a sudden Murali could tee up his victims before bamboozling with a wicked delivery, putting him up there with the greats.

Umpires haven't been so kind to him though. Darrell Hair called him for throwing on the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne 1995 and the same happened in Brisbane and Adelaide. Another umpire Ross Emerson followed suit three years later. Even former Australian prime minister John Howard once labelled him a chucker - though he later apologised.

Murali even bowled on television in a special cast, going through his entire repertoire of deliveries to try and convince the critics.

He finally won the day and despite the controversy he has kept a dignified stance throughout. He is often accused of lacking that passion and fire in the belly that marks out the great players.

And although I agree that determination often put the elite players above the rest, Murali's unassuming nature betrays his devastating affect with the ball. He has no need to shout and bawl - his actions speak for themselves. Sri Lanka's cricket odds will no doubt take a hit after his departure.

He finally brings the curtain down on his Test career against India this week - I'm sure much to the authorities and opposition batsmen's relief.

Derbyshire v Surrey

Chance lost for me.

200 to win, even on the last day at Chesterfield, should be attainable with 9 wickets in hand hand.

Very disappointing, especially for Wayne Madsen with two tons and still on the losing side.

More in due course but thought we had that sussed at lunchtime with their bowlers limping.

England hold all the aces over Australia

England find themselves in an unusual position at the moment. After securing the one day series against Australia with two games to spare they can now laud it over their great rivals in every format of the game.

The Ashes are in their possession after last year's dramatic home victory, while their first ever ICC trophy was secured in the form of the World T20 where they beat the Aussies in the final.

The feel-good factor among the players is in stark contrast to England's footballers, whose 4-1 hammering by Germany threatened to ruin the afternoon for the supporters packed into Old Trafford on Sunday, before Tim Bresnan's late pushed nervously sealed a series deciding victory. Graeme Swann even went as to say they were the "golden generation" of England cricketers, a title rather embarrassingly applied to England's failed footballers.

The football side, who were third favourites in the World Cup online odds, could learn a thing or two from their cricketing counterparts.

Swann's argument certainly seems to hold water as the side are backing up their talent with results. England are historically weak at the shorter forms of the game but it appears they are flourishing in all forms of the game - don't forget this is just a year after England lost to the Netherlands in the T20 World Cup and were hammered by Australia in the post-Ashes One day series.

Each win in this series was achieved via different methods. The first at Rose Bowl was all about the bat with Eoin Morgan's superb century leading them comfortably home. The second in Cardiff was all about the bowlers, with the short bouncing, skidding deliveries of Broad and co skittling through the Aussie top order. The third was achieved with grit, determination and nerve.

Too often in the past England have bottled it at the crucial moment so a win of this nature is another sign of an emerging side determined to win at all costs. This is reflected in the cricket odds.

Andy Flower deserves a lot of credit for setting England on a path to complete cricket domination. Flower gathered his players last year and stated his ambition to be number one at all forms of the game. It sounds ambitious but the self-belief and confidence flooding through the players suggests they agree with his vision and ethos.

Don't write off the Aussies yet though. Listening to Ricky Ponting after the game suggested he is as determined as ever to gain the last laugh and that could come when the Ashes kick off next November.

But the fact we have barely mentioned Freddie Flintoff shows just how far England have come and the genuine threat they pose in the world game.

Steven Finn latest victim of England Ashes hype machine

A battling Bangladesh side, who showed they are rapidly improving as a Test outfit, were eventually defeated by England on the final day at Lord's.

The eight wicket win hides the fact that England's bowlers were made to toil for much of the game, with the decision to only field four strike bowlers brought into question.

However, the biggest positive to come out of the game was the performance of paceman Steve Finn, who was the standout bowler of the match, claiming 5-87 in the second innings to achieve match figures of 9 for 187.

The 21-year-old is 6"7', so is clearly earmarked for a key role on the hard, bouncy pitches of Australia next winter. His huge frame and solid action mean he will be able to achieve plenty of pace and bounce, something our often swing dominated attack has failed to do in recent excursions down under. The Ashes betting will make England second favourites for the contest, so they will need some special performances to pull off a win.

But Finn also displayed encouraging versatility - sensibly slowing his action down on the final morning in order to take advantage of the extra swing and movement the cloud cover above Lord's would bring. The Test series odds always suggested Bangladesh would be defeated, but Finn did well to ensure this happened.

Like any young player in this country who displays even a glimpse of potential a series of sensational headlines soon splurge out from the newsstands. Some of the articles regarding the Middlesex bowler have compared him to Glen McGrath and Curtly Ambrose.

I don't think I need to tell you that Finn is not at the level of those all-time greats, few Englishmen have ever got close to their sky-high standards.
But given the figures he has achieved so far, plus the maturity he displays on and off the field, he is certainly a great talent to be nurtured and one that is one the right track. He's definitely one to watch this summer.

England hit on winning formula

England fans are still taking in their side's dramatic World T20 final win on Sunday, their first ICC triumph in a one-day tournament after 35 years of trying.
What made the win more satisfying was the manner in which it was achieved. England played the best cricket in this tournament by a distance and no one can argue with their win.

In the West Indies, England upset the cricket betting odds but they did it with such ease you would have thought they were favourites before the start of the competition.

The old question marks that hung over the team in recent years England have been eradicated and credit has to go to the selectors for dealing with those problems.
Firstly, England's repeated failure to take advantage of the powerplay was solved by the selection of Craig Kieswetter and Michael Lumb. The pair may not be technically the best cricketers in the country, but they know how to hit a ball and aren't afraid to do so.

Their lusty blows at the top of the innings gave England a solid platform on which to build on. They duly did so with the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan ensuring that the momentum gained by the openers was not lost. This is backed up by the statistics which reveal all but one of England's batsmen had a strike rate of over 100.

The pressure was kept on the opposition in the field as well. England had no 'out' bowlers, a player who the opposition knew would bowl a few loose ones allowing them to hit a few boundaries to release the pressure.

The opening pair of Sidebottom and Bresnan were on the money from the off, no looseners there. While Stuart Broad as first change bamboozled the batsmen using the full compliant of deliveries in his armoury.

With the powerplay out of the way spin pairing of Graeme Swann and Michael Yardy choked the middle of the innings, meaning when the pacemen were brought on at the end they were bowling to frustrated batsmen. Desperate to boost their side's low score they took more risks, usually resulting in their dismissal.

Coach Andy Flower was quick to put things in perspective and urged calm, saying this was only one format of the game. But the confidence taken from this win should spur the players on to greater things in 50 over and test matches. With the Ashes on the horizon, that is definitely something to get excited about.

Meanwhile, the England football team will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of their cricketing compatriots this year when they travel to South Africa for the World Cup.

The World Cup betting makes the Three Lions third favourites for the tournament, but they will face some stiff competition.

Player Discussion : Stuart Broad

Author: kirankriSubject: Stuart BroadPosted: 14 May 2010 at 5:55amAn inexperienced lad goes for six 6's in an over. Many people around the world thinks, this guy is not capable of adopting to the shorter version of the game. And full of praise for the guy who hit those 6's. Luckily the men who mattered had confidence in the lad's ability and persisted with him. 3 years later, the same lad comes up with a match winning performance in the semi-finals of the same format of the game. He rejects to participate in the IPL - Playing for the country is more important than money. What an attitude!!! This is a true illustration of how, hard work and good attitude pays dividends. I am so happy to see this lad performing yesterday and playing an important role in taking his side to the finals.I would love to see him becoming a premier all-rounder in the world in the coming years. He has the potential to be the future Flintoff for England and world cricket. Few things he has to continue doing in my opinion:1) Continue to be a bowling all rounder and don't focus too much on batting.2) Given the schedule in international cricket,  injuries will always be a threat. Participate only in the important tours.3) Never get attracted to money oriented circus like IPL. (There is a case of the man who hit those six 6's. He is not able to even bend and pick the ball lying on the ground)

England see both sides of Duckworth-Lewis

Being in Paul Collingwood's company would not have been pleasant had the complicated maths involved in the Duckworth-Lewis method gone against England once more.

The England captain couldn't hide his frustration after England lost to the West Indies under the method, despite posting a tournament high of 191 in their 20 overs. But a sloppy start by England's bowlers was compounded as the rain came down in Guyana.

The mathematical system, which was introduced in 2001, set the Windies a target of just 60 from six overs with all their wickets in hand. The system isn't ideal, but it was also designed with 50 over cricket in mind, not T20.

As Collingwood said a score of 191 would win the game 95 per cent of the time so for the system to skew the odds the other way is proof it is flawed in this format.
England then had a dreaded sense of deja vu as the rain came down again during their match with Ireland. In truth they weren't as impressive with the bat as they were against the Windies, and credit has to go to the Irish, in particular pace bowler Trent Johnson and young leg spinner George Dockrell.

However, it was Irish-born Eoin Morgan, who made a composed 45, who dragged England to 120-8.

Ireland were 14-1 from three-and-a-half overs in reply, but found themselves dodging the rain. There was a real worry in the England dressing room that the maths would fail then once more. The cricket betting suggested England are in with an outside chance of winning the competition, but had things gone wrong they could have fallen at the first hurdle.

After a prolonged break, Ireland were set a revised target of just 47 from 33 balls before a final burst of rain ended the contest without a result being reached.
No one would argue against using Duckworth-Lewis to decide a game - using run-rate ratios or best scoring overs is unthinkable, as past experience shows.

However, the past two games have shown adjustments need to be made for its use in the T20 format of the game. After all, losing a match because a formula needs rejigging is not what cricket is about.

Meanwhile, in other sports news, England remain third favourites in the FIFA World Cup odds as this year's tournament approaches.