Aussies gearing up to declare the British Lion 5-0
 The rejuvenated Australian cricket team led admirably and
aggressively by Michael 'pup' Clarke has outplayed England in all of the
four Ashes Test matches at the time of writing.
They are confident and believe that they can thrash the British Lion
in the final Test which began on Friday at the Sydney Cricket Ground
with a clean sweep of Alastair Cook's team 5 - nil.
The question that every cricket fan would ask: What has happened to
English cricket that was riding a crest of a wave of success only five
months ago when they won the third Ashes series in England?
Well as for this writer it was apparent that the Brits were
underprepared and under'Cook'ed. Complacency had set in and they were
cock sure that they could roll the Australians over in this series too
and achieve what no other English team had done - winning four Ashes
series in a row.
While the Brits had not got their game plans and strategies right,
the Australians on the other hand stung to the quick by the Stuart Broad
incident, where he tickled a catch to Clarke in the slips and refused to
walk, which incident the Aussies still feel could have won them the Test
and the series.
Aussies masters at sledging
The Aussies are masters at sledging, which they term 'mental
disintegration.' They have now made a fine art of it and from the first
ball of the First Test in Brisbane let the Brits have it.
The first casualty was one drop batsman and the reliable Jonathon
Trott. Then followed off spinner Graeme Swann who jumped ship after the
Third Test and series was lost.
One expected the Brits to bounce back and save face by, if they
cannot win holding the Aussies in the next two Tests, But that was not
to be as they capitulated in the Fourth Test at the Melbourne Cricket
Ground by 8 wickets.
The match winners for Australia were Chris Rogers century in the
second innings, off spinner Nathan Lyon five wickets in the second
innings and a blazing 83 by Shane Watson in 90 balls in the victory
chase.
Lyon in the process joined an illustrious band when he captured his
100th Test wicket. Lyon joined finger-spinners Hugh Trimble, George
Giffen, Ashley Mallet, Bruce Yardley and Ian Johnson in reaching the
record.
Umpire Davis 50 Test matches
When umpire Steve Davis took the field in the final Test between
South Africa and India along with Rod Tucker, he became the 11th umpire
to complete half-century of Tests. Born on April 19, 1952 in London. He
did his first Test in the third and final Test between Australia and New
Zealand in November 1997 in Hobart. Davis got promotion to the Elite
panel of umpires in April 2008.
Davis in addition to 50 Tests has also umpired in 122 ODIS and 20
Twenty20s, and has also been involved in all the ICC major events
including the 2007 and 2011 World Cup,2009 and 2013 Champions Trophy,
World Twenty20 in 2007,2009,2010 and 2012.
ICC match referee Andy Pycroft to mark the achievement presented a
crystal plaque to Davis on behalf of the ICC at a special Christmas
lunch. It was a good gesture by the ICC.
'I am proud to have joined the company of some of the top name to
have umpired in 50 Tests. Every Test I have been involved in has been a
memorable one for me, not only because I had the privilege to feature in
matches played by some of the modern day greats but also because I got
an opportunity to work closely with my colleagues and learn something
new and different from them each time', said Davis.
Hassle to media men
While the grounds are all picturesque and up to international
standard in the UAE, it is a hassle to media men covering cricket in all
three venues - Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Dubai International Cricket
Stadium and the Sheikh Zayed Stadium - in the United Arab Emirates.
In the Sharjah press box, seats for the press are in a row and if a
mediaman needs to go out, the whole row of other press men need to get
up and make room. It can be annoying.
Then also in Sharjah, the media box is not covered. With the
spectators shouting, beating their drums and making ear-splitting
noise it upsets concentration. It is time that a covered press box is
made.
Then in all three venues, there are scorers, but they are not
provided with the sound system and cannot announce, the teams, the
scores or any other matters of interest. These comments are not made
with any malice. But that things could be put right.
Christiano Ronaldo speaks
'Getting to the World Cup was the biggest achievement for me this
season and the playoff with Sweden, a world-class team, was one of the
best games I have ever played. We are not among the favourites for the
World Cup and I think this is great for Portugal as we will take it one
game at a time after the start against Germany in our tough group.
'If we take Portugal and some of the top ranked sides today, I agree
that many of us do not have depth when it comes to fielding so many
quality players like Spain did four years ago, which by the way still
stands good. 'The fans at home won't expect big things from us unlike
the previous edition when we went into the tournament with a high
rating. I grew up aspiring to become a Portugal national team player,
and today on the international and club stage, we have so many classy
players who are good as anyone or better on a given day in every
continent'.
To a question posed by former World Cup referee Collina on his
relationships and interactions with referees, Ronald said: 'We have
specific roles to play as individuals in a team sport as per the coach's
instructions and team strategy. So has the referee who has one of the
most difficult jobs to carry out in the sport.
Getting along with a referee
'Getting along with a referee is good for the spirit of the game and
it is nice to run into a ref who is open and is prepared to hear out a
player's version during the close situation. 'However, some of them tend
to keep aloof throughout the duration of the match. Many keep a distance
which cuts off the possibilities of building up good spirit'. Portugal
and Real Madrid soccer great Christiano Ronaldo was speaking to a
gathering at the Mina Al Salam Hotel in Jumeirah at the opening session
of the 8th Dubai International Sports Conference on Saturday.
Ronaldo is the highest paid soccer player in the world at 21 million
Euros per year with Real Madrid. 'Empowering the Future of Football' was
the theme of the seminar which saw children from the Rashid Paediatric
Centre in Dubai also in the gathering. A grand hat-trick by Ronaldo
against Sweden saw Portugal into the 2014 World Cup. Shaikh Hamdan bin
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoun, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman,
Dubai Sports Council is the Patron of the event.
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