Top-ranked India fly Asia's flag in year of turmoil

by Kuldip LAL

CRICKET:(Asia) NEW DELHI, Dec 19, 2009; - Mahendra Singh Dhoni's India ended 2009 as the number one Test side in the world, but the militant attack on Sri Lanka's players in Pakistan changed cricket's landscape in Asia.

The horrifying attack which injured seven Sri Lankans and eight locals as armed militants opened fire on the team bus in Lahore on March 3, saw security dominating the agenda for the rest of the year. The attack, the worst on sportsmen since the massacre of Israeli athletes by Black September guerrillas at the Munich Olympics in 1972, ensured Pakistan was blacklisted as a major cricketing venue.

The International Cricket Council (ICC), which had already shifted the Champions Trophy out of Pakistan, also took away the 14 matches the volatile nation was due to host in the 2011 World Cup. Pakistan protested, threatened legal action and sought to hold its World Cup games in the United Arab Emirates, but the ICC was unmoved as co-hosts India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh insisted it was a South Asia tournament.

Pakistan's matches were distributed among the other three nations, who in turn agreed to forego the hosting fees of 10.5 million dollars that were due to the Pakistan Cricket Board.

As political tensions between Pakistan and India grew, World Cup organisers played safe and scheduled all of Pakistan's matches in Sri Lanka, except the final which will be played at Mumbai's renovated Wankhede stadium. Despite the troubles, Pakistani cricketers gave their fans reason to celebrate when Younus Khan's men won the World Twenty20 title in June by beating favourites Sri Lanka in an all-Asian final at Lord's.

Younus removed

Typical of the intrigue and backroom politics in Pakistan cricket, Younus was removed as captain and dumped from the team before the year had ended amid reports of a players' revolt against him.

While Pakistan played its cricket at neutral venues because no team wanted to go there, India too could not escape the heightened security environment following the Mumbai attacks in November last year.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) was shifted to South Africa after the government declined to release security forces for the lucrative Twenty20 tournament because it clashed with parliamentary elections.

On the field, India thrashed Sri Lanka 2-0 at home in December to top the official Test rankings for the first time, relegating the islanders from second place to fourth. Sachin Tendulkar, the world's leading Test and one-day batsman, began a third decade in international cricket in November since making his debut as a 16-year-old in Pakistan in 1989.

Sehwag - the star

But it was the brilliant Virender Sehwag who stole the show, his 293 against Sri Lanka in December narrowly denying him a chance to surpass Australian legend Don Bradman and West Indian great Brian Lara with a third triple century.

There were warning signals for the hyped-up IPL, where the world's top stars earn big bucks to turn out for cash-rich franchises, as India's vast cricket-crazy television audiences favoured country over club.

IPL's second season in South Africa failed to generate the same excitement as the first edition, and its off-shoot, the T20 Champions League, barely created a ripple in India in October. A recent poll conducted in India by the Lord's-based Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) revealed that 58 percent of respondents preferred T20 internationals, but just four per cent chose the IPL - lower than even Tests (seven per cent).

The 50-overs-a-side game continued to rule despite critics fearing its future as packed grounds in India witnessed the one-day series against Australia and Sri Lanka. Elsewhere, Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan was voted Wisden Cricketer magazine's player of the year as the minnows won their first overseas Test series against a weakened West Indies. AFP