It's barely two years since I waxed lyrical on these pages about Ashwell Prince following his attractive 119 in the Sydney Test of 2006. He now has seven Test centuries under his belt, but his Twenty20 stats are almost non-existent.
"Lack of professional expertise in managing a sporting franchise of this magnitude seems to be a glaring gap, especially as a lot of these teams are led by what we call 'casual but rich fans' who are assuming their team will be in the top three."
- Anirban Das Blah, VP Globosport India, from the 3.3.08 edition of Outlook magazine
Today, Victoria were narrow losers in the final of the Australian domestic one-day competition, which this year is sponsored by an automobile with a big carbon footprint. Bowled out for 158 at Bellerive Oval, they lost by one wicket when Tasmania reached a Duckworth-Lewissed target of 131.
Cameron White is the captain of Victoria. Today, White did not bowl. Earlier, he was out first ball, caught by Travis Birt off the bowling of Brad Geeves.
"I'm more IPL savvy. And I'm reading the sports sections more now. My interest in cricket will take time."
- Preity Zinta, co-owner of the Mohali IPL franchise, in an interview with Times of India, 22.2.08
Buyers came away the big winners at the supreme bull sale in Brunswick, WA last Thursday.
A big run of 160 bulls went under the hammer, to sell to $8000 with an average of $3704.
A total of 46 studs offered bulls, with an outstanding line-up from 11 breeds.
The $8000 top price tag was paid for a magnificent Blonde d’Aquitaine from Gerald Bergsma’s Amaroo stud, Mundijong, WA.
A compact 720kg, this June 2006-drop youngster's length, depth, muscle, impressive butt profile and temperament attracted attention from all sides of the shed.
I've been following cricket now for almost four decades, and seen plenty of changes in that time. Some changes have lasted (the World Cup, helmets, the third umpire), some haven't (limited-over cricketers wearing shorts, day-night Sheffield Shield matches, Super Max Eights). I'm not sure which category the Indian Premier League will fall into.
In a way, I'm very excited about the IPL concept. A high-level club competition, devoid of nationalist overtones, based in the blossoming economy of India and attracting the best players from around the world. Such an idea is long overdue.
