Why The Moeen Ali Booing Was Not Racist

During the recent ODI series between India and England, it appeared that large sections of the crowd were booing England’s Moeen Ali. This was first brought to attention during the 4th One Day International in Birmingham, incidentally Ali’s birthplace. It was clear during India’s innings that when Ali would field the ball on the boundary, a large part of the predominantly Indian support would erupt in a chorus of boos. This again happened during the T20 international match also at Birmingham, a few days later.

There has been a lot of coverage on this story, suggesting these boos were ‘racist’ and a ‘disgrace to the game’. While it is hard to argue with the latter, the fact that people are trying to imply these boos were racist could not be further from the truth. It is no secret that Moeen Ali is a Muslim of Pakistani heritage. I have seen a lot of articles on the internet saying these boos were because of his beliefs, but that is simply not the case. India has had plenty of Muslim players don the blue Indian jersey over the years, fan favourites in fact in the case of Irfan Pathan and Zaheer Khan. India is a country with a large Muslim population where the multiple religions have integrated. India have played South Africa many times in the past year and not once has Hashim Amla, openly a Muslim, been subjected to any type of booing from the Indian fans.

There are many reasons why the booing took place and none of them are to do with religious beliefs of racism. The most obvious reason is the fact that he is of Pakistani origin and there has been so much history between the two countries in the past that booing each other is bound to happen. Now that is not to say I condone this, but it has happened for years and people have managed to deal with it. A conflict between two countries is certainly not racist, especially as the two used to be one many years ago.

Another reason behind the booing could be down to the fact Ali pretty much had a go at the British Indian fans for supporting India, saying they should get behind England instead. You can understand why many Indian fans would be upset with this remark, as supporting India is fully justified and a way to get in touch with family roots. To many Indians, a Pakistani British man such as Moeen Ali telling them to support England rather than India would seem like a huge slap in the face. It is much more likely that they were booing him because of these comments rather than just because he is a Muslim.   

These booing’s are also very similar to the booing of Ravi Bopara and Samit Patel, both of Indian descent who have played for England against India in the past. When they did, they too were booed in the same way as Ali was. This is because a large part of the Indian fans feel betrayed by the fact that one of their own has decided to play for England. This might seem a bit ironic as I am sure they would play for England if given the chance but these booing’s are much like Ali’s, and are simply due to the fact they don’t like British Asians playing for England. This is a completely different argument but an interesting one.

British Indians have every right to support their roots and it is quite insulting when someone such as Ali is telling you otherwise. I am quite frankly sick of seeing all the bad press about the booing’s, putting it down to racism when it is about Ali’s comments he made and the fact it is like a betrayal when a British Asian plays for England. It is typical of the media to make a story out of nothing and to assume the worst in what is at the end of the day, only a bit of harmless banter part and parcel in sport. 

England Finally Beat India In Final ODI

England finally secured victory over India at Leeds in the ODI series which finished 3-1 to the visitors. The 5th and final match- one was rained off- was a dead rubber but one in which England desperately needed to win after 3 thrashings to the hands of India. It seemed as if India were off the pace and were not that interested in a series which was already won.

India won the toss and elected to field on what seemed like a good batting track with a little bit of pace and bounce. England didn't get off the the best of starts, losing 2 wickets in the opening 10 overs with Hales falling to Yadav and Ali being dismissed off the bowling of B. Kumar. Captain Alistair Cook looked like he was finally getting some much needed runs at the top of the order but still looked scratchy with a couple of edges luckily going to the boundary. He fell again to spin on 46 with the score on 91 and Morgan fell shortly after to leave England 117-4 off 29 overs. He too met his downfall to spin, getting stumped off the bowling of Ashwin.

 It looked like spin was going to be England's weakness yet again but Joe Root and Jos Buttler had other ideas. They were very positive against the bowling of Jadeja and Ashwin, something in which the rest of the batsman could take heed from. Root brought up his 2nd ODI hundred with a big 6 off Jadeja before he fell for 113. Mohammed Shami got a couple of late wickets with some solid death bowling but a late 33 off 23 balls from Ben Stokes took England to 294-7 off of their 50 overs.

India got off to the worst possible start with Rahane falling off the third ball of the innings to a poor shot, sliced to point. Kohli continued his shocking tour falling yet again to Anderson, edging a ball outside off. India moved along to 49-2 after Dhawan smashed Ali for 6 but he was dismissed in the same over, bowled trying to hit Ali out of the park. Ali again got a wicket, dismissing Raina to reduce India to 91-4. Ali has somehow been getting a lot of wickets on this tour, surprising as he does not seem at all special. His action is pretty average and he does not tend to spin the ball much, also his record is substandard in county cricket which is why his success is a mystery.

 Rayudu played well for his 50 but he fell trying to hit Stokes over the top and when Dhoni was out to Finn, the match was all but over with India 173-6. Jadeja hit a fairly rapid half century with the game already lost and cashed in on this with some late runs, smashing his way to 87 from 68 before chopping on to Finn. India were dismissed for 253, 41 runs short.

This victory for England should not take away their weaknesses against spin displayed from this series. They have also been pretty poor in the bowling department and look miles away from a side who can challenge for a World Cup.

 India on the other hand can be extremely pleased with their work from this series. They were a little off today but it really did not matter in the grand scheme of things. They looked strong in most departments throughout the series, although death bowling will still worry Dhoni. It could be argued that 9 players have all but cemented their place in the starting XI for the World Cup in a side that will be very hard to beat as they defend their crown in just 6 months time. As far as this tour is concerned, the last match takes place on Sunday in a one off T20 match.  

Rahane Ton Gives India Series Win

India bounced back emphatically from their test series humiliation to wrap up the series after winning the 4th ODI at Edgbaston on Tuesday, to go 3-0 with one to play. Some tight bowling from the seamers was also followed up by the high quality spin bowling that India possess as India restricted England to just 206 and a incredible opening stand by Rahane and Dhawan set up one of the most one-sided ODI match you will see.

India won the toss and elected to field on a good looking batting track that did a little bit early on. England got off to a poor start after B. Kumar removed Alex Hales and Alistair Cook in the same over to restrict England to 16-2. Ballance was then out a couple of overs later to Mohammed Shami as England were put into a spot of bother at 23-3. Kumar and Shami at this point were bowling extremely well with excellent control, sticking to their line and lengths brilliantly. Root and Morgan trundled along slowly as England reached their 50 in the 20th over. The two got England past the 100 mark before spin again proved their downfall. Jadeja got rid of Morgan for a gritty 32 as he was caught by the unusual fielding position of leg gully, demonstrating the adventurous side of captain Dhoni which is a trait needed to succeed at the highest level.

 Part time bowler Suresh Raina dismissed Root shortly after, as Root attempted to play the reverse sweep but was caught easily. Moeen Ali was the only England batsman to show any flair and attacking prowess as he played spin excellently with plenty of foot movement, boundary hitting and the rotating of strike. He hit a well made half century off just 37 balls but regular wickets and little resistance from the tail meant England were bowled out for just 206 in the 50th over, well short of a par score.

With run rate not being an issue, India started watchfully as they only scored 4 runs in the first 4 overs. The next over though is where the innings was really kicked started. Rahane stroked his way to 4 boundaries in the Jimmy Anderson over and never looked back. Some beautiful stroke play and wonderful timing by both Dhawan and Rahane took India to 57-0 off of the 10 over powerplay to give India more than the perfect start. Things went from bad to worse for England as a lack of control in their bowling allowed India to score far too quickly for the amount of runs they had on the board.

 Rahane brought up his 50 in style as he hit Ali for 6 and Dhawan followed suit hitting a massive six off the bowling of Anderson to bring up a sublime half century. By this stage India were strolling to victory at 127-0 off 21 overs with just 80 needed. Rahane then brought up his maiden ODI century, a truly excellent innings surely cementing his place in the side ahead of the World Cup in 6 months. He eventually fell for 106 after an opening stand of 183 but Dhawan smashed the remaining 25 runs from the next two overs to end up 97 not out as India ended up 212-1 from 30.3 overs to cruise home and cruise to a quite brilliant series victory, proving why they are the best ODI team in the world.

India Back To Winning Ways With Thrashing

Give India another format aside from the test arena and they thrive. Another dismal overseas test series in England ended 3-1 to the hosts but they bounced back from that humiliation with a thumping 133 run victory over England in the second ODI at Cardiff. A much improved Indian side in all three areas of the game definitely raises the question as to why they perform so much better in one day cricket as opposed to the test format.

After the first ODI was rained out on Monday, this was effectively the first in a five match series. England won the toss and elected to bowl in overcast conditions and were rewarded, reducing India for 19-2 in the 8th over. Chris Woakes was the man to take both the wickets, which included the removal of danger man Virat Kohli for a duck as his abysmal tour continues. Rahane and Rohit Sharma got things moving with a 91 run partnership at just under a run a ball, until Rahane was stumped off the bowling of Tredwell for 41. Rohit Sharma brought up his half century, a gritty innings of 82 balls crucial to India's cause. But he fell tamely trying to hit the ball over long off but did nothing other than finding the fielder and reducing India to 132-4 and needing a big partnership to restore things. 

India had got to 156-4 by the 35th over and the start of the 5 over powerplay, which really changed the whole momentum of the innings and indeed the match. Raina blasted Woakes for 20 runs in the 38th over which kick started a real surge which led to 62 runs coming off the 5 over batting powerplay. He then brought up his 4th ODI century of just 74 balls which was his first international century for over 4 years. He later fell to Chris Woakes and Dhoni picked up yet another half century as India closed their 50 overs at a very competitive total of 304-6. 

England's innings was halted initially by rain which reduced their innings to 47 overs, with a target of 295. Debutant Alex Hales looked assured at the crease as he cruised to a run a ball 30 with England bringing up their 50 inside 10 overs. But captain Cook and then Ian Bell fell in the same over off the bowling of Mohammed Shami to leave the hosts 56-2. Things then got worse as Joe Root was bowled by Kumar to make it 63-3 and which gave India all the momentum. 

The visitors really bowled well, hitting the right areas which challenged the England batsmen greatly. Left arm spinner Jadeja then came into the attack and removed Hales in his first over for 40. Buttler was then out for 2 as Jadeja picked up his second wicket in as many overs to leave England in tatters on 85-5 from 23 overs, needing over 200 runs at a run rate of nearly 9. Ashwin dismissed Morgan for 28 to leave England 119-6 with the match seemingly all but over. Jadeja picked up a couple of wickets as he ended up with figures of 4-28 as England got bowled out for 161, giving India victory by 133 runs in a match they mostly dominated throughout and looking like a real force ahead of the World Cup in February.  

India's Lower Order Deny England

The first test match between England and India will mostly be remembered for the incredibly flat pitch and the huge amount of runs both team's lower orders made in a stalemate between the two. Numerous records were broken including Joe Root and Jimmy Anderson’s partnership of 198 being the highest 10th wicket partnership in the history of test match cricket. Jimmy Anderson’s 81 was the third highest score by a number 11 batsman and Bhuvneshwar Kumar became only the second number 9 to score two 50s in a test match, after Peter Siddle achieved this feat in 2013. These extraordinary records highlight both teams’ struggles to dismiss the tail and ultimately fall short of victory.

The first day started with India winning the toss and electing to bat first on a seemingly flat track. England brought about an early breakthrough when Anderson dismissed opener Shikhar Dhawan for 12 but India safely negotiated to lunch on 106-1. England then made two quick breakthroughs to leave India 107-3 and India were wobbling a touch when Rahane was out to Plunkett for 32 to leave the tourists 178-4. Murali Vijay scored a sublime hundred before the end of play, his first outside the subcontinent before captain Dhoni added a stylish 50 to leave India 259-4 at the end of day 1.

Day two started with India comfortably crossing 300 before the first wicket of the day fell with the score on 304 and it was Vijay who departed for a very well made 146 to Anderson, in a dubious LBW decision. India reached lunch on 342-5 before a typical Indian collapse started. They lost 4 wickets for 2 runs to leave them with a seemingly below par score at 346-9. But to England’s dismay, Kumar and Mohammed Shami added 111 with both batsmen scoring their first half centuries in their Indian career. Kumar was eventually out for 58 as India were bowled out for 457. There was however still time for England’s captain Alistair Cook to be dismissed for 5, prolonging his dismal form. England ended day 2 at 43-1.

England began day three brightly moving past a hundred with both Robson and Ballance passing 50. Both batsmen were then out in a relatively short time with Ian Bell following soon after to leave the hosts 172-4 after being 134-1. England then followed India’s example in the first innings to collapse to 202-7 putting themselves in all sorts of trouble. But just like England struggled to dismiss India’s tail, India followed suit as Stuart Broad added a quick fire 47 of just 42 balls before being adjudged LBW to Kumar to leave England 280-8. Kumar then added his fourth wicket to leave England 298-9, still over 150 behind India. However it was India who left the field feeling frustrated as Root and Anderson added 50 runs for the last wicket to end the day not out.

The fourth day arrived with India hoping to get the elusive wicket quickly with a lead of around 80-90 but things soon started going pear-shaped rather quickly. Joe Root brought up his hundred as England blasted 50 runs in the opening 10 overs of the day. Thanks to India’s rather defensive tactics, Jimmy Anderson and Joe Root put on easy runs as Anderson scored his first ever 50 in any form of cricket as England rapidly approached India’s first innings score. Joe Root brought up his 150 before Anderson fell to Kumar, who claimed his 5 wicket haul to leave England with 496 after that mammoth last wicket stand of 198, which gave England a slender but priceless lead of 39. India’s openers looked untroubled before Dhawan fell cheaply to Ali but Vijay and Pujara cruised to take India to 130-1. Both passed 50 and looked in little trouble before like Dhawan, they gave away their wickets cheaply to leave India 167-3 and the close of play, 128 ahead.

The fifth and final day began with England in search of quick wickets to put India under pressure to try and force an unlikely victory. Their plans worked as India lost 3 wickets for 17 runs to leave themselves 184-6, just 145 ahead. Binny and Jadeja came to the crease and looked assured early on. They added a vital 65 before Jadeja fell to Anderson to put India on 249-7, just over 200 ahead. Binny then made his maiden 50 on test debut as India crawled ever close to safety. He then fell for 78 to Ali to leave India 340-8, with a draw all put confirmed. There was still time for Kumar to add his second 50 of the match before England’s captain Alistair Cook brought himself into the attack and took his first ever test wicket dismissing Ishant Sharma for 13 before India declared at 391-9, which confirmed the draw.

Overall both teams would agree that a draw was a fair result but both sides had chances to win the match. The final consensus will be that the pitch was ultimately too flat to force a result and both teams move on to Lords for the second test match, starting later this week.  

India's Young Guns Pick Up More Silverware

MS Dhoni's men won the Champions Trophy just last week and what a performance by Team India it was. It was 2 years ago when they lifted the World Cup in Mumbai but the difference this time was most of that squad had been dropped in the subsequent  years. No longer do India rely on the class and aggression of Virender Sehwag, the genius of Sachin Tendulkar, the all round prowess of Yuvraj Singh or the craftmanship of Zaheer Khan. In fact, only 4 members of that World Cup winning squad remained for the Champions Trophy which is another reason why this victory was oh so sweet.

Leading into the final against England, there was no doubt that India were the best team of the tournament. They blew away every team that stepped in their way and they had got the balance between their bowlers and their batsmen just right. But England were always going to be a handful in home conditions, especially with the type of seam attack they have. In a rain affected final which was reduced to 20 overs a side, England won the toss and decided to bowl first which took place 5 hours before play finally got under way. Conditions were tough early on and after a solid start of 38-1 from 6 overs, the rain further delayed proceeding destroying any momentum India might have had. On a slow pitch, part timer Ravi Bopara struck 3 times with his slow medium pacers to restrict India to 66-5 off 13 overs. Kohli played a useful hand of 43 before he was dismissed in the 19th over and it was only until Jadeja struck a quickfire 33 that India got to 130-7 which seemed like at least 20 runs off a par score.

England lost Cook early and quickly slumped to 46-4 on a turning track after a debatable third umpire decision which saw the demise of Ian Bell. Dhoni decided against bowling spin in the middle overs and seemingly relieved the pressure off of England with some hapless bowling from Ishant Sharma. This saw England to a comfortable position of 110-4, needing just 20 from 16 balls. That was until that man Sharma picked up 2 wickets in just 2 balls to turn the final on its head. England then lost a further 2 wickets to collapse to 113-8 and fall 5 runs short of what should have been a certain victory. England once again fell short in a final and India once again win a major ODI trophy.

This young Indian side were very impressive throughout the Champions Trophy. Shikhar Dhawan won player of the tournament and most runs whilst Ravindra Jadeja took the most wickets. These two players were the stand out performers for India with Dhawan scoring back to back centuries in the group stage after a two year absence from the side. Jadeja proved to be a very useful all rounder with his spin proving his worth to the team. He hasn't always had the praise he might have deserved from the Indian media but surely now that will change. MS Dhoni proved why he is probably the best captain in World cricket. Bold moves were made throughout which went a long way to him lifting the title. So this new, young Indian side looks like it could be around for years to come and with one eye on the 2015 World Cup, they could well be the team to beat.

Is The End Near For Sachin Tendulkar?

Like with anything, all good things must come to an end eventually. Sachin Tendulkar is without a doubt the greatest batsman in the modern era and second only to Sir Don Bradman in the history of the game.

The numbers are simply amazing. 198 test matches, close to 16,000 runs, 51 centuries and not to mention a remarkable ODI career to match. But he will be 40 next month and the signs are already there that he could well be on his way out of the game. He retired from one day cricket in December to spend more time with his family and to be honest that was the right decision due to the lack of one day cricket he had been playing since the World Cup victory in 2011. His form has been poor by his very high standards, for the past couple of years.

He hasn't scored a test century since January 2011 in South Africa which was 21 test matches ago. In that time his average isn't that bad at 31.80 with 8 half centuries but the pressure of being the best tells you that isn't good enough by Sachin standards, which are enormous in all truth. Critics will say he should have retired on top after the World Cup win two years ago. He was in the form of his life during 2009 and 2010 and that was probably the best time to leave.  The difference with him now though is how he has been getting out after getting a start. He will play majestically until he reaches 20 or 30 and not capitalise which is not like the Sachin of old.

No matter what happens from now on, he will always go down in history as a true great. I believe there is no comparison between him and the likes of Lara, Sobers and Sir Viv Richards. Although these players were true greats, the numbers and impact Sachin has had on the game just don't compare. Also take into consideration the style of his game which is truly unmatchable to any player ever to play this great sport. It will be a sad day when Sachin decides to finally retire which will be sooner rather than later, but he will always be remembered as a true great of cricket and a true sporting hero.