Print Wrap: Daily dose of headlines

Every morning Cricketnirvana brings you a roundup of headlines from the leading national dailies across the cricketing nations. Here's what some of the newspapers are talking about…

Unsung Paul Collingwood hoping his one-day wonders will never cease

British daily The Times hails Paul Collingwood, who is just a game away from being England’s most capped One-day player…
Back problem permitting, Paul Collingwood will set a record as England’s most-capped one-day player tomorrow when he makes his 171st appearance in the navy blue pyjamas. Nobody will be more surprised than Collingwood himself.

The man who, in his own description, gives England “a bit of ginger” — and these days a few blond highlights as well — tends to be viewed as one of the foot soldiers there in support of the Flintoffs and Pietersens, a blue- collar man who puts in his shift and never sees his name in lights.

In truth he has long been integral to the balance of the side, but, perversely, stayed too fit for the good of his reputation. Had he suffered more injuries, people would have seen an England one-day team without him and, as with Craig White before him, understood his all-round skill and importance.

Then again, he would not be where he is today, on the brink of becoming England’s most unlikely record- breaker since . . . well, since a certain Paul Collingwood established the best one-day figures for the country four years ago when he returned six for 31 against Bangladesh at Trent Bridge.

Who would have thought it? “Certainly not me after four games,” Collingwood, 33, said. His initiation against Australia and Pakistan in 2001 brought three single-figure scores and a duck, a total of 20 runs in four innings. Given the criticism that was to follow, it is interesting that Shane Warne was among those who saw a strong character and predicted a bright future.

“To play so many games, you need a lot of luck,” Collingwood said. “I was lucky to be picked to go to Zimbabwe after that start.
“I had shown no signs whatsoever in those four games, but I scored 77 in the second game in Bulawayo and that was a major hurdle cleared. I knew then in my own mind I could progress as an England cricketer.”

Collingwood’s motto is to squeeze everything out of himself. He has also recognised the importance of adjusting as one-day cricket develops. These days he bowls off cutters as much as standard medium pace. He calls them “my Basil Barwicks” after Steve Barwick, the former Glamorgan bowler. And he hits a ball more forcefully than ever, to the point where he thinks his back injury stemmed from swinging too strongly during the Twenty20 international against South Africa six days ago.

Inevitably, his career has had highs and lows. Given England’s uneasy relationship with the shorter form, it is perhaps inevitable that one of the latter will define his career, the decision not to withdraw a run-out appeal against Grant Elliott when the New Zealand batsman collided with Ryan Sidebottom at the Brit Oval last year.

“That was one of the hardest parts of my career,” he said. “In many ways I am glad it happened; it taught me a lesson, a hard lesson at the time

“I cannot remember too many highs as captain. Of course, it is a great honour and I still enjoy captaining in the Twenty20s, but we all know I found it mentally draining. I have a lot to deal with in my own game so to look after a squad of 16 on tour was difficult….”

Ian Bell: at last I am ready to fulfill my talent for England 

On the brink of making his 50th Test appearance, England opening batsman Ian Bell thinks it is time he does justice to his talent, writes The Telegraph…

If he makes the England team for the first Test at Centurion on Dec 16, Bell will be making his 50th appearance. There is still time for him to fulfil the predictions of greatness that greeted his arrival on the county scene with Warwickshire. But he knows things have to change. 

"This has been my longest break for a long time and it has given me time to prepare for the Test series and a chance to reflect on where I want to be," he said. "I am halfway through my career so this is a good time to kick on. 

"I wouldn't say I'm starting again but this is a chance to cement my place." 

Selection for the first Test is by no means a certainty. Bell has been away from the England set-up since he set up victory in the Ashes decider with a first-innings 72. 

With Kevin Pietersen once again fit, Jonathan Trott a certainty to play and Paul Collingwood back in the runs, his place will depend on whether England opt for five or four bowlers. 

"I am fully aware there is competition for places and I see myself right now more in terms of being on the outside and I have to work hard to get my place back," he said. 

Since his debut at the Oval in 2004, Bell has frustrated his many backers with an inability to play a defining innings. "There have been some good bits but also bits I would love to improve on," he said. 

"I look at my stats and I have eight hundreds and 21 fifties. I know I could have converted more of those fifties into hundreds and I probably would be in South Africa now if I had. 

"There have been times when I have done the hard work and got out and that frustrates my critics as much as it frustrates me. For me it is a matter of trying to learn and give myself a chance. Physically I am in as good a shape as I have ever been and I have tried to work mentally to ensure that when I go to South Africa I am ready for a real tough series and I'm switched on." 

As England desperately searched for a No 3 after Ravi Bopara's collapse in form, Bell found himself promoted at the Oval. He now hopes his response under pressure there will define the second half of his career….

Back-breaking pitches driving fiery fast bowlers into the docile dirt

The Sydney Morning Herald raises concerns about the quality of pace bowlers deteriorating owing to the ever flattening Australian tracks… 

Australia needs to spice up its pitches. Nothing is more tedious than a slow game played on a pasty-faced strip that permits batsmen to step onto the front peg without putting their teeth in peril. It's about as compelling as a race between tortoises. 

Traditionally, Australian pitches have been rock hard. Brown or green, bare or grassy, they had guts. Accordingly, search parties were sent out to look for raw fast bowlers and ripping wrist-spinners. Nothing else worked. It helped the game to take hold. Australians like cricket of character played by people with character.

With every passing year, the tracks seem to be slowing down. Take the mottled surfaces seen at the SCG this season. A more docile bunch of decks it'd be hard to imagine. Admittedly, the new ball had a bit of carry but it did not last long. Doug Bollinger had plenty of gas but before long was obliged to bowl stump to stump. Already Stuart Clark had adopted the same strategy. These blokes are top-class operators. Burt Cockley was not as smart and suffered the death of a thousand cuts. Within an hour the pitch had lost its spark. It's not much of a way to produce a new generation of speedsters. Huge hulks of men are learning to bowl silly little slower balls and cutters and other limp aberrations. Old sweats always grizzle but sometimes they have a point.

Nor is it much of a way to attract crowds. Spectators like action-packed cricket. For all the talent on display, the exchanges at the SCG have been one-dimensional this season. Certainly no one was sitting on the edge of their seats, not even the next man in. Even inexperienced batsmen were able to stick around. Courage and footwork were not tested. Fast bowlers were pulled forward of square. Of course the season is young, and the ground has been used for other purposes all winter. All the more reason to recognise the problem and find a solution. Although the ground was almost empty yesterday, the old guard at the SCG is desperate to retain its Test match. In that case, it needs to produce faster decks.

And it's not only Sydney. Nowadays Perth is about as lively as sago pudding. Previously swing and pace bowlers relished the opportunity to exploit the breeze and bounce. It was outside-edge cricket. The cordon was on constant alert. For their part, batsmen could use their full range of shots. Brisbane has likewise been tamed. First mornings of a Gabba Test could be gripping as the openers tried to keep wickets intact until the pitch had settled down. Nowadays the grass is short and dry. At least, though, bounce has been retained. Melbourne is harder to predict because it has a ''drop-in'' but mostly tends to crack as opposed to fly. Adelaide has not changed much, and nor has its pitch. If anything, it favours batsmen even more than before….

Ticket sales slump for Tests

Australian newspaper, The Age reports that the sale of tickets at the SCG and MCG for the Tests against Pakistan has gone down by 20 percent…

India isn't the only nation losing its cricketing passion for the traditional form of the game.

Pre-sold ticket sales for the Tests against Pakistan at the SCG and MCG are a whopping 20 per cent weaker than 12 months ago, and the first Test against the West Indies in Brisbane next week is expected to draw 12,000 fewer spectators than Australia's corresponding clash with the Windies on their previous tour in 2005.

The Age yesterday revealed that only 7 per cent of fans in the heartland of cricket, India, still regard Tests as the most important form of the game. Fans worldwide appear to be even less convinced, Australians included, with Cricket Queensland officials last night saying they expected a five-day crowd of 39,000 people. Three years ago, the Windies pulled in more than 50,000.

Cricket Victoria chief executive Tony Dodemaide said the drop in MCG sales was ''probably what we'd expect in a year when Pakistan is the opponent''.

''Next year, with the Ashes here, we'd expect it to be a lot stronger,'' Dodemaide said.

Pakistani players are not well known here, he said, and the marketability of the Australian Test team is also on the wane, having ''drifted just a fraction''.

In Sydney, just 9000 tickets have been sold for Australia's clash against Pakistan from a potential 230,000-seat pool.
"That's about 20 per cent down on this time last year," Cricket NSW CEO David Gilbert said….