Haseeb Hameeds first Test hurrah and the Mannequin Challenge gave everyone pause
for thought in the drawn opening Test between India and England.
Wholesale Cheap
Jerseys . Coupled with Adil Rashids re-emergence as a spin
sorcerer, the arrival of DRS in India and Alastair Cook eclipsing Sir Donald
Bradman, it was quite a five days in Rajkot…Hameeds heroicsLets open with the
teenager. Wise decision. Now, the pitch at Rajkot didnt rag square - this was no
devilish Dhaka or crazy-paved Chittagong - but even so, Haseeb Hameed produced a
dreamy debut that made a mockery of those who pigeon-holed his game as more
attune to timeless Tests.Using the crease with the agility of a scrawny Billy
Elliott, the 19-year-old scored 113 runs - becoming the third-youngest English
batsman to score a fifty on debut in the process - but it was the manner in
which he went about his business that impressed most.Its funny how some players
look born to do play Test cricket, mused Mike Atherton, before comparing Hameeds
fledgling career to the start of Joe Roots. Haseeb Hameed described the path to
his Test debut as surreal Playing fully forward and fully back, Hameed countered
the worlds No 1 bowler Ravichandran Ashwin with a heartening surety before being
undone by some drift from around the wicket in the first dig and selflessly
going on the offensive in the second.The pick of his shots? A six down the
ground off Ravindra Jadeja. Refreshingly, his demeanour is as cool, calm and
collected off the pitch as it is on it and, based on the speed of his reactions
as he snapped up Amit Mishra, there are the makings of an exceptional close
catcher in there too. Nasser Hussain analyses Hameeds technique at the crease
Mannequin mayhemSir Ian Botham is usually in perpetual motion but even he paused
to take part in the latest craze sweeping social media - the Mannequin Challenge
- offering a prolonged view of the very rare sight of Beefy getting the teas
in.Time had not, as Nasser Hussain would later suggest, stopped still while Mike
Atherton told one of his stories - rather the statuesque commentators struck a
pose for the 71-second video which quickly went viral around the
world.Nowhere more so than in India where the sight of Kapil Dev tucking into
some tiffin and the ever-stylish Laxman Sivaramakrishnan doing his barnet are
presumably must-see sights. Ian Botham and Michael Atherton join in the
commentators Mannequin Challenge Nasser would later do his own version of the
Mannequin Challenge in the nets when attempting to hit a young spinner for four
- advancing only to then appear motionless as he was beaten in the flight to be
stumped by an absolute distance.This mishap came just a day after the Sky Sports
commentator kicked a stumped out of the ground after dragging another spinner,
with an action eerily reminiscent of Graeme Swann, into his wicket. Englands
Jonny Bairstow had some advice as Mike Atherton and Nasser Hussain padded up for
a spin demo. Rashid re-bornIf England have answered the eternal question of who
will partner Alastair Cook long-term at the top of the innings (until he
retires, at least), then they might just have the solution to their spin-bowling
conundrum too after Adil Rashid returned his best match figures in a Test -
following up his first-innings of 4-114 with 3-64.After a baffling array of
deliveries in Bangladesh, Englands spin attack in general upped its game in
Rajkot with Rashids improvement the most telling: improved pace + control =
wickets + confidence boost.Unsurprisingly, Cooks belief in his leggie also took
a sharp upturn and the stock of spin coach Saqlain Mushtaq is certainly on the
rise. England spinner Adil Rashid heaped praise on spin coach Saqlain Mushtaq
Those tempted to pack Rashid off back home before the series even began suddenly
had to think again - Bob Willis even remarking: One swallow doesnt make a summer
but it was fine bowling and I take my hat off to him. That counts as high
praise from Bob!The temptation was to throw Rashid into the attack as early as
possible - a temptation Cook resisted in both innings in part, presumably,
because of the difficulty of gripping the newer, more slippery ball. Whatever
the reason, Rashids form bodes well for England for the rest of the series.The
right decisionOh, the trials of technology. The arrival of DRS into India was
greeted jubilantly in some quarters, most conspicuously by the family of
Cheteshwar Pujara after Indias number four successfully overturned an lbw
decision won by Zafar Ansari when he had 86 in the first innings - Pujara going
on to make 124.His second innings dismissal goes to show that your fate is only
as good as your batting partners judgement - Pujara falling lbw to an Adil
Rashid delivery that Murali Vijay failed to spot had pitched outside leg.
Cheteshaw Pujara scored his ninth Test century after a successful review Youve
got to wonder about these sharp-eyed opening batsmen - Alastair Cooks wicket the
first to fall in the Test when Hameed didnt insist he reviewed a Ravindra Jadeja
delivery that was slipping down leg. Way to impress your skipper!Hameed then
compounded his slip up by wasting a review on his dismissal when trapped in
front by Ashwin. The presence of DRS ramped up the tension in the final session
as England probed for a clatter of wickets but it also led to a little mischief
earlier in the Test - England comically reviewing a not out decision against
Vijay after he middled a Moeen Ali delivery, knowing that the new ball and two
new reviews were just around the corner.Cook cracks onThe most surprising aspect
of Englands first-innings 537 was that Cook wasnt one of the three players to
make a hundred. The combined efforts of Joe Root, Moeen Ali and Ben Stokes
ensured that, for the first time in almost 55 years, the tourists chalked up
three centuries in an innings on the sub-continent.Once Murali Vijay and Pujara
had countered with tons of their own, Cook was back in 2012 mode as he cruised
to his fifth century in India - a new record as he eclipsed the four apiece
scored by South Africas Hashim Amla and West Indian duo Clive Lloyd and Everton
Weekes. Watch Cook crack up another ton in the highlights of day five The 30th
Test ton of his career also took him above Australian legend Sir Donald Bradman
(who scored his 29 hundreds in rather fewer Tests - taking just 52 in comparison
to Cooks 136) and level with Australian Matthew Hayden and West Indian
Shivnarine Chanderpaul.Seriously, why would you even entertain the idea of
retiring from the captaincy when in such nick - a point Cook was keen to impress
on the media before the Test. And you know what? I reckon he got Englands second
innings declaration pretty much spot on too.Watch the second Test between India
and England at Visakhapatnam live on Sky Sports 2 from 3.30am on Thursday. Also
See: India hold out for draw Scorecard Watch highlights Commentary
Wholesale Authentic
Jerseys . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. Where there is
smoke, there is or perhaps has been a little fire. Or, in other words, the two
teams would appear to have at least spoken. And spoken is defined as one calling
the other to inquire, no more, no less.
NFL Jerseys
Wholesale .C. Lions has come to an end. Banks told TSN on Jan 2
that he had no interest in playing out the option year of his contract with the
Lions in 2014, and he again made that clear in a conversation with Lions GM
Wally Buono last week.
http://www.cheapjerseysoff.org/ . But by the
time the game started, the Toronto Raptors forward felt even worse. And, for
three quarters, it showed as Gay shot a woeful three-for-13 from the field.Rob
Green says he is counting down the days until he leaves QPR having been frozen
out over a contract clause. The 36-year-old England keeper will trigger an
extension of his current two-year deal if he plays 30 Championship matches and
has been told he will not play again this season.Several clubs were interested
in signing him in the winter transfer window, including Crystal Palace, but he
was unable to secure a move away and has not played since New Years Day. Green
told the Daily Mail: [New manager] Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink spoke to me soon
after he arrived and said; look, its nothing personal, but because of budgets
and things youre not going to make the 30 games.I played one more game on New
Years Day then missed a couple through illness, and by then Alex Smithies was
fit and available. I guess they figured they might as well make the change
then.Im not massively angry.
Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping. Im not going
into training wanting to kill people. After 20 years in professional football
you have seen it all, so it never really surprises you.But its the first time in
my life Im sat around on a Saturday afternoon not doing anything. I didnt go
into football to earn money. It was because I liked playing football. It took me
six weeks to get my head around it.I am counting the days. Its like a sponsored
keep fit until the summer so I can hit the ground running when I hopefully do
get another club.I can apply a bit of perspective. We are very fortunate to do
this job. But Im desperate to play because this is hurting me. Also See: QPR
video QPR fixtures QPR stats Bet £5 Get £20 Free
Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '