Early wickets essential for side fielding first

Those who have watched Henry Olonga bowl in the World Cup thus far, would not blame the Indians if they considered themselves extremely u...

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Those who have watched Henry Olonga bowl in the World Cup thus far, would not blame the Indians if they considered themselves extremely unlucky to have received that over in which he claimed three wickets to win the match. For, that devastating over apart, he has been bowling below average stuff all along. Tuesday was no different, as his team went down to a determined England at Trent Bridge.

Over a remarkably short period of time Zimbabwe have taken giant strides towards building up their team into one that takes on the very best. For that, a lot of credit ought to be given to their former captain and present coach, Dave Houghton, who was instrumental in moulding the team into a winning combination.

In this World Cup, they have done quite well for themselves. Though they held their nerves when they played against India, but failed to do so against Sri Lanka and England, they can draw comfort from the fact that they have turned in creditable performances.

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In Tuesday’s game, England, for some reason,preferred to play four specialist bowlers, leaving out Robert Croft. The common thinking here is that the last ten overs are proving to be expensive. In the last few games of the tournament as many as 70 to 80 runs have been scored in the death, and that has made a big difference between winning and losing. This is what prompts most teams to go in for five specialist bowlers.

As I mentioned earlier, the first 15 overs are crucial for the fielding side. They must pick up early wickets if they are to gain the advantage. That’s what happened in the England-Zimbabwe encounter. The latter lost early wickets to the new ball and, as a result, struggled in the rest of their innings.

No doubt, Darren Gough, Angus Fraser and Alan Mullally bowled superbly in helpful conditions in which, if pitched on the right spot, the ball moved around considerably. They were also backed up by some brilliant outfielding.

Mullally was the pick of the bowlers on Tuesday. I see he’s improving with each outing, and that’s good newsfor England.

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When England batted, Zimbabwe’s lack of depth in bowling was what let them down. Despite claiming a couple of quick, early wickets they let the rivals off the hook and paid the price for it.