Diary: Facing Warne seams easier (12 June 1999)

12 June 1999

Diary: Facing Warne seams easier

The Electronic Telegraph

One of the sad aspects of this World Cup has been the general ineffectiveness of spin. The pitches and cold weather have been partly to blame, but in Shane Warne's case, the Indians have found a genuine flaw.

Two of their leading batsmen have noticed significant differences in his deliveries which account for his demise (104 runs from his last 15 overs). "When you faced him in his prime," one said, "you could only see the side of the ball whirring towards you. [The seam was revolving at right angles to the pitch, and was thus invisible.] Now you see a mixture of seam and leather. There is much less spin and no dip."

Warne's seam now revolves more towards third man than cover point, clear evidence that his shoulder problem is seriously restricting his flexibility. And with his 30th birthday approaching, it is unlikely to improve much. Warne's relationship with 'spin doctor' Terry Jenner seems to have cooled. Jenner was mainly responsible for curing Warne's past ills, but he now tends to turn to Richie Benaud for reassurance instead.

There will be no respite for Warne after the World Cup, either. Australia's next home Test opponents are, yes, India. He has taken only 11 of his 317 Test wickets against his principle tormentors, at an average of 69.82.

Zimbabwe, the young pretenders of the tournament, could spring a further surprise. If weekend results go their way they will reach a first World Cup semi-final without winning a Super Six game. Whatever happens, they have established themselves as the happiest team in the competition and the slowest changers. "We're often still in the dressing room two hours after the game," says their vice-captain, Andy Flower, "and we're always happy to have a drink with the 'oppo', but not too many have stayed. So we invite our supporters to come in and have a beer with us instead."

In the past, better accommodation for their cricket supporters would have been accomplished by purchasing a three-piece suite, but not any more. Although there are only 35 first-class players in Zimbabwe, cricket is gradually gaining acceptance beyond the 80,000 white minority. Having initially rejected a free offer of live world cup pictures from the South African satellite station MNet, Zimbabwe TV actually delayed the national news to show the finish of their memorable victory over South Africa.

The president, Robert Mugabe, even took time off from further devaluation of the Zimbabwe dollar (currently standing at 60 to the pound) to promise them a bonus in a fax of congratulation. "It contained some of the longest words I've ever seen," said the team manager Andy Pycroft. Probably 'floccinaucinihilipilification' - the act of estimating something as worthless.

The old adage that fast bowling requires more brawn than brain is officially dead. The two most fearsome adversaries in the competition, Allan Donald and Glenn McGrath, are in opposition tomorrow, and admit they have learnt most by watching and talking to their peers. Seeing the Indian seamers bowl a fraction short was the catalyst for McGrath to demolish their batting last week by pitching the ball up, and Donald is forever scrutinising the game.

There is a sort of reigned-back Hadlee-ness about his bowling now, a controlled aggression born of years of looking and listening. Particularly in India, he says, where you learn better control and a greater range of skills. He suggests England's lack of recent tours to the sub-continent (only one senior visit to each of India and Pakistan in the last 15 years) as part cause of our bowling inadequacies.

Donald is not remotely bothered at the figures which show him a consistent 5mph slower than Shoaib Akhtar. "It's quite spectacular for the crowd to see someone like Shoaib bowling as fast as he can and I thought it was really unfair on Shoaib to be blamed for losing the game against us," Donald says. "But ultimately it's not how fast you bowl, it's the results you get. I don't even notice the speed readout."

It has been calculated that the average 30-year-old cricket supporter has spent 166 days and 18 hours watching England lose Test matches and one-day internationals in the last 25 years, which may account for the fairly regular turnover of captains.

Another change is about to happen. Through no particular fault of his own, Alec Stewart's tenure is about to be concluded. There are two contenders to replace him. For Mark Ramprakash against Nasser Hussain, read Mike Gatting versus Graham Gooch. David Graveney will shortly act as mediator in the battle of wills between big G and bigger G. Perhaps they could just settle the issue with an arm wrestling competition.

Source :: The Electronic Telegraph