James Pattinson | Australia Cricket | Cricket Players and Officials | ESPN Cricinfo FC Profile A strong fast bowler who hits the bat hard, James Pattinson will be one of Australia's players to watch over the next few years, a fact he demonstrated emphatically by taking a five-for on Test debut. The national selectors certainly thought highly of his talent when they thrust him into a Cricket Australia contract in 2011 and then picked him for the Test tour of Sri Lanka when he had only six first-class matches to his name. But it was in one-day cricket that he had shown his early potential. In 2009-10 he swung the ball impressively during a match against New South Wales, his 6 for 48 the best figures ever by a Victorian in a domestic one-day game, breaking Graeme Watson's 40-year-old record. The younger brother of Darren Pattinson, who played a Test for England in 2008, James honed his skills against his much older sibling in the backyard of their Melbourne home. Unlike the English-born Darren, James has only an Australian passport, having been born in Victoria after the family migrated.

He made ODI debut in Bangladesh in 2011, but it was in his first Test that he showed his potential, taking the first five New Zealand wickets and finishing with 5 for 27 and the Man-of-the-Match award. Brydon Coverdale Darren Pattinson | England Cricket | Cricket Players and Officials | ESPN Cricinfo T20 Profile After years of toiling away for Dandenong in Melbourne's club cricket, higher honours appeared to have permanently eluded Darren Pattinson until, in July 2008, he was sensationally plucked from obscurity to make his Test debut for England - the country of his birth - against South Africa at Headingley. It was a bewilderingly rapid promotion for a man who had played only 11 first-class matches in his entire career, and who at the time was only two weeks shy of his 29th birthday.

That weekend, he had been planning to take his kids to Alton Towers but an injury to Ryan Sidebottom - and doubts about the effectiveness of Matthew Hoggard - led England's selectors to trawl the shires for a tall and accurate new-ball bowler who could be relied upon to hit the deck and extract some swing at a good pace. Pattinson's season stats, 29 wickets at 20.86 for Nottinghamshire, brooked no argument, although the fact that he had not been a permanent resident in England since leaving his hometown of Grimsby at the age of six might have counted against him. As it turned out, he performed credibly with 2 for 95 in South Africa's first innings, but England's ten-wicket drubbing meant he vanished from view almost as quickly as he had risen in the first place. That rise had begun in November 2006 when a spate of injuries struck down Victoria's frontline fast bowlers.

At 27, the uncontracted Pattinson made his Pura Cup, limited-overs and Twenty20 debuts, and his job as a roof-tiler took a backseat as he claimed 4 for 87 in his maiden first-class match against South Australia. His efforts earned him a state contract for 2007-08, and though he was only used twice in Pura Cup games in his second season, Pattinson was recommended to Nottinghamshire by his colleague, David Hussey. Pattinson became the spearhead of the Nottinghamshire attack, helping them win the County Championship in 2010 but suffered injury problems in 2011 and missed the first two months of the 2012 season as he recuperated from a stress fracture of the back. Although he played in the Twenty20 and CB40 competitions, he did not make a first-class appearance in 2012 and ended his five-year association with Nottinghamshire by deciding to play in Australia as a domestic player, returning to resume his career with Victoria alongside his brother, James.

When the latter made his Test match debut for Australia in December 2011 it meant that for the first time in more than a century two brothers had represented different countries in Tests. Darren developed into an effective bowler in Twenty20 cricket. His haul of 23 wickets in 16 matches in the 2011 English season was the most by a Nottinghamshire bowler in a single season and included figures of 5 for 25 against Warwickshire. Andrew Miller Top Ten Cricket Players to Watch Out for in 2012 Top Ten Cricket Players to Watch Out for in 2012 Tweet 2012 has finally arrived. A new year signifies a new beginning and this is no different for players. They want to make a name for themselves by consistent performances for their respective nations. And with 2011 being one of the rare years where there was a presence of so many debutants, 2012 is expected to be a marquee year for them. There are ten such players who are more than capable of making an impact in the game in the next twelve months.

1) Nathan Lyon (Australia) Nathan Lyon The Australian offie was born on November 20, 1987 in New South Wales in a town called Young. Lyon was initially a curator and his work took him from Young to the capital Canberra to Adelaide, the den of the Don (Sir Donald Bradman). He worked in the Adelaide ground staff in the 2006 Ashes series but five years later, and his rise was so high like an eagle flying that he made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in Galle. His bowling talent was first spotted by the South Australian T-20 coach Darren Berry. His strength is his fearlessness to flight the ball and that makes an attacking wicket-taking bowler which is exactly what Australia needed after Shane Warne’s retirement. In his first ball of Test cricket, he famously picked the wicket of the legendary Kumar Sangakkara making him forcefully play a shot to a ball turning fractionally outside off stump. In that innings, Lyon went on to pick five wickets as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 105, setting the foundation for a huge Australian win. He has so far played only 9 Tests for his country and has picked 24 wickets.

It is a considerably low number but it has to be taken into account that pitches in South Africa and Australia do not have much assistance for spinners and these are still early days for him. Australia have tried out 11 spinners since Warne and have not yet succeeded to solve this problem. But Lyon could be the solution if they persist with him, which is likely after having glimpses of Michael Clarke’s captaincy so far and the new Australian selection panel. 2) James Pattinson (Australia) Player of the Match James Pattinson James Pattinson is a Melbourne boy born on May 3, 1990. He was earlier known as the brother of Darren Pattinson, who went on to make his debut for England in a Test match against South Africa in 2008. Yet James was given a Cricket Australia central contract after having played only six first-class matches and was provisionally picked for the tour of Sri Lanka in 2011. But his abilities were first seen in the ODI format when in 2009, his swing got him the best bowling figures in Australian domestic cricket, i.e, 6 for 48 which was against New South Wales playing for Victoria.

His consistent performances also caught the eye of the Kolkata Knight Riders team management in the IPL and was auctioned for $100000 in the beginning of 2011 and that was the first time a few Indian fans might have heard his name. After a disastrous World Cup 2011 for Australia, Pattinson was called up to make his international debut in a 3 match ODI series in Bangladesh and showed a lot of promise, although Bangladesh as an opposition does not pose much of a challenge to teams like Australia. A few months later, and he made his Test debut against archrivals New Zealand at Brisbane in the first Test of the 2011 Australian summer and helped it begin in fine fashion with a 5-wkt haul in the second innings, which made Australia win by 9 wickets. In just 4 Test matches, he has picked 25 wickets which is easily a record by any bowler in the longest format of the game. To trouble the likes of Sehwag, Gambhir, and the evergreen trio of Dravid, Tendulkar and Laxman being a newbie is an outstanding achievement and goes to show the immense talent he possesses.

India will breathe a sigh of relief, now that he is injured! Batting-wise too, ‘Patto’ has a decent technique and he could develop into a potential bowling all-rounder for Australia in the future. The only impediment in the path of excellence for him is perhaps the IPL and the rigours of the T-20 formats as a whole. 3) Patrick Cummins (Australia) Patrick Cummins ‘Cummo’ as he is affectionately called, is just 18 years old but has taken the world by storm. He was born on May 8, 1993 in Sydney, the capital of the proud state of New South Wales (NSW). NSW has produced several great cricketers over the years, which is shown by their outstanding Sheffield Shield record and Cummins could be added in that list as he does possess an extremely bright future. He made his debut for NSW in 2010-11 season and impressed instantly with some nerveless performances in the Big Bash, eventually ending as the highest wicket taker of the tournament, with 11 wickets at as low an economy rate as 6.59, which is superb for T-20s.

Indian fans got to see more of him in the Champions League 2011 for New South Wales where he was impressive, despite unhelpful conditions. His raw pace made him the youngest Aussie cricketer ever to earn a central Cricket Australia contract in mid-2011 and that permitted him to hop on to the plane to South Africa, where he made his T-20, ODI and Test debuts respectively. He performed reasonably well in the ODIs and T-20 but he caught the eyes of the cricketing globe in the Johannesburg Test match when he picked 6/79 in the second innings against South Africa with the wicket of Jacques Kallis reminding many of a breathtaking spell the young Ishant Sharma bowled to Ricky Ponting at Perth. Cummins’ first Test wicket was that of Hashim Amla, not bad for an 18-year ‘rookie’ bowler! Australia won the Jo’burg Test by 2 wickets in what was a cliffhanger but it could have gone in South Africa’s favour if it was not for Cummins scoring 13 valuable runs and remaining unbeaten till the end.

His cool-headedness was appreciated by many, especially the fans who expected to watch a fine day of Test cricket. Like Pattinson, Cummins too has to be managed extremely well as he is also injured at the moment and is unlikely to play in the next few months for Australia. However, it will be thrilling to see Cummins and Pattinson sharing the new ball for the country, especially in Tests and they could form one of the finest new-ball partnerships, alongside the likes of Thomson and Lillee as well as Hughes and McDermott. 4) Ed Cowan (Australia) Ed Cowan Ed Cowan is another man who was not required by New South Wales since they already possess a dearth of cricketers. Born in a place called Paddington on June 16, 1982, Cowan made his first rapid stride in the game with a move south, to Tasmania in the 2008-09 domestic season. That move paid off drastically as he scored prolifically, i.e, 957 runs at an average of 53.16 not having missed a single game for Tasmania then.

Three years later, and Cowan yet again hit a purple patch which saw him get a place in the starting XI for the Boxing Day against India, even as he was helped by Phillip Hughes’ poor form and an injury to Shane Watson. He scored a promising 68 in the first innings and that was the top score in Australia’s 333 and it was vital in allowing Australia to take a first-innings lead of 51, eventually which won them the Test match. He seems to be relaxed when he is batting, and in this aspect he reminds many of Simon Katich with Katich himself agreeing that Cowan is likely to be his successor as Australia’s Test opener in the future, despite being only 2 Tests old. Ed Cowan is also said to be one of the rare intellectuals in the game, as seen with his thoughts on Twitter and his articles for websites. His interests apart from cricket and writing are in the field of finance, having previously worked in an investment bank. So he seems to enjoy his game and lead a more or less satisfied life, and these are good signs for Australia who are in this tough period of transition still.

5) Umesh Yadav (India) Umesh Yadav The Vidarbha pacer was born on October 25, 1987 at the time when India was defending the World Cup in the sub-continent. Yet, a few would have ever thought that he would eventually become a cricketer, let alone a popular one mainly since his father is a coal-mine worker. At 19, he was only considering to play cricket as his aim was to become a policeman. His steep rise is commendable considering that Vidharbha is one of the failed teams in Ranji Trophy history. His debut season in 2008-09 saw him pick 20 wickets in four games for his home side and as he continued with his good performances, the Delhi Daredevils signed him for the IPL in 2010 and that is where he made more people applaud. That made Delhi buy him back again in the 2011 auction and is likely to feature in the team for a long period of time. He used the IPL to burst on to the international scene first in May 2010 when he made his ODI debut against Zimbabwe at Bulawayo.

He could not still cement his spot in the Indian team until 2011 when he was playing in the starting XI in the first Test of the series against the West Indies at home, with incidentally Delhi being the ground he made his debut in. Now, he is likely to be the second fast bowler India will play in Tests, in case Zaheer gets injured or Ishant strikes a bad patch while in ODIS and T-20s, he has become a favourite to play. His balls above 140 km/hr and his seam movement, not to mention his bouncers should hopefully be seen at a greater frequency in 2012 and he could be India’s answer to their fast bowling woes. 6) Darren Bravo (West Indies) Darren Bravo The younger brother of West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, Darren was born in Trinidad on February 6, 1989. His batting is not only reminiscent but almost identical of that of ‘The Prince’ Brian Lara.

Bravo is an extremely talented left-hand batsman with the same style of walking, the same backlift, the same flourish, the same footwork, and above all the same mannerisms which is evident in the leap he takes after scoring a century. He is a living example of the saying ‘Imitation is the best form of flattery’. In fact, Darren used to watch cricket as a child only for Lara who also incidentally hails from Trinidad and Tobago. The moment he was dismissed, the television set was promptly switched off. He was without a home, i.e a century for a short period of 9 Tests, 31 ODIs and 4 T-20s. Though he is predominantly a stroke-relying player, it is indeed a shock that his first hundred came in a Test match and that too against Bangladesh in 2011. Ironically, he is more relaxed when he was batting in Test matches unlike batsmen these days who revel more in the shorter formats of the game. A fine run in Test matches in India, saw his run aggregate and average being identical to Lara’s after 12 Test matches.

He is capable of achieving much more but to guide a wrecking ship, i.e a weak West Indies side in turbulent times is a mountainous task, and that will Bravo’s biggest challenge starting this year. 7) Vernon Philander (South Africa) Vernon Philander He was born in a town called Belville on June 24, 1985 but rose in the ranks to be qualified enough to turn out for the Cape Cobras, in the South African domestic competition making Cape Town his home ground when it comes to cricket. Philander had all the makings of a great all-rounder when he had a top-class season for the Cobras in 2006-07, averaging 72 with the bat and 30 with the ball. He was considered to don the national colours in the summer of 2007 until he suffered from a stress fracture in his back. But it was in 2011 that he ended as the fourth highest wicket taker in domestic cricket and was ultimately rewarded with a Test cap against Australia in Cape Town a few months ago.

He was selected ahead of left-armer Lonwano Tsotsobe.to play in his home ground and he justified the faith the South African selectors had in him and his hard work over the years. Graeme Smith made him share the new ball with the numero uno Dale Steyn, instead of Morne Morkel. And the move worked, even more in the second innings. Philander was the chief architect of Australia’s stunning second innings collapse as the visitors were bowled out for 47, and the wicket of Ricky Ponting was a joy for most of the South African fans to watch that day as he was spot-on in his line and length when it came to bowling to him especially. He ended with figures of 5/15, indeed staggering on Test debut! In the following, Test at Johannesburg, he again took a 5-wicket haul in the second innings and could have led South Africa to the victory post though unfortunately he did not. His bowling seems to be even more threatening and he proved that his performances against Australia were not a fluke.

Against Sri Lanka in the first Test match at Centurion a few weeks ago, he took 10 wickets in the match making it four 5-wicket hauls in five innings. He missed the Durban Test due to an injury but came back impressively at Cape Town yet again, with 6 wickets in the game. His tally is 30 wickets in just a span of four Tests, something which even the likes of Pollock or Steyn did not achieve. 2012 could be his year as South Africa continues their quest to gain the World No.1 spot in Tests. 8) Doug Bracewell (New Zealand) Doug Bracewell Doug Bracewell was born on September 28, 1990 in a place called Tauranga at the Bay of Plenty. In New Zealand though, there is scarce talent so it perhaps has not been that hard for him to show his skills at the domestic level at a tender age of 18 for Central Districts. He was also a part of the U-19 World Cup team in 2010. The New Zealand selectors considered him good enough to make his international debut on the tour of Zimbabwe in 2011.

He picked up four wickets in the two Twenty20 internationals held there and three in his first two ODIs, impressing with his pace in particular. A handful of injuries in the New Zealand squad led to making him play his first Test in Bulawayo, and he took six wickets in that game to make a lightning fast impact. But his moment in the sun was in the Hobart Test match against Australia recently when he picked match figures of 9/60, helping New Zealand clinch a cliff-hanger out of nowhere, by 7 runs and it also meant that New Zealand beat their Trans-Tasman archrivals for the first time in a Test match since 1993 and in Australia since 1985. The Hobart performance reinforced the feeling that Bracewell could be a huge icon in New Zealand’s bowling arsenal not just in 2012 but for years to come. However, for that consistent performances irrespective of the conditions are a must. 9) Dean Brownlie (New Zealand) Dean Brownlie His story is a once-in-a-lifetime one in New Zealand cricket.

It is because essentially he is a half-Kiwi and half-Australian, born at Perth on July 30, 1984. Unlike Bracewell, Brownlie received his opportunities late in domestic cricket having made his first class debut for Canterbury in the 2010-11 season. His inaugural season was impressive as he managed to score 918 runs at an average of 48.31. He made his first appearance in national colours in a T-20 international against Pakistan in late 2010 but still had to fight it out hard in the last 12 months to get a Test match call-up. He eventually did, on the tour of Zimbabwe alongside Bracewell, where he got his Test cap from the legendary Chris Harris in Bulawayo. He seems to be a promising prospect after a mature showing in Australia. He used his experience in those conditions to have done well there. An unbeaten 77 in extremely tricky batting conditions at The Gabba helped New Zealand reach 250, which was unlikely at one stage. His match aggregate was 119 runs as he top-scored with another sedate 42 in the second innings.

Another fifty followed at Hobart in the first innings even as New Zealand succumbed for 150. These innings have shown that Brownlie is here to stay in Tests, with New Zealand’s batting line-up still being fragile and more conducive in playing the shorter formats of the game despite the presence of experienced players like Brendon McCullum and skipper Ross Taylor. He will be the key in changing the Black Caps’ Test fortunes in 2012 as the nation aims to move above its lowly no.8 spot in the ICC rankings. 10) Dinesh Chandimal (Sri Lanka) Dinesh Chandimal The young man from the Emerald Isles was born on November 18, 1989 in a place called Balapitiya, a name certainly unheard of. He was invited to the NCC at the age of 18 where he was invited to hone his skills by none other than the great Kumar Sangakkara. His coach there, Hemantha Devapriya, calls him ‘a level-headed player able to adjust to all situations’.

Chandimal is actually a wicketkeeper-batsman who idolizes Romesh Kaluwitharana for his attacking mode of batting and wicket-keeping skills. Consistent performances with the gloves and bat, including an attacking century against India Under-19s in August 2007 and an unbeaten 112 in the tri-nation series against England U-19s the following year earned him a call-up to the squad for the U-19 World Cup in Malaysia in 2008. His tremendous accumulation of runs in Sri Lanka’s Interprovincial Twenty20 competition duly won a place in the national squad for the ICC World Twenty20 in 2010 in the Caribbean. Soon after, he made a one-day century against India in the tri-series in Zimbabwe where he made his ODI debut but was never able to build a stronghold in the playing XI until he made his Test debut on Boxing Day against South Africa, in Durban where he scored two impressive fifties in Sri Lanka’s historic victory.

2012 will be a year Chandimal would look forward to turn from a whipping boy to the bulwark of Sri Lanka’s batting which is in desperate need for a revival after a disastrous 43 all out in yesterdays ODI against South Africa. James Pattinson, brother of England reject Darren, in Australia squad | Sport | The Guardian James Pattinson, brother of England reject Darren, in Australia squad • Australia name James Pattinson in initial World Cup squad • Darren Pattinson played one Test for England in 2008 Darren Pattinson, who played one Test for England, has congratulated his brother for being in Australia's provisional World Cup squad. Photograph: Gareth Copley/PA Friday 17 December 2010 10.36 EST First published on Friday 17 December 2010 10.36 EST Close This article is 6 years old Australia's selectors have opened up the possibility of James Pattinson making history in next year's World Cup by representing a different country from his elder brother.

It is more than two years since Darren Pattinson, the Nottinghamshire and Victoria seamer who will always be remembered as the son of a roof tiler from Grimsby, made a single, shock Test appearance for England, against South Africa at Headingley. Now James, another fast bowler who at 20 is more than 10 years Darren's junior, has been included in the provisional 30-man squad named overnight by the World Cup holders Australia for the spring's tournament on the subcontinent. According to both Darren Pattinson and Paul Franks, the Notts all-rounder who played alongside the brothers in Victoria last winter, the younger Pattinson has the ability to enjoy a much longer international career. "He's a better player all-round than me," Darren has told Melbourne's Herald Sun. "He's a bit of a larrikin, you need to straighten him out a bit sometimes. But he's only young; I was exactly the same at his age.

He's got the talent and he's got the passion, so if he does the right things, there's no reason why not." Franks said: "I know from my time out there that they think of James very highly both at Victoria and in the Australian national set-up. There has never been any chance of him coming over to Notts with his brother. I think it would be too cold for him over here. Cricket Australia have had him up in Brisbane at their winter training camps, doing a lot of strengthening work. He's definitely got the ability to make a big impact at international level." Unlike his elder brother, who was born in Grimsby before the family moved to Melbourne when he was four – and therefore holds a British passport – James has never had split loyalties. He captained Victoria at various junior levels and represented Australia in the Under-19 World Cup. "I've always dreamt as a kid to play Test cricket and now Darren has achieved it [it] makes me a bit more hungry to make it, to get that baggy green," he told Cricinfo after being called into a full Australia squad for the first time.

"He always gives me crap about playing Test cricket, so hopefully I can play Tests and get more than one Test in so I can give it back to him. But I think it's better to play for Australia than England." Franks said: "He gets some stick about being a Pom, but he's definitely a true blue Aussie. Him and Darren are very different characters, but on the pitch they're quite similar – no-nonsense fast bowlers who hit the pitch hard, and bowl a heavy ball. "There's quite a big age gap between them but they've always been very close, and enjoy each other's company. It was quite a big thing when they played together for Victoria for the first time last year, and it would be even bigger if they ended up playing international cricket for different countries." That would not quite be a first: Albert Trott (a distant relation of Jonathan) played once for England having previously represented Australia with his elder brother Harry; and Frank Hearne played for South Africa against an England team including his brothers Alec and George. But all that happened in the late 19th century. Australia have named Ricky Ponting as captain, and recalled the veterans Brad Hodge and Brett Lee.

England are expected to name their 30 tonight, with final 15-man squads to be confirmed by 19 January. Australia provisional squad: Ricky Ponting (captain), Michael Clarke, Doug Bollinger, Dan Christian, Xavier Doherty, Callum Ferguson, Brad Haddin, Ryan Harris, John Hastings, Nathan Hauritz, Brad Hodge, James Hopes, David Hussey, Michael Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Shaun Marsh, Andrew McDonald, Clint McKay, Stephen O'Keefe, Tim Paine, James Pattinson, Peter Siddle, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Shaun Tait, Adam Voges, David Warner, Shane Watson, Cameron White. Cricket News - buzzincricket.co.uk buzzincricket.co.uk by william Making the right plans is very important if you want to become profitable betting on cricket. Although, things at times do not go according to plan in cricket matches, trying to make an educated guess on the outcomes will always help in the end. Many can and will try to predict the games themselves. A normal cricket fan would know all the facts related to any match, but beginners might need to carry out some research.

Betting on these matches will be a good practice for the bettor to keep good bankroll management and do their due diligence when it comes to analyzing games. You should understand that you will not become an expert on cricket simply doing a couple of game analysis. However, looking at different statistics will help you create a clearer picture while making bets. Bookmakers normally carry out details analysis of each match and team so that they are never in the dark. You need not carry out such extensive analysis since there is so much data already available pertaining to every team and player. Study the team that you fancy for a short amount of time so that you can learn its strength and weaknesses. For example, you can study two teams that are going to play a bilateral series in a couple of month’s time. This will give you enough time to prepare for making the right bets. Cricket commentary sites such as cricinfo can give you a lot of insight since major cricket writers give an opinion on it. Detailed statistics are also found on it as it is one of the most widely used sites by cricket lovers all around the world. Study the predictions made by former players of the game and you will have an idea how a particular series might pan out.

Watch out for the current form of the main players that are expected to make a mark in the series. After you scope out the players in both the teams, it is time to look at the match conditions. You may find that a team may get battered while playing in the home of the opponent but play exceedingly well in their own home. A home series can certainly add to the fortunes of a team as they would know the conditions very well thanks to playing a lot of domestic cricket in the country. So, this factor should not be overlooked when you want to pick a team to bet on. When you have done all of this analysis, you want to check whether your analysis is sound or not, and one way to do this is to compare your predictions to cricket betting tips provided by other punters that are analyzing these cricket matches. This can be a good practice and a great way to learn without having to put too much money at risk before you know you are a winner. Also, the cricket betting tips can be bet yourself, so a win-win! by william Cricket betting has been around for a long time and live betting has been booming the later years thanks to various online betting sites.

As the name suggests, live cricket betting allows bettors to place bets while the cricket match is going on. Running bets offer a better chance for the bettors to make profits as you have a chance to assess the innings of a team before placing a bet. This is a very good option since someone with a deep understanding of cricket would be able to beat the statistical models employed by various sites. Cricket is an unpredictable game and sometimes the computers that are analyzing the games on the spot are not able to fully gauge the little nuances. This is where you can get huge returns on the bets you place. Live cricket betting is more commonly known as In-Play betting on online betting sites. There are a lot of things that you can bet on such as the score of current batsmen, team score, score after a specific number of overs and mode of dismissal. In-Play betting can be considered as the most beneficial for cricket aficionados since you are able to take a calculated choice after finding out how the pitch is behaving and how the team is playing. Another advantage is that you also get more markets to bet on as compared to before the match. This means you will be able to place a bet on something that you are more comfortable with.

The bookmaker normally tends to change the odds as the match progresses, so the odds may go lower or higher as the match continues. Now, you may think that this gives you an advantage with respect to match betting before the start of the match. The thing is that you would be able to better predict the final outcome or player performance better than any statistical model. Let us say you have a favorite to win the match, but the odds are lower at the start of the match. Let the match begin and wait for the odds go up during the match which is often the case in almost every match. Hence, you can still earn more by placing the same bet that you would have placed before the match. It is important to do your homework well on the teams that are playing. You should know the ability of the players so that you can make positive expected value bets on the live cricket betting markets. Let us say there is a top batsman but it is not in form currently, then it is probably better to see how he is doing in the match. If he is still struggling then you can place a bet on him to score less.

The good part about live betting (and betting in general) is that you do not have to bet if you are not sure if it will be a good bet or not. You can always sit on the fence and wait for the next opportunity, there will always be a cricket match to bet on. by william Gosh, is it really a year since the last one? The new cricket season waits before us, to borrow radio genius Danny Baker’s delicious aphorism, like a great big shoe with its lights on. It’s quite probably my age, but the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack is surely coming round quicker every year. At least that’s how it feels. It’s the first under the editorship of Lawrence Booth, the youngest editor of the Wisden Almanack for 72 years. I’m pleased to report its very much business as usual. No boats have been rocked, it still looks, feels and reads very much like a Wisden should. He tackles the weighty issues affecting (the future of) the game – Twenty20, India and the IPL, the jailing of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer, the World Cup and Test cricket.

However, he has also introduced two competitions (see page 25), one of which offers a lucky reader/writer the chance to have his or her work published in next year’s Almanack, which will be the 150th. The big news is always the Five Cricketers of the Year. Yes, the selection of Alastair Cook was a no-brainer, but what had he done, or not done, to escape the accolade thus far, a full six years since his debut ton in India? Likewise, Kumar Sangakkara, a run-glutton for Sri Lanka for the past dozen years, who was also named The Leading Cricketer in the World, 2011. Tim Bresnan, a cricketer who is showing every promise of rising above the rank of doughty yeoman into something approaching the new Flinto… Let’s just say he’s turning into a pretty useful Test all-rounder. Completing the quintet are County Champions Lancashire and Worcestershire stalwarts respectively Glen Chapple and Alan Richardson.

A mighty two hundred plus pages are devoted to absorbing essays, reviews and comment before we get on to the nuts and bolts of stats covering every game of note from the past year with records being broken or updated from across the game’s rich history. It’s not for me to tell you what to read in a Wisden Almanack, it’s for you to delve in as your whim takes you. What gives greatest delight, for me, is that nothing escapes its attention, however obscure or arcane. I chanced across a category titled ‘I might as well not have bothered’, subtitled ‘Players in English first-class cricket who top-scored in both innings, took ten wickets and lost.’ Take a bow, Warwickshire’s C.R.Woakes, the tenth player to do so, the first being W.G. Grace back in 1869, whose 64 and 23* plus 7-20 and 3-103 could not prevent Hampshire defeating him, and his obviously hapless team mates, by 209 runs in August.

Finally, I wouldn’t normally scour the stats of the Aussie domestic game but my Wisden fell open, like a wizard’s book of spells, at just the right page. May I draw English and Australian eyes to page 884 – Australia First-Class Batting Averages, 2010-11. Places 1 to 3 are occupied by Alastair Cook, Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott, all of whom play for the England XI. An Aussie (Queensland’s James Hopes) sneaks in at 4, before Andrew Strauss, also of the England XI stands at number 5. Yes, Sir Donald Bradman, Mark Taylor, Dennis Lillee, Steve Waugh, Alan Border, Shane Warne and Ricky Ponting, we haven’t forgotten, your boys took one hell of a beating. Well done, Lawrence Booth and all his merrie contributors. by william So, Kevin Pietersen is back in the squad; no doubt the England selection committee believe that we can’t do without him, but is that the right decision?

After all that he did in the summer, sending texts to members of the South African team criticising England captain Andrew Strauss – and suggesting to them ways in which they could bowl him out – was a despicable act. Surely England should expect loyalty in the face of the enemy; in war he would have been shot for carrying out such a treasonable act. Are they certain that, given the right circumstances, he wouldn’t do the same thing again? He has shown that he is not a team player, and you can’t win consistently unless you are pulling together as a team. No man is an island – that is unless you are Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff – but that is another story; he wasn’t just a great player, he was a great team player and a great motivator and mentor. Andrew Strauss was one of the best captains that England has ever had. His form might have suffered of late, but he knew what it took to put a team together and how to keep it motivated. Under his leadership England became the number one team in the world; now that he has gone, and Pietersen certainly played a part in his going, there is a strong possibility that England will go down.

The problem with touring India is that gambling at a real or online casino is against the law across most of the country and it is punishable by up to three months in an Indian prison; not a pleasant prospect, and we know how much our cricketers enjoy a little gambling and are quite adept at casino games. Despite this ban it is estimated that 40% of people who use the internet in India visit gambling sites of one kind or another and they can use for example Canadian online casino sites instead. Their primary form of gambling is sports betting on cricket and horseracing, though Indians also enjoy lottery games, which is good, as many Canadian online casinos offer them. Gambling is allowed in Goa and Sikkim which have 12 and 1 casinos respectively. Sikkim has applied for a number of licences for online casinos, but so far its applications have been rejected. by william The good people at Wisden have published two brand-new ‘How-to’ guides aimed at all cricket coaches, teachers and players looking for ways to improve performance in the forthcoming season (which is meant to be starting today – Sir Geoffrey Boycott has just said on TMS that the report from Headingley is snow and ice).

Both guides are produced by Mark Davis, who played for Somerset in the eighties alongside Beefy, Vivi and Big Bird, and Sam Collins, cricket journalist and former captain of Eton. Mark Davis’ pedigree is enhanced with 16 years coaching at Millfield School. The authors set out logical coaching advice in clear, easily understood language, with photographs and diagrams to add further explanation. Each guide includes: The basics – Grip, stance, trigger movement for bats. Grip, run up and delivery stride for bowlers. The shots that every batsman needs, plus the shots better left only to the supremely talented or the most brainless of batsmen (yes, not only the reverse sweep, but the slog sweep, switch hit and Dilscoop are all included). That said, for all of the 21st century innovations, the authors still place the greatest importance on the ability to master the forward defensive. Detailed explanations of seam, swing and spin bowling. Practice drills – always sound like fun to me, but in twenty-plus years of village cricket my team have never once attempted anything approaching a ‘drill’. Analysis of potential problems and easy fixes for batsman and bowler.

Technical and match advice, including mental preparation, that caters for players of beginner, intermediate and advanced level. Although less so for grizzled, dyed-in-the-wool village veterans. Clear pictures and illustrations demonstrating correct technique and how to put it into play. Published at £14.99 each, both are currently discounted by 10% at the Wisden Bookshop. The only obvious critique is that neither book comes with a guarantee of improved performance – I was pulling your leg with the headline. Like they say, there is no substitute for hard work and ‘Practice, Practice, Practice‘. Good luck for the season to all cricketers everywhere (unless you’re playing my village team). Let the sun shine and play commence. by william Cricket fans of a certain age grew up in the age of regular cricket on BBC tv, but will still have tuned in to TMS to listen whilst watching with the sound turned down. With the advent of Sky in the early 1990’s TMS gradually became the sole diet for some of the species.

A fixture of TMS’s golden age post-Arlott was the super gruff, Yorkshire grunts from the bluntest of blunt speakers from the capital of Bluntshire – Frederick Sewards Trueman, a man who spoke with the experience of 307 test wickets, all taken at lightening pace whilst puffing on a briar of St Bruno. And boy, did he speak… A man whose observations (“Botham can’t bowl“) eventually grated too much on a generation who had never seen him play and, though we knew he had been a legend on the field, off it he had become a bore. His expert analysis invariably began and ended with ‘I don’t know what’s going on out there.’ It almost became a catchphrase. However, I was always a fan. The more outspoken the better, for in an age when, Atherton-excepted, the England team were rubbish, hearing how high the Fred-o-meter would go was one of the few compensations. He was ousted from the airwaves before his death six years ago. One hopes he is playing rather than talking up in heaven (if you believe in that sort of thing).

It is mistakenly thought by some that Sir Geoffrey Boycott took over his mantle of the ‘it were better in my day’ grizzled old pro. Wrong. Yes, there is no-one straighter than Geoffrey who tells it straighter than his straightest of straight bats, but he is always fair. Geoffrey can be a little cruel, he can be heard chuckling at hapless run outs (pot, kettle, black) and moronic shot selection with groans at poor bowling (‘that was shoddy creekit’). He can often be heard saying that something or someone is roobish. But he only says it when it is. If you doubt me, you have not been listening carefully enough to Fiery (a nickname also bestowed on Trueman). He has immense enthusiasm for the game. He absolutely loves cricket. It is his very lifeblood. I think he has been leant on, by various producers and editors. He has listened to advice. He has been careful not to fall into the traps that would have turned him into a latter-day Trueman.

Of course, he thinks it were better in his day, but listen to him talk about Tendulkar, Dravid, Ponting, Pollock, Donald, Warne and McGrath. He rates them as highly as any players he played with and against. He claims to love KP, despite all his unorthodoxy, and even cricket’s surly young nephew, Twenty20. Yet, there is a successor to Trueman’s ‘I-don’t-know-what’s-going-on-out-there’ crown. Though Manchester-born, he is as Yorkie as Fred, illy, Boycs, Closey, Clegg, Compo and Foggy. He is, of course, Michael Vaughan, the grumpiest 37-year-old-man in cricket. Have you been listening to the latest four days of embarrassment for the current team? “Absolutely no excuse”, “Why did Stuart Broad play?”, “Did not attack enough”, “Really disappointing”, “You just can’t do that”, “You have to say that’s a poor shot”, “Oh NO!” (after KP’s dismissal this morning) , “The top six have failed again”, “This is ridiculous.

We get brought up on this kind of bowling.” “Miles below par”, “embarrassing.” During England’s pathetic response to the Sri Lankan first innings on Tuesday, Michael Vaughan just kept repeating ‘there are no magic balls’ implying that their poor display a few weeks ago against Pakistan could be explained by the mysteries of their spinners and pitch conditions. Here, there were no excuses and a clearly exasperated Vaughan gave a masterclass in chuntering. If you think I’m being unfair, let me say that I am not complaining. I’m merely telling it like it is! I’ve rated Vaughan’s commentary, insights and observations since his first day in the box, and I’ve had the pleasure of following his playing career, being there at Trent Bridge when he scored 197 in a day against India (the same test in which he clean bowled some chap called Tendulkar). The memories of his performances in the 2002-03 Ashes and his captaincy in the magical 2005 series will live with me forever.

But… wind forward 20 years and there will be a whole new set of listeners who may find themselves thinking ‘who does this grumpy old Yorkshireman think he is…?’ by william When James Pattinson made his debut for Australia in Brisbane, he became only one of two sets of brothers to ever play cricket for different countries. James Pattinson is the younger brother of England bowler Darren Pattinson. Darren played only once for England in 2008. After being born in Grimsby his family moved to Victoria, Australia where his younger brother, Darren was born. James looks likely to surpass older brother Darren’s international career as he began what looks likely to be a successful international career, as he helped Australia thrash New Zealand in the first test at The Gabba. He took no less than 5 for 27 that reduced New Zealand to a mere 28 for 5. James Pattinson’s debut included an amazing three wickets in his maiden international over. New Zealand went on to make 150 all out, leaving Australia only 19 to win with a day to spare. Winning the match comfortably they now lead 1-0 lead in the two-match series.

Though cricket is not as played in as many countries around the world as football, where it is played you will find fanatical support; and whether you play the game, are a passionate fan or just an occasional spectator, you will be interested in a £3000 cricket competition. In association with betting company Stan James, BettingExpert – the sports betting website are offering a share of £3,000 to the best cricket tipsters over the course of 12 months ending on 28th June 2012. To enter the competition and a chance to win prize money all you need to do is follow three simple steps. First, open an account with Stan James, sign up and sign in and then post cricket tips from now until June 2012. The six best cricket tipsters over the period will win a share of a whopping £3,000 – and it’s absolutely free to join in the fun! Australia pick team for the future, but at what cost? - Cricket Country Australia pick team for the future, but at what cost?

Australia's selectors named a very controversial squad for the Test series | Updated : April 22, 2014 6:26 PM IST Doug Bollinger… among the many shocking omissions © Getty Images By Adrian Meredith Australia ‘s selectors named a very controversial squad for the Test series in Sri Lanka in August, controversial because it is missing a number of in-form and quality players, who have been replaced by out-of-form newcomers. With just eight quality players, Australia have given a massive advantage even before the start of the series. Test squad: Shane Watson, Phillip Hughes, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke (c), Michael Hussey, Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Brad Haddin (wk), Mitchell Johnson , Ryan Harris , Peter Siddle, Trent Copeland, James Pattinson, Nathan Lyon, Michael Beer. Player analysis: Shane Watson is a must for any Australian team and is right now the best player in the Australian international scene. He is a solid opening batsman without being remarkable who occasionally bowls, but when he is on song he is remarkable. Phillip Hughes is woefully out of form and has been since the 2009 Ashes series when Steve Harmison found him out in a big way.

After two years of averaging around 20 in first-class cricket, he was gifted a spot in the Australian Test team to replace the injured Simon Katich. In spite of failing in the Ashes, he was offered a contract ahead of Katich! Sure, he did well against a Zimbabwe A side, but does that really count? Everyone did well against them! His inclusion, while somewhat predictable, looks very foolish. Ricky Ponting has been out of form ever since his unofficial co-captains Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Matthew Hayden retired in a heap around 2008 or so. Perhaps it is because he now was forced to focusing on captaining the team, instead of just letting his co-captains do it. Perhaps now that he is free from the burden of captaincy he will actually become a good player again. Or, alternatively, perhaps he is just woefully out of form, is old, and will never recover it. It is a risk to take him but perhaps a risk worth taking. Michael Clarke hasn’t looked in form for years, if he ever really was in the first place, yet just as there are serious questions about his spot in the team, he answers them.

Except in T20 cricket, where he stinks. Nobody really cared that he didn’t make himself available for the Big Bash League this year. He has been earmarked for Australian captaincy ever since he was captain of the Australian Under-19 side, and especially since entering the Test side. But is he really good enough? Some say he is, but many others say that there are a lot of better choices. On form, he is a fringe player in the Test side and some of his captaincy errors seem childish errors. But now he is captain we may as well give him the chance, as that is the Australian way. Michael Hussey is one player who absolutely deserves to be in the team. From his amazing start to ODI and Test cricket, Hussey eventually lost form, at least in Test cricket, though somehow still batted well in ODIs and T20s. Statistics may have said that he was out of form in the long game, but few pundits thought that he really was and he returned triumphantly in the Ashes series and has just gone from strength to strength since then. He is one player who can really shake Sri Lankan cricket, a player who can bat forever.

Usman Khawaja probably doesn’t totally deserve his spot, as he still has precious little first-class cricket behind him, but his first-class record is good enough to give him a shot and why not! On merit, he probably isn’t in the top six best batsmen for Australia, but he probably is in the top 15. And perhaps the selectors see something in him that suggests that one day he will genuinely deserve the spot. Perhaps in this tour he will come of age. Or perhaps not. Either way, it may set him up in the future, even if he does end up unceremoniously dumped. The good news for Khawaja is that with the squad selected Australia has next to no chance of victory, which means that if he fails it won’t matter so much. Shaun Marsh has done well in the one-day and T20 games, but his first-class pedigree suggests that he is very unlikely to do well in Test cricket. Perhaps he is in the squad as a back-up for Hughes, just in case Hughes continues to stink.

Marsh, however, did surprise by just how well he did in ODI cricket, after not being all that good domestically, and there is a suspicion that the same may be true in Test cricket, that he may be a “big game player”, whose first-class average in the 30s may somehow transform into a test average in the 50s. It is a bit of a hunch and probably worth giving it a try at some stage. If it works, it’ll be great. And if it fails, realistically with such a weak squad it won’t be noticed. Brad Haddin, rightly or wrongly, is the incumbent in the wicket-keeper position. At least he has captaincy experience and, with Hussey and of course Ponting, can help Clarke to make decisions in his first full series as captain. Haddin is more known as a batsman than a ‘keeper but, sad as it may sound, there are worse international ‘keepers out there. And, depending on whether his opposite number is Kumar Sangakkara or Prasanna Jayawardene, Haddin could even win the wicket-keeping battle. Mitchell Johnson is an enormous talent who, like Watson a few years ago, is being very poorly utilised.

Perhaps Clarke can utilise him properly, using him as a shock bowler and batting further up the order. But, as we have seen, when used poorly, he stinks. But I suspect that if he is used properly, he will become the best bowler in the world, and will surpass Watson as the best all-rounder in the world. Johnson and Watson could become like Pollock and Kallis for South Africa, one bowling all-rounder and one batting all-rounder. This is the series to do it and it all gets down to Clarke as to how well he utilises Johnson. Ryan Harris is the only consistently good bowler who is named in this squad. After the odd omission from the Ashes squad apparently due to knee soreness, Harris proved that he is still the best bowler in Australia, alongside Doug Bollinger, who, somehow or other, managed to get out of favour with the Australian selectors and is, absurdly, not even in this squad, apparently because he claimed to have “hit the wall” in the Ashes after being used totally incorrectly. Anyway, at least Harris is there. Absurdly, not even Clint McKay or John Hastings is there either.

Harris may be left to do it all on his own but, luckily, he has at least a few times been good enough to do that. He may find himself trying to get the most out of the inexperienced Trent Copeland or the generally hopeless James Pattinson. Or, if he is lucky, he will get to partner the out of form Peter Siddle. Peter Siddle managed to make the squad, in spite of being woefully out of form, ahead of Bollinger. How this happened, one may never know. He is a real trier, which is a bonus for a struggling team. That he makes the side ahead of actual quality bowlers is mystifying. You never know though, perhaps he will surprise with a hat-trick and five wicket innings and then do absolutely nothing else for the entire series. Or perhaps he will just do nothing at all the whole series long. He may plod along with a wicket or two here or there though. You never know. But there were so many other better options that should have made the squad ahead of him. Trent Copeland isn’t terrible. In a few years he may even be Test quality.

A bit like Usman Khawaja, it isn’t terrible for him to be in the squad, as, while he isn’t in the top 4 bowlers in the country, he is at least in the top 15. But how on earth can we justify playing him ahead of McKay or Hastings? If we are insisting on going for youth, why we are ignoring in-form and better quality youth? Oh, well. Like with Khawaja, no matter how terribly he goes, Copeland is bound to use this as a stepping stone for the future. Such a pity that such experiments will come at the expense of any chance that Australia has for the series. Perhaps he’ll get a couple of wickets and even have one good performance in the entire series. It is a bit much to expect him to do any more than that. James Pattinson has to be the worst pace bowler chosen. I try to think how we can justify having a player who isn’t good enough to play for his state (except when the better players are off playing for Australia) to be in the Australian test team. Oh yes, I got it, his brother Darren Pattinson played one Test for England.

Thus it’ll create all of that excitement that two brothers played for different test countries. And that is about it. He is not quality. But, of course, as some may remind me, McGrath wasn’t quality when he made his Test debut either. You never know and perhaps Pattinson is going to be that one in a million player for whom this kind of bizarre experiment works. But right now it just doesn’t seem likely. Nathan Lyon had a fairly good end to the season last year. Probably fair enough to give him a shot. But um, how many spinners is that in the three years since Shane Warne retired? Why aren’t Jason Krezja, Nathan Hauritz or Xavier Doherty on this trip? Or even Steve Smith? Surely Steve O’Keefe was next in line. But no it is Nathan Lyon. Apparently in spinning circles it is enough to have had three or four good games in a row in order to play a Test match for Australia. Heck, it might work and there is more chance of this working than some of the other bizarre choices but you just have to wonder why they keep going for more. Are they going to keep going until one of them gets 5 wickets on their debut?

Michael Beer was the choice approved by Shane Warne. Well, that’s it really. Except that Steve Smith was approved by Warne too. Beer had a horrible debut (though Warne tried his best to talk it up) and is still a very ordinary cricketer. Oh, he did do well against Zimbabwe A. But so did everyone! Oh well at least his last name gives a few jokes. This team just defies belief. No Katich, no Smith, no Doherty (who did so well against Sri Lanka), no Hauritz, no Dan Christian, no McKay, no Hastings and, worst of all, no Bollinger. It is apparently a team for the future. And what we can imply from that is that this team is expected to lose. But why does Australian cricket need to do that? Do we need to deliberately lose series just to give youth a chance? And does it really help their development to be put in teams that have no chance of victory? ( Adrian Meredith , an Australian from Melbourne, has been very passionate about cricket since he was seven years old. Because of physical challenges he could not pursue playing the game he so dearly loved.

He loves all kinds of cricket – from Tests, ODIs, T20 – at all levels and in all countries and writes extensively on the game) First Published on July 28, 2011 12:45 PM IST Last updated on April 22, 2014 6:26 PM IST TOPICS: 19 Jan, 2017 20:30 IST Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai 20 Jan, 2017 03:30 IST | 22:00 GMT Hagley Oval, Christchurch 20 Jan, 2017 11:30 IST | 06:00 GMT Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai 20 Jan, 2017 16:00 IST | 10:30 GMT Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai 20 Jan, 2017 21:00 IST | 15:30 GMT Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai 20 Jan, 2017 21:30 IST | 16:00 GMT SuperSport Park, Centurion

Question: Cricketer James Pattinson made his test debut for Australia this year. What is the first name of his brother, a Nottinghamshire player who played one test for England in 2008?
Answer: DARREN