The English cricket T-20 team

Led by Paul Collingwood wins T-20 world cup

They must be really happy this time, even if it is an only 20 overs hitting cricket, but they have won the Twenty-20 cricket world cup. No longer a world clam team in tests (5 days) or DDIs they slipped like the Black West Indies team, as a white English team, into abysmal depth  of play in the last 2 decades or more. They suffered like Pakistanis in this game, but for lack of form, rather than administrators’ interference or legal troubles. It was in England and London (MCC) that cricket was born over a hundred years ago, with strong English team of 15 men touring British India and white Australia. Lates they fell away. Captaincy was a problem. They mixed the team with India and South Africa born players, but the magic did not work. They changed captains as it was done in India in recent years. Finally, they found Paul Collingwood, a middle order batsmen who could also go in as an opener, and perhaps bowl a few overs as the change bowler. Paul was in IPL matches till recently in India, as also in South Africa. He was a captain of English team, later changed but then brought back. He did not do too well in IPL or in Australia, much less in English, like, say A. Strauss or Kevin Petersen. Yet, after searching for captains all over the country clubs of UK, the selectors again pitched on Paul. Unlike the “patriotic” English cricketers who would rather play for England, than in IPL matches for flash pounds (1$=60Rs), they kept aloof. Paul and Ravi Bopara played in IPL matches, never felt tired like, Dhoni’s men who were kicked out in quarter finals in the T-20 world cup 2010 tournament in the West Indies isles. Collingwood and Bopara became better players coven opened the Innings for England after the IPL-2 & 3 games. Thus time, not West Indians, but Sri Lankans were favoured from the Indian subcontinent after India (2004) and Pakistan (2007) had won this waterfall like trophy in 2010. both Srilanka and Pakistan fell in semi-finals. White Englishmen defeated white Australians (under M. Clarke) to win the finals, under Paul Collingwood.

The scores: Australia 147 for 4 wickets, England 148 for 3 wickets in 17 overs only. Paul’s team won.

Virendra Sehwag, N. Delhi &  Lalit Modi, IPL fame