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Friday, March 5, 2010, 12:34 pm
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Thursday, January 14, 2010, 10:06 pm
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Thursday, September 24, 2009, 12:29 pm
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Tuesday, June 23, 2009, 10:49 am
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In our previous article (hyperlink here) we picked the best individual performances at the World Twenty20. This time round, we identify the players who performed well consistently throughout the tournament and pick the best eleven of the tournament- the Dream Team.
One caveat before we begin our selection- we are looking at players who have [...]

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Monday, June 22, 2009, 6:16 am
Read more: AB de Villiers, Twenty20, Umar Gul, World Twenty20 (add tags)

We witnessed a number of great individual performances at the ICC World Twenty20. Which ones were the best? The Castrol Index helps us figure out by measuring the value of each and every performance with bat and ball. Here are the star exploits from the tournament.
Best Batting Scores
S No
Player
Runs
Strike Rate
Opposition
Batting Momentum Score
1
AB de Villiers
79*
232.35
Scotland
183.6
2
TM [...]

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Saturday, June 20, 2009, 3:28 pm
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sri lanka’s progress in this tournament is a great advertisement for bowlers in t20 cricket. with a slightly shaky batting line up that is over-reliant at the moment on the top 4 they have marched into the final without losing a game. but now they will come up against a side to whom their bowling [...]

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Saturday, June 20, 2009, 7:22 am
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Two teams remain with a shot at being crowned champions at the World Twenty20. The Castrol Index scores indicate that Sri Lanka has been the best team in the tournament so far with Pakistan surprising all with their high octave performance in the semi-finals.
A deeper look at the Castrol Index helps us understand why [...]

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Thursday, June 18, 2009, 9:52 pm
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The Kennington Oval is a batting paradise but the wicket slows down considerably under the lights. A 45-run difference between the average first innings and second innings score at this venue may emerge as a key to the strategists of West Indies and Sri Lanka.
Average 1st Innings score
Average 2nd Innings score
1st innings wicket fall
2nd innings [...]

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Thursday, June 18, 2009, 6:41 am
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Twenty-twenty matches in Trent Bridge are a bit skewed in favour of the team batting first. Castrol Index analyses the International T20 matches played at the venue and throws the question what’s the best decision to take after winning the toss – bat first or bowl first?
According to Castrol Index, 56% of the matches played [...]

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Tuesday, June 16, 2009, 10:04 pm
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The saying goes- Well begun is half done. That has held true at the ICC Twenty20 World Championships where getting off to a good start has been supremely important and has played a big role in determining match results.
The Quick Start Batting, or the QS Bat, is a metric in the Castrol Index that measures [...]

Post from Fuel for Debate
Tuesday, June 16, 2009, 5:35 am
Read more: India, World Twenty20 (add tags)

Team India is out of the 2009 Twenty20 World Championship after consecutive defeats against the West Indies and England. It was the first time the Men in Blue were really tested in the tournament and they didn’t look up to scratch.
So what went wrong for the Indians in the Super 8 stage? For one, [...]

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Sunday, June 14, 2009, 1:56 am
Read more: World Twenty20 (add tags)

Eight teams are vying for four semi-final spots at the current stage of the 2009 Twenty20 World Championships. Theoretically, all teams should be in with an equal shot of making it, assuming all sides are more or less equal. But that is not the case and we now have one group more stacked than the [...]

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Thursday, June 11, 2009, 9:13 pm
Read more: Pakistan, West Indies, World Twenty20 (add tags)

West Indies is scoring most of their runs in boundaries while surprisingly Pakistan are running through the 22 yards the most during their matches in 2009 ICC T20 World Championship, according to Castrol Index.
The strategy may be to have a right mix of boundaries and singles / two’s / three’s. Singles help rotating the [...]

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Tuesday, June 9, 2009, 9:27 pm
Read more: Australia, World Twenty20 (add tags)

Losing back-to-back matches and bowing out of a World Championship early in the first round is not something that Australian cricket is used to. Was it lack of match practice that led to their elimination?
Since 2005, when Australia played its first T20 International, it has played 19 matches, including the two in the current Championship [...]

Post from Fuel for Debate
Tuesday, June 9, 2009, 10:27 am
Read more: Pakistan, World Twenty20 (add tags)

Four days into the competition, we already know seven of the eight sides that will be a part of the Super Eight stage. We also know which group they will end up in thanks to the seeding system used at this year’s tournament. Here’s how the two groups for the Super Eight stage are shaping [...]

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Saturday, June 6, 2009, 11:22 pm
Read more: England, Netherlands, Twenty20, World Twenty20 (add tags)

Lord’s was covered in a sea of Orange as the Netherlands pulled off a sensational upset against hosts England on account of better fielding on Day One of the T20 World Championships.
A look at our match review will tell you England, despite losing, ended up with a higher Castrol Index for the match. The [...]

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Friday, June 5, 2009, 12:45 pm
Read more: India, Twenty20, World Twenty20 (add tags)

Team India is all set to defend their crown as the World Twenty20 kicks off this Friday. The players have seen plenty of cricket action over the last few weeks, which give us a fair sense of who’s in good form and who isn’t. How exactly do we measure this form? Simple, we look at [...]

Post from Fuel for Debate
Monday, May 25, 2009, 7:39 am
Read more: IPL (add tags)

Picking the best XI of the tournament is kind of like the Oscars- you pick the best performer for a particular role. For instance, you pick the best batsman in an opening role or the best bowler in a miserly role. And what you end up with is the “Dream Team” of the tournament.
One [...]

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Sunday, May 24, 2009, 10:20 am
Read more: Adam Gilchrist, IPL (add tags)

Different strategies adopted by Deccan and Bangalore brought about changes in their approach in this IPL. While Deccan skipper Adam Gilchrist changed his game in the semi-finals, Bangalore captain Anil Kumble brought discipline in all the departments of the game. Two different approaches adopted, and both are working fine with the teams.
Gilchrist changed his [...]

Post from Fuel for Debate
Wednesday, May 20, 2009, 11:49 am
Read more: IPL (add tags)

With less than a week to go in the IPL 2009, its time to look back and pick this year’s Most Valuable Player (MVP). Selecting the best player in a league is a subjective call. And when it comes to cricket you can be sure that everyone has their own opinion.
In the NBA, the [...]