Superstitions and International Cricket Captain 2010

I am one that believes in omens, portents and other superstitious stuff. I think sometimes it comes from being a sportsperson - you train a certain way, adopt certain routines and rituals, and when things don't seem to be working out, you look for a time when things were working out. Sometimes they are logical things - your not keeping your eye on the ball for long enough, or are rushing things. Othertimes they are little things that you'd otherwise overlook - gear is a little too loose, tight, or not quite right. And then there are the other things. Just about every players has them, whether it is not shaving during a game, wearing lucky underwear, or lacing the left boot before the right. They don't make sense to anyone, but they are as important as having the right technique and gear.

Anyway, I should have sensed something was amiss when I was going through my emails, and noticed that gmail had put something in my SPAM folder. There was an email in the SPAM bin from Childish Things, the guys that make International Cricket Captain, undoubtedly THE best cricket management/simulation game series on the market. I immediately rescue it, returning it back to my inbox, and follow the links to grab the demo. That's one of the things that I love most about the ICC series games (and I know it is not unique to them - other game companies do it) - you can grab the demo, and play it for a solid 48 hours before buying it. You can even keep your game progress when you finally buy it, which is a nice touch, too.

So I begin the download process, sipping a beer, watching the download time left jumping up and down like Ponting before he's settled at the crease, and resist the urge to fire up ICC2008 while I wait. When it's all down, installed, and everything is set, I run it - or try to. I see the little error message, ignore it and try again. Same deal. I have a WTF moment, followed by a RTFM moment, and come across this little message on the Childish Things website - "*Please note: International Cricket Captain 2010 does not support Integrated/Onboard graphics chipsets and laptops but works on most machines. You can try the demo on your machine to see if it will work before purchase." Okay. What? ICC2008 and every other earlier version that I've tried to install on my trusty netbook have no trouble working. I look through all the other changes that they say that they have made to the game, and I can't for the life of me work out why ICC2010 (and, it seems, 2009) shouldn't work. It's not like they've installed the latest Quake engine on the thing. And it's not like the highlights in the game (which I assume could be the only reason that it wouldn't work) are essential - it even says in the manual - "RUNNING ANIMATED HIGHLIGHTS - If these highlights appear jerky or slow, then choose ‘None’ from the Highlights Level menu." I've sent them an email to see if they can explain to me what's going on, because I'd really love to give them my money, and play the latest version on my netbook. I really would. I've been playing this game series since 1999, when I picked up my copy of the original ICC.

So, in terms of reviewing this game, as was my initial intention, I guess I can just go on the information I have - what their website says and what is in the manual. Their website says that they have added an Australian Domestic season. Thank you, and about time! I mean, seriously, about time! It's not like the game takes up a huge amount of space on a CD when you buy it, and I've been waiting for a decade to be able to play all the domestic series from around the globe, but, hey, this is a good start. Maybe as future versions roll out, more domestic series will be available to us. Please? The rest of the new features seems to be what all the previous updates have been - updated player stats, update the game to reflect the current tournaments and series in the real world, better AI, and so on - all the kinda stuff I'd need to play the game to check out, and that you could read straight off their website. There is one other thing that I think needs to be mentioned, and I have thought this for several versions of the game now. The manual. Please rewrite it, update it, make it more relevant, useful, something? Please?

Anyway, I'm going to go sit by my inbox, and see what the boys at Childish Things have to say, if they get back to me. I'll keep you posted as to how things go. And maybe play a bit of ICC2008 while I wait.

Childish Things Ltd Inc has sole ownership of the names, logo, artwork, marks, photographs, sounds, audio, video and/or any proprietary material used in connection with the game International Cricket Captain. 

IPL - Template for the future of cricket

The IPL has attracted not only players from the top cricketing nations, but audiences from around the world. Well, those that get the coverage, at least. The mix of international players - retired, current, and fringe - have complimented, mentored, dominated and in turn been dominated by the local talent - making IPL a must see series (if you can see it ;)), and turning T20 into a very bankable format. IPL has done a lot for cricket, Indian and otherwise.

The retired players have managed to make their last big score from the game - hopefully something that will allow them to enjoy their retirement, rather than forcing them into business, commentary roles, or bad blogs. They have given fans an opportunity to see them in action again, and in sometime instances wonder why they retired in the first place. Perhaps the lure of the US$ overcomes the lure of the other retirement reasons.

The current players have managed to add yet another tributary to the rich river that is their revenue stream. and to pass on current valuable skills and information to other players. At a time when players complain that they are playing too much cricket (a phrase which seems to me like someone complaining that they make "too much money"), they seem more than willing to sacrifice their time for the IPL series. Perhaps this is a sign that players should be getting paid larger match fees or retainers.

The fringe players have the chance to prove that they might warrant a shot at the top level in their own country. It gives them exposure to international players as team mates and opponents, which is vital for their development as players. It also gives them a decent form of income so that they can devote their time to cricket.

Each IPL team, however, must maintain a certain number of Indian players. There is nothing wrong with this, as far as the IPL goes, but the future of cricket could well be based on this template, with a twist - rich companies/teams/etc. fielding teams of international players with no requirement for local talent.

Is this truly the future of cricket? Players from around the world, forming teams owned by conglomerates, and the locals are expected to support them? The USA has done this, well, forever with their sports, and it seems to be a model that works for them there. The hardest part will be to organize things. Does it become like a World Cup, where the teams play in one locale for a season, and rotate every season, to allow franchises to have home grounds? Or do things just remain as they are now, with individual tours for the teams like the tours for the countries now? Will there be salary caps, so teams with a large budget can't simply purchase all the best players, so that they can field the strongest side, and hamper the opposition by not allowing them to have access to certain players? Or perhaps a cap on the size of the squads? I'm sure that the powers that be will work out a system that works, and hopefully continues to allow the fans to see good cricket on a regular basis.

Brett Lee - Retirement too late?

Brett Lee was a fast bowler - there is no denying that. From the start of his career as a teenager, he terrorized batsmen with his close-to-100mph speeds, shattering confidences and helmets. And for a while that was enough. He had the support of good bowlers for most of his Test career - the likes of McGrath and Warne - so just being fast was enough for him to claim a decent amount of Test wicket.

Since the retirement of these greats Lee had to become a different sort of bowler. And he did. His Test average after McGrath's retirement in 2007 is actually better than his overall Test average (and hence his average prior to that time). However his problem has been with injuries, rather than his technique, or skill as a fast bowler in his early 30s.

Since the end of 2008, Lee has played 4 T20, 13 ODI and no Test matches. His retirement from the Test arena this year seems to raise the question "Why not last year, Brett?". In his absence Bollinger, Johnson, Hilfenhaus, Siddle and Hauritz have all put in top notch performances. Performances that may have been better if they hadn't been looking over their shoulder worrying if they would have a place in the Test team when Lee returned from injury.

Player	Mat	Inns	Overs	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	Ave	5	10
Bollinger	8	16	294.1	62	903	39	23.15	2	0
Johnson	17	32	651	119	2231	81	27.54	3	1
Siddle	14	26	493.2	136	1473	51	28.88	2	0
Hilfenhaus	9	16	328.5	75	1040	34	30.58	0	0
Hauritz	12	23	490	104	1477	44	33.56	2	0

Likewise, Harris, McKay, Watson and Bollinger have all done exceptionally well in the ODIs.

Player	Mat	Inns	Overs	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	Ave	4	5
Harris	12	11	98.1	9	450	29	15.51	0	2
McKay	10	10	87.4	10	403	22	18.31	1	0
Watson	36	26	192	6	959	45	21.31	1	0
Bollinger	20	20	163.4	18	722	33	21.87	1	2
Lee	13	12	104.1	7	501	21	23.85	0	1
Johnson	40	38	343.1	18	1767	63	28.04	2	0
Hauritz	44	42	339	11	1566	50	31.32	1	0
Siddle	15	14	110	8	499	14	35.64	0	0
Hopes	41	37	264.1	11	1228	33	37.21	0	0
Bracken	24	24	213	17	1002	26	38.53	0	0
Hilfenhaus	14	14	119.2	10	691	17	40.64	0	0

Surely retiring from the Test side to focus on ODIs and T20s was just an attempt to keep playing a game that his body no longer seems capable of continuing with. Many other bowlers continue with Tests and retire from the shorter version of the game, perhaps because playing Test match cricket seems to still capture the hearts and minds of the players and the fans. Where Test matches are a full length movie epsiode, ODIs are more like an episode of a drama TV show, and T20s like the Simpsons. Sure, watching the Simpsons is great, but at the end of the day, they don't give an Oscar to the best actor in any given Simpsons episode. 

This latest injury to Brett Lee must surely lead to him considering retirement from all forms of the game, which these days isn't necessarily the death knell that it used to be. It simply means that he can focus on the IPL while he still has a few years of moderate short term bowling left in him.