Word: muralitharan
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...misses an opportunity to comment on his greatest passion: cricket. An obsessive fan of the game?Australians call him a "cricket tragic"?it surprised few to hear that Howard holds an opinion on an issue that is the talk of the international cricket fraternity: Is Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan, a slow bowler with the uncommon ability to spin a ball like a top, a "chucker"? Howard didn't hesitate: "Yes," he told supporters at a political function in rural Australia last month. Howard had, in effect, labeled the most successful bowler in cricket history and an icon in cricket...
...Australia "could not bear the extraordinary heights the Sri Lankan spinner was achieving." Few in Sri Lanka have forgotten that it was an Australian cricket umpire, Ross Emerson, who was among the first to cast doubt on the bowling action of Sri Lanka's favorite son by repeatedly penalizing Muralitharan for "chucking"?using a bent, instead of a regulation-straight arm?during a 1996 match against the West Indies. The bowler walked off the ground in tears. Even though Muralitharan has gone on to take a world record 527 wickets in 90 tests, polls still show that Emerson remains among...
...while Howard may regret his diplomatic faux pas?though not enough to issue an apology?his comment was based on sound principles. At issue is one particular delivery known as the "doosra." It is Muralitharan's secret weapon, a slight-of-hand delivery only he can bowl. The International Cricket Council (ICC), after a series of biomechanic tests, ruled the delivery "illegal" and told Muralitharan to shelve it or face a 12-month ban from the game. Though he insists his action is legal and will be vindicated, Muralitharan has not bowled the doosra in a match since the verdict...
...Trescothick and India's pint-sized maestro Sachin Tendulkar. Pakistan's Yousuf Youhana and Shoaib Akhtar, the "Rawalpindi Express," who can bowl a ball at 161 km/h, should be enough to keep them in contention. And don't miss Sri Lanka's man with the golden arm, spinner Muttiah Muralitharan, sometimes known as the smiling assassin because he grins incessantly as he mercilessly bowls out opposing batsmen. For South Africa, meanwhile, there is the chance to recoup from a disastrous semifinal of the 1999 World Cup, when a dreadful mix-up with two balls remaining between their batsmen Allan Donald...
...field in Colombo the people's favorite wins applause every time he touches the ball. His every warm-up stretch is met with a collective intake of breath. In the 21st over of the match, Muralitharan finally prepares to bowl. Only in cricket could such a non-event spark a frenzy. "Murali is going to bowl. Murali is going to bowl," screams Nihal Samaranayake, a 46-year-old Sinhalese pharmaceutical executive, joining the rest of the stadium on his feet...