A snapshot in time: Sept. 12, 2005. London.
The fifth day of the fifth test of the Ashes cricket series has just ended. England has completed a series win over Australia to recapture cricket's oldest trophy after 16 years.
The joy of the England team, and of the nation, is unfettered, multiplied by sheer surprise. The lame-duck English had been given no chance of beating Australia, who for seasons had no rivals as the best team in the world.
PHOTO: AFP
At the center of the English celebration -- a beery blur of street parades, visits to Buckingham Palace and Downing Street -- is the tow-haired Andrew Flintoff, hailed the man of the series and the best English all-rounder since Ian Botham.
Flintoff's star is on the rise.
He modestly deflects praise, saying "everyone in the dressing room plays a part from the captain to the coach" but there could be no doubt about Flintoff's contribution to the English victory.
PHOTO: AFP
Prominent Web site Cricinfo said: "He single-handedly inspired England to a two-run victory over Australia at Edgbaston in one of the greatest tests of all time, followed up with a maiden Ashes hundred at Trent Bridge, sealed the series with a marathon five-wicket haul at The Oval, and embarked on a 17-hour bender culminating in an open-top bus parade through the streets of London."
"Arguably his finest hour of all was the manner in which he stepped into the breach as England's captain, on an injury-plagued tour of India the following spring," it added.
Flintoff took 11 wickets and scored five 50s in six innings, as England defied the odds to draw the series 1-1.
Return to The Oval, to that mid-September evening, and contrast with Flintoff the more abject figure of Australian captain Ricky Ponting, forced to step before a threatening arsenal of cameras and microphones to explain Australia's defeat.
The series outcome had not been contemplated in England or Australia and Ponting had now to account for the loss, to be judged by the harsh standard Australians apply to their captains.
He faced his inquisition stoically and told journalists with patent sincerity that England had been the better side.
"Apart from when we won at Lord's we were never as good as England and they deserve to win the Ashes," he said.
Ponting's dignity in defeat amazed his critics. For a man who doesn't do diplomacy, such modesty and candor was disarming.
Move on 12 months and England has arrived in Australia to defend the Ashes. Flintoff is now England's captain, asked to use those qualities of leadership which shone 12 months before to unite and rally a weakened force.
For Australia, for Ponting, last year's defeat has been swallowed, digested and sifted of its nutrient value. Australia is once again at the top of world cricket, supreme in test and one-day styles.
England is in decline. The Ashes victory has not been the dawn of a new age in English cricket that many had expected. Injuries have compounded an epidemic loss of form and the team's confidence is low, last year's series a taunting memory.
Only Flintoff and Ponting face each other on something like equal terms. Both are now their team's best players and their inspirations.
Taiwanese badminton superstar Lee Yang broke down in tears after publicly retiring from the sport on Sunday. The two-time Olympic gold medalist held a retirement ceremony at the Taipei Arena after the final matches of the Taipei Open. Accompanied by friends, family and former badminton partners, Lee burst into tears while watching a video celebrating key moments in his professional sporting career that also featured messages from international players such as Malaysia’s Teo Ee Yi, Hong Kong’s Tang Chun-man, and Indonesia’s Mohammad Ahsan and Hendra Setiawan. “I hope that in the future when the world thinks about me, they will
Bayer 04 Leverkusen go into today’s match at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim stung from their first league defeat in 16 months. Leverkusen were beaten 3-2 at home by RB Leipzig before the international break, the first loss since May last year for the reigning league and cup champions. While any defeat, particularly against a likely title rival, would have disappointed coach Xabi Alonso, the way in which it happened would be most concerning. Just as they did in the Supercup against VfB Stuttgart and in the league opener to Borussia Moenchengladbach, Leverkusen scored first, but were pegged back. However, while Leverkusen rallied late to
Former Formosa Dreamers player Ilkan Karaman was killed in a traffic accident in Datca, Turkey, Turkish media reported yesterday. He was 34. The former Turkish national team player was reportedly hit by a car, the driver of which was allegedly drunk, while he was standing on a sidewalk, Turkish newspaper Sozcu reported. Karaman and his friends were on their way to the beach town of Dalaman to go scuba diving when they stopped at a gas station to buy gasoline, it reported. Karaman was hit by the car while waiting on a sidewalk as his friends were buying gasoline, it
ANKLE PROBLEM: Taiwan’s Ye Hong-wei and Lee Chia-hsin had a disappointing end to their tournament after an injury forced them out of their mixed doubles semi-final Taiwanese badminton ace Tai Tzu-ying on Friday was knocked out in the women’s singles quarter-finals at her last Taipei Open. The world No. 3 lost 21-18, 16-21, 22-24 to Putri Kusuma Wardani of Indonesia in a match that stretched 68 minutes at the Taipei Arena. Despite her higher ranking, Tai said she was not too sad about the loss, given her struggle with a lingering knee injury. “Wins and losses are just part of the game. Actually, I think I’m going to lose every single match considering my condition now,” said the five-time champion of the Super 300 event, who has announced plans
RSS