ICC World T20 - Deploying http://www.senore.com/Cricket/C-Kieswetter-c1206 with good effect could reap rewards for England – Opinion
England is the undisputed dark http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758. In order for them to defy the odds and win however, would require carefully devised strategies. Winning combinations need to be forged, in order for them to
cement their place in the finals with ease. The most important fact that http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013 would need to take into consideration however, would be to ensure that they have a stable opening combination, that can fire with all guns blazing.
This fact became one of the pivotal factors which helped England win the ICC World T20 of 2010, in the Caribbean. The team which was led by http://www.senore.com/Cricket/PD-Collingwood-c2173, emerged victors after they strung a set of consistent performances by beating teams like eventual
Semi-Finalists http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MJ-Lumb-c1981 and Craig Kieswetter.
While Lumb may have fallen down the pecking order in the eyes of the selectors, Kieswetter’s presence in the team, and his ability to frighten the socks out of the opposition and deposit cricket balls out of stadium, is a weapon that England could deploy with
good effect, provided that he is utilized properly.
As a T20 specialist, the South African born has played numerous match winning innings for England in the pocket sized format. He is technically solid, and his defense is impeccable. In addition to that, he has the ability to smash decent deliveries for four
and bad balls for six with authority. His attractive style of play and penchant for smashing big hits has made him a first choice wicket-keeper batsman in ODI cricket and it is plausible to assume that Kieswetter’s name in the squad would mean that he would
feature in this year’s tournament as well.
England however, needs to decide how they could best use him. During the recent one-dayers against South Africa in the NatWest Series of 2012, Kieswetter batted lower in the middle-order and in the process, failed to make much of an impact. In contrast,
throughout the ICC World T20 of 2010 in the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Somerset-c843 player managed to smoke some of the thriftiest of bowlers in that tournament by opening the batting. He forged a prolific partnership with Lumb at the top of the innings, and his heroics
in the Final of the tournament against an Australian attack which consisted of the likes of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/SW-Tait-c2616, were instrumental in ensuring that England lifted their first global title in over a decade.
He averages 24 in T20 cricket, which is impressive for a player of his calibre, and has a strike rate of 115. 13. The bulk of his 487 runs that he scored in 21 matches however, had come at the very top of the innings, where his ability to negate the shine
of the new ball and score freely at will, have gone hand in hand, with England emerging victorious in the many games, that he has made a contribution in.
The best way to describe this player would be to consider him as ‘fluid’, and unlike other T20 batsmen in his generation, he seldom gets out bowled or LBW. He has a guilty pleasure of being reckless at times, yet the same can be said about Dilshan and McCullum
as well. They have often fallen prey to their own decision to deposit cricket balls out of the park. The desire to hit sixes often leads to Kieswetter’s down fall, as a number of his dismissals have been characterized by lobbing catches in the air.
England needs to pick up his record in terms of his best performances, which have undoubtedly been at the top of the innings. If he is elevated, a quick fire 30 or 40 could well and truly help his side post a monstrous total and gain a commanding position
in their games against their oppositions. Yet if he languishes in the lower middle order, then England might deprive themselves of an http://www.senore.com/Cricket/XJ-Doherty-c2804 factor, which was visible in their triumphant run in the ICC World T20 of 2010.
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