Heath Streak

Full Name: Heath Hilton Streak..
Nickname: Streaky, Stack.
Date of Birth: 16 March 1974.
Place of Birth: Bulawayo,Zimbabwe.
Batting Style: Right Handed Batsman.
Role: Bowling All Rounder.
Bowling Style: Right Arm Fast Medium.
Test Debut: 1 December 1993 Vs. Pakistan.
ODI Debut : 10 November 1993 Vs. South Africa.
Playing Teams: Zimababwe, Africa XI, Ahmedabad Rockets(ICL), Hampshire, Matabeleland, Warwicshire.
Relations : DH Streak.

TEST CAREER:
Matches: 65.
Runs: 1990.
Best Score: 127*.
100’s/50’s: 1/11.
Bat Average: 22.35.
Wickets: 216.
5w’s/10w’s:7/0.
Best Bowling: 6/73.
Bowl Average: 28.14.
Catches: 17.

ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL CAREER:

Matches: 189.
Runs: 2943.
Best Score: 79*.
100’s/50’s: 0/13.
Bat Average: 28.29.
Wickets: 239.
5w’s/10w’s: 1/0.
Best Bowling: 5/32.
Bowl Average: 29.82.
Catches: 46.

First Class Career::

Matches: 309.
Runs: 5,684.
Best Score: 131.
100’s: 6/27.
Bat Average: 26.31.
Wickets: 449.
5/10 wicket’s: 17/2.
Best Bowling: 7/55.
Bowl Average: 28.765.
Catches: 58.

List A Career::

Matches: 309.
Runs: 4089.
Best Score: 90*.
100’s/50’s: 0/14.
Bat Average: 25.71.
Wickets: 385.
5/10 wicket’s: 1/0.
Best Bowling: 5/32.
Bowl Average: 28.55.
Catches: 75.

T20 Career::

Matches: 19.
Runs: 333.
Best Score: 59.
100’s: 0/1.
Bat Average: 27.75.
Wickets: 24.
5/10 wicket’s: 0/0.
Best Bowling: 3/18.
Bowl Average: 22.37.
Catches: 7.

Heath’s Personal Information:
Heath Hilton Streak (born March 16, 1974 in Bulawayo) is a Zimbabwean cricketer. A lion-hearted fast bowler with immense stamina and strength, Heath Streak has the ability to bowl out swing at good pace and with excellent control, as he showed at Lord's in 2000 when he was virtually a one-man attack. These qualities made him the first Zimbabwean to reach 100 Test wickets. Streak is also an extremely capable batsman who loves to give the ball a whack over the infield, and a magnificent outfielder with a howitzer-like throw.

INTERNATIONAL PERFORMANCE:
TEST CRICKET:
He made his Test debut in Zimbabwe's tour of Pakistan 1993/1994 making his mark by taking 8 wickets in the 2nd Test at Rawalpindi (December 9-14, 1993). He won the Man of the series award in that series taking 22 wickets at an average of 13.54. He bettered his best bowling figures in 1995 when Pakistan toured Zimbabwe taking 6/90 in the first Test at Harare.In 1995/96 Season :In 1995/96, Streak played in the same Matabeleland team as his 46-year-old father Denis in the final of the Lonrho Logan Cup against Mashonaland Country Districts; this was the first instance of a father and son playing in the same first-class match for more than thirty years.In 2000/2001 :In 2000/2001, he won 2 man of the series awards, first in Zimbabwe's tour of England and then in Bangladesh's tour of Zimbabwe.

After appointing him as a captain of Zimbabwe :
He was appointed Zimbabwe captain in 2000, but found that the responsibilities - and tension with the board over pay and quotas - affected his form and he resigned. He was reappointed to the role in 2002 but again found himself in the spotlight as the Zimbabwe side disintegrated in the wake of the country's internal turmoil. He was criticized for not taking a firmer political stand, and the subsequent protest by Henry Olonga and Andy Flower further weakened his standing. He again burdened the bowling - and the batting - in Zimbabwe's disappointing tour of England in 2003. The disintegration of the side and the political turmoil in Zimbabwe made the captaincy increasingly burdensome, and in April 2004 he quit after the Zimbabwe board refused to give him guarantees over selection.

After a bitter standoff with the board:

After a bitter standoff with the board, Streak finally returned to the fold in March 2005 and was immediately restored to a struggling side. He was appointed captain of Warwickshire for the 2006 season after signing a two-year contract, but quit the captaincy one match into the 2007 season. While he hasn't completely ruled out a return to Zimbabwean cricket, his contract with the Indian Cricket League, which he signed early in 2008, could spell the end of his international career.

100 Test Wickets for Streak :

He is the only Zimbabwean bowler to have taken over 100 Test wickets and one of only 2 Zimbabwean bowlers to have taken over 100 ODI wickets (the other being Grant Flower). There is little doubt that he is the best bowler to have played for Zimbabwe, with the ability to extract seam movement at a lively pace on even the deadest of wickets.

Retirement :

He retired from international cricket in October 2005 to become captain of Warwickshire County Cricket Club having previously played county cricket for Hampshire. He also captains his fellow exiled Anglo-African players from Zimbabwe in the Red Lions team, which plays charity games in England.
On 25 April 2007, Streak resigned as Warwickshire captain, saying captaining the side was affecting his on field abilities. He was replaced as captain by Darren Maddy. At the end of the 2007 season he left Warwickshire citing family reasons.

Controversary Point :

Heath Streak claimed in an interview in The Observer that he was faced with moral challenges in captaining Zimbabwe. He said that he was asked to tell white players that they were not talented enough and were to be replaced by black players..

Krishnamachari Srikanth History

Full Name: Krishnamachari Srikkanth.
Nickname: chika.
Date of Birth: 21 December 1959.
Place of Birth: Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Batting Style: Right Handed Batsman.
Role: Aggressive Opening Batsman.
Role Now : Member of selection committee(Chief Selector of Indian team).
Bowling Style: Right Arm off spin.
Test Debut: Against England in Mumbai in 1981
ODI Debut : Against England in Ahmedabad in 1981.
Playing Teams: INDIA
Relations : Anirudh (son)

TEST CAREER:

Matches: 43.
Runs: 2062.
Best Score: 123.
100’s/50’s: 1/11.
Bat Average: 29.88.
Wickets: 0.
5w’s/10w’s:0.
Best Bowling: 0.
Bowl Average: 0.
Catches: 40.

ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL CAREER:

Matches: 146.
Runs: 4091.
Best Score: 123.
100’s/50’s: 4/27.
Bat Average: 29.01.
Wickets: 25.
5w’s/10w’s: 2/0.
Best Bowling: 5/27.
Bowl Average: 25.64.
Catches: 42.

First Class Career::

Matches: 186.
Runs: 7,021.
Best Score: 150*.
100’s: 6/35..
Bat Average: 33.11..
Wickets: 667.
5/10 wicket’s: 22/1.
Best Bowling: 7/33.
Bowl Average: 23.25.
Catches: 132.

List A Career::

Matches: 435.
Runs: 5494.
Best Score: 134*.
100’s/50’s: 3/24.
Bat Average: 26.66.
Wickets: 573.
5/10 wicket’s: 7/0.
Best Bowling: 6/21.
Bowl Average: 22.93.
Catches: 153.

T20 Career::

Matches: 46.
Runs: 569.
Best Score: 59.
100’s: 0/1.
Bat Average: 21.07.
Wickets: 45.
5/10 wicket’s: 0/0.
Best Bowling: 3/12.
Bowl Average: 22.13.
Catches: 9.



Chika’s Personal Information:

Krishnamachari "Kris" Srikkanth pronunciation (born 21 December 1959 in the city of Chennai, Tamil Nadu) in India is a former captain of the Indian Cricket Team.
Srikkanth's son Anirudh is currently a starter in the Tamil Nadu cricket team. On February 18 2008, Kris Srikkanth was named the ambassador for the Chennai Super Kings franchise of Indian Premier League.

INTERNATIONAL PERFORMANCE :

He made his One Day International debut against England in Ahmedabad in 1981, followed two days later by his Test debut against England at Mumbai. He made his debut at the age of 21 as an opener of the Indian team to partner Sunil Gavaskar. Both batsmen had entirely different approaches to their batting. Gavaskar was more of the orthodox technical batsman and Srikkanth was prolific hitter and a swashbuckling batsman. Srikkanth redefined batting with his power hitting and he gave so wonderful starts to the team against even the toughest of oppositions. He was gifted with good eye and super quick reflexes. Consistency was not his forte. With more technical batsman in the side during his times like Gavaskar, Vengsarkar, Mohinder Amarnath, Shastri etc, he could fancy hitting the bowlers all over.

Batting Technique :

Srikkanth was a stylish opening batsman with a keen eye and sharp reflexes, allowing him to play aggressive attacking strokes with power and precision. Although somewhat rash in execution, which led to his downfall at times, his swashbuckling style and free scoring like were a favourite with Indian crowds, making him a popular player.
As he matured, he tempered his aggression somewhat and became a mainstay of the Indian Cricket Team. He was an integral member of the Indian squad when they won the 1983 Prudential World Cup and 1985 Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket.

Chika Leading Indian Cricket Team :

He was made the captain of the Indian team in 1989. He never hesitated to experiment like he did against England where India had a target of 260 to chase and had lost two early wickets and Srikkanth sent all-rounder Chetan Sharma to bat at number 4 and Sharma returned with a score of 103 and India won the game. He remained the captain of the team for India's tour of Pakistan in 1989 and managed to draw all the four Tests of the series, which was seen by many as an honourable result. But the selectors disappointed with his batting failures, controversially dropped him. He returned two years later and played for another year before being dropped again. By this time, he had entered the 30s and his reflexes were slowing down. He retired from international cricket in 1993 after not being picked for the South Zone team. He was the first Indian player to score a half-century and pick up 5 wickets in an ODI. He achieved this feat against New Zealand at Vishakapatnam in 1988.

After Retirement :

He retired from international cricket in 1993 after not being picked for the South Zone team .After retirement he took up the mantle of coaching the India 'A' team and was a quite successful stint. He has since been a broadcaster and commentator with various sports and news channels.
On September 27, 2008, he was appointed the Chief Selector of the Indian Cricket team.

Chika’s Career Record :

Srikkanth played 43 Tests for India, scoring 2,062 runs at an acceptable average of 29.88. His style was better suited to one-day internationals, where he compiled a significantly better record of 146 matches for 4,091 runs at a good average of 29.01. He also bowled off spin regularly in ODIs, taking 25 wickets at a very good average of 25.64. He also lost his flamboyance after he became captain of the Indian team.of 25.64.

Ajanta Mendis History

Full Name: Balapuwaduge Ajanta Winslo Mendis.

Date of Birth: 11 March 1985.

Place of Birth: Moratuwa, Sri Lanka.

Batting Style: Right Handed Batsman.

Role: Bowler.

Bowling Style: Right Arm Slow.

Test Debut: 23 July 2008 Vs. India.

ODI Debut : 10 April 2008 Vs.West Indies.

Playing Teams: 2007/09-Present(Wayamba), 2007/08-2007/08(Sri Lanka ARMY), 2008-present(Sri Lanka), Kolkata Knight Riders(IPL-2008).

TEST CAREER: (As on june , 2009)

Matches: 6.

Runs: 25.

Best Score: 17 Vs. India .

100’s/50’s: 0/0.

Bat Average: 6.25.

Wickets: 34.

5w’s/10w’s:2/1.

Best Bowling: 6/117 Vs.India in 2008 at Galle, Sri Lanka.

Bowl Average: 23.05.

Catches: 1.

ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL CAREER:

Matches: 28.

Runs: 66.

Best Score: 15*.

100’s/50’s: 0/0.

Bat Average: 11.00.

Wickets: 64.

5w’s/10w’s: 3/0.

Best Bowling: 6/13 Vs. India in 2008 at Lahore, Pakistan.

Bowl Average: 13.14.

Catches: 4.

First Class Career::

Matches: 27.

Runs: 423.

Best Score: 37.

100’s: 0/0.

Bat Average: 12.08.

Wickets: 155.

5/10 wicket’s: 9/2.

Best Bowling: 7/37.

Bowl Average: 16.54.

Catches: 10.

List A Career::

Matches: 47.

Runs: 393.

Best Score: 71*.

100’s/50’s: 0/2.

Bat Average: 21.83.

Wickets: 101.

5/10 wicket’s: 3/0.

Best Bowling: 6/13.

Bowl Average: 12.15.

Catches: 8.

T20 Career::

Matches: 27.

Runs: 20.

Best Score: 9.

100’s/50’s: 0/0.

Bat Average: 21.07.

Wickets: 41.

5/10 wicket’s: 0/0.

Best Bowling: 4/15.

Bowl Average: 13.95

Catches: 8.

Mendis Personal Information:

Balapuwaduge Ajantha Winslo Mendis (born March 11, 1985 in Moratuwa) is a cricketer who plays for the Sri Lankan national cricket team.

Mendis hails from a hamlet in Moratuwa. He is the third child in a family of five with an elder brother and a sister. He has had his basic education at St Anthony's College at Kadalana in his village where there were no facilities at all for sports.

His Early Years:

Mendis subsequently entered Moratuwa Maha Vidyalaya in the year of 2000. During a cricket coaching class, Mendis' talents were initially identified by the school coach named Mr Lucky Rogers back in the year 1998 when he was just 13 years of age. In the year 2000 he represented the school under 15 cricket team and he was selected to the first eleven team. He also deputized for the school team captain. This slow medium bowler with a variation of leg spin was adjudged the Best Bowler at the big-matches twice in 2001 and 2002.

Sri Lanka Army Cricket Committee noticed his talents when he played a cricket match against the Army under 23 Division 11 during 2003/2004 tournaments. Following this he was invited to enlist in the regular force of the Sri Lanka Army, this was particularly due to the low number of cricketers from Colombo schools joining the Army in the recent years. He enlisted, partly due to the reason that his father, the bread-winner for the family had passed away the week before due to a heart attack.

Mendis in ARMY:

Following basic training he played for the army team and saw active military service as a Gunner in the Sri Lanka Artillery, a regiment of the Sri Lanka Army. Following the Asia Cup final, he has been promoted to the rank of Sergeant on the 7 July 2008 and the next day again to Second Lieutenant.

Domestic Career Information :

Mendis has represented the Army in 23 limited over matches and 59 two/three day matches, in which he has 38 wickets and 244 wickets respectively to his credit. Mendis bowls off spin as his stock delivery and he has few more variations in his armory- leg spin, top spin and faster bowl. All this was developed during 2006/2007 domestic seasons on his own. He also extended his purple patch in the domestic season 2007/2008 under 23 division 1 tournament and was later selected to the pool of "Academy Squad" organized by Sri Lanka Cricket. There he was able to polish his cricketing skills further. He had the opportunity of touring neighboring India on an eight-day tour in June 2007 where he was given the opportunity to play two, two-day matches. In the meantime, Sri Lanka Cricket selectors could not ignore his performance in the Premier Limited Over Tournament 2007/2008 and got him selected to play in the "Provincial Tournament 2008" representing "Wayamba Province" under the National Captain. In that tournament he performed exceptionally well with the ball. Local TV commentators predicted him as the ideal replacement for spin wizard Muralitharan in time to come and nick named him as "Mysterious Bowler". His marvelous performance in the said tournament got the National Selectors to observe him further closely. In the just concluded domestic season in Premier League Tournament, he has become the Most Successful Bowler by taking 68 wickets in nine matches which is also a record in any form of domestic cricket. The accomplishments of the Gunner Ajantha Mendis hit the pot of gold by getting himself selected to "National One Day Squad" to tour West Indies in March-April 2008.

Bowling Technique of Mendis :

The veteran West Indies cricket writer Tony Becca wrote in the Jamaica Gleaner: "Mendis bowls everything. With a smile on his face as he caresses the ball before delivering it, he bowls the offbreak, he bowls the legbreak, he bowls the googly, he bowls the flipper, he bowls a straight delivery, he bowls them with different grips and different actions, he bowls them with a different trajectory and at a different pace, and he disguises them brilliantly. The result is that he mesmerises, or bamboozles, batsmen.

Jerome Jayaratne, the Sri Lanka Cricket Academy coach, said: "Mendis is unusual, freaky and has developed a ball which he releases with a snap of his fingers, (Carrom ball), which is very unusual compared to other orthodox spin bowlers." That ball is reminiscent of the former Australia spinner, who had a similar delivery.

Although the ball can be made to either turn away or into a right-handed batsman, Mendis uses it to turn away from a right handed batsman, in order to contrast it with his off-breaks and googlies.

Inernational Perfromance::

Test Cricket:

Great Debut for Mendis against INDIA in July 2008::

Ajantha Mendis made his debut in Test cricket against India in at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo, on 23 July, 2008. He claimed his first Test wicket in his fifth over, bowling Rahul Dravid with a delivery now christened the carrom ball, that turned from middle and hit off stump. He went on to claim the wickets of Anil Kumble, Zaheer Khan & VVS Laxman to finish with figures of 4 for 72 in his maiden test bowling performance. He followed this up with 4 for 60 in India's second inings. Ajantha Mendis' match figures of 8 for 132 are the best by any Sri Lankan bowler on Test debut, bettering Kuruppurachchi's 7 for 85 against Pakistan in 1985-86. After the game Muttiah Muralitharan stated that "When I started playing Test cricket, I was not as good as Mendis. He is exceptional. He is the future of Sri Lankan cricket,". Mendis collected his first ten-wicket haul in the very next match, which Sri Lanka went on to lose. With 26 wickets (ave.18.38) in the series, Mendis has passed Alec Bedser's world record for most wickets by a bowler on his debut in a three-Test series. Ajantha Mendis won the player of the series award for his efforts.

ONE DAY INERNATIONALS:

Debut against West Indies in April 2008 :

Ajantha Mendis made his One Day International debut against West Indies in at the Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, on 10 April, 2008. He announced his arrival on the international stage with three for 39 off 10 overs in this game, and confounded the West Indian batsmen with his range of variations without a perceptible change in his action. Rob Steen summed up the impact of this initial performance by stating "I have just seen the future of spin bowling - and his name is Ajantha Mendis.". He also plays for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League.

Mendis Performance against INDIA in Asia cup 2008 :

Ajantha Mendis, playing his eighth ODI, picked up the first six-wicket haul in the Asia Cup final against India in July 2008. His 6 for 13 is the third-best bowling performance in a tournament final, and the third-best for a spinner in ODIs. His 17 wickets is the best for an edition of the Asia Cup, and he bagged those wickets at an astounding average of 8.52. Ajantha Mendis won the man of the match award in the finals as well as the player of the tournament award for his efforts.

His best bowling performance in a one-day international came in the final of the 2008 Asia Cup, where he took 6 wickets for 13 runs in just his eighth match. His 17 wickets in the tournament earned him the Man of the Series award.

T20 International Career :

On 10 October 2008, Ajantha Mendis made his Twenty20 debut against Zimbabwe in King City, Canada. He claimed 3 for 15 in 4 overs and won the man of the match award. In the next game he took 4 for 17 against Canada and went on to take 3 for 23 in the four-nation series final against Pakistan, helping his side to a five-wicket win. For his remarkable performance of 11 wickets for 55 in just 3 games, Ajantha Mendis was adjudged the player of the series.

Some Acheivements and Awards of Mendis :

· Ajantha Mendis won the Emerging Player of the Year award at the LG ICC Awards ceremony held in Dubai in September 2008.

· Mendis was the top choice of the 25-person Voting Academy, coming in ahead of England’s up-and-coming Stuart Broad, South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel and Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma of India.

· The Emerging Player of the Year Award was one of eight individual prizes given at the 2008, ICC Awards. Players eligible for this award must be under 26 years of age at the start of the voting period (August 9, 2007) and have played no more than five Test matches and/or 10 ODIs before the start of the voting period.