Women in male dominated sports

Over the past century, women have come a long way in terms of equality. Ever since Women’s Suffrage (which, by the way, may be the worst name ever for women’s equality), in most aspects women have been put on a level playing field with their male counterparts. During the brunt of the 20th Century, women largely spent their time tending to the home. However, as a society we have since left those archaic times, and women currently comprise nearly 50% of the work force.

So, the next question that comes to mind is whether or not this equality issue should be taken to the next level, allowing women to participate in sports that are predominantly played by men. Here are my thoughts on the issue.

I generally feel as if I am a progressive thinker. In no way, shape or form do I believe that women are of a lesser life form than men. Women are just as intelligent, talented and capable as men, far surpassing men in some areas. However, when it comes to sports, it is a virtual certainty that men are bigger, faster and stronger than women. As a result, it is no secret that women find it rather difficult to compete with men.

Also, from an economic perspective, i find the women’s cricket league economically draining, why spend money on something a minority care about? Women should stick to netball and volleyball and men should stick to men’s sports!!!

thoughts?

Duckworth/lewis method flawed?

I personally feel that D/L method is flawed in the sense that too much emphasis is given to the wickets in hand factor when the play is stopped.

I find the calculation to be pretty unfair. First of all, it doesn’t take into account the strength of a batting line-up, and the relevant bowling line-up. The averages and strike rates of bowlers and batsmen should be incorporated into the calculation for it to be a fair reflection on the game. A static calculation should no longer be applicable in the modern form of the game. It also doesn’t appear to take into account power-plays in the modern game, nor does it take into account that in the modern game, it is becoming a common trend to see 60 runs or more taken in the final 5 overs for example.

Another reason is that wickets hold more weight than runs for a team batting second, which works to their advantage if rain is imminent. One can score at a much lower run rate than required to protect wickets and in turn the Duckworth Lewis calculation will reward you for it.

One cannot use a static calculation in a game where there are so many variables. However there is a clear need for it in the modern game where broadcasting, advertising and sponsorships are necessary. So in that case, the ICC should re-evaluate the calculation imo to fairly incorporate more of the variables, to ensure that delays do not result in unfair advantages.

Another quick example is that it only requires 20 of the 50 allotted overs for a result to be decided based on D/L. It stands to reason that the way a team bats in the first 20 overs is vastly different to the final 10 overs for instance. So a match stopped after a mere 20 overs will favour the team batting first. However you can manipulate this to your advantage as the team batting second as indicated above – by not losing wickets but then the run-rate becomes more of a moot point.

thoughts?

A new captain for South Africa

Every coach  needs help from the team; this is why there are team captains. Team captains are part of the leadership chain, as they are part of what makes a winning team. Picking the right team captain is nearly as important as picking the right coach. Question is which team member do you pick to be the team captain? There are many theories about this. Some say you should look for the natural leader, some believe you should pick the top performer and that member will become the inspiration.

In theory, you might assume that the top performer is the best suited to be the team captain, but it is not necessarily so. Often, top performers are very ego-centric, and whereas this is not a character flaw, as it comes from extreme self-confidence; it does not directly relate to the inspiring of other lesser performing team members. Now, with that said the other team members will listen to the top performers through primate politic pecking order innate traits, but they may not follow them, as well as an inspirational team captain.

I asked my team mates about this, and got their input on aspects that should be looked at when a captain is to be elected. Some of the aspects that came out tops:

• Most talented player
• The most experienced player
• The player with the longest tenure on the team
• Leadership Qualities
• Most good looking

While these aspects are rational, many of them are flawed (especially the one about the best looking, i just added that in there ). South Africa’s performance in international competitions hasn’t been the greatest, and i think one of the main reasons is the leadership of the team. I have been to alot of games, and I’ve seen the phenomenal morale the team have, and while i do respect Graeme Smith as a player, I don’t believe he’s the best SA can do. He displayed a remarkable performance in the last game the team played in the ICC champs, one that deserves a standing ovation, but I believe there are other players on the team that could lead SA to victory in the future.

If I had the power to choose a new captain for team SA,  I’d go with Mark Boucher!

What would your choice be?

Introduction

So, I’v finally found the time to write my much anticipated blog post. I’m going to make this one short, more introductory, and will start the real blogging as soon as things start to calm down on my side of the world! I’ve still got alot of work to do on my blog, clearly!!!

I’ve been playing cricket my whole life. Started off with action cricket, I’m currently in the club cricket stage, hoping to go pro some day! (one can hope right) Recently, the cricket club champs and rugby club champs were held at the same time, and what annoyed me the most, was the fact that the rugby champs received much more media attention, compared to the little (if anything) the cricket club champs received.

It was also brought to my attention, that a test series which is due to be played sometime this year, was pulled from being aired on TV here in South Africa, due to the lack of interest by viewers.

I’ve started this blog, mainly to bring the attention back to the game, and to remind people how much fun it can be, both to watch and play. My main focus will be on cricket ofcourse, but i also plan on linking it to other aspects affecting the game and also, get input from players in all leagues! (fans as well) It’s not much, but it’s a start, i hope you guys enjoy it!!