Daily Result: £193.49
Oh dear. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. What the hell was Shoaib Akhtar doing with his thumb and that seam? In close up. Live. In front of dozens of camers? I have the benefit of writing this after match referee Mike Proctor has cleared Akhtar of any wrongdoing. For the good of the game I say fine. That's the decision and I go with it.
But fuck me. Even if it was completely innocent, what on earth possessed him? Just two weeks after the disasterous Oval test following ball tampering allegations he's clearly seen running his thumb down the ball's seam. It's been suggested that Shoaib was merely cleaning some dirt from the seam. Ok. But even that is illegal under the rules of the game. Only the umpire is allowed to do it.
I thought someone may have posted the most debated incident on YouTube but alas no. So although not the incident that caused most the fuss these still shots published by the Australian media still show why the debate took place in the first place.
Oh dear. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. What the hell was Shoaib Akhtar doing with his thumb and that seam? In close up. Live. In front of dozens of camers? I have the benefit of writing this after match referee Mike Proctor has cleared Akhtar of any wrongdoing. For the good of the game I say fine. That's the decision and I go with it.
But fuck me. Even if it was completely innocent, what on earth possessed him? Just two weeks after the disasterous Oval test following ball tampering allegations he's clearly seen running his thumb down the ball's seam. It's been suggested that Shoaib was merely cleaning some dirt from the seam. Ok. But even that is illegal under the rules of the game. Only the umpire is allowed to do it.
I thought someone may have posted the most debated incident on YouTube but alas no. So although not the incident that caused most the fuss these still shots published by the Australian media still show why the debate took place in the first place.
There are many who believe the whole incident has just been swept under the carpet to avoid any further ball tampering controversy on this tour. Others say although there were grounds for suspicion there is no way of telling if a thumbnail was actually used as the pictures and video footage are inconclusive. Whatever happened I accept that you have to abide by the referee's - and governing body's decision. And I do. Akhtar did nothing wrong.
But that doesn't mean I can't think former England captain Nasser Hussain hasn't got a rather pertinent point when, considering Akhtar has not only been reprimanded but also banned for ball tampering before, he said:
"At best he's been very, very silly. To do that in the present climate is stupid."
Quite.
As for the game itself. Well, I was stupid! I fancied Pakistan to win. I backed them to win. They did win. But I lost! Like I said - stupid!
To cut a long story short I simply tried to hard in this one. Tried to make too many quick trades for extra profit when I should have really just left it. Ended up with a small red either side at the change of the innings. Waited a few little while, still fancied Pakistan to win so lumped on at 1.51, again looking for a quick trade. The run out the next ball didn't help and I ended up trading out at 2.04 fearing another wicket for a larger all round red.
Anyway, catches might win matches but Khan and Yousuf showed the value of a decent partnership, and although there were some hiccups Pakistan made the total quite comfortably. I'd continued to mess around on the match but rather than risk a very large red for a small green I ended up keeping the reds fairly level and costing myself a little extra. Also had a rather speculative £10 on a tie at good odds just incase as it would have turned a fairly substantial loss into a decent win but no joy with that.
It may have been a weakened England team, with perhaps Pakistan's best line up, but even given a good England total the gulf in class in the one day game was there for all to see again. (I'm sorry, injuries are not, but Mahmood should not be playing ODIs in my humble opinion) Pakistan are a pretty good shout for the World Cup next year on recent performances. Their price has come in a recently but it's well worth keeping an eye on the in the forthcoming Champions Trophy as some good results there and surely it will contract further.
But that doesn't mean I can't think former England captain Nasser Hussain hasn't got a rather pertinent point when, considering Akhtar has not only been reprimanded but also banned for ball tampering before, he said:
"At best he's been very, very silly. To do that in the present climate is stupid."
Quite.
As for the game itself. Well, I was stupid! I fancied Pakistan to win. I backed them to win. They did win. But I lost! Like I said - stupid!
To cut a long story short I simply tried to hard in this one. Tried to make too many quick trades for extra profit when I should have really just left it. Ended up with a small red either side at the change of the innings. Waited a few little while, still fancied Pakistan to win so lumped on at 1.51, again looking for a quick trade. The run out the next ball didn't help and I ended up trading out at 2.04 fearing another wicket for a larger all round red.
Anyway, catches might win matches but Khan and Yousuf showed the value of a decent partnership, and although there were some hiccups Pakistan made the total quite comfortably. I'd continued to mess around on the match but rather than risk a very large red for a small green I ended up keeping the reds fairly level and costing myself a little extra. Also had a rather speculative £10 on a tie at good odds just incase as it would have turned a fairly substantial loss into a decent win but no joy with that.
It may have been a weakened England team, with perhaps Pakistan's best line up, but even given a good England total the gulf in class in the one day game was there for all to see again. (I'm sorry, injuries are not, but Mahmood should not be playing ODIs in my humble opinion) Pakistan are a pretty good shout for the World Cup next year on recent performances. Their price has come in a recently but it's well worth keeping an eye on the in the forthcoming Champions Trophy as some good results there and surely it will contract further.
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