Indian techie team predicts World Cup cricket match winners
MUMBAI, India: Will the Kiwis beat the English on Friday at the 2007 Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean? Will Australia return to form against South Africa next week?
Seven Indians may know late Wednesday — that's when a computer model formulated especially for the World Cup will begin spewing out results.
During it's first try Tuesday, the computer model developed by Mumbai's Fractal Analytics Ltd. certainly earned its billing as cricket's crystal ball. It not only predicted the West Indies would beat Pakistan in the World Cup's inaugural match, but it also forecast the exact scores of West Indies captain Brian Lara and Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq.
Fractal specializes in predicting customer and employee behavior for clients that includes banks and consumer goods companies in Asia and the United States.
"We began with cricket in January just for fun and found we had a 70 percent success rate," said Mukesh Budania, a consultant at Fractal.
"The model has data of 2,523 one-day matches and we have trained the model to learn from the data about variables like the team's and opposition's performance," he said.
The model analyses a batsman or bowler's performance in the last few matches, then compares this with earlier stages in their career when hey were exhibiting similar form and comes up with a likely performance chart.
The Fractal team correctly called New Zealand's surprise victories over Australia last month, but "nobody trusted us then," Budania said.
"Now with so much attention, there is more pressure to get the results right," he added.
So far, they haven't given their doubters much ammunition.
Fractal correctly predicted that West Indies captain Brian Lara would be out for 37 and Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq would be out at 36 on Tuesday.
But were they wrong in forecasting a tight victory for the West Indies? The team scored a resounding 54-run win over Pakistan.
Cricket remains a game of chance, Budania said, and their model cannot predict dropped catches or run-outs.
"There are a few things you can predict like the form of a batsman, the team's performance," he said. "But to keep the fun in the game we should fail sometimes."
And no, they don't know who will lift the Cup. That will depend entirely on the last match played, Budania said.
Fractal will wait awhile before it decides to market the software. "Why not? Sports analytics is a big market," he said. "We could think of marketing this tool to the sports companies or cricket boards."
Bookies have not yet begun calling — but Budania says Fractal will make sure the model ends up in "the right hands, not the bookies."
As for personal bets, Budania says neither he nor his colleagues are placing any. And their lips are sealed until the predictions are printed the day before each match in Mumbai's DNA newspaper.
Australia's Ponting Resumes Cricket World Cup Where He Left Off
March 15 (Bloomberg) -- Ricky Ponting opened Australia's latest Cricket World Cup campaign in the same manner he closed the last one by smashing a century to lead his team to victory.
Ponting, who hit 140 not out in the 2003 final, struck 113 in St. Kitts as the defending champion beat Scotland by 203 runs -- the second-biggest win by runs in tournament history.
``It was a good game for us first up,'' Ponting said in a televised post-match interview yesterday. ``There is a good feeling coming into the group again which is positive for us.''
Australia, the bookmakers' favorite to win an unprecedented third straight World Cup, entered the 16-nation event on a five- match losing streak in one-day internationals and after surrendering its top ranking to South Africa.
Australia's preparations were also hit by an injury to Brett Lee that ruled the fast bowler out of the tournament. Allrounder Andrew Symonds arrived in the Caribbean with an arm injury that doctors said may limit his participation.
Ponting said Symonds had told him on the team bus that he was ``right to play'' in yesterday's match and that Symonds may return for the next group game against the Netherlands on March 18. Australia faces South Africa six days later.
``It is a bit of selection problem, but a good one,'' Ponting said of Symonds. ``We will see how he comes up before the Netherlands game. It will be good to give him a run in that game but we will see how it goes.''
Records
Ponting's fourth Cricket World Cup century, which included five sixes, lifted him into a four-way tie for the all-time record alongside fellow Australian Mark Waugh and Indian pair Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.
Yesterday's 93-ball innings also took Ponting's World Cup aggregate to an Australian-best 1,111 runs, overtaking Waugh's tally of 1,004. Only four other players have amassed 1,000 runs at the sport's premier event.
Following Ponting's 23rd one-day international century, U.K. bookmaker Ladbrokes halved his odds of being the top run-scorer at this World Cup to 4-1. Teammate Matthew Hayden and South Africa's Graeme Smith are second at 16-1.
After Australia's batting lineup racked up more than 300 runs for the third straight match, the bowlers backed up their efforts by dismissing Scotland for 131-9. One batsman was unable to take to the field.
Glenn McGrath, who is quitting international cricket after the tournament, took 3-14 to move within seven wickets of Wasim Akram's World Cup record of 55. Fellow fast bowler Shaun Tait got two wickets on his World Cup debut.
`Blast'
``It was good to see Shaun Tait come out and get a couple of wickets,'' McGrath told Sky Sports. ``His role is to blast a few out early on and he did that. We are going well with the fast bowlers.''
Ponting said he expects spin bowlers to have an impact as the tournament progresses and was encouraged by the performances of Brad Hogg and Brad Hodge, who snared a wicket each yesterday.
``Flexibility is very important for us,'' Ponting said. ``It is good to have options with the ball, especially as I expect some of the pitches later in the tournament to provide more turn. Things are coming together well.''
Greg Chappell appears keen to continue, but...
- Team India coach’s job after World Cup :
Visakhapatnam: Greg Chappell, it appears, is keen to continue as the Team India coach but may not wait for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to begin negotiations after the World Cup, by when his contract would have ended.
“I understand Greg doesn’t have reservations about staying on, though he’s concerned about the amount of cricket being played... However, he can’t keep waiting for the BCCI to initiate a dialogue,” somebody close to Chappell told The Telegraph on Saturday.
Chappell came on board in May 2005, succeeding John Wright, and if the BCCI has somebody else in mind then the ODI here against Sri Lanka — won handsomely by Rahul Dravid & Co. — is going to be remembered as his last as coach on Indian soil.
Surprisingly, till now, the BCCI hasn’t given thought to who will be the coach after the World Cup. In fact, the first series after that mega event (in Bangladesh) is just a few days after the April 28 final in Bridgetown.
“Let’s see how things go in the World Cup,” is what a top BCCI official had to say. That’s strange, to say the least, and suggests that the body’s priorities are definitely misplaced.
For the record, Chappell has himself not said anything beyond “I can’t say (about the future)... I know as much as you probably do... Right now, I’m thinking about the World Cup.”
Soon, though, Chappell must begin exploring options.
A silly point about cricket playing ladies:
Feb, 18 2007
Indians, the cliché goes, are passionate about cricket. But there is a chink in that armour of cricket passion and that is women’s cricket. It’s even possible that some of you, having read the word women taken in the same breath as cricket are already groaning in agony.
After all, who wants to read about them? Isn’t cricket a guy thing? If you think I am overstating a point, I decided to conduct a quick experiment for all the doubting Thomases out there. So before writing this story, I called up a cricket mad friend of mine. I posed a simple question to him.
“Do you remember how we lost to Australia in a World Cup final in 2005?” His reply was, “Dude, the World Cup happened in 2003 and not 2005.” India did reach the finals of a World Cup in 2005 but it was the women’s cricket team that managed it and not the men in blue.
This complete ignorance about women’s cricket is just one of the many problems that plagues women’s cricket in this country. While everyone might know pretty much everything about, say, M S Dhoni or Yuvraj Singh (what did they eat for dinner, for lunch, did they sneeze, how many times and why, who irons their clothes in the morning — there is no end to trivia on the men’s team) people will fail to name 11 women players.
Even when some of their achievements overshadow those of their male counterparts. The likes of Anjum Chopra or Mitali Raj have been performing admirably on the international level, yet recognition and fame eludes them. But things are slowly improving.
With the Board for Cricket Control of India (BCCI) taking over the Women’s Cricket Association of India (WCAI) as per ICC’s instructions, the players are hopeful that things will change.
“Things are looking bright and we will see a better future for Indian women’s cricket,” says Chopra, wicket-keeper and a talented batswoman. Agrees Raj, India’s star batswoman, “There has been an improvement since the BCCI has come in and I hope that we get more support from the public as well.”
Chopra, who has been around for some time, has seen both the good and bad of Indian cricket. “There was a time when we used to earn Rs 1,000 per ODI and Rs 2,000 per test match.” Compare this to the men, Rs 1.5 lakh per test match and Rs 1 lakh per ODI. But things are looking up. “The match fees have increased considerably and we get allowances, plus the facilities for training and playing have improved a lot.”
Any comparison with the men and Chopra laughs it off. But on the field, the women have been consistently good and if you must know, better than the men. Apart from reaching the World Cup final, they recorded a first-time test series win in England, won the Asia Cup and have been a force to reckon with in the international arena.
Also consider this statistic - the men’s team last month was said to be ranked number seven among 10 one-day teams. The women’s team on the other hand is considered to be among the top four teams in one-day games.
Chopra, nominated for the ICC Woman Cricketer of the Year award in 2006, feels that there is enough talent coming up through the ranks but they lack motivation. “The perception about women’s cricket isn’t great and that discourages girls from taking up the sport.” She also admits that it hurts at times when one performs extremely well and does not get enough credit in the media as well. “But it is something we have become used to now.”
When it comes to sponsors, there are very few corporates who have come forward and helped the women. Sahara has been there with the team since 2005. Barring that, not many corporates have made any substantial contribution. But players are confident that money will start to come in, albeit slowly.
But are there enough girls coming forward to take the game to a new level? “Yes, we have seen enough talent coming up and girls like Priti Dimri and Neetu David have proved that they can be the future of Indian women’s cricket,” says Raj. Agrees Julen Goswami, one of the most successful fast bowlers, “We can get a bit discouraged by the response we get sometimes, but when it comes to representing your country, one tends to forget all these slights.”
So what exactly is required to improve the standard of women’s cricket in India? “There are a couple of things which are required to raise the standard. We need more international tours to give more exposure to players and more teams should be invited in our country to play,” says Chopra.
The Indian team is currently playing against England, New Zealand and Australia in a quadrangular series in Chennai. But after that the players aren’t too sure about their next assignment. These are the things which can be improved, like having a proper cricketing calendar.
But the players, as of now, aren’t complaining too much. “We have issues but the hope is there that they will be sorted out soon,” says Raj. But as Chopra puts it, “It is a matter of pride to me to represent the country. If it isn’t being shown live on TV or enough people aren’t watching it, it doesn’t bother me too much.”
The women are clearly exhibiting the right spirit, now it’s for the paying public to do the same.
NEWZEALAND BEATS AUSTRLIA :
Australia's cricket World Cup hopes have been thrown into disarray after the loss to New Zealand in the second one day international at Eden Park in Auckland.
AUS CRICKET CAPTAIN SAYS TOP SPOT CAN BE REGAINED
Feb, 18 2007
Acting Australian cricket captain Mike Hussey says he's not concerned by his team's one-day form despite a fourth consecutive loss ahead of next month's start to the World Cup in the West Indies.
Australia lost its number one world ranking to South Africa after a two-nil defeat to New Zealand in the Chappell-Hadlee series.
The Black Caps won game two in Auckland yesterday by five wickets after achieving the victory target of 337 with eight balls to spare.
