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New South Wales’ mighty victory in the 2005 Pura Cup final represents one of the great comebacks of shield cricket.

They were gone for all money against Tasmania a few weeks ago before Stuey MacGill ripped through the Tigers’ batting. That kept them alive in the finals race. Last week they knocked off Victoria and Queensland beat WA, boosting NSW from third place to second.

On Sunday, the Queensland hoodoo continued. They have never beaten New South Wales in a shield final. This time, the Blues won at the Gabba by one wicket with two days to spare.

Great work, guys. Savour the scorecard and check out the Blues website.

Let’s hear it for: Doug Bollinger, Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, Ed Cowan, Brad Haddin, Phil Jaques, Simon Katich, Jason Krejza, Grant Lambert, Stuart MacGill, Greg Mail, Matthew Nicholson, Aaron O’Brien, James Packman, Matthew Phelps, Dominic Thornely. Amazingly, they did it without a single appearance from Michael Clarke, Glenn McGrath or Brett Lee!

After the outstanding success at staging the first ICC v ACC tsunami relief match at very short notice in Melbourne in January, I was disappointed to read of the cancellation of the return game, originally planned for February 13, then pushed out to April. However the reason given by [insert the cap he’s wearing today] Jagmohan Dalmiya on Sunday is totally pitiful.

With no announcement yet on the websites of either the ICC or the ACC, this is the Press Trust of India’s report on Sunday’s proclamation by JD:

Second Tsunami cricket match called off
Feb 27, 2005 07:27:00 PM
.KOLKATA CAL58
Kolkata, Feb 27 (PTI) The high-profile charity cricket match between Rest of the World and an Asian XI, scheduled to be held here in April to raise funds for tsunami victims, has been called off.
Disclosing this here today, Asian Cricket Council President Jagmohan Dalmiya said the match had to be scrapped because it was not feasible to hold the match in April.
“Due to the heat in this part of the country in second half of April, the tsunami match cannot be held,” he told PTI.
The match could not be held earlier than that because India and Pakistan would be busy with their series till mid-April.
The match, originally scheduled to be held here at the Eden Gardens on Feburary 13, had to be postponed to the second half of April due to non-availablity of best players from Australia and New Zealand.
The delay in holding the match could have also contributed to the decision to finally call it off.
The postponement was made as per the direction of the International Cricket Council, which had earlier assured the Asian body that the Rest of the World XI would comprise all front ranking players who did duty in the first tsunami relief match at Melbourne on January 10.
The ICC had also wanted that the second match be held in either India or Sri Lanka, the two countries which mainly suffered the devastations from the December 26 tsunami. PTI

(Source, not permanent)

So it’s too hot for a day/night game in Kolkata in April. Yep. And hotter in May? Like in 1997 when Sri Lanka beat Pakistan in the Independence Cup? Like in 1998 when India beat Kenya in another ODI final?

And why Kolkata? It may well be more desirable to stage the game in either of India or Sri Lanka, who both suffered badly from the Decembe 26 tsunami. So why not Chennai or Colombo? And why has it taken until now to take note of the climatic conditions in April?

The excuse “because of the heat” is paltry. Do these administrators want to help victims of the worst natural disaster in recent memory, or don’t they?

Everyone involved in making the January 10 game in Melbourne a reality deserves the fullest congratulations. Everyone responsible for the collapse of the return fixture should be sacked.