bandy, also called Banty, a game similar to ice hockey. It is played almost exclusively in the Scandinavian countries, the Baltic countries, and Mongolia. A team is composed of from 8 to 11 players who wear skates and use curved sticks to hit a ball. Rink size varies but is characteristically larger than an ice hockey rink (about 100 by 55 m [109 by 60 yards]). The goalie does not use a stick but, alone among the players, can touch the ball with his hands. There are two halves of 45 minutes each, and play commences at the centre circle. Unlike hockey, no play is allowed behind the goals. Play begins with a “stroke off,” and each team is confined to its own half of the rink. The use of a ball instead of a flat puck makes bandy faster than hockey. Free strokes are given for penalties, such as for going over the midline. Free substitution is permitted. There are six officials in the game. Bandy originated in England in the late 18th century, and the modern game of ice hockey probably developed from it.
Leslie Ames, in full Leslie Ethelbert George Ames, (born Dec. 3, 1905, Elham, Kent, Eng.—died Feb. 26, 1990, Canterbury, Kent), one of the outstanding all-round English cricketers.
At the age of 17 Ames became a batsman for Kent; he became a wicketkeeper in 1927. He began playing in test matches in 1929, and in 1931–38 he was the first-choice keeper for England. His finest season was in 1933, during which he scored 3,059 runs (average 58.80). During World War II he served in the Royal Air Force; subsequently he seldom kept wicket. After his retirement in 1951 he continued with Kent as coach, then as secretary-manager (1960–74). He also was an England test selector in 1950–56 and 1958, and he managed England on tour three times.
In a playing career that spanned 1926–51, the quick, aggressive Ames, as a batsman, scored 37,248 runs (average 43.51) and 102 centuries, including 2,434 runs (average 40.56) and eight centuries in test matches. As a wicketkeeper he dismissed 1,121 batsmen (including 418 stumped, a world record in his lifetime, and 703 caught); he recorded seasonal doubles (at least 1,000 runs and 100 dismissals) in 1928, 1929, and 1932.
Muttiah Muralitharan, (born April 17, 1972, Kandy, Sri Lanka), Sri Lankan cricketer whose unorthodox delivery made him one of the most effective and controversial spin bowlers in history and enabled him to take more wickets in both Test and one-day international (ODI) cricket than anyone else who had ever played the game.
Muralitharan attended St. Anthony’s College in Kandy and began bowling off-spin on the advice of his coach. He made his Test debut against Australia in 1992 at age 20, taking two wickets with successive balls. When England toured Sri Lanka the following year, many batsmen found Muralitharan’s spin difficult to read and expressed concern about the legitimacy of his bowling action. To the naked eye, Muralitharan appeared not to bowl the ball but rather to flick it with a bent arm and flexible wrist. According to the rules of cricket, if his arm was bent and then straightened at the point of delivery, the ball would be deemed a throw (hence illegal), but Muralitharan’s arm remained bent throughout the action.
Exhaustive studies by the International Cricket Council (ICC) of both his action and the physiology of his right arm showed that the bend was a natural deformity and therefore not illegal.
0 Comments