Tony Blade
U19 Cricketer
Pathetic test match, absolutely boring and completely uncompetitive.
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***Official*** India in Pakistan
- Thread starter Pratters
- Start date
Psychological Advantage: India
Danish Kaneria's frankly ridiculous shy at the stumps, which went for four overthrows, and Mohammad Sami's little tirade towards the end revealed how there was no chance of Pakistan leaving this game with even a smidgen of psychological advantage. Dravid would tell you that such glib phrases matter more to the media than to the players themselves, but the manner in which Sehwag rubbed in Pakistan's failure to take even a wicket so far would certainly have reopened a few wounds from the last tour.
This stirring response to a mammoth Pakistani total has, however, left India with a real dilemma for the coming games. Sehwag was categorical when he said later that Dravid opening shouldn't become a regular thing, given his peerless record as a No.3. But with no result possible here, and the Sourav Ganguly conundrum far from resolved, it's hard to see how a specialist opener can be drafted in. Those with vested interests will now conveniently climb on to the Dravid-for-opener bandwagon, but for Indian cricket's sake, it's imperative that its tyres are slashed immediately.
As he showed again today while performing the supporting act to perfection, Dravid can make runs anywhere, and against anyone. But the team's most valuable player must play where he's most comfortable, and from where he has inspired Indian cricket's most celebrated wins. There's a reason why Donald Bradman and Viv Richards batted at No.3, and why Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara have spent the bulk of their careers at No. 4. All these men had the quality and temperament to bat where they wanted, but they settled on the slot that worked best for them and the team. You don't mess with such men. Not for anyone, not at any cost.
Dileep Premachandran is features editor of Cricinfo
Not even for Ganguly. Especially for Ganguly, who is the complete opposite of a team player.
Danish Kaneria's frankly ridiculous shy at the stumps, which went for four overthrows, and Mohammad Sami's little tirade towards the end revealed how there was no chance of Pakistan leaving this game with even a smidgen of psychological advantage. Dravid would tell you that such glib phrases matter more to the media than to the players themselves, but the manner in which Sehwag rubbed in Pakistan's failure to take even a wicket so far would certainly have reopened a few wounds from the last tour.
This stirring response to a mammoth Pakistani total has, however, left India with a real dilemma for the coming games. Sehwag was categorical when he said later that Dravid opening shouldn't become a regular thing, given his peerless record as a No.3. But with no result possible here, and the Sourav Ganguly conundrum far from resolved, it's hard to see how a specialist opener can be drafted in. Those with vested interests will now conveniently climb on to the Dravid-for-opener bandwagon, but for Indian cricket's sake, it's imperative that its tyres are slashed immediately.
As he showed again today while performing the supporting act to perfection, Dravid can make runs anywhere, and against anyone. But the team's most valuable player must play where he's most comfortable, and from where he has inspired Indian cricket's most celebrated wins. There's a reason why Donald Bradman and Viv Richards batted at No.3, and why Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara have spent the bulk of their careers at No. 4. All these men had the quality and temperament to bat where they wanted, but they settled on the slot that worked best for them and the team. You don't mess with such men. Not for anyone, not at any cost.
Dileep Premachandran is features editor of Cricinfo
Not even for Ganguly. Especially for Ganguly, who is the complete opposite of a team player.
luckyeddie
Cricket Web Staff Member
I watched much of the first day (I guess the cable company viewed that as a 'sweetener' to encourage more subscribers) and thoroughly enjoyed it because at that time it wasn't totally evident that it was all down to the pitch.Dissector said:
As the game continued, so my interest waned as it became more and more obvious that the pitch was a lifeless featherbed. Today, I didn't even have the desktop scoreboard - not even minimised - just relied on Sky Sports News. That was how interesting I found it (just a flicker as each milestone was passed).
Mr Mxyzptlk
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Sehwag for 502 not out...
Mr Mxyzptlk
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No Test bowling attack is strong if it includes Rana Naved (61.66) and Mohammad Sami (47.15).Armadillo said:
Jungle Jumbo
International Vice-Captain
CW Report now up...
http://www.cricketweb.net/article.php?CategoryIDAuto=1&NewsIDAuto=1177
Asian pitches are, by and large, criticised by the pundits of many other nations: some are branded 'dead as a dodo', others written off as 'doctored dustbowls'. But the wicket used in the First Test in Lahore is one of a new breed, with runs flowing from the bat, at a healthy rate, and bowlers faced with utmost frustration. And is the game any better for it? No, probably not. The records set in the past few days by Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid may catch the untrained eye of the casual observer in years to come, but they do not tell the full, long-winded tale of a dull draw on a tasteless, placid pitch.
That is not to take anything away from the achievements of Sehwag, the bullish cavalier, and Dravid, the stand-in opener. Opening up this morning on 145 without loss, the pair batted throughout a curtailed day, taking their partnership to 403, and threatening Pankaj Roy and Vinoo Mankad's 50-year-old 413 run record for an opening partnership. On that occasion in Madras, Mankad and Roy had meticulously shredded an immature New Zealand bowling attack. Now Dravid and Sehwag are confronting an ancient milestone, though with more assistance from the playing surface than from the opposition, it must be said.
Sehwag has hammered 46 fours in his unbeaten 247, with only nine piercing the leg-side fence. Any hint of width, be it short or full, spin or seam, was effortlessly crashed to the off-side boundary. The Pakistani bowlers, probably lacking any major incentive, offered little resistance, and a frenzied Sehwag partied on, making the second fastest Test double-hundred of all time.
Dravid meanwhile had firmly settled into his experimental role at the top of the order, though the sheen of the new Kookaburra had long vanished into Sehwag's fury. He remained as calm and understated as ever, providing the steady support for the more collateral approach of his junior. While his first half-century took 128 deliveries, the second fifty occupied just 78. As he too began to expose the disheartened bowling, the loose deliveries became more and more frequent. Shoaib Ahktar, often expensive and much maligned, proved the most inexpensive of the clueless Pakistanis, though his 15 overs cost three runs apiece.
It will be a relief in hindsight for Pakistan that the day was considerably shortened, with over three hours lost in the entire day, due to a combination of light overnight rainfall and murky conditions. With a draw almost certainly on the cards, both camps will already have one eye on the next Test in Faisalabad. But what can they take into that Test, or out of the current one in the Gaddafi Stadium? Other than a heavily extended net for Younis, Yousuf, Akmal, Afridi, Sehwag and Dravid, very little can be. Neither bowling attack has shown any substance, but may have been better off on a concrete wicket. Are the batsmen able to really say that they have been tested? Have we learnt anything new from the run-fest? No. The Fifth Day now takes on a more psychological sense. If Sehwag and Dravid bat for a substantial proportion of the day, then the Pakistanis will arrive in Faislabad utterly bemused and under severe pressure. But if the home side can break this formidable partnership, and access the underbelly of the Indian batting, Tendulkar and Ganguly in particular, then they could return a telling blow.
Pakistan 679 for 7 declared (143.3 overs)
Younis Khan 199, Mohammad Yousuf 173, Shahid Afridi 103, Kamran Akmal 120*
India 403 for 0 (75 overs)
Virender Sehwag 247* (240), Rahul Dravid 128* (227)
Probably loads of mistakes, I'm a bit busy with homework so it's a little rushed. It's a hard life being a Staff writer...
http://www.cricketweb.net/article.php?CategoryIDAuto=1&NewsIDAuto=1177
Asian pitches are, by and large, criticised by the pundits of many other nations: some are branded 'dead as a dodo', others written off as 'doctored dustbowls'. But the wicket used in the First Test in Lahore is one of a new breed, with runs flowing from the bat, at a healthy rate, and bowlers faced with utmost frustration. And is the game any better for it? No, probably not. The records set in the past few days by Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid may catch the untrained eye of the casual observer in years to come, but they do not tell the full, long-winded tale of a dull draw on a tasteless, placid pitch.
That is not to take anything away from the achievements of Sehwag, the bullish cavalier, and Dravid, the stand-in opener. Opening up this morning on 145 without loss, the pair batted throughout a curtailed day, taking their partnership to 403, and threatening Pankaj Roy and Vinoo Mankad's 50-year-old 413 run record for an opening partnership. On that occasion in Madras, Mankad and Roy had meticulously shredded an immature New Zealand bowling attack. Now Dravid and Sehwag are confronting an ancient milestone, though with more assistance from the playing surface than from the opposition, it must be said.
Sehwag has hammered 46 fours in his unbeaten 247, with only nine piercing the leg-side fence. Any hint of width, be it short or full, spin or seam, was effortlessly crashed to the off-side boundary. The Pakistani bowlers, probably lacking any major incentive, offered little resistance, and a frenzied Sehwag partied on, making the second fastest Test double-hundred of all time.
Dravid meanwhile had firmly settled into his experimental role at the top of the order, though the sheen of the new Kookaburra had long vanished into Sehwag's fury. He remained as calm and understated as ever, providing the steady support for the more collateral approach of his junior. While his first half-century took 128 deliveries, the second fifty occupied just 78. As he too began to expose the disheartened bowling, the loose deliveries became more and more frequent. Shoaib Ahktar, often expensive and much maligned, proved the most inexpensive of the clueless Pakistanis, though his 15 overs cost three runs apiece.
It will be a relief in hindsight for Pakistan that the day was considerably shortened, with over three hours lost in the entire day, due to a combination of light overnight rainfall and murky conditions. With a draw almost certainly on the cards, both camps will already have one eye on the next Test in Faisalabad. But what can they take into that Test, or out of the current one in the Gaddafi Stadium? Other than a heavily extended net for Younis, Yousuf, Akmal, Afridi, Sehwag and Dravid, very little can be. Neither bowling attack has shown any substance, but may have been better off on a concrete wicket. Are the batsmen able to really say that they have been tested? Have we learnt anything new from the run-fest? No. The Fifth Day now takes on a more psychological sense. If Sehwag and Dravid bat for a substantial proportion of the day, then the Pakistanis will arrive in Faislabad utterly bemused and under severe pressure. But if the home side can break this formidable partnership, and access the underbelly of the Indian batting, Tendulkar and Ganguly in particular, then they could return a telling blow.
Pakistan 679 for 7 declared (143.3 overs)
Younis Khan 199, Mohammad Yousuf 173, Shahid Afridi 103, Kamran Akmal 120*
India 403 for 0 (75 overs)
Virender Sehwag 247* (240), Rahul Dravid 128* (227)
Probably loads of mistakes, I'm a bit busy with homework so it's a little rushed. It's a hard life being a Staff writer...
luckyeddie
Cricket Web Staff Member
I haven't and I won't - equally, if Sehwag was dismissed for 399, my sympathies would still be with the bowlers.Armadillo said:
luckyeddie
Cricket Web Staff Member
How can you construe what I said into what you are suggesting? Creative, I must say.Armadillo said:
I said that I haven't and I won't take anything away from the batters' achievement - it is simply an awesome exercise in concentration, and one that ranks alongside the likes of Hanif Mohammad, Mudassar Nusar and Brian Lara.
My opinion on the whole affair remains unchanged however - my sympathies lie with the bowlers (both sides).
Literate Essex? Fantasy land.
luckyeddie
Cricket Web Staff Member
That's ok. I only commented because you had 'Literate Essex' as your location - and that's like a red rag to a bull.Armadillo said:
Natman20
International Debutant
Wow well that must be a very very good batting pitch. I dont ussually follow these overseas series very much but I never thought that it would be possible for India to reach 670 or so runs but it looks as though they could do it quite comfortably. A 403 run opening partnership! wow. I Just hope that Sehwag gets a triple century.
garage flower
State Vice-Captain
Don't know whether that's a bit of false modesty Jumbo, but it's a very good read. Certainly more interesting than watching cricket (even Sehwag, who I'd trample my own mum to watch!) on that wicket.Jungle Jumbo said:
I'd have been better off gambling the 40 quid I've paid ARY Digital for the coverage, on Pete Doherty making the New Year's Honours list (or indeed making the New Year) or Adam Gilchrist ever doing something dishonest on a cricket pitch (the very thought!).
vic_orthdox
Global Moderator
Including dissent?garage flower said: