***Official*** India in West Indies

[luckyeddie]

Great 50 by Dravid.

Is there something wrong with Samuels ' action ? CB is reporting that he chucked one particular delivery and might be reported.

It looked to me somewhat 'iffy' - a bit of a 'Tony Lock' ball.

 

[adharcric]

And how is Kaif a dissapointment here ? He was the new batsmen in and needed to stay because India were playing with only 5 batsmen and lost 3 quick batsmen, Had India lost another wicket, it would have been tough to recover.

This was the perfect Kaif situation and he came and has done a wonderful job so far.

Dravid dropped.

Yes he did a good job by not getting out, but he should be pinching plenty of singles. We've seen Yuvraj, Dhoni, Raina, etc churn the strike during tough situations. That's what the middle overs are about in ODI cricket. Just like Venu's performance in the BSNL final, he did well to stay that long but he seriously hurt the team by going so slow at a crucial juncture. Anyways, I'm not THAT disappointed with Kaif, just saying he's capable of much more than this in terms of rotating the strike.

 

[Sanz]

100 run partnership between the two batsmen in 115 balls, It's pretty good. Last 4 overs :-

4 1 1 1 2 1 | 1 . 1 1 . 1 | 4 2 . 1 1 1 | 1 1 1 1 1 1

Pretty good batting rotation I would say.

 

[Sanz]

100 in 99 balls, 9 $s, 2 6s. Great batting by the Captain.

 

[viktor]

Just go back a few overs, when Samuels was bowling; Kaif couldn't seem to get a single whatever he did. Only 11 of 20 balls v Samuel

 

[Sanz]

I know what you are talking about, but Check Dravid's batting during that period as well and besides I dont think it did any harm there.

SIX !!! By Dhoni 34 off 32

Oh My 30 off 31 )

 

[viktor]

I know what you are talking about, but Check Dravid's batting during that period as well and besides I dont think it did any harm there.

SIX !!! By Dhoni

Agree. anyway, all that discussion was unnecessary, Dhoni Maharaj on fire!!!!

 

[Sanz]

Kaif 50 in 74 balls, Great inning under the circumstances, only one boundry there.

 

[adharcric]

So happy for Kaif. Our batting has done well but we shouldn't forget that Irfan Pathan and RP Singh were very poor today. All credit to Bhajji, AA, Sehwag, Dravid and Kaif.

 

[Sanz]

Now Kaif is wasting balls, 4 dot balls in the over so far, India need 25 from 20.
5th dotball now. Takes Single off the last ball

 

[Anil]

what is that incredible moron kaif doing? he is just building the pressure on dhoni, the idiot...

 

[Sanz]

Dhoni Out Didn't need to go for the big hit, but thanks to Kaif, it put him under pressure.

 

[Sanz]

A bit of Luck there for India. Need 14 off 13 .

 

[Sanz]

*4* to Raina. We need 8 off 11.

 

[Sanz]

This is painful. Kaif has screwed it up big in last 3-4 overs.

 

[adharcric]

Yesssss!!!!!!!! Hats off to the Windies for a terrific match, they fought well but didn't take some crucial catches.

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

Not to mention, supporting the faster or more prolific batsman, as Morton supported Gayle. Dravid plays out too many dot balls in the first 15 overs.

Dravid may be ten times the player Morton is overall, but it comes closer when he's opening the innings.

And that's why the BCCI hasn't asked your opinion as yet.

 

[Mr Mxyzptlk]

what is that incredible moron kaif doing? he is just building the pressure on dhoni, the idiot...

It's not like he was leaving the ball alone or playing defensive shots. He was trying to score runs. It was just good bowling and some sharp fielding. Ease up on him - he played a match-winning knock.

 

[Dravid]

what is that incredible moron kaif doing? he is just building the pressure on dhoni, the idiot...

He was going for the shots. But he couldn't find the gap. Those kind of situations are the hardest to find gaps because the fielders come in and even players like Tendulkar and Ponting would have troubles when the fielders are set perfectly for that situation. He still batted really good. 66* and the game winning shot!

But man of the match goes to Rahul Dravid for an outstanding century

 

[adharcric]

He was going for the shots. But he couldn't find the gap.

That's what differentiates the really good one-day batsmen from the rest: they can find the gaps when the pressure is on. It's not like Yuvi, Raina and Dhoni have constructed those stellar run-chases by rotating the strike with open fields. That said, well done Kaif; he got tied down and some of it was due to good bowling (mostly at the end) but he needed that confidence boost and he's played a good knock for India.