First 200 in a ODI

I know that this blog is not the place for discussing ODIs, but special occasions call for some exceptional treatment. One such special occasion was the Second ODI between India and SA at Gwalior where the little master turned the clock back and scored the first ever double century in an ODI. He was at his destructive best and we were fortunate to have witnessed this master innings of his. In my opinion, he is the rightful owner of this record and thoroughly deserves it.

There will be more people scoring double hundreds, possibly during the World Cup 2011 when a number of weaker teams will participate in the tournament. The distinction of being the first to conquer a peak is always remembered by many and that is why Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay are famous. That is why Neil Armstrong is a familiar name. Reading the papers in the morning today was that sort of feeling with everyone in the cricketing fraternity praising this genius.

Congratulations Sachin, you have made us proud!!

India v SA : Second test, Kolkata : India stays on top

T he second test match of this two match series started off quite sedately. There was speculation on whether Smith will play after injuring his finger, but that was swiftly set aside. SA were without the services of Mark Boucher and they promptly drafted in a spare batsman in Alviro Petersen with AB doing duties behind the stumps. They also won the toss and started the day pretty well. Both Amla and Petersen scored centuries and at Tea they were 200-odd for the loss of two wickets. In the next 45 minutes or so they lost 5 more wickets and finally were bowled out for 296. Indians fought back stupendously and never showed any signs of frustration when the Proteas were sailing smoothly for a mammoth first innings total.

The Indian batsmen then came to the party and Sehwag and Tendulkar dominated the proceedings on day 2. SA bowlers wasted their energies in bowling a negative leg stump line and I thought they missed a trick or two by not making the Indians play the deliveries. On top of that, they also spilt about 7-8 catches, which must be a record of sorts for them. For Sehwag, the line does not matter and he just kept thrashing them to all the corners of the park. The Little Master completed his fourth consecutive test century and I think he wants to be in the six consecutive centuries club. Post tea session on day 2 also produced a flurry of wickets but Dhoni and VVS completed the demolition job on day 3. VVS literally owns the Eden Garden wicket. Indians settled for a lead of 346 and declared.

With two days to spare, it looked like India will pocket the test match quite easily, but rains took out a good chunk of the fourth day. As is becoming the habit with this SA team, the last day went to the wire and the final wicket was claimed by the Indians with 9 deliveries left. They seem to be at the wrong end of the trick this too, because earlier England defied them in similar fashion in two test matches. Hashim Amla was simply outstanding with close to 500 runs in the series with three centuries. Smith rightly described him as the glue at number three.

So India retained the No 1 rank in test cricket. A two match series is never a good idea, and when two top ranked teams played, there was a very high probability of dull draws. But we ended up having two one sided games, with the victors winning by an innings.
Some interesting stats and comments that were observed during this game:

1. We had two frontline batsmen from SA scoring centuries, yet the team scored less than 300 runs.
2. Four Indian batsmen scored centuries and four SA bowlers conceded centuries.

Fitness remains a major concern for the Indian and for most teams these days. With so much cricket being played, injuries are bound to take toll. The bench strength also remains a worry. This was a great opportunity for a youngster to step in and grab the chance, but they failed. So lot of thinking and planning for the board and the selectors. They must keep the team fresh and hungry if we are to win the 2011 World Cup.

India v SA : First test, Nagpur : All gone wrong for India

T he first test match of this series billed as the Championship of Test cricket went awfully wrong for the Indians. We did nothing right and were punished by a disciplined SA team.

First, the selectors did not pay attention to the composition of the team and selected players based on, I believe, zonal biases. Despite the long list of injured batsmen, we loaded our team with four fast bowlers and not enough batsmen. Dravid and Yuvraj not playing was known beforehand and Laxman dropped out too. So in a rush, the selectors asked Rohit Sharma to stay back after the 2 day practice game. He too twisted his ankle on the morning of the first day and we had a situation where the spare wicket-keeper was drafted in the playing eleven as a specialist batsman.

The only session that went India’s way was the first session on Day-1 when Zaheer bowled a superb spell and managed to get two wickets very early. Ashwell Prince was unlucky to get out on a armguard catch. After those two quick wickets, it was SA all the way with Kallis and Amla grinding the Indian bowling attack and demoralizing the fielders. I thought the Indian bowling changes were also predictable but then the Proteas had done their home work pretty well. Harbhajan needs to sit out on the current form. His bowling form, attitude and fielding is a huge worry. The last time he took a fifer was in March 2009 against New Zealand. (And July 2008 vs SL prior to that). It is about time we brought in another spinner, possibly Ojha.

Indian batting, after the flurry from Sehwag was cut to pieces in the first essay. What a magnificent spell Dale Steyn bowled in the afternoon. Sheer pace and accuracy. He brought a seemingly dead track to life with the changed cricket ball and produced sheer magic. Though we were on the receiving end of the spell I think it was probably the best bowling display by a visiting fast bowler that I have seen since Malcolm Marshall. The difference was that Marshall was threatening while Steyn was pin-point accuracy. His figures of 7/51 were truly deserved. That helped the Proteas to enforce the follow on and quickly take two second innings wickets on Day 3. Only one team could win the test match from then on and the only question was whether it will get over in 4 days or 5 days. They settled it in 4 days with Sachin fighting a lone battle to score yet another ton, his third successive so far. A thoroughly deserved win for the South Africans and that means India is on the back foot now. It would be interesting to see the team selection for the Second test.

I am a big fan of Jacques Kallis. He is a player who embodies the qualities of a good test player. Great batsman, excellent fielder and a good bowler too. Even at this late stage in his career he bowled at 144 K at the end of day 4 in India. His record is truly impressive with tons of runs, bucketful of wickets and handful of catches. He is physically very fit and I doubt if he has missed a lot of matches due to injuries. It is a pity that he played in the era of Hansie Cronje and therefore could not captain the Proteas on a regular basis.

India v SA : The battle for No. 1 Spot

F inally there is some good test match cricket on offer when India locks horns with the South Africans for a two test series. I did not write my usual updates during the England-SA series but that was one hell of a series where England hung on by the skin of their teeth. SA deserved a far better final score line but that has been their problem area; they always choke on some key points.

Coming back to the India-SA series, I am really excited to watch this. Both teams start off with some great handicaps but want to do their best. India has the challenge of a raw middle order with Yuvraj, Dravid and possibly Laxman pulling out due to injuries. I am concerned about Yuvraj’s injuries because he has made a habit of sitting out and the his recovery is very slow. Harbhajan has also had a patchy form and is also under a lot of pressure to deliver. So the think tank of M/s Srikanth and co. decided to catapult an opener into No. 3 slot and blood Badrinath finally into test cricket. I think for Badri this opportunity is too late. He did not get an opportunity when he was at his peak and now the pressure will get to him. Murali Vijay may do well at No. 3. Tendulkar and Sehwag therefore become very critical to the success of this team.

SA on the other hand, have had a cracking 6-8 months. Their bowlers are unidirectional but in form and their batsmen have all scored well. But SA cricket administration resembles a ship wreck these days with the stand-in coach and sacked selection committee. Smith will be confused because he would not know the direction the scheme of things will take back home. He has a solid batting unit in Kallis, deVilliers, Duminy and Amla and Steyn, Morkel and Harris with the ball. It is going to be battle of wits and both teams are going to put up a strong challenge. I am excited with the prospect of some high quality test cricket. Keep reading my updates here.