What Have the Commentators been Smoking? - Day 2 at the Kotla
Friday is a day off in the Middle East so I woke up early in the morning to catch the LIVE action, hoping for a Misbah 100. That was not to happen, but I sure did enjoy the cricket throughout the day. I think India is slightly ahead at the end of day 2 but only slightly.
Here are some of the key things that I noticed during the day:
Here are some of the key things that I noticed during the day:
- Ul Haqs playing for Pakistan will always manage to find the strangest ways of getting out.
- Dravid wants his ODI spot back.
- Best way to Ganguly out: Bowl a wide one and let him smash it for 4 and then bowl one coming into him - he would either play it on to the stumps or to the slips.
- Mohd. Yousuf is a better fielder in test cricket than ODIs.
- No one has been out caught in the slips in 2 days of cricket.
- 20-20 cricket can be the stepping stone for new test players - examples: Misbah and Sohail Tanvir.
- Geoff Lawson has his heart with Pakistan.
- I still don't know what the commentators are smoking. Pakistan lost 5 wickets between lunch and tea yesterday, India lost 4 today and yet Rameez, Arun Lal, Bishop, Yardley & Co. keep saying that the 2nd session is the best time to bat.
- The post tea session is the best time for batting. Pakistan lost no wickets yesterday and India lost only 1 today.
- Malik has used Kaneria better than all other former captains he's bowled under.
- Yuvraj Singh will have to continue bringing the drinks during test matches. Laxman's career is far from over and Ganguly is India's 3rd pacer.
- Not only do umpires help Kumble get wickets at the Kotla (1999), they also help him stay at the crease (2007).
Labels: Kaneria, Kotla, Laxman, Misbah, Pakistan vs India Tests, Q, Saurav Ganguly, Sohail Tanvir, Yuvraj
4 Comments:
great observations Q...i loved Lawson's reaction when Tanvir dismissed Dravid.
also agree about Malik using Kaneria well...perhaps because he is a spinner himself.
Kumble is extremely lucky to still be there!
Laxman is a very good batsman...Yuvraj should be playing instead of Karthik and let Ganguly open.
Nazhar - Karthik is India's leading run scorer for 2007. I'll give a link for the stats later but they were showing the list during the game today. So I don't see him being dropped, not do I see Ganguly opening - his career will be over if he does that in tests ;-)
I forgot one observation - Shoaib Akhtar! Actually u pointed it out Nazhar - the man cant bowl more than 3 overs in a spell! He bowled well I thought but he definitely needs to be fitter and bowl longer spells.
Yep maybe Kaneria was used that way cos Malik is a spinner himself, or maybe it Kaneria himself doing the thinking - he's shortened his run up, bowled the google much less than he usually does, and didnt give away too many runs. Or is Lawson behind this?
I loved Lawson's reaction too.
Q/N,
That delivery evoked almost the same reaction from me, albeit more in pain.
However what a beut!
BTW, None of the batsmen want to open and surely none would like to head to Australia as the designated opener.
Karthik/Jaffer will stay.
I like Karthik. From what I saw of him in England, he's a very good bat.
Ottayan - a lot of us thought that Tanvir is not a test bowler but after today most of us are thinking otherwise.
I think Lawson was as surprised as he was happy seeing Tanvir bowl that beauty. I had a similar reaction - I was ecstatic, but also surprised that it was Tanvir who had gotten DRAVID!
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