If the first day had been all about making an emphatic statement to Sri Lanka, the second was about restraint and maturity

Andrew Fernando in Galle16-Nov-2010Hard-hitting opening batsmen are all the rage in Test cricket right now. Virender Sehwag, Shane Watson, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Tamim Iqbal, and lately – Brendon McCullum. Few however – Sehwag excepted – can claim the kind of voracious appetite for massive innings that Chris Gayle so patently displays. Six of Gayle’s thirteen centuries have been scores of over 150. Three of those have been double-tons and two have been in excess of that magical 300 mark.While Gayle might not have Brian Lara’s prodigious ability or his effortless control, it seems that he has inherited the great West Indian’s hunger to strive for something even greater when the battle already seems won; the hunger to not be sated by simply having one’s opponents by the scruff of the neck, but to play the kinds of innings that would push them to the brink and further.Like Lara, Gayle is no stranger to playing the lone hand. His valiant second-innings 165 against a formidable Australian attack, while his team-mates’ resolve deserted them in Adelaide last year, ensured that West Indies salvaged a creditable draw from an otherwise arduous series. His unbeaten 63, however, was not enough to get them across the line in the semi-final of the World Twenty20 in 2009. The next highest score on the team card was just seven.Little wonder then that, in an innings where the West Indies amassed their highest-ever total in the subcontinent, none of Gayle’s team-mates passed 70. That’s not to say, of course, that he didn’t have support: Adrian Barath, Darren Bravo and Brendan Nash played second-fiddle admirably. But they were all exactly that: the forgettable back-up singers in a spectacular performance of the Chris Gayle show.The zeal with which the Sri Lankans appealed for every half-chance betrayed the immense value that they had placed on his wicket. For a man who is so often derided as egotistical and self-serving, Gayle means a lot to this West Indian outfit. And had he perished early on Monday morning, perhaps the inexperienced youngsters in the top-order whose work was made that much more simple by the fireworks at the other end, would not have lasted long either. The dramatic collapse after Gayle’s departure this evening simply highlighted his importance to a fledgling side who have struggled whenever he has failed.It’s not as if criticism of Gayle is unwarranted. A man who hauls in a tidy sum as captain of the West Indies in addition to the income from sponsors and the IPL might be expected to fall in line when the board makes demands. But to see Gayle through this one-sided lens – as a mercenary hack who sells out his national side for more money – is to obscure a more laudable piece of the Chris Gayle puzzle: a batsman whose team’s fortunes depend so heavily upon him that he is more often than not, the difference between victory and defeat. The way he compiled his mammoth innings at Galle suggested that perhaps Gayle is himself aware of this fact.The first day of a tour in which your side has already been written off is about impact, the need to convey to the opposition that you won’t be beaten without a fight. And Gayle provided it in emphatic style – 219 not out from 241 deliveries and the record for most sixes in an innings by a West Indian. But the restraint and maturity with which he batted on day two, to not only complete his triple-century, but to consolidate his team’s dominance and lift them to a first-innings total from where a maiden Test win in Sri Lanka was now a very real possibility, was perhaps even more impressive than his opening-day ballistics.He had blasted 34 boundaries in all on the first day, hitting 26 fours and eight sixes. On Tuesday, in over two sessions of batting, he struck just nine, opting instead to exploit the defensive fields to keep the scoreboard ticking alongside Nash, who did the same. Instead of brutish pulls to the midwicket boundary, there were delicate glances and fends to the on-side. The crashing blows through cover and point became gentle nudges and late dabs. Even the majestic wallops high above the bowlers’ heads – the highlight of his dazzling strokeplay yesterday, were replaced by stolen singles to long-off. The ceaseless slogger of the previous day’s play had overnight transformed into a canny accumulator. And his team was far better for it.The celebrations too, were muted. No belligerent fist pumps ensued, no yells, leaps in the air or extravagant flourishes of the bat. He simply knelt in the middle of the Galle pitch and raised his arms aloft. Perhaps the searing heat had sapped the energy necessary for the requisite amount of showmanship or maybe it’s just not his style, but for a man who’d just been relieved of the captaincy, Gayle seemed to have surprisingly little to prove.

If Bangladesh stay in the World Cup, it will do more than just give the competition life. It will give it boisterousness, it will give it energy, it will give it a new character. But South Africa are standing in the way.

Firdose Moonda in Mirpur18-Mar-2011The Lobby Café at the Sheraton Hotel where the South Africa and Bangladesh teams are staying emptied out faster than a stadium does after England beat West Indies. The romantic cricket-watching scene of noses pressed against glass with curious eyes straining to see the screen had played out when Andre Russell and Ramnaresh Sarwan were batting. When the collapse began, those cricket lovers disappeared, their hopes of Bangladesh easing into the quarter-finals gone with them.At the end, only one smiling policeman remained. “I am very happy,” he said. “I am very happy because if Bangladesh were to get into the quarter-finals because of the West Indies beating England, that is not good. They should rather get in by beating South Africa. That is very good.”Pride is what he was talking about. In recent weeks, Bangladesh have had plenty to be proud about. Their role as hosts of the World Cup is something that they are treasuring, something that they hope will put them on the global map in the same light as South Africa has been since the football World Cup. Tourists are welcomed with the words “Thank you for coming to Bangladesh,” Dhaka is transformed into something magical at night with fairy lights on all the streets and there are posters advertising the tournament and the team everywhere.The Bangladesh team are a dominant feature in the marketing campaign, because without them the tournament would hold far less value to the public. The team, in good touch before the event when they blanked New Zealand at home, came in as a strong contender to qualify for the knockout stage. It was the first time in the history of Bangladesh cricket that there was pressure on the team of this nature – the pressure of expectation – and now the moment has arrived where the limits of testing that pressure will be reached.Bangladesh could not have expected it to be easy – with India, South Africa and England in their group. They probably eyed West Indies as the soft targets, the men in decline with a record of inconsistency that could see them fold at some stage of a six-match league. That didn’t go according to plan and West Indies earned the most resounding of wins against them. It was a serious reality check of everything, from where they stand in world cricket to what they need to do to qualify for the quarter-finals.In a beautiful twist of irony, one of the things they needed was for West Indies to beat England. That would have given Bangladesh a clear passage to the knockouts. It meant that the same team whose bus was stoned, accidentally or not, when they beat Bangladesh, was being cheered on in earnest. It would have been a less dignified way to qualify for the quarters, but it would have been a way, and that may have been all that mattered.The team themselves don’t seem to have placed too much importance on the West Indies loss, knowing that they can’t expect favours on the road to success. Shakib Al Hasan didn’t even watch the whole match. “When Chris Gayle was batting, I was watching. After that, I watched Hindi movies,” he said. It may have been that he wanted to get away from the cricket for a while, but it’s likely that he was avoiding the goings-on in Chennai because he wanted to get the mindset right and it seems he has.”We have to fight to get to the quarter-finals ourselves,” he said. It’s a tough ask, but they can take comfort in knowing that the World Cup has usually provided the stage to pull off a big upset. In 1999, they did it against Pakistan, in 2007 they did it twice, to make up for not doing it in 2003. First, they axed a giant, beating India by five wickets and ultimately sending them out of the tournament. Then, they were a banana skin for South Africa in the Super Eights, something that will no doubt be a source of motivation ahead of tomorrow’s match.Bangladesh are enjoying their role as World Cup hosts•Associated PressThe biggest inspiration should come from within though. Bangladesh have made strides towards being a credible cricketing nation in the recent past. Graeme Smith, South Africa’s captain, said the “knockouts will make the World Cup because it will feature the best teams in the world.” Bangladesh would dearly love to be counted among those.Beyond wins over Associates and the odd triumph against Zimbabwe, they whitewashed the West Indies away from home and did the same against New Zealand. The only way they can prove how much they have improved and how seriously they can be taken is with their actions on the cricket field.Their fans will come into the fray – with the passion they are showing for the game seeing Bangladesh talked about as the new market for cricket. It’s no secret that keeping a host in a tournament for as long as possible keeps interest alive in the event, but for this host to stay in the tournament will do more than just give the competition life. It will give it boisterousness, it will give it energy, it will give it a new character.It will give all those people the reasons they need to keep believing and to keep supporting. It will bring back those who turned away from the café, because they didn’t think Bangladesh could do it for themselves.At the far end of that restaurant a few South African players were sitting as the support dwindled. Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Morne van Wyk, Colin Ingram and Johan Botha watched with amused smiles as the West Indies did the ch— better than South Africa in Chennai. They saw, first-hand, what it will mean for the public if Bangladesh get through and they will be braced for a tough fight when the players step onto the Shere Bangla field.

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the day from the second day of the second Test in Lord’s

Andrew Miller at Lord's04-Jun-2011Jitters of the day
It’s been six years and 11 Tests since England last failed to score a century in a Lord’s Test, but that record was looking in some jeopardy. After Alastair Cook succumbed for 96 on Friday, Matt Prior needed an extraordinary run of good fortune to sneak through to three figures today. After moving calmly along to 86, he hurtled to 99 in the space of four balls – each and every one a genuine edge through the slips. Three of them fizzed away to the boundary, including a perfect bisection of keeper and first slip, while the fourth was badly dropped by Mahela Jayawardene at second slip. At the fifth time of asking, the middle of his bat did the business, as he nudged a single out to midwicket, to jog through to his fifth Test century – equalling Allan Knott’s record for an England keeper.Blow of the day
For the first 18 overs of Sri Lanka’s innings, Graeme Swann was fairly confident he had sustained the most painful blow of the day – a bruised right wrist after an edge from Dilshan had bounced awkwardly in front of him at second slip. For an anxious hour he was off the field receiving treatment, leaving England to contemplate the possibility of being a bowler down for the second Test in succession. But then, eventually, he returned to the fray … and his short leg man, Ian Bell, was soon made to wish he hadn’t bothered. Swann’s first delivery of the match was a long-hop, which was clattered mercilessly into his ribs by Tillakaratne Dilshan.Drop of the day
Paul Collingwood’s absence continues to be felt by England. His successor, Eoin Morgan, may have produced a feisty fifty to propel their hefty first-innings total, but in the field, Colly’s safe hands have not yet been adequately replaced. Alastair Cook is the new man in the cordon, but on 37 for 0, he dropped a clanger as Tharanga Paranavitana edged Steven Finn at a comfortable height to third slip. The opportunity struck him on the thumb and spun away to safety, as Sri Lanka’s opening pair took advantage of the let-off to pile along to their country’s highest first-wicket stand against England, beating the 113 that Sanath Jayasuriya and Michael Vandort added at Kandy in 2007-08.Reactions of the day
Dilshan’s second half-century of the series was a watchful affair in spite of the pace he scored his runs, and no moment epitomised that better than the first ball after tea. With the over-spin that has become his trademark, Swann looked to have squeezed a length delivery through Dilshan’s back-foot defences, as the ball looped up behind the batsman and was heading inexorably for the stumps. But, with a casual flick of the back of his bat, Dilshan deflected the ball away to safety, and carried on with his innings. It wasn’t quite the Dilscoop, but it was innovative bat-work nonetheless.Non-reaction of the day
Emboldened by that escape, and by a subsequent squashed thumb courtesy of Chris Tremlett, Dilshan decided to up the ante after tea. On 56, he sashayed down the track to Swann, and belted him handsomely towards the pavilion benches at long-on. There, minding his own business, was an MCC member who hadn’t a clue what violence was heading his way. The ball crashed into left-hand side of his chest, and within minutes, the England doctor had rushed down from the balcony above to attend to the scene. Fortunately, after a few anxious minutes, the patient was back on his feet.Spurious record of the day
Hastings and Collinge, eat your heart out. A new (unratified) record was set in the closing stages of England’s innings, as Steven Finn joined Chris Tremlett to form the highest tenth-wicket partnership in Test history. Admittedly, their runs tally of 34 fell some way short of the 151 held jointly by the above-mentioned Kiwis and Pakistan’s Azhar Mahmood and Mushtaq Ahmed, but at a combined height of four yards, one foot and three-and-a-half inches, there’s surely no other combination who could hold a candle to them (without using a stepladder).

ESPNcricinfo presents the Plays of the Day from the IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals

Sidharth Monga21-Apr-2011The no-ball, part I
It was a strange move from Shane Warne to open the bowling with Siddharth Trivedi, who almost exclusively deals in slower balls nowadays. However, the move seemed to have worked when he bowled Adam Gilchrist with the fourth ball he bowled on the night; except it turned out to be a no-ball. Just to rub it in, Gilchrist pulled the free-hit for four.The awareness, or lack of it
Gamesmanship is all fine, but it can be a bit embarrassing if indulged in without proper awareness of the rules and regulations of the game. Gilchrist, unaware that the delivery that had bowled him was a no-ball, was walking off, but as soon as Dishant Yagnik realised it, he broke the stumps, and even appealed for a run-out. “How was that?” In gully cricket maybe. In official cricket, you cannot be run-out if you have left the crease to walk back, not knowing that you have been dismissed of an illegal delivery.The no-ball, part II
It was a perfect plan: Shaun Tait bowling at 150kph, getting menacing bounce, placing a slip and two gullies for Paul Valthaty. And it worked. A short ball got big on Valthaty, he failed to control the shot, and hit straight to the second gully. Except that the umpire wanted to check the legality of the delivery. Tait hadn’t overstepped, but as it turned out, he had cut the return crease, and not for the first time in recent cricket.The disrespect
Shane Warne played Test cricket with Geoff Marsh. He had his own sons and a special friend watching from the stands when he came on to bowl to Marsh’s son, Shaun. Marsh junior, though, was in no mood for niceties as he slog-swept the legend for three sixes in one over, bringing up Warne’s half-century. After the game, though, Marsh was graceful in describing the events. “First time I have got a few off him, usually he gets me out pretty early,” Marsh said. His old man would have approved.The maiden
With the score reading 77 for 1 after six overs, you would not believe a maiden over had been bowled. And it was no ordinary maiden over. It was one in which Shaun Tait consistently kept beating Paul Valthaty for pace. Never mind that Valthaty is in such good touch that he was 33 off 13 before the over started. Valthaty managed bat on ball only once in that over, digging a yorker out. Four other deliveries he tried to cut and was slow on them, and the sixth hit him in the hip area, and ran away for four leg-byes.

Plays of the Day from the IPL game between Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Daredevils in Chennai

Abhishek Purohit12-May-2011Dharamsala revisited
MS Dhoni and Irfan Pathan have some history in the IPL. Dhoni had pulverised Irfan for consecutive sixes in the final over against Kings XI Punjab to take Chennai Super Kings in to the semi-finals of IPL 2010. Irfan had been largely economical today, having gone for 28 with only two deliveries left in his fourth over, again the final one of the innings. Knowing that anything on a length against Dhoni would disappear, Irfan targeted the blockhole. It was going to be a high-risk strategy, and as it turned out, the fifth delivery turned in to a low full toss. Six over midwicket. Irfan stuck to his guns and again went for the yorker. Another full toss. Six over deep square leg. The 12 runs helped in the end as the winning margin was 18.The one that didn’t swing
Before he was taken apart by Dhoni, Irfan had been hard to get away, getting controlled movement with the new ball. His first ball went away from Michael Hussey, and was taken for a single. Hussey watched from the other end as the next two sharply came back in to M Vijay. On strike for the fourth ball, Hussey did not commit fully forward, waited for the ball to move away and cracked it past extra cover. The fifth one straightened and was played out quietly. The sixth one was the sucker punch. It kept the batsman guessing on the back foot. Hussey expected it to move away, but it went straight on. He tried to bring the bat down late but the ball had already struck him plumb in front.Aaron checks in
Varun Aaron had impressed with his pace in his first IPL game against Punjab. Today, he did so with the steep bounce he got. Consistently bowling from short of a good length, his second delivery flew to the wicketkeeper above head height. Vijay, who had already swung Ajit Agarkar for two sixes, was pegged on the back foot with well-directed bouncers. Aaron was unlucky to have Vijay dropped in the covers, but he got Suresh Raina with the bouncer. The first ball he bowled to Raina was short outside off and beat the batsman on the cut. The third ball was aimed at his throat, Raina instinctively went for the pull, and Irfan accepted the catch at long leg.The dugout catch
Chennai caught safely in the field today, and even off it. Venugopal Rao lofted Shadab Jakati over Raina at long-off. Raina thought he had a chance, went backwards and lunged for the ball but it went over him and in to the Chennai dugout. Raina overbalanced and flew in to his sitting team-mates, bringing Faf du Plessis down. A metre away, Suraj Randiv wondered what the fuss was all about as he calmly stood up and took the ‘catch’ cleanly with a smile on his face.

Failure was not an option for Virat Kohli, coming in to this Test, and he ensured he delivered, albeit in an understated way

S Aga25-Nov-2011On the surface, there were similarities between the two. One was playing
his third Test, the other his fourth. Both had won Test honours largely as
a result of eye-catching displays in one-day colours. But while R Ashwin –
who sat out the World Cup final – had taken to Test cricket with élan,
picking up 18 wickets, Virat Kohli’s arrival at the crease was effectively
an audition for next month’s tour of Australia.Kohli has fond memories of this ground, having played a crucial cameo in
the World Cup final. But in the Test arena, he has yet to find his
footing. A debut series in the West Indies that produced just 75 runs in
five innings had the critics carping, and he had no part to play in the
debacle that subsequently unfolded in England.Both he and Ashwin starred in the one-day successes against England, but
only one man was a certain starter in this Test series. While Kohli
watched Yuvraj Singh fluff his lines in Delhi and Kolkata, Ashwin was
ensuring that he would be one of the first names written down for the
Australian touring party.With Rohit Sharma in the squad for this game and Ajinkya Rahane also in
the reckoning, Kohli knew that failure was not an option. “When I came
into the team, we had this team meeting with someone new in the team
giving a speech,” he said after a fourth day during which his 52 and a
97-run partnership with Ashwin saved India from the ignominy of the
follow-on. “They made me do that again. I said that my first series was a
disappointment and hopefully I can get things right this time around.”I was in a good mental space before this series. I got runs against
England, but it is a totally different ball game – Test cricket. It was
difficult for me because I was thinking too many things. I put myself
under pressure in the West Indies, thinking too many things, not sure what
I wanted to do.”The cat-on-hot-tin-roof feeling was apparent again at times today, and in
stark contrast to the nonchalance with which Ashwin went about his
business. “He came out and started playing shots,” said Kohli with the
merest hint of a smile. “I am standing at one end trying to handle
pressure, trying to get the situation right, and he gets five fours in 10
balls. He was pretty relaxed and confident because of what he’d done with
the ball.Virat Kohli’s 52 may have done enough in sealing his spot in the Boxing Day Test•AFP”It was good he was in that kind of space. He came out and timed the ball
well. It was good to have him scoring from one end. I could bat myself in
and spend more time in the middle. It was a very
good innings.”His own innings had started in Sachin Tendulkar’s company, with a large
crowd throbbing with excitement at the prospect of history being made.
Within the hour though, expectancy had given way to anxiety. “It’s not an
easy position [No. 6] to bat in Tests,” said Kohli. “When I went in, I was
playing with a set batsman. As soon as two batsmen got out, I had to be
the one to play with lower-order batsmen. It was a complete transition in
half hour.”The partnership with Tendulkar was brief, but he apparently had a big
influence in the way Kohli approached this game. “I spoke to Sachin, and
he told me to do the same things I do normally, on any given day,” he
said. “I went in a difficult situation in the morning, but I cherish
playing under pressure.”With Ashwin playing the aggressor’s role, Kohli could ease his way into
proceedings, and he got as far as 52 before a miscue to mid-on off
Devendra Bishoo. “Definitely, the way I was going, the way the situation
was, it was the perfect scenario for me to get a big score,” he said. “I
wanted to go with the turn, but did not get too much elevation. I middled
the ball but it went it straight to the fielder.”The biggest challenges had come much earlier, with the West Indies bowlers
targeting a perceived weakness against short-pitched bowling. “I was
tagged as someone who cannot play the short ball after West Indies, so
when I went in, I knew they were going to throw short balls at me,” he
said. “I am more of a mindset player. I need to be in the right frame of
mind. Today was one of those days when I thought that it didn’t matter if
they bowled short. I was going to get a full stride out. I had a blank
mind before playing every ball – that kind of helped. It’s all a menta -toughness game out there.”Lessons have been imbibed from a dressing room that knows a thing or two
about toughness. “I never thought I would even get to meet these
people face to face,” said Kohli. “Now I’m sharing the dressing room. You
learn so many things from them, especially in practice
sessions. They will take a certain number of catches every day, they
will hit certain amount of balls. It’s not something they are complacent
about. That’s what makes them great players.”For India to pull off an unlikely victory on Saturday, they need wickets
to fall in a heap in the morning. “Our aim was to get early breakthroughs,
which we did,” said Kohli. “We would have loved to have them four wickets
down, but it did not happen. Tomorrow could be interesting if we could get
early wickets and may be get one-and-a-half sessions to bat.”He batted over a session today and may just have sealed a spot for himself
in the Boxing Day Test. On a day when Ashwin stole the limelight from
everyone, Kohli’s understated impact could have similar long-term
ramifications for a side in transition.

Whether Ricky Ponting crafts a victory for Australia or South Africa record a landmark win, this match is a tribute to the longest format of cricket

Firdose Moonda at the Wanderers20-Nov-2011There is a reason crime series television will never go out of fashion. Besides the car-crash curiosity of human nature, that wants to peek at other’s offences without being part of them, the suspense, intrigue and mystery is what makes the shows watchable. What makes them successful, though, is the way suspense hangs thick in the air, subplots create violent twists around unseen corners and anticipation builds to a crescendo.The same applies to absorbing Test cricket. When played between two, equally matched and competitive sides in conditions that encourage a genuine contest between bat and ball, the intricacies and beauties of the game unfold like a flower in the springtime.South Africa and Australia have produced many such gripping contests in summers past. In 1952-53, an under-rated South Africa travelled to Australia and drew a four-Test series when no-one though they would come away unscarred. In 1993-94, in another drawn series, South Africa recorded a memorable win in Sydney, with Fanie de Villiers and Allan Donald the architects of an unlikely triumph. In 2008-09 in Perth and Melbourne, South Africa made history on two counts: chasing down a mammoth 414 and beating Australia for the first time away from home.Apart from the 1969-70 clean sweep, Australia have dominated South Africa at home, until now, with South Africa one day away from getting their own back. They will have to bowl with discipline, which has evaded them at times, and with consistency that has played hide and seek so far. Even if South Africa are not able to close out the series, they should be able to take pride out of the intensity of the mini-battles and the quality of cricket they produced.Russell Domingo, South Africa’s assistant coach, pointed out at the end of the third day’s play that “many matches are decided on what happens in the third innings”, and he may be proven right. South Africa’s day started with Hashim Amla 11 runs short of a century and AB de Villiers at the other end, well set and poised to go on to something bigger.What played out in the 168 minutes after that was a cricket-lover’s dream. Under cloudy skies 18-year-old Pat Cummins, whose smile only disappears when he steps onto a cricket field, ran in like he knew exactly what to bowl. Shane Watson said that Cummins’ cricketing instincts are remarkable for someone of his age and it showed when he set Jacques Kallis up on the third day.On Sunday morning, it was the turn of de Villiers, who Cummins was drawing into the drive. As soon as Cummins got the length right, de Villiers poked at the ball awkwardly and sent a high catch Michael Clarke’s way.The partnership was broken but Amla needs more than a fractured stand to rattle his nerves. He saw off Cummins to reach his second century of the series, a knock of such self-assuredness that it could stand as an example of how a Test innings should be played.In a complete turnaround, however, Amla did not continue is such sagely fashion. Three balls after completing his ton, he was involved in of madness of the match. He stuttered in his run and Ashwell Prince was forced to sacrifice himself. It was the only run-out in the series, so far.Mark Boucher, much like Ricky Ponting, is at the stage where every innings is considered potentially career-ending. He did himself no favours after failing to lead the tail for the second time in the match. His top-edge in the first innings came at the height of South Africa’s collapse, but the way in which he was deceived by Nathan Lyon’s flight in the second innings was more concerning. Although South Africa have not groomed a wicketkeeper to replace Boucher at Test level, the need for them to start the process becomes more pressing with each match. Boucher’s non-performance with the bat in this series is a further illustration of that.Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn flew the flag for fast bowlers who believe that they can contribute with the bat. Both have hard-hitting skills that should be nurtured, and their 48-run partnership could still prove to be the crucial contribution in South Africa’s second innings.With tension governing the morning session, what happened after lunch was a release. Cummins ripped through Philander and Morne Morkel, before Steyn executed his own brand of aggression, protecting Imran Tahir from the strike and lashing out when appropriate. Quick bowlers of Cummins’ quality are as valuable as a spotting of a leopard in the wild and to see the teenager marry pace and control in the way that he did bodes well for the future of Australian fast bowling.While Cummins relied on pace and bounce, Vernon Philander used length, accuracy, and seam movement to rock Australia with a double-strike early in their chase. His punctures brought to the crease a legend facing a burden like no other. Ponting had been given the perfect stage to redeem himself and, so far, with an unbeaten half-century he is close to doing so, even if he bows out of the game at the end of this match.Ponting’s sincerity in passing on some of what he has learned to Australia’s younger lot is evident. In Potchefstroom, during Australia’s tour match against South Africa A, Ponting was spotted at a restaurant joking with Usman Khawaja, the man with whom he shared a crucial partnership with today, and in deep conversation with Shane Watson, long after the rest of the squad had left. With both Khawaja and Watson, his commitment to Australian cricket was in full view.Ponting now has the opportunity to assert himself once more, with the end beckoning. South Africa have the opportunity to break the shackles of years of Australian dominance. Whether Ponting crafts a win, or South Africa steal it from under him, the anticipation of a memorable Test is almost guaranteed to be met. The intrigue of the oldest form of the game should burn brighter at its conclusion.Hashim Amla put it best when he said, “The purists of the game would have enjoyed the challenge and the delicate nature of how thin the game has been,” Amla said. “Both the Newlands Test and this one have been good adverts for Test cricket in different ways.”

Sure, the wickets in Australia are faster and bouncier than back home; all the more reason to pitch it up

Aakash Chopra26-Dec-2011While batting is undoubtedly India’s strength, it is not possible to make an impression without having the arsenal to take 20 wickets in a Test match. After all, winning a Test match is more about dismissing the opposition twice than scoring more runs than them. India’s batting will blossom only if their bowlers manage to restrict the Australian batting line-up to a manageable total, for batting after fielding for two days in the field is a herculean task. India’s bowling unit isn’t all that experienced and will have to punch above its weight to tilt the balance in their team’s favour.Pitch it fuller
When a young fast bowler lands in Australia, fantasies of bouncing batsmen out begin to play in his mind. Nothing pleases a fast bowler more than the sight of a batsman hopping and ducking for cover, but not many young fast bowlers realise that the idea of bouncing the top order out is a fallacy in international cricket. Most batsmen at this level are adept at handling the short-pitched stuff, and in fact they secretly hope that bowlers waste their energy, and the shine on the ball, by bowling bouncers. Whatever doesn’t get a batsman out doesn’t hurt him. It’s important for the likes of Umesh Yadav, Abhimanyu Mithun and Ishant Sharma to take a leaf out of Zaheer Khan’s book of line-and-length bowling in Test cricket. The new Kookaburra swings appreciably in the air and it’s important to keep the ball in the air for longer by pitching it fuller.Make the batsman play
The wicketkeeper collecting the ball with his fingers consistently pointing upwards is a wonderful sight for a bowler. The bounce and carry on Australian pitches encourage the bowler to run in a little harder and bowl a little quicker. Most bowlers from the subcontinent are not used to getting rewarded in such a quantifiable manner, and often get carried away. It’s important for the younger Indian bowlers to remember that however nice it feels to see the ball carry through to the wicketkeeper at a good height, it’s all about dismissing the batsman. I can tell you that an opener hates to be made to play at most deliveries, and is more susceptible to making errors when he is forced to play. It’s important to make the new ball count, for the failure to take wickets with the it can often result in the team spending long hours in the field.Hit the deck hard when the ball gets old
While the new Kookaburra swings appreciably, it ceases to swing when the seam and shine disappear. A bowler who wreaks havoc with the new ball becomes easy pickings with the old one. Once it stops swinging in the air, you have to extract movement off the surface, and for that you must hit the deck hard. The good thing is that the hard Australian surfaces are very responsive, but the tough part is that it calls for more effort from the bowler. India’s bowlers may have to bowl shorter spells but they must put everything behind the ball in those four or five overs. In Australia it’s all about quality, not quantity.Flight it
Australian surfaces with their pace and bounce may be ideal for fast bowlers, but the bounce can be a spinner’s ally too. While a spinner must always have the mindset of a fast bowler, he should refrain from bowling it quicker in the air. The easiest way to play a spinner is from the crease, which is possible when the bowler bowls quicker and the batsman doesn’t need to use his feet to smother the spin. If Ashwin and Ojha are prepared to flight the ball, they’re sure to get some assistance from the surface. The bounce ensures that edges carry comfortably to the close-in fielders, so batsmen have to be extra careful while playing defensive shots. Most Australian grounds have long boundaries and that should further encourage the Indian spinners to toss the ball up a bit. Most Australian batsmen prefer to attack spinners, but not many of them use their feet all that well, so the slower India’s bowlers bowl, the better their chances of creating opportunities.

Marks out of ten for South Africa following their 2-1 Test series win at home against Sri Lanka

Firdose Moonda08-Jan-20129
Vernon Philander
With 16 wickets from two matches, at an average of 12.62, Philander has continued to surf the waves of Test success. A knee injury prevented him from playing in the second Test but either side of that, he was exceptional. He bowled a questioning length throughout and had the Sri Lankan batsmen constantly confused about whether to go forward or back to him. He operated as an out and out strike bowler, and had the ability to apply the stranglehold on run-scoring and thereby became Smith’s go-to man. After just four Tests, he is already the spearhead of the South African attack.8
AB de Villiers
Named Man of the Series for his prolific efforts with the bat, de Villiers was the highest run-scorer of the series. His 353 runs included a fluent 99 in Centurion, which was crucial to South Africa batting only once, and a quick-fire 160 in Cape Town, which was characterised by some of the most audacious shots in Test cricket. His role in the middle order varied from anchor to aggressor and he pulled both off with equal acclaim. He also played a key role in forming part of the core of the brains’ trust and was often seen chatting to bowlers, setting fields and helping make tactical decisions.7.5
Dale Steyn
Although he operated in the shadows of Philander, Steyn’s success cannot be overlooked. He was South Africa’s second highest wicket-taker, with 14 scalps at an average of 21.57, and threatened the batsmen throughout. With little swing on offer in any of the venues, Steyn had to rely on pace to make inroads and it worked most of the time. The series showed that his determination and ability to be dangerous has not faded an inch. In Durban, he went wicketless in the first innings, the first time since 2008 that he had not taken a single stick in a complete innings, but retuned with a five-for in the second.6.5
Jacques Kallis
After two relatively nondescript performances, Kallis turned things around with an all-round effort of the highest quality in Cape Town. In Durban, Kallis recorded his first ever pair in Test cricket and responded with the second double-century of his career. Talk before the Newlands Test was that age was finally catching with the great allrounder and his reactions against the short ball, in particular, were too slow. He erased all of that with a magnificent 224 which included some of the finest pulls of the series. To add to that, Kallis took six catches, five of them at second slip, and claimed three wickets.6
Graeme Smith
Not since Bangladesh in 2008 has Smith led South Africa to a Test series win at home. As a leader, he was shrewd and street smart. He managed his bowlers cleverly, using the three attacking seamers in short bursts, handling Kallis’ workload well and allowing Imran Tahir to settle into his role in the side. Smith’s contributions with the bat were underwhelming and after he got starts in all his innings but only managed to convert one of them. Ironically, that was on the most difficult batting pitch of the series in Centurion.Imran Tahir
Baby steps have been the strategy to Tahir’s inclusion in Test cricket and he made a giant leap in Cape Town, where he bowled a large chunk of the total overs. Although expensive, Tahir ensured he made up for that with wickets, finishing the series with 10 victims. With a good googly and the ability to tease the batsmen, he appears to have made a proper leap to the international arena, although some will argue that the theatrics need to be toned down. Tahir has clearly improved in the other two disciplines of the game as well, fielding with more composure than he is known for. He made handy contributions at No. 11, including a feisty 29 in Centurion and may be eyeing a move up the order.Is it curtains for Ashwell Prince?•Associated PressMarchant de Lange
Last year’s most successful bowling debutant, de Lange was sublime in his first match. At 21-years and just 15 first-class matches old, he used pace and bounce to claim 7 for 81 in his first Test innings in Durban. He showed all the qualities of a future star, maintaining good control throughout. He struggled in the second innings as Sri Lanka extended the advantage. Philander’s return to fitness saw him miss out on the deciding Test.Alviro Petersen
He only had one chance but he made the most of it. Petersen was recalled to the side after Rudolph failed to set the stage alight and Petersen grafted hard at domestic level. Against a pumped up Sri Lankan attack, coming off their first win in South Africa, Petersen brought a degree of composure to the top order. He played a chanceless innings, formed a key partnership with Kallis and was the founding stone of South Africa’s mammoth total.5
Hashim Amla
A quiet series for the man with the bat that usually does the most talking. Amla was dismissed cheaply at Centurion but looked like his usual self in Durban, his home ground, where he has an unusually poor record. He scored twin half-centuries in the match, and was dismissed both times just as he was finding form. He was South Africa’s best performer in their worst match, a sign of his ability to respond to pressure, but barely featured in the other two apart from an always eager presence in the field.4.5
Jacques Rudolph
He started the series as an opening batsman and ended it in the middle order. In his first three innings, shot selection let him down as Rudolph was unable to keep the pull down and induced into the drive. After seven innings, with an average of 22.71, the selectors had no choice but to take action. Rudolph was moved to No. 6, as a way to shield him from the top-order assault and pave a way for him to translate his prolific domestic form. On a flat deck at Newlands, after South Africa had piled on over 450 runs, he added a competent half-century. The innings proved he still has it but it remains inconclusive whether he will keep it for pressure situations that are sure to arise in future.Mark Boucher
Boucher started by providing a fresh reason for prolonging his career with a carefully crafted 65 at Centurion, where he used his experience to shepherd the tail, particularly Tahir. Like most of the South African line-up, he failed in Durban. Boucher took 17 catches and effected a stumping but his performances will be underlined by his two dropped catches. Both were ugly and one of them cost South Africa more than hundred runs. Boucher let Kumar Sangakkara off the hook in Durban and then put down a sitter in Cape Town.Morne Morkel
As the series went on, Morkel got better, but he ended it still not at his best. At first change, Morkel appears out of sorts and short on confidence. He was expensive and unsuccessful in Centurion and leaked runs in Cape Town with small reward. His best performance came when he was given the new ball in Durban, as a temporary measure in Philander’s absence. Of the South African strike bowlers, he had the highest average and will be under the most scrutiny going forward as the reserves, including Lonwabo Tsotsobe, challenge for a place. 4
Ashwell Prince
Some believe he may have played his last Test innings as he was dropped for the third Test. Prince scored 57 runs in three innings and each of his dismissals were concerning. In Durban, he tried the reverse sweep against Rangana Herath when South Africa were in trouble in the second innings was involved in an embarrassing mix-up with Amla, who was run-out. Prince’s place in the side has long been under scrutiny and this series may have been his last chance to put that right.

The search for young batsmen who display the virtues of patience, concentration and lengthy attention spans has gathered steam, and Azhar Ali, so far in his two-year career, has shown signs that he is one such player

Kanishkaa Balachandran in Pallekele11-Jul-2012When Rahul Dravid announced his retirement from international cricket a few months ago, a pall of gloom descended over cricket. It wasn’t necessarily because of the departure of a great player. It was partly because of the uncertainty around whether the next generation have it in them to sustain Test cricket, because it is common opinion that the last generation of quality Test players is slowly slipping away. That they are being replaced by batsmen loaded with skill sets needed for Twenty20 cricket, but are rather lost in Tests. The search for young batsmen who display the virtues of patience, concentration and lengthy attention spans has gathered steam, and Azhar Ali, so far in his two-year career, has shown signs that he is one such player. He showed it at the SSC in this series and, again, at Pallekele, shrugging off his first-innings duck to get to a century in the second.Azhar knows a thing or two about occupying the crease and wearing the opposition bowlers down. His job is to hold one end up so that another player can adopt a more aggressive approach, especially if there is scoreboard pressure. When Azhar walked to the crease late on the third day, Pakistan had just begun their task of erasing a first-innings deficit of 111 and setting a target that would give them a chance to level the series.The momentum was firmly with Sri Lanka at the end of the third day. Pakistan had to practically double their first-innings effort to give themselves a realistic chance of fighting back. Adding to the pressure was an inconsistent middle order, a half-fit Adnan Akmal, and the seaming conditions witnessed over two completed days.Pakistan, perhaps, were fortunate that the harsh sun had evaporated whatever moisture there was on the surface, making batting considerably easier on day four. There was no exaggerated movement in the air or off the pitch to test the technique of either Mohammad Hafeez or Azhar. Both had to ensure they batted an entire session, to gain psychological points over the hosts. Azhar, true to requirements, cut out the extravagance, only playing balls within his reach.He was particularly impressive through the covers, pounding anything with width. Mahela Jayawardene maintained attacking fields for a while during the morning session, packing the slip cordon, but Azhar ensured he drove off the full face of the bat, exploiting the big gap between mid-off and cover, and also straight down the ground. He was judicious with deliveries that honed in on his off stump, preferring to leave them alone. His defence was solid too, and he found opportunities to pick up quick singles.There may have been a case to accelerate post lunch, but the quick departures of Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq forced Azhar to revert to a watchful approach. He had Asad Shafiq – the last recognised, fit batsman – for company, and the pair created some anxiety in the Sri Lanka camp with a stand of 100 for the fifth wicket. Prior to that, Azhar had shared stands of 94, 48 and 18. His was the prized wicket.When Azhar reached his century, shortly after tea, it was his third in Tests for the year – the most by any batsman. It should silence his detractors, who in the past have pointed to his poor conversion rate – he had 13 fifties and only three centuries coming into this game. Another impressive feature of his innings was his stamina, converting twos to threes each time he exploited a big gap. The bowlers needed a mistake on his part and he obliged on 136, chasing a wide Fernando delivery. It was a rare lapse in concentration, after hours of hard work.”Asad and I were aiming to play till the end of the day, so I was a bit disappointed to get out. I was disappointed to leave him alone,” Azhar said. “Hopefully he can string together a good partnership tomorrow morning.”Reflecting on his good form in 2012, Azhar said that the England series in the UAE, during which he scored a career-best 157, convinced him that he belonged at the highest level. “I’ve been playing well over the last few Test matches,” he said. “The England series especially gave me a lot of confidence. I am carrying on from there.”The batting conditions, he said, had eased. “On the first day, the first couple of hours were difficult for the batsmen. It was doing a lot for the seamers. It has settled down now and got a bit slower. But I feel that if a bowler puts in an effort, he can get something out of this pitch.”Though Azhar failed to bat out the day, he helped give Pakistan a fighting chance: their lead stands at 188 with two wickets in hand and Shafiq at the crease. He was confident his team had sufficient runs to create pressure. “We came into this Test with the intention to win and level the series. We have the runs on the board to put pressure on Sri Lanka. I don’t think we need to rely only on the seamers. Saeed Ajmal is a world-class spinner and I think he can change the game for us in one spell.”