World Cricket Information: Test

Showing posts with label Test. Show all posts

West Indies triumph in low-scoring battle

Quite suitably, it took an up and down day to end an up and down Test, a cracker between two faltering sides. At the end West Indies had wrapped up their first and most significant Test win in over two years, since they beat England at the start of 2009. Ravi Rampaul and captain Darren Sammy were at the centre of it, taking eight wickets between them to lead the side to a 40-run win in Providence. Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Akmal battled but Pakistan had been outplayed, their batting as brittle as ash.

Though Sammy took five wickets, Rampaul was actually the key, the best fast bowler in this Test by some distance. Devendra Bishoo's arrival has taken the limelight away from Rampaul, for whom, in a normal non-dysfunctional cricket set-up, this would be hailed as a breakthrough performance. He's bustled in all game, with pace, intelligence and movement.

He was terrific yesterday and began similarly today, generating incoming swerve and then more off the surface. Asad Shafiq's charmed but vital hand was defeated early by one such delivery, coming in and going through. He gave little away in that first six-over spell. Then, after lunch as the ball softened and got old, he raced in for a spell of subtle reverse swing, dismissing the stubborn Abdur Rehman in his second over back.

In between, Sammy took over, playing a real captain's hand. Bishoo and Kemar Roach had looked particularly flat in the morning, so Sammy brought himself in and at his gentle pace, immediately started getting some inswing. The key intervention came in his third over - two wickets in three balls turned around what was becoming Pakistan's morning. He found enough late in-drift to first trap Misbah and then Mohammad Salman lbw; the latter's leg-before took the total number of such dismissals in this Test to a world-record 18.

After tea he picked up three more in a similarly simple manner: pitch on a length on off and bring it in. Umar Gul was first and then came the killer blow, Akmal. The pair were trapped in successive overs before Saeed Ajmal was bowled to cap the win.

With Misbah and Umar putting on a breezy 52 in the morning, the game had been shifting into Pakistan's control. But the fragility of their batting is swiftly becoming legendary, especially in chasing small-ish targets. Misbah continued his extraordinary revival as captain-batsman with a seventh fifty in eight Test innings, employing a familiar method designed to frustrate and exhilarate equally. Most deliveries he blocked, as you might with the Most Exaggerated Forward Defense in world cricket.

But he does possess a keener mind than most Pakistani batsmen and his mini-assault in the morning on Bishoo was well-conceived. Having been tied down against him through the Test, he suddenly lofted him straight for a big six. In the next over, he lofted him through midwicket for a boundary and the field spread, Bishoo a little rattled.

With him, Akmal provided such easy impetus that the surface was forgotten about. He'd already cut a faltering Bishoo, before producing a sumptuous drive on the up off Rampaul. Soon he began to look so good, cutting square, picking through the leg side as well as driving to bring the target under 100, that a rash dismissal felt inevitable, as it so often does with him.

At lunch, he was still around though, poised between his most significant Test innings and yet another pretty but futile hand, and the game was just about still on. Post lunch, he went soon enough, another of the latter in his bag, and one of Pakistan's more shocking recent Test defeats was sealed.

Source & picture: http://www.espncricinfo.com

London: International Cricket Council (ICC) chiefs believe floodlit, day/night Tests could take place in the next few years but insist more work needs to be done on the ball before they give the go-ahead.

A traditional red leather ball is difficult to see under floodlights, while the white ball used for day/night one-day internationals doesn`t wear at the same rate and so is considered unsuitable for longer formats.

Finding a suitable ball has so far proved the key stumbling block, with David Richardson, the ICC`s general manager for cricket, telling reporters at Lord`s on Wednesday: "We`ve spent a lot of time over the last 24 months trying to develop a ball.

"Now we`ve crystallised that there`s not much difference between the pink and orange balls and it was a question of finding a ball that could retain its colour throughout 50-80 overs."

Richardson was speaking after a two-day meeting of the ICC`s cricket committee at Lord`s, the self-styled `home of cricket` and the headquarters of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), who are still responsible for the sport`s rules or Laws.

Officials at MCC believe they have found a solution to the ball problem by developing a pink ball with a black seam.

This ball was used during their first-class match against England`s champion county, Nottinghamshire, in March -- the traditional curtain-raiser to the English season which for the second successive year took place in the non-traditional setting of Abu Dhabi rather than Lord`s itself.

MCC are convinced the ball can last in Tests and former South Africa wicketkeeper Richardson said: "In the Abu Dhabi match it did but the conditions were fairly benign, the outfield was a good one, there was no dew and the balls stood up well."

The dew factor was emphasised by ICC cricket committee chairman Clive Lloyd, the former West Indies captain, who said: "We were worried by the dew factor. If one side bowls at night, it could be with a bar of soap."

Richardson said: "We decided we needed further trailing in multi-day competitions," adding he hoped the pink ball would be used in at least one round of first-class tournaments such as England`s County Championship or Australia`s Sheffield Shield during the next 12 months.

"If the reports coming back are that the ball keeps it’s condition and colour then I think we will be in a position this time next year to select a couple of venues and trial a day/night Test.”

"The venue still needs to have decent lights, somewhere like Lord’s, Sydney or Abu Dhabi. You also need to play it at a venue, and time of year, where dew isn’t going to come in. You can have the best ball in the world but it would be unfair in those conditions."

With audiences for Test cricket declining in recent years outside of traditional heartlands such as England, floodlit matches have been suggested as a way of bolstering crowds for the five-day game.

But Richardson said: "I`m not as pessimistic as some when it comes to needing to save Test cricket. I do think it (day/night Tests) affords boards the opportunity to play Test cricket when more people are available to watch and also commercially it can be more valuable to play at those times of the day -- the prime viewing time in the evening."

Asked if the first day/night Test would take place by 2014, Richardson replied: "I would hope before then."

Source & picture: cricket.zeenews.com

Former Sri Lankan captains Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene have backed fast bowler Lasith Malinga's decision to quit Tests on account of a degenerative knee condition. Malinga announced his retirement last week, when the Sri Lankan board questioned his participation in the IPL after withdrawing from the upcoming England Tests citing fitness issues. Sangakkara pointed out that Malinga's decision was best for the team, while Jayawardene said it was the right call from a personal point of view.

"We were all well aware of the seriousness of his knee condition and while I was captain we tried to manage him as carefully and sensitively as possible during the past couple of years," Sangakkara wrote in his column in the Times of India. "We obviously wanted him to play Tests, but when we asked him to play the India tour it took him two months to physically recover from that."

Sangakkara revealed that Malinga's future was one of the issues he had discussed with the Sri Lankan board while stepping down from captaincy. "The truth is that Lasith is our best fast bowler in limited-overs cricket right now," Sangakkara wrote. "If we forced him to play Tests we would be running the risk of losing him completely. That would be a tragedy for Sri Lanka, undermining both the ODI and T20 teams."

Sangakkara dismissed suggestions that Malinga chose to quit Tests in order to extend his participation in the lucrative IPL. "Malinga has always given his best as a national cricketer. Had it not been for his knee problem he would definitely want to play Tests. I fully support his decision and hope that as a result of it we see him playing for a few more years."

Jayawardene, who was in charge of the Sri Lankan side before Sangakkara took over said it was unfair to criticise Malinga's decision. "Given the state of his knee condition, there is no point in him taking the risk of playing Test cricket," Jayawardene wrote in the same newspaper. "If he breaks down then it will be bad for Sri Lanka. We want him playing for us as long as possible. Some people have criticised the decision, arguing that he is being selfish. This short-sighted argument is very unfair given that he clearly has a chronic knee problem.

"Lasith is a human being and, while he is totally committed to Sri Lanka, he also has responsibilities as a husband and, one day hopefully, a father. If his career is ended by injury, who is going to look after him and his family? When he suffered the injury the first time he was stripped of his central contract within about six months and left with no income.

"Any individual in any profession has to consider their personal and family interests when they make big decisions in their life. Why should a professional cricketer be any different? We need to support him and protect him. He is a natural match-winner and a great asset for Sri Lanka. We should be grateful for his services and help him look after himself."

Source & picture: http://www.espncricinfo.com

PCB pushes for series against India

The Pakistan board has said they have initiated talks with the BCCI over resuming cricketing relations between India and Pakistan, though no decision has yet been taken on when and where to play or the number of matches.

"There has been contact with the BCCI with regards to restarting bilateral contests," Subhan Ahmed, chief operating officer of the PCB, told ESPNcricinfo. "We sent them an email and they replied but as they are busy with the IPL currently, talks will begin after the IPL is over."

There are no details yet of when and what form the contests will take but they are likely to be a short, bilateral ODI series. "There will be three stages to these talks," Subhan said. "Firstly, the boards will decide when we can actually play. Both sides are very busy with FTP requirements in the near future so finding a window will be the first thing. Then we'll talk about the matches themselves and what kind they will be, a three match ODI series or whatever. Finally we will discuss the venue for the series."

The IPL runs till the end of May and India have three overseas tours in the eight months that follow, including high-profile series in England and Australia. India also have a full series home-and-away against West Indies, the Champions League Twenty20 and a home one-day series against England.

India has suspended sporting ties with Pakistan since the 2008 Mumbai terror attack. Since then, India and Pakistan have faced each other only three times, in ODIs at multi-lateral tournaments. The last of those meetings was the World Cup semi-final last month in Mohali, which was attended by the prime ministers of both countries.

After the Mohali match, and the resumption of talks between India and Pakistan's politicians, India's foreign secretary Nirupama Rao said the government welcomed more sporting contact between the two countries. The BCCI has maintained that it has not received any communication from the government over resuming cricketing ties with Pakistan.

While the PCB would like to hold the bilateral cricket series at home, security concerns are likely to rule that out, with the matches likely to be held in India or a neutral country.

Source: http://www.espncricinfo.com

India batsman Sachin Tendulkar and Jacques Kallis of South Africa have jointly claimed the coveted number-one position in the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen after stellar performances in the Cape Town Test which finished on Thursday.

Tendulkar, who scored 146 and 14 not out, has gained one place while Kallis has been rewarded with a jump of four places for his performances of 161 and 109 not out .that earned him the man of the series and match of the match awards, to leapfrog Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara.

Both the batsmen now sit on 883 ratings points, just one ahead of Sangakkara.

Tendulkar, who won the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Cricketer of the Year Award 2010 at the LG ICC Awards in Bengaluru in October last year, last claimed the number-one spot on 14 October 2010 after his magnificent 214 and 53 not out against Australia also in Bengaluru.

It is the 10th time that Tendulkar has claimed the number-one ranking which he first achieved in his 33rd Test in November 1994 against the West Indies in Mumbai.

Kallis last surged to the top of the batting table in October 2005 after the Sydney Test against Australia while he first topped the chart after the Newlands Test against England in January 2005. He earned 77 ratings points from the series against India in which he scored 498 runs.

Also charging up the batting table are left-handed openers Alastair Cook of England and Gautam Gambhir of India. Cook, who scored a match-winning 189 in Sydney, has vaulted eight places to fifth spot. Cook had entered the Ashes in 30th position on 628 ratings point and ended the series with a career-best rating of 803 – thanks to his series aggregate of 766 runs which earned him the man of the series award.

Gambhir has broken into the top 20 and he now sits in 15th position after his scores of 93 and 64 have helped him jump seven places in the latest rankings which were released on Friday.

England's Ian Bell and Matt Prior have also improved their rankings after hitting centuries in England's an innings and 83 runs victory in Sydney. Bell has moved up five places to 22nd position while Prior is now in 29th position after gaining six places.

In the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers, South Africa's Dale Steyn continues to lead the pack. He is now on 899 ratings points after earning two ratings points and will now have to wait until the next Test series against Australia in September-October before he takes a shot at the 900-point mark threshold..

Bowlers making upward movements include James Anderson in third (up by one place), Ishant Sharma in 15th (up by one place), S.Sreesanth in 22nd (up by four places), Ben Hilfenhaus in 24th (up by two places), Shane Watson in 32nd (up by one place) and Tim Bresnan in 36th (up by five places).

There is no change in the top five of the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test all-rounders with Kallis leading Daniel Vettori of New Zealand by a distance.

Source: http://icc-cricket.yahoo.net

Pakistan's scandal-hit Akhtar pays massive fine

Feb 16, 2010
AFP

KARACHI (AFP) - Scandal-hit Pakistani paceman Shoaib Akhtar had 83,000 dollars docked from his pay cheque for discipline problems Tuesday, one of the heaviest fines imposed on a Pakistani player, the board said.

Akhtar was fined seven million rupees (83,000 dollars) for criticising the cricket board in 2008. He has faced a series of controversies over the years, including hitting a player with a bat, and contracting genital warts that prevented him playing in a match.

"A fine of seven million rupees has been deducted from Akhtar's payment due for January to November 2009," Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) spokesman Nadeem Sarwar told AFP.

Akhtar has been on probation since October 2007, when he was fined 52,000 dollars and banned for 13 matches for hitting bowler Mohammad Asif with a bat, ahead of the Twenty20 World Championships in South Africa.

The paceman features in the current national one-day tournament but has yet to shine.

Akhtar was dropped from Pakistan's list of 15 contracted players in January 2008 after a disappointing year on the field, prompting him to criticise the PCB publicly -- an offence that landed him a five-year ban in April 2008.

A PCB-appointed tribunal reduced the ban to 18 months, but ordered the seven-million rupee fine. Akhtar appealled to the Lahore High Court, which suspended the ban but upheld the fine in July 2008.

"Akhtar had got a stay on the ban but there was no stay on the fine, so legally PCB is in the right," PCB legal adviser Taffazul Rizvi told AFP.

The suspension of the ban allowed Akhtar to play in a Twenty20 tournament in Canada in 2008 and Pakistan's one-day series in Australia in April-May last year, but he performed poorly in both.

Akhtar was also included in Pakistan's World Twenty20 squad in June last year before being expelled after being diagnosed with genital viral warts.

Last year, Akhtar also underwent knee surgery, his second in four years, and hoped to revive his international career.

Akhtar has taken 178 wickets in 46 Tests and 223 in 144 one-day matches since making his debut in 1997.

There's a correlation between a stable administration and a team's strong performance on the field, so is it then fair to compare the style of a player with that of an official?

The thought came to me following Virender Sehwag's highly amusing press conference in Chittagong where he claimed: "Bangladesh are an ordinary side. They can't beat India because they can't take twenty wickets."

Why all the fuss over his comments? After all he is correct. Sehwag was only being honest, which is the least you should expect from players and administrators. He was also being consistent; he's a straightforward, uncomplicated batsman so why would he be any different off the field?

As a batsman Sehwag is brilliant but frustrating. He can win a match in a session with scintillating strokeplay and equally drive his captain and fans to distraction by playing an indiscreet shot at an inappropriate moment. However, as the lyrics in Love and Marriage go: "you can't have one without the other". A captain can't gleefully hail Sehwag's scintillating performances when it results in victory and then castigate him for the odd indiscreet shot when it's detrimental to the team.

If we were to judge the flamboyance of administrators along similar lines, does that make Lalit Modi the Sehwag of officialdom?

Modi has had moments of brilliance interspersed with occasional lapses. His outstanding manoeuvres have resulted in IPL franchises, the IPL-Google deal and the BCCI's finances rising exponentially. On the debit side there have been his indiscretions in the USA during his student days and a rampant ego massaged by appearing more often on the IPL television coverage than the sponsor logo.

Modi is an administrator for the modern game. He's decisive and forward thinking. However, like Sehwag needs a steady opening partner to balance the combination, Modi requires a strong lieutenant to watch over him and temper his instinctive brilliance with a liberal dose of discipline.

With a number of international teams now bunched at the top of the rankings and sides being more aware of each other's ability through technology, one of the few remaining ways of gaining an advantage over opponents is to have a decisive and more flexible administration. This should apply to officials both at home and on tour.

And "decisive and flexible" certainly do not describe Pakistan's administration which is like the captain who is always at least a couple of overs behind the play.

It would have been preferable if Pakistan hadn't appointed Mohammad Yousuf captain in the first place. He has a temperament being weighed down, rather than buoyed, by the extra responsibility. However, having made the appointment and then found him wanting in the second Test, a vibrant administration would have considered replacing him swiftly. It couldn't have done any worse in a new appointment because following the SCG debacle, Yousuf was a dead captain leading.

Having seen that Yousuf would back off even before trouble reared its ugly head, the Australians couldn't wait for the next opportunity to attack Pakistan. They knew Yousuf was likely to succumb and he quickly obliged on the first day of the Hobart Test. That just confirmed his lame-duck status. And the Pakistan board reacted in the worst possible way.

With a number of international teams now bunched at the top of the rankings and sides being more aware of each other's ability through technology, one of the few remaining ways of gaining an advantage over opponents is to have a decisive and more flexible administration

Instead of making a bold move in an attempt to keep the team's hopes alive in the ODI series, it threw a lead-weighted lifebelt to a captain already up to his neck in quicksand. It retained him as the ODI captain and announced there would be a change in leadership when the team returned home. It couldn't have committed a bigger crime if it had backed Australia to win all five matches in the series. With the administration of both Pakistan and West Indies floundering, Cricket South Africa has made an interesting decision on the eve of the team's departure for the crucial Indian tour. It has decided to restructure the administration and as part of the process the coach has resigned and the selection panel has been sacked.

This move has the potential to replicate either a brilliant attacking masterpiece by Sehwag or the chaos of Inzamam-ul-Haq and Salman Butt gesturing at each other after having failed to complete an easy single. We'll soon know. If South Africa win the 2011 World Cup, instead of making an ignominious exit at the knockout stage, the decision will have a touch of Sehwag's genius.

Source & Picture: http://www.cricinfo.com

Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh miss first Test for India

India will be without the injured duo of Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh for the first Test against South Africa, which starts on 6 February.

Batsman Dravid is out for three weeks with a fractured cheekbone after being hit by a short delivery during the second Test against Bangladesh.

All-rounder Yuvraj injured a wrist in the same game and will miss the two-Test series against the Proteas.

Wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha and paceman Abhimanyu Mithun are included.

Dravid's participation in the second Test, due to start in Kolkata on 14 February, is also in doubt after he was advised three weeks' rest.

VVS Laxman, who suffered a hand injury during the first Test in Chittagong, has been included in the squad, but fast bowler Sreesanth has been left out because of a hamstring injury.

Subramaniam Badrinath has been recalled in place of Dravid, while Mahendra Singh Dhoni will once again captain the side from behind the stumps.

South Africa were originally scheduled to play only five one-dayers in India, but the itinerary was revised to include Tests following India's ascent to the top of the International Cricket Council's rankings for Test nations late last year.

The Proteas' preparations for the series, meanwhile, have been thrown into turmoil after the departure of head coach Mickey Arthur earlier this week.

Arthur confirmed he had resigned from his post on Wednesday citing differences with Cricket South Africa as the reason, with Corrie van Zyl installed as caretaker coach for the India tour.

CSA has also sacked the country's selection committee chaired by Mike Procter.

CSA chief executive Gerald Majola will take charge of an emergency selection panel for the tour.

India squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt & wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Murali Vijay, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Subramaniam Badrinath, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra, Sudeep Tyagi, Pragyan Ojha, Abhimanyu Mithun, Wriddhiman Saha.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk

Zaheer Khan ripped through Bangladesh's brittle batting line-up as India secured a 2-0 series victory with a comprehensive 10-wicket win in Mirpur.

The left-arm seamer finished with a career-best 7-87 as the hosts, who began the day on 228-3, collapsed to 312 all out before lunch.

Zaheer cleaned up the tail with four wickets in eight balls setting India only two runs to clinch the match.

Those two runs came in byes from the second ball as India romped to victory.

It looked like being a far more challenging day for the tourists after nightwatchman Shahadat Hossain shared 68 for the fourth wicket with Mohammad Ashraful.

Having begun the penultimate day with their side 83 runs in arrears they reduced the deficit to 21 and batted well beyond the first drinks interval.

After Zaheer and Ishant Sharma failed to break through, left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha was introduced but Shahadat launched him for a towering six in his opening over.

Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was brought into the attack and should have struck with his second ball when Shahadat skewed to wide mid-on, but substitute Amit Mishra fumbled the chance.

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Well done Team India!!!

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Finally in the 20th over of the morning Shahadat danced down the wicket and tried to hit Harbhajan for six, but could only find long-on, where Mishra this time made no mistake.

Ojha then removed Ashraful in the next over, the batsman feathering an edge to India captain and wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and though Shakib Al Hasan thumped his first delivery into the the sightscreen for six there was little else to cheer for the Tigers.

Zaheer took three wickets in an over but was denied a hat-trick as Rubel Hossain steered a full ball on his pads safely to square-leg.

Mushfiqur Rahim hit two fours in an over from Harbhajan to guide Bangladesh to lunch, but in the first over after the resumption Zaheer uprooted Hossain's off-stump and claimed his maiden 10-wicket haul.

"Zaheer's spell was remarkable as I felt it was a fantastic wicket to bat on," said India captain Dhoni.

"It was a difficult task to get 10 wickets in the second innings as there was nothing in the pitch to help either fast bowlers or spinners."

Opposite number Shakib Al Hasan bemoaned the batting frailty which is preventing his side becoming a more potent force in Test cricket.

"We didn't bat well for two hours in the match that's why we lost - first hour in the first innings on the opening day and an hour before lunch today.

"Every time someone is getting runs, but we need two or three guys to score in each innings and that's something that we need to improve," Shakib commented.

Bangladesh next take on New Zealand in a Twenty20 game, three 50-over internationals and a single Test, while India face a tougher assignment against South Africa following their return home.

Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk

ICC plans meeting to tackle review system

Technology in cricket

Akhila Ranganna
January 25, 2010

The ICC is planning a meeting with television broadcasters in March to sort out problems arising from the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS). Speaking on Cricinfo's Time Out with Harsha Bhogle show, Dave Richardson, ICC's general manager, said the system - which he said has reduced errors in decision-making since its implementation - would improve with standardisation of technology, and the meeting would discuss the cost implications in this for the member boards and broadcasters.

"The only way for us to successfully standardise the technology specifications and develop protocols is first of all to discuss and determine them," Richardson said. "The first step will be to get together with the broadcasters and the technology suppliers and come up with a more refined set of specifications. And [then] to implement those protocols and practice them.

"The overall consensus across the board, whether from umpires or players or the media, is that the UDRS has worked well; that we should continue to implement it but we should look at ways of improving the technology, refining the technology and certainly as far as possible standardise the technology across all series."

One serious issue is inadequate equipment - there are currently four Hot Spot cameras available worldwide and the technology has not been used in all Test series since the UDRS was made mandatory last October. Richardson admits to the problem but says having less equipment is better than none - at least some errors will still be caught this way.

However, the main hurdle on the way ahead is the cost involved in getting the system up to scratch. Richardson conceded that things were difficult "with existing agreements in place between members and broadcasters" when the system was implemented but disagreed with suggestions that the ICC should take on the cost burden to implement the technology. "When someone says the ICC must pay, in effect what we are asking is for the members to pay. Now some will argue, why should members like Afghanistan, Ireland, Holland - or even some of the other full members who do not have as many Tests - be paying the costs for Tests put on in some other full-member country?"

The misgivings surrounding the UDRS reached a flashpoint during the recent fourth Test between South Africa and England in Johannesburg with umpire Daryl Harper at the centre of controversy. When Graeme Smith, on 15, cut Ryan Sidebottom, England went up for the top-edge. However, Tony Hill, the on-field umpire, turned down the appeal and Andrew Strauss asked for a review. There was no noticeable deflection on the replays so the noise from the stump microphone would have to be the decisive evidence. Harper said he couldn't hear anything and upheld Hill's verdict.

The problem, as David Lloyd, the former England coach, explained on Time Out, was a multiplicity of broadcasters. "The [host] broadcaster, SABC, had a technical glitch in their sound department at that time so the director and the two commentators didn't hear the nick either," said Lloyd, who was on the commentary panel for that series. "So the information fed to Harper meant that he didn't hear the nick, but on Supersport and Sky [who were also broadcasting the game], with different technicians, everybody heard the nick. So there is a real problem there for the ICC and the review system to ensure the broadcasting body has got the right people and the right equipment to hear the nick. Harper was also looking at a totally inadequate monitor. He has got to have the best monitor available."

"[That] was a very good example of how complicated this can all get," Richardson conceded. "Obviously if we had that series again we would make sure that the same levels or specifications that the host broadcaster was using was also being used by the other broadcasters so that there was no room for different feed going out to different people."

One of the key reasons behind the introduction of the UDRS was to reduce the scrutiny on the umpires but the Johannesburg Test showed that the results can sometimes be the opposite. "Obviously the DRS system is going to involve much more scrutiny on the third umpire himself and the role of the third umpire is crucial to the success of the system," said Richardson. "But we are hoping that once everyone gets used to the DRS being used it will be used like it is in tennis. In so doing actually, the end result will be that the umpires won't be blamed necessarily for causing series to be lost or players' careers to be ended and everyone will just accept that the best decision was reached in a majority of the cases."

There is a view that the UDRS should have been trialled at the first-class level before it was introduced at the Test level but Richardson disagreed. "The problem with that is purely a practical one. First, there is very little first-class cricket that is televised. Secondly, if it is even televised, the technology that is available at those matches is very scant. Thirdly, what is needed is for players to get better understanding of when to use the system and when not to. The umpires also need to get practice at implementing the various protocols. I don't think we would have made any progress had we initially trialled it at first-class level."

In the 13 Tests the UDRS had been used in since October 2009, the correct decision percentage had gone up from 91.3% (had the UDRS not been used) to 97.4%. But Richardson conceded that "when it comes to decisions involving thin edges, more often than not in fact, the TV technology that is available does not always help on every occasion".

The answer, he reiterated, is standardisation. "Unless we are able to improve and refine the specifications it may well be that in the end we think this is too complicated and we leave it to the on-field umpires. But I think we have already learnt enough to see that the percentage of decision-making can be improved using the DRS and, yes, it is not going to be perfect 100% of the time, so if we can get correct 97% of the time then it is all worthwhile."

'Last day at Kensington Oval always belongs to us'

West Indies v South Africa, Only Test, Barbados, 1992

South Africa need 79 to win but can they get past Wambrose?
Telford Vice
January 24, 2010

If Curtly Ambrose or Courtney Walsh bowled a less than lethal ball between them in Bridgetown on the morning of April 23, 1992, it has skulked out of this reporter's memory.

South Africa went into the final day of their first Test in 22 years - not to mention their first Test against a team that was not lily white - needing 79 runs to win. Eight wickets stood, and old hands Kepler Wessels and Peter Kirsten were well set. Those eight wickets crashed for 22 runs as West Indies avoided spectacularly what would have been their first defeat at Kensington Oval since 1935.

"Tell your boys," an ancient denizen of the ground rasped at every white man he could find who was not Tony Cozier, "that the last day at Kensington Oval always belongs to us."

Ambrose and Walsh, of course, didn't need to be told. They pitched everything on off stump and let a pitch stricken by multiple-personality disorder do the rest. Each perfect delivery was followed by another perfect delivery. It was as if Richie Richardson had found a loophole in the laws that allowed him to unleash the same unplayable bowler from both ends. Fittingly, that Wambrose bloke ended up with 10 wickets.

The shot of the day was played by Dave Richardson. Ambushed by a ball that jolted vertically off a length, Richardson, unflappable lawyer that he is, manfully middled the missile into submission. But this was a forward defensive stroke like no other. Eighteen years on, the memory of Richardson's bat meeting the ball at least a foot above his head remains as clear as the Caribbean sky. (www.cricinfo.com)

India coast to win despite Mushfiqur century

Bangladesh v India, 1st Test, Chittagong, 5th day

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga
January 21, 2010
Tamim Iqbal's brief resistance and Mushfiqur Rahim's crowd-pleasing century were way too inadequate for Bangladesh who had no surprises lined up on the final day. Even with an off-rhythm Sreesanth making it a virtual three-man attack, Ishant Sharma and Zaheer Khan paved India's way to an eventually comfortable win despite their first-innings failure and murky conditions curtailing action on every day of the match. Despite Mushfiqur's knock - the fastest hundred for a Bangladesh player - alongside the tail, they could not last until the final session.

In the end, it was the batsmen who let the Bangladesh bowlers down. Their bowlers might have shown they were better than ordinary, getting India out for 243 in the first innings, but both their batting efforts were ordinary. In the final innings, none of the batsmen showed either the aptitude or the inclination to bat out long periods on a flat pitch and on a day where bad light was bound to cut the day short.

The signs were all there in the first ten minutes of the day. Mohammad Ashraful carried on from an edgy first innings. After surviving two slashes and edges in the first three overs, he drove on the up at an Ishant delivery that held its line enough to take a healthy edge. Raqibul Hasan showed the willingness to fight it out, even taking a blow on the elbow, but Ishant's re-discovered offcutter proved to be too good for him, trapping him plumb in front.

The only bit of fight came from Tamim, who survived the early thorough examination given by Ishant and Zaheer. He concentrated hard, and quelled his natural game for the first hour. Except for one loose drive in the second over, he resisted the cover-drives, and instead relied on bunting the balls close to him for singles. He did not concentrate for long enough, though. The way he tried to open up against Sreesanth and Amit Mishra showed that the first hour had taken a big extra effort. From 27 off 81, when the back-up bowlers were introduced, he moved to 50 off 106, bringing up the milestone with a reverse-sweep.

Eight minutes before lunch, Tamim gave it all away. Virender Sehwag had replaced Sreesanth, and in his second over, Tamim went for a big booming drive when he was close to neither the line nor the length of the delivery. The outside edge was snapped well by an alert Rahul Dravid, and India were sensing the win.

The only man who could hold them up was Shakib Al Hasan, and post the break, he got a special googly from Mishra that kicked at him and took the shoulder of his bat on its way to silly point. Mahmudullah, who scored 69 in the first innings, got into a personal battle with Zaheer, and eventually Bangladesh paid for it. Bouncers, verbals, hooks, upper-cuts, and then a tame edge outside off.

Mushfiqur stood on the burning deck, hit his way to a personal best, added 60 for the eight wicket, then cut, pulled and lofted some more, made Sreesanth mouth off like a madman for no reason, manoeuvred the strike expertly, and managed a consolatory maiden century. Mishra kept at the task, mixing the googlies well with the legbreaks, and took out the last three wickets. (www.cricinfo.com)

India seize advantage despite Mahmudullah heroics

Bangladesh v India, 1st Test, Chittagong, 3rd day

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga
January 19, 2010

A brain freeze from the Bangladesh lower order squandered the initiative that a 108-run seventh-wicket stand had secured them. With Bangladesh throwing away their last four wickets and falling behind by one run, India didn't look the gift horse in the mouth and went on to extend that lead to 123 with nine wickets in hand.

From 98 for 6, Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur Rahim had carried Bangladesh past 200 when common sense deserted them. Mushfiqur, who had survived an edgy period early on, threw it away by slog-sweeping an innocuous-looking Amit Mishra from wide outside off. No. 9 Shahadat Hossain came out swinging like the climax of a Western, as opposed to giving the strike to Mahmudullah, who was already past his maiden Test fifty by then.

In the last over before tea, Shahadat chipped Mishra straight to cover. Back after the break, Mahmudullah smote the first ball for four, but when he lofted the fifth ball of the over over mid-on, he came back for two - any other settled batsman would have taken a single and seen out the whole of the next over. Under pressure to take a single next ball, he opened the face and edged Sreesanth to Dinesh Karthik. In the next over, Shafiul Islam got off the mark in Tests with a mowed six, but sliced the next ball to point. Just like that, a golden opportunity of keeping India in the field till about stumps had passed Bangladesh by.

They lost wickets in clusters: the last four for 36 runs, and the first six for 45. Of those six, three came early on the third morning. Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma continued from their impressive spells from the second day and the batsmen kept obliging. There was slight seam movement and bounce in the pitch, enough to make the batsmen regularly play down the wrong line.

Mohammad Ashraful was all at sea, playing Zaheer away from the body, and getting squared up by Ishant. The ever so slight holding of the line from Ishant, and a shade of extra bounce, was enough to awkwardly square up Ashraful and take the shoulder of the bat. Shakib Al Hasan looked to counterattack, hitting four boundaries in the next four overs. Again, all it took was a slight straightening of the ball, and a slash at a wide delivery was flying over gully when Virender Sehwag intercepted it perfectly.

When Zaheer and Ishant were taken off simultaneously, their partnership had resulted in five wickets for 59 runs, during the 23 overs they bowled on the trot. Sreesanth came back to end Raqibul Hasan's resistance, who too played inside the line of a straight delivery, and edged.

The seventh-wicket partnership stopped the procession of dismissals to outside edges and made India go wicketless for almost a full session, leading Bangladesh to a first-innings lead at the same time. Zaheer, the pick of the bowlers, struggled for support, with Sreesanth warned once for running on the pitch and over-stepping almost every second delivery. Mishra was not looking effective at all and Mahmudullah got stuck into him. Between them, Sreesanth and Mishra bowled 12 no-balls.

The duo didn't entirely abort the shots that had proved to be fatal for the earlier batsmen, but were slightly more sensible. They did get away with plays and misses to begin with, but when they chased the wide ones, soft hands meant the ball didn't fly towards slips. In fact, the third man area leaked eight boundaries.

The other big difference the two made was the running between the wickets. They ran hard, and they ran more often, which meant neither of the batsmen got stuck at one end for too long. Nineteen boundaries had been hit before the two came together and 14 came during their stand.

As the stand grew bigger, the batsmen grew surer. Mahmudullah started targeting Mishra, driving him through the covers, lofting him over mid-on, and paddling him to alternate the strike. But then, Bangladesh chose to display their lack of experience.

Coming into bat one run ahead, Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir were more circumspect than in the first innings. They saw off the aggressive Shahadat without much adventure, and punished the other fast bowers, Shafiul and Rubel Hossain. With eight of their overs going for 55, Shakib had to bring himself on early again. By then, almost nonchalantly Sehwag and Gambhir had added 56 in 10 overs.

Sehwag stayed quiet against his first-innings nemesis for a bit, and had taken only five off 16 Shakib deliveries when he stepped out and launched him over long-on. Four balls later the slog-sweep against the turn consumed Sehwag. Sent in originally as nightwatchman, Mishra reversed roles, and got his own back at Mahmudullah, dancing down the track and lofting him over mid-on twice on the way to an unbeaten 24 off 21 deliveries. He subjected the other spinners to three other boundaries, taking his tally to one more than Gambhir's, who had seemed inconspicuous and yet scored 47 off 56. (www.cricinfo.com)

ICC hopeful of thawing of India-Pakistan relations

Osman Samiuddin in Hobart
January 19, 2010

The ICC remains hopeful that bilateral contests between Pakistan and India can be resumed in the near future. Ties between the two governments have been rocky since the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008, which the Indian government blamed on elements based within Pakistan.

Soon after, an Indian tour to Pakistan was cancelled, bringing yet another halt to a brief period of cricketing detente; between 2003-04 and 2007-08, each country visited the other twice for full tours in addition to facing off in a number of ICC and offshore bilateral contests. Since the attacks, however, the two sides have only played one international match, a group game in the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy.

Subsequently the relationship between the two boards has become strained during the period of impasse. A nadir was reached in the aftermath of the terror attacks in Lahore on the Sri Lankan team, with many officials in the PCB believing the BCCI had somehow engineered the removal of Pakistan as a venue for the 2011 World Cup.

But David Morgan, the ICC president, believes he can broker a resolution between the two. "One of the things I am working on is trying to persuade the BCCI that they should play bilaterally as opposed to in ICC events with Pakistan," Morgan told Cricinfo. "India versus Pakistan, Pakistan versus India is the equivalent of the Ashes in Test match cricket parlance. It is very important for both countries that they renew their rivalries on the field in the five-day game. I am very hopeful they will."

A revival of the rivalry is crucial especially for the PCB, currently battling a financial crunch after the banishment of the country as an international venue. According to Ijaz Butt, chairman PCB, the board lost US$40 million as a result of India's cancellation last year; a fair portion of the US$140 million broadcast deal the board has with Ten Sports is believed to have been based on the series against India.

The ICC remains hopeful that bilateral contests between Pakistan and India can be resumed in the near future. Ties between the two governments have been rocky since the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008, which the Indian government blamed on elements based within Pakistan.

Soon after, an Indian tour to Pakistan was cancelled, bringing yet another halt to a brief period of cricketing detente; between 2003-04 and 2007-08, each country visited the other twice for full tours in addition to facing off in a number of ICC and offshore bilateral contests. Since the attacks, however, the two sides have only played one international match, a group game in the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy.

Subsequently the relationship between the two boards has become strained during the period of impasse. A nadir was reached in the aftermath of the terror attacks in Lahore on the Sri Lankan team, with many officials in the PCB believing the BCCI had somehow engineered the removal of Pakistan as a venue for the 2011 World Cup.

But David Morgan, the ICC president, believes he can broker a resolution between the two. "One of the things I am working on is trying to persuade the BCCI that they should play bilaterally as opposed to in ICC events with Pakistan," Morgan told Cricinfo. "India versus Pakistan, Pakistan versus India is the equivalent of the Ashes in Test match cricket parlance. It is very important for both countries that they renew their rivalries on the field in the five-day game. I am very hopeful they will."

A revival of the rivalry is crucial especially for the PCB, currently battling a financial crunch after the banishment of the country as an international venue. According to Ijaz Butt, chairman PCB, the board lost US$40 million as a result of India's cancellation last year; a fair portion of the US$140 million broadcast deal the board has with Ten Sports is believed to have been based on the series against India. (www.cricinfo.com)

India hit back on truncated day

Bangladesh v India, 1st Test, Chittagong, 2nd day

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga
January 18, 2010

Bangladesh's collapse, like India's, started in the 15th over. India lost three wickets for six runs, Bangladesh lost three for five. India had 79 runs on the board before their collapse, Bangladesh 59. India continued collapsing, bad light granted Bangladesh stay orders. In fact the murky conditions allowed only 24.5 overs of play in the whole day, which means 90.1 overs have been lost on the first two days.

After Sachin Tendulkar reached his 44th Test century, scoring 29 of India's 30 runs on the second day, Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes provided Bangladesh a solid and quick start, reaching 38 in eight overs. The coming together of Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma reduced scoring opportunities, the batsmen started playing and missing, surviving lbw shouts, and two runs in three overs resulted in Kayes slashing outside off, a shot that told the bowlers they were not far off a wicket.

One more close lbw shout against Kayes later, Zaheer got one full and straight enough, and caught him on the crease. Shahriar Nafees, coming back from the ICL, top-edged a pull second ball, and then found Ishant to be too good for him. The ball landed on middle, back of a length, and then nipped away. Nafees had to play at it, and the movement squared him up, taking a healthy edge. In the next over, Zaheer, by now frustrated at missing the edge repeatedly, got one to nip in, squeeze under Tamim's bat, and take the off stump.

In 11 balls, Bangladesh had gone from hoping to dominate India to hoping for a Tendulkar-like stay to carry their fledgling innings. Tendulkar it was who added some respectability to India's total, scoring 105 runs out of the 164 scored since he came to the crease. Resuming on 76 on the second morning, he manoeuvred the strike well and scored his 89th international century. Shakib Al Hasan and Shahadat Hossain reached five-fors - for Shakib, a sixth five-wicket haul in 15 Tests.

Bangladesh came in with the mindset of attacking Nos 10 and 11, and hoping that Tendulkar wouldn't cause irreversible damage in the meantime. In the first four overs, Tendulkar let Ishant play just six balls, only one of which troubled him. And during those four overs, with the field coming up for the last two balls, Tendulkar hit 2, 4, 1, 4, and 6 to get into the 90s. Shahadat then moved round the stumps and the change of angle proved to be too much for Ishant to handle, who edged a delivery going across.

Sreesanth got a single first ball, and Tendulkar reached his century off the last two balls of that Shahadat over - Shakib was seen applauding Tendulkar's effort. At the other end, Sreesanth didn't look overly comfortable against Shakib who got alarming turn, but somehow saw off one over. Shahadat did his bit by bowling a wide yorker and keeping Tendulkar at his end. In the next over, Shakib got a leading edge that ended India's innings.

Bowlers hand Australia 3-0 clean-sweep

Australia v Pakistan, 3rd Test, Hobart, 5th day

The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale at Bellerive Oval
January 18, 2010

Australia wrapped up their 12th consecutive Test victory over Pakistan on the final afternoon in Hobart, where Khurram Manzoor's fighting half-century was not enough to salvage a draw for the visitors. Nathan Hauritz added to his growing reputation as Test bowler by picking up the key wicket of Manzoor and finished with three, while Peter Siddle also grabbed a trio of victims.

Despite showers being forecast, the only sprinkling of rain came during the lunch break and it wasn't enough to delay Australia's charge to a series clean-sweep and a fifth Test win of the summer. Australia have now equalled the record for the most consecutive Test wins by any country over any other nation, matching the 12-game streak currently held by Sri Lanka over Bangladesh.

The only slight concerns for Australia came during a 66-run seventh-wicket stand between Manzoor and Mohammad Aamer. Manzoor, who came in for this Test at No. 3, enhanced his chances of keeping his place in the side with a patient 77 from 239 deliveries that gave Pakistan, for the morning at least, a tiny sniff of saving the game.

Manzoor showed impressive resolve for most of his innings but it didn't hold, and soon after an injudicious swipe against Hauritz he slashed at a cut against the spinner and was caught behind. The rest of Pakistan's resistance fell away and Hauritz had Umar Gul brilliantly caught at slip by Michael Clarke for a duck, before Mohammad Asif (0) was bowled by Mitchell Johnson.

Hauritz finished with 3 for 30 and was comfortably the leading wicket-taker for the series, with 18 at 23.05. Siddle was also happy with his 3 for 25, which was his best return of a lean summer, and he wrapped up the victory with the second new ball when Danish Kaneria played on for 1.

Pakistan's victory target of 438 was not the issue for Australia, they simply needed to grab the remaining wickets while the weather held up. Showers had been tipped on the final day but the Tasmanian local Ricky Ponting, who was confident in his knowledge of the state's weather, had his decision not to enforce the follow-on vindicated.

Australia began the day impressively wth Shoaib Malik caught behind off Siddle for 19, after adding only one to his overnight score. That was the key breakthrough for Australia as it opened the way into Pakistan's lower order, and the wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed finished his debut Test with a disappointing batting return when he was caught at slip off Hauritz for 5.

Sarfraz departed in strange circumstances, when his edge clipped the gloves of Brad Haddin, went through the hands of Clarke and onto his boot before bouncing up for Clarke to complete the catch. If Pakistan had made their catches stick throughout the series it might have been a more enjoyable tour for them. Now they must wait until the two Tests in England in July to redeem themselves. (www.cricinfo.com)

Siddons slams Bangladesh batting response

Bangladesh v India, 1st Test, Chittagong, 2nd day

Sriram Veera in Chittagong
January 18, 2010

India may have been bowled out for 243 in the morning session but Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons fears the hosts might have spoiled the second day by losing three wickets. "I am really happy with the bowling performance," Siddons said. "However, three wickets, while batting at the end of the day was a pretty ordinary effort."

The Bangladesh openers Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes started off well, adding 53 runs, the highest opening stand for Bangladesh against India. However, just when the advantage was waiting to be seized, they started to make the errors. It was Kayes who faltered first. It wasn't a great delivery from Zaheer Khan but he fell trying to whip a full delivery across the line. Shahriar Nafees, on his comeback game post-ICL, pushed out at a delivery with an open bat face and edged to second slip. Both efforts didn't impress Siddons.

"We had two bad shots today," Siddons said. "You have to hit the bad ball, but I guess they tried to hit few good ones today as well." He also said there was no special instruction to be extra positive; he just put it down to the need to adjust better to Test cricket after playing an ODI series. "The transition from ODIs to Test can get a little tougher for some. There were no extra instructions."

Siddons, however, pointed out that Bangladesh still possess enough quality batsmen who can make a difference and help them gain a lead. "I am hoping they will apply themselves. I am hoping for one of the remaining batsmen to hit a hundred. We still have batsmen who can hit Test hundreds."

He also had words of praise for his bowlers who did not allow India to drag on their batting effort today. "We took the last two wickets today," Siddons said. "Tendulkar was batting well and if the tail had hung around with him, Tendulkar could have taken them to a bigger total. So I am happy."

It was a truncated day's play where 249 minutes of play was lost. There wasn't much cricket on offer and no one from India came to address the press. (www.cricinfo.com)

Live cricket match

Shakib and Shahadat leave India reeling

Bangladesh v India, 1st Test, Chittagong, 1st day

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga
January 17, 2010

Bangladesh, all pumped up and incisive, roared back "extraordinarily", taking eight Indian wickets for 130 runs and forcing Sachin Tendulkar to dig deep and try and take the visitors towards a respectable total. Shakib Al Hasan, who bowled 25 overs unchanged for 48 runs, and Shahadat Hossain, who bowled in hostile spurts, were at the centre of the comeback. The duo took four wickets apiece for 103 runs between them, and proved the Indians were "still human beings". Every wicket pumped Bangladesh up more and was met with wild celebrations. The special one was Shahadat's after Dinesh Karthik's wicket - a finger on his lips, telling his opponents in no unsubtle terms to watch their mouth.

Virender Sehwag, who had called Bangladesh an "ordinary" side in the lead-up, got off to an aggressive start in a curtailed first session, after fog and murky light delayed the start of the match. When he went into lunch, despite the balls stopping and coming and the turn available for the spinners, Shakib would have wondered if he had made the right decision by putting India in. India had raced to 63 for 0 in 13 overs, and immediately after the break Sehwag hit Shahadat for three boundaries in one over, reaching his fifty at more than a run-a-ball.

Yet Sehwag wasn't totally in control. He had hit Shakib for a first-ball four, but the turn had Sehwag in an edgy frame of mind. During the 13 balls of spin he faced prior to his dismissal, Sehwag was forced to abort attacking shots because he was beaten in flight, rapped on the pads by arm balls, and had one bat-pad fly wide of forward short leg. He eventually lost patience and hit the 14th - a shortish delivery -straight to short cover. Shakib 1, Sehwag 0.

Sehwag's dismissal kickstarted a period of aggressive, smart bowling and captaincy, which eventually resulted in soft dismissals. Gautam Gambhir, who had been circumspect in playing outside off, went to cut a wide delivery from Shahadat and the extra bounce caught the edge. Rahul Dravid came to bat in a situation tailormade for him, but played all around a swinging yorker, and 79 for 3 became 85 for 3 in a matter of 17 deliveries.

Shakib kept his fast bowlers fresh by rotating them from one end, and upped the pressure by bowling himself unchanged until stumps. With Rubel Hossain getting reverse-swing from the other end, there were no free hits, boundaries were plugged away, and Laxman, especially, struggled to get off strike. For 13.4 overs there wasn't a single boundary.

Shakib mixed the offbreaks and the arm balls well, varying the degree of the flight as well. After a series of near dismissals - leaving alone an arm ball that almost shaved the off stump, hitting uppishly one bounce to short cover, and scoring 7 off 29 balls, Laxman finally over-balanced when looking to drive Shakib. The ball went straight on, took the inside edge onto the pad, and then rolled along to an alert Mushfiqur Rahim, who found Laxman short of his crease.

There was no counterattack forthcoming from Yuvraj, who prodded and nudged dangerously for 30 deliveries, before the lack of clarity of thought consumed him. Caught completely in the defensive frame of mind, Yuvraj could have done many things with a gentle leg-side fulltoss, but lobbing it down mid-on's throat wouldn't have been high on the agenda. Immediately, Shakib got Shahadat back, and as if on cue, Karthik drove at a wide delivery and edged low to gully.

All the batsmen who got out had a lesson to learn from the man they passed when they walked back. Tendulkar, dropped on 16 by Imrul Kayes at wide slip, respected that the pitch was not flat, Shakib and Shahadat were bowling really well, and cut out undue risks. He didn't play away from the body, worked the singles, found the gaps for twos, and even the edge that flew to the left of slip came against the run of play. Tendulkar capitalised on that, and without taking risks, maintained a strike-rate of 50-plus in reaching his 98th score of 50 and above.

The other end, though, remained vulnerable. The tea break came just at the right time, and Shakib and Shahadat came back fresh. Tendulkar and Amit Mishra added 32 for the seventh wicket, but Shahadat came back to produce a low, reversing full toss to Mishra. Unlike Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan couldn't make the most of a dropped catch, and the 27-run eight wicket ended when an arm ball got the latter.

Before bad light kept India's first innings fighting for another day, two statements were made that suggested that Bangladesh were not as ordinary as India had thought. Tendulkar was forced to try and farm the strike, and more often than not Shakib bowled smartly enough to keep him at the other end and expose the tailender for a complete over to Shahadat. And just before stumps, Shakib, not lacking in a sense of drama, bowled with three slips, a silly point, a forward short leg, and a leg gully to Ishant Sharma. (www.cricinfo.com)

'Bangladesh are an ordinary side' - Sehwag

Bangladesh v India, 1st Test, Chittagong

Sriram Veera in Chittagong
January 16, 2010

"Bangladesh are an ordinary side. They can't beat India because they can't take 20 wickets." That was Virender Sehwag's pre-series shooter on Bangladesh on the eve of the first Test in Chittagong.

You can never accuse Sehwag of being boring. His press conferences are as interesting as his batting. He sauntered in to the press room today, remained typically blunt throughout, dealt in monosyllables and left people speechless. The Indian journalists weren't so shocked because it was almost the norm with him; a few Bangladeshi journalists looked stunned.

You could have said Sehwag was bordering on arrogance, you might have felt he was being dismissive, almost brutal especially in his assessment of Bangladesh' strengths and if you hadn't been in a Sehwag conference before, you certainly would have thought it was a slightly bizarre event. But it wasn't. It was in character. It was actually very funny but you could also see why some might take offense.

Bangladesh's response later on, in the form of Jamie Siddons and Shakib Al Hasan, was equally interesting. They weren't present at Sehwag's conference, of course, and reacted to the perceptions of the media who had listened to Sehwag.

A journalist asked the obvious question - can Bangladesh surprise India? "No. They can't beat us in Test matches," Sehwag said. "They can surprise you in ODIs but not in Tests."

Why? "Because they can't take 20 Indian wickets. Even Sri Lanka found it difficult. Bangladesh can't. They are an ordinary side."

There was not even an attempt at civility. There were no standard responses like "they are an upcoming side", "you can't take anyone lightly", or "they have some talented players." Nothing. He just saw the ball and hit it.

It's not as if Sehwag was even trying to be provocative. There certainly was no condescension, nor was it an act of trying to win any psychological points. It's how he has usually been addressing press conferences for some time now. And it certainly wasn't directed, at least solely, against Bangladesh.

Sample this.

"Where is Dhoni?" "He is taking a break". "Is he fine?" (The questioner wanted to know why he didn't come for the press conference). "He is enjoying himself. He is relaxing in the dressing room."

"What's your thought on the pitch?" "I haven't seen it."

Cue an awkward silence. It was a permanent feature of the conference. At one point, early on during one such period, Sehwag leaned forward and said, "thank you." Some laughed, some remained silent, some looked on quizzically and slowly more questions started to trickle. However, the answers continued to be fired with an impassive face and almost all questions were longer than the replies.

Siddons' and Shakib's conference too was awkward but for different reasons. Shakib didn't want to say anything on Sehwag but he said he doesn't consider India to be a true No. 1 Test side. "They are ranked No.1 recently but I think South Africa and Australia are much better than them," Shakib said. "It's true that they are playing well but they still are human beings and they will make mistakes."

Cries of "shabash, shabash (excellent, excellent)," went up from the back of the press room. It was certainly an interesting conference. It was Siddons' turn next. "Your thoughts on what Sehwag said?"

"He should stay away from mikes," Siddons said. "Every team has good and bad phases. His comments might bite him on his bum in a few years time. It might even hit him in the bum in a week's time. We are definitely not an ordinary side. That's what we are hoping to show in this Test series. We could hopefully prove Sehwag wrong."

Not many are convinced that the quality of the cricket in the series will be of high standard, but as Wally Hammond once so famously said at the start of an Ashes contest, what "a fine bloody way to start a series". (www.cricinfo.com)

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