INDIA 282

Before we get a chance to settle, Dravid has departed. It seems that the construction workers were late in setting up the wall this morning. It’s an enormous wicket in the context of this game, when Tendulkar and Dravid were in full swing yesterday it seemed as though nothing could stop them, but Australia, even in this new era, always do have an ability to make things happen.

Looking at VVS Laxman as he strides to the crease it strikes me as odd that his numbers aren’t better than they are. A colleague in the box rightly points out that he bats at number five, but still the fact that he averages under 50 and that he has only made 17 centuries is surprising. He reminds me a little of Mark Waugh actually. Like Laxman, Waugh could make batting look so easy, but at times looked like he wasn’t interested in proceedings. Laxman can look imperious at times, but this morning he looks incredibly rusty and like he wishes he was still enjoying a buffet breakfast at his hotel.

There is a general sense of confusion in the box this morning as India’s batsmen get themselves out at regular intervals. The overall feeling is that whilst the bowling was solid it was probably down to some lazy footwork, particularly on the part of Laxman.

As Dhoni strides confidently to the middle, Dave Siddall raises the question of who the best wicket-keeper in test cricket is today. The general consensus seems to be Matt Prior from England, though for old times sake I throw up Mark Boucher. Discussion then turns to Kamran Akmal and one of the gents alerts us to an extraordinary video showing Akmal’s propensity for bending the rules. I think also of Zulqarnain Haider whose story was so sad. A player who had the confidence to speak up about the problems in Pakistani cricket, Haider’s family had to flee his home country and Haider was penalised for leaving an active series in the UAE to protect them. Much of course has been written about the overall problems of Pakistani cricket, but it is these personal stories that really hit home.

It’s hard to believe that a team that worked so hard to build itself up to the number one test team in the world would crumble so pathetically. A lot of the time this kind of looseness is attributed to players being too used to limited overs cricket, but that can’t be said of Dravid, Laxman, Tendulkar or even Zaheer Khan, whose dismissal was nothing short of a disgrace. As he cleared the front foot whilst trying to hit the ball to the next suburb, he had his stumps smashed and walked off as if someone had done him a disservice. What makes his shot even worse is the fact that Ashwin can do more than just hold a bat.

AUSTRALIA 8/179

Australia’s approach after lunch is interesting because it has seemed that no one is ever really ‘in’ on this pitch. That said, India’s approach is important too, and it is more than perplexing that in Zaheer Khan’s first over Dhoni has only two slips in place. It’s a strange thing about Dhoni that someone who seems so flashy in life and particularly with his batting can be so defensive in his field placements. On a recent One Hand One Bounce cricket podcast, Michael Wagener from www.cricket.geek.nz noted that Ross Taylor, whilst being a slashing batsman, was in fact quite conservative himself. Even if that is the case, I can’t believe he would come out in such an important part of the game and be so negative in his approach as Dhoni was after lunch here.

On what is quite a benign pitch these teams have somehow managed to lose wickets galore and in the media box we struggle to make sense of what is happening. Perennial foot-in-mouth-er Tony Greig tweets that there is grass on the pitch and that India are ‘flat track bullies’. Tony must’ve been asleep under his big hat when Tendulkar and Dravid made batting look like the easiest thing in the world.

I took a walk around the ground late in the second session as the two old stalwarts, Ponting and Hussey, attempted to wrest back control of the match. The crowd’s reaction was very positive, more so even than the reaction to the current Australian captain. Despite the media rhetoric, the public do still seem to support Ponting and I’m sure that must keep him hungry to succeed. Test cricket has an extraordinary way of throwing up the unexpected and nothing was more out of the blue than the effervescent partnership between Hussey and Ponting. Suddenly, the demons in the pitch were gone and the Indian bowling attack looked more like the toothless crew that many were expecting. Hussey has an amazing energy to his play and we enjoy his innings as much as the adoring crowd.

Geoff Lawson rightly described Haddin as playing ‘dumb cricket’. It makes you wonder whether Haddin either:

• has a never-ending licence to bat exactly how he sees fit, or
• completely disregards his teammates and coaches plea’s to bat responsibly.

Either way, he is a curiously stupid cricketer who seems really to bat for himself without regard for the position of his team.

I love the late period of the middle days in test matches. There is, after a day such as today, a real satisfaction with the show that has been put on, but there is also a sense of anticipation. Probably only golf can compete in this sense, but even then there is not really the same sense of continuity as everyone simply starts again. On the other hand, test cricket might suggest that the status quo will continue, but we all know that is far from the truth. Either way, this match is deliciously poised and I look forward to providing you with another view from the box tomorrow when this match will likely come to a close.

Check out all the main talking points of the day here

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Australia 333 all out

As the day starts talk in the press box inevitably turns to the Decision Review System, as it will for the entire day, and probably for the series. Debate rages not only about the merits of the now ‘turned off’ system, but also on whether we should even bother debating it at all. Newspapers are on the desk, there is a stats book being passed around and all the while Umesh Yadav steams in to send down his erratic but dangerous thunderbolts.

A little later, the TV commentators rightly point out that umpires are too scared just to give anyone out now, and as such we endure the absurd situation where the crowd sits around for 5 minutes while they go through the process of verifying Zaheer Kahn’s legal delivery as…a legal delivery! As a result, Brad Haddin is on his way.

Hilfenhaus and Pattinson open their shoulders like all good tail-enders should. Sometimes it seems that it is only tail-enders that can summon up the confidence to really take on the bowling, it’s almost as if the burden of being a ‘batsman’ requires you not to play freely. It’s ridiculous really because all one has to do is look at tape of Viru Sehwag or Adam Gilchrist to know that playing confidently is just fine. That said, it must suit your game, and Ed Cowan showed yesterday that if your game is based on a sound defence, then that is the way you should play. Perhaps Ricky Ponting’s form slump is based on the fact that his talent can no longer match his style of batting. Unfortunately for him it is far too late to adjust.

Late in the Australian innings, while India attempt to take their final wicket, I pick up the newspaper and read a story about Imran Khan attracting over 100,00 to a political rally in Karachi. My colleagues from the sub-continent inform me that Khan is a controversial but popular figure (they always go hand-in-hand don’t they?). It seems Imran has attracted a younger demographic and they see him as the saviour of their poor and corrupted country. Of course, this younger generation have probably been hearing about Kahn as a saviour from their parents. This refers to his extraordinary feats on the cricketing arena, but it will certainly be interesting to see whether he can translate this into politics.

As India wraps up the Australian tail, the excitement grows as we know Sehwag is coming. Talk turns to his electric innings last time out at the MCG, a 195 in just under five hours. First though, Sehwag and Gambhir had to see out two difficult overs before lunch.

Lunch is in the basement of the Southern Stand at the MCG. There is a motley collection of mainly tv production guys. The absolute highlight of the lunch break though is the Channel 9 segway running over the spare helmet and destroying his two-wheel motorbike. Hilarity ensues.

INDIA 3/214

Sehwag is just addictive to watch. His game seems to be without any rhyme or reason, and yet his record speaks to him being a consistent performer. In the middle session, his approach seems to have infected Rahul Dravid, who is rocking back to play through cover point and is playing some lovely drives through wide mid-off. Ian Healy rightly points out that Dravid doesn’t walk down the pitch much to the spinners, but he does use his front stride exceptionally well. He seemed to be going slowly for a while, but once fifty was in his sights he went predictably crazy. A colleague mentions that after two fours in an over against Lyon, Sehwag is lucky to survive a third smash, but that’s just the way he goes.

Nathan Lyon came on to bowl in the fourteenth over. It’s an interesting move so early, but it shows his ability to think outside of the box. In the box we discuss Ricky Ponting’s lack of tactical nous using spinners when he was captain. This was reflected even in the selection of such a strange mix of spinners during the post-Warne era. This probably shows that the selectors didn’t know what kind of spinner Ponting liked, and if his treatment of Bryce McGain against South Africa showed us anything, it was that Ponting was largely uninterested in giving his spinners a sporting chance.

When Sehwag is dismissed it reminds me of a comment by my colleague David Siddall who said that when Gayle was dismissed cheaply in his first BBL game this year, the crowd both applauded but was also disappointed. Well, it’s the same with Sehwag, except that this time the fallen maestro is replaced with the little master.

The box clears as the gathered journos make their way out to join in the rapturous welcome that Tendulkar commands. He takes his usual amount of time to settle, and second ball he French cuts for a single. As he warms up, Tendulkar’s strokeplay becomes just sublime. His drives through cover are a sight to behold and he mixes them up with audacious flicks over the slips. He continues to strike the ball with precision, and he just seems so at ease in partnership with his old mate Dravid. Clarke tries just about everything, including Dave Warner’s leg spin, but nothing much worries these two.

It’s interesting to be at a match where the crowd is in some ways supporting both teams. The crowd is obviously more Australian focused, but there aren’t many in attendance who aren’t excited to see Sehwag smash it and perhaps see history in the making from the little master. Dravid is also well respected in Australia as he is always someone who seems to have personified that Australian cliché of the ‘battler’.

In the last over the crowd, the cricket authorities and the broadcasters all weep as Australia’s wood-chopper Peter Siddle is rewarded for a fantastic spell with the wicket of Tendulkar. It is a sight to see Siddle in full flight and as we sit in our now well worn seats, we watch him pepper Ishant Sharma to no avail.

It has been a fantastic day of play, enjoyed thoroughly by those of us in our slightly airless media box. Check out our Plays of the Day for all the big moments in dot point form and check back tomorrow for more from this tight contest.

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• Nathan Lyon Signals a Post-Warne Era for Australian Cricket
• One Hand One Bounce Weekly Cricket Podcast 60
• My Favourite Cricketer…. Chris Pringle
• What Would Hell Be Like for a Pakistani Cricket Fan?
• 5 Golden Cricket Commentary Moments
• Watch Pakistan vs England 1st Test Highlights

lead image: ‘Caught Guptill Bowled Martin’ (c) news.com.au

DAVID SIDDALL appraises Australia after their first defeat to New Zealand on home soil for 26 years and asks who is safe and who is sweating on their place for the India series.

Australia seem to take one step forward, two steps back right now. The bemused look on Australian skipper Michael Clarke’s face as he was handed the Trans-Tasman trophy ( despite their first loss to New Zealand on home soil for 26 years, they retain the trophy) indicated that they have perhaps reached a new lowest point, surpassing the 47 all out in Cape Town only a month prior.

Only a few players in the Australian squad can feel safe in their spots for their upcoming series against India. Lets take a look back over the series and see who performed and who didn’t; and who is safe and who is sweating on their place. Here are Australia’s marks out of ten:

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In the Latest Episode of the Sledge….

The Sledge team previews the 2nd Test between Australia and New Zealand which kicks off in Hobart today.

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