Day 3 - St. Lucia test.Cricket is a game where outside factors effect a lot. It can be a 22 yard pitch which changes from country to country, it can be the weather that no body can control... but there is another factor that effects cricket - the big total of opposition... Its amazing to see how batsmen plays bad shots when opposition team has
made a huge total, even if the pitch is playing in the
 same manner as it was
during their batting. I remember Mumbai crowd booing their most loved child -
Sachin Tendulkar and also their latest love - Mahendra Singh Dhoni when they
played lose shots and got out when India needed them to be there on pitch and
save that test match against England..It wasn't the pitch, or the bowling of England but it was the opposition
score on Indian batsmen's head which they knew they can't get pass and lost
their wickets. Recently, England were playing at home against Sri Lanka
at Nottingham and on the same pitch where English bowlers couldn't get Sri
Lankan tail-ender out, their batsmen folded out in just 40 odd over. Again, it
wasn't the pitch or anything else, it was the Sri Lankan score that England knew
they can't get past..
Now West Indies are in same position for the second straight time. They
somehow managed to save the first test by 1 wicket and now when Indian batsmen
scored freely on St. Lucia pitch, West Indian batsmen are finding it hard to
survive even on day of test cricket. Toda
 y on Day 3 of this second test match
between India and West Indies, they lost 7 wickets and Rahul Dravid asked them
to follow-on..They again lost their opener Chris Gayle with just 2 runs on the board.
Lara had said at the end of Day 2 that West Indies still have 17 wickets
remaining and they can come back strongly into this St. Lucia test match...
Well, now he just have 9 more to go and 2 days to negotiate. He has taken a bold
decision to come at no. 3 to bat and has done quite well so far, but how long
this "quite well" is going to save him.. .we will soon find out. The Scorecard.
Having said all this, we all know what Brain Charles Lara is capable of
and if you are an Indian, hope with me that there will be no Lara special at St.
Lucia any more... we really need to win this test match... and the series as
well..!! Related Articles |