Wow, that is all I can say
January 24, 2006That was Vince Carter’s response to the 81 of Kobe Bryant. I concur.
Rakhi
Dr. Saeed Durrani in Daily Times letters suggests Rakhi as the name for the India-Pakistan series. While Ashes symbolises destruction, Rakhi is the symbol of bonding. I like it.
Karachi decider looks likely
Younis Khan and Kamran Akmal love to bat versus India. They know how to play the Indian spinners very well. Pakistan can make quick runs and put India under pressure tomorrow if they are brave enough to go down that road. With only 1 wicket for Pakistan, they find themselves in a position to decide the possible course of the match. A draw does look the likely outcome even if both teams intent to play for a win from the current scenario.
Zero off 100
Shekhar Joshi bats a 100 balls, 120 minutes without scoring and helps Baroda draw their match versus Bengal.
A master of short columns
Tim de Lisle proves it once again in his new column on cricinfo. He has mixed reactions on BCCI’s superpower status:
Business has the upper hand. TV contracts go to the broadcasters with the most money, not those with the most viewers. Administrators express themselves in the grim, grey jargon of the businessman. Players blithely promote companies that run sweatshops, cause pollution, create obesity, collude with tyrants. Even the ICC aspires to be a brand.. ..The Champions’ Trophy has yet to find a decent format, let alone a place in cricket lovers’ hearts. The FTP has done more harm than good, abolishing the one-off Test (except when it suited ICC for its Super “Series”), creating far too many two- and three-Test series, and making five-Test series even harder to schedule. And someone had to do something about Bangladesh.
He ventures in the new fast bowlers we are seeing:
The rising generation of fast bowlers are a different breed, delivering more ferocity and less precision. We are witnessing the end of a game of patience.
Finally, Kerry Packer isn’t looked at with tinted glasses which the media has done:
His personal baby, the annual triangular series of 50-over internationals, was exposed as a bore. Spectators turned up, because Australia’s cities are far-flung and it’s a great country for floodlit viewing. But as sport, the B&H, Carlton, VB or whatever you called it was a dud, long-winded and repetitive. The triangle was too often one-sided.. ..His TV coverage, on Channel 9, was similarly stolid, and was made to look it as soon as Britain’s Channel 4 entered the picture.
A spinning web on the 4th day?
I had written this after Day 2 when not many were giving India a chance:
India has 110. At 3 and half runs per over then can reach 425. Accelarting tomorrow, they can reach the score of Pakistan. Then a performance by Kumble and Harbhajan (provided the pitch provides support) can lead to a change in scenario. India may have to chase around 200-250 in the last 2 sessions or so. Could be a mouth watering prospect. On the other hand the Indian batting can collapse and we can see a Pakistan victory. There is a lot to unfold still in this match
It will indeed be very interesting to see how Kumble and Harbhajan perform now.
