A huge part of Test Cricket's appeal lies in the scope it provides across five days, for events to unfold, for twists and turns. We await them in the knowledge that they may never come. If the Test Match is a fickle lady when it comes to dealing with us viewers, over the course of this Sri Lanka vs India series she's been a positively harsh mistress.
Following the run-glut at the SSC, after the Lankan batsmen helped themselves on day one I'm sure I wasn't alone in predicting another boring draw. Which pretty much reflects the mental image I have of the series so far, from what I've watched on TV. Today, Sri Lanka began the day 34 ahead with 8 wickets in hand, spectacularly collapsed to indian spin to be reduced to 125 for 8, and have now 'recovered' to 190 without further loss (courtesy Mendis and the gutsy, underrated Samaraweera). Who knows where this is headed.
Now here's the rub; I spent much quality time on viewing tiresome passages of play and nearly giving up on the series as a result, and now that the game has come alive I'm stuck in office and unable to watch. This sudden turn of events has been of the doze-off-and-you'll-miss-it variety, again just one of the ways in which the lady chooses to reassert herself.
I wonder if England (and Pakistan) fans had similar feelings on the final day of that December 2000 Karachi test match, when an exceedingly dull series played out on dead tracks suddenly came to life with Pakistan collapsing in their second innings. England, led by Graham Thorpe and Graeme Hick, chased down 176 in near-darkness in the face of Moin khan's desperate delaying tactics.
Top Cricket From The Second Tier
13 years ago
2 comments:
It's hard to rate Samaraweera as being in the same class as the more illustrious members of the Lankan top order when he has 1 test hundred outside of the subcontinent, and that being on a dustbowl in the Port of Spain.
Saying that, he has taken a particular likening to New Zealand bowling in his career.
Hi David, thanks for stopping by! Have added your site to the blogroll.
Yeah, Samaraweera's stats are quite skewed but I like his technique and the way he goes about his batting. Even though his better performances seem to be confined to the subcontinent, he tends to come up with good innings when they are neededmost.
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