Moving on from Hyderabad...

Once again, the draw was an excellent result even if it felt a bit hollow coming as it did on a lifeless pitch. If the batsmen can keep this up for one more game it'll be a solid achievement.

Instead of writing a long recap of the test, here's a piece in the Herald which echoes my thoughts all the way.

Special mention must made of Brendon McCullum because he's been at the receiving end of much of the criticsm that has come NZ's way in recent times. Ever since the one-day series victory over Pakistan last November, he's more than done his bit with the bat in all forms of the game and has had a particularly good 12 months in test cricket. It's early days yet in his latest avatar as a test opener, but for once he walked the talk. For the last 9 years Virender Sehwag has shown what a difference a quick-scoring opening bat can make, and McCullum's 225 hinted he could perform a similar role (though he would need the middle-order to stay strong to afford playing that way consistently).

As for the 3rd test, the Nagpur pitch is reported to be more bouncy and should get more spin-friendly as the game goes on. This was what we were supposed to expect at Hyderabad, so will reserve further comment. Harsha Bhogle has noted in Cricinfo the difficulty both sides have had to face in bowling the opposition out quickly, as a possible sign of things to come.