Sunday, August 28, 2016

india vs west indies 2nd t20 no result

'Technical' delay, rain, wet field: bizarre no-result

International cricket has lost valuable time in strange circumstances in recent weeks - bright daylight but non-drying outfields in rainy months - but what happened in Lauderhill on Sunday might just be too bizarre for even cricket to come up with. For 40 minutes at the start of the day, on another beautiful sunny morning, the full house at the ground was denied cricket because the broadcasters suffered an "unavoidable" and "technical" problem. Once the game began India bowled superbly to bowl West Indies out for 143, but two overs into the chase, a 20-minute shower was enough to ensure the three remaining overs required to constitute a result would not be bowled.

This two-match series, which West Indies won 1-0, was supposed to be an exercise to take the game into a new market, a market where fans are used to being treated better than cricket tends to treat fans in India. They would have been in for a rude surprise when, after paying steep prices for their tickets, they didn't even get a proper public announcement explaining the delayed start. The broadcasters had paid massive sums for the rights and deserved some consideration, but there was rain expected later in the afternoon. You can imagine the eggshells the match officials would have walked on while sanctioning that delay.

That was not the last bizarre act of the day. At around 12.40pm, with India looking to be on their way to a win having restricted West Indies, it rained for around 20 minutes. The ground didn't have a Super Sopper, and wasn't covered fully. The business area was promptly ready for play and the deep parts of the outfield drained well too, but the top of the bowlers' run-ups, around the area where the painted advertisements are, didn't dry up. The captains were seen looking at that particular area with concern minutes before the game was called off at 2pm.

The official presentation was carried out in gloomy circumstances with the official interviewer steering clear of even mentioning the delayed start, without which the crowd would have had a result. The studio shows and the official interviewer only spoke of how humans are helpless against "mother nature" and "weather". Without being prompted, the West Indies captain Carlos Brathwaite said he hoped the drainage and equipment would improve at the ground, which he said was a wonderful venue otherwise.

It would have been particularly disappointing for the India fans who would have been expecting to celebrate a bowling comeback after their side went for 245 on Saturday, and the comeback of Amit Mishra. He last played a Twenty20 international during the World T20 in 2014. In the next year-and-a-half India only played bilateral Twenty20 internationals, not bothering with flying in T20 specialists for one or two three-hour matches. By the time India started taking T20 internationals seriously again, in the lead-up to the 2016 World T20, Mishra had lost out to Pawan Negi and Harbhajan Singh without being given a chance to build on his impressive bowling in 2014.
Now, perhaps precisely because India didn't bother to fly in T20 specialists for another bilateral series, Mishra got another chance, and made immediate impact to help India bowl West Indies out for 143.

Mishra removed Johnson Charles with the first ball he bowled, inside the Powerplay. Charles had run away to 43 off 24 in the first five overs, but Mishra began with a front-of-the-hand legbreak that followed Charles as opposed to turning away, cramping him up, getting him caught at long-on. After that the spinners choked the life out of the West Indies batting. Ravindra Jadeja zipped through with quiet overs, and R Ashwin bowled cleverly to take the wickets of Lendl Simmons and Kieron Pollard.

The fact that spinners bowled so well just after the Powerplay meant India could afford to introduce Jasprit Bumrah after the 10th over. He prefers the ball to be as old as possible. Bumrah responded immediately with the wicket of Marlon Samuels, and the others tightened the screws around him. West Indies, with Brathwaite coming in at No. 9, kept coming hard at India even though they kept losing wickets. India still kept taking wickets, bowling West Indies out for a below-par score, but they were powerless against the "weather".

Saturday, August 27, 2016

INDIA LOSES 1ST T20 VS WEST INDIES BY 1 RUN

Bravo magic seals one-run win in 489-run T20I

    West Indies 245 for 6 (Lewis 100, Charles 79) beat India 244 for 4 (Rahul 110*, Rohit 62,  Bravo 2-37) by 1 run


A hurriedly arranged exercise to take a glimpse into the future of cricket economy provided a giddying look into the future of Twenty20 cricket on the field. This was a future of fearless, relentless, calculated, almost unhurried hitting taken to the next level as West Indies first amassed their personal best of 245 only for India to come within two runs of mounting the highest successful T20I chase almost without breaking a sweat.

Evin Lewis and KL Rahul, replacing regular openers Chris Gayle and Shikhar Dhawan, smashed hundreds, but in this future bowlers did deal the consequential blows. India bowled superb wide yorkers to concede just 40 in the last four and 64 in the last seven, but the wily Dwayne Bravo outfoxed MS Dhoni and the centurion Rahul by defending seven runs in the last over. India needed two off the last ball, but Bravo made Dhoni wait and wait before bowling a slower ball that was caught by Marlon Samuels at short third man.

On a day that some batting records were broken and all sorts of others, and low-flying aircrafts, were under threat - Richard Levi's fastest hundred off 45 balls thrice, most runs in an over, most runs in boundaries in a team innings, highest T20I score, highest successful T20I chase - the bowling was the story of the day. In particular the last over of the day.

When Bravo began it, 483 runs had been scored in 39 overs. Thirty-two sixes and 35 fours had been hit on a flat deck surrounded by short boundaries. Johnson Charles had looted 79 off 33, playing only five scoring shots on the off side. Playing only his second T20I, replacing Gayle, Lewis had hit five sixes in a Stuart Binny over. Rohit Sharma looked like he could cream his way to another hundred when he scored 62 off 28. Andre Russell, the best T20 cricketer going around today, had just been mercilessly taken for 36 runs in his last two overs.

Bravo had no business even hoping to save this one, especially when bowling to a man batting on a smooth hundred and the other renowned to be one of the best finishers in ODI cricket, Dhoni. In ran Bravo, a nine-run 18th over behind his back, hoping to not concede a boundary first ball, to "try to get into the over". He had reason to just hope: 20 of the 39 previous overs had been taken for at least a boundary in the first two balls.

Bravo did way better, though, bowling a bewitching slower ball, dipping on Dhoni - 40 off 21 at that time - drawing a big edge, but at short third man Marlon Samuels dropped what Ian Bishop called was the "sittest of sitters". This was the second catch West Indies had dropped; Russell had reprieved Rahul when he was only 36. Rahul had gone on to play a chanceless innings, continuing to run hard despite having been hit on the toe twice.

Back to the frustrated Bravo then. This one was full and outside off, Rahul smashed it into the off side, and now was the time to hope this went to a fielder. Straight to the sweeper-cover fielder it went. Six required off four now. Still a matter of hoping. Bravo's next ball was on a length, but smartly he followed Dhoni, cramping him up, conceding just the leg-bye.

If Bravo and Russell were the big boys West Indies went to with only 53 required off the last four overs, Bravo now went to the big boys of death bowling. No more mucking around. Bowl them yorkers. The first one was a low full toss, the original call was two as this went to long-on, but finally, at long last, Rahul had had enough up haring up and down with a badgered toe. Also if there had been a run-out - and there could only have been one at Rahul's end - India would have had a new batsman facing up with four required off two balls.

Instead we had the cool head of Dhoni. Against his trusted lieutenant for years at Chennai Super Kings. Bravo bowled the near perfect yorker, Dhoni dug it out powerfully, the ball bounced over Bravo's head, who got a hand to it, slowing it down. Was this absorbing of the blow that cost West Indies the second run here? Would this have been a single had Bravo not intercepted or would it have beaten long-off to end the game right there? We won't know.

Now time stood still. Dhoni has often destroyed many an inexperienced bowler by bringing the contest to a one-on-one from the 11-on-1 that it is for major durations of the match. The hunter had become the hunted now. Bravo had begun the over with nothing to lose, and now he had left Dhoni in the spotlight. And he left Dhoni on a slow burn. About five minutes went by before he bowled the next ball, but it seemed like an eternity. First a man from the off side was moved to midwicket inside the circle to block that Dhoni bunt into the leg side for a couple. Then once the field was set, once Dhoni was ready to face, Bravo walked back all the way to long-on for another conference with Kieron Pollard and new captain Carlos Brathwaite.

Dhoni had met an equal at mindgames. He had only recently outfoxed Bangladesh when they needed two off the last ball. He was now being given enough time and more whether to go for a boundary or the safe route of getting bat on ball for a single to tie and then see if they could get the bonus second? Bravo, and those who know Dhoni, knew the answer. "Knowing MS," Bravo said in a flash interview, "I knew he was going to take the safer route."

Bravo said he wasn't always sure of bowling the slower ball, but once he saw Dhoni move towards him a little, he pulled out that slower dipping offcutter again. Destiny's child Samuels, twice Man of the Match in World T20 final wins, got another chance as Dhoni edged while trying to push this into the off side for the safer route. Samuels caught it this time. Bravo had taken a stunning catch earlier to get rid of Ajinkya Rahane and had taken the crucial wicket of Virat Kohli without pulling out his Champion Dance, but turns out he had saved it for something special: this.

Monday, August 22, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES,4TH TEST DRAWS DUE TO RAIN

West Indies v India, 4th Test, Port of Spain, 5th day August 22, 2016

Farce ends as third-shortest Test ever

The farce in Port of Spain ended in bright sunshine with no play possible, just like the earlier three days. Called off at 9.30am on the fifth day, this was the third-shortest non-abandoned Test ever.

This was the first Test played in August in Trinidad, which is the rainy season. The outfield had taken a lot of beating in the days leading up to the Test, but the ground staff was economical with covering the ground when it rained, leaving the bowlers' run-up exposed. There was no super sopper available either. As a result the field didn't recover from the rain on day one, and only 22 overs - all in the first session of the Test - were bowled.

The draw meant India lost their No. 1 ranking to Pakistan one week after they had gained it thanks to the whitewash of Australia in Sri Lanka. They still won the series 2-0, the first time they won two Tests in a series in the West Indies.

 

Sunday, August 21, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 4TH TEST, PORT OF SPAIN - DAY 4

India vs West Indies, 4th Test, Day 4 at Port of Spain, Trinidad


Play called off: 

Wow that was quick! The umpires had a long discussion with West Indies coach Phil Simmons and Indian coach Anil Kumble and it was decided that play would be called off already despite the bright sunshine. That's three days in a row now! Pakistan will have to wait for one more day now before they get crowned as the new World No.1.
Absolutely: 
Build up: 

Only 22 overs have been bowled in three days as rain has had a major say in the final Test. Even though we have had bright spells of sunshine on many occasions, the wet patches on the outfield haven't dried up and hence not even a single delivery was bowled on day two and day three. This is a huge blow in India's quest to retain their No.1 spot in the Test rankings. It's a bit bizarre that a Test match has been scheduled in this part of the world in August as it usually rains at this time of the year. The umpires will conduct an inspection shortly but the signs aren't good yet.

Saturday, August 20, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 4TH TEST, PORT OF SPAIN - DAY 3

India vs West Indies, 4th Test, Day 3 at Port of Spain


Play called off: 

A wet outfield, followed by heavy showers, meant that the umpires were forced to call off the play for the day. A second day in succession being abandoned without a single ball being bowled has dealt a big blow to India's prospects of retaining the No. 1 ranking. With the outfield taking a long time to dry, and the unavailability of a super-sopper, puts the fourth day's play too under doubt.


 Heavens open up: 

As expected, the dark clouds that were hovering above the ground, brought with them a heavy spell of rain, forcing more covers to be brought on. Even the area that was dug up to hasten the drying process, had to be covered. This should be the end of the day's play, official confirmation awaited. Considering the abysmal drainage at the ground and the limited resources available for the groundsmen, it could well be the end of the Test.


Update: 

Just when the umpires were getting ready for the inspection, dark clouds forced the groundsmen to bring the covers on. With a portion of the outfield already dug up, the Test maybe as good as over if the intensity of the rain increases.

Build-up: 

The first session on day one saw 22 overs being played, following which there has been no action at all in the fourth Test at Port of Spain, apart from groundsmen being kept busy and the umpires doing some inspections from time to time. While rain played spoilsport on day one, washing out the second and third sessions, no play was possible at all on day two, despite no rain. A wet outfield forced the day's play to be called off and inadequate drying facilities at the ground added to the woes.

While day three was again expected to begin early, the outfield is still soggy, leading to a further delay. "Folks here have some questions to answer. Not having a Super Sopper is unacceptable," said Viv Richards, disappointed with the facilities at the ground. A pitch fork was used to check how much the outfield has dried, but the signs weren't promising as the fork sank in with ease, indicating the wetness underneath. After several inspections on day two which did not provide any positive news, another inspection has been scheduled for today, at 11:00 AM local time. Will there be a different script today?

Unfortunately for the Indian team, which needs a victory to remain No. 1 in the Test rankings, there aren't any promising news. Thunderstorms have been forecast for later today, and in case the intensity of the showers happen to be as much as it was on day one, this Test is as good as over. But for now, fingers crossed.

 © Cricket Fever

Friday, August 19, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 4TH TEST, PORT OF SPAIN - DAY 2

Outfield consumes two sessions, rain the last

     West Indies 62 for 2 (Brathwaite 32*) v India

Port of Rain: There was little rain but the wet outfield accounted for the whole second day's play
From the moment Port of Spain woke up to 2.15pm, when any hope of a resumption of play evaporated, no rain fell at Queen's Park Oval. Yet not a single ball was bowled despite the sun beating down on the ground till 2pm.

The umpires came out for inspection after inspection after inspection, but didn't find the outfield to be fit for play. There was no super sopper to assist the ground staff nor was the whole ground covered when it rained. The eventual downpour at 2.15pm, 15 minutes before yet another inspection, accounted for any remaining hopes.

With only 22 overs possible on the first two days, with forecast not great for the rest of the Test and given the facilities available at Queen's Park Oval, only an unbelievable three days could produce a result. India needed to win this Test to retain their No. 1 Test ranking and not lose it to Pakistan. West Indies were 62 for 2 after 22 overs, all bowled in the first session on the first morning.

Thursday, August 18, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES - 4TH TEST, PORT OF SPAIN - DAY1

West Indies lose two before rain washes out 68 overs

     West Indies 62 for 2 (Brathwaite 32*) v India

Ishant Sharma struck with the first ball he bowled

India's hopes of retaining the No. 1 Test ranking going into the home season suffered a setback as only 22 overs were possible on the first day in wet Port of Spain. Forecast for the second day wasn't great either, and the facilities at the ground came under scrutiny too. The first day's play began half an hour late despite no rain since the evening before the Test, and it was called off as early as 2pm. There is no super sopper at Queen's Park Oval.

Any team will be a tad disappointed with losing two wickets in the first session after choosing to bat on a slow track, but such has been the state of the West Indies batting that they might take this, with the rain being the bonus. Only once in the series have they lost their third wicket after reaching three figures. Kraigg Brathwaite, who has shown the willingness to buckle down, did that job, but he will be disappointed they lost two wickets especially after he and Leon Johnson had seen off the first spells of the opening bowlers.

West Indies will be all the more disappointed because the pitch was really slow after having spent a lot of time under covers because of rain leading up to the Test. It had left the outfield wet enough to delay the start of the Test by half an hour. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who had cracked open the last Test for India, wasted little time, though, in creating opportunities. In his first four overs, he hit the outside edge of Brathwaite's bat four times: twice the ball fell short, once it travelled in the gap in the slip cordon, and once Virat Kohli dropped it at second slip, seeming to suggest he expected third slip KL Rahul to go for it.

That wasn't the first disfavour he had done his bowlers: he had decided to play just the four bowlers so that both Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma could be included. Also he dropped Shikhar Dhawan for M Vijay after an uncertain batting line-up had been reduced to 126 for 5 in the previous Test.

After seeing off Bhuvneshwar and Mohammed Shami for a partnership of 31 runs, Johnson fell to the first ball bowled by Ishant Sharma. This was his second straight dismissal to short leg, and again straight off the bat. Ishant got it just high enough into the ribs, but Johnson could have left it alone.
The second wicket didn't take so much co-operation from the batsman. After Darren Bravo had picked R Ashwin for a two and a four at his home ground, the next ball was just a bit shorter, creating the distance between the pitch of the ball and the bat. Then it had enough time to turn from middle and leg and past the outside edge to hit the top of off stump. That in the first session of a Test is excellent for a spinner.

Brathwaite, though, remained solid and in partnership with Marlon Samuels took West Indies to within 15 minutes of lunch when rain brought them early relief. As it turned out steady rain for the next hour or so was all it took for the day's play to be called off.

INDIA VS WEST INDIES 4TH TEST REVIEW

Record-setting India aim for 3-0 series win

Rain is expected to play spoilsport during the course of the final Test
   
World No 1 - that's where the Indian Test team stands at the moment. It's a small incentive, as Virat Kohli rightly termed it, but the team is looking at continuing its winning form for much longer, in order to carve out an era.

India are 2-0 up with one game to play in the Test series against hosts West Indies, already a record scoreline for any Indian side visiting the Caribbean, and they will look to wrap up the series 3-0 when the two teams meet on Thursday at Queens Park Oval in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

The pitch at the Queens Park Oval looks like one that will play to the spinners' benefit and that will put India at more of an advantage. Ravichandran Ashwin has already scored two hundreds and picked up a truckload of wickets on the tour, and he will be looking at another strong performance to cap off a successful series.

India's batsmen have been in good form, too, with Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha and Ashwin all getting hundreds. The curator at Port of Spain reckons the pitch will be a good one for batsmen, even though there will be spin and bounce on offer. India's batsmen will be keen on putting up another big performance with the bat.

For the West Indies, the only way is up. They showed some fight during the second innings at Jamaica and the first at St Lucia. However, they slumped to a new low during their second innings in the third Test, losing wickets in a heap and succumbing to another big defeat. They will hope for a good performance from at least one of their top four batsmen, who have all been, expect Kraigg Brathwaite to some extent, in bad form. The middle-order failure in the last game exposed how dependent the team is on them, and they can ill afford another bad show with the bat, against an Indian team hungry for success.

 When: West Indies vs India, 4th Test on August 18 at 10:00 AM local time (7.30 PM IST)

Where: Sabina Park, Port-of-Spain Trinidad

What to expect: Rain is expected to play spoilsport during the course of the Test, and the pitch could play a tad differently. Kohli opined that the rain, and with the pitch kept under covers, could help the faster bowlers, while the curator felt that the pitch will be a good one for batsmen and spinners.

 Team News:

India: India sprung more than a couple of surprises during their last game in St Lucia, and it wouldn't be surprising to see them do so again in Port of Spain. Murali Vijay could come in for the out-of-form Shikhar Dhawan, while there might be a case for an extra seamer for Ravindra Jadeja, judging by Kohli's reading of the wicket.
Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara and Shardul Thakur have also been named in the sides to play in the Duleep Trophy. All three were left out of the starting XI in the last Test, and it will be interesting to see if the players are released to play in the pink-ball tournament if they are not picked for the fourth Test.
West Indies: The only change West Indies could make would be bringing in specialist spinner Devendra Bishoo for one of their pacers. Alzarri Joseph had a good debut, while Miguel Cummins sparkled with a six-fer in the second innings in St Lucia. It will be interesting to see which pacer gets the drop, should the team management go with Bishoo.

What they said:

Virat Kohli: If you're playing five batters and looking to bat someone at number five then the batting order that we played in the last game works. When we play six batters and four bowlers in home conditions maybe where you won't require that extra fifth bowler who might not bowl too many overs, then the combination becomes different. We are open to both

Jason Holder: Personally, I would like to get some better starts. Part of my job is to do the holding bit at one end, as the hard working boys tend to rest. I felt that I was always doing well in the series but just haven't got the wickets to show.

Squads:

India: Virat Kohli(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Cheteshwar Pujara, Stuart Binny

West Indies: Jason Holder, Devendra Bishoo, Kraigg Brathwaite, Carlos Brathwaite, Jermaine Blackwood, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Leon Johnson, Alzarri Joseph, Marlon Samuels

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

INDIA BECOMES NO.1 IN ICC TEST RANKINGS

Australia concede No. 1 Test ranking to India

Sri Lanka's 3-0 win over Australia in the home series helped India climb to the top spot in latest ICC Test rankings.

The Indian cricket team climbed to No. 1 spot in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings after Sri Lanka blanked Australia 3-0 in the home series on Wednesday (August 17).

Sri Lanka whitewashed the three-match Test series against the No. 1 ranked Australian side with a 163-run victory on the fifth and final day of the third Test. Consequently, the visitors lost 10 rating points and slipped to the third spot in the table with 108, four points behind India's 112.

To retain the No.1 rank, though, India will now have to win the final Test of their ongoing four-match Test series in West Indies, which begins in Port of Spain on Thursday (August 18). Their failure to win the fourth Test will propel Pakistan to the top spot for the first time.

If India win, they will finish on 112 points - one ahead of Pakistan - but slip to 110 points if the Test is drawn. In case the West Indies earn a consolation win, India will slip to fourth place with 108 rating points.

Pakistan, who won the fourth and final Test against hosts England at The Oval last week to level the series 2-2, jumped to the second spot with 111 ranking points.

England are placed fourth in the table with 108 rating points while Sri Lanka gained ten points to pip South Africa and climb to the sixth spot.

Sunday, August 14, 2016

India vs West Indies: In a first, India win two Tests in the Caribbean

Stats: Virat Kohli becomes first India captain to win two Tests in West Indies

India haven't lost a Test for nine matches in succession with Virat Kohli as captain










India defeated a hapless West Indies side by 237 runs in the third Test in Gros Islet despite losing one entire day's play to rain. India were clinical during the final day's play, dismissing West Indies for 108 in just 47.3 overs after setting them a target of 346 runs. This was Jason Holder's sixth loss in eight Tests as captain and West Indies' eighth in the last ten. Darren Bravo's 59 was the only positive for West Indies on Day 5 while Mohammed Shami was the pick of the Indian bowlers with three scalps as the visitors took an unassailable 2-0 lead.
 
Stats wrap of the final day's play in Gros Islet:
 
4 Series wins for India in West Indies. They won only one series in their first eight tours to the country - a 1-0 win in 1971 under Ajit Wadekar. However, they have now won three series in a row - 2006, 2011 and 2016.
 
India's series wins in West Indies

MARGIN   Tests     Year          Captain               WINS AT VENUE(s)
 1-0                5             1971 Ajit Wadekar Port of Spain
 1-0 4        2006 Rahul Dravid Kingston
 1-03        2011        MS Dhoni                   Kingston
 2-04        2016 Virat Kohli                 North Sound; Gros Islet















0 Previous instances of India winning two Tests in series in the Caribbean. They won one Test each in 1971, 1976, 2002, 2006 and 2011, all under different captains. Virat Kohli became the first Indian skipper to lead India to two wins in the West Indies.
 
1 Instance of India winning two Tests and losing none in a series away from home (excluding Bangladesh and Zimbabwe). That instance came in 1986 in England.
 
9 Consecutive Test matches for Virat Kohli as captain without a loss - sixth-best streak for an Indian captain. His last defeat came against Sri Lanka in Galle in August 2015. The ones with longer runs are Sunil Gavaskar (18), Kapil Dev (17), Mohammad Azharuddin (14), MS Dhoni (11) and Sachin Tendulkar (10).
 
3 Wins for India away from home with a higher margin than the 237 runs in this match. They won by 279 runs in Leeds in 1986, 278 runs in Colombo (PSS) in 2015 and 272 runs in Auckland in 1968.
 
5 for 33 by Bhuvaneshwar Kumar is the third-best figures for an Indian pacer in West Indies, after Ishant Sharma's 6 for 55 in 2011 and Kapil Dev's 6 for 84 in 1989.
 
4.52 India's run-rate in their second innings - the third best for them in the third innings of an away Test, after 4.86 against Australia and 4.74 against Bangladesh.
 
6 for 48 by Miguel Cummins is the fourth-best figures for a West Indies pacer against India in Tests, after 7 for 64 by Andy Roberts, 6 for 37 by Malcolm Marshall and 6 for 39 by Vanburn Holder. The last West Indian to take a six-fer against India was Franklyn Rose, who took 6 for 100 in Kingston in 1996.
 
9 wickets taken by Cummins off his last 76 balls. He went wicket-less for the first 280 balls in his career.
 
4 runs scored for the opening wicket stand by Kraigg Brathwaite and Leon Johnson in West Indies' second innings. The three first-wicket partnerships between the two before this read 143, 76 and 59.
 
3 Wickets taken in this Test by R Ashwin - the fewest he has taken against West Indies in a Test. However, his economy rate of 2.10 in the best for him against them in a Test.
 
8 Test matches taken by Ashwin to take 50 wickets against West Indies, the fewest for an Indian bowler against them, surpassing 10 Tests by Harbhajan Singh. Ashwin is also the joint second-fastest Indian bowler to take 50 scalps against an opposition, along with EAS Prasanna and Anil Kumble, who also took eight Tests each to reach 50 wickets, against New Zealand and Pakistan respectively. Harbhajan has taken the least Tests to 50 against an opposition - seven against Australia.
 
2 Bowlers with more wickets than Ashwin at the end of the first 35 Tests of their career. Waqar Younis (194) and Clarrie Grimmett (193) are the only ones with more scalps than Ashwin's 192.
 
3 Alzzari Joseph became the third West Indian to be dismissed for a pair on Test debut. Alf Valentine and Rajendra Chandrika faced this ignominy earlier.
 
108 is the second-lowest total for West Indies in Tests against India. The only lower score came in the series decider in Kingston in 2006, when they were dismissed for 103 in the first innings.
 
Lowest scores for West Indies against India
SCORE    OVERS    INNINGS    RESULT       GROUND                 START DATE  




  103          33.3             2               LOST             KINGSTON             30-JUN 06





  108          47.3             4               LOST             GROS ISLET           9-AUG 16




  127          47.1             2              WON               DELHI                   25-NOV 87




  134          57.2             3              DRAW             MUMBAI               22-NOV 11




  140          45.0             3              WON               BRIDGEOWN    27-MARCH 97











1 This is West Indies' first loss in a Test in Gros Islet. They had won one and drew three of their first four Tests here.6 Man-of-the-match awards for Ashwin in Tests. It is the most for an Indian player since the all-rounder's debut, ahead of the next-placed Cheteshwar Pujara (3).






















INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 3RD TEST- DAY5, Quicks seal India's incredible series win

Quicks seal India's incredible series win

India 353 (Ashwin 118, Saha 104, Cummins 3-54) and 217 for 7 decl. (Rahane 78*, Cummins 6-48) beat West Indies 225 (Brathwaite 64, Bhuvneshwar 5-33) and 108 (Bravo 59, Shami 3-15) by 237 runs 


On Thursday, the third day of the St Lucia Test, India saw rain wash a whole day's play out, with runs having been scored at about 2.5 an over on the first two days. The bowlers' last memory of having taken a wicket was 79.2 overs ago. By the end of the play on Saturday, the fifth day, India had taken 17 wickets in 63.5 overs to complete an incredible Test and series win, one that was borne as much out of belief and intent as out of West Indies' lack of resistance after what hopefully wasn't a false dawn in Jamaica.

India began the final day believing they could still win; West Indies did nothing to make India doubt it. After Bhuvneshwar Kumar's swing masterclass left India 285 in lead at the end of the fourth day, India quickly ran away to 60 runs in nine overs to leave West Indies with no chance of winning and 87 overs to survive.

That was a big difference between Jamaica and St Lucia: there, one counterattack put the hosts within sight of parity and gave them direction. Here they didn't know where to go. Feet stopped moving, brains got muddled, plans went absent, and India stayed relentless. The victory, the first time India won two Tests in a series outside Asia since 2005 and the first time ever in the West Indies, arrived before tea.

The gulf in the class and awareness between the teams was glaring on the fifth day. It began with awareness and intent. India knew the outfield was slow, they knew they were short on time, so they came out running runs as if in street cricket. Tip and run, runs to slip, second runs with the ball in the fielder's hand, thirds because of panicked throws and poor backing-up, India almost literally stole these runs from under West Indies' noses. A six-wicket haul for Miguel Cummins as the batsmen went after the bowling was the only silver lining on a dark day for West Indies cricket. Ajinkya Rahane, not surprisingly, top-scored with an unbeaten 78.

Then came the question of class. West Indies still had only 87 overs to survive on a pretty reliable surface. Except that the batting was not reliable. Coming into this innings having lost their last seven first-innings wickets in 16.2 overs, West Indies needed a solid start. It wasn't to be. On a new-ball pitch, the India quicks were soon going to be all over them. This was going to call for gumption, especially if West Indies lost a wicket early on. Which they duly did, with new opener Leon Johnson fending Mohammed Shami to short leg.

Bhuvneshwar, who had cracked the game open with a quick five-for on day four, then had Kraigg Brathwaite - not the only West Indies batsman who prefers to stay back - with a really full delivery. The inswinger held its line a little, Brathwaite played across its line and was caught dead plumb. With openers gone in the fifth over, there was extra responsibility on the most experienced West Indies batsmen, Marlon Samuels and Darren Bravo. Samuels couldn't have played a more irresponsible innings.


Samuels went from fasting to sugar rush, betraying no sense of plan or direction to his batting. He faced the first 12 balls of his innings responsibly, avoiding the short-pitch barrage nicely. With no run to his name, and no intent to score any until then, out of nowhere he looked for a lofted off drive to the 13th ball he faced. Having survived that rush of blood, having scored his first run off the 21st ball he faced, Samuels got two half-volleys from R Ashwin, boundaries off which should have settled down nerves.

Samuels, though, went on a hitting spree. He was lucky he mistimed his next big shot, an attempted loft with a long-on in place. This one fell short, but Samuels, having been dormant for the first half of the innings, struggled to calm himself down. The feet didn't move, the bat went high, an inswinger from Ishant Sharma burst through the gate and sent the off stump on a cartwheel.

Three wickets had been lost in 13.2 overs, but Roston Chase and Bravo batted more sensibly and saw West Indies through to lunch. Post lunch, Ishant produced the delivery of the innings to remove the centurion from Jamaica, Chase. India had got their act together for Chase, bowling fuller than they did in Jamaica, giving him less time to recover should there be any misbehaviour off the pitch. This one misbehaved massively, seaming back in from a full length to take the off stump out.

Jermaine Blackwood's attacking ways were less likely to work here; India had anyway cut off his runs by not bowling in his zone. A frustrated big drive - trying to save a Test with parity nowhere in sight - brought an on-the-line stumping, and half the side was gone even before the ball became old and settled down.

After about the 30th over, the pitch settled down a little. The edges began to die, as R Ashwin found out with Bravo who reached his first fifty in eight innings. The seam movement ceased. A main batsman would have found this period easier to negotiate, but Shane Dowrich fell to a disciplined spell from Shami, who followed on from a seven-over interrogation by Bhuvneshwar. Jason Holder ran himself out, and with the tail in the middle it was just a consolation that West Indies managed to cross 100 and didn't succumb to their lowest total against India.


 

Saturday, August 13, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 3RD TEST - DAY 4

Bhuvneshwar swings through West Indies to give India shot at win

India 353 and 157 for 3 (Rahane 51*) lead West Indies 225 (Brathwaite 64, Bhuvneshwar 5-33) by 285 runs

Despite a rained-out day and the slow rate of scoring in the first two innings, India entertained thoughts of winning the St Lucia Test thanks to a masterful spell of swing bowling from Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Playing his first Test in a year and a half, Bhuvneshwar swung through the West Indies side with a spell of 11.4-6-16-5 as West Indies went from 202 for 3 to 225 all out.

With 98 overs to go in the match and a lead of 285 in the bag, India could think of declaring soon on the fifth morning. They made a good start to the endeavour, scoring 157 for 3 in the 39 overs they got on day four, a rate well higher than the 2.48 an over in the first two innings.

Bhuvneshwar, and for that matter Ravindra Jadeja, is not Virat Kohli's first choice. He prefers Umesh Yadav's pace and Amit Mishra's legspin. Post lunch on day four, with West Indies going fairly well in their quest to ensure they don't lose this Test, it was Bhuvneshwar and Jadeja who turned the match around with the second new ball.

There's a reason why Bhuvneshwar was Kohli's last resort. He bowled the entire match-changing spell without a fine leg. No fine leg, no long leg, no backward square leg. No man behind square on the leg side. Kohli prefers his wickets with batsmen fending at express quicks. It was a sign that the young captain is not stubborn in that he first selected Bhuvneshwar and then gave him the field that works with his bowling. Bhuvneshwar was about to show him the other way of taking wickets.

Kohli had taken the new ball as soon as it became available just before lunch despite the struggles of
Jermaine Blackwood and Marlon Samuels against the turning old ball. It was a session in which an India bowler took a wicket for the first time in 528 legal deliveries. If the last wicket off a bowler shouldn't have been given out - Shane Dowrich on the last day in Jamaica - the legality of this 528th delivery was in doubt. It was an Ishant Sharma bouncer that Darren Bravo top-edged after taking his eyes off, but Ishant didn't quite seem to have a part of his foot behind the crease. It wasn't an obvious no-ball, though, and after multiple replays the third umpire ruled in favour of the bowler, perhaps acting on the new ICC directive to grant the benefit of doubt to the bowler.

 
R Ashwin went on to get the other overnight batsman, Kraigg Brathwaite, and the two spinners had Samuels and Blackwood uncomfortable. Kohli took the new ball and handed it over to Bhuvneshwar. The batsmen had added 59 before lunch, they can both punish errors in line, but through the spell Bhuvneshwar conceded only two shots to fine leg. Blackwood was the first one to go, having faced 15 straight dots from Bhuvneshwar, who bowled a length fuller than he did with the first new ball. The 16th was an outswinger that Blackwood, who loves bat on ball, couldn't resist. Kohli took one of the more predictable edges at second slip.

It took less persistence to set Samuels, 48, up. With Blackwood facing the Bhuvneshwar swing almost exclusively, it was only during the 10th over with the new ball that Samuels was presented to Bhuvneshwar. This time Bhuvneshwar was in no mood for slow cooking. Four outswingers later, he went wide on the crease, slipped in an inswinger, and Samuels, surprised by it all, played on.

Kohli brought Jadeja on at the other end, and he kept creating trouble with the ones that went straight on. The one that turned, though, got the man who had denied India in Jamaica, Roston Chase. Bhuvneshwar's masterclass continued at the other end. Jason Holder was caught on the back foot by one that angled in, and Alzarri Joseph followed a straight ball outside off.

With a remarkable five-for in sight, Bhuvneshwar's persistence was thoroughly tested by his fielders. There were signs he was tiring - the second ball of the 10th over was short and pulled for four, reducing the spell analysis to 9.2-6-11-4 - but he still produced the edge from Shane Dowrich. KL Rahul dropped his second chance of the match at third slip, but it took the third umpire to ascertain it that he had grassed it. In his next over, Bhuvneshwar was offered what should have been his through an ill-advised pull from Dowrich. Rohit Sharma, though, dropped a relatively easy catch at midwicket; he suggested he had lost the ball in the sun. Later in that over Bhuvneshwar was denied a pretty straightforward lbw by the umpire; Miguel Cummins was the beneficiary this time.

A change in bowling at the other end worked. R Ashwin ended this frustrating 6.5-over partnership, and Bhuvneshwar bowled another over to complete his third Test five-for. This was one of his least impressive wickets; in this over he had even conceded a boundary to fine leg. Two balls later Dowrich saw one short and wide, edged the cut, and this time Shikhar Dhawan nearly dropped it at first slip. Dhawan took the rebound, drawing hardly a reaction from Bhuvneshwar.

India had wasted about 40 minutes through some ordinary fielding, but the first culprit, Rahul, went about making up for that time in earnest. His 28 off 24 gave India a run rate of higher than six, but with the subsequent fall of Kohli and Dhawan meant Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma had to be cautious at the start of their partnership. They scored only 16 in the first nine overs of their stand as West Indies made no bones about trying to slow India down through containment and not wickets. Roston Chase and Kraigg Brathwaite bowled 19 overs between them after the pace bowlers had travelled.

Rahane and Rohit made up for the slow start, ending the day with 51 off 93 and 41 off 57, but the time wasted through dropped catches and the mid-innings slowdown could just end up costing India a five-six over burst with the second new ball on day five.

Friday, August 12, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, Raina, Yuvraj out of T20Is in USA

Raina, Yuvraj out of T20Is in USA


MS Dhoni, India's limited-overs captain, will lead the 14-member squad for the two T20Is against West Indies in Florida on August 27 and 28. Dhoni and Jasprit Bumrah are the only members in the squad who are not who are not in the West Indies for the ongoing Test series.
The squad for the USA matches includes nine members of India's 2016 World T20 team. Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Hardik Pandya, Pawan Negi, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra and Manish Pandey have missed out.

While Pandya and Pandey are with the India A team in Australia, Raina, Yuvraj and Harbhajan will feature in the upcoming Duleep Trophy that will be played with the pink ball, and under lights starting from August 23 in Greater Noida.

Yuvraj and Raina have been named captains of the India Red and India Green teams in the Duleep Trophy respectively. Negi does not feature in the squads for the Duleep Trophy either, while Nehra is recovering from a knee surgery following the conclusion of the IPL in May.

KL Rahul, who made his T20I debut in Zimbabwe in June and has been in good form in the ongoing Test series against West Indies, has been retained, while Amit Mishra and Stuart Binny have been recalled to the squad. Binny last played a T20I in Zimbabwe in 2015, while Mishra has not featured in the format since April 2014.

Meanwhile, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Shardul Thakur, Ishant Sharma and Wriddhiman Saha will return after the fourth and final West Indies Test in Port of Spain, which is scheduled to end on August 22. Vijay, Pujara and Thakur are likely to be available for the second round of the Duleep Trophy.




Changes from World T20 squad

In: KL Rahul, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Amit Mishra, Stuart Binny

Out Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Hardik Pandya, Pawan Negi, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Manish Pandey

Full squad for WI T20s: MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Amit Mishra, Stuart Binny

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 3RD TEST - DAY 3

Washout a big step towards draw at St Lucia

West Indies 107 for 1 (Brathwaite 53*) trail India 353 (Ashwin 118, Saha 104, Rahul 50, Cummins 3-54, Joseph 3-69) by 246 runs

 The St Lucia Test took a big step towards a draw with steady rain not allowing any play on the third day. The match had already gone at a slow pace on the first two days with 11 wickets falling for only 460 runs. There hadn't been any weather interruption on the first two days; the slowness was down to disciplined West Indies bowling and a slow outfield. 

West Indies were 107 for 1, trailing India's 353 by 246 runs. With two days to go and an outfield slowed down further, chances of a result looked remote. India led the series 1-0 after the win in Antigua and draw in Jamaica.

The rain on the third day was so steady play was called off before tea, at 1.45pm. Forecast for day four was for early showers but a clear afternoon.

Thursday, August 11, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 3RD TEST - DAY 2

West Indies reply solidly to India's 353

West Indies 107 for 1 (Brathwaite 53*) trail India 353 (Ashwin 118, Saha 104, Rahul 50, Cummins 3-54, Joseph 3-69) by 246 runs



#India lost their first five wickets for 126 and their last five for 14, but between the two collapses R Ashwin and Wriddhiman Saha added 213 runs to save them the blushes. Ashwin scored his fourth century, all against West Indies and two in this series, and Saha attacked his way to a maiden Test century, which countered West Indies' plan to keep India from scoring freely on a slow outfield.

#The day, though, belonged to West Indies, whose new opening combination of Leon Johnson and Kraigg Brathwaite followed the bowling charge with a stand greater than all their earlier opening partnerships in this series put together. Brathwaite ended the day unbeaten on 53, with West Indies still 246 behind, which could take some time coming on the slow outfield. After 234 runs on the first day, the second day produced 226 for six wickets.

#India's theoretical dislike of slow scoring, and some of the selections in Virat Kohli's Test team might leave you worried for the future of old-fashioned Test batsmen, but Saha and Ashwin continued to bat for the tribe after the rescue job on day one. While Ashwin, resuming on 75, gave India the solidity, it was Saha who played with intent against a limited West Indies attack happy to play the defensive game. Saha added 58 off 105 balls to his overnight 46 even as West Indies kept it tight at the other end.

#The first hour of the day replicated what happened for long periods on the opening day. West Indies stacked up one side of the field, and their strike bowlers spent their energy bowling on that side of the wicket, hoping for impatient shots from the batsmen. None of that arrived.

#The intent came in the second hour with Saha taking risks and Ashwin taking only what came his way, understandable given he was approaching a hundred. Saha's effort on the second morning was a repeat of his approach on the first day: against disciplined bowling, Saha had scored 1 off the first 34 balls he faced, 8 off the first 65, and then opened up to end the opening day on 46 off 122; when he came back on Wednesday he scored just 6 off the first 31 balls he faced, but then drove Alzarri Joseph through cover for the first boundary of the day, in the 10th over of the morning.

#After drinks the clear plan seemed for Saha to have a go and disrupt West Indies from their plan of taking time out of the game. Sixty-one came in the second hour as opposed to 21 in the first. Saha was at the forefront, hitting all of the first five boundaries of the day. The third of those, a slog off Roston Chase, the offspinner, took him to his personal best, 64. The fourth took the partnership to 150. In the 21st over of the morning, Ashwin cut away from his body and got his first boundary of the day, moving to 99.

#Even as Ashwin stayed on 99, Saha raced away from 77 to 93 by the time the players went off for their second meal of the day. In the last over before lunch, though, Shannon Gabriel caught Saha on the bare forearm with a short ball. Saha came back with a swollen elbow, but both the batsmen duly reached their centuries with Saha becoming only the fourth India wicketkeeper to score an away century. In the seventh over after lunch, Saha went to drive a really full delivery from Alzarri Joseph, edging it through to Shane Dowrich.

#Now the West Indies pace attack charged at the tail with renewed vigour. Having waited 281 balls for his first Test wicket, Miguel Cummins took three in 10 balls: Ravindra Jadeja following an angling delivery, and Ashwin and Ishant Sharma fending at awkward short balls. In between the Cummins carnage, Gabriel came back to get a much-deserved second wicket, Bhuvneshwar Kumar caught at short leg.

#That the quick bowlers were making the batsmen fend pointed to some life in the pitch, but only if you banged the ball in. The India bowlers - Bhuvneshwar and Mohammed Shami with the new ball - looked to nick the batsmen out. Shami took over Cummins' poor luck; in the half hour before tea he drew an edge from Brathwaite that fell short, and one from Johnson was dropped by KL Rahul at third slip. By the time Rahul made amends with a direct hit from midwicket to run Johnson out, West Indies had put together their first fifty opening in 26 innings.

#For the first time in the series Darren Bravo walked out after a good start, and batted with more assurance than earlier. Brathwaite brought out the discipline he is known for, waiting for loose balls, not minding having to run runs because of the slow outfield, breaking the monotony with a chip shot here or there, spending more than three hours at the wicket for his half-century. The closest India came to a wicket was indifferent running from Bravo and Brathwaite.

Wednesday, August 10, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 3RD TEST - DAY 1

Ashwin, Saha rescue India on testing day


#On a day when India made questionable selections, one of the management's moves in this series, the promotion of R Ashwin to No. 6, rescued them from 126 for 5. In testing conditions India left out Cheteshwar Pujara and M Vijay in favour of Rohit Sharma, whose inclusion led to a rejigged batting order.

#While this apparent push for quick runs resulted in a batting failure, West Indies were not behind in making unusual moves. There was more purpose to their attack, after putting India in, than in the first two Tests. But when they should have looked to finish things off, they opted for the patience route, which cut down the runs thanks to a slow outfield. The wickets, though, came only through the batsmen's impatience. KL Rahul and Ajinkya Rahane threw away starts with impatient shots, but Ashwin - dropped on 26 and caught off a no-ball on 35 - and Wriddhiman Saha soldiered on to keep India from imploding.

#Ashwin and Saha, 46 off 122, added an unbeaten 108 for the sixth wicket. Another lower-order contribution was a continuation of a trend for India: on tough pitches in the home season, they recovered from 139 for 6 in Delhi, 125 for 6 in Nagpur, and 102 for 5 in Mohali.

#The big comeback, though, was that of West Indies in the series. For the first eight days of the series they were pretty much outplayed. Moral victories and psychology can be terms abused in cricket, but the Jamaica draw might have caused damage in Indian heads that might have played a part in leaving them in tatters at tea in St Lucia. West Indies won the toss and utilised the conditions efficiently without being sensational, but India helped them out with their selections.

#Having survived the Jamaica Test, West Indies mounted a fresh challenge against this unsteady Indian batting line-up - a different top three in each Test - by taking wickets when the pitch was fresh and then choking India out with disciplined bowling. Rahul and Rahane, the only specialist batsmen to reach double figures, helped India recover from 19 for 2 but fell in soft manner just before the two session breaks, Rahane to a full toss to end his slowest Test innings of 10 or more.

#The second of the wickets was the highlight. Debutant Alzarri Joseph, who impressed with his pace and his bowling mechanics in only his ninth first-class match, nicked out Virat Kohli with the new ball, a promotion in the order because of the selection of Rohit. West Indies' resistance and the resultant draw in Jamaica led to three changes for India, two of them expected, Ravindra Jadeja and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in for Amit Mishra and Umesh Yadav.

#The batting selections were instructive. At the toss, Kohli, who would have batted if he had won the toss anyway, emphasised that Rohit can change a match in a session. Both Vijay, who was fit after missing the Jamaica Test, and Pujara are reputed to be slower scorers. Turns out India might have misread the pitch or underestimated the attack: the situation asked for the patience of Vijay and
Pujara. Moreover, Kohli and Rahane had to give up their familiar batting positions.

#West Indies were more aggressive to begin with. They added Joseph to the attack, and peppered India with short deliveries. The moisture in the pitch gave them spongy bounce when they pitched short, and some seam movement when they pitched it up. Shikhar Dhawan wasted little time in falling to a short ball, tickling Shannon Gabriel down the leg side.

#Kohli walked in at No. 3, but the fresh pitch with the new seaming ball was not suited for his style of play: soon he shaped up to cut a Joseph delivery that was neither short nor wide, neither full nor close enough to him. Kohli was eventually done in by the extra bounce, but playing such deliveries you get away on pitches like the one in Antigua or against the old ball. A bit of a repeat of his England dismissals brought in India's most reliable batsman, Rahane.

#It was Rahul who weathered most of the initial storm. After an ordinary start - missing five of the first 11 balls he played at - he punished every error in length. Every time West Indies overpitched, Rahul drove hard, even in the air. Short and wide deliveries were cut away. It didn't matter that the good ones in between kept beating him. On a day that the rest of the team scored 169 runs, Rahul took 50 off only 65 balls. Having done the hard work, Rahul fell 18 minutes before lunch, trying to whip a shortish delivery from Roston Chase straight to the man who had just moved to short fine leg.
West Indies came back attacking in the second session. Soon Rohit fell in typical manner, pushing defensively at a Joseph outswinger a set of stumps outside off. After that wicket, though, perhaps because the pitch had settled down, West Indies began to test India's patience. It worked: minutes before tea, Rahane, seeing release in a Chase full toss, swept down the wrong line and was bowled
for 35 off 133. That didn't result in taking off the part-time spin of Kraigg Brathwaite.

#The middle session produced just 43 runs for two wickets, and instead of going for the wickets of the lesser batsmen West Indies began with Jason Holder and Chase in the final session. On another day, persisting with these tactics might have worked but West Indies made two crucial mistakes. When Ashwin left the crease in impatience, inside-edging Chase, Leon Johnson missed him at short leg. When West Indies looked to break the monotony, Gabriel bowled a short ball from round the wicket for a catch at point, it turned out he had cut the return crease with his back foot.

#Other than that, Ashwin and Saha showed remarkable patience. Because of the slow outfield West Indies could have a stacked field. Chase often bowled with a six-three leg-side field, leaving point open and bowling into the pads. Any scoring was now fraught with risk, and if he dropped the ball short the slow outfield cost him just the one run. India were in no state to take risks so the two batsmen put their head down, and kept picking whatever singles or twos were on offer.

#Between the fall of Rahul and the claiming of the second new ball, only 111 runs came in 61.3 overs. Against the new ball, having done the hard work, the two batsmen chanced their arms. An edge fell short here, another flew over slips there; a crisp drive was misfielded now, a bowler bowled a loose ball there, and India had 46 in the last nine overs to wrest the initiative a bit. India dropped solid batsmen for quick runs when they should have been weathering the new ball out, then they were forced to bat slowly when they should have been capitalising on the older ball and tired fielders, and finally the lesson of building long Test innings was delivered by the lower order whose first role in the team is not batting.

Saturday, August 6, 2016

The importance of Kumble the coach for India's bowlers

The new coach is already making a difference to Ashwin's overseas record, and his partnership with Kohli could be fruitful too


Is it a coincidence that R Ashwin reached new heights as a spinner in away Tests after Virat Kohli and coach Anil Kumble came together? I believe not, for the two are among the most positive thinkers on the game that Indian cricket knows, and I am sure they have given Ashwin and the other
 Indian bowlers a dose of the sort of confidence they have rarely known before.

While his promotion in the batting order in the first Test must have done Ashwin's self-belief a world of good, we learn from the man himself that he successfully overcome his frustration at his lack of wickets in the first innings in Antigua thanks to Kumble's counselling.

Kumble obviously knows from his own experience that bowlers sometimes go unrewarded while doing everything right, but not all bowlers recognise this fact. In their anxiety to get wickets, they may end up trying too hard and eventually lose the plot altogether, instead of calmly continuing to do what they have been doing and waiting patiently for their luck to turn.

I never played international cricket and do not know firsthand what it is to feel the pressures of bowling at that level, but in my own cricket career I knew how to deal with wicketlessness. It never bothered me so long as I knew I was bowling well.

(Actually, that last statement was not entirely true. There came a time when I did become anxious for wickets, and that was the beginning of the end of my bowling career.)

As a specialist bowler Kumble brings a rare advantage to his job. He understands bowling and bowlers in a way batsmen-coaches can seldom do. In his all-too-short stint as captain of India, he handled bowlers perhaps better than most of his predecessors did.

Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, in his second reign as captain, and Ajit Wadekar, with their different approaches, used their bowling resources well. Pataudi relied heavily on spinners and so did Wadekar, who was a little more defensive in his approach in a typically Mumbai style.

Between Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid (or even Dravid and MS Dhoni), Dravid was usually more ready to go for the kill, especially in the matter of timing declarations. Both he and Ganguly had Kumble and Harbhajan Singh at their command, though India sometimes went in with only one of them in the XI.

As captain, Kumble himself insisted on two spinners in the XI, and used Harbhajan very effectively. He was also not averse to giving Virender Sehwag relatively long spells as an offspinner, or trying to include Ganguly the medium-pacer in his scheme of things.

As coach, Kumble has even greater freedom to try out his bowling theories than he had in his captaincy days (as he doesn't have to deal with thinking of when to bring himself on or take himself off), though he still needs to sell his ideas to Kohli.

In fact, the Kohli-Kumble partnership could be the ideal coach-captain combination, with Kohli bringing a complementary batsman-captain's perspective into their discussions. It helps that both of them are equally aggressive in intent and tend to back the bowlers. Both seem to allow the bowlers to express themselves without inhibition.




Bowling allrounder Kapil Dev handled his bowlers remarkably well in the 1983 World Cup and also in Test cricket, leading India to a 2-0 triumph in England, where he marshalled his resources - Chetan Sharma, Roger Binny, Madan Lal, Kapil himself and spinner Maninder Singh - admirably.

At a recent cricket-related event, Kapil spoke of the problems he had communicating with one of his favourite bowlers, Roger Binny. "He didn't know Hindi and I didn't know English.'' But Kapil also said that discussions between captain and bowler could assume greater importance than they deserve. "There was little conversation possible between me and Roger, so I left him alone, and he bowled very well. It's sometimes good to leave bowlers alone."

There can be such a thing as too much communication from the captain to the bowlers, as we saw during Sachin Tendulkar's captaincy, or too little, as was sometimes evident when Dhoni led the side. It's early days still, but the Kumble-Kohli partnership does augur well for India's bowlers in the long run, though the pair will be tested by stronger teams than West Indies.














INDIA VS WEST INDIES 2ND TEST 2016 DRAW

India vs West Indies: Losing More Than 100 Overs Was Crucial, Says Anil Kumble 


India head coach Anil Kumble hailed Roston Chase for his magnificent 137-run knock but rued that losing more than 100 overs in the Jamaica Test was one of the most important factors that helped the West Indies pull off a draw.

Led by Mohammed Shami, Indian bowlers ran through the Windies' top-order on the fourth morning before rain wiped out play in the final two sessions of the day, after which their lower-middle order resisted through the whole of Day five

"Obviously, we wanted to win this Test match. Yesterday, we were in a very good position and credit to the West Indies batsmen, the way they batted," said Kumble after the match ended in a draw.
"Yesterday, time was very crucial for us because we were in great momentum and the conditions were such that it could have been different if we had probably bowled more. There was loss of play, more than 100 overs were lost in this Test match. So all those factors mattered. In the end, credit to the West Indian batsmen in terms of how they batted and their application as well," he added.

Talking about Chase in particular, the former Indian captain said,"It is creditable for someone playing in his second Test match, to be able to bat through the day and save the game for his team. Chase's approach today was very good. He looked to attack when needed to and blocked literally every ball. So he kept our bowlers at bay, which was obviously disappointing from the outside.

"I think all their batsmen, right from Jermaine Blackwood, Jason Holder and Shane Dowrich, all of them applied themselves. It's something that we also have to sit down and analyze as to how we're going to get the last five wickets because in this series they have certainly contributed," he added.
India bowled out West Indies for just 196 in their first innings. KL Rahul's third Test hundred and Ajinkya Rahane's unbeaten 108-run knock helped India put on a humongous total of 500/9d. The scoring rate was a bit low as compared to the Antigua Test, and particularly in light of the tropical storm hitting Jamaica on day three and four.

"You can't really look at the forecast and take decisions," said the coach.
"If you looked at the forecast on day three, it was supposed to rain the whole day, and even on day four it was supposed to rain. So you can't really look at the forecast and decide what you need to do. Yes, you strategize slightly differently."

"Having said that, we wanted to bat once because we didn't want to declare with just a lead of 160 runs and then bat again on the fifth day. I thought we played really good cricket and we were dominant right throughout. Today the change in momentum happened and credit to the West Indies' batsmen."

The Indian coach accepted that the position that they were in, Kohli and co. should have won the match.

"From the position, we were in, we should have probably wrapped up the Test match, but having said that this is certainly something that happens in a Test match. Sometimes the opposition puts up a brave challenge and that's exactly what happened," he added.
Despite being reduced to 48/4 on the rain-marred day four then, West Indies were able to put up a momentous batting display and get away with a draw in this second Test. While Chase's knock must be celebrated, at the same time, it ought to be mentioned that a five-bowler attack couldn't take six wickets on fifth day pitch.

"The plan was always to take wickets. Initially, since we had 300 runs on the board, we were attacking and they came hard at us as well, and they got away in the five or six overs. They got a lot
of runs.

"And once that period happened, I believe the ball went a bit soft as well. So it was quite difficult to get the purchase that we were getting yesterday and the conditions were different as well."

Kumble admitted that overcast conditions on the fourth day helped the seamers get more swing.
"It was cloudy, there was some rain about and there was a lot more swing yesterday. So in that sense, we could have probably adapted better. Having said that though, the West Indies' batsmen really applied themselves, so it was quite hard for our bowlers and this was certainly a learning spell. I'm sure on the next opportunity, whenever that is, the bowlers will be probably come up with a different approach, in terms of the challenge," Kumble signed off.

Friday, August 5, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES TEST SERIES 2016

Hope replaces Chandrika in West Indies Test squad


West Indies have included Shai Hope, the 22-year-old opening batsman from Barbados, in their squad for the third Test against India, which begins on August 9 in St Lucia. Hope replaces Rajendra Chandrika, who made scores of 16, 31, 5 and 1 in the first two Tests, and saw his Test average drop to 14.00, the worst by any West Indies opener who has played 10 or more innings.

Hope, a right-hand batsman who is also capable of keeping wickets, has played six Tests so far, scoring 171 runs at an average of 15.54. He has been in excellent form in recent months, with two hundreds in his last four matches in the WICB Professional Cricket League four-day tournament, and a century for the WICB President's XI in the Indians' first warm-up match in St Kitts.
The selectors have made no other changes to West Indies' 14-man squad. India lead the four-Test
series 1-0.

West Indies squad for third Test: Jason Holder (capt), Kraigg Brathwaite (vice-captain), Devendra Bishoo, Jermaine Blackwood, Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shai Hope, Leon Johnson, Alzarri Joseph, Marlon Samuels.

Thursday, August 4, 2016

INDIA VS WEST INDIES, 2ND TEST - DAY 5

Classy Chase ton leads West Indies to Improbable Draw


There is a lot to be said of Roston Chsse. He's languid at the crease. He plays late and close to his body. He wasn't perturbed by a tough situation. And his timing stood out. Two days short of 50 years since it was last done for West Indies and six days after the 80th birthday of the man who did it, Chase achieved the double of a century and a a five-for in the same Test. In the process he helped pull off an improbable draw: batting for survival, West Indies had lost four wickets in 15.5 overs on day four, but on the final day they gave up only two.

Chase looked correct when he defended, graceful when he attacked and bloody determined all through. Sir Garry Sobers would've enjoyed a fellow Bajan emulating his feat with an innings like that.

On a wet day four, along with 82.1 overs, it appeared West Indies' fight had gone missing too. Their openers fell early, and in ungainly fashion. One senior player fell for a duck and another was a sitting duck against a short ball. It had become a walk in the park for India. This morning, however, they were stuck in the mud. The first 25 balls cost 40 runs. The fast bowlers were hit through the line and over the top. The spinners were hit against the turn. Chase had finally made it a contest. At tea, he had the favourites sweating. An hour and a half later, he made Virat Kohli concede and take the draw. The first draw at Sabina Park since 1998.

India tried to bounce Chase, he pulled them away. India used reverse swing, he kept them out shortening his backlift. India tried to spin him out, but his open stance showed him exactly what was coming at him. On 99, he flicked a ball on his pads right through the man at midwicket, completed the single and celebrated his first Test hundred in his second Test match by crossing his hands in the shape of an X over his head. His coach and team-mates were clapping with gusto. Sir Viv Richards was up on his feet screaming "Roston!"

From the other end, Jamaica's own Jermaine Blackwood smashed 63 off 54 balls and the man who replaced him at the crease, Shane Dowrich, applied himself beautifully. He fell 26 short of what might have been a maiden Test hundred when umpire Ian Gould adjudged him lbw to Amit Mishra not spotting an inside edge.

This was only the third time over the last 12 Tests that a Kingston crowd got to watch cricket on the fifth day. And while their numbers could have been better, their investment in the match couldn't be faulted too much. One fan implored Dowrich to "come again" - meaning restart - after he turned his nose up at the turn a Mishra legbreak got. The outside edge evaded a diving Ajinkya Rahane at slip. Another boomed "good shot, good shot" when Chase drove R Ashwin down the ground. Among the fans was Sheldon Cottrell, who had completed his CPL stint last week, with a little girl next to him. They were all watching history.

India bowled 88.1 overs. They conceded 340 runs and could get only two wickets. For the first time in nine days, their opposition was willing to give, well, opposition. Kohli began to chirp at Chase to see if he could be unruffled. Mishra fielded a ball that was pushed back at him and flung it back at the batsman in frustration. Things were getting out of hand. More accurately, West Indies were not giving anything away under the the kind of pressure where giving away an inch was as good as a mile. Chase and Dowrich raised the team's first hundred partnership of the series at the rate of 3.77 runs per over. Chase and Blackwood had added 93 runs at 5.26 an over. This was not backs-to-the-wall batting. This was special.

Those in the know say batsmen need to switch on and switch off. But it was difficult to say if Chase ever switched off. The smallest of smiles broke through when he secured his century; it was only his third in first-class cricket and this was only his 31st first-class match. He was batting like he had a 100 of each.

Chase defied India when they had secured a lead of 304 runs, and then taken four wickets in only 15.5 overs on a rain-hit fourth day. With 98.1 overs on the final day, they were supposed to get back-to-back Test victories in a series away from home. Something that has not happened since 2005, against Zimbabwe. Dilute the equation to the top-eight teams, and you end up at 1986, against England.

The bowlers did try. Mohammed Shami made the old and the new ball swing. Ishant Sharma kept squaring batsmen up. Ashwin couldn't have one of his days - 30-4-114-1. Umesh Yadav and Mishra were disappointing, a combined 37-8-134-2.

West Indies saw every ball that came down, inspected them carefully and then put them in their place. As good as the strokes themselves was the batsmen's belief they could measure up.
Blackwood showed it when he lifted Shami over his head for a six. When he leapt back, stood tall and hit Ashwin despite the extra bounce to the cover boundary. He became the first West Indian since Shivnarine Chanderpaul in 2014 to hit two half-centuries in the same match.

Dowrich showed it when he lofted Ashwin over the long-on fence. When he used Umesh Yadav's reverse swing to his advantage and flicked through midwicket and when he topped that by pulling the next ball to the boundary.

Holder showed it when he blunted a brutal short ball from Shami, dropping his wrists but keeping his eyes on it to make sure he could control where it fell. He got to his fifty with a six against Ashwin.
It was only the first time in West Indies' history that their Nos 5 through 8 had scored 50 or more in the same innings. That's so rare it has only happened five times in all of Test history.
The man who inspired it all walked away unbeaten after an entire day's play.

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