India vs. Australia, 2nd Test, Sydney
Surreal Sunday saw an astonishing day unfold. Another twist in the tale as Harbhajan Singh departs- out to Michael ’Pup’ Clarke. With 2.4 overs or 16 minutes to go, the big question would be answered by the I finish writing this blog and by the time you read it i.e. the outcome of the match.
Another one has fell… Clarke on hat-trick. Anil Kumble can only watch in dismay down the other end. The crowd is exited to the hilt as 19 year old Ishant Sharma walks out take guard. But, yet another goof up. He walks out to bat with a wrong pair of gloves.
Amidst all this hustle bustle, I can safely declare that this is by far the second most intriguing test match I have witnessed, the first obviously being the ‘Very Very Special’ one at Kolkata in 2001. As I jot this down, Clarke and Australia have their final scalp. The match is finally over. Australia have won it (not) fair and square. The doors have been shut right on the face of India and its hapless captain Anil Kumble who is reduced to a meek spectator. He is clearly aghast.
Now, coming back to my point about the reason behind this test match being a real ’spectacle’. Three reasons cloud around my mind.
REASON 1: Dubious and absolutely crap umpiring.
THE CULPRITS- Mark Benson and Steve Bucknor in alphabetical order.
VICTIMS- Team India
This ’Imperfect test match’, to quote Mr.Harsha Bhogle, showcased perhaps the worst instances of umpiring. Some of the incomprehensible decisions started of with Ricky Ponting getting a reprieve from the umpire after the ball clearly nicked his bat on its way to Dhoni’s gloves to the utter dismay of Saurav Ganguly. But, the real bloopers were the ones delivered in favor of Andrew Symonds, that too three of them. Other bad decisions notwithstanding, the real KO was delivered one apiece by Steve and Mark(not the Waughs but India’s bugbears) which ultimately turned out to be the turning point of the match. This time while Rahul Dravid and Ganguly bore the brunt.
Now, jumping over to the next reason.
REASON 2: Andrew Symonds allegation to have been racially abused by Harbhajan Singh. Well, this comes out as a surprise to me.
Anyways, the Aussie team believe that they have got a strong case against Bhajji in hand. Some Oz newspapers also went to the extent of making a caste based analysis of the Indian team and even mentioned a thing or two about ’Brahmin Dominance’. All this, however to India’s delight didn’t reduce Harbhajan’s competitive edge, neither has it curbed his exuberance, which was apparent by his soccer style celebration after having scalped his ‘bunny’ Ricky Ponting for the third time in 4 innings.
Finally, the 3rd REASON: The aspect that stood out to me was the dogged determination and application shown by the Indian batsmen barring Wasim Jaffer and Yuvraj Singh (Dude! You let even Deepika down…). While the first innings showcased some sublime batting by Laxman, Tendulkar( Sydney is surely their favourite ground) and some rustic but gritty batting by the tail enders, the second innings had Anil Kumble displaying undying grit, stupendous resolve and stoic resilience in his batting. He truly played a knock which the Englishmen would describe as ‘captain’s innings’.
I would not like to comment about the Aussie win, which could well have been The ‘Indian win’, if only for the bullshit umpiring which left a bad taste and the unsportsmanlike behavior from the entire Australian team.
Whatever it may be, the bottom-line remains- The match and the series is well and truly lost for the Indians. Amen.
Surreal Sunday saw an astonishing day unfold. Another twist in the tale as Harbhajan Singh departs- out to Michael ’Pup’ Clarke. With 2.4 overs or 16 minutes to go, the big question would be answered by the I finish writing this blog and by the time you read it i.e. the outcome of the match.
Another one has fell… Clarke on hat-trick. Anil Kumble can only watch in dismay down the other end. The crowd is exited to the hilt as 19 year old Ishant Sharma walks out take guard. But, yet another goof up. He walks out to bat with a wrong pair of gloves.
Amidst all this hustle bustle, I can safely declare that this is by far the second most intriguing test match I have witnessed, the first obviously being the ‘Very Very Special’ one at Kolkata in 2001. As I jot this down, Clarke and Australia have their final scalp. The match is finally over. Australia have won it (not) fair and square. The doors have been shut right on the face of India and its hapless captain Anil Kumble who is reduced to a meek spectator. He is clearly aghast.
Now, coming back to my point about the reason behind this test match being a real ’spectacle’. Three reasons cloud around my mind.
REASON 1: Dubious and absolutely crap umpiring.
THE CULPRITS- Mark Benson and Steve Bucknor in alphabetical order.
VICTIMS- Team India
This ’Imperfect test match’, to quote Mr.Harsha Bhogle, showcased perhaps the worst instances of umpiring. Some of the incomprehensible decisions started of with Ricky Ponting getting a reprieve from the umpire after the ball clearly nicked his bat on its way to Dhoni’s gloves to the utter dismay of Saurav Ganguly. But, the real bloopers were the ones delivered in favor of Andrew Symonds, that too three of them. Other bad decisions notwithstanding, the real KO was delivered one apiece by Steve and Mark(not the Waughs but India’s bugbears) which ultimately turned out to be the turning point of the match. This time while Rahul Dravid and Ganguly bore the brunt.
Now, jumping over to the next reason.
REASON 2: Andrew Symonds allegation to have been racially abused by Harbhajan Singh. Well, this comes out as a surprise to me.
Anyways, the Aussie team believe that they have got a strong case against Bhajji in hand. Some Oz newspapers also went to the extent of making a caste based analysis of the Indian team and even mentioned a thing or two about ’Brahmin Dominance’. All this, however to India’s delight didn’t reduce Harbhajan’s competitive edge, neither has it curbed his exuberance, which was apparent by his soccer style celebration after having scalped his ‘bunny’ Ricky Ponting for the third time in 4 innings.
Finally, the 3rd REASON: The aspect that stood out to me was the dogged determination and application shown by the Indian batsmen barring Wasim Jaffer and Yuvraj Singh (Dude! You let even Deepika down…). While the first innings showcased some sublime batting by Laxman, Tendulkar( Sydney is surely their favourite ground) and some rustic but gritty batting by the tail enders, the second innings had Anil Kumble displaying undying grit, stupendous resolve and stoic resilience in his batting. He truly played a knock which the Englishmen would describe as ‘captain’s innings’.
I would not like to comment about the Aussie win, which could well have been The ‘Indian win’, if only for the bullshit umpiring which left a bad taste and the unsportsmanlike behavior from the entire Australian team.
Whatever it may be, the bottom-line remains- The match and the series is well and truly lost for the Indians. Amen.
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