10:45 PM

Pakistan in India - a retrospective from the BBC

By Scott Heinrich


Pakistan's current tour of India is their first there for six years and sixth overall dating back to 1952/53.
Of the 27 Tests played between the two sides in India - including a one-off Asian Test Championship match in 1999 - the hosts have won five, Pakistan four with 18 draws.
BBC Sport takes a look back at these contests between two fierce arch-rivals.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/4273633.stm

 
10:16 PM
Swing Low, Sweet Cricket Dove
S. Ravi Rajan
Boulder Creek, California

Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home

I looked over the Indus
And what do I see,
Coming for to carry me home
Ordinary people
On both sides of me
Coming for to carry me home

Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home

If you get there
Before I do
Coming for to carry me home
Tell our Paki friends
I'm coming too
Coming for to carry them home

Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home

The chariot of hope is sometimes fast
And sometimes slow
But one day our joint roots
Will trump the big blow
And come for to carry us home

Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home

Our collective soul
Feels peace bound
Coming for to carry us home
One day, before too long
We'll all feel at home
Coming for to carry us home

Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry us home

Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet cricket dove
Coming for to carry us home

(It is best to read the above while imagining the gospel song, "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot," by Harry Thacker Burleigh. The song is a favorite among British Rugby fans - very odd, given its Black American roots. However, since many Black baptists went to India to meet with or were inspired by Gandhi, I feel that tweaking the song to the subcontinental context is more apt. My favorite version is the regge rendering by Eric Clapton.)

 
9:35 PM
"...I prefer Priyanka Gandhi at a game over Tear Gas any day."
Umair Hoodbhoy
Karachi, Pakistan/San Jose, CA

I had flown to Karachi from San Jose primarily to witness the recent Pak-Ind
ODI at National Stadium Karachi. During India's last full tour of Pakistan
in 1989, I was also present at NSK for the ODI with my friends from school.
Pakistan was 28/3 in 14 overs with Rameez and Saleem Malik back in the
pavilion in the very first over without a run on the board and Miandad gone
soon after, when a few bad apples in the crowd began pelting the Indian
players. It was a disgusting experience, We put dampened handkerchiefs to
our noses to help breathing during the Tear Gas, then fled as a 'Lathi'
charge evacuated the stadium.

Fifteen years later, Pakistan began the Karachi ODI on an even worse note.
The run-rate never dropped below six an over for the duration of the Indian
innings, a catch was floored in the first over of the match, another was
taken off a no-ball, and Shoaib and Sami overindulged in the sins of
no-balls and wides. But the crowd at NSK was tremendously sporting and no
example was better than the standing ovation given to Rahul Dravid after his
fabulous innings tragically ended at 99. Priyanka Gandhi won the hearts of
Karachiites when she sat amongst us in the stands and signed autographs. The
atmosphere at the NSK was electric and it was *deafening*. Read
http://usa.cricinfo.com/db/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2004/MAR/100432_PAKIND2003-0
4_19MAR2004.html to get an idea how loud. The stadium remained packed to the
last ball and I, personally, never felt Pakistan would lose the game, even
as Nehra delivered a full-toss for the final delivery, just as Chetan Sharma
had to Miandad in '86 in Sharjah. Most people attend cricket matches to see
runs scored and this game broke the world record for any match - 693. What
more could one ask for? Perhaps a Tie result instead.

Personally, I prefer Priyanka Gandhi at a game over Tear Gas any day.

 
1:55 AM
"finally...a normal game"
S. Ravi Rajan
Boulder Creek, California

Didn't see or hear the match - too much work to do. But I did read just about everything written on it in the press. Pakistan are like always - mercurial and unpredictable. On their day, they are mind blowing. Sadly, they can also fail equally spectacularly - so I am not worried about the future of this series. It is disappointing to see the quality of their fielding touch such depths - I am just not quite sure why they are so bad in this department this series. And, regardless of the performance of some players, I still don't see why they are keeping Saqlain out. In my book, he is their best spinner - and one of the best spin all rounders playing the game today.

It is certainly an understatement to stay that India disappointed big time. If the senior bats had just played tuk tuk, a score around 300 was on the cards. Clearly, they can't play the fast rising ball well. It is not that they can't play fast bowling - the Australian tour disproved that. But, there is definitely a problem with the rising delivery. But that having been said, it is good to see the tail wag a bit - something it did not do down under. It is a matter of time it all comes together. I am glad they are playing circus cricket before the real thing.

Amidst all the talk about matches being dominated by the bat, we finally got a normal game yesterday. The pitch, and the toss, obviously played a factor. However, one can't help feel that the quality of bowling has declined during the past few years. We just don't seem to have bowlers of the calibre of a Kapil Dev or Imran or the two Ws. I suppose this is just part of the ebbs and flows in the evolution of the game.

Game 4 is obviously key, but my attention will be on Kandy, where a truly epic contest is being played out. I just hope Vaas and co. can pull off a victory. What a knock from Jaisuriya! A true champion.

 
6:15 AM
"The second one was just as good..."
Mehdi Hasnain (Moon)
Detroit, USA

The second one was just as good.. Wow what a series we have going....... Afridi did score 80 but I hope our selectors understand that these flattest pitches are no match to pitches anywhere else in the world and Afridi may have cooled down a bit as a batsman (or was he under a lot of danda from the coach) for the first two games but man he is still all over the place in technique (or absence of it) .... the gap between his bat and pads.... one can park a minivan there..:(

I would still play Imran Farhat..... and yes why are we not playing "Saqlain" instead of Shabbir or Naveed or etc etc

 
1:51 AM
Faith
Hasan Jafri
Singapore
I wanna talk about faith - not religion - but faith.

Does Inzi have faith in his own abilities as a skipper? Does he have faith
in his bowlers? The answer is critical for Pakistan's success. Inzi is a new
skipper, but a veteran player, and should know better how to handle pressure
situations. I hope he gets better with time, because we have the talent to
win games, but need good leadership. He needs to provide that leadership.

Two critical points in the game, where I think, Inzi showed his immaturity
and nerves. One, when he removed the slips and moved to a semi-defensive
field in only the second over. That gave the game away, I think. His action
signaled the Indians that Inzi won't attack, but DEFEND the total. The
pressure on Tandulkar and Sehvag dropped several notches from then on. Inzi
did a disservice to his bowlers by removing an attacking field as they then
only had the stumps to attack or hope for the batters to make mistakes. Inzi
didn't have faith.

Second, asking Afridi to bowl the 47th over was just suicidal when you have
Shabbir, Sami, Shoaib and Razzaq with overs left to bowl. Why he made that
choice? Didn't he have faith in his quickies to mop-up the Indian tail? With
India in sight of a victory, was Inzi still thinkin of DEFENDING the total?
Did he not have faith in his strike bowlers?

What distinguishes an average leader from a great leader is the ability to
recognize and intelligently use assets on hand, the ability to outsmart and
outwit the opponent, the ability to conceive a game plan and to strike hard
when the time is right - and knowing when the time is right. Some of these
qualities come with experience, but others are in the blood - not sure if
Inzi has it yet.

 
5:54 AM
"...another awesome game"
Ali
UK
For the cricket, another awesome game yesterday. Good to see the Shoaib and
Sami bowling well at the death. Taufeeq Umar is back in the side, which is
good as he can be awesome.

A little story about Miandad...before he played any international cricket,
at age 17, he was playing a local match, Karachi against Peshawar or Pindi
or something. His team was batting second and needed 3 sixes on the last 3
balls to win. The captain of Miandad's team was batting, Miandad had yet to
go in and bat. He asked the coach to send him in for the last three
deliveries, and since it looked unlikely that the captain would be able to
hit three boundaries, the coach agreed (presumably the captain pretended to
be injured or something). Anyway, Minadad went in and hit three sixes on
the last three deliveries to win the match!

 
8:44 PM
Raza Hasan
Karachi, Pakistan

As i was late in the discussion..........i was thinking before the first ODI that Shahid should be included in the playing 11 b/c he has the power to hit the ball hard and is out from the playing team for quite some time. So he is going to play positive cricket instead of just hitting the ball like a pathan and javaid has also gievn him some tips for batting.

Anyways let see what happens in the next match but my pricdiction is that pak will loose the ODI series in the last match (only my opinion as the indian team is more professional then paki's but paki's are more talented but they lack professionalism) and win the test series to make the tour even.

 
5:18 PM
S. Ravi Rajan
Boulder Creek, California

[Editor's note: Ravi is bouncing quite a few of his comments and references off Hasan Jafri's entry a few items below.]

So, Pakistan won a match without managing to hit the stumps once while fielding - and with a tidy bit of chucking from SA. :-)) But hell, did Afridi fire! This launda is not only good looking - he can play! Even though we (Indians) didn't manage to win, and although I agree with Hasan that "there is no love lost when it comes to cricket," one has to honor those who played well. After all, the game is bigger than a given team or a player. And after all, akhir wo bhi to desi hai. As for sexiness, how about assigning a good hair stylist to Akhtar? He looks like a chokraboy, as one of my teachers in school would put it. If he wants to grow his hair, why not do it with some style?

A comment on the commentary. After hearing the HT commentary the other day, I tuned into the Cricinfo version today, done by our bhais from across the border. While the Punj accent sprinkled with "You knows" was fascinating, I couldn't help detect the ever so slightly partisan note. Yaar, this is just a game...

I fully agree with Hasan [see Hasan's post below] about the farewell to the two Ws. It is still not too late... I can't see why the test matches can not be used to honor these people - not the shameless propaganda we witnessed with Steve Waugh, but some decent, honest, gratitude. Why not at least set up a web and get desis of all stripes to sign a thank you note? A final note to Hasan. If you can, watch the replay of the World cup game between India and Pakistan. While you are at it, watch ANY World Cup game between us! The thing is: we kick butt when it matters! We thrashed Pakistan even in the World cup tournament it won! Who cares about anything else?

 
11:50 PM
Ali
UK

I think that even at this age, if Miandad was facing the last ball, he would still have hit a six. That's how much of a legend he is!

 
11:44 PM
Hasan Jafri
Singapore

It was probably the best game I have seen since the Australia-South Africa match in the second to last world cup in England, and one of the best India-Pak match since the series in the 1980s.

As for Allo, I am glad to see is back in form, and his batting (recall his batting in the last world cup) was such a contrast to the slogging of others (does Sehwag know what footwork is????), his was a a treat to watch. Yohana (pity his teammates call him 'chura') is THE anchor for the Pakistani battin in the next five years, knows how to build an innings (like Inzi) and at some point should be the team's skipper - if parochial politics does not get in the way.

But a few points:

1. Our bowlers look shit - absolutely shit. As Imran Khan said during the match, it seemed they were out of rhythm and didn't get enough real match practice before the game. You can have the world's best talent (and we don't), but practice makes perfect.


2. We really need another star batsman or two. I thought the opening pair is too immature and could not handle the pressure well enough. In contrast the opening pair for the Pakistan A team was just the opposite India relies a lot on Tandu, but it also has Ganguly and Dravid - two very, very classy players. We don't. Our "all-rounders" for example, were bad bowlers and not so good batsmen either. Their strike rate is in the 70s not 100s as should be for someone who will come to the pitch at crunch time.


3. Skipper. Allo was a disaster. I am not sure if he really understands tactics and strategy. Wasim took a while to be a good skipper, but he had Miandad and Imran to learn from. We need a good, strong skipper.


4. Can you take the pressure: Need more training on handling pressure situations, like if you have 10 to score of three balls or if you see a full-toss on the last ball, what to do with it....Indians handled the pressure better than we did.


5. Karachi has finally resurrected its reputation as a great place to play cricket. We were ourselves to blame. No other stadium in the world has had three matches abandoned in the last 10 years than Karachi. We earned the bad name and it's good to see we were clearing it. While the crowd was rightly partisan, it was good to see Indians there, Indian supporters and Pakistanis cheering for Indians when they did well.

If the past is indeed history, as Ganguly says (he's a good skipper, don't u think?), I'd say forget this loss.

I'm ready for tonight....and yeh BRING'EM ON!

 
4:29 PM
S. Ravi Rajan
Boulder Creek, California

Enjoyed reading Mehdi's blog. Unfortunately, I could not watch the game because I don't have Dish, but I did listen to the Hindustan Times live commentary - which brought out the tension and the excitement on the ground. Clearly, Inzy is great. Looking at his record, I am staggered that he hasn't achieved more, because on talent alone, he is just mind blowing. This seems to be a trend among sub-continental cricketers, but in the last few years, the Indian board has invested well in training and player development. Looking at the Pakistani team from an Indian perspective, I am stunned by how many top players they have wasted. Afridi is one - he should have been groomed better when he was younger. What an eye the guy has! An even bigger waste is Saqlain. I have not encountered a cricketer with a greater heart. He fails a couple of times, and gets dropped. Can't believe that the Pakistani selectors even imagine that his replacements come anywhere near him. As for Akhtar, I would have taken him to the nearest Dhobhi ghat, given him a haircut, and a spanking on the back with a dhobhi ka danda until he learnt about discipline and team spirit. And sadly, the Pakistani team, given all the factionalism, has failed to make full use of Wasim Akram. Want to know what he can do? Look at Nehra or Zaheer or Irfan on our side. Each of them sought out Wasim - and look how they've improved.

Cricket apart, it is nice to see something else. Far from the football hooligans in the UK we have shown that we can sustain a healthy rivalry without killing each other. It is also wonderful to read of Yuvaraj going to Akhtar's house for dinner, and about the general attitude to Indians on the streets of Pakistan. I am not sure that the two governments knew what they were doing - but this series, if it proceeds the same way as far as crowd behavior is concerned, will blow every stereotype held by the average Indian about Pakistan. And that alone will compensate for the heartbreak of any final result.

On paper, I think the two sides are balanced - both in batting and bowling. Pakistan have Akhtar - but even if he bowls at his best, he does not have terrific support. Sami is hype, and I frankly think that the more disciplined Indian medium pacers will be as (in)effective despite lacking in the talent department. And far from Pakistan not having a good batting line up, we all saw what happened in Karachi. I can't imagine a run chase of 350 being almost achieved. On current form, we have a terrific series at hand. The only thing we now need is for Pakistan to send some of its best Hockey coaches to India. We have good boys in our side - but not the temperament of the Pakistanis.

Now on to tonight's match. We don't have Nehra, and Saurav has the flu. I think that Irfan is better than Ashish, and that Badani can on his day, compete with Saurav. BUT... what Saurav brings something else to the game - BALLS - an attitude that previous Indians did not have. He represents the generation growing up in India today - at least the middle classes, who aim to out compete the rest of the world and be the very best, not second best. I see it every year when I lecture to this generation. He is as much an icon of the Me generation as Azza was of the previous. Anyway, it will be interesting to see Dravid locking hearts with Inzy. Unlike Mehdi, I have not given up on Aaloo. He'll be back. Just give him a chance, groom him, and let him grow in to the job instead of doing what you Pakistanis always seem to do - bay for blood when someone fails a few times. Look how we handled Ganguly. Otherwise, give Inzy to us. We'll be happy to have him, and Saqlain, and much as we hate him, Miandad too.

 
3:16 PM
Mehdi Hasnain (Moon)
Detroit, USA

Mother of All Games

Folks

the battle was indeed a tonic.... arguably the best game we have seen in last 8-9 years.... . "wasooled" my $199 investment on just the first game .. rest is bonus...

Now on the mother of all games

Aloo is one of the best batsman playing at the moment in cricket.. he just proved Imran Khan right many times on Saturday ! But I also think Inzi Allo is a bad captain. There is no other way to describe it... Captaincy sucks overall.. no improvisation, or tactics in field placement or inspiring the bowlers,.. very dumb! Though some would argue that with the most trashy boowling display by Naveed, Razzak and initially Sami.. CAPTAIN CAN JUST PRAY AND PRAY AND PRAY...

Any way Sehwag reminds us of Sri Kanth..No no no... he is not another Afridi .. there is lot of sensible stroke making in his game...unlike Afridi... who we all were relieved not to see in the side...

These openere are good (they posses a record of 4 consec. 100 runs partnerships in one days happened last year... it is a world record...) Imran Farhat has touch of Saeed...YaasirI thought was out on a better ball but Imran threw away his wicket... Inzi and Youhana played one of the best cricket they will ever play...Moin was about to become a hero again.. Poor Moin ..he has done similar feats before but may be the nerves got to him.... But I guess the best tribute was given to someone who was not playing in the Pakistani side...

Asked after the game, if he feared a repeat of the Sharjah final in 1986 when Javed Miandad, the current Pakistani coach, hit the winning six off the final delivery from Chetan Sharma, the Indian captain Gangulay said. "I don't believe in history and there was no Miandad at the crease," .

I am ready for the next one tomorrow morning... bring'em on!

Moon

 
5:39 PM
Hasan Jafri
Singapore

Array yaar Moon:

You are looking at the glass half-empty: Six all-rounders means that we'll have an equally good chance of screwing up both batting AND bowling - can you beat that!!!!! You and I may not like Afridi, but it's precisely his unpredictability that makes him so dangerous! Imagine bowling against him - you either get a wicket or you are out of the park man! Also, in order to promote the game among women and our Pathan bhais, it's good to have a "cute launda" in the team, yaar. Inzi has no bloody sex appeal!

The more I look at the team, the more I realize I will really miss seeing the greats Ws in action again. Man, what fantastic (and some not so great memories) did they leave us to cherish. Shoaib is a shadow of the great Ws, tho gettin better, but the others strikers are not first-rate at all. So sad that we had the world's two top bowlers, and how unceremoniously were they "retired." A few months ago Mazdaq wrote a column in Dawn saying how disgraceful Wasim's exit was. While Wasim was commentating from Australia after not being offered a "cup of tea" from the PCB, the entire Australian nation and others were bidding Steve Waugh goodbye - the papers were full of stories, people packed the stadiums, the Injians lined up to salute him - thats the way great players are said goodbye!

On the other hand, I can see that for the Indian series we are setting aside our national pastime of bitchiness and fatal, suicidal politics. I read some news items that Imran, Wasim and Zaheer are among former players who have held closed door meetings with the probables - to give them a few tips, I guess. That's a good sign that the PCB actually acknowledges Imran and Wasim can make a contribution. Imran maybe a lousy politician, but a cricketer of awe he was! And as for Wasim, ask any gora (Australians in particular) and they would tell ya, he was the greatest Pakistani bowler ever and one of cricket world's all time greats. Good for him that the Indians recognized him for his talent, and shame on us for not.

Cricket is a great equalizer. We (as in Pakistan) may be small, fucked up to our necks and everything, but boy can we whip some Injian arse on a cricket (or hockey) pitch, can we not! I am all for peace with India, but there is no love lost when it comes to cricket - sorry.

Let the beautiful game begin.

 
5:53 PM
Mehdi Hasnain (Moon)
Detroit, USA

OK people.... lets the season begin.... though I guess Pakistan has already made first attempto to loose the series by including Afridi..... as [my friend] Ishaque would say ... we are down to 10 men before the start off the series..

read this good article on whats to come:

Too Many All-Rounders...