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Vivian Richards - 18 November 2002
Now we move on to Baroda where a crucial match will be played with both teams desperate to inch to a 3-2 lead. With India proving that they are excellent at chasing, Carl Hooper will be pinning his hopes on winning the toss. There is no guarantee that Carl will call right, but if he does, he will certainly invite the Indians to take first strike. The West Indies have got some injury concerns with Marlon Samuels, Vasbert Drakes and Mervyn Dillon limping their way into the injury list. They are all being monitored and a decision on whether or not to play them will be taken on Monday morning after a fitness test. The visitors were very disappointed by the way things turned out in Ahmedabad. Their batsmen responded superbly when Sourav Ganguly invited them to bat, and during the break I thought: “Wow, that’s a huge total.” However, the bowlers lost control of the ball during the latter stages of the innings, because the dew was making it difficult to grip the ball. The most disappointing aspect for me was the way the bowlers kept bowling no-balls and wides right through the innings. When you are bowling to a batting line-up as strong as India’s, every extra ball is a cardinal sin. This indiscipline used to plague our bowling a few seasons ago, and it is worrying to see it resurface during such a crucial match. The catching and fielding only made matters worse and the West Indians will need to get these areas sorted out as fast as possible. In a one-day game you have to keep your focus going right through the 50 overs. This is something the West Indies must work at. However, I would like to take nothing away from the West Indian batting. Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan were absolutely marvellous. The former showed glimpses of the great Clive Lloyd as he got into the Indian bowling. He hits the ball as hard as Clive did, and is gifted with the same immaculate timing. Let’s hope the young man now works on his consistency so that he too can serve his country for many years. It’s a little sad that during the Tests it was the West Indian batting that was letting the team down while the bowlers toiled without much to defend. In the one-dayers, the roles have been reversed with the bowlers not being able to defend the massive totals that the batsmen are putting up. Amongst the Indians, it was once again Rahul Dravid who impressed me with his solid knock. His innings was the cornerstone of India’s remarkable run chase. Once you see the backs of Sehwag and Ganguly, you feel you are in with a chance, however, Dravid never gave up and was there for his team till the end. Sanjay Bangar was the guy who surprised every one on Friday night. After seeing his sedate batting in the Tests, the West Indians must have been a little complacent when he came in. However, he set about the task of getting his runs with the ferocity of a caged animal. He was quite magnificent in his strokeplay and while he did have a thick slice of luck, one cannot argue that his was a crucial contribution. Bangar may not be able to replicate his Ahmedabad knock if West Indies do their homework well. They will certainly change their length and avoid the areas that he likes the ball in. In fact, these run chases on the magnificent tracks in India might make many feel that this is the way things will be in South Africa during the World Cup. Make no mistake, conditions will be very difficult, and the scores that are being reached here will be nearly impossible to achieve on those testing pitches. Other Articles by Vivian Richards:
© Gameplan
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In my last article, I had spoken about the crowd disturbances
before speaking about the game itself. This time round, I would
like to congratulate the spectators, administrators and policemen
for the magnificent match at Ahmedabad. We were all worried about
what would happen during the day-night game, but the people of
Ahmedabad responded positively by turning out in large numbers to
enjoy a good day’s cricket where around 650 runs were scored.
Their Mexican waves and cheers contributed to a wonderful
atmosphere right through the game. Full marks to the authorities
for learning from the earlier incidents and keeping the situation
firmly under control, they certainly did their city proud.