In reference to this:
http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/rsavaus/content/current/story/240507.html
Calling it the greatest game ever is a grave injustice to the game. No doubt, it was close, nail-biting, exciting, and had most ingredients of a masala-packet encounter. But, the game is supposed to be a contest between bat and ball, and the last I heard it was not a contest between bat and bat. Unfortunately in recent times ODIs have become increasingly a contest between bats on either side, and bowlers are reduced to pale shadows of themselves with little or no assistance from the pitches. Flat track bullies like Younis Khan, Veeru Sehwag (the list is long..) dominate the game with absolute nonchalance and rake up averages and astonishing scores entering themselves in the record books -- but whats the net worth of these records? I hope this game serves as a wakeup call to administrators and viewers all around the world to re-think what cricket is supposed to be about.
I will have at least one person to agree with me, the pitiable Lewis, who suffered the ignominy of scoring a century for the wrong reasons.
All said and done, its good to see the Aussies are mortal (with even playing conditions, unlike calcutta/madras dustbowls, with umpires like bansal and jayprakash who are ever trigger-happy with lbw and bat-pads) ..
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2 comments:
I could not DISAGREE with you more
Its true the game was not highly lopsided in the favor of batsmen, but I think that was more due to the batsmen's attitude than the favorable conditions. I am sure a game played 10 years ago under very similar conditions would not have yeilded more than 250 runs in each innings.
John Buchanan had always urged Aussies to push the envelope of ODI's and score 400 (read JL's column in BBC) and they did it. But hats off to the Proteans who undid the AUssie efforts with a spectacular display of their own...
More, when I post on the similar topic (hopefully tonite !)
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