ID :
36658
Sat, 12/20/2008 - 08:31
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/36658
The shortlink copeid
Dour Dravid out of the doldrums
Amlan Chakraborty
Mohali, Dec 19 (PTI) The unbeaten knock of 65 -- a veritable assortment of jabs, nudges, edges, mishits, drives and pulls -– may not stand out for its aesthetics but would definitely rank among the most valuables runs India's Rahul Dravid had ever scored as he finally clambered out of the hole.
Walking out to bat on a chilly, gloomy morning soon after
the side had lost its most potent batsman is hardly the ideal
recipe to revive the sagging form of an off-colour batsman who
has aggregated a pathetic 322 runs from his last 10 Tests.
But loads of toil and a pinch of luck finally did the
trick and in the end, Dravid managed to get the huge monkey
off his back with a laboured knock, which would finally help
him breath easy.
As captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni had predicted Thursday,
the first job for Dravid was to get to the 30-run mark.
"Once he passes that 30-run mark, he would get his
confidence back," Dhoni had predicted Thursday.
However, even that seemed a task beyond Dravid as he
poked, missed and almost perished early in his innings. He
blocked the first ball he faced from James Anderson with a big
stride forward, considered a positive sign. But he had just
opened his account when his fluffed pull looped over before
landing in the no man's land between the square and fine leg,
much to the relief of the Karnataka batsman.
He, however, subsequently managed to properly execute the
shot off Anderson and it turned out to be his first boundary
in five innings. Dravid looked far more confident in the
post-lunch session and he announced that by reaching for a
Monty Panesar half volley and driving it through a packed
offside.
In the next over, Andrew Flintoff was driven through the
onside for a similar effect and two overs later, the bowler
was run down the unpopulated third man region.
True to Dhoni's words, once he reached the 30-run mark,
Dravid sent Stuart Broad through the mid-wicket area for his
fifth boundary before tip-toeing his way into the 40s. A light
drizzle started but it could neither dampen Dravid's
determination or deny him his fifty before tea.
Flintoff sent down the last over before tea and his fifth
ball was a no-ball which Dravid flicked through mid-wicket and
scampered for two to complete what was his 54th Test half
century – first in nine innings.
True to his nature, there was no over-the-top
celebration, nor any pumping of the fist or waving of the bat.
His stoic face betrayed no signs of a relief either.
Dravid did acknowledge the cheers of his teammates and
the sparse crowd before shaking hands with Gautam Gambhir who
had come down from the non-striker's end to congratulate him.
By stumps, Dravid had accumulated another 15 runs and as
he was about to leave the ground, England captain Kevin
Pietersen too came forward and patted him on the shoulder. It
may not have been a very convincing effort by Dravid but at
least he managed to arrest the slump.
Gambhir later oozed confidence that the knock would do a
world of good to the right-hander who has been the bulwark of
the Indian team for a long time.
"He played a very important knock today, both from his
personal and the team's point of view," Gambhir said. "We were
six for one and the ball was doing a lot. At that stage, we
really needed a big partnership and I think he tackled the
seamers really well. He is a legend of the game with
10,000-plus runs under his belt. Who am I to comment on him?
"But I think after this one innings, his confidence would
be high and he would continue to do well," Gambhir added.
England coach Peter Moores was definitely not amused that
Dravid chose England to claw his way back into form but said
he was not surprised.
"He is a fantastic player we have seen playing very well
in England, both in international and domestic cricket. Good
players don't become bad overnight... The longer he stays, the
settled he gets and by the end, it was Rahul Dravid, all hard
work.
"He is a good player and you expect it from them at some
stage because that makes them the players they are," added
Moores. PTI AY
PMR
Mohali, Dec 19 (PTI) The unbeaten knock of 65 -- a veritable assortment of jabs, nudges, edges, mishits, drives and pulls -– may not stand out for its aesthetics but would definitely rank among the most valuables runs India's Rahul Dravid had ever scored as he finally clambered out of the hole.
Walking out to bat on a chilly, gloomy morning soon after
the side had lost its most potent batsman is hardly the ideal
recipe to revive the sagging form of an off-colour batsman who
has aggregated a pathetic 322 runs from his last 10 Tests.
But loads of toil and a pinch of luck finally did the
trick and in the end, Dravid managed to get the huge monkey
off his back with a laboured knock, which would finally help
him breath easy.
As captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni had predicted Thursday,
the first job for Dravid was to get to the 30-run mark.
"Once he passes that 30-run mark, he would get his
confidence back," Dhoni had predicted Thursday.
However, even that seemed a task beyond Dravid as he
poked, missed and almost perished early in his innings. He
blocked the first ball he faced from James Anderson with a big
stride forward, considered a positive sign. But he had just
opened his account when his fluffed pull looped over before
landing in the no man's land between the square and fine leg,
much to the relief of the Karnataka batsman.
He, however, subsequently managed to properly execute the
shot off Anderson and it turned out to be his first boundary
in five innings. Dravid looked far more confident in the
post-lunch session and he announced that by reaching for a
Monty Panesar half volley and driving it through a packed
offside.
In the next over, Andrew Flintoff was driven through the
onside for a similar effect and two overs later, the bowler
was run down the unpopulated third man region.
True to Dhoni's words, once he reached the 30-run mark,
Dravid sent Stuart Broad through the mid-wicket area for his
fifth boundary before tip-toeing his way into the 40s. A light
drizzle started but it could neither dampen Dravid's
determination or deny him his fifty before tea.
Flintoff sent down the last over before tea and his fifth
ball was a no-ball which Dravid flicked through mid-wicket and
scampered for two to complete what was his 54th Test half
century – first in nine innings.
True to his nature, there was no over-the-top
celebration, nor any pumping of the fist or waving of the bat.
His stoic face betrayed no signs of a relief either.
Dravid did acknowledge the cheers of his teammates and
the sparse crowd before shaking hands with Gautam Gambhir who
had come down from the non-striker's end to congratulate him.
By stumps, Dravid had accumulated another 15 runs and as
he was about to leave the ground, England captain Kevin
Pietersen too came forward and patted him on the shoulder. It
may not have been a very convincing effort by Dravid but at
least he managed to arrest the slump.
Gambhir later oozed confidence that the knock would do a
world of good to the right-hander who has been the bulwark of
the Indian team for a long time.
"He played a very important knock today, both from his
personal and the team's point of view," Gambhir said. "We were
six for one and the ball was doing a lot. At that stage, we
really needed a big partnership and I think he tackled the
seamers really well. He is a legend of the game with
10,000-plus runs under his belt. Who am I to comment on him?
"But I think after this one innings, his confidence would
be high and he would continue to do well," Gambhir added.
England coach Peter Moores was definitely not amused that
Dravid chose England to claw his way back into form but said
he was not surprised.
"He is a fantastic player we have seen playing very well
in England, both in international and domestic cricket. Good
players don't become bad overnight... The longer he stays, the
settled he gets and by the end, it was Rahul Dravid, all hard
work.
"He is a good player and you expect it from them at some
stage because that makes them the players they are," added
Moores. PTI AY
PMR
