Review of International Cricket - November 2002 - Sanjay Manjrekar

Unlucky!!! That is what the Indian cricket team was on the last two days of September. Twice, they were within striking distance of the ICC Champions Trophy, only for the weather gods to play foul. Without getting into the pros and cons of continuing play on the second day in the event of a rain interruption as was done during the India-England clash in the 1999 World Cup, the fact remains that the 'mini-World Cup' final and the spectators deserved better.

The resurgent Indian cricket team went on to thrash a weak West Indian side in the first two Tests played at Mumbai and Chennai respectively. Virender Sehwag extended his golden run at the top of the order on home soil and into the Test variety, as did Rahul Dravid who became the first Indian to score four hundreds in consecutive Test innings. The pick of the bowlers was Zaheer Khan, who came up with vital breakthroughs on unresponsive tracks, although the lion's share of the scalps went to the spin duo of Kumble and Harbhajan. Both the Indian one-day and Test sides now sport an integrated look, with all the departments comprising dedicated and committed individuals who value the India cap tremendously.

While the Indians are on the top of their game, the same cannot be said about their counterparts across the border. The cracks within Pakistani cricket appear wider than ever before, with the double-digit scores at Sharjah and the axing of seniors Wasim Akram and Saeed Anwar from the Test side for a series against the lowly Zimbabweans. Serious introspection, involving the captain, senior players, selectors, Board officials and the coach (who could be advised to improve the doings of his own side instead of taking digs at the opposition) is the crying need of the day. Having said that, one would like to add that it is impossible to arrive at a definite conclusion about the 'problems' confronting Pakistani cricket. It might all change tomorrow. As we are all aware, the only predictable thing about Pakistani cricket is its unpredictability!

Predictable with a capital 'P' are the travails of the Bangladeshi cricket team. After yet another humiliating series loss, this time to South Africa, the newest entrants to Test cricket desperately need to return to the drawing board.

For most cricket fans however, the highlight of the month was not yet another series win by India at home or Pakistan going from bad to worse in the same Test match, but the retirement of Mark Waugh. An elegant batsman and arguably the greatest slip-fielder the game has ever seen, Waugh holds the world record for the highest number of catches (181) by a non-wicketkeeper.

The game shall miss him.