Chanders, Samuels Hog Eden Gardens Spotlight
Fri, Nov 1, '02
A superbly disciplined display of batsmanship saw the West
Indies gain the ascendancy in the second test match at the Eden
Gardens today.
West Indies began the day at 189/3, in the familiar situation of
having to bat through most of the day if they were to stay in the
match. The overnight batsmen, Gayle and Chanderpaul started off
rather well, though it seemed that for the first time in the
innings, Gayle was less than comfortable against Kumble, having
more than one lbw appeal turned down when he opted to pad up to
deliveries pitched perilously close to the stumps. Chanderpaul, on
the other hand, wasted no time in trying to hit Harbhajan off his
length with some very well timed shots through the onside.
After his magnificient partnership with Hinds yesterday, Gayle
hit just one cracking straight drive today before he got a delivery
from Kumble that bounced just a little more than he expected. The
ball took Gayle's glove and pad enroute to Sehwag at forward short
leg, and the first West Indian wicket of the day had fallen at 213.
Though he did not go on to get his century, Gayle could justifiably
feel proud of his effort here, under intense pressure and in
conditions that do not suit his style of batsmanship.
Carl Hooper joined Chanderpaul in what was expected to be the most
important partnership of the innings. That Hooper is a phenomenal
player of spin is common knowledge among Indian cricket followers,
but the Hooper they saw today was not his usual flowing self. From
the beginning, Ganguly set a field which made it difficult for him
to play his lofted drives over the offside field, and Hooper took a
long time to get going.
Chanderpaul at the other end, was solidity personified. His
technique against spin, built around an ability and willingness to
play the ball at the very last minute, made it impossible for
either Harbhajan or Kumble to make any impression on him. At the
same time, the placement of his nudges and his unforgiving shots
against the bad ball ensured that he kept his score moving
steadily.
When the new ball came due, Ganguly gave Srinath an over with the
old ball before opting to take it. Hooper greeted Nehra with an
explosive cover drive, but in the same over, found a delivery that
pitched on middle and moved away sharply off the pitch. It was a
delivery that a new batsman to the crease would probably have
missed, but Hooper was well set by this time, and the ball took the
outside edge. The lack of pace in this pitch meant that the catch
would not have carried to first slip, where it was headed. But
Patel, in a brilliant piece of wicket-keeping, dived in front of
first slip and came up with an absolute stunner of a catch.
The combination of excellent delivery and great catch meant that
West Indies had lost a very important wicket, and were now 255/5.
Judging by the first two tests, it seemed certain that they would
concede a significant lead to India in the first innings.
Marlon Samuels was the next batsman. If the situation of the match
and the quality of the spinners he was facing were not difficult
enough, the atmosphere at Eden Gardens must surely have made this
the most testing situation of his career so far. With fieldsmen
circling around the bat, Samuels and Chanderpaul negotiated the
overs before lunch.
Lunch was taken with the West Indies at 261/5, with Chanderpaul on
42* and Samuels on 1*.
After the lunch interval, Chanderpaul opened out and took the
attack to the Indian bowling, especially to Kumble. He hit three
fours in Kumble's first over after lunch, a sweep, a pull and a
sizzling straight drive. Ganguly persisted with Kumble, perhaps
hoping that Chanderpaul would get over ambitious and play a false
shot, but Chanderpaul's judgement in picking the delivery to attack
was flawless. The next over saw Kumble going for a six and a four.
Samuels at the other end, hit Srinath for two boundaries, and
looked increasingly confident. The time that Samuels has to play
his shots, his sound technique and his calm, unflustered demeanour
made one wonder why he was not played ahead of Ryan Hinds in the
first two tests. In light of his performance in this innings,
Samuels must be a fixture in the West Indian middle order.
Ganguly made frequent, almost frantic bowling changes, but nothing
made an impression on the West Indian batsmen. Between lunch and
tea, the West Indian score went from 261/5 to 363/5, with
Chanderpaul taking just sixty deliveries to go from fifty to his
sixth test hundred.
To a man, the West Indian team rose to greet Chanderpaul when he
reached his century, as did the mammoth crowd at the Eden Gardens.
Chanderpaul fell to his knees to kiss the turf, a gesture which
should eloquently explain what this innings meant to him, as well
as to the cause of his team. If his innings was invaluable in the
context of this test, it's worth cannot be overstated in the
context of the rebuilding of the West Indian team either.
At tea, Chanderpaul was on 107* and Samuels on 36*. Their
partnership was already worth 108 runs.
The post tea session saw Samuels open up and play some lovely
shots. In the course of this test match, one got the impression
that not only Samuels, but all the other young West Indian batsmen
had gained a better understanding of how to score runs against spin
bowling in the conditions that prevail in India.
The placidity of the pitch was definitely a factor, but Hinds,
Gayle and Samuels, especially the latter, all showed an ability to
play the waiting game. The fact that the batsmen were willing to
use the pads, or ignore any delivery that did not have to be played
meant that the spinners could not fall into a groove. This meant
that the spinners had to constantly adjust their line and length in
an attempt to get the batsmen to play. The resulting loose
deliveries were ruthlessly dispatched to the boundary.
Samuels growing confidence can be judged by the fact that he moved
from his fifth test fifty to 89* at stumps with no less than eight
boundaries. At stumps, West Indies had moved on to 446/5 with
Chanderpaul on 136*.
The overall lead for the West Indies is 88, but with this pitch
still being good for batting, and the outfield nothing short of
lightning quick, the objective must be to extend that lead to the
maximum extent possible. Test batting is not only about runs, but
also about time, so the effort for the West Indies should be to bat
till atleast an hour after lunch. A lead of about 150 should enable
the West Indian bowlers to put the Indian batting under pressure.
Batting last is never easy for any team, under any conditions, so
the West Indies would do well to ensure that if they have to chase
a target in the last innings, it should be a token chase.
Day Four at the Eden Gardens promises to be another riveting day.
The Indian spinners will undoubtedly recoup and analyse what they
could have done differently, but however they change their
approach, it seems certain that they will not be confronted by a
timid and shaky West Indian batting lineup.