The first day battle at Barbados – India Vs West Indies 2nd Test 2011.

Being consistent sometimes makes one becoming predictable.  

I have the habit of sharing my posts in pdf form with a large group of friends.  In fact this is two stage – one group of colleagues from my official ID and to another set of friends from my personal ID.  Sure it would have a caption and some description of what is contained therein also.  When I am about to send a newsitem on a marine occurrence at Spain and if title it ‘update from Spain’ – some of my recipients are bound to misconstrue it as something happening at Port of Spain and hence think that to be a cricket update.  

Not to disappoint those who might not have followed the match status of the second test – it was close to repeat of the abject surrender by Indians on the first day of the first test.  At lunch Indians were 44 for 4.  last match there were 3 debutants and Virat Kohli perhaps was the most dominant, having made some runs in ODIs and touted as prospective captain material for the future, he failed in the first test and this time he almost froze to another short pitched delivery described as ‘ball played him’.  – so for innings to come, sure he would be tested by short-pitched deliveries and whether he would come back in style – only time can tell.  

Ravi Rampaul is no Malcolm Marshall and but does what Marshall did.  He sliced through the top order with figures of 8-5-4-3 at lunch. It was on a pitch that aided bounce and Fidel Edwards kept bouncing everything.  There was a good partnership between the ever reliant VVS Laxman and Suresh Raina -  155/4 and then again late order collapse to 201 all out.  Only solace was when WI played each of the bowler Ishant, Praveen and Mithun got a wicket a piece to leave WI tottering at 30/3.  Perhaps, Indians can still hope of getting a slender first Innings lead going by the bounce that the pitch offered.   

This test also could prove to be decisive which is good advertisement for the enthralling Test Cricket

Regards – S. Sampathkumar