The top's gone, and not much left
India's strangulation of this New Zealand innings, while satisfying from the perspective of the Indian fan, does create the rather unappetizing possibility that the ODI will drift to an end in that most dreaded of ways: a perfunctory, businesslike, accumulation of a rather low total by the side batting second. The crowd will struggle to stay awake, and I might go take a nap as well.
I'll make no secret of it. On subcontinental pitches, I prefer watching India bat first. One gets a little value for money if they rack up a big total, and then of course, there is the defense to look forward to. When their outcricket does as much damage as it has today, it doesn't leave much to be consumed later. (By way of clarifying, I do like India bowling first overseas on more bowler-friendly tracks; it often is their best chance of winning).
I'll make no secret of it. On subcontinental pitches, I prefer watching India bat first. One gets a little value for money if they rack up a big total, and then of course, there is the defense to look forward to. When their outcricket does as much damage as it has today, it doesn't leave much to be consumed later. (By way of clarifying, I do like India bowling first overseas on more bowler-friendly tracks; it often is their best chance of winning).
Labels: India, New Zealand, one-day internationals
posted by Samir Chopra at 7:26 AM
3 Comments:
I don't believe sluggish wickets like the Premadasa should really be blamed for the further decline in popularity of ODIs. My feeling is the batsmen have been spoilt by flat wickets and short boundaries, and find it difficult to make the necessary adjustments when confronted with pitches of this sort. If they were prepared to fight it out a bit more, there would be plenty in it for the spectator who doesn't demand a sixer off each delivery.
Disclaimer: The comment above may not be directly related to the subject matter of your post, but it was something I had to get off my chest.
Suhas: Oh, I wasn't blaming the Premdasa at all. Its just the format of the game is such that a low score is bound to result in a rather desultory chase (unless there is a collapse in the second innings - like an extended version of the small one in the Indian innings!).
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