Transcript of the Commentary - Indian Innings

hemant (hemant@mailexcite.com) Looking at the comments even god would shudder to become the cricket captain of india.come on guys this after all a game -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- aditya (agarg@unifi.com) It's a pity they don't beleive in Dravid. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Malvinder () whisky Brandy Soda Pop, Indian Cricketers are so hung up Ravi (rkondapa@ford.com) Kumble is probably the slowest batsman in the side in terms of scoring rate while joshi, agarkar and srinath have the reputation of tonking the ball and hence the position. it doesent indicate any demotion for Kumble. It is choosing right horses for right courses Prem: 179 all out india, in 49.5 overs, kumble last to go with 12 off 11. and with that, shutting down, guys, be back in 45 minutes with the Lankan response.

arvind () Why Gaikawad is considered worthy to be the coach of Indian ODI. Only famous inning he has played is "Slowest double hundred in a test" that too when playing on a batting wicket, against a weak opposition and with no pressure. I wonder if that's what he is teaching to the Indian players. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pravin Kulkarni (pravin2k@hotmail.com) Prem> Commentary window is too wide. It's difficult to read commentary. Also score is not getting updated at the top half. It's still showing 66/4 in 24 overs. Hope this will be fixed during Lankans inningis. Thanks Prem: ball five, kumble thumps to midwicket, atapattu in from deep midwicket, kumble goes for the second, atapattu slams in the trhow, catches kumble halfway down the track, atapattu having a wonderful day today, 3 catches, 2 run outs, and that is the end of the indian innings.

Prem: wsinghe agian to kumble, three left in the over, down the trcak and moving to leg, wsinghe keeps it just outside off, kumble misses with the heave, having backed away too far. two balls left.

Prem: lots of field arrangement happening, now wsinghe to joshi, yorker on leg, played to square leg, single. 178/9.

anish () Why is Kumble last? Didn't he get a 100 in Zimb. Azhar has a total lack of common sense Prem: 177/9 and wsinghe now to joshi.

Prem: wsinghe to kumble, ball two of the 50th, kumble can be guaranteed to go to leg and hit to off, there he goes again, but this time along the ground, gets one.

Prem: 172/9 and into the last over of the innings, wickremasinghe being brought on for it, bowling to kumble who backs away and slashes, gets the bottom of the bat on it and fires it over cover, four. 176/9.

arvind (arvindn@udel.edu) prem, you must be feeling like a radio commentator of a bygone era- having to update the score and try and convey the situation as you see it. you seem to be managing pretty good though. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () Kudos to Prem for his patience and his effort for vbringing the game live. Prem's views are good enough to help him contend for the post of Manager (replacing Gaikwad) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- arvind (a_singh@HotMail.com) I think Selectors will try something new smart and new other than constantly rotating LAXMAN-DRAVID-SIDHU. I don't have anythinng against these players but they have wasted so many chances (read so many matches for India). Some new players like Khurasia, Gavasker deserve some chances to prove themself. Afterall, this is the way we discover new players - imagine if we didn't try Agarkar, Harbhajan, Chopra. So, please give some break to LAXMAN-DRAVID-SIDHU and give some chances to Khurasia, Gavasker ahead of the WC. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ravi (rkondapa@ford.com) Hi Guys, The debate about who should be #3 has been going on for a long time now. But if not for anything else but for his sheer ability to rotate strike and the rich experience of 303+ ODIs against his name it should be Azhar and only Azhar at #3 spot. It is a pity that Rahul cannot play at any other spot except #3. Prem: next ball, cover drive, one more.

Prem: two balls left in the 49th, vaas to kumble, on leg, he gets under it, lifts it over long on, dharma had all the time in the world, moves late, misjudges, grabs at the ball, makes about every mistake a fielder can make and ends up giving four, dropping the catch.

Prem: joshi back on strike, into the 49th, vaas, on off adn joshi flicks, one more through midwicket. 167/9.

mickey (sarkar@hotmail.com) Sorry I meant Azhar's captaincy that Prem mentioned Prem: vaas to kumble, now, 49th over, four balls left in it. kumble makes room and hits through point, single. 166/9.

Prem: vaas, huge appeal there for lbw, got joshi on the pad, meanwhile they were scrambling a leg bye, ranatunga missed with the direct throw at a point when the batsman was not even in the frame. ball two, the cover drivve, joshi gets one. 165/9.

Prem: another yorker length ball from jaya, kumble scrambles to dig it out, no run, end of 48 with india 9 down for 164.

Sajid Bhombal (sajid@loxinfo.co.th) Sorab, I agree with you that if Azhar wants to bat at #3, then he should bat at #3. However, I think Azhar is not suitable to bat at #3. He should play at #4. Dravid is suitable at #3 if he learns to rotate strike Prem: jaya to kumble, that hit the boot on the full, but the ball going down leg.

Prem: srinivasL:: I cant, unfortunately, it is stuck, that is why I am posting the score on each post. 164/9 india in 47.4.

mickey (sarkar@hotmail.com) Exactly, I think that India's fielding and as Prem mentioned in his match report, Azhar's fielding yesterday were all probably 'flashes in their respective pans'.Pessimistically I predict that Sri Lanka will really get off to a flier. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram () Jadeja has to open up now. No use getting singles and hitting chip shots. Better to go for it and become out than to hit a few singles and remain unbeaten -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- srinivas (smurthy01@sprynet.com) Prem, you dont have to answer any questions, but can you please refresh the scoreboard at the top?! Prem: there goes the red light, so jadeja begins the long walk back and last man, kumble -- how times change, he used to be number seven at one time -- walks in.

Prem: They are waiting for the third umpire to make up his mind, not sure why, the bails are off and the bat is short of the crease.

murali () Azhar is really a poor strategist! He gets Chopra,Agarkar ahead of Srinath. I hope all of you folks know how many times Srinath has hit those quick 30s and 40s Prem: jadeja 63 off 115, on strike to jaya, ball one hit back down the track to the bowler. ball two, jaya, 48th over, jadeja steps to leg, hits to extra cover, pushing the second run there and i would think he's gone.

Prem: vaas now to sunil johsi, yorker on off and the batsman plays back to the bowler. three overs to go after this one, one more from vaas and at the end of 47, india are 163/8, going at 3.46

Sorab (sorab_dalal.dfci.harvard.edu) Well one things for sure, to win we are going to have to bowl a tight line and length and field like the dickens. This does not inspire me with much confidence as the performance in the field yesterday was probably a flash in the pan. Keeping the field in to keep the singles down means that you give the Sri Lankans a chance to go over the top and I do not think that they are going to turn down that opportunity. Also why does Azhar say he wants to bat at #3 and then consistently push himself down the order. Need five batsmen to win in the ODIs and I suspect that it is time for Dravid to make an appearance in the side in the place of Robin (I don't know why I am not being bowled) Singh. This is not a criticism of Robin, who I would definitely have in my WC team, its just that if you want a specialist batsman I think Dravid is the better choice. Sorab Prem: 161/7 anmd srinath has a nice huge heave ho at the next one, ball high in the air but falls between extra cover and long on, and they really push the running on this, racing as the ball was in the air a long time, they get two for it. 163/7. vaas, and there goes srinath, the ball kept on a straight line, srinath trying to swing over midwicket, palys over the line and back goes middle stump, the batsman playing over the slower delivery. gone for 15/20.

Prem: vaas to jadeja, ball three, yyorker length on leg and jadeja gets batt on it, finds the single to square leg, aravindia dives and stops the ball going through for more.

Prem: srinath now on strike to vaas, into the 47th over here, short and lifting and again, srinath looking to hit over mid off, ball off the edge to third man, single.

Prem: 158/7 in 46 and jadeja on strike, batting 61 off 113, vaas the bwoler, yorker length on off and jadeja gets one to cover. 159/7

Prem: mickey, they use two pitches in rotation this is the one sri lanka and zimbabwwe played on, slower and lower than the first one. 240 is defendable, most anything under is not.

mickey (sarkar@hotmail.com) Prem, I know you just talked about the pitch. Is it playing really differently from yesterday? I am of course supposing that anything around 180 will not be a defendable score at all. Prem: srinath on strike now to the last ball ofthe 46th, jaya, steps away from the crease, jaya angles it in at him, no room for the batsman to do anything but play to midwicket, no run.

Prem: jaya now to jadeja, he goes across to paddle adn misses, no run. two left to bowl, in the 46th, jaya to jadeja, down the track and finds long off with the drive, one. 158/7 in 45.5.

Prem: single off the second ball, to midwicket, brings srinath on strike, and there he goes, winding up and swinging, but just one to long on. 157/7 in 45.3.

Sajid Bhombal (sajid@loxinfo.co.th) The problems with us Indians is that we never perform as a team. We always see overselves as South Indian, North Indian etc etc. Look at the comments by some of the expert here. Let us forget the north, south, east & west angles. Let us project ourselves as Indians. A team with a common goa. Sachin, Azhar, Dravid belongto all of us. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () pc2 - I never asked you about Vishy or anything! My question was why is Joshi not being promoted in the batting order if they intend to use him as an all-rounder? Kumble,Srinath and Joshi is a better bats than Chopra! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- mohan () Do the bowlers in the Indian tem get regular batting practice? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sorab (sorab_dalal@dfci.harvard.edu) Well this seems to be a feature of this tournament. The team batting first is jinxed. Its possible that all the teams have convinced themselves of this. Either that or batting is tougher in the first session. Kinda doubt that. Another 30-40 runs and we will have something to bowl with (probably not enough though). Wonder if we will finally see Robin the bowler make an appearance. Sorab Prem: jayasuriya to bowl the 46th, jadeja the man on strike, batting 60 off 109, srinath 11 off `15, jaya has two overs left to bowl, and he starts with wide again. keeps trying to fire one on leg stump and every now and again goes wide. ball two, jadeja down the track, hits hard, finds midwicket. no run.

Prem: 154/7 in 45 and into the final phase here. Deepak:: doing ball by ball now, pal, pitch okay, slowish, will do it in detail in the match report, not here.

Prem: vaas to srinath, on leg, played to midwicket, no run. 154/7 in 45.

Prem: srinath on strike, ball five of the 45th, this one comes in sharply, srinath gets it on the pad, huge appeal for lbw, jadeja meanwhile sneaks the single, bit of a mixup, overthrow, finally, after a prolonged comedy of errors, two for it.

Prem: vaas again to jadeja, short on middle, jadeja tries to hit over the top, that one climbed, the hit in the air and just short of the fielder at mid on, quick single taken, jadeja making his ground before the direct hit.

arvind (arvindn@udel.edu) robin is definitely the greatest overachiever in a team filled with quite a few passengers!! Though his bowling is effective only on pitches which offer a li'l something to the bowler, hisshort arnm pulls can be extremely effective, as seen in the windies match. add to that his electric fielding, hez always an asset to the team. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- pc2 () murali, Wadeker is right. Remember our team in 1983 WC. One of our greatest batsman, Vishi, was out of the team because he was not an all-rounder! Prem: yorker, srinath gets enoough bat on it to sneak the single to cover. 151/7.

Prem: full toss, this time, trying for the yorker, srinath lifts over the bowler's head, gets two, 150/7 in 44.2.

Prem: vaas now to srinath, india 148/7.

Prem: 6 more overs to go. Kumble and joshi to come after his. 3.34 the run rate, jadeja 58 off 107, vaas with a yorker, jadeja digs it out, single to long on.

Prem: dharma to jadeja, the flick, finds square leg, single, 147/7 in 44.

Prem: slower ball, yorker length, srinath digs it out and plays to long on, single.

Prem: dharma, fast and full on leg and jadeja tries to swing it around, no touch but the leg bye is on, 144/7 in 43.3.

Prem: dharma, and srinath rocks back, thumps over midiwcket but just the single. slight correction, score now is 142/7 and that was almost eight, jadeja down the track, liftintg to long off and wickremasinghe didnt need to move, got the ball in both hands and put it down. one more. srinath off the third ball, one through midwicket.

PC () pc2, yeah robin in the team if he is not being used as a bowler is a bit dumb.. unless we believe taht he is one of tghe better batsmen around Prem: that was fuller in length, srinath looking to launch it over mid off, the ball flaring off the thick outer edge down to backward point, single and india 145/7 in 43.

Prem: 140/7 and a yorker from vaas, srinath digs it out and plays it back to the bowler.

Prem: jadeja drives, finds the single to long off. srinath back on strike, to vaas, good ball this, on off cutting in, srinath hurried on the push, back to the bowler.

PC () pc2, yeah robin in the team if he is not being used as a bowler is a bit dumb.. unless we believe taht he is one of tghe better batsmen around Prem: vaas to jadeja, down the leg and called wide. 139/7.

Prem: srinath on strike to vaas, on off, palyed through point off the open face of the bat, single.

Prem: and now vaas comes back on. he has 4 to bowl, so we should see him bowl through from here. jadeja pushes the single towards mid off, frist up. 137/7 in 42.1.

rsinha () Mohan : If dravid were there we would have been 134/1 and hoping that Dravid got out before the innings were over. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () PREM - Wadekar had said that Joshi was picked to be groomed as an all-rounder. Why is Joshi not being sent early in the batting order even though is a good bat? Prem: india after 42 overs, 136/7.

Prem: singles to both srinath and jadeja, 136/7 the score, india, and dharma to srinath, who almost makes the mistake of driving without reading the pace, the ball came through slower, the on drive in the air but short of the fielder, no run.

mobeen (afaqih@eden.rutgers.edu) sachin hamesha to khush nahi kar sakta aakhir woh bhi insaan hai -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VICKY (charms69@hotmail.com) HEY GUYS I AM SIGNING OFF. DON'T FIGHT UR DIVERSITIES BECAUSE SURVIVAL DEPENDS ON UNITY TO ALL THE SARDARS AND THE SOUTHIES. BYE!!!!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ramgopal (ramgopal_uk) hey,why is the scoring so slow.Is the wicket slower than yesterday -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- pc2 () Hi PC! The way game is going, it seems to me that today is the slow bowler's(spin) day. We have kumble, joshi, chopraa and sachin. We have two more opening bowler's. Ganguly is also there; then why it is necessary of keeping Robin in this team? Prem: srinath the new man in. dharma the bwoler. on off and played to leg. no run. ball two, agian the same line and same shot, finds midwicket,. no run.

Prem: 134/7 the score, for india, and now having yet again to choke back the strokes, try and bat out the overs.

Prem: dharma, nice full toss on leg and agarkar hits it right back into the bowler's hands, misreading that ball completely and that is wicket number 7.

Malvinder () Murali, Relax and dont be oversensitive -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daler Mehndi () Sachin ne bahut dhook diya Prem: and again. thrice on the trot, to end the 41st over. 9 more left in the innings, india way short of a good target, which on this track would be around the 240+ mark, given the presence of three spinners and the occasional stuff of Tendulkar.

Prem: ads, jadeja drives, finds midiwcket. ball six, around the wciket, he flicks and finds midwicket again. 134/6

Prem: agarkar on strike, aravinda the bowler, around the wicekt line now, and agarkar plays to point, single. 134/6.

mohan () if only dravid were there! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ramgopal (ramgopal_uk@hotmail.com) hi,what's the score right now Prem: on drive nex tball, and one more to the batsman, 133/6 in 40.2.

Prem: 126/6 in 40, and off the first ball of the 41st, jadeja down the track, getting under the ball, lifts it high over midwicket and gets the six, calculating that one very nice, jadeja 52/97.

Malvinder () Indian Team koh vapas ghar bula loy...must ne feeling homesick..the rich , spoilt brats -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () Malvinder - Dont use terms like "South Indian' etc. You know Sardars are laughed at everywhere because they behave like this in a forum like this! Prem: agarkar trying to run the next ball down to third man, misses. ball five, he steps back, sets himself and swings one, slightly short and gets four.

Prem: vicky:: 15. ball three, jadeja plays through midwikcet, gets one more. 122/6 in 39.4.

Prem: supriya:; the typed commenary is the only one we have. Dharma sena now back inott the attack, bowling to jadeja, down the track and pushing back to the bwoler. ball two, turned round, finds square leg, no run.

VICKY (charms69@hotmail.com) PREM HOW MUCH DID CHOPRA SCORE? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- arvind (arvindn@udel.edu) i dont think ranatunga would've set a field to prevent the big hits. the big hits now are big risks they would hardly take. so the ideal thing for rana is to choke the singles and thats what hez doing -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- supriya (supsiyer@yahoo.com) just joined... could anyone tell me the the latest score and how much did the previous batsman make.. the score board above is stuck at 4/66 also is there a way by which i can listen to the commentary , not the typed one... Prem: last ball of the 39th, turned around, finds the fielder, no run.

Prem: ads to agarkar, on off, played defensively.

Prem: aravinda to jadeja, who goes back, hits against the spin, through point, single. 121/6

Prem: ball three, agarkar opening the bat face, gets one to point, 120/6 the score.

Prem: 43 off 89, jadeja, aravinda to bowl and pitches one outside off, turns it in, jadeja lets it through. ball two, again the same line, cut to backward point,single.

Malvinder () During the match in Toronto there was a south Indian who would keep shouting ' come on Srinath make them tight'...thats waht SL is doing to India right now -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () What is the basis in promoting Chopra ahead of Agarkar,Joshi etc? Prem: 118/6 in 38 the score, 12 overs left in the innings, and agarkar the new man in.

Malvinder () The Indian Team is like the weather in Europe....and I find the weather here disgusting -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Venkat () I think the field must be set to prevent the hits - singles must be there for the asking. Why is these guys not placing the singles and braces ? Realy confused. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VICKY (charms69@hotmail.com ) PREM WICKREMASINGE HAS COME IN WHOSE PLACE? Prem: sorry, guys, had a bit of a problem here and meanwhile, there goes number six. chopra trying to on drive, the ball comes slower onto the bat, ball in the air and mahanama flies through the air to hold a brilliant one at midwicket.

Prem: bad ball, down the leg, jadeja helps it along to fine leg, gets two more. into the 37th. jaya, and jadeja gets one with the off drive. 115/5 in 36.4.

Rajababu () I am confident but not overconfident and I cant change the stakes half-way thro the match. Anyway I think Kumble joshi and chopra will surely do it for us I cant think any other way Rajababu () I am confident but not overconfident and I cant change the stakes half-way thro the match. Anyway I think Kumble joshi and chopra will surely do it for us I cant think any other way Prem: 39 off 86 jadeja, and having to continue to bat through here. chhopra, first ball of jaya's over, down the track and driving over long on, splits the field and gets the four, the first four in the innings after sachin's dismissal. next ball, an off drive, single. 112/5 in 36.2.

Prem: ranatunga missing a bet here, the jadeja wagon wheel shows 19 of his 36 runs have come to long on, strange to see that gap not being plugged yet. chopra, down the track, on drives and gegs one more, 107/5 in 36 india.

Prem: 2.95 the run rate, chopra cover drives, single as ranatunga dives and stops but fails to keep the batsmen in their crease, chopra running with the shot there. ball three, sweera, jadeja drivds, back to the bowler. ball four of the 36th, jadeja on drives, the single to long on. 105/5

harish (hkuma@hotmail.com) I dont understand why Chopra came in before Agarkar. I thought Agarkar was a far better bat. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- arvind (arvindn@udel.edu) our team resembles the English team in so many ways-the tails hardly wag, the top order, with the honourable exception of one or two, consistently fail and both teams have extremely inspiring captains...so on and so forth. fortunately, we dont have a coach like lloyd who shoots his mouth off and causes greater embarrasment to his team off the field -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sripad (gcl_hyd@bluecrosslabs.com) This is the right time to shut the comments of so many persons who have had critics about our tail enders,today they will show,with master Sachin also India can manage. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Makhan (seru@home.com) Folks: This match is gone unless SL does the same mistakes. But, in this loss we as a team learn more than yesterday's winning: namely our lack of confidence with accurate seem bowling, running between the wicket etc. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PC () mm there seems to be another pc in here, hi anyways pc Prem: the replay, annd chopra has made his ground ahead of the direct hit from jayasuriya.

Prem: sweera continues, starts with a wide down leg side. 103/5 in 35, sweera to jadeja, on leg and gently played to square leg, the fielder there is quickly in, direct hit, third umpire called in.

VICKY (charms69@hotmail.com) PREM CAN U TELL ME HOW THE PITCH IS BEHAVING? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Venkat () I don't need a calculator to tell that the 100 was obtained at a runrate of 3 an over - precise ! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rocket () Have teams started sorting outRobin? Did not do well in the chase in the first match either. Prem: vicky:: like i indicated it would, at the end of yesterday';s match report. lower and slower than the first pitch -- check out the lanka zimbabwe match which was played on it. single meanwhile to jadeja, played sauare on the on. chopra finds midwicket off the last ball, o run, india 102/5 in 35.

Prem: jaya, with india 100/5 in 34.3, to chopra, outside off, he cuts, finds one to the sweeper, 101/5 the score.

Prem: jayasuriya continues, chopra on strike and almost gets himsefl stumped first ball, trying to go down the track. ball two and three, both fired in fast on leg and chopra cramped on his on drives, no run.

anand () yup rocket. dravid is the ideal one down man. a rock solid wall to face any bowling. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rocket () Last message should read "...since one wicket down in the first few overs is not unusual." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prasanna () Rax,What if it's a spinning wicket? India has lost lot of matches on spinning wickets even when they had the famous quartet. Spin bowling is not everything. It should be backed by a decent score coupled with some good fielding. And RAX< would you like to double the stakes for this match ( This is to test whether ur confidence is real) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ravi (nravichandran@hotmail.com) If Ajay keeps his end going, why not, we can reach 200 or around. May be it is time for our bowlers to respond. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- pc () Sriram, please do not compare Gavaskar and Tendulkar. I would appreciate the comparision of players playing at the same time, under identical conditions! Prem: sweera, and jadeja this time drives to mid on, no run. so far, just the three fours that sachin hit, no fours beyond that, one reason for india's crawl, none of the batsmen being able to really read the relative slowness of this track.

Prem: chopra on drives, very tight single being tried, brings up the 100 in 33.2 overs, going at 3 an over now. sweera to jadeja, who shuts the bat face, finds the midwicket fielder, no run. ball four, sweear, jadeja down the track, tries to flick, misses.

pc () what is the purpose of this? Seems to me everybody is expert but I have a feeling most of these people participating here never played cricket!Instead of real game, they are more interested about Dravid and Azza! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PICHU (PICHU@HOTMAIL.COM) Hi Prem, This is the match, Dravid is usefull at one down Prem: post drinks, sweera continuing, jadeja on drives, gets one more, india going on at 2.98 now.

Bull () I remember Jaunty winning the MoM for his fielding in one of the matches in the recent SA tour of England. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- anand () considering the way pak tail pulled their innings agains aus and the zim tail played agains us i hope our guys do the same. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rocket () Why send Mongia one-down. This makes no sense at all. He took all of 22 balls for one run. Who comes up with these poor strategies?! We need a solid one-down bat, since one wicket down in the first few overs is unusual. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sripad (gcl_hyd@bluecrosslabs.com) HEY!! TODAY JADJ WILL BE PLAYING HIS BEST INNINGS OF LIFE. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- VICKY (charms69@hotmail.com) JADU SHOULD BATTLE IT OUT AND GIVE CHOPRA SOME POSITIVE APPROACH. IS THE PITCH PLAYING SLOW? Bull () I remember Jaunty winning the MoM for his fielding in one of the matches in the recent SA tour of England. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- anand () considering the way pak tail pulled their innings agains aus and the zim tail played agains us i hope our guys do the same. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rocket () Why send Mongia one-down. This makes no sense at all. He took all of 22 balls for one run. Who comes up with these poor strategies?! We need a solid one-down bat, since one wicket down in the first few overs is unusual. Prem: and with that, drinks on the field, taking a breather here, guys, back in two.

Venkat () Attapattu seem to have a hand in many dismisals - I think he would compete for MoM for his fielding. When was the last time a guy won MoM for fielding well ? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- rajababu () Yes Proski man, It is a spinning wicket and we have 3 of them So I haven't lost hope. Anil () This is a good opportunity for chopra to show his batting ability -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sripad santpur (gcl_hyd@bluecrosslabs.com) TODAY IS JADS DAY TOTALLY,HE MAY BE PLAYING HIS BEST INNING OF LIFE,HE WLL HIS WORTH AGAIN TODAY Prem: last ball, tries to play on the on side, leading edge out on the off for chopra, finds the bowler on the follow through and no run. end of 33 overs. 98/5 the score.

Prem: 98/5 the score, ball four of the 33rd, the straight drive finds the bowler. this one angled in from wide of the crease, chopra pushes and finds midwicket, no run.

Prem: jaya, bad ball that, fast and short outside off and chopra cuts, gets two through point. next ball, wide down leg and he is called.

Prem: jayasurriya continus, jadeja down the track, finds long on with the push, single. chopra on strike, into the 33rd over here, chopra pushes, gets the leading edge, that one stopped on him, but falls just short of vaas at mid on. 95/5.

Prasanna M N () Rax, Do u think that India can win this match? Remember it will be 3-0!!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- anand () nice example azhar has set to his team - playing irresponsible shots. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vtv () What are N Chopra's batting stats in domestic cricket? can he permanently replace harbhajan? Prem: jadeja on drives, one more. singles being given in that direction, india 94/5, chopra on strike, last ball of the 32nd, this time the off drive against the turn but the bowler dives and stops, no run.

Prem: ball four, this time he shuts the bat face and on drives, plays it wide of the fielder, gets one more.

Prem: chopra, off his pads, but finds square leg, no run. ball three, chopra on drives, finds the fielder again.

arvind (arvindn@udel.edu) was just about to say azhar's gonna do well. but... anyway, the pessimist that i'm, i feel our kaptan will score less than two hundred runs in the three tests!!! and BTW, the decision on the SA-WI tour will be taken in another two hours. Hopefully it takes place. I mean, its such a loss no to play that one. and i think lara has been veryy admirable. the way he stuck to his guns. Prem: sweera continues, jadeja on drives, single. 93/5. into the 32nd over here.

Prem: Anand:: yes to both -- unlike the first pitch, the ball is not really coming on here. makes the heave ho, especially to spin, rather dicey and the bwoler held it back a bit seeing him readying the charge. Jaya completes a good over, just one in it and 91/5 India in 31. GUYS, THE SCOREBOARD HAS FROZEN, GIVING IT HERE INSTEAD.

Prasanna M N () Lot has been said and written about Jadeja.( He being more interested in Chasing girls rather than batting ) This is the right platform for him to prove his talent. And Prem, what happened to the score card? I was wondering whether play was stopped due to rain... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Venkat () This was stupidity of highest level by Azzar. I mean this fellow comes in just ahead of the tail at a small score and instead of seeing through till the slog overs, slogs himself into Attaputtu's hands. So much for a captain's role. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Malvinder () I think 150 is all we will get...if at all -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- anand () prem, how ambitious was azhars shot. and was it predetermined? Prem: 91/5 and chopra pushes to the on side, no run, finds the fielder again.

Prem: chopra drives, jaya dives and stops on the follow through.

Prem: down the leg side this time, and jaya is called. chopra the man on strike. ball two, on middle, played to mid on and finds the fielder.

Prem: 90/5 in 30 the score, chopra on strike and jayasruiya to bowl.

Shriram () Gavaskar took less mathces, but more innings to reach his centuries. SRT took 94+197 and I think Gavskar took more innings. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- kishore (kishore9@hotmail.com) is there anything wrong with the wicket or is it the same old India to the fore again Prem: this time, chopra off driving -- he has a big flourish of the bat, bringing it down from around second slip, gets the single this time to long off to end the 30th over.

Prem: 5th ball of the 30th, jadeja again on drives, gets one more.

Prem: nikhil chopra the new man, but the batsmen had crossed, so jadeja, the senior partner, now on strike, plays sweera back to the bowler.

Prem: atapattu had to judge that one to a nicety -- he was running along the line, one step and he would hve been over, kept his eye on the ball and clung on to a very good one.

john f a (arul_jf@hotmail.com) come on jadeja help india and make urself a proud cricketer as usual do some thing and help us Venkat () Am I seeing a scoe of about 210 in 50 overs -Reasonable - not match winning though - particularly if the ball does not come on to the bat. the Q is can Jaya really hit our quickies here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Malvinder () Jadeja used to go with to Univ togheter. We used to always ask him about his chances of making it to the Indian Team and he would guffaw' Kapil Prahji karan gey ta ho jay ga... Prem: 26/46, Azhar, 88/5 India, the need was for the last recognised pair to bat through but now jadeja and the tail ahve the job of batting out just under 20 overs.

Prem: 30th over in progress, sweera being persissted with. jadeja on driving to get one, after azhar had taken one off the first ball. ball three, and azhar is gone, down the track, trying for the big hit over long on, atapattu racing around the line, holds a superb catch diving sideways at the end of a long run.

Prem: one in the over so far, jadeja on strike, jaya down the leg, he flicks and finds backward square. 86/4. last ball of the 29th, jadeja drives on off stump, the bowler fields on the follow through. no run, 86/4 in 29 the score.

Prem: No name:: will check on that and let you know, those figures were released by the board's official statistician. Jaya continues, azhar on strike, on off angling in, azhar plays defensively. 29th over in progress. ball two, the on drive, making room for it, finds the fielder, no run. ball three, down the leg side, azahr was stepping to leg, the bowler follows him, cramping him for room. ball four, on middle, played to point, single.

Ken () Prem, why isn't your scoreboard being updated? You say it is 27th over and the scoreboard only shows 24!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- () prem, got the odis count wrong, even then i dont seee gavaskar took more international matches than sachin to reach 35.(233<253) Prem: ball six of the 28th over, jadeja flicks, finds the gap at midwicket, two for it and 85/2 the score to end the over.

Prem: jadeja off his pads, single. 83/4 in 27.5.

Prem: sweera to bowl, and azhar works one more. jadeja back on strike, the ball is floated up on off and driven to long on, single. 82/4 in 27.3. guys, the score card frozen, some tech hitch, so will keep posting it here. azhar taking one on the full and finding long on, single.

Venkat () Friends & Prem - Joining in late - Wow what a procession to the hut. Not to worry folks, Ajju and Jadu seem to be set for a century a piece. Prem: 44 off 84 the partnership, jadeja going at 24 off 67 balls

Prem: jadeja on driving, this time, one more, last ball of the jaya over, the 27th of the innings, angled in to leg and azhar works that off the wrists, one more, 80/4 the score.

Sanjeev () I am also leaving the office now. Thanks a lot guys.. Thanks Prem. Bye... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- arvind (arvindn@udel.edu) At this stage, had India been on field, for some inexplicable reason, the field would've been spread out and the opposing batsmen would've got a new lease of life. whereas, here, it looks like quite the contrary. hope skipper azhar takes a leaf outta ranatunga's book. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vijay (fdsfhg@sfdd) will a total of 220-230 be defendable on this pitch given the indian attack? and more importantly will indians get to that score? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Himanshu (hdhamdhere@hotmail.com) Prem, Gavaskar/Noname comment was good Prem: into the 7th over here, jaya the bowler, azhar now on strike. down the leg side and azhar almost does a robin in reverse, flicking and coming very close to playing it into kalu's gloves. like with the robin dismissal, that ball was wide of leg and is in fact called. 77/4. jaya atin, on off and driven, finds long off, one more.

Prem: To those who have been asking, the pitch is playing like it did in the lanka zimbabwe game -- slightly slower, not coming on as much, otherwise no problem. jadeja off dirves, jjaya the bowler, no run.

Malvinder Singh (Singh_malvinder@hotmail.com) being a tiger at home does not mean that one is doing well internationally..apropos Azhar being successful -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () Prem - I am going to the office. Thanks for the comentary pal. You are doing a great job! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () To me Azhar looks like a joker in the category of Lele and Rungta Prem: sweera to jadeja, the off drive finds the single again,this one relatively trouble free. last ball of the 26th, turned off his pads and finds square leg, no run.

Prem: sweera to azhar, tucked down off his pads, single to fine leg. 74/4 inu 25.4.

Prem: these last two singles have been very risky, this one is again pushing the envelope -- on all three, the direct hit would have had the batsman out and the trouble with such running is, you cant bank on the fielder missing all the time. sweera to azhar, who drives, finds the bowler on the follow through.

Prem: Look, Mr No Name, I got your post about Gavaskar about a dozen times now. 125 Tests, 108 ODIs, does not equal 227 in my book.

jaweed (jaweed@hotmail.com) looking at azhars stats one should agree that he is doing a good job that too at international level -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rajababu () I think the Gavaskar fan is not mindful of the facts that he was 36 or 38 when he finished his career and had those hundreds. And to think Sachin is 25 and it is said a batsman's best years are between 28-32!! imagine !! And the all important criterion : I remeber only about 5-6 ininings that Gavaskar has played which have won the match for India (tests+ ODI combined).Period. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanjeev K V () We shoud still hope for the best.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- () prem, gavaskar reached 35 100's in 227 Prem: Jayasuriya continues, into the 25th over, a very risky single there and azhar just making his ground.

shettigar (shettigar@hotmail.com) Whay can't we win all the matches in a tourney for a change? Why the hell slacken!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Malvinder Singh (Singh_malvinder@hotmail.com) I saw one of the games in Torontona was very unimpressed by Azhar's captaincy. If only shrugging of the shoulders was considered to be a sign of leadership.... Prem: Okay, guys, telling you this just the once, okay? No more personal comments are going up -- this is meant for you guys to analyse the game, not call each other names. Thanks.

Prem: sweera, jadeja this time tries to work it off his pads and again, finds the fielder. last ball, flick, find the same fielder. no run.

Prem: sweera. jadeja down the track and finds midiwcket.

Prem: sweera continues, azhar on strike, cutting from close to the stumps, one more. ball three, to jadeja, worked off his pads but finds square leg, no run.

jaweed (jaweed@hotmail.com) I totally disagree with abhay that azhar "sucks". by looking at ur comment u sucks badly abhay -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vinit () Sorry, Abhay. I can't agree on that, niether on view that India _must_ win all the matches, but we _must_ hope that India wins all the matches, bcoz we r too passionate about cricket here. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- () I think Azzu shouldn't have sent Rabin so earlier. Waht is your openion sameer? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- shettigar (shettigar@hotmail.com) Dravid has been given enough chances already, but this variety of game is not his cup of tea -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Malvinder Singh (Singh_malvinder@hotmail.com) 'Too many EXPERTS...and Prem will be on the streets..' sunil (sunild@hotmail.com) somebody please tell me the scorecard -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sanjeev (SanjeevV@cisindia.com) I still didn't get why it is happening? Wheteher pitch is not well or our people are not interested. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- nitin (nitin_sood@hotmail.com) India should be able to score at least 200, if dravid had been there, it would have been halved Prem: jaya for the last tim e in the over, to azhar, played through midwicket, single, three in the over.

Prem: jaya now to jadeja, ball five, on off and the off drive finds the run to long off.

Prem: ball four, jaya to azhar, outside off and off the back foot, punched through cover, single.

Prem: ball three, on off and played to cover by azhar, no run.

Prem: change in bowling, jaya being brought in, jadeja plays to square leg, atapattu picks up and hits the stumps but the batsman just home. azghar flicks, finds square leg, no run.

Malvinder Singh (Singh_malvinder@hotmail.com) Why isnt Dravid Playing?? For god's sake stop messing around with this guy. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanjeev Kumar Vaishya (SanjeevV@cisindia.com) Its ajay's & azher;'s day.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sameer () Just how many times Azza and Ajay are supposed to repeat the world record partnership performance? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sonu () india should start finding new captain as very little time remained for world cup -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abhay () Thanks vinit.. so you agree that India must win every match they play, they should bat out the rest of the overs.. just agree on one more thing.. Azhar sucks as a captain (not necessarily as a player) Prem: sweera to jadeja, who drives and finds mid on, no run. 5 singles in the over, 62/4 the sccore.

Prem: sweera in the 22nd over, to jadeja, the off drive against the spin fetches one more. these two needing to keep the singles coming, and they have a lot of overs to bat out. azhar on strike, cuts, against the spin but hits it well, single to backward point.

() gavaskar reached 35 100's in 227(tests + odis) sachin () a good captain's inning now expected fm Azhar.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- rajababu () (Hi Proski) Hello folks, Just take a look at this: Dravid's averages can be compared over diffrent time periods in Khel.com. Before he was dropped by some joker for slow scoring i.e in 1997 he averages 39. This year he is playing for his place and also trying to play fast and no wonder the guy's confidence and performance are down. Trust the bunch of jokers to demoralise a player Consider also treatments to Rajesh Chauhan and Harbhajan singh -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mahesh (MaheskKT@hotmai.com) What is this happening here? Why is india playing this game? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Raju (raju_ilango@yahoo.com) Now it is time to bring Dravid permanently into the team. Prem: sweera bowling, sorry, , flighted on leg and swept round by jadeja, single.

Prem: *sigh* Guys, could you hold down these one liners? I am getting so rushed cutting and pasting your posts that commetnary is going for a toss, here. dharma to azhar, who swings hard towards long on, finds the fielder, single.

abhay () According to this "expert" .. India's gameplan should be .. 100-105 by 30, 165-170 by 40 and 235-240 by 50 i.e. avgs of 5, 6 and 7 respectively.. Wishful thinking huh! abhay () According to this "expert" .. India's gameplan should be .. 100-105 by 30, 165-170 by 40 and 235-240 by 50 i.e. avgs of 5, 6 and 7 respectively.. Wishful thinking huh! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PC () Perhaps Azza is trying to tell critics n commentators, buddyies, its me at 1 down or its problems.. or forget 5 bowlers (which incidentally may be a good idea) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vinit () We need a good partnership now, they need to stay at least for next 20 overs or so may be making 100 odd runs in the process. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- niraj () I don't want to accuse anyone but could this match have been fixed. After all nobody in sharjah wants to see an India - Zim final -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- jaweed (jaweed@hotmail.com) I think India have the best possible combinations. They just need little "killing" instincts! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- () i think gavaskar reached 35 centuries faster than anybody else(125 tests + 102 ODIs). Not sachin or haynes. Please note. Sanjeev (SanjeevV@cisindia.com) I still feel that India will make atleast 250. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SARAVANA (SARAVANAS@HOTMAIL.COM) WE FROM GANESH INTERNET SERVICES SAY THAT RAHUL WOULD BE A KEY MAN AT THIS STAGE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sachin () kamal is right.. we should hv vinod in the team.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PC () Wow, the stage set for a dashing recue from Agarkar, and he will have more time too! Great show -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vinit () Yeah, vinod kambli is surely missed. He is much much better than Rahul at no 3 I guess. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- anurag (anuragkrishna@hotmail.com) a bad performance at this stage. should make about 175-200 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Himanshu (hdhamdhere@hotmail.com) murali>> This kind of collapse is not everyday fact for indian cricket, if it happens onetime that doesnot mean that we should take players who would while away without scoring runs. Thanks Tendulkar if he would not be there dravid could not do*** Prem: dharma continues. jadeja the batsman and a single to wide mid on. into the 21st over here, azhar back on strike.

Prem: last ball of the 20th, thje on drive and again, jadeja finds the fielder, no run. 54/4 in 20.

Prem: azhar dabs this down behind square, single. jadeja on drives, no run this time as cover is quickly across. sweera, and jadeja drives back to the bowler.

vinit () I agree with Abhay. Lets not lose hope and be like Indians. Always hopeful of good performances:-) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chandra (()) What Azhar is trying to prove by changing the batting order. Prem: sweera continues, bowling to jadeja who flicks to the on side, finds square leg. ball two, down the track and pushes to mid on, single.

kamal (kamco27@hotmail.com) i think india need vinod kambali in the team. Prem: correction, tht was a typo, 52/4 in 19.

Prem: 15 off 41 jadeja, and now on drives, gets one more. 5 in the over, 62/4 in 19 india.

Prem: jadeja drives, finds mid on and the single is on. these two working the ball around better against dharma than they hvae managed earlier. india 2.67 the run rate, and azhar plays square on the off, gets one more.

Prem: dharma to azhar -- sorry, previous batsman was jadeja -- and he runs one down past point, one more.

abhay () Guys.. All's not lost yet! If we play out the overs and get to 220-230. We will win the match.. Prem was suggesting yesterday that the pitch is slowing down and the ball is not coming on to the bat.. That's disaster for SL bats like Jaya, Desilva. any thoughts Prem: Makhan:: not really. bad batting and good thoughtful line and length bowling. Azhar on drives, dharma the bowler, one more.

Prem: sweera to azhar, on off, the one going through straight, azhar defends, no run.

Prem: azhar this time, attempting to work it on the on side with the turn, finds square leg. ball five, sweera, flightes ont to azhar, played to square leg again.

Prem: Jadeja on drives, gets one tothe fielder who this time is deep on the lline.

vinit () Indians definitely r more talented than SA but get complacent soon. Also the mental attitude and physical training makes a difff which Indians lack. Prem: samaraweera now taking over from wsinghe, bwoling to azhar who flicks and finds midwicket. ball two, off stup line, too much width, magnificient stop on the line by Vaas, three for it though to azhar.

Prem: maya:: you are welcome to make the wildest of allegations, but do that on some newsgroup -- we dont need libel suits on your account, thanks much.

murali () To all ANTI-DRAVID folks - If Dravid was not played in the Wills Cup matches recently against Australia and WI,the same story of 4/36 would have repeated. It was Dravid who kept one end going while Sachin made 141 and Gangs made 83 in the next match. Prem: dharma, and jadeja finds midwicket this time, maiden, the only run being the wide.

Prem: dharma to jadeja, down the leg, wide called.

Prem: dharma to jadeja, who shuts the bat face and finds square leg, no run.

Prem: ball four, dharma to jadeja, on off, played back down the track, the bowler fields on the follow through.

Prem: ball three,onto the front foot flicking, finds square leg again.

Prem: dharma to continue, jadeja on strike, ball one on off, played back down the track to the bowler. ball two, off and middle, jadeja tries to play on the on and finds square leg.

Prem: wide of off and this time, he is called, so one more. wsinghe, to azhar, outside off, he pushes and lucky to miss the edge.

Chandra () Let us wait and see what ASzhar is capable of doing with his wealth of experience in a crisis situation like this. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prasanna () Murali, How about Vijay Bhradwaj? He got a century aganaist TNadu yesterday in the Ranji Match... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- manishankar (shokare@hotmail.com) miracle could only save india -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prashanth (svp_dallas@hotmail.com) It was good ploy to send other players ahead, but it did not work. The other players have not had a good match practice. If it had worked everyone would have been praising Azar -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abhay () vinit>> SA at least tries to win every game. AND why is SA a better side.. can you pls compare SA vs Ind .. man to man .. what you'll find that Ind is a better side. but look at the results. The excuse that we cannot win every game is not a good one for chronic underperformance given our talent and capabilities Prem: wsinghe bowling nice and fluently here, getting some good swing and seam movement, pitches off this time but fuller length, jadeja drives through cover but finds the sweeper, single.

Prem: wsinghe, with a point, cover, short extra cover, mid off, and a sweeper and this time, the push finds mid off, no run.

anish () we shouldn't moan all the time - this not a great team. As we know 1-day brilliant, next absolutely the opposite -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Himanshu (hdhamdhere@hotmail.com) Muralli>> Dravid would have done like mongia play 20-30 balls score 2 runs!!! This kind of collapse happens u cnnot excpect to be always on top -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dazzle (daz@hotmail.com) well spoken rajan::mark his words prem....he's better than u! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- kamal (kamco27@hotmail.com) azhar should have come at no. 3 change in batting order is responsible for india's disaster. request: pl.. list both teams -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- manishankar (shokare@hotmail.com) has india got any hopes? Prem: wsinghe, ball three of the 16th, outside off, jadeja hits on the up and finds cover for the third time on the trot.

Prem: wsinghe to jadeja, again the drive finds cover, no run.

Prem: wsinghe being bowled through apparently, now to jadeja, who drives and ranatunga makes diving stop at cover.

Dave () For those comparing SRT & MA's captaincy: When SRT was captain, MA played most irresponsibly and was more a liability to the team. By contrast, SRT udner MA has been a total team man and entirely responsible. That's the difference. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- prash () india started of very badly,the planning was not good.azz should have come up and agarkar should have been send as a pinch hitter -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vinit () I don't think we still require Rahul. We don't want a guy whose strike rate is below 50 "ALWAYS". -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Abhay () The way indians are throwing their wickets away.. something fishy is going on.. Could someone investigate match fixing! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dazzle (daz@hotmail.com) murali: dravid is as slow as a tortoise on an travellator going backwards -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prasanna () Why is murali bent on playing Dravid? He has been given his chances and he did not perform. What's the point in playinfg him again. We should look at some young chaps.... Prem: dharma to jadeja, pushed to wide mid on, single. last ball of the 15tgh, azhar tries to glide to leg, finds the fielder, no run. 40/4 in 15.

anand () murli i agree with u completely. dravid is a MUST. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vinit () I m sure, India still can reach to a fighting total.Don't forget Azhar and Jadega hv a record of partnership in one day cricket. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ranjan () Dear Dravid's supporters. Cheers for him when he plays good. India can not afford a burden.Last time it costs ICC trophy What u think should we out of worldcup in the first round itself. Un less he improves , no chance -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chandra (shekar@alphalink.com.au) If Azhar is afraid to face medium pace bowlers in Shqarjah pitch, what are his plans for the world cup - non-playing captain? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Howzat (ciberia@com) vinit: look at it this way -- under Azahr's captaincy, how many matches did Sachin win for us? and now look at it the other way -- how many good performances from azhhar when sachin was captain? check that out, and you will realise there was more to the 1997 results than just the lack of azhar as captain. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sanjeev Kumar (SanjeevV@cisindia.com) I feel india should stop playing cricket. Prem: back after drinks, dharma to azhar, who flicks and finds square leg. ball two, on midle ane leg, guided for the one through square.

vinit (vinit_t@hotmail.com) Yes, we do hv hopes everytime they play but look at the no of one days India plays. Be practical, Abhay, even SA does not win all the matches and they r definitely a far better side. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dazzle (daz@hotmail.com) murali ..yeah sure and soon we will have johnson, ganesh , somasunder and all the rest of the karnataka squad being pasted by even bangladesh..thats what will happen if we make kumble captain -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- anish () see- at times like this we would need dravid to steady the ship ranjan (ranjan@hotmail.com) Look Guys, what i have said earlier. Now india's position is worse than yesterday's Zimbawe's position. Azhar U have to take the whole responsibility. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () Now people realise the importance of having Rahul Dravid. If Dravid had no played in the Wills Cup, then same story would have been repeated in both the games against Aus and WI. Dravid is one guy who can hold one end! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prasanna () These guys have totally messed up the batting order.What happened to Azhar? Can we cross 150 today? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mukul () What is the India's lowest total in One dayers. Can we break that record today? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vinit (vinit_t@hotmail.com) In 97 nearly same team was playing under sachin's captaincy.Why were we losing then? Now, don't say that sachin wasn't playing well. He was still playing very well. We r definitely underestimating azhar's captaincy. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ANH (ANANTHA_NARAYAN@hotmail.com) This is plainly suicidal. Surprising that Azhar didn't send Agarkar after Robin. Prem: wsinghe outside off, azhar slashes, bottom edge into the ground, no run, and that is drinks, taking a breather here, be right back.

Prem: jadeja pushes to mid off, they take off for the run, and atapattu, like agarkar did yesterday, throws to the other end, azhar just getting home ahead of the throw and now on strike for the first time. wsinghe to azhar, on off, played square, finds point.

abhay () vinit >> We do not expect much from indian team.. we just expect them to win. Is that too much to expect from a team that is there to play and win. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dazzle (daz@hotmail.com) now azzar will smash the lankans all over the park and silence his critics !!! ppl who complain about india not experimenting should not complain when it doesnt pay off and anyway this is a dead match from india's point of view.any comments prem -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- murali () AZHAR should be CHUCKED OUT! Make KUMBLE CAPTAIN. Dravid will bat at #3 Prem: wsinghe agian, to jadeja, that's got to be a wide but no, the umpire figures otherwise.

Prem: wsinghe agian, on off, and pushes to cover, no run.

Prem: wsinghe continues, jadeja onto hhis toes, pushes to point, finds thefielder. all but two right inside the circle now, so the singles are getting rather difficult to get.

Harry () I think India is not in habbit of digesting Wins So have planned a defeat today -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abhay () vinit> be careful, India has been successful under Azhar despite his captaincy.. Give me 2 examples of games india won due to Azhar's captaincy.. This year you will find that we win games DESPITE his captaincy.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Prasanna (prasannamn@hotmail.com) Where is Azhar? IS he afraid of coming out? Prem: bad ball that, full length on middle and leg and jadeja drives to long on, one more. 2.8 the run rate now. last ball of the over and robin's gone -- down the leg, he plays a tentative flick, gets the edge and Kalu takes very well down the leg side. so much for that experiment.

Ranjan (ranjan@hotmail.com) It is a very wrong move to send jadeja at no. 3. He is the only player who should be utilised during the slog. I don't know what Azhar is doing. He is shuffling the position like cards. I can bet it will cost india very much. Prem: and again, dharma angling to midwicket, robin hits it wide of mid on, the single is on.

Prem: jadeja pushes at ball one, gets the single and robin back on strike. ball two, dharma, around the wicket and going wide of the crease, into off, forces the defensive push back tothe bowler. ball three, on middle, robin works him through square leg, good running there to get two.

Shriram () You cannot blame SRt. Mongia and Jadeja have played horribly and caused Sachin to lose his wicket. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dela fer (deer@hotmail.com) somebody please tell the scorecard -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- cazzle (daz@hotmail.com) prem: let them experiment for once...azzar is the best captain that we can afford for the world cup!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- aman (aman@mindless.com) any idea why azhar is demoting himself? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abhay () What's the hurry! After Vaas .. SL does not have that many good bowlers.. AND why is Mr captain not coming in.. SCARED puppy Prem: Lanka now has everything its own way, so predictably, the field coming right in, nice and tight with just two outside the circle. dharmasena now being brought on.

murali () Yesterday, I was rooting for Dravid's inclusion and folks were knocking me off. Today I am surprised that I have supporters! But I am not a Dravid synpathiser or anything. Just that we need to make Dravid play at #3 ONLY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dazzle (daz@hotmail.com) this series was the correct time to try players like amay khurasia, jatin paranjpee..... why bother with dravid when he cant score for nuts. even shastri would look like a richards in comparison!! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vinit (vinit_t@hotmail.com) Abhay, Azhar is one of the most successful captain. And mind u It was MONGIA who got the things going for India in the first game. We Indians expect too much from the team. Right, Prem? Prem: At the toss, Azhar looked perfectly fine, so injury doesn't explain this. damned if I know what does -- robin is the all rounder, but he doesn't have to bowl here. now he is up ahead of the regular number three? strange, to say the least, and wsinghe continues to keep him quiet through the rest of the over, no run.

Prem: not quite sure i understand what the team management is doing here -- azharuddin bats 3 one day, now coming in at six? and who does he have for company? agarkar and the rest? robin meanwhile moving to off and playing to leg, finds square leg on successive pushes, no run.

Prem: wsinghe having a nice outing here, coming in as replacement batsman. robin singh now on strike and again, the lankans taking their own time

Prem: In the previous over, Sachin seemed rather impatient, went dwn the track once to talk to jadeja who was finding the fielders with the pushes, andn that impatience here producing the error. batsmen crossed over so it is jadeja on strike, driving through cover, finds the gap this time, gets one.

deep (deep@rocketmail.com) it seems SL has done their homework pretty well for this game .They are bowling beautifully...indians need to do something special here Prem: and there goes the wicket -- sachin has been at the other end for quite some time, away from the strike, the score also static, so first ball, came down the track, tried to hit over mid off, the ball moved off the bat and soared high, then down mid off's throat and that is number three gone for India.

Ank (dollars4u@rocketmail.com) Anyone who calls Jadeja a class Batsman has still a lot to learn about cricket, all he is is lucky. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram () Anand: It would have ben pointles to send Agarkar after mongia. Another wicket would have really put the pressure on india. They coul have sent Agarkar instead of mogia, but not instead of Jadeja. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- abhay () good morning folks! looks like Gang is back to his old ways .. bad running between the wickets. AND could someone explain to me why qualities MONGIA has to come in at 1 down.. Azhar sucks as a captain. period. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- dev () anand, the problem is they cant lose 3 quick wickets that will coz enormous pressure and for such situations i recommend dravid and I REALLY DONT WONT TO GET ANY ARGUEMENT OVER WHTHER HE IS GOOD/BAD!! Prem: the lankans taking their own time between overs, slowing the game down at this point, and wsinghe to continue bowling, on strike sachin.

Prem: jadeja playing out a maiden here, and now it is sachin back on strike.

Prem: vaas to jadeja, fuller length, the push off the front foot finds mid off, no run. sachin in quite animated conversation with him just now, and agian, vaas, on off and played to mid off, no run.

murali () Hey Guys,Hey Prem, It is 6.20 AM here in USA. It is nice to start the morning listening to Prem's sweet voice! Prem: jadeja again pushing at the line of off, finds the bowler on the follow through, his feet not quite to the itch thus far, tending to push half forward and play from top of the crease irrespective of the length. vaas, this one on leg and middle, slower ball, jadeja defends.

Prem: jadeja again pushing at the line of off, finds the bowler on the follow through, his feet not quite to the itch thus far, tending to push half forward and play from top of the crease irrespective of the length. vaas, this one on leg and middle, slower ball, jadeja defends.

Anand (anand@qspl.stpp.soft.net) instead of jadeja who is a class batsmen they should have promoted agarkar and asked him to whack around. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arun (arun_bhat@rocketmail.com) What was Mongia upto? Was the bowling so good or was he out of sorts? Prem: 2.85 india's run rate at this point,

Prem: tendulkar batting 17, mongia batting 5 at the end of the 10th over, and vaas continues, bowling to hjadeja, on off and the batsman finds point with an attempt to glide the single.

Prem: wsinghe to sachin, who is in line on off and defending, finds the fielder at cover, no run.

Prem: wsighe, this one a better line, jadeja defends, the ball flies off the thick outer edge behind point, one more.

Krishna Kaliappan () Mongia really made a mess of the first 15 overs. He took 24 balls for his single. It's time to think whom to come one down. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Anand (anand@qspl.stpp.soft.net) after checking mongias game i hope the selectors select dravid in the next match. Prem: wsighe now to jadeja, whose coming in this early seems a rather dodgy ploy, frankly -- he is usually much better off batting in the middle of the innings, when his penchant for working the ball around and innovative strokeplay are more useful. bad line though from wsinghe there, wide of off, short, and jadeja gratefully cashes in, through cover with the drive off the front foot on the up.

Prem: wsighe, and tendulkar, seemingly unaffected by all this fuss, slams hi over long off for a four. next ball, a delicate cut and one more.

Prem: Sorry, guys, had a bit of a freeze there for a bit, back now, and Jadeja in at the fall of the second wicket. for now, struggling to read Vaas, who is getting lovely late swing here both ways. vaas, last ball of the 9th, and jadeja finds mid off on the push, no run.

Prem: wsinghe now tto mongia, lifting on off, mongia has an airy wave at it, up in the air and down the throat of cover.

Prem: that was slightly wider of off and sachin cracks it through point, there is a sweeper there so a single is all sachin gets.

srivatsan (chellnir@hotmail.com) this is a match where the Indians could have tried rahul dravid out and rest one of the senior players. Any good performance in this match would have given rahul the confidence he lacks in one dayers Prem: wide of off and that is not called, much to tendulkar's surprise.

Prem: wsinghe again to srt, on off, this guy is keeping a very good line here, wide of the crease three quarter length angling in to off, with a packed off cordon. sachin defends.

Prem: again on off, sachin tries to push past point, good fielding there, no run.

Prem: w'singhe to continue, bowling to sachin, on middle, sachin opens the bat and tries to work it through off, no run. good work thus far from wsinghe.

Shriram () Mongia seems to be a hindrace to SRT here. Though he has played soem good knocks, he cannot perform each time. Hopefully he will not make Sachin run-out and rotate the strike well. Prem: vaas again to mongia, with a slip in place and one in a close catching position at short midwicket, faster ball on off and mongia defends to end the over.

Prem: sachin back on strike, playing vaas, these two have had some interesting battles of late, this one is on off and a fluent drive, checking the pace, placing it wide of mid off and gets one.

Krishna Kaliappan () Hello Srivatsan, I am from Switzerland. Here there is no coverage on cricket itself. So, I have to depend exclusively on Prem and Indian newspapers. Anyhow, it is sad to hear that in Australia, they discriminate. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sunny (sunil_ralhan@hotmail.com) The only thing Mongia should do now is to HIT. A fast 20-30 runs from him can ease out the situation Prem: this one is down leg side, mongia tries to flick, misses, leg bye.

Prem: ball three, vaas, again that perfect line just around the off corridor and again, no room for mongia to do anything with it.

Prem: vaas again to mongia, lovely line just around off, the problem for the batsman being that vaas moves it both ways so when he pitches it there, the man with the bat has to figure if it is coming back, or leaving him.

Prem: slip and a gully, vaas continues, to mongia, on off and played square on the on with the shut bat face, finds square leg.

Shriram () If you slash then slash hard!! Lucky for SRT, so now he must make a century. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- rajesh () whew that gave me the jitters Prem: guys, need to reboot this thing, be only a minute, hang on.

deep () let india consider to retain wickets till next 15 overs as we already have one batsman less -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MURTUZA TAYEB (murtuza_tayeb@hotmail.com) MR.PREM THE IDEA OF SENDING MONGIA AS A PINCH HITTER IS NOT GOOD .INSTEAD AJAY JADEJA CAN IMPROVE THE SCORING BY RUNNING BETWEEN THE WICKETS QUICKLY srivatsan (chellnir@hotmail.com) I am fron down under. Here Tendulakar gets reported only when he scores gainst aussies.Not much new abouthis latest century. Any cricket which the cricketers from the Indian Sub Continent is not reported unless it is played against Aussies. For a supporter of cricket I find the Indian press coverage is more well balanced though we all also tend to go overboard with Sachin's performance.Any views on that -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram () SRT should dominate early. Will put the Lankans on trouble since their bowling line up is quite weak. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vels (svelmurugan@dns.ufsia.ac.be) prem..., from your pitch analysis report, I reckon, if India able to muster a score of 200-210 it would be tough for SL. Its sad that India has not brought in Dravid in - Prem: bang on line of off and sachin again defensive.

Prem: wsinghe now to tenndulkar, who goes for that one, he was loooking to hit over cover, extra bounce on that one, takes the edge, roshan mahanama at first slip moved to his left, got both hands to the ball as it flew past him, was an easy enough chance but he lets it go, and the ball goes through for four, that could be a very costly miss, sachin rarely gets a life without taking full toll.

Prem: this one is outside off again but fuller length, sachin covers for the movement, plays late and blazes it through cover, jaya runs it down but three more to the batsman.

rajesh () sachin in this year already has scored back to back tons , so definitely high hopes for one today -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Krishna Kaliappan () Prem and Sai, Problem with our Indian opening duo started during the Toronto-Commonwealth games. BCCI and Kalmadi should take the responsibility. Still, Ganguly has to go back to his basics and try to sort out his problem. Prem: vaas, good comeback with a beauty outside off, seaming away late, drawing the batsman forward and leaving him.

Prem: vaas, good comeback with a beauty outside off, seaming away late, drawing the batsman forward and leaving him.

Prem: That one was the wrong line, full length on middle and tendulkar easily forward, picks it early, gets under it, and flicks it over midwicket, to the fence for four.

Prem: vaas to sachin, outside off and guided to point, misfield, but they decide not to run on it. that was dharma who threw himself in the way of the ball but didn't stop the hard hit clean.

Prem: that time, ball outside off and sachin forward, at the last minute checking an intended drive, gets the inner edge into the ground, no run.

Krishna Kaliappan () Going with the same combination will help later when they bowl as the wicket will start turning in the evening. Hope Chopra will have one more good match Prem: vaas to sachin, who thus far has looked in complete control, this one is on off seaming in and sahcin plays from the crease, waiting on it and pushing the ball back down the track.

Prem: Maiden from W'singhe, Mongia forward defending throughout that over, and that brings Sachin back on strike, and now needing to balance the twin demands of making good use of the first 15, and also needing to bat as long as he can.

srivatsan (chellnir@hotmail.com) what are the chances of some more records being overtaken today -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- raj (prempanicker@rediffmail.com) why does india hesitate to much -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- npil staff (npilptp@hotmail.com) As we are late entrants , Pl. convey who are those out earlier. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram () indian supporters are very fickle. Ganguly scored a century in Zim. just 5 matches ago. What's all the fuss about his form. This undue pressure on the batsmen form the media and public is what affects them more. give him another match or two and he will come good. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vels (svelmurugan@dns.ufsia.ac.be) Vels>>> I hope its high TIME we RESTRICT OUR QUESTIONING To PREM atleast TILL the MASTER BLASTER is AROUND!!What say? Prem: again on off and again, mongia forward, pushing it out on the off side to point. ball three is middle and leg and mongia shuts the bat fce, finds square leg. SAI:: true, ganguly ad sachin had big scores in zim but never together. suspect the main problem is that ganguly is going through a lean patch, and increasingly, quick bowlers are figuring out how to bowl to him, so it is back to the drawing board time for the southpaw. Mongia is all defense here, to wsinghe, sachin watching from the other end.

Krishna Kaliappan () Prem, Scoring 8 one day hundreds in a year itself a record. If he can score another two more in this tournament, I feel it cannot be broken. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- rajesh () now all this chaos between the batsmen , it certainly doesnt look good. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- sandeep (npilptp@hotmail.com) What is the hurry: why they are playing racklessly -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sai (sais@rediff.co.in) Prem, over the last few matches that India has played, it seems that the opening partnership of Tendulkar-Ganguly has come unstuck... Your views? Prem: mongia on strike, to wsinghe, on off and played to coverpoint, finds the fielder, no run.

vivek (vivek@most-wanted.com) SACHIN IS NO DOUBT WORLD"S BEST BATSMEN ! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mahato (mahato@engineer.com) Ganguly has lost his touch. He needs to believe in himself. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Krishna Kaliappan () It would have been nice if Robin Singh would have at this time so that left-right combination can be maintained. Prem: Leg bye taken there brings tendulkar on strike, plays to mid wicket from line of off and middle, no run. last ball of the 3rd, vaas again, on off and saachin defensive, ends a very good over from vaas.

Prem: vaas with the inswing, mongia in front and rapped on the pad, given the benefit here because he was well forward but that was a close one. and again, mongia hit on the pad, this one pitched just middle, the iswing taking it outside the line of leg but again, very very close.

rajesh () jadeja is the man to look out for today -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bull () How Sad! Saurav might be overeager to get his running between the wickets right, but not in the 2nd over! Tragedy! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vivek (vivek@most-wanted.com) All The Indians, please hope get a GREAT WIN Today :) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- CML Narayan (seeml@yahoo.com) Dear Prem, The match is going to be very interesting since Lankans are in a MUST WIN situation, and we INDIANS are equally determined to WIN. How do you foresee the outcome will be? You may answer during Drinks Time. Thanks & Regards Prem: vaas on leg, mongia plays down at his feet, sachin was ready for the run but mongia static. more chatter between the batsmen.

Prem: There he goes, pushes to mid on, takes off for the single, mongia not quite sure which side of the pitch to run on, nearly runs into sachin there -- sachin clearly unhappy, calling mongia down the track for a chat, hopefully to sort out who will run which side of the wicket.

deep () With Ganguly gone it's again has to be Tendulkar...india need a big score to plat it safe Prem: Vaas continues, bowling here to tendulkar, over the wicket and on middle, sachin off his hips to square leg, good stop there and no run.

Prem: wsinghe to mongia, on off and played defensively. his role here will be more to anchor and let sachin make the running, than to go in for any wild heaves, I would imagine. next ball, on off and played to short cover, no run. wsinghe to mongia again, this one middle and leg, played suqare on the on, no run.

hari (harikn@asu.edu) srilanka won the toss and are fielding first.. try to get it right -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Makhan (seru@home.com) Prem: How is the pitch Behaving? How is Vass's Bowling? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram () Azhar should send in Robin Singh. might be a good idea at this stage. Azhar will be asking to get out if he comes in now. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vels (svelmurugan@dns.ufsia.ac.be) Prem... VEry Good Afternoon!! Ofcourse not EXPECTING back yours CONSIDERINg the WORK LOAD on you put by our SRT) - But STRANGE that SL have opted to field!!! I was BAFFLED on READING ROY DIAS COMMENT before the START of this TOURNAMENT (quoting Zim would be a tough side compared to India!!) Prem: wsinghe to srt, outside off, guided down through the gap at point, single to srt and india 3/1

Prem: w'singghe missing the run up this time, so he has to go back and do it all over again, nayan mongia at the non-striker's end.

Prem: w'singhe to tendulkar, wide outside off and called, second run for the indians.

Prem: Guys, if you keep asking me questions this commentary will never get done. No changes in the Indian side, Krishna. Shriram: yes.

Krishna Kaliappan () It would be nice if Lankans learnt something from the previous match so that today's contest will be a good one. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram (shriram@andrew.cmu.edu) Prem: DOe SRT look in good touch? is he middling the ball or does he sem tentative? Prem: Just what India didn't need, that early wicket, when they are going in one batsman short.

Prem: Wickremasinghe the bowler now, right arm over and bowling to Sachin, on off and gentuly guided to cover, ganguly takes a huge start, sachin sends him back, needless mix up there, ganguly was taking off for a run that never was there, couldn't make his ground, atapattu hits the stumps direct and bye bye ganguly. not quite sure what his hurry there was -- normally reluctant to run, here he was halfway down the track though it was sachin's call.

Prem: vaas again, this one middle and leg, rapped on the pad as he tries to flick -- now where did we hear that before? -- ganguly fortunate the ball was angled across and liable to miss leg. ends the over.

Bull () Oh no! Not another Azhar bashing session please!! After the comments here yesterday, Prem's report was refreshingly pro-Azhar to read! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shriram (shriram@andrew.cmu.edu) Time for SDRT to show Vaas who's boss. Hope we win -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Baapu (waliana@mail.ssb.rochester.edu) Ranatunga doesn't seem to agree with Prem - he will pay for his foolishness (as will Vijay, Gans and rest of that posse...) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- deep (deep@rocketmail.com) Hope Ganguly comes up with atleast a half century to boost up his confidence... the guy needs a big inning here Prem: Vaas again, outside off, ganguly opens the bat face, guides it square, finds point, no run.

Prem: vaas now to ganguly, outside off and driven, better than yesterday's efforts this one, nice footwork from the southpaw, finds point, no run.

Prem: Ball three, on leg, sachin helping it along backward of square, single. first run of the innings, brings ganguly on strike.

Krishna Kaliappan () Prem, It's good that sri Lankans won the toss and asked India to put otherwise Azhar again would have opted to field first -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- () Goodafteenoon Prem . Srilanka decided to field ?? Not what you expected right ??? Comments please ... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- vtv (tviswana@hotmail.com) What are N. Chopra's batting records in domestic cricket? How come he came ahead of other guys who played more ODI's? Prem: Vaas again, to sachin. this one off and middle, sachin shutting the bat face, plays to mid on, no run.

Prem: Ball one, with a slip in place, on off and tendulkar drives, finds cover, no run.

Prem: Chaminda Vaas will bowl the first over of the innings, as always with Sri Lanka. On strike, Tendulkar on strike.

Prem: The Lankans are out there already, the stands are filling up and the Indian openers now out there as well.

Baapu (waliana@mail.ssb.rochester.edu) Time for India to finish the Lankan challenge. Prem - is the number of tosses that Azza has been winning some kinda world record? Prem: The news is that Sri Lanka have won the toss and elected to field first -- if India puts up around 250-260, the islanders are having a very hard time chasing.

paashish (paashish@hotmail.com) Sri Lanka will HAVE to win today in order to stay in contention for the finals .... deep (deep@rocketmail.com) The indians should go with the same team as previous two matches.It seems they have struck a winning combination atleast for this tournament But they do some some serious thinking regarding one batsmen less in the team.. By WC99 we should be looking to go for one more batsman than now Prem: Meanwhile, as we wait for the toss and the teams, a couple of random thoughts: this match is going to be played on pitch two, the one on which Lanka and Zimbabwe went head to head the other day. Check out the first two games, the most startling thing about game two is the extraordinary number of LBWs -- all genuinely out. Indication there is that this pitch tends to keep that shade lower and, since most of them were out playing across the line, it also indicates the ball is not coming on to the bat as much as on the first pitch, thereby the batsmen tend to play too early and end up missing the line. All of which is why batting first would be a very good option on this track, for the side winning the toss.

Prem: GOOD AFTERNOON ALL, JUST A NOTE TO TELL YOU IT IS NOW 3.40 PM IST A

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