Transcript of the Commentary - West Indies Innings

I think WI deserves to win this match. Regarding "us" the Indian fans...we just like to blame defeats on individual players. Azhar has had decent outings in Sahara Cup and Zimbabwe in ODI's...I would like to see who replaces Azhar if ya all want to sack him so badly!! Prem: thanks for the company meanwhile, folks, off now and back tomorrow morning, usual time.

Rangeela (Rangeela@hotmail.com) Tushar, you can't win everyday and every match. Yeah, you need to analyze why you lost and removing a player cuz he played bad in one match is not the ans .. this is not the galee cricket ... the problem is our cricketers are not well matured and prefessionals except one .. Sachin ... Prem: Lara, and this time backward point misfields one that was coming straight to him, one more to the batsman. next ball, into the gap, all fielders up, they get the four with ease, and the windies have won. They deserved to, and with that, over from here for the day, folks, be back tomorrow for the final.

Prem: Ssatish:: adios, pal.

sbeotra () What was the goddamn rationale for bringing Dravid on?? Dravid is just plain disgusting %$@@! Prem: 10 off 24 neeeded and it is drvid continuing and again a risky single to mid on, wonder why these are being resorted tto. anyways, that is the way it goes, lara on strike, dravid, and lara down the track, lifts him over midwicket, six and I would think now lara will free his arms and go for the runs that are left. not that there is much of those. sorry, that was a four. next ball, a huge heave, misses completely. ball four, another heave, gets enough on that to get two through midwciet,

Tunna () I wonder how many Indians would pass the fitness test used by the western world... Sudhakar G (sudhakar@zebra.net) Prem, I was quite surprised to see Agarkar say that he wants to become more aggresive during the ReDiff interview with him. He seemed quite aggresive even before that interview... Wondering if that extra aggresion now has made him not to 'think'. I guess the match slipped away from India after the initial 4 overs!! sunil (sunilkher@hotmail.com) even harbhajan would not have been good, if ganguly and singh do not find favour with the captain, may be harbhajan would not have bowled at all Ramesh (rjagannathan@siumed.edu) Azhar is always going thru' a lean patch it seems ag. quality pace bowlers ... remember the tours of Australia, SA and WI...Ramesh Prem: agarkar this time short, cut, single to point, no run.

Prem: agarkar to lara, two balls left in the over, on off and a pull, misses, they race the single and agarkar just fails to get to the ball before the batsmen made their ground.

Prem: Agarkar, to arthurton, over thew icket, on off and played off his pads, as always the midwicket fielder escorts it to the mid off fielder while the batsmen take a single.

Subhash () Well folks thats it. One fact is for sure. India cannot win without Sachin batting successfully. (and now it looks like he has to bowl too...) Conclusion: Forget all the rest, if Sachin fails INdia fails else India wins. Advice: Pray that Sachin succeeds. tushar (tushar@hotmail.com) Rangeela...its just shows how passionate we feel about cricket...tell me one fan( of any nationality) who graciously accepts defeat...besides its tough to swallow a defeat when u know ur team has all the potential in the world but always finds a way to go down... Prem: arthurton on strike, on off and pushed back down the track, no run.

Ramsakthish (r_sakthish@hotmail.com) Forget About Wills World Cup my fellow indians.... We will grab the World Cup this time!!!!!!!!! () Hey guys it is no use blaming the players.We should first look at the kind of board officials we have ,who are determined to cause harm to Indian cricket. Look at the Sri Lankan board,how they back their players. wheras here we treat our players like a bunch of cards. Look at the way they treated two good bowlers Chauhan and Harbhajan. sunil (sunilkher@hotmail.com) azhar should be given some matches with kenya, bangladesh etc to get the remaining 90 odd runs to become the highest and then be sacked. Prem: agarkar to lara, 14 needed off 29, wide of off and cut away, one more.

Prem: on off and lara defends.

Prem: ajit agarkar being brought back now, 3-0-21-0 thus far.

RanaRansher (ashish@akula.com) How about team selection ? On a track where even WI plays only 2 quicks. We should have played a spinner (Chopra eeks!) instead of Agarkar. RRRS could have done the token opening with Srinath. Prem: Vijay, hang on, will just confirm that pin code ofr you. It is v/o Cricket Club of India, Churchgate, Bombay 400 020

Dravidfan () Guess what we are going to hear in the post-match interviews - we batted, bowled and fielded badly! Prem: Vijay:: Care of the Cricket Club of India, Bombay - 400 021.

hemant () come on guys, azza is human too, he is just going thru a lean patch remember that azza has played over 300 matches, scored nearly 8500 runs and added to that he is the fittest and most agile fielder even though he is the oldest member Prem: on middle, paddle, misses, leg bye to end the over.

Prem: dravid now going over the wicket, onto off, played defensively.

Prem: 19 more needed and lara chips, just over the fielder at midwicket, the ball eluding the bat and four more, to the midwicket fence.

Rajeev (baids@ibm.net) I think the return of Kambli into the team is inevitable. He is required Prem: arthurton wafting this on the on side, one more.

criclovers (hercules@ccnsimail.com) I think Dravid is good for Tests not a ODIs. Prem: dravid, to lara, on drive for one off the second ball.

naren () I wonder why they keep playing Agarkar after all his failures. sunil (sunilkher@hotmail.com) well the defeat should entirely be blamed on azhar totally irresponsible captain and a very bad player for sure Rangeela (Rangeela@hotmail.com) folks, i am reading all the comments and it shows the mentality of an Indian Cricket fan. Neither we can enjoy win nor we can accept a defet. we need to mature foks. Prem: amazing statistic this, lara has had just four runs on the off side, all the rest of his 46 rins have been on the on, 19 of them to fine leg region, 19 between square leg and fine -- which means they have gifted him far too many balls on his pads, and not made him drive at all.

Prem: joshi to lara, sillly point still inplace, good ball outside off turningin sharply, lara defends.

Prem: lara sweeps again, again to azhar, no run.

Prem: joshi agin, to lara, this time he reaches forward and sweeps very fine, there was no one at fine leg, picked his spot and went for it, four.

Kamlesh (krn38@hotmail.com) Cannot blame Dravid for this match. All our top bat faild and then with a low score Azhar tried to do something unusual to get WI bats that did not work. Prem: Lara on strike to joshi, sweeps, finds azhar, no run.

Dravidfan () Prem - people like to find somebody to blame - and of course if it Dravid. Of the last three one-days he has played, he only played badly in this one - not bad statistics for a batsman (compare that to our illustrious captain) Ramesh (rjagannathan@wpsmtp.siumed.edu) We we start talking in terms of consistency then Azhar too needs to be faulted, bats at no. 3 against quality pace bowlers and usually falls cheaply...and he has played more than 300 matches...Ramesh Prem: Lara has been reining himself in very well here, never letting himslef get pressured into hitting out, good mature attitude, seeing the side home.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem>You just kill me,friend.. What do you like so much about Mr.Class that you can't bring yourself to say one bad thing about him, even after 100 failures? Prem: Flick by arthurton, single.

Prem: dravid, ball three, to lara, sfaster through the air, swept away, single behind square.

Prem: dravid again, to lara, flights this one on off, gets some turn, lara pushes to point, no run.

Prem: lara on strike, dravid continues, pushes to mid off ball one, no run.

tushar (tushar@hotmail.com) Prem, I hope Dravid does not get blamed for this defeat of ours. Our main strike bowler did precious little in both matches... Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem>You just kill me,friend.. What do you like so much about Mr.Class that you can't bring yourself to say one bad thing about him, even after 100 failures? Prem: Vijay:: because you guys have nothing else to say, simple. Look, like I said, I am going to write an entire diary on this thing, answer me then, no problem.

Prem: Vijay:: you raised the point about chaurasia -- a point that, if you notice, I made the main point of a diary right at the time of the selection, go check. so dont ask me about fairness, since I was asking the umpires the same question.

sunil (sunilkher@hotmail.com) Dravid has a lot of godfathers Qasim () Prem, The reason why fans are after that one guy is because they are not going by the performance in just one match but in general. Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem,our comments are not based on this one match..rather, it's the 100 that Mr.class has played, when a guy like Chaurasiya doesn't even get one match ? Where is the fairness in that ? Prem: I see, Qasim and Vijay, thanks, now I know. So then, by that logic, India won all the odis dravid didn't play in, right? batted superbly, bowled brilliantly, fielded out of their skin on every one of them? Meanwhile, joshi got one in to the batsman, hit him on the pad, he was gone plumb, and the umpire doesnt bother. now that is ridiculous.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem,our comments are not based on this one match..rather, it's the 100 that Mr.class has played, when a guy like Chaurasiya doesn't even get one match ? Where is the fairness in that ? Qasim () Prem, The reason why fans are after that one guy is because they are not going by the performance in just one match but in general. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem,our comments are not based on this one match..rather, it's the 100 that Mr.class has played, when a guy like Chaurasiya doesn't even get one match ? Where is the fairness in that ? Prem: Ravi \shastri makingthe same point, says, if Bajju has a suspect action, it is the umpire's job to call him, not the icc's to suggest he be dropped and the bcci's to promptly drop him. dead on, there.

Prem: Vijay:: like I said, i might have many flaws, but monomania is not one of them.

hrd (hdhamdhere@hotmail.com) David is a loser. Bring KAMBLI back Prem: dravid to lara, outside off, turning away, lara drives and misses. dravid getting turn here, making you miss bajju all the more. lara this time into the line, cuts, single.

Prem: shantannu:: not that I noticed. Subhash, it was not filtered out but do remember I can post your views only in between overs and if there are twenty posts in between, then some slip off the frame. dravid continues, arthurton cover drives, gets one to extra cover. lara on strike.

SUbhash () Hey Prem>> Why was my message filtered out? I don't think I used any foul language nor was I close to suggesting anything like that. (shantanu@bu.edu) Prem;in your report at least could you mention if Srinath and Agarkar bowled any yorkers. ven (ramanalv@hotmail.com) Azza never thinks. he depends on luck and talisman. Prem: It's really funny, what cricket following has come to, though. Here, a team bats badly en masse, except for two exceptions. then the bowlers come out and give it completely away in the first ten. and whatever else is left, the fielders gift away with a large heart, but for six hours, cricket fans on this site can only go on and on and on, ad infinitum, about one player. Strannge, to say the least, meanwhile, joshi comes to the end of another over.

Prem: Joshi to arthruton, forward defensive.

tushar (tushar@hotmail.com) Prem, I have noticed Agarkar bowls well when Srinath is not around...or when he is the main strike bowler...wonder why.. Prem: Joshi continues, arthurton, with dravid at silly point but no slip in place.

Prem: Vijay:: Remember your private post to me? You perhaps have reason to be on one monotonous trip throughout your time here, but should I really play along, you think?

Khabar () I think Azza has dug his own grave here.. Want to see him get axed. When he was off the field and tendu was managing, we were still in the game, but after he returned, we are out of it... Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem>do you think Dravid bowls better than he bats, so Mr.Wadekar would be justified in including him as a bowler? Satish () Can't understand Azza;s tactics here... brings on someone who has bowled only 8 overs in his intl. career at a crucial stage in the innings while Robin and Gangs have not bowled even one... bsampath (arvram@uswest.net) It is a pity that players like Diwakar Vasu of Tamilnadu, who can bowl left arm medium pace, left arm off spin bats left arm and a dependable batsman couldn't even get a chance to play in Zonal level. Prem: dravid to arthurton, on off and cut, through point, single. end of the over.

Prem: dravid to lara, and this time, single to azhar at cover.

Prem: dravid to arthurton, wide of the crease and into off and this is really ridiculous, the fielder at mid off escorting the ball along, languidly picking it up after a single is taken.

Prem: dravid, to lara, ball three, fractionally shoort, lara pulls and misses, off the pad, a leg bye.

Prem: dravid continues, on off and lara defensive. ball two, around the wciket, flight on this one and again, the defensive push.

hemant () hemant () PREM<< i think the rules are entirely in favor of the team batting first 1) if a team bowling first fails to complete its 50 overs in the stipulated time, it is fined 15% of its match fee as well as it gets to face only the number of overs it bowled in the time 2) whereas a team bowling second gets off only with a fine dont u think its unfair Sanjeev () I second the opinion - There is no point in having Dravid in the team. And last point - I have lost hope - we are out of the tourney now - sad. Prem: joshi to lara, last ball, played gently to midwicket and runs the single.

Prem: joshi now to lara, who is forward, flicking, misses, rapped on the pad but outside line of off.

hemant () PREM<< i cant understand the idea of getting dravid to bowl when we have proven bowlers like ganguly and robin who can use the seam Prem: joshi again, this time outssid off and arthurton nudbves to third man, long chase for sachin and three for it.

tushar (tushar@hotmail.com) Prem, Whats the use of having Joshi/Robin in the team when we have to depend on players like Dravid to bowl us to victory...Maybe Azza himself or Jadeja could have tried to bowl off-spinners. Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) God,Azza did exactly what I suggested...If Mr.Class can keep the batsman's scoring rate anywhere near his own, they can't make the remaining 50 odd runs in 15 overs... bsampath (arvram@uswest.net) It is Dravid to bowl. Hope he gives the same no. of runs he normally takes of an over while he bats Prem: good ball, bounces and turns, arthurton pushes defensively.

Prem: Joshi, to arthurton, flighted, finds midwicket with the push.

bsampath (arvram@uswest.net) It is Dravid to bowl. Hope he gives the same no. of runs he normally takes of an over while he bats Sandeep Singh () I saw too many people talking about Dravid. He is being given so many chances despite his failures. Any other cricketers would feel jealous. Let us get rid of him and bestow our faith on someone like Khurasia - He needs real support!!! Prem: Rather surprisingly, given that thus far all the teams have had success with the slower bowlers, neither robin nor ganguly getting to turn their arm over here, which to my mind seems a waste of resources.

Prem: outside off, pushed through cover, a single ends the over.

Prem: Dravid to lara, angled on off, beats the bat but onto the pad, no damage.

Prem: Ravi:: never did expect miracles --0 but is it too much to expect line and length, and not three, four four-balls per over in the first 10? \Arthurton driving, one to long off.

Prem: ball two, outside off, too much width, cut away and four mroe.

Prem: round the wicket and ball one, angled in on off and arthurton defends.

Ravi (nravichandran@hotmail.com) Why don't we accept, Prem! Today we batted badly. We can't expect bowlers to perform miracles on this flat pitch ! Remember, most of the matches were high scoring ! hemant () i think azza is looking for a wicket becos one cannot expect a new bowler to get bang on target it will be better to continue the good work and hope for the best Prem: What they do, though, is bring on Dravid, for his part time off spin.

Prem: Now the question is who does azhar use. my call would be to bring on ganguly and continue to keep the field up tight.

prabhu () Prem, my comments arre not getting posted! Is there a problem? Sudhakar G (sudhakar@zebra.net) Kamlesh>>Remember, Kumble came on to bowl in the 4th over... Sachin was too good today, but cannot expect this from Sachin everyday. Prem: Prabhu:: no problem, is just that sometimes, before I can get to the comments page, they drift out of the frame because there are too many posts.

Rajarshi Ray (rajarshir@yahoo.com) On this pitch , 270- is very hard to defend and that too with Indian bowling, where spinneres don't turn the ball !!! Prem: Joshi in this over on a very good line here, keeping it tight and lara unable to get him away, ball outsdie off curling in. two balls left in the over, and lara onto his knee, sweeps, two to ganguly riding the boundary out there.

hemant () PREM<< i think the rules are entirely in favor of the team batting first 1) if a team bowling first fails to complete its 50 overs in the stipulated time, it is fined 15% of its match fee as well as it gets to face only the number of overs it bowled in the time 2) whereas a team bowling second gets off only with a fine dont u think its unfair Sanjeev (8sanjeev@pgplan.iimahd.ernet.in) I feel had we had harbhajan here, things would have been different. Hope the board would stand by him for the World Cup. Sandeep Singh (sandy@aol.com) Azhar does not apply his brain. He just follows his ego. He has determined not to use Joshi and Ganguly and Singh and that's it!! Prem: lovely ball to end his spell, flighted on off, draws arthurton forward, squares him up, turns it past the edge, arthurton nods acknowledgement and that is it, the end of his spell.

tushar (tushar@hotmail.com) I dont think Joshi is a good idea...Singles will do the job for Windies...I think Srinath/Agarkar should be brought on...Even if they dont bowl well, match will be over faster.. Prem: Tendulkar to lara, ball five, the arm ball this time, lara hurried on the push, then they race the single.

Prem: ball three, again the off break, floated in, lara defends. ball four, tendulkar, again that perfect line, and lara defends.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) I have an idea..Why not use Robin..He is supposed to be a friggin' allrounder, right? Kamlesh (krn38@hotmail) see the difference" Kumble: 10|0|52|1 Sachin: 9|1|28|2 Kumble a specialist bowler? Huh.... Prem: ball two, the off break on off stump line and lara again defensive

Tendulkar, now into his final over and lara on strike. slip in place, pushes the first one through on off, lara defends. Prem: one ball left in the over, joshi to arthurton, brings him forward defending, end of the over.

Prem: joshi again, on off, and played defensively by arthurton. ball five, joshi, flight, outside off, driven, robin in from sweeper cover, two for it.

Sandeep Singh (sandy@aol.com) I feel we should not have dumped Mohanty and Sidhu hemant () i cant understand why azhar is holding back joshi even when kumble is getting the stick that doesnt show light on his captaincy he should have gotten joshi earlier who is bowling well rather than getting him on when its too late mohit (mohit@rmi.net) i would worry more about indian bowling standards at this time rather than dravid's batting! why don't we ever criticize bowlers? Prem: joshi to arthurton, on off, driven, misfield at cover but tendulkar backing up, no run.

Prem: pushed through faster, this ball, lara pushes off his pads to srinath at midwicket, single.

Prem: In comes Joshi again, to lara, over the wicket, bowls wide of off turning it in, with a slip in place, lara defends.

Shantanu Desai (shantanu@bu.edu) Heye guys remember in 1992.We were defending 126.Srinath cleaned bowled Lara and Artherton on consevcutive deliveries. Wish he can repeat that. Prem: tushar:: quite effective, suggested that in yesterday's match report, at the end, that he should be bowling here. trouble is, now it is too late, if the bwling early on had been good and tight, then there would be runs for the indians to bowl to now.

Prem: flighted, arthurton pushes, finds midwicket, robin fielding, no run to end the over.

Prem: on leg, sachin looking to get lara round his legs, brings the paddle into play, single. arthurton on strike, flighted, pushed to mid on, no run, two balls more in the over, this one is the faster one and arthurton poushes.

hemant () PREM<< its amazing what sort a cricketer sachin we are extremely fortunate to have a genius like him i think i only thing he is not doing right now is wicket-keeping maybe he will do that some day bsampath (arvram@uswest.net) While Azharuddin wanted his players to match with his fielding, they match him with his batting. Sandeep Singh (sandy@aol.com) Let there be Ganguly with his ball. I don't know what Azza has in his mind against Ganguly's bowling? He can at least try one over. Prem: that completes kumble's over and now tendulkar is into his 9th, an off break on line of middle, lara pulls, in the air but past midwicket, to jadeja on the line, he has a lot of running to do, the batsmen meanwhile run two. next ball, flighted, draws lara forward, defensive.

Sunil (pillappa@hotmail.com) Right now what needs to be done is to get wickets. Containing these two guys is good for a while. Once they settle down then it is another story. Have to keep attacking and getting them out. Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) bsampath>Lara and Dravid may score the first 20 in 60 balls, the only difference is Lara goes on to make 75 off 80 balls, whereas our Mr.technique gets out after making 20 Prem: bad ball from kumble, overpitched outside off and driven for four through cover by arthurton, that one bad ball undoing all the good work till then, which has been the story of the indian bowling all along.

Prem: lara drives, azhar dives and stops well at midwicket, taking over from robin and straightaway, almost beating lara on the throw to the non stiker's end. next ball, kumble, outside off and lara goes forward, wanting the run, tendulkar at point throws down the stumps wiht lara again just getting back. lara looking very nervous here, they have to keep bowling tight to take advantge of this.

Satish () Looks like these 2 batsmen wanna see off Tendu and Kumble first, and then take their chances against the other bowlers... The key here is Lara here, gotta get him out soon if India is to have even a remote chance.. we Indian supporters never give up, do we?? Anup (anup_gupta@hotmail.com) Azhar's really not playing well nowadays Prem: OKAY, HERE WE GO, back live after the break for the final session of play. 19 overs left to play. Hey, whoever asked, the lanka south africa report is up. and that is another bad error, lara sweeps, edge onto pad, ball balloons and mongia doesnt see where it is going, that was a catch if he had run back three steps. lara, next ball, gets it outside leg, the usual kumble error, and a paddle gets him two.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Read a really funny comment on cricinfo..Cpaul was playing with a runner, he was standing at sq.leg..The comment said "Played to sq.leg, the indians seemed to think Cpaul would field that..Two runs.." That says it all about Indian fielding standards, guys.. Prem: hemant:: Tendulkar is a thinking player, he practises everything in the nets, and does what he has to do. like here -- leg breaks when the right handers are on strike, off breaks to the lefties, spot on field placing, and turning on the pressure when the batting side seemed to be running away with the game. trouble being there is only one of him.

hemant () bsampath<< i think arthurton is slower that both lara and dravid hemant () prem sachin used be a non-regular bowler earlier did he develop his bowling to such an extent that he is troubling Lara PC () Damn we neeed wicket, cannot squeeze them inot losing, could have done it with another 20/30 runs on the board SUbhash () i say chaps that it's time to bring on Joshi. Keep kumble's last over for the leftovers! Bring Agarkar and get the wicket. Remember he has not taken wickets only in two matches. So common sense suggests that he'll get the breakthrough. Come on! Prem: Rajeev:: \simmons after this, but not in prime touch just now, and that meanwhile is drinks, taking a break here.

Prem: PC:: By squeeze, I meant pressurise into the false stroke, not defend. :-)

Prem: tendulkar, on off turning it away and he is really getting turn and bounce, slip in place. twice on the run, arthurton unsure where it is going, goes right back on the stumps and pushes late. ball four, too full in length, played to midwciket and two more. robin not at his best in that position today, tending to let the ball past and then go chasing after it. one ball left in the over, outside off, cut away, there is no cover there and that is a four to end the over, tenndulkar trying a bit too hard there and giving width to the batsman.

bsampath (arvram@uswest.net) Here is a poll Who is the slowest? Dravid Lara Saurabh (s4gupta@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca) Whats with the club level fielding Prem: ball two, the single on as lara plays off his pads, arthurton back on strike.

Prem: tendulkar to continue, bowling his 8th, to lara, starts with a wide. ball two, on off and the straighter one, played defensively.

Saurabh (s4gupta@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca) I like this new format. Kinda painful but good Prem: Just a single in that over, and this is what the Indians need to do here, give one to lara early in the over, bring arthurton to the crease, and squeeze him, with fielders round the bat.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Why not bring Joshi on.. Looks like he bowled well in the first spell.. Tendu and possibly Kumble and Joshi have to finish it off.. If we are forced to use Agarkar and Srinath again, we are goners.. hantanu Desai (shantanu@bu.edu) Prem did Srinath and Agarkar try bowling yorkers to the batsmen? Prem: again, a full pitched top spinner this time, pushed back to the bowler.

Prem: arthurton now on strike, and slip and short square leg back in place. good ball, on off, played defensivgely. Kumble now needs to pitch a flipper slightly short, to get the splice. This one is full pitch, arthurton plays to short square, dravid. ball five, again the flipper but again, too full, defended.

Prem: Lara back on strike, they should be looking now to give him a single and bring arthurton to the business end. angled ball on off and played to midwicket, no run. ball two, again the same angle, driven to long on, single.

Prem: This guy is something else, now flights one and arthurton finds midwicket with the push, no run to the first five balls again flighted, robin misfields at midwicket and gives two.

Prem: Tndulkar back at hhis best, beating arthurton twice on the trot with off breaks, then the arm ball going through him.

Prem: Kumble to Arthurton, just one in the over thus far, bad fielding at cover lets the single off a push.

Prem: kumble this time with bounce on the top spinnnerr, arthurton takes one hand off and jabs it down to square leg, fortuitousm, and that brings a forward short leg also in place.

Prem: over the wicket, angling across the left hander and now a slip and silly point in place.

Prem: full pitch, played to point, tendulkar, no run.

Prem: Kumble continues and lara takes one more, wide of long on, off the first ball. brings arthurton back on strike, now if kumble can come close to the stumps and bowl just around off, there should be fun and games.

Shantanu Desai () Prem,great to have you back live. At least now we need to tighten up our fielding. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subhash () Prem>> Where were you? These are the times when we are looking forward to your comments. :0) Common Kumble now go for the kill. This match is going exactly like the 1996 semifinal. Can kumble be Warne? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Saurabh (s4gupta@undergrad.math.uwaterlo.ca) finally -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Thank god Agarkar fields better than he bowls.. Which is to say that his fielding is below average... Subhash () Prem>> Where were you? These are the times when we are looking forward to your comments. :0) Common Kumble now go for the kill. This match is going exactly like the 1996 semifinal. Can kumble be Warne? Prem: yorker, arthurton digs it out again, to backward point, dravid, no run. next ball, and a beauty -- on off, squared the batsman up, bounced and spun past the bat and tendulkar bowling here like a master spinner. end of the over, just one in it.

Prem: Tendulkar, ball two, floated in on middle and leg, turnning away from the left hander, played to mid on, no run. next ball, faster through the air, forces arthurton to jab down on it, finds point, no run.

Prem: Tendulkar around the wicket, a slip in place, bowling off breaks now with the two left handers in place.

Prem: Last ball, and lara tucks it round for a single to fine leg. good time for the fielding side to really turn on the screws, lara has looked unsure when the line was good and arthurton is always a nervous starter. tendulkar, and lara flicks, gets one to fine leg, brings arthurton on strike.

Prem: Earlier, Tendulkar did precisely what was required -- with Chanderpaul limping and using a runner, he began flighting more nad more, drew the batsman down the track, the hampered footwork was going to cause problems, and sure enough, cpaul failed to get to the pitch, the ball went through and bang onto middle stump.

Prem: Sorry, guysm we had to reboot the server, back now in time to see carl hooper depart, kumble hholding one back, hooper predetermined on the drive, doesnt get to the pitch, puts it up in the air for agarkar to hold at cover.

Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) These guys are exactly proving that the game very much depends on their ability to convert ones into fours (negative). I am talking about the "great" fielders like Ganguly, Srinath etc Indian () Hey Prem ... keep up the good work dude ... lotsa people here .. in spite of cricinfo ... all because of you .. and the ability to 'chat' simultaneously! Prem: Vijay:: what you told me just now in that private note, much appreciated, now send me the same again in an email. the address is premp@rediff.co.in. Within the next six months, I will send it back to you and ask you if you still want to stand by it, and stake all right now that your answer will be no. |Go for it, buddy. Okay, now back to play, resuming here.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Prem,a note just to you... Not that I don't like what you are doing..Just the opposite,I love your commentary and analysis, along with those by Harsha Bhosle.. It's just that I really, really hate Dravid..Not personally, but for his batting..Just as people used to hate Ravi Shastri... Prem: Tendulkar again to cpaul. and a bit of chat between the two batsmen, as cpaul seems to have some kind of cramps, liull in play.

thanks satish! you said what i wanted to! prem, its simply great having u and commentry, my only cricket connection in this remote town. Prem: tendulkar again, this one on off, flicked to midwciket, great running makes the second run on and robin, of all people, overruns the ball.

Prem: Tendulkar continues, cpaul the man on strike, 21st over in progress, round the wicket and from wide of the crease, the off break, cpaul plays to point, dravid, no run.

rajeevm (rajeevm@rocketmail.com) Vijay>> R U one of those kids who played in the Nutrine under-12 championship...and thinks that u can impress everyone with ur expert comments on Dravid...;) Get a life pal!!!! Agni () I agree with Satish... and as Prem knows, I have been up thorugh out the night... its cos of guys like vijay that we lost the chance to interact more freely on this chat... if he needs to make a point, he will make it in the proper way. Go on Prem, you are doing great! Prem: Srinath again, to Lara, a slip in place, again the angle in from wide of off cramps the batsman, good work this. If they can keep this up for a few more overs, the pressure will shift, but it will take tight bowling and vdery tight fielding to do that. srinath this time errs, goes too wide, lara swings it round and again, fun on the boundary line, the fielder, Ganguly this time, first spots the ball late, then runs across and dives after the ball has past him and gone for four. Oh well.

Saurabh (a.k.a sgups) (s4gupta@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca) Prem, How is the weather down there. CricInfo says something about WI being 70/2 if game were to be abondoned and they winning Prem: Srinath again, to lara and outside off, swing and miss, taken by mongia.

Prem: srinath again, to lara, ball three of the 20th, good angle in to the left hander forcing the hurried defensive push.

Prem: Srinath continues, to chanderpal, round the wicket, pushed through cover, single and brings lara on strike. tendulkar seems in captain mode now compleely, walking back with srinath, talking of field placements. ball two, to lara, round the wicket and left outsdie off.

Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Nice that we came to know about the result (you still have hope guys?) in the initial stages of WI innigs. Otherwise poor we patriotic guys, keep hoping, guessing etc. A big thanks to Srinath, Kumble and Azhar. Please don't make Sachin captain again and spoil the genius. You want him to bat and score centuries all the time, bowl and take wickets and restrict scoring all the time, field well and save runs all the time, encourage the colleagues by sharing his cricketing brain all the time more importantly managing to keep the hopes of millions of fans all the time, Enough. Don't forget, he is a human being too, What's the use of earning all the money, I really feel sorry for this "contemporary great" Prem: Flighted, brings lara forward and then turning away, the batsman lets it go. next ball, a yhorker and dug out. superb stuff thus far from tendulkar, next ball, short outside off, turns away, lara launches a cut and mishits, into the ground at his feet.

Harish (hsankaran@juno.com) Hi.. I have never been able to figure out why Azhar keeps coming one down in crucial matches. It is so difficult to recover after such early setbacks Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) bhaskar,even if we B'desh, Mr.technique will only make a correct, anchorman type 30 out of 100 balls..And there'll be people to praise it as a real good, correct innings... Prem: lara again, way down outsdie off, and defensive push.

Prem: Vijay:: *laughing* what's the matter, friend, cant understand why others are supporting dravid too? apparently it aint only me with this "thing", huh? And what is the point of posting language you know wont go on anyway? Beats me, buddy -- maybe it would help if you realise that different people see things differently, and everyone who doesn't see things your way is not necessarily all those things you said in caps just now. tendulkar, meanwhile, to lara who is a long long way across but can only defend.

rajeevm (rajeevm@rocketmail.com) I remember readin' an interview where Agarkar said he's goin' to be aggressive. Well someone's gotta tell this kid that bowling all ur 6 deliveries short is not aggression... wonder what Simpson did via consulting...beginning to think that this part-time consulting is a rip-off!!!! Satish () Prem, please keep Ur cool. There are people like me too watching the action and following Ur commentary. Please just ignore the delinquents. U r doing a wonderful job.. I have not slept the whole night, and more than half the reason is your coverage, and "straight-from-the-heart" comments.. PC () Actually I wonder if the virliuence of people's comments increases as India falters Prem: correction that was cpaul, now lara on strike, srinath back to over the wicket, and here goes the misfield again.

haskar@4genesis.com (bhaskar@4genesis.com) Vijay, If you are comparing, compare the kind of bowling and fielding RD was facing.. and see what SC is facing.. Prem: Srinath now going round the wicket, finally, and lara plays it through point and gets one.

Dhirendra () Sachin might become captain again after World CUp next year -dhirendra Dhirendra () Sachin might become captain again after World CUp next year -dhirendra Dhirendra () Sachin might become captain again after World CUp next year -dhirendra bhaskar@4genesis.com (bhaskar@4genesis.com) Vijay, If you are comparing, compare the kind of bowling and fielding RD was facing.. and see what SC is facing.. Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Tendu vs Lara...Man, I wish I was there in B'desh.. Though Lara is hardly close to our guy in terms of class, consistency, form ...Here's to Tendu getting Lara too, for than 10 Prem: short outside off and the fierce cut, kumble runs around the line, dives, gets his hand to the ball and pushes it over the line. four more.

Prem: srinath still bowling over the wicket, into the 18th over here. on off stump line and driven to mid off, no run.

Prem: mohit:: like I said, I've just about had enough of this nonsense, planning to write a piece on this whole thing. maybe saturday next. outside off, played to sweeper cover, two for that.

mohit (mohit@rmi.net) its amazing the cricketing mind tendulkar has. i would have expected kumble to get someone out from his leg breaks. prem, why do fustated people loginto this website? any guesses? Prem: Srinath now being brought back on. Helmets coming on to the ground for Cpaul, be interesting to know if he goes round the wicket with two lefties in place.

Prem: the off break bowled fractionally short and lara hits it out to mid on, finds the fielder, no run.

Prem: tendulkar now to chanderpual, off break, played through cover and that is a very good 50 to chanderpaul off exactly the same number of balls.

bhaskar (bhaskar@4genesis.com) Prem, but the unfortunate thing is, the captain lacks the cricketing knowledge of using this little Genius at the right time. I think, now its too late.. Prem: Tendulkar to Lara, now, and he still has the slip in place, going round th wicket, bowling off breaks now, that is good thinking, off to the left hander, leg breaks to the right hander. next ball, slightly short, lara tries to pull, gets bottom of bat on it, and one to mid on.

Prem: Last match, Tendulkar came on, did the same thing, held a leg break back and steve waugh pushed it right back to him. One thing this shows, is that it is not enough to be a bowler, you also need to have cricketing intelligence.

Prem: Tendular to wallace, the leg break pushed through faster, wallace hits to cover, no run. ball two, and he's gone, the leg break on middle stump, held back, wallace hits it right back to the bowler and agian, he comes on and gets the wicket with the caught and bowled.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Cpaul is the same kind of batsman as Dravid,defensive, anchorman, but look at him now, and look at our Mister technique"... Prem: And now Tendulkar comes on to bowl. busily setting the field and I cant see azhar anywhere on the scene.

Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Cpaul is the same kind of batsman as Dravid,defensive, anchorman, but look at him now, and look at our Mister technique"... ) I feel to make a match off it we should cramp the singles,and bring on Srinath and Tendulkar at both ends,force the batsmen to take risks,that is our only hope. Prem: drinks on the field and taking a break here.

Prem: Vijay:: neither your language, nor query, deserve a response, do they? anyway, to make you happy, later this week I will put up a diary about this whole dravid thing, and give you guys the platform to respond, let's see how we go. meanwhile, if you want your posts going up, keep your language within bounds.

Prem: Actually, to respond to those asking about strategy, I frankly see no point -- if bowlers cant bowl an obvious line, what is the point of thinking further? Before the innings we kept pointing out, in detail, why bowling short would be disastrous, and that is what we got. What strategy do we talk of from here?

Sandipan (skd@fluent.com) I think even after 15 overs the fielders should be placed in attacking positions because you can't win by being defensive in bowling and fielding at this stage. Can you please describe the field Prem? Prem: short, and predictably, another four -- wide of off and cpaul cuts through the gap.

bhaskar (bhaskar@4genesis.com) Prem, What do you think should be India's strategy. I see no options left except to pray WI to commit a harakiri.. Other wise, the match is as good as over.. Prem: good line, wide of the crease angled in and again, cpaul tucked up, no run as he plays back down the track.

Prem: Vijay:: and while complaining about your posts not going up, do realise that language like the word you just used for wadekar isn't going to go up, no way.

Prem: there we go, fuller length on off, played to point, no run.

Prem: agarkar again, fractiaonlly short, cpaul pulls, went into the shot very early, got enough wood to power it through the gap, four all the way for that one. eachj time agarkar drops short he gets mauled, each time he pitches up he looks good.

Prem: Agarkar continues, around the wciekt to cpaul, tucks him up, played to midwicket, no run.

Prem: Vijay:: now what? your post went up. as did about 250 posts about dravid, which is all that has been spoken off on this site all day. So what is the point behind that childish challenge of yours anyway?

Bhaskar (bhaskar@4genesis.com) Prem, I see that the commentary window width is now proper, thanks for a quick fix. Vijay (usd0002c@hotmail.com) Oh, if anybody says anything bad about Dravid, then it doesn't concern the match, right ? Post this if you have the guts ... Prem: 6.81 the windies run rate here.

Prem: joshi now to cpaul. over the wickt, flighted, on off, cpaul covers the angle, pushes to mid on and gets the 100 up for the windies.

Prem: joshi agin, to wallace but this one the shorter faster ball, wallace rocks back, off drives, one more.

Prem: Joshi continues, with a slip and silly point in place, to wallace who defends, twice on the run, joshi getting turn here.

KK_Barbados () Hello..Guys..I think we have taken charge,,remember what I said before Prem...WI will rise to the top again.. Prem: goes wide of the crease, angles it in, cpaul plays to point, no run.

Prem: agarkar again, to cpaul this time, and going round the wicket.

Prem: There are clouds out there but whether it will rain is anyone's guess.

Prem: Vijay:: if the comment pertains to the match, we will repost here.

Prem: agarkar, to wallace, this one on middle and leg and swings it round, gets one.

Prem: agarkar, who apparently has cooled down a bit, now to wallace and a lovely ball, just outside off seaming in, wallace pushes to mid on, mis reading the pace, finds the fielder.

Prem: cpaul square drives, robin dives and stops the ball going through, just the one.

Prem: good ball this time, cutting in sharply, wallace scrambles a push out on the leg side, races the single.

Prem: Hmm, now here is a bit of a surprise, agarkar being brought back into the attack.

Anandha (Anandha@jagat.net) 242 is not a bad total. If the openers bowl so bad there is little any captain can do. OK Azar didn't score runs but stop blaming him for now. The game now is more in the hands of bowlers. Prem: I am having a lot of fun, actually, listening to Sachin's yelled comments through the stump mike -- right now,he is in the captain's chair with azhar merely fronting, sachin busily setting the field and talking to the bowlers, beend oing that for the last three overs now.

mohit (mohit@rmi.net) somebody tell azza to bring in ganguly. i dont know what azza has against ganguly's bowling Prem: joshi again, to cpaul, who plays to square leg, no run to end the over.

Prem: cpaul on strike this one on leg, no touch to it, mongia blinded by the batsman, misses and the ball runs down, four byes.

Prem: Sachin caught yelling on the stump mike:: Arre, jaldi math daal, aaram se, time le, baarish bhi aa saktha hai.

Prem: Joshi again, to cpaul, flaster ball on off, played to square leg, no run.

Prem: on middle turning in, cpaul flicks and misses.

bhaskar (bhaskar@4genesis.com) Kumble is proving the captain's faith in him wrong, I think he should stick to his 'miserly' line and length and not to try take a wicket.. Also, I think it is time to cut his spell now and bring SRT Prem: Joshi to continue, now bowling to chanderpaul, around the wicket, sees cpaul coming, drops it short, cramps him for room, no run.

Prem: bettter line, going wide of off and anggling in, gets it into off, cramps the batsman. next ball, on off, played to point, no run.

Prem: cpaul on strike, 4.07 the ask, kumble around the wicket with sachin at slip and a short square leg as well, cpaul down the track, over mid on, four. kumble now needs to hold his nerve, that one the batsmen didnt quite get to the pitch, another one down the same line, slightly shorter, and you could hvae cpaul hitting up int mid on. off drive next ball, no run.

Prem: good over this from joshi, finally.

Prem: after every ball, now, you can hear sachin's voice yelling instructions. joshi bowling line of middle, turning it away and wallace quiet. ball three on middle, the sweep, misses, and sachin was saying exactly that -- wo sweep marega, there paas aayega, the previous ball. next ball, on off, bounce and turn, wallace beaten badly.

hemant () sachin should be brought into the attack immediately its a shame that these days we are looking on him to perform with the ball and that leaves only wicket-keeping maybe one day he will have to don the gloves too Prem: Interesting sight out there, suddenly, azhar is taking a quieter profile and sachin is telling him and the bowler what to do. you can hear his voice clear over the stump mike now, saying, "normal line daal, outside off"

WALL AND HAMMER THE INDIANS prashant (kondlepb@hotmail.com) dravid only looks cool in the PEPSI ads with the gals, on the field he is MR.UNCOOL JAMMED UP JAMMY. may be we should provide him with a bottle of pepsi after every over. Prem: cpaul the man on strike, and ball one, on leg, flicked, single to backward square.

Prem: 4 per over the ask, and joshi continues.

Prem: kumble goes round the wicekt, something he should have been doing all along, to cpaul, and look at the difference -- a wild heave, an inside edge, off mongia's pads and a single, but not the assurance with which cpaul was coming down the track when kumble bowled over the wicket to him.

Manash (manash.sengupta@mci2000.com) We all are talking about Rahul Dravid. Is it not time that our great captain has played agood innings. I feel Azza's technique is not good enough to handle the quicks. He should bat lower down the order.When Azza flops he does not score any runs for twenty innings. Prem: Kumble again, short and fast, wallace cuts and gets one to coverpoint.

Prem: kumble again, fuller length on middle and off, played forward, kumble appealing for everything here but that one was not on. ball four, and again, on middle and leg, wonder what happened to his ability to home in on off right from ball one?

Prem: kumble again, to wallace, and this one way down the leg side, the worst line he could have bwoled, and lets the pressure of wallace, who sweeps him, no one at fine leg, four more.

Nayak () Manoj..Why blame Dravid.Blame Azza who insist on coming at No.3 when India has lost a wicket and than get out for nothing and put more pressure on the next batsman That is stupid captaincy!!!!!!! Prem: kumble to wallace, on off and middle, angled across, rapped on the pad but that was going down to leg.

Prem: when ganguly kept going down the track, the bowler pushed it wide, got him stumped -- a ploy either joshi or kumble could try here since cpaul hasn't played one single ball from inside the crease. but then, innovation is not exactly the forte of the indian cricket team, so be very surprised to see it happen.

Prem: joshi now to cpaul, who is nicelyl down the track again, pushing the single to mid on.

Prem: joshi again, on middle, wallace sweeps, gets one and brings cpaul back on strike.

Prem: wallace now on strike, to joshi, ball three of the 9th, slip and silly point in place, nice line on off turning it away, tentative drive from wallace, finds mid off, no run.

Prem: Next ball, good use of the feet from cpaul, the flick takes it through midwciket, single.

Manoj (gandhimn@erols.com) R Dravid 20(54) When will Indian Selector understand that Darvid is not good for oneday Prem: Joshi tgo cpaul, overpitched ball, cpaul frees his arms and smashes back down the track, past the bowler for four.

Prem: joshi bowling around the wicket, which means he is looking to angle it across the left hander and then bring it right back in with the turn.

Prem: 4.14 the ask from here on, and 42 overs to go, off goes srinath as well so both quicks as quickly out of the attack, in comes joshi.

hemant () i would say seeing the way they are batting it will be better to get sachin right now remember he was the star against australia he can mix up his leg breaks and off breaks and will be difficult to get away a bowler should keep the batsmen guessing now, Prem: kumble, stays over the wicket, pitches on leg, or rather, full toss on leg, swung around, single for cpaul to keep strike.

Prem: kumble again, cpaul down the wicket and almost yorks himself in his exuberance, digs it out at the last moment, no run.

Prem: Kumble continues, to chpaul who gets nicely under it and lofts him straight over long off, six. |Kumble still hasnt figured out that he HAS to come round the wicket, or he will let the left hander have the room to free his arms. this is pure folly, frankly.

Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) I think the "15 overs concept" has been dozed too much in to the minds of WI cricketers, Poor Indians, No strategy at all in spite of knowing well about the boxers Prem: Srinath with a square gully in place, to chanderpaul, played forward, no run.

bhaskar (bhaskar@4genesis.com) I would say, don;t evev chance Srinath, should be slow bowlers from either end.. And well, if the bowlers kept bowling like this, no captain can do any thing.. Prem: one ball left in the 7th and bad bowling in the beginning is all but giving the game away right here. srinath, full toss trying the yorker, swung around, single off the no ball so two for it.

prabhu () Normally slow Chanderpaul is going at almost run-a-ball today. Looks like we will have to remove both these batsmen in quick time. KUMBLE, GET THEM OUT!!! prabhu () Normally slow Chanderpaul is going at almost run-a-ball today. Looks like we will have to remove both these batsmen in quick time. KUMBLE, GET THEM OUT!!! Prem: srinath again, strange to see him losing it so completely here but this time, the ball comes in, takes the edge of teh pad, that one was a very good ball, almost did for the batsman. next up, short ball, wallace pulls, four more. this is getting rather funny -- a great ball, a four ball, a great ball, a four ball... one thing for sure, they didnt do any thinking in the dressing room, based on this performance.

Prem: wallace now on strike to srinath, short outside off coming in, wallace cuts, cramped on the shot but the power takes it through point, for two more. good line that, but the length was just short enough to have wallace going back. srinath again, to wallace, that is bad cricket, short ball on middle and predictable, wallace pulls for four.

Krishna Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan@chiorg.unige.ch) These two (CP and PW) show our Indians how to bat. Azhar, atleast hereafter, should not come one down, if not for Godsake atleast for India's sake. Krishna Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan@chiorg.unige.ch) These two (CP and PW) show our Indians how to bat. Azhar, atleast hereafter, should not come one down, if not for Godsake atleast for India's sake. ashish () bowling up to the mark is the key, we should have make strategy to bowl each batsmen according to their weaknesses Satish () PC:- No contest?? So quickly?? It's still early days buddy. Philo will now fall againsta Kumble and the match will turn on its head. Prem: this time, too full, punched to mid on, single to end the over.

Prem: that misfield though has wallace back on strike, kumble has two left in the over, the first is the classic leg break, wallace forward, nowhere in line, misses.

Prem: kumble now to cpaul, who is good against spin, chips over midwicket, joshi misfields and two becomes three.

Prem: uh oh, that one was the attempted yorker but bowled drifting to leg, leg bye gets wallace off the strike.

Prem: This over could swing the game one way or the other -- the windies have decided apparently to blast their way to the target, so if they take out philo, then the next man in, lara, will also come out blasing and cause the problem. and here we go, kumble to wallace who doesnt have a clue what that one is doing, goes back, the ball goes through and just misses off.

PC () Intelligent batting, really made this a no contest now... with the batting to come Prem: and yes, short and lifting on middle, cramps cpaul, no run, end of the over and kumble now to wallace.

Prem: srinath again, to cpaul, short on off played to point, no run. ONe more ball, if srinath can keep him there, then kumble gets another chance at wallace -- then again, if kumble bowls too full, it will be wallace getting a chance at kumble

Prem: srinath again, to cpaul, full length but on off stump which makes it the half volley, cpaul says thanks, slams it through cover, four. the indians regularly doing this, couple of good balls and then compensating with the gimme.

Prem: ball three, on off, played to point, no run. they need to keep cpaul on strike here, so that kumble gets wallace facing him in the next over.

Prabhu () Kumble should remove the dangerous looking Philo Wallace if we have to stand a chance in this match!! Prem: srinath again, to cpaul, lovely ball slanting away from him, cpaul cuts, beaten by pace and bounce, misses.

Prem: 4.41 the ask, cpaul on strike to srinath, good ball on off, cpaul has a heave, bad shot as it wasn't short enough, hits bottom of bat and finds midwicket, no run.

Krishna Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan.@chiorg.unige.ch) I just don't understand why our so called pace bowlers try to bowl fast and in the process bowl so many wides and no balls. Against WI bowling fast doesn't help them any way. Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Are these guys thinking that the target is 343 instead of 243 (like what the great "Viv" thought 15 years ago)? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PRAGAV (pnjain@del3.vsnl.net.in) can kumble lead to victory was azhar's gamble alright! -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Venkat () Philo may not take risk with kumble at least during his first couple of overs. Hope this slows the run flow. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Krishna Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan.@chiorg.unige.ch) I just don't understand why our so called pace bowlers try to bowl fast and in the process bowl so many wides and no balls. Against WI bowling fast doesn't help them any way. Prem: Jumbo, as they call Kumble, this time on leg and swept away, single to end the over.

Prem: kumble again, and this is better, on off and cpaul defends.

Prem: kumble again, holds one back nd cpaul plays it back down the track.

Prem: Kumble now to chanderpaul but goes too wide of off stump -- when kumble bowls over the wicket tothe left hander, that is what happens, the fliper takes the ball wide of off, he needs to come around. cpaul meanwhile smashes it through cover for four.

hemant () PREM wallace may be weak against spin so do u think giving either kumble or joshi a bowl instead of agarkar with a long-on and deep midwicket is a good idea hemant () PREM wallace may be weak against spin so do u think giving either kumble or joshi a bowl instead of agarkar with a long-on and deep midwicket is a good idea -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Satish () I would bring in the slower Ganguly on now; the ball won't come on to the bat and Philo might get out....but we all know Azza.... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- prabhu (prabhu@lucent.com) Prem, who is your best bet, to win this match for us? Will the slow bowlers be effective? Prem: Slip and silly point, wallace on strike, three quarter length, good thinking, gets wallace on the pad/ Next ball, the three quarter length again, the flipper, perfect prescription, flies off the splice and wide of gully, robin reacting a shade late, that was a catch but he fields it on the bounce and one to the batsman.

Prem: And immediately, Anil Kumble comes on. Trouble is, this is the heck of a gamble, if Wallace can get the fuller length ball, then it is bye bye kumble. He needs to bowl a shade shorter than he normally does, look to the top spinner to cramp him and have the batsman mishitting.

bsampat (arvram@uswest.net) It won't be a bad idea to send robin at no.3 or 4. After a couple of matches he will really set well in that slot. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Satish () Need to remove this guy Wallace now..wickets the key here -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Krishna Kaliappan () Wallace the danger man need to get him! pragav (pnjain@del3.vsnl.net.in) stop the wides and no-balls srinath!& remember that u r playing against W.I and not SRILANKANS Prem: cpaul this time gets one slightly shorter nad rising on off, plays it to short cover, no run.

Prem: Bad ball, outside off, too much room and chanderpaul blazes it through point, four. Heck, I wonder why I did those dossiers, these guys are doing the exact opposite, and getting taken for the max. Ball five, played to point, no run.

Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem, you got it dead right this time. I think we need Philo Wallace, Lara and Hooper more than others as they can single heandedly win the game from here. Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem, you got it dead right this time. I think we need Philo Wallace, Lara and Hooper more than others as they can single heandedly win the game from here. Prem: srinath, ball four, to chanderpaul, bowling over the wicket though, i would have liked to see him go round. Cpaul across, plays in front, but a no ball, srinath stretching for pace.

Prem: Srinath to Wallace, good line, three quarter length, not lettting him hit through the line, this is what they need to do, wallace tucks to square leg, they scramble a single.

Prem: Srinath now, into the second ball of the third over, to Chanderpaul, good line on off and played to point, they race the single.

Prem: Our dossier on Chanderpaul: Chanderpaul is aces on temperament, and technically, his main problem would be the tendency to shuffle too far across his stumps -- being bowled round his legs enough times to indicate that this is his biggest achilles heel. A right arm bowler going round the wicket, angling in to leg and middle and either straightening with the arm, or coming back in to him a shade, seems a nice line to bowl to him.

Prem: Williams on strike now to Srinath, over number three and he's gone, outside off, three quarter, getting williams driving and the clear edge to the keeper -- precisely what we were talking of here, williams can't drive, that is where to get him.

bsampath (arvram@uswest.net) I think Ajju should take rest and let jaddu take care of sharjah tour. Prem: Another wsing, misses, but four leg byes this time.

Krishna.Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan@chiorg.unige.ch) Prem, As suggested by you, why our pace bowlers don't bowl from round the wicket. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- pragav (pnjain@del3.vsnl.net.in) 13 in the very first over, wake up guys and something that will make us proud of you! and agarkar stop bowling the wides atleast for god's sake! Prem: Full length -- interesting, agarkar bowling full to wallace and short to williams when it need s to be the other way around -- and wallace powers him through mid on.

Prem: Agarkar, ball four, slip and now a short fine leg in place and again, williams takes it from off and flicks square on the on, one more. agakar a shade on the short side, he needs to get williams driving, not flicking and pulling.

Prem: agarkar, and williams takes it from outside off, cross bat hit but got it in the middle, through midwicket for four but that shot at least shoudn't have agarkar worrying.

Prem: Agarkar again and this one, straightening on middle and leg, hits williams on the leg, a flick to midwicket with no footwork, missing, that one was fractionally missing leg so gets away with it.

Prem: agarkar again, first ball being rebowled, better line, three quarters and just outside off, williams shuffles across and lets it go.

Prem: Williams on strike to agarkar, two slips, and first up, a wide down leg stump.

Krishnan Balakrishnan (krishnan@etl.go.jp) Prem, Thanks for your lightning commentary. Cricinfo is still having luch. Prem: You cannot pitch up to Wallace, srinath here finding the right length -- any shorter, and he will pull you to ribbons. Last ball, pitched up and sure enough, wallace over the top. Not getting much wood on it, but the muscle of the man has the ball rolling over the fence for four to end the over with windies 13/0 in 1.

Prem: This was the right line for Wallace, just short, cutting in late, has him trapped on the pad but that was a no ball, no damage. Srinath now on line after his first ball. Ball five, thhree quarter length on off and wallace can only play it back to cover.

Krishna.Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan@chiorg.unige.ch) If Agarkar bowls like how he did in the previous matches first spells, definitely Lara will show him the boundary lines especially square off the wicket frequently. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Anandha (Anandha@jagat.net) When WI played Pakistan the Pak bowlers were erratic in their first spell and allowed WI to get going. If Srinath and Agarkar can just stick to the line India will be on it sway -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Venkat () Azza does have a lot of choice - Srinath, Agar, Joshi, Kumble, Robin, Jadu, SRT. My bet is on Jadu and SRT. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- pragavjain (pnjain@del3.vsnl.net.in) if philo philo's(flews) the ball like the previous match like this one india sure is going back home Prem: Ball four, Srinath in the first over, and again cuts in sharply, williams rushed on the flick, misses, leg bye.

Prem: Williams on strike, Srinath with ball three, cuts in, williams stuck to his crease, rapped high on the thigh, no run.

Prem: Okay, here we go, Srinath the bowler and first ball, overpitched, the loosener and Philo Wallace gets under it and thumps it over long off for six. What a way to start, though. Srinath, ball two. cutting in and played square, single.

Venky () long time no magic from kumble...should he do it today... india might just win today.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- pragavjain (pnjain@del3.vsnl.net.in) early wickets for which agarkar is famous for can make the differnce , which will pressurize lara and his team Prem: Guys, play about to resume so I will be back on the commentary gig, hold off the questions, please?! Meanwhile, to take two more quick ones: Venkat:: Philo, just spoke about him in that "dossier", which I think is the way to go with him. PC:: Not really -- Kumble pitches a full length, Philo with his muscle will tend to get under it and send him travelling. I like Kumble for Chanderpaul, for his habit of moving across off, and Hooper, who he can tie up and irritate into mistakes.

Krishna Kaliappan (Krishna.Kaliappan@chiorg.unige.ch)

Continued