Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
In this match 194 overs played by india & 228 overs played by Pakistan. So Pakistan played 34 overs more then India.....Only difference is that India had more option for bowling and Pakistan had to rely on 2 sick bowlers in the first inning.
But all in all good effort by Pakistan to save this match. So difficult to play against 600+ runs...you gonna be continuosly under pressure and opposing captain can do whatever he likes fielding and bowing wise.....pressure pressure...
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
What an innings by Younis once again. Its his 3rd hundred in 4 matches. Aamir Sohail was so impressed by him that he wanted Younis to be captain for the next test match. I only wish Younis could lead the side permanently...only if the players could respect the guy...he always plays for his team.
Does anyone know why Younis does the weight lifting thing when he gets his 100? He has started doing this recently...from the SA series I believe.
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
Not a single response from saieen and co. I'm disappointed.
Great job by Younis. And yet I have not understand to put Akmal in front. He did on good job and the very next day he is promoted. WTF!
Keep batting orders alive, PCB!!! Also Misbah is much better playing at 5th.
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
Younis once again showed that he is a tough nut to crack. If he messes up on one occassion, he will make up for it on more than one. Thats how he is. Great fight!
If we are miraculously still alive in this series, we have to thank Misbah, Younis and Akmal to some extent for it.
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
i think pak missed a trick, when they had 30 overs left they should've gone for the target, think the RR was around 9 an over. obviously very improbable but what do you have to lose? Lose one wicket and theres a specialist batsman in the pavilion. if he cant be trusted to survive 30 overs with another specialist batsman then why is he in the team?
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
i think pak missed a trick, when they had 30 overs left they should've gone for the target, think the RR was around 9 an over. obviously very improbable but what do you have to lose? Lose one wicket and theres a specialist batsman in the pavilion. if he cant be trusted to survive 30 overs with another specialist batsman then why is he in the team?
Very true! This team has been missing of some ambitious aims.
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
And yet I have not understand to put Akmal in front. He did on good job and the very next day he is promoted. WTF!
Bhai, you are criticizing Akmal/team without knowing the facts. Butt was feeling sick and did not come to field in the morning (5th day). That's why he couldn't open with useless Hameed.
Anyway, from 150/6, chasing 600 and then go on to save the test is big achievement for Pakistan. And it's time to send Hameed+Iqbal back home. Both have done their part.
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
I like Younis Khan
He is confident and knows what he's doing
Excellent batting by him.. i just wonder if India should have rather played murali kartik than Munaf.. Hmmm.. Left arm slow, bowling into the rough.... Food for thought...
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
No moral victory for Pakistan' - Kumble
"I don't believe in moral victories. It's really crazy, I don't know why people talk about moral victories," Anil Kumble said, rather emphatically at the end of the second Test when it was put to him that Geoff Lawson, Pakistan's coach, had suggested that his team had won a moral victory in battling out a draw. "When you struggle to pick up five wickets in both innings, that's no moral victory to me. To me what matters is the result and I think overall we dominated the match over the five days."
Just minutes before Kumble's press conference Lawson had addressed the media, and when asked if his team had won a moral victory, he said, "At 78 for 4, you know you had a lot of work to do but in our batting order we had a few down the order who had spent some time at the wicket in the first innings. So you feel you can survive. And the two experienced players [Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf] batting in the middle, did prove they were the two most experienced players. When you have people who have been in that situation before, you always believe you can escape with a draw. You are obviously a bit nervous, but we felt that the pitch was still good enough for us to get through. Younis and Yousuf played like veterans and the highly talented players they are. It took a lot to get through but they were good enough."
The one thing Kumble and Lawson, and just about everyone else who watched this game, agreed on was the nature of the pitch. "I think we all expected the pitch to do a bit more on the fourth and fifth day," said Lawson. "It was just the foot-holes that did something and it did hang together quite well so that made batting a little bit easier on the fourth and fifth day. I think it surprised a lot of us that it was so good for batting on the last day."
Kumble said it had been tough to bowl on the pitch. "It got slower and slower and even when it spun, it spun very slowly. Considering the pitch and the conditions I thought our bowlers put in a fantastic effort," said Kumble, and suggested it was the time of the year that ensured that pitch did not break up more than it did, even on the final day. "It's winter here so there's a bit more moisture in the surface so even if the sun comes out, and it's not really harsh, the wicket tends to be on the slower side. Maybe that's one of the reasons. It's produced two good Test matches, but not really for the bowlers. It's been really tiring for the bowlers to try and ensure that 20 wickets are taken. We did really well to get at least 14."
But pitches in Kolkata have not always been bowling graveyards. In the past India has won dramatic victories in the last couple of days of Test matches. "They [earlier pitches] had a bit more pace and that really helped. As the game progressed when there were a few footmarks and the ball landed in them the ball carried."
Kumble did not want to look forward to the Bangalore Test just yet. "I've said it in Delhi and at the start of the Test. I'd like to re-iterate it here: toss, pitch and weather are things I don't want to think about," said Kumble when asked if the toss would be crucial in the last Test.
Lawson suggested, with tongue firmly in cheek, that his team was thinking about the possibility of a win late on the final day. "In the last 15 overs we only needed 11 an over to win. So I did actually mention it in the dressing room and the fact that Younis was batting and he did play a sweep shot past point last ball before the drinks break, I thought he must be thinking the same thing. Yes, I did think about it but we decided to play out time."
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
Bhai, you are criticizing Akmal/team without knowing the facts. Butt was feeling sick and did not come to field in the morning (5th day). That's why he couldn't open with useless Hameed.
Anyway, from 150/6, chasing 600 and then go on to save the test is big achievement for Pakistan. And it's time to send Hameed+Iqbal back home. Both have done their part.
Bro, exchanging one useless player for another doesn't make sense. He might had his 100+ at the last match, but he never performed well as opener or second down. Do you agree?
Re: 2nd Test: India v Pakistan at Kolkata - Nov 30-Dec 4, 2
chalo some good news for pakistani supporters even if its a so called FACE SAVING DRAW. sari zindagi FACE SAVING ki hoti rahay ge iss team se. seems like thats all they are good for. as for india, well they are still 1 up and now the pressure on pak is even more to win the 3rd test, level the series and again do the FACE SAVING dance.
