As far as Pakistan is concerned has to be Sami during the first test match.
Forget everything else which happened in this match.
Had he held the catch of Shewag when he was on 68, things might have been very different.
ifs r always very bad....
u shud never think about that....
if inzamam had not been given out wrong....
if only youhana had stayed longer....
if only those catches were held....
if only we had never called india to play....
if only we had never learnt cricket on the first place....
Yes all those are ifs and buts.
Sami dropping that catch had a major impact on the direction the match than took.
imho, that was relatively minor a mistake when compared to the planning gaffes. pitch vs choice of bowlers, inclusion of razzaq, exclusion of a natural test player like younis khan, lack of preparation to play spin bowling (excluding inzi)..
Dropping someone on 68 who then went on to score 309 is not minor by any stretch of imagination. That is not to take anything away from Shewag's brilliance.
if a single dropped catch can make such a huge difference, it goes to show exessive reliance upon luck. the real trouble lies elsewhere.
Probably, but than I was talking about the chump during the test match not before it.
It has nothing to do with luck. I am sure you must have heard that "catches win matches". Very true for this match.
forget winning for a second; had sami hung onto that one catch, do you think it would have ensured a close match? i doubt it very much.
Had Sami hung on to the catch with Chopra already gone and Dravid and Laxman returning quickly to the pavilion, the Indian team would have been under pressure. Pakistan might not have won but it would have been a different ball game altogether.
IMO that dropped catch had a major impact on the match.
what's the guarantee that had sehwag been caught at 68, dravid and laxman wouldnt have stayed on to make big totals? actually, at sehwag's 68, chopra was still at the crease.
too many assumption involved that are not related to sami's dropped catch.
ok Ehsan bhai - would you think had Sehwag departed that early Dravid would have taken a chance to hit a casual shot? Come to think of it - even Yuvraj and Laxman got out in a cheap fashion.
Even the best fielders sometimes drop catches. It's not something that we can control unlike planning, approach, team spirit etc. queer is right, Sami is a great fielder, it's pointless dumping the blame on his shoulders for making a mistake.
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*Originally posted by queer: *
what's the guarantee that had sehwag been caught at 68, dravid and laxman wouldnt have stayed on to make big totals? actually, at sehwag's 68, chopra was still at the crease.
too many assumption involved that are not related to sami's dropped catch.
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The fact is that he did drop the catch, the fact is that it did cost us very dearly. The other things are all if's and but's. The fact is that he might be the best catcher in the world, but in this particular instance he turnned out to be a chump and his mistake had a major impact. Keep it in perspective, we are talking about an event which took place during the match and which had a major impact.
I actually agree with Uncle Jee here. Look at the South Africans and the Aussies. Just look at how they win matches. They dont have talent. They dont have players the calibre of Sachin. What they have is a cohesive unit which takes catches, when they arent even any. Why is Jonty so famous. Ok he is an excellent fielder, but more like he has hands like glue. That has made the difference in so many matches.
Feilding now is the most essential part of the game. Restricting runs. One thing about the South Africans. Where they give 1 run we give 4. They have the knack of turning a double into a dot ball.
Catching is just another part of that aspect. If a batsman knows the fielders are exceptionally good at what they do, they dont take as many chances.
CM you are actually agreeing with queer. You are criticising our unprofessional fielding which is down to coaching drills, lack of direction etc. Sami is actually one of our premiere fielders so your criticisms don't even apply to him as an individual.
Read again. I am saying one catch makes the difference. That is what the South Africans have always been able to capitalize on that. That is what makes them a winning team. Catches, stumpings make all the difference these days. Dropping a person who goes on to make 300 runs is a vital mistake.
South Africans have dropped catches in the past too. They certainly did when they were stuffed by us in the recent series. Even the best fielders drop catches and Sami is beyond dispute one of our best fielders. So his mistake in this game cost us does it make him a bad fielder? No. So really we should look at other aspects which were in our control if we want to pick chumps for this match IMO. Sami did ok with the ball and was probably the pick of our attack. If we really want to pick a chump how about the guy who decided that on a spinners track we needed 4 seam bowlers and a has-been off-spinner?
So xtreme you agree that dropped catches lose matches as you have given the example of the SA yourself. That is the whole point of this thread. No one is questioning his overall abilities. The point is about this test match and the fact remains that this particular dropped catch cost us over 250 runs.
We can talk about many other chumps and factors in this match but this one sticks out like a soar thumb.
Dropping a catch once in a blue moon doesn't make somebody a chump IMO, because it happens to the best fielders. Inzi's run out in the second innings was a more chump-ish act because it was an act of sheer stupidity and irresponslible as a captain. If I had to pick a chump for this match it would be the Pak 'think tank' - who that is i'm not sure because no one accepts any responsibility for decisions.
I don't agree. Dropped catches are part of cricket. You can not and should not blame the result on a single incident. That's not very prudent cricket.
India played well in every department of the game and beat us fair and square. No if's and but's. Sehwag has a heart of lion and he deserves 500 not 309 the way he played. And the way Dravid lead his troops is exceptional. I haven't seen a captain on the cricket field like Rahul since the days of Imran Khan.
I think the way Yuvi got Inzi run out ...that incident alone deserves India a win. It showed the 'lazy elegance' of our captain when he is not at the crease. I love Inzi as a batsman ONLY when he is facing the ball. All other times, he looks like a mediocre club cricketer.