It was the Australian season 2003/04. It was an Indian team visiting those shores as holders of the Border-Gavaskar trophy. It was expected to be passed on to the Aussies meekly. Losing 2-0 would have been respectable. What is funny about the Indian team is that they generally give 2 hoots for the expectations one way or the other.
Brisbane saw a gutsy knock from Saurav and then Adelaide happened. Dravid, Laxman, Agarkar, Kumble. What a game! What a performance! Dravid cried after hitting the winning runs. No writer can sum up the emotions better. We went to Boxing Day with history knocking on our doors - pleading to be let in while the Aussies were trying hard to drag it away. For a while on the first day Viru laughed in the faces of the Aussies and defied them - nearly letting history slip in a glorious moment for the Indians. But it was not to be. The Aussies came back and dragged history away and kept the series alive.
It was the South African season 2006/07. It was an Indian team visiting those shores as an improved test side and a plummeting one day side. They folded 4-0 in the ODIs and were expected to go down 3-0 in the tests. Again funnily enough the Indian team gave 2 hoots for the expectations.
The first test saw a steady batting performance and a brilliant bowling performance. Saurav, Laxman, Sachin, Rahul, Sreesanth, Zaheer, Kumble. The Indians celebrated with champagne. Writers might be able to sum up the emotions nearly as well but the impact of the victory was for all to see! India went one up.
And yet again it was boxing day when history beckoned. She figured that they didnt let me in in Melbourne - maybe Durban might just let me slip in. Till day 2 - it looked like the Indians might just pull the rug on the Africans but Ntini and Pollock and Prince ensured that it was not to be.
Sydney is the most spinner friendly ground in Australia. Capetown they say is the most spinner friendly ground in South Africa. Sydney had Tugga going, Sydney had Steve Bucknor, Sydney had Parthiv Patel. CapeTown has an opportunity for the Indians and none of the above three. Freakishly enough there have been many similarities between that series and this.
Lets hope Sachin and Laxman score as many here as they did in Sydney. Lets hope that this time though we go the full distance and pull it off.
History and Opportunity are very egoistical knockers - they dont do so repeatedly. Lets hope we answer their call this time.
Monday, January 01, 2007
The more things change....
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
i was having exactly the same conversation with swami the HT commie yesterday.
also I thought the current ashes reminds me of india in aus 91-92 (if england do well in sydney and it ends in a draw..)
Its actually been freaky - what with Adelaide Ashes resembling Adelaide Indian victory.
India - Australia 1992 had another superb test match, I suspect, at Adelaide when we were chasing 350-odd and fell short by about 60 odd runs. Azhar got a classy century in that game and that was the beginning of another golden period for Azhar
Post a Comment