Review by Pradeep Ramarathnam

Déjà vu (Noun): (Origin: French) - A peculiar feeling that a place, situation, person, action, or conversation is familiar and has already been experienced.

The feeling you get when you watch Anil Kumble get hapless right handed batsmen caught at short leg on the fifth day of a home test.

When I was in primary school and attending cricket camps like the rest of the wannabe Tendulkars, there was just one important match in any tournament. It wasn’t the finals. It wasn’t the first game of the tourney. The most important match for me and the rest of the kids was the game our dads chose to come and see. It could be a meaningless dead rubber against a weakling team but you could feel the mind numbing pressure beating down on you. A test match at Eden gardens is somewhat the same, only the pressure is multiplied by 100,000.

An India Vs Pakistan encounter can on its own merit generate enough convection currents to cause an earthquake. Throw in the hallowed Black Hole of Kolkata and you have 22 Men trying desperately hard to impress 1,00,000 discerning spectators. Unfortunately, at least 60,000 of the 1 lakh spectators were conspicuous by their absence for the second test match of the TVS Cup Series between India and Pakistan. The pressure though never waned in this torra torra of a test.

The Toss: Senior mathematicians say if an Indian captain wins the toss for a home test and elects to field first, there is a 62 % probability his cranium has suffered irreparable damage in the nets and a 30 % chance that the waiter at the breakfast table mixed his morning cuppa with some Smirnoff. Batting in the fourth innings in India is a terrible punishment, especially with two world class spinners on the other side. Here, Sourav Ganguly threw Pakistan at the deep end by electing to bat first on a bright and sunny morning.

India: The Kolkata test worked out well for most. In the first morning, the manic Delhi duo of Sehwag and Gambhir raced to 50 in 12.4 overs with a nice little potpourri of delicious drives and rasping square cuts. Rahul Dravid strode in purposefully and with that perfect mix of silken wrist work and rock solid defense ground the increasingly dishabille Pakistani bowling to dust. His 110 in the first innings was reminiscent of the 148 he scored at Headingley in 2003. All soda, no fizz - Just what India needed. His second innings 100 was a lesson for the rest of the Indian players on the art of winning matches through sustained effort. This man is second only to Sir Donald Bradman in terms of averages (Among Cricketers who have scored > 5000 runs). The next critic who has a problem with Dravid should be made to face Shoaib Akhtar without an abdomen guard.

This was the test the mercurial Dinesh Kaarthick chose to come of age. The turning point of the test was undoubtedly the partnership of 167 between him and Dravid. Kaarthick fell for a brilliant 93. The last time a wicket keeper played such a brilliant innings under mounting pressure was probably Mongia against Pakistan in ’99 in Chennai when he made a backs to the wall 52 with Sachin blazing away at the other end. Kaarthick rounded off a perfect test with a brilliant stumping on the last day. This boy has arrived. Sehwag as is his wont went for a bored looking heave over long off and holed out for 81 in the first innings. His second innings was a damp squib. No complaints though. This man averages close to 52 in Tests. The last opener who did that for India took 60 overs to make 36.

Sachin Tendulkar entered this test with more criticism in his own mind than from the press. He looked like he had to prove something to himself before answering repetitive and mundane media probes on whether he had ‘lost it ‘. His first innings was workman like, more Javed Miandad than the Sten gun approach of Tendlya, but his 52 in the second innings was all class. The pleasure on millions of Indians’ faces when Sachin rolled his wrists and cut Sami for four could only be matched at the sight of Saching bending on one knee, as if to kiss a rose, to cover drive Razzaq to the ropes. Unfortunately he was dismissed by Steve Bucknor. I don’t recall the last time I saw such red fury on Sachin’s face. Why does Steve Bucknor hate India so much?

Of the bowlers, Anil Kumble stole the show yet again. It is one of Indian cricket’s biggest riddles as to why Kumble was dropped so much the last few years. He has never bowled better and seems to get better with age like a good old bottle of 1937 Dom Perignon. He pegged away with excellent support from Balaji whose in swingers prompted comparisons with Imran Khan and Harbhajan. Pathan stepped in with vital breakthroughs in the first test. If you are looking for a near perfect team performance, kindly cut out a copy of the India-Pakistan Kolkata test scoreboard and keep it.

Pakistan: Pakistan once again flattered to deceive with a frustrating mix of exhilarating rearguard action with spineless displays of batting and bowling. But compared to the Pakistani teams of yore, this was definitely a more spirited performance. Full credit to Inzy, Woolmer and his Pentium-4 Laptop.

Taufiq Umar must go. The lad can’t locate his off stump even with a radar. The number of times he fished aimless outside off stump to Balaji must have made him red with embarrassment. His 39 in the second innings really adds nothing. Yasir Hameed and the exciting Salman Butt can do better than to cool their heels in the dressing room. Younis Khan finally showed India what the fuss about him was. He has a certain Azharesque elegance about him. Light bat, supple wrists and flowing drives, all of which add up to a picture of exquisite beauty when the going is good. Chasing 407, Younis and Youhana took the attack to the Indians with terrific hundreds. As long as they were in the middle, Pakistan looked the better team. As Inzamam said in the post match interview, a 500 first innings total could have thrown the match off course.

Asim Kamal once again impressed the discerning with his tight game. He surely bats too low at 6. His solidity would yield greater utility at 3; Younis with the slightly older ball could well be the accelerator at the latter stages of the innings. Kamal made a doughty half century on the last day. His first test 100 can’t be too far behind.

The Pakistani bowling was good in patches. Razzaq had a good spell, Sami had a good spell, Afridi had a good spell. Unfortunately none of these spells were long enough or came frequently enough to pose any real threat of routing India. Kaneria pegged away at one end and by sheer persistence picked up a few wickets. However, he has a few flagrant chinks in his armour that must be corrected before any comparisons with Qadir can start. His flighted deliveries almost always finished next to the batsman’s front foot and the end result was a dizzying number of half volleys. Kamran Akmal deserves a special mention. This boy can catch peppermints thrown at 100 kilometers an hour. His keeping was a thing of pristine beauty.

For the record, India beat Pakistan by 195 runs. It was the first time India has beaten Pakistan in Kolkata. The last time they played a Test here, Akhtar thrust his large posterior in the way of a Sachin second run and got him run out. This time Bucknor threw him off his gravy train. Is Eden Gardens for Sachin what Court no 2 was for Becker in Wimbledon?