When Test cricket ruled the roost!
The week that has passed by has answered some questions that pundits, media analysts and cricket experts have been pondering over for the last 20 months. Time and again, questions have been raised about the existence of Test cricket in an eon where the Twenty20s and ODIs have soared (in number for sure!). For the purist, Test cricket has always been the in thing.
But for the one who wants to rake in the moolah, the answer lies in the shorter formats. First the Sydney Test that saw Australia secure a comeback win to seal the series after being bowled out for 127 against Pakistan. The first day saw Australian captain Ricky Ponting earning a host of brickbats for having batted at the Sydney track. But he stood vindicated when the Pakistanis failed to chase a modest 179 for a win, thereby not only winning the series with the Hobart Test still to be played, but also showing the world that the Test cricket is indeed the best thing cricket has to offer to the students of the game.
The other hallmark in the name of Tests arrived at the Newlands, Cape Town when England and South Africa drew their second Test. You might ask what’s the big deal about a drawn game? Well, on the last day of the Test, England sneaked home and their match saver was NOT Ian Bell who played a stupendous 78 off 213 balls but their No. 11 —Graham Onions who batted the last six deliveries of the match to literally shut South Africans out of the series. The coverage of the match on Star Cricket showed spectator, administrators and not to mention the two dressing rooms chewing their hands that ensured a ‘nail-biting’ finish to the whole spectacle. The feat gave the Englishmen a chance to emulate the record set by Michael Vaughan’s team on the last trip to the Rainbow Nation in 2004-05.
Not long ago, the cricket boards of India (BCCI) and Cricket South Africa (CSA) added another Test in the forthcoming tour of the Proteas to the sub-continent. With the international cricket council (ICC) trying to spice up Tests, the longest version of the game will stand the test of time against its shorter and newer cousins. Amen!
