I happened to watch the Lords test on TV yesterday for about an hour. It was one satisfying 60 minutes on TV , I must admit. Satisfying, because the sight of a youngster striving for excellence in the Mecca of cricket would have inspired even the most depressed and devastated man , who has lost all hopes and is at the tip of a cliff ready to jump off. After the insouciant Brendon McCullum who seemed to have relished the England attack reached the 90s, Simon Jones began his act. McCullum was clearly in the nervous 90s zone. Jones with patience and persistence on his mind just kept pegging away on or outside the off stump and a man completely incharge( McCullum) till then suddenly seemed struggling to get the ball past the inner circle . Infact , playing and missing( abt 10 times) and edging to gully was the only 2 things that he could do. It was frustrating to say the least from Jones' point of view to see a batsman whom you have foxed umpteen number of times still there . But Jones was 'perseverance personified' and finally got his man, getting McCullum to knick on 96. It was just reward for the ardousness of this young English fast bowler.
I was surprised to see Nasser Hussain standing at silly poiunt and short leg yesterday. Hussain and his ilk i.e a former captain , 36 years of age would not be the ideal men for that job . Just when I was beginning to think what Hussain was doing there he pulled off 2 great catches off Giles who seems to have taken a vow to bowl outside the right handers leg stump. Trying to extend his career by 2-3 years??
Mark Richardson reminds me a lot of Gary Kirsten in the way he goes about accumilating runs by grinding the opposition with immense concentration. The Kiwis have found a reliable dodgy opener in him. Finally my suggestion to Stephen Fleming - 'Bat 3 or 4 in the tests, opening in the tests is not the same as opening in the onedays'.
