Could not have been better for Kochi

They took four long years to make it to the Indian Premier League and it should be as mindblowing as it can get when they beat the former runners-up and along with it the number one team in last year's edition of the same. Howver, I am aware that my words make little sense for it is only the Kochi Tuskers Kerala who as a team are making their first appearance in the IPL and not its players especially in the game of cricket. Players like Sreesanth, Jayawardane and McCullum along with Muralitharan know what it takes to be the best.

If Sachin Tendulkar is someone who can do miracles with the bat, Muralitharan is another similar chap who can do the same with the ball. Someone like Sreesanth can play well for his home team-Kochi rather than some Kings XI Punjab needless to be said. But, much to anyone's surprise the same man from the same town was found to lack his place in the playing eleven. However, that should not be the matter to think about when it was the time to rejoice after Kochi handed Mumbai a 8 wicket defeat yesterday at Mumbai. Defeating a lion's team on its own den is better relished than missing out on a local lion.

The Kochi Tuskers Kerala team has been the pick of this edition of the Indian Premier League not only for their on field performance but also for the team that they have chosen to head with. They have batsmen of the likes of Brendon McCullum who is a hard hitting player famous for his 158 off just 74 balls in the inaugural edition and the inaugural match of the IPL when he blasted the RCB bowlers all over the stadium to score the only 150+ individual score of the IPL which stands even today. Other mad names include Muralitharan, John Hastings and Brad Hodge.

The highlight of the day was the hundred by Sachin Tendulkar which was I guess the first in his T20 career if the IPL is considered as a tournament. Otherwise, Sachin Tendulkar has hardly any T20 games behind him. For a change, he was not awarded the man of the match despite scoring a hundred which brigs up another rarity in cricket. That hundred according to me should have been the innings bestowed compared to McCullum's 81. When Sachin Tendulkar could have been given the man of the series last year despite being on the losing side, one has to wonder what deceived him yesterday.

Sr Lankan Ship Sinks Further

Well one gone then two followed by three and now, it has been four. So, cricket is found to be so boring with the Sri Lankans in the recent past that forget about winning or a decent encounter, even a positive approach to the game is a thing of the past. After looking at the current one day series against, it is still not been able for me to figure out as to how the Sri Lankans could manage a series win against Pakistan off late. Forget about the series against India. Even against some lower based teams like Zimbabwe and Bangladesh were more than enough to pose problems for the Sri Lankans.

More cricket for Sri Lanka at the moment is found to be more worries and nothing else. A team in India scores a massive score of 332 despite winning the series 3-0 and Sri Lanka are least bothered to even chase the target down. All they were found doing was just trying to draw a test match and nothing else. It all lied in the bowling departmant of Sri Lanka where each and every bowler gets belted. All that the match could produce was Muralitharan's 503rd wicket. Thank god that at last Muralitharan found something for him atleast. Finally you've done it Murali!!!

Coming to the match, there was only one bowler in Sanath Jayasuriya who could end up with runs-per-over of 5.6 (less than 6 runs per over). And Sanath Jayasuriya being the one of the bowler to have bowled less than 10 overs raises some doubts about Mahela Jayawardane's captaincy as well as player handling skills. And in the bowling department of the Indians, even part time bowlers like Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh can be of some contribution. And new comers like Pragyan Ojha and Yousuf Pathan too pose a threat to the Sri Lankan batsmen I believe. So, what can be said of a team like this?

I wish the Sri Lankans had come to this match to face bowlers like Suresh Raina and Rohith Sharma who are rarely given the ball. Or may be even they could end up successful against the Sri Lankan batsmen who knows? All that was required for Sri Lankans to be found kicking themselves were just three Indian batsmen namely Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina towards the end of the Indian innings. The aforementioned players added 294 runs and the rest added just 14 runs, with extras having been 25. So, this means that the Sri Lankans were never mentally prepared to return to international cricket by any means. India might have won the series against Sri Lanka but, it has failed in selecting a decent opposition against which a thrill could have been expected.

Sri Lanka Gives Up The Chase

A loss at the hands of team India in the first one day international at Dambulla makes Sri Lanka more determined to face the challenge in the second one day international, which they end up losing despite a decent team plan in chasing a comparitively low of 257 when they fall just short by 15 runs. So,this time in the third one day international, all eyes should have been on Sri Lanka who were expected after the second one day match to make things difficult for India. And Oh my god!what a surprise? What happened was exactly opposite of their expectation.

Sri Lanka seemed to have all lost even before the match started I guess. For, if not, it would not have been possible for the Indians especially Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag to blast the Sri Lankan bowlers all over the stadium. Lack of planning and prior to this , lack of interest on the Sri Lankan part was India's gain I can say. Loss in the first two one day internationals made Sri Lankans reluctant to go in for the third. A defeat was thought to be on the cards even before the Sri Lankan players stepped into the field.

Just two of the Indian batsmen were more than enough for th Sri Lankan bowlers equipped with Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis (who were thought to be Sri Lanka's main weapons before the series began) to destroy the opposition. And coming to the second part of the match, the Sri Lankan batting absolutely showed no signs of chasing the mammoth total as expected. All that the match could offer was to see some great batting display from the blades of Yuvraj SIngh and Virender Sehwag and Yousuf Pathan towards the fag end of the Indian innings. A little bit of effort from the Sri Lankan batsmen could have made the day for cricket fans.

Now that Sri Lanka have lost the third one day international against India and with it the series as well, it would not be right to expect Sri Lanka to come back and win the next two one day matches for, Sri Lanka never approached the game with a positive mind when things really mattered, a guess would reveal about their approach to the remainder of the series. Probably, Sri Lanka might offer India a 5-0 whitewash. None of the Sri Lankan players are really found equipped with the challenge of destroying the opposition, since rhe day they have been playing against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh late last year. And Muralitharan is yet to get his 500th wicket. When can we expect that?

Sri Lanka Just Unpredictable

Well just a day before the second one day international match between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, all words were against Sri lanka, not only for their loss to Pakistan in the first one day international, but also their dismal performance against minnows Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. But, as the game of cricket itself is unpredictable, more predictable is the way the Sri Lankans play their cricket. First, they beat even the strongest of all cricketing nations and later, they are found to succumb even against a mere team. This was the reason as to why their world cup victory in 1996 against Australia at Lahore raised so many eyebrows.

barring Australia, when most of the cricket fans over the world had restricted them to just the super eights. And once again, after the world cup, the Also the way they beat most of the major teams in the ICC world cup 2007 at the CarribeanSri Lankans were back to their old routine of losing. They lost matches to India and Australia in the Common Wealth Bank series 2008, where Sri Lanka didn't even make it to the finals. This was followed by losses to the West Indies as well. Then, suddenly they end up the winners of the Asia cup in Pakistan.

And this time, if one takes a close look at the way they lost the first one day match at the hands of Pakistan, not many people would have ever thought of Sri Lanka winning the second one day match at Karachi. And Sri Lanka did just that. Not only did they win that match, but also the margin of victory was as convincing either. A huge margin of 129 runs, with the Pakistani batsmen being bowled out for a score of less than 200. Amazing!!! This they did against a team that won all the three matches against the West Indies in Abu Dhabi last year.

A team in Pakistan who can boast of being one of the teams to play spin with ease gave MuttiahMuralitharan a reason to party. Not much was expected for the Sri Lankans if not for a decent loss at the hands of the Pakistanis. But, much to our surprise, the Sri Lankans overcame their dismal performance against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe thus stunning the entire world. None of the Pakistani batsmen could really stand up with courage to face the Sri Lankan bowlers and give them even a moment to think. It was as though the Sri Lankans were there to just dictate the Pakistani batsmen with a ball in their hand.

A Nightmare For Sri Lanka?

Well..at the end of the day, the Sri Lankan team looked somewhat relieved, after winning the second test match against Bangladesh. This was however expected. Meaning a Sri Lankan win was expected and not a Bangladeshi fight back. On one hand, if there is a team in Australia who are found to lose their fearsomeness, Bangladesh on the other hand are coming up with surprises in test cricket as well after some amazing ones in one day internationals. Anyway, lets keep that aside for the moment. Coming to the Sri Lanka-Bangladesh tests, I feel Sri Lanka would be saying a "Oh! no never again". That was the trauma that the Sri Lankan team had to go through the series against Bangladesh.

Of course, Sri lanka would have never expected Bangladesh to come back so strongly at them whatsoever. But, Bangladeshis are no morons to not take the advantage of the over confident Sri Lankan team. I still cannot recall as to hoe the Sri Lankan team could manage a win in the first test against Bangladesh at Mirpur, when Bangladesh had gone past 400 runs. Finally, the Sri Lankan team had to rely on their old war horses Muttiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis to register a win at Mirpur. Not to forget Sangakkara and Jayawardane who did the job with the bat for Sri Lanka.

After this match, Sri lankan captain Mahela Jayawardane never repeated the mistake what he did at Mirpur and was over cautious so as to settle a win in the second test without any trouble. Of course, the captain can never ever afford to forget this nightmare, which didn't even win the man of the match award for any of his team mates.However, the approach to the second test was not at all satisfactory. For, against a team like Bangladesh, the other teams take as much chances as possible, so as to bring in the lesser experienced ones to face the challenges of the international arena. But, Jayawardane went in with a full strengthed team to face Bangladesh in the second test.

The same old faces of Mahela and Dilshan batting and the same Murali bowling. And look at the target what Sri Lanka imposed on the Bangladesh team. A whooping 624 runs! For, a total of just above 400 would have been more than sufficient against Bangladesh, Jayawardane took no chances absolutely to put pressure on the bowlers. It would not be wrong to say the Mahela Jayawardane didn't have enough guts to dictate the bowling on the Bangladeshi batsmen. Jayawardane never wanted to take chances against even Bangladesh, fearing a major upset to him and his team. A fear of losing a test to Bangladesh was always there in the minds of Mahela Jayawardane. Mahela's efforts to win the test against Bangladesh would have even outclassed Smith's efforts to win the ongoing test series against South Afrcia.

Cooool Sri Lanka!!!

Something that is to be noticed in the ongoing test series between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, wherein, a day of the test match was called off owing to elections in Bangladesh. Not at all. This is of course not at all a big issue, not it is made into one. All such things are part and parcel of the game. However, Sri Lanka does need some justification as to why the players of the caliber of Muttiah Muralitharan are still leading the Sri Lankan bowling party, even against a minnow team like Bangladesh? And much to their fortune, the major wicket takers in the ongoing first test between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are Chaminda Vass and Muttiah Muralitharan. The two bowlers who have been known to international cricket since the last decade or so.

And the major run contribution coming from the blades of Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardane. Of course, not to forget the 90 contributed by Thilan Samaraweera in the first innings. Jayawardane scores 166 and Sangakkara 67 in the second innings. The same two batsmen who put up a world record of 624 runs against South Africa some three years ago. It is as though that Sri Lanka has not realized that a cricket team consists of 11 players, as against some five to six of them saving the face or winning matches. If this is the case against a team like Bangladesh, one would imagine the fate of the same, given their run against other major teams like India and South Africa.

Its our fortune that Sanath Jayasuriya was not recalled once again for the second time, after he bid aideu to test cricket last December after the test series against England. A target of 521 runs is imposed on a Bangladesh team. What for? Are the Sri Lankans afraid of a major upset in test cricket? No doubt that Sri Lanka will for sure win the test series 2-0. But, the standard of the team as well as his ability of taking chances will surely be under question. Every test match, in addition to the result of the same, also hints the capability of the team to face bigger challenges. The common names in Sri Lankan cricket, Jayawardane, Sangakkara, Murali and Vass have been their major match winners in test cricket.

On a rare occasion, as it happened against India, Ajantha Mendis did the job. Else, taking the recent past of Sri Lankan test performances, its been Jayawardane and Sangakkara in the batting department, followed by Murali in the bowling. Now one can realize as to why the selectors had to go in for retired Jayasuriya for the test series against England. If this continues, one could even see Murali playing until the age of 45 so will Sangakkara. The only trump card being that of Mendis. This is also the case when it comes to their one day and T20 games. One cannot forget the way Murali single handedly winning the third test against England in Nottingham where he took 8/70 to see England succumb fo 104/2 to 190 all out.

If this continues, one has to wonder as to how long can Sri Lankan cricket go, once these legends call it a day. Keeping the fact of the present Australian team, after the retirement of Warne & McGrath.

Sri Lanka Off The track?

Well it looks like the Sri Lankan cricket team is not too much satisfied with this current tour of Zimbabwe.And that is very much obvious, given that their not only recent, but also their overall track record in international cricket has not been on par even against minnows,far from being on par with the other test playing nations.I wish it was a punishment for the Sri Lankan players to go and play Zimbabwe there.In fact touring Zimbabwe would have been a nightmare for these players I suppose.As it is for us viewers to watch a match between Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka also for television channels to telecast the same.Anyway, it is not Sri Lanka's problem as such.And how can one expect one to be?

The first thing that was evident from this tour was when it came in dropping its key players like Sanath Jayasuriya and Chaminda Vass who have had enough from the matches involving Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.But,it is really a wonder that the Sri Lankan Cricket chose to go with Muttiah Muralitharan and Kumara Sangakkara.Of course Mahela Jayawardane is needed for the sake of captaincy.I guess that the Sri Lankan Cricket as well as Muttiah Muralitharan's fans want to see their hero going past Pakistan's Wasim Akram to claim his 500th one day wicket as soon as possible.His wicket tally in one day internationals now stands at 490 scalps from 318 one day games.And probably, Sri Lankan Cricket does not want to risk the place of a keeper by going for some lesser known names.

In the first one day international,Sri Lanka batted for 33 overs to get a modest total of 127, at an average of 3.9 rpo compared to zimbabwe's 4.09 rpo, wherein even if one goes by a run-rate of 6.0 an over, the target should have been attained in just above 22 overs.And in the second one day, Sri lankans just smashed the Zimbabweans,first by getting them all out for 67 and chasing the same in a7 overs, losing just 1 wicket.Still not satisfactory?It was Mendis all the way, who is likely to become another Murali for Sri Lanka.And, in the third one day match, it looked like the Sri Lankans were all exhausted in this boring encounter,for they became all-out, for a score less than 200, to fecilitate the Zimbabwe team, so that they carry home atleast one victory.But,no..

If Sri Lanka get bowled out for less than 200,Zimbabwe get all out even before that.It is the reverse of a team scoring 300+ and the team batting second crosses even that.Once again, Sri Lankan dreams were shattered.Drawing some lessons from the third one day match, Sri Lanka now decided to lose by batting second, by losing wickets in quick succession.But,Zimbabwe batsman spoil even that.As many as eight wickets are lost by the Sri lankan team batting second.Plans change in the fifth one day as the Sri Lankan team settles for just 150 on board.But, Zimbabwe are real champions in losing the game.And this time they once again went on to prove the same, by getting themselves all-out for 133.Thus, Zimbabwe attain their goal, by losing to Sri lanka 5-0.Well..it was only after this series that I came to know that even losing is as difficult as winning.

A Deserving Farwell,But Not A Deserving Treatment

Well a shocking decision by Anil Kumble to call it a day from the longest version of the game is a lot discussed thing since yesterday.But,without a word or two about this great gentleman would be an insult not only for Anil Kumble but for me also for being a cricket blogger and not writing anything about this great chap who has served cricket with all heart and soul for the past 18 years.In addition to whatever that has been discussed about Anil Kumble since he announced his retirement from test cricket,there is something that I share with Jumbo apart from being from the same state where he made his mark as a cricketer.But,that is a top secret.

I bet that there cannot be any other member in the team who had to undergo so much humiliation undeservingly.Not even Sourav Ganguly for that matter.I wonder as to why people didn't stand up against Anil Kumble when he had to go through the odds he never deserved?When Ganguly came in for all sympathy from his team mates and his fans back at Kolkata, in what way was Kumble's issue different from that of Dada? Despite all these odds,Jumbo has crossed all of them to become the highest wicket taker in all forms of the game.No doubt,he got the farewell what he deserved.But, atleast if one could have a glimpse of what Kumble would have underwent through all these years.

I wonder what made Sourav Ganguly to go in for Dinesh Mongia and Mohd Kaif with Kumble being made to warm the benches in the 2003 world cup?This despite his 4 wicket haul against Holland and the run out of Inzamam in the famous Indo-Pak encounter.If Ganguly feels humiliated for being dropped for the Irani Trophy, so would be Kumble for the same since Ganguly took charge as captain.Even in the 2007 World Cup, Kumble played just one ODI against Bermuda and given a ticket in the matches against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.If this is the case, why the hell do the selectors go in for Kumble to be included in the 15 member squad?

Since his re-entry into the national squad in Adelaide test after being ignored by Ganguly in the Brisbane test (which delayed his 400th test wicket), Anil Kumble has missed only two occasions owing to injury.The one against South Africa and the other in the recent Mohali test.Isn't this lovely when copmpared to someone like Zaheer Khan, Ishanth Sharma and our hero Sreesanth, who are most of the time in garages getting some of their parts repaired? One can never forget the way he bought up a victory against Australia in Bangalore in Titan cup 1996,after a series of controversial decisions involving Mohd. Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja along with his Karnataka team mate Javagal Srinath.

Both Srinath and Kumble share something,for both of them announced their retirements all of a sudden and shockingly.Of course not much was expected from their aging bodies and minds.But, I guess there was some fuel still left in their tank. Srinath announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on 11Th November 2003 and Anil Kumble on 2ND November 2008.The difference being close to 5 years.And one fascinating achievement about Anil Kumble that could be compared with nothing is his 10 wicket haul against Pakistan at Delhi.This I call is the most undisputed record for even the 400* scored by Lara could be achieved with sheer determination and hard work,while Kumble's perfect ten could have been averted by some unfair means by the opposition batsman getting run-out or throwing his wicket to any other bowler,like it happened to Murali against England and Zimbabwe.

Whether someone can replace Anil Kumble or not being out of question,but,the post insists that a person of the caliber of Anil Kumble gets his reward for the hard work and dedication that he has shown in the game of cricket for almost two decades.Last but not the least,Cricketahead salutes this great hearted bowler with all cheers throughout his off-field life.

A Step Ahead..India

Hmm..with all critics showering the team Indian in spite of a win in the second one day international at Dambulla,it looked as though the impact of this criticism on team India had such an impact that they were desperate to prove a lot of things and this is what they did! If not for the likes of Mahela Jayawardane,the Sri Lankan team had nothing to boast about when their batting was taken into consideration.And what an opening spell ot was by the duo of Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar who rattled the Sri Lankan top order by taking 5 wickets between them.Sri Lanka were reeling at 94/7 after the 27th over and much did one realize that they would cross the 200 mark,which they eventually did.Thanks to some patient batting by Mahela Jayawardane..a captain's knock indeed.

And hats off to all those people who called the pitch at Colombo a batsman's heaven when both the teams out there lost all their ten wickets.And the team that batted first could not even cross the 250 run mark despite the slog over advantage in the late 40 overs.And,the team that batted second..Forget about a batting friendly wicket.The ball was found moving like a cobra towards the end of the second innings itself and,when the match progressed to the second innings the situation was even more worse that the Sri Lankan batsmen had no other choice but to lose wickets.

The going was smooth during the initial phase of the first innings which the Indian batsmen Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni made full use of,scoring half centuries each to post a decent total.It was really sad to see Ajantha Mendis miss out on a hattrick after claiming two wickets on successive balls during the fag end of the Indian innings.This really a magic of the toss of the match which Dhoni luckily and effortlessly won and with it the match.Sad that Chaminda Vaas could not grab his wicket number 400 even after an economical spell of 32 runs in 10 overs.

It was amazing that even the likes of Muttiah Muralitharan,upon whom the Sri Lankan team had complete dependence and expectation could not serve even half of what was expected from him.So was the case with Sanath Jayasuriya.Even juniors like Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli could not be contained by these experienced bowlers on their own track.Tuff whether to congratulate these youngsters for standing up when the opportunity arose or to condemn the experienced bowlers who could not turn their magic on even these kids.

Too Much Of Mendis?

Well..in the past three or four months, one devil that continues to haunt the Indian batsmen is Ajantha Mendis. It all started since the Asia cup in Pakistan, where Mendis ended up taking 16 wickets, that included a career best of 6-13 in the finals. This was followed by his record of a 26 wicket tally in the recently concluded test series against India. And in the first one dayer against the same India, this man was found to trouble the Indian batsmen once again, by tackling three batsman, the must watch delivery being that which was bowled to Yuvraj Singh, that deceived the batsman- who,misjudged it to be fairly outside the leg stump, only to realise it too late that the ball was found to straighten. Full marks for this delivery of Ajantha Mendis.

However, this man has off-late been found to show his skills only against India. To remind, there are as many as 9 test playing nations in the cricketing world.No doubt that this man shows all signs of making it big but, it would be wise not to assume too many things for the moment. And coming to the first ODI betwen India and Sri Lanka, in addition to praising Mendis for his devastating spell, isn't it India also who are making it too big in Mendis? Have they really given it all to Mendis, for they are found to come up with all praise for this man whenever they lose, despite this feat being repeated for not once but for the fifth time in succession.

Do the Indian batsmen have any plans to tackle Mendis? Either they (Indians) take the opposition lightly or they come in for full praise for the same rather than think as what could be done regarding the same. Like Anil Kumble- who before the test series bagan, took the same Mendis lightly. This was not the way the Indians were found playing during their tour of Australia earlier this year. The team that had some success against that best team in the world, is now rather giving it up against a team which is placed below in the ICC points table. All that is needed for the moment is their will to win matches. And until this happens, the result will never change I believe.

Some foolishness in the commentary team should also be noticed. This was observed when one of the commentators were found utterring "It looks like Munaf Patel has done the job for his team (after sending back Sangakkara when the score board read 45-2)", and then after a while, "Sri Lanka in deep trouble now...eight more wickets from here onwards would see India through this game..."..I wonder if anyone is unaware of the fact that each team has 10 wickets to go? Anyway thanks commentators for informing us. Thanks a lot..

Singh vs Singh and Kings vs Kings

It was a battle between two Kings in Chennai Super Kings and Kings XI Punjab and also between two Singhs in Yuvraj Singh and Mahendra Singh Dhoni who captained their respective sides.One team that had come off from bottom to top and the other maintaining their streak with some ups and downs in the tournament.

But some difference with so many similarities between the two teams that clashed out there was that the match witnessed what no other team in the tournament so far has been able to achieve so far.A hattrick by a man who was seen in action after almost two and a half years-Laxmipathi Balaji.Also not to mention the clash between two players who have played for the same team for years altogether.But this time one had to face the other's bowling.Muttiah Muralitharan and Mahela Jayawardane two M's.And finally similar to his team's result,Murali's result was also no different. Murali did the same to his counterpart what Dhoni did to his.

All could be forgotten but for the wicket of Irfan Pathan who was threatening to walk away with the match had he not been taken by Raina off the bowling of the local hero-Laxmipathi Balaji.Irfan scored an 18-ball 40 before the ball found the hands of Suresh Raina.The Kings XI Punjab gave away 15 runs in extras with some clever bowling off Chennai Super Kings gave away just 3.If this was not to be,the Chennai Super kings had nothing when it came to their batting for the strike rates of even the settled batsmen was not above 150.

The match result may say whatever but both the kings team put up a decent performance what-so-ever.Both threatening to take away the game from each other time and now.

Some Positive Signs Shown By West Indies

It was really good to hear that West Indies had won the second and final test against Sri Lanka at Trinidad.And also,it was like as though I was hearing a joke that "West indies beat Sri Lanka"..ha ha ha atleast there is some maturity in West Indies cricket.But,for Sri Lankan cricket??

If both are taken considering their test performances,I don't think Sri Lankans are way behind the out-of-form West Indies.For,they can win only with the presence of spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan.Though there are likes of Kumara Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardane-both of whom can see their team through with their batting performances,nothing is complete without the likes of Murali's spin bowling-who is a nightmare for most of the Western cricketers,who fear to play spin.

And even the West Indies were not this weak in test cricket,with the batting great- being around.Though not a formidable team,it is to be noted that that they used to lose with atleast some face saving work done by Brian Lara in most of the games.After his retirement,the West Indies team was all the most lost I can say.None of today's West Indies batsmen have the courage to take the team forward.Even the likes of Ramnaresh Sarwan & Shivnarine Chanderapaul.

After the second test against Sri Lanka-which West Indies won comfortably,I feel the West Indies have a ray of hope to get back to their winning ways.But,they had even won a test match against South Africa.only to lose the second & third.

With the tough tour against Australia coming up shortly,though a West Indies win is out of question at the moment,lets hope for a decent performance by the West Indies,reminding the world of their test status and their world dominance,decades ago.

Lara Is Retired,But Murali is Still There..

Sri Lanka had the double advantage with the absense of Brian lara & the presence of Murali

A couple of days ago,the first test between Sri Lanka and West Indies got over-with Sri Lanka winning the contest by 121 runs.Well the result was all the most expected keeping in mind the recent(Four years down the lane) debacle and the retirement of batting great Brian Lara.This helped the Sri Lankan team relish their long awaited dream of winning a test series in the West Indies.On the previous two tours that I've come across involving West Indies and Sri Lanka,the Sri Lankan dream was left unfullfilled,thanks to some brilliant batting display from Brian Lara-who put up a score of 209 in the first and an unbeaten 80 in the second test at Kingston to win the test by 7 wickets and with it the series in 2003.Also not to mention the superb bowling of Corey Collymore-who picked up 14 wickets in that series.Murali's magic was never found to work then.And in 1997 West Indies won by the same margin 1-0,with Lara scoring 115 in the 2nd innings of the 2nd test to see the test end up in a draw.Muralitharan's 16 wicket tally in that series was found not to contribute for the team's sake.

But,atleast now Sri Lanka have got what they were looking for.A test series win on the West Indies soil!And it was not only Murali but a team effort,with contributions coming from the blades of Warnapura and Jayawardane-each one of them putting up a century.And at last,A 5-wicket haul by Chaminda Vass.

At the end,I would like to say that West Indies missed Brian Lara this time,with Murali's presence being a advantage for Sri Lanka.The teams would rather the less be balanced had Murali not been in fro Sri Lanka.