MOST took a rather dim view of the English tactics in the recent Bangalore Test. "What is this?" said an irate guru nursing a stiff gin and tonic in the well-appointed Diamond Box at the KSCA. "The bowler is pitching a mile outside leg, the keeper is somewhere at square leg. Is this cricket?"
Well, it is. The thing is negative (intelligent and brilliant, if seen from England's perspective) because all of us want to see the best batsman in the world (Sachin, regardless of your perspective) play with his bat not his bum. But this is gamesmanship and a tactical ploy, not exactly admirable but audacious. It made poor viewing, what with long periods of inaction when nothing happened. But give the left-armer credit for bowling to his field - he got little, in terms of wickets, but gave nothing away too.
The Test anyway was played in what is conventionally called English conditions. Imagine, Bangalore with light showers during the day, dark gloomy clouds hanging over the Chinnaswamy Stadium and, surprise, play on all days with floodlights on. Lord MacLaurin looked at the skies and thought the light perfectly fine, he considers night cricket a terrific spectacle but that has not yet found favour in England. "Our weather is a problem", he said. "There is too much dew and the ball gets slippery."
But Test matches are serious business, teams play to win and for that they adopt whatever methods that come in handy. And of all centres in India, after Mumbai, cricket is taken more seriously in Bangalore than anywhere else. Strange how cricket has a different character in different cities in India.
In Mumbai all kids play with their elbows up and head down, they are taught from childhood to demolish bowlers. Cricket is important, it is a vehicle for economic improvement and social mobility. Nothing of this kind in Delhi which has an overwhelming chhole bhatura and chalta hai culture, which gets reflected in cricket. The sport therefore is chaotic, disorganised and unfocussed.
Bangalore has quickly acquired a reputation of being a bustling city with IT, large numbers of beauty queens and an equally large presence of star players. All this of course means there is a strong cricket base, which enjoys the support of a throbbing commercial structure. Cricket's clout is seen in the presence of stalwarts in the Indian team, and several others who played not long back. Yet, despite the riches, Karnataka is out of this season's Ranji, they have fallen behind Andhra and are not among the top three teams from the South Zone.
However, when it comes to a shaadi between cricket and commerce, Bangalore is in a league of its own, miles ahead of competition. More than at any other place, there is a distinct air of efficiency and purpose as busy officials, with mobiles, get on with their jobs.
Brijesh Patel is a hands-on executive who has neatly tied up commercial arrangements. All hospitality boxes are sold and ground advertising negotiated for a staggering amount of money.
That cricket administration involves complicated management was highlighted by the painting of the sponsor's ground logo. Apparently, the 3D design which stands up nicely on TV is patented by a South African company and experts need to come all the way from there to make sure it is done correctly!
Before the game started attention was squarely focussed on readying all facilities and preparing the pitch. The newly-laid surface aroused enormous speculation, many thought it would crumble before the first drinks break but expert curator Kasturi Rangan dismissed these alarms with a shy smile and a shrug of his shoulders. "It is a five-day wicket with something in it for everyone," he said. But this hardly satisfied the Indians who saw red due to the hint of green on the surface.
Sanjay Manjrekar, was however, certain the wicket was just right. "For many years we have played on nice tracks at home", he pointed out. The era of designer pitches for spinners went out with Ajit Wadekar. Sanjay is measured and sensible, he weighs words with care and is unlikely to offer a careless opinion or play a careless shot.
Which is what, judged brutally, Sachin did. For hours the great man tolerated Giles, resisting the temptation to butcher him because the team was in trouble. He came close to another Test hundred when his concentration snapped and a huge swipe, meant to send the ball into orbit, resulted in a stumping dismissal. Coming from the master player it was a disappointing shot.
Sachin we all know is a huge star, his presence electrifies spectators, to such an extent that many actually hope a wicket falls so that he comes quicker to the crease. Each time he stops a ball in the field the stands erupt with joy, he is a powerful cash generating machine which produces thousands of runs and millions of dollars.
Which brings up another related point about keeping the interest of spectators in mind. A Test match is a dog-fight with teams jostling for control, and while this happens the cricket, occasionally, becomes tedious. At Ahmedabad the Indians closed shop when confronted by a stiff target and in the process the viewers/spectators endured an uninteresting day's play. The tactics were perfectly legitimate but it made extremely boring cricket. Said an unhappy observer: "We owe it to the public, cricket is entertainment, people are paying big money to come to the ground. Which is why the lights must come up and play has to carry on. You can't put off customers, they are very valuable to the game."
But cricket evolves, and so does Test cricket though the changes can be slow, almost imperceptible. The batsmen play more shots, and there is a greater inclination to put bat to ball.
The players are athletes who train, work out in the gym, lift weights, monitor heart rates and calories, and generally pay as much attention to their bodies as cricket skills.
Some of this new attitude has rubbed off on the selectors too. Each evening Chandu Borde and Jagdale would walk briskly round the field; Madan Lal, Ashok Malhotra and Shivlal hit the hotel treadmill every evening. Between watching play for six hours and trips to the gym, Shiv also made a quick visit to a temple to thank the Gods for his son Arjun's first century in Ranji.
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