Archives

by Gerry Vaidyasekera

I, fully, totally and completely agree with my young Wisden colleague, Sa'adi Thowfeeq, Sports Editor, Daily News, in his remark that Test Cricket has been ridiculed by two batsmen giving themselves out. It is true that it is our responsibility and duty as correspondents of the century old famous Cricketers' Bible, to comment sharply, without fear or prejudice, and in the process expose the poor knowledge of our so called "Pundits"; in over looking this unsavoury and unprecedented tomfoolery of Test Cricket, any mockery of cricket.

Even the scorers were at a loss to record whether the batsmen were out or retired hurt. So were the commentators. This has never happened before.

Any batsman at any stage of his innings is free to walk out of the wicket, never to return. His innings is considered over and that effects his Batting Average. If the batsman is injured and wishes to retire, he must first obtain the consent of the fielding captain to do so. In this event, the batsman is considered not out and free to return later. This not out innings boosts his Batting Average. How this elementary rule escaped the eyes of our Captain and Coach beats me.

Let me shower both with a few questions. What was the necessity to declare our innings closed so early on the second day. The severe drought is on and there are no signs of rain, not even rain clouds.

Second, it was the Second Day of the Five-day Test, and like the Ides of March, come but not yet gone. Why this indecent hurry to declare? Do you, captain, wish me to believe that our boys need more than three days to dismiss the inexperienced Bangladesh babies a second time? If we need more than three days to dismiss them, are we worthy of Test Status? Is Murali a world class spinner? We dismissed them for 90, batting first and on the first day. Surely there must be something else behind it.

As my colleague wrote, I, too, spent hours till late in the night in spite of light cuts, for a similar incident, but I never found one. Surely there are better records to be set up by our boys in Cricket.

Next I come to the two batsmen - the two Ms. Mervan and Mahela, who delighted my grand children and myself, with a masterly display of sparkling batting. And what a Batting Rate! May I ask this question from you. Did you score faster than these two batsmen when scoring 340 against the Indians at Colombo, 1997-98. You batted for 799 minutes, spread over three days, second only to Haneef Mohammad's 337 in 970 minutes against the West Indians at Bridgetown in 1957-58.

Did your captain, Captain Cool, declare the innings closed or call you to the pavilion, or ask you to speed up for a win. Instead you scored a triple hundred at your sweet pace. Our boys recorded a World Record Total in Tests. Your captain delayed the declaration and the game was drawn. But all were happy as new records were set up. Our fervent prayer and hope is to record more and more feats of our boys in Wisden's and earn world wide fame.

Again, I ask you why this hasty declaration on the second day, when our star batsmen, well in form, displayed majestic batting that gave me full hopes of two new world records. They were seeing the ball as large as world globes in class rooms. No two batsmen ever recorded two scores of over 300 in the same innings of a Test. The world record for the third wicket was dangling before their eyes. Your 340 was at stake. The call to speed up and to retire, upset the tall debutant Michael Van Dort to lift the ball.

These three batsmen will never get this golden opportunity again. As you grow in years, so does your batting skill decline, as it is with our captain. There is a tide in the affairs of men, which if never grasped, will never return.

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