Batting their way to a boring finale

One of my favourite loves is the game of cricket and I have long argued against the jibes of non cricket-lovers that the game is boring and worse, ridiculous, when it can go on for 5 days and there is no result. Ah, I have argued but it's not just the result that matters. It's the skilful appreciation of the conditions, to know the strength of your batting and bowling, to know when to declare and put the other side in, to time a run chase etc etc - knowing full well that my sceptical friends, here and abroad, would not believe a word of it.

I have to say that the game between the West Indies and England, just ended in Barbados, made my defence very shaky. It is a measure of my confidence in the England team at present than when they were able to declare at 600 for 6 wickets, I thought the pitch must be a carpet on which the West Indoes would do almost as well, batting second. In fact they did a damn sight better making an incredible 794 for 9 declared and virtually ensuring that the game was drawn, England making certain of that by batting safely today.

But are games like this going to safeguard the future of test cricket? Yes it was wonderful to see Ramnaresh Sarwan score 291 and his batting partner young Denesh Ramdin score 166 , his first test century but games like this are pointless and simply add fuel to the fire of critics who see no point in a game which is simply a feat of endurance where it becomes clear pretty early on that it will simply fizzle out into a draw despite all the batting heroics.





The West Indies, in particular, while wonderful contributors to the high scoring will be one of the major victims if cricket gets too many Tests like this. Youngsters in the West Indies are not playing cricket as they once did, instead turning to baseball as a more exciting game which gets a result. The talent the West Indies once had, when they dominated the world game is no more - and its unlikely to return.

Pitches have to be prepared which produce a better game between bat and ball than this. OK one of the problems could well be very average bowling attacks on both sides but the incredibly flat pitch with hardly any deviation for the bowlers, certainly didn't help. Somehow cricket needs to get the crowds back all over the world - and games like this one will not help!!