Author: Shamik Chakrabarty

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati The question was about South Africa’s declaration in their second innings. Shukri Conrad, the team’s head coach, came up with a shocker. “We wanted them (India) to really grovel,” he said at the press conference, after the end of the fourth day’s play in the second Test between India and South Africa here in Guwahati. A line was crossed and it wasn’t the boundary line. Probably as part of damage control, Conrad added: “To steal a phrase, bat them completely out of the game and then say to them, ‘well, come and survive on the last…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati For two-and-a-half sessions on Day 4 of the second Test here in Guwahati, the game meandered along. It tested everyone’s patience. South Africa were under no compulsion to add spice to the proceedings. They were happy to pile misery on India, who were just going through the motions. Eventually, 41 minutes after lunch, when the tourists declared on 260/5 in their second innings, their lead swelled to 548. India will have to score 549 to square the series. They finished the day on 27/2, with Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul back in the hut. India stare…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati Slowly but surely South Africa batted India out of the second Test. The lead swelled. The Proteas started Day 4 on 26 for no loss. The lead went past the 400-run mark just after tea. A team can lose a game or a series, but the biggest concern was the body language of the Indian players on the field. Even the three wickets that fell in the first session had muted celebrations. Ravichandran Ashwin’s post on X (formerly Twitter), was timely. “I really hope we can bounce back while batting in the 2nd innings, but the…

Picture credit- Debasis Sen Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati India run the risk of slipping further in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) points table if they lose the second Test against South Africa in Guwahati. Before the start of this game, they were placed fourth with percentage points (PCT) of 54.17. In case they lose here, India might drop to fifth with a PCT, 48.18. The PCT is calculated by points won divided by points contested multiplied by hundred. The ongoing Test is India’s ninth in the current cycle, which means that so far they have contested for…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati Some innovative thinking saw India go with four spinners on a raging Eden Gardens turner in the first Test of the ongoing series against South Africa. Axar Patel was the additional spin-bowling all-rounder and his inclusion prompted the omission of Sai Sudharsan from the playing XI. Washington Sundar was asked to bat at No. 3 and he played 82 balls in the first innings followed by another 92 in the second. It required skill and top-class temperament to bat for 122 minutes in the second dig on that lottery deck. The team management decided to…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati Question: Did the ACA Stadium pitch here in Guwahati change drastically on the third day for the Indian batting to implode? Answer: No. On this surface, Kuldeep Yadav, batting at No. 9, played 134 deliveries and added 72 runs for the ninth wicket with Washington Sundar. That was India’s only rearguard in an otherwise forgettable batting display. Only one batsman, Yashasvi Jaiswal, went past the 50-run mark. Washington’s 48 was the second highest in a sorry scorecard. In the first Test at Eden Gardens, on a Bunsen, Washington was the only Indian batsman to play more…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati Kuldeep Yadav at the press conference after the second day’s play: “… yahan pe pura road tha (we have a road here).” It didn’t age well. On a sluggish pitch that looked placid until yesterday, Indian batsmen were bounced out by Marco Jansen on the third day of the second Test here in Guwahati. At Eden Gardens, they couldn’t play spin on a turner. On an ACA Stadium surface, still pretty good, they failed to handle the lift. Take the case of Dhruv Jurel, the team’s makeshift No. 4 in Shubman Gill’s absence. Less than…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati Shubman Gill is steadily improving and is on his way to the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (COE) in Bangalore for neck rehabilitation, it is learnt. After missing the ongoing Guwahati Test, Gill has also been ruled out of the three-match ODI series against South Africa starting on November 30. Whether he can feature in the five-match T20I series against the Proteas that follows will be based on his progress. The T20I series commences on December 9. On Sunday, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee announced a 15-member squad for the ODIs against South Africa and, in the…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati Kuldeep Yadav gave the punchline: “Kolkata ka pitch alag tha, yahan pe pura road tha (the Kolkata pitch was different, we have a highway here).” Maybe, it summed up the collective mood of the Indian team after a day when South Africa made them toil hard and all but slammed the door shut. Kuldeep, however, added: “So it’s challenging, and this is why it’s called Test cricket.” Pitch-wise, are India moving from one extreme to the other? The question has to be asked, because if batting was a pain in the neck on the Eden…

Shamik Chakrabarty in Guwahati For a moment, let’s rewind to Sitanshu Kotak’s press conference two days before the match. “See, the last match wicket, Gautam (Gambhir) took all the blame on himself,” India’s batting coach had said. Honestly, I will talk all the honest things, what I know and what I feel. He took the blame because he felt that he should not take the blame to the curators.” In Kolkata, it was a case of whose pitch was it anyway. In Guwahati, on a proper Test match surface, albeit sluggish, South Africa posted 489 in their first innings. The…