An Agonizing Wait Ends

Indian cricket is headed towards greatness, and the win in Pakistan is a giant step in that direction.

India has finally won a Test series overseas - it has been a very long and agonizing wait, but what a series to break thejinx. This team has truly created history. My heartiest congratulations to Saurav Ganguly and the rest of the team fortheir remarkable cricket in Pakistan.

This Indian team has clearly looked the superior side in the series -- be it in professionalism, work ethic, sheertalent, application or coping with pressure.

If there was one clear difference between the two teams, it was batting. I am at a loss to explain thegreat performance of Rahul "The Wall" Dravid. He means so much to this Indian team.

Dravid has been in great form over the last two years and his technique, temperament and commitment are unmatched. He is a team man to the core. I have watched him for many years now, beginning with a domesticgame in 1998. I have always admired the skill and discipline of this exemplary man.

Dravid's fitness regime too touched a peak in the presence of our then trainer AdrianLe Roux, whose routine hestill religiously follows. Only a supremely fit man could have carried on for over 12 hours in extremely hot conditions forhis 270 runs. Had I been there, I would have hoisted him on my shoulders and given him a lap of honour around the ground.

Well done Rahul you were fantastic!!!

Cricket, however, is a team game, and the support given by ParthivPatel, V.V.S. Laxman, Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh ensured that India had to bat only once in this Test, on a relatively difficult pitch.

Opening the batting against a rampaging Shoaib Akhtar is difficult for the best of players, but young Parthiv showedgreat spirit and guts for a non-regular opener. Laxman gave the innings the impetus it needed, and Ganguly came back afteran injury-break and scored a quick 77.

I had mentioned in a previous article that Pakistan's inexperienced batting would be exposed under pressure. Well,it got exposed twice in two innings at Rawalpindi.

Sure, the pitch was doing things on the first morning, but to collapse the way they did showed a lack of experience and applicationfrom the top batsmen.

Inzamam-ul Haq and Yousuf Youhana flattered to deceive throughout this Test series, and the rest performed inpatches.

India's relatively inexperienced bowling attack performed brilliantly on this tour. I can't praise Lakshmipathy Balaji enough. He was the outstanding Indian bowler of the Test. The way he was making the ball move, itappeared as if he was bowling on seaming, green pitches of New Zealand or Australia and not on the flat tracks of Pakistan.

Irfan Pathan bowled very tight in this Test, allowing Balaji to attack from the other end.Ashish Nehra also came back andbowled a couple of good spells. Anil Kumble wrapped up the tail very quickly in the second innings, and just like thebatting, it was a complete team effort in the bowling department.

Pakistan missed Umar Gul badly in this Test. Even though Shoaib and Mohammad Sami bowled fast, they were rarely able toswing the ball. The Indian batsmen played them with relative ease, and once Shoaib got injured and had to leave the field,the load on Sami and the other bowlers was too much.

Wasim Akram once mentioned that the speed gun was killing swing bowling - seeing Sami and Shoaib bowl in this series, thisrings so true. Both bowlers were looking for the 150 kmph ball, but compromised on swing, line and length.

No wonder that Pakistan's most dangerous bowler in this series wasGul, who purely concentrated on swinging the ball. Pakistan's profligacy with the ball meant that Indiawas able to score 600 on a pitch that had something in it for the bowlers.

So much for the pre-series hype that Pakistan's bowling attack was the best in the world -- by the end of theseries, India's bowling looked far superior.

It was shocking to see India drop so many catches on the final day of the Test. Normally the Indians are safecatchers, and I have never seen so many catches go down in one session of play.

Even though it did not prove to be costly, this is clearly one area of improvement for the team. A moreprofessional and accomplished team like Australia would have made us pay dearly for these lapses.

The entire series was played in a very friendly fashion, and has been a great success. The Pakistanis havebeen gracious hosts, and the crowds exemplary.

I hope India can reciprocate this feeling of togetherness when Pakistan tour India. The Indian team has conducted itself verywell, and the players have been terrific ambassadors for our country.

This is a very different Indian team, and a lot of credit is due to Ganguly and our coach John Wright forinculcating that spirit of togetherness. It is a family and not just a team in the dressing room.

On a personal note, I wish I could have been there to share these once-in-a-lifetime moments with my mates.

Well done guys, you have made a billion Indians proud!

PTI