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Plays of the Day
Zak gets Cook-ed and the missing banner of the day
Dileep Premachandran at Lord's
July 19, 2007
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Slapstick comedy: Dinesh Karthik messes up a dolly of a catch
© Getty Images
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Drop of the day - The cap doesn't fit: Dinesh Karthik's attempt to
catch Andrew Strauss just before lunch was pure slapstick. There was a
little anticipatory jump, even though the ball was coming to him at eye
level, and it then burst through his hands to knock his cap off. India's
best outfielder had spilled the easiest of chances, and provided the
perfect snapshot to encapsulate a mediocre day for his team.
Top shot - Zak gets Cook-ed: Zaheer Khan's first spell was a truly
woeful one and, when he dropped one short, Alastair Cook was so quickly
into position that the pull just rocketed to the square-leg fence. There
was a peachy Michael Vaughan cover-drive off Sourav Ganguly later in the
day, but Cook's aggressive intent was what established English dominance.
Ball of the day - How to make an impression: Your new-ball bowlers
have been as effective as the wolf huffing and puffing to blow the
house down, and you turn instead to your former captain, a man who bowls
at 70 mph. With his fourth ball, he gets you a wicket, breaching the
defence of the dangerous Cook. Eleven years after making a century on
debut at Lord's, Sourav Ganguly's timing is once again spot on.
Shocker of the day: Anil Kumble's first ball was an attempted
googly. It emerged from the hand as a looping waist-high full toss.
Strauss was so surprised that he could only put it away for a single.
How not to get a hundred: Premeditated charges have caused plenty
of batsmen grief against Kumble in the 17 summers since he made his Test
debut. And when Strauss chose the Light-Brigade option when on 96, he paid
a heavy price. Having committed to the stroke, he might as well have given
it a wallop but an attempt at cuteness only found Dravid's hands at slip.
The new face of English cricket: Monty Panesar is everywhere,
smiling enigmatically at you from NPower hoardings and stickers. A year
ago, Duncan Fletcher appeared reluctant to play him. Now, an England team
without Monty is almost unthinkable. And with Flintoff, Harmison and
Hoggard out of commission, he's now the most senior bowler in the side.
Missing banner of the day: Time was when Indian fans would arrive
at a game in England with those hand-painted banners that said Give 'em
Curry. No longer. It would be a futile taunt anyway, given how eagerly the
English have embraced curry - or their version of it.
Dileep Premachandran is associate editor of Cricinfo
© Cricinfo
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