Pakistan v West Indies, 1st Test, Lahore, 2nd day

Where have all the grafters gone?

The Verdict by Osman Samiuddin in Lahore

November 12, 2006

Surrender: Ramnaresh Sarwan was unable to bat through to the close, as West Indies hurtled towards defeat at Lahore © Getty Images

Test cricket has never been played at a quicker pace than in this modern age. Since over-rates are universally poor, it is the batsmen's scoring we refer to. Run rates and strike rates are rising and a score of 300 runs in a day is only just about par, where once it was exceptional.

Some combination of flat pitches and a dip in the quality of bowling has played a part, but the most significant factor has been the change in mindsets of batsmen. That is to say, a batsman of the 2000s is, broadly, more aggressively-inclined than his predecessor.

Obviously, this is no bad thing, as games are eminently more watchable and result-orientated. But in all the rush, we should spare a thought for one of cricket's endearing quirks - the grafter - whose role has faded away quietly.

Grafters never make good viewing; they are, by definition, a bit dull. But there is a perverse pleasure in watching a batsman dig in for a 200-ball 30, especially when it saves a Test. Taking hits, leaving balls, rarely striking out. Erecting a monument of self-denial. Several of cricket's epics, old and new, have been of this ilk; Hanif's 337, Atherton's 185 or Ponting's 156 to recall but a few.

They have lessened over time, however, because batsmen capable of that kind of innings are few and far between. Rahul Dravid never shies from a good, sweaty battle and neither does Justin Langer if it serves a purpose. In the 1990s, we've also had the dubious pleasure of watching Gary Kirsten and Michael Atherton taking out mortgages at the crease for days, saving Tests. Not many of the batsmen on display at Lahore are capable of such feats. Unfortunately for West Indies, it might be precisely what they need to save this Test.

Even as they faced up to a daunting 279-run deficit and a mammoth amount of time to bat out, they fairly sped off, intent apparently on eating into the lead and setting a total. It was attractive stuff. Chris Gayle thumped some crunching boundaries, as did Ramnaresh Sarwan and Brian Lara and the rate never dropped below three an over, at times touching four.

Lara's touch appeared particularly golden, as two fours off the first two balls he faced bore testament. But his side lost three more wickets in 21 overs than they needed to, Gayle needn't have played the stroke he did and Daren Ganga needn't have attempted the run he did. Forget winning, even drawing seems a forlorn hope, despite the loss of, on average, 15 overs a day to bad light.

Lara is still there and he has only recently saved a Test, against India, with a most uncharacteristically restrained hundred. He can do it again but his legend is built on thrilling counterattacks rather than gritty defiance. As one journalist quipped, if Lara continues tomorrow as he did this afternoon - 28 off 49 balls with four boundaries and much bristling intent - West Indies are more likely to win than they are to draw.

As Lara proved against India, the quality can be manufactured for those not accustomed to it. Matthew Hayden's career was nearing an unlikely end when he suddenly decided to switch from chest-puffed-out bluster to broad-shouldered introspection. By becoming a little more like his opening partner and realising he cannot forever stand halfway down the pitch and drive merrily, he has revived his career. To a more subtle degree, Mohammad Yousuf has also undergone a similar awakening.

He hasn't lost any of the fundamental grace of his game but he has located a solid core. As he moved nearer to a third double-hundred in a year (ending instead on a second 192 in three Tests), he did so more with application and accumulation. The cover-drives, glances and dabs were pulled out, only they came out less frequently than they have in the past. The elegance was not as sustained and intense as it once used to be, but with over 1200 runs this year alone, he is unlikely to care.

Osman Samiuddin is Pakistan editor of Cricinfo

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Pakistan v West Indies, 1st Test, Lahore

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Pakistan v West Indies at Lahore

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Mike Atherton

Chris Gayle

Hanif Mohammad

Gary Kirsten

Brian Lara

Mohammad Yousuf

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West Indies tour of Pakistan

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Pakistan