Years ago I saw Michael Jordan’s last ever 40 point game. It was when he was with the Wizards. By halfway through the 3rd term it became obvious that no one in the stadium gave a shit about the result of the game.
They were all there for Jordan, and since he was putting on a vintage display, the game just faded away.
I have no idea what the result of the game was. I do remember some of Jordan’s reverse lay ups, some fade aways, and him pick pocketing Jason Kidd. After the game we got back to our Hostel and there were about 40 people with Jordan singlets on.
I can only image that is what people will feel like today. Some people might remember the game, but even with Australia winning this becomes Sachin’s game.
When Sachin caught White off the last ball of the innings, he threw the ball into the ground in a very pissed off manner. He knew India had played pretty ordinary to let Australia score 350.
Sachin wasn’t the only one, Dhoni ran off the ground without his team mates, Yuvraj and Praveen Kumar were still in conversation about a piece of lazy assed fielding. The senior players knew that they had been gifted a weak Australian side and they were in danger of losing.
Sehwag batted as he always does. Gautam City looked in an odd mood. Neither Dhoni or Yuvraj seemed quite on it. Raina had a lot of luck, but eventually went out to an ugly shot. Bhajji never got started. Jadeja kept pusihing the limits of sensible running. Praveen tried his hardest. Ashish and Patel were never going to get it done.
Those were the ten dudes. A collection of shit hot batsmen who were made to look like dribbling fools compared to Sachin.
He scored over half the runs, passed some unimportant milestone, seemed to be dragging Raina and Jadeja by the neck like kittens, and then eventually went out to a shot that wasn’t even thought of when he started playing.
India didn’t deserve to win, but Sachin did. I wanted him to make 200 and win the game, but he came up short and had pretty much no help at all.
I could go on about his innings, but he said it best.
“I was striking the ball pretty well”.
Yes, you were.
I shed a tear.
And you still do not like him enough to put him in your hall of fame.
Btw Tendulkar is the 3rd most trending topic right now. A lot of Indians are awake filling up the twitter server. It has been that kind of knock- everyone is talking about it.
Umm, so why did he give his wicket to McKay again?
[...] knowledge – Jadeja was a classic example today! What on earth was he running for?? As Jrod says, Those were the ten dudes. A collection of shit hot batsmen who were made to look like dribbling [...]
The only one who could have got him out was a bloke he hadn’t played (and probably had never heard of) before. That made sense to me.
“Tendulkar is the 3rd most trending topic right now. A lot of Indians are awake filling up the twitter server.”
so what’s new? What else do Indians ever twit on about?
India lost – that’s all that counts.
I thought the Australians played quite well. What a shame they just can’t ever match those Indians. Ponting should’ve shown the graciousness to gift them the match.
Before a ball was bowled I read this on the cricinfo commentary:
Link here: http://www.cricinfo.com/indvaus2009/engine/current/match/416240.html?innings=1;view=commentary
Nice prediction – but does it count as throwing your wicket away after you’ve single-handedly scored 175 at 7.45 runs an over?
Also why does Ponting doing his best to lose matches with his bowling choices? Specialist batsman Mike Hussey bowled 3 overs? Really? Two ODI wickets in 125 matches to date. Surely Hopes, Hauritz or White were better alternatives..
I seem to recall him doing this in a Test vs India last year as well. Great batsman, but a bit of a muppet sometimes.
Gregg, I love bagging Ponting, but I spose he had a choice between Hauritz, Hussey and Voges. Look at the figures.
One day cricket is shit, I can;t believe we are even talking about this
I normally hate 300+ slogathons but that game was a cracker. I think because it was a bouncy pitch rather than a slow 300+ wicket. Makes for more attractive cricket. And Sachin – wow!
At the risk of stirring up a hornets nest – has Praveen Kumar’s action been tested recently? It seems to be getting worse. It’s possibly when he tries the inswinger that it looks ugliest.
Hewy, you racist.
Well I’m pleased Coventry’s record stands.
This record
.-= Leg Break´s last blog ..Bowling through India, with giveaway =-.
@breakleg – imagine my surprise when i was checking the stats on cricinfo…coventry..wtf? last nite i was just hoping that tendulkar would get past anwar’s 194 but apparently coventry’s is a NO.
Nevermind the bollocks. If you like cricket, this was a great game to watch and a great innings. Had a bit of dust in my eye when he got out. Made me wish I were 6 drinks in so I’d have an excuse.
I felt like ripping my guts off and eating them again. It was AGONIZING.
morethanjustagame.wordpress.com
pakistanis have always loved claiming that sachin is no great cuz he can never finish the match. tonight would seem like such an example, but like every generalization it requires a closer look, and you’ve said it best jrod – the other guys were about as useful as a pair of skis in karachi.
my heart breaks for sachin, he’s played as many lone hand losing innings as lara. before, like in chennai in 1999 you thought that well the rest of the team sucked shit. but this line up is the best indian line up i have ever seen, surely they could have put together 176 runs between the 10 of them.
i wonder how ponting feels – lost the ashes with a superior side, winning in india with a vastly inferior side…
just saw the cricinfo list – sachin has 6 of the top 22 highest scores in losing causes in odis… lara has none…
Lara leads the test one I’m sure!
karachi, this is Punter’s unpredictable world now. It looks to me like he enjoys it. I have far more respect for him than I did when he was surrounded by superstars.
Sachin can’t be blamed by fans for this loss. How in the hell could he?
For me, in modern cricket, it was always Lara, Sachin, Ponting.
I think it was those many years when Sachin was troubled by elbow injuries etc, and Lara was piling the runs on.
I’ve changed my mind. It’s definitely Sachin, Lara, Ponting.
@manduwala, if chuckers are a race to themselves, then your description of me is accurate.
hmm..
he tried that shot and succeeded many times and at that time he needs to play that shot. U can’t blame his commitment.
Tendulkar’s innings was all the more remarkable in that it was on a flat, true, non-seaming, non-swinging road against a second rate domestic bowling attack. No way would he have performed so well had he had to face a barrage of premier leather flingers* such as Cockley, Lee, Starc, Clark, Bird, Bracken, Hazlewood, Thornely, Cameron and Casson.
The other ten Indians are the story here – on a pitch that good against an attack that ordinary is an absolute disgrace
*Copyright worlds second worst cricket commentator
in response to Hewy -
Why is it that out of all the cricket playing nations its the Aussies that have problems with bowling action. Muralidharan, Harbhajan, Shoib Akhtar and the list goes on….
Me thinks…… because you cant play them you try to blotch them. Historically Aussies have been the most pompous bunch of cricketers ever and dont even get me started on sportmanship…. check the link out SHIT SCARED underarm bowlers. PERIOD!!
in response to Hewy -
Why is it that out of all the cricket playing nations its the Aussies that have problems with bowling action. Muralidharan, Harbhajan, Shoib Akhtar and the list goes on….
Me thinks…… because you cant play them you try to blotch them. Historically Aussies have been the most pompous bunch of cricketers ever and dont even get me started on sportmanship…. check the link out SHIT SCARED underarm bowlers. PERIOD!!
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/387236/underarm_bowling_in_cricket/
Sachin had no support.
Sachin played well no doubt but more important is team lost if you score 200 and still cant win the match for team then that is meaningless. sachin is not a good game finisher. what is the meaning of making 175 if he cant make last 18 runs when the rate was just abot run a ball.
India has no chance in world cup 2011. same pitches same bowling attack.
poopsie
who’s the worst? I thought Roebuck was bottom of the barrel.
It was a depressing day (or should I say, night) for me at the end of the match. While Australia can look at Sachin and rejoice, the Indians had lessons to learn from the match yesterday.
Regards
Madhu
Sachin deserved to win, his team mates let him down. Barely a complete cricketing brain between them.
The prospect of getting beat at home by what is basically – give or take a few players – an Aussie second team is getting to MS Dhoni and his merry men.
.-= cricketbettingblog´s last blog ..Pakistan V New Zealand – 2nd ODI Betting Preview =-.
Tendulkar’s knock put in perspective the quality of the Aussie attack. However, he seemed to be the only one getting to face the ordinary bowling!! Second implosion in two games. A series loss against a C-string Australian side would be a nice kick up Dhoni’s backside for dropping the likes of Irfan Pathan and sticking to the Jadejas.
Jay, a West indian bowler got called (can’t remember which one, Morton or Samuels?) for a dodgy action. No Aussies involved. Johan Botha got called in a domestic game in SA. No Aussies involved. Pakistan players have been called with no Aussies involvement in the match.
This is like the excuse that only Sachin every gets poor decisions against him.
And don’t you think that umpries have minds of their own?
Apart from Rudi that is. Historically he is hopelessly swayed by the crowd.
A man can only do so much. (to all sachins crtics)
As far as Kumars action is concerned it does look dodgy but I think its because he uncocks his wrist as he delivers which appears as if he is chucking. Definitely needs veryfying
If he was chucking it ,I dont see any advantage, it only comes out at 79 – 80 mph (unlike some 100 mph yorkers)
@CM: “Umm, so why did he give his wicket to McKay again?”
For the same reason the Don got out for a duck, needing just 4, to what-was-his-name…the vagaries of cricket, and life.
@poopsie: “Tendulkar’s innings was all the more remarkable in that it was on a flat, true, non-seaming, non-swinging road against a second rate domestic bowling attack.”
No, mate. It was FANTASTIC because other batsman also batted on it – Ponting, Watson, Marsh, Dhoni, Sehwag, Yuvraj, et al – and no one will remember what they did or did not do on the night.
@Rehan Khan: “sachin is not a good game finisher. what is the meaning of making 175 if he cant make last 18 runs when the rate was just abot run a ball.”
The man is still human. To expect him to give a good START (isn’t he an opener) and also to FINISH by hitting the last run in a 350-chase is asking too much of one man…cricket is still a team game with 21 other players who can affect a game! And that’s why Australian units are always highly competitive…all 11 men fight bloody hard!
below link for those who have doubts that sachin is not a good finisher….please refer to the solid facts instead of free statements out of nowhere….
http://www.cricinfo.com/indvaus2009/content/current/story/433228.html
Not only Sachin is great finisher of the game, but he is also a great in winning hearts all around the globe..
Cheers!!
@Gavs: truth to power!
If you blame that sachin didn’t finish…what were other 10 players in the team doing ?. Why play with 11 players for indian side..play just with sachin..
sachin was in the list of 6 out of top 22 losing odis biggest scores…..that proves..the above statement..Lara wont be there..becos he too was out early when everyone got out in their team.
Had any of you achieved what sachin is today..I am sure , your feet wont be in the ground.
Pakis – stay off commenting on Sachin
UR country has nothing worthy of mention in the same breath as that of Sachin
Go join your Mullahs
Bloody hell, one latter-day Bradman and ten other players that looked like Sachin picked them out of the stands on the way in…
Glad I’m not in Dhoni’s shoes atm…
The most succinct and brilliant article about yesterday’s game!!!!
those who are blaming tendulkar for the loss are not only cruel, but do not understand squat about cricket. Leave aside all emotions, when a guy soaks up and beats the pressure of scoring at seven an over for 47 overs while wickets kept tumbling around him, and scores more than half the runs at a better strike rate than required, he should not be asked to do much else. Scoring 19 off 17 balls, unless the batsmen are complete bunnies is an easy task especially in the era of twenty20. Also, the batting order was more to blame. At 53 to win from 48 balls, why send in Harbhajan at no.7. He is known as a hitter and at that point just wasn’t needed. It was better to get a more accomplished batsman in Jadeja. He could have moved the ball around with sachin and brought the rate below six an over. Then even if sachin had gotten out, the lesser batsmen would not have to face the pressure of scoring more than a run a ball. I am pretty sure those who are blaming tendulkar are supporters of Lara and Ponting, and being too petty to give a great man his due. Tendulkar scored 175 off 141, all the other ten had to do was score 176 off 159, does that seem too difficult on a flat track.?
You guys need to stop being petty schoolgirls
Dhoni not even mentioning Sachin’s performance in the post match presentation was downright disrespectful. This team doesn’t even deserve him.
.-= Dijo´s last blog ..Consuuuuume the animal’s fear =-.
You are right in your assessment CMIS. But your data is slightly wrong! The ten needed to score only 159 in 162 deliveries (because there were 17 extras and 3 no balls don’t count). That’s less than run a ball on the Uppal pitch! It was great toss to win for Ponting. When we talk about class, Lara is of the same class in batting and does come as a good competitor of Sachin in test cricket. But Sachin is way ahead of Lara and Ponting in ODI version. This cricketer whose centuries don’t win India the game, has only 32 ODI centuries in winning cause! and what’s the next highest number of total centuries by any other individual? 28
Thanks satyajit, I forgot about the extras.
CMIS, Brahmin, kkumar et al
although one of you is a dick, and the others aren’t, i am still posting a collective response. i don’t think anyone here is saying sachin can’t finish. or that he’s not a match winner. the general consensus is that people find it shocking how many times he has been let down by his team mates.
i’ll be honest, post-chennai i felt that under pressure sachin can’t finish games. but haivng seen his team fuck him over several times, i think that in clutch situations every other indian team mate seems to work overtime to fuck things up even more, leaving sachin to clean up the mess. i think he literally takes it to the maximum possible limit for a human to go before he gives up.
having sai that, i don’t get why there has been a deluge of indian commenters picking on people who think sachin isn’t a finisher, especailly since that opinion is not really present on this comments page. why are some of you getting so defensive?
.-= karachikhatmal´s last blog ..To Look or To Love – Voyeurism in Pakistan =-.
I cant understand what the fuss is. Saching played well but India LOST. End of story. Yet again. as long as Sachin cant finish matches all such performances just benefit his statistics and not the team. And the less said about the rest of the team the better especially the assinine Jadeja..its time to dump him for good. Seems like every time the Indian tail is left the task to finish a match they play like chickens with their heads cut.
I think some credit is due to McKay for that clever slower ball.Sachin was tired, and I think he just wanted an easy boundary or 2 runs with that scoop.He will be the first one to admit that he should have played a proper cricketing shot, or used more power in that scoop. The simple reason he did not do that, was that he was tired and did not read the slower one well. It happens.He is human.
What is inexcusable: Jadeja’s run out, Bhajji’s lazy poke, and PK not diving for that risky second.
Dhoni’s blooper was in sending Bhajji above Jadeja.
Assuming Sachin got out after his 45th ton, the margin would have been much higher.Sachin’s knock is making us all believe that India competed well to come close.
Lesson learnt: Unless a miracle happens, we Indians should be happy if we even reach the Semis of the 2011 world cup. Let us all thank IPL for effing up the priorities of the young players. It will be a very long time before we see the next Dravid or VVS come up for India, leave alone Sachin.
Steve – worst commentator is Tony Grieg
Gavs – Along with most of worldwide cricket fans, you are caught up in Sachin hysteria. It doesn’t matter what other players do, everyone always remembers what Sachin did or did not do in every game he plays. For example when you ask people about the 2003 World Cup final, it is not Ponting’s match winning innings that is remembered, but Tendulkar’s failure. For sure it was a great innings the other day, but when a bozo like Watson makes 90 odd, takes 3 for and is probably most responsible for winning the game – he is only remembered by The Skiver and Lee Furlong. And both of these for vastly different reasons
@poopsie..
Watson made 93 runs out of 350. He took only 3 wickets out of 10. Then how can india lose only on his performance. If he is a match winner then what should i say abt sachin. Marsh,white, mckay, watson, ponting, hussy , bolinger all have part in that win. This is a team game. Sachin did really well more than a normal cricketer can do. Stop blaming sachin and mind ur own business. Who are the bloody hell to ask his commitment. Can u show me the other cricketer who won the team that many times?