The Emotion of Watching a Full Day of Test Cricket
As I have grown older (and hopefully wiser), my interests have changed. An idea of a perfect Friday evening has changed from playing board games with friends till 3am to watching a feel good “chick flick” movie and sleeping early. The idea of a perfect vacation has changed from an action packed itinerary to a relaxing time at a beach, reading books and doing nothing.
The idea of a perfect day of cricket has also changed from watching the fast paced white ball cricket to a longer and slower test match cricket. As a teenager, I was a sucker for one day cricket. I went crazy for Tendulkar’s 134 (131) and 143 (131) in Sharjah — yes, I still remember not just his individual scores, but many other stats of these two matches — than his iconic 136 in Chennai against Pakistan or his 155* against Australia. I was always happy when India won tests but one days were more fun.
Over the past decade, my interest has waned from limited overs cricket to test cricket exclusively. My interest in tennis has a lot to contribute to my increased interest in tests. Tennis is not just about the game but about narratives; each of the big three in tennis (Federer, Nadal, Djokovic) have entirely different personalities. There are characters like Nick Kygrios, Sergei Stakhovsky (google him), Fabio Fognini, Victoria Azarenka, Li Na , Marion Bartoli and so many more.
For me, sports is not just about what happens during the contest but about personalities, about narratives, about what happens during the contest when the action is not happening (drinks break, changeovers, locker room).
When we were relocating from US to India, Sukriti made me promise that I won’t become one of those “Indians” who is mad about cricket. I had almost stopped watching cricket in the States and she was (rightfully) concerned that Cricket would come back in my life once I moved back. She had a rude awakening when I watched the final session of the final test between England and Pakistan during our vacation in Goa! The transformation was complete.
Today, the second day of the first test of Border-Gavaskar trophy 2023, was one wholesome day of test cricket. India and Australia are the top two test playing nations in World Cricket, and we are in the era where Australians care equally (or probably more) about conquering India in India than winning Ashes in England. They may not say it publicly due to the history of Ashes, but in their hearts they know it. The pre-series narratives are there. The supposed doctoring of pitches to assist Indian spinners. The hiring of Ashwin’s doppelgänger to help them prepare for the challenge. The floating images on social media showing their top two batsmen touching the pitch to understand its behaviour. This builds intrigue. This brings impatience. This makes us nervous. India is the favourites to win the series — what if we don’t?
India started the second day in a dominant position with just 100 runs behind and 9 wickets in hand. But in our hearts we knew the situation is not as good. For the last two seasons, Kohli and Pujara have not been in form. Our lower order, while good, is still prone to a collapse. Surya Kumar Yadav — the top T20 batter — is untested on “rank turners.” A fourth innings target of even 150 is anything but a home run in Indian conditions. And no matter how strong our bowling unit is, there is Smith and Labuschagne in the opposition.
The day ended with India sitting pretty with a lead of 144, 3 wickets in hand and two half centurions at the crease. But what it did not tell us was the ebbs and flows of the day.
It is amazing how a long day is defined by so many small key moments. Rohit and Ashwin started pretty but Ashwin got reviewed for LBW by Aussies. Ashwin’s confidence during the review calmed me, which suddenly changed to despair when the ball tracking was shown. Pujara’s confident jabs settled me but his mis-attempted sweep suddenly meant India was three down with a suspect Virat Kohli and the debutant SKY to follow — in no time India could be 118/1 to 130/5.
The day’s run rate was a measly, supposedly boring, 2.7 runs an over, but it masks the action that happens during all those defensive jibes. A day when the teams score at 3.5 an over is less interesting than the one where the batting team is still dominant but scoring slowly. It is an even contest between the bat and the ball. The fields are attacking, bowlers are looking for wickets. There is banter behind the stumps. Thing happen almost every over.
For example that bat-pad of Rohit Sharma which flew just a couple of inches away from the short leg right after lunch. Like those two close LBW shouts against Jadeja where the balls were hitting the middle of middle stump but he survived only because (1) the impact was “umpire’s call” and (2) On field umpire’s decision was not out. Twenty two yards of pitch, big circular grounds, five days of cricket; yet it is a game of inches.
Like the cheer of watching Smith drop Rohit Sharma at slip right after the new ball was taken to the scream as his stump cartwheeled the very next ball.
Like the frustration of watching Kohli getting out in the most ridiculous ways possible (caught behind the leg side) the first ball after lunch. Like that expletives during the mix up between Rohit and Kohli (and later Rohit and Jadeja) while running between the wickets. In white ball cricket these incidents affects me less because there’s pressure of scoring quickly. In red ball cricket these incidents make you tear your hair off.
Narratives matter in test cricket because the duration is long. From a statistics’ perspective, it doesn’t matter whether Kohli goes out on the final ball before lunch or the first ball after lunch. But in the world of test cricket, that makes a huge difference because there’s a long period of forty minutes in between those two balls.
It is hard to describe the emotions when we are thinking of a lead of 200 and an innings victory at lunch, to constantly looking at the deficit and calculating how a probable lead of just 20 will affect our chances of victory. All in a matter of twenty minutes.
Narratives change, strategies change. Smith dropped Jadeja at the slip on the penultimate ball of the day. He would have certainly caught that two hours ago. India ended the day with Jadeja’s wicket intact. He may well get out the first ball of day 3, but the mental damage of Jadeja surviving tonight is significant on the outcome because Australia now have half a day to dwell over the missed opportunity.
Test Cricket is such a gift that cannot be explained in words; it can only be experienced. Not just by looking at score cards, or by watching it in patches, and definitely not by watching highlights! But by getting hooked into it for a whole day. There aren’t a lot of days when I watch test cricket, and even lesser days when I get to watch it for a full day. But the days I get to do, like today, I realise once again why I love this format so much. Every day of every good test match is a brand new experience comprising of multiple highs and lows in a single day. The high is mostly short lived, and despair can be averted because things, ironically, change very quickly in test cricket.
Even after all of this, there is no respite because one has to go through the same drama tomorrow!
Every single day I get to watch this beautiful game in this entirety, I cherish it for the wholesome experience it offers. And it never gets old, it never gets repetitive.
