19/3/15

Dear Diary,

A few days just kicking back and chilling out have left me refreshed and ready to get back into the cricket.

Quarter Final 1 was yesterday where South Africa blew Sri Lanka out of the park in what was one of the shortest quarter final games in history. Surely that kind of mismatch couldn't happen two days in a row ... could it?

Quarter final 2 is today's big match in Melbourne and the one I have tickets for and I’m looking forward to it too. India V. Bangladesh.

I must admit, I laughed myself silly when Bangladesh knocked England out of the running for the quarter finals. It felt like irony was watching as England, who were keen to devise a format of the world cup that would ensure only the “top” teams progressed through and the “minnows” were left behind, were the ones who were actually left behind. But now that it comes down to the day of the match that England could/should/would have been playing in I had to admit that I probably would have preferred to see them playing in this knockout match. They only have themselves to blame as they didn't play well enough to deserve to be here. But Bangladesh did and that's why they're here and not England are not. (I wonder what format will be devised for future world cups that will guarantee “Great” nations like England are guaranteed Quarter final berths)

And perhaps Bangladesh will pull off a surprise victory over India today. They have beaten them in the past and Bangladesh have played with a certain amount of composure in their victory over Scotland and Determination in their victory over England. If they manage to pull both those things together in this game they could topple a giant.

Today's family member that I haven't seen for twenty years is my Dad. What can I say ... families are difficult. It’s a strange relationship and an estranged one for a long while too broken only by sporadic bursts of emails that descend into anger far too quickly. When I bought my tickets for the World Cup I bought a spare for this match, sent Dad an email telling him I have a ticket for him if he wants to join me, and waited, and hoped. Months later he replied with a yes.

I’ve spent a lot of time over the last few months wondering if he would show up and a lot of time over the last few days wondering what I would say if he did. We have arranged to meet at the Shane Warne statue outside the M.C.G. and when I arrive there bang on time ... he’s not there.

I’m sure that this is the last chance for both of us to get things back on track. how will I handle it if he doesn't show up today? what will I say if he does? how am I going to handle this? The oxygen seems thin today. I Lean on Warnie for some support when a guy who looks a bit like my Dad, except 20 years older, comes round the corner of the statue. He stops and looks at me and holds out his hand for shaking, crunch time, moment of truth, how do I handle this, I brush his hand away a go in for a hug. Twenty years of hurt starts to chip away in the shadow of a legend.

We make it inside the ground with plenty of time to see the toss which India won and chose to bat first. A four off the first ball shows India is intent on setting a big score today. Both openers look keen and up for it. There are a few close instances that keep Bangladesh hopes that a breakthrough is coming at any moment, an edge to slip that falls short, the ball nearly getting chopped back onto the stumps, but the breakthrough eventually comes via a quality stumping to send Dhawan out for 30 in the 17th over. India have walked to 1/75. Kohli walks out and is greeted by the biggest cheer of the day and an over later he walks back to the dressing room, out for 3, to a large cheer from a different section of the crowd. You would struggle to say that Bangladesh are on top at this time but they have squeezed the usually fluent scoring Indian batsmen into a less free scoring mode with some tight bowling and sharp fielding highlighted by the Indian hundred finally coming up in the 26th over. Wickets are the key for Bangladesh though and when Rahane is out well caught off an ordinary shot for 19 the celebrations from the Bangladesh team are so exuberant that it leads to two of them knocking each other to the floor after an energetic chest bump goes awry. It’s the funniest moment of the day and puts Bangladesh in a good position to press home the advantage (India are 115/3 off 28 overs) but also the last thing that Bangladesh had to laugh about for the rest of the match.

A drinks break and a short rain break brings some sloppiness into the Bangladesh outfit, missed catch, overthrows, fielders caught on heels allowing singles all allow India to step up their attack and cut loose in the batting powerplay.
Bangladesh need a breakthrough and they think they have it when danger-man Sharma is caught at midwicket. Don’t celebrate too early though as the umpires have called it a no ball. From my ‘fan in the stand’ point of view I can't figure out why it is a no ball. There’s no free hit signaled so it can't be front foot error, the big screen replay looks fine to me (sure it’s a full toss but it is below the waist), so I’m left thinking that there were too many men outside the infield circle. It’s not until I get home hours later and check the internet that I find out it was controversially called a full toss no ball on height above the waist. Ridiculous.

Bad decision made by the umpire at a crucial point of the game. Sharma was breaking India free of Bangladesh bowling shackles at the time and even though there's no way we can tell what-would-have-been if he was given out there and then the fact is he was on 90 at the time with India 196/3 in the 40th over and went on to be 136 when eventually out in the 47th over having helped India on to 273/5.

India eventually finish their 50 overs on 302/6.

Holding their composure is the only hope Bangladesh have of chasing down this total and a good start has hopes floating as Tamim Iqbal races to a run a ball 25 before nicking one to the keeper. He stands his ground and refuses to walk and the umpires take an age to refer it to the 3rd umpire for help, the 3rd umpire takes an age to give it out, and the batsman took an age to walk off the field. End decision: out. caught behind. The very next ball there is a silly, comical, run out. and Bangladesh lose all composure and with it their chance of taking this chase close

Mahmudullah is caught on the boundary edge to a juggling catch by Dhawan who has to lob it up in the air before his foot touches the boundary then return to the field of play to complete the catch. For the second time in the match a bangladeshi batsman refuses to walk and the 3rd umpire is called in to adjudicate again. The replays at the ground look inconclusive one way or the other but the TV umpire deems it a fair catch and the last of Bangladesh’s hopes walk off the field with Mahmudullah .

Bangladesh try hard to stay in the game and at the 28 over point are not far off the pace (at the same point India were 115/3 : Bangladesh are 105/5) but even if they stay on target its hard to imagine them scoring 100 off the last 10 overs.

They don't stay on target and a succession of soft dismissals and pressure shots trying to pick up the pace lead them to lurch to being all out for 193 in the 45th over, 109 runs short of the required target.

After eight hours of cricket and eight hours of talking painful family history things over with my Dad a couple of things have been sorted out. India will progress through to the semi final in Sydney next week while the progress Bangladesh made in getting through to the knockout stage of the competition has given them a new plateau to push on from and continue to be more competitive in the future.

And the new plateau of understanding that my Father and I have arrived at should also give us a more stable grounding on which to stand on in the future.

The healing power of cricket eh?




"Look for the ridiculous in everything and you will find it." Jules Renard - (1864 - 1910)