India...back in business !

At the end of the 4th day in the first test at Antigua against the West Indies, India had set the opponents an improbable target to overhaul. After being totally dominated for the better part of the first two days of the test India showed the grit and steely resolve it was made of, and the batting finally clicked in this tour of the Carribean. The Indian batsmen, led by Wasim Jaffer who made his maiden double ton, were upto the challenge posted by the inexperienced and the stereotype West Indian pace attack and never let the scars of the one dayers affect their performance. It was pleasing to see Jaffer play. His strokes are soothing to the eye and elegance personified. It was an exceptional knock under pressure, similar to the one against England at Nagpur earlier this year. Scoring a century in the second innings of a test match is always a difficult ask; the batsmen have to contend with the pitch slowing down and offering uneven bounce. It was an innings of high quality and must have instilled the much needed self-confidence in the dressing room, after a mediocre display in the one dayers.
Also, was in witness an innings that justified why Dhoni is what he is today. Acclaimed by most people as one of the most destructive batsmen, he played some scintillating shots off the leg-spinner that carried the ball not only beyond the ropes, but to the streets and nearby suburbs. It was some sight for the crowd, who during the one day series hardly got to view his rare and phenomenal strokeplay. The controversy over his dismissal consumed fifteen minutes, which in the final analysis proved to be the margin between a victory and a draw for the Indians.
West Indies must be complimented for their effort. Odds were heavily stacked against them after losing three wickets just before lunch on final day; they recovered brilliantly with their second most experienced batsman Chanderpaul leading the way. He continued his stupendous run against the Indians and displayed some quality shots through covers and point, scoring at will. Gayle was beginning to look ominous after hitting couple of lusty blows against Anil Kumble but succumbed to the bowler playing forward with his pad rather than bat. He paid the penalty as umpire Simon Taufel adjudged him leg-before, who had a fantastic game unlike his counterpart.
West Indies salvaged a draw after being in a winning position at the end of day two. Indians gained some vital points in this test, with Sreesanth coming good in the second innings and Kumble striking form early in the series. Surprise package was Viru who bowked at the right areas and troubled the batsmen with his drift and turn. The chink in the armour is VRV Singh. Known as India's fastest bowler, he struggled to clock speeds in excess on 130 kph and never looked threatening. He has to make way for Pathan in the second test and it will be interesting to see if Harbhajan gets a place in final eleven. Indian batting is unreliable apart from Dravid. Indians always perform better when they have the luxury of an extra batsman in the side. The team management has some thinking to do and especially with Sehwag bowling as well as he is, its difficult for Bhajji to play the next test.