Cricket Review Corner

Pakistan v/s Bangladesh series

The recent cricket series between Pakistan and Bangladesh proved to be an exciting contest in which, Pakistan eventually ended on the top. The series played in Bangladesh had two Tests, three ODIs and one T20, which were all won by Pakistan. During the whole tour, Pakistan spin attack dominated and never allowed Bangladeshi batsmen to settle down. Particularly Saeed Ajmal, Shahid Afridi, and Muhammad Hafeez bowled brilliantly and were equally assisted by pace bowlers Umar Gul and Aizaz Cheema. On the other hand, the Bangladeshi team yet again failed to deliver in front of their home crowd. The Bangladesh team did not have a plan and looked completely out of touch. Only Nasser Husain and Shakib-ul-Hasan offered some resistance, which did not prove enough. This series was also considered very crucial for both nations as Pakistan team after 2002 were touring Bangladesh for a complete bilateral series. Apart from all this, crowd’s enthusiasm was another highlighting factor during every match despite their home team’s poor performance. This series was very important from Pakistan’s perspective because after this, they have to play with England, who are currently ranked no one side in the world and victory over Bangladesh would certainly give them a psychological advantage over England. Overall, it was a fascinating series where, cricket was played in Great Spirit.  

India v/s West Indies ODI series:

West Indies and India are two famous cricketing rivals and when ever they play against each other, there is always an excitement. The last five match ODI series played in India is a clear example of it which, India won by a massive margin of 4-1. It was a great contest particularly Indian young player Umesh Yadav, Ravichandan Ashwin and Virat Kohli played exceptionally well and had great support of their other team mates as well. This series would also be remembered for Virender Sehwag’s 219 runs in the third ODI, making a world record for most runs by a batsman in an ODI innings. The West Indies on the other hand gave a great fight but, could not capitalize during key moments of the series. There were some great performances from West Indies player Darren Bravo, Ravi Rampaul and Kieran Pollard but unfortunately, they could not lead their side towards victory. In spite of all this, crowd’s involvement during every match was another great aspect as they enjoyed every moment of the game. Consistency has been a main issue with the West Indies team as players do not perform on regular basis, which was also visible in this series. But from Indian perspective, this series was very important because after this, they are going to tour Australia where, Indian teams record is very poor. So this series would certainly give them confidence, which would be very vital for their upcoming series against Australia. By and large, it was a wonderful series, where cricket was played in fabulous environment.       

Article By: 

Omar Sajjad