Never has a victory huddle told a story more visibly. Team India have been in grim search of a win abroad for so long the delight was obvious. Having reached the threshold in the first two games, Rahul and boys needed this famous win to quell self-doubts more than anything else. Critics can claim the series win has come against a weak West India side but in the final analysis all that matters is the result.
India could not have asked for a better script on day three. Chris Gayle who has tormented India in the past got out to a beauty from Sreesanth and that to me was the key to the final result. Nothing spurs a team’s attack more than an early wicket. That it was the danger man to fall first provided the spur.
With only a target of 269 to chase, a batsman like Gayle can turn the match with a short and swift innings, but his early fall and the wicket of Lara left me in no doubt history was going to repeat itself after 35 long years.
I was happy to note the body language of the visitors remained upbeat in spite of a couple of threatening partnerships.
A couple of performances stood out strikingly in a match where every cricketer played his role to a nicety. Anil Kumble would have made every cricket writer in the world run in search of latest adjectives with this performance that had commitment written all over it.
His battling knock against all odds and the crucial partnership he shared with Dravid to me was what turned the match in the first place.
What can one add to Rahul that has not been said already about an outstanding performer? The fact that he averages above 97 in Test match wins abroad signifies his contribution to the side.
Drawing on his technical brilliance Rahul came up with another couple of knocks that will stand out as one of the best played in adverse conditions in a single Test match.
The team jelled as a unit, Munaf and Sreesanth working their socks off. Though not anywhere near fiercely threatening, the two did the job competently in grabbing the early wickets to open the doors for the spinners to strike.
Sreesanth on his part was rewarded for pitching the ball in the right areas and keeping a cool head. One has to appreciate the mental toughness of this youngster who came back strongly after being pasted all over the park in the earlier games.
With the slow stuff, if it was Harbhajan Singh in the first innings it was the turn of Anil in the second. I am losing count on the number of times he has bowled India to a win. The situation was tailormade for him; a wearing wicket and the opponents prodding nervously not knowing whether to go all out to attack or grind it into submission.
The win was a remainder of what team work can bring about. Up against a no-win situation (India were expected to steamroll the Windies, weren’t they?) Dravid and his boys had to pull this off lest they face ridicule. That they did will go a long way in establishing the confidence back that went missing after the ODI debacle.
I am a happy man for reasons more than one. All my predictions came right and the team composition was as what I wanted it to be. I am over the moon for the fact these young stars achieved what was only a dream to us in our playing days. Beating the Caribbean in their own den seems phenomenal, even if it came against the weakest West Indian side we may have played in the last 35 years.
(www.krishcricket.com)
