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Weekend that produced top-drawer cricket

While Evin Lewis’ hundred was full of strokeplays and power hitting, KL Rahul played conventional shots. Sarfraz Ahmed and Dinesh Chandimal deserve credit to have bought time on two different but tricky tracks.

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There were lots of entertainment for the crowds, in different corners, to see great knocks by batsmen in different formats © Getty Images, AFP
There were lots of entertainment for the crowds, in different corners, to see great knocks by batsmen in different formats © Getty Images, AFP

The weekend gone by saw lots of action on the cricket field with India taking on West Indies in United States of America (USA), England playing the second One-Day International (ODI) against Pakistan in their ongoing bilateral series, and Sri Lanka locking horns with Australia for the third ODI (which was Tillakaratne Dilshan’s last match). While cricket experts (on and off the field) were bringing out their expert analysis to the viewers, fans were busy switching from one channel to another to keep themselves occupied with a heavy dose of cricket. There was enough entertainment for the crowds and viewers with four centuries from these matches. Full Cricket Scorecard: India vs West Indies, 2nd T20I at Lauderhill 

Sarfraz Ahmed scored 105 runs off 130 balls in 2nd ODI against England © Getty Images
Sarfraz Ahmed scored 105 runs off 130 balls in 2nd ODI against England © Getty Images

Pakistan vs England, 2nd ODI: Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat in the second ODI with an aim to level the series. The turf at Lord’s looked green with the ball seaming a bit. It may not have been a wise decision by Azhar Ali to bat first, but they know that their strength lies in defending rather than chasing.

Sharjeel Khan was out off a peach of a delivery from Mark Wood, whereas Chris Woakes accounted for Sami Aslam and Azhar Ali’s wickets. The conditions were tough, as there was lateral movement, producing adequate bounce. Pakistan were in trouble with the scoreboard reading 2 for 3 when wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed walked out to bat. He always looks steady at the crease, but has often failed to convert starts into big innings. The team badly needed him after getting off to a precarious start.

He joined Babar Azam and showed he was up for the fight. He danced down the track on a few occasions in a bid to rattle the line and length, and negate the ball’s movement from the surface. He played with full face of the bat and often pierced the gaps. After Azam ended the 64-run stand with Sarfraz, Shoaib Malik added another 59 with the wicketkeeper-batsman.

Sarfraz is usually an aggressive batter, who likes to play his shots and sweetly time the ball. His approach was a little different, as he knew the situation and stuck around, buying ample amount of time. ALSO READ: England’s batting-order depth makes them strong contenders for upcoming ICC events

He did not go for the glory shots, as he scored just six boundaries and went ahead to score his second ODI century. His stay ensured Pakistan had a modest total to defend, as they crossed the vital 250-run mark, courtesy his calculative and patient innings of 105 off 130 balls. He not only justified his talent, which has never been in doubt, but also showed his maturity in handling the inexperienced lower-order. Nonetheless, the total was not huge and England chased it down easily by winning the match by 4 wickets. It was still Sarfraz’s show that Pakistan can fall back to draw some inspiration and level the series.

KL Rahul scored his maiden T20 century against West Indies in USA © AFP
KL Rahul scored his maiden T20 century against West Indies in USA © AFP

India vs West Indies, 1st T20: MS Dhoni and co. were up against a formidable batting line-up of reigning champions West Indies. Nothing clicked for the hapless Indian bowlers as the pitch was tailor-made for batsmen. Nonetheless, Dhoni’s bowlers backed it up with short-pitch and over-pitched deliveries. Though Johnson Charles started the onslaught, it was Evin Lewis who fired on all cylinders. Having a solid technique coupled with power hitting, he played with full swing of the bat, as he dispatched everything that was there to hit. He brought up his maiden T20 century, which comprised of nine big sixes. He smashed Stuart Binny for 5 consecutive sixes, showing his demolition on the opponent bowlers.

Chasing 246 in 20 overs was going to be tough, but India did not give up. They lost Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli early, but it was time for a new star to unearth for the team in the shortest format. KL Rahul, having already shown his talent in other formats, notched up a brilliant innings of 110 not out. He played conventional shots and followed the path of Virat Kohli in T20s. Rahul seems to have learned a lot from him during his stint with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016. ALSO READ: Rahul: Good to see IND did not give up half way through

He put on his dancing shoes against T20’s most experienced and prolific bowler Sunil Narine. He swept with effective purpose while also played the low full-toss by coming to the pitch of the ball and smashing it down to deep long-on. Rahul brought India close to a remarkable victory, but Dhoni’s last-ball dismissal ensured West Indies win by 1 run.

Dinesh Chandimal stood the test of time on a tricky track at Dambulla vs Australia © AFP
Dinesh Chandimal stood the test of time on a tricky track at Dambulla vs Australia © AFP

Sri Lanka vs Australia, 3rd ODI: Sri Lanka’s openers continued their struggle for the umpteenth time against Mitchell Starc, as Danuska Gunathilaka was dismissed early. Kusal Mendis’ dismissal brought Sri Lanka’s most trusted and consistent performer (in the recent past) Dinesh Chandimal in the middle. He added 73 runs with Dilshan before the senior pro departed in his last ODI innings. Wickets tumbled at the other end, but Chandimal showed his class.

Chandimal read the track well and knew that his responsibility was to  bat out the innings along with the lower-order. Chandimal stitched small but vital partnerships with Kusal Perera and Thisara Perera held his end. He was comfortable nudging the balls for ones or twos and scored seven boundaries to bring up his fourth hundred. He brought up his first ODI ton at home, whereas this was also his maiden century against Australia. ALSO READ: AUS beat SL by 2 wickets in 3rd ODI

Chandimal looked in ominous touch, as played no rash shots, sticking to one end and taking time in the middle to push his side’s total over 220. In the end, George Bailey played a valiant 70-run knock, which was similar to the one played by Chandimal, as both understood the need of hour to be patient and play ODI cricket like the way it was seen in early 90s. The most significant aspect of their innings were that they were aware of the nuances of the pitch.

While Lewis’ hundred was full of strokeplays and power-hitting, Rahul played conventional shots and displayed smart cricket, like a modern-day player. On the other hand, Sarfraz and Chandimal deserve credit to have bought time on two different but tricky tracks. They took us back to the time when ODI innings were played with batsmen buying time to settle, with limited aerial shots.

(Aditya Sahay is a journalist with CricketCountry who is completely into sports and loves writing about cricket in general. He can be followed on Twitter at adisahay7)

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