Published: Aug 13, 2011, 02:34 PM (IST)
Edited: Apr 15, 2014, 03:14 PM (IST)
Alastair Cook’s marathon innings of 294 runs was overshadowed by Virender Sehwag’s king’s pair in the third Test © Getty Images
By Christopher Poshin David
Alastair Cook, who batted for a little over 13 hours (803 minutes to be exact) scoring 294 runs after facing 545 balls, was the backbone of the England innings. He played one of his best knocks, that was for most part the usual boring and chanceless knock one associates with Cook.
Having scored his highest in Test cricket, Cook looked well set for the big triple when he fell agonizingly six short, out to a wide delivery that he slashed to deep point. Despite batting for all that time, accumulating all those runs, there was a bit of regret for Cook in the end. It was a shame and a pity that he missed the mark, but that’s how cricket works. It’s cruel, like life!
However all about Cook’s exploits with the willow was forgotten within the span of a few minutes as India‘s opener, Virender Sehwag edged James Anderson to the slip cordon to register a King Pair. The man who was seen as a Messiah for beleaguered India in this match, faced just two balls and was in the middle for a total of eight minutes before becoming the 13th person to bag a king pair. He had traveled all the way from Delhi to Birmingham, over four 4000 miles for just 8 minutes of action and managed to get more attention than Cook’s mammoth 294!
Life can be bitch, can’t it? A person getting King Pair is talked about and hogs the limelight when the real hero of the day who played a marathon innings is overlooked!
Who says life is fair!
(Christopher Poshin David, aka ‘Poshin’, is a die-hard cricket fan from India. A student from Chennai, he is an aspiring journalist and the all-rounder India never wanted. He also writes for the Royal Challengers Bangalore website. His articles have been featured on the IPL website, ATYTY and Cricjoy)
