THE HAMMERING

 

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

Venue – Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui [February 4-7, 2024].

In the summer of 2024, the South African cricket team toured New Zealand to play 2 test matches. Unfortunately, the ongoing 2024 SA20 significantly undermined the South African team's strength. Only half of the team's 14 players had ever played a test match at the international level, and none of them were regarded as South Africa's strongest eleven. Hence, the team was made up of second-string and inexperienced players. As a result, the South African Cricket Board faced harsh criticism for its decision to withhold South Africa's top players, which raised questions about the long-term impact on Test cricket's significance.

The first test of the series took place in Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, wherein the Proteas captain Neil Brand won the toss and decided to field first. Interestingly, six Proteas players made their Test debut in this match, including their skipper, Brand. Something which we have not seen before.

The visitors got off to a great start as they dismissed both the openers cheaply. However, the duo of Rachin Ravindra and Kane Williamson brought the hosts back into the game. Kane Williamson scored a gritty 118 off 289 deliveries and took the sting out of the Proteas attack. However, the man who stole the show was Rachin Ravindra.

Ravindra scored a monumental 240 of 366 deliveries and took his team to a massive total of 511 runs in their first innings. In an innings which lasted for around 9 hours, Ravindra smashed 26 boundaries and 3 massive sixes. For the visitors, Brand was the leading wicket taker, who picked up 6 wickets for 119 runs.

In response, the Proteas were bowled out for just 162 runs in their first innings. Interestingly, no Proteas batsman was able to cross the 50-run mark, whereas we saw the Black Caps mounting loads of runs. To be honest, everyone was expecting that Tim Southee would enforce a follow-on. However, the Kiwis came out to bat again.

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Kane Williamson scored yet another hundred in the match as the hosts declared their innings at a score of 179/4. The visitors needed 529 runs to win the match. It was almost certain that the best thing which the Proteas could do was to save the test. However, the duo of Jamieson and Santner just ripped the South African batting line-up as the Kiwis won the game by a huge margin of 281 runs.

Rachin Ravindra was awarded the man of the match award for his brilliant double hundred, whereas Kane Williamson became the 5th New Zealand batsman to score a Test Ton in both innings.

To watch the highlights of this test, click on the URLs below.

Day 1.

Day 2.

Day 3.

Day 4.

To watch the innings of Rachin Ravindra, Click Here. 

A RANDOM SUNDAY EVENING

 

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Venue – WACA Ground, Perth [January 28, 2007].

The year was 2007, and as a 10-year-old, I returned back home after playing with my friends. However, before I sat for studies, I thought of watching some cricket. So I switched on my television set and went to the sports channel. New Zealand were playing Australia at the WACA. The Aussies batted first that day and piled up a massive total of 343 in 50 overs. Captain Ricky Ponting scored a brilliant 111 off 122 deliveries, whereas Matthew too scored a quickfire 117.  However, the knock for which the author remembers this game is that of Jacob Oram. Oram played one of the best innings of his career that day. Even though the Kiwis lost the game by a very small margin, the knock became an instant classic. 

The Kiwi Scorecard read 150/4 when Oram joined Ross Taylor in the middle. The visitors still need more than 190 runs to win with just 23 overs left in the innings. It looked like the game was well and truly over, and it's just the formalities which remain. However, this is when Oram did something which no one expected of him.

Oram scored a magnificent 101 off just 72 deliveries and took Kiwis closer to the target. At one stage it appeared that he could win it for the Black Caps. Unfortunately, they ended up being 9 runs short of the target. However, the sixes which Oram hit were truly remarkable. The Aussie Pace Attack Back then was legendary (Lee, McGrath, Johnson, and Bracken), but Oram looked possessed that day. He cleared the boundaries with so much ease that it felt that the match was being played in a school ground instead of at WACA.

The innings, which lasted for around 130 minutes, consisted of 4 boundaries and 6 massive sixes. Till the time Oram batted on the crease, the audience could not take their eyes off him. As a 10-year-old, the 101* was something very special. It truly made my evening. Mind you, it was no World Cup match, but a normal round-robin game of a Tri-Series. But nothing seemed normal that day. It was truly magical. A normal Sunday evening became special.

To watch the innings of Jacob Oram, Click Here.

To watch the innings of Matthew Hayden, Click Here. 

THE CLASH OF TITANS

 

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

Venue – M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai [October 22, 2015].

In the autumn of 2015, the South African cricket team toured India to play 3 T20 Internationals, 5 ODIs and 4 Test Matches. The Proteas won the T20 Series 2-0 and were leading the ODI Series 2-1 at the end of the third one-day match. As a result, the fourth ODI was a must-win game for the hosts to stay alive in the series. Indian Captain MS Dhoni won the toss and decided to bat first on what looked like a hot day in Chennai.

However, the Proteas got off to a great start as they dismissed both the openers cheaply. The Indian scorecard read 35/2 when Rahane joined Kohli in the centre. It was necessary that the duo stitch a big partnership so that the Hosts can make a comeback. But this was not going to be easy. After all, the visitors were bowling with accurate line and length. 

Interestingly, the momentum of a one-day game can change quickly. A couple of wickets brings the bowling side in the game, whereas a couple of big partnerships can tilt the game to the other side as well. And this is exactly what happened that day. Firstly, Virat Kohli shared a 104-run partnership with Rahane, who scored a solid 45. Post his dismissal, Kohli shared a 127-run partnership with Raina, who scored a quickfire 53 and helped India reach a competitive total.

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

However, the man who stole the show was none other than Virat Kohli. In this high-pressure game he scored a magnificent 138 off 140 deliveries. His innings comprised 6 boundaries and 5 massive sixes, something which we don't often see in a Virat Kohli innings. But the most interesting part is that Kohli scored 84 of his runs by running between the wickets. Mind you, the weather was tough, and Kohli was battling pain. Despite the adverse circumstances, Kohli played one of the most scintillating knocks of his ODI career. It was only because of his 138 that we managed to give Proteas a competitive target of 300 runs in 50 overs.

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In response, the Proteas got off to a decent start but continued losing wickets at regular intervals. However, Captain AB de Villiers stood strong from his end and scored a brilliant 112 off 107 deliveries and kept the hopes of his team alive. Till the time he was on the crease, it appeared that the visitors could pull off the chase. However, once AB was dismissed, the hopes of a South African run-chase collapsed, and the Indians ended up winning the game by 35 runs.

The series was 2-2 now, and we were all set for a blockbuster in Mumbai.

However, this game will be remembered by the cricket fans for a very long time. After all, we witnessed two of the greatest batsmen of our generation going hammer and tongs.

To watch the innings of Virat Kohli, Click Here.

To watch the innings of AB de Villiers, Click Here.

To Know about what happened in the Mumbai ODI, Click Here. 

THE LEGEND OF KING KOHLI

 

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

Venue – Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai [December 8-12, 2016].

In the winters of 2016-17, the English Cricket Team toured India to play 5 Tests, 3 ODIs and 3 T20 Internationals. At the conclusion of the Third Test, the hosts were leading the series 2-0. Hence, the fourth test was a must-win game for the visitors to stay alive in the series. English Captain Alastair Cook won the toss and decided to bat first.

The pitch in Mumbai was perfect for batting, and the visitors took full advantage of it. Opener Keaton Jennings scored a marvelous 112 on his debut as the English posted a competitive total of 400 in their first innings. Apart from Jennings, Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali scored gritty half-centuries as Indians struggled for wickets. It is interesting to note that all 10 wickets in the first innings were picked by the spinners as pacers failed to strike. Ashwin took 6, whereas Jadeja picked 4 crucial wickets.

In response, India got off to a good start as Murali Vijay scored a solid 136 at the top. But, at one stage, both the teams were on the same footing. The Indian scorecard read 364/7 when Jayant Yadav joined Kohli in the middle. The match was on a knife-edge. However, what followed next was something truly unbelievable. Virat Kohli and Jayant Yadav stitched a massive partnership of 241 runs as the hosts ended up scoring 631 runs in their first innings. To everyone's surprise, No. 9 Jayant Yadav scored a remarkable hundred. But the performance which stood out of all was that of the skipper, Virat Kohli.

Image Credit- ESPN CricInfo.

Captain Kohli scored a monumental 235 of 340 deliveries and took his team to a commanding position. The innings was a masterclass. The shots he played were marvelous. To be honest, the commentators ran out of superlatives to describe the innings. It was truly one of the best knocks ever played in the Wankhede Stadium. The crowd were up and cheering their skipper as he demolished the opposition completely.

The English were now on the back foot as they were supposed to bat the remaining hours to save the match. However, the duo of Ashwin (6) and Jadeja (2) just ripped the English batting line-up as the visitors were bowled out for 195 runs in their second innings. Apart from Root and Bairstow, no English batsman was able to cross the 50-run mark as the hosts won the test by an innings and 36 runs.

Captain Kohli was awarded the Man of the Match Award for his brilliant double hundred as the Indians took an unassailable lead of 3-0 in the series. 

To watch the innings of Virat Kohli, Click Here.