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PHOTO: BHAGYA PRAKASH K.

SPORTING SPIRIT The last session of the third and final Test between India and Pakistan in Bangalore epitomised a much abused cliché — ‘sport is war minus the bullets’

But dark clouds sashayed across the skies and soon the light-meter was out. The verdict pronounced ‘bad light’ and the Pakistani pair of Mohammad Yousuf and Mohammad Sami trooped out while the Indians slumped on the ground, aware that a draw was inevitable. With three wickets in hand and 12 overs remaining, Pakistan was staring at defeat before the weather gods threw a lifeline. Later Kumble said: “If I was in the Pakistan team, I would have said that the light was bad and if I was in the Indian team, I would have said that the light was good. It is subjective and I think the umpires were fair in their verdict.”

In the lead-up to the game, talk centred on a newly-laid out pitch and the Rahul Dravid jinx. The pitch, topped with Mandya soil and a sprinkling of grass, was expected to play true to both batsmen and bowlers. Dravid meanwhile had to contend with a history of not converting starts to big scores in international matches at his hometown. In the end, the pitch confounded everyone, staying flat in the first four days before acquiring a spiteful touch on the fifth and final day. “It was a good pitch to bat on. Maybe a few deliveries kept low but it was not a dangerous pitch at all by any standards,” batting legend G.R. Viswanath said. Meanwhile Dravid’s mixed returns in international jousts at a ground which he knows like the back of his hand, continued.

The stands were filled to the brim in the opening weekend (if we can use a term like that for cricket!). But then in an age when the lines between cinema and cricket are blurring, opening weekend sounds apt. Sourav Ganguly’s double century kept the ‘come on Dada’ chant alive , Yuvraj Singh’s century, rich in punch and poise, elicited sighs of delight and Irfan Pathan pitched in with a century of his own. Meanwhile the applause for Misbah-ul-Haq’s unbeaten century was muted though the audience did have a soft corner for speedster Shoaib Akhtar’s antics on the field. Shoaib, steaming in from the top of his run-up, and indulging in an ‘eagle-has-taken-wings’ style jaunt after taking a wicket was lapped up with grudging admiration. And in the end when the match ended in darkness, with India wrapping up the series 1-0, Akhtar endeared himself to the fans as he threw a few of his shirts and trackpants to the milling crowds in the adjacent stands.

Local heroes — skipper Kumble and batting mainstay Dravid — evoked thunderous applause whenever they moved into the ground. And a touch of narcissism also reigned among the players as they were often spotted looking at the replays of their shots or wickets on the giant screen. For instance, Ganguly on the opening day was still staring at the screen and admiring his cover-drive on the replay while seamer Sami was waiting for the former Indian captain to take guard.

A bit of celebrity spotting too happened as the cameras whirred on known faces ranging from tennis star Sania Mirza to actor Tom Alter, while also hovering on some pretty faces with wide-brimmed hats and dark glasses in the stands. Banners ranged from the banal – ‘Dada’s winter special century’, to the good ones. A fan held aloft a chart which read ‘please declare zzzzzzzzzz’ and acted as if he was falling asleep while the Indians batted on a bit more on the final day.

And in the end, when the teams trooped out, India had finally broken the Bangalore jinx against Pakistan. India had lost to Pakistan here in 1987 and in 2005. Thankfully this time around, history was rewritten though the result was just a draw. India won the series 1-0, riding on its Delhi Test triumph.

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