Beyond the boundary - Odious Comparisons (19 May 1999)

19 May 1999

Beyond the boundary - Odious Comparisons

Shakil Kasem

At the end of the day, when this World Cup is over and stock taking is completed, the facts will no doubt emerge. There does exist a great divide. Teams like Bangladesh, Kenya, Scotland and others of their ilk are the gatecrashers of this party, and they are being put in their proper places. The world of cricket has its own gentry as well as its hoi polloi.

Some, of course, are more equal than others. Whatever the outcome of the match between England and Kenya, it only heightened the difference between Kenyan attitude and the Bangladeshi approach. Barely hours ago, the ICC champions were made to pay for their misplaced temerity, whilst Kenya made no bones of the fact that they did intend to stake permanent claim on this exclusive piece of real estate.

Kenya were put into bat and lost an early wicket, much the same pattern as in yesterday's match. But there ended all comparisons. Kenya did not lose their second wicket until another hundred runs had been added. The virtues of having batsmen willing to graft, and having the ability to do so as well, ensured that all of the fifty overs allotted to the batting side would be gainfully used up. For the second match in a row, Kenya romped past the 200 mark.

The batting revolved essentially round a very assured partnership between Ravindu Shah and Steve Tikolo. These two are classy players, as good as any in this competition. Tikolo, who was going through a run drought until now, fancied the English bowling quite enough to hit sixty-odd. The fact that Kenya did not get another forty more runs was essentially because Darren Gough bowled a highly inspired second and third spell to knock over four wickets, just when the runs were likely to come along.

Kenya perhaps lacked a lower order that could be confidently expected to throw their bats around. Odumbe's early dismissal also meant that a second major partnership with Tikolo could not take place. But to their credit, none of the batsmen could even remotely be accused of throwing their wickets away. A far cry from the performance in the last match displayed by you-know-who.

It would be a travesty of the game of cricket, if a team like England were to win the World Cup. But let's give the devil his due. Against Kenya they were indeed the better side. Iqbal Azim, the home-grown expert on anything English, insisted that if Odumbe had not got out in the way he did and if Gough had not bowled that last spell, perhaps the outcome might have been different. I am not quite so sure. Kenya is not there in England to set the Thames afire. Kenya has its own set of priorities. So far they have not done anything to harm their cause as far as their future in world cricket is concerned.

Even more importantly they have managed to answer the sixty four dollar question. It is possible that a coach who is in charge of a team for less than six months to do a better job than one who has been there for more than two and a half years. How's that?

Source :: The Daily Star