“INDIA WINS” (AGAIN) – by Des Kelly

“I told you so”, is a phrase that is seldom used, but I do recall another article, recently written by me, on many other aspects of “Mother India”, as many Sri Lankans, especially those living in the Northern area of beautiful Sri Lanka, call her. India, a huge Country, indeed, seems to be the mother of the tiny dot in the Indian Ocean, that was our homeland.

Still, before coming to the major part of my previous “story”, I did touch upon the Indian Cricket team, right now, in Australia for a series of test-matches, predicting that these “visitors” would win the 1st test, lose the 2nd test, win the boxing-day 3rd test, and, actually WIN the overall series for the very first time in history!!, and, although I am no soothsayer, cannot read palms, & don’t muck around with fortune-telling of any sort, it seems that I was a 100% correct (this time).

However, while I congratulate the Indian Cricket Team on it’s superb “debut-win”, there are a few facts that have to be considered. Australia, still the “best” cricket-team in the World, bar none, WAS minus two of the highest-scoring batsmen in Steve Smith and David Warner (thru their own faults, mea culpa, mea culpa), their middle-order batsmen batsmen were, in the main, absolutely hopeless, and they depended too heavily on their bowlers, especially “Gazza-boy”, as they keep calling him, every time he hits the bowling crease. In addition, the “new” Aussie bowler Pat. Cummins has been expected to shatter all records with the red ball and then batter it into a pulp with his bat (which, as a “batter”, he did), showing his other batter-mates how to “batter better”. Nathan Lyon (Gazza-boy), is still the best “Spinner” in the World, and Australia will undoubtedly be at the forefront of Cricket, once again, in the near future, no worries about that. This is, of course, after Cricket Australia

learn their lesson and realize that Cricketers are there to “play the game”, NOT win, at any cost. Good luck to them.

As for this Indian Cricket Team, they should have won the 3rd test, 2 days ago. Virat Kholi might be the BEST Batsman in the World right now, but what made him NOT call a “follow-on” when it was obvious that India was so far ahead, it could NOT lose this match, is a quandary. Virat is also a superb “Captain”, but, to have to “declare” twice, in one Match, is a little too much, I declare. He obviously did not study the “weather” in Melbourne and it was plain to see that this 3rd Test could so easily have become a “Draw” if the “showers” mean’t the “covers” of the pitch had to stay ON. Oh well, I suppose “Cricket India” know what they are doing. Cricketers like Kholi absolutely love the feel of a bat in their hands, this is why he wanted to bat again. So sad that this decision left him with the first “duck” he would ever see, in Australia.

If this Indian Cricket Team, superb, as it is, loses too many matches because of simply bad decisions made on the field, they might have to learn the “You-Tube” song clip I dedicate to them. Billy Ray Cyrus may never have played cricket, still, for him, the road was gettin’ kinda rocky when she said he was actin’ cocky, & the rest is history. Just listen to the song, folks & enjoy the music.