GROUND REALITY
In a crunch India Pakistan T20 match when your team fizzles out at 83, it’s only sensible to not waste another hour and a half of your precious life to watch the agony of a simple chase. Actually, that way you do yourself a favor by allowing your blood pressure and heartbeat to remain normal.
However, if you did throw the towel in early on February 27, 2016, you missed one of the finest if not THE finest bowling spell in the short history of International T20 cricket. Muhammad Amir ripped through the Indian top order like a lion through the herd of wildebeests, words cannot describe the sheer feeling of ecstasy experienced by cricket lovers during that unforgettable spell of vicious fast bowling.
Wahab Riaz’s tormenting of Shane Watson in the cricket World Cup last year reminded the cricket world just how fearsome a Pakistani fast bowler can be on his day, but Amir easily equaled Wahab’s excellence and at times looked to have surpassed him.
Pakistan’s sorry batting lineup failed to negotiate the swing that the green top at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium provided the seam bowlers. They were at one stage 42-6 and looked like heading towards their lowest ever total in T20 cricket, a couple of blows from Sarfaraz were still not good enough to carry the score beyond 83. It was a simple equation for a formidable Indian batting lineup stacked with tremendously gifted players like Kohli and Sharma; a quick chase looked the most likely outcome.
That’s when Amir took over, it was natural and it was beyond belief; perhaps the only ingredient missing from this performance to be nominated for the Oscars was that it was not scripted in Hollywood. Cricinfo ran a short article the next day made up entirely of the live commentary feed of the thrilling first six balls bowled by Pakistan’s lead marksman!
Indian opener Rohit Sharma was in rich vein of form and looked in confidence with the target a paltry 84 well within reach as Amir steamed in... it was quick and it swung in at the dying moment like a venomous pit viper bang on Sharma’s toe, it was as close as it gets, the umpire remained unmoved amidst a humongous appeal from Afridi and Co. Amir ran in again and undid the master batsmen for the second time in as many attempts and his brief stay came to a grinding halt as the umpire decided in the bowler’s favor.
A couple of balls later, the reliable Ajinkya Rahane became victim of a boomerang of a delivery from Amir, caught plumb in front of the wicket, and India were 2 for 2. Raina joined Kohli on the crease in an effort to weather the Amir storm. It doesn’t get bigger than this, Pakistan vs. India, throbbing heartbeats raised eyebrows, a Pakistani fast bowler at his blistering best steaming in like a burning train Raina must be having his heart in his mouth, as he’s not in great form right now.
When Amir ended Raina’s stay on the pitch in his next over India feared for the worst, each ball he bowled looked like an entire over, which just didn’t seem to end fast enough for the Indian team. Couple of balls earlier came the moment when a massive LBW appeal by Amir on Kohli was met by disapproval from the umpire; that was the moment of the match, it went in India’s favor and Kohli got his chance.
From that point onward India’s premier batsman showed his true class, leaving the good deliveries and milking the bad ones for runs. Amir and Kohli personified Pakistan and India that night, a world class bowler against a world class batsman. Kohli is a supreme batsman and this fact was written on almost all the deliveries he faced playing the ball on merit and his timing was immaculate.
Batting wasn’t easy on that green pitch and Kohli’s knock cemented his status as one of the finest batsmen in the game today, but, in Amir Pakistan have found another bowling messiah, another merchant of speed!
