Here Richie Benaud in his book The ABC Of Cricket explains exactly what this fourth innings blues phenomenon is and I quote:
I have seen many games where the fourth innings has gone well for a time, very few where the impetus is maintained right through the innings for victory. It all comes down to fear. Not physical fear, but fear of losing and fear of the fourth innings syndrome in a cricket match. It's all right being 448 behind when you start your own first innings; you have a second chance, but to be that many in arrears when you are playing your second innings is another matter. You have no second chance. It is this psychological block that poses problems as soon as a wicket falls. Two quick wickets and suddenly there is a mist across yourr brain as batting captain and you are becoming very nervous...
Thanks Prem, for the link. Read Prem's thoughts here.
Also note that the context in which Benaud makes these comments is that of a game between Australia and England in 1995 at the SCG where the SCG wicket on the fifth day was still an excellent one for batting. Australia chasing 448 in 4+ sessions were already 139/0 at the end of Day 4 ... and yet it was not at all easy chasing down 309 runs on the last day. They ended up with 344/7 - note 205 runs on the last day !
Something for armchair critics who have been vocal in their criticism of Dravid and India in their early part of the innings on the last day in Nagpur, especially people like Tim de Lisle who have wasted no opportunity in trying to score some points by straightaway saying that if Ganguly had been captain he would have gone for it. Bull crap in my opinion. We saw what India did in a similar situation at Bangalore against Pak last year when Ganguly was captain and Dravid was out early.
2 comments:
ahem
i wont be fool enough to criticize dravid for his 5th day 4th inning tactics.
but what about 1st 4 days? like Tim de Lisle is foolishly against RD, i see that you are foolishly "for" RD. We were up against a depleted english side - without tresco, vaughan n jones. We were on home pitch. Clearly, we were favorites.
Then why did we found ourselves in a trench on 5th day? Dravid's captaincy to get team out of trouble on 5th day is commendable. But at the same time, he should be criticized for not taking advantage of favorable conditions.
Hoho !
Where did you see me praising his tactics on first 4 days ? To give you the impression that I was foolishly "for RD" ??
I think RD made one mistake in this game that I can definitely see. When Harmisson went berserk with the bat in the first innings he should have persisted with Sreesanth even thought he was hit around. I thought Sreesanth might have got Harmy out sooner rather than later. But RD showed too much faith in Kumble and Harbhajan and too little in the newcomer, something which was proven wrong.
Other than that I fail to see how RDs captaincy can be blamed for a superb spell by Hoggard, poor umpiring and poor batting by some of our players in the first innings.
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