Learn from thy neighbours...

I am quite an Afridi with the 'remote' in hand, checking out on every channel once every 15 minutes so as not to miss out on this great movie or that NatGeo / Discovery program or a cricket match that suddenly turned into a thrill-a-minute affair. You'll probably agree that it always is a sick feeling to learn next day from mocking pals with wide grins that you were in front of the television and yet missed out on 'the' event.

Not that the just-finished Pak-SL match turned any such brilliant corner at any stage on this 5th day. Yet my fingers insisted on taking a break every time I passed by it. It sure is a pleasure to see any cricket team, even your rivals, getting it right under pressure as the Pakistanis did today.

Former Indian Test cricketer and fielding great Yajurvindra Singh was asked to remove butter from fingers of our Test fielders in the pre-Test preparation camp. Surely neither Singh nor the person who thought of the idea is to be blamed for the catastrophic Indian fielding that followed in the Test matches. Maybe it is time for Dravid, Greg Chappell and BCCI to put on their 'constructive thinking' caps once again and summon Messrs. Inzy and co. to share a few words of wisdom with their Indian counterparts on the right mix of aggression and defence that constitutes fourth innings batting.

If you think of it, this Test match at Colombo's SSC ground went exactly the way of the Karachi Test a few months back. That is, till Pakistan showed why they are the best Test team in the sub-continent at the moment.