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 London,
July 24: Things at Lord's, the spiritual home of cricket, are
not so perfect after all. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, India's saviour
in the first Test, has said "a problem with the sightscreen" led
to his dismissal in the first innings and he was lucky enough to
stay unbeaten in the second and see India through. "There was a
problem with the sightscreen at the pavilion end. I could not
see the ball on three occasions, and on all those occasions, I
played the same shot," Dhoni said.
"In the first innings I got out, but in the
second innings it went for four," the wicketkeeper-batsman said
after the match. He said the problem was due to a combination of
sightscreen's size and the background colour. "The sightscreen
is small but the background is also maroonish and the ball mixes
up with the colour," he said.
"There is also the clothing of the
spectators. During the first innings, it was also bright
(because of the sun)," he added. Dhoni hit 76 not out which, in
captain Rahul Dravid's words, "got India out of jail" against
England on Monday. His uncharacteristically subdued knock helped
India hang in until the rains arrived to keep them unconquered
at 282 for nine while chasing a target of 380 on the fifth and
final day.
Dhoni said his match-saving innings showed
how far he has come from being a slam-bang batsman to one who
plays "according to situation". (Agencies)
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