Two days I wrote about how India was collapsing under a relentless Australian bowling attack, and thought that the game would be over before it really started. However, I did leave a caveat; “never judge a pitch until both sides have batted”.
To my American readers, the pitch makes a huge difference when it comes to the game. Unlike baseball, where the ball passes through the air, in cricket, the ball (almost) always has to bounce on the pitch before reaching the batsman. Every pitch is different, and they change over the game as well. Hot weather in particular can have a major effect, as the heat dries out the wicket and can cause cracks that can cause the ball to jerk off course. When the ball is travelling at almost 100 miles an hour, even a tiny diversion can be deadly.
It turns out I shouldn’t have been so quick to judge. While India was bowled out for 150, Australia barely got over 100, which are both very low scores. What’s more, each team has two innings a piece, and most of the time, they score far more in the first attempt than the second. Not so in this instance, India piled on 450+ (a huge score), and have set Australia a target of 500+.
Since the first game in 1877, there have been over 2500 tests, and only 13 times has a score of 300 been chased down. 3 times a score of 400 has been achieved, and 500 has never been achieved.
It would be a genuine miracle.