Today at the Test
Last wednesday I was watching channel 5 listening to Geoff Boycott and Simon Hughes nonchanantly dismiss any threat posed by Sri Lanka to England on the eve of the first test. I grimaced but knew deep inside they were right. My brother sent me a text just then saying how sweet it would be to prove them wrong. I had tickets for the next morning’s play and felt an eagerness and anticipation I hadn’t felt for a long time. I woke up extra early and getting out of bed was for once a simple affair. I had never been to watch any test match in England let alone a Lord’s test involving Sri Lanka, so I guess my excitement was justified.
I stepped out into a crisp but bright morning and smiled at the sun, hoping for it to continue to shower its rays over the next five days. Little did I expect to be praying for rain come Monday morning. My mind went back to Sri Lanka’s last Lords encounter in 2002. The situation was similar, we played a weakened team minus Murali and few gave us any chance of success. But at the end of the first innings Marvan had 185 to his name and Mahela made a lovely 100 and we made England follow on. Oh for a deja vu. It got hotter and hotter and as I left St. John’s Wood tube station I joined a stream of England supporters making the 400 yard trudge to the ground.
The first thing you see after the security checks is the back of the rather extra-terrestial looking media centre and just behind it the practice nets and the “nursery ground” which gives its name to one of the two bowling ends in Lords. I probably looked like a star-struck teenager, wide-eyed looking around and trying to take in all the atmosphere that was slowly building up. I made my way to the Dennis Compton stand and found my seat at the top open air tier, it felt much like an amphitheater. The stadium was relatively empty but the players were out practicing, and I could see Murali and Malinga Bandara spinning a few to Sanga, sharing the practice pitch with 4 English quicks. The ground is absolutely beautiful, the grass is perfectly trimmed to look like a billiards table from far, the Member’s pavillion looks regal, as do the players’ balconies onto which I superimposed so many memories that I’ve seen through pictures and television. At the opposite end is the media centre whose architecture is completely alien to the ground and all it stands for, but somehow it seems to fit. The famous slope isn’t immediately apparent but if you look for it, it becomes quite obvious. The sun was baking down by now and it felt genuinely hot despite just wearing my SL ODI T shirt, cap and jeans. The ppl at at the ground were unreservedly friendly, I got chatting to the fellows next to me about the length of Sri Lankan surnames and the oddity of Vaas, Warnakulasuriya Patabendige Ushantha Chaminda Joseph Vaas. One old man asked me what I think my team’s chances are, I smiled and said “Not good on paper, but Lords is usually a nice batting deck, and the sun’s out. Hopefully we can retain our unbeaten record there.”
We lost the toss and had to bowl, our chances slipped a few more notches. Nonetheless Vaas bowled beautifully, getting the ball to move in the air and off the wicket from a consistent line and length, and beat the bat several times in the first hour or so. The other end was less consistent with Maharoof sending down too many no-balls and Kulasekara struggling to hit the right spots. Murali bowled his first ever ball at Lords, shocking given his 14 year international career, and later got the breakthrough at the stroke of lunch, Andrew Strauss nicking to Mahela at slip.
During the interval I strolled around the ground, watching ppl enjoy their picnics sprawled out in the sun, the jazz quartet playing underneath some precious shade watched by smiling old men in tweed jackets and ties. All the bars are named with cricketing terminology, The Full Toss bar, The Outfield Bar to name but two. I made my way passed the pavillion to the cricket museum housing loads of memorabilia including the Ashes. The highlights for me included some lovely cricket photography, the cricket ball that killed the bird (and the bird), the signed bat of the ‘96 World cup winning side, old bats, caps, balls of famous players from back in the day, a replica of the Honours boards, and an amusing photograph showing the contrast between a toss from the 1970’s with just the two captains in the middle, and from 2004 with the two captains and about 40 others with cameras, mikes and what not. The major disappointment was the Ashes itself, I expected a nice replica of the original urn (now in Australia after millions of years, terrible timing), but what I did see was a big crystal cup.
The ensuing sessions went decidedly England’s way. Trescothick escaped an excellent LBW shout by Murali to get yet another Lords ton and the game clearly drifted away from the visitors. The ground was packed by now and the crowd was anxious for some action. When little was forthcoming a man in my stand produced a cleverly hidden trumpet and burst the silence with a classic England supporter’s tune. A huge cheer erupted before the ground stewards reprimanded him much to the displeasure and boos of the crowd. A few minutes later two guys had smuggled a flag into the ground and waved it furiously when Pieterson clubbed a six, they too were told to put the flag away. The crowd isn’t all tweed jackets, hats and tie, that is reserved for the Member’s pavillion. Everyone else is casually dressed, guzzling beer, wine and champagne. The effects of which are noticed towards the third session as more ppl burst into song and random yelling. The atmosphere at Lords is unique. It isn’t the party atmosphere that you find (and love) in most other grounds in the world, it’s far more reserved and serious. It’s incomparable to any other cricket watching experience that i’ve had. I guess it only makes sense in the context of the history of the ground and the fact that it stands for what cricket once was, a gentleman’s game. I wouldn’t like it if every ground in the world had the same regulations at Lords, but it’s good I think to have it in this one place.
The day whizzed by despite Sri Lanka’s inability to breakthrough. The sun continued to bake down and I felt for the suddas who became progressively lobster like. Soon it was time to head home before the crowd packed St. John’s Wood station and I left with bitter-sweet feelings. I was thrilled to have spent the day at Lords, soaking up the history and tradition, but sad that in a cricketing sense the day wasn’t great. I got home to hear that Maharoof had dismissed Pieterson off a no-ball and I sulked off into the shower to let my migraine settle in.
After the second day’s play the result seemed a foregone conclusion, and I told a friend of mine, who had day 5 tickets, to sell them. But the second innings batting performance was nothing short of remarkable. I followed day 4 and 5 glued to cricinfo, closing my eyes each time there was a delay in the feedback (usually a telltale sign of a wicket). But the boys stuck out 199 overs in overcast conditions, they played and missed, they edged and got dropped, but each time they knuckled down and took it in their stride. The team showed something that it so often fails to produce, the never say die attitude and self belief. Lords has an uncanny knack of bringing out the best or worst in players, for Sri Lanka this was played out in the contrast between first and second innings. Kudos to all the batsman, from Mahela to Murali who stuck it out for the last 16 balls, avoiding the temptation to back away and swat. Let’s hope they can sort out the bowling for Edgbaston, the wicket there is likely to be less batsman friendly, and England are likely to be seething after Sri Lanka’s houdini act.
Lovely post machang, but did you go alone?
Comment by Curious Yellow — May 16, 2006 @ 2:43 pm
Yeah men
Everybody had exams and what not. I am the new Percy Abeysekara. Some buggers thought I had come all the way from SL for the tour!
Comment by ddm — May 16, 2006 @ 2:51 pm
I’ll second that - really nicely written post. It made good reading.
Comment by R — May 16, 2006 @ 3:37 pm
You should have said you were and held out the begging bowl. I would have, could have made some money to cover the tube fare or something.
Good scene we managed to draw it, I’ve been away from my PC so long that I didn’t even know th first test had started!
Anyway, really nice post once again machang, hope I will see you when you come this way.
Comment by Curious Yellow — May 16, 2006 @ 6:10 pm
definitely interesting match it was…
like you said,our team showed some unbelievable grit and determination… I couldnt help grinning with pride when I checked cricinfo on day 4 and 5 to see how much we have managed to recover from the rut…and they said ’srilanka better pray to the rain gods….!!!’ muhahahha :d
Comment by Savi — May 16, 2006 @ 7:11 pm
hehe that’s what, i could have pulled my bigissue gag again as well. There’s always next time. Ah and thanks
and thanks to R as well.
Savi: super game, wish they showed the whole thing on tv though, highlights just don’t cut it! but then it would have put an even bigger dent in my revision plan.
Comment by ddm — May 16, 2006 @ 10:15 pm
I dont understand why this stupid country can show every other sporting event from horseracing to cycling to snooker but not broadcast any of the cricket matches?!?
haha I finished exams today and I have about 2 weeks to kill before I head home, could have done with watching a test match :p
Comment by Savi — May 16, 2006 @ 11:14 pm
Never mind other sports, they show that travesty of a show Big Brother. To have that and not have cricket is criminal, twisted society this is.
Comment by ddm — May 16, 2006 @ 11:21 pm
Don’t know machang, can you not get it on Sky or something? I know if you have sky sports extra you can get it, I can’t afford the 40 odd quid for it but rich bitch like you probably could no? I have been reduced to having to watch bloody WTA tennis while the ATP Masters series is on
now that’s a travesty!
Comment by Curious Yellow — May 17, 2006 @ 8:38 am
Yeah Sky puts it, but surely you recognize their evil capitalist ways? expecting us to pay to see things, what next? paying for food?
WTA tennis rules! Beats seeing men in shorts any day of the week.
Comment by ddm — May 17, 2006 @ 8:56 pm
Are you mad you bugger? I’d rather see some buggers who can play tennis than some mediocre women bat a ball about. Anyway, they’re all fat and ugly and the one’s that aren’t fat make up for it by being uglier or by being really shit.
It would be like watching the Brazilian volleyball team play cricket or something, actually scratch that, some of them are actually marginally attractive, all the tennis bitches are butt ugly.
Ado, the capitalist fuckers are trying to make me pay council tax next year, can you believe the cheek? Must see if I can pass myself off as my brother or something.
Comment by Curious Yellow — May 17, 2006 @ 9:15 pm
**oooh curious yellow thinks of committing fraud**
well done macho,I’m proud… you are definitely a true sri lankan !!! 
Comment by Savi — May 17, 2006 @ 10:29 pm
Hmm I thought WTO girls weren’t all bad, I haven’t been following of late though.
Demn councils, it’s time to bring out the Che T shirts and join our JVP brethren who at the May Day rally in Trafalgar Sq were shouting “Down down cepitalism, down down LTTE, down down SL gouverment” and then as a footnote “Hands off palestine!” Ah the spirit lives on.
CY is not a Sri Lankan, he is originally from Mozambique, but he got a bottle of fair and lovely and a smile that charmed the pants off the local immigration boys. Metaphorically of course.
Comment by ddm — May 18, 2006 @ 12:51 am
Fair and lovely nevei yako Dark and Ugly! Anyway, this Harry hari hari yanne naha, kelimma yanawa council office disability queue ekata.
And it’s WT*A* girls you bugger, WTO girls all met a sorry end in the plane accident no?
Zing!
Also, this woman is the current number 3 I think. And that’s a good picture!
Comment by Curious Yellow — May 18, 2006 @ 6:01 pm
CY: if you used Fair and Lovely, demand your money back! Clearly it hasn’t worked. Actually, that’s the makings of a great scam, now that I think about it.
Also, I thought all tennis playing females (WTA, WTO, WTever) were teh hawt? They’re not?! Say it isn’t so?!! That picture is Nadia Petrova, innit?
To all those who don’t have Sky Sports available (that would be me), might I suggest going into a pub with a widescreen TV and nursing a few drinks throughout the day? I plan on doing this, soonish.
Comment by drac — May 19, 2006 @ 8:59 am
CY - Ah good old Orix leasing, nothing like a good Sri Lanka jungle. Jingle even. That picture clearly confirms your assesment of WTA girls, but I think looks and ranking are inversely related, I mean isn’t that French girl (yes, I know that may raise a few eyebrows) almost number one? And the likes of Billy Jean King , Navratilova (besides the legs) didn’t really provide too much joy to the dirty buggers who watch women’s tennis just to see some short skirts.
There’s something called Fair and Handsome that’s meant for chaps who are closet fair and lovely users. Dark and Ugly must be some cheap fake tan product, you have clearly been scammed.
Drac - As appealing as that sounds, I’d have second thoughts. How’s that? you ask. I struggle to contain myself when cricket is on, and end up appealing louder than the players, and shouting things like duwapang yako! When Strauss got out on the stroke of lunch on day 1 I got out of my seat and made what sounded like an aboriginal war-cry. I don’t think I’d be a hit amongst a group of fired up England supporters.
Comment by ddm — May 19, 2006 @ 10:10 am
Every fan of cricket should watch a test at Lords before they die! Hell of an experience soaking in all that history but the crowd was a tad boring when I went to see SL play in 2002. An aunty draped in a SL flag and me in my cricket shirt were the only ones jumping up and down, screaming “umpire hora”, “lanuwa uding aro”, etc and we got a looot of odd looks from the predominantly white, middle aged England supporters. Luckily I have no shame
As for WTO check this out…I for one would not complain (the lucky girl).
Hope our boys can pull it together, ignore the shit with Sanath drub the English and wipe that smirk off Boycott’s face.
Comment by childof25 — May 19, 2006 @ 5:39 pm
French chick? Almost number one? Amelie Mauresmo? If you do mean her then she’s a dyke. She has a hot girlfriend though. You’re right about rankings and looks being intensely diversified. The ones towards the top are ugly but try and cover it up with a lot of makeup, the ones towards the bottom don’t.
I just don’t like the way they use their mediocrity at tennis to launch their “modelling” careers. Take Kournikova for example, people think she was an amazing tennis player who happened to be pretty. The fact is, she was a mediocre player who looks like a pig. She just got lucky, dumb, stupid whore.
The truth is the women’s circuit is shit, you have players dropping out of grand slam finals because they think they may have the beginnings of a tummy upset. I mean, WTF? And then the bitches have the gall to demand equal price money? Fuck that. Wimbledon has bravely held out against awarding them equal prize money with the simple justification that the men’s product is superior to that of the women’s product and I think they’re right. The whores try and say that more people tune in to watch them, what shit. It’s not the women who keep kids playing tennis, it’s the men. Ask a kiddie playing tennis who their favourite player is and they will not say Davenport, Clijsters or Henin-Hardenne. It will be Federer, Nadal or Safin or something like that. I will get off my soap box after saying tennis girls are not teh hawt because I can pick ten women off the street in Bristol who look better. The women on the tour are just nasty.
I chose dark and ugly on purpose. Because of all the bourgeoise who use fair and blah blah blah…
I’m totally with you on the shouting machang. My father has scarred me for life with his cries of “finished, finished” everytime the 3rd ump is called for and the loud hissing noise he makes everytime the ball beats the outside edge which I disconcertingly catch myself imitating.
P.S: childof25, that girl is 16, aka jailbait where you’re from. She is Dutch though, so maybe you’ll get your chance in Amsterdam in a few years when she’s dropped off the WTA circuit?
Zing!
Comment by Curious Yellow — May 19, 2006 @ 9:32 pm
Lamaya: Boycott is such a condescending twat. That’s a nice girl there, good luck in Amsterdam!
CY: You tried to do what Anna did but failed didn’t you? I sense the bitterness deep down. Ah and yes, Mauresmo is the one, very macho.
Comment by ddm — May 20, 2006 @ 9:23 pm
Such anger; CY old chap. Tsk tsk. I’m sure you have adequately good looking legs to compete in the women’s tour if you wanted to, there there. Haven’t we already seen you in a skirt? You’re more than halfway there. You just need to work on the grunting and moaning when you hit the ball, that’s the ticket.
Well, I sorta agree on the shouting too.. I’ve watched most Six Nations matches involving England in the pub and I restrain myself from cheers at the wrong moment with great difficulty. Most fun I had at a test ever was when the South Africans toured SL a while ago… I sat with a friend in front of a bunch of red faced, sweaty Boks. They kept calling our guys rabbits when we ducked under bouncers, I kept cheering lustily when our chaps whacked boundaries. Good times, good times.
Comment by drac — May 21, 2006 @ 10:06 am
CY - think u have a case of mistaken identity there! Shes Russian, born in 1987…from which I tentatively assume she’s 19…perfectly legal
Blowjob..um I mean Blofield is a twat as well…would love to throttle him with his bloody bowtie.
Comment by childof25 — May 22, 2006 @ 2:14 am