When a team wins a test, people remember both, the winners and the losers. In a draw, nobody remembers either team. I read various cricket writers describe how the Indians fought hard and emerged moral victors from the game. I sum such talk in just one word – CRAP.

It all depends on where you set your standards. If you set them high, you would be disgusted with this draw. Some it seems, are happy with  just a  moral victory. There is no such thing. This is sport, not moral science class!

In the end the team tried hard and fought back marvelously in this test, but hesitation and a ‘safety first’ mind set nullified all the good work. I really don’t care how close we came. Whether we took 1 wicket or 9 matters very little. A draw is a draw is a draw. The Aussies would be livid with this result.

I hate to beat the same drum but it needs to be said that if Dhoni had come on before Kaif we would have scored the runs much quicker. If any of you can explain why Kaif was sent to bat before Dhoni, write to me, and I will publish your comments. As I said yesterday, it was utterly mindless.The declaration came a good 45 minutes late. When you play safe, that’s what you get – a ‘safe’ result, ie. a draw. I had written yesterday :

‘ I would have declared half an hour earlier with 25 less on the board. We lost valuable time and if the team fails to win a close match tomorrow, we will have only ourselves to blame. There is no way the Windies will score 350 on the fifth day on this pitch against Kumble’

I take no joy in being proven right. In fact, if I sound bitter, it’s because I so fiercely want the team to win. As the adage goes in sport - winning is not important- it’s everything. For me, a draw, however close, is just not good enough. It is all the more galling because this very team has failed to win quite a few crucial tests it should have. Chandigarh against Pakistan and the last tour of Australia readily come to mind. History has no time for people who came close. It only remembers teams that win.

To make matters worse, when at the receiving end, this team has collapsed in a heap too frequently themselves in the recent past. Bangalore and Karachi against Pakistan are classic examples.

Again, there is absolutely no guarantee the batsmen will play big knocks every time. This very team may collapse in the next test. When you score big, you need to convert that into a win. Otherwise, they are mere personal statistics with no meaning. Again, I shall quote – writing the preview for the series on June 1 (Archives – A crippling mind block…) I had said :

‘There will be some big knocks, but they are useless if they do not result in a win, and that has been our problem. Our batsmen will score big in drawn matches’

This draw will hurt most when the Windies win a test or if the series is drawn.

On a different note, the bowlers need to be congratulated for bowling their hearts out. The team did fight hard on the field and that needs to be acknowledged. In a test match a one crucial misjudgment frequently proves heart breaking and can make grown men cry. That is why it is called a ‘Test’.

Over the years, I have seen too many such close draws to accept another. I just hope the team can pick itself up and start the good work all over again.