Bang, Bang - yawn, yawn

After back-to-back series that strengthened the case for test cricket as the most engrossing form of the game, now we have what is essentially a throwback to the dreary 1980s. That was when India and Pakistan were more interested in not losing, rather than winning - or so the lore went. You can't blame these contemporary sides for not wanting to win. They're after all, creatures of an age where arguments have been put forward for curtailing the duration of test matches! The blame lies squarely with the curators or whoever prompted the curators to come up with these sleeping beauties, if at all anyone did (wink, wink, nudge, nudge). If there's been one consolation, it's the pace at which the runs have been scored. That's not surprising given the times, and not least given who have been wielding the jedis. Now comes Dhoni's match-saver (in theory, things could happen between now and the end of the day), entirely in keeping with the scheme of things. Despite Dhoni's heroics, this test really has belonged to Shahid Afridi, who belongs to that not-so-exclusive club of batsmen who simply love Indian bowling. Even given the featherbed tracks, I wonder if India had any specific plans for bowling to Afridi, given his well documented problems with short balls speared into his body at a height. That's not to take away any credit from Afridi, who's a magnificient and fearless striker and always an entertainment value. The problem is, there's been too much entertainment of only one kind this series. - NK