It was disappointing to lose the one-day series after being outplayed in the fifth game by 40 runs on Wednesday. There were four tight games that had set up a good contest in the final match of one of the most memorable series I have had the privilege to be a part of. We did not handle the chase too well and paid the price but full credit and congratulations to India. VVS Laxman played shots all round the wicket. If a batsman of his class stays at the crease for 35 or 40 overs, you can be sure that he will have a good century against his name. He plays the ball on merit and was comfortable at the wicket. I reckon the crowd would have enjoyed his batting, though it did do us a lot of damage. I think we bowled at our best in the series on Wednesday, though we gave away 81 runs in the last 10 overs. India had the wickets in hand to press for a big total, with Laxman guiding the later order batsman. The runs that Irfan Pathan and L Balaji scored in the death were more than we could afford. We had planned to try and keep as many wickets to be able to reach the target. We knew that in the end, we could attempt an asking rate of 12 or 13 runs an over if we had the wickets. But the Indians bowled well in the first 15 overs and made it hard for us. The difference between the fourth game, when India chased 294 successfully, and this one was the steady fall of wickets. Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammed Kaif just had to play their natural games on Sunday while Shoaib Malik and Moin Khan had to ensure that we would not lose more wickets. In the dressing room, we were confident that Shoaib Malik and Moin Khan would pull it off if they stayed at the crease. Mohammad Sami raised fresh hope when he made a few runs himself. We knew that the Indian bowlers would struggle, just as ours did on Sunday, with the damp ball and we kept ruing the loss of so many wickets at the start. We believed that if we lasted the 50 overs, we would be setting up a close finish as in Karachi but that was not to be as the Indian bowlers stuck to a good line. Then again, the Indians must be given credit for playing such good cricket. The team that played the better cricket, consistently, won the series. There is disappointment but we know we were not too far behind and must learn to take our chances. We are now looking forward to the Test series that begins in Multan this weekend. Our fast bowlers, who have played a big hand in winning matches in the past six months or so, will be eager to sustain the good work.
