All the best Iain, although it's going to take something special to get India out cheaply. Besides, what's this I see you did to yourself today? Almost wore a gas-mask to the field!

Hi Ian, great blog mate and great last over on the second day. I am an Indian supporter but it was refreshing to see good contest between bat and ball and your bowling and your insights on the game have been refreshing on this tour. Hope to hear a lot more from you mate.

Glad you got to your best score. Wish you good luck in the second innings. Wonder what was going on between you and Munaf.

i wasn't expecting this day either from yot people. I was anticipating a strong show from your especially seeing the effort in the last match

It was poor display of batting by New Zealand and a scathing bowling attack by Indians. All about hard work and discipline and nothing to do with luck. That's all there is to it. Good luck for rest of the match !

Good luck with todays match Ian! NZ have had a tough two days of cricket.

nice blog. lets hope for better.. btw, first to comment :P

Congrats Iain on the top score, 100 runs and 50 wickets. You are doing a great job out there. Hopefully you can get some help from the others guys and some luck. Great fan of the blog!

Iain,

Very tough day and even though the track was flat there was some kind of venom in it. The odd ball kept spitting up and some of the wickets (be it NZ or India) were due to that. NZ is trying to get hold of themselves and create a good landing foot in cricket after their best left the scene. In that regards all are doing fine. This side is like Ganguly had when he started doing captaincy role.

Best of luck on your future and may the best team (Eventhough currently it is India) win.

-- Anand

What happened to home side advantage and seaming tracks? Or is there consensus that this Indian side would still fare better? Or does the home team not care and ask for specific pitches at all? Remember how India has always been a challenge for many. Dust bowls and crumbling pitches. But I remember you mention that the conditions and wind especially here were better suited for NZ. Didn't happen though. Been following you on this tour Mr.O'Brien thru this blog, and I must say it gives viewers a new level of involvement and association with you. Awesome.

Another tough day huh? Bad luck mate. Still, you made your best test score and picked up your 50th test wicket. Not too bad a match on a personal level. Best of luck for day 3.

NZ didn't play as badly as the results look like but the current Indian team is simply too good for NZ..

Don't be to harsh on yourself. This Indian team is just too good for the Kiwis.

Nice post again mate. Always look forward to reading your thoughts. Really helps us feel like we're part of it all too. Love your outlook on life and the game. Can only wish you all the best of luck with your career.

Seems like you're trying to attribute Zahir Khan's success to his luck rather than his superb bowling. Wake up dude... your team sucked and didnt play to its potential. In any case, this Indian team is far more superior.

Hard luck Ian,
But all the best for the future.Its very obvious the fact India dominated the series pretty well.It might be their time.They are playing great criecket so far, Kiwis tried their best as well..congrats for all the hard work.Its the quality makes the difference between two teams.Sachin,Zaheer,Dravid,Dhoni,Sewvag,Gambhir,Sharma,Yuvaraj they are really a world class team...something similar to Ausis last decade.Seems like coming days are India's, but defeenitley Kiwis are a strong rising team.They have the talent likes of Ryder,Taylor,Guptill,Dan Vettori,Mccullum..offcourse you, just need some proper training and practice.Hopefully NZ will be on winning track very soon .All the best for the future and congrats for Indian team to contiue thier winning streak.

Hmm, hope this match doesn't end in a draw.

How about Tom's lofted drive!!? I was pretty sure that it was him on strike but had to triple check that it was not you as I was in disbelief that he could play such a shot

Hello Iain, Cmon your blog today shows your shoulder down. its missing that energy. cheer up mate, I always enjoy watching your bowling, but true I enjoy Indian team hitting too. good luck

Ha Ha! :) Oh my god, this is the funniest thing I have heard in quite a while!! You really should write a memoir someday - it'll be an instant best seller. You have genius man, not just cricketing talent, but something far more important in today's world - a fine comic genius! I mean to to be able to see the funny side of things after a hard day like that, "I spent the day switching between the changing room and the viewing area trying to change the luck of the guys out there. Don't move seats if someone is in, don't talk about how good someone is playing; these things can jinx or curse an innings. So I was up and about trying to find a place where the luck was good."

how did u post this blog 1 hour abd 28 mins ago? you were on the ground at that time lol...

Its been a pretty good feeling rplying ur blog at first.
today is a tough day for you n your team.
but dont lose hope.
hope the new day will bring the new harbingers of joy.
best of luck to you, mate.

Ian - Not only it was not your day - But not Glenn Turnre's day as well - he had said earlier that India is not consistent without looking at the series so far

consistency acc. to Turner is every session, needs to be parsed and how may NZ dominated and how may India dominated and results do not matter much to him

strange - India dominated all the way

Ian - Not only it was not your day - But not Glenn Turnre's day as well - he had said earlier that India is not consistent without looking at the series so far

consistency acc. to Turner is every session, needs to be parsed and how may NZ dominated and how may India dominated and results do not matter much to him

strange - India dominated all the way

Would have loved to read the things you were angry about. And I am bit disappointed the way you described Zahir's bowling. Yes he got wicket of a wide ball, but that was more due to the other excellent balls he bowled. Once wicket of a wide ball doesn't undermine a 5 wicked haul.
After looking at the way you and others bowled in the first session today, doesn't seem like you learnt anything from Zahir.

What do you mean?...Zaheer went lucky?..
This looks like a very good blog for cricket freaks like me, always searching for new articles in cricinfo and refreshing if every 5 min.
Some where down the line i feel you are writing one dimensional posts. Please try to write it also in the Indians' perspective ..
mate.. i'm a noob but believe me, Nz is going to be a potentially very good side in the near future ..

woow.. btw.. mine is the first comment?

Iain, great blog, very informative and unique.
Don't know if you will read this during lunch. If you do, you should try to bowl to Dravid the ball you bowled to get him out in the first test. Your speed is very good, 142 into the wind. At your speed, you guys have a good chance in the afternoon session if you keep it tight and bowl the occasional yorker to hurry the batsmen.

Too bad you did not get more than one day to rest. Hope you come to the IPL, if not this season, the next one.

I think the game is almost over. I was hoping for NZ to get a follow on but then Singh wont get to ball on the final day ... hopefully India will be looking at 600+ runs

As an Indian supporter I must say that that last over you bowled down wind was superb, good speeds and good focus and concentration even in the last over of the day.

A bit unfortunate that you had only 65 overs of rest and recovery time :(

It is going to be very hard to pull it back from here but I wish you all the best in trying to bowl out this in form Indian side!

Hard luck mate! Full points on effort though.. Khan was in his zone today, and I thought Harbhajan played the role of a support bowler to perfection at the other end. "Hunting in pairs" - the Indians did that well!
The score now reads Ind 170/1. Team India is really pulling the strings now. NZ needs a miracle from here.

Hey Iain, nice post there... I think NZ just threw away wickets they shouldn't have. You guys are trying your best to get back into the game but that would mean a gigantic effort. All the Best!!

I think to sum this day up, it was an attacking Indian bowling against a very defensive New Zealand batting. This is where experience outshined inexperience. I was only pleased to see how Taylor batted. I still think McCullum should bat up the order and not at 7. He deserves a better batting position than Franklin. A lot on introspection needs to be done for NZ. Well played India. Good way to gift your seniors.

I have been listining to NZ cricket commentary for more than 18 years now. I always thought that Martin Crowe, Smithy and gang were pretty good. This morning when Smithy said that he wanted to end all the speculation obout Taylor's dismissal and went on to say that Ross Taylor was out and the decision by the umpire was good. This is the fairest and most balanced piece of cricket commantary I have ever heard. Thanks Ian. Well done.

Hi Iain, You are an honest person,and a good cricketer. But you just got to admit the fact that the Indian side is far superior side than urs and it thoroughly deserved the 2-0 win.

OB! cricket is a game of luck. Anything could change at anytime. Put your full effort after the lunch, surely you could make a break through because, bowling in these windy conditions is not a strange thing for you. Get on and make a break through. Good luck.

I do feel for you mate.We all saw you bending your back and hitting the 140 mark even in the last over of the day.Quite a contrast to the way your batsmen commited themselves in the 1st innings.With this Indian line up, getting 400+ on the board is the minimum criteria to even contemplate a winning chance.It might still not be enough as we saw in the 2nd test.Nevertheless,this means its the batsmen's responsibility to set up the team with this..well I should say "outside" chance really.And, the current Indian team, if they have to lose a test, there has to be a combination of phenomenal complacency from them along with some disciplined batting as well as bowling by the opposition.We did not get to see either factors in the final test and right now it looks quite inevitable that this Indian team is going to bring home a glory that they well and truly deserve.Cheers!

Hey man, congrats on your new top score. Here's hoping for a chenge in fortune - perhaps moving seats would have jynxed the unlucky?
Take care mate, us Wellingotnians are always rooting for ya!

keep on bowling like ur doing.... who cares if india wins you cant win the series anyway

Hey Iain

It's my first time commenting on ur blog...well i guess and as everybody else is sayin...NZ is missing the likes of Jeetan Patel....Seamers are not bowling to the plan and obviously Vettori doesnt seem that confident...i believe another specialist spinner would have given Vettori more options....well hard luck so far....i don't see NZ even drawing this match...its a 2-0 series for India...:)

Even though I am an Indian supporter, I feel for the New Zealand team as they have been outplayed without much support from home turf. Such was the pressure applied by Indian bowlers and fieldsmen that even though both teams batted almost same number of overs, the difference in runs scored is huge. Taking into consideration that India lost 9 wickets for 380 odd and Kiwis lost all ten for 200 odd shows the dominence of visitors. Still, the sportsmenship spirit of both the teams remains unmatched.

Well Iain Gambhir and Dravid have dug in. Its gonna be a long day for you in the field again

i have your autograph
i got it on the 4th ODI at Hamilton 12th March

Yeah, this is cricket. The most beautiful thing about cricket, what I think, is nobody wins or loses till the last ball has been bowled. India showed that again in the previous match when they came back so well after being written off. So I would say, don't lose any hope...still a lot of time is left in this test match. Anything can happen. And I thought you really bowled fast yesterday towards the end of the day. Keep it up man, and all the best!

Iain, wish you and your mates well! I think you guys will have to spend the next five sessions in the basin containing this prolific batting line-up.

All the best!

Well attempted effort buddy... and congrats on your highest Test score... GOOD LUCK for your future cricket.. guess from here it looks like indias victory in the game & the series but good luck to you and your mates on chasing the target INDIA set.. you can never predict the future..GOOD LUCK!!!

hard luck...

all the best Iain .. this series definetely did not go according to plans but I am confident you will succeed in the future .. you are pretty talented and hard working .. keep it up!

you ought to spend more time at the nets than just writting stupid blogs on the website ! The basic problem with you and most other new zealand bowlers is that you never bowl at the batsmen's weaknesses. Try to assess each batsman and try to bowl wicket taking deliveries !

why you can't give enough credit to india? and accept the fact that india outplayed you in this series? You and played bouncers with some plan??? give me a break

Well Iain Gambhir and Dravid have dug in. Its gonna be a long day for you in the field again

O'Brien, good to read your blog! and its always nice to see cricketers being so honest and frank to their supporters... yeah definitely not a good day for kiwis.. well its got so much to do with indians i feel.. India are a team when they are on roll they make opposition look so weak and at the moment they are on a real high and hence things look pretty dim to the kiwis. I sincerely hope the kiwis have a better 3rd day and bring the game in balance. Its always great to see tests going down wire and not one side dominating.
All the best for u guys.. and one thing just dont let the tiredness come in your mind when you are actually out in the middle. i know its easy said than done, but just hoping this works in your favor.

Nice to read your blog, Brien! Sad luck as India are set to win the series against you, guys. Our team (India) are really good and its no big disappointment that you lost to the best side right now in the world. Hope you come to India and have a taste of the conditions so that you can become a better allround bowler. All the best!

Posted 2 hours ago - weren't you on the field? Anyway - bad luck Iain - I thought your last spell last night was pretty good - very pacy.

Its really a frustrating day for New zealand.I think your last chance to win this match is under big threat!But i hope you will keep writing in ur future tour.Best luck of u!

Hey Iain , we love your blog and keep blogging and also do mention us , ur readers sometimes in ur blog ;). will feel like u did really notice us , lolz , al rite mate all da best for the comming hard day!! this is tapan from Canada , cheers for the blog again...

Looks like end of the road for Newzealand. I will be amazed if a miracle happens from here. All the best for your future games.

This is unique - I just have to read every post you make.. but this is still unbelievable.. to read your comments while th ematch is going on.. it almostlooks like you sent this just before the match started today...

Hard luck Ian! I was feeling you were batting pretty nice out there till you threw it away. Nice bowling action and nice photograph too..

Like ur attitude mate...it is reflected in every single blog. Perhaps a sense of dissatisfaction leads us to achieve new zeniths in our life.

Well,Yes everything went horrible for you guys yesterday .Now,everyone will blame Daniel for not batting first after winning the toss ,but that's past ,nothing can be done now .

I felt our tail-enders somewhat took the game away in the last 20 overs of the game on the first day .

regarding Superstitions ,best of luck with that :p

You have bowled well mate throughout the series,but its the batsmen who have let the NZ team down. 2-0 series defeat is inevitable. Still u have a long career ahead. Hopefully you will end your career after 15 years with 500 wickets in your bag. And ya,u need something from Mcgrath,if u need wickets on flat wickets,i.e how to provoke batsmen by sledging and then getting then out. You are just too decent on field as a fast bowler!!!!

hi o'brien, the way of writing this blog is very interesting.if u ppl playing gud in the second innings u can win this test regardingless watever the total. bcoz still u r having 2 days more. al d best for rest. but dont forget to post the blog daily.

I like this blog keep it up.

Ian, you said you're angry while writing this article but I couldn't find in your anger in this article. You got very cool head. Great going, keep on writing inside story of a cricketer's mind.

Tough luck, mate. Your effort shows in your writing. This too will pass. There will be bestter days.

Not much I reckon you can do for this test but maybe pick yourselves up to save it - bat through 180 overs. I a not sure if NZ has done it before - better if not, because then that is is a strong motivation to do it NOW.

I will be cheering NZ to save this TEST.

Nice blog, Iain. Very good performance in the test matches too. Good bowling and spirited batting. Keep up the good work. All the best!!

Cheers,
Santosh

Hi Iain,

I dont see anything stopping the Indians from winning the series 2-0. You can be happy that the series is about to end and the Indian team is not going to be back atleast for the next couple of years.

Nandhaa

Great Job Ian. The few deliveries you bowled at the end of the day were encouraging from NZ perspective! As I'm writing this IND's lead is almost 400 ... long day ahead before seeing off the Tourists...Thanks for being great hosts!

Don't you think it will be hard for New Zealand to win or even draw this test at this stage?

Nice blog mate,

Just go all out mate last test nothing to lose only to gain , put the weight behind the ball.

Good luck

hi buddy,
i think u must be pretty happy abt ur 100 runs being scored..of course its disappointing to see how India bowled and batted (well,not for me)...but u shud go on..and on..all the best

damn am i the first? neway, good luck for today, hope u guys do better in the field. what happened in the fag end of the day? u were probably in some kinda tiff with the batsman? let us all know thanks n good lck again

damn am i the first? neway, good luck for today, hope u guys do better in the field. what happened in the fag end of the day? u were probably in some kinda tiff with the batsman? let us all know thanks n good lck again

dude i always liked ur blog because it full of positive energy but i find that missing here.dont lose hope.you have everything to play..go have fun ut there..

Actually Nandhaa it is great having the Indians here and the only way we are going to get better is if we have more opportunities to play top teams like India - and not just one or two tests but three test series like this one. We have a team of great potential and the only way for them to improve is to keep playing tests!

No idea if you actually ever read these comments Iain but know even though we don't always get the results we want you will always have the support of true NZ cricket fans like myself, however frustrating it may be to watch days like yesterday. Going to start training to become an umpire over the winter - with any luck I will see you out in the middle in a couple of years :) Enjoy the rest of the test at the Basin and I look forward to the return of test cricket to Auckland in the not too distant future.

Hope what looks like the return of Bondy next season won't push you out of the team, suspect Millsy is at greater risk - keep up the good work!

I think NZ will ban you from blogging. You do not want put oil into the fire in how miserable NZ feeling. Take a day off or write some story between players not about the game when it was not going your way. Unless you take 8 wickets then NZ lose it is ok. Things are not looking good for nz. As no one scored 500+ second innings to win the TEST. I doubt nz got it in this pitch. This pitch or the windy condition make it difficult to play. You cna get out anytime like dravid and sachin getting cute with their shot. Mccllum catch was brilliant. You have to see dravid's face. He got duped. well done for the planning. I think NZ is losing because of batting. I think sehwag factor play big even if do not score. i can't tell you how to get indian players out. It is easy if you watch how these players get out. Problem with NZ is this. They need one player who tighten up another end other than vettori. Franklin is utter waste. India used to take usless agarkar for nothing. Franklin is same.

I am an Indian fan but I don't think this match is over yet. I think you should have a really good shot at maybe 200 overs. There is a chance that Kiwis can play that out. I wouldn't give up just yet, Iain.

This New Zealand team is very young. You guys will come together and turn into a fine and competitive group. Just give it some time.

50 wickets is a good achievement, congrats. I would always love to see more from you.

good luck

hai IAn brother,....
ZTough luck...hope ur team will bring back the old memories...As far ass this match is concerned i think it is slipping away from ur team.....

Your blog is really cool mate. I know its goin to bea tough one on day 3. All the best Iain.

hI this is someone who is not th suporter of th either playin nation...
but as a cricket loVer i gota say NZ is completely outplayed by Ind..
NZ seemed nowhere duRing th Entire tour..exCept in th couple of 20/20 matches which is actualy th finest LUCk as u mentioned earlier..
n don change ur seat fo ur mere superstition..i got a better one fo u guys...
i.e "celebration befo success is PoIs0n" as u guys did in 2nd test in Napier.....:)
N besides Zaheer is th best bowler among th two currently playin nation..u gota agree that befo u wish to b appreciated fo ya bowlin..
n add me as s_factorz@hotmail.com
coz i realy spit when i talk but its th Fact n i am not th one to create it nor to change..
loads of luck fo ur bright caReer..

Whatever said and done, Indians were too hot to handle by Kiwis on their own soil. Admit it.

Hey Iain,
I am writing this after watching u take 2 wickets in 7 balls... well done mate... somehow I was happy coz YOU took them.... I am still a die hard Indian fan.. Ball to Laxman was a cracking delivery...good luck...

SINGH AND KHAN is a bit weird.
Harbhajan and Zaheer would have been better !!!

hi iain, nice to see you taking the wicket of gambhir and laxman.but india is in adriving seat now and a large defeat is looming over you. first time india is going to thump you 2-0 in your own backywards.but we enjoyed a lot. Particularly Iain, you are superb through out the series. you have a bright future.

its realy disappointing that Yuvaraj singh is still in the test team after missing so much of oppurtunuties wasted by him,instead we should have probably tried with M.vijay who's is expected to be the nect generation player for the test after these senior players retrier,when do we give chances to players like vijay,rather wasting time in yuvaraj who is not all showing any sign for improvement in test cricket.

Mr. Ian O'brien. Don't you change from this attitude? "People who really act more will always talk less". Please follow this philosophy and do something good for your team to recover from bad days.. You need to face more and more bad cricket days going forward.

nice stuff Ian, That last over was a gem.. :)

I saw few glimpses of your bowling today.
You were hostile alright. Didn't know there was
another Kiwi who touches 140+ regularly. The one
I knew is lost in ICL. Keep working shoulder
and rotator cuff muscles and you'd be in 145+
bracket... Good luck...

Ian,
Congratulation for reaching another mile stone (19 runs) in your career. I can read your mind about how you and your mates feeling after Khan & Singh bundled out. I am a die hard cricket fan and been watching for 25 five years. The Indian pace attack is at it's best. Khan, Ishant, Patel and many more to come. In future NZ will rely on their pitch rather believing their strength.
Better luck next time..

i think nz din show character or thay were not in a mood to do so they were less energetic perhaps given up their ide of victory i suppose

I feel so sorry for you how Indian batsman have thrashed you all round the park HAHA

Iain, you really batted well. Crashing off drive against Munaf. With a little bit of practice against the spinners (thought you didn't pick Harbajan at all) you should be able to push your batting average into double digits soon.

Cmon' Ian, your blogs doing great and whatever ppl may say about us, only we (our teams) know how close the matches really are.And a session isn't won till its actually won. The best thing about ur team and our's is the spirit in which its been played. D best site was today, when Dan was appreciative at Gauti's 150. Realy awesome hospitality, and really like yous blogs. Hope that one day i write about indian team and the dressing room news, but only if we were allowed. Have a grt day tomorrow and keep up the good work.
God Bless.

Dear Ian,
Is it the first time ever that a cricketer has started a blog during his career? Whatever it is, makes interesting reading and so are the replies- all spice! Well, to give the man credit, enjoy his writing. This series lives up to everything Test cricket is all about- all grace and technique. Thanks guys, whatever side we are on, it has been entertaining enough. Ian, carry on the blog and we will be all part of it

Terrific off-cutter to knock Laxman over, Iain! But that also means there is still some juice for Zaheer & Co. to exploit with the new ball on day 4. Wonder how your batters will approach the 4th innings? Go down guns blazing, or try to do a Napier yourselves?

Dear Iain,I saw few glimpses of your bowling today.You were hostile alright.But you don't have the movement in the air and of the seam like Zaheer Khan...Really I am bit disappointed the way you described Zaheer's bowling. Wake up dude... Zahee has shown the Kiwis how to use the pitch to get wickets which Kiwis failed to do so..Anyway Kiwis didn't play as badly as the results look like but the current Indian team is simply too good for Kiwis...all the best!!!!........

Wonder what was it that you were angry about? The pitches? And why is it that the pitches are so docile? If India wins the series, the win would have a lot more value if the pitches had been the regular NZ seaming pitches...

Well bowled, mate. I suppose you and Danny were the only two who really threatened to take any wickets at all. Unfortunate for you though that you had to come up against this batting line-up at its best. The Indians have a way of reversing history, as you've seen in this test match. The Basin Reserve was NZ's favourite hunting ground—but I'm afraid, the hunter has become the hunted. Brilliant delivery to Laxman, though. Love your blog. Keep bowling and writing!

Ian, well bowled mate....d wkts you got today was a beauty. Still ,India gona win :)

You did not mention how's you A$$ after taking that bouncer !!!!!!!!!!!!!

First time i seen you complement an Indian....good to talk about yourself, but lets talk about other stuff too eh!!

it feels special to be writing a comment here.. is like talking to an international cricketer in person... anyway, love reading this blog.

i think if India wins the series, it would be a fair result considering how young and inexperienced the NZ side is and also the fact that the current Indian team has a couple of true legends besides some terrific performers who'd make it into a World XI of today. but this NZ is really promising, the batting talent in people like Guptill, Taylor and Flinn is pretty impressive and bowlers like O'Brien yourselves and others are making it no easy for the Indian batters. So I think under the guidance of the experienced campaigners like Vettori and McCullun, this side could become a tough unit in course of time. That will be great for international cricket, all the best!

I say it again. Your bowling is not at all bad. I mean you, Martin and inform Mills. NZ batting is that needs fixing. I thoroughly enjoyed your honest effort on the field. Running in every time and giving everything. And also please please say thank you to McCullum on behalf of Indians to make the wicket keeping look enjoyable viewing. It was outstanding. I take a bow. Keep up the spirit. You are up against a team that has 5 of the top 8 best ever Indian batsmen in terms of averages. Use it as an experience to bowl to the greats like Dravid (though he is way below par his best), Tendulkar.

What NZ really needs is a better captain. See the difference in Indian team when Dhoni is around and when he is not. NZ has very young developing players. If they get a great captain now, they can gel well as a team. Vettori is a good guy but not a great captain. He has too much of 'we tried our best' attitude. What you need is 'no way these SOBs are gonna get us again' attitude. I think Brenden McCullum would make a better captain though. OTOH, this NZ team is perhaps the most gentlemanly team in the world today playing the true spirit of the game. (I'm an indian fan)

There is all, but one difference between the two sides - that being that the tail wagged for India, and (make it two) the willingness to win. The confidence they gained with the bat, reflected when they bowled the next day. Zaheer and Harbhajan - scored 93 and took 8 wickets between them.

I think India will win this test on 4th day. NZ will be all out within 200 again. Good luck to India.

Dude, Concentrate on the game not on airing your views. Btw, you and your team is pathetic - that's a honest feedback.

I really like this blog. It's great to see the inside thoughts of an actual player rather than relying on "Seasoned" experts and commentators who, with all due respect have no idea what happens in a current match on the ground.

I think you and Chris were the most effective bowlers with some good action from Franklin as well. I just think some of the Indian batsmen were too good. Yuvraj and Sehwag are the talismanic weak links.

Hey buddy..you should give up bowling and become a cricinfo writer or join the commentary team..because it's clear that you are not a very good bowler..no offence here..but looking at other teams..the NZ bowling attack is the most benign and toothless..and I would consider this as a failure on the part of the indian team if it doesn't massacre you guys..

The modern cricket we must have produe bat & bowl even your'bowler. It's clearly shows inexperience NZ team surrender in expeiernce Indian Team...Alteast NZ should show some fighting cricket on next two days whater bowl or bat..!

Nice Effort mate . the Ball that got LAXMAN today was a GEM .. but i will credit the pitch and the seaM more . the ball landed at the right area and thats where you get the credit . always wondered why ya name is spelt IAIN ??????????

Tough on you, mate.. but as some people have pointed out here, this indian team IS a bt too much for the kiwis as of now. no hard feelings. the batters have a phenom amount of experience and ability. the bowlers are too tight and varied. the only aspect where your team scores is on the athleticism and agility front when fielding. i don't remember a single indian leap in the air a la guptill... most of them are podgy (check out the "new" look harbhajan singh.. he'll be like Bedi in some time, looks like!! ha ha), slow and casual.. so they have a fitter-faster outfit for the One-dayers and the 20s... try to forget this Test Series Iain, its just a Bad nightmare which doesn't go away!! :)

You could read my comments a couple of days back.. when i was sure that India is bound to win this one. weather permitting (no rains...) india is pretty much likely to finish this off tomorrow itself. you see the colder it gets, the less tired our quicks will be. they relish bowling in colder places.. i dont know if you've done that, but do try and play a game in Nagpur or Chennai - bowling in 40 Degrees Celsius + 90% humidity + the dust, noise and bad tummy (thanks to some crazy food you Had to try...) then you'll know what i'm talking about ... are you game, Iain boy?!

Iain...
Get ur boots on... U gotta bat longer., make atleast a 50 while batting tomorrow..! Keep batting dude... My hearty wishes dodo...!

Hey Iain!

Delivery to Laxman was unplayble! It's always pleasure to see you bowling that line & length.

Congrats for your highest score :D

Hey btw, do you know that even Ravi Shastri talked about your blog in the tv-commentary???

Mate, keep on trucking. Ask Dan to bowl down wind and you will be sussed.

Keep up the batting especially padding the the ball when ever necessary. Quality viewing.
Chur

good one Ian

good luck Ian for next season and eat a lot in break!!!!
Your posts are really good, i m in mumbai atlast but will leave tomorrow for SA.