Mark Waugh's timely return to form
Anand Vasu - 21 March 2001
Mark Waugh has signaled his return to form in world cricket. The New
South Wales batsman went through a lean patch at the beginning of this
series, with scores of 0, 22 and 0 in the innings leading up to the
third and final Test. In the first innings of the Chennai Test, Waugh
made 70 and looked good for more. In the second innings, he struck
seven boundaries on the way to a 57 that formed the crux of a vital
partnership with brother Steve Waugh.
The day before the final Test began, Steve Waugh attended a press
conference. When asked about the form of brother Mark he said "We know
that Mark is a good player. He is going through a bit of a bad patch
now but is sure to bounce back." Today, it was clear that Mark Waugh
felt he had justified the faith the captain had in him. "It's always
good to get runs when the team needs it," he began. "Even though I was
going through a lean patch I was not under much pressure. I knew that
the captain and the team backed me and that gave me confidence," said
Mark Waugh.
Having the confidence of the captain is all very well. And yet there
are many players who struggle despite enjoying the confidence of the
captain. Ricky Ponting is a case in point. Despite being fully backed,
Ponting has managed just 17 runs in five knocks. What helps Mark Waugh
also is the manner in which he plays his cricket. Using soft hands
Mark Waugh has been able to blunt the spinners for the best part.
However, even he has come a cropper against Harbhajan Singh on more
than one occasion. "Going by his current form, he's a very dangerous
bowler. Playing in these conditions Harbhajan is by far the biggest
threat for us," conceded Waugh, talking about the way the young Punjab
offspinner had come up in this series.
The one chink in Mark Waugh's armour has been his penchant to turn the
off spinner around the corner. An elegant timer of the ball, he has
been exceptional at playing the ball off his toes and hips. On this
tour however, this strength has proved to be his undoing on more than
one occasion. He was caught at backward short leg on more than one
occasion and the Indian team was beginning to think they had found a
weakness. "I don't think it's a major issue. Just because there's a
fielder placed there I can't stop playing strokes in that region. It's
an area where I make a lot of runs and can't stop playing in that
region," said Mark Waugh conclusively.
Mark Waugh has played his last innings in the Test series. In the one-
dayers he has a major role to play at the top of the innings. If Mark
Waugh has returned to peak form, the Indians better watch out.
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