Red-Racers Forum » Collins: How helpless of a feeling is it (caddie start

Choice of game I was visiting India for a month-long break and had timed my vacation such that I could attend the Mumbai Test. Wankhede Test are generally quite entertaining as the pitch offers something for everyone and the game moves quite fast. England had won their previous two Tests here and India was on the verge on another series win. All this offered a tempting prospect to watch the game.Team supported Being an Indian, I was supporting India but all I wanted to see was a contest between bat and ball and a hard-fought day of Test cricket. And both the teams didnt disappoint.Things I would have changedThere are two things in particular that I would have changed. First being the heat. Despite being December, temperatures in Mumbai are still well in the late 20s and as the day went on, the sun was beating straight down at the Sunil Gavaskar stand making it very uncomfortable. The seats in the stadium are not the most comfortable either and that added to the uneasiness.But more importantly, I would have changed the way Alastair Cook used Adil Rashid in the first session. After removing Cheteshwar Pujara early, England had a great chance to attack with the legspinner when both M Vijay and Virat Kohli were looking to settle in. Instead, Moeen Ali bowled a fairly ordinary 10-over spell allowing them to get set for the long haul. By the time Rashid was brought in, Vijay had reached his ton and Kohli was beginning to dominate the bowling. He got just five overs in the first session and the tactics were baffling.Key performer India had lost Pujara off the second ball of the day while still trailing by 254 runs. They ended the day with a lead of 51. Between the third ball of the day and stumps, Virat Kohli had stitched together yet another mature century proving again how he has lifted his long-form game. It was a near chanceless knock filled with sparkling strokes and astute defense defying the English bowlers throughout the day. He was also the crowd favourite and had been welcomed with loud cheers which only increased as his innings progressed.Wow Moment This has to be the moment Virat got to his ton. The crowd had come to watch him bat and he didnt disappoint. There were deafening cheers as he moved swiftly through the 90s and chants of Vi-raat-Virat filled the stadium. Virat got a well-deserved standing ovation after reaching his hundred and it felt like we had got our moneys worth.Face-off I relished Rashid vs the Indian middle order. After picking Vijay, Rashid had begun to trouble the Indian middle order with his leg spin. Every now and again, he would get one to grip the surface and beat the outside edge or the googly would miss the inside edge to strike the pad. He may not have got the wickets to show for his effort, but he kept a lid on the scoring which brought wickets from the other end. The afternoon session saw some gripping cricket between Rashid and Kohli and while Kohli emerged the winner, Rashid could have easily run through India on another day.Shot of the day There were a few contenders for this. Virats slap pull off Stokes in the 69th over which also took him to 1000 test runs in 2016, Vijays lofted drive over Andersons head in the 77th over and Virats rasping off drive in the 131st over. But one shot that stood out was the boundary Virat hit just after reaching his ton in the 121st over. Jake Ball bowled a full wide delivery which Kohli dispatched with a classy square drive. What made the shot great was his hand-eye coordination which accounted for the lack of footwork. The ball sped across the turf in no time and beat the man sweeping on the off-side boundary. It was also a statement of what was to come.Crowd meter The crowd at the Wankhede was energetic throughout the day. The day started with a few pairs of Punjabi drummers in North, Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar stands playing the drums which made the crowd dance. There was never a dull moment as the crowd cheered every single run with the loud vuvuzela. If there was a lull in the game, Mexican waves were performed to keep everyone on their feet. One of the waves lasted seven rounds and it was wonderful to watch and be a part of.No Wankhede Test goes without chants of Sachin-Sachin and this one had its share too. The crowd also showed their admiration for Mumbai Indians player Jos Buttler as he was fielding at the fence by applauding and cheering him on. All-in-all the crowd made it a great experience just as much as the cricket did.Overall Indias dominance in the first session, Englands comeback in the second and Indias fightback in the final session made this an intriguing day of Test cricket. Virat and Vijays tons and the celebrations in the crowd at every milestone made it a highly enjoyable day, one which I will remember very fondly. The chants of Virat-Virat are here to stay for a very long time.Marks out of 10 8.5Authentic Sneakers Ireland From China . -- The Portland Timbers and Real Salt Lake played to a 0-0 tie Saturday night that left the top of the Western Conference standings unchanged. Sneakers Ireland Outlet . LOUIS -- Mike Smith is used to facing plenty of shots, so this was nothing new. http://www.sneakerssaleireland.com/ . Ivanovic was leading 7-5, 1-0 when Hantuchova withdrew after falling 0-40 behind in the second game. The match started slowly for Ivanovic, who surrendered her first two serves as Hantuchova took a 5-3 lead. Cheap Nike Sneakers Ireland . -- Vincent Lecavalier got everything but the desired result in his return to Tampa Bay. Cheap Sneakers Ireland Fast Shipping . Its 1987 and a Brazilian playmaker, known as Mirandinha, is being paraded around St James Park to the passionate Newcastle fans.Lets start the 2016-17 season off with a bang!Tiger Woods did the Hokey Pokey with the Safeway Open. We know what effect it caused in the media, but what about the guys inside the ropes?This weeks caddie drops opinions on Tigers withdrawal, the Safeway Open course and the fans.Remember how this works: We get the truth and inside access, the caddies get anonymity. Enjoy!Collins: How different is the vibe since Tiger isnt playing? Caddie: Well, they moved the tee box up on (the 10th hole) I had heard to alleviate some congestion from the fans. Thats not going to be an issue anymore. I think amongst the players, I havent heard a whole lot of chatter about him not being here. I think its definitely made an impact with the fans and the people in the area. A lot of people I talked to were excited to see him play and dont get the opportunity to now.A couple [of] people were like, I dont even care if he showed up and didnt play well. I just wanted to see him play. So its interesting, the dynamic [and] the difference between what Tiger is thinking about relative to his game and what the fans want.Obviously everyone wants to see him play well. But I think the fans just wanted to see him play. Thats been the biggest difference. The fans are disappointed he isnt here. For the players, its business as usual.Collins: Whats your opinion on how Tiger withdrew? Caddie: It was very interesting that he used the word vulnerable to describe his golf game. Ive never heard a golfer use that language. It would be something that, maybe, a golfer would say to his wife if he was in a moment of despair. Its a very telling word that he used and he definitely did it on purpose. I mean, all his words are very calculated.So I dont know if hes kind of letting everybody know, Hey, Im being truthful. This is where Im at. Dont have too many expectations for me right now. Im not ready yet. I think its tough for Tiger post-scandal. ... He sees all the eyeballs now. He used to have that tunnel vision. He used to own the entire golf course and everybody that he played with. He was the man.Without knowing him well and without trying to speak for him too much, he might [still] have some embarrassment from that. Its hard to play golf. You need to have an ego out on the PGA Tour. All of the players do. When that gets compromised, for whatever reason, then it becomes more difficult to perform at a high level.A major-winning player that I spoke with about it thought that Tiger might not be interested in playing golf on the PGA Tour if he knows that he cant compete at the highest level that hes used to. ... I still think he can win! Im a little less confident that he can win a major now, but I still think he can win. ...If I had any advice for him, youd look at some of these players in other sports that have made comebacks in their careers. I would say, Hey man. Youre not going to be the same guy you used to be, but you can definitely reinvent yourself. Youre still a champion. You might just have to figure out a different way to do it.Colllins: Is there anything the caddie can do to help his player when they have a case of the, I wont say the word, but it rhymes with hips? Caddie: [Big sigh.dddddddddddd] Thats an interesting thing. One of the things youre always trying to do is instill as much confidence as possible in your player. Another thing that you can do is take your players mind off the task at hand, so to speak. Be somewhat of a distraction.Those are two things some of the top caddies on tour do very well. And they dont always do both. You do one or the other. It depends on your player. An example of being a distraction would be, maybe if youre walking up to a shot that you know your player has been struggling with, that might be a time when you get in your players ear and change the subject. You gotta know your player, obviously. ...I think the other [example] would be just to instill as much confidence as possible in practice situations and as the round is unfolding, too, because the player has to do a good job of almost tricking himself in those situations. As much as you [the caddie] can do that without him knowing youre doing it, [that] could be helpful.Collins: How helpless of a feeling is it (caddie starts laughing before I even finish the question) when you know there is nothing you can say or do to prevent disaster for your player? Caddie: Yeah, that is a helpless feeling. Sometimes you get in situations as a caddie where youre off to the side of the green or off to the side of the shot, youve done everything you can do, and you know that your player is about to mess the shot up, because youve seen enough shots and youve seen your player enough out on the golf course that you know, oh no.It happens a lot with short putts. Putting is one where youre not in there talking to your player as much. Like a lot of times on approach shots or drives, you can kind of get that last word in there. Its not really as easy to do when it comes to putting. ... Yeah, it is a helpless feeling because you want to help him out, but you know hes got to figure it out on his own.Sometimes when you jump in there and it still goes wrong, its worse than sitting off to the side and having it go wrong! Versus, you sit off to the side and it goes right. Its kind of a catch-22 there. It is the most helpless feeling when you know your player just doesnt have it in that particular moment.Collins: Lets talk about the golf course. Theres weather, of course, in the forecast. Will that make this particular course easier or harder? Caddie: My first instinct is that its going to get harder. The [golf] ball doesnt go as far up here in this cool air. The rough is just long enough where you can get a club on [the ball], but you cant quite control it. The greens were firm, so theyll get a little bit softer but -- if its going to be gray, windy, rainy and overcast, I just dont think that can be easier in any circumstance. ' ' '