You just had to be online.

Like Abhinav Kalani in the USA, who was following the India-Zimbabwe test series said, "I knew it was all over on the last ball of the third day, when Rahul Dravid was caught by Andy Flower."

For Saurabh Gupta, student at the University of Waterloo in Canada, online commentary helps save the big bucks. "It's all pay per view here. Also, my parents aren't big on cricket, so I hate watching it alone. Online, I have found old school friends whilst chatting and reading the commentary."

A high point, for him, was the recent India-Australia Web cast, where he had 15 friends crowded around a computer hooked to a TV screen at the Doordarshan site. "The entire room exploded after the win," he says.

The Internet also helps Gupta become a more informed fan: "I can keep in touch with statistics, be more objective about the talent available, and be unbiased about my own country. In India, one gets to read only about one side of the story. Now, I make it a point to visit sites of the opponents as well."

Lots of surfers have tried it at least once, especially while at work. "The secrecy of following cricket online from work makes it even more exciting," says Anand, who follows the game from his office in Japan. His recommended sites include rediff.comand Cricinfo.com. Another self-confessed refresh button maniac, Milind Rao says, "Online audio commentary is also great. It reminded me of the great radio commentary of Anant Setalwad and Sunil Doshi on A.I.R., while I was growing up."

Harshal Kulkarni, a stats freak, loves comparing past scores, wins, losses, etc. before a series. Others, like K. R. Kiran, are more selective, and check out rediff.com, clickcricket.com, thepavilion.com.au, and kris-srikkanth.com.

He is not alone. Statistician Menon says his oddest query has to be when Azhar got married for the second time. Someone wanted to compare his performance before and after both marriages. And Menon did have the answers. "The Internet and television have made viewers more cricket stats savvy. Most queries addressed to me are usually based on player performances in Tests, ODIs and first-class cricket."

What makes or breaks it though, according to most, is the quality of commentary. Explains Joshi, "Commentators like Prem Panicker help rouse your interest even in test cricket, which I was never really keen on." Gupta disagrees. "Names are not such a big draw as offline or on television where you would prefer hearing Harsha Bhogle, Sunny Gavaskar or Ravi Shastri."

According to Prem Panicker, our in-house commentator and resident chat host, the audience has, over the last six years, become very discerning. "The surfer continously wants more. If there is a spelling mistake, they will make sure you hear about it. If you miss a few balls, they will yell out loud. They want us to go the whole hog -- field settings, pre-match interviews, post match interviews and analysis and an informed opinion. Today, every other cricket site is doing online commentary to a degree of higher or lesser competance, but surfers come back to us because in Rediff they have found a voice that is more knowledgeable and considerably more outspoken."

Most agree that online reportage has done the five-dayer a great favour. Explains Ganpathy Kotteshwara, "It has bought back the lost fans. With online commentary, it helps keep the excitement alive over five days, and I like the steady development of a test match."

Forums and chat rooms are also a huge place for cricket fans to vent their feelings, apart from being a great place to know where good reportage takes place. "It was on one of the CNN cricket forums that I discovered online commentary at Cricinfo and Rediff," says Gupta, who rues missing a chat with Bhajji, (Harbajan Singh) online.

Needless to say, there are pitfalls too. Cribs K. R. Kiran, "Too many people following the game freezes a server. Also, there is often a lag. But then, to be able to watch a live web cast of how Laxman and Dravid carried on in the India-Australia series, makes up for all of it."

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