Geometrical Cricket

I must admit that while watching the final day's play in Bangalore today, the geometry of the fielders' placements wasn't something I was keeping an eye on. India Uncut's Amit Varma was though as his post entitled The Delights of Geometry testifies:

One of the things I’m enjoying most about the Pakistan bowling performance today is the close-in field positions. The one with most symmetry was when Arshad Khan was bowling to Dinesh Karthik, with the wicketkeeper and the batsman being in the middle of a perfect hexagan [sic], with three close-in fielders on either side of the wicket. That became a pentagon when Shahid Afridi was bowling to Anil Kumble, with four men close-in on the off side, one man on the leg side. Danish Kaneria, meanwhile, has been bowling with an unequal heptagon, with five men on the off side – two slips, silly point, silly mid-off and short extra-cover – and two on the leg. Hexagons, pentagons, heptagons, fluid shapes with their corners moving as the batsmen change, or the bowlers change their tactics, and the two men in between, concentrating intently on that round piece of leather that follows a geometry of its own. This is Test cricket. Marvellous [sic].

I can just see Geoff Botycott during his next commentating spell using the on-screen marker pen to highlight an innovative octagonal fielding arrangement!