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This is a blog post that I wrote a couple of months back on wordpress.com! I was wondering if somebody could point out my mistakes so that I can improve the next time! Thamks in advance!

Hello!

I couldn’t log into wordpress in the last fifteen days because of my exams. Now that they are over, I am revelling in my regained freedom. All my school life, I have always celebrated the end of my exams by playing or watching cricket and so it was this time around as well. Fortunately, I got the rare oppurtunity to watch an India-Pakistan Test Match for the full five days without being nagged by my mother to get back to studies after a fairly long time. And I haven’t squandered it.

The first Test Match at Delhi has proved to be an excitingly unpredictable affair. Both sides have shown a queer inability to assert themselves when they have been in advantageous positions in the match. Consequently, we have had a fairly interesting low-scoring match full of twists and turns. Unlike the usual scenes of bowlers being taken to the cleaners, the bowler-friendly pitch and conditions have presented before us an evenly contested encounter between bat and ball which is a refreshing change. Kumble once again proved his dominance on Indian tracks. I wonder why he is still viewed as somebody who is just not good enough to be openly accorded the status of a legend.

Well, India have batted well in the second innings so far and are all set to take the lead in the three match series with only twenty-five runs to chase tomorrow. That’s the way I want things to happen so that I can celebrate after bungling up my exams!

Cheers!

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

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Very good. I have underlined problem areas and stricken out words not needed:

This is a blog post that I wrote a couple of months back on wordpress.com! I was wondering if somebody could point out my mistakes so that I can improve the next time! Thamks in advance!

Hello!

I couldn’t log into wordpress in the last fifteen days because of my exams. Now that they are over, I am revelling in my regained freedom. All my school life, I have always celebrated the end of my exams by playing or watching cricket and so it was this time around as well. Fortunately, I got the rare oppurtunity to watch an India-Pakistan Test Match for the full five days without being nagged by my mother to get back to studies ~~after a fairly long time~~. And I haven’t squandered it.

The first Test Match at Delhi has proved to be an excitingly unpredictable affair. Both sides have shown a queer inability to assert themselves when they have been in advantageous positions in the match. Consequently, we have had a fairly interesting, low-scoring match full of twists and turns. Unlike the usual scenes of bowlers being taken to the cleaners, the bowler-friendly pitch and conditions have presented ~~before~~ us an evenly contested encounter between bat and ball which is a refreshing change. Kumble once again proved his dominance on Indian tracks. I wonder why he is still viewed as somebody who is just not good enough to be openly accorded the status of a legend.

Well, India have batted well in the second innings so far and are all set to take the lead in the three match series, with only twenty-five runs to chase tomorrow. That’s the way I want things to happen so that I can celebrate after bungling up my exams!

Cheers!

Ashish Tiwari · Answer

Thank you very much, Mister Micawber!
I understood all but one mistake (or mistakes, please tell). Could you kindly clarify exactly what is wrong with the following and suggest corrections for it?
All my school life,........ What's the problem? Please correct it as well!
By the way, the expression 'Test Match' is not wrong. It's one of the many forms of 'Cricket'.
Thanks once again!

Goodman · Answer

Hi Ashish Tiwari,
Mister Micawber already gave you his opinions but I thought I would offer you a couple advices just so that you understand the courtesy concept. When the volunteers help the learners,
we may give them our personal view of their writing. Some may interprete it differntly and corrected it. Sometimes the terms you used are not mainstream English and so it's pointed out to you.
If you still like to continue receiving help, I suggest that you be less arugmentatively inquistive. "In all the sports we know in the US, there is no "test match" that I know of. Perhaps, qualifying match, semi-final, or Elimination match.

<<<<By the way, the expression 'Test Match' is not wrong. It's one of the many forms of 'Cricket">>>>

Mister Micawber · Answer

Hi Ashish.

All my school life,.. What's the problem?-- Many of my Japanese students try the same phrasing-- but it's not a natural phrase; we do not normally use 'my school/work/single/etc life' in English. Try 'While in school'.

By the way, the expression 'Test Match' is not wrong. It's one of the many forms of 'Cricket'.-- I know 'test match'... but it should not be capitalized.

Ashish Tiwari · Answer

Hello Goodman!
I do not know what you found so very offending about the post. I am sorry if I sounded discourteous, but I did not intend to. I guess you thought that I was being argumentative when I asked what the problem was with 'school life'. All I wanted to know was that what could be the possible alternatives to express the same meaning so that I am not at a loss of words the next time I need to refer to my life at school. I was not trying to question his authority or anything, but simply to know more.
Perhaps you did not notice, but I am really very new to this website. So thanks for introducing me to some of the dos and don'ts of the website, but you could have been a bit less harsh and certainly a lot less sarcastic in offering the advice.
When the volunteers help the learners, we may give them our personal view of their writing. Some may interprete it differntly and corrected it.
I did not know that it is considered discourteous to ask for explanations and alternatives, but I do know now and I'll make it a point to not to do so in the future. I have visited other 'learning' websites where experts help volunteers and didn't notice anything like that there. But I guess 'different place, different rules'!
If you still like to continue receiving help, I suggest that you be less arugmentatively inquistive.
I would 'still' like to receive help for sure. Once again, I can't understand what made you think that I was being 'argumentatively inquisitive'.
Sometimes the terms you used are not mainstream English and so it's pointed out to you.
Okay, got the point! I did not think that anybody would read so much into that passing remark. Yes, that's what it was - a passing remark. Surely, it wouldn't hurt anybody's pride to know about a game? Anyway, if it did sound disrespectful, I apologize.
In all the sports we know in the US, there is no "test match" that I know of. Perhaps, qualifying match, semi-final, or Elimination match.

The US is not the world. Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world after Football and Test Matches is the oldest form of the many forms of the game!
Once again, I have tried not to sound argumentative, discourteous or anything of that sort in this post as well. But I am not a native speaker of the language and cannot know what shades of meaning my seemingly innocuous sentences carry! I apologize if do sound like any of those.
Thanks once again!

Goodman · Answer

Hi Ashish Tiwari,
Actually, I find your English quite fluent when you are in the defensive mood! You are quite right! "The US is not the entire world". But
is cricket really the 2nd most favorite sport? I seriously doubted.
I guess the message I was trying to bring to you was you need to learn to realize the tone of the statement is louder than the words you chose. You may not know it. You may call me "reading too much into it". Believe or not, I actually was working on your thread. Halfway through, I lost the motivation. Well, I guess without my participating on your thread, the world still evolves and other would still answer your questions. Good luck!

Hoa Thai · Answer

Hi Ashish,
This is for my curiosity. Must all national cricket teams participate in the Test matches before they can take part in the 'first-class cricket' tournament? Can they get a by?
I my country, Vietnam, soccer is the most popular game. Teams have to compete all year around through various stages. At each stage, some teams do get a by if they rank among the top few. I, however, do not know if we officially name the matches between teams. Sometimes, we call a match by the name of the biggest sponsor. I like the name Test though - it is about competency instead of commercial orientation.

Ashish Tiwari · Answer

Thank you, Mister Micawber! Now I understand why I shouldn't use 'school life'.Your inputs really helped a lot!
I know 'test match'... but it should not be capitalized.
I got the point! Thanks once again!
Just to make it clear, I mentioned that 'test match' wasn't wrong because I did not expect you to know about cricket considering that you live in Japan, a country where, as far as I know, cricket is not a popular sport. It's a pleasant surprise that you know about the game! I hope it didn't upset or annoy you. If it did, please accept my heartiest apologies.
Thanks!

Ashish Tiwari · Answer

Hello Goodman!
Actually, I find your English quite fluent when you are in the defensive mood!
Thanks for the compliment! I am being defensive because I know my limitations in the English language. Though I have learnt English primarily through grammar books, magazines, newspapers, books etcetera, I am aware that I am not really good when it comes expressing my thoughs exactly the way I feel them in the written form of the language. And that is the reason why, as you rightly pointed out, I did not get the 'tone' right in my second post on the thread.
I know you are more experienced than I and if you think that I was being argumentative, then I have no option but to agree with you. I don't know what I did wrongly and though I tried hard, I could not figure out exactly what made the tone unfavourable. Please understand that I am not a native speaker and it's really not that easy for non-native speakers to get the right tone every time they use the language.
I can't really be called fluent if I cannot express myself the way I want to, can I? I guess that pretty much explains why I am being defensive.

I guess the message I was trying to bring to you was you need to learn to realize the tone of the statement is louder than the words you chose. You may not know it.
I realise that the tone of my statement wasn't exactly great, but how - I can't seem to understand! I'll try my best to learn how to get the tone right. And yes, you are right, I did not know how wrong my tone was.
And since I did not realise that my tone was not right, it was obvious that I thought you were reading too much into it!
Believe or not, I actually was working on your thread. Halfway through, I lost the motivation.
Surely, it wasn't that bad a piece of writing for you to lose the motivation to comment on it!
But is cricket really the 2nd most favorite sport? I seriously doubted.
I did not believe it either when I read it on wikipedia.com! Okay, I concede that it should have been - it's 'thought to be' the second most popular sport in the world after Football. A lot of it can be explained by the fact that it's the only sport that Indians (more than a bllion in population) care about! In fact, the nation is crazy about cricket!
Here's the wikipedia article - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cricket
Well, I guess without my participating on your thread, the world still evolves and other would still answer your questions.
Well, I guess I have really turned you off! I really did not intend to annoy you or anything like that. I have already apolologized, and I apologize again. But I really do feel that you could have been a bit softer in the way you expressed your criticism of me and, believe me, it stung!
I see no point in harbouring bitterness. I would love to see your replies to my questions. Really, if you give me enough time and give yourself enough of my posts to base your judgement on, I am quite sure that you'll realise that I am not as bad as I seem to be! Let's bury the hatchet, shall we?
See you!

Anonymous · Answer

Ashish,

You should be proud of yourself. You have a good command of English. Your writing is better than many native speakers. Smile!

Don't worry about Goodman's comments. It seems to me that you are a very courteous young man or girl (I can't tell from your name). I don't see an offensive or denfensive person in you. I see someone who aspires to mastering a language by being modest and receptive. You have some good qualities in you. Good luck!

Learner Myself

Please edit this for me!

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