With two 4-0 drubbings overseas and now a 2-1 defeat
at home, Indian cricket administrators, selectors, coaches and players have a
lot to ponder. The Indians looked jaded on the field after too much cricket
through the year. And they played against a team, which was far better prepared
than them in all departments of the game.
Indians were over-confident predicting a clean sweep
of the weak English team. The Indian skipper Dhoni is experienced in leading in
all forms of the game, while Cook is new to the job. Apart from Test
match-fitness, which clearly reflects on fielding and reflexes on the field,
the weak Indian attack and dearth of quality fast bowlers at Test level added
to India’s problems. After the retirement of Anil Kumble and out-of-form Harbhajan
Singh, Ashwin and Ohja were not experienced to extract much from the pitch and
conditions to trouble the English batsmen who are normally vulnerable to spin
bowling.
India will not be consistent at home or win Test
matches, especially abroad without good penetrative fast bowlers, bowling at
140 plus speed to trouble the opposition batsmen, in case the spinners fail to
make a break-through. When you go into a Test with just one fast bowler that
shows there is something seriously wrong with fast bowling in India. Bowlers,
especially fast bowlers hunt in pairs. New raw fast bowlers should be encouraged.
By taking one fast bowler the message you are sending in is two-fold – one, you
lack quality fast bowlers and two, you discourage young fast bowlers who then
feel there is no point of hard work as you are not going to be picked anyway.
Fast bowling is a serious business; whenever the spinners fail, the fast
bowlers are expected to do the damage. Every Test team around the world have a
couple of good fast bowlers to fall back upon. Near home you have Sri Lanka and
Pakistan with couple of good pace bowlers who are capable of restricting or
damaging. Till Indian selectors understand this simple factor, India will not
be consistent and find it difficult to win series abroad.
And Indian selectors have a tendency to pick players
on reputation, not form or fitness. The senior players should be in form and
fit enough to last for five days of Test cricket. Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer
Khan are glaring examples. They too need a break. The opening slot too is cause
for concern. Rahane or Mohan can be tried out in place of Shewag or Gambir if
have failed to provide a good start which is very vital for the batting side.
Virat Kohli and Pujara are adequate replacements for Rahul Dravid and VVS
Laxman, but they have a long way to go to step in to their shoes. The middle
order is shaky and does not hold on in case the openers and one down batsmen
fail. India needs good dogged batsmen to stay out there and build-up a good
innings. Without the seniors, India looks a team in transition and vulnerable.
India’s biggest strength has been their spin
department in sub-continent conditions, and this has let them down badly with
no good replacements after Anil Kumble and out-of-form Harbhajan Singh. Through
the series, India looked ordinary in batting, bowling and fielding except for a
few glimpses of good cricket. Administrators and selectors need to have a good
look and form a good pool of players, with a couple of batsmen each in
different batting positions, spin and pace bowlers, etc who can replace if one
fails or is out-of-form. India cannot rest only on its traditional strength of
spin but will have to soon nurture fast bowlers if they have to consistently
make an impression on world cricket. This is no rocket science. BCCI should
know it by now.
No comments:
Post a Comment