India Tour Down Under - Preview

(Article dated December 23, 2007)

Lots have been said and written about the ‘fabulous five’ – Captain Anil Kumble, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman – touring down under for one last battle. The importance of ending their career on a high conquering the mighty Aussies, the last Indian tour where India tasted relatively huge success by leveling the test series 1-1, the question mark over the possibility of grabbing 20 wickets with not so experienced pace attack.

But for me, this Indian tour, a score line in favor of India is imperative for more than the reasons mentioned above. What will Anil Kumble and his exuberant Indian team will carry with them is the battle for rest of the world against the all conquering Australian team in their own land. I say this because this Indian team is the only team to challenge Australia consistently well and have managed to put them on mat more than a few occasions.

The last three test series between the two teams have resulted in some intriguing combat. The epic series in 2001 saw India stop the Aussie juggernaut of record 16 consecutive wins by winning the Kolkatta test match by 171 runs after being bowled out for the same number of runs in the first innings and facing follow-on. The match saw some Godly batting display by VVS Laxman, an aficionado of Australian attack. India rapped the series in Chennai with some deadly bowling from Harbajhan Singh., the Australians where blown out and lost the battle of minds as well as the skills.

The next series was in 2003-04 down under where one expected the visitors to lose 4-0. But that saw a fighting captain in Sourav Ganguly displaying a tiger like attitude to rattle the Aussie bowling on the way to his brilliant century enabling India to hold draw in that crucial first test at Brisbane. His innings certainly inspired his team to put on fearless show there on lead by Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Virender Shewag. The middle order batsmen fired consistently after solid opening partnerships match after match.

The third series was back in India where Australia conquered a test series on Indian soil after 35 years. This too was a closely fought encounter and could have well been 2-2 had the last day of Chennai test match not rained out.

The formula for India will be very much the same this time too. The first test on Boxing Day will be crucial as in case of any test series. Melbourne has never been a happy hunting ground for any visiting team and a draw here will be the key for a competitive series. India can snatch the initiative in Sydney by employing two spinners, enhancing their chances of taking 20 wickets. The third test will be very crucial once gain. Last time after a win at Adelaide they lost in Melbourne, this time the third test will be played at Perth. Honestly there are only two results possible – an Australian victory or a miraculous draw. If India can sneak through a draw then they have a realistic chance of an easy draw or even a win in one of their favorite ground in Adelaide Oval. Especially this Indian team will have happier memories of this ground having won here last time.

Anil Kumble will feel at ease with the situation that he is in, having seven of his batters in form. Sourav is at his life time best and his contribution and responsibility in the middle order will be decisive. Laxman has always been at his best against Aussies and the whole nation will hope he will continue his good showing this time as well.

There has been a lot of debate over the opening slot and I strongly believe opening with Rahul Dravid is a huge gamble. If the indications of India’s tour match is anything to go by then I will be keeping my fingers tightly crossed. He has always been the mainstay of Indian batting overseas and it will be no different this time. Losing him early will be a huge moral disaster for the players inside the dressing room. His loss will play in the minds of the batsmen to come thereafter and can affect their batting as well. Dravid’s sheer presence in the middle is more than enough to keep the opposition thinking and I strongly recommend not to open with him. Though he has been out of the team for almost a year now, Viru will be my choice as he can play mind games with Brett Lee and Co.

As kumble said, it’s vital that India should post totals of 400 plus in their first innings every time to give its bowlers a fair chance. Talking about the Indian bowling, my money will be on RP Singh. He has knack to surprise the batsmen with his pace and bounce. He is relatively new to Australian batsmen and the alien conditions will only help him his cause. Even Ishant Sharma and Pankaj Singh can actually be a surprise package as their height being their advantage. However, India will be missing the accurate seam bowling of Sreesanth for sure.

This series will be watched closely by rest of cricket fraternity. India has nothing to lose and have to showcase some fearless display of attitude and skill. An Indian win can certainly restore the hopes of other cricket playing nations of defeating Australia and bring the game of cricket alive which has been now dominated by Aussies for a long time.

Kirsten the Right Choice

(Article wrote a week after Kirsten's appointment as India Coach)

After controversial Chappell regime it took seven months of highly intense drama filled BCCI’s baffling administration, Ford crisis, captain’s frustration leading to overall pressure with undying media speculation has at last resulted in Team India having a new coach in Gary Kirsten.

Former South African opener will fit in as an excellent choice as he can be looked as a long term solution compared to various other names that did the rounds throughout the hunt. A reasonable and plain-speaking approach, in short as many believe a John Wright approach was required to handle the big names and also to understand the psychology of the Indian players. To say the least, this was a must after a bossy Chappell rule.

Kirsten will serve with distinction. A tactful person in nature he looks prepared to remain behind the scene. He was a thinking cricketer during his playing days and can be a good analyzer. Having Gary will actually end up being a big advantage because he has played a lot of cricket against the many senior players in the Indian team starting from Sachin Tendulkar to Yuvraj Singh and Harbajan Singh. Therefore, for sure he will be in a position to help these cricketers by letting them know how the opposition plan to counter them as he had been the part of south African dressing room planning one of these Indian’s dismissal.

Also another plus of Kirsten is he will be very much aware of the demands of modern day cricket and the physical and mental stress comes along with it.

Kirsten as a player never took things for granted, neither his place in the team nor his form with the bat. He worked hard for his runs so does he will as a coach. He also has this charm to induct a positive influence among youngsters and keeping them on toes.

Kirsten wasn’t a gifted batsman as he worked hard on his technique throughout his successful career and this will make him to show patience with some of the less gifted players. He played under Hansie Cronje for most of his career and a team was one of the top teams in the world which showed good aggression and competence. Coming up from such a background he can keep up the momentum going inside the dressing room.

Kirsten might not have coaching experience of a national team or even a domestic side but he has the ability to learn the nuance of coaching in a short span of time. Coaching an international team is not about teaching how to hold your bat grip or how to get your seam position right but it is about facilitating the players’ needs. And now if you think if he suits the best as coach, he is the most appropriate I feel. The credit should go to the coach selection committee comprising Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar and Srinivas Venkataragavan for entrusting Gary Kirsten with the job.

He will play his cards close to his chest in handling the team as a whole, the seniors, the BCCI and the Indian media. And he has already given us the glimpses of that by making himself available full-time from March, smartly avoiding the team’s tour of Australia. However, his presence as coach will be one more interesting phase in Indian cricket.

Kirsten is already into his first task meeting the team in Bangalore during the on-going third test verses Pakistan trying to interact with the players. After the Australian tour he will be presiding over the change in guard. And he has the brilliance, understanding and strength to take charge.

Dominant Indian Batsmen Silence Critics

At the start of the ongoing India-Pakistan test series there was enormous pressure and a little temptation among selectors and typical media speculation surrounding the inclusion of in-form Yuvraj Singh in the playing eleven. And with two days into the second test, the two men under the cloud Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman proved their worth for yet another time in the test team with some brilliant and breadth taking stroke play displaying authority on the field.

Sourav Ganguly before the second test said, it was his dream to score a century in his home ground. The stage was perfectly set for ‘the Prince of Kolkata’ with India already scoring 300 runs as he walked in. with less than an hour to go on the first day’s play, he played with caution and the next morning he made his presence felt with some trademark dada drives- Godly! - on the off-side. He wasn’t reluctant to put his bat to the bouncers as he pulled Shoaib Akthar and Mohmmad Sami for boundaries with ease.

If Sourav was ‘Son of the soil’, on the other end partnering him for the fifth wicket was VVS Laxman once again proved that he is ‘Lord of Eden Gardens’ as one of the banners in stands claimed. It is always a delight to watch Laxman playing his ‘very very special’ on drive against the leg spin and this time Dainsh Kaneria fell victim to his beautiful wrist work. The duo put on 163 run stand before Ganguly sacrificed his wicket trying to hit his trademark lofted six over long on to satisfy his everlasting fans who have undefined love for him.

Before all this the stage belonged to the Mumbai boy, well if your guess is Sachin Tendulkar it’s not. But it was Wasim Jaffer who stole the show on first day with elegant stroke play including 34 hits to the fence filled with attractive cuts and pulls and gorgeous drives on both sides. The flow of runs was never in question when he was at crease as he maintained a 100% testimony in punishing the loose balls for fours. Playing around him was Rahul Dravid putting on 136 runs for second wicket and Sachin Tendulkar adding 175 for the third wicket taking India to a position of strength.

The first day of second test was one of those rare occasions where Sachin Tendulkar when in full form was overshadowed by relatively inexperienced Jaffer. However, it was a pleasure to watch Indian batting dictating terms to the opposition.

If the exhibition at Kolkata is dominant, in Delhi it was efficient enough to make amends. Though few big names in the Indian batting failed in the first innings, Laxman and Dhoni took India to safety before captain Kumble along with the Hydrabadi made sure India take some sizeable lead in the first innings. Laxman silenced his critic with a help of patient and unbeaten 72 runs. After a deadly display by Indian bowlers led by skipper Anil Kumble, Wasim Jaffer provided India with a good start chasing a moderate total followed by Tendulkar and Ganguly show who did good for themselves by scoring handful of runs. Ganguly calmed the nerves in the dressing room by some aggressive batting taking India closer to victory before stumps on the fourth day.

As Test captain for the first time Anil Kumble draw lot of praise from the former captains including the ones in the team. His move to bring Sourav Ganguly to bowl with the new ball on fourth day morning was a master stroke fetching him two wickets. He shuffled the bowlers well as one would expect from him and his field placements were accurate.

And for Yuvraj, he might be at the form of his life but it is certain that it is not enough to open the doors in the playing XI. And the scenario was rightly articulated by Anil Kumble. "I think Laxman's knock was very crucial considering the circumstances. He's a fantastic player and his partnership with Dhoni was very critical for us. I don't know why there is always a sword hanging over his head. It's only a perception from those not within the dressing room. We [the team] know what quality he brings in and his role in the team is very crucial," Kumble said in a press conference in Delhi. Yuvraj has to wait a little longer.