India look forward to the Eden for revenge

Image via Wikipedia

Eden Gardens - the first memory of this ground was the 1987 World Cup Final that was held at this very ground - a brand new stadium was released to the public who occupied every inch of it during the final even when the match did not feature the host country.

The next memory of course, is the 281 of VVS Laxman - no Indian would probably forget this match for the determination, guts of the Indian fightback. VVS has made this ground his second home - his stats at this ground better than any other in India. Harbhajan will also like coming to the ground where he made magic against the visiting Aussies during the same 281-series.

Thanks to the politics that is common-place within BCCI, the test matches have been a very rare occurrence at this ground. One-day matches have returned and one is happy to see that a test match is played after 3 years. The last match was played recently between India and who else, Sri Lanka - Gambhir and Kohli scoring centuries each as India chased down a 310+ score successfully.

So, what can one expect to see in the 2nd (and strangely, the final test) match of the series? Ex-coach John Wright suggests that VVS be pushed to the No.3 slot - a good move which will have the best batsmen of the team occupying the first four spots in the lineup. With MS Dhoni coming in at No.7, the 2 relatively younger players (most probably Vijay and Badrinath) will occupy 5 and 6. So far, so good but what India will hope is for the players to fire all guns blazing. Win the toss, bat first and chalk up a big score in the first innings to put pressure on the Proteans.

Then, the bowlers need to come to the party. Zaheer and Sreesanth will have to swing the ball in conditions that might help them (the wind in the afternoon thanks to the Hooghly river might make things interesting for both sides). But, it is Harbhajan who has to come to the party in this test. He has to make a difference to the team with incisive spin - Pragyan Ojha seems set to make another replacement of Amit Mishra.

Last year matches at this ground saw huge scores being put up in the Ranji matches with no result at the end - Bengal playing against Saurashtra and Baroda. Will this test go that way as well? Do not think so. Spin will come to play during the 3rd and 4th day of the match - hopefully, India will take the steps required (as suggests their No.1 spot) to win the match and draw the series. Then, only can they claim to be rightfully No.1 team.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Nagpur Post-mortem (myhistoryisinteresting.blogspot.com)
• India's heavy defeat to South Africa was a debacle waiting to happen (guardian.co.uk)
• South Africa complete India rout (news.bbc.co.uk)

Nagpur Post-mortem

Image via Wikipedia

An interesting link on the day when India lost the first test at Nagpur against South Africa, while browsing hit my attention - especially this block of text

Winners become sinners when confidence turns into complacency and arrogance. They over-estimate their own invincibility and under-value mundane disciplines. Whenever someone feels on top over a long period of time, they are tempted to neglect the very fundamentals that helped them succeed in the first place. They might even start to feel that the rules don't apply to them.

The article was about Toyota's current issues but I felt that the Indian team would do well to read this article as well as introspect. If anyone thought that the Indians could face the No.2 ranked side in the world (having the No.1 ranked bowler), they needed to check their head first. The Indian think-tank also probably under-estimated the strength of the South African team (did they not remember the fact that India was all out for 76 in the last series in 2008) - If they did not forget, why did they not prepare for Steyn? One cannot plan against such a bowler - agreed. But, did they think they could get away with the practice they had prior to the test series?

Not to say that this was the only reason for the loss against South Africa. There were plenty of others as well.

• Luck - VVS being added to the team was not luck - it was bad planning. How come a player who was 50-60% fit on the eve of the match added to the fifteen?  Rohit Sharma getting injured on the morning of the match was purely bad luck. No one can dispute that!!! Saha must be thanking his stars that he was lucky to play one test match - something that many players in the yesteryears were not so fortunate.
• Injuries - The injury to Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman obviously played a big role in the test match. The middle-order had no or minimal experience. Badri played a good innings in the first innings but gave it away in the second. Vijay had played well in the opportunities he had received so far - this was his first failure. This lad deserves another one or two chances.
• Bowling - Because of the attention Steyn received, the Indian bowlers might not face the heat but the truth was that the bowling was downright bad. Harbhajan and Amit Mishra bowled well in patches but not well together to take wickets. Ishant could not get any wickets at all - surely Sreesanth must be back in the next test match.

Will the Indians prepare a track for the South Africans like last time? Will we see the pitch of Eden Gardens take turn from the first session? Time will tell if the Indians draw the series to retain No.1 or go down to No.2.

So far, the selectors have changed their team by calling up Raina, Sreesanth and Dinesh Karthik - the best option to shore up the batting would be to hope VVS is fit again.

Related articles by Zemanta

• South Africa complete India rout (news.bbc.co.uk)
• Stunning Steyn cuts through India (news.bbc.co.uk)
• Steyn helps South Africa push India (guardian.co.uk)
• South Africa's Dale Steyn blows India away (telegraph.co.uk)

Will it be India's Garden at Eden?

Image via Wikipedia

India play Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens tomorrow (24th) with the series 2-1 in their favor. A win will give the series to the Indians once again.

India will miss Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni in their batting lineup. Virat Kohli will be expected to make up for the omission while Dinesh Karthik proved to be an able contributor to the Indian team. The pace bowlers need to pick up Dilshan, Tharanga and Sangakkara early to put pressure on the middle-order.

The Sri Lankan team should bring back Sanath Jayasuriya and drop a bowler so that they can beef up their middle order even though he seems to be uncomfortable there. His spell during the 1996 World Cup at the same ground is fresh in every one's mind.

Can the spinners do it again for the Indians?