Sri Lanka series - ready to start

The Indo-Lankan series is ready to start after a long time. In fact, I did read that the Indian team has not won a series in Lanka for 22 years! It was probably Azhar who won the series with help of Sachin and Kumble in the team (the lone win was well-planned out by Indians). Even Ganguly and MSD could not achieve a win - wonder what the new permanent captain will do.

The Lankans are vulnerable this time after series defeat against Pakistan in multiple formats. The aging Sangakkara will play his last test match in this series and in my view, will hold the biggest challenge for Indians. If they can get him out quickly, the Indians will have a good chance to win the series.

The bowlers have done well in the warm-up match, especially Ishant Sharma. But who will the management pick as part of the playing eleven - Bhuvi and Umesh? Along with the three, two spinners will be picked and my suspicion is that it will be Harbhajan who will miss out.

The batting will be made of Dhawan, KL Rahul, Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane - Pujara seems to be out of favor at the moment with Rohit edging ahead. If Rohit cannot make runs in the first two tests, it will be back to Pujara.

Saha will have all three test matches to prove himself. Especially with his batting, Saha is one who has not contributed much. There are players like Samson, Uthappa are waiting in the wings.

If the rains do not disturb the series, India should edge Sri Lanka. But, it looks like rain will have the last say. My guess is that the series will be shared.

Dhoni the unconventional hero

MS Dhoni was always unconventional - when I thought of writing a blog entry about him, there were many thoughts that entered my mind. But, Rahul Dravid's post was just superb, on the spot about what MSD stood for. Hence, I will try to write this post a bit differently.

When Ganguly announced his retirement, he was merely a player. What did MSD do? Watch this video for a timely gesture.

When Anil Kumble announced his, he was taken around for a lap by his team-mates (no, just one man)

Thanks to Times Group for image 

When Sachin Tendulkar's famous last match finished, this was the fitting finale

Thanks to Cricinfo for image

Having done all this, MSD also watched the likes of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman walk away into the sunset without any fanfare. He was also witness to his friends like Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag fade away from the limelight. 

Would he have scripted a better farewell himself than what he did? Probably not. Taking India to safety on the last day of the Boxing Day test match was the best way for him to say goodbye.

Thanks to Cricinfo for image

His records speak for themselves and there is no comparison for a wicket-keeper who captained his side so well. 

Finally, what did his workload look like? In 2014, he captained his team in nine tests, twelve ODI's and seven T20 internationals. Other than this, he led CSK in 16 T20 matches in the IPL as well as six T20 matches in Champions League. 

It was probably a choice of letting go one of the formats or one of his occupation (wicket-keeping or captaincy). Since he would continue to keep wickets (he is not a good fielder according to himself) as well as captain the side (his CEO would demand it always), one of the format had to give way. And that is exactly what MSD opted.

SAF series - Indian teams announced

The Indian team was announced today by the selectors without major surprises.

Let us look at who have been selected

Players picked for both include - Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kolhi, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja,

Only for ODI matches - Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Mohit Sharma, Amit Mishra

Only for test matches - Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Wriddhiman Saha, Zaheer Khan, Pragyan Ojha

The ODI matches are starting first which means that the team has got a good feel of the conditions and pitches before the test match starts. Only Murali Vijay and Pujara are the ones who will miss out on match practice before the tests start. Similarly, it will be good for Zaheer to play the next match for his Ranji team before leaving for the tour.

No surprises as far as I am concerned other than the return of Saha who has not done anything of note so far. Dinesh Karthik will feel sad that his good form on the Champions Trophy sojourn was not accounted for. His Ranji form, though, has not been impressive so far. Ojha and Mishra will be passengers on the tour who will enjoy the African safari. Rayudu also might join them with Rahane the first preference to handle the No.6 position.

As expected, Kohli will occupy Sachin's position and maybe Rahane will take his position. Rohit's good form with the tail will make him favorite to occupy the No. 6 batting position. Dhoni and Ashwin round off a good batting lineup while the bowling seems to be reinforced with the return of Zaheer.

After their French training, it was expected that Yuvraj and Zaheer would return to the squad. Zak did well in the domestic tournaments just like Yuvi and hence his experience was sought after. He with Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Shami will be the first preference for the test matches. Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma will be the backup - my preference would be to pick Umesh as a standby, not Ishant.

All in all, this is the first tour post-Tendulkar and it would be a good experience for the team to benefit from. And for all of you, please lower your expectations and have patience with the team !

Thank You Sachin

West Indies series - End of THE match

If the first test match was won by India easily, the final test match (THE match as everyone will call it going forward) was won even more easily than the first. The after effect of the series was very similar to one who had enjoyed a good meal at the local restaurant (West Indies) instead of a five-star hotel (South Africa). By not allowing Sachin to bat more than 2 innings in the 2 test match series, the Windies did spoil Sachin's party as they mentioned earlier!

Sachin scored 74 in his final innings, 74 more than what Don had scored in his last innings. Deonaraine had his 'Hollies' moment and all were happy. That is what it finally was - a Happy feel-good series just like the one that you see on the numerous channels on Indian television. No one was bothered about the result or the statistics - they were side-acts in the story.

Sachin's speech was a fitting climax not only to the test match and series but a 24-year career. He ensured that everyone who had made a contribution to his career were covered.

What everyone forgot was the way the top 6 lineup in the Indian team had been replaced completely from the next test match from - Gambhir, Sehwag, Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Ganguly - to the current crop of batsmen - Dhawan, Vijay, Pujara, Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Rahane. The beginning of Post-Tendulkar era seems to have started on a bright note but one has to remember that it will not be glowing as it is now.

There will be more downs than ups in the near future and these batters will be tested thoroughly. If they can withstand and become tougher, that is what will benefit Indian cricket. PATIENCE then will be the virtue that the Indian public will need in large doses in the coming days. 

West Indies series - debutants give India 1-0 lead

India gave the opportunity to two players for making their debut in the first test of the Farewell Series of Sachin Tendulkar. Both debutants had done well in the recently concluded ODI series against Australia, one of them in fact was named the Man of Series then. Both grabbed the opportunity given to them and ensured that the 199th test of Sachin Tendulkar finished as early as the third day itself.

It augurs well for Indian cricket that Mohammad Shami has come through at this time with a potent combination of swing and pace. Though he may not be express pace, the difference that he can conjure up compared to that of Praveen Kumar will be critical for Indian teams fortunes during their South African sojourn later this year. If Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav can pick up their form, the Indian bowling will be a tough force to reckon with.

On the batting front, the void created due to the retirement of VVS Laxman has still not been filled yet. Sourav Ganguly's position has been taken up by Virat Kohli (who will now move into the No.4 position of Tendulkar). Rohit Sharma had not taken his chance earlier (through a freak injury) while his colleagues like Rahane and Raina were preferred earlier. This time, he was ready and his 200 in the previous ODI was a good dose of inspiration. Though he could not repeat the double century at Kolkata, his innings and partnership with Ashwin took India into the comfort zone. With Rohit's debut, the Indian batting lineup for South Africa looks like - Vijay, Dhawan, Pujara, Kohli, Rohit, Rahane/Raina, Dhoni, Ashwin. Quite a strong lineup in fact.

Credit must be given to Ashwin also. Though he performed well with the ball, his contribution to the partnership with Rohit was equally important. Ashwin seems to have all qualities of a No.7 batsman and he should be groomed for the allrounder role (as we have mentioned earlier on this blog). All in all, a good result for the Indian team at Kolkata. Everything to look forward at Mumbai where the Master will be playing his last (and 200th) test match.

Good Bye, Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin's retirement was very much similar to the Cyclone Phailin that is close to the Indian east coast at the time of writing this article. Many knew the situation but no one knew the exact timing and what the impact is going to be. Though some might argue that comparing SRT to the cyclone is not a good one, the manner in which the legend batted throughout the career, the opposition had to inevitably feel as though a cyclone had indeed hit them!

There are millions of articles and blog-posts on Sachin and I don't have anything new to add. Hence, I will share my thoughts on how he has affected me during his career. 

Yes, I did see the charity match when he smote Abdul Qadir for those sixes with his captain Srikkanth at the other end. I thought then who this lad was (he is the same age as mine) who is trying to show off to the non-striker. Little did I know.

I did watch him being hit by Waqar Younis and then for a moment felt that the selectors had made a mistake of selecting him so early! Little did I know.

I then watched him smack Shane Warne on his debut test along with Ravi Shastri. I thought here is a guy who is making good use of the average spinners that opposition try to produce. So Little did I know.

When I saw him tear apart the South Africans on their soil, I stopped doubting. This was a man no ordinary. He was beyond the ones that I had seen in my lifetime and the next five-ten years were absolute vintage for someone who was closely following the fortunes of the Indian team. The next distinct memory is that of Desert Sandstorm when he hit those two centuries back-to-back against the champion Aussies. This was also at a stage when the Indian team were losing many but Sachin still produced such gems that shone through. I can go on and on but you get the gist. 

Couple of decades passed and then he started failing (in relative terms). Gone were the centuries and you could see the Master struggle (just like the tennis Master Roger Federer, another favorite of mine, is going through these days). I wondered why he continued. 

Then, came the 175 against Australia in a losing cause. He showed again how little did I know! It was now, payback time for Sachin. His team(s) started winning tournaments. World Cup 2011, Champions League T20 (though he was not part of the time during the first win), IPL. 

He had in the process finished what Sunil Gavaskar had instructed him to do - 100 centuries. What else was remaining? Where was his hunger? What would he do next? Is there any point at all for him to get up in the morning and go to practice (when he did not have any further targets)? How little did I know.

Only those who have remained for long at that level and status can answer the questions that came to my mind. As far as me, I could only speculate and fail!

Now that Sachin has retired, will he still remain associated with cricket? It looks likely (associated with Mumbai Indians at least) but I still know little. Do you know more?

2013 Champions League starts

After the qualifiers, the main tournament started on 21st September with Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid squaring off.

Rahul Dravid's Rajasthan Royals continued their perfect record at Jaipur as they defeated Mumbai Indians with relative ease. The stars were relatively unknown players like Vikramjeet Malik, Sanju Samson and Stuart Binny. Others pitched in together to make it a comfortable victory at the end. Mitchell Johnson will feel aggrieved though!

Champions Trophy beckons - is it the last?

From all quarters, everyone seems to be proclaiming this as the last Champions Trophy to be played! There had been many noises around the world where no one were convinced about the stature of the tournament (conceived by Sharad Pawar initially). One hardly remembers anything about the editions that have gone by except for those few and far between. West Indies (in their decline) and New Zealand have won one edition each while India & Sri Lanka shared the trophy (match being a no-result after 110 overs were played!) once.

The memory that stays in my mind is the quarterfinal of the 2000 edition between India and Australia for many reasons. This match was played when the Australian team was slamming every other team in the world.  India was rebuilding under Sourav Ganguly and had two relatively new players in their side - Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh (at the age of 18 years, playing his second match). Both of them used this match to pitch themselves to the forefront.

Image Courtesy: Cricinfo

The first image of the match was the way Sachin Tendulkar ran out of his crease to upset McGrath's rhythm. Known for his stinginess at the bowling crease, McGrath was thrashed for 61 runs in his 9 overs after the initial flurry from Sachin.

Yuvraj Singh was one player who made his reputation in this match by his match-winning innings, following up on Sachin's blitzkrieg. To quote Steve Waugh:

As a striker of the ball he played an excellent innings. He kept the composure of the side going and he saw them basically through to the end so it was a match-winning innings.

Zaheer Khan, in fact, was a revelation with his yorkers (Steve Waugh was one casualty) throughout the tournament staking claim to be one of the bowlers to be looked out for. Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad were looking for a third bowler to ensure that the pressure they created could be sustained and Zaheer proved that he was a good fit. What a revelation he would turn out for India in the years to come.

India defeated South Africa next but lost to (Chris) Cairns-inspired NewZealand in the finals.

Zaheer and Yuvraj were in contention for the 2013 version also - this itself speaks about their longevity and talent that they demonstrated in this 2000 match.

Do you remember any other image of the Champions Trophy? 

IPL6 for Mumbai

During my morning stroll to the local market, I noticed a vendor who was sporting CSK jersey. Obviously, the topic shifted from tomatoes to last night's IPL final. The Chennai lad mentioned that he switched off once Albie Morkel was dismissed (even though captain MSD was still at the crease) - why? Dhoni needed someone to farm the strike and the ask was too much even for the champion batsman. Fair. Question was asked regarding the decision to send Raina when Hussey got dismissed in the first over itself. Why not send someone like Badrinath who could have settled the innings? Fair once again. It is very enlightening speaking to such folks on the street who are still following the League even with all its controversies (maybe Srinivasan is also having similar conversations!)

The discussion then moved to the spot-fixing controversy that is ongoing. The young lad mentioned that it would be no surprise that couple of days later, there would be reports coming in that talk about the IPL6 final being fixed as well! Very interesting indeed. Interesting because I noticed in Facebook that there were updates from my friends and contacts on how CSK's initial run made the bookies put all the money on a probable win only for Mumbai to win at the last minute! Is this what we have come to? What happens to Kieron Pollard's match-winning innings or Lasith Malinga's toe-crushing yorker to Hussey? Is this not the real deal?

The match itself was a good contest with both teams losing early wickets and making a recovery to post a total, only difference being Mumbai had 23 more runs than Chennai. Sachin Tendulkar's absence from the team meant that he was not part of the eleven that won the title (just like Champions League) but it looks like it did not matter. SRT was enjoying as much as Ricky Ponting. Which team can comprise of players outside the playing eleven that had a combined experience of 60,000 test and ODI runs? Which team can manage a support staff that has Anil Kumble, John Wright, Robin Singh, Jonty Rhodes? Only a team that can be funded and managed by the Ambani's, according to the Tamil lad (it is quite popular in Tamil Nadu to relate Ambani to one who is rich and famous). Such a team could upset a gigantic team like Chennai SuperKings in the IPL final, hoped the team owners. On 26th May, the hope became reality.

The Aussies are here...

There has been no talks about a revenge series or a whitewash like the one India faced Down Under. Why? The English test series has ensured that expectations from the Indian team is reduced to the extent that they probably don't start the series as favourites! While I would have agreed with that status earlier, the retirement of Michael Hussey before this series makes the competition more equal.

One cannot compare the English team with the Australian side simply because of the experience that the former had at their disposal. Alistair Cook and Kevin Pietersen were superb in the test matches against India which were instrumental in their win. Michael Clarke has to find one more batsman who can do a similar job in the test matches - will it be Shane Watson or David Warner? What happens in such situations is that there is a virtually unknown player who rises to the fore and makes a name for himself. I am betting on Usman Khwaja to do it this time - let us see.

The preparation that the Australian team has been putting has been noteworthy - arriving 10 days early and staying in Chennai to ensure that they adjust to the heat and humidity is a marvellous piece of planning. Compare this to the schedule that the BCCI comes up with. Though the Aussies slumped against little-known off-spinner from the Board Presidents XI team, the practice they received must have been invaluable.

On the Indian front, Dhoni will need to play a bigger role in this series to stop further decline. MSD will not have Gambhir in his squad after a long while - Murali Vijay will be my favourite to play the first test, especially on his home soil. Shikhar Dhawan's technique is suspect against fast bowling and this must be on the minds of selectors also.

The middle-order will have Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara in their roles that they have been occupying for the last few series. Will this test series be Sachin's last one? Will Virat Kohli regain his form? One of Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja will play the first test and knowing Dhoni's quest for players with multi-skills, he will once again opt for Jadeja to play at No. 6. Dhoni might also opt to come up at No.6 and then have the troika of Harbhajan Singh, R Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha play together.

Harbhajan's exploits against Australia (especially at home) is well-known and thus Dhoni will try to play that card once again. The combined batting of Ashwin and Harbhajan will be better than what Jadeja can provide and thus it does not look like a bad decision at all. Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashok Dinda are the pacers in the side and unless Ishant's ankle gives him a big issue, it will be Dinda who will sit out of the playing eleven.

Overall, the series seems to be interesting between two teams who are equal on paper but the Indians might be slightly ahead because of home conditions. Will their team members grab the opportunity to show that they can emulate their predecessors of 2010s?

End of an era

From now, all ODIs played will be considered to be

Post Sachin Tendulkar era

Indian team at Nagpur - chaos abound

Mohinder Amarnath remarked that he wanted MS Dhoni to be ousted but he was not allowed to do so! Who was his choice for replacement? Gambhir or Sehwag? Both of them are not having the best of runs for a long time now. Who else would Mohinder have suggested?

Sunil Gavaskar said that Yuvraj and Harbhajan were made scrapegoats for the debacle in Kolkata! Who else did Gavaskar want to drop?

It looks like there are many ex-players who want change to be introduced but not clear on how or who will the change get impacted!

Nobody wants to suggest that Sachin Tendulkar needs to be dropped purely because of respect for the legend but who will bell the cat? Everyone suggests the selectors to have a chat with SRT - will they do it? Of course, no!

BCCI have insisted that they do not enforce any decisions on the selection committee - what does Mr. Srinivasan have to say?

The additions to the squad for the final test were surprising to many - one of them is Dhoni's CSK team-mate - Ravindra Jadeja while the other is Dhoni's favourite mascot (one who has been part of two World Cup winning teams) - Piyush Chawla!

If Sreesanth was available, maybe he would have been picked instead of Awana! By the way, where is Praveen Kumar now? Was he not the one bowler who came out of the English sojourn with his head high?

What is amazing is the lack of sound-bites from Duncan Fletcher - ten losses since he came on board must have made him tense!

Will Nagpur see a change in Dhoni's luck? Let us see. First, he has to lose the toss to get back his old form!

Kolkata Test - Do we have confidence in the Indian batters?

I am writing this after six wickets have gone down in the second innings of the third test at Kolkata. What was expected to be a 4-0 win for India will very soon be 1-2 with England favourites to cross the 'Final Frontier'

Looking at the batting line-up, there is hardly any confidence that one gets

1. Sehwag - True, he played differently this series. He respected the bowlers and gave them time but he is always going to be a lottery against world-class bowlers and an agile captain. Captains tend to see that they can prey on the patience of Sehwag and very soon he will give way. Spinners can always lick their lips in anticipation of his wicket any time (never mind they might go for few boundaries). 
2. Gambhir - Once supposed to be the best batsman against spin, Gambhir does not seem to be at ease against the likes of Monty and Swann. Neither is he confident against the pace bowlers. When it was expected that Sehwag and Gambhir would guide the team in the absence of Dravid and Laxman, the loss of form of the openers has resulted in a downward spiral. 
3. Pujara - Pujara started well and his average for the series was HUGE! Now, he seems to have come back to ground. Not because of any lack of form - he has been edgy and unlucky in his appearances at the crease. There is no doubt that he is the future lynchpin of the Indian cricket but it is time he regains his form this series for India to do well in the next test.
4. Tendulkar - I am expecting Sachin to announce his retirement after this series. I think enough is enough - he seems to be getting out to bowlers whom he would have spanked in his heydays. Why then is he trying to prolong his stay at the crease? It doesnt matter that there is no replacement for him but it is important for Sachin to let his legacy not get impacted by his last few innings. He should not go out because of lack of form but take a step back to think whether it is time (Ponting did it last week and bowed out immediately)
5. Kohli - No great performance from the hottest cricketer in Indian cricket this series. Kohli has not made any impact in this series and it looks like he might not be taking his chances coming his way. Has he assumed his position in the eleven and become complacent? Hopefully no. He will be the Tendulkar to Pujara's Dravid in the future. He can still become one if he uses this as a learning lesson in the future. 
6. Yuvraj Singh - his survival story was great but it is back to normal now. Runs are expected to flow from his bat just like any other batsman but frankly, he cannot face pace bowlers (with the shorter balls) and spinners! Then, why is he there in the playing eleven? Why are there no cries about his axing just like Laxman used to face after almost every failure?

It is not that there are ready-made replacements for these batsmen in the domestic version. But, it is also important that those who play should grab the opportunities and make them count! Definitely, three batsmen in this squad seem to have overstayed - should they be given a pink slip soon? Will Sandeep Patil take the tough decision in the next series, if not for Nagpur?

2012 Mumbai Test - India caught in their own web

MS Dhoni would have been happy with the wicket, his team composition as well as his luck with the toss. For other than this, there was nothing that worked in the match (other than Pujara and Ashwin with the bat in the first innings). Dhoni did not factor his own batsmen's incompetencies against quality spin bowling (how he wished he had the recently retired Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman in his batting eleven!)

For most of the match, the commentators showed the pitch map as well as the pace of English bowlers in comparison with the Indians. Though this was true, the Indian bowlers were not consistent and disciplined in their attack. Every over there was one ball that would give runs to the batsman and rotate the strike. Dhoni's captaincy has deteriorated so much that he is now ball-following mostly. He is not trying to make things happen but instead moving the fielders to where the ball went the previous delivery.

In the second innings, none of the batsmen (other than Gambhir of course) played more than 20 deliveries! What else can you expect with such a performance. Gambhir also wanted to prove that he still deserved his place in the team rather than rotate strike and score some runs for his team. Though one can praise Kevin Pietersen and Alistair Cook for their batting, it was the failure of the Indian batsmen to come to terms with the pitch that did the main damage.

Sachin Tendulkar played more like a debutant rather than one with 192 matches to his credit. Virat Kohli's stroke selection was suspect while Yuvraj showed his weakness against quality spin. Sehwag did well until he met Monty. Harbhajan's selection was a surprise and seemed to be on course on Day 1 but it has to be remembered that he did not get wickets even in Ranji matches - how can he be expected to make miracles in test matches? He was the one who bowled faster usually but on this track if the English bowlers could make such a big impact, why couldnt he? Not every question can be answered with Pietersen and Cook's brilliance!

What will happen in the next two tests? Will Dhoni still ask for a turning track, considering that the opposition has Monty and Swanny in their eleven? Kolkata will have the answers for us!

2012 Ahmedabad Test - Pujara and Cook stand out in Indian win

Cheteshwar Pujara and Alistair Cook are two of the softest yet most determined players you will see in international cricket today. It gives one great pleasure if these cricketers do well on the ground - no one will grudge their performances even if you are the loyal supporter of their opposition. In the first test at Ahmedabad, both played their roles to perfection but only one of them was destined to be the winner. That it was Pujara was because he was helped in his cause by his bowlers while Cook was let down by his batsmen.

Sehwag was the first to score a century, making up for his century drought by giving the bowlers their moments in the sun and then starting to hit out at the average bowling that England showed up. Gambhir also stuck around to stitch a partnership with Viru but not for long. Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli failed but they will deliver in the next test, if not the next innings. Dhoni also flopped but the form of Yuvraj Singh was pleasantly enjoyable.

But, the innings of the match was that of Pujara - showing everyone that he is made for test match, Pujara showed admirable patience and technique to counter the attack of Swann and the other English bowlers. It is not fair on Pujara to compare him with Rahul Dravid but from the current crop of batsmen, Pujara will occupy the slot of the one who is most accomplished and composed (just like Dravid would occupy in a line-up consisting of Sachin, Laxman and Ganguly).

The Indian bowling rose to the occasion as well - Ojha standing out with nine wickets while Ashwin couldnt get more than one in the 2nd innings. Ashwin will do well to emulate Ojha's consistency and persistence in the next test while Ojha will have to add a couple of skills from Ashwin's resume to make him a complete bowler. Yadav and Zaheer pitched in regularly to show that they are better bowlers than the English rivals on Indian conditions.

Will the English team change its lineup for the next test? Will they bring in Panesar for Samit Patel and Finn for Bresnan? These changes will weaken their batting but you need better bowlers to take 20 Indian wickets - with the current lineup, the English team could take only nine in two innings.

Next to Mumbai and I dont think the result will be anything different!

India start as favourites against England

India will start the return series against England as the favourite, waiting to take 'revenge' (despite their statements on the contrary) on the team that inflicted a 4-0 defeat overseas.

The English team have played three warm-up matches on their tour but have showed enough glimpses of weakness against whatever little spin they have encountered. The Indian think-tank have made sure that not much of top-draw spin was visible to the visiting batsmen. How this strategy will help the Indian tweakers remains to be seen?

The Indians have many problems on their side too. The opening batsmen (Sehwag and Gambhir) are not in their best form - Sehwag scored a century in his last first-class innings though. Pujara also did well against the English bowlers in his outing as a special invitee for Mumbai 'A'. Tendulkar scored a hundred for Mumbai while Yuvraj showed his form against the visitors both with the bat and ball. Dhoni is the only person who did not play any cricket in the last few days.

Ashwin also did not benefit much because of the weather that affected Tamil Nadu's first match in Ranji. Zaheer's fitness is another concern that the team management will have while Umesh Yadav's top form in his match would have made the Team Management hopeful. Ishant Sharma will warm the bench mostly while Ojha has done a lot of bowling in his match (not with great success).

Kevin Pietersen is the one player that the Indians will have to look out for. The rest are not ones that will take away the sleep of Dhoni and Fletcher (no ill-will to the others please)!

Overall, the hosts have shrugged off their rustiness in the outings they have got and hence the build-up to the test match seems to be quite even. If the pitches play to form and the Indians capitalize it well, the series will be over from the English perspective quite fast.

Did we learn anything from the NZ series?

Yes, the Indians won the series 2-0 - what else did you expect at home against a team that is ranked below West Indies? Never matter that the Indian team looked different and had batsmen like Sehwag, Gambhir and Sachin out of form. It also did not matter that the season was early and the team was coming after a surprisingly long break. There were more questions that popped up in one's mind rather than answers.

The reports all around say that the young team is good enough to take the team to the next few years. Do we have a choice? No. After the way we treated our seniors like Dravid and Laxman, these are desperate times. Someone has to play a part in the Indian saga. MS Dhoni is particular about his choices and he is clear that the roles should go to Suresh Raina (in tests) and Rohit Sharma (in ODIs). Looking at his record, maybe his demands are justified! But Raina does not share the same optimism - if he had, he would not have run out of his crease the way he did in the second innings. Kohli, on the other hand, can do no wrong, so far! Where does Badrinath go now? Is he still in the scheme of things?

Sachin will now rethink his options and see why he is following Rahul Dravid by getting bowled repeatedly - is it the same disease that made Dravid retire? If so, should Sachin follow his dear friend to the confines of the dressing room? There were many questions asked about Sehwag's position in the batting order - first question to be asked is whether he demands a position in the team at all!! Similarly, Gambhir's penchant to poke at the ball outside the off will make him easy target for the faster and better skilled bowlers. Is it the time to drop Gambhir from the T20 series so that he can make the necessary adjustments?

The bowling was good but Zaheer had no role to play at all! Umesh Yadav's progress is good but inconsistency is not - this series will make him relearn all the good moves he had made against Australia Down Under. Ojha and Ashwin will rule in India against England and Australia but they will be exposed on overseas pitches unless they make their game all-round. Ojha's armer is still missing and once included, will make him more lethal.

The team needs more weapons to compete against better sides like Australia and England, even Pakistan. How will the newcomers get a chance now? Will it be the ones on the 'A' tour who will be selected next? 

The case of Rohit, JP and Umar

In the cricketing world, all of us agree that we are in the midst of some extraordinary talent - talent that may not touch the heights of Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting or Inzamam-ul-Haq but will take their countries to the pinnacle in some form or the other. But, it is also disturbing to see the likes of Rohit Sharma, JP Duminy and Umar Akmal falter the way they have been in recent times.

The three of them have been given chances galore by their country but they have not risen to the occasion as well as they would have or their captains would have liked. It becomes frustrating from the perspective of their fans that such a huge talent is wasted amidst talents that do not scale to the half-way mark. 

Let us look at their numbers for a moment:

• JP Duminy - age of 28 years. 16 tests at an average of close to 38, 92 ODIs at 40. Though the numbers do not show anything wrong, they have come down a notch in recent times. It was expected that JP will be the fulcrum of the Proteas batting with AB De Viliers - but that was not to be. After a great 2010-11 season, JP has not been able to catch up with the rest of his team-mates. 
• Rohit Sharma - age of 25 years. Though he has not played any tests so far, he has been helped by a captain who thinks he has a big future. 85 ODIs at an average of 31 does not do Rohit any justice at all. His penchant to play across the line has led to many downfall. He is still in the scheme of things but time is running out and there are other talented players waiting for his spot in the team.
• Umar Akmal - age of 22 years. An average of 36 in 16 tests, 39 in 69 ODIs once again does not reflect the talent that is inherent in this youngster. If he can only put in the effort like Hafeez or Ajmal, this youngster can reach the heights of the world. He has promised so much in his innings only to falter at the wrong time. Reminds one of a certain Basit Ali from the earlier days.

Do they need a challenge to deliver their performance? Or is it something more serious - having reached the highest level, do they not have the drive to perform day in and day out? 

Whatever it is, world cricket is poorer by their absence at the headlines of the sports page!

India versus New Zealand test series - will Sachin be next?

New Zealand are fresh after their defeat to West Indies - they lag the Caribbean team by 10 points in the ICC Rankings table. The Black Caps are in India after the loss, still without veteran Dan Vettori. Is there any point in getting interested about this 2-test series?

As predicted, Ashwin and Ojha trapped the NZ batsmen in the first test in their web to ensure that India ran away with the match to win by an innings and more. After the VVS controversy, Pujara raised his hands and put up a big hundred to boot. All nice and well. We will revisit the scene once the English and Aussies are in India. Kohli, as usual, is milking runs like there is no tomorrow (nobody should blame him for there will be a time when he will struggle to score runs). As with Rohit Sharma in the ODIs, MS Dhoni has given Suresh Raina a long reign in the test matches (ahead of the senior Badrinath). Time and again, Raina has promised much only to under-deliver - this must be making Dhoni's youngsters-only mantra more difficult to implement.

Sachin Tendulkar has failed twice so far, completely bowled in the innings he has faced. Though Gavaskar and Manjrekar thought that this was due to Tendulkar's age, they managed to come up with a statement (as only fellow Mumbaikars can) to assure the viewers that Sachin might still come up with a big hundred in his next outing with the bat! The double standards are visible for everyone to see - when Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman were not doing well, they were questioned but the same is not applied to a certain Sachin Tendulkar. Even if he is a genius, there is a time one must leave, isnt it? You cannot put a Dravid or Laxman anywhere behind Sachin in terms of their effectiveness, commitment and dedication to Indian cricket - then, why the dual policy?

After the initial flurry of wickets on the second day of the second test, Raina, Kohli and Dhoni have wrested back the initiative. It is just a matter of time when the Indian spinners weave a web around the Black Caps again!