2016 USA Tour - Windies edge India in high-scoring thriller

India made their debut in USA, by conceding their highest score to any opposition but redeemed themselves to score the highest chase ever in a T20I only to lose by a single. MS Dhoni was on strike off the last ball to Bravo, who turned out to be more skilful of the two.But, MSD didnt disappoint - highlights of his innings were:

• He scored 43  runs off 25 balls - strike rate was in his Top-20 of T20I innings
• He added 107 runs with Rahul in 49 balls. Rahul was the only one who scored faster than him in the innings.
• He agreed that he had executed the stroke wrongly after guessing the ball.

MSD also took the blame himself, despite his batsmen like Rohit, Kohli letting him down!And bowlers like Stuart Binny letting him down, MSD praised them for pulling back the innings from a possible target of 270! Only he can do this!

Image Courtesy:espncricinfo site

Sri Lanka series - India win 2-1

I had expected India to edge Sri Lanka in the series despite knowing that it has been 22 years since an Indian team won a test series there. What transpired was something else - It could have been a whitewash if not for the upset loss in first test. Virat Kohli has won his first series as captain but equal (dis)credit should be given to Sri Lanka's relative lack of experience.

The Indians have had a long introduction to test match scenario in tough conditions outside sub-continent. This experience has hardened them enough to score over their Asian colleagues. The core team has been identified and it looks like the team will continue to look like this for the next 2 years, injuries notwithstanding:

• Opening Batsmen - Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul
• Middle-Order - Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma
• Wicket-keepers - Wriddhiman Saha, Naman Ojha
• All-rounders - Ravi Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Stuart Binny
• Pace bowlers - Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Varun Aaron, Mohd. Shami

17 players who will appear in forthcoming test series for India is a good composition to have and a good set of choices to opt from. Credit should be given to MS Dhoni and team management for identifying this set and ensuring that the chances obtained so far have been used to groom them further.

Whether the Indian team should go with five-bowler policy is a debate but I feel in subcontinent pitches, the fifth bowler will mostly be underutilized. Stuart Binny did his role well but should contribute consistently. It is not that the future looks rosy but the initial investment in these players should be well worth it, if the players repay the interest well.

2015 World Cup - India's preparations so far

The Indians finished their preparations for the World Cup with a loss in the final ODI at Perth as well as the teaser for their uniform they will display (on top of the MCG).

There are couple of warm-up matches scheduled before the tournament starts officially, against Australia (8th Feb) and Afghanistan (10th Feb) at Adelaide. These two matches will serve the purpose of testing out the four players who are in doubt for the tournament (fitness issues) - Rohit Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. There are doubts about Ishant but only MSD will know what is real. Mohit Sharma and Dhawal Kulkarni who went for the tri-series are still with the team as per the latest news.

So, where are we in terms of preparations? Let us go through the team and see the plans that the Indian team might have:

1. Shikhar Dhawan - definitely will play the warm-up matches and first two ODIs (Pakistan at Adelaide and South Africa at MCG). Based on his performance, his future will be decided. Dhawan did well at Perth against a decent England bowling attack - a knock that will give him confidence going into the tournament.
2. Rohit Sharma - he will play as the opener whenever he is fit. It will be good to give him a work-out in the warm-up matches but will be key to the current team's fortunes.
3. Ajinkya Rahane - Back-up opener but could also potentially come one-down in case of an early wicket. He is much more technically sound than Rayudu and hence he will be the backup for No.3 slot
4. Virat Kohli - Dhoni seems to like Kohli lower the order in case Jadeja (or Ashwin or Binny) does not play. But, on initial look, it is certain that Kohli will be at No.3 when there is a good partnership at the top. Will he be always at No.3? Probably not (especially when a wicket falls early)
5. Suresh Raina - Raina has done well in recent times though the Tri-series saw just one good knock from him. Raina can be ideal to play in the latter overs and statistics also point that Dhoni is a better bet ahead of Raina. Will Dhoni come in to stabilize the innings while Raina is held back to blast the attack?  
6. Dhoni - The captain has not shown glimpses of his usual form recently. Will be good for him to have a break before he comes back to his own. His impending baby will also clear his mind for good. 
7. Rayudu - If Dhawan has to be dropped, Rahane goes up the order and Rayudu comes in his place. Hence, he will not be in the starting lineup but will be expected to play as soon as he gets an opportunity. Tough luck for the lad!
8. Binny - Stuart Binny has been the biggest bright spot to emerge out of India's performance in the tri-series. It is a no-brainer for Binny to be in the playing eleven. This gives India the luxury of playing two seamers and two spinners with Binny/Raina to bowl the other ten. He can open the bowling and shore the batting.
9. Jadeja/Ashwin - Jadeja has been rusty and hence he will be the biggest beneficiary of the warm-up matches. If he can recover to his prime form, India will have one less headache. Ashwin has gone down in the pecking order, lower than Axar because of his lack  of wickets in the ODI version. Though he is a better batsman than Axar, his fielding is a cause of worry.
10. Axar Patel - Axar bowled well in the Tri-series, showing that his performance on sub-continental pitches was not a fluke. He is a handy player only if he can lift his batting skills
11. Mohd Shami - Easily the best pace bowler on view in the Tri-series, Shami has been enjoying the stint in the shorter version after a mixed test series. He will lead the attack in the absence of Ishant (due to injury) but his performance will reflect on India's fortunes with the ball.
12. Ishant/Bhuvi/Umesh - Bhuvi should partner Shami in the Adelaide match to make use of the new ball but if Ishant is present, he might get the nod. If the pitches are helpful to the faster bowlers, expect Bhuvi and Ishant to be both present. Umesh Yadav has not shown any semblance of form and he is an insurance for the squad at this time.

With this situation, India will go into each match with an open mind and flexible plans to counter any situation. With the cool Dhoni at the helm, let us wish the Indian team all the best!

Do have a look at the 50 ODI victories that redefined Indian cricket.

Australia Tour Tri-series - India bow out winless

On Twitter, Statistician Mohandas Menon posted the series where India finished winless since 2011 World Cup

• 2011 in Eng 
• 2013/14 in SA 
• 2013/14 in NZ 
• 2014/15 in Aus

They escaped a whitewash in the test series and another losing streak in the ODI series (thanks to rain) but that was no consolation to a team that has high hopes on retaining the next World Cup.

At Perth, the Indians started well. Their openers did a decent job to see off the dangerous Anderson and managed to score a 80+ partnership with both taking chances but surviving. Dhawan was back to something that resembled form. Rahane, after the initial jitters, settled down to anchor the innings. It was the failures again of Kohli, Raina that hampered India. The batting collapsed from 83-0 to 165-9 before Shami hit out to get 200 on the board.

The Indians seem to be experimenting with the batting positions and getting some answers. Stuart Binny has made Dhoni realize that he is a handy person to have in the lineup. Jadeja was rusty with bat and ball but Axar has proved that he is a good bowler to have in the middle overs. The batting depth is present on paper but that has to be translated to reality. With Ashwin in the squad, the team management must figure out what is the combination to play in the World Cup. What happens to Umesh and Bhuvi? Are they injured? Dhoni's answers in the press conference seems to suggest.

The Indian batsmen dont have a first (or even second) gear - they seem to bat only at the top gears or perish. This was the fashion few years ago when batsmen used to play defensive and rotate the strike over. But, the new generation tend to be aggressive in any situation - that is causing the problems to the Indian batsmen, like this game. No longer are they happy to score at 3-4 runs per over. They are looking at boundaries every over. This will not work - Kohli, Rahane, Rayudu, Jadeja should be told this. Rahane should have gone on and controlled the innings but could not.

The Indians fared better while bowling thanks to the pitch and an accurate bowling attack (except the comeback man Jadeja). Binny made use of the conditions to his favor and picked up wickets to put England  on the backfoot. But, the Indians could not restrict the winning team. Jadeja and some sloppy fielding (by selected fielders) meant that the Indians could not put enough pressure on the duo of Butler and Taylor. Overall, a tour that ended without a win. It can be termed as a success still if the next tour (with more or less the same players) contains few winning moments. Hopefully, the players remember and implement the lessons learnt.

Australia Tour Tri-series - England crush India

Binny came in for Ashwin and injured Rohit Sharma was replaced by Ambati Rayudu for the match against England at Brisbane. The Indians suffered a rare defeat against England on neutral venues - one of the worst defeats. But, Dhoni would say that the process is more important than the result. Here, the process seemed to be clear once again.

Dhoni is putting his boys through a tough test - putting his team in when he could have easily bowled after winning the toss on a helpful surface. Playing against the accurate English bowling on this surface is probably the best practice that he could get his team. Seeing the team performance, Dhoni must have got an idea of who is capable and who is not. I expect to see strategy changes for the World Cup based on this match.

Stuart Binny shone with the bat and then picked a wicket while opening the bowling. If one goes back to the last World Cup Down Under, the likes of Phil Simmons (probably same speed of Binny) did a great job opening the bowling. Binny and Bhuvi opening the bowling is going to be a good option if they can restrict the scoring with the new ball. Shami and Ishant then could bowl first change and make use of any reverse. With the spinners, Axar seems to have proved that he is as good as Jadeja and Ashwin but not in the similar mould while batting.

With two more matches in the tri-series and then maybe couple of warm-up matches, one should  foresee Dhoni tinker  with  more options even at the loss of few matches. Getting to know the strengths  and weaknesses is  probably the most important test now.

England Tour 2014 - First match drawn - sign to come?

The first test match ended in a draw with England not being able to get 20 Indian wickets while the Indian bowlers got 10 in the one innings that they bowled! Not without both teams giving each other a tenth wicket stand of more than 100 runs. It was a mediocre match with the teams putting up performances that were mediocre, at the best. True, Bhuvi scored two fifties and took a fiver but there was nothing much to separate the two teams. That in itself is a sign to come up in this series. Of course, the pitches will be better in the following tests but neither team has shown the right skill and application to step up and grab the mantle.

With both captains being under pressure for different reasons, the match had a number of interesting sidelights but overall tended to be a bit like the dull and drab soap operas that appear on the telly. India will feel good that they did not lose their first test of the tour - something that they have been used to, every tour. The grounds seem to be in favor of the Indians more than the hosts (for commercial reasons - grounds having spent money on getting drainage systems fixed have to earn back the money quickly and for that, they need matches to go for five days)! The weather is also good with less interruptions from cloud or ground. All this means that the Indian team feels more at home on these pitches.

As I had suggested in my previous post, Stuart Binny was picked in the playing eleven as a batting allrounder but his captain was not sure about his bowling talent. He was given 10 overs of a total of 145, not something that he would have hoped for, when given the cap on the opening day. On the final day, his knock with Jadeja showed his temperament and ensured that he will live on for another test for sure. He seemed comfortable at the crease and definitely deserved more with the ball. MSD too mentioned at the end that he wouldn't change his bowling attack - that means there will not be any changes to the playing eleven for Lords test (not a bad idea though).

Murali Vijay and Pujara (in the second innings) continued the good work they had put in on the tours to SAF and NZ while Virat Kohli will try to forget this match quickly. Rahane and Dhawan got starts but could not capitalise much. Vijay was the batting highlight for India and he will do well to remember his good knock for all his moments in future where he will get into trouble. He is one batsman who seems to be comfortable in test matches and T20s, not ODIs. Strange! Rahane looked pretty while on song but could not convert his knocks to a bigger one.

Dhoni and Binny played one innings of significance which augured well for a team that went in with five regular batsmen. MSD has come up with a new plan to counter the swing on this tour and it seems to be working so far. The English bowlers seem to have found a defect in full areas to him - that might be a critical flaw in his game now. The tailenders contributed to the team total which meant that twice this series already, India went past 350. The last tour, they managed to touch 300 once only! Not a bad start for a team that had the batting legend, Rahul Dravid, as the batting consultant before the first test.

The bowlers did well till they met Root, Broad and Anderson. Bhuvi was always expected to do well because of the swing he obtained but Ishant continued the good work from NZ series. Ishant seems to have taken over the mantle left vacant by Zaheer but he needs more wickets under his belt. Shami was a bit disappointing but he is a good bowler who will learn from his mistakes soon. All in all, a good outing for a bowling unit that was not expected to take 20 wickets. They still havent but the hope has been revived in this test. This bodes well for Dhoni and his team for Lords.

Everything to play for in London and the Indian team will be keen to go forward quickly in the series.

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!