Cricket Tournaments

After the world cup win, this was apparently the high-profile series every-one was waiting for. India with the #1 status defending their ranking to the #3 ranked England, was one of the most anticipated series at the moment. And what an occasion to begin with. This being the 2000^th test overall, 100^th test between India and England and the venue being, LORD’S the Mecca of cricket.

As the first day began, the Lord’s had overcast. An excellent start to the game, as the pitch looked like a bowler friendly one. Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar’s sheer swing disturbed the batsmen, especially since Andrew Strauss is known to throw away his wicket against left arm seamers. Soon enough, Zaheer Khan provided India with a strike as Alastair Cook couldn’t go beyond the single digit mark. Soon Andrew Strauss departed too. Though, Zaheer soon had to walk out of the field because of a muscle pull and India were left with 3 bowlers. A struggling Pieterson trying to find his run-making ability couldn’t score as well as he normally does.

Though, India missed out on a lot of opportunities. Sharma missed out on an opportunity to run out Strauss when he was on 2. While Dravid missed out on a catch of Trott. A partly-blind sighted Dravid again missed out on an easy catch of Trott again at 1^st slip off Zaheer Khan’s beautiful out-swinger.

With day over with just 49 overs played, England were left at 127/2 with Pieterson struggling and Trott scoring an outstanding half-century. Apart from the fact that Indians could have fared way better than this as the ball swung because of the overcastting skies.

As the day passed, England were already at the crease and rearing to go.  Almost 3 years, a big match difficult conditions and that’s all he wanted to score a century at Lord’s and his third double century. Though it was his slowest double century, but it was a century made with sheer temperament and exceptionally well played. An innings built and played against all the odds that were standing tall against him.

With the Indian pace attack already paralyzed because of Zaheer’s injury, Praveen Kumar showed India the way. Exceptional bowling, he tried everything in his book to restrict them but with no support from either bowlers. Except for the fact that, Bhajji didn’t bowl badly. Praveen Kumar had an excellent start to his test career, picking up 5 wickets at the Mecca of cricket. As people say, if god has taken something from you, he will give it back to you in a better way. A dejected Praveen Kumar was left out of the World cup squad because of an injury, but he has made an impressive comeback with his first few matches in test cricket. His double blows at regular intervals did disrupt England’s batting for a while but Pieterson continued forming partnerships with Ian Bell, Matt Prior and Greame Swann. As Pieterson neared his double century, the original Pieterson was back leaving away his shadow as he attacked and how! The last 30 runs was a mere waste of effort by all the bowlers he was scoring against. Atlast they declared at 474/8, the crowd applauding for a superb double century and Praveen Kumar and Pieterson acknowledging each other’s excellent offers. Indian openers on the other hand tried and survived on the second day of the match at 17/0.

But the highlight of the day couldn’t be missed. The ball in the hand of M.S.Dhoni, Indian captain and wicketkeeper and the gloves in the hands of Rahul Dravid. But what amuses me is the fact that he almost got Pieterson out twice in the 8 overs he bowled. Once, Billy Bowden even judged him out, but UDRS just helped him out. But did Dhoni have an option? He sure did, 3 strike bowlers whom he had to rotate all the time, Raina and Sachin as part time bowlers who could be driven all around the ground. Being a gambler, he tried his luck out too, and trust me he was accurate.

As day 3 started, India were expected to score heavily with the kind of batting line-up they have. With Gambhir walking the path to pavilion early, India already looked in distress. Mukund made a fine 49, but wasn’t enough and got out as Broad bowled a full length delivery. And the most awaited person entered and was given a standing ovation by the entire crowd. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, who was the most awaited person in Lord’s at that point of time, a person who has ever scored the century at the Mecca of cricket, ad what an occasion if he would have scored his 100^th international century here in Lord’s. After making an impressive, he started struggling against Tremlett and atlast got an edge against Broad and the anticipation was over. Disappointed, he walked back to the pavilion.

A much hyped Sachin Tendulkar day was however taken over by Rahul Dravid’s sheer temperament. Rahul Dravid took the opportunity and scored a fine century without certainly an almost no-support as even M.S.Dhoni fell for 28 just to follow Laxman and Raina. En route, he even became the 2^nd highest run-getter behind Sachin as he ran past Ponting. The great wall of India again proved why is he called one of the best in business. With India all out for 286 they already had a lead of around 188 runs which showed a clear advantage towards the English side. As the day ended, England were 5/0.

4^th day started and England were on top of the game. A quick wicket of Alastair Cook ad the day looked good for India. A quite partnership and here goes the wicket. An excellent spell by Ishant Sharma and England were already 107/6. But, Matt Prior and Stuart Broad played an excellent part and they just grew stronger. Scoring 103* and 74* respectively, they got England back into the game. Declaring at 269/6, England were back at the top.

India’s innings started and they were back to nowhere. With Gambhir injured because of shot played by Matt Prior which hit him on the upper part of elbow and Sachin Tendulkar ill, India were even more paralyzed. With Mukund’s wicket it looked like India were out of contention and even a draw looked far away from there. Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman who had to shift to no.2 and no.3 positions respectively, still hung out in the middle ad saved India from the embarrassment. At 34* and 32* they look to play their parts perfectly to get India on track to win the game. One being the centurion in the previous inning while the other being the second inning man and has been an ultimate savior for India in last few years. If they hang around with Gambhir, Tendulkar to follow if they fit, they have the perfect recipe for a draw if not win.

Its been a long tough schedule for India all around this year. With just some breaks in between the World Cup and the IPL, the South African tests just got over 10 days before the World Cup. On top of that, the West Indies tour is going to take just 6 days to kick start. Unfortunately, it puts a lot of pressure on the players and their fitness because of this packed-up schedule.

Indian Cricket Team With World Cup 2011

The test squad as well as the ODI squad for the West Indies tour have been announced and its quite disappointing to not hear some of the big names. Virender Sehwag already pulled out of the ODI squad because of injury, while Gautam Gambhir cannot play both the test tour as well as ODI tour because of a shoulder injury which was apparently caused in KKR’s last game against Mumbai Indians. Yuvraj Singh too has a throat infection which ultimately leaves Dhoni and Zaheer Khan to take rest off this schedule. This is not all, as Sachin Tendulkar too gets off the flight to West Indies as he wants to spend some time with family.

Such a schedule just takes a lot of toll on its players and just can’t be acceptable. All the big names being injured all the time and begging for some rest just makes it tough to live a life for them. A bowler has to be prevented from injuries, but as the number of games is increasing, the injuries can certainly go long-term. With Indian fast bowlers are even more susceptible to injuries it just makes it worse. And an injury to a player like Zaheer Khan, where we don’t even have a back-up bowler just makes it even tougher.

As every coin has two sides, this tour and the rest taken by players, has its own advantages too. This tour certainly gives an exposure to younger players in the team to take more responsibility and gives an opportunity to more players to show their talent on an international base. An opportunity, which would give India a larger pool of players to select from and would be an extremely nice opportunity to rotate the players, especially the fast bowlers. This could reduce the chances of players getting injured which will ultimately help India on the whole.

But its sometimes extremely disappointing to look when you see the players still selecting the club and money over country. As per the news, Gambhir was already injured before the start of the IPL season, though he didn’t know the intensity of the injury. On top of that, most of the players preferred playing in IPL with their respective clubs instead of taking the much needed rest. But preferring to take rest during the West Indies tour instead of playing the game for the country just amuses me. Which clearly states, that players have started giving much more importance to the club over country.

Obviously big money lures people and has quite an impact, but why put money over country. They say money is not the only answer but it makes a difference. Country and money are the only answers for the players and they let money make the difference here.

Its extremely important to give an opportunity to every player who is truly deserving, but not on the cost of so many senior players being rested. BCCI needs to keep some basic strategies in mind, and give opportunity to some players at a time, instead of giving every player just to show their talent on one stage. An extremely phenomenal scheme, they can certainly try and make 2 pool of players and try and rotate players at a regular interval. This can certainly help the team. But for that, we unarguably need to get in more talent to play for the country and not waste the talent.

West Indies tour on its way, its time for players like Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina to take up the big responsibility and try and carry the team on their shoulders. Apart from that its definitely a good opportunity for youngsters like Dhawan, Vinay Kumar and some more to shine and steal the limelight away from the other cricketers who have already put themselves in the list of top-level cricketers. Even in the test squad, Badrinath has atlast got a chance to prove himself that he is the lone and vivid player who has the skills to fill the big shoes ahead of Yuvraj Singh and Chateshwar Pujara.

Team India with the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 Trophy

It was a contest befitting of a World Cup finale, and a victory that a billion countrymen would cherish and relive for the rest of their lives. Sri Lanka played hard and tough – they were sublime at times (read Mahela Jayawardene) and at times deadly (read Lasith Malinga). Still, India managed to garner enough courage to recover from adversity even on the day that mattered the most en route to ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 glory. It will be a day that will be etched in the memory of cricket loving Indian public till time immemorial. Here’s a relook at the big moments that made the final.

Toss confusion

This had to make an appearance for it was the first instance in the World Cup final wherein the toss had to be held twice. Apparently, there was so much noise and buzz around the Wankhede Stadium that Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara’s call just couldn’t be heard. The second time around it almost needed a roar from Sangakkara to ensure that he was heard loud and clear. Lanka won it and, with it, augmented their chances of victory.

Zaheer Khan stands tall again

It was arguably the best spell in a Cricket World Cup final and erased the bad memories of an overenthusiastic Zaheer Khan’s atrocious opening burst in the 2003 final against Australia. The left-arm seamer, who ended up as the joint leading wicket-taker in the tournament alongside Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi, was magnificent in his opening spell, bowling a perfect line and length and was duly rewarded with the wicket of Upul Tharanga. The pressure of the occasion clearly got to the in-form Lankan opener. But, to be fair to him, Zaheer was unplayable in his opening spell, and his figures of five overs for six runs with three maidens aptly reflected it. The ball was doing enough for Zaheer and, using all his experience, he kept the Lankans on a tight leash throughout. Thanks to Zaheer, round one clearly went to India.

Sangakkara-Jayawardene join forces

For the umpteenth time, it was Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara who rebuilt the innings amidst a mini crisis. Following Tharanga’s dismissal they seemed to have recovered well enough courtesy a good partnership between Tillakaratne Dilshan and Sangakkara and some wayward bowling by surprise choice S. Sreesanth. However, just when they seemed to be on the up, Harbhajan Singh struck. He was lucky to get Dilshan bowled round the wicket. From there onwards, Sri Lanka’s two most experienced batsmen took it upon themselves to do the repair job. And they did a wonderful job, rotating the strike at ease and managing to find the boundary whenever the opportunity presented itself. It wasn’t anything new for them as they had done it time and time again in the past. But, this was the World Cup final and they were rising to the occasion.

Yuvraj’s strikes bring India back

Yet again, it was Yuvraj Singh’s left arm spin that brought India back in the game when Lanka seemed to be getting the upper hand. He bowled an innocuous delivery outside the off stump, which managed to find the edge of Sangakkara’s bat, two short of the latter’s half-century. And when another partnership between Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera began to threaten, it was again Yuvraj who broke the threatening partnership, trapping Samaraweera in front of the wickets, URDS coming to India’s rescue again.

Jayawardene’s sublime counter attack

At the fall of Samaraweera’s wicket Lanka were back in a spot of bother. However, Jayawardene responded with a splendid counter attacking innings, finding the boundaries at will and striking two awesome partnerships, first with Nuwan Kulasekara and then Thisara Perera. Both the batsmen played their part too striking some crucial big blows even as Jayawardene was caressing the ball all around the park. The power play overs really saw Lanka take their game to a different level. Ironically, Zaheer who was exceptional in his opening spell, was the one who was taken to the cleaners as Lanka ended their innings on a marvelous high.

Malinga silences Wankhede

In spite of the Lankan counter attack, the large gathering of Indian fans at Wankhede Stadium were hopeful of some fireworks from the explosive Virender Sehwag and of course the master Sachin Tendulkar. However, all it took was two deliveries to silence the noisy crowd. Lasith Malinga trapped Sehwag plumb in front as the latter failed to get bat on a fast, inswinging delivery and was accompanied back to the dressing room by a second ball-duck. Sachin Tendulkar looked untroubled during his stay at the crease, but it was only a brief relief. The pressure seemed to get the better of the big man too as he flirted with an away going delivery from Malinga and nicked it behind the stumps. The ball only just carried to Sangakkara, but it was enough to spark off wild celebrations in the Lankan camp.

Delhi boys rebuild

Lanka were firm favourites once the two Ss departed. However, as Naseer Hussain had commented after the finale of the Natwest Trophy in 2002, “This Indian batting just keeps coming at you.” Nothing much has changed nearly a decade later as Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli went about their job brick by brick. It was partnership that has defined Indian cricket in recent years. The ‘never give up’ attitude of the Delhi boys kept India in the hunt. A striking feature of their partnership was the ease with which they rotated the strike under pressure and always ensured that the run rate stayed under control. However, just when they seemed to be getting on top, Kohli fell to a brilliant return catch by Dilshan to even out the game.

The captain takes it away

How often have we heard… ‘Cometh the hour, cometh the man.’ On Saturday, with the pressure reaching fever pitch, M S Dhoni walked into bat ahead of the in-form Yuvraj Singh to the surprise of many. But how well he played! In the company of a defiant Gambhir, Dhoni ran like a hare between wickets until both grabbed their backs and decided to take it a little easy. And once he got his eye in, Dhoni clubbed the bowlers like only the man from Ranchi can do. The ease with which Gambhir and Dhoni chased down the target saw the Lankan heads fall steadily, and the formalities were completed pretty soon. It was a fitting end to the game as Dhoni smacked Kulasekara out of the ground to clinch the trophy for India.

There were a couple of major disappointments on both sides. Jayawardene did everything right during his innings and yet ended up on the losing side. On the other hand, Gambhir fell tantalising short of a century. But, as Dhoni said post match, he had only himself to blame. Keeping personal glory aside though, it was a team that deserved to win the World Cup for the manner in which they overcame once challenge after the other.

Virender Sehwag

Virender Sehwag making their presence felt, the fragile middle-order has been exposed. While Yuvraj Singh has made a few contributions, skipper M.S. Dhoni, Yusuf Pathan, Gautam Gambhir leave a lot to be desired. An important case in point is the senseless batting display by the Men in blue during the batting display. On more cases than one, the batting powerplay have witnessed some uninspired batting. The very fact that you need to get the ball past the in-field to fetch a boundary has not been worked out. For a team that has done well on the performance aspect in the last few years, Dhoni’s men have been found wanting in the imagination aspect of the game.

While the Indian batters have always wanted to use the longer handle, it is the singles that needs to be taken to rotate the strike, a trait, which I doubt would ever be mastered by Dhoni’s men.

Now, we come to the bowling and fielding assets of the team. Well, the lesser said, the better. The selectors literally spun a surprise by including Piyush Chawla in the final 15. Chawla, who last played for India back in 2008, has looked ordinary and should have been given more chances with the side than picking him up for a tournament of this magnitude.

Barring Zaheer Khan who has been inspirational with the ball, the rest of the cherry-hurlers have looked out of sorts. While Ashish Nehra played one ‘eventful’ match in this tournament, players such Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel has looked good only in patches.

Zaheer needs a special mention here. While he has constantly bowled with venom and head, the lack of support for him at the other end has made India look ordinary with the ball. With Zaheer looking like the only bowler who looks threatening, Dhoni needs to utilise him judiciously.

Indian ground fielding never was high-quality, and, in all probability, will never be one. While players such as Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh are the live-wires in the field, others in the form of Ashish Nehra are embarrassing to say the least. While the Indians may not be great fielding outfit, but showcasing intent and applying themselves on the field could go a long way in helping the team save invaluable runs.

Also, with the crunch game against the West Indies in Chennai coming up on Sunday, India will have to be on their toes if they want to make it to the quarters with a lot of confidence.

Coming to the main question—will this team lift the World Cup? Well, the world is full of miracles and India do have the necessary arsenal to surprise its spectators in both their wins and their losses. Fingers crossed.

Sachin Tendulkar

Australia will hold most of the aces going into the final day’s play at Mohali. Having claimed four of the top Indian wickets cheaply late of the fourth day, after themselves being dismissed for a disappointing 192, the visitors would feel elated. All they have to do now is somehow get through Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and an unfit VVS Laxman to get the 1-0 lead in the two-Test series. And they have Ben Hilfenhaus to thank for for putting them in such a commanding position.

He may have been extremely lucky to get the wicket of Gautam Gambhir, who was adjudged lbw despite hitting the ball. However, the short-pitched deliveries directed at first innings Virender Sehwag and Suresh Raina were perfectly well planned. The bounce the bulky paceman generated caught the Indians off-guard and undid all the good work done by their bowlers earlier in the day. After his disappointing effort in the first essay, it was a strong comeback by Hilfenhaus, one that will give him a lot of confidence for bigger battles ahead.

As things stand, Tendulkar holds the key to India’s hopes. However, on a fifth day pitch, even the best can struggle. It remains to be seen whether the maestro can pass yet another stern test. Of course, he can’t be expected to see the team home alone. Skipper Dhoni’s contribution would be crucial, more than ever, since India’s ‘rescue specialist’ is fighting a battle of a different kind. Like in the first innings Laxman will definitely give batting a short. But one can’t expect him to do a Colombo encore time and again. If he does, it will be nothing short of a herculean effort. Thinking practically though, the home team will need Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh to chip in and ease the pressure somewhat on Sachin, Dhoni and Laxman.

Whatever the result of the game, Australia need to be credited for fighting back from difficult positions time and again, and, in fact, should be considered favourites from hereon. In India’s first innings, things looked down and out for Australia when Raina and Tendulkar were carving their attack with minimal discomfort. However, once they got an opening courtesy Marcus North’s surprise dismissal of Sachin, they capitalised on it wonderfully, so much so that they ended up getting the first innings lead despite the fact that the Indian batting had dominated almost the whole day.

MS Dhoni

India, on the other hand, must look at themselves in the mirror and ask whether they got complacent. An honest assessment would be yes. Both Sachin and Raina played across the line whilst approaching the tons and Zaheer Khan batted like he possessed a million runs under his belt. The rest, including Dhoni and Harbhajan, were undone by some excellent bowling by Mitchell Johnson, and India’s hopes of batting out the Aussies were gone. To their credit, the Indian bowlers also hit back strongly. Ishant’s triple strike after Australia looked like running away with the game set the match up nicely. Soon the spinners got into their own as Australia crumbled a la 2001. Of course, Harbhajan did not single-handedly run through the batting order, as Pragyan Ojha and Zaheer provided ample support. Still, the result was exactly what the sparse Mohali crowd desired.

The same cannot be said about the Indian batting effort, however. Gambhir may consider himself unlucky at having got a tough decision. But every time such an occurrence takes place, they will be reminded by all and sundry about the refusal to use the UDRS. And so, the Indians should neither expect sympathy nor do they have the right to feel hard done by. Also, the opposition team also got a shocker when Micheal Hussey was adjudged lbw to Harbhajan despite the ball pitching way outside the leg. So things had evened up by the end of the day.

Nothing would be level by the time the game finishes though. We are sure to have one winner and a loser, quite a drastic development considering a draw seemed to looming large after the first three days. But then again, that’s the beauty of Test cricket. And the final twist is yet to come.

Sri Lanka India

Yet another final, yet another defeat. The surprise victory in the Asia Cup final notwithstanding, the Indians continue to struggle at the final hurdle. As if this perennial problem wasn’t enough, the woes of Team India were compounded in the series courtesy yet another below par performance by the youngsters. With just over five months to go for international cricket’s most prized competition, India have plenty on their plate to ponder upon. Crucially, the decisions taken in the aftermath of the Dambulla loss should not be in haste, and must adhere to sound cricketing logic.

I am saying this because the easiest scapegoat could be, and perhaps will be, Dinesh Karthik. When Gautam Gambhir returns to the team, he might not be needed. However, it will be unfair to discard him solely on the basis of his disappointing scores in the recently concluded tri-series. It must be taken into consideration that he is primarily a middle-order player and was opening only to fill in for his more illustrious team-mate. He even recorded a match-winning score in the Asia Cup final. However, when it conditions got tougher for batting, his technique was found out.

A utility player like Karthik, and a complete team man, deserves a fair chance to prove that he is good enough to represent India consistently at the international level. And for that, he needs to be played in the lower-middle order. The question then arises is can be afford seven batsmen. Well, the problem should all but solve itself owing to Ravindra Jadeja’s uninspiring efforts with the bat. It isn’t great news for India that they can’t find an all-rounder a la Angelo Mathews. However, that’s the truth and they need to make do with it. And unless they want to give Yusuf Pathan another go – which would be worth a try — it wouldn’t be illogical to slot Karthik in at number seven. He could even keep wickets and relieve some pressure off captain MS Dhoni’s back.

Even as the Karthik dilemma needs to be solved in right earnest, India need to look beyond Rohit Sharma and possibly even Virat Kohli for occupancy in the middle-order slots. Both started off in international cricket in highly promising fashion, but haven’t shown the consistency to be trusted upon, unlike Suresh Raina, who too took his time to blossom, and is now one of the backbones of this Indian side. Also, some of the shots the two played in the tournaments were shocking, and they could be axed for that purpose itself. Of course, Raina too had an unsatisfactory. But, it has to be taken into account that his debut Test series must have taken a toll on him.

Considering the uncertainty in the middle-order, it would be logical to give the veteran Rahul Dravid one final go. He did pretty well when recalled for the Champions Trophy in the absence of Virender Sehwag, only to be dropped for reasons best known to selectors. The argument here could be that the great man had a torrid time in Lanka. However, knowing Dravid the cricketer, it shouldn’t be long before he has sorted out his batting flaws, unless his powers are on the wage.

The brightest spot for India from the ODI series in Lanka was performance of Virender Sehwag. Had he not been tragically run-out in the finals, who knows what might have transpired, considering the murderous form he was in. Anyways, let bygones be bygones. What Sehwag needs now is some stern support from the other end. The return of Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar should help, but having their names on the scorecard alone won’t transform into runs. Everyone needs to battle it out in the middle.

Call it a surprise or what you might, the bowling that was expected to be India’s Achilles Heel turned out to be rather reasonable, although they would have liked to do better in the finals. Praveen Kumar, especially, was below par in the summit clash. He is one of those curious cases for India. When the ball moves around, he is lethal even at his pace. But when he delivers the same stuff on an unresponsive, he is easy meat for the opposition batsmen. As such, while it will be a good idea for India to have him around, he shouldn’t be a certainly for all games, considering the flaw in his game. The other three pace bowlers were impressive at various phases in the tournament. However, they have far from achieved their desired consistency.

All of this means Dhoni faces his toughest test as captain in the months building up to the World Cup.

Ms Dhoni

Okay, for a change we aren’t discussing about an India-Sri Lanka game in the Emerald nation. Still, the India-New Zealand clash on Wednesday will be a highly significant affair in the context of the ongoing tri-series. As aptly pointed out by Indian skipper MS Dhoni, the game will be a virtual semi-final, with the winner joining the home team in the finals. Interestingly, both teams have had similar fortunes thus far, with a win one day and a disappointing loss on the next occasion. This is what makes the tussle between the two sides intriguing and very well-matched. Whichever team can leave their worst form back in the pavilion will benefit the most from the clash.

Starting with India, they entered the tournament with massive bowling worries. However, scores of 88 and 104 have meant that their batting deficiencies have also been seriously exposed. The problem begins right at the top, with Dinesh Karthik being unable to fit into the shoes of Gautam Gambhir. As a result, Virender Sehwag’s task has become doubly difficult. And while he has succeeded in helping India clinch one win, it is crucial from India’s point of view for him to find some support.

The non-performing youngsters are proving to be another bane in India’s build up to the World Cup. While Rohit Sharma has been a little unlucky with some close lbw shouts, the reality is that he still hasn’t ironed out the flaws in his game. And when you consider that he has been around the international circuit for a good four years now, it is a danger signal. His dismissals in the last two games have been as good as carbon copies.

For a while Virat Kohli looked settled at the number three slot. However, with Sachin Tendulkar shuttling in and out of the ODI team at his own will, Kohli has had to move up and down the order. And if his recent string of scores is taken into consideration, it hasn’t helped his cause at all. He might get one more chance to prove his worth again in place of, maybe, either Karthik or Sharma. It remains to be seen how he reacts if such an opportunity comes his way on Wednesday. A note on Ravindra Jadeja is essential too. While his bowling has been decent for a while, except the T20 World Cup, his batting skills haven’t come to the fore. And so, India need to decide very quickly whether they want him in the scheme of things for the 2011 World Cup.

Bizarre as it may sound, India’s bowling looks stronger in comparison. That, however, epitomizes the team’s batting debacles more than anything else. Still, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma and Ashish Nehra have done reasonably well in the series. And when the ball moves around, as it has been doing in Lanka, they aren’t the worst trio. Thankfully for the Indians, Pragyan Ojha has stepped up his game, as a result of which India haven’t missed Harbhajan Singh much. And anyways, the Punjab off-spinner wasn’t having a great time with the ball himself.

Shifting focus to the Kiwis, they have their own concerns. The inexperienced batting line-up was found out against Sri Lanka. Also, it hasn’t helped that their last game against the home team was washed out. Considering the leisurely schedule of the tournament, (the players wouldn’t be complaining) the wash out means the Kiwis haven’t batted out in the middle for well over a week. India would be hoping to take advantage of the rustiness, if any has crept in. Further, their batting looks brittle if ones takes away Scott Styris and Ross Taylor. Things seem worse when you add the fact that Jacom Oram is back on the ‘I am injured’ list, even though Martin Guptill’s expected comeback should cheer up the Kiwi camp.

Like India, their bowling too wears a stronger look in the presence of Daryl Tuffey and Kyle Mills, with the experienced Styris for support. India will need to be wary of the opening bowlers as the new ball has been doing plenty in the initial stages, and the batsmen have been guilty of not applying themselves. The pitch, once again, will play a crucial role. With the rain around, some movement has to be expected both at the start of the game as well as under lights.

Dhoni’s luck at the toss may have changed in the previous game, but he wouldn’t mind retaining the losing streak if the team continues to win. On a more serious note, winning or losing the toss notwithstanding, application should be the keyword for both sides.

Virendra Sehwag

The controversy over the ‘denied century’ notwithstanding, Virender Sehwag batted with extreme maturity to lead India to victory in the crucial tri-series game against Sri Lanka. True, India weren’t chasing a massive target by any means. Still, the conditions weren’t the easiest for the batsmen under the lights. Most of the top order struggled to cope with the moving deliveries. As such, a repeat of the disastrous batting effort against New Zealand seemed a possible danger. This is where Sehwag came to India’s rescue, and how.

Often in the past, the swashbuckling opener has hit India out of trouble. And while he was totally restraint here either — never expect him to be – there were sure signs of a batsman, who was willing to hold himself back, even be it ever so slightly for the team’s cause.

On this day, Sehwag was prepared to wait for the loose balls instead of trying to invent strokes, which has often been his bane in the shorter format of the game. It was a masterly knock that not only ensured that India stayed alive in the series, but also saw to it that they were very much on par with the other two teams, courtesy the bonus point gained. If only Sehwag can continue to adopt a similar approach in the coming one-day games, one is sure his success rate would only be that much greater.

If Sehwag was the undisputed hero with the bat, there were plenty of them with the ball for India. Praveen Kumar swung the game India’s way early on with a lethal exhibition of bowling under overcast conditions. His performance at the top was critical in guaranteeing that India did not feel the pinch of another lost toss by MS Dhoni.

More importantly for India, the other bowlers stuck to their guns as well and did not allow the Lankans to get away, unlike in the game against the Kiwis, where the opposition recovered brilliantly to post a challenging total and then dump India out of the match with a cunning bowling effort.

Ashish Nehra, whose fitness was a concern, used his experience under such situations to proper effect, backing up Kumar were well. And thankfully for India, Ishant Sharma too raised his game and struck some crucial blows. Following the early strikes, it was imperative for the spinners to carry on the good work. And both Pragyan Ojha as well as Ravindra Jadeja responded to the task on hand.

All in all, it was a well-rounded bowling effort for India, something which should please Dhoni no end. Having said that, it still remains to be seen whether they can be as effective under less helpful conditions. This is all the more imperative in case of the spinners, who have looked listless at times in the recent past.

A couple of other areas India will want to work on would be their batting order, which still doesn’t wear a settled look. Dinesh Karthik put in a match-winning effort in the Asia Cup final. But he hasn’t been up to the mark before and after that.

In the absence of Gautam Gambhir, India need him to make the transition to a consistent performer at the earliest. Also, while both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma remain in the scheme of things for India, one of them needs to be identified as India’s next middle-order lynchpin pretty soon, in case Yuvraj Singh’s woes don’t end.

The Sehwag-enabled win has definitely given India something positive, from where they can build on. For that though, the rest need to chip in as well.