India scurry past England and make it 2-0, looking for a whitewash

It is the same story for England in the ODIs as was for India in the Tests. The Batsmen just do not seem to be clicking as a unit. One would have expected more out of the likes of the 50-over specialists like Morgan and Buttler. 

Bopara was missed! I mean yes Buttler batted at 6 for England yesterday, and he is a great prospect for England. And Bopara perhaps would have slotted at 7 had he been around in place of Stokes. Ben Stokes is hugely talented alright, but Bopara has a better strike rate and a much better average of 31ish against Stokes who averages under 15, which is nothing to be proud of. Plus, the biggest advantage what Bopara brings to the table is the experience of playing 108 one day internationals across the globe. By now he and Bell should have been the spine of the team. But then this is England and one dayers are still looked down upon, and still do not get the same importance as Tests in England. It looks to me that winning the tests against India was everything England wanted out of this series. But a champion side needs to win in all formats, lest bad form and vibes affect their team in their favorite format. As a result, Englands' sedate yet solid start at the top by Cook and Hales was squandered away. A good side would have notched up 275+ after that kind of start. 

But unfortunately for England the pitch was 'Made in India' and Ashwin and Co. made full use of it. Dhoni must have been delighted. You seldom catch him smiling behind the stumps, but he did so on more than couple of occasions. Why wont he? This was a complete performance and the horrid days of the test losses seems like distant memory. Dhoni would like to believe all is well, atleast in this format, and India look well prepared for next year's world cup.

But the caveat is that one or two performances do not mean ever lasting success. India are still unsettled with the their opening partners. Rohit has been inconsistent of late, and is injured. It will be interesting to see how he copes with the injury and how fast he proves his form and fitness before the World Cup. Shikhar Dhawan has looked out of sorts, and his lack of runs means India have never started with a 100 run partnership at the top for some time now. Vijay has not opened in this format for a long time, although his big hitting exploits in the IPL are well known.

But I feel Rahane is the best choice to open in Australian conditions. He is technically sound, and scores at a pretty ominous pace. If Rahane plays well in subsequent matches in England, Dhoni needs to ponder whether he has a better option in Rahane than anyone else to open in Australia later this year and next year. Rohit can go back to the middle order, and India have a lot of options in the slot vacated by Rahane in the middle order if Rohit flirts with inconsistency. Rayudu, Binny and possibly even Yuvraj Singh and Manoj Tiwary. And with Sanju Samson waiting in the wings under a rich vein of form, middle order options are multifarious. 

Mohammad Shami has looked fresh and that is good for India. He has been pacy, nasty and accurate. Which means he has kept Umesh Yadav out of the side. Yadav does warrant a look in, once India seal the series with another win. India may need him in Australia. And the team managament would surely like to have all guns well oiled before departing for Australia. 

I am also disappointed with the way Bell and Morgan have played in the tournament. Both have got out and would feel unlucky on both occasions, but they need to fire as the senior lynchpins of the side. In the absence of the mercurial Pietersen, if England have any chance at the WC next year, these two have to be in good shape. Both can play the big innings and Morgan can be deathly for any opponent in the dying overs of the innings. If the two results have been so lopsided so far for England it is because Morgan has not been able to deliver.  I bet Morgan is itching for a big innings to silence his critics and stake his claims for the captaincy just before the World Cup. England are better served under him for the shorter version. Let the likes of Hales and Co. bludgeon at the top. Bell, Ballance, Root can join in to accumulate and consolidate and then the late blitzkrieg by Morgan, Buttler, Bopara and Jordan is the ideal recipe for England's success next year.

Even the media must be a little weary reporting about the turmoil about Ravi Shastri's appointment and speculations about who calls the shots within the team now. So some action on the field would be a welcome aberration to all the speculative analysis.

Focus back on the teams. Alex Hales will be the focus when England bat, especially when England bat first. Going by his recent form in domestic cricket, especially the shortest version, he looks likely to carry England home on his own. And with India's batting form suspect barring exceptions like Dhoni, England looks good to win the first (albeit second fixture) match of the series.

For Team India, knowing Dhoni does not like to throw too many surprises, Dhawan and Rohit should open and are expected to flounder at the top. If Kohli comes to the party then maybe India may post a total in excess of 275. Otherwise, it is left to chance. Such is Kohli's influence in the 50 over format. Rahane bats at 4 and Raina at 5. And yes, Jadeja at 7. There might be surprise selections in the bowling department (influence of Mr Shastri ??)..Maybe a Dhawal Kulkarni or Karn Sharma gets game. But if Dhoni is indeed the boss as Shastri says, then both will not play.

A Prelude to World Cup preparations for India

India is past the horrendous journey of the test series, and it is time to expect better results from the team due to the change in the format. After all, India are the reigning World Champs and would be returning to the World Cup arena next year to defend their title albeit in hostile conditions in Australia and New Zealand. The World is watching them !! Well they already have had a taste of New Zealand recently where they could not convert opportunities and lost close matches. And the present series in England gives them a good chance to tinker and play around with their options especially with the batting. 

India has opened with Rohit and Dhawan and of late both have been found out of sorts. It is time they start firing and stop gifting away their wickets. Virat Kohli can not always bail the team out. Virat's own form was suspect in the test series, but this champion lad has mastered the art of building an innings in the 50-over format. He showed welcome signs of return to form in the practice game last week with a well made 70 plus score. And so did Ambati Rayudu. Will Rayudu get a chance in the playing eleven needs to be seen. Raina should definitely get a look-in and Jadeja is a favourite to start off as the No 1 spinner in the side. So it is a toss sadly between Rahane and Rayudu. India might need the services of both, should the top half meekly surrender. 

Ashwin has been a mainstay in the spin department since the last World Cup, but that was a long time ago. But he is no longer a spearhead. Maybe the opposition has found a way to work around him. So it would be interesting if Dhoni rewards the rookie Karn Sharma with a debut. Karn was impressive in the practice game, with 3 scalps, albeit all lower order batsman of a county side. But he comes into the squad in a rich vein of form, and the idea of fielding a side on a day is to field the best XI. So in my view, Karn needs a look in. Will Mr Shastri have a say in this? I would also be excited to see what Umesh Yadav can conjure up especially if he opens the bowling at the expense of Shami Ahmed or maybe Mohit Sharma. Bhuvi opens the bowling for sure, but who shall partner him?

England have their own interesting set of options. Moeen Ali has been in unputdownable wicket taking form in the test series, while being decent with the bat. Will he be rewarded for the same with a sustained run through the one dayers? Time will tell. Cook is a defensive captain and chances are he would not be looking too far in the future. But, Moeen is a spinner, and just like India, England think tank will also be looking towards preparing for the next year's World Cup. This means they would like to groom Stokes, Woakes and even Bopara (if he would have been in the side). I really wonder why he was omitted. He has been in great form whenever he has donned the English blues and a few times played the lone hand at the death. He is the perfect no 6 for England.

I am excited to see Alex Hales at the top of the order. He will be a dangerous batsman and India needs to get him early, because if he gets going, England are sure to post a 300 plus score on board. Ballance should get a game at 3 or 4, and that leaves Bell at 4 or 3 or maybe even 5 if Eoin Morgan wants to play up the order. Buttler is a certainty and then the flurry of allrounders.

It looks like an interesting duel in the 50 over format, and unless India bat like the champions they are, and their 'stars' bat even 50% of what they are capable of, India will struggle in this leg of the tour as well.

Autopsy: Investec Test Series

It is so ironical that when you think of summing up of what happened in the Investec Test series, the one thing that comes to mind is the word Autopsy, usually associated with a death or a corpse. In essence it has been a horrible test series and one more away series loss for Captain Dhoni. He now holds the dubious distinction for most away test losses as Captain of any Indian Test side. It is not the fact that the test series was lost, but the manner of defeats, especially the last test at the Oval which should hurt all Team India fans worldwide as well as the team within. Barring Anderson who was at the top of his game, England was very much a beatable side; coming into the series low on confidence with multiple series losses and a loss at Lords in the second test was a golden chance for Team India. True, India never had the bowlers who threatened to take 20 English wickets, but the abject fielding was clearly the sore point. 

Heads have already started to roll and the two assistant coaches have been 'given a break', and Mr Ravi Shastri appointed the Director with immediate effect. This indirectly means Coach Fletcher stands sidelined and probably opens the door for his exit. Some would call this knee jerk, and indeed it may not have a direct or immediate impact on the team's fortunes in the One Day Internationals in England which start within a week from now.

At the beginning of the series both Cook and Dhoni had similar records in the test arena of late and one of them was bound to end on the losing side. Dhoni was sadly unlucky as he was part of a side whose bowling unit is nothing to be proud of and whose batting contingent just did not show the application it should have had from its so called world class players ! Are we labeling our young guns world class too early?  Tendulkar, Ganguly, Dravid, Laxman, Kumble, Harbhajan and Sehwag are never going to play a test again for India, and we are now staring at this new bunch of players for atleast for the next 3-5 years. Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane will do the bulk of the batting in tests for India going forward. While Bhuvi, Shami, Ishant, Ashwin and Jadeja will have the onus of the bowling department. If not a wake up call for all the above, this series definitely gives them the 'experience' to come out stronger and hungrier for success. The only outside chance from the legends to ever make it to the Indian side again would be Virender Sehwag, if he can maintain his fitness and come back to form before the Tour Down Under at the end of this year. (Albeit he turns 36 in October this year and had a horrendous run against the Aussies in March 2013) India over the last decade relied heavily on his exploits at the top and his prolific hundreds laid the platform for the famed middle order. The Sehwag factor was missing in this series (and has been missing on all the overseas tours Dhoni has lost of late) even though Murali Vijay looked the best batsman in English conditions. Atleast, one hoped he would not meekly surrender everytime he came out to bat after the first test. But he could garner little support from Gambhir or Shikhar. Gambhir looked like a spent force and his obsessive fixation to look cute by running down the ball to the third man has been his undoing in many a match now, across formats. Shikhar Dhawan suddenly seems to have lost his mojo. India has not had a 50 run opening partnership for more than 10 innings. Pujara looked good during his brief stays at the crease, and while he has played the bulwark to perfection in preceding tours to South Africa and New Zealand, his failure in England meant India never dominated a game. He like his predecessor Dravid, is getting bamboozled and bowled 'through the gates' early in his innings which must be a concern for the team management and the coach.

There are not many options one can think of and this is the reason why talent still is the yardstick for selections. Case in point Rohit Sharma. Rohit promises to end up like Yuvraj Singh. A highly talented bat but with limited success in tests. He should be dropped from the test side and should not travel to Australia for the tests. Where are the Ranji bullwarks and run machines? Apart from rewarding Ranji top scorers one should also expose young batsmen in county circuit. I remember, during the 90s and even in the last decade (but ah yes, before the IPL started..!!) subcontinent players used to play in the county circuit and that is the reason India had a better record overseas. Dravid, Sehwag, Harbhajan, Kumble, Dinesh Mongia, Tendulkar, Ganguly, Srinath, Prasad, all played for county teams in more than one season. So it is not the coach or the supporting staff or even the Captain to blame. Lack of application does not equate to lack of ability. Simply put, alien conditions are tough to deal with and success comes with practice and experience. So if the BCCI is having the right intentions (they have the right advisors) they ought to arrange tours regularly to face such conditions especially the Under 19 blokes. Otherwise, we will continue to beat around the bush and keep sacking assistant coaches and questioning and scrutinizing every loss and every move made by the Captain on the field.

Team India comes back home after the One Dayers in England and hosts the Windies next and then they move to another disaster zone - Australia. If India continues to have a mindset towards Test cricket like this, the Australian series could definitely be Dhoni's last overseas series as Test Captain and probably jeopardize next year's 50 Over World Cup which is being jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand. So the Shikhar Dhawans, Virat Kohlis, Ajinkya Rahanes, Rohit Sharmas need to pull up their socks, get back some confidence and regroup as a batting unit. India cannot win overseas without their batting unit firing in all cylinders. The Top 4 need to fire. 

I am not talking of bowling because nobody is losing sleep over the fast bowlers. They seem to be just making up the numbers. There are no match winners in the side. Ashwin has become toothless of late. Jadeja has had a forgettable Test series and would be low on confidence. England hammered the bowlers whilst it was not really a batting pitch at the Oval. Bhuvi bowled miserly and picked wickets but looked jaded and defeated by the end of the penultimate test. He needs to be rested perhaps for the first one day fixture.  Ishant used the short ball to good effect at Lords and was rewarded with a bounty of wickets which enabled India to win the Lords test. However, his workhorse like approach meant India missed a strike bowler. Varun Aaron looked good, but lacks the guile to outwit the batsman. India perhaps missed a trick by reserving Mohit Sharma for the one dayers only. He could have been handy in English conditions. I bet Dhoni will use him first up in the One Dayers. 

Team India will be bolstered by some fresh legs in the form of Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu and Sanju Samson for the One Dayers. Sanju Samson has been in fine touch of late and it would be interesting to see where is he slotted and at what point he gets picked. Shikhar Dhawan gets another go at England, and perhaps he should be liking this format more since it suits his batting style. I pray Kohli finds his Midas touch again. One Day cricket has been his forte and he has mastered the art to build an innings in 50 overs. Lets hope I do not have to write an autopsy for the one dayers atleast.

Cricket Utopia: Pugnacious Dhoni stands out on England's day

Cricket Utopia: Pugnacious Dhoni stands out on England's day: It was a sense of deja vu. India were put into bat on Day 1 by England at the Oval in the penultimate (but series deciding) test match...

Pugnacious Dhoni stands out on England's day

It was a sense of deja vu. India were put into bat on Day 1 by England at the Oval in the penultimate (but series deciding) test match of the Investec Test Series, and barring the Indian captain, Dhoni, the scorecard wore a sorry face. Dhoni showed his teammates how to go about things in such conditions and bettered his 70 he made in the last test. Dhoni once again walked in when India were in deep deep trouble. He walked into bat at 8 for 4 in the disastrous innings India had at Manchester, while he came to the crease today when the scoreboard read 36 runs for Team India. Yet India managed to salvage some decency to the score albeit not enough, ending at 148 all out. Dhoni batted bravely and did what he had to with no nervousness and muddle in his mind as he lost partners at the other end. He added 58 runs with Ishant Sharma for the last wicket. Until that partnership, India stared at the prospect of being bowled out for under 100 runs on the board (Varun Aaron was scalped by Chris Woakes when the score read 90) Indian famed batting line up was exposed by the pace quartet of England (Anderson, Broad, Jordan and Woakes). For once, the backup bowlers en-cashed on the good work done by the opening bowlers Anderson and Broad. Jordan and Woakes shared 6 wickets between them. England were relentless. It was top quality bowling and toothless batting from the majority of the Indians.

Murali Vijay labored to a 64 ball 18, and when he was dismissed  a similar script started to enfold as was at Manchester. On a pitch like this, it helps to spend some time at the crease. Things ease out, bowlers tire, and one can hope to cling on and play a long hand. Only Dhoni (209 minutes), Murali Vijay (92 minutes) and Ishant Sharma (71 minutes) stayed for more than 60 minutes at the crease. Ishant's effort was laudable. Vijay once again looked determined to play a long hand. The strokemakers fell around him in a heap all perishing to nothing strokes. Gambhir edging one while leaving a ball (his first ball !!). Pujara bamboozled right through his defence (I suspect a glaring lack of confidence with the way he has been getting dismissed). Rahane playing into the hands of Jordan offering a difficult return catch. Kohli came and went. And, by the time Vijay departed, it was time for me to switch off the idiot box and do something else (more worthwhile, eh)

England came out to bat hoping to avoid any damage and they did achieve that, albeit with a generous doze of edges and flirtations outside the off stump. Even Stuart Binny in his two overs looked like getting a edge from Cook's willow. But it was not to be, and England ended at 62/0 making it entirely their day. Sam Robson looked more focused and intent between him and Cook. The Australian born batsman looks like a batsman with a good compact technique and a determined approach. He may be ungainly but has had a good start to his test career with a best of 127 earlier this year and is expected to stop the musical chair at the top of the order in pursuit of finding a successor to Andrew Strauss. (England have already experimented with Nick Compton, Michael Carberry et al)

Expect some fire from the likes of Ishant, Bhuvi and Varun Aaron tommorrow in the morning half. It all depends on how England openers weather the storm. A lot will be expected of Ishant. He used the short ball stuff to good effect in the Lords test to achieve his career best figures of 7/64. What will he do at the Oval. If the openers go back early, India will have the onus on themselves to make a match of it. Otherwise, I am afraid, this is going to be another 3 or 4 day affair.

All Eyes on the Oval

As I started writing this post, a sense of deja vu struck me. On the eve of the last test, I was gripped with what would be going on in Dhoni's mind. He is a shrewd lad, despite all the criticism around his bland predictive moves on the field. I wondered which new move will he come out with. What new moves will he make at the onset. Drop Jadeja, bring in Ashwin? Drop Shikhar, bring in Gambhir? Or open with Pujara and Vijay and have both Ashwin and Jadeja play. Or reinstate Binny as the all rounder more for his promising batting abilities. Ironically, the same set of dilemnas still hold for the Captain and the coach on the eve of this match.

Ashwin has looked more reassured with his batting, but he is not in the team for his batting. Kohli is, but he is perhaps as some media reports suggest distracted from the game allegedly due to the presence of Ms Anushka Sharma. His lack of runs must be frustrating from within, and I hope he does not implode before the World Cup next year in Australia and New Zealand. I bet my money on Vijay and Pujara to fire in atleast one of the innings along with Rahane. The three have looked the best batsmen on this tour. If Dhoni gets Dhawan back (looks unlikely inspite of the brief stay of Gambhir at the crease in both innings of the last test) into the paying XI, then he must be thinking of an extra batsman. Bad Move. I still feel Pujara would make for a good opener. Vijay and Pujara open followed by Kohli and Rahane at 3 and 4 respectively. Slot 5 is a gamble. Naman Ojha? The lad has been shoved into the squad for some reason. He was in tremendous form against a dangerous Australia A side last month. Shikhar Dhawan? Yes. Shikhar is an attacking option and takes the attack to the opposition. If he manages to get past the initial hickups he may be an ideal fix. And finally Rohit. He has been touted as the talent to watch out by none other but Sachin Tendulkar, but does he inspire the confidence? True, he has a double hundred in One Dayers, and he can switch gears too. He has batted at 5 or 6 all his Test career for Team India. Dhoni ? Yes, if Binny plays. Jadeja should get one more chance. He has been the most prolific wicket taker for India in the recent past but has not batted consistently. Remember, he has multiple triple hundreds in First Class.

Talking of bowlers, Varun Aaron and Bhuvi lead the attack. If Ishant is fit he plays. (he plays even if he is half fit, chuckle !!) If he isnt, then Ishwar Pandey should get the nod. It is high time he gets a chance. A solid performer at the domestic level. Easy action, decent pace and very accurate.

But the obstacle to a positive result for Team India at the Oval shall also be hugely dependent on the way England approach the game. Would they start playing for a draw from Day 2? Cook is likely to retain the winning squad unless ofcourse if Broad doesnt take the field owing to his injury due to Varun Aaron's beamer from the last game. England might tinker with the opening slot or the position of a seamer. But it would be needless for a team combination that has dug its feet well into this tournament.

It is difficult to expect India to have a dramatic change in fortunes in the final series levelling duel. At best, they can expect to salvage a draw. But then this is Cricket !! Lets see which team comes out all guns blazing.

Team India falter again with zero gumption

As I had some guests at home I did not know until 2200 hrs IST what is the state of the test match at Old Trafford. Little did I know that the match was already over. India's top order had been decimated with zero gumption and once again Moeen Ali was the the wrecker in chief. As the series has progressed, Moeen Ali has moved from being derided as a part time bowler to the leading wicket takers in the tournament. Even the great Graeme Swann would have been proud of what Moeen has achieved uptil now in the series. 19 wickets in four tests, and marginally behind the leading wicket taker in the test series, Anderson (21) ! On the other hand Bhuvi has been waging a lone battle from Team India with 18 wickets.

But it is not the bowling which is the culprit. The collective batting failure and lack of both application and grit has cost India the last 2 tests and the chance to win an away test series. Which is very rare for Team India.

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, Gambhir's inclusion was never going to be an elixir for Team India. True, the opening pair has not weathered many opening spells in the recent past. A good opening stand with no damage for 20 overs means there is a less nervous middle order. However, between a Shikhar Dhawan and Gautam Gambhir, Dhawan has looked better. Both are not in the best of form. All these years India had a voracious marauder in the form of Virender Sehwag who changed the color of the match in one session alone. Alas, he is past his prime too !! I believe the true culprits of the batting failures have been the opening pair. Dhoni needs to find an answer soon. Else India needs to ready itself for another impending defeat and another away series loss. That would also mean Dhoni's detractors would bay for his blood and he might lose the test captaincy !!

The only plus in this match for India has been the way Varun Aaron has bowled. He has become sharper and the 3 wickets he produced were so good to watch. If he maintains his fitness, he is a good asset for the future. I hope he doesnt lose his speed to compensate for accuracy. So many bowlers have been wasted in the past like that - Ajit Agarkar, Irfan Pathan, RP Singh, Munaf Patel et al.

Team India needs to pull up their socks for the Oval Test now. There is no point in drowning in negative feelings and critique. A match has ended. Move on, prepare for the next. End on a high, and level the series. Stop tinkering with the bowling. Fielding (too many dropped catches mean England were left off the noose) and Off stump batting needs to improve with more gumption.

Cricket Utopia: Weather spoils the day at Manchester, elsewhere Sa...

Cricket Utopia: Weather spoils the day at Manchester, elsewhere Sa...: Well we anticipated so much yesterday, but it was not to be. Bell fell for a well made 58 and looked good to complete a second ton in succe...

Travelogue: Saputara - Gujarat's only hillstation

Travelogue: Saputara - Gujarat's only hillstation: Well, I thought of writing this blog for the benefit of all who are wondering whether to go to Saputara for a weekend trip or not. I did no...

Weather spoils the day at Manchester, elsewhere Sanga's ton propels him to greatness.

Well we anticipated so much yesterday, but it was not to be. Bell fell for a well made 58 and looked good to complete a second ton in successive tests. On the other hand, looks like Joe Root is determined to get a big one and close all escape routes for India, the weather notwithstanding. India would do itself no harm if they can get both Buttler and Root out early tomorrow. Bhuvi as usual bowled well and surprise surprise Varun Aaron impressed all in his brief spell of play. Ishant might be squirming and cursing his injury tonight.

Elsewhere, the old Srilankan workhorse Kumar Sangakkara completed another test ton, his 37th, to  move past another legend of test cricket, Rahul Dravid on the list of Most Hundreds in a Career. Dravid amassed 36 centuries in his illustrious career. Sachin Tendulkar is obviously sitting pretty with 51 hundreds followed by Jacques Kallis (45) and Ricky Ponting (41) both retired and not moving up on that list. With the kind of form Sanga is in, he might be in sight of Ponting's number as well in some time. Sanga has got to these many hundreds in just 127 matches as against the 164 Dravid had played. This in other words means that Sanga has a better career average (58.8) than Dravid and infact any one in the top 10 in the list of Most Hundreds in a Test Career. The only other active batsman in the Top 10 is fellow Srilankan Mahela Jayawardane (at 8th) with 34 hundreds. Sunil Gavaskar (34), Brian Lara (34), Steve Waugh (32) and Mathew Hayden (30) complete the list.

It is interesting to know that amongst the active cricketers, the ones who are expected to shake this list in the near future are Shivnarine Chanderpaul (29), Micheal 'Pup' Clarke (27) and Alistair Cook (25). Neither of Clarke or Chanderpaul have enough cricket left in them to emulate Ponting or Lara as the leading hundreds amasser for Australia and West Indies. However, Cook to me seems to be destined to be the greatest English batsman of all time especially in this regard. Only Ian Bell (21) has a realistic chance of beating his record and no English batsman has as many hundreds as Cook and will not have as many hundreds for a very long time. So in my mind Alistair Cook is already a legend. And as an Indian fan, I dread he has many years left in him, he is only 29 after all !

England will keep winning if Bell and Cook continue with their century making exploits. For tommorrow however it would be Joe Root's chance to get his 5th ton in 20 test matches with a best effort of 200*. Onus is on India to take back the game in their hands. 

India sway like an old bridge in disrepair

As I mentioned in my previous post, the Retro Stride is not going to help. So. Sigh. Gambhir's inclusion did not help things much, and soon we will see Ashwin getting hammered mercilessly. I would pray he fares well and England gets bowled out within 300 if we have to make a match of it. India folded up for a meagre much under par total to wield any influence on this test. Only a brave and sustained session by session campaign will help from here onwards. Dhoni is the key. The right bowling changes, sharp fielding and some luck may help.

Talking of Gambhir, he would be the one man I would be watching out for. He would be the most eager to perform in the second innings and given his short duration at the crease, he would atleast play with caution in the second innings to give himself a chance for a big knock. Pujara troubles me. His lack of runs and his habit of looking in touch and suddenly getting out is baffling. This trait was so epitomized by the talented Yuvraj. His backlift and the swagger was so good to watch. He looked supremely confident and made you feel he might repeat his six hitting blitzkrieg every time he came out to bat. Vijay disappointed me as I expected him to show up some resistance. The brief stay of Rahane was delightful. I wish he had gone further and got to some personal landmarks and propel India to 250. Dhoni was at his cautious but belligerent best, although he had a dreadful show running from the other end of the crease. Six ducks, 4 of which were Top order batsmen. Even Jadeja has triple hundreds in first class cricket to his name which is no mean feat. So, was it lack of application or good fast bowling by the seasoned Anderson and Broad. Both.

India won the toss and chose to bat, maybe to avoid batting last on an unfavorable pitch. Good move, but little did Dhoni realise that the bowler friendly pitches and fresh bowling legs would mean a tricky first two sessions. And tricky it was as India swayed like an old bridge in disrepair under the weight of the rampaging duo of Broad and Anderson with Jordan and Woakes as backup. By lunch time the back was already broken and India was as TOI headline stated in Deep Trouble. Can India wriggle out of the deep trouble or not will depend on how India bowl today.

Varun Aaron has looked good and Bhuvi has looked like taking wickets all throughout the series besides being stingy with the runs. I wish Ashwin and Jadeja join the party too.

It makes for an exciting day of test cricket.

Who is gonna be the bunny out of the hat tommorrow?

I have decided to write a blog regularly despite the paucity of time in between a hectic work life and an even more hectic personal life (more hectic after our first child). Cricket is my passion and i need a daily dose of cricket in the form of daily news, match updates and if no matches are on then lean back and watch picture perfect Indian run chases or classic test battles on the idiot box. Daily dose much in the same vein as a diabetic would need his insulin shots. As I think what to write, what interests me most is something which is hackneyed in every sense as a sport in India. Nevertheless, I start with the ongoing India-England series (http://www.espncricinfo.com/england-v-india-2014/content/series/667693.html).

So much has changed in the first three test matches in England. Ishant Sharma after having been unfairly written off at the start of the series with acerbic criticism and relentless focus on the number of test matches behind him (54 in all) without becoming the feared spearhead that everyone expected him to become, became a star with his best 7/74 figures only to limp off and sit on the sidelines respectfully for the rest of the series. He is the one perhaps who is missed most by Dhoni as I scrawl here. I wonder if I could delve into Dhoni's mind and unearth what does he fear most for the test match at Old Trafford? Cricket as they say is very much of mind games. So, is it the form of Shikhar Dhawan, or the lack of runs from Pujara? Is it the lack of options in the spin department? Jadeja obviously has looked more potent than Ashwin all of last few seasons, and only if Ashwin bowls with a little more heart will he surprise his critics. Is it the ignominy of lagging behind opposition even after being 1-0 up initially, should England win the duel at Old Trafford? This looks likely with Anderson still fit (unlike Ishant) and available to play, and with Finn joining Broad, English quicks will feast like a voracious pack of wolves on the Indian top order (with a fast and bouncy track on offer), however brave the resistance. Or is it the muddle in the head on how to surprise the opposition. So, whats on that menu?

1. Fire with Fire# gamble with Varun Aaron's usually erratic pace. Sourav Ganguly would have done that, atleast his media diatribe suggests that. But then Dhoni is not Ganguly. 2. Retro stride # Bring in Gambhir and Ashwin? Both might not be an elixir to the cause. Neither has looked close to his best in the recent past. 3. Pujara the opener# Wise move since Dhawan has always ensured in the last 6 innings that nobody gets to sleep in the dressing room (except Rahane !!   http://www.espncricinfo.com/england-v-india-2014/content/story/767211.html)


I wish Dhoni pulls out the hat he wears in the ODIs !! He has been pulling out bunnys out of that hat on many occasions. There is a lot of careful analysis and meticulous thought process behind the gambling over the years. Nothing else can explain his success in the limited version of the game. So I wonder what he will do. Which Bunny will be out over the remaining half of the week? Perhaps open with Rohit Sharma (stupid move and common sense will say he has a weakness for the short ball), or plant Gambhir at 3 and open with Kohli or Pujara. or Play Pankaj Singh along with Varun Aaron, leaving out Shami Ahmed (Shami has looked lost and jaded) or perhaps play both the spinners Ashwin and Jadeja? or place faith on young Stuart Binny again? With his military medium pace he can be an option. Binny can also bat with a sensible head and weather a storm if need be. Ashwin does that too. So leave Jadeja out? Jadeja will surely have a point to prove after the sullen reprieve of Anderson. Leave it to the Hat tommorrow. We shall see. Which hat does Dhoni adorn at Old Trafford. Bunny Hat or otherwise, lets hope Team India puts a brave fight.