India thrills in the shorter version: Several gains

Despite losing the last match, the T20 match at Birmingham yesterday, India would leave England on a high. India give priority to ODI wins and they would be mighty pleased with the outcome of the ODI series, and they definitely made a match of the uphill chase in the lone T20, albeit not being able to surmount in the last step. England on the other hand would console themselves that atleast they saved the day by clinching the Test series coming from behind. The back to back test wins was the only high for the English team and Captain Cook. England has always looked to unfairly shun limited overs cricket for a while now. I would certainly like to know what difference would the presence of a Broad, Bresnan or a Luke Wright or Bopara have made. England would have looked more potent atleast on paper. Cook opens for England till the World Cup and perhaps is the best choice to lead them. I would not write them off yet, due to their bowling options. England need a blistering start alright, but they also need solidity at the top. Cook is a solid old fashioned ODI bat and his stodgy batting at the top, long made obsolete by the likes of Jayasuriyas, Tendulkars, Sehwags, Haydens, Gilchrists, Gayles, et al. will help England lay solid platforms for the strokemakers down the order. England have flirted with the Am-Wham-Thankyou-Ma'am approach at the top in the shorter version with the likes of Craig Kieswetter, Luke Wright and others with limited success. Alex Hales (and perhaps Jason Roy, if he is in the scheme of things for the WC) still provide that option for England. Perhaps England can also open with Bopara as the pinch hitter. His hitting abilities are grossly under rated. Going by what Arjuna Ranatunga reasoned for Kaluwitharana and Jayasuriya when they were pitching in with short quick innings of 20s and 30s batting at 6 or 7 for Srilanka in the 90s. If one can make a 10 ball 25 batting at 7 in the dying overs, what can he do if he batted at the top getting full 50 overs to bat. And everyone knows what deadly effect the duo had on world cricket, and an everlasting effect, changing the way One Day cricket is played. Cook can perhaps reinvent himself at No 3. a la Gambhir or Ganguly.

Plenty of positives from the tour for India though. They have a batting unit that is buzzing with energy. The batting success rubbed on the ground fielding which was electric and effervescent. The bowling department was doing well, with the only concern being the death bowling. India are yet to find a Malinga in their ranks. (although Malinga is so unique that you may never find someone again so menacing and accurate with yorkers) I feel a fully fit and hungry Zaheer is the closest answer to that. India have kept Zaheer hungry of late, and whenever he is back, he would be eager to impress. His fitness is the key to India's bowling woes. He is a clever operator and could bamboozle many a batsman in the death. Add his experience Down Under and he becomes a matchwinner for India.

Coming back to the positives for India. India look settled in the batting department. Rahane and Dhawan open with Kohli, Raina and Dhoni to follow. Jadeja and Ashwin should be the spin workhorses for the middle overs. India's ability to restrict oppositions lies in their hands. The home series with the West Indies looks more of a disturbance to the WC preparations. It would be interesting to see the selection for that series. Would they bring in fresh replacements and preserve the best XI, or keep playing the best XI and in the process expose them to opportunities to get injured or become jaded and rusty (The England tour has been a long one, 5 Tests followed by 5 One dayers and a lone T20) I bet some players (like Bhuvi) need to be rested for the WI series. I also see a Yuvraj, or a Manoj Tiwary and even Robin Uthappa coming in for that series. All three vying for one of the 2 unsettled spots in the squad. The lone middle order berth and the backup opener's slot. The middle order slot is left vacant by the sudden success of Rahane at the top. He looks to be the best bet to open in Australia. The contenders for the spot left vacant for him at 5 or 6 are many. Yuvraj Singh is my favourite. (But then there is a lot of heart in that pining; Is he in form and the kind of form that would warrant a place in the playing XI? Suspect.), Ambati Rayudu? (He is young, eager to impress, has been waiting in the ranks for a long while, and has done well in England albeit on flat sub continental like pitches), Rohit Sharma (the most likely guy to get the nod. He is a man who when on song can be a matchwinner. He can hold and hit and is difficult to dislodge) or Manoj Tiwary (He is talented and with whatever little opportunity he has got has impressed, plus he can bowl spin too as can Yuvraj, Rohit or Rayudu) The other position which looks unsettled is the third or backup openers' slot. Gambhir and Sehwag look unlikely to hang around in the WC squad for that. Murali Vijay is an option certainly and he would like to impress in the West Indies home series. But then again, he is known to be a big hitting lion only at home and not very effective elsewhere. Robin Utthappa is an option, provided he improves his consistency. His strike rate was never a problem. He could also play in the middle order as he has done for India in the shortest version. India would also like to consider Parthiv Patel. He is a backup keeper (along with Wriddiman Saha and the new kid Sanju Samson) to Dhoni and could double up as a backup opener. He is an aggressive hooker and puller and a expert keeper. He has a big heart and doesnt chicken out on Big Match days. I expect him to be in the frame of things. With the Indian batting ticking all the boxes, suddenly there seems to be no need for discussion on the Parthivs and Sehwags and Yuvrajs of the world. 

The bowling needs to improve, but the biggest gain from the entire tour has been Bhuvaneshwar Kumar. He has been the spearhead for a majority of the tour, bowling miserly at the top and getting crucial wickets. He will be an asset Down Under. Shami impressed in the ODIs but he has competition. Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron and Mohit Sharma. He would know that Zaheer is aiming to make a comeback. Things are tight, and time will tell who remains fit and hungry by the time India reach Australia. The spin department looks settled and Jadeja and Ashwin look like they would carry India's middle over workload on their shoulders with support from the 'batting allrounders' like Raina, Yuvraj, Rohit, Rayudu or even Tiwary.

Indian team will be heading back to India in 'high spirits', pun intended. Time to look towards a more tame series with the Windies. Welcome to the Pollards and Gayles swashbuckling Windies style of cricket.

England should expect no mercy from India

Dhoni is hungry and England are on the mat. If I would have been him, I would have gone all out to complete a whitewash. It would give you such a high after a near disastrous Test series against the same opponent. 

England are likely to have the same lineup. The problem is not the lineup but the application. England as I said in my last blog must bat well in the middle overs to be able to give themselves any chance in the death overs. Their batting is the key to the result. If they bat well (which they should, after all the failings and flak, and a flat pitch expected at Headingly with little or no cloud cover) I predict this could be a high scoring game. The onus shall be on the middle overs again. Bell is out due to injury, so a lot of responsibility rests with Ballance, Root and Morgan. The trio will have to show some gumption and ensure that the likes of Jadeja, Ashwin & co. do not force a similar result again. 

Again, England have a matchwinner at the top, and their woes is partly because he has unexpectedly not fired. He has an aggregate of 88 runs from 3 outings with an unimpressive average of under 30. A couple of 40+ scores in this series is lot less than what was expected from him. Once he is set, he needs to be around and push the accelerator. Something that England would like him to do, so that there is less pressure on the struggling middle order. The teams are staring at a flat pitch this time, and it is the time for Hales to come to the party. I expect England to perform much better than they have fared till now in the series.

Dhoni is not known to tinker with his winning XI, even for dead rubbers like this. But the sudden rise in faith of Rahane's suitability at the top means there is a void to be filled up in the middle overs. And you have a young 19 year old Sanju Samson to try out. It would be a good game to give him his debut and valuable international exposure. The lad has a first class average of 43+ and has 4 centuries to his name already. It will be a waste if he ends up not playing. With so much cricket to be played in the near future including the World Cup, it would be a good idea to blood youngsters. Rohit Sharma should be able to come back into the middle order, but he has been an inconsistent bloke. In the bowling Karn Sharma could get a game after a noteworthy performance in the practice game in England. He has an outside chance to play if Ashwin is rested. I do not expect Umesh Yadav to get a game though.

Dead Rubber it is, but expect plenty of boundaries and a run feast !! Sit back and enjoy.

England decimated within 31 overs !!

So much was expected from England, but India is truly on top of their game, and with spin friendly pitches England had no chance. By the time Ashwin came to bowl, England were 3 down and Morgan and Root were on the backfoot. A spinner loves to bowl when the new ball bowlers have done the damage. England never really got going and the late flourish never came. Moeen Ali did leave an impact but that was simply not enough. After restricting England to an under par score India cantered home without any loss. Rahane gone only just before victory. Dhawan got an important innings, more importantly remaining unbeaten till the end, which should help his confidence and do a world of good to Team India. A settled opening pair is the best thing to happen for any top notch side. For England though, the problem starts from the top.

There has been a lot of clamor for Cook's place in the shorter version due to his scoring rate and his limited success of late. But England need not be able to look beyond Cook till the World Cup atleast. Firstly, there is no one pushing him for the top job. Morgan is struggling. Pietersen is out of favour. That leaves England with only one alternative - Stuart Broad. I am not a fan of Stuard Broad the Captain though. England need fresh thought. Secondly, Cook has had a prolific career over the years, and if he holds one end up, England do have a worthy plan to build the innings around him, Bell and Root while the stroke makers up the ante.

The worthy England captain in my view would have been Mr 'Swagger' Pietersen. He inspires awe around the world and is a matchwinner. He would walk into any limited overs side. Unfortunately for England, he is out of the gambit. With the present set of choices with England, they are doomed in the World cup. Changing the captain hence does not help. 

Middle Overs hold the key for Tuesday's Match

India go into the next match 2-0 up and threaten to bag another one on present form and momentum. England will have to come up with something dramatically different for this encounter. For instance, bat well through the middle overs. The spinners Ashwin, Jadeja & Co have ensured India get an iron clasp of the game during the middle overs, often leaving no room to play strokes and eventually England succumb. This has meant very little contribution from the likes of Bell, Root, Morgan, Buttler and the allrounder brigade. 

I would expect some changes in the middle order for England. Who will it be? Bell? Morgan or Root? Bell brings in experience. Roots has been among the runs in the Tests, but then this is a different format and every games you start afresh. Morgan is an asset with his big hitting and can gallop to a catchy scoring rate in no time despite a slow shaky start. England need a big one from one of these 3 guys in the middle. If either is going to make way, it would be for Gary Ballance. Ballance has been a mainstay for England during the recently concluded Investec Test Series with India, but hasnt cemented his place in the shorter version. Will he grab his chance with both hands? On recent form, i bet he will. 

Moeen Ali also becomes an automatic choice for the allrounder slot ahead of Ben Stokes. Although England have never really relied on a spinning allrounder, especially while playing in England and playing against a subcontinent side like India, who can play out less than spectacular spinners half asleep. Moeen is no Swann mind you. Barring recent exceptions like Samit Patel, England have always had more illustrious allrounders who were all pace bowlers. If I read the game correctly, Moeen Ali should make an impact with both bat and ball tommorrow. He must be eager to perform and will have to once again silence his naysayers. Moeen Ali will bring that uncanny wicket taking ability of Jadeja into the England side, although Tredwell is the better spinner of the two.

In my view the slower bowlers on both sides bowling during the middle overs will hold the key in tommorrow's match. So Ashwin, Jadeja, Tredwell (if he plays) and Moeen Ali hold the key to the match. A dry pitch should favour the spinners even more. 

For India, everything is going right for them now. And if Mohit Sharma is cleared to play in this encounter, then Dhoni gets his best XI on the field. If Mohit is unable to take the field then it is a toss between Dhawal Kulkarni and Umesh Yadav. Dhawal is a similar bowler, but Umesh Yadav has got pace. His present form though is a mystery. If Mohit has a specific role to play, then like for like, Dhawal should get the nod ahead of Umesh. Period. Expect no further changes. Dhoni is not known to make unnecessary changes. 

Elsewhere in the cricket world, Elton Chigumbura guides Zimbabweans home against the more fancied Australian side with a life saving partnership with Prosper Utseya. My hearty congratulations to the entire Zimbabwean team and their families. It is a day they all will cherish all their lives !!