India lost 4-1 to the no-hopers Windies in the Carribean, and much breast beating has started, including the now-familiar cries to bring back Ganguly, Kapil Dev and CK Nayadu. So a team that had a stupendous ODI run in the recent past has been brought back to ground level with this 'shock' defeat. However here are a few facts of life in the ODI version for India:
- ODIs are not very predictable. On your day, you can win, irrespective of how good or bad you/your opposition is. It is just the way it is - unless you are Australia, wherein you win much much more than you lose because you are so bloody good.
- India are always very very strong in home conditions. Remember, the great ODI winning streak was accomplished in India (V SL and SA), Pakistan (pitches similar to Indian ones) and back in India V England. India are historically not so good at adopting away from home.
- India is not alone in being unable to adopt away from home - again, except for Aus, most other teams struggle while travelling.
- India has a very inexperienced team. The bowling attack is young and green, and the batting is not that much different. They will need time and experience of losing overseas to pull up socks.
- India looks much more fitter on the field than ever before. The buzz is better, the fielding is sharper, and they look like a team.
In summary, what I have been trying to say here is that India are not as good as the home results indicated, nor as bad as the Windies loss denotes. We are a middling team, along with a bunch of other teams - but still a far way away from Australia at their best. However, we are looking up - a young team that can only get better as they learn more. We can win the World Cup, and so can a bunch of other teams. The blocks are in place to be built upon for March 2007, and the rest us upto that elusive commodity called LUCK.
3 comments:
A few observations from watching India play after a long long time........October/November 2004 to be precise.
1 - Dhoni needs to be more vocal behind the stumps. He just seems to be in his own world and it is catching on. Our skipper needs all the support he can get. Especially when he himself is not the demonstrative kind.
2 - We can be a bit more flexible with our bowling options as well. We could have had Powar/Bhajji/Yuvraj bowl within the first 8 overs in any of the 5 matches. The wickets are slow and Gayle just leans back on his back foot and waits for the ball to be short and wide so that he can slash it over cover. Slowing the ball down to him and the others would not have done any harm at all.
3 - Let us admit it - Bravo is a fine fine cricketer. But surely giving him all those wickets on the slower delivery was criminal. The first cardinal rule in batting is - if you are not picking it, you knock it around for a single, get off strike and then watch closely from the other end for the release from the hand. Our batsmen could also have stood a few inches out of the crease to stop Bravo from aiming at one particular spot. Heaving wildly at deliveries you are not watching from out of the bowlers hand is gambling at its very worst.
4 - Dhoni and Raina are everything they are touted out to be. Talented, tough and calm. The future looks promising.
5 - Yuvraj/Raina/Shewag should bowl more than they are doing right now.
6 - DON'T bring back Anil Kumble back into the ODI squad.
HK
interesting about the dhoni bit - do you think he is not as vocal as some of the other keepers - or is it a audio thing with TV that we are not picking it up?
Nope - I have been watching Dhoni closely for a while now. What is also disappointing is that he offers Dravid no insight at all. There is hardly any interaction between the skipper and the keeper and they stand close enough to shake each others hands!
HK
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