Random Scribblings : India Em-'Powar'ed, India's Youth Policy, Raina's Chase and the Official Biker...

Having snatched victory from the jaws of a certain defeat, India went into this game as a confident side, knowing what they wanted to do. The onus was surely on England to create a feeling about themselves that they could compete in this form of the game against the hosts. With Powar replacing RP Singh (a good move in my opinion because the latter looks nothing but a 'dibbly-dobbly' guy with some pace), strategy prevailed and two-spinners on this dusty Faridabad wicket, would be quite a task for the Poms to handle. In the end, India prevailed in what looked like a nervy encounter and quite worthily, taken a 2-zip lead in the 7 match ODI series. Here are some musings from the Faridabad encounter...

India Em-'Powar'ed...

At last, one feels that the hunt for India's compatible second spinner in ODIs is seemingly over. Ramesh Powar was handed a perfect opportunity in the 2nd ODI and even though he could not grab a catch (Strauss on 27) off his own bowling, he surely grabbed his chance as a part of this side. India in the recent past have tried several others like Murali Kartik and of course the old warhorse Anil Kumble, but the recent loss of form for Kartik and Kumble's aged make-up not in Chappell's scheme of things at the moment, it was an important game for the Mumbai offie. What makes Powar an effective ODI bowler is his variations - in line, length, trajectory and indeed speed. Early wickets do help any bowler for that matter, but an impeccable line and length coupled with patience is what saw Powar through. It was imperative for him to perform today purely because of the fact that his showings in the last four games he played were'nt encouraging enough. I always believed that he has a crucial role to play in Indian cricket and add his lusty batting at the lower part of the innings and Powar seems a invaluable player. Perhaps the dawn has just begun with this stellar performance and Faridabad. Knowing Ravan (a nickname his Mumbai team-mates have given him for his huge fetish for food) he has a cool head on his shoulders and one certainly hopes and wishes that he be given regular chances to prove his mettle.

India's Youth Policy

Persistence with youth seems the way ahead for Indian cricket. And indeed, this way is leading to smoother roads. At 92/5, most of us 'fickle-minded' Indian fans would've written the team off. But thanks to some young thought processes and indeed unquestioned talent, there is surely a sense of belief emerging not solely from the player himself, but also the fans. I do not quite want to be an Economist, quoting statistics about the youth in India and stuff, but as far as cricket is concerned a team with an average age of 25 is surely worth a mention. The emergence of a 'young brigade' so to say has had an immense impact on India's recent successful one-day run. This is a side, that at least appears to have rid away with the concept of 'Choking' and a testament to this fact would be the last 14 out of the 16 wins coming through chases. With Sreesanth, Munaf Patel, Suresh Raina, RP Singh and of course Irfan Pathan coming through the ranks successfully, age is slowly getting out of the equation. That of course highlights the difference playing two seasons of first class cricket can make to a young cricketer. Thus far, thus good and as an observer of the Chappellian comrades, the policy of blending youth with a touch of experience is the only way Indian cricket can take the 'Giant' leap into the next level.

Raina's Chase

The situation was pretty precarious when this young man walked into bat. With India reeling at 80 for 4 and later 92 for 5, it almost needed a near-miracle to pull it off. It was a fascinating inning played by Suresh Raina today and what was more pleasing than seeing the young man seeing the chase through the last ball. There are 3 Ts that most experts look out for in a young player - Talent, Temperament and Technique and add another T when it comes to Raina - Timing/Touch. It was indeed an encouraging sign as a cricket watcher to see Raina get his timing spot-on when batsmen as good as Flintoff and Pietersen (earlier) were struggling. Responsibility often gets the best out of you as a person, and Raina for sure succeeded with greater burden of pressure. His shot-selection pretty much summed up his innings, that one might describe as one with class, yet a tinge of cheekiness. He picked his spot as and when he desired and what better time to get a boundary than the first ball of any over. Believe you me, it eases the pressure for the rest of the 4 or 5 balls. Being involved in a match-winning partnership and producing a virtual chase of his own would probably do him loads of good and I surely hope that the Team Management look after this chap with a great degree of care and even though it is too early to say, let me put my hand up and predict him to lead India one-day !

The Official Biker

He's India's man behind the stumps, an important part of the batting line-up and that apart an added responsibility has been ushered onto Mahendra Singh Dhoni - the team's official biker. For the second time today, MS Dhoni took the victory lap on Suresh Raina's brand new TVS Apache. And let me tell you, its not a bad idea to do something that would please his sponsors (He is sponsored by TVS). For a man who often publicly professes his passion for biking, its a responsibility he sure would be thriving on ! And who knows, 2 rides gone, 5 more to go. Lets hope Dhoni gets the last ride !

Over to Goa for the 3rd ODI !

Random Scribblings : The Delhi Debacle, Sweep-o-mania and Bhajji's Coming at Last...

Delhi played host to what seemed like a contest between England's momentum and India's recent one-day international form. It seemed like a keen contest from the time England won the toss and inserted India in, but little did they know that their purpose would go unrewarded as their batsmen fell like nine pins in a bowling alley. Here are some snippets from the 1st ODI that are worth a mention...

The Delhi Debacle !

It all seemed done and dusted when England were riding themselves high at 116/3. As the game was heading towards a particularly known direction i.e. an England win, I decided to swap channels and check out a rather intriguing contest of ball and bat between Pakistan and Sri Lanka ! Five minutes and two overs later, the England score read 117/5. The match had already turned on its head, quite literally - with Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff falling in succession. Then it was Jones, then Blackwell, then Collingwood, Ali and lastly Plunkett. It was only a spell of imagination that stung England and quite badly so. The collapse might just prove a bit costly and will remain as a scar had to erase in the coming few matches. And it was the second consecutive time that England failed to chase a low-score against India. The previous occasion was at the Oval back in 2004 (Natwest Challenge), when while chasing a similar score the English team faltered badly. So, at one end of the globe we see bullions of runs being chased successfully and at the other, scores around 200 is becoming a major mess to contend with. Long live the man who hailed cricket as the "game of uncertainities" !

Sweep-o-mania

The strong fetish of sweeping just can't get off the system of the visiting teams against India. For them, somehow it turns into a success recipe, for reasons only they'd know best I guess. Today, the shot got rid of at least 4 English men (Flintoff, Jones, Blackwell and Prior) and a more decent way of smothering the spin needs to be looked at. It seemed like a computer game whereby the bowler exactly knows what the batsman is going to do next and pitches the ball in areas, where at best the strength could also hail his downfall. This obsession of the batters has to change quickly, whereby the risk element is reduced and they play free cricket. Dean Jones in his commentary stints has stressed on the importance of finding targets (a term used for boundary-riders in Australia) and has always maintained that it could be achieved by playing simple risk-free cricket. For now, it looks as though another bug has creeped into the English system. The earlier they get rid of it, the better and secure they might seem. That does not quite mean taking the shot completely out of the game, but using it selectively according to the situation ! As spin-friendly tracks await the Englishmen, it would be interesting to see how much of sleep they would be losing over the s-w-e-e-p !!

Bhajji's coming at last !

India's confidence man is back at last ! One could almost sense the fact that Harbhajan Singh was just a spell or so away from being back to his best ! He bowled with a lot of intensity and guile in the Third Test at Mumbai, but sometimes wickets do not play justice to the fact that the numbers in the confidence meter were just rising. And today, it reached its optimum best ! Of course an early wicket played its part in easing his nerves and the tough times had ended for good ! The entire make-up of the man looked so different. His approach to the wicket was smoother than recent times, the ball was leaving out of his hands much better and the overall outlook at its best. It should not be so ironical that England have been at the recieving end of Harbhajan (his first 5-for came against the Poms at Mumbai on 3rd Feb 2002). But, this one would be worth remembering for both Bhajji and his fans, as he won the game single-handedly with both bat and ball. Having seen him bowl today, one can certainly see brighter days ahead of him ! As far as England are concerned - "Bhajji has hit the dance floor, finally"

Thats all for today ! Watch this space for more random scribbles after the second ODI at Faridabad !

The Battle of the Blues

In just three days from now, the battle will resume again. This time in coloured clothing and white balls. Yes folks, it will be one-day time from the March 28 and going by the high-intensity cricket played in the Test matches between India and England, it will be a keenly-contested contest, one hopes. It will surely be a contest between a team brimming with confidence (England) and a team that knows what forgetting the bad games is all about (India). With England's 'nothing-to-lose' mindset, nothing is at stake for them but the ODIs for India come at a heavier price - keeping their unbeaten series run in the ODIs thus far since october.

India will start as unquestioned favourites for this series, but one might argue that they did so for the Tests as well. It was upto England to raise their intensity of cricket to match upto the Indians and so they did to, what they might equate to a series win, having been through all the pre-series problems. This time around, it will be a different level of challenge for a team that is not known to trouble most teams in the ODIs. To start off, their recent form against Pakistan comes as a boost for the Indians and having seen some of their players in the recently concluded Tests, it will be bunch of boys whose awareness about the opposition might have just gone a little higher. India does have its own share of problems with Sachin Tendulkar nursing a shoulder injury. But having said that, a problem brings itself an opportunity. For someone like Venugopala Rao or Gautam Gambhir, the call-up to the squad might not have come at a better time. The onus will be on them though, to grab this hint of opportunity and translate it into their destiny, perhaps ! There is something about this Indian one-day team. They seemed least perturbed, though highly disappointed after the Test series loss to Pakistan and their ability to claw out of difficult situations should be commended. It must be noted that India's rich vein of form in the ODIs has surely help mask its undoings in the Tests and if history repeats itself as it did in Pakistan, India should surely come out on top. One need not be an Einstein to figure out if surprises will come England's way and knowing Chappell and Dravid's determination to innovate and 'experiment', several players would be put to test. So, it would be fair to say that the 'Form is with India but the confidence with England'.

On the other hand, England have surely taken a leaf out of India's book in terms of a wink towards the future, and the quite immediate one - World Cup 2007. They have gone with a horses for courses philosophy with guys like Vikram Solanki, Owais Shah and Sajid Mahmood having played here for England A in the Duleep Trophy a season or two back. And more importantly, they are the men in form. Gareth Batty, Vikram Solanki and Sajid Mahmood have entered the squad through sheer merit on account of their strong match-winning performances in the recently concluded England A tour of West Indies. It will be interesting to see how they match-up to the conditions and the weather especially in some of the unusual centres in India, like Kochi which will be nothing short of a scorcher. But, they have a confident leader in Andrew Flintoff, who has eased into the demands of captaincy quite well. The Poms will surely be welcomed by flat pitches and their ability to post big totals will have to come to the fore if they intend to succeed. These pitches can be unforgiving for the bowlers and somehow I tend to feel, this is where England would struggle. There may well be a sameness about their attack and I find it surprising as to why a bowler like Monty Panesar has been sent home, after all the good work he did in the Tests. If England do believe in wearing the underdog tags, they might be able to spring a bigger surprise on the punter's bets - India.

Flexibility of thought and action would decide the outcome on Indian pitches. After the near whitewash of the Sri Lankans and the tough grind against the Proteas', it would not be wrong to brand the Indians as clear favourites by a long mile. But, it will also be imperative for them not to let complacency creep into their systems as it did in Mumbai in the test match and go out their and play the game with a sense of meaningfulness, purpose and intensity. The last time the English were here, India managed to succumb to the pressure after leading the series 3-2 and the visitors drew the series at Mumbai. This time around the teams are different, the centeres are different and of course the form !

One hopes to see a highly competitive series of cricket and this would be only justified if the better team wins. Both teams are young in terms of age and spirit, but the team that holds its nerve in the testing conditions coupled with good catching and fielding will come out on top !

For now, let the battle begin !

A View from the North Stand....

Barmed by the Army

Oh well, as I made my way through the 'F' Block in the North Stand at the Wankhede Stadium, surprise was the first emotion that went through me, as I could all but bump into a swarm of the British Barmy Army fans. It was a pleasant one as well, as for once, I happened to watch cricket with a bunch of highly knowledgeable persons. It was a great sight to see so many fans travel all the way from England/Wales to watch their country play, braving the weather and the pathetic infrastructure of the Wankhede stadium. It felt pretty lonely out there to be an Indian, but gave me a perfect opportunity I was looking for to discuss some good county cricket (something I follow religiously) and of course, flaunt the pride I carry with Manchester United (highly unpopular among the fans there of course though I managed to find someone with the same leanings).

Where is the comfort ?

Someone actually remarked about the inferior state of infrastructure, particularly the seatings of the Wankhede Stadium. He asked me "You guys have so much of money, why don't you spend it in improving the stadium ?" and to a large extent I do empathise with him, having come all the way from England just for this game and this is what we welcome our 'guests' with ? Another British spectator went to the extent of rating the stadium as the "worst" he's ever been to, having seen cricket all over the world. Unfortunately, one must admit, Indian cricket has been too busy about revenue-making than actually bothering to allocate it. It is about time the administration takes the question of spectator comfort seriously ! The Mumbai Cricket Association need not look anywhere outside for inspiration, just up north at Mohali. The way the spectator has been treated there is nothing short of exemplary. Dean Jones has gone on to rate Mohali as the number 1 venue in the Indian sub-continent, for its hospitality, the stadium and ground and the pitch of course. As someone based in Mumbai and a regular spectator at the Wankhede, I must confess, its much better off to watch the cricket at home than the Stadium, with some good snacks and of course comfort at its best. One hopes that by the time the ground hosts another match, such issues will be addressed and Mumbai will also throw its hat in the ring to claim some accolades.

Of Bloated Egos

A British-Indian based in London remarked about the electronic scoreboard at the Garware Pavillion End, which was nothing but an advertising spot used by the Mahindras. He asked me "Does this Anand Mahindra have a big ego ?" and that left me wondering if our corporates have resorted to cricket matches to flaunt their prowess ! There was a scroller in the scoreboard, which constantly, if not very regularly reminded what the Mahindras stood for and beyond a certain extent, it just seemed a pointless exercise. Of course, there were mentions of Anand Mahindra winning the Businessman of the Year and the taking over of British Telecom by the Mahindras, but one somehow felt that they were overdoing it, jumping over all the lines of publicity !

Definition of Appalling

If ever the dictionary got a chance to describe the shot Mahendra Singh Dhoni played, a few words like appalling would do it best. It was nothing but a display of mindless and reckless cricket by the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman, and as it turned out to be, his dismissal proved costly under the circumstances. Maybe I would lose many friends here, but it won't be wrong to say that Dhoni is still very much a one-day specialist. Test Cricket is not meant for nuts that crack easily and Dhoni, somehow has not yet learned the grind and the mettle required to answer the tough questions, test cricket poses at you as a batsman. I would stick my guts out and say that Dinesh Karthik got a raw deal at the hands of the selectors and perhaps should be back in the reckoning, bouyed by Dhoni's lack of maturity as a batsman and butter-gloves as a keeper. Of-course, Dhoni is a phenomenal one-day cricketer, no-body denies it, but as per the requirement of the game, talent, technique and temperament are imperative to the makings of a quality Test batsman. Dhoni seems to have a decent blend of the two formers, but certainly lacks on the latter.

P.S : This post is in no way undermining the ability of Dhoni, but just questioning his makings of a Test cricketer ! As a footer, I'd like to quote Navjot Singh Sidhu here, "To Err is Human but to repeat the error is foolishness" - hope Dhoni's listening !

Awakening a Generation !

Awakening a Generation…

"Do the words “nayee dagar naya safar mera…” from Rang de Basanti ring a bell in our ears ? Yes, they do. Loud and clear, as it could be the closest expression that describes the present state of Indian cricket. Indeed, they have embarked on a new journey of excellence the driving force behind it has been the Wall himself, Rahul Dravid.

As we have gathered here to celebrate the century of tests for the Indian skipper, his initial footings in International cricket deserve a mention. Playing his first Test match against England at Lords, considered to be the ‘Mecca of Cricket’ in 1996, Dravid went on to score 95 and since then looking back has never been a part of his dictionary. That was the starting point of a journey that would be most cherished by Indian cricket. His first century of 148 runs at Johannesburg in 1996-97 was a treat to watch for all cricket fans, and the bricks of an unbreakable Wall were laid. He has then gone on to score 21 Test centuries and in the process of doing so, is the only cricketer to score a hundred in every Test playing nation. His average of 58.16 is envied by many nations and his presence on our television sets is a strong reassurance of our hopes. This unfinished journey has a long way to go and going by his consistency and performances, it would to fair to say, that a place amongst the all-time greats is just a mile away.

My mind dates back to September-October 2005, when Indian cricket languished under a barrage of controversies and, it wouldn’t be wrong to say, that our cricket had hit an all time low. The country looked up to its crisis man, yet again to reignite and reinstate the spark that was needed to resurrect its present and reassure the future. As the transfer of the captain’s armband took place from Saurav Ganguly to Rahul Dravid, the country was gripped with a bright ray of hope and a bucket full of expectations and all he asked for patience for deliverance. The man promised, performed and delivered. A resounding 6-1 one-day series win over Sri Lanka, marked his arrival and ushered the Dravidian Era of Indian cricket.

The elements of leadership always existed within Rahul, but the timing of acquiring the mantle deserves credit. As the management gurus would put it, the traits of a leader have to be identified, nurtured and then must be handed over the responsibility. The identification stage was done way back in 1996, when he was leading the Board President’s XI side against the visiting South Africans at Kochi. The nurturing process began with his stint as Saurav’s deputy from 2000 and today, the process has reached its logical conclusion, with his appointment as Captain. He was given stop-gap opportunities and surely demonstrated his leadership capabilities in these few matches and being a part of the learning curve for him, it proved to be a successful arrangement for the team.

As a captain today, Rahul Dravid’s leadership is nothing short of inspirational. His leadership style is highly reflective of the team’s mindset of mixing aggression with a degree of control and cautiousness. As a leader, he comes across as a man with a larger vision, in the form of the long-term future and success of Indian cricket and a focused mission that is the game on hand. Such exemplary definition of goals is what leads to initializing and continuing a process and he repeatedly talks of the commitment to the process of team-building, irrespective of the results at the end of the day.

Another important facet of his leadership is the way the individual goals are blended with the team goals. Yes indeed, individual goals are important, but channelising them in accordance with the team’s approach is what leads to a successful unit. His decision to declare the innings in 2004 with Sachin just 6 short of a personal score of 200, virtually shocked the nation, but when one reads into it, for Dravid an individual is just a mere part of the eleven, and has to bind within the framework of the team-strategies. Such tough decisions have surely played their part in taking Indian cricket forward.

To put it straight, Rahul’s influence on the dressing room is impeccable and enormous. The team has recognized and acknowledged the talent and shaping up the right attitude is what Rahul and Chappell have set out to do. There is a greater sense of belief within the team. Who could believe that India could chase totals of 270+ repeatedly to win matches, when a stigma of ‘chokers’ accompanied them just a while back ? A few years ago, with India reeling at 190 for 5, many fans would have written the team off, but now, the new approach and leadership has led to a greater steel and belief in their own individual abilities, and this is the one of the main reasons for the resurgence we are witnessing now. Another important area, that defines the dressing room climate is confidence. What Dravid brings to the dressing room is sheer confidence. Along with the runs from his bat, he adds confidence to the dressing room, as the symbol of hope and reassurance. Today, it is great to see the youngsters in our team like Sreesanth and Munaf Patel derive strength from this confidence and perform better. Desire is another factor that Dravid’s men thrive on. It is really heartening to see the a great amount of desire to perform, irrespective of the results. Rahul has played his part in creating these levels of desire among his players and the hunger has surely rubbed onto the results. And lastly, as a leader, it is important to empower the team. What we see today as Team India, is nothing but an extended family of individuals. There is a huge emphasis on team spirit and for shaping it up for the larger needs of the team, the credit goes to Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappell.

Another notable dimension to Dravid’s leadership qualities, is the fact that he believes in leading from the front. One of the recent examples accentuate it – Putting the team’s interest in mind, Rahul Dravid decided to open the batting in Pakistan, sacrificing his usual No. 3 spot. It was a great example that was set by him and such instances of bravado and courage, rubbed off to the other members. His stature as a captain is surely respected by one and all. No wonder, at times when the boat is uncertain of the weather, it is the captain to whom the crew looks upto. His gradual progression as a captain, has surely succeeded in instilling some of his guiding principles on to the players like determination, discipline and dedication. His performances along with the consistency, have surely given the right sort of direction to the rest of the team members and more importantly, have translated into India’s performances in the recent past. These are some of the reasons why, Rahul Dravid is the man we look up to, when adversity stares us straight on our faces.

The sudden emergence of a new generation of Indian cricketers is surely a food for thought, and it would be fair to say that Rahul’s vision for the future has started bearing ripe fruits already. Opportunities are the key for any cricketer to express his talent and get noticed and it is indeed heartening to see this phenomenon happening under the leadership of Rahul Dravid. And what is more delightful than seeing these young bunch of talents making their mark by delivering to their captain’s needs ! The youth to an extent form an integral part of any cricketing side – mainly because of their approach to the game, the extra degree of exuberance they bring into the side along with the fresh legs and approaches of course. Rahul has done exceedingly well in tapping and nurturing talented players like MS Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, Sreesanth, RP Singh and Munaf Patel by giving them the right platform to bring out their skills and talents. For now, it would surely be safe to say – A Generation Awakens !"

The Big One

Me with the England skipper Andrew Flintoff at the Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai
Picture taken on 16th March during the Felicitation Function of Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble for their respective achievements.

Venkat Ananth