WHITHER INDIAN CRICKET

It is a crucial time for Indian cricket. In the last 4 years since the advent of MS Dhoni as the captain, India has become the No.1 team in test cricket, won the ODI World Cup, started winning series outside of the sub-continent and have not lost a Test series yet under Dhoni’s captaincy. Amidst all these fabulous winning moments, there have been some failures, the 2007 World Cup, the Champions Trophy in 2009, the series in Sri Lanka. And no doubt there has been the odd loss in Tests as well, usually the first Test of an away series. Nonetheless, none of it has been as testing as the current series in England. India has been in woeful form in all departments of the game. They came into the series as favorites, as the Champions, as the best Test playing nation in the World and a huge expectation on the 100^th hundred. They have been found wanting in preparation, intensity, commitment, fitness and form.

As if the on-field incidents weren’t enough, the recall of Dravid to the One-Day squad and his subsequent announcement of retirement from the shorter formats have created a furore. To just rub salt into the BCCI’s wounds, Zaheer Khan has been ruled out of cricket for 16 weeks joining the injury list of Yuvraj and Harbhajan. These are tumultuous times in Indian cricket. They have been found out against seaming and swinging conditions and high-class fast bowling. No apparent successor has emerged for the batting trinity yet. Ganguly’s place in the batting order hasn’t been snatched by anyone. The dependence on Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan at the start of the innings has never been more pronounced. The selectors have had to send an SOS to Dravid to ensure that the World Champion side doesn’t face embarrassment in the ODI format.

What exactly is the cause of this downslide? Has India gone from being the best team to an ordinary team over a fortnight? Were they ever the best team in the World or did they just got lucky through the points system? What is the way out of the current crisis? All these questions pop up. But before we get down to find scapegoats and accuse BCCI of overkill, let’s just be a little rational in our analysis and avoid knee-jerk reactions.

Well first of all, India does not become a bad side over 2 test matches. They are still a very good side and have won matches and series outside of the sub-continent. They are definitely the No.1 team in the World, or at least were until this series began. Are they the best team in the world? They certainly are one among the best teams of today but they aren’t dominating cricket like the West Indies in the 70s and 80s or Australia in the last 2 decades. They are yet to win a series in Australia or South Africa. In fact world cricket is at such a stage where there are a number of teams that are all good enough to beat each other and no one team is dominating World cricket. Australia is in a transition phase and so is New Zealand, India & Pakistan. South Africa is still finding consistency; England looks a dangerous Test team at home but yet to prove their mettle away. Sri Lanka look like a settled side but have been besot by too many injuries to its bowlers. The other sides have not posed a big threat despite occasional good performances. So it’s not such a bad time to have a bad time actually.

Let’s look at what’s ailing the Indian team. We have to look at all three formats of the game because the challenges are different in different formats as well as the team composition. Let’s start with the test team first. The core of this team is a bunch of world-class players who are on the wrong side of 30s. Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman and Ganguly have shouldered the responsibility of batting India to good positions. Sehwag has emerged as one of Test cricket’s greatest ever openers. Gautam Gambhir realizing his potential was the best thing to have happened to Indian cricket as he formed a potent opening pair with Sehwag. Their opening partnership has been the reason for many a wins. Anil Kumble and Zaheer Khan have carried the bowling on their shoulders. Harbhajan Singh has been phenomenal at home and threatening abroad. A lot of credit is due to Gary Kirsten for building a strong team. Even though there were different teams for the One Day and test arenas, Kirsten built a sense of togetherness and trust among the players. He was quietly efficient, ever willing to work in the background and stay in the background when the team cornered glory. In MS Dhoni, India found an amazing captain who was street smart as a cricketer, supremely fit and had an uncomplicated, unflustered attitude to captaincy. The way he took over the mantle of captaincy from Dravid, Ganguly and Kumble was inspiring. He looked like a natural leader. The flowing mane was a reflection of both his ability and confidence. He was playing the kind of cricket India has not seen in the limited overs format. India settled into a balanced unit capable of beating any side and in fact winning test matches in Australia and South Africa. The same time that they were becoming a top team, IPL became a big hit. Ganguly announced his retirement and was soon followed by Kumble. India’s best captain and their greatest match-winner both faded away at the same time. Zaheer Khan manfully took over the responsibility of spearheading the bowling attack and has been one of the best fast bowlers in the world in the last 3 years or so.

What India did not realize however amidst all this rosiness was the fact that no heirs appeared on the scene who looked good enough to take over from the ageing superstars. Murali Vijay had his chances but could not translate his T20 form. Wasim Jaffer was ignored. Abhinav Mukund has looked good but hasn’t produced the scores. India has had to use makeshift openers and ask Dravid to open. We still do not have an alternative to Sehwag and Gambhir. And of course the holy trinity of Indian batting has experienced their second coming in the last 3 years. Tendulkar has been in the form of his life. Laxman has single-handedly won so many matches in the last 3 years and Dravid has looked as solid and as dependable as ever. Yuvraj Singh was the man expected to make the No.6 slot his own but injuries and a lack of self belief has hurt him. Cheteshwar Pujara looked solid against the Aussies but has struggled with his fitness. Badrinath was never given his due and probably will never be. Kohli and Rohit Sharma need to establish their credentials. Suresh Raina has looked vulnerable against short-pitched bowling. We have a good 2-3 years before the holy trinity moves away and we need to groom replacements fast. It would be in the best interests of Indian cricket if the batch of Raina, Rohit, Kohli, Pujara and Badri get their act together quickly and have the chance to ramp into the squad while the three great men are still there. As for the openers, Gautam Gambhir is still young and Sehwag has a good 5-6 years of cricket left in him. But inorder to remain as the best team or even to be competitive, we need to build a pool of players who could just walk into the side when the regulars get injured and play well for India. I haven’t seen much talent in opening slots. Jaffer has made loads of runs but I doubt if he will get another chance. Ajinkya Rahane has looked solid for Mumbai but these days he bats at No.4. Vijay and Mukund have to pull up their socks. Another opener from Tamilnadu who has been consistent in Ranji has been Arun Karthik. We need to groom these players for Test match cricket. A-tours need to happen a lot more than it does now. IPL and T20 have just diluted the significance of A-tours. Kevin Pietersen is a classic example of an A-tours product.

Now the bowling. I think there needs to be a mindset change. It’s not so much that we depend on Zaheer than the fact that the players believe we depend on him. No doubt he has been the match winner on all surfaces. But injuries have plagued him and he is 32. Many a fast bowler has gone who did not give fitness its due importance. Shane Bond and Andrew Flintoff are prime examples. Akram, Walsh, Mcgrath, Murali, Warne and even Kumble were great matchwinners because they were able to sustain their form and fitness. As the senior fast bowler in the country he has to realize that he does not have to play every Test, ODI & T20 game. He has to ensure that he is fit for the most crucial games that India play. The England series should have been the biggest series of this year so far. And yet Zaheer Khan chose to play the IPL and had to miss the West Indies tours and pulled up at Lord’s after a dozen overs. And the selectors cannot be blamed because they have to agree if your premier fast bowler says he is fit. Zaheer is so much more experienced now that he should know his body better than any doctor can. He has the responsibility to guide India’s next generation of pacemen, the likes of Sreesanth, Munaf, Praveen, Irfan & Vinay Kumar. They all look up to him for guidance and we can see a significant difference in their performance when he is around. He needs take the onus of shaping the future of India’s fast bowling. He has about 3-4 years of solid cricket left in him and he can do wonders if he puts his priorities in place.

Harbhajan Singh has been the other worry for India. Everyone knew that he was not the same bowler away as he was at home. But since Kumble’s retirement, his performance has diped significantly. In 25 tests played after Kumble retired, Harbhajan has taken 101 wickets at an average of 34 at 72 balls per wicket and only 3 five wicket hauls. One can understand that spinners hunt in pairs but when you do not have the choice, you have to make do. Anil Kumble did it remarkably well for a decade before the Australia series in 2001. That has been India’s problem. Zaheer has been the only one who has delivered on all surfaces. And we have depended too much on Zaheer. Of course it is almost impossible to replace someone like Kumble but Harbhajan should take a lead. He has the ability. He just needs to sort out his technical weaknesses. Duncan Fletcher is a good man to have in this situation. He oversaw the development of Graeme Swann and knows the ropes.

One major problem India will continue to face is the 5^th bowler. This will be a thorn until we find a bowling allrounder. In test matches, I think it is disrespectful to go in with 4 bowlers and end up losing one of them to injury during the match. This is where we miss Irfan Pathan. Prioritizing batting has ruined his career. No one can forget the promise the young man had when he got the ball to swing. The hat trick against Pakistan was a delight in swing bowling. If the bunch of seniors can help him rediscover his bowling skills, he will be an invaluable asset. He still has time on his hands. He just needs the right guidance.

The ODI format is where we have the least problems. That is also partly due to the fact that we have a balanced team in this format with well defined roles. Sachin and Sehwag at the top, Gambhir to stabilize, Yuvraj to consolidate, Dhoni, Raina & Yusuf or Rohit to finish. Indian batting is well settled even when we tour abroad. Ofcourse the selection of Dravid to the team for England is more an ad hoc emergency measure than a long term one. Dravid did the right thing in announcing his retirement. He has served the country as no one else has. He deserved the graceful exit. The bowling has the tendency to leak but can hold its own against any side. Again it is important to keep building a pool of talent rather than be complacent about it. But I think the shorter the format the easier to build a talent pool. Of course India are the world champions and in recent times have won in Australia, drawn in South Africa, won in Sri Lanka, NZ, Pak and West Indies. So they look okay in ODI.

I am considering T20 not so much for the format but for the importance being given by players in India. Yes IPL is a big hit no doubt. And yes as a professional cricketer, each one has the right to safeguard their finances for their families. But its important not to lose sight of the larger picture. Indian cricket should not suffer because of it. Zaheer Khan does not have to play every IPL game. Harbhajan Singh does not have to play every game. Dhoni himself does not have to play every game. Graeme Swann does not play domestic T20. He plays only international T20. Dale Steyn plays less than half of his county’s T20 matches. T20 can sometimes put you out of form. The nature of the format is such. So we need to be careful from now on. I think the best person to learn from is the Little Master himself. He has survived 20 years in cricket through hard work, determination, hunger and also being smart. One should watch how he chooses the tournaments he wants to play. The youngsters have volumes to learn from him, not cricketing skills but the attitude towards the game. No one is blessed with the talent of a Sachin but you can replicate his respect, attitude, approach and commitment to the game. The BCCI also has to step in here and ensure they don’t kill the geese that lay the golden eggs. Youngsters should be given opportunities in the T20 and then groomed for the longer versions.

Duncan Fletcher is a really good coach. He built this England side to become fearless, to play the kind of cricket that they have never done before. He got them to believe in themselves and find out their own winning strategies. India is a different ball game altogether. The pressure is immense and margin for error is minimal. Yet the advantage he has is the wealth of seniors in the dressing room. And India has processes in place now thanks to Kirsten. So it should be easier than when Kirsten took over from Chappell. Gary Kirsten deserves all the accolades he was given. He has done a tremendous job in making this Indian team to the pinnacle of the sport. To remain there requires a different level of commitment, preparation, intensity and hard work. That is the stuff of champions. Australia did this for 2 decades and West Indies before that. It is not impossible. The domestic structure needs support. Some of the exorbitant money from the BCCI coffers should go towards attracting and developing the talent at grassroots level. Without a solid domestic structure, no team can hope to remain competitive for long. BCCI has the resources to do it. Do they have the will? That will determine Indian cricket’s future once the golden generation walks into the sunset.