da bet7k： It is not often that India loses a one-day international seriesat home
Partab Ramchand25-Nov-2002It is not often that India loses a one-day international seriesat home. Their record in the limited overs game is as impressiveas their record in Test cricket. In 2000, India even got thebetter of the redoubtable South Africans and last year they ranAustralia, the reigning world champions, close before losing bythree matches to two. On the evidence of this, the loss in thejust-concluded series against the West Indies might be difficultto digest for some.On the contrary, while there is still some cause for concern asfar as the team composition for the World Cup is concerned oneneed not take the final result at its face value. In the firstplace it must not be forgotten that India were without SachinTendulkar and Zaheer Khan for the entire series of seven matches.Then at various times during the contests and for differentreasons India lost the services of Sourav Ganguly, Anil Kumbleand Harbhajan Singh.
© ReutersSecondly, the selectors and the team management decided to makesome experiments in a bid to try and zero in on the rightcombination for the World Cup. The move may be debated butrightly or wrongly the decision was taken and in the short term,it was bound to have an impact on the overall performance. In thelong-term analysis, if this helps in finding the ideal squad forthe World Cup, the decision to experiment could be hailed as amasterstroke.Indeed, continuing to look at developments from the positiveangle, the non-availability of the stars and the decision toexperiment gave the fringe players a chance to bid for apermanent place in the squad. The selectors also took theopportunity to give talented young players the big break. It isanother matter that cricketers like Dinesh Mongia, Jai PrakashYadav, Reetinder Singh Sodhi and Lakshmipathy Balaji did not makethe most of the chances that came their way.On the other hand, players like Sanjay Bangar and Murali Kartikcame up with eye-catching performances and took a firm steptowards cementing their places in a full-strength squad. Theformer showed distinct signs of emerging as the all-rounder theWorld Cup side will undoubtedly require while Kartik’s left armspinners frequently had the Caribbean batsmen in trouble.Kartik’s strong temperament allied to his undoubted skill makeshim an ideal bowler for Test cricket too.There was a clamour for long that both Yuvraj Singh and MohammadKaif batted too low down the order. The absence of some of thestars gave them the opening to bat a notch or two up the orderand the result was at best a mixed bag. Once Tendulkar andGanguly return, it is apparent that the two will again have tobat in the lower half of the order. With Dravid, Sehwag andLaxman in the line-up, there does not seem to be any otheroption.With the attacks of both sides coming in for a lot of stick, itwas inevitable that the Indian bowling too would pose problems.The emergence of Kartik was a big plus and one must assume thatJavagal Srinath will go to South Africa again, at least on thebasis of his vast experience, if not exactly as the spearhead. Itmust be admitted that even at 33 there were times in the sevenmatches that he looked quite menacing.The return of Zaheer will no doubt strengthen the seam attackwhile Ajit Agarkar did just about enough to guarantee his placein the World Cup squad. In any – as relief seambowler, a pinch-hitter or utility man – his claims cannot beoverlooked. There must be a question mark over Ashish Nehra whileBalaji was a sore disappointment. With the seam bowling resourcesrather limited, it is obvious that spin will continue to play anotable part in shaping India’s fortunes in the World Cup. Kartikremains the most promising prospect.
© ReutersYes, in the absence of Kumble and Harbhajan, Sehwag was given alot of bowling. But one suspects that in South Africa, Gangulywill send down more overs than Sehwag.One is not sure whether the team management will continue withthe experiments in the seven one-day internationals in NewZealand next month, the final engagement for the Indian sidebefore the World Cup. But one thing is clear. The experimentationprocess against the West Indies did not help much in zeroing inon the ideal combination for the World Cup. Question marks stillremain over the bowling and the all-rounder’s slot despiteBangar showing some promise. After all, it must not be forgottenthat conditions in South Africa are very different. The pitchesthere are less likely to favour the batsmen and it is battingafter all that is our trump card. The bowlers will no doubt dobetter in the more helpful conditions but is it a match-winningline-up? I think we all know the answer to that one.