Only ABDe's double was a little hallucinogenic. Actually, if you come to think of it, it was quite mundane. It is not the first time that a seemingly ordinary batsman has played career defining innings' against India. Chanderpaul, Andy Flower, Younis Khan etc. were all seemingly regular crew until they came across India.
Then a West Indian umpire refused to give Kallis LBW on something which someone I know would ve described as 'It doesn't get plumber than this'.
Poor Sree toiled with the new ball. And he was good. Just not as good as Steyn or Ntini were.
Harbhajan started losing it after a while. Combination of turn and bounce is usually enough for him, but it just wasn't working against a patient Kallis, and an unusually adept ABDe.
Arpy and Pathan were sorry. I will soon conclude that they are worthless if the ball will not swing in from around the over, or away from around the stumps. But Akram could make it move anywhere. They're still quite young so, a long way to go to become the complete package. Am even tempted to say that Mitch might have been better than them on this pitch.
So. Get ready for pain, folks.
Showing posts with label Pathan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pathan. Show all posts
04 April 2008
19 March 2008
Return of the Sree and other boring matters
Been a while since that war dance, the defining memory of that series, happened. Sreesanth had a fantastic tour of South Africa, though the batting frittered it away every time he and Zaheer had South Africa down in a heap. Boring, cautious batting from the two sides did not help the series though there was a result in every match - quite like the Eng-NZ zzzznorathon going on right now.
Sree now returns from injury to find a place in the team because of injuries to Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma, to bowl under Anil Kumble's captaincy for the very first time. The recently concluded CB Series not only saw a much calmer Sree, (who incidentally, has attributed his new Zen state to Ayurvedic treatment), he was also modestly succesful with a few crucial wickets.
With such intense competition for a spot in the Indian fast bowling ranks, how Sree copes with the drudgery of bowling to Ashwell and Jaques, and the biffing to be expected from Grame Smith and ABDe could determine his future in the Test bowling ranks. Will he keep his cool? Unlikely. Will he be succesful? Perhaps. Smith, Jaques, Amla and co. are unlikely to have forgotten about Sree's wily ways. In any case, Sree will be part of an attack that might contain two left arm seamers.
Edit: Sree's rehabilitation though, is just one of many cataclysms that we have seen since that eventful tour of South Africa. Foremost among them is the end to those meandering days under Dravid, to a more purposeful approach under Anil and MSD. Dravid may have been a more astute strategist, but Anil and MSD are delivering more spectacular results.
Dada's return. If memory serves right, that tour was when he made his comeback, and things have been pretty rosy for him in the Test arena since then. With Yuvraj and Rohit Sharma barking at his heels, this series is no different from the previous few which have all started with his place under threat.
Sree now returns from injury to find a place in the team because of injuries to Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma, to bowl under Anil Kumble's captaincy for the very first time. The recently concluded CB Series not only saw a much calmer Sree, (who incidentally, has attributed his new Zen state to Ayurvedic treatment), he was also modestly succesful with a few crucial wickets.
With such intense competition for a spot in the Indian fast bowling ranks, how Sree copes with the drudgery of bowling to Ashwell and Jaques, and the biffing to be expected from Grame Smith and ABDe could determine his future in the Test bowling ranks. Will he keep his cool? Unlikely. Will he be succesful? Perhaps. Smith, Jaques, Amla and co. are unlikely to have forgotten about Sree's wily ways. In any case, Sree will be part of an attack that might contain two left arm seamers.
Edit: Sree's rehabilitation though, is just one of many cataclysms that we have seen since that eventful tour of South Africa. Foremost among them is the end to those meandering days under Dravid, to a more purposeful approach under Anil and MSD. Dravid may have been a more astute strategist, but Anil and MSD are delivering more spectacular results.
Dada's return. If memory serves right, that tour was when he made his comeback, and things have been pretty rosy for him in the Test arena since then. With Yuvraj and Rohit Sharma barking at his heels, this series is no different from the previous few which have all started with his place under threat.
Pathan was sent home in disgrace from that tour, having lost his form so horribly since his brilliant hat-trick. Not only was he crucial in that win at Perth, but he has made himself pretty much indispensable to the balance of the ODI team. The pace and nip are not quite there yet, and it is forseeable that he may find himself in a restricting role, once the ball loses shine.
South Africa was also where Karthik was asked to open for the first time. Having impressed, he went to scale greater highs in England - not only as opener, but as general cheerleader-in-chief, before returning with a thud at home against Pakistan. Now he finds himself a back-up for the tireless MS Dhoni, Sehwag having claimed the opener's spot with aplomb in Australia. Unfortunately for him, it also looks like Gautam Gambhir and Chopra have somehow climbed higher up in the pecking order to replace Jaffer if that becomes necessary.
17 February 2008
Pathan's batting
Pathan is not a polished enough bat to command a permanent position at the top of the order. Despite the evident talent, there are significant deficiencies in his game that lessen his impact. He has a good eye, looks good off the front foot, while cutting, and when defending close to the body. Judgment outside off is not something one can hold against him in the shorter versions of the game. In addition to the pull, if he can make himself a better 'milker' of runs, he can become double the batsman he is now.
If some of these aspects of his batting can improve, he is just the solution India needs for real firepower in the bowling. Like today. But as things stand, such a strategy is necessarily a gamble that will put an inexperienced batting order under a lot of prssure. I am okay with batting Pathan at number three if the circumstances are right. His batting will improve and that can only be good. But until his batting improves, it is wrong to treat him as a batsman. Not only does it put his own game under pressure, it also means that if the target crosses 250, (or if it is the Aussie bowling they are up against) the likes of Gambhir and Sharma are being asked to perform out of their skins.
If some of these aspects of his batting can improve, he is just the solution India needs for real firepower in the bowling. Like today. But as things stand, such a strategy is necessarily a gamble that will put an inexperienced batting order under a lot of prssure. I am okay with batting Pathan at number three if the circumstances are right. His batting will improve and that can only be good. But until his batting improves, it is wrong to treat him as a batsman. Not only does it put his own game under pressure, it also means that if the target crosses 250, (or if it is the Aussie bowling they are up against) the likes of Gambhir and Sharma are being asked to perform out of their skins.
19 January 2008
All's well with the world
Right now, life seems to be clothed in a mellow light, there are birds singing outside my window and they aren't annoying, and the weather in Delhi is just the perfect mix of cool, breeze and sunshine. Also, India have just won themselves the most signifcant match since I started watching the game.
Even if India go on and lose badly at Adelaide, to script the first half of a turnaround from 2-0 down, is remarkable for a touring Indian team. Forget the events at Sydney. Forget that it was Perth. Forget that the legendary Hayden was sitting out. This match is one for the ages, simply for the confidence-injection that it will give the likes of Arpy, Pathan, Ishant, Dhoni and Sehwag. Here is a team that can now create its own winning streaks, provided they continue to look forward.
Ishant Sharma will leave Perth knowing that he made the best batsman in the world today, look like a tailender. Pathan and Sehwag know that they belong in the international arena. Arpy knows for sure that he can lead an Indian attack in years to come. Dhoni hasn't messed up with the gloves all series.
Can we forget the role of the Chief? Lead kindly Kumble. Credit to him for lifting the team from Sydney. Hope he lingers as captain for more years. What a champion! Nineteen wickets in the series already. Talk about leading from the front!
Pathan has become a very smart cricketer, and I suspect he is fast turning into what Uncle J Rod calls a Probot. When asked to bowl when the ball is flying around, even a television viewer is arrested by the sense of calm that he brings in. You can almost see him make an assesment of the situation, and quitely determines the line and length that is largely required. That he had evolved into someone who could look beyond the storm, was clear in the T20 World Cup itself. In Tests, he is not only a bowler who can make the new ball talk in helpful conditions, but also someone who can be relied upon to keep it tight when the strokemakers are set, and perhaps induce an error. With such an abundance of left arm swing bowling options, he may not always make the team, but his presence will make Zak and Arpy persevere for improvement. Man of the match in the T20 finals, a hundred in his comeback Test match, and now another MoM performace when it counts.
Sehwag should go forward from here and he should not give anyone a reason to question his spot at the top of the order. His contribution to this team cannot be measured in terms of his runs, wickets and strike rates alone. "Work ethic" was one of those sound bytes floating around when he was dropped and it is up to him to make sure that not even demented selectors and BCCI mandarins have a reason to say that again. But what a bowling performance, na?
Jaffer remains the only one to have not made a contribution in Australia, and the knives are out. I hope they persist with him, but I have no words in his defence. But I will stick by my point that as a team looking to challenge Australia consistently, a settled opening partnership is important, and that means identifying openers who will do the work for you over the long run and then sticking with them through good times and bad.
Australia will need to reconfigure their bowling attack, and in all probability, so will India. But Mitchell's skills as a swing bowler are under some doubt, and Wasim Akram keeps criticizing his new bowling action on air. Ponting needs to do something about that fast, or find a better third seamer. He also needs to ask himself if he got carried away by the hype. Why did he not include a spinner at Perth? Was it because the part-time spinners did better than Hogg in Sydney? Or did he believe that this Perth wicket required a four-man pace attack? He will need to question how he arrived at that conclusion. It is strange when a visting team assesses conditions better than the home team.
As for Adelaide, expectations are already sky high. Mather Hayden will be back, and India have a chance to level the series. I cannot wait.
Even if India go on and lose badly at Adelaide, to script the first half of a turnaround from 2-0 down, is remarkable for a touring Indian team. Forget the events at Sydney. Forget that it was Perth. Forget that the legendary Hayden was sitting out. This match is one for the ages, simply for the confidence-injection that it will give the likes of Arpy, Pathan, Ishant, Dhoni and Sehwag. Here is a team that can now create its own winning streaks, provided they continue to look forward.
Ishant Sharma will leave Perth knowing that he made the best batsman in the world today, look like a tailender. Pathan and Sehwag know that they belong in the international arena. Arpy knows for sure that he can lead an Indian attack in years to come. Dhoni hasn't messed up with the gloves all series.
Can we forget the role of the Chief? Lead kindly Kumble. Credit to him for lifting the team from Sydney. Hope he lingers as captain for more years. What a champion! Nineteen wickets in the series already. Talk about leading from the front!
Pathan has become a very smart cricketer, and I suspect he is fast turning into what Uncle J Rod calls a Probot. When asked to bowl when the ball is flying around, even a television viewer is arrested by the sense of calm that he brings in. You can almost see him make an assesment of the situation, and quitely determines the line and length that is largely required. That he had evolved into someone who could look beyond the storm, was clear in the T20 World Cup itself. In Tests, he is not only a bowler who can make the new ball talk in helpful conditions, but also someone who can be relied upon to keep it tight when the strokemakers are set, and perhaps induce an error. With such an abundance of left arm swing bowling options, he may not always make the team, but his presence will make Zak and Arpy persevere for improvement. Man of the match in the T20 finals, a hundred in his comeback Test match, and now another MoM performace when it counts.
Sehwag should go forward from here and he should not give anyone a reason to question his spot at the top of the order. His contribution to this team cannot be measured in terms of his runs, wickets and strike rates alone. "Work ethic" was one of those sound bytes floating around when he was dropped and it is up to him to make sure that not even demented selectors and BCCI mandarins have a reason to say that again. But what a bowling performance, na?
Jaffer remains the only one to have not made a contribution in Australia, and the knives are out. I hope they persist with him, but I have no words in his defence. But I will stick by my point that as a team looking to challenge Australia consistently, a settled opening partnership is important, and that means identifying openers who will do the work for you over the long run and then sticking with them through good times and bad.
Australia will need to reconfigure their bowling attack, and in all probability, so will India. But Mitchell's skills as a swing bowler are under some doubt, and Wasim Akram keeps criticizing his new bowling action on air. Ponting needs to do something about that fast, or find a better third seamer. He also needs to ask himself if he got carried away by the hype. Why did he not include a spinner at Perth? Was it because the part-time spinners did better than Hogg in Sydney? Or did he believe that this Perth wicket required a four-man pace attack? He will need to question how he arrived at that conclusion. It is strange when a visting team assesses conditions better than the home team.
As for Adelaide, expectations are already sky high. Mather Hayden will be back, and India have a chance to level the series. I cannot wait.
09 January 2008
Bowling at Perth
Unc J Rod reminded me that there was a Test series being played, and here are my thoughts on the bowling attack at Perth.
We don't need five bowlers. Sharma, Arpy, Kumble and Bhajji were able to take close to 25 wickets at Sydney, and my guess is that four bowlers will be more than adequate. Question is, do we need to go in with both spinners or do we need to shore up the pace attack with Pathan/Pankaj Singh? This is Perth. Oz will be throwing all four pacers at us.
Obviously, if one spinner had to sit out, it would have to be Bhajji since the other guy is a captain and a legend. I almost thought Procter had done us all a favour, and made the decision much easier. But now, it is not so simple - Ponting's been in Bhajji's bag for two matches now. I can't make this decision, I really can't.
So please people, for the fourth spot in the bowling line-up. Between Bhajji, Pathan and Pankaj Singh, but really it is between Bhajji and Pathan, isn't it?
We don't need five bowlers. Sharma, Arpy, Kumble and Bhajji were able to take close to 25 wickets at Sydney, and my guess is that four bowlers will be more than adequate. Question is, do we need to go in with both spinners or do we need to shore up the pace attack with Pathan/Pankaj Singh? This is Perth. Oz will be throwing all four pacers at us.
Obviously, if one spinner had to sit out, it would have to be Bhajji since the other guy is a captain and a legend. I almost thought Procter had done us all a favour, and made the decision much easier. But now, it is not so simple - Ponting's been in Bhajji's bag for two matches now. I can't make this decision, I really can't.
So please people, for the fourth spot in the bowling line-up. Between Bhajji, Pathan and Pankaj Singh, but really it is between Bhajji and Pathan, isn't it?
01 November 2007
Number 3
I doubt the Ganguly-Sachin opening combine would be broken just yet. The plan, for all to see, is to drag it on a little longer. So we move on to the number three position.
The number three position though, is far from settled. Even though conventional wisdom points to a batsman settled at this spot, India, over a period stretching even prior to the Chappell years, have approached the spot with some amount of flexibility. Of course, on some occasions such fluidity has been forced on the managment. On others, Dravid and Chappell pursued it aggressively as strategy. Quite surprisingly, it is VVS Laxman who has walked in at the fall of the first wicket, the most number of times since 2003, having done it 28 times. Ever since he was dropped from the squad to South Africa for the '03 World Cup, it was clear that Laxman would never cement his spot in the ODI team. Nevertheless, India kept going back to him. This is just one more instance of muddled Indian selection. Not only has this held up the development of another ODI batsman, it probably affected Laxman's Test batting as well.
Pathan has batted at number three sixteen times, and is second only to Laxman. Surprisingly,
of the 142 matches he has played since 2003, Dravid has batted at this position only thirteen times. Dhoni has done it eleven times, Kaif ten, Sehwag nine, Yuvraj eight, Gambhir seven, Tendulkar five and Uthappa and Raina have each batted there four times. and surely there are a few more.
Contrast this to Australia. Of the 134 ODIs Ricky Ponting has played since 2003, he has batted at number three in 126 of them. I don't want to use this statistic to extol the virtues of a settled number three position. In the 2003 World Cup, Saurav Ganguly batted at number three for all but two matches of the tournament. Even that does not settle the obvious superiority of this approach. Especially for the Indian captain. After all, is he not a product of the flexible approach that allowed him a platform for creative expression?
Now, assuming that the managment stays predictable and opts for Sachin-Saurav Inc to open, we have the following candidates for the spot.
- Gautam Gambhir
- Virender Sehwag
- Robin Uthappa
- Yuvraj Singh
- S Badrinath
- M S Dhoni
- Irfan Pathan
- Rohit Sharma
- Pravin Kumar
And if Dravid is back after two ODIs, then of course, him too.
It would be surprising to see any of the last five at the position. Such a ploy may work, but it won't sustain itself over a series or more. Of the rest, one has to say that all of Sehwag, Gambhir, Uthappa and Yuvraj have a claim on the spot. Yuvraj is used to coming in a little later, but there is no point in worshipping the dharma of youth if the ultra-experienced and uber-talented Yuvraj still does not or is not allowed to take responsibility for the batting. Gambhir is the man riding a purple patch. Sehwag should be given a chance to storm back, and Uthappa has proven just as destructive at the bottom of the lineup. Since this is such a tough choice, one is likely to see more shuffling. A couple of failures could see Sehwag either sit out or move to the lower middle order to make space for Gambhir or Uthappa.
The number three position though, is far from settled. Even though conventional wisdom points to a batsman settled at this spot, India, over a period stretching even prior to the Chappell years, have approached the spot with some amount of flexibility. Of course, on some occasions such fluidity has been forced on the managment. On others, Dravid and Chappell pursued it aggressively as strategy. Quite surprisingly, it is VVS Laxman who has walked in at the fall of the first wicket, the most number of times since 2003, having done it 28 times. Ever since he was dropped from the squad to South Africa for the '03 World Cup, it was clear that Laxman would never cement his spot in the ODI team. Nevertheless, India kept going back to him. This is just one more instance of muddled Indian selection. Not only has this held up the development of another ODI batsman, it probably affected Laxman's Test batting as well.
Pathan has batted at number three sixteen times, and is second only to Laxman. Surprisingly,
of the 142 matches he has played since 2003, Dravid has batted at this position only thirteen times. Dhoni has done it eleven times, Kaif ten, Sehwag nine, Yuvraj eight, Gambhir seven, Tendulkar five and Uthappa and Raina have each batted there four times. and surely there are a few more.
Contrast this to Australia. Of the 134 ODIs Ricky Ponting has played since 2003, he has batted at number three in 126 of them. I don't want to use this statistic to extol the virtues of a settled number three position. In the 2003 World Cup, Saurav Ganguly batted at number three for all but two matches of the tournament. Even that does not settle the obvious superiority of this approach. Especially for the Indian captain. After all, is he not a product of the flexible approach that allowed him a platform for creative expression?
Now, assuming that the managment stays predictable and opts for Sachin-Saurav Inc to open, we have the following candidates for the spot.
- Gautam Gambhir
- Virender Sehwag
- Robin Uthappa
- Yuvraj Singh
- S Badrinath
- M S Dhoni
- Irfan Pathan
- Rohit Sharma
- Pravin Kumar
And if Dravid is back after two ODIs, then of course, him too.
It would be surprising to see any of the last five at the position. Such a ploy may work, but it won't sustain itself over a series or more. Of the rest, one has to say that all of Sehwag, Gambhir, Uthappa and Yuvraj have a claim on the spot. Yuvraj is used to coming in a little later, but there is no point in worshipping the dharma of youth if the ultra-experienced and uber-talented Yuvraj still does not or is not allowed to take responsibility for the batting. Gambhir is the man riding a purple patch. Sehwag should be given a chance to storm back, and Uthappa has proven just as destructive at the bottom of the lineup. Since this is such a tough choice, one is likely to see more shuffling. A couple of failures could see Sehwag either sit out or move to the lower middle order to make space for Gambhir or Uthappa.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
