A stern test ahead for India

By Rajadhyax

India recently came back from Bangladesh having defeated an up-coming, young team of the host country 2-0. To say that it was a comprehensive rout would be both, unsubstantiated and audacious. There were sessions in both Test matches where the Bangladeshis matched the ICC-number-one flouting Indians and about four sessions where they got an upper hand over their visitors. One or two tactical lapses on part of an inexperienced captain, Shakib Al Hasan, wrong choice of shots from some Bangla batsmen and some sterling performances from guys like Zaheer Khan, Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir brought India home with a series win.

For the Indians it was good practice but surely not the best kinds. A number of dropped catches, inaccurate throws that let go runout possibilities, inept bowling from the supposedly strike-bowler Harbhajan Singh, lack lustre performances from Shreesanth and a string of injuries marred the otherwise great euphoria that follows a series win. Rahul Dravid got shockingly hit on the jaw by a bowler who barely reaches 130 kph while Yuvraj continued to select newer parts of the body to hurt. The team came back with so many injuries that one was reminded of weak teams that visited the mighty West Indies of 1970s or early 1080s.

But now the Indian are up against the full might of ICC-number-two South Africans from February 6 onwards. This is going to be a much sterner test. Surely if MS Dhoni’s boys display the level of cricket that they did in Bangladesh then they have not even a skin’s chance of winning the series. To start with, India will be without the services of Yuvraj and Dravid for both the Tests. Shreesanth and VVS Laxman may not be hundred percent fit too. That puts guys like Murali Vijay and Badrinath directly in the line of fire and though both are talented, they have not yet shown scores that instil instant confidence.

Harbhajan’s seam position is going repeatedly toward the fine leg region on the off-break while he is using the ‘doosra’ very little for reasons best known to him. This makes his off-break spin less than before and the lethal doosra is no longer being bowled enough making him come down in the wickets column. His replacement spinner could the leggie Mishra but he too is yet to put the fear in any batting order’s minds. Having cut down on pace, Ishant Sharma appears blunt now while Pragyan Ojha is still young and learning and that leaves virtually the whole bowling responsibility on Zaheer alone. Mithun and Tyagi are untried in Test matches and we do not know how much they will trouble the South Africans. All of this makes our bowling side weak, unless they are provided with tailor made spinning wickets on which the Indian spinners can be lethal.

In batting the Indians will hold the trump card even after the list of wounded soldiers. Sehwag and Gambhir are playing so well that one should have no hesitation in comparing them with opening pairs like Greenidge-Haynes or Gavaskar-Chavan. Old war horse Sachin looks fitter, leaner and is scoring heavily in almost every alternate Test. Dhoni is putting in valuable runs every time it matters. If flat wickets are laid in the two Tests these guys can pile up a mountain of runs and put the South Africans under pressure.

The Proteas have also come here with a problem or two. Firstly, they had to come through a very tough series against England. Secondly, they were slated to play only ODIs in India when two Tests were abruptly added. The Tests have clearly come as a surprise to them. Plus they are also battling against the coaching fiasco that is too recent to ignore. Sudden changes in support staff matters as it could lead to adapting difficulties for players and excess strategic changes. Indifferent form of Mahkaya Ntini led to him being left out against England recently.

However, they too are coming with a strong batting line up, which opens the scary possibility of both Tests becoming heavy scoring draws where hardly two innings are completed in five days. A lot would depend on what kinds of pitches are laid for the series. But all of this makes for a very interesting series to come up between the one and two sides in the ICC rankings. But the one best thing this time will be that the Aussies are gunning to regain their top spot. And that means India as well as South Africa will battle very hard to win the series. This opens up the other, and more exciting, possibility that we could have two Tests full of exciting, thrilling cricket with close finishes. To close with a cliché, may the best team win.