Three exciting talents for Test cricket

By Rajadhyax

The last few weeks have been an exciting time for Test cricket. Three new talents have been formally welcomed by Test cricketing firmament. Whether they eventually become major Test stars of the future or not will, of course, depend on how their respective national selectors and coaches nurture them as also how they last in the toughest form of cricket. But the sheer talent is clearly there and these three guys have put it up for display in their very first few Tests.

And the first of these is Sri Lanka’s new off-break bowler Suraj Randiv. Filling the vacancy of Murali is never going to be easy, but if Randiv can deliver on what he promises, they won’t be too far away from it. In his first two Test matches he has troubled the famed Indian batting order that consists of players famous for being the best players of spin. Had Dilshan picked a sharp chance of Tendulkar, the little master, in the second innings of the recent third Test off Randiv, the complexion of the game could have changed. Regardless of that fielding lapse, Randiv still made his first ‘fiver’ in Tests in a losing cause in only his second Test match. Randiv’s three best aspects already are what every off-spinner dreams to have. He has natural bounce, excellent control and a remarkably steady seam position. If he can develop an odd ball that rips across the face of the bat and a deceptive ‘doosra’, he could demolish any batting order that is not so adept to playing spin (West Indies, New Zealand and England come to mind quickly).

The second in line is new England paceman Steven Finn. Playing first class cricket for Middlesex, the man stands at six feet, seven inches tall and gets an exceptional bounce on the ball in addition to superb movement of the ball both ways. He has good pace and a whole lot of patience that is required for his kind of bowling and – get this right – he is only 21 years old. For 21 he also possesses a very stable head on those broad shoulders. He made his debut for Bangladesh and doubting Toms felt Finn only impressed since the opposition was weak. But now playing against Pakistan, he is troubling almost every batsman. Making the ball deviate off the seam, he has already picked up 24 Test wickets in first five Test matches. Watch out Ponting and co, this man could be very dangerous on the bouncy Australian tracks. Probably two areas where Finn needs to concentrate more are to develop some reverse swing with the older ball and little more control with the new one to put the ball repeatedly in the ‘corridor of uncertainty’, just outside the batsman’s off-stump. If he can do that then sides not so great at handling quick, short stuff need to be scared (India, Pakistan and Lanka come to mind off-the-cuff).

Everyone thought that Indian batsman Suresh Raina is only a typical ODI-T20 player, what with his aggressive style and stroke play. But that is until he made his Test debut against Sri Lanka recently to score a flamboyant, yet masterly century on debut. In his second Test he scored his first fifty and followed it up with a great cameo of 41 [not out] in the second inning to take India home. The Indian team composition is such that he had to wait for 98 ODIs and 18 international T20 matches before he could play his first Test at Colombo, but now that he is there, one hopes he makes that middle-order position his own in Tests. Quite a few were surprised (may be not Greg Chappell who always thought ‘Sanu’ had talent for all forms of cricket) since Raina was believed to be lacking in patience and hardly carried a defensive stroke in his repertoire. Plus, the ‘nay-sayers’ said he was vulnerable against the short lifting delivery. Well, Malinga bowled quite a few of those at over 140 kph, but that made no difference eventually to this youngster who played with authority. He defended well too and played some of the most exquisite shots of the series. He played shots where necessary and showed a lot of patience at moments when that was needed.

New talent spices up the game and creates possibilities of new Test records. It also brings in a fresh faces and styles into the game. Some of these players finally become the Laras, Tendulkars, Muralis or Warnes of the future. What is needed is for the individual boards to use them properly and for the selectors to put faith in them even when they hit a bad patch, as everyone will at some point of time in their careers. Besides these players also need to understand that regardless of the sceptics, Test cricket is the real deal. To click here is one thing but to have a long Test career is no joke. A lot of hard work, patience, perseverance, updation and fitness are needed. Raw talent and early success are the first two steps. You have got them, guys, now for the grind uphill.