Absolute Surrender Down Under

The ongoing series against Australia has reiterated that Indian team deserves to be few notches below the Numero Uno rank, they once briefly held. The last defeat being their seventh consecutive loss on foreign shore in last six months is certainly not an aberration rather an affirmation of the above fact. Any side that aspires to dominate the game in five day format has to have a blend of quality batsmen and bowlers who can adapt to different conditions and surfaces quickly, pile on big totals for their bowlers to bundle out opposition twice in a game. This dexterity for a batsmen comes with an exquisite technique to cope with pace, bounce and spin.

While our bench strength has improved, now that we have atleast couple of names who can try and fit in the slot that exit of Indian batting trio (Sachin, Dravid & Laxman) would create, the breeding ground of these successors still remains the docile wickets that hardly test the ingenuity of a player. The standard of domestic cricket stands exposed when youngsters are blooded into our national team and made to slug it out against fiercely competitive opponents who outperform them in all department of the game. Change in domestic structure alone would not suffice unless the turfs on which our budding talent plays are revamped to create a level playing field for both seamers and leather hunters. There ought to be more overseas fixtures with other cricket playing nations especially for India A and under-19 teams to give them exposure in terms of nature of wickets, climatic conditions and chance to guage the difference in quality of international teams.

The present lot, dubbed as the best available, bereft of any fitness issues and touted as having the best chance of drubbing Australians in their backyard, is completely bewildered and rattled by the Aussie quickies. The top order is clueless in negotiating the lateral movement of the cherry as if they seem to have developed glaring deficiency in technique. For some, the deliveries invariably go past the huge gap between their bat and the pads to dislodge the stumps, others love to fiddle with away swingers to be lapped up in the slip cordon and the rest hardly move their feet to reach out to play the ball and literally swing their willow relying on the eye-hand coordination as if it were a golf stick. The likes of Sachin, Dravid and Laxman who are most accomplished of the lot have all been bowled through the gate on most occasions. They certainly need to tighten their technique and lead by example. Agreed that this trio had amassed tons of runs around the world but reflexes and footwork tends to slowdown with age. Perhaps, the time to hang their boots is just around the corner. Its just not the technique to nit-pick but the temperament that has let down the Indian team as well. Willingness to graft patiently and letting go the bait that is pitched outside the off-stump should be a part of Test batsmen’s armoury. Going into test matches without shrugging limited overs approach, is bound to result in wrapping up of a Test within four days.

Proving their mettle on dusty spinning tracks at home as well as on green tops overseas where the ball wobbles in air and after pitching, can only bring about consistency and give an impetus to reaching the top echelon of Test cricket rankings again. The argument that every cricket playing nation plays to their strength and have the prerogative to prepare wickets suitable to their style, is fine. But, invincibility at home only induces a false notion of being the best and dismal performances abroad, crumbles the team morale thereby making them surrender matches meekly rather than looking to reverse the loosing streak. Media commentators too can contribute a bit in taking the burden off the Indian team by being modest in their expectations instead of going ballistic in sensing victory before the series gets underway.

Thus, the choice between remaining complacent in winning home series convincingly but looking forelorn on away tours and being a formidable team irrespective of opponents they are pitted against on any soil, is for BCCI to make. But, the first option shall tantamount to cheating millions of Indian fans who worship the game and depriving them of seeing their heroes reach absolute glory in Test cricket.