The Hindu : Sport : The Indian top-order has to start firing

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Monday, Oct 08, 2007
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Sport

The Indian top-order has to start firing

S. Dinakar

Ganguly expected to open the innings with Tendulkar

— Photo: S. Subramanium

EXPERIENCED CAMPAIGNERS: India will look to Sourav Ganguly and Zaheer Khan to deliver the goods in the fourth ODI.

Chandigarh: India’s revival in the Future Cup series could hinge on starts. The Indian line-up, an outfit of shot-makers, relies more on a platform than most sides. And the top-order is being blown away by the Aussie pacemen.

At Kochi and Hyderabad, Australia inflicted serious damage with the new ball. There were no recoveries by India although the gifted Yuvraj Singh made a statement in Hyderabad; given his attributes, the southpaw should stay in the middle-order.

Otherwise, the Indian guns have largely stayed silent. Sourav Ganguly should join Sachin Tendulkar at the top of the order in the fourth ODI of the series at the Sector 16 ground here on Monday. India has been a different force — both old and recent history underlines this — when these two heavyweights have built a partnership.

The selectors and the team-management might also be forced to induct Ganguly since Gautam Gambhir hurt his groin during nets and was taken to hospital for an MRI scan. Against a formidable adversary, the side requires a blend of experience and youth.

No friction

Robin Uthappa clarified on Sunday that there was no friction between the seniors and the juniors in the team. He described such speculation in the media as grossly untrue.

Eventually, it is performance and not age that matters and India has been sucked into an unhealthy debate after the Twenty20 triumph — a form of the game that has to be looked upon as a separate entity.

The talks swirling around the team is bound to have an adverse effect on the morale even if there is no conflict between the players. India’s preparation for the series has also been undone by the various felicitation functions for the Twenty20 heroes in the middle of another series.

While taking on the World champion, a side needs to be totally focussed on the job.

Now, to the conditions. The day games in the northern parts of the country tend to favour the side fielding first, even if winter has not actually set in. However, there is bound to be a measure of assistance early on for the pacemen in terms of seam movement due to the moisture in the wicket.

There was some grass on the surface too, although it remains to be seen how much of the green actually remains on the pitch when the match commences.

In any case, India would do well to include two spinners. The side already has three pacemen — Zaheer Khan, S. Sreesanth or R.P. Singh and Irfan Pathan — in the event of bowling first. Left-armer R.P. Singh, the most improved bowler in the Indian ranks, could be pushing Sreesanth for a place.

It is also necessary to have a Plan ‘B’ if India bowls second. It’s here that spinner Murali Kartik could be a factor. Kartik, with his flight, spin and drift, is a left-armer in the classical mould, and could combine effectively with off-spinner Harbhajan Singh.

Leaving out an extra batsman in Rohit Sharma and picking five specialist bowlers would be the right ploy, especially since India is down 2-0 in the series.

Meanwhile, the Australians are quietly confident. With Ricky Ponting back at the helm, there is a buzz about the side. The Aussies have adapted well, which is only to be expected. The focus has rightly shifted from words to cricket.

Ponting has explained that aggression is more about how hard a team plays its cricket than about provocative body language and postures.

Longer run

Ponting also dwelt on how the team kept “challenging itself to scale greater heights.” He indicated that the out-of-form Brad Hodge would be given a longer run and added that left-armer Nathan Bracken could replace one of the pacemen.

Changes, if any, will not affect this side with depth and bench strength. The Aussies have contributed and applied pressure collectively.

The teams (from):

India: M.S. Dhoni (capt.), S. Tendulkar, S. Ganguly, R. Uthappa, R. Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, I. Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Murali Kartik, Zaheer Khan, R. P. Singh, G. Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, D. Karthik and S. Sreesanth.

Australia: R. Ponting (capt.), A. Gilchrist, M. Hayden, M. Clarke, A. Symonds, B. Haddin, J. Hopes, B. Hogg, B. Lee, S. Clark, M. Johnson, N. Bracken, B. Hodge, B. Hilfenhaus and A. Voges.

Umpires: Steve Bucknor and Suresh Shastri; Third umpire: A. Sahiba; Match referee: Chris Broad.

Play begins at 9 a.m.

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