Adelaide: questions asked, but...

Adelaide test was the perfect example that illustrated team india’s flawed thinking, unsound cricketing knowledge and the erroneous strategy borne out of them. Team India did not make it secret: “we would play to our strengths…we would like to post big score and put pressure.” Yeah, they put up big score, alright. Sachin scores 153 n.o, kumble and harbhajan rub on aussie bowlers and India score 526 in first innings. But what happens then? Four days into the test match, the aussies have turned it around and it was Team India that only could have lost the match. Team India did two things wrong there. #1 They took inordinate time to bowl out aussie. #2 They assumed that they could not lose the test match even when aussie are not bowled out cheap. Eventually, it required a gutsy shewag who scored 151 out of 253 runs (60% of teams score) to bail out India.

Team India unfortunately missed the services of RP Singh due to injury during the match. It only emphasizes the need to field at least 4 wicket taking bowlers in any test match. It seemed like Team India almost did not have a strategy against Aussie batting. With dhoni being a wicket keeper batsman and pathan an all-rounder, India could have easily fielded five bowlers any number of times. Instead they fielded five bowlers only at Adelaide and even then they had to drop an opener to field 5 bowlers in Adelaide. India’s middle order with big4 is bit inflated and in attempting to protect one or two of the big 4, Team India ended up with weaker bowling attack and make shift opening batsmen.

Theres no doubt, team India asked a lot of questions through out the series. Their batsmen sort of tamed aussie bowlers as the series progressed. Their bowlers kept the dreaded aussie batting line-up at a leash, if not a tight one. In spite of all, aussie emerge not only as 2-1 victors, but as test champions by a distance. Now, if Team India has learnt well in the series, they need to address two issues. #1. They not only need to field five bowlers in any test match, but they need to field wicket taking bowlers. They will have to realize that finding wicket taking bowlers would be a distant mirage when they go with less than 4 bowlers. #2. The middle order with big4 from no3-6 is swelled; neither does it allow even strong players like yuvraj & shewag into that middle order nor accommodate five bowlers easily (with dhoni at no7).

Lastly, the harbhajan-gate episode was not only a blotch on the series, but on cricket too. Twice now, BCCI and Team India have threatened to exit the series, if the racist charges are not dropped. Twice now, Indian players had a foot on aeroplane forcing ICC and Cricket Australia to do things that they would not have done normally. It was nothing but third-rate blackmail by BCCI and Team India. ICC and cricket Australia might have salvaged the series by succumbing to the ‘hijackers’ demand, but what about cricket?

Cricket was on her knees during this episode. Then she was slapped on the face, kicked on the stomach and beaten black & blue to disfigurement when ICC and CA yielded. My lord, have mercy on cricket; shes just gone lame and poor…permanently.