Ahoy Pommie Land !!! & taking stock of the Carribean sojourn !

Today ends the looooong wait, err… atleast for me. Guess you cant comprehend can you ? Well, today we are here in Somerset, the men in blue I mean for their first tour match of England !

The Men in Blue from after soaking the sun and enough playing on the Carribean beaches have now come to the English Summer, which is almost like our winter !!!

The land of low, slow(err..not so slow) pitches where it swings the moment there is a cloud and it stops swinging the moment there is sun ! The greens here are lively green and almost all stadiums picturesque ! There is a totally different charm of watching Test Cricket in England, something I dont see anywhere else, neither Australia nor New Zealand !

The English crowds have always been appreciative of good cricket and I think they will enjoy watching the brash, confident and supremely talented men from India ! Too bad for the crowd the biggest entertainer today in Test Cricket will only be available from the 3rd Test Match !!!

India has come a loong loong way from wanting to play a hamstrung affected Kapil !!! Today they dont play unfit players, be it a Sehwag or a Sachin or a Zaheer or a Gautam or all 4 of them together !

As much as people still doubt that India is not the real number 1 or whatever crap, the fact is India is a very good allround team, take any 4-5 members out and still they dont really sweat and that is what is their biggest strength.

Imagine if this England team were to play us without Anderson, Cook, Strauss and Pietersen ! Whaddya think would our chances be then ??? huh ??

Yes, in the caribbean, Dhoni won the series but missed a huge oppurtunity. India is a good team but I think champions always keep raising the bar. Safety first really cannot be good idea, aggression and showing intent should always take first priority, coz the moment you let the opposition see a weakness they will be all over it. India must assert themselves more !

Above all, Dhoni or for that matter, all captains must understand they are there to play cricket for the crowd ! The crowd pays for the tickets and thats what allows the cricketers to actually play their most loved game and even earn a living out of it. They could have been working in some boring cubicle all their lives if not for the paying spectator !!!!! So as a player their biggest responsibility is towards the public that has turned out to watch !!!! How the heck can Dhoni decide to not go for 84 runs in 90 balls on that fateful day in Barbados is beyond me. The entire ground was full with spectators !!! Now dont blame anyone for Test Cricket’s demise !!!! The players must understand that a hard fought draw is another thing, but not playing while the public has paid for tickets is BLASPHEMY !!

Dhoni is GUILTY in my books ! period !

The turn around in Indian cricket began on that famous afternoon in Kolkatta when Dravid and Laxman batted like men possessed. It was sad to see they were the two at the crease and with such a petty chase in a series where we were sitting 1-0 up in the series, we chose to ABORT !!!!

Thinking of the Carribean tour I actually think we gained nothing from the series apart from perhaps watching Ishant regain his confidence and composure, can’t help but feel all the overs bowled in the carribean will do him a world of good in England. Perhaps Praveen was a relevation, coz I was always worried he cant get the ball through to the keeper at a decent pace, but he proved pace is not the only thing and his teasing, tantalising line and lenght and movement could probably have him playing ahead of Sreesanth alongside Zak and Ishant !!!!!!

That apart I dont really think Indian bowling was put under much pressure in West Indies as the batsmen were just not enterprising there so I am not really sure how much to read into the bowling performances.

The true test begins on 21st July, England are a more well rounded and balanced team, they would like to avenge their defeat on India’s last visit and actually increase more murmurs that they are the number one team and not India !

India on the other hand needs to squash all murmurs ! The Barbados fiasco didnt help !

I indeed dont think the English bowling can actually consistently bowl us out cheaply, way too much quality in our line up to fail regularly and that will be India’s strong point. Also I have always believed that Indian bowling is most competent in seaming, swinging conditions, whilst their quality batting ensures enough runs the help from the surface makes our bowling a lot more dangerous than on flatter surfaces !!!!

LONDON - AUGUST 13: The Indian team celebrate their series win against England during day five of the Third Test match between England pic courtesy : cricinfo.com

Greener, bouncier, livlier tracks should actually help Indians to win as our quality of batting will ensure the bowlers have enough in the bank to bowl !!!!

 

 

I hope Dhoni and his boys are thinking on the same lines !!!!

Exciting times lie ahead and I am hoping for an entertaining English Summer !!!!

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Next post : India’s chances and man to man comparisons and Swot Analysis and preview to the first Test !!!!

Sabina Park, Jamaica conquered again !

Indian have gone 1-0 up at Sabina Park, the field where India sculpted a series victory in the Carribean after 35 years in 2006 has again been a happy hunting ground. Gone are the days when we could only play well in Port of Spain and always be pummelled in Barbados and Jamaica !

At 80 odd for 6, India were in a tricky situation, but than as someone mentioned on twitter, we got to know exactly how Australian fans felt the last decade and a half when someone or the other would always stand up and be counted. It had to happen, Bhajji came in and slogged a few and rattled the Windies, runs then just flowed and at 246, I think the game had slipped from the hands of West Indies !

The ball was turning square and India would be greatly disappointed with the performances of Bhajji & Mishra with the ball, Bhajji was steady to say the least and Mishra would be rather unhappy with his performance, he just wasnt consistent and accurate. Mishra might just miss out in Barbados as Munaf will most likely take his place on the bouncier track that awaits us in Barbados.

Praveen Kumar was a revelation in this test match, I for one used to think he just doesnt have the pace and that after the first 10 overs when the ball will stop swining Praveen Kumar will be a liability but he exceeded all expectations I think. Infact it will be difficult for Dhoni to ignore him in the next Match.

The one message that is clearly going to all Indian players is dont miss matches or your spots could go. Pujara will curse his luck, his injury came at the wrong time and I think the only place vacant has now 4 competitors Raina, Pujara, Virat and Yuvraj all will slug it out for that no.6 position as the other 5 are already taken. Thats what surprised me when Yuvraj skipped the WI tests. He is not an automatic selection in Tests and why he let go of this oppurtunity to cement his place for the England series is beyond me.

On the other hand the Windies just dont seem to help themselves, dropping Dravid at 6 sealed their fate. Dravid is starting to move his front foot well and now with runs under his belt and calmed nerves I think the second wind is all set to begin. Mountain of Runs beckon.. !

India’s performance was scratchy, not upto the mark I’d say, however, a Test after 7 months, without any practice match is an excuse I am tempted to accept. Though, if India would want to build an aura that the Windies team had through the 80′s and early 90′s or the Australians had during the late 90′s and the last decade India would do well to crush oppositions when they are down.

At the moment there are a lot of murmurs still, lots of people although they cannot beat us still keep whispering about our problems on green, lively, bouncy, fast tracks which I think is a whole load of crap. But then India will get their chance to quell these doubts on the trips of England and Australia later this year.

In many ways a bouncy track at Barbados will be great for the Indians and if the West Indies can get in Kemar Roach to accompany Fidel and Rampaul, it will be great preparation for the English trip. The conditions will be entirely different but atleast they get practice against some good quality pace, which apart from Ishant no one in our team can give them unless, ofcourse the bowling machines are that good. I seriously cannot understand how Sammy can be the captain when he doesnt deserve a place in the team. A bloke as quick as Kemar Roach is in the 12th man while Sammy plays ahead of him !!!!!! *BLASPHEMY*

If the WICB really need Sammy, make him the non playing captain !!!!

The case of the Indian skipper is much easier he has few things to worry about, his players fight when pushed into a corner and be it Bhajji with a 80 or Mishra with the plucky lil innings with Rahul, someone or the other puts up their hand and India sails through. Admittedly the Windies tail wagged a bit, but then our spinners were not upto scratch this match. Expect Harbhajan to improve, Vijay & Virat to contribute more in Barbados, Mukund to get rid of his nerves and VVS to show some of his masterclass.. Remember India were without their devastating opening pair, their best batsman, their chief bowler and in Praveen Kumar they fielded a fast bowler that they didnt have in their original plans.

India need to play to potential and the contest will not be as close and as an Indian fan I wont complain if we have a boring one sided victory !

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P.s – Chris Tremllet, the English seamer currently considered as the ‘new BIG thing’, some want to complare him to Joel Garner already, wants Lively tracks against the Indians during the 4 Test Matches… !

All I can say to English Groundsmen regarding Tremllet’s wishes is – BRING ON YOUR FASTEST, LIVLIEST, BOUNCIEST AND GREENEST track. We need them more than you to squash all the murmurs !!!!

The boot is firmly on the other foot…

I dont know if you all have heard of this recently released movie, Fire in Babylon, I have been waiting to get a copy of it to no avail as yet ! No torrents available either :-/ and not on ebay either…

But I am sure I will find it sooner than later, here is a trailer of the movie for you to savour…

For all of us who were born in the 70′s and fell in love with cricket in the 80′s and 90′s the West Indies team was a team of demons. They were the most feared team… !!!

No other team and I repeat no other team has been feared as much as that West Indies team, the Australians did rule the last 15 years or so but they were never that fearsome, they were an all round team but the Windies were a magical force, they put fear in the hearts of the opposition.

The opening batsman on strike would quake in his boots waiting for the first delivery, his partner at the other end thanked his luck and hoped his partner wouldnt take that single ! The batsman waiting in the pavilion to come in next made frequent loo visits !!!! No this was not the age where tailenders scored hundreds… this was the time when the openers would believe the wisest thing to do was take a single and get to the other end and watch the fun !!!

There are innumerable occassions when they crushed the opposition mentally even before a ball was bowled.

All of us Indians remember how we won the World Cup in 1983 ! But no one will ever talk in India about the Test Series that followed the World Cup ! We were beaten black and blue 3-0 in a 6 Test Series.

I grew up to tales of the Fearsome Foursome from my Dad. They were such a cult in those days, Micheal Holding nicknamed Whispering Death!!!!!!, Andy Roberts, Colin Croft and Joel Garner they epitomised fear!!! They didnt sledge they only STEAMROLLED !!! West Indies also had a very very steady supply of fast bowlers even after the retirement of these devils ! These were backed up by Malcolm Marshall, Pattrick Patterson, Ian Bishop, Curtley Ambrose, Courtney Walsh. West Indies were the pace kings…

The game has changed today, with the advent of the Helmet batsmen hit scoop shots to pacemen.. ! I seriously wonder how many would scoop these bowlers without helmets !

While batting they had two prolific openers followed by the gum chewing Viv Richards ! The batsmen had a certain swagger about them. There aint no other batsman that has brought more AWE to the audiences than Viv, the sheer prescence of him in the middle would mean the opposition could never breathe easy. They had a wonderful wicket keeper in Jeff Dujon and in Clive Lloyd they had their leader !!

They literally were giants and overpowered all teams. Infact between March 1980 and May 1995, they played 29 Test series without losing a single one.

I have always loved the story where Steve Waugh decided to bounce Patrick Patterson in a test Match in Melbourne in 1988/89 and that night Patrick stormed the Australian dressing room and threatened to kill the opposition batsmen on the pitch the next day,

No Patterson failed, he couldnt kill a single Australian batsman, but Australia were dismissed for 114 chasing 400 with Patterson claiming 5 wickets in the innings and 9 in the match !!!!!

The magic of the Calypso was mesmerising, something to behold !!!

Another Champion bowler and probably the most underrated bowler of all time was Curtly Ambrose who would script impossible victories, he fought on and was probably the reason why the slide of the Carribean Kings was delayed, it was this duel in 1995 which marked the end of the reign of the West Indies in world cricket and the beginning of the Australian Supremacy !

Steve Waugh refused to be intimidated by the Windies, this series in 1995 when Australia regained the Frank Worrell Trophy marked the end of this long reign on World Cricket. Steve Waugh recalls the incident
HERE

It is sad today that when India tours West Indies they have fallen so mightily from their high peaks that an almost second string Indian team that too playing badly beats the Windies easily ! Players like Sachin dont even think it worthy to tour the West Indies for Test is further proof that they dont even have the respect of their peers ! Or else who would not want to be a part of a team that won a Test Series in the West Indies !!

I would not be surprised if the Windies lose 5-0 in ODI’s and 3-0 in Tests, the worser thing is even if they do, it will count for nothing for the Indian team.

The boot as they say is now firmly on the other foot.