Cricket India

After the South African tour, India has already launched into another series, this time a one-day series against the West Indies. And India has already won the first two matches though narrowly. The main difference in the complexion of the team is that it does not have Sehwag and Yuvraj in the team though for different reasons and Ganguly is in, deservedly too. In the first ODI on a belter of a pitch at Nagpur, India piled up 339 for three aided among others by Ganguly’s 98. The pitch devalues the pretty knock played there by Ganguly but the pitch has aided Gambhir, Dravid and Dhoni in equal measure. But the pitch provided for the second match at Cuttack was a nasty cousin of Nagpur and proved quite unfriendly to the batsmen from either side.

Quite surprisingly the Indian batsmen failed –sadly the top order- to adapt to the pitch miserably. Ganguly, Dravid and Tendulkar failed to test the waters properly and gave away their wickets cheaply. They did not look like batsmen who have played more than two hundred one-dayers each. From there Karthik showed the way and his ability to play within one’s limitations enabled India to reach a score, considered unattainable at the end of the PowerPlays.

The margins were narrow in both matches and India does not look a well-prepared side, with the World Cup in mind. That applies to the West Indies also. Now only Australia has that look of consistency required of a champion. They are a strong side with the capability to come out of crises powerfully. No other side has shown, with the Cup just weeks away, the qualities to threaten the Aussies.

Pitches like the Cuttack one might provide India with a reasonable chance to upset the Australians but won’t it be a little too much to expect Cuttack in the Caribbean?

# posted by Upendra Varma @ 12:05 PM