India cricket news

India bad enough to draw attention from Tendulkar milestone

The India team as a whole has been pleading for attention for a while now. Not content with being overshadowed by Sachin Tendulkar’s apparently forever imminent 100th hundred, they’ve sought the spotlight through rank incompetence.

Well, the good news is that after getting within a handful of runs of conceding a first innings lead on the first day of a Test match, they might finally have achieved their goal. Their shoddy cricket is now more newsworthy than a Sachin milestone. That’s some achievement.

What’s gone wrong with India?

We’re struggling to make sense of India’s fall. We half-thought that maybe the fixture list just took this long to reveal an ongoing decline. Much of their stronger cricket away from home took place back in 2007 and 2008. However, that would be to overlook a series win in New Zealand in 2010 and a fine comeback against South Africa later the same year, so it’s not that.

Harbhajan Singh played a big part in that drawn series in South Africa and his oddly limp departure seems to coincide with India’s decline. For all the talk of needing fast bowlers away from home, India are best when they have a good spinner. The number one ranking was achieved thanks to his and Kumble’s labours.

But the batting’s been the big disappointment. It’s actually a malaise afflicting the entire “unit” and they seem to be deteriorating increasingly rapidly as well.

It’s like India are skiing and they’ve gone over a gentle lip only to find a giant, steepening slope beyond. Hopefully there’s a chair lift or at least a button lift at the bottom, but a few famous faces might have been flung over a cliff before they reach that particular transportation salvation location.

Fit and misfiring

We don’t try and steer clear of stupidity altogether – that would be unrealistic – but we do generally try and avoid saying anything too moronic until both sides have batted. Even so, we’re tempted to get in early today after India were again bowled out easily by Australia.

India have some good bowlers, but a first innings lead seems unlikely. MS Dhoni has been quick to point to the injuries his team were suffering when they lost to England, but that doesn’t apply here. The batting is letting them down. The only question is whether Australia’s batting will let them down to an even greater degree.

It is now exactly a year since Gautam Gambhir did anything of any consequence. That’s nowhere near our personal best, but people are starting to write articles about him. Does our lack of effort not warrant the same recognition?

Making sense of Test victories and defeats

The Test world is a baffling place right now. There’s more uncertainty than when the cat finds himself equidistant from some food and an open door.

Australia are worse at home than they used to be, but India are worse away than they have been in recent times, so what does an Australian win mean?

India’s batsmen collapsed. Are they old? Are Australia’s young bowlers really good? Or did the pitch deteriorate? After all, Australia collapsed too. Then again, they often do at the minute, most notably against South Africa – although that’s hardly surprising because the Saffers have such a strong pace attack.

Or do they? Pitches there have been greener than a seasick parrot in recent times, but the bowlers haven’t outdone their opposite numbers. South Africa drew 1-1 with Australia and are currently 1-1 with Sri Lanka as well. Maybe it’s the batting that’s letting them down. Maybe it isn’t.

Sri Lanka themselves were comfortably beaten by Pakistan. Most people concluded that Sri Lanka were struggling, but maybe Pakistan are amazing.

The good news is that Sri Lanka play another Test in South Africa, while India will play three more Tests in Australia, which should help clarify some of this.

That bloody two-Test series between South Africa and Australia is where all this uncertainty came from. It raised questions and answered none. In cat terms, it added a comfy bed to the food-and-open-door situation, leaving us in a pain-faced, miaowing, triangular limbo.

Another Test, another Australian batting collapse

It was only just over a month ago when South Africa were given the most memorable of lessons by Australia. In being dismissed for 96, South Africa thought they’d set the standard when it came to batting collapses, only to see their opponents proudly stumble to a score of 47 all out in response.

Seemingly unaware of Australia’s predilection for buckling as easily as a child’s belt, India chanced their arm on the third day of the Boxing Day Test at the MCG, falling from 214-2 to 282 all out. “Less of that,” said the Aussies and promptly self-detonated, losing their first four wickets for 27 runs.

It was the kind of stirring stuff that brings a tear to the eye. David Warner’s ugly flail and inside edge onto his stumps seemed like it would be a high point until Shaun Marsh did the exact same thing. There’s a certain nobility in that; a suicidal conviction akin to dashing your own brains out on a tree even when there are quicker, less painful options available to you.

India won’t be doing that again. Don’t mess with the best when it comes to batting collapses.

Sachin Tendulkar falling short

Suppose we should write about at least one of the Boxing Day Tests. Australia v India is the more interesting one from an impartial perspective and so far India have the upper hand thanks to Zaheer Khan and some old bastard fifties.

One of those was from Sachin Tendulkar, who apparently ‘fell short of his hundredth hundred’. Few people aren’t willing him to get to three figures before too long, if only because the whole ‘falling short’ thing is getting so tedious. It detracts from a decent innings and a decent delivery from Peter Siddle that did for him.

The way it’s going Tendulkar will be ‘falling short’ of a hundred when he’s bowled for three or even when he’s sitting at home on his settee, not playing a match. Theres a risk that he might start to claim he’s falling short when attempting all sorts of other things as well. He’ll tell the missus he’s fallen short of unloading the dishwasher and she’ll pat him on the back for making a great effort, even though all he was doing was lying in bed reading his Viz annual.

Tortoise Dravid will doubtless overtake Hare Sachin tomorrow morning to become India’s top scorer. Ed Cowan top-scored for Australia and Jarrod Kimber’s put some words together in an interesting order at Cricinfo on that subject. It’s an article that says a bit of something about being a cricket fan, hints at how hard it is to make a Test debut and boasts a beautiful closing line. We heartily recommend it.

Virender Sehwag has something to shout about in one-day cricket

And it’s about time. We were talking about Sehwag’s unspectacular one-day record on this site only the other day. He’s properly addressed that now by hitting the highest one-day international score of all time.

Sehwag deserves a one-day record – not because he’s an exceptional one-day batsman, but because he’s an unforgettable cricketer. 15 hundreds in 240 matches is nowt to write home about for a one-day opener (Trescothick hit 12 in 123 matches, Upul Tharanga’s got 12 in 131). But 219? Hell, that warrants digging out the fountain pen and some coloured paper.

“Dear mum, played a top knock against the Windies today, so work’s going okay. Regarding the car, it seems to have stopped making that sound, so I’m just going to leave it and hope it’s sorted itself out. Finally, the cat had to have his teeth cleaned by the vet, which cost a bloody fortune – as usual – but he’s eating okay, so I think he’s fine as well.”

India lose home one-day international – West Indies win away

Which is the more noteworthy? Not sure. Not sure it matters. Both facts are pretty striking.

West Indies

West Indies’ tour of the subcontinent, while on the face of it relatively unsuccessful, has been fairly decent in our eyes. It’s a bit sad that expectations have dropped that much, but let’s face it, they have. There’s promise in this side and not the dumb, blind optimism kind of promise either, but real, gritty actually-going-to-make-some-effort promise.

When the Windies last toured England, their captain turned up about four minutes before the first Test. It wasn’t his fault his team were playing an away series in England in May, against opposition they’d finished playing a home series against about a week before, but it still didn’t set much of an example. His side promptly went through the motions in cold weather, in front of few fans and the series never captured the attention, let alone the imagination.

This summer, West Indies again arrive in England in May. We feel faint confidence that they’ll have more stomach for a fight.

India

Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Suresh Raina have mustered 69 runs between them in nine innings in this series. Our verdict on this is as follows: three good one-day players haven’t played very well.

Great draw – in no other sport does that make much sense

It was a glorious and gleefully shambolic finish to the third Test between India and West Indies. West Indies were one wicket away from a tie, India one run away from a win. R Ashwin was run out going for what would have been the winning run and the match ended in a draw – but the Windies had chances in those closing overs too.

Our initial thought was that it would be boring if we repeated ourself about how a close Test match is generally superior to a close one-day or Twenty20 match. But then we thought, no, to hell with you. We’re incredibly boring in real life and we repeat ourself constantly. It’s our website and if we want to be as repetitive as the snatch of music on a DVD title menu, that’s our decision.

The closing overs of a Test match that’s in the balance

As a child, we loved Lego. We would spend five hours making an elaborate Lego spaceship the like of which had never been seen before. Sometimes, in attempting to secure an awkward piece towards the end of the construction process, we would inadvertently explode the whole damn thing. When this happened, we would make a sound.

The sound started low and quiet, slowly rose in both pitch and volume and culminated in an angry shriek. It was pretty foul. Anyone who heard that sound would have instantly known the emotion behind it. It was borne of the profound frustration you can only feel when you’ve spent bloody ages on something and then made a balls of it at the end.

Where are you going with this?

If there was Lego crumblage in the first few minutes of construction, we didn’t make the sound. Quite simply, you have to have invested time and effort in something in order to feel that level of emotion.

It doesn’t have to be a negative emotion. You’ll generally feel more pride over something you’ve slaved over than something you knocked up in five minutes.

The point is that having made an investment, you care more about the outcome. That is why a close Test match finish feels so electrifying to those who have followed proceedings from day one.

R Ashwin learns from Harbhajan Singh

We like R Ashwin. He seems… keen.

He’s talented too, but talented players are ten-a-penny. Who cares about them? No, what we like is a stony face when someone runs in to bowl; a face that says: ‘Shut up, I’m working. No, seriously, stop it. I’m trying to concentrate. I’ve got to get this finished otherwise I won’t be able to leave on time and I hate – absolutely HATE – staying late’ – that kind of face.

R Ashwin has replaced Harbhajan Singh in the side. We wouldn’t say Harbhajan became complacent exactly, but he did start to cling to his own record and past reputation a little too tightly.

Speaking to us in a fictional interview, Harbhajan reacted to Ashwin’s hundred and five-for against the Windies in Mumbai by saying:

“Obviously, as a senior player, I’m delighted for him. It’s great to see that I’ve mentored these youngsters so well and if they ever want more advice, they know they can count on me as a senior player.

“His performance in this match brings to mind my own in Cape Town earlier in the year. As a senior player, I made a whirlwind 40 and took 7-195 on a pitch that was tougher for both batting and bowling than this one.

“Hopefully, one day, Ashwin will become a senior player and will replicate such astonishing feats. Also, while we’re on this subject, I think it’s important to emphasise that I’m a senior player.”

Is Tendulkar’s milestone a higher priority than winning a Test match?

Home ground. Series won. You could be forgiven for wondering whether the Wankhede pitch has been tailored for one man’s benefit – one man and his legion of fans, that is.

We could say that placing so much emphasis on one man’s achievement is disrespectful towards the 21 marionettes who will also be gracing the pitch during this Test, but it’s also disrespectful towards the beneficiary. Devalue the run and you devalue run-making achievements too. Tendulkar is good enough to deserve better.

Besides, sport is about naturally occurring tales. Steer the narrative and you diminish the story. A 20-over run chase in a Test match is infinitely more alluring than that in a manipulated 20-over format. It has greater context.

Similarly, all Test hundreds should have context. Matches are played to see which team will win, not as run-scoring exercises. Runs are a means to an end.

Or maybe it’s not deliberate. Maybe it’s just a crappy pitch.