The Hindu : Sport : A dress rehearsal

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Sep 02, 2005

Sport

Sport

A dress rehearsal

I personally feel it would be better to rest Bond.

STEPHEN FLEMING

If the last two games at Harare Sports Club are an indication, the next three will not be run bonanzas, thanks to the spongy nature of the pitch, whose steep bounce and slow pace had both India and New Zealand in trouble. These factors suggest that a score of anything between 230 and 250 would be a fighting one in Friday's game, which will in all likelihood, be a dress rehearsal for the Videocon Cup tri-series final.

However, even though the wicket was difficult, I was still pretty disappointed at the way the top-order performed in Wednesday's match against Zimbabwe. We had a tremendous start to the tournament, but after that outstanding batting performance, everybody seems to have become a little careless about shot selection.

The hosts bowled with more purpose and planning than in the opening game and we helped them by playing a few ordinary shots. Thankfully, when we bowled, Zimbabwe's over-cautious start and Shane Bond's opening spell ensured that we had just enough in the kitty. Andy Blignaut once again impressed with his all-round show. He has a flamboyance about him that can be used to attract crowds to the game, which is still at a nascent stage in this country.

Now that we are in the final, we will use Friday's game as an opportunity to field some of the guys on the bench. The toughest call will be whether or not to play Shane. He had a devastating effect on the Indians in the last meeting and we are in two minds about giving him a break.

However, I personally feel that it will be better to rest him, so that the Indians don't get another look at him before the final.

If he does have a psychological hold over the Indians, it would be better to have them guessing during the main game. We will also try and give Daniel Vettori and Chris Cairns a break before the final.

The Indians are still sorting out their batting order, but I would expect them to play their full side.

Fruits of labour

All the teams in the tournament are getting used to life with Power Play and Super Sub. I personally don't think that the Super Sub rule does much for a side like ours. We have worked hard over the last few years to develop a band of players with multiple skills, and right now we are enjoying the fruits of our planning. We have plenty of depth in our batting anyway, and the Super Sub does not take us much further in that department.

The rule would help a side like India, who often feel the absence of an all-rounder. However, if their two games were any evidence, it did not take them too far. Since both these rules are being used on a trial basis, I hope that there will be some serious rethink on the Super Sub rule.

Gameplan

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