The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Change in game plan helped Harbhajan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Dec 23, 2005

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Sport - Cricket

Change in game plan helped Harbhajan

Harbhajan's craft made for enjoyable viewing for the discerning

W.V. RAMAN

Harbhajan Singh made amends at the Motera by bowling Team India to victory with more than enough to spare. The Turbanator had a quiet game at the Kotla but a change in his game plan at the Motera proved too much for the Sri Lankans.

The slow surface at the Kotla saw Harbhajan push the ball quickly through the air, which did not allow his fingers to tweak the ball enough. Realising that he had to bowl a trifle slower through the air in order to be his old self, Harbhajan adopted his ploy to reap rich rewards. The mindset to bowl slower through the air allowed him to release the ball just about right which caused the ball to dip, deviate and bounce disconcertingly.

Enjoyable viewing

Harbhajan's craft made for enjoyable viewing for the discerning but it was none too pleasant for the batsmen facing him. The talented Jayawardene could not negotiate the extra bounce of Harbhajan in the first innings but he displayed remarkable grit and courage in the second.

With the spin twins Harbhajan and Kumble on top, the writing was on the wall though the visitors put up a fight with Jayawardene and Dilshan standing firm to counter the Indian attack. The partnership was a lone bright spot on this tour for the Sri Lankans, as their batsmen never really got going.

They missed the experience of Jayasurya and with Attapattu looking extremely burdened at the crease, the visitors could not even stretch India. That they managed to extend the final Test to the last day would go down as a minor achievement. The inexperienced batting line up was up against a very purposeful attack and this tour would have taught the likes of Mubarak and Samaraweera some valuable lessons.

The Indians would be pleased with the victories, as they had to wriggle out of some tight situations in this series, which they did with aplomb. The knock of Yuvraj Singh in the second innings is a case in point. The youngster was under pressure to perform and his entry at the crease was at a very crucial stage of the game.

Youthful exuberance

The youthful exuberance of Yuvraj coupled with his confidence bordering on arrogance enabled him to play an innings of high quality. His innings provided the inspiration for the lower order batsmen and with useful contributions coming from the bowlers, the Lankans were batted out of the game.

The biggest gain for the Indians has been Pathan's dexterity with the bat. The young man is not comfortable with the all-rounder's tag but it is understandable as comparisons are drawn with the legendary Kapil Dev. A pragmatic youngster that Pathan is, he would prefer to be talked about as a bowler as yet and not be put up on the same pedestal as Kapil Dev.

However, sooner or later Pathan has to accept the fact that he is more than a swisher with the bat and has to contribute as frequently as possible. This will make him more responsible and a good performance in one aspect of the game will enhance his confidence in the other.

Resist the temptation

While there is no doubt that Pathan has performed at the top of the order, his place is at the bottom half of the batting card. The temptation to elevate Pathan up the order is bound to be there, but there is no dearth of batsman in the country. The team management has to handle Pathan with care in as much as Kiran More has to handle the next selection committee meeting. Interesting times are ahead even before the much-awaited India-Pak series commences.

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