— Photo: S. Subramanium

TIME TO REGROUP: The Indians have to ensure that the Pakistanis don't run away with a 2-0 advantage at Rawalpindi.

Rawalpindi: In the melting pot of limited-overs cricket, balance in team composition is the most essential ingredient. The Indians have to find a solution to the vexing question of having the right men at the right place.

The team management was right in picking five specialist bowlers in Peshawar. On such wickets, given the fragile nature of the Indian bowling, the think-tank was left with no other option. Somebody like Suresh Raina can always be called upon as a Super Sub if the side suffers a terrible collapse.

The pitch at the Pindi Stadium has a thin coating of green, which could well disappear before the start of the match on Saturday. India captain Rahul Dravid chose to call it "cut piece grass."

There was some good news, however, for the Indians when Pakistani pace spearhead Shoaib Akhtar limped off the practice session with a painful ankle. The injury has been bothering Akhtar from the middle of the series against England and also kept him out of the first ODI in Peshawar. There is an element of doubt about his inclusion for Saturday's game.

Bowling depth

But then, Pakistan clinched the first ODI without Akhtar and has the required depth in its ranks to bother the Indian line-up. Mohammed Asif and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan are fine bowlers and the experienced Abdul Razzaq adds teeth to the attack.

The Indians need to have a re-think over their batting line-up. It might not be the worst of ideas to have Mohammed Kaif opening with Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag walking in at No. 4. India needs to make the most of Sehwag's natural ability to strike the ball and it would be wise to protect him from Asif's probing line with the new ball.

That way, it can have Mahendra Singh Dhoni or Irfan Pathan coming lower down the order to deliver the big blows or use one of them as a floater upfront. The side can also avoid a scenario where both Pathan and Dhoni are sent in early, leaving the team without a heavy hitter down the order.

How the surface appears on Saturday morning could well determine the nature of the Indian attack. The fluid formation on Harbhajan Singh's index finger has not reduced and it is highly unlikely that he would figure in the second ODI. The off-spinner did not bowl at the nets on Thursday.

Ideal combination

The Indians should opt for a 3-2 combination, with left-armer Murali Kartik and off-spinner Ramesh Powar being the spinners, unless the grass is left uncut.

Kartik suffered on a small ground and a placid pitch in Peshawar, though he bowled to a nice rhythm in the latter stages of the Pakistan innings. He can be deceptive in the air and this works in his favour when the pitch offers some assistance.

S. Sreesanth operated with zest in the first ODI, but needs to realise that the Pakistani batsmen will take full toll of deliveries even slightly on the leg-stump. However, he has to first recover in time from a minor bout of fever before thinking about his gameplan.

The Kerala bowler, working up a speed close to 140-kmph, has to be encouraged. Pace bowlers need to have the basic element — speed. If they possess this quality, the variations can always be worked on. In this context, the National selectors have acted rightly in picking V.R.V. Singh and Munaf Patel in the Board President's XI for the tour game against England.

Dravid chose to bowl out Irfan Pathan in a 10-over spell in Peshawar since the left-armer, lacking in pace, would have been taken apart in the latter stages. Perhaps, the Indian captain can manage the overs better if he can have two spinners bowling in tandem in the middle of the innings.

Sharp fall

India also requires a bowler at the death. Zaheer Khan has bowled well at the finish in the past with reverse swinging yorkers, but there has been a sharp slump in his pace from the time he entered the international scene in 2000. Zaheer and Agarkar, who too can, potentially, send down toe-crushers, will have to ward off a serious threat from the younger contenders.

The Indians face a perform-or-perish situation. A setback here and it would be well nigh impossible to bounce back against this confident Pakistani side.

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