The Hindu : Sport : Near-perfect display by India

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Sunday, Nov 18, 2007
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Near-perfect display by India

The intensity, that is always associated with India-Pakistan clashes, seemed to be missing, writes Gundappa Viswanath

A series win against arch-rivals Pakistan is always great, but when it comes after a 24-year drought at home, then it has to be extra special. That said I cannot get over the feeling that something has been missing from this ODI series. I am unable to put my finger on the exact reason but certainly the intensity, that is always associated with India-Pakistan clashes, seemed to be missing.

The lack of intensity between the teams cannot take anything away from the Indian victory at Gwalior. They played out a near-perfect match when the series was still in the balance and closed out the series with one match to go. Their efforts were best exemplified by the fact that the bowlers gave away hardly any extras. That meant the Pakistanis weren’t given any freebies and it also meant fewer runs to chase.

Rotation policy

What I would now like to see is whether the much-touted rotation policy comes into effect for the final match. I suspect there will be some changes with at least one or two seniors rested but then that’s not what rotation is all about, is it? Having the courage to give your key players a break when the going is tough is one thing and giving them a day off when it’s all but over — one way or the other — is an altogether different matter.

The one change I would like to see is the inclusion of S. Sreesanth if only he seems set to play the opening Test. He is short of match practice — which he wouldn’t have been had we really adhered to a rotation system — and there’s nothing like having at least one match behind you, whatever the form of the game. Which is why I am glad the likes of Rahul Dravid and V.V.S. Laxman too have been spending time out in the middle, with the ‘out of form’ Dravid even notching up a double hundred and a hundred in quick succession.

Vintage Tendulkar

Perhaps the team management will choose to rest Sachin Tendulkar. If that happens spare a thought for the Jaipur crowd for, after the majestic display at Gwalior, I myself can’t get enough of him. He seemed to literally turn the clock back to his debut series — perhaps November 15, the day of his Test debut back in 1989, is a special day for him.

He has been batting well all along, but on Thursday he took it to a far higher level. When you bat in the Power Play periods, you tend to go over the top but I can’t remember one such shot at that stage from Tendulkar. He just didn’t attempt to hit over the top as he didn’t need to, so well was he piercing the field and so often.

Had Pakistan bowled first instead of strangely choosing to bat, despite knowing about the excessive dew that was expected during the second half, they could have learnt a thing or two by watching Tendulkar bat. I have the feeling that they are putting all their eggs in one basket, that is the last 10 overs or so.

Strange tactics

They seem to believe that all they need to do is keep wickets intact for the last 10-15 overs and then go for broke. It doesn’t always work out that way. Also their skipper Shoaib Malik keeps insisting that the two targets they have set the Indians in the series have both been defendable. He certainly got that wrong. He and his team have to be more ambitious.

Hawkeye Communications / Chivach Sports

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