THE DRAVID SELECTION DEBATE

After what's been a nightmare of a Test series for an Indian cricket fan, the only silver lining is that it can continue for just 3 more days. I hope the change from white to blue will change the fortunes as well!

Talking of white to blue, I was just thinking about the Indian ODI squad for the 5-match series later. And obviously, the biggest surprise in that list was a certain Rahul Dravid.

Dravid has been one of the face-savers of India's batting in this Test series. With 2 hundreds against his name, he does seem to have gotten his touch back after a not-so-good run over the past 2 years. It was nice to see him bat the way he did, and the best aspect of his batting on this tour for me was that he did not get bogged down even when India was in a backs-to-the-wall situation (which was often). He still played his shots when the bad balls came (which was rare)! Over the last 2 years, I think he used to get bogged down quite easily but it didn't affect India much because the men around him were having golden runs.

Coming back to the ODI squad, as good a form as Dravid may be in, it was a surprise still to see him named in the ODI squad. I know that the Test team has been hammered by the English bowlers and English conditions. Yet, I somehow feel that asking Dravid to strengthen the ODI squad's Middle Order is a bit of a regressive step.

The last ODI that India played under MS Dhoni, it defeated Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in a match that was the finals of a World Cup! If you do not retain faith in a World Cup winning squad, it is quite a disappointment.

For the sake of argument, people would say that India was the No. 1 Test team too going into this Test series. Yet is floundered in a big way! But the point is, are we going to use this Test series then as a judgement scale for all our future selections in all formats of the game? Yes, it was a nightmare of a series, as I have already stated. But the ODI squad is different - even if it has to fail, it should be allowed its own chance to fail! The fact that the selectors have decided beforehand that the ODI squad is likely to fail and thus it requires services of Rahul Dravid, even without giving it a chance to fail, has disappointed me immensely.

The selectors have often been criticised for making Test selections on the basis of ODI performances, and Suresh Raina is still used as a case in point. Now they are making an ODI selection on the basis of Test cricket. How is the latter justified if the former is considered wrong?

I remember the time when the Vengsarkar-led selection panel decided to field a very young and inexperienced ODI squad against Australia in Australia. Back then, Australia were the reigning World Champions and also the World No. 1 team in ODIs (as they still are). Yet, we were bold enough to test our younger lot in the harshest way possible.

A certain Gautam Gambhir was the highest run-scorer for India in that tri-series. That same Gautam Gambhir went on to have a brilliant run in Test cricket over the next 2 years, and a little over 3 years after that tri-series, that same Gautam Gambhir fell 3 runs short of a World Cup final winning century while chasing a stiff target!

As a fan of the Fab Four batting lineup, I do feel happy to see Dravid back in the ODI squad. But as an Indian cricket fan, I do not think it is a move in the right direction. Rahul Dravid was persisted with despite a prolonged slump in his batting performances for over 2 years. I think the selectors should have shown similar faith in India's ODI batting unit!

TAKING A PHILOSOPHICAL VIEW

This is a very frustrating time for an Indian cricket fan! Coming into the English tour as the World No. 1 Test team, India has now not only lost that ranking, but will also take field at The Oval seeking to prevent a whitewash!

There is such a hollow feeling in my head right now that I really cannot be coherent with my thoughts on anything related to cricket. The criticism and finger-pointing that I wanted to indulge in, I have done so in my previous blog post. In this one, I am not going to indulge in any of that.

Over the last 2 days, I have finished reading ESPNCricinfo's publication "Sealed with a Six". It is a journey through the World Cup 2011. Just to get the complete feel of revisiting that journey, I also read the blogs that I had posted myself during that time.

In this particular blog, I want to quote two excerpts. The first one is what I had written on 5th April 2011, just 3 days after the World Cup win for India. The second one is an excerpt from an article by Sambit Bal, the editor of ESPNCricinfo. He wrote that article on the eve of the penultimate match of the World Cup - the 2nd semi-final match between India and Pakistan at Mohali.

Here's the first excerpt (from my own writing):

"I felt proud to be witnessing this moment, and not just proud because I am a fan of Indian cricket team, no! That would kill my joy! I was proud of that moment in Indian cricket because I have supported Indian cricket team even through its darkest hours, like the World Cup 2007. I have had faith in these men and boys, and I have always wished for them to perform. There have been some players I have liked more than others, a lot of decisions from the captain that I have criticised, and I will continue doing so. I have and will continue pointing out shortcomings of certain players, and loopholes in our team. But through all this, I have never stopped supporting the team through its turbulent times, nor will I ever do so."

And now here's the second excerpt (this one from Sambit Bal):

"Sportsmen compete fiercely and proudly, exhausting themselves mentally and physically in the pursuit of victory, and then the victor and vanquished walk off the field, shaking each other's hand, and often with the knowledge that no victory or loss is final. They will compete again tomorrow and there will be another shot at redemption. That is the essence of sport."

In these two excerpts, I have summed up, as best as I could, the way forward for the fans of Indian cricket, who feel as distraught about the Indian cricket team's loss as I feel. India and England will meet again in the future, on the field of cricket, and we will have our chance at redemption. And when we earn that redemption some time in future, the memory of the pain of this defeat will make it feel that bit sweeter!

WHY ARE WE HERE?

India, the World No. 1 Test team, is very likely to relinquish the ranking very soon to the rampaging English team. It's been frustrating and embarrassing to witness this Test series for an Indian fan. It was a tad bit embarrassing to see our famed middle order, known for its prowess against spin bowling of all kinds, catapult against Mendis in Sri Lanka 2008. It was embarrassing also to watch a virtually limp Indian team surrender to Australia 3-0 back in 1999-2000. But none of those experiences come close to what I have seen over the last 3 weeks in England.

After the ultimate high of World Cup win, I am feeling a bottomless low even before this series has ended. The Indian supporter in me shall never die, but I pray that it never has to face this kind of embarrassment ever again!

But why has Team India reached this position in the Test series against England? Last time that India toured England in 2007, we won the series 1-0 with a similar Indian line-up against a similar English line-up. What has changed? Both the teams have gotten better since then for sure, even though the scoreline suggests that only one team has gotten better, and the other has gone down to pits!

Why are we performing so badly then? Many people have come up with different reasons and explanations. The primary reason for me is not something new and unknown... but I will come to that later. First, I want refute another view.

Sanjay Manjrekar thinks that our bowling attack lacks ability. Maybe, it does. But India beat Sri Lanka in Colombo with an attack of Ishant Sharma, Abhimanyu Mithun, Amit Mishra and Pragyan Ojha. India beat Australia in Perth with an attack of Irfan Pathan, RP Singh, Ishant Sharma and the great Anil Kumble. The current bowling attack of Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, S Sreesanth and Harbhajan Singh / Amit Mishra is not much worse from those attacks. Both Sri Lanka and Australia were in-form teams at those times playing on their home grounds with a series lead in hand, very similar to England here!

Admittedly, this attack has misfired, and apart from Praveen Kumar, no one has been able to maintain consistency that demands respect from the batsmen... but is that the primary reason? Often in the past, our bowling attack has been helped by a scoreboard cushion provided by the batsmen, something that has not occurred this time.

This is the other reason that a lot of people have agreed on (and I agree too) - the failure to fire of our batting line-up. It has been somewhat surprising to see this line-up misfire so spectacularly. I still have no doubt that India's is the best batting line-up in the world in Test cricket. In the last five years, whenever our bowlers have managed to pick 20 opposition wickets, our batsmen have almost always ensured that they put enough runs on the board to beat the opponent. The only exceptions to this rule have been Lord's 2007 (draw), Cape Town 2011 (draw), Dominica 2011 (draw) and Nottingham 2011 (loss).

In fact, the last time (before Trent Bridge) that we lost a Test match despite our bowlers having taken 20 wickets was Mumbai 2006 against England. 5 years and a few months since then, there have only been those 4 aforementioned instances where the bowlers have done the job, and the batsmen have not capitalised. Worryingly, 3 of those incidents have come in a span of 7 months in 2011 while holding the No. 1 rank!

So if we agree that our batting failures is the single biggest cause of this situation in the series (and even if we do not agree, this question is still important), then the question that arises is how did it come to this! Why is the best batting line-up in the world misfiring so badly?

In the 1st Test, lack of acclimatisation could have been used as an excuse. But it's been 5 Test innings and 2 and a half practice match innings through this tour now, and we have not had a single collective batting performance to rejoice. Rahul Dravid has scored 2 hundreds, and there have been a few fifties to assuage some pride, but where is the good old Indian way of applying scoreboard pressure gone?

In my humble opinion, the failures have been caused not by the lack of acclimatisation, but by the lack of preparation. The English cricket team had their eyes set on an Ashes triumph in Australia, and so they prepared for it diligently and well in advance. They planned well, had contingency options ready, and when the time came, they delivered. They then had a new goal to aim for - the No. 1 ranking in Test cricket. They knew they would have to beat India at home quite comprehensively to attain that. So they prepared again, planned again, and seem to be delivering again!

It's not that the Indian team and its management is incapable of such planning. Our triumph at the World Cup 2011 is a prime example of how we planned for a campaign that was very precious and dear to us. Players have talked about how their mental preparation started a year before the World Cup in Dambulla. They have talked about how they worked at their fitness to be in the best shape during the final stages of the campaign. They have talked about how they wanted to peak at the right time. And they delivered!

So was it a case of not having planned and prepared well to take on England in England? Was there a bit of complacency after having creditably earned a draw away at South Africa just a few months ago? As a fan, I think that even I am a little guilty of having underestimated England a little bit before the series began.

But my assessment of England before the series was based on an English attack containing a misfiring Stuart Broad. But the Stuart Broad playing in this series is a different one from the one that played earlier against Sri Lanka and Australia in the Ashes!

Stuart Broad's new avatar has ensured that the English pace attack has been able to apply relentless pressure on the ill-prepared Indian batting line-up. In South Africa, after the pressure from Steyn and Morkel was over, India could play a few release shots against Tsotsobe, Kallis and Harris. Similarly, against all other attacks, our batsmen have always had at least 2 bowlers who could be attacked for pressure-release!

However, on the evidence of the cricket that has been played on this tour thus far, India's only hope for release in pressure has been in the form of Graeme Swann. The difficulty for the Indians has arisen because Strauss has rotated and managed his fast bowlers so well that Indians have not faced too much from Swann! Instead, it has been steady and relentless pressure and testing from a highly-skilled English pace attack!

When India's No. 1 ranking used to come under fire by people who used to say that they are not like the dominant West Indies and Australia of the past, I always defended India by saying that No. 1 ranking suggests that we are the best of the current lot. That ranking does not imply that the team owning it will be one of the all-time greats like those West Indian and Australian teams!

So going by the same logic, if and when England get to that ranking, I will accept their position there. However, to be dominant like West Indies and Australia, they will need to beat South Africa (home and away) as well as India (away). Nevertheless, if they get that No. 1 ranking, then No. 1 they will be, and deservedly so! As for India, I know that I will (like a lot of others) continue the support despite this nightmare. They may have been badly exposed this time in England, but the lessons will be learnt, and we will see better cricket from this team!

A CASE FOR A 15-TEAM WORLD CUP

This post is inspired by Russell Degnan's 'Potential World Cup Formats' post on his wonderful blog Idle Summers. He argues a strong case for a 20-team World Cup based on 4 groups of 5 teams each, and lists the merits and demerits of such a format.

There is one demerit though, in his 20-team format, (which I loved, but am sure that the ICC will not for the very reason I will now elaborate), that gains in significance with the recent ICC decision of a 10-team World Cup. The ICC wants to ensure as many matches as possible featuring the big teams like India, Australia, South Africa, Pakistan and England (in terms of revenue generation). In that format, these teams can assuredly play only 4 matches, before entering the knockouts. In ICC's view, that would be regressive from the 2011 format. That is why there is a proposal to go for a 10-team round robin format in 2015.

Using a bit of inspiration from Russell's idea for groups of 5, I came up with an idea for a 15-team World Cup, where the teams are divided in 3 Groups of 5 each. Using the current ODI rankings, I have divided the three groups as such:

Now, the first round will be the Group Stages (Round Robin), where 10 games will be played in each group, and 30 games overall. Each team will play 4 matches. The top-3 in each group shall qualify for the next round. Why 3? This ensures a very low chance of a top-ranked team missing out on the next round, even if they suffer an upset in this stage. When Pakistan lost to Ireland in 2007, they exited in the first round itself because they had also lost to West Indies in their group earlier. In this scenario, if Pakistan were to lose to Ireland, but all the other matches give expected results, both these teams shall be tied on 4 points each, along with Bangladesh (assuming 2 points for a win). This will bring the NRR into play, which means that despite the upset, Pakistan will stand a chance to enter the next round.

The second round will be Super Nines, where each team will play 4 matches, resulting in a total of 18 matches. Who will play whom in these 4 matches? Here it is: A1 will play B2, B3, C2, C3; A2 will play B1, B3, C1, C3; etc. The following box will give a clearer picture:

The idea here is to ensure an easier round for those teams that finished 1st in their respective groups, and a tougher round for those that finished 3rd. Additionally, the teams that finished 1st in their groups will start this round with 4 points each, those that finished 2nd will start with 2 points each, and those that came 3rd will start at Nil.

This ensures that in the First Stage of Group Round Robin, there is every incentive for a team to finish at as high a rank as possible. Yet, if a 3rd ranked team wants to qualify for the next round after Super Nines, they can do so by winning all 4 of their matches in this round. In fact, it is possible for them to proceed even with 3 wins out of 4 (with some help from others).

With points set as 4, 2, 0 for 1st, 2nd, 3rd ranked teams respectively, this ensures that there will not be a scenario like that of Kenya in 2003. Kenya had finished 3rd in their Group in that World Cup, yet they carried more points into the Super Sixes than the 1st and 2nd ranked teams, because they had beaten Sri Lanka (1st), and New Zealand (2nd) had forfeited their match due to security reasons. This enabled Kenya to get a head start in the Super Sixes that they did not deserve based on their Group ranking, and therefore, with one win over Zimbabwe in the Super Sixes, they managed qualification for the semi-finals.

This ensures that each team that qualifies for this round is guaranteed to play 8 matches each. Since all the big teams in terms of revenue generation are expected to qualify for this round, there should not be a problem in terms of advertising and broadcasting contracts.

The top-4 teams in Super Nines shall qualify for the Playoffs in the same format as being used in IPL 2011. The following figure illustrates it:

This again gives an incentive for each team in the Super Nines to finish at as high as rank as possible. Both the rounds (i.e. Group Stages and Super Nines) will become more competitive with extra focus on the teams' rankings.

In this format, one finalist will play 10 matches and the other one will play 11 matches. In 2011, the two finalists played 9 matches each. In the 10-team format for 2015, the two finalists will play 11 matches each. This 15-team format will contain 52 matches (30 in Group Stages, 18 in Super Nines, 3 in Playoffs and 1 Finals). This ensures that the broadcasters will be satisfied as well.

Now, lets see how long will the 52-game 15-team World Cup last. The Group stages of 30 matches can be completed in 15 days, with 2 matches on each day. However, if the big matches (i.e. matches between Seed 1 and Seed 2 in each group) are to be held singly on certain days, this stage can last up to 18 days.

The Super Nines stage has 18 matches, that should be completed in 9 days if 2 matches are played each day. However, if these matches, viz. A1 v. B2, A1 v. C2, B1 v. A2, B1 v. C2, C1 v. A2, and C1 v. B2 are to be held singly on certain days, this stage will require 12 days to be completed.

For the Playoffs, 3 separate days will be necessary, and 1 day for the Finals. If the itinerary is planned well, there will not be a need to add any rest days in between the Group stages and the Super Nines stage. Despite no gap, each team will assuredly have at least 2 days between successive matches, as is the current practice. A 1-day gap between Super Nines stage and Qualifier 1, another 1-day gap between the Eliminator match and Qualifier 2, and a 2-day gap before the Finals ensure that the tournament shall last no longer than 38 days.

While the length may seem a tad too much, it can be reduced to 5 weeks (i.e. 35 days) by making the Group stages more efficient and finish them off in 15 days. The World Cup will have low number of meaningless games as at each stage, an incentive to finish high has been given to the teams. Add to it the fact that it will allow exposure to 5 Associate nations on the big stage (in this case 4 Associates and 1 Affiliate, since Afghanistan is still an Affiliate Member of the ICC), which is the very purpose for which I thought of this format!

POSSIBLE CONSEQUENCES OF THE CAPE TOWN TEST

And so it's set to begin tomorrow... The hosts and 2nd ranked South Africa will take on the visiting team and top-ranked India in the deciding Third Test at Newlands, Cape Town. It has been an amazing series so far... and I hope it continues that way in the shadow of the Table Mountain from tomorrow.

Like I wrote in an earlier blog, India has not won two consecutive away Tests in the same series against a top-8 Test team for about 2 and a half decades. Now the challenge for them is to tame the No. 2 side in the world.

IF INDIA WIN

If India do manage to pull out a series win at Cape Town, the world will be a lot closer to acknowledging India's rank as No. 1 Test team. The English might still say that India needs to beat them later this year... and they would have a point there. England did not manage to beat South Africa last time they visited the Rainbow Nation, so India will be able to boast of a series win there... but the English will remind India that they just beat Australia in Australia... something that India has not quite managed for a number of years now. South Africa's claim to the No. 1 spot will be a lot subdued and India's tour of England might become another tussle for the No. 1 spot that India will have to win to justify the ranking.

IF SOUTH AFRICA WIN

If South Africa beat India at Newlands, be assured that they will claim themselves to be the 'unofficial' No. 1 Test team in the world. India's No. 1 ranking will then be referred to as just a piece of paper with some calculations. And then even if India beat England later in July - August, this defeat will keep on souring the taste of the No. 1 spot that they will in most likelihood maintain. With a win at Cape Town, South Africa, alongside England, will start thinking of themselves as the best in Tests... and India's tour to England will further complicate matters then. An Indian win will again make it a three-horse boasting race whereas an English win will intensify the two-horse race between South Africa and England.

(Note: No matter what South Africans would like to claim, the fact that there are a number of South African-born players in the English team shall not be considered as a point in their favour.)

IF IT IS A DRAW

Well, a draw at Newlands would keep the status quo. India will continue to call themselves as No. 1 (both officially and unofficially). South Africa will not be able to boast of the fact that they are the only team over the last 6 and a half years to have scraped through with a draw on tour of India... twice! Because a draw would mean that India has done the same. England's chants would continue and India's tour of England would be a decisive moment. If India draw the Test series with England as well, though the No. 1 ranking will still be in the bag, the team will be criticised for not being ruthless enough to finish teams off.

FINAL ANALYSIS

So if we really want an 'undisputed' No. 1 to emerge by the year end, the best we can hope for is an Indian win at Cape Town. I would certainly be hoping for that... though sadly, except for Day 1, I would not be able to follow the rest of it properly. I will have to be relying on Cricinfo commentary, SMS updates from friends and whenever possible, I will try and catch up a bit on the TV. I will be on the road for the about 10 days, which would mean that I would also miss another rendition of the 'Sprinkler Dance' (it it happens) at Sydney.

I hope that the four teams play out two cracking New Year Tests to kick of a year, which I hope will be another brilliant one for Test cricket.

RECENT HISTORY DISAGREES WITH GOUGH

Darren Gough's statement that England can beat India any day of the week has naturally ruffled a few feathers... as I assume it was meant to! It's strange though to hear this comment... simply because England has not beaten India in a Test series (home or away) since 1996.

I was just checking the tour schedule of India's 1996 tour to England... when two youngsters by the name of Sourav Chandidas Ganguly and Rahul Sharad Dravid made their Test debuts. And that tour schedule made a very interesting reading...

Besides playing 3 Tests (against England) and 5 ODIs (3 against England and 2 against the Netherlands), India played 8 three-day matches and 4 one-day matches in preparation for their campaign at different points during that tour. That makes it a total of 12 practice matches.

TWELVE PRACTICE MATCHES??

Sounds like some different era to me! Gosh, I can't believe that a couple of guys from that time are still around the Indian team right now... and who play the most important away Test series, one that could justify and consolidate their top ranking, without a single practice game...

But that is not the point. Coming back to Darren Gough's claim... he feels that England is the best Test team right now. Given that they have just retained the Ashes in Australia... a feat not achieved for 24 years... it is quite all right to think so.

But England's away record is still no better than India's! India has an away series win against England and two away Test wins against South Africa and Australia each to talk of during the 2000s. However, here is England's record against India over the last decade:

In India (2001-02) - Lost 1-0 in a 3-Test series
In England (2002) - Drew 1-1 in a 4-Test series
In India (2005-06) - Drew 1-1 in a 3-Test series
In England (2007) - Lost 1-0 in a 3-Test series
In India (2008-09) - Lost 1-0 in a 2-Test series

So in the last 15 matches between these two teams, the record stands thus: India Win - 5, England Win - 2, Draw - 8.

Most cricket experts were of the opinion that despite India being the top-ranked team on the table, only a series win in South Africa can justify that rank. Given that England is not even ranked at the top, they would need to do a lot more than just beat Australia in Australia to justify Darren Gough's claim.

The three teams in the mix for the top spot are India, South Africa and England. Given that England and South Africa played each other last year, India and South Africa are playing each other now (having already played once during the year gone by) and England - India are scheduled to play during the next year, we can have a clearer claimant to the top spot by August 2011.

Till then, Mr. Darren Gough may have his views... but he'll have a tough job convincing non-Englishmen regarding the sanctity of his views!

CHALLENGING THE HISTORY

It felt nice to see India bounce back from their SuperSport nightmare at Centurion to win at Kingsmeade, Durban against South Africa. The loss at Centurion had deflated a lot of hopes... and most of those are back high again.

A lot of us already feel that this win, though special, is not an oddity. No away wins are oddities now. India's performances at the Test level over the past few seasons have given us all a reason to expect something more out of the team.

While I do hope that India should win the next Test at Cape Town and seal the series, I also do know that it will be a huge task for them. India have not won two consecutive Tests in an away tour since 1986 against England (Test tours of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe have been excluded here). In India's entire Test history, such occasions of 2 successive Test wins on away tour against the top-8 Test nations have occurred only thrice.

So it would be apt to say that the Indian team is up against it. But then, they have been up against it many times in the recent past... and still come out trumps. They have been up against it every time they have lost a toss in the recent past and still win the Test. They were up against it when Zaheer was ruled out at P Sara Oval and yet managed a win to level the series. They were up against it when almost a 100 runs were needed at Mohali against Australia with just 2 wickets in hand and yet managed to squeeze out a 1-wicket win. They were up against it when Dale Steyn demolished the batting lineup at Nagpur and still managed to come back with an innings win at Kolkata.

If any Indian team has given its fans reason to believe that they can challenge history and change it, this one is it. They have conquered peaks that no Indian team of the past has... and they have set their sights on new peaks that the Indian teams of the past didn't even know existed!

Before winding up, I have to mention a word for Zaheer Khan. I know that VVS Laxman won the Man of the Match, and deservedly so... but Zaheer's performance was more special to me than all the other performances put together by the Indians. He came back into a bowling unit that had managed to take just 4 wickets in the previous Test. The lowest score amongst the South Africans who batted at Centurion had been 62 by skipper Graeme Smith. And as if by magic, Zaheer's entry almost changed the entire character of India's bowling unit.

Suddenly, Smith decided to make Peterson take the first strike when it was their turn to bat. The innings started on this negative note... and never had anything positive about it through to its end. Zaheer eventually got a go at Smith... and had him. After that, he took 5 more wickets in the match... and helped his mates pick up the rest by creating pressure on the batsmen. If his first spell of the second innings is excluded, Zaheer's economy rate was 2.56. His second spell in the second innings had the figures: 3-2-1-0. That pressure created at the end of Day 3 was sustained by Sreesanth and Harbhajan at the end of Day 4... and India was rewarded.

Though I may not approve of his continuous chatting with thee batsmen, but to his credit, he never looked like he had overstepped the mark... and he got the results almost every time. There was a stark contrast in that Zaheer of World Cup 2003 finals, whose first over yielded 15 runs including a first-ball no-ball and yet he had the audacity to stare at the batsmen... and this Zaheer, who stared, chatted and got under the skins of the batsmen and also delivered the goods for the team. Truly, Zaheer Khan has come a long long way and has been one of the most instrumental figures in India's continual journey to and through the No. 1 spot in Test cricket.

THE CENTURION TEST

The anticipation is almost palpable now. For both the Tests that start tomorrow... particularly South Africa v India at SuperSport Park, Centurion. I just hope that the Gods don't decide to pour water all over the show.

Since I have already done a preview (sort of) of the Perth Test, this one will focus on the Centurion one. The match starts on 16th December 2010. This day - the 16th of December - holds special memories for Indian Test cricket fans. Exactly 7 years ago, on 16th December 2003, India defeated a world-beating Steve Waugh-led Australia at Adelaide and announced to the world that lousy visitors we are no more!

It marked the start of a new era. Some may argue that this era began with the victory in England in 2002 itself... when we showed that we are capable of winning Tests in alien conditions as well. But the Adelaide win was way beyond just a win... it was a celebrated milestone, and India has not looked back since then.

Though there are question marks now over the spot of the chief architect of that win (viz. Rahul Dravid), there can be no denying that he would want to erase those question marks with a strong match and series winning performance in South Africa... along with his contemporaries Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman. The desire is almost a desperation now... and when such stalwarts are desperate, you know that something's bound to give!

On the other hand, South Africa is also aware of the importance of this series... and they know that a series win against India is the biggest step (almost a leap) that they can take in their desire of regaining the mantle of No. 1 Test team in the world. If the ICC Rankings are disconsidered for a moment, then there are a lot of people in the world who hold the belief that the South Africans are the real No. 1 team in the Test world. But India has an opportunity to shake this belief... to destroy this notion and firmly establish themselves as the best cricket team in whites.

The weather has been very wet in this build up to the First Test. There are chances that a lot of play will be lost on most of the days. So whereas I was initially hoping that India should bat first (simply because Gambhir - Sehwag v Steyn - Morkel is THE BATTLE of the series), now I hope otherwise. Batting first under cloudy skies with wetness in the pitch will be extremely difficult against the South African pace attack... just as it will be difficult for Smith, Peterson, Amla, Kallis, De Villiers and Prince against the Indian pace attack minus Zaheer Khan.

Zaheer's loss may have a telling effect, but the best that India could have hoped for in Zaheer's absence was for helpful conditions to assist the likes of Sreesanth, Ishant Sharma and Unadkat / Yadav (I believe that it will be the former who makes the cut tomorrow). If India does bowl first under overcast skies, that should compensate well enough for Zaheer's absence.

Talking about Zaheer, its only apt that we drop a line of two about Zaheer's potential replacement for the match as well. I would like to see Jaidev Unadkat make his debut tomorrow... and given how this 19-year old had performed six months back in his first-class debut at Leicester with a 13-for, I will definitely be hoping for another impressive performance on his Test debut. He (or Umesh Yadav) will be the 267th Test player for India... but I guess Unadkat will be the first teammate of Sachin Tendulkar who would have been born after the master made his debut over 21 years ago (he has played AGAINST youngsters who were born after his debut... I can recall Mohammed Aamer during the ODI match against Pakistan during the Champions Trophy last year).

Sorry for digressing... but now that I have brought up the topic of Sachin Tendulkar, there has to be a mention of the eagerly-awaited 50th Test ton also. Another feather in that cap, which must weigh a ton now!

On that note, I end this preview... and lets hope that we witness a cracking start to the blockbuster contest tomorrow.

TIME ZONES

Of all the Australian cricket venues, Perth is my favourite... because if I am interested in following a good day of Test match cricket at Perth, I don't have to get up at an abnormally early hour of 05.00 a.m.

The 3rd Ashes Test will begin at Perth from 16th December 2010 from 08.00 a.m. Indian Standard Time. Assuming that the additional half hour available at the end of the day to cover up for slow over rates will be used up, the match will go on up to 03.30 p.m. However, at 02.00 p.m. IST on the same day, another Test match will begin... which promises better quality of cricket, a better contest and a mouth-watering prospect of watching the No. 1 team play against the No. 2 team for the second time this year (after February).

But in any case, I wouldn't want to miss a lot of action at Perth either. So it's going to be quite a task switching in between two channels to watch the action both at WACA, Perth and SuperSport Park, Centurion between South Africa and India simultaneously without wanting to miss out on any key moments of either match.

This problem will be solved when action moves back to the eastern part of Australia with the Boxing Day Test at MCG... but then again, it raises the problem of getting up at 05.00 a.m.!

GAMBHIR TICKS THE UNCHECKED BOX

The first South Africa - India Test match starts in just a couple of weeks from today at the SuperSport Park, Centurion... and in the lead up to that Test match, it is great to see Gautam Gambhir get a century against New Zealand today. He was the only unticked box remaining in our top and middle order.

Virender Sehwag - He is in roaring form... second highest run scorer in this calender year (2010)... and could be the key for India's series win in the Rainbow Nation. Back to the land where he embarked on his journey in Test cricket, there are high expectations of him this time round. With the pace that the South African attack can generate, his fiery slashes may carry all the way over the third man boundary!

Gautam Gambhir - It was good to see him get some runs against the Kiwis. He did get lucky with a couple of streaky inside edges... but the crucial thing is that he capitalised on the luck. And once he got closer to three figures, he looked as comfortable as he's looked this entire year. Surely the signs are good for the Indian opening partnership...

Rahul Dravid - Though I am not completely confident about his form and indeed his place in the side, but it cannot be denied that he did get 2 centuries in Tests against New Zealand. That is bound to give him some confidence before the South African tour. But if I were MS Dhoni, I would still tell Cheteshwar Pujara to be on standby mode... just in case!

Sachin Tendulkar - Though the New Zealand series was not that productive, it cannot be denied that he is looking in ominous form. He will be facing South Africa in any form of cricket for the first time after the history-making 200* (147) at Gwalior. This time he'll have a chance to make another history... No. 50 is waiting... will it be SuperSport Park, Centurion, where he had smashed the Pakistanis into submission at a World Cup just under 8 years ago?

VVS Laxman - The South Africa tour will be a difficult one. There will be times when that brilliant bowling attack will put the Indian batting unit under immense pressure. And that will be the time when we'll again look towards Lax to bail us out... for he's a crunch-situation specialist. It will be interesting to see the fields that Graeme Smith sets for VVS.

The anticipation is building up for the clash of No. 1 against the No. 2. I know that a lot of neutrals will follow the Ashes more religiously that this one... but I think that this series will be a lot more interesting and the mini-battles a lot more absorbing. Obviously, this feeling may have come (or may have been strengthened) by the 22-wickets-over-5-days draw at The Gabba and the prospect of another such match at Adelaide next.

So I can't wait for December 16th to arrive... it's time to see the best in action!

INDIA'S TEST BATTING - THE FOUNDATION OF NO. 1 SPOT

Whenever MS Dhoni's One Day team puts in disastrous performances like the one that was witnessed today, I like to think about out Test team... just to lighten up my dark mood!

So today, I decided to do a bit of number-searching. Here's what I found - India's performance in last 25 Test matches: Win - 12, Loss - 5, Draw - 8.

I have blogged a lot about how India's bowling unit (even in Tests) is very poor, but India is till managing to hold on to the No. 1 spot on the strength of its mighty batting. I decided to search for numbers that prove my viewpoint.

In these 25 Tests, India's bowling has managed to pick up 20 opposition wickets only on 11 occasions. So it's surprising to see 12 wins in the above stats, isn't it? That 1 win without grabbing 20 wickets (we did take 19 though) came against England in Chennai, where after England's declaration on their 9th second innings wicket, Sehwag led a brutal assault on the Kevin Pietersen - led team to mastermind an unprecedented chase on the Indian soil.

Coming back to the point, have you noticed that every time that the Indian bowling unit picks up 20 wickets in a Test, our batting manages to have enough runs on the board to win the Test... 'Time' is an immaterial factor in India's batting unit - there are men who save it, there are men who waste it, and there are men who can do both of it!

This stat is a remarkable one. Though I have not checked for the other teams, I am sure not many teams will be able to boast of having won every Test in which they have picked up 20 opposition wickets. This is a testimony to the remarkable abilities of India's batting stalwarts!

On the other hand, India has lost 20 wickets in only 6 occasions in these 25 Tests. And on one of these 6 occasions, the batsmen had scored more than enough to seal a win... so India's batting has truly failed only on 5 occasions in Test cricket over 2 and a half years! It may still not be the hallmark of a Test Champion side, but which other side has managed to perform as such over the last few years!?

Sehwag, the only one to have featured in each one of these 25 matches, scores at the rate of more than 100 runs per Test match... amassing 2598 runs during this period. Four batsmen have managed more than 15 scores of 50 or above... (Laxman - 17 from 23 Tests, Sehwag - 17 from 25 Tests, Sachin 16 from 23 Tests and Gambhir 16 from 18 Tests).

Though Raina has made a promising debut (albeit on the flattest track I have seen for quite some time), I am quite uncertain about life after Sachin, Rahul and VVS. They will have a lot of learning to do... and it is not going to be easy!

Masters at what they do...

P.S.: Amidst all these numbers, you might have failed to notice that only 1 Test of India's last 25 have resulted in 20 wickets falling... and guess where it came!?
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In a stadium, which in its small history, has been known to be one of the flattest of tracks... it is the VCA Stadium (Jamtha), Nagpur against Australia!

A COMMENDABLE WIN

© Associated Press

A series-leveling win for India against Sri Lanka means that India retains the No. 1 spot on the ICC Test Team Rankings. But the point worth noting is that Sri Lanka have now moved up to No. 3 on the table, pushing Australia down to No. 4 - the first time that I have seen them there.

VVS Laxman played a serene knock - a chanceless unbeaten hundred guiding India to a successful 4th innings chase of a tricky target away from home!

I mentioned in my previous post that the main men for India in the chase today would be SRT and VVS, and that the first hour of the day would be the most crucial one. These two men stitched up a 109-run partnership that laid the foundation for a Raina flourish at the end... but more importantly Laxman and in particular, Tendulkar negotiated the first hour in a cautious manner to ensure that Raina does not have to face a ball that had retained some hardness in it and that Dhoni did not have to face a ball at all!

The win is a commendable one indeed, given the bowling attack that we went into the match with. For just the second time in 10 years was India playing a Test without the services of either Anil Kumble or Harbhajan Singh (not that I rate Bhajji very highly these days)! The four frontline bowlers had a combined experience of 41 Tests before the match started... but they somehow managed to eek out 20 wickets with some good help from Sehwag.

But at the end of it all, I am left wondering about one thing! The entire world knows the importance of a Virender Sehwag start for this Indian batting lineup. A Viru failure puts immense pressure on this lineup... and his duck yesterday was no different. But the class of SRT and VVS had it in them to bat through that pressure and win the match for India. Once these men call it a day, I wonder if the future class of Yuvraj, Raina, Pujara, Sharma and Kohli will have it in them to soak this kind of pressure!

ICC RANKINGS GO FOR A 'TOSS'

A number of things that have happened in quick succession have prompted this thought in me. First, I'll tell you what events happened.

First, Kumar Sangakkara criticised the ICC Ranking system (he's not the first one to do that!)... Second, in his latest article on 'It Figures' in Cricinfo, S Rajesh, the extraordinary stats-man observed that Sri Lanka has the most imposing home record after winning the toss. They have never lost a Test in last ten years at home after winning the toss. And third, on the comments page in this article by S Rajesh, I read someone's comment that said that the ICC Rankings should also consider the factor of tosses won / lost.

I have been thinking more and more about that comment. And it does make a lot of sense. Most of the Test matches (and even ODIs between competent teams, for that matter) are being decided at the time of the toss itself (unless ofcourse, you have captain called Ricky Ponting who always starts with "We'll have a bat!" after every toss win)!

So if a team can defy the odds, lose the toss and still end up winning the match, then it does deserve some more respect than other ordinary wins! There might also be cases of dilemma where a captain is unsure of what to do on winning the toss. The two captains may have different opinions. For example, at the Leeds Test, Ricky Ponting elected to bat first on winning the toss... but I am sure Salman Butt would have preferred a bowl had he won the toss!

In such cases, a problem arises. Pakistan won this game... and had the system of accounting for tosses been in place, they would have earned more points as they won that Test after losing the toss. Had they won the toss and then won the Test in a similar manner, they would have earned relatively lesser points.

To provide for such a problem, I have a solution. It's pretty simple. Just before the toss, the two captains must separately reveal what they decide to do in case they win the toss. If both captains had pre-decided at bat-first or a bowl-first strategy, then the toss factor should be considered important and extra points should be awarded to teams that lose the toss and win the match. But if one captain says bat-first and the other says bowl-first before the toss, the toss factor should be considered as 'not crucial' for that match and there will be no need to provide bonus points at the end of the match to either winner.

This would make the points system a lot more meaningful, especially in this day and age when teams are almost guaranteed not to lose a Test after winning the toss at Colombo. Even MS Dhoni will be thankful... considering the fact that he's not managed to win a single toss in Test cricket in his last six trysts with the spinning coin!

TWO CHAMPIONS... SIMILAR STORIES...

Australia have managed a decent 290 - 5 in their 50 overs in the dead rubber (oh sorry, what was it... "playing for pride") 4th ODI at The Kennington Oval, London. Just a little less than 6 miles to the south west, Roger Federer has just been handed his 2nd straight Quarter Final exit from a Tennis Grand Slam event at the Wimbledon by Czech Tomas Berdych 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.


It just rings a bell in my head. Two champions... both losing their aura... both signalling the end of an era! Australia dominated cricket through the 1990s and the 2000s. The decade to come looks like a different story! England have been consistently performing well in the longer version of the game and have shown good form over the last 2 years in the shorter versions as well. India have been consistent, ranked No. 1 and 2 in Tests and ODIs respectively. And then there is South Africa, who play well throughout the year except for the business end of ICC tournaments.


In case of Roger Federer... he reached the semi-finals of 23 straight Grand Slam events. With the highest number of Men's Singles Grand Slam titles ever and numerous other records in his bag, he is widely acknowledged as the best Men's Tennis player ever. Through the later part of his career, his one biggest challenge was Spaniard Rafael Nadal. However, now he has been challenged by others as well... Serbian Novak Djokovic (Australian Open 2008), Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro (US Open 2009), Swede Robin Soderling (French Open 2010) and now Czech Tomas Berdych (Wimbledon 2010).


This does mean that the two sports should now become more interesting as the teams / players are more evenly matched and no particular team / player radiates an aura of invincibility. Waiting to see how my prediction pans out...

INDIA - PAKISTAN... FINALLY!

India completed an easy victory over Bangladesh in the Asia Cup 2010 at Dambulla. The 6-wicket win would have, to a certain extent, restored the fans' faith in the side... which had plummeted to an unprecedented low after the Zimbabwe tri - series.


The regular India XI (minus Sachin Tendulkar) looked good... sure and composed. The break should have done them... though their thorough test will come in the next match... against arch - rivals Pakistan.


Pakistan were impressive in their 16-run loss to Sri Lanka in the opener. Afridi's century (though I did not see it) sounded a captain's knock... albeit in a losing cause. India will need the big men to fire in the big match against Pakistan. Sehwag is currently India's best batsman in this format (I don't care what ICC Rankings say about MS Dhoni!) and he will need to fire along with Zaheer Khan, who is India's bowling spearhead. Dhoni will not be able to depend on Sehwag again for his golden arm figures of 4 - 6 in 2.5 overs.


Though I am not overly interested in the ongoing Asia Cup, I will be interested in watching India take on Pakistan... simply because I don't know when will I next see this rivalry unfold again! There will be spice in the contest... there always is, especially when the relationship between the two nations is not at its best.


Here's hoping that the match lives up to my high expectations!

BUILDING UP TO IND V PAK

India finally managed to beat Zimbabwe on this tour. And it's Twenty20. Looks like Zimbabwe is more comfortable playing the longer game rather than 20-over cricket. The only match they lost during the round robin stage in the tri-series against Sri Lanka was also reduced to 20-odd overs due to rain. Weird, I used to think that shorter the format, greater is the chance for the underdogs... the weaker team.


And then I thought... maybe, Team India is the weaker team. Zimbabwe has been far more impressive than India over the past couple of weeks. Their departments have played as proper units... the army of spinners choking the opposition and the batsmen remaining cool during the crunch moments. Neither of the two has been the case with India.


As India ends the Zimbabwe tour today with the second and final Twenty20 and then regroup with the seniors to fly to Sri Lanka for the Asia Cup, they will need to deeply think about really how good is the team. The team was World No. 2 on ICC Rankings before the tournament... I do not know if there is a fall after the two defeats to Zimbabwe... but are we really playing as a No. 2 / 3 team?


A clearer picture will emerge when an almost full-strength squad plays at the Asia Cup. Matches against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh might test the Indians... but the match against Pakistan has the ability of separating boys from men. India play Pakistan on 19th June... it's been quite some time since their last meeting at the Champions Trophy in South Africa last year. In that match, Shoaib Malik hit a match-winning hundred to take Pakistan to victory. Who will be the man this time?

The build up is not quite the same... but it should be a cracker nonetheless!

The build up to this match has hardly been what it was like for the meeting on 1st March 2003 during the World Cup at South Africa. But that should not mean the match will be anything less than a cracker! Luckily, the FIFA World Cup fixtures that day include just one team that I am interested in... the Netherlands, which will feature against Japan in the first match on that day. After that, I can use that Saturday to pay complete attention to an Indian cricket fan's delight... an India v Pakistan match!

TEAM INDIA TAKES A BEATING

What is the progress made by Indian cricket in the last 12 months?

o India has climbed to the No. 1 spot in ICC Test Rankings
o India is placed at No. 2 spot in ICC ODI Rankings
o India defeated Sri Lanka 2-0 in Tests at home, drew 1-1 with South Africa
o Sachin Tendulkar became the 1st man to score an ODI 200
o MS Dhoni became the first Indian captain to lift the IPL
o Gautam Gambhir equalled Sir Viv Richards' reccord of a 50+ score in 11 consecutive Tests and also scored 100s in 4 consecutive Tests
o Sachin Tendulkar has also managed a 100 in each of his last 4 Tests

Yet, the youngsters in the squad still cannot play short and pacy bowling. And our team, the captain included, do not seem to learn from their mistakes at all. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been witnessing a repeat of England 2009 at West Indies 2010.

MS Dhoni won the toss, and committed the same error again of inserting the opposition into bat. But even before that error, he had already made another one - an erroneous team selection. For the second game in a row, he went with a part-time spinner laden attack of a pacy and bouncy Kensington Oval wicket. When you have a decent backup seamer in the form of R Vinay Kumar in your ranks, you pick him... even if he is a new to this level. I'd have thought that Dhoni must have learnt his lessons from the defeat at the hands of Australia... but no, the learning is just not happenning. May be if Shashank Manohar had talked to Dhoni yesterday and said that he was confident that the team would qualify, then Dhoni would have hit a couple of sixes out of Barbados in the end and helped India into the semi-finals. Shashank Manohar needs to learn a few lessons on motivation from N Srinivasan, the owner of Chennai Super Kings.

I will also never be able to understand why he gave Harbhajan 3 overs in the Powerplay. The pitch was never a turner... and he wasted some tidy overs that were needed in the middle right at the start. He had already tried this strategy a couple of days back... and it had failed (pretty miserably at that!). So why try it again?

Apart from all the strategies, I still don't get it why Dhoni wanted to take the 2nd run and risk getting run out, which is exactly what happenned. Did he think that Harbhajan would be better against 5 more Kemar Roach deliveries? May be, he was right! Roach was so scared of Bhajji that he kept on spraying wides.

Gambhir needs to sort out his approach towards short pitched bowling in limited overs cricket. In Tests, he does not need to attack every short ball, and thus he can survive there. In ODIs and T20s, it is a different matter altogether. As for Suresh Raina, if he is not comfortable with the pull shot, he needs to find out alternative ways of scoring off short ones. Maybe, make-some-room-and-slap-over-point is an option that can be used. A session with Sourav Ganguly should help as well. The solution for Yuvraj's problem is simple: lose some weight.

Yusuf Pathan needs to realise that is he wants to become a good finisher for Team India, he needs to be adept at playing fast bowling... because its pacers who usually finish an innings for a bowling side. Bullying the medium pacers on the domestic circuit will not help in international cricket.

Ravindra Jadeja: what should I say? I like the lad... but he did not seem to learn from his mistakes in the previous match and continued bowling fast half trackers here as well. When Sammy hit him for a 4, I was relieved to see a 4 being hit off him. Otherwise, he just gives 6-hitting balls. The Watson 6s knocked the confidence out of him... and the Warner 6s ensured that he'll not be able to regain that confidence in quick time. So a rest for him in this game, and an opportunity for R Vinay Kumar seemed the ideal choice for me. Strangely though, Dhoni had some other ideas.

Though Zaheer is not playing well, I am not worried about him. He will need some time to get back into a good rhythm... a Test series could help him out here. Ashish Nehra has performed satisfactorily. Harbhajan has not taken wickets, but he has bowled extremely well... never letting the opposition relax. And as for Rohit Sharma, despite his 79* against Australia, I have had enough of him. I liked him in Australia 2008, but his perform-for-Deccan-Chargers-and-fail-in-Indian-colours scenario has frustrated me and many others enough now.

I am also tired of Dhoni's irrelevant comments to the media. Before the match, at the press conference, when asked whether he was expecting a barrage of short-pitched stuff, he said that all the Indian teams have been facing this kind of bowling for the last 10-15-20 years... yet some of the best batsmen in the world have been Indians. He conveniently forgot that none of those 'best batsmen in the world' are a part of his team, and that he was asked a question about his team and not the past Indian teams.

I know a small opportunity still exists. But if Sri Lanka win against Australia now, even that window of opportunity will be shut. And given that Australia are currently 4 down for 45 in 7.2 overs (with Michael Clarke at crease, I might add), the chances look bleak. God help Team India!

SRT: REWRITING HISTORY... ONCE AGAIN

The 'revenge' matches have begun. All teams have played each other once in the season... and its now time for the visitors to play hosts and for the losers to seek revenge.

MI are topping the table comforrtably... if they continue this way, the question to be asked is - will they be like the RR of 2008 or DD of 2009? In 2008, RR were the comfortable table-toppers and went on to win the inaugural IPL. In 2009, DD topped the tables, but could not even manage a place in the finals.

Maybe MI will set a new precedent by topping the table, reaching the finals, and then losing it. No way! It would only be fitting that the first Indian to lift the IPL aloft as a winning captain be Sachin Tendulkar.

I am not talking in terms of captaincy record (Ganguly will deserve it more, if that's the case). I am talking about the man that SRT is in Indian cricket... or the God! His captaincy has been so very refreshing to watch this season. It's almost as if he wants to ensure that he ties all the loose ends up before he retires from cricket.

That is why, over the last 2 years, we have seen from SRT those very things that his critics claimed he was incapable of doing. In early 2008, he scored 208 runs (including 1 unbeaten century in a chase) against Australia in the 2 finals of the CB Series. Later that year, he scored an unbeaten century in a successful fourth innings chase (5th highest ever then) on a 5th day Chennai track against England in a match that was much more than just about the 22 players on the field. In 2009, he played his role in helping India reach the No. 1 spot in ICC ODI Rankings, which could not be maintained. So he made up for it by playing his part in making India reach the No. 1 spot in ICC Test Rankings, and continue holding it till date. Then on 24th February this year, he scored an ODI 200 - the first in 2962 ODIs played by men.

And now... using the platform of IPL, he is seeking to erase the question marks that have always been see over his captaincy record. That he is an astute thinker of the game, no one can deny! However, in his captaincy stints, he was unable to inspire his team to reach dizzying heights or do the unthinkable. So after resigning as an international captain, and a decade more in cricket, he has certainly learnt something... and he is putting it to good use.

Harsha Bhogle talks at Cricinfo in his article about how he has trusted his youngsters over the international stars. He talks about how he has infused confidence in the likes of Saurabh Tiwary, Ambati Rayudu and Rajagopal Satish. He talks about how SRT himself has led from he front. He talks about the selection of Ryan McLaren, which has given him a great number of bowling options.

However, he misses out on the fact that he has taken a very hard decision this summer - dropping Sanath Jaisuriya. Even when not in the best form, SRT has always trusted the skills and abilities of the man from Matara, but he has dropped him for the balance of this side. And it's paying dividends already - in the form of Shikhar Dhawan.

So well, there you go... this is SRT! The man (sorry, God!) just wants to keep on rewriting the history again and again and again.

9 TO GO TILL IPL

Finally, after 123 days, Australia have finally lost something! The defeat to New Zealand in the 2nd Twenty20 match would statistically still be counted as a 'Tie'. I don't know why do they play the One Over Eliminator if they still want to count the match as a tie. All the previous cases of Bowl Outs are also listed as ties in the Cricinfo's archives.

In any case, Australia's last defeat in an international cricket match came on October 31, 2009 at the Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium, New Delhi against India. Since then, Australia's sequence has been:

ODIs v India: Win 3, NR 1
Tests v West Indies: Win 2, Draw 1
Tests v Pakistan: Win 3
ODIs v Pakistan: Win 5
Twenty20 v Pakistan: Win 1
ODIs v West Indies: Win 4, NR 1
Twenty20s v West Indies: Win 2
Twenty20s v New Zealand: Win 1, Tie 1 (Lost via One Over Eliminator)

In a space of 2 days, we have had two ODIs won by mid-table teams by 2 wickets with 7 or less balls to spare. One of the losing sides was the top of the table Australia, and the other one was at the opposite end of the spectrum, Bangladesh.

One match was finished off by a young 23-year old, already-played-for-two-countries, waiting-for-the-IPL Eoin Morgan. The other one was seen till the end by a 34-year old veteran, almost-12th-man, also-waiting-for-the-IPL Scott Styris. Both the winning captains were standing in due to the unavailability of their regular captains - one resting, the other recuperating. Both the 'finishers' have or have had been a part of Middlesex.

That's it. I couldn't find any more links between the 2 matches. But both have been good ODIs. Bangladesh gave England a good run for their money. Alistair Cook knows that despite the relatively easy assignment for his first stint at the helm of English cricket, things can get tricky if his batsmen continue to throw their wickets away in the 3rd ODI. A loss to Bangladesh would not only be embarassing, but also put his future as a captain of England cricket team in jeopardy. And going by what we have seen so far, that is a distinct possibility.

On the other hand, Ross Taylor and Daniel Vettori will know that Australia will bounce back hard. They have not lost an ODI series for about a year now, and will want to continue this streak for atleast 12 more months till the end of the World Cup next year. But they also know that their boys are capable of withstanding the Aussie attack. Kiwis have always been a fighting ODI unit, and with a chance to go up to as high as the No. 2 spot in the ODI Team Rankings, the Kiwis will not be budging to give an inch willingly.

So we have 9 more ODIs to look forward to (including the WI-Zim ones) before the IPL begins on the 13th March and then 1 more on the 14th. However, other than West Indies and Zimbabwe, these teams will still not be available to play due to their Test fixtures. Looking ahead to some exciting cricket on cards.

MISSES IT ON MON, SUN AND THU, SACHIN FINALLY GETS IT ON A WEDNESDAY

Monday, 8th November 1999 (Hyderabad): He threatened to do it for the first time. But he just ran out of overs against the Kiwis and finished 186*.

Sunday, 8th March 2009 (Christchurch): We were almost sure that he'll get there. But with 5 overs to go, he retired hurt at 163.

Thursday, 5th November 2009 (Hyderabad): What a heartbreak! Not only did he get out on 175, but the Indian tail somehow contrived to lose the plot completely and succumb to the pressure.

Wednesday, 24th February 2010 (Gwalior): Finally, he gets there. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar scales the hitherto unsurmounted peak of a Double Century in One Day International Cricket, finishing 200*.

In the process, SRT has broken some more records - most fours in an ODI innings (25), most 150+ scores in ODIs (5), and of course - the highest individual score by a batsman in One Day International Cricket.

When Sachin reached 179* in 42 overs, the target I wanted him to reach was 230. That's because the highest individual score in all forms of ODIs is 229* in Women's Cricket by the legendary Australian batswoman Belinda Clark in the 1997 Women's Cricket World Cup match at Mumbai against Denmark. But given the amount of frustration MS Dhoni caused to SRT fans like me, I think I should just be glad for the 200 - 200 of the silkiest and risk-free runs that Sachin might have ever scored.

Indeed, there was no dropped chance, one run out appeal to third umpire and one stumping appeal to the third umpire - both which were not very difficult decisions. In fact, except for one ball from Steyn (fourth ball of the fifth over of the match), Sachin was not beaten even once in his 147 ball stay at the crease.

If you are not already impressed, here's another one. After the first four balls that he faced from Steyn in which he did not score a run, there was no other occasion in his entire innings where he let four consecutive balls bowled to him go runless (Thank you Cricinfo for this bit of trivia). Such was the mastery!

He almost toyed around with the young Wayne Parnell (not that the other South African bowlers were spared). His two backfoot punches square on the off side early in the innings to Parnell from around the wicket were the highlights if his innings for me. Even honey can't get sweeter!

In the last 12 months, Sachin has shown that age is having no effect on his body. If anything, it is speeding him up. What else can explain 3 scores of 150+ in ODIs in the last one year? What the heck man, most batsmen would die to get one such score in their entire career!

Amidst all of this, it is so easy to forget that India won the match by 153 runs and take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. This means that India have secured the No. 2 Rank in the ICC ODI Team Rankings as on the cut off date - 1st April.

Accolades are pouring from all over the world:
- No one deserved it more than him!
- He is a true champion!
- One of the best knocks ever!
- India's Superman!
- Cricket's best brand ambassador!
- We are priveleged to be living in the Sachin era!
- Sachin's a gem of a person, apart from being a great cricketer!

And he deserves all of it. I am not sure if I will see God when I die. So till then, I am just content watching Sachin Tendulkar.