The recently concluded, first World Cup match between Bangladesh and India spoke volumes as much about things to expect in this world cup, as it did about the individual teams.
First, Commentators, especially Sanjay Manjarekar, have got to take a step back and evaluate their roles as ‘unbiased’ and ‘neutral’ narrators. Comments like ‘the crowd would be foolish to expect that Bangladesh would be better than India’ are not likely to get them into the good books of any purist, leave alone any Bangladesh fan or a non-Indian in general. These guys have to stop bellowing their own horns, which seems like some toxic byproduct of India’s recent success in both forms of the game (notice my clever use of words to ignore Twenty20 as a valid cricket version). Commentary should help a Cricket fan to relate with Cricket and the match at hand. We don’t need arrogance disguised as ‘expert comments’ to get through what promises to be a riveting Cricket World Cup.
Second, Teams playing in Bangladesh have got to get down to business and prepare as well as they possibly can. Especially teams from outside the sub-continent. These are pitches where stroke makers come to die, and the slow and low pitches here are going to be mighty helpful to the slow bowlers from the home side. They showed in the first game that they have enough talent in the batting department to deal in scores above 250, and this should be a wake-up call for England and South Africa to say the least. I won’t go on record to say that Indian bowling attack was at its best, but with Zaheer, Bhajji and Munaf producing below-5-runs-an-over performances, you have got to give credit to Bangladesh batters (and Sreesanth) to score in excess of 280. With Sehwag on song, the scorecard paints a different picture for the pitch. However, this was by no means a belter, and India’s 370 will prove to be an aberration (and a display of uncommonly controlled-aggressive batting by Indians). Foreign teams playing in Bangladesh - be very very wary of the Bangladesh hospitality - their cricketing skills as well as the pitches.
Third, India’s bowling has showed some pretty ominous signs of not being able to penetrate. The nature of the sub-continent wickets has been talked about enough, but is it too much to expect beyond-ordinary performances in the ‘cup that counts’ that comes only once in four years? After all, it was in these conditions that Steyn produced the performance that would go on to bring him the ‘Performance of the year’ award. Our bowlers have got to dig in deeper and find the inspiration to produce impacts. With the bowlers not in supporting role, no team can lift the World Cup. India can not ride on their batting performances for 8 matches in a row, and that is a problem that Dhoni and the team management has got to figure out. At this stage, we can not go out hunting for fresh fast bowling talent, but to go in with two specialist spinners can also be a huge gamble. Whatever they decide to do, one thing is for sure, the bowling problems will need to be worked out soon for India to fancy their chances in the knockout stages of this tournament. This mediocre bowling attack needs to step up because not everyday the batters are going to put 370 on the board. And even if they do, not everyday would you be against teams that don’t have big hitters for the home stretch that are capable of hitting their way out of any 11-an-over situation. And one loss to a 300-and-above score will be enough to shatter the confidence and take away the cozy place that India finds itself every time the batters put up a good show. If they ever arrive at a place where they don’t feel that their batters are going to get them out of jail, or a place where they feel that even the best batting performance from the top 5 might not be enough, I shudder at the thought of where the inspiration is going to come from.
Fourth, On the other hand, India’s batsmen, the ones that got a chance to bat today, have shown excellent temperament and form to intimidate most oppositions in the tournament. The indications that Sehwag has figured out the only flaw in his game is as if all our prayers have been answered just in time. If this man can extend his average stay on the crease just by 20 deliveries, the opposition sides are in for a very very tricky situation. In addition to Sehwag, in home conditions, these guys can put together insurmountable totals and the batting order that India boasts today is quite a handful for most bowling attacks visiting. To say that the number two batsman in the world doesn’t even have a confirmed spot on India’s lineup is almost ridiculous. But it is true. We finally have a rich problem to solve and I bet Dhoni would rather think about this one than the issues that captains of the past have taken on.
Finally, the fact that this world cup is going to be about slow bowlers has been mentioned enough as well. But quality fast bowling will prevail no matter what the pitch has to offer. I expect the Brett Lee’s and Steyn’s to create an impact in this world cup. But what this match showed us in sufficient detail is that games are going to be won and lost in the overs between the power plays - when captains are trying to operate with part timers, trying to get through the overs before the spearheads can come back on or operating on the mutual no-aggression treaty. That is where the teams are going to be tested. Teams with solid middle orders, the right mind-set, and teams with good first-and-second-change bowling options are the ones that are going to last deep into this tournament. These conditions are not going to be easy and it will take grit. Ability to handle slow bowling and the ability to shut out the raucous crowds are going to be the required-skills.
Pull up your socks people, the World Cup is under way!
First, Commentators, especially Sanjay Manjarekar, have got to take a step back and evaluate their roles as ‘unbiased’ and ‘neutral’ narrators. Comments like ‘the crowd would be foolish to expect that Bangladesh would be better than India’ are not likely to get them into the good books of any purist, leave alone any Bangladesh fan or a non-Indian in general. These guys have to stop bellowing their own horns, which seems like some toxic byproduct of India’s recent success in both forms of the game (notice my clever use of words to ignore Twenty20 as a valid cricket version). Commentary should help a Cricket fan to relate with Cricket and the match at hand. We don’t need arrogance disguised as ‘expert comments’ to get through what promises to be a riveting Cricket World Cup.
Second, Teams playing in Bangladesh have got to get down to business and prepare as well as they possibly can. Especially teams from outside the sub-continent. These are pitches where stroke makers come to die, and the slow and low pitches here are going to be mighty helpful to the slow bowlers from the home side. They showed in the first game that they have enough talent in the batting department to deal in scores above 250, and this should be a wake-up call for England and South Africa to say the least. I won’t go on record to say that Indian bowling attack was at its best, but with Zaheer, Bhajji and Munaf producing below-5-runs-an-over performances, you have got to give credit to Bangladesh batters (and Sreesanth) to score in excess of 280. With Sehwag on song, the scorecard paints a different picture for the pitch. However, this was by no means a belter, and India’s 370 will prove to be an aberration (and a display of uncommonly controlled-aggressive batting by Indians). Foreign teams playing in Bangladesh - be very very wary of the Bangladesh hospitality - their cricketing skills as well as the pitches.
Third, India’s bowling has showed some pretty ominous signs of not being able to penetrate. The nature of the sub-continent wickets has been talked about enough, but is it too much to expect beyond-ordinary performances in the ‘cup that counts’ that comes only once in four years? After all, it was in these conditions that Steyn produced the performance that would go on to bring him the ‘Performance of the year’ award. Our bowlers have got to dig in deeper and find the inspiration to produce impacts. With the bowlers not in supporting role, no team can lift the World Cup. India can not ride on their batting performances for 8 matches in a row, and that is a problem that Dhoni and the team management has got to figure out. At this stage, we can not go out hunting for fresh fast bowling talent, but to go in with two specialist spinners can also be a huge gamble. Whatever they decide to do, one thing is for sure, the bowling problems will need to be worked out soon for India to fancy their chances in the knockout stages of this tournament. This mediocre bowling attack needs to step up because not everyday the batters are going to put 370 on the board. And even if they do, not everyday would you be against teams that don’t have big hitters for the home stretch that are capable of hitting their way out of any 11-an-over situation. And one loss to a 300-and-above score will be enough to shatter the confidence and take away the cozy place that India finds itself every time the batters put up a good show. If they ever arrive at a place where they don’t feel that their batters are going to get them out of jail, or a place where they feel that even the best batting performance from the top 5 might not be enough, I shudder at the thought of where the inspiration is going to come from.
Fourth, On the other hand, India’s batsmen, the ones that got a chance to bat today, have shown excellent temperament and form to intimidate most oppositions in the tournament. The indications that Sehwag has figured out the only flaw in his game is as if all our prayers have been answered just in time. If this man can extend his average stay on the crease just by 20 deliveries, the opposition sides are in for a very very tricky situation. In addition to Sehwag, in home conditions, these guys can put together insurmountable totals and the batting order that India boasts today is quite a handful for most bowling attacks visiting. To say that the number two batsman in the world doesn’t even have a confirmed spot on India’s lineup is almost ridiculous. But it is true. We finally have a rich problem to solve and I bet Dhoni would rather think about this one than the issues that captains of the past have taken on.
Finally, the fact that this world cup is going to be about slow bowlers has been mentioned enough as well. But quality fast bowling will prevail no matter what the pitch has to offer. I expect the Brett Lee’s and Steyn’s to create an impact in this world cup. But what this match showed us in sufficient detail is that games are going to be won and lost in the overs between the power plays - when captains are trying to operate with part timers, trying to get through the overs before the spearheads can come back on or operating on the mutual no-aggression treaty. That is where the teams are going to be tested. Teams with solid middle orders, the right mind-set, and teams with good first-and-second-change bowling options are the ones that are going to last deep into this tournament. These conditions are not going to be easy and it will take grit. Ability to handle slow bowling and the ability to shut out the raucous crowds are going to be the required-skills.
Pull up your socks people, the World Cup is under way!
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