Dec 31, 2006 04:33 PM
2380 Views
(Updated Dec 31, 2006 09:10 PM)
The Indian team was upbeat after the win in the first test against SA.
Then what went wrong in the 2nd test?
I am a keen follower of Indian cricket. My observations after watching the Indian team perform in the 2nd test are:
1)India was outplayed in every department of the game in the second test.
2)The Indian team desperately needs an all-rounder.
3)We need 2 technically sound batsman to open the innings on overseas tours(We all know we are tigers at home!).
I think the batting failed as much as the bowling did. We should have restricted to South Africans to 75 runs less in the second innings and atleast 50 runs less in the first. Dravid could have used Tendulkar and Sehwag to break the sameness of the bowling attack. VRV Singh has to bring some variety to his bowling. Zaheer seems to have lost his yorker length deliveries. Sreesanth bowled splendidly in this test match, wish there was more support for him in the second innings. I also felt what happened on the 5th day was simply miraculous. Makhaya Ntini bowled his heart out and was simply unplayable in those overcast conditions. The balls that got Tendulkar and Laxman out were fabulous deliveries.
I feel we need an all-rounder at No.8 to save us test matches when we tour overseas. And our batting looks ill-equipped to face the battery of fast bowlers when playing teams like Australia, South Africa, or even New Zealand for that matter. I wonder where Akash Chopra and Shiv Sundar Das have gone? Akash Chopra was one of the most technically sound batsman to have played for Indian in the last 5 years. Sehwag should never open for India in Test matches when we tour countries like SA or Aus. He might succeed in Pakistan but he will look his confidence if we ask him to open in conditions that suite fast bowling and swing.
I think Dravid got two dubious decisions in this test match. India desperately needs an all-rounder at no.8. Irfan Pathan would have been more than useful at that number if he was picked, but he seems to have lost his bowling form of late and lost his place in the side. I think we must not over-criticize the batsmen for what happened on the 5th and final day. Those were overcast conditions, Ntini and Nel bowled some outstanding spells, and we had a thin batting line-up, and the light was not great. Let's give it to the
South Africans, they played superbly to come out on tops after playing badly on the first day. Shreesanth has brought a new energy and dimension to the side, one just hopes he does not get carried away with it.
