Thursday, August 4, 2005

The elusive Indian all-rounder

The Indian cricket team has been struggling to find an all rounder ever since Kapil Dev's departure. Forget about a star bowler like Kapil. India badly needs someone who can score 3-50 runs and be counted to bowl 10 consistent overs in every match.

The Indian team management strategy of unearthing this elusive player is completely baffling. India has played three matches and not once has anyone who fits that profile been given his quota of overs to bowl. Venugopal Rao never got to bowl in the two matches he played. Then he was dumped from the team. Raina seems to have developed into a run out specialist. He gets to bowl the last over to give away the winning runs. Kinda like giving the young boy a candy. JP Yadav is busy warming the benches while Ganguly and Sehwag get to cover for the 5th bowler! Firstly, how can you unearth an all rounder unless you experiment with those who fit the profile?

India went into this series knowing fully well that the fifth bowler-all rounder slot was crucial. Then, we select a few newbies and never try them out! Why were these guys selected if the captain does not have the confidence to try them out? What kind of message does it send to these newcomers? In my opinion the captain must select a couple of bowlers who he thinks are the going to be his 5th, 6th and 7th bowling options and then make sure they bowl in every single match. That's the only way they can identify this key player.


No comments: