5 takeaways for Captain Dhoni from the Ashes

A predictable outcome notwithstanding, the recently concluded Ashes has presented Indian captain MS Dhoni with a lot to ponder ahead of the busy 2013/14 Test season.

Here's a lowdown on what Indian cricket - Dhoni in particular can learn from the 3-0 bashing that Poms handed over to the pitiable Aussies.  

1) Old is invariably gold : At an age when many quicks are seeking post retirement benefits in the Twenty20 leagues or easing their aching bones into commentary boxes and coaching gigs, Ryan Harris, 33, was Australia's man of the series in the Ashes tour - claiming 24 wickets at 19.58 in four matches. That was the first time he has ever played four Tests in a row due to a career-long battle with fitness problems. Indeed, he has worn the Baggy Green just 16 times since his debut in March 2010 despite being considered one of his country's most incisive bowlers and boasting a superb record.

It would be detrimental to India's chances of succeeding overseas if MS Dhoni fails to pick a certain Zaheer Khan - form and fitness permitting for India's tour of South Africa later this year as the premier strike bowler's  years of experience at the international level would prove invaluable to the team.

2) Stable opening partnership : For time immemorial, the hallmark of a successful Test team has invariably been in possessing a stable opening pair. While England made a contentious selection in promoting Joe Root to open the batting with captain Alastair Cook, the team management was sensible enough in giving the opening combine a long rope by sticking to it in all the matches. Contrasting in approach, Australian team management tested as many as three different opening combinations in the series, with Chris Rogers, David Warner and Shane Watson opening at different points of the series.

Continuous chopping and changing of batting order shatters the confidence of players and Dhoni would do well to remember that  while the two Indian Test opener's  accession to the top table of international cricket is not yet assured, giving them a long rope would be in the best interest of Indian cricket.

3) Experience matters : At 35 years of age, Chris Rogers was never intended to be a long-term solution. The veteran opener was drafted into the side, in the hope he would provide a much-needed steady hand at the top of the order in back-to back Ashes contests and subsequently pave the way for the youngsters. Hailed as one of the few success stories for Australia (he made a ton and two-half centuries), Roger's vast experience has left him better equipped to handle the pressure and rigours of Test cricket than the twenty-somethings.

Having said that, much to Dhoni's chagrin, does this provide a glimmer of hope to Gambhir or perhaps even Sehwag? Only time will tell.

4) Importance of No. 3 :  Every good team has a strong No. 3 batsman and that's been evident in the most successful Test sides of recent times. South Africa has Hashim Amla, a run-making machine, Sri Lanka has the silky Kumar Sangakkara and Jonathan Trott performed a similar role for England until recently. It's no coincidence that Trott's slump in the Ashes coincided with England putting up lower totals. However, since Ponting  has retired, No. 3 has been an Achilles' heel during a period of limited Australian success. That's why the importance of Shane Watson's belligerent century at the Oval can't be overstated as it allowed Australia to dominate the hosts and set up a thrilling Ashes finale.   

And while India in the past had Rahul Dravid with his technical efficiency, Indian cricket would be served well  provided Dhoni sticks with Cheteshwar Pujara, who has a liking for big scores.

5) Similar pattern of team composition : Teams dominating Test cricket typically have a similar pattern of team composition especially when it comes to bowling. Australia in their prime had McGrath, Gillespie and Lee along with Warne. The current England team owes a large chunk of their success to bowlers like Anderson, Broad, Bresnan and Swann and their capability of taking 20 wickets in a Test.

India's relatively inexperienced attack comprising of Ishant, Umesh and Kumar along with Ashwin and Jadeja have proved to be highly successful at home on spin-friendly tracks. But with significant overseas tours in the offing, Dhoni's selection policy will play a key role in Team India's quest to attain the elusive No. 1 ranking in Test cricket.

Placid tracks during 'A' Tour is South African ploy to foil Indian plans

When the BCCI  announced that the India A team would be touring South Africa for a tri-series involving the A sides of the hosts and Australia, there was plenty of cheer in the India cricket community.

India A's tour of South Africa was deemed to be more of a preparation for the forthcoming tour of the senior team in the tough and bouncy conditions. However, it appears like the 

Cheteshwar Pujara-led side is having it easy.

A brief look at the scores in the recently concluded tri-series and one could be excused for thinking that the matches were being played in the subcontinent.

Of the total seven games played in the tri-series, a mammoth 4090 runs were scored by all the three teams combined. That translates into a colossal 292.14 runs per innings. A flat pitch with true bounce and short boundaries resulted in seven hundreds being scored, including Shikhar Dhawan's jaw-dropping 248 against South Africa A. Ironically, it was the final that turned out to be a damp squib and the lowest scoring game of the series, which India A managed to win by 50 runs against Australia A.

The story was not too different when India A played their first unofficial 'Test' at Olympia Park, Rustenburg on August 17^th. After posting an impressive 582 in the first innings with Pujara, Sharma and Raina slamming centuries, Indian quicks-born and brought up on flat decks were quick to dismantle the Proteas to hand visitors a thumping innings and 13-run win.

With the second Test currently underway in batsman-friendly Pretoria, where the home team are without the services of Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Marchant de Lange, the result seems to be a foregone conclusion.

When asked if the performances here could be a red herring for the senior team ahead of their tour in December, India A's coach Lalchand Rajput was frank in his assessment when he said " We expected a lot of bounce and seam movement. What we have got here though is a complete paata (belter) wicket. It's been a surprise. But conditions are not in our control."

Not someone to be misled by the prevailing conditions, Cheteshwar Pujara was quick to add "These wickets are quite flat out here at the moment and when we come in December, the conditions will be hugely different and we are aware about it. It's about getting used to the conditions, not the wickets only but the weather and other aspects of this game."

In this context of flat tracks, while it's difficult to be excited about some of the batting performances, it is pertinent to mention that all the Indian batsman have been among runs.

For the bowlers, this could yet turn out to be a good lesson. They might not have got the pitches they anticipated but at least they know what areas they have to work on.

They were slaughtered throughout the tournament but somehow, the Indians led by Mohammad Shami managed to produce an inspiring performance to help India A win the final. Ishwar Pandey's hard work finally paid dividends, when the young pacer decimated the Proteas line-up with a scintillating 7-wicket haul in the first Test, helping India A notch up a comprehensive victory.

To some this may seem as a deliberate ploy on part of Cricket South Africa to negate any advantages to the visiting Indian side comprising members of the senior team and fringe players. But when one takes into account the stakes involved-The coveted No. 1 Test ranking, the famous adage 'All's fair in love and war' seems totally apt.

Indian selectors have failed to understand the true meaning of 'A' tours

With a resounding 50-run victory in the final of the triangular 50-over series against Australia A, India A finished the limited overs leg of their tour of South Africa on a high. 

It is interesting to note that from the 16-man squad led by Cheteshwar Pujara, as many as ten members were part of the Indian team that swept Zimbabawe 5-0 in the recent series. The remaining six were part of a short camp at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore before departing for the Rainbow Nation on August 3.

In fact most of the batsman in the playing eleven have been an integral part of the senior side in recent months. Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma have opened the batting for India since the ICC Champions Trophy 2013. Dinesh Karthik and Suresh Raina have also been fixtures in the side. Only Cheteshwar Pujara and Ambati Rayudu are yet to get an extended run in the senior one-day team. Thus, India A was relatively stronger when compared to the batting units of their opponents.

What one needs to realize is, that the very purpose of conducting 'A' tours is to give international exposure to players who have been consistently knocking on the selectors' doors for quite a while. 

For long, 'A' tours have provided a good opportunity for fringe players to earn a berth in the senior team. Players who are in and out of the team, coming off of an injury or those who have done extremely well in the domestic circuit, in other words those who are not regulars in the team, are basically the intended beneficiaries of such tours. 

With the current tour being wrongly labelled as an audition of sorts for several members of the 16-man squad considering India will travel to South Africa in November for a full series against the hosts, the sole purpose of testing India's bench strength has been defeated.

Yes, all this while Dhawan smashed his way to the record books with a breathtaking 248-run knock. But if we take a moment to pause and think that if Dhawan would have managed 200 runs less than that in the innings and scored 48 runs, won't he still have been opening the batting for the senior side, considering his past exploits?

Similar is the case with Rohit Sharma. Having yet again flattered to deceive, without converting any of his three fifties in the series, Sharma seems yet again being easily satisfied. Irrespective of the scores, it's a no-brainer that he will be seen partnering Dhawan at the top of the order for the national team.

Instead of putting pressure on these openers, selectors lost a golden opportunity in trying out other openers in the fray, notably Ajinkya Rahane and Murali Vijay, thereby robbing them of opportunities to stake a claim for a place in the national team.

The true essence of an 'A' tour would have come to the fore when players like Sharma and Raina who are yet to establish themselves in the longer version of the game, taken part only in the second leg of the series. The First-Class matches against South Africa A provide a chance to prove themselves and push for a berth in the touring party, come November.

They may not get a game on the big tour, but may be in the fray for the later series. After all, Sachin Tendulkar's retirement is around the corner and his exit would leave a gaping hole at No. 4. Even if Virat Kohli is promoted to that spot, No. 5 would still be up for grabs.

With the Sandeep Patil led selection committee seemingly unable to comprehend the true meaning of 'A' tours, hopefully that's something Indian cricket doesn't regret in the future.

Sri Lanka's youngsters fail to inspire confidence

It's the end of another tournament. Another home series won by a handsome margin. But sadly for Sri Lanka Cricket, it's those familiar faces again who continue to top the charts.

Not long ago there was a huge buzz in Emerald Isle about how youngsters were not getting enough chances at the highest level. When Thilan Samaraweera retired from all forms of the game having lost his place in both ODI and Test teams, Sri Lankan selectors  finally woke up to answer the clarion call by providing an opportunity to youngsters in the Champions Trophy, tri-nation tournament in the Caribbean as well as the home series against South Africa. But have they really delivered the goods that were expected from them? No! Instead they have hopelessly disappointed a nation of cricket lovers.

For a nation that has witnessed the likes of Madugalle and Ranatunga wielding the willow, it seems only proper that the silken touch of Jayawardene and the flamboyance of Sangakkara are worthy heirs to the flair of Attapattu, grit of Aravinda de Silva and brutal power of Jayasuriya. However, with the two guardians of Sri Lankan cricket along with the aggressive match winner Dilshan fast approaching the twilight of their careers, it is baffling to observe the dearth of talent to replace them.

Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews are the captains of the national team in different formats of the game. There is certainly no doubt in the talent that both Chandimal and Mathews possess. But in recent times their talent has rarely translated into match winning performances on the field.

Their inability to convert starts and help the senior pros in forming substantial partnerships has hurt the team badly. Time and again, they have fallen victims to injudicious strokes when the need of the hour has been to stay on the wicket and play patiently, letting themselves and their fans down.

Kusal Perera has averaged just over five in his last seven international innings. Having arrived in the international side in a whirlwind of hype, his failures continue to be considered kindly, but it won't be long before there are calls to send him back to domestic cricket so that someone else can be tried.

The idea behind selecting Lahiru Thirimanne for ODI's was that he could provide some stability in a rather fragile middle order. But it seems when Thirimanne bats, nothing happens. He is terribly slow, a fact vindicated not only in the recent home series but also in the Champions Trophy. It is difficult to digest that Thirimanne’s striker rate in ODI's (68.48) is worse than Samaraweera’s (69.29).

Tillakaratne Dilshan has admitted that Sri Lanka cricket in fact is in crisis at present and blames the existing domestic cricket structure for producing half-baked cricketers. According to the in form opener "There's a huge gap between our domestic level and the international level. So when cricketers integrate directly from domestic level to international level it takes time for them to bridge that gap. So we need to revamp the domestic structure, making it as competitive as possible. This is why cricketers coming from other countries do better when called up for national duty".

Except for exposing their cricketing immaturity, Sri Lanka's youth brigade has hardly been effective leaving the seniors to do the job. The side's senior batsmen have carried the load on their shoulders for some years now. All three are yet to taste major tournament glory and now may only have two more opportunities remaining to them before the years begin to weary their game. For the sake of Sri Lanka Cricket, it is high time that the youngsters stand up and get counted. After all the cricketing world cannot afford a sub-continental giant to fritter away in obscurity.

Is Ireland Cricket fighting a lost cause?

On  July 9^th 2013, Ireland became the first Associate nation to qualify for the 2015 World Cup. However there are good chances that most of the cricketing world would have missed the high intensity drama that day in Amstelveen as Ireland pulled off a thrilling last-ball tie against their Dutch hosts.IRELAND CRICKET

For long, Ireland has been at the forefront of rising standards and profile of Associate and Affiliate cricket around the world. The World Cup 2015 will be Ireland's sixth global event, with the side having already competed in the 2007 and 2011 editions, as well as the ICC World Cup Twenty20 in 2009, 2010 and 2012.

During the 2007 event in the Caribbean, the Irish broke many hearts when their motley bunch of amateurs-including a postman, a farmhand, a school teacher and an electrician-defeated Pakistan. Four years hence, Kevin O' Brien smashed the fastest century in World Cup history as Ireland defeated England in extraordinary fashion.

If Irish player expectations have soared, then so too have those of supporters and administrators. In the last three years, Ireland have been defeated just four times in 42 ODI's by their fellow Associates and Affiliates, clearly establishing their kingpin status in the Associate world.

With seemingly no more lands to conquer, Cricket Ireland recently announced that it will apply for full membership of ICC, with ambitions for Test status by 2020. But without a clear roadmap  for graduating to the next level and reluctance on the part of ICC to define , let alone create one after the premature and hurried elevation of Bangladesh - Irish players seem to have become flustered. In a sport like cricket, careers are finite and the lure of better opportunities (read Test Cricket) has proved overpowering for some.

From the likes of Ed Joyce who once went astray only to find out that he was not in England's scheme of things for Test Cricket to limited overs giant Eoin Morgan-who has slipped down England's pecking order in the longer version of the game, Cricket Ireland has been rendered helpless in preventing its players from representing England. Another Irish star, fast bowler Boyd Rankin has just recently become a part of England setup and it won't be long before the talented 21-year old left-arm spinner George Dockrell is lapped up by them.

It's clear that the quality of cricketers being produced by the emerald isle is not a problem. One argument against Ireland's elevation is lack of stadia. Ireland currently host their home matches at Stormont in Belfast and Clontarf in Dublin, each having a capacity of over 5,000 spectators for internationals. But with the under construction stadia in Malahide, planned to have a capacity of over  10,000 to be completed in the next two months, Ireland will be able to spread its fixtures between three top quality venues.

Another argument puts forth the fact that Ireland has no domestic first-class structure in place. Ireland's chief executive, Warren Deutrom has outlined a plan to establish a provincial first-class structure, although the plans are still in a nascent stage. It is important to note that Bangladesh received their Test status before their first-class competition could be properly established. Only in the season following their  first Test match, did the National Cricket League become a first-class competition.  

With seemingly all the bases covered, where is Ireland cricket heading?  Test Nations continue to ignore their improving one-day results since it doesn't make financial sense to play them. The ICC, despite its rhetoric about globalising the game, doesn't act to stem the talent drain.

With a number of Irish players playing in the highly-competitive County circuit, Ireland should be better prepared for Tests than say, players from Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Moreover providing Test status would help them retain quality players and feature in more top-level competitions. At least their ODI record shows they are good enough. For the moment though, it remains an agonizing wait for Irish cricket fans and its cricketers, for whom, Test status still seems a distant dream.

MAGGI MAN's Rise Shows Why Opening No Longer a Specialist's Job

It is often said in cricket that opening the innings is a job best left to specialists. After all, a specialist opener must possess the rare combination of a different technique and a different mindset to achieve success at the top of the order. 

But the history of one-day cricket is replete with examples of players who have made successful transition from middle-order to opening, thereby quashing the notion that it is a specialised position.

Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly,  Sanath Jayasuriya, Mark Waugh, Adam Gilchrist and many more set new benchmarks in ODI cricket with their explosive and flamboyant batting, ably showcasing their batting prowess with consistency hitherto unseen in the game.

While it is true that all these greats came into their respective teams primarily as middle-order batsman, in most cases circumstances forced them to get converted to openers-possibly as a last resort to save their promising careers.

A case in point is Rohit Sharma. His recent success , albeit as an opener in ODI's has once again shown how someone with a sound technique and temperament can resurrect his career by switching atop the order.

Thrust into the opener's role, he was instrumental in helping the team win the Champions Trophy and the tri-series in the West Indies. He was the second highest run-getter for India in the ICC event with 177 runs at 35.40 and the top scorer in the West Indies with 217 runs at 54.25.

When Sharma burst on to the international scene as a member of M S Dhoni's Twenty-20  World Cup winning squad back in 2007, critics quickly labelled him as the potential successor to Rahul Dravid. Things, however did not unfold that way.

Despite being one of India's most talented cricketers, the Mumbaikar soon became an epitome of inconsistency. So frequent were his flashes of brilliance combined with a flatter-to-deceive-act, that he allowed some of his contemporaries to steal a march on him as he continued to struggle for a spot in the Indian team.

Although being given a long rope, Sharma had made just 1949 runs in 83 matches at a disappointing average of just a shade over 30, prior to his stint as an opener.

It was only in January 2013, when the team management frustrated with his inconsistencies decided to gamble with him at the top of the order, providing possibly the last ray of hope to revive his largely unfulfilled career.

And, he grabbed it with both hands, scoring a stroke-filled  83 off only 93 balls to set up a series-clinching victory for the Men-in-Blue.

Sharma's track record as an opener speaks volume of his talent and he has been quoted as saying "From the point of view of consistency, this has certainly been the best phase as an international cricketer. I am enjoying my new role as an opener. That I have been successful and my contribution has helped the team's cause makes it even more satisfying. I am hoping to keep up the good work."

While Sharma has a lot to prove before being considered in the same breath as his more illustrious predecessors who had successfully converted as openers, 2013 might well be his year. Rohit Sharma may just have woken up from his slumber to play a long innings. After all, he is too good a player to not come good for India.

Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara - Now or Never !!

Post the victorious limited overs campaigns in England and West Indies, India are all set to embark on a tour to Zimbabwe with a relatively young and inexperienced side. While such a tour demands justification considering that the national team plays virtually non-stop throughout the year, it presents a one-of-a kind opportunity for fringe players looking to cement a place in the senior India squad and subsequently be in the scheme of things for 2015 World Cup. 

Looking back at the team selected for the five-match series, there are two players who will be viewing this tour as a make or break case. The quality of the opposition notwithstanding, an impressive performance here will undoubtedly force the selectors to have a harder look at the current batting order of the senior team, however failure could well see them lose their place forever. Yes, we are talking about Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara.

The importance of performing in the international arena cannot be better understood than by a certain Ajinkya Rahane. Before his debut in the Delhi Test in the 2013 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Rahane had been a part of the Indian squad for an astonishing five consecutive series, dating back to November 2011 against West Indies - without getting a look in.

During that period, India had won three series and lost two, including at home against England. As many as seven players made their debut during this period even as Rahane started being labelled as the "permanent drinks-fetcher and substitute fielder" by the media.

Before this however, Rahane had forced his way into the Indian ODI team on the back of a stupendous record in domestic cricket, but failed to cash in on the opportunities he got at the international level courtesy a generous captain. 

Rahane played 16 ODIs since making his debut against England in 2011, amassing 404 runs, at a disappointing average of 25.

He started off on a good note, scoring 40 and 54 in his first two ODIs in England, but thereafter found it difficult to score on a consistent basis. He slammed 91 against England at Mohali in October 2011, but since then accumulated a mere 126 runs in eight innings before finally getting the axe.

And in an irony of sorts, his spot has since been taken over by a former middle-order batsman and his Mumbai teammate Rohit Sharma. While Rahane gets his opportunity this time albeit as a middle-order batsman, he will do well to fathom that seizing this golden opportunity will only happen if he performs on a consistent basis and scores big, even if against the lowly attack of Zimbabwe.

Another player who will look to stake a claim in the first choice ODI team is Cheteshwar Pujara. The tour to Zimbabwe finally allows the Saurashtra run machine to make his ODI debut for India. Despite being amongst the best batting talents to have emerged from the slippery rungs of India's domestic cricket ladder in recent times, it is highly unfortunate that Pujara has been labelled as a proverbial 'Test Match' specialist. His good showing in the Tests coupled with his ability to play marathon innings in the longer version of the game have gone against him when it comes to the limited overs format of the game.

But Pujara has time and again dispelled the notion of being a slowcoach by scoring runs at a brisk pace. During the Test series against Australia, Pujara hammered 419 runs at an average of 83, with an equally impressive strike rate of 62. He further plundered the Australian attack in the second innings of the fourth Test in Delhi by scoring 82 from 92 balls, thereby putting to rest his inability to score quick runs when needed.

It is no secret that flamboyance in the current batting order has paid rich dividends for the men in blue. On slow wickets (uncharacteristic English wickets included), the team can get away with a line-up full of stroke players; but in conditions akin to Australia and New Zealand (slated to jointly co-host the 2015 World Cup) which are known for their fast and bouncy wickets, Pujara's role will be as important as Rahul Dravid's was in the 2003 World Cup in South Africa.

The upcoming tour therefore gives him the ideal platform to impress upon the selectors that his batsmanship is not restricted to any particular format. Pujara in all probability is expected to bat at No. 4, serving the role of sheet-anchor and technical fulcrum around which the batting will revolve.

With Dinesh Karthik failing to nail down his place in a full-strength middle order, the game of cat and mouse has begun for a couple of positions in the batting order. Those who rise to the occasion are sure to reap rich dividends in the future.