Sport
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Cricket
On predictable lines
By K. Srikkanth
So the contest went along predictable lines. The Indians are one-up in what promises to be a rather one-sided three-Test series.
The collapse of the English side once again exposed the serious shortcomings in its line-up. There was hardly any resistance, any fight.
That the team, with all ten wickets in hand going into the fourth day, could not even last two full sessions, tells its own story. England is in a hole.
The English media has been extremely critical of the Indian teams when they have found the going tough in England. Wonder what these `wise men' are going to write about their own side now.
Nasser Hussain's men seem to have no clue about tackling the Indian spinners. They are neither positive in their methods, nor rock solid in defence.
And unless the English batsmen pick themselves up, this could be one of the most disappointing series in recent times.
Cricket is all about two sides fighting every inch of the way, and when one of the teams is unable to make a match of it, the game in terms of a contest, falls flat.
The match reiterated the fact that the Indians are Kings at home, with the batsmen breathing easy and the spinners weaving their web. It is a very different kind of battle.
The kind of battle that Anil Kumble relishes. The leg- spinner went through a tough phase following his return from a shoulder surgery, and his lack of success in South Africa raised some uncomfortable questions.
However, Kumble's match-winning performance in Mohali has shown that there is plenty of cricket still left in him. He is mentally strong and has come back well.
The noteworthy aspect of his bowling on Day Four was the impeccable line. When the batsmen missed, he either hit the stumps or trapped them leg-before. There is also that extra bite in his bowling on the Indian pitches.
In the second innings, offie Harbhajan Singh, the strike bowler in the first essay, played the role of a support bowler wonderfully well. The Englishmen appear to have no idea about the one that goes through straight from the Sardar.
Harbhajan went back to `flighting the ball' in this Test and the results could be seen straightaway. In South Africa, he tended to bowl flat, and the crucial element of bounce was missing from his bowling.
When Harbhajan wreaked havoc against the Aussies earlier this year, he didn't have Kumble along with him - the Karnataka bowler was injured during that period. Now that they are operating in tandem at home, they could script a lot more victories.
In fact, at Mohali they bowled on a pitch that was not a `turner' by any yardstick. It was a flat track for most part, and all credit to the Indian spin duo.
It is also about time that India grooms a left-arm spinner to provide even more variety to the attack. Too many left-armers have made their appearance and then disappeared in a hurry in recent times, and it is about time that the selectors give one of them an extended run.
If they do not have faith in the current crop of left- armers, then offie Sarandeep Singh, who did his cause no harm when he made his Test debut against Zimbabwe last year, can be tried.
Spin ruled for most part at Mohali, however, a measure of praise for the young Tinu Yohannan would not be out of place. The Kerala paceman provided the crucial breakthroughs in the morning, and sent down some well-directed short pitched deliveries. He has indeed made a fine Test debut.
The Indians too have made the right kind of start at Mohali. And if England doesn't improve dramatically, we could witness a repeat of the '93 series at home, when England was swept away 3-0.
www.krishsrikkanth.com
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