The Hindu : It all boils down to who will remain cool in the heat

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 13, 2002

Sport

Sport - Cricket

It all boils down to who will remain cool in the heat
By S. Dinakar

WILL THEY GET THEIR TURN: India's specialist opener Shiv Sundar Das (left) and home boy Tinu Yohannan await their turn at the nets. (Right): Zimbabweans Gary Brent (left) and Heath Streak seem to have found a temporary solution to the heat. - Photos: N. Balaji

KOCHI, MARCH 12. Kochi is a sparkling town with bustling traffic, a busy harbour, an inviting fort, lovely tiled buildings, alluring backwaters... and the blue Arabian Sea. With the rainy season left behind, the sky is clear too.

How wonderful it would be if the cricketing fare in the third India-Zimbabwe ODI in Kerala's commercial hub is bright and sunny as well.

And will the Indian experience and youth complement each other, in a place that is a blend of the ancient and the modern...in a heady tango.

It is bound to be `scorching' for the players of both the teams out on the field, under a blazing sun - the humidity level is also high in Kochi.

On the cricketing front, when things get hot, the Indian bowlers tend to wilt. They would do well to stay `cool' when it `burns'.

That, in fact, will be the key to the contest, that gets underway at Nehru Stadium on Wednesday... the ability of the Indian attack to handle pressure.

The fact that Dinesh Mongia's part-time left-arm spin contributed to India's series levelling (1-1) victory at Mohali, is a clear indicator that all's not well with the bowling, Harbhajan Singh being the lone exception.

And India might be without senior leg-spinner Anil Kumble, who is feeling a slight pain in his bowling shoulder. Coach John Wright indicated to the media that off-spinner Sarandeep Singh might come in in his place.

The news on the injury front is not good for Zimbabwe either. Key batsman Andy Flower is nursing a sore hip and, interestingly, skipper Stuart Carlisle hinted at the possibility of medium pacer Douglas Hondo being picked to give the side with ``another bowling option.''

Zeroing in again on the Indian attack, Zaheer Khan has not quite recovered from the blues after Douglas Marillier dismantled him so clinically in that astonishing `Death or Glory' effort in Faridabad, Ajit Agarkar's bowling is inconsistent, Kumble has appeared out of sorts after a fine Test series, and Sanjay Bangar's lack of pace provides him with very little margin for error on the batsman-friendly Indian tracks. The Nehru Stadium pitch is likely to be no different.

Someone like the in-form Murali Kartik could provide variety with his left arm spin - coach John Wright believes in this combative Railways cricketer's ability - however, the wise men have not been listening.

Local boy Tinu Yohannan was greeted with a huge roar during the practice session, however, the captain and the coach were non-committal about the paceman's inclusion for Wednesday's game. ``Everybody in the 14 has a chance,'' said Ganguly.

Actually, it is no credit to India that the scores of the five-match series are now level, against the lowly Zimbabwe. The home side, despite a comfortable win at Mohali, has lacked consistency, and with the World Cup less than a year away, the countdown has already begun. It is time to gaze at the `Big Picture.

The innovation of trying Dinesh Mongia at the top of the order has not been a failure - he is adept with lofted strokes and in the first 15 overs, when the field restrictions are in place, he can strike the ball over the infield. Spare a thought for the specialist opener in the side, Shiv Sundar Das, though.

On the positive side, Ganguly is stroking the ball with effortless ease, however, the best piece of news has been the return to form of the gifted V.V.S. Laxman, coaxing the ball into open spaces again. Rahul Dravid also silenced several of his critics with a strokeful half-century during the climactic stages of the innings at Mohali - he is too precious a player to come under scrutiny time and again. The Indian middle-order was indeed buzzing in the second ODI.

Similarly, if Andy Flower doesn't recover in time, there will be a hole in the Zimbabwe line-up. However, there have already been some gains for the spirited Zimbabweans from this tour.

In case Andy Flower misses out, there is bound to be that much more burden on the other senior in-form batsman, Alistair Campbell, who has been putting the pieces back together again.

The experiment of sending in Travis Friend as a pinch- hitter has worked, but this Zimbabwean clearly needs to work on his bowling, where he either sends down beamers in Test cricket or wides in ODIs.

Indeed, bowling has been a huge problem area for the visitors, and the sending back of Raymond Price, who made a distinct impression during the Test series with his probing left- arm spin, was baffling. Yet, despite some inherent weaknesses in the side, the Zimbabweans have displayed the heart for a battle. All credit to them.

One of the several features of Kochi is the `Chinese Fishing net,' a unique method of catching fish. Will the Zimbabweans nab the Big Fish - India - again?.

The teams:

India (from): Sourav Ganguly (Capt), Dinesh Mongia, V.V.S. Laxman, Rahul Dravid (vice-capt), Mohammed Kaif, Sanjay Bangar, Ajay Ratra, Ajit Agarkar, Anil Kumble, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Tinu Yohannan, Sarandeep Singh & Shiv Sundar Das. Coach: John Wright.

Zimbabwe (from): Stuart Carlisle (Capt), Alistair Campbell, Dion Ebrahim, Travis Friend, Andy Flower, Grant Flower, Craig Wishart, Douglas Marillier, Heath Streak, Tatendu Taibu, Gary Brent, Douglas Hondo, Mpumelelo Mbangwa & Charles Coventry. Coach: Geoff Marsh.

Umpires: Messrs. Devender Sharma & Vijay Chopra; Third umpire: Mr. Suresh Shastri; Reserve umpire: Mr. Radhakrishnan; Match referee: Mr. John Reid.

Hours of play: 9 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. & 1.15 p.m. to 4.45 p.m.

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