Tuesday, May 07, 2002
Tuesday, May 07, 2002 |
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Cricket
By Vijay Lokapally
Any suggestions for boosting the team's morale? That's the question Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly seems to be asking a pensive Javagal Srinath, the day after the team lost the third Test against the West Indies in Bridgetown on Sunday.
On the surface, everything looks fine with the Indian team. But scratch a little and things would be different from what is generally perceived. And don't be surprised to know that the coach and captain are at loggerheads on the selection issue. "When will they learn? At the end of the day, the biggest issue we've on tour is shot selection.'' These were coach John Wright's words after India's loss to Zimbabwe at Harare. Shot selection. The seniors and juniors are still engaged in trying to sort out this `minor problem.' "It's really something we can talk about and practice. It's about self-discipline. What's important is the choice you make in the middle. It's disappointing when you do things and repeat the mistakes. The first day was our nemesis really,'' was Wright's honest assessment of the humiliating defeat at the Kensington Oval. Wright has said the same thing numerous times, in team meetings and media briefings. And the coach must be exasperated to see the players making "exactly the same mistakes.'' Why are the players not learning, the tail especially? "We need a little time," was Wright's reply. Do seniors need time to recover and recoup? "It's true. Going into this Test match we knew we needed more from the tail but at the same time we expect our frontline batsmen to put them (the tail) in a position from where they don't feel the pressure. We really needed to get through the first two hours on the first day, which was very critical. Sourav didn't look in any trouble at all until the run out (of Dravid)," was Wright's answer while skipper Ganguly nodded. The coach was then asked if he would blame the pitch for the debacle. "We can't blame anybody or anything. At the end of the day, no matter under what conditions we bat on, we can't blame anything. We got to aggregate a decent total. If we score 150 in the first innings, we got to make sure we make 400 in the second,'' Wright said. "We'll have a good look at things between now and Antigua. We're confident. The batsmen can do the job in the series," said Wright about the matches ahead. Ganguly seemed to have come prepared for the `tricky' questions — shades of Mohammad Azharuddin who had the same answers at the end of every Test while defending his team. When the skipper was asked to comment on the difference between the last tour and the present one, he replied quickly: "this wicket was a lot harder; there was grass last time. It was also uneven on the fourth day. This was a much better wicket than it was last time." What about Antigua? Ganguly was quick to answer again. "No cricket's been played on that pitch. Whatever is going to happen to one team will happen to the other too." The skipper was being fair, at least! What did he feel of the collapse in the first innings? "It happens. You get a couple of good balls. You lose a couple of wickets and you find that you're struggling. As John (Wright) said we didn't get much contribution from the lower order, which is a problem area in our team. Believe me, this is normal in international cricket but other teams have the ability to come back and score runs in the lower order."
Kumble back in the reckoning?
When someone remarked that Harbhajan Singh looked an ordinary bowler, Ganguly jumped to the defence of the off-spinner. "I don't agree at all. He's got nearly 100 wickets in 23 Tests. (Anil) Kumble is definitely in contention for the rest of the games. He has a great record for India. Obviously he'll be in our thoughts when we pick the team for the Antigua Test." Ganguly then defended his batting form. "I've been hitting the ball pretty well right from the beginning of the year. I failed in one innings and everybody started talking about my own form. By God's grace I've been hitting the ball pretty well. And I hope I can continue for the rest of the series. Asked to predict the outcome of the series, Ganguly sounded confident. "If we bat well we can still win the series." What were Ganguly's expectation on the fourth morning ? "We really had to bat well. Had to think about the good things we've done in the past. The Test against Australia at the Eden Gardens was always on my mind. The Mohali Test (against England) was also vivid but Laxman got out early in the day. And there's no harm in accepting that the West Indies played better than us,'' was Ganguly's candid reply. The skipper refuted suggestions that India was not mentally prepared to tackle the situation. "It wasn't lost in the mind. You lose some; you win some. We have two Tests to go. Maybe we might have different results."
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