The Hindu : Will Ganguly's team get over its blues?

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 19, 2003

Sport

Sport - World Cup

Will Ganguly's team get over its blues?

By Vijay Lokapally

Sachin Tendulkar makes a passionate appeal for patience from Indian cricket fans at a press conference in Harare on Tuesday.

HARARE FEB. 18. It is critical time for Indian cricket and the cricketers. Expectations, bordering on insanity, may have raised visions of an Indian domination at the ICC Cricket World Cup, but it has increasingly become difficult for the team to maintain its focus.

And now reports from back home of the widespread anger among the fans have only added to the pressure on the team on the eve of its match against Zimbabwe here plus the added threat of rain playing spoilsport. The team has rarely felt such pressure as it has now and one can't remember seeing the players so despondent.

The Indian team has been confronted with reality quite early in the tournament. It has lost a match most comprehensively and won one after considerable struggle. These two matches have put things in perspective. Some areas have been exposed and some more stand in danger of being ripped open unless Sourav Ganguly sets an example or stumbles upon a messiah. The situation is too messy for Ganguly to just sit back and reflect upon past glories of the Natwest and ICC Trophy performances.

The players know they are not as good as they have been projected back home by people who never belonged to this game. But they also know that they have the talent, at least on paper, to shake the opposition, especially if it happens to be Zimbabwe or Kenya or Bangladesh.

The character of the team shall be known now when it faces an opposition which can be as unpredictable as the West Indies _ formidable one day and mediocre the next.

The Indian cricketers have shocked their legion of followers and in the process also discovered some innate shortcomings. The team lacks the substance to threaten the big teams and could end up getting badly humiliated if the seniors do not take charge and also make the juniors realise that they have a duty to perform. Enough has been said of the team's potential on paper. It is time to deliver.

The cloud of uncertainty has enveloped every aspect of the team's preparation. And all because of one miserable performance against Australia on a pitch which had some bounce. India's batting looked awfully short of conviction in the ranks and has led even Zimbabwe to back itself strongly in Wednesday's match. The home team firmly believes it has a strong case if the ball can be made to knock at the rib cage of the Indian batsmen.

With its reputation in tatters, the Indian team finds itself at the most demanding crossroad in recent times. The sickening innovations in the batting order have not come to rest and we may see some more experiments in this match. The skipper faces an unprecedented dilemma when he sits down to decide the batting order.

The pressure on him to vacate the opener's slot is enormous but the man has shown no signs of making a compromise in the interest of the team and himself. The leader suddenly has become self-centred in this battle of wits and attrition despite pleas from various quarters within the team.

The coach has been singing different tunes and does not appear to be in control of things. For John Wright too it is a severe test of character. But knowing his total commitment to the players, one can expect the Kiwi to crack the whip before it is too late. He can't afford to allow things to drift at this stage when one more defeat could spell disaster for Indian cricket.

One hopes he now sheds his favourite theme of passion being the defining factor in this team's future in the tournament. The team has to perform. It is as simple as that.

Tendulkar too has to perform

The nightmare of New Zealand tour has returned in a lethal fashion. The Indians, so confident before Ganguly went out for the toss at Paarl, look demoralised, suspecting their own potential. The worries stem from the fact that bad form has afflicted the top brass of the batting line up with even Sachin Tendulkar not able to raise his game.

He has looked in fine nick but the big innings that would distinguish him from the rest has just not happened.

Patience has run out now and Tendulkar needs to justify the tag of greatness with an innings befitting his stature in world cricket. If he is great, he must demonstrate in these times of distress by playing an imposing innings that would transform the face of Indian cricket.

For the likes of Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, the situation is equally grim. Both have looked out of sorts and in some sort of a stupor at the crease, reading too much into the pitch and the playing conditions. Yuvraj Singh in known to play one good innings in eight and one hopes this is the one he has reserved for the team.

Mohammad Kaif, enough of his precocious fielding talent please, should ideally pave the way for Sanjay Bangar in this crucial match. Ganguly holds Bangar in esteem and this is the stage for the Railway player to grab the chance and come good.

India's famed batting line up, so good in the sub-continent, holds the key. The bowlers need runs to defend and it is here that teamwork would come to the fore. How far can the batters back the bowlers. The bowling too shall have a significant part to play on Wednesday because the pitch is likely to possess some juice, thus raising the possibility of Ashish Nehra's return to the playing eleven.

Nothing to lose for Zimbabwe

The Zimbabweans have nothing to lose. The match is being seen as a means to tell the world that their country's state of affairs have been blown beyond proportion and what better way than doing it with a victory. The average citizen may not follow the intricacies of the game in Zimbabwe but there is reason to believe the masses have a silent prayer on their lips.

"I'm a Zimbabwean. I'll support Zimbabwe,'' said a porter seeing the media pass dangling. It is the spirit to excel together that shall motivate the Zimbabweans to expect a coup at the Harare Sports Club.

The Zimbabwean team is known to spoil it's opponent's party in big tournaments and one cannot rule out the possibility here. Having gained four points from England the Zimbabweans are looking at a place in the super six. In veteran Andy Flower they have a man who can sweep the Indians away. But Zimbabwe's strength lies in playing collectively.

India has a monumental challenge. The team will have to improve vastly, and therein lies a message for Ganguly. He must decide the right course of action _ the best possible line up and the right batting order. Indian cricket cannot allow matters to drift anymore. Team, and not individual, shall matter, as John Wright would have us believe.

The teams (from): India: Sourav Ganguly (captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Harbhajan Singh, Sanjay Bangar, Ajit Agarkar, Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Anil Kumble and Parthiv Patel.

Zimbabwe: Heath Streak (captain), Andy Flower, Grant Flower, Dion Ebrahim, Doug Hondo, Craig Wishart, Doug Marillier, Brian Murphy, Henry Olonga, Andy Blignaut, Tatenda Taibu, Mark Vermeulen, Guy Whittall, Travis Friend and Sean Ervine.

Umpires: Asoka de Silva and Rudi Koertzen. Third umpire: Darrell Hair. Fourth umpire: Shaid Wadvalla. Match Referee: Clive Lloyd. Hours of play (IST): 1.30 p.m. to 5 p.m.; 5.45 p.m. onwards.

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