The Hindu : Indians have a lot to learn from the Aussies

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 25, 2003

Sport

Sport - World Cup

Indians have a lot to learn from the Aussies

By Vijay Lokapally

Photo: V.V. Krishnan

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: The Australian players greet each other after retaining the World Cup in style in Johannesburg on Sunday.

JOHANNESBURG MARCH 24. Their radiant faces reflected the joy of a champion. Australia was ruthless in its annihilation of India at The Wanderers and there was immense pride in every step that Ricky Ponting took towards the podium.

The Australians played to a plan after studying the opposition and knew their lines before the actual battle began. While the Cup win proved the depth of Australian cricket, the margin of victory amply reflected the difference between the teams.

Australia was a complete team and was mostly in command. True, it had a bumpy ride against Pakistan, England and New Zealand but found match-winners on all the occasions. Andrew Symonds, Michael Bevan and Andy Bichel, in that order, emphasised the Aussie character of not depending solely on individuals.

Ponting's success in the final was a lesson in application. The Australia skipper had an indifferent form in the preceding matches but put his head down and came up with an outstanding innings when it mattered most. His face beamed with pride when he said "this was my best by a mile.''

It was to Australia's credit that it maintained the high standards it has set for itself. Coach John Buchanan succinctly summed up his team's progress, saying it was "clinical.'' It was a well-crafted win and the strength, as Buchanan observed, came from the desire to do better than the others.

The Aussies were dominant right through the tournament. The batsmen and bowlers backed themselves and the captain had sound tactical support from the dressing room. One remembers the 1999 World Cup when the Australian designated Glenn McGrath as the assassin. His job was to snare Sachin Tendulkar and The Oval saw the wily Aussie fox the Indian master. He was given the same job here too and McGrath did not disappoint again, surprising Tendulkar with a ball that climbed on him faster than he anticipated.

Badly exposed

Tendulkar's failure in yet another Cup final will be the subject of debate again but the Indians were thoroughly exposed by the Australians twice in this tournament. At Centurion, the Aussie bowlers ruined the Indian batsmen's reputation and at The Wanderers they destroyed the confidence of a bowling attack which looked ordinary when Ponting and Damien Martyn went berserk.

However, India did well to reach the final of a tournament which never really rose to great heights. A handful of matches in the preliminary league enlivened the competition but it was mediocre fare right from the Super

Six stage with not one match worth remembering. The duration tested the patience of the teams but also contributed towards testing the endurance of the players.

It can be tough for a player to maintain top form over a long period and this applied to the Indian bowlers who were pedestrian on the day of reckoning.

No doubt, India and Australia were the two best teams but the difference between them was huge. Australia backed itself to win the tournament and the mission was accomplished authoritatively. The Indians too promised a lot as they improved with every match but the bubble burst in the final when the bowlers were put in their places. Even Australia possessed a depleted attack, what with Shane Warne lost even before the tournament commenced and Jason Gillespie midway through on account of injury. Yet, it did not miss two of its best bowlers because it had strong replacements.

The same cannot be said of India, which stuck to a seven-batsman policy with hopes that Virender Sehwag, Tendulkar, Dinesh Mongia and Yuvraj Singh will chip in as bowlers.

"We lack a quality all-rounder,'' was Ganguly's justification in taking seven batsmen. The move always carried a risk against quality batsmen which the Australians proved they were and quite devastatingly.

The skipper's statement might not go down well with Ajit Agarkar and Sanjay Bangar, who both are rated as all-rounders by coach John Wright.

The captain's faith in Harbhajan Singh was based on the off-spinner's exploits on friendly pitches at home but he was bound to struggle in the absence of support at the other end.

Kumble treated shabbily

Sadly, Anil Kumble lost his place due to the team management's obsession to play Dinesh Mongia as the seventh batsman. It was always debatable if Mongia had the potential to change the course of a match, batting at No. 7 or with his left-arm spin. With the benefit of hindsight, one can say that the Indians did not treat Kumble fairly.

The Indians had much to learn from the Australians who had faith in every member. The coach pointed out that the idea was to thrust responsibility on the youngsters and adopt a consistent selection policy.

The best example was Ian Harvey, who despite a decent showing in the semifinal against Sri Lanka, giving way to Martyn who had recovered from injury.

The depth in the Australian ranks was real, unlike the Indian myth.

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