Good Judgment | Vivek Atray
India's defeat against the formidable South Africans in a Group match of the ICC World Cup 2011 should not be cause for alarm bells to ring at this stage of the tournament. Team India has all but qualified for the Quarter Finals but they do need to take remedial measures in order to ensure that they hold their own in the crucial matches ahead.
The following five steps should make the Indian team quite unbeatable as the World Cup reaches a climax in the days ahead: Continue reading below
1. Play Raina instead of Pathan: Suresh Raina is a quality batsman, a superb fielder, he can hit sixes, and he has been one of India's mainstays in the limited overs formats of the game in recent years. His batting abilities are such that he can hit the spinners as well as the pacemen out of the attack in no time. He has been found wanting against the short ball overseas but on Indian pitches he should certainly be in the playing XI. Yusuf Pathan is the cleanest hitter of the cricket ball today but his value to the team as an all-rounder is not much. His bowling has been used for only a few overs per match by MS Dhoni and he is not as agile a fielder as Raina is.
2. Play Ashwin instead of Munaf Ramachandra Ashwin needs to be in the side as soon as possible. Team India needs to play its two best spinners in all matches. Ashwin along with Harbhajan Singh would form a potent spin attack even though both are off spinners. Yuvraj Singh provides variety with his effective left-armers and even Raina can bowl a few overs. Munaf Patel is too predictable with his line and length and would suffer against quality batsmen. Even against the South Africans, his last over went for many runs. Though Ashish Nehra was also easily put away by the impressive Robin Peterson in the last over, he is a more effective and experienced bowler than Patel and should be retained.
3. Use the batting Power Play from overs 15 to 20: When the ball is hard it is easier to hit to the boundary and in Indian conditions it does not swing much. India should take the batting Power Play upfront in the innings and not towards the end when most teams have floundered, as did India, by trying to hit too many sixes. The manner in which the electric Virender Sehwag and the outstanding Sachin Tendulkar took apart the pacy South African attack was breath-taking to watch. Tendulkar's straight drive off Morne Morkel and his pull for six off a Dale Steyn bouncer were enough to bring out the goose pimples. In any case, given India's batting might, sixes would be hit even when there is no Power Play in the slog overs.
4. Do NOT shuffle the batting order: India has been sending Pathan up the order off late but the move has not worked at all. It is quite clear that the capabilities of Pathan lie down the order. And if Raina does come in for Pathan there would still be merit in sticking to the same order with Virat Kohli at number 4 and Suresh Raina at number 7. In this manner every batsman would be able to play to his strengths and the likes of Yuvraj, Dhoni and Raina can go ballistic in the second half of the innings.
5. Play with fire in the belly and minimise pressure: This is easier said than done, but Team India does need to be fired up and mentally strong in the matches to come. The pressure of a World Cup does get to everyone, but the team that wins it is the one that keeps its cool when the chips are down. Determination and a calm mind-set would win the Cup for India, for its players clearly have more ability than any other team's in this tournament.
All in all, if India plays with passion, minimises chinks in its batting and bowls to a plan in the remaining matches of the Cup, skipper MS Dhoni might well be the one to hold aloft the trophy at Mumbai after the final.
