All's Not Well in India's Garden

[Dhondy]

Several inexplicable selections stood out like chancrous thumbs in the last match. Sehwag was punished for his interview to the press where he let slip that he had not been selected despite being fit in the preceding match. Even if India were going to go in with 5 bowlers, there's no way a journeyman like Uthappa should be preferred up the order to Sehwag. The difference in class between the two batsmen is an unbridgeable chasm. Dhoni compunded that by sidelining Sreesanth in favour of Munaf and Kumar. Result? India could only pick up 3 wickets in the match via her bowlers. Munaf and Kumar are limited, defensive triers that will never run through sides. How highly does the rest of the world rate Sreesanth? Here's an abstract from Peter Lalor's latest column in the Australian:

Two years after Australia scored the first one-day international 400 and six months after the introduction of the wham-bam-thank-you-bank-manager international Twenty20 series the runs have dried up in the 50-over game. This tri-series features half a dozen of the world's best batsmen, but in 11 innings no side has got near a total of 300 and seven times teams have failed to pass 200. As Australian coach Tim Nielsen pointed out yesterday, this tri-series features a bag of very quick and very good bowlers. India's Ishant Sharma and Sreesanth, Australia's Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson, and Sri Lanka's Lasith Malinga are all bowling at 145km/h-plus. In Adelaide the teenaged Sharma clocked 152km/h which is believed to be the fastest ball an Indian has bowled. Nielsen says it isn't just a matter of speed. "You've got four or five guys in this series bowling 145km/h plus, swinging new balls away and with old boys reversing it in, it's not an easy life for batsmen in international cricket," Nielsen said.

Dhoni may have won this particular match through sheer bloodymindedness, and deserves every ounce of credit going his way for seeing the side through to the end, as indeed for for keeping faith with Yuvraj while the armchair experts of the world exhorted him to do otherwise, but he needs to identify his matchwinners and stick by them. Defensive players only take you so far. Players like Sehwag and Sreesanth can change the complexion of the game in the matter of half an hour. My other concern is that somebody has obviously been whispering in Ishant's oversized ear to cut down on his speed and concentrate on bowling to his field. Now why does that send a shiver down my spine? If the management are worried about his workload, they should rest him. It would be criminal to convert this guy to a line and length bowler to minimise his prospect of injury. For India's newest and brightest pace prospect, quality definitely trumps quantity. It shouldn't come as a surprise that he went wicketless against SL, having dropped his pace by a full 10 kph for obscure reasons. Dhoni should be admired for his strong beliefs, and his ability to live by them, but he needs a counterbalance. Kirsten's input can't come a day too soon.

[fineleg]

Dhoni should be admired for his strong beliefs, and his ability to live by them, but he needs a counterbalance. Kirsten's input can't come a day too soon.

Spot on! Doc - if MSD or whoever is asking Ishant Sharma to cut down on pace, then :banghead: That is screamingly stupid.

[Ram]

Sreesanth was dropped ? I remember Mark Taylor saying in commentary that his shoulder was troubling him again. I am still a bit undecided on Sreesanth's place in the one-day team. Yes he is attacking bowler, a wicket taker, but he gives runs in a cascade too often for my liking. I understand that wicket-takers are bound to go for runs, but look at RPS and for that matter even Ishant. They are wicket takers too, yet have excellent control. I still remember the T20 final between India and Pakistan, when, after RPS had picked up a wicket in his first over, Sreesanth conceded 21 runs in the second over, only for RPS to take another in the second over and stem the flow a bit, Same with the rain reduced match against Lanka. Sreesanth's first over literally sealed the fate of the match. Of course, on the counter argument, who can forget his spell against Aus in the T20 semi-final, when he gave away only 13 runs and picked up Gilly and Hayden. I like Sreesanth, I value his agressive streak, his attacking bowling, but he definitely needs to curtail the run flow.

[Holysmoke]

Sree was dropped because he doesnt bowl to his field. I have no fkkin idea why/if Sehwag was dropped.

[Dravid]

sree was dropped because he is coming back from an injury, and so gave him a rest, he will be back for next game..

[Mr. Wicket]

Enlightening as always Doc, and worrying. In any other team, Sehwag would be recognized as a true freak - a batsman cricket rarely sees with amounts of ridiculous potential - and persisted with. He'd have been nurtured the way Michael Clarke or Andrew Flintoff were had he been Aussie or English. Instead he gets dropped from tests for his ODI form, dropped from ODIs for making the wrong comments, and gets some of the most abysmal treatment imaginable. Deplorable.

[bigdhoni7]

i think sehwag was dropped because he's been getting out under less than 20 outside of that rained off sri lanka match. sreesanth probably wasn't played for the last match because he would've been taken apart by jayasuriya like he did before.

[sm332]

agreed on most acct on Viru ... however thet have to decide at some stage what constitutes adequate chances ... he is 29 a veteran of 150+ matches ... when do u decide to cut your losses. PS - I am not talking abt the test team where I have been hankering for his permanent inclusion for ages!!

[Bumper]

Am not sure Sehwag is the answer for Uthappa in ODIs. Sehwag hasnt made a 50 in an ODI since the Afro-Asia cup. He is not out of form, 20s & 30s are his norm. Uthappa is a pretty handy bat on flat tracks. But even on flat tracks, he can only be used as a power hitter, not as an innings builder. Picking him in these conditions, as well as sending him at no. 3 were huge mistakes. Considering the Aussie conditions and our weaknesses in batting (we struggle to bat 50 overs batting first or chasing), I'd give Raina, Tiwary & KKD a decent run (in that order) and entrust them with an innings building role. I'd back Sehwag for a big opponent such as Australia. Lesser individuals wont have the heart or guts to fight against such an opponent. But against other teams, I'd like to see other youngsters given a chance. Sreesanth too is an Aussie specialist. I wont pick him against other opponents. A very good bowler, but kinda like Anil Kumble in ODIs, will leak too many runs.

[suraj]

Sehwag is useless as an ODI player- he should only be in the test team

[Bumper]

Enlightening as always Doc, and worrying. In any other team, Sehwag would be recognized as a true freak - a batsman cricket rarely sees with amounts of ridiculous potential - and persisted with. He'd have been nurtured the way Michael Clarke or Andrew Flintoff were had he been Aussie or English. Instead he gets dropped from tests for his ODI form, dropped from ODIs for making the wrong comments, and gets some of the most abysmal treatment imaginable. Deplorable.

I dont think its fair to say that Dhoni dropped him for his comments to the media. Veeru in ODIs is like Yuvi in Tests. Veeru uses his test form to get into the ODI squad, but does not quite justify his potential, even when persisted for extended periods of time. Veeru has lost his mojo that he had at the beginning of his ODI career. The last time Veeru scored a match winning 50 against a serious opponent was way back in 2006 (vs Pak). As a senior statesman, he should take on the responsibility of building an innings like Tendulkar. A quickfire 20 or 30 is no longer good enough with an inexperienced middle order.

[atul]

Dhoni is killing any competion for him , but he should play Sehwag as one down

[Dhondy]

You don't drop a batsman who's averaging 32 in ODIs at a SR of 97 that easily, and certainly not if he has shown signs of buckling down and trying to build an innings in the limited opportunities afforded him. Statistically, those are pretty much the stats of one Adam Gilchrist. Anybody following Sehwag over the years will have noticed the recent change even in ODIs. He's playing straighter, cutting out the exaggerated hoiks and waiting for the right ball. Opponents fear him, and he takes the pressure off Tendulkar by scoring quickly. He's a fantastic catcher in the slips, and an useful bowler as well- India are insane to keep him out in the cold.

[bunny]

You don't drop a batsman who's averaging 32 in ODIs at a SR of 97 that easily, and certainly not if he has shown signs of buckling down and trying to build an innings in the limited opportunities afforded him. Statistically, those are pretty much the stats of one Adam Gilchrist. Anybody following Sehwag over the years will have noticed the recent change even in ODIs. He's playing straighter, cutting out the exaggerated hoiks and waiting for the right ball. Opponents fear him, and he takes the pressure off Tendulkar by scoring quickly. He's a fantastic catcher in the slips, and an useful bowler as well- India are insane to keep him out in the cold.

Remove his average of 2002 and see what you have got left. An average of 28. He has been a dud in ODIs for the past 5 years. If at all he should be played in the middle order or he should be selected when he does really well in 2-3 consecutive test series. I do agree though that Uthappa isn't a replacement for him. On the other hand, RS might turn out to be a good 1-down player or even an opener in ODIs. Also watching Praveen Kumar I think he needs to be given 2-3 overs of new ball if he is picked otherwise he shouldn't be selected. SS is no great shakes either though. He will be replaced by RPS and Zak when they are back. Also, SS might rue his decision to not undergo surgery.

[Dhondy]

Remove his average of 2002 and see what you have got left. An average of 28. He has been a dud in ODIs for the past 5 years.

Remove 1939 and Hitler would be a saint. What's your point? You don't do analysis by removing somebody's best year. Why don't you remove his 20 worst innings and see what you get? Your arguments, bunny, I must say make you a sitting...rabbit.

[Bumper]

You don't drop a batsman who's averaging 32 in ODIs at a SR of 97 that easily, and certainly not if he has shown signs of buckling down and trying to build an innings in the limited opportunities afforded him. Statistically, those are pretty much the stats of one Adam Gilchrist. Anybody following Sehwag over the years will have noticed the recent change even in ODIs. He's playing straighter, cutting out the exaggerated hoiks and waiting for the right ball. Opponents fear him, and he takes the pressure off Tendulkar by scoring quickly. He's a fantastic catcher in the slips, and an useful bowler as well- India are insane to keep him out in the cold.

Gilly is an alltime great ODI bat. Veeru is struggling to make it to a squad filled with greenhorns. I dont think the comparison even begins. Gilly averages 36 @ 97, which is more than decent. Plus he is a wicket keeping allrounder. Besides, Gilly compensates for his few failures by knocking some mammoth 100s when it matters the most (his world cup knocks are fair enough evidence). He has shown tremendous adaptability in ODIs, by seamlessly switching between attack & innings building as the situation demands. (The 50 & 118 vs SL in this same tourney show his innings building potential). OTOH, Sehwag's stats are getting more & more mediocre as we speak. He started well in ODIs. But his ODI career has gone south since then. His retrogression, is not attributable to a temporary dip in his form. Since 2004, he averages 28. Since 2005, 29. And Since 2006, it is 27. Am convinced this is too large a sample to be misleading. At this point, Veeru is being picked purely on reputation (enhanced by his recent test form). I dont have a problem picking him over Uthappa. But sooner or later Veeru must score big & more importantly, show some aptitude for innings building. Otherwise its difficult to justify his ODI spot. He is too good a player to be dismissed in the 20s & 30s for this long. None of his recent efforts suggest that he is gonna make a big 50 or 100 anytime soon. I have almost forgotten the last time he made a big 100 to win an ODI. (Was it vs Pak in 2005 ?)

[Bumper]

That said, am willing to give him this tourney to prove his form. Let him use the remaining games to score a 50. This is his best chance, the team is still unsettled, the youngsters are still trying to make their mark. In such an inexperienced team, Sehwag is worth the gamble

[fineleg]

Let Sehwag play all matches remaining, 2 50's and he stays, or just drop him from ODIs after this tournament is over. The Doc is too sentimental about Sehwag, but give him this series - prove yourself or ship out message, and we'll take it from there.

[bunny]

Remove 1939 and Hitler would be a saint. What's your point? You don't do analysis by removing somebody's best year. Why don't you remove his 20 worst innings and see what you get? Your arguments, bunny, I must say make you a sitting...rabbit.

No 2002 is way in the past. Sehwag has been averaging 28 for the last 6 years almost consistently. This, at a time when the averages of other players have been rising. He needs to first perform consistently in 2-3 successive test series. Then we will know how much of a game/brain he has got left.

[dial_100]

I think Bump has given good analysis and factual support to his argument. When we talk of greats.... We want to see a guy score 45+ avg in every 3-4 series he plays. With Sehwag, he is so impatient that it is unwise to choose him with these averages. He has not matured at all. Look at MSD's career in the beginning. he was a dashing hitter. But now he plays a matured innings. He can still hit those juicy balls to Max. He can still get boudary every 2-3 overs with his hard hitting strokes. The point is, that type of game is w/ minimal risk. Sehwag is playing with 1 leg towards pavilion all the time. Almost 30-40% strokes go in the air. Even though Yuv plays 40% strokes in the air, he is more like hook-n-pull type of guy. Where as, Sehwag plays these shots on the off-side where oppositions always have best fielders. Besides aireal placement on the boudary is dfferent from in 30yard circle where Deflection angle vs distance ratio is very much manageable. He has to work on his ground strokes.