Could Raina be the real deal?

[Mr. Wicket]

I'm damn impressed by what I've seen so far: solid, calm batting under pressure, aggression at the right times in moderate amounts, he's not gotten into a shell against the spinners the way Vijay and Dravid did at points and even though the pitch is largely a patta, he's been very solid against all the bowlers. Given the situation and the way the SL spinners have bowled, the guy deserves plenty of credit and I hope (and strongly suspect) that he will turn this into a debut 100. So if that happens... bye bye to Porky for a while?

[Sachinism]

been saying for a while now that Raina needs to be given a chance to prove himself. He's gone from a young lad in the ODI to one of the more reliable batters. People have had beef with him and the short delivery, but you can just duck and leave in Tests. Good to see him doing well, hopefully he can get through the new ball and really cash in

[Mr. Wicket]

yeah, they've bowled a few short pitched balls to him - he's generally ducked and swayed away pretty well. Too much is made of the short ball issue - in ODIs/T20s when you have a constraint of time and need to play scoring shots, then it becomes a bigger challenge scoring off short ball barrages. In tests, if a batsman who can't handle the bouncer can keep ducking and avoiding the ball, he isn't going to get out and it doesn't hurt the team too much as long as he - like Raina certainly can - is able to compensate against other bowling. PS: Goddy ... what a drive that was

[DomainK]

I got to watch a few overs towards the end and he really looked solid in defense. Good footwork and truckloads of confidence. Later saw the highlights and found some of his cover drives awesome. He looks really good when he plays those shots with confidence. Definitely better than Yuvi. Superior technique, better temperament. IMO Yuvi is finished. He just had his last opportunity in test cricket and even tough he got a 50, he is done with that career. Both Raina and Vijay looked much better than him.

[Guest Hiten.]

I'm more worried about the form that Laxman and Dravid are carrying atm. I know that they are short of practice (heck..test cricket itself) but RSD is not looking comfortable on the field on the whole (His dropped catch in first test could be his worst drop ever). I know Laxman hit a solid fifty in 1st test 2nd innings, but I don't get the same vibe of comfortableness that I am used for many years ago. Is it just an overreaction from my side or do you guys feel the same ?

[Mr. Wicket]

Fully agree with you, though I suspect the Australia series could be the swansong for one of them. Most likely Dravid. Laxman still fits his role at 6, has made some solid scores for a while now but has been showing a worrying inability to convert good starts into the three figure scores he produced a while ago. I imagine the NZ series will be used to blood a couple of new guys like Rahane and Pujara. Hopefully. Even Mukund, I wouldn't mind. Just as long as Yuseless doesn't return.

[Malcolm Merlyn]

Dravid and Laxman will be fine.We just need to win the toss and bat 1st to get some pressure of these guys.Remember Dravid is back from a jaw fracture. DRavid will play one more year i guess.till 38. Laxman may be cpl more.

[Desi Cartman]

I was waiting for his fav slog shot during the first 30mins but then I was convinced that he is not willing to risk/throw it away. He was solid , confident and scored freely. BTW I think its time for RD to go , we cant have RD , VVS and SRT retire in the same year. I am not saying RD isnt worth a spot in the XI but he doesnt look at the top of his game and someone will have to go first, to me its about time we drop him and try Vijay at #3 . Or maybe wait till we tour SA

[Malcolm Merlyn]

I was waiting for his fav slog shot during the first 30mins but then I was convinced that he is not willing to risk/throw it away. He was solid , confident and scored freely. BTW I think its time for RD to go , we cant have RD , VVS and SRT retire in the same year. I am not saying RD isnt worth a spot in the XI but he doesnt look at the top of his game and someone will have to go first, to me its about time we drop him and try Vijay at #3 . Or maybe wait till we tour SA

Bawla ho gaya hai kya be.....Daaru or Khana kam kar de.

[veer]

Raina is good for all three formats.. he got skills with right attitude.. i say pull him in for permanent no.6.. arre uparwale, ab koyi bowlers de do yaar .. not asking for five or six but two or three bowlers will do ....

[achilles]

Wonderful innings. But I would like to see him playing on a non-race track wicket to be in a better position to judge his credentials over Yuvraj, Che Pujara, S.Badrinath and other middle order batsmen

[cowboysfan]

his technique against the short ball is lacking,he hops even when the ball is not that short,he will struggle to keep the ball down.i think he needs to be more chances to work them them(hopefully on better pitches)

[achilles]

I was waiting for his fav slog shot during the first 30mins but then I was convinced that he is not willing to risk/throw it away. He was solid , confident and scored freely. BTW I think its time for RD to go , we cant have RD , VVS and SRT retire in the same year. I am not saying RD isnt worth a spot in the XI but he doesnt look at the top of his game and someone will have to go first, to me its about time we drop him and try Vijay at #3 . Or maybe wait till we tour SA

Bad idea. Why not Badrinath or Pujara? Why Vijay?

[Lord]

just one 100 on a dead track n people r writing obituaries of Yuvraj,completely forgetting he made a 50 in much tougher conditions in Galle

[Mr. Wicket]

Raina has a coolheadedness about him at the wicket that's a great trait for a #6 to have. Deft worker of the ball, good at placing quick singles and attacking, which will be key batting with the tail. Only issue for me is whether his technique can hold up v. the second new ball (which he'd often be facing a fair bit of coming in at 6) against better quicks. But I am damn impressed with the way he has worked on his short ball weakness - he looked very relaxed and patient when leaving/ducking the short stuff from Fernando/Prasad, and looked in control most of the time when he did play the ball down to the leg side. What impressed me most was his judicious attitude to playing the big shots - he only really broke out the extravagant strokeplay when things were settled. Didn't charge the spinners early on, played things very quietly and carefully when the deficit was big, and once we were pretty safe re. the follow on, he started playing more aggressively. Even if it is a flat pitch, the temperament and approach still stood out and I am hoping he makes a lot of runs batting here for India.

[veer]

just one 100 on a dead track n people r writing obituaries of Yuvraj' date='completely forgetting he made a 50 in much tougher conditions in Galle[/quote'] boss the only thing we need to check out for Raina is his termperament.. we have already seen his skills in ODIs.. and dont know why yuvi is getting injured so many times.. yuvi, gambhir, veeru gotta put lot of efforts to stay injury free..

[saneindian]

Raina's knock was quite good. Best was the calmness he showed, looked in complete control. Of course the true test will be on bowler friendly wickets, but hopefully by the time we tour SA , Raina would have settled down in the test team, would have played a few good knocks against the Aussies and Kiwis and will be ready for the challenge. As Dada said, this 100 could transform Raina from a good batsman to a very very good batsman.

[King Tendulkar]

I still think there are better canditates for test match spot. However, was very impressive even though super flat track. He must be given a run and had edged out Yuvi for time being imo. He is so young with loads of talent. He will get much better in all aspects in time. He may well be the real deal. But to me Sharma is the man still, ridiculously talented

[f.b.m]

One thing that generally stands out regardless of which format he is playing is his mental strength (a bit like Morgan but not exactly). Generally seems to have a good technique (better than Yuvraj's) although its better to wait for a proper wicket before passing any judgements on who is better. I remember seeing him struggle against Abishek Nayar moving the ball in a domestic game.. :/

[Manny_Pacquiao]

i never thought of raina as a test prospect. he is a fantastic limited overs player, one of the very best. but as a test prospect? nah. doesn't have a wide strange of shots. and very, very fallible against the short ball. if he can develop his leg side game - and right now the only shot he has on the leg side is that big slog sleep and front foot heave to cow corner - then maybe. still young, so i wouldn't rule that out. good hundred from him yesterday but bear in mind that it was a flat pitch against an average bowling attack. need to take a look at him in SA. call me negative, but i think somebody like morne morkel would have him for breakfast. i also think yuvraj has more batting ability, but since he hasnt established himself in the side after 35 tests, there is little point in continuingwith him. i want to see pujara play.