The Four Musketeers

[wobblydoggy]

Here is an article in the Daily telegraph today which I think sums up the situation perfectly. The same is happening to the Indian batting order. The four musketeers - Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman, hounded by crackshot snipers wherever they travel - are nearing the end of the road. Unless they all exhibit their best form during the third Test which starts in Perth tonight, one will be asked to fall on his sword before the fourth Test in Adelaide next week. A mini dynasty - which has a combined total of 574 Tests and in excess of 45,000 runs - is about to end. The positon of Tendulkar - the D'Artagnan in this story - is of course sacrosanct, in spite of his fruitless nine-month search for his 100th international hundred. He has looked increasingly secure and fluent and is averaging 53 in his last 10 Test innings. The others are less secure. Dravid, despite a remarkable resurgence last year, has looked increasingly vulnerable, and has been clean bowled too often of late. But his painstaking approach and exemplary attitude will win him a stay of execution. Sehwag - the youngest of the four - is too mercurial to jettison for the moment, though he will need a decent score before long to ward off younger pretenders. Laxman is the most vulnerable. Although he has maintained a decent average (49) in his last 10 outings, he does not exude permanence and has an annoying habit of tamely giving his wicket away. Though he is undoubtedly trying his best, his rather lethargic body language at the crease suggests fragility which hungry bowlers feed off. He has perhaps two innings left to regain his, and the selectors', self belief. There is a deeper problem for the Indians here. Their star batsmen are like war correspondents. When they are young they are fearless and thrive in difficult or dangerous circumstances. They want to make a name for themselves. When they are older they shy away from adversity, seeking to protect their reputation and subconsciously yearn for a more comfortable life. Most are reluctant to do the hard yards. You can see that in these Indian batsmen's approach to practice. Only Dravid, and to a lesser extent Tendulkar, are fastidious. Generally there is less appetite for hard work. Last summer in England it was noticeable that only Dravid took net practice seriously. The others were mainly content with throwdowns on the outfield before a day's play, as if they were playing an exhibition match rather than a Test. It was an attitude that hinted at complacency, an approach that said 'this is what I have always done, this is how I play'. Their fitness was lacking in some cases too. In the modern cricketing world of highly-trained assassins (the bowlers) and forensic analysis, it is not good enough. Batsmen have to work extra hard to stay ahead of their pursuers. These men have been lavished with riches for their exceptional batting feats. Deservedly so. They made India a proud cricketing nation, the No 1 Test nation and World Cup champions. It probably seems alien to them to completely change the way they prepare and approach their life. But, in the modern game, you cannot survive on talent alone. The two areas I have highlighted are telling too. These four are like much revered statesmen, they in general see no need to adapt or change, except to be fair SDT. Bowlers have their numbers

[Crookbond]

Interesting. Now, journalists are going to tell how one of the greatest batsmen in the world and arguably the greatest of all time, Sachin Tendulkar should practice. Nice!

[wobblydoggy]

Interesting. Now, journalists are going to tell how one of the greatest batsmen in the world and arguably the greatest of all time, Sachin Tendulkar should practice. Nice!

Oh come on he is not saying that. He is saying that of those big four only Sachin and possibly Dravid netted properly. He is saying that in general they are not trying as hard as in their youth IMO time to go apart from Sachin for a couple of more years