India's selectors need to take the tough calls now

[rkt.india]

Like a rock n' roll festival coming to an end, T20 is winding down and it is time to begin to appreciate symphonies; bhangra will give way to the sitar, and we must learn to acknowledge the nuances of the alaap again, its gentle flow towards a rich end-experience. Eight Test matches between now and March will allow connoisseurs of five-day cricket the joy they believe is interrupted by the loud three-hour version. And India have much thinking to do. The 0-8 may not have generated the kind of debate, and corrective action, we would have liked, but it cannot be brushed away. Established players are looking vulnerable, outstanding players are experiencing dusk, and the new generation will have graduated from the school of shorter cricket. There is much work to be done and the time has come for selectors, now well paid, to project their vision for the future of Indian cricket. In an ideal world the new selection committee should sit down to pick two teams: one that will play the first two Tests against England, and another that will take the field in July 2014 in England, or even in November 2014 in Australia. For India to regain the No. 1 slot, both those have to be winning teams. And so if the latter teams have to be competitive, it must influence the way they pick the current team, because some investments made in players, like those made by banks in high-profile corporations, have begun to look poor. Munaf Patel and Praveen Kumar are not being sighted any longer, Sreesanth and RP Singh have almost vanished, Amit Mishra and Rahul Sharma are not preferred anymore, No. 6 has been a revolving door, and Abhinav Mukund and M Vijay haven't exactly produced great returns either. In recent times India have had problems at the top of the order. It would be an interesting exercise, while picking teams, to look at times when India have played well overseas and isolate factors that produced those results. I am fairly certain that such an exercise would throw up the quality of the opening partnership as the lead factor. And so, while India need to win in India, the selectors need to balance that need with getting the best pair ready for 2013 in South Africa and thereafter for New Zealand, England and Australia. But by picking three openers for the warm-up game against England the selectors have made it clear that they have no pecking order in mind yet. I have never understood picking 14 or 15 players for a tour game. That is not a selection, it is a gathering. Anybody can send out invitations. Picking 12 with two openers is a selection. We don't yet know who the selectors rate after Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag. And yet we must, for while those two are quality players, they haven't been setting grounds on fire lately. Historically they have been India's best opening pair at home (avg 60 v 53 for Sunil Gavaskar and Chetan Chauhan) and second-best away (42 v 53 again for Gavaskar and Chauhan). But in the last 20-odd months, while they average 52 at home they average 15 overseas (collectively India average 16 from 24 starts). By 2013 both will be a year older, and while you can see the need to play both in Indian conditions, throwing a rookie into the deep end overseas has hardly ever worked. In an ideal world the new selection committee should sit down to pick two teams: one that will play the first two Tests against England, and another that will take the field in July 2014 in England While we don't yet know what Sachin Tendulkar (1001 runs in his last 14 Tests at 40) and the selectors are planning for his future (and both must be involved), India need to plan now for life beyond him. If Virat Kohli moves up to No. 4, which seems a stable bet, it means there are two places in the middle order to be filled. Both Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina are very gifted batsmen but are they going to be the men for those positions? Records would suggest otherwise (since 2010, Yuvraj averages 25 in nine innings, Raina 28 from 27), and so if somebody else will be needed to fill those slots, they need to be got ready today. Like with Tendulkar, India need to start getting prepared for life without Zaheer Khan. He has been magnificent for India but the role of the lead bowler now needs to belong to someone else. We already know that medium pace is as useful in Australia and South Africa as a sailor who cannot swim. And the fact that India are forced to persist with Ishant Sharma (133 wickets from 45 Tests at 37.87) tells you how grim the situation is. Even spin is throwing up skewed figures. Pragyan Ojha and R Ashwin are magnificent at home (Ojha 63 wickets in 12 matches, Ashwin 40 in five!) but Ojha hasn't played outside the subcontinent and Ashwin has nine wickets at 62 overseas. I think, too, that the selectors need to start looking at Mahendra Singh Dhoni's workload. Captaincy and wicketkeeping is a tough combination, which is why there have been so few players who have done both well in the history of the game. And to do it day in day out must be draining. And so, with the next World Twenty20 two years away, is this the time to rest Dhoni from international T20 cricket? I know it is only a couple of games here and there, but it will allow him to put his feet up. If India have to become No. 1 again, they need to start looking at bowlers who can bowl fast and batsmen who are unafraid of bowlers who can bowl fast. The key people in that search are not so much the coach and the captain as the selectors, and the earlier they start taking hard decisions, the better off everyone will be.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/588106.html

[diga]

sort out openers/settle middle order/ Find new pacers. / Ask Dhoni to avg atleast 35 against Eng.. Hard to sort out previous committees hubris

[kubrickian]

The problem areas are openers and Sachin, who have been out of form for a while and no established number 6 batsman. Pujara and Kohli are inexperienced and the side could be depending on them too much. Batting looks fragile IMO.

[ShebbySB]

Bring in 1 or 2 allrounders in the test side,let Rahane replace 1 of Sehwag or Gambhir, play Mandeep Singh at no.6,try out new pacers like Aaron(if he's fit as he's always injured), Shami,Awana etc & for god's sake leave SRT alone.

[CG]

Bring in 1 or 2 allrounders in the test side,let Rahane replace 1 of Sehwag or Gambhir, play Mandeep Singh at no.6,try out new pacers like Aaron(if he's fit as he's always injured), Shami,Awana etc & for god's sake leave SRT alone.

who is mandeep singh?.Also who are the allrounders.

[India-KXIP fan]

who is mandeep singh?.Also who are the allrounders.

strong username to post content ratio. :winky: You really are a Cricket God. He's just a nobody! Unmukt is the only other fringe player with talent! Well atleast that's what the media says. However a thing called runs is missing. Anyway they have been chit at home as well indicating they are out of form and not at their best. If they were pure flat track bullies then they would at least have scored big at home but no 100s for a few years there as well. This series they will start playing like 50+ batters again (potentially they are that good) and provide solid starts and keep us winning for next 2 years :nice:

[ShebbySB]

who is mandeep singh?.Also who are the allrounders.

http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/player/398506.html Mandeep Singh avg's 62 at FC & playing in India A,King's XI Punjab,North Zone & Punjab ranji team. Irfan can be a genuine all-rounder at test level.Dhoni,Irfan & Ashwin at 6,7 & 8 would be quite handy.Problem is our middle-order is very inexperienced as we've Pujara at 3 & Kohli at 5 plus SRT is out of touch right now so we'll play with 7+4 combo with Dhoni at no 7.I think Mandeep will best bet at that position.He's pretty similar to Kohli.Rohit is not in the best of form else he should've been there.Raina with all his efforts & desire is simply not good enough for test cricket.

[ShebbySB]

My final 15 for Eng test series would be like this:- Openers:-Sehwag,Gambhir(last chance for them),Rahane Middle order:-Pujara,Sachin(needs to score runs),Kohli,Mandeep, Yuvraj/Badri(as he was on the reserves for NZ series). Keeper:-Dhoni(wk/bat & c) Spinner:-Ashwin,Ojha,3rd spinner?.Warm up matches against poms should've been used to select 1 of Bhajji,Chawla & Rahul.I guess Chawla will be preferred as he troubled poms before & he's a leggie. Seamers:-Zaheer,Umesh,Shami Ahmed.Ishant has done nothing to retain a spot.

[Malcolm Merlyn]

VVS's retirement was hasty.IDIOT CHIKA forced him to retire so that crap crony Raina gets a run in the team.Now our Middle order is as strong as bone china.Bhugto ab.Sala Srikannth @#@$!@$@!$

[Sooda]

Pujara, Rahane, Gambhir, Tendulkar, Sehwag, Kohli, Dhoni, Ashwin, OJha, Umesh, Zaheer Hells yes.

[veer]

rahane gambhir pujara srt kohli yuvi dhoni veeru needs to be kicked out.. taking it too easy. gambhir won't survive either... i want him to be replaced too but want to give him one more series..

[Gunner]

My XI: Rahane Gambhir Pujara Tendulkar Kohli Sehwag Dhoni Ashwin Zaheer Ojha Yadav

[PaceAttack]

VVS's retirement was hasty.IDIOT CHIKA forced him to retire so that crap crony Raina gets a run in the team.Now our Middle order is as strong as bone china.Bhugto ab.Sala Srikannth @#@$!@$@!$

U still want Laxman in team? Its good he is retired.

[JourneyMan]

Give Yuvi captaincy. Dhoni's had a lot on his plate.

[BeautifulGame]

rahane gambhir pujara srt kohli yuvi dhoni veeru needs to be kicked out.. taking it too easy. gambhir won't survive either... i want him to be replaced too but want to give him one more series..

If one deserves one more series btw Sehwag and Gambhir out of performances it definitely is sehwag imo.

[Trichromatic]

If one deserves one more series btw Sehwag and Gambhir out of performances it definitely is sehwag imo.

+1. Sehwag is still lot better than Gambhir.

[SLICKR392]

Give Yuvi captaincy. Dhoni's had a lot on his plate.

:facepalm:

[Trichromatic]

Give Yuvi captaincy. Dhoni's had a lot on his plate.

:facepalm:

[saneindian]

The clamor for giving Yuvi the captaincy may gather strength especially if he make a successfull comeback to the test side. He will have the popular support and we could see a sustained media campaign as well. But for that to happen he will have do very well vs England in tests.

[MCcricket]

Most Knowledgeable fans are aware what selectors need to do along with BCCI , point is what will they do, they have shown some initiatives with the A squad selections, also with Dhawan away for his marriage he will be playing in Mumbai side against the poms, plan ahead for Sachin, Zak, places up for grabs in batting and building of bench strength in both departments. Separate teams and captains is the need of the hour also rgiht players for the right format, Rohit should be in test squad, Dinda, VK, PK,will not play or be successful in test's rather invest in the right players for the right format.Bradmanath , Tiwary are out of depth playing good bowling so should not be looked at for test's also rather groom talented rookies like Anwar , Awana, Rayudu, Unmukt.