Good article by Dileep

[Sooda]

As India fumble their way through this one-day series in England, it's hard to imagine that the same core group of players put together such a golden run two seasons ago, thrashing Sri Lanka 6-1, routing Pakistan 4-1 (away) and then swatting aside the English 5-1. Though all those successes came in the subcontinent, there was real optimism that India would be genuine World Cup contenders, with the combination of experience and youth peaking at the right time. That it didn't happen had much to do with the youngsters losing their way. And once men like Suresh Raina and Mohammad Kaif were cast aside to accommodate the likes of Sourav Ganguly, the standard of fielding dipped alarmingly, especially in the inner ring. It was a huge call for the selectors to take with the World Cup just a couple of months away, but Ganguly's stunning batting since his return to the fold has certainly vindicated them. In 19 matches, he has struck nine half-centuries and averaged 55.5, while also contributing to the tactical side of things in a team that now has no coach. And while his snail-paced running between wickets and indifferent fielding will make the athletic brigade cringe, just a cursory comparison with Raina and Kaif reveals why he has earned his spot in the XI. Raina averaged 16.66 over his last 15 matches, with a top score of 34, while Kaif's figures of 305 runs at 25.41 from his last 15 games were also mediocre. Neither man can have too many complaints. Lest it be forgotten, the peerless Jonty Rhodes averaged 35.11 in ODIs, and no team can be expected to pick players on fielding alone. With the senior players unlikely to play any part at the 2011 World Cup, India have also been criticised for reuniting Sachin Tendulkar and Ganguly at the top of the order. Even in the autumn of their careers, the duo continue to be staggeringly successful - the century partnership at Bristol was their 18th as an opening combination - and the selectors face a tricky choice between opting for short-term gains and planning for the future. The so-called Dad's Army has been severely criticised for their statuesque fielding, but it's not as though the younger members of the side take after Michael Clarke either. Rudra Pratap Singh and Ramesh Powar have been frankly embarrassing and even the normally reliable Dinesh Karthik has goofed up more than once. Worst of the lot though is Munaf Patel, whose apologetic throws from the deep would shame someone playing in a geriatrics' league. Venkatesh Prasad, India's bowling coach, recently expressed his displeasure over Munaf being selected without the selectors consulting him, and it wasn't hard to see why. Having played most of his formative cricket in a village in Gujarat's interior, Munaf, 24, only became aware of the physical-training side of the game when he was fast-tracked into the squad 18 months ago. Even at that time, Greg Chappell had sounded a cautionary note. "His body isn't really robust enough to bowl at pace for too long," he said. "I remember working with Shaun Tait in South Australia and, even at 18, his body was better prepared for the stresses and strains of bowling genuinely quick." If India do go on to lose the series, questions will surely be asked of the decision to play Munaf and send back Sree Santh, one of the few players in the Indian squad with a strong arm from the deep. Sree Santh has often been profligate in ODIs, but his ability to swing the ball and his aggression have been sorely missed. So where do India go from here? Clarion calls for change are easy to make, but are there really any options? Rohit Sharma is unproven at this level, while neither Robin Uthappa (averaging 30.9 after 12 games) nor Gautam Gambhir (32.29 after 26 matches) has done enough to ease out a Tendulkar or a Ganguly. For the moment then, it's a case of sticking to known faces, even if that means fielding standards are strictly Ikhar - the village where Munaf hails from.

[King]

Something that everyone ignores is that India won those ODIs while the super sub was on. India made the best use of it at times using the extra batsman or an extra spinner. What super sub meant to India was irrespective of the toss and option to bat or bowl India had the personnel to win the games. Now the team selection and the option to bat or bowl is hurting India dearly. Something this article also doesn't point is that Kaif, Raina, Yuvraj and Pathan used to save a lot of runs with the fielding. If India saved 20 runs that effectively meant India had to either set a target of 20 less runs or chase 20 runs less. Effectively a profit of about 40-60 runs then. Now India has either to set an extra 30 run as target owing to fielding blues or chase 30 extra runs as they would have given away that many bowling first I don't understand why he compares Ganguly's record to the worst of the lot? His will obviously be better than the 15 ODI stats of Kaif and Raina even after 2 years. Does that mean India should continue to bank on Ganguly so that Raina and Kaif can't complain? Why not compare the average and strike rate to someone more consistent like Rahul, Tendulkar or Yuvraj? This article achieves nothing and lacks logic completely.

[Holysmoke]

what a retard