Dravid to open, Yuvraj to play in 1st Test: Consequences

[Donny]

He has agreed to become opener becuase ...

He has agreed ?? Here, I read this again. I really don't know if any of the players feel this way but as long as you, the fans, keep treating your players like princes and/or gods, you are missing the point. Maybe you could take a leaf out of Brad Hogg's book: "Wherever they want me to play, I'm happy. It's a huge honour, even if I'm 12th. man."

He is best batsman India has ' date='[/quote'] Have you actually watched any Indian cricket over the last year or so ? He is floundering while Ganguly, Laxman, Jaffer and Sach have all been in better form.

[Chandan]

Harsha Bhogle describes the best what the shuffling around in batting order will do to India's cause: Thursday December 20, 2007 It is easy to be pessimistic about India’s chances in Australia. Quite apart from the fact that they will play the world champions on their home turf, that Australia are on a 14 game winning streak, that they have won their last eight tests at the MCG and that the pitches and conditions will be very different to those in India, they only get a couple of rainy days to acclimatise. India cannot complain about anything else but this was in their hands and they chose it this way. I’ll go so far as to say that if Australia had to propose an itinerary to beat India, this is pretty close to what they might have come up with. Maybe the first test in Perth, but a test anywhere in just about a week of landing would do quite well for them. These are not artists from the circus for whom life inside the big tent doesn’t change much from Melbourne to Delhi. Or baseball or basketball players or formula one drivers for that matter. These are players who have to make significant adjustments to their game; more like a driver shifting from concrete to gravel. You don’t do it overnight but that cannot be an excuse because India’s cricket establishment wanted it that way! I have one other concern ahead of the first test and that concerns the batting order. Typically, classically, you must play two openers and four middle order players. Numbers 1,2 and 3 must retain their sanctity as far as possible and 4,5 and 6 can be more fluid. India, by the looks of it, are choosing to do it differently by moving everyone around to accommodate no 6. There is some merit in the idea of playing the best six batsmen and creating a batting order around it, and in doing so dispelling the comfort factor of batting numbers. However sportsmen have their oddities and special skills and some players play better at some positions than at others and as far as possible, especially on a big tour, you must change little. Centre forwards don’t suddenly become centre halves, full backs don’t suddenly move to the right wing. And so a peculiar problem presents itself. In the interests of the team, should Rahul Dravid play at no 2 or, in the interests of the team, should the world’s most prolific no.3 be retained at no 3? It doesn’t end there of course. It means VVS Laxman, so solid in the middle order now, has to be moved up as well. He’s batted there before but a long time ago and in different conditions. On a big day, a person must do what he does best, most instinctively, and that is true of any profession. So ideally, if Yuvraj Singh has to break into the batting order he must either do so by batting better at his position than anyone else, or by taking whatever number is available. If Australia had to replace, say, Phil Jaques, I don’t see them picking Brad Hodge at number six, moving Ponting to open the batting and sending Clarke at number three. For a start they would replace opener with opener or ask Hodge to open the batting. When Justin Langer had to come back to the side, they didn’t disturb Ponting from no 3, they asked Langer to open. If you want to pick a junior minister in the cabinet, you don’t move the home minister to finance, the finance minister to external affairs so that the junior man can take home! I thought that was the reason the selectors picked Sehwag; so that he could open the batting. When you pick someone like that it has to have been accompanied by a great deal of thought, there has to be a strategic reason for picking someone who hasn’t scored a run. If India wanted a reserve middle order batsman, the selectors could not have looked beyond Badrinath of Tamil Nadu. So hopefully Sehwag will play in the test match and everyone will go back to the job they know best. So how does one become optimistic about this tour? There is quality in this team, there is a great deal of experience and there is the lingering smell of victory in the air. Two bad sessions in South Africa undid a lot of good work but there were series wins in the West Indies, Bangla Desh and England. Now Pakistan have been beaten comfortably at home and the atmosphere in the dressing room is cordial. Players are looking up to the captain who has made it clear that the pitch and such factors will not be used as excuses. And even though recent overseas wins have been fashioned by the bowlers, if the batsmen put runs on the board, India will be a different side.

[putrevus]

Harsha Bhogle describes the best what the shuffling around in batting order will do to India's cause: Thursday December 20, 2007 It is easy to be pessimistic about India’s chances in Australia. Quite apart from the fact that they will play the world champions on their home turf, that Australia are on a 14 game winning streak, that they have won their last eight tests at the MCG and that the pitches and conditions will be very different to those in India, they only get a couple of rainy days to acclimatise. India cannot complain about anything else but this was in their hands and they chose it this way. I’ll go so far as to say that if Australia had to propose an itinerary to beat India, this is pretty close to what they might have come up with. Maybe the first test in Perth, but a test anywhere in just about a week of landing would do quite well for them. These are not artists from the circus for whom life inside the big tent doesn’t change much from Melbourne to Delhi. Or baseball or basketball players or formula one drivers for that matter. These are players who have to make significant adjustments to their game; more like a driver shifting from concrete to gravel. You don’t do it overnight but that cannot be an excuse because India’s cricket establishment wanted it that way! I have one other concern ahead of the first test and that concerns the batting order. Typically, classically, you must play two openers and four middle order players. Numbers 1,2 and 3 must retain their sanctity as far as possible and 4,5 and 6 can be more fluid. India, by the looks of it, are choosing to do it differently by moving everyone around to accommodate no 6. There is some merit in the idea of playing the best six batsmen and creating a batting order around it, and in doing so dispelling the comfort factor of batting numbers. However sportsmen have their oddities and special skills and some players play better at some positions than at others and as far as possible, especially on a big tour, you must change little. Centre forwards don’t suddenly become centre halves, full backs don’t suddenly move to the right wing. And so a peculiar problem presents itself. In the interests of the team, should Rahul Dravid play at no 2 or, in the interests of the team, should the world’s most prolific no.3 be retained at no 3? It doesn’t end there of course. It means VVS Laxman, so solid in the middle order now, has to be moved up as well. He’s batted there before but a long time ago and in different conditions. On a big day, a person must do what he does best, most instinctively, and that is true of any profession. So ideally, if Yuvraj Singh has to break into the batting order he must either do so by batting better at his position than anyone else, or by taking whatever number is available. If Australia had to replace, say, Phil Jaques, I don’t see them picking Brad Hodge at number six, moving Ponting to open the batting and sending Clarke at number three. For a start they would replace opener with opener or ask Hodge to open the batting. When Justin Langer had to come back to the side, they didn’t disturb Ponting from no 3, they asked Langer to open. If you want to pick a junior minister in the cabinet, you don’t move the home minister to finance, the finance minister to external affairs so that the junior man can take home! I thought that was the reason the selectors picked Sehwag; so that he could open the batting. When you pick someone like that it has to have been accompanied by a great deal of thought, there has to be a strategic reason for picking someone who hasn’t scored a run. If India wanted a reserve middle order batsman, the selectors could not have looked beyond Badrinath of Tamil Nadu. So hopefully Sehwag will play in the test match and everyone will go back to the job they know best. So how does one become optimistic about this tour? There is quality in this team, there is a great deal of experience and there is the lingering smell of victory in the air. Two bad sessions in South Africa undid a lot of good work but there were series wins in the West Indies, Bangla Desh and England. Now Pakistan have been beaten comfortably at home and the atmosphere in the dressing room is cordial. Players are looking up to the captain who has made it clear that the pitch and such factors will not be used as excuses. And even though recent overseas wins have been fashioned by the bowlers, if the batsmen put runs on the board, India will be a different side.

that is exactly my point why change everything for one player keep YS as opener and there you go why ruin dravid

[novpj]

IMO if we dont want to play Karthik then this is the best option. Sehwag has shown nothing in the last year and a half that proves that he canbe relied upon as an opner. If we play him we will have Dravid coming to bat within the first ten overs i.e. in either case Dravid will find himself in the same spot - facing the new ball (probably with more pressure if he comes in as 1 down) and Yuvi can definitely avg more than Sehwag. I think opening with Dravid is the right call. Now lets take the issue of whether Dravid has the confidence or the form to do this. My view is that since this is similar to the role Dravid would have to play if we opened with Sehwag the fair question here is whether Dravid deserves a test spot. Once we agree that he does and that he has more chance of playing into a form than Sehwag then we open with him adn Yuvi gets a spot. Essentially in my mind the argument is whether to play Sehwag or Dravid and not whether to play Sehwag or Yuvraj.

[Chandan]

I really disagree with the idea of Dravid opening. This will destabilise the whole line up and then you expect them(a destabilised batting line-up) to succeed and score big? This is India's first step to failure in the series and might be to ruin the career of Dravid and Laxman too, the two most successful batsmen we had last time in Australia. If Dravid goes early, who'll consolidate? If there is no one like Dravid in case an early wicket goes down, don't you think the whole batting will collapse for paltry total? Then? Who'll be blamed for that?

[gs]

It doesn't sound right, but under the circumstances I don't see any other option other than Dravid opening in the first test. Yuvraj is a must for this line up. He is in the form of his life and is a tremendous fielder in point/backward point/gully region where the ball flies a lot in Aus. Yuvraj/KKD/Ganguly dont have the technique to last long in the opener's slot. Sehwag with his current form cant seem to buy a run. Whether Dravid bats at 2 or 3, he would only have a choice in facing a ball that is brand new or 5-6 overs old. So in all likelihood, he'll be up against a fresh bowler and a new ball. So why not just cut the drama and open instead? I understand that batsmen have some superstitions/mental blocks against varying their batting spots, but there are times when tough measures have to be taken. C'mon Dravid, you da man!!

[Ram]

I dont know about the cricketing consequences, but I do know that Beetle must be fuming now.

[DesiChap]

Dravid to open, Yuvraj to play in 1st Test Dravid to open, Yuvraj to play in 1st Test Melbourne: The flip-flop has finally ended and Rahul Dravid would indeed open the innings in the Boxing Day Test against Australia at the MCG here on Wednesday. The uncertainty around Yuvraj Singh has also been put the rest and the 'sixer king' would play, his second Test in succession. It leaves Virender Sehwag, hoisted to the main stage in the last 10 days beyond his wildest dream, and all dreams of him emulating his swashbuckling heroics of Boxing Day Test four years ago would have to wait for some other occasion. It hasn't been an easy decision for the team management but thankfully they have arrived at it a good 72 hours before the start of the Test. It only suited the side that they haven't left it for the last minute as it involves three stalwarts, all of whom want to resurrect their careers floundering on the treacherous waters of international cricket. Dravid is seeking a route from the back lanes of Tests to find a way back into the One-Day squad, Yuvraj's frustration of not having established himself at the Test level has reached a flashpoint and Sehwag is desperate to leverage his still-outstanding record into a goodwill among selectors and team management. The visitors arrived to this shore having made up their mind on Dravid as opener before a rethink occurred, largely to do with the risk of putting their best batsman in a position he is unaccustomed. There was also this matter of the vacancy the move creates at number three. VVS Laxman for the moment has been chosen for the role though it must be said his best knocks at number three came in familiar conditions in India. His breathtaking success on the last tour of Australia was mostly constructed at the tail of the great middle-order. The visitors are hoping the move would yield astonishing results and produce runs on the board to shift pressure on the Australians. India's best bet on this tour is if their batting comes off. They expect the longer batting line-up, with the induction of Yuvraj, to show Brett Lee and Shaun Tait as just psychological ploys and not necessarily the destructive force across 22 yards which the hosts are priming them for. The fourth piece of this jigsaw is Dinesh Karthik, the likeable, earnest young cricketer from Tamil Nadu, who would have conflicting thoughts to come to terms with. If the move succeeds, all the lugging he has done in the last few months as an opener would amount to nothing. If the move fails and somebody in the batting line-up needs a break on account of fitness or form, it actually would hurt the team even if Karthik is once again revived. Karthik, a team-man to the core, has a palpable commitment to the team's welfare. It's a wicked thought but all his gains of last few months are hanging by a thread. He has lost out on his place in Twenty20 and One-Day cricket and now is just about holing on to the straw of opportunity this tour presents. http://www.cricketnext.com/news/dravid-to-open-yuvraj-to-play-in-1st-test/28483-13-single.html

[DesiChap]

http://cricket.indiatimes.com/Dravid_confirmed_as_opener_Yuvraj_will_play/articleshow/2645647.cms It is a PTI report probably true

[kumble_rocks]

Good ! Let's hope Yuvi does not falter to deceive this time around ! :DThe last time he was accommodated in the England series in 2006 based on his alleged tremendous form in the prior Pak series, he managed to average only 21.33 .

[King Tendulkar]

Good move. Yuvi has to be in the team, especially as he is tremendous against pace bowling

[jf1gp_1]

i want gangu at 3. i stil think ita a mistake to open with dravid

[gs]

Good ! Let's hope Yuvi does not falter to deceive this time around ! :DThe last time he was accommodated in the England series in 2006 based on his alleged tremendous form in the prior Pak series' date=' he managed to average only 21.33 .[/quote'] Yeah, but this time around one gets a feeling that he'll fire. He's been in great form in T20 and ODIs for a while and translated his good form into runs in tests as well in the last test against Pak. So for India's sake I hope he comes up with big runs. The Yuvraj-Dhoni combination in the lower order could potentially become a thorn in Aussie flesh. :hatsoff:

[sandtest]

Well, I have all praise for Yuvi, but, I am bit nervous at this wisdom. Though Yuvi is in great form still fact is that it's a test Cricket in Australia. I would have preferred Sehwag opening and playing his natural game and saving Dravid-- our one of the best for later overs.:nervous: We could have tried Yuvi from second game onwards-- if the need arise.

[ludhianvi]

so who's likely to come at number 3? Laxman? Jaffer Dravid Laxman Tendulkar Ganguly Yuvraj If they play the order like this then our two lefties are playing right after each other if that counts for anything.

[Laaloo]

just wondering will pathan play or will they opt for ishant sharma instead

[siddhu]

just wondering will pathan play or will they opt for ishant sharma instead

that depends on the pitch... if its spin oriented then Bhajji plays, if its green then Pathan should play. Ishant/Pankaj would probably be opening the bowling with Zaheer to not make the bowling one dimensional (i hate that term)..

[Chandan]

that depends on the pitch... if its spin oriented then Bhajji plays' date=' [b']if its green then Pathan should play. Ishant/Pankaj would probably be opening the bowling with Zaheer to not make the bowling one dimensional (i hate that term)..

And where will RPS be, our most improved bowler in tests? I wouldn't want Pathan just now in the team, even though he'd prolong the batting, as it'd make the attack too predictable. And I'm sure that Dravid will deliver where ever he is played. It the the #3 batsman I'm worried about. Laxman is not suited for that role, as it is quite sure that Jaffer would get out within 5 overs and then two middle order batsmen would be fighting to see the new ball off instead of imposing themselves on the Australian bowlers. So, Dravid opening is is a bad move.

[Rajan]

Gavaskar is wrong when he says, Sehwag should open and the team management should decide between Laxman and Yuvi.Yuvi is in form.Laxman cannot be dropped after his performances in pak series. Considering Sehwag's poor form in the domestic season, we have no other option to accommodate Yuvi in the playing XI, but to have Dravid open the innings. Just no other way at all. Jaffer,Dravid,Laxman,Sachin,Saurav,Yuvi,Dhoni,.......Kumble,Zaheer,RP Singh must be certainities. I want Pathan to play in MCG just to ensure we bat deeper because whenever we have not done well in first tests of away series and lose, we find it very difficult to come back. Ishant and Pankaj, for all their freshness and right arm variety, are too raw.Pathan can bowl better in bowler firnedly surfaces and he is consistently bowling at 135kmph.at least Pathan can bat in both innings and hold up the aussies for some time. he is quite good against fast bowling, has a simple but effective technique, does not flinch. Kapil, Prabhakar, Srinath are all right handed and bowled together in tests, similarly Kapil, Binny, Madan Lal have bowled in tandem. so, i dont agree that there is any issue in bowling 3 left arm bowlers at all. Zak is a very different kind of skiddy bowler when compared to RPS who hits the deck and gets bounce or Pathan who looks to swing the ball more.

[HouMac]

This was an easy decision. You go with the players who're in form. Sehwag hasn't done jack for more than a year and shows no signs of putting in the required work to come out of his funk either. Picking him would've been no different than Dravid opening because I can't see Sehwag lasting 5 overs.