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

[The Outsider]

What a disaster. Might as well play Harbhajan as well now and hand Australia the game.

[siddhu]

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.

oh.. sorry... forgot RPS was in the squad too...maybe i need some afternoon coffee:finger::finger:

[Rajan]

What a disaster. Might as well play Harbhajan as well now and hand Australia the game.

\\ I have been reading your posts criticising the decision to open with Dravid. but there is just no other sane option.Sehwag is not in form.Anil Kumble is not like other captains who get swayed by public opinion or by the press articles. he can really judge Sehwag's form based on watching him closely in the nets , for the past week.He has tremendous experience as well as the advice from Dravid and even Sachin. He would have considered all possible scenarios before persuading Dravid to open, in a series as important as this one. Instead of accommodating Viru and ruing the decision later, he has done the best thing as per the choices available to him. V can wait till the end of the MCG test at least before criticising the decision. Please understand, Anil Kumble would be at the receiving end of all the criticism and not Ian Chappell and sunil Gavaskar , if Sehwag fails. India is not in a position to gamble at all. we have to play the best possible XI which can hope for a decent performance against a very good Australian attack. Sehwag's feet are in concrete now.just freeing his arms and throwing the bat around would not help him in his current form. Dravid has already proven his class in the practice game.He is in his groove and can hold an end. the other batsmen have to play around him, more aggressively.I am sure it is the right way to start the first test, not to lose in MCG. We can definitely have Sydney and Adelaide to try out other players. Afridi was a very good success in the last indian tour as a bowler and a batsman, but he was treated with disdain by the batsmen this time and he failed even in kanpur where he has a 45 ball hudred last time. just because Sehwag scored 195 last time, does not automatically assure him of success this time. he is woefully short of confidence and bereft of any form. Dinesh Karthik looks like a walking wicket despite his england and SA performances. Dravid has to open at MCG.

[living]

why is kkd the opener being ignored?

[The Outsider]

Rajan, don't you see the folly of disturbing a batting order which has been delivering the goods for one year consistently barring the one bad afternoon at Cape Town. Dravid is not in the best of form. Even in the tour game he was scratching around and not scoring the runs. I trust him to come good, but he must be given his favorite number 3 position to do that not thrust out to open putting him under more pressure. Moving Dravid up not only unsettles his spot, it puts Laxman in an uncomfortable number 3 position, where he has never batted on a long term and has not even played at that spot for years. He has been sublime and successful at number 5/6 and we are putting his batting in jeopardy. These are two batsmen who almost put us on the road to a series win last time we toured Australia and we are unsettling both of them. Now let's see what we are gaining - we are playing an in form but unproven Yuvraj at the cost of two proven performers. If past tours to Australia are any indicators it is your seasoned performers who are going to put you in the match. For all talk about Yuvraj, he was a failure last time he was trusted with the responsibility at the expense of a class act like Laxman. Sure, he has the potential but the upside is not enough to risk Dravid and Laxman. If Yuvraj has to play, let him open and not play Sehwag. I have no problems with that combination. But if he does not want to open then risking two of you best batting options for an unproven commodity doesn't make sense to me.

[The Outsider]

why is kkd the opener being ignored?

Perhaps because he could not buy a run against a washed up Akhtar, Sami, and Tanveer.:wink_smile:

[Hawkeye]

Rajan, don't you see the folly of disturbing a batting order which has been delivering the goods for one year consistently barring the one bad afternoon at Cape Town. Dravid is not in the best of form. Even in the tour game he was scratching around and not scoring the runs. I trust him to come good, but he must be given his favorite number 3 position to do that not thrust out to open putting him under more pressure. Moving Dravid up not only unsettles his spot, it puts Laxman in an uncomfortable number 3 position, where he has never batted on a long term and has not even played at that spot for years. He has been sublime and successful at number 5/6 and we are putting his batting in jeopardy. These are two batsmen who almost put us on the road to a series win last time we toured Australia and we are unsettling both of them. Now let's see what we are gaining - we are playing an in form but unproven Yuvraj at the cost of two proven performers. If past tours to Australia are any indicators it is your seasoned performers who are going to put you in the match. For all talk about Yuvraj, he was a failure last time he was trusted with the responsibility at the expense of a class act like Laxman. Sure, he has the potential but the upside is not enough to risk Dravid and Laxman. If Yuvraj has to play, let him open and not play Sehwag. I have no problems with that combination. But if he does not want to open then risking two of you best batting options for an unproven commodity doesn't make sense to me.

It is well known that Dravid's sweet spot is at no. 3 but you must be aware that there is a very good reason why he has been promoted namely that no-one else can do a better job in the team (except possibly Tendulkar). Karthik has to get the short straw because he has simply not performed in recent times and whilst he might be worth persisting with against most teams, Australia is a different kettle of fish. Sehwag has not performed for far too long and only deserves a place in the 11 later in the series if someone consistently underperforms or is injured. Yuvraj should be in just before Dhoni but having him as an opener is unimaginable. He's not played in that spot before and will hence be completely unfamiliar (and unnecessary) territory for him. Laxman doesn't need to come in at no.3 and I have no idea why you think this is a concern. Tendulkar is the obvious choice for this position followed by Ganguly so then you will have Laxman where you want him. Finally as to Dravid being unsettled, it does not appear to bother him much and nor should it. What we need is gradual runs on the board in the first session with the loss of no (or maybe just one) wickets whilst the new ball is seen off. Can you really think of anyone else who can accomplish this task with greater success? Once we settle in, the slightly more attacking option at 3 and 4 can make their mark.

[The Outsider]

Hawkeye, it all appears great on paper. Dravid has the best technique for the new ball, has scored tough runs before etc. But get down to reality - he has tried opening a few times and except for the pattas in Pakistan has not been a success. Dravid himself while showing his willingness to open, did mention the difference in mindset between an opener and a number 3. I am sceptical about making him this mental transition so late in his career, and specially since he is already out of form. The arguments for Laxman are the same for Tendulkar and Ganguly. Why fix something which is not broken? Tendulkar has been rock solid at number 4, Ganguly has been terrific and positive at number 5. The opening test against Australia is not the time for these experiments. Once they get on top of you they are going to dance all over you to victory. If the team management does not have confidence in Sehwag, fine. Go with Yuvraj. Throw the gauntlet at the Aussies while preserving your numbers 3-6, which frankly are our only chance of competing in the series. It'll give a left-right opening combination with an attacking player who is good against pace as long as the ball is not moving around too much. The guy will be hungry and willing to perform to cement his place in the team. Put him in there.

[Rajan]

Shweta/Hawkeye Hawk eye is spot on. in most of the points, he had literally typed what i had in mind, in the last 30 minutes when i was reading Hari Sampath Vs Others on Sachin and Ponting comparison thread. Thanks Hawk Eye. I differ on only one thing. Laxman will bat at 3 this time in MCG though I would prefer Ganguly to come in at 3. if we go by the practice match, Kumble would be asking Laxman to shoulder the burden.I have no doubth about Laxman rising to the occasion or even Ganguly because both of them have expressed their displeasure in batting lower down the order at 6. in fact if we can split one of the left handers to bat at 3, it would be good in the team's perspective.But Laxman is good enough to carry the innings at 3. Unless u have anything against Yuvraj, u would not want him to open against Australia, in australia in a test !!! Trust me, Dravid is technically too good to fail as an opener.in the last 2 series, he has not made any major contribution, had been getting out almost always after a start due to lapses in concentration, but the added responsibility would spur him on to fulfill the expectations of Kumble, the team and the country. I think Kumble would be able to get the best out of every player in this tour.

[siddhu]

Hawkeye, it all appears great on paper. Dravid has the best technique for the new ball, has scored tough runs before etc. But get down to reality - he has tried opening a few times and except for the pattas in Pakistan has not been a success. Dravid himself while showing his willingness to open, did mention the difference in mindset between an opener and a number 3. I am sceptical about making him this mental transition so late in his career, and specially since he is already out of form. The arguments for Laxman are the same for Tendulkar and Ganguly. Why fix something which is not broken? Tendulkar has been rock solid at number 4, Ganguly has been terrific and positive at number 5. The opening test against Australia is not the time for these experiments. Once they get on top of you they are going to dance all over you to victory. If the team management does not have confidence in Sehwag, fine. Go with Yuvraj. Throw the gauntlet at the Aussies while preserving your numbers 3-6, which frankly are our only chance of competing in the series. It'll give a left-right opening combination with an attacking player who is good against pace as long as the ball is not moving around too much. The guy will be hungry and willing to perform to cement his place in the team. Put him in there.

Totall agree in bold... Opening with UV may not be as bad as we think... don't completely agree with the thing in red. No doubt that UV has not been very consistent in the test arena. He is not as suspect against moving ball or pace as made out. If he is in good form and if his mood is right he can take the game away against any attack on any surface. Having said that, if he is not in his element, he can make mediocre bowlers (espcially spinners) look class apart on total patta pitches.

[Rohan495]

Personally ive been a strong on my belief Laxman should bat at 3. But in all seriousness it might not be the best move. I feel like if the openers are lost early Laxman is vulnerable early. So a platform must be created if Laxman is too score runs. I say play Ganguy at 3. Tendulkar 4 and Laxman at 5. the key to winning is too score big in their first innnings so my team would look like this: Dravid Jaffer Ganguly Tendulkar Laxman Yuvraj Pathan Dhoni Kumble Zaheer RP Singh 12th man: Sehwag

[Guest Hiten.]

Dravid Jaffer Ganguly Tendulkar Laxman Yuvraj Pathan Dhoni Kumble Zaheer RP Singh 12th man: Sehwag

There is no sanity in promoting Ganguly if ausi's happen to draw first blood early. Laxman is the man who should be promoted at number 3 (after RD, he is the best #3 we've got in Tests). What do you mean by "we should have a platform for Laxi to score runs". I think its other way around, Laxi is there in the team to layout a platform so other batsmen can cash on it. My team would be : Jaffa RD Laxi Tendu Ganguly UV Mahi IK AK RP ZK/Ishant

[ludhianvi]

I'd be looking forward to the Yuvi/Dhoni partnerships. They seem to have a good understanding when playing with each other. Lets see how they do in the Test matches.

[msb1991]

I think it would have been far wiser to send Yuvraj to play domestic cricket instead of stay with India on all those Test tours over the years. India have now chosen to play Yuvraj and they have little or no indication of his consistency in the 4 or 5 day game.

[novpj]

The arguments against Dravid opening have evolved from a belief/hope that Sehwag would do what he did in the last boxing day match to the discomfort of Dravid and Laxman at the new spots. At some point each of these players have to step up and be counted. If we open with Jaffer and Sehwag and both or at least one of them always gets out in first 5 overs then Dravids role wont be very different than what he has now in the new lineup. In this case the pseudo no. 3 is SRT who is now replaced by Laxman at this spot. Till what time are we going to make excuses for the players. There are time when the opponent may take a new ball when Laxman is batting - are we going to just assume that he will fold up and get out quickly? At the end these guys are professionals and if we have the best mix for the team then they should be expcted to step up and play their roles.

[Anakin]

It might work out fine. RD is technically capable of opening, and UV bolsters the batting. Keeping my fingers crossed that it all works out well for us.

[DesiChap]

Door not closed on Sehwag yet Melbourne: India's team management is still uncertain about whether or not to open with Rahul Dravid in the first Test against Australia at Melbourne that starts on Wednesday. Bad weather over the last few days has meant that the pitch at the Melbourne Cricket Ground has been under covers and as a result the team is still uncertain about the composition of its playing eleven. Sources told CNN-IBN that the final call over whether or not Dravid will open will be made only after the practice session on Tuesday. While Dravid remains the front-runner to open the innings and did so in the practice game against Victoria, the door isn't shut on Virender Sehwag who made 195 when India last played at Melbourne in 2003. http://www.cricketnext.com/news/door-not-closed-on-sehwag-yet/28488-13.html

[Yuvraj4Captaincy]

Excellent decision by the team management to play yuvraj..lukin forward to the first test

[DesiChap]

Melbourne wicket has a strange look OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Melbourne: The Indians had their first look at the (drop-in) wicket at the MCG, on Monday afternoon, and came away slightly confused. The first Test begins on Wednesday. “There was much grass at one end and hardly any at the other… I’ve been informed that there will eventually be an even spread… Let’s see,” cricket manager Lalchand Rajput told The Telegraph. For a change, there was bright sunshine for much of the day and, so, the dampness should disappear. Meanwhile, former captain Rahul Dravid remains the favourite to open with specialist Wasim Jaffer — unless, of course, he does a complete U-turn from his public position. In case of a rethink, indications are that the think tank will “gamble” with Virender Sehwag and not Dinesh Karthik. If that does happen (seemed highly unlikely on Monday night), then Yuvraj Singh will have to miss out.

[putrevus]

Why not make Yuvraj the opener atleast he is attacking and gives left right combination , he cant be worse than Dravid, he needs to given free reign and be told go out and attack aussies, even if you fail it doesnt matter. That what I was worried we moving whole batting order to make room for one and this is price you pay for it.Yuvraj wants to play in test matches he should open no matter what ,Let dravid be in no 3 or reshuffle with VVS at no 3 and dravid no 6.