Kuptaan's Foolhardy Bravado leads India into the abyss

[Trichromatic]

20 minutes ago, rkt.india said:

captain does not have confidence in Pujara who has helped them team win in 3 of the last 7 tests he played  but has confidence in Rohit's game changing ability in session which no one has seen yet. The ultimate stupidity.

Not saying that dropping Pujara for Rohit was right, but at least we knew that his place was fixed in the team. However no one could have imagined that Vijay could lose a spot from this Indian team.

[Vilander]

7 hours ago, Bigg Brother said:

Anyone with intact brain cells will pick Vijay,Pujara ahead of Dhawan,Rohit unless you are desperate for win,want to rattle WI in one session or keeping weather in the picture as there is prediction of rain here..

Look at the Indian batsmen in test cricket-

Top 2 are dropped and bottom 2 are left out.

We can only hope for Kohli to learn from this..But this isnt the first time.Even in the Galle test Rohit was dismissed in the most absyml way(Actually twice in first innings)but wasnt questioned as whole batting lineup was blamed for the batting debacle.Had Pujara been there,India would have won that match.

Rohit is indeed poor.

[Silva]

 a top order of Vijay/rahul/pujara

middle order of Kohli/rahane/ashwin

lower order of Saha/bk/jadeja or mishra

 

thats a difficult line up to take 20 wickets against IMO. I know Kohli is all about ruthless aggression but defense is the best offense and this line up gives you the best chance at preventing opposition from getting 20 wickets while increasing your teams chance at getting 20 wickets by still having 5 bowlers available.

[velu]

12 minutes ago, Silva said:

 a top order of Vijay/rahul/pujara

middle order of Kohli/rahane/ashwin

lower order of Saha/bk/jadeja or mishra

 

thats a difficult line up to take 20 wickets against IMO. I know Kohli is all about ruthless aggression but defense is the best offense and this line up gives you the best chance at preventing opposition from getting 20 wickets while increasing your teams chance at getting 20 wickets by still having 5 bowlers available.

dude 

 

[Silva]

19 minutes ago, velu said:

dude 

 

playing "defensive" minded pujara and vijay ahead of "aggressive" minded Rohit and dhawan is better for the offense as well.

[velu]

8 minutes ago, Silva said:

playing "defensive" minded pujara and vijay ahead of "aggressive" minded Rohit and dhawan is better for the offense as well.

but defense will never be used as offense .. if other team also plays defensively , end result will be a deadlock

[sandeep]

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Edited August 10, 2016 by sandeep
wrong thread.

[New guy]

Nice to see the mask is finally off. Someone who did not criticise a senior, veteran captain a single time even when made blunders, after blunders after blunders for years, is now criticising a really young captain who is just learning in his first over seas series. Worst thing is, this guy pretends to be neutral. This was a match on a flat pitch where almost an entire day was washed off and yet he is blamed for a draw

 

The best thing? Kohli just proved how willing to learn he was after he made mistakes and make changes, instead of acting like a stubborn mule and keeping the same team every match. He is in the learning and experimenting phase but as he has repeatedly said, he would rather lose than always chase the safer option. You can argue the changes were due to Kumble but I am pretty sure the previous captain would have over-ruled the coach. 

[Debutant]

People here calling Kohli a stupid is like chindi stock traders calling Warren Buffet stupid  

[Brainfade]

30 minutes ago, Debutant said:

People here calling Kohli a stupid is like chindi stock traders calling Warren Buffet stupid  

Generally speaking, yes. But, was the win due to the Rohit Sharma experiment or despite it?

 

The BK call was outstanding!  The RJ call was solid.  The RGS call?  Dubious.  

Edited August 14, 2016 by Moth2Flame

[asterix]

Generally speaking, yes. But, was the win due to the Rohit Sharma experiment or despite it?

 

The BK call was outstanding!  The RJ call was solid.  The RGS call?  Dubious.  

The key thing is making a "call" instead of being a stubborn mule. Nobody gets everything right every time. But that doesn't means one shouldn't try different approaches.

[Jimmy Cliff]

Stats for Indian batsmen since Pujara's comeback in SL last year:

 

http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=1;filter=advanced;orderby=batting_average;spanmin1=28+Aug+2015;spanval1=span;team=6;template=results;type=batting

 

Tailunt with a jaw dropping average of 19 (barely ahead of Jaddu) is now the preferred option ahead of Pujara who averages 45+ which is even better than Kohli in the same phase.

 

I thought this chutiyapa with #intent #aggreshun #expressurself will stop with Kumble at the helm but what did I know.

[G_B_]

Well Che v Rohit in India is not even a debate.

 

Che has been the best batsman in home conditions. Stats are there to back him on that.

[Jimmy Cliff]

1 minute ago, G_B_ said:

Well Che v Rohit in Tests is not even a debate.

Fixed!

[Jimmy Cliff]

I am glad this clown was not in charge in the mid to late 90s or early 00s as he'd have probably replaced Dravid with Kambli or Yuvraj. Yeah I can even picture him spouting rubbish like:

 

Quote

Nothing wrong with Dravid who's been solid but we feel Kambli/Yuvraj has been batting very well and deserves to be picked as he is a dangerous option at no. 5 who can change the game in a session with #intent.

 

[velu]

Cat is out of the bag

[velu]

Nice to see the mask is finally off. Someone who did not criticise a senior, veteran captain a single time even when made blunders, after blunders after blunders for years, is now criticising a really young captain who is just learning in his first over seas series. Worst thing is, this guy pretends to be neutral. This was a match on a flat pitch where almost an entire day was washed off and yet he is blamed for a draw

 

The best thing? Kohli just proved how willing to learn he was after he made mistakes and make changes, instead of acting like a stubborn mule and keeping the same team every match. He is in the learning and experimenting phase but as he has repeatedly said, he would rather lose than always chase the safer option. You can argue the changes were due to Kumble but I am pretty sure the previous captain would have over-ruled the coach. 

I am happy that we won somehow rather than proving how other players let down dhoni like your usuual arguments

Hey still two spinners outside asia and dhonis friends jaddu , rohit n ishant are playing..

[Tibarn]

Batting: The same 7 batsmen have been included, that Dhoni included, but Kohli wants to play 5 batsmen with high strike rates/aggressive, versus Dhoni who would play 6 batsmen and used a traditional test batting lineup, being concerned more with getting a good score rather than potentially getting a good score quickly. Kohli's is risky, as we can get shot out for a low score against better teams.  On the other hand, if we score, the bowlers would have more time to get the opposition out. 

 

Bowling: Our overseas bowling core during our last overseas leg under Dhoni was: Zak, Shami, Ishant, Ashwin/Jadeja. Bhuvi replaced Zak in England. Our core bowling under Kohli is the same, except we have 5 bowlers now, so Ashwin has a spinning partner: either Jadeja or Mishra. Kohli keeps an attacking field at most times, so he thinks the original bowlers are good enough, but they needed more attacking field placings. 

 

We won't see if this is foolhardy until our next overseas leg.

[NameGoesHere]

2 hours ago, zen said:

Based on how you present it, Hitler would have earned the right to do what he pleases as well since he was winning and probably also grinning until Operation Barbarosa happened (in Operation Barbarosa, Hitler took on the big boy Russia) 

 

And that is what happened- with memorable results. :))   Why only Hitler, even Alexander or Caesar walked the same path.  But it's a fact- if you win, you get the right to choose your play.  You have the right to argue against it, but I doubt we can deny someone (Kohli)  freedom of action when have won him a historic overseas Test series for India?

 

Quote

 

Talking about batting, dropping Pujara ( and Vijay) is definitely questionable as Ind was 120 odd for 5 in the 1st inning. It was the men trenches i.e. Ashwin and Saha that brought Ind into the game. In tbe 2nd inng, Rahane provided the backbone support. And #3 position has hopelessly failed in this test

 

5 bowlers strategy is good and so is the mindset to look to attack. However,  when playing 5 batsmen, the team has to be particular in whom it selects

 

In the name of offensive strategy, if correct players are dropped, it could risk putting question marks on an otherwise good strategy 

 

I completely agree.  I am also sure Kohli knows it and that if it doesn't work out he will be under the gun big time.  We all - or almost all- know tailunt is likely to not cut it.  But Kohli's takend a decision and he is well within his rights to do so.  Let's see how it plays.

39 minutes ago, rkt.india said:

Just because he didn't score big in 2 tests he played this series, you forgot what he did against SA and SL. This isn't how cricket is played and a team is built. Imagine if Dravid had been dropped after an abysmal Australian tour in 1999.

I am not forgetting what Pujara did, but at this stage I think there is something seriously wrong with his core game and/ or approach, and not just a temporary matter of form. From what I saw in this series - and I don't claim to be an expert - he can neither (a) Stick around long enough to save a game or (b) Stick along long enough to score a big one or (c) Look convincing even when he is failing to do (a) or (b). 

 

I hope Pujara answers his critics, he represents the fundamentals of Test cricket and a world of batting that is under threat.  But as of now, he is not cutting it, IMO.

 

That Vijay is not playing more concerning to me at this stage.

 

[Texan]

Pretty disappointing to see some of the viciousness of some comments (not all) in attacking Kohli just to try to defend their beloved Dhoni. The same people who never criticized Dhoni for any captaincy decisions have suddenly found their voice.

 

Well, I wasn't pleased with the batting selections either. I think Murali Vijay is a Must Have in the Test team. He should have played instead of Dhawan. Also, between Pujara and Rohit, Pujara seems a better player, but on current Test form, even Pujara is not really setting the World on fire or so. Against better teams especially away from home, this batting lineup may struggle. We need the solidity of Vijay at the top of the innings. 

 

On the other side, we have to also give credit to Kohli for the bowling selections. Picking BK was a masterful move. Jadeja also kept the pressure on and seemed to have done better than what Mishra was providing in this series. The bowling selections definitely paid dividends that helped us win the match. So, it does look so far at least that Kohli is willing to pick horses for courses instead of blindly picking same team over and over again. This also means that there is always pressure on players to perform and not take their places in the team for granted, a welcome change from the ultra comfort all players enjoyed even when the team was getting beaten black and blue. I would rather have a captain who is willing to ring in the changes when things aren't working to expectations than a captain that plays by a fixed playbook and for whom the process mattered more than results even when said process was not achieving the right results time and time again.