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| April 10, 2000 | ||
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| CRICKET Low on Attitude The Indian team seemed unwilling to mend its losing ways at Sharjah despite captain Saurav Ganguly trying out new ways to win By Javed M.Ansari
The display put up by India made it quite clear that they were never really serious contenders. High on confidence after their 3-2 win over South Africa in the one-day series at home, India was quickly grounded. Its star-studded batting lineup packed up in all four matches, while its bowlers just didn't carry enough firepower. Tournament tally: won 1, lost 3. The batting lineup, which twice posted 300-plus scores at home against the Proteas, failed to get past the 200 mark in any of its four matches in the desert. "Our batting let us down miserably," said skipper Saurav Ganguly. If the batting was wretched, the bowling was no better, with Javagal Srinath struggling for both form and fitness. Anil Kumble waged a lonely battle, and once he was seen off, the attack just fell away. "International cricket is all about quick bowling and until India can find a couple of quick bowlers it will continue to struggle," says former South African great Barry Richards. Something that even Ganguly readily agrees with: "What I need is a couple of young quickies." (see interview). Laments team coach Kapil Dev: "I can only motivate them and show them what to do, I can't go and bowl for them." India could actually have done with some of the great man's commitment. In the days leading up to the crunch game against Pakistan, the Indians chose to spend the day after the first round matches shopping in Dubai and went through a perfunctory practice session on the eve of the match. All this while Pakistani coach Javed Miandad worked his team to its bones. Ganguly and Kapil have been striving hard, trying to get the boys out of the rut. But old habits die hard. The day the team lost its tournament opener against South Africa, the captain and coach read the riot act and dropped Srinath. The team responded and won against Pakistan, only to lapse into mediocrity once again. "How many times can one tell them the same things?" asked Kapil. In the midst of the gloom in the Indian camp, Ganguly's captaincy and his positive attitude stood out. Unlike his predecessors he has been in control of the situation on the field, trying to make things happen, putting back the pressure on the opponents, throwing them off balance. He has been bold. Aware that the team needed to score runs at a fast clip and post a big win against the Proteas, he reshuffled the batting lineup, bringing the in-form Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja up the order. Against Pakistan in the first match he brought on Kumble to have a go at newcomer Younis Khan. "It was a great move to have got his main bowler to have a go at the newcomer," says former Pakistan cricketer and commentator Rameez Raja. But a captain and a coach are only as good as the team. Despite their exertions and efforts the team continues to falter. The freeze-frame of the Indian cricket team's performance in Sharjah was the sight of how two of its seniormost players Sachin Tendulkar and Azharuddin got run out in the last match against South Africa -- running erect rather than diving in the desperate fashion of one-day cricket. That was the message of the team's performance in Sharjah: hoping to get there rather than actually getting there.
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 © Living Media India Ltd |
As
the lights dimmed at the Sharjah cricket stadium, the battle for the
Coca-Cola Cup finally over, South Africa and Pakistan stood aside,
gracefully acknowledging the applause from their supporters. But there was
one team missing from the festivities -- India. Outbatted and outgunned, the
tournament's wooden spooners were already back home cooling their heels.