Running away to defeat. India versus Pakistan. Abu Dhabi ODI 1.
This is a story of run outs. The team looked strangely edgy today, which is a surprise because they have looked so assured in ODIs for several months now. As I write this, Pakistan are 126/2 off 31 overs and will win the match easily, chasing 198 for victory.
India dropped Sehwag and Kaif. I would have played Sehwag and dropped Kaif. Sehwag’s mere presence has an impact on Pakistan, the way Younis Khan or Afridi has over India. I would back him to return to form at the expense of their bowlers, considering his well advertised love for them! Sehwag has not looked out of place recently, unlike Kaif who looks lost. The problem with Sehwag has been poor shot selection, which is far easier to correct with concentration.
In any case, Uthappa opened with Rahul and was out for 7 (25/1), trying to loft the ball over the in field and was caught at mid on. He was trying to force the pace and paid the price for not getting to the pitch of the ball, which bounced a shade more than expected.
Rahul was his usual composed self till he ran for a non existent run, to be out for 20 (47/2). Good bowling had kept the run rate below 4 an over which built up the pressure, forcing the run out. Yuvraj departed next for 7, not going forward enough to one that moved away late and kissed the bat en route to Akmal.
Meanwhile, Pathan had settled down nicely after riding his luck early on, till he decided to commit hara-kiri, and ran himself out foolishly for 26 (72/4). Except Yuvraj, all the batsmen were out trying to steal runs when faced with good bowling, on a two paced wicket. The surest way to slow the scoring rate is to lose a wicket, and that is exactly what happened. The Pakistani bowlers deserve the credit for the run outs. Even though Raina (40) and Venugopal (61 n.o.), managed to steady the ship, they were in no position to score freely. In the end, the innings ended how it had begun, at just under 4 an over.
It would have been far better to realize that this was a 230 – 250 wicket and not get so desperate so early. With wickets in hand, Dhoni, Yuvraj and Raina could have launched a late overs assault, which became a non starter due to regular loss of wickets. There were 4 run outs in all, but the last two do not count for much as they came off the last 2 balls of the inning.
Even though Venugopal top scored for us, my team would have not included him as I would open with Sehwag and Robin with Rahul at No. 3. Venugopal is a good batsman, but not a natural ODI player. He is a run accumulator and can rotate the strike but I do not think he will win matches single handedly. He is still batting much better than Kaif, whose return looks increasingly uncertain. I expect Sehwag to be back for the next ODI, though.
Agarkar bowled well today – as of now his figures read – 9-0-25-2. Therefore, I expect him to bowl badly for the next 5 games! Sreesanth bowled with heart and fire, but Pathan was disappointing.
It will be interesting to see how the pitch behaves tomorrow. I am unsure if the same strip will be used. As I finish writing, Pakistan are 181/4 off 45.1 overs, and will win with overs to spare.
I am not worried, though. The team has been on a dream run for a while now, and the occasional loss can serve to keep the players honest. Tomorrow may well bring a different result.
-- Third Umpire
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Reader Comments (4)
Bring in Sehwag against the Pakis. Dropping Kaif is alright. But playing 5 bowlers in just not on. In ODI cricket, it is always the batsmen who will win you the games. So pack in 7 regular batsmen and 4 bowlers.
I was watching the game last night and the only Indian bowler who impressed me was Shreesanth.Sad you forgot to mention him !!! The young lad is improving with every match. Wonder why Harbhajan is so shit scared of the Pakis coz he is bowling very flat and defensive - the Afridi effect I guess !@$%^!
The Abu Dhabi stadium looks fantastic and the pitch - horrible @#%^%!. The strip prepared for the first 1-dayer was as dead as a dodo with the ball barely rising above knee height (especially in the second half).
I also have a word of caution for Greg and his seemingly magical innovations in experimenting. You know what it is with this random juggling, mixing and re-shuffling of the batting order. It makes a genius out of you when you are lucky and somehow, it clicks. But, when things do not fall in place because every player becomes unsure of what his role is going to be - changing his batting position every now and then there is confusion resulting in collective failure. If you are wondering what I am hinting at I'll give you a hint - just check on the number of run-outs we had last evening.
Munaf should get more chances. He has the potential to be a strike bowler in ODIs. Agarkar would not feature in my team. Even my granny can bowl well once every 10 games!
Sreesanth was mentioned in the column. He bowls with aggression and pace but needs to improve his control over line.
I do not think changes to the team have anything to do with run outs. They were the result of mistakes made by batsmen. In any case, team changes yesterday were dictated by loss of form and not mindless tinkering with the team.
Even though I have been critical of inappropriate changes made for the Jamshedpur ODI, it has to be said that the policy of flexibility has been a resounding success overall.
The team has discovered new options and certainly improved because of it.
I was talking about changes in the batting order - not the Team !
Happy?
The whole idea of changing the order is to challenge batsmen and hopefully discover unrealized talent and potential (Dhoni and Irfan are classical examples). It also shows the maximum a given player can bring to the team - this is absolutely crucial in deciding the best eleven for the World Cup.
Having players fulfill multiple roles is also the best insurance you can have for injuries to key players. If you look at it carefully, there is a clear method to it.
Apart from Irfan and Dhoni, most other players have stable positions. This is because these two CAN play more than one role. Rahul has moved up to cover for Sachin's absence and Sehwag's previous lack of form.
The modern game is constantly moving and changing. If you are not moving, you are falling behind. Great teams actually shape the future - and that is what the team is trying to do.
Of course, sometimes the changes will not work - even then, they are of value for the lessons learnt.