After the second ODI I had reminisced about how Raina’s emergence was similar to that of Yuvraj at Nairobi in the ICC trophy. Yuvraj played a sublime innings today to remind us all that he is now the master and Raina should, for now, be satisfied with the tag of most promising apprentice. There is little doubt that Yuvraj is the best ODI batsman in this side. Rahul, of course, is peerless in the test side and remains our most reliable in either form of the game.

Batting first, India scored 294 for 6. Gambhir and Sreesanth were dropped. Agarker and Munaf came in as India played 5 bowlers. The Goa pitch is substandard and not worthy of an international match. Till a few weeks ago, football was being played on this turf and the pitch is a disgrace. Most balls died in speed and bounce after pitching, while the occasional ball exploded off it. The local cricket association should not be given matches if they cannot prepare a half decent pitch.

Batsmen can get injured and bowlers lulled into a false sense of ability. My granny can take wickets on this pitch and both teams deserve credit for scoring as much as they did.

Sehwag’s poor run continues and he is now playing only because we do not have a proven opener to replace him. Gambhir is not good enough to be a long term option and the selectors, I hope, are looking around for options. Suffice to say that Sehwag will remain just a poor Sachin clone. I do not see him having anywhere near the longevity of Sachin in either form of the game. Batsmen like him bat only one way and struggle when found out by bowlers. This just serves to put Sachin’s class to scale.

Back to the game. Dravid opened with Sehwag and concentrated on keeping his stumps intact. The ball was difficult to get away and he kept the scoreboard ticking with singles. Irfan came in at No. 3 and batted well for 36. Dravid was done in by a slower one that stayed low and slow, sneaking in on the stumps off inside edge. As with almost every innings he has played as captain, he steadied the ship when disaster loomed and laid the platform others could use for mounting an assault ( 105/2).

Yuvraj announced his intentions with two 4s in the first over he faced. His fifty came off 48 balls. The second fifty runs were scored off only 25 balls! Even for someone who has been a very good timer of the ball his timing today was heavenly. How he manages to do that, only he knows. No other batsman came anywhere close to the panache with which he played on this difficult pitch. He is in the form of his life and I am glad he is making it count. His 103 came off only 76 balls. Breathtaking drives, pulls and lofted flicks over midwicket, his innings had them all.

Raina played well to score a 68 ball 61. Dhoni savaged 13 off 6 deliveries but that was merely the icing on the cake. The average first inning score at this venue is 196 and I think this was a batting performance of caliber.

294 was an even bigger ask with Pietersen out with a stomach bug but I doubt if that would have changed the result. For the English, pitches like these are few and far between. Batting on these tracks does not come naturally to them and it was no surprise when they limped to 100/6. The game was over as a contest and India visibly eased off. This is my only criticism of the team’s performance.

Pathan bowled the opening overs well, using the slower ball frequently and effectively. Collingwood did get 93 runs but the Indians had, regrettably, lost intensity in the knowledge that the result was already a forgone conclusion. This is a dangerous assumption and will come back to bite the team some day. At 100/6 India should have wrapped up the English innings for less than 200. Instead, they let it prosper to 245.

I am worried about Kaif’s lack of form. He is a crucial member of the side and is looking lost as a batsman. His batting just isn’t clicking and I would hate to lose a fielder of his ability. Powar bowled well again today and should be persisted with.

Looking ahead to the World Cup, we should try out a few young batsmen in the remaining matches. Yuvraj, Dravid, and Raina are looking good. Sachin is due to return in a few weeks. This still leaves us short of 3- 4good batsmen in the squad. I would try out Robin Uthappa as opener any other young batsman the selectors have been watching. A good ODI opener is desperately needed. I have seen enough of Gambhir to know that he will not cut the mustard. At best, he is a passable stopgap.

I think that we do have a good chance in the World Cup and the team has the right combination of talent and spirit. However, if we are to avoid a fate similar to the last World Cup, we cannot have any weakness in the team. The Aussies would just love that. The careers of Zaheer and Nehra never recovered after being brutalized in the final.

We rightly expect more than just another trip to the finals. I trust that Greg is looking at all available options. And yes, think about bringing Kumble back. I would. He would not play every game but would give us an option on pitches with any bounce.