Team India on Victory Trail, Keep the Spirit Up
By,
Yashpal Singh Stickiewicket.com
Friday, February 23, 2007
It is a good omen. Just before the battle of cricket is to begin, circumstances cannot be better than this. Struggling to overcome the bad form over the last one year, Team India seems to be back to the trail of victory now. The matches with Sri Lanka were the last series before the World Cup and it was not easy to beat a strong team such as Sri Lanka. But the Team India, showing amazing courage and team-spirit, not only battered the Sri Lankan tigers but has also raised the expectations of cricket lovers about the chances of India winning the World Cup.
The trail of victory began with India beating the West Indies at their domestic grounds and then Sri Lanka in India. Indian players have left the losing trail behind. The dose of confidence that the Team India has received, just before the mahakumbh of cricket starting on March 11, will definitely pay dividends. After beating the West Indies by 3-1, India had a series against Sri Lanka, the team which has always been considered a strong rival of India. This is also true that two of the superstars of the Sri Lankan team, Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas, were not in the team. But their absence should not lead one to undermine the caliber of the Team India. One of the most important reasons for the failure of Indian team in the previous session was excessive experiments by coach Greg Chappell. Indian team was performing in bits and pieces and there was a lack of team spirit and uniformity. The zest for victory was missing. But during the last series against the West Indies and Sri Lanka, Dravid displayed an aggressive captaincy and players such as Tendulkar and Ganguly did their best. After a long time Team India showed the appetite for victory.
Sehwag was not in the form for which he is known, but in the last one-day match, he exhibited the skills for which he is known as the ‘king of Multan’. In real sense, the failure of Viru is the main concern for the think tanks but his 48 run innings in Vizag will restore his confidence. Robin Uthappa has shown that he can play at any order. Playing in the middle order he displayed the same aggression as he used to do for Karnataka as an opener. Sourav proved to be a boon for India. He not only scored 168 runs in the series against Sri Lanka but also made his bete noire Greg Chappell to comment that Sourav has the competence to play for three more years. Sourav has become an example for comeback. After an exile of 9 months, this maharaja has shown the signs of playing similar innings in the World Cup too. Sachin may not look extraordinary but he is in form, and the depth of middle order batting of Dravid, Yuvraj and Dhoni and the retrieval of rhythm by Zaheer Khan can do wonders for India. Agarkar is doing controlled bowling with smaller run-ups. The only worry for the team management is Irfan Pathan. Struggling to regain his form over the last one year, this all-rounder has not shown much proficiency. India, in real sense, does not have a true all-rounder but the good combination of batting and bowling by Sachin, Sehwag, Pathan and Yuvraj can bring glories for India. The location for the World Cup is West Indies and it is being speculated that on the slow pitches, batsman will score fast runs. Under these circumstances, it is expected from Harbhajan and Kumble to bowl parsimoniously and master the art of snatching wickets. At our home grounds we appeared stronger. This is definitely a good sign. But there is a need to carry this zeal forward in a situation where the team will be under tremendous pressure and a single defeat may lead to the exit of the team.
(Media Features of India)
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