The recent losses in the champions trophy should have been a strong eye opener for the people who run Indian cricket and especially those responsible for selection. The problem was none other than team selection. I sincerely believe that is what caused India early exit in this competetion.
The chinks in the armour lay in both batting and bowling. Here are my views on the two:-
Batting
Our middle order lacks the fire power to take on the best bowling attacks in the world and dominate. I have a lot of time for Kaif who is a 100% effort player. His dedication and whole hearted approach is refreshing but sadly he does not fit into the current scheme of things. You cannot have someone batting at 5 or 6 who cannot find the boundary regularly. The similiar thing goes for Raina who has potential but is still far from being the clinical finisher. The overs that these guys played aginst the Aussies highlighted that fact as India from a position of dominance suddenly found themselves loosing momentum at atime when they needed to power on.
Bowling
The ability to pick up wickets in the middle overs is critical for any team. This team didn’t have it. I will never ever think of Mongia as a devastatingly effective left armer even on his best day. He did his job alright but to expect him to run through the Aussies was not going to ever happen. With Pathan as an allrounder the Indians need to play 5 bowlers with the others being non- regular occasional bowlers - which is the reality anyway. Kumble is much needed and Im glad to see he has been selected. The middle overs are crucial in a one day game and we need to be able to take wickets in that period.
My Ideal Team
Sachin
Sehwag
Laxman
Dravid
Yuvraj
Dhoni
Pathan
Agarkar
Harbhajan
Kumble
Munaf
I believe we need to bring Laxman back immediately. I understand he is not the best fielder going but his batting is exceptional. Not puting Ganguly’s name in the hat simply because I don’t see him being able to replace Sachin or Sehwag as an opener. Not too sure how good he will be lower down the order.
The bowling combination needs to have 3 quicks and two spinners. Pathan is going through a rough phase but he will get though it. he has too much talent too be questioned. I do agree that the bowlers can be played on form but the pool Id have is:-
Fast Bowlers
Agarkar
Munaf
Zaheer
Pathan
Spinners
Harbhajan
Kumble
Powar
The world cup isn’t far away and I think this is the best line up India could have. Lets see if they put this in place any time soon.