Some Thoughts on the Test Series ( India v South Africa)

The test series between India and South Africa kicks off at Jo'burg on the 15th. It will be an interesting contest, not least because India, in the extended format of the game, can go toe to toe with the Proteas.

The South African Team

The Proteas have a potent bowling attack, and I wont be too surprised to see Dale Steyn drafted into the squad only for the shock value he provides. A bowling line up of Ntini, Pollock, Steyn, Nel and Kallis is pretty potent under any conditions, and the Proteas are playing at home, so BEWARE!!
The batting lineup will pretty much be the same as in the ODIs, with Rudolph coming in place of Kemp and Prince coming in the middle order. Smith, Gibbs, Kallis, Rudolph, Prince, DeVilliers and Boucher are a pretty good front 7.

The Wickets

The Proteas have sensed that the Indians are uncomfortable with the bounce and so I do not expect any freebies on the wicket front. Expect to see bouncy wickets, though I doubt they will be green tops.
I think the Proteas will be exposed if green tops are provided, only because the South African batting, while deep, is surprisingly fragile and India has the bowling to expose this fragility.

The Indian team

This is going to be the most contentious section of this post, and I will be flamed for this ( if anyone does read this blog :) ), but here is my lineup for the first test ( given fitness)

Sehwag
Jaffer
Dravid
Tendulkar
Laxman
Ganguly
Dhoni
Kumble
Zaheer
Munaf/Sreesanth
VRV Singh/Sreesanth

if Rahul is not available

Gambhir
Jaffer
Laxman
Tendulkar
Sehwag
Ganguly
Dhoni
Kumble
Zaheer
Munaf/Sreesanth
VRV Singh/Sreesanth

variations of the above ( by adding Harbhajan in the mix) can be used for the remaining tests. 2 spinners for Port Elizabeth and 4 pace 1 spin in the remaining 2 tests.

I do not know whether the Ganguly selection or the Pathan non-selection will raise hackles but here is my reasoning for this :-

Saurav Ganguly -
Now that Saurav has been drafted into the test squad, its a no-brainer that he will play. I mean, do we really want to have Saurav and Greg in the dressing room together for ALL 5 days of the match (j/k) ? That said,playing Saurav will put an end to the whole " he is the messiah"/ " he is past his sell by date" debate. If Saurav performs, he pushes his candidacy for the World Cup. If he flops, its "thank you very much, and here is your pension".

Irfan Pathan -
Pathan is, by all accounts, undergoing a major crisis of confidence. This has been a problem since the beginning of the 2006 season , and is one of the pivotal reasons for India's dismal performance in the ODI arena.
Given that he is not feeling his best, does it make sense to play him in the test series? Wouldn't it be better if he was made to train with Wasim Akram ( on tour as ESPN commentator and Pathan's early mentor) for the duration of the test series? A couple of hours everyday at the nets for the next month or so should do enuf to get some confidence back. And not being exposed to the Protean batsmen ( and getting mauled), should also soothe nerves and get the head straight. India has enuf in the pace bowling department to cover for Pathan the bowler unless the other bowlers drop like flies ( highly unlikely) and so Pathan on the bench is not such a bad deal.

Season 2007-2008 looms as a significant one in the Indian cricketing calender, one that offers both crisis and opportunity.
There is the World Cup, the 20/20 World Cup, a test series in England, an away series in Pakistan and a home and away series against Australia.
It is imperative that we have our spearhead in proper working condition for this.
Short term expediency ( read the SA series) at the cost of the long term will hurt us and hurt us badly.
Opportunity lies when India plays BD in an away series and this is where the next generation of India's middle order can be identified and tested. Ditto for a leggie and a left arm orthodox spinner.