India goes into the first test with injuries to Sreesanth and RP Singh. And so Munaf finds a place in the XIV. Thing is, Munaf does not inspire confidence in either his bowling coach or the audience, given his propensity to break down mid match.
Given that we cannot go into a game with just 3 bowlers ( what with the workload involved in Test cricket), why not go into the game with just the single pacer and three spinners?
If required, Sachin and Saurav can be called upon to take the shine off the new ball before the spinners come in. Heck, even Anil Kumble can open with the new ball if he so wishes.
And the spinners pick themselves. The Kotla is Kumble's happy hunting ground. And given Pakistan's troubles with Paul Harris' left arm spin in the recently concluded series, Murali Karthik picks himself. And given Harbhajan Singh's propensity to bowl containing lines in both the Twenty20 and fifty over games, he can be called on to be the stock bowler.
And we will also be playing our best XI. Think about it - a batting lineup that bats all the way to number XI and one in which every batsman puts a premium on his wicket. And a bowling lineup that , on current form, is the best we can field for this game.
--
I take umbrage to this statement by Anil Kumble - "Moving forward, he'll have to probably wait a little bit more to become a regular member in the Test squad. It's unfortunate with the circumstances that we have for this game. That's the way it is."
Well, its not.
VVS Laxman has scores of 0,38, 18 and 26 in 4 completed innings in the Ranji Trophy for Hyderabad. Throw in a stiff back into the mix and that begs the question - how is VVS an automatic selection over Yuvraj, who is in the form of his life?
And the "class is permanent" argument does not wash, unless there is a suggestion that VVS has more class than Yuvraj and that, somehow, this translates into better Test performance, form be damned.
And I have not yet mentioned their fielding :)
--
And finally,this gem from Shoaib Malik
"I think India would be at a disadvantage, having a new captain who has to start afresh while I have been leading the side for quite a while. Though he [Kumble] is a great bowler I think we would start with an advantage."If ever proof was required that Mr Malik's IQ is no greater than 2, there it is.
17 comments:
People born with Turner's syndrome and Down's syndrome are mentally retarded
and incapable of carrying out daily activities. Their IQ is in the 50-70 range.
Eh, a tad too harsh on Malik, Homer.
Now, if you allow me some lack-of-modesty, I study brain physiology, and my guess is Malik's IQ is 110. It's normal, actually.
Shane Warne, I estimate, has about 150. I think that's one of the highest among recent cricketers.
But I get started...sorry.
Six,
Fascinating, Dinnie.. Would love to know more...
Care to shoot a mail off to Homers.email@gmail.com and we can take this conversation further.
Cheers
Homer,
Yuvi should have been selected instead of Ganguly.
But then Ganguly is 'nandigram'. The cadres will go on a rampage. :)
Ottayan,
The PWG is strong in AP too :)
Cheers
Is Yuvraj a Sardar? If so, we have a simmering Khalistani element in the flux.
Wretched wretched mistake.......for someone who is in such a good form .....Firstly they said yuvi should be playing consistent to make a place in test side...and whn he is actually doin tht....they said u still have to wait for sometime more ??
Wat do u mean by that ?? Y should he wait ?? wat has laxman done to make a place in test side....yuvi is 10 times better than vvs at the moment....forget the past ....talk about present .
Very sad ! I wonder wat it will do to yuvi's confidence....inspite of playing so well still no use...and all the so called " SET TEST MATCH PLAYERS " grab the place in test squad automatically ....
y cant a player who is playing so well should be promoted from ODIs to tests....
Y captain and selectors still follow the set pattern ??
Y do we forget the other consistent performers? Parthiv Patel comes to mind.. And I don't come from gujju land.. but I think the same logic holds.. Karthik and Jaffar have done ok in England so we can't drop them till they fail.. Jaffar himself hasnt done too well in Ranji has he? So lets be happy that all the preference for status quo is happening in the Pak series and not in Australia.. Remember its an ever evolving team homer and we will strive to find the right mix to play the best team in the world.. We might lose some in the process but think the Pak series is the best one to experiment.. or rather not experiment -)
Rahul,
Parthiv has a case and so does Badri.. And Manoj Tiwary..
But what we have here is a guy who is in the form of his life being sidelined for someone who has barely been able to put a string of scores together.
Jaffer got a 50 in Ranji and so did Dinesh Karthik, so form is not a question there.
And again, the preference for status quo is the team prerogative. I just think that in keeping the status quo, we are weakening ourselves and not putting our best team out in the field.
Cheers
But that was my point, we can afford to experiment in this series.. And also remember people like Bevan and Symmonds who were in the form of thier respective lives,failing miserably in tests. Extrapolation is not rational in cricket
Rahul,
Yuvraj has a test match hundred on a green top..And Andrew Symonds is a regular #6 in the Australian squad :)
Cheers
Homer,
When did Symmonds feature in a ODI side and when did he start his Test career Also since when has he been a regular #6 in the test team?
He has played 15 test matches over a span of 4 years.. Even in the previous Ashes, he played 3 out of 5, so regular is an incorrect word to use I would think..
2 100's in 18 tests at an average of 33 odd isn't what i would call a compelling reason for Yuvi's inclusion.. Anyway VVS has answered all your well meaning criticism of his with his bat.. Need I say any more -)
And now we cant drop Laxman. Now who do we drop ? May be KKD or a jaffer. Laxman proved his class today.....Yuvi got to wait.....When he had chance to seize it, he failed and now he s got to wait...
Laxman has proved nothing. He should continue to be under pressure to perform. Of course if he feels he doesn't want that, then he can be show the door marked EXIT. This innings is crucial for India's hopes in this test. But, it is not his best innings- for if it was, he would indeed be a mediocre batsman. Issacn
Rahul,
criticism or the form book?
That he scored his runs means more power to him, but I would still not have played him in my starting XI
Cheers
Homer,
you wouldn't have Kumble for captain,
you wouldn't have VVS in the starting XI
Form book of Ranji trophy? DK showed how fickle that is..
Symonds after playing 5 consequitive tests or has he, is a regular No 6 in the oz test team, according to you
-)
Well now I realise what RD meant when he talked of arm chair critics..
I agree I am one of them as well but all of us are and we better recognise that
Rahul,
Thats my reading of the game. Am I right all the time? Never claimed that. Most famously when I said that Dhoni would not be the right guy for the ODI captaincy.
That said, Saurav and Kumble did take the new ball and Harbhajan Singh is not the second best bowler in the country :)
See you in Mumbai in a week,
Cheers,
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