Looking ahead

India's schedule for the rest of the season looks like this

4 ODI set against the West Indies ( June 26 thru July 5, 2009)
The ICC Champions Trophy (September 24 thru October 5, 2009)
7 ODI set against Australia ( October 2009)
3 Test and 5 ODI set against Sri Lanka ( November 2009)
2 Test and 3 ODI set against Bangladesh in Bangladesh ( December 2009)
3 Test and 5 ODI set against South Africa ( February 2010)
Asia Cup (2-6 ODIs) (March 2010)
ICC T20 World Cup in the West Indies (April 2010)

The schedule does not contain any Twenty20 games in the leadup to the World T20 Cup in the West Indies which, from an Indian stand point, can be a huge negative. With the IPL probably scheduled after the T20 WC, the only games the Indians will get is if the Champions League takes place later in the year.

On the other hand, India play plenty of ODI cricket. Against some very good opposition. And predominantly on the sub continent. Which, with 2011 in mind, is a huge bonus. Team India has a fantastic opportunity to start getting the contours of its 2011 campaign in place.

Finally, Test Cricket. The team has a fairly soft Test match schedule leading into the South Africa series, which will allow it to fine tune itself and get match ready for the big clash. Which, from a morale and match fitness point of view, is a plus.

For Team India, there are some pressing questions, the answers to which can be found in the coming months.

For starters - who replaces the big three in Test cricket? There are plenty of contenders, some with better credentials than others. The Bangladesh series can be a good testing ground to identify and groom the next generation of India's middle order. While it will be a stop gap thing ( with the onus on the selectors to ensure those chosen in their respective roles get further exposure in those roles with the "A" team and their respective domestic teams), it will still be a starting point for what follows after the retirements of Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman.

The last thing India can afford is to undo all the good work the Fab 5 have put together over the years and play musical chairs with the incumbents and their batting positions well after the remaining three have retired.

Given our experiences with finding the next Gavaskar and the next Kapil Dev and the permutations and combinations that followed, it would be better to start now when there is time rather than later when time becomes premium.

The other big question India face is - who are our close in fielders? Is Gautam Gambhir our permanent forward short leg? Who are our slippers when Dravid, Tendulkar and Laxman go? And who takes the fielding positions of those who replace them?

The idea of playing Yusuf Pathan in the slips during the recently concluded T20 WC was daft, imho. If he is a slip in T20, he has to be the slip in ODIs. But he is not. The slips are manned by Tendulkar, Sehwag and whoever else catches MSD's fancy. And quite frankly, there is no method to that madness.

We play Sri Lanka at home and Bangladesh in Bangladesh. In both cases, there is a very good chance we will go in with three spinners ( with Pragyan Ojha bowling the way he is, it will be difficult to keep him on the bench).

And with no leg slip, no forward short leg or silly point, and Dravid's catching form being patchy, we will spend more time on the field than we want to if our catching is shoddy.

And its not just the spinners. For the first time in the longest time, we have both depth and variety in our pace bowling resources. We actually have bowlers who will create opportunities for us, both with the new and old ball. And if our close catching is not up to scratch, those opportunities will go to waste.

And for a team that is now seen as a contender for the top spot in all three forms of the game, the inability to catch will see us move out of contention.

Then - bowler rotation.

Given the fact that we had bowlers carrying injuries from the IPL into the T20 WC and given the number of ODIs we play in the next few months, it is imperative that we have a proper rotation strategy for our bowlers. The last thing India need is for Ishant to play all the games leading into the South Africa series and then be hors de combat, with no replacement to readily slip into his spot.

Likewise, if Irfan Pathan is a bowler who can bat, how does he fit into the grand scheme of things? If we are to play two spinners in ODIs along with two pacers, with Sehwag, Tendulkar, Yuvraj, Raina and Sharma forming the fifth bowler option, is Pathan a better bet than Ishant and RP or does India want to stick to them? And what about Praveen Kumar? And Piyush Chawla?

Ideally, an Indian ODI line up should read

Tendulkar,Sehwag, Dhoni, Raina, Sharma, Yuvraj, Pathan, Karthik, Pathan, Chawla and Kumar although a case can be made for Harbhajan, Zak, Ishant, RP, Gambhir, Jadeja, Ojha, Badri and Vijay along with Uthappa, Munaf, Sreesanth and Virat Kohli.

Finally - is Dhoni the first choice keeper for ODIs and T20s? In Test cricket, he cannot command a place in the side as a batsman alone, which makes it imperative for him to keep. In ODIs and in T20, he can and should play solely as a batsman. The notion of him being a keeper in all three forms of the game will hurt India more in the medium and long terms than help them.

And now is as good a time as any to put this in motion.