The events that unfolded have put to question where the game of cricket is really heading.
Why the criticism India is facing after just one defeat in South Africa is unjustified.
Dhoni's ability to keep the scoreboard moving will also ensure that the team is not strangled for runs.
Shrouds of uncertainty and fear are bound to linger in spaces unknown, where the conditions are alien. There has been little wrong as far as India’s performance is concerned over the last few months. They conquered the world battle at the ICC Champions Trophy 2013, registered series victories in West Indies and Zimbabwe; and the rest, to put it in mild terms, demolished oppositions at home. Yet as they play on the African shores, there seems a certain sense of apprehension. Despite being ranked number one in One-Day Internationals (ODI), they won’t really walk into the series as favourites.
Stats can be a cruel indicator to assess performances. When the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced its Test and One-Day International (ODI) teams of the year, there were a few surprising decisions. The exclusion of Virat Kohli from the ODI team and the inclusion of Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the Test team raised a few eyebrows.
One doesn’t need statistics to prove the fact that India have relied on their batsmen in One-Day Internationals (ODIs). In its 42-year history in the format, India have gone on to become the second-highest run-scoring team and could soon overtake Australia when they face South Africa in during the upcoming ODI series.
Looking at the way things have panned out for England so far on their tour Down Under — in the first Ashes 2013-14 Test as well as the tour games — they would’ve realised that they don’t have the arsenal ready to outdo Australia in their tactic. Even as they packed their squad with five tall pacers to take advantage of the hard pitches in Australia, the home team batsmen seem ready to fight fire with fire and unleash their own pace battery to dislodge the opposition.
India can ill afford mediocrity when they take on South Africa in their own backyard in December. They need to hit the chords of excellence, much as they would be expecting from their opposition. It is exactly for this reason why the series was eagerly awaited and the shortened version of the tour is frowned upon. And thus, every player in the team needs to pull out their A-game in order to fir into to the potentially exciting contest between the two strong sides.
In street cricket, the best player is chosen as the captain. However, as the grades and level of cricket improves, the role of the captain changes from being the best player to being the best manager of individual egos; one who can stand up for his team, make them play as a unit and strategise.
Darren Bravo is not a cricketing great by any stretch of imagination. Nor is he a player who is going to give sleepless nights to opposition bowlers. You know he is not going to be the subject of long discussion in team meetings. Yet if you are a cricket fan, you are likely to leave most of your work to watch him bat.
