Indians falter when it matters

Having won four one-dayers in a row, the Indians could be excused for a defeat, but the loss came at the wrong time. In the summit clash. Teams like Australia raise their level in the final and this is what India needs to learn.

In pursuit of a huge score, the Indians needed a blazing start, but what left one disappointed was the meek surrender of the other specialist batsmen after the early departure of Sachin Tendulkar. There is still too much dependence on the Mumbai Maestro, which is not a healthy sign.

The match was effectively lost in the first 15 overs of the innings, yet the good aspect was that the Indian lower middle- order batsmen made a match of it, with a spirited Reetinder Singh Sodhi and a fighting Sameer Dighe taking on the bowlers.

In the past, the Indians have often collapsed like a pack of cards in a situation like this. At Harare, they went with their guns blazing, thanks to Sodhi and Dighe. The duo's attitude and approach in a hopeless situation was refreshing.

Sadly, both the West Indies and Zimbabwe are among the weaker cricketing Nations, the kind of outfits, the Indians should not really find difficult to overcome. Yet, they continue to stumble.

It was written earlier in the column that we shouldn't get carried away by a few victories and this fact shines like a beacon after the final. Some sections of the media went overboard after the Indian victories in the initial league encounters, and this only created a false sense of aura about the team's capabilities.

The Indian bowlers had delivered for most part during the tour, however, their inexperience showed in the final. Both Ashish Nehra and Zaheer Khan are young and promising, and the experience should stand them in good stead for the future battles.

On Saturday, the team desperately required an experienced bowler when things began to go wrong. Under these circumstances, it was baffling why Ganguly did not bring Sachin Tendulkar on and used so little of himself.

Tendulkar's `mix' has often managed to turn the course of matches and he could well have troubled the West Indians. Rahul Dravid's off-spin was another option. In testing periods on the field, a skipper should display a cool head, apart from being innovative. It was a day when the Indian captain did not display these qualities.

Finally to the question of fitness or the lack of it in the Indian team. In a relatively short tour of two Tests and a triangular one-day series, so many cricketers have been declared unfit by the team management - Laxman, Ramesh, Agarkar, Nehra and now Badani. One really wonders how with a foreign fitness trainer around, there can be so many injury problems. Or is there more to it than what meets the eye? So after the Zimbabwean tour, the Indian cricket is back to square one. The Indians flattered to deceive in the Test series, and the same story has continued in the one-dayers, where they have been found wanting when it comes to the crunch. Where are the gains in terms of results?

K. Srikkanth

www.krishsrikkanth.com

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