Cricket: Blame Game. Find your scapegoats.

Thee, a former cricketer? Then thou shalt criticise. There is a tremendous influx of expert cricketers on news channels quizzing Tendulkar form, Ganguly’s mental make up Dravid’s defensive captaincy. God, nothing as fickle as comments made in media. They hardly make a difference to anything worthwhile. The blame game started as soon as Indian Team meekly surrendered to Pakistani team. Pakis have won a series at home against Indian for the first time in nineteen years. It was another overseas series defeat for Indians. The chief reason was India has not toured there for seventeen years.
I would like to cite a recent history. There is a player in the Indian team by the name of Virender Sehwag. Every cricket reporter as after him saying that he hasn’t played a long inning for a long while. I don’t think Sehwag said much about it. He went to Pakistan. The Pakistani welcomed Indians by posting 679 in the first inning of the first Test. Sehwag still did not say a thing about his form. He went and smashed 254 runs and flayed the Pakistani attack along with Captain Rahul Dravid. Television channels said thank you very much and suddenly there was a new batting star that by the way he hadn’t made much runs last year. “Sehwag slams double century” a cheerful red lipstick loaded face said on the Prime Time “news” channel.
The match ended in a draw. The pitch was a dead one. The pitch for the second Test was too a dead one. The batsmen queued up and tonked bowlers all over the ground. The Indians were in a spot of bother before Dhoni and Pathan rescued Indians who batted to enforce a draw.
Then came the third test and pitch reports said it was a lively pitch. Who knew this lively pitch would be the reason of the undoing? Dravid would not have believed his luck when he won the toss for once. Pakistan forced to bat and within an over into the match the scoreboard read three down for no runs. I am sure some daggers would be out for Woolmer but then a tremendous century by Kamran Akmal. He is an awesome player and never looked worried. Neither the bowlers looked threatening.
Pakistan managed a decent score of 245. It was then that Indian Team had a chance for once to show their mettle but they were reduced at 74-4. There was a little hope then too. But when I saw the score at 169-7 I knew where this match was headed. Pakistanis hammered 599 with all there batsmen having a gala time at what had turned into a batsmen paradise.
I had a hearty laugh when Invincible (a very good blogger) wrote something to the similar effect to “why Indian batsmen struggle on a batting pitch and Indian bowlers on a bowling pitch?”
The world of sport is not always about winning. It is always about competing, giving a challenge, holding fort and catching the bull by its horns. I think there were a few things which could have been done.

• We should stop playing three left hand bowlers at the same time. I think one is good enough other two are not quiet there. No matter what.


• The sense of patience is lost among players.


• There is too much predictability and too little a pace to unsettle any batsmen.


• Find FAST bowlers. They should make the batsmen sweat and hurry the opposition’s batsmen into a false stroke or weave under a surprise bouncer.


• Spinners never looked like taking wickets.


• There were players like Sehwag, Tendulkar and Yuvraj who, for some reason were not bowled long enough.


• The selectors would select a squad of 14 only. Jaffer, Gambhir, Prathiv were also members of touring party I believe. I am sure that the enjoyed Pakistani hospitality completely.


• The rotating policy of rotating only a certain players is a head spinner itself. There should be directive as to the player who would have to sit out.


• The out of form player should be given rest to come back to form.

There is only one thing I that as an avid cricket fan I would like to quote.
“The form is temporary and class is permanent.”
This is true for Ganguly who would not play much before English tour of India. This episode is now posing threat to Saas-Bahu and K-series serials as a non-ending episode.
Tendulkar and certainly not Endulkar.
I pray that he batters Pakistani bowlers. I just wish he plays, like the way he did in 2003 World Cup. He shredded their bowling attack to pieces. He can do so again. I would prefer see him cut loose and play as if he has never ever played before. Then I would like to note what does the news channel say Endulkar or Tendulkar? The same was said for Lara and check out Lara’s record for last few seasons he has but to sword each bowler that he has faced.
It is now Tendulkar’s time to turn on a similar page in his career. He has nothing to loose.
The One Day Internationals are yet to start. India will do well to fight that out.