I write this after the fourth disappointing loss by the famed Indian team. This time to an Australian second XI. Yet another inconsistent performance by an Indian team. Or should we say a 'North Indian' team?
It looks like Dhoni has his mind set on who will play in the XI regardless of who the selectors pick in the squad of 15. While its very clear that Dhoni backs players from the rural areas (he has said that in many interviews), it is also interesting to note that this current team has only one player from the South of the Vindhyas - Sachin Tendulkar. Even though there is no doubt that this team is extremely talented, there is a side of me that begs to think what would a 'South Indian' team have done against these Aussies. Please allow me to indulge.
Starting with the all-rounders (a role that I feel is very critical especially in one-day cricket), the most obvious choice would be Abhishek Nayar (yes, as per my geography South India extends to the Vindhyas!). Nayar is a powerful lefty who can turn the heat on at any time. His accurate medium pace could make it difficult for any opposition to score fast. Another good all-rounder is the former ICL Indian captain Rajagopal Sathish. Opening the bowling would be Zaheer Khan and Lakshmipathy Balaji with Sreesanth to back them up. Pragyan Ojha would be the lead spinner with Ravichandran Ashwin supporting him. Opening the batting would be Sachin Tendulkar (there are no surprises there!) and Murali Vijay. The middle order would be made up of Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, and Subramaniam Badrinath. And finally, the team would be led by Dinesh Karthik who will also do the job behind the stumps (keeping up with the trend of having a Wicket Keeper captain). In addition to these twelve players, the squad of 15 would include Rohit Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, and Manish Pandey (the youngster from Karnataka). Going by the current form of these players, I wouldn't mind betting that this team would give the Aussies a run for their money.
May be the selectors should pick such a 'South Indian' team to play the Lankans. I am not holding my breath.
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3 comments:
Really wish some drastic action is taken. I agree to most of your selection! Will try to talk with Srikkanth next time I see him in the temple!!
The selectors have spoken. They have picked Vijay, Badri, Sreesanth, Zaheer, Ojha, Dravid, and Laxman (in addition to Sachin) from my list. Dhoni will do his selection in a few hours. I am pretty sure the 4 who warm the benches would be Vijay, Badri, Sreesanth, and Ojha. Coincidently all 4 are from the South!!!
You could not have been more correct!!
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