Howzzat!

looking ahead at the second test....

....The champagne bottles in the aussie dressing room lie unopened...hadnt the aussies won their first test..of the series. Not yet...not this time! The premature celebrations and the nightmare that followed has gone down in history as one of the glorious classics of test cricket. It was a match where laxman and dravid set about the task of redefining the impossible and set new limits. It was also a match that shook the greatest team to its root , so much so that they are confused as to what exactly transpired in the garden of eden on a hot afternoon...so the champagne bottles are waiting....waiting like a predator.

Any attempt to draw a comparison between the sides on the conclusion of the first test would reveal a huge chasm. A chasm as deep as the indian confidence is low. Having lost contigous series. Now they've lost the first test too...never for once dominating the match. Remember 2001 , say some. However there is an unspoken feeling that the aussies aren't naive this time around.They are now ready; for surprises and turnabouts and have shed their stubborn sticking-to-my-plan attitude.

So the scenario is bleak like an alien surface(or should i say chinnaswamy surface). How do we look at a turnaround from an indian perspective? The solution is simple theoritically.By forgetting the past , by killing all emotions and looking at the job in hand at its most elementary level. The indians need to forget calcutta , forget adelaide or even the first test for that matter. They need to forget home advantage. They need to forget the recent losses. Ultimately the plan for the bowlers is to bowl a tight line. That was what they did at adelaide and they need to do it again. Seems simple isnt it. As for the batsmen...play ball by ball on merit. Ya looks good on paper but when McGraw seams one into you at 45 degrees.....stumps would tumble and so would your plans.

There were a few positives from the first test for the indians. The final two sessions were perhaps the best for them.Ironic it should come just before losing the match. We've got a lot of clues here. One , Irfan pathan is no blow away with the bat. Two , indians until then succumbed to aussies more pshycologically than technically. Through out the match the indians were on the defensive which was a clear indicator of this fact. They need to learn a few lessons from pathan and harbajan. Go for the loose ones , dent a bowler's confidence and then the job would be much easier. Shane warne had glimpses of 2001 nightmare when pathan launched into him like a mad elephant. He must be hoping other indian batsmen dont take cues from his batting.

So heres the deal...If indian batsmen attack and bowlers stick to basics then the second test would be a pretty even contest...else.....the champagnes will begin to flow...beleive me even after the second test.

posted by Tyagarajan S @ 6:03:00 AM