is team india a one man army again...?

if you have come to read it thinking about certain sachin in mind... please don't even bother to read beyond this line coz this post is not about him...

its about zak... zaheer khan... when no one can...

Zaheer takes a wicket every 58.6 balls. Of all the bowlers who played for India and took 100 wickets or more; no one has a better strike rate. For reference Kapil stands @ 63.9, Kumble and Chandrashekhar @ 65.9 and Bedi @ 80.3

- facts courtesy opinions on cricket...

naturally when zaheer don't take wickets... india struggles... considering bhajji has refused to take the lead spinner role let alone the lead bowler... and ojha being a defensive bowler at best...

together they are not creating enough wicket taking opportunities and reasons are apparent... obvious...

india is playing with virtually non-existent second pace bowler... sree has been erratic at best... ishant struggling with fitness and form... and selectors not showing enough balls to look for pace bowlers beyond these two until unless forced by the way of injury...

this has resulted in a tremendous pressure on zak who is supposed to take wickets with new ball... with old ball... supposed to check the flow of runs and keep the one end going while the bowlers from other end seem more interested in creating bowling dots all over the pitch...

still zaheer's name is not taken in the same breath as his more pedigreed colleagues as the reason india rose to the summit of test ranking... but this rant is for another day...

unlike previous dominant forces... team india has adopted a different route to achieve results... their no-nonsense batting...

although test match advances coz of wickets but team india is consistently putting up huge totals or over coming it in no time which not only gives our bowler enough time to bowl opposition out but give an additional teeth of pressure of total on board...

australia becoming the first team to lose a test match in india despite putting up 450+ score in first innings recently is the case in point...

but this strategy backfires when pitches doesn't even have the semblance of life coz then it neutralises everything... one of the reason india could not force issues in current series with new zealand... on the likes of pitches where even a tailender in sree could play out 70 odd deliveries without looking much in trouble against the likes of vettori and company...

it seems that curator's and team india's missions are poles apart... that simply defies the endeavor of a world no.1 test ranking nation... that team india is no.1 despite all these limitations is testimony to its character, attitude, intent and mental strength...

but in short india can afford to have an off day from any bowler but zak... the fit zaheer could have still extracted the result from this track and there in lies the story...

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so who is next for the musical chair game...?

after zaheer khan's injury the latest news being that sreesanth too is returning home leaving the already reeling bowling attack bit more thin...

although it is questionable that why zaheer was selected in the first place coz he was struggling even in odi series... was not looking fully fit... but at least there our bunch-of-jokers were consistent with their 'selection policy' which is to select (unfit) players on hope that they will be fit by the time series will start... rather than proven fitness though certain yuvraj would like to disagree with me...

one would like to believe that sree's injury is bit freakish and can happen to any bowler... but closer look at the 'selection policy' makes one think differently...

it's common knowledge in cricket that bowlers... specially pace bowlers... need some overs under their belt to be back in the groove... to gain bowling rhythm... loosen up bowling muscles... they cannot be installed from one place to another like bowling machines out of cold... though even machines require bit of warming up...

if it was clear in our bunch-of-jokers minds that ishant and sreesanth will be our 'test bowlers' then why they deprived both these bowlers some good overs and exposure in england for india-a tour...?

now suddenly the onus is on 'cold' ishant to be the leader of the pace attack and i will be least surprised if he too falls out midway during the series...

the least common sense we can expects from these gents, who get paid 40 lacs per annum to play the musical chair game, was to send them on india-a tour so that they would have been in perfect shape going into the sri lanka series which has already been labeled as unfinished business...

but as they say... common sense is the most uncommon thing these days...

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if zaheer khan... why not sreesanth...

...too can reinvent himself... and make a comeback as strong... focused bowler for his own good...?

that sreesanth is a good bowler and has talent to go far in international cricket is the fact not many can dispute...

its also not hidden fact that he is not liked by even his own colleagues...his temperament and over the top antics has been his biggest enemies...

that slap-gate didn't helped his matter too and became the cause of his falling out of favor...and eventually the reason of his prolonged ouster from the team india... coz despite being the victim of harbhajan's wrath... it somehow convinced team think tank that's its better to leave him alone...

then came the god send chance knocking at his door... to play for the warwickshire county for the rest of the season...

recently...on being asked about sreesanth move to join county...this is what zaheer said...

He's made a very wise move. He's a good bowler but has had injuries and issues. The best part about county cricket is you get to play non-stop and you're doing stuff absolutely on your own. You are not in a familiar environment. That forces you to think much more. If you are serious, it improves your game.

may be this was the 'dressing down' sree needed at this stage of his career...

left to fend himself...far away from alluring media spotlight...suddenly living a normal life simply as one of the many players over there...after used to of being chased in public...it can clear lots of clutter in your mind and then you are forced to think things which you would have not thought of in normal course...like zaheer experienced himself...

before zaheer joined county cricket to resurrect his sinking career...he too faced almost similar uneasy questions...on his bowling...on his attitude towards game and team...but how he used county stint to reinvent himself...to come out as better bowler is very well documented...

so if zaheer can...why not sreesanth too...?

now that sreesanth will play for warwickshire for the rest of season...i hope and wish that he will use this as an opportunity to stake his claim not only with irresistible performances but also with fresh attitude towards game...

india require him at the top of his game...specially with injury of zaheer the indian pace cupboard is looking thin and bare...with not many fast bowlers knocking team india's door with conviction...

also for the fact that i strongly feel...sreesanth along with ishant and zaheer can make cricketing equivalent of 'bermuda triangle' in which lots of teams will sink without a trace...

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zaheer khan's injury and team india's bowling woes...

its official now...zaheer khan is injured...we finally know it coz he underwent major shoulder surgery in south arfica...so much so for the professionalism of bcci in being transparent with injuries...etc...

zaheer khan rose in the ranks of indian cricket with his sublime form since his come back to international cricket...specifically that fifth morning spell of him in mohali when he cut thru australia's middle order like hot knife goes thru butter...to kill any possibility of australia chasing victory target...

he was unofficial bowling captain of team india and his absence will hurt our chances very badly in about to begin champions trophy...you could see him fielding at mid off or mid on urging the strike bowler...giving valuable tips...helping him sort out what kind a delivery he should bowl...helping him to keep his focus on the task at hand etc...other bowlers too seem to acknowledge him as leading bowler...and respect him...

with his injury the bench strength of indian pace attack has been exposed...more so coz ishant is struggling to find right line and length for limited over games of late...munaf being munaf...rp singh etc refusing to raise their bowling to next level...and sreesanth being out of favor...

since harbhajan singh must play every game as leading spinner...india's penetration in middle overs too becomes questionable as i don't think in south africa dhoni will include two spinners in final xi...though i firmly beleive that your best bowlers should take on the field and if adding another 'full time' spinner in the ranks can improve your crucial middle order play in odis then its better choice over opting for a weak pacer...

now the opposition batsmen will look to attack ishant even more to crack the game open at the outset and hence he and team india will be under tremendous pressure to not only take wickets but keep runs under control...

at the same time our batsmen too will be under more pressure to score and score big to first make-up for the absence of zak...and then to give leeway to the waywardness of rather inexperienced pace attack...more so coz opposition teams will use 'batting powerplay' to hit india where it will hurt most...

so all in all...it will be interesting to see how our pace bowler respond to the situation... whether they will see it as added responsibility...or whether they will see it as an opportunity waiting to be grabbed with both hands to make mark when the cream of cricketing world will be competing against each other to decide who is going to be the champion...

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you beauty...season two...

ZAK bowle aise...bacha sake na koye...!!

(if zak bowls like this...there is no escape)

image courtesy cricinfo

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