I wrote on Raina almost a year back just before he got selected for the Indian One Day team. I had stated that Raina is one for the future. I can say now that the future is here. India were struggling in the second One Day International versus England. A defeating chasing a low score (just like England had managed to do in the first One Dayer) looked on the cards. Suddenly the smallish target of 227 looked mighty big with 5 Indian wickets down.

Raina, with an unbeaten 81 off 89 balls, played his most important international inning yet. Raina is agressive. Raina is technically sound. Raina can also field superbly. What more do you want? We can go on and on regarding Raina’s strong points. Temperament, thought,  is the biggest strength of Suresh Raina. He showed it during Uttar Pradesh’s Ranji Trophy trimph this year with vital innings which are expected off seasoned campaigners and not new kids on the block.

But Raina isn’t really a new kid. He is known to have an old head on young shoulders right from the under-19 days. Today, he gained many more fans and admirers. It is only time before Raina makes a test debut and shines at the test level. In place of who you ask. The middle order is jam packed you retort. Those were the same sounds I heard from every where before Raina was selected for the One Day squad. I had written back then:

Quality players do not wait for room in the XI. They make their own room. Would a Sachin Tendulkar really not make it to the test team if the middle order was tightly packed? If not in tour x, then on tour y. Else tour z is always there. It is only a matter of when and not if with quality players. Raina is a quality player. The future is here for Suresh Raina.

One headline I thought I would never see on Cricinfo! Ian Blackwell’s performance so far: 6-0-16-2. He was great in the first game too with a bowling performance of 10-0-24-1. Srikkanth said at the lunch interval in game 1:

Ian Blackwell is an ordinary bowler but India made him look like a great bowler as if he is Bishan Singh Bedi.

India is struggling chasing England’s 226 and are at 125/5. Making a legend of Shaun Udal first. And now adding Blackwell to the list. India sure know how to improve the profile of pie bowlers! I have seen absolute ordinary players achieve extra ordinary feats versus India. Case in point: Chris Lewis making a century. But ordinary spinners made to look like they are unplayable is some thing else.

A few days ago I asked the question, “Has England let the opportunity slip in the battle for No. 2 and chasing Australia?”

A win in Mumbai is now needed for England to remain in the race. Very difficult but it is the only way England can stop the opportunity from slipping. No one said the battle was ever going to be easy!

England did win in Mumbai and showed strength in the face of adversity. The persistance was evidant in the way England batted in the post tea session on Day 4 - with planning to go for the shots only once England felt safe. The persistance was also evident on Day 5. The pitch had not deteriorated. It was playing much better than most 5 day pitches play. England kept the ball in a line which made Indians play. Ball after ball this line was maintained. There was hardly any straying. The discipline and superb bowling effort was a pleasure to watch.

Defensive mindset

India has been defensive in mind set in this series. In the first test they went for the shots very late. That was when the score line read 0-0. Here the score line was 1-0. So it was unlikely that they would go for runs and risk drawing the series. The plan would be to play out the first session and a half or two sessions and if wickets are in hand after that, see if going for the target during a small phase is a good option.

This is where I think India erred. Defensive play is never a good option regardless of the situation. Dravid almost got into a shell and Tendulkar survived a few close LBW shouts which would have been plumb had they been a bit closer to the wicket. Safeguarding your wicket is needed in such situations. But in the process playing the natural game as far as possible should not be forgotten. If you let the bowlers dominate, they will gain in confidence and get on you sooner rather than later.

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With Sehwag missing most of the time in the field in England’s second inning due to injury, he can bat only lower down the order.

Debate between Jawagal Srinath and Dean Jones occurs on who should open with Jaffer. Jones reckons it should be Munaf Patel.

No he wasn’t joking as he backed it up:

I would say Munaf Patel. If he gets quick 15 runs, India could be off to a flyer. Certainly he is wasted at number XI and should bat up higher.

Hmm.

The English Team was at cross roads in Pakistan. I had written on the same nearly 3 months ago which can be read here. I titled it facing adveristy. In the period which has followed since then, England has enountered a lot of adversity. A menacing Shoaib Akhtar in Pakistan and a series of unfortunate events leading 4 of their first XI to withdraw from the tour of India being unquestionably the biggest external adversities. The internal weaknesses they have shown shouldn’t be forgotten.

With the collapse in Pakistan and throwing away a match England should have probably drawn in India in the second test of the series in Mohali, it has probably let slip the opportunity to challenge Australia for now. From being the unquestionable number 2 side, it has gone down a step in the close battle of the number 2.

In fact, it also finds itself at a position inferior to Pakistan. Pakistan appear to have lost Shoaib Akhtar for the immediate future. However there is some time to go for Pakistan’s tour of England. If Pakistan can manage even a draw in that series, it would mean that Pakistan has set itself above the current English side.

And what about South Africa? South Africa played superbly in Australia. It is now involved in the home series versus Australia. If South Africa can manage a victory or even a draw, it can be accepted as a strong team despite Glenn McGrath not playing in the current series and despite what Chris Fogarty has to say regarding only the Ashes mattering, test cricket is about more than just The Ashes. John Stern analyses the current situation and the mouth watering prospect which lies ahead of us much more judiciously.

India may be finding bowlers (Munaf Patel, Piyush Chawla) who might show some potency in times to come. However, with it playing just 2 test series in the run up to World Cup 2007 and having lost the series to Pakistan (despite it being like a 1 test series), India finds itself behind the pack in this chase. Did New Zealand not go behind a huge distance in one session in their home series versus Pakistan where Shoaib Akhtar wrecked them? It did India no favours that for them that the home series versus England was always going to be The Nothing Series. India in fact loosened their noose in the tussle they failed to win their last series in the West Indies. That they lost the home series versus Australia did them no favours. They have been chasing as a back runner since then and will have to keep persisting. They do not find themselves in the picture before the pyajama cricket - World Cup 2007 is done and dusted with.

Climbing up the ladder is difficult. It requires consistent brilliant performances. New Zealand is finding it out the hard way. It is doomed in mid table for the time being. Has England let it’s opportnity slip by two collapses, one in Pakistan and one in India? The importance is not in that England lost. England would be respectable losers after drawing their first test match in India. The importance was in the manner in which a match which should have been drawn was lost. A win in Mumbai is now needed for England to remain in the race. Very difficult but it is the only way England can stop the opportunity from slipping. No one said the battle was ever going to be easy!

Pakistan does have a small lead ahead of the rest of the pack - England, South Africa and India. South Africa has the best chance to contend with Pakistan. While all this is going on, Australia cannot work out who the right players are for their international side. A side which boasted of depth finds itself bringing back older warriors who were discarded after the Ashes war was lost. The batsmen are not showing consistency. There is no sign of a future Glenn McGrath or Shane Warne. Most importantly, Australia has set such high standards for themselves that they will themselves find it difficult to maintain these levels. Even if McGrath and Warne do manage to play for a few more years, it will be very difficult for Australia to not slip from it’s high intensity performances is now characterized with. Some would argue that the slipping has already started.

Very interesting times to be a test cricket fan.