|
 The
Mumbai pitch was like a minefield and the ball was turning square.
On this poor wicket for an international one-day fixture, the Indian
spinners failed to deliver but the inexperienced Aussie spinners
exploited the conditions better to bowl their side to victory by 77
runs.
Australia thus
moved to the top of the table with 13 points including a bonus point
while India remain at 8, with the only consolation that New Zealand
is trailing behind at just 3 points.
In conditions which
were alien to the Aussies, they triumphed and gained sweet revenge
for the loss at Gwalior.
In retrospect,
Ricky Ponting did his side a big favour by leaving out medium
pacer-batsman Ian Harvey and bringing in the left arm spinner,
Clarke. It was this inexperienced spinner who dealt vital blows,
getting rid of Tendulkar, Dravid and Yuvraj Singh, bagging four
wickets for 47 runs. Bracken too achieved some success with some
cutters, one such delivery dismissing Kaif.
 The
Indians could have done better by bringing in Murali Karthik for
this game. However, the team management seems to have erred in
reading the pitch correctly. Ponting's decision, on the other hand,
to induct Clarke was the turning point of the game even before it
had begun!
Harbhajan and
Kumble failed to drive home the advantage of a turning track and
bowled far too short or wide, allowing the Aussie batsmen to go scot
free. No doubt, the classical approach of Damien Martyn, the only
Aussie batsman who bats with grace and style, provided an option to
the Aussies to put up a good score on this track. Martyn's century,
in difficult circumstances, would rate as one of the best innings on
a turning track but there was little doubt that the Indian spinners
too bowled poorly and allowed him too much lattitude.
The innings started
in explosive fashion with runs pouring in thick and fast, despite
Hayden getting out to a ball which lifted steeply from Zaheer, his
first delivery. Gilchrist perished to spin, against which he must be
considered weak, but Martyn, supported by the others, made full toll
of the loose deliveries from the Indian spinners to help Australia
286 in their allotted 50 overs.
 The
Indians lost Sehwag early yet again, out offering no shot to a
delivery from Bracken, although there must be doubts whether the
ball would have missed leg stmp. Tendulkar and Laxman steadied the
ship but it was obvious that batting would be difficult in view of
the steep bounce and the sharp turn obtained by the Aussie spinners.
Despite some
anxious moments, they did maintain the momentum. Though Laxman fell
for 21, making a wild shot outside the off stump, India was still in
the hunt due to a fine partnership between Tendulkar and skipper
Rahul Dravid. The captain began elegantly, flicking and driving
through the covers, and Indian hopes were kept high as Tendulkar
reached his 50 -- not his best innings but an invaluable and
fighting innings nonetheless.
At 137 for 2, India
nurtured hopes of a victory as the side was going steadily at 5 runs
an over and could chase even 80 runs in the last 10 overs if it had
at least seven wickets in hand. However, Tendulkar, opening the face
of his bat, tried to glide a Clarke delivery to third man but the
ball, turning viciously from middle hit the top of the off stump.
India never recovered from that blow and kept losing wicket after
wicket, with the ball turning square and rearing up at the batsmen
from awkward angles.
 Dravid,
who played a sterling innings, was dismissed for 59 when he
reverse-swept Clarke into the hands of short third man.
None of the other
batsmer could deal with the Aussie bowlers and were dancing like a
cat on a hot tin roof. The end was inevitable, so tame that the
Indians could not reach the target of 228 to salvage at least a
point from the game. The Aussies thus gained a bonus point.
It is a crying
shame that such a poor pitch should be provided for an international
fixture, that too at Mumbai, which has a fine cricketing tradition.
The sub-standard nature of the pitch also deprived the packed Mumbai
crowd the opportunity to watch some good cricket. With the World Cup
champions and the runner-up battling it out, the least the curators
could have done was to provide a good wicket. These days, all over
the world, good batting tracks are considered a must for an ODI. It
was sad to see great batsmen reduced to a pitiable state and made to
look ordinary due to the deterioration in the pitch as the made
progressed. Even part-time bowlers were made to look extraordinary!
However, it was strange that even on such a pitch, good bowlers like
Harbhajan and Kumble could not dminate the batsmen with accuracy,
leaving the rest to subtle soil chemistry!
Test-match like
close-in fielders should have surrounded the bat in a bid to bowl
out Australia for a score under 200. Instead, they allowed the
Aussies to keep their wickets in tact. Dravid, who otherwise
captained the side well, failed to be aggressive and attack when he
should have. Perhaps, the fear of the Aussie batting had taken its
toll. Here is where the Indians must play tougher cricket and seek
to dominate Australia. It is as much a battle of the minds and the
Indians must learn to try and dictate terms. Otherwise, they will
continue to be at the receiving end,
R Rangaraj
|
