Warm up record:
Match #1 - 182 run win vs The Netherlands
Match #2 - 9 wicket win vs The West Indies
Much to my disbelief India (and relief) has played really well in the warm up games so far. In fact other than Pathan's wayward bowling and the pointlessness of having Sehwag in the team I can't really complain about much as a fan. They were great with the bat (was good to see Tendulkar hitting some runs in the first match) and devastating with the ball in the second. However I hope that this team does not become complacent as they play the mercurial Bangladeshis on the 17th.
Although I on current form I do not expect them to falter against the Bangladeshis, one has to consider that the only constant about the Indian team is their inconsitency (especially the batting). I hope the Indians take this form with them throughout the cup. If they play this way they could well be the team to dethrone the Aussies for the title.
Based on the performances in the warm up matches and the recent past here are the players I consider to be the Key players for India:
* Rahul Dravid - When he plays well, India almost always wins. He provides a solidity to the Indian batting that seems to rub off on players such as Yuvraj. When he fails India often falters. His captaincy has been very patchy as well. Here is a golden opportunity for him to prove his critics wrong.
* Yuvraj Singh & Mahendra Singh Dhoni - The performances of these two could well mean whether India win/lose their games. Be it on the field or with the bat, when they fire India can blow away their opposition.
Yuvraj is the future of the Indian batting line up. Hopefully he will show some temperment and play to his potential. If he does then no score is too large for India to set up or chase down. His bowling and fielding can prove to be invaluble as well.
Having seen the pitches so far, I am not sure if Dhoni will be able to play as he does in India, however he can clear the fence and can chip in with some vital cameos to help India set up a huge total/ win when chasing totals.
* Irfan Pathan - I am sure he will be selected in the batting line-up despite his indifferent form with the ball. However the pitches here will suit his bowling and he may surprise many with his bowling ala Brian Lara. If he can get his bowling sorted out India will have a bowling attack to be proud of.
My prediction:
Based on the performances in the Warm up matches I think a semi-final place is assured for the Indians. After that if they can continue in the same vein as they have in the last few games, fans such as myself could become believers again.
Team Talk - Australia
Team Talk - Pakistan
Team Talk - West Indies
1 comment:
Indian team's looking good before the WC for a change. It'll be funny if India wins the WC : one of the most inconsistent teams in the world will wear the tag of WC champs for 4 years just because they played consistent cricket for one and some more months. That's all it takes to win the Cup really. And thankfully, there's no consistent team out there which can be called favorites. All this augurs well for the tournament. A shame that the organisers couldn't arrange for any day/night games to satisfy the cricket hunger of avid 9-5 sluggers working in Eastern Standard Time (or CST or MST for that matter). Long live internet commentary!!
Pathan's recent performances show he's a part-time bowler at best. I just hope he can improve his form; the kinda balance he provides to the team is an over-repeated issue. The Indian dark horses for me are Agarkar and Zaheer, especially if these two are opening the bowling. Get any of these two to bowl first-change and something goes awry. I just hope the management can stick to Agarkar opening the bowling because that's when he performs his best; he gets wickets with the new ball and his ODI record in WI is good. Zaheer has gone through a pleasantly surprising improvement. And there's something about KKD Karthik's guts and positive intent, I hope he does well.
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