South Africa's all round strength is awesome
The Indians get into the one-dayers under a new captain in Sourav Ganguly
Woorkheri Raman
08-Mar-2000
The Indians get into the one-dayers under a new captain in Sourav
Ganguly. It is always a great honour for anybody to lead a national
side, but Ganguly has got the job at the most difficult juncture
possible. The performance of the team has been mediocre, to say the
least, in the last few months and consequently the morale of the team
is at its nadir. This is going to make Ganguly's job all the more
difficult because the mental make-up of a team has a direct bearing on
its performance.
Ganguly will be able to understand the psyche of the players better as
he has been through the grind in more ways than one. Though naturally
talented, he had to achieve success the hard way, which will help him
in managing the team. He has shown this trait on the few occasions
that he has led the side. One can only hope that he will somehow lift
the team to better heights and thereby justify his elevation to the
prime post.
A comparison of both the sides will reveal the huge difference in
fielding as well as in versatility, with South Africa being way ahead
in these aspects. The all round strength of the South Africans is
awesome with Kluesner, Pollock and Crookes capable of doing the star
turn. Another advantage is the ability of Cronje and Kallis to bowl
effectively and Boucher is an all-rounder in his own way. The
embarrassment of riches is evident with Cullinan and Donald opting out
of one-dayers with a view to build the team up for the next World Cup.
The hosts will be banking on Tendulkar to provide rousing starts along
with Ganguly. The return of Azharuddin and the street-smart duo of
Robin Singh and Jadeja will bolster the batting line up. Dravid will
be under pressure to perform to retain his place in the side as he has
been discarded earlier in this version of the game. The Indian bowling
looks thin with Srinath and Prasad being rested and dropped
respectively. The mercurial Agarkar will be the main bowler to be
backed up by the inexperienced Kumaran and Bhandari.
The spinners have to be prepared to bowl within the first 15 overs and
apply the brakes on the Springboks. It is about time Joshi was given a
decent run of chances as he has been treated rather
indifferently. Dighe has to contribute with the bat to help the team's
cause and he may be called upon to play the role of a pinch-hitter. He
will have to also infuse enthusiasm into his teammates and keep them
going, as he will be fresh.
The pitches at all the venues for the one-dayers are basically batsmen
friendly and tall scoring matches can be expected. Maybe there will be
a bit of assistance for the spinners in the second half at Kochi and
Faridabad. One strategy the Indians can adopt is to bat first and put
the pressure on the South Africans. The Indians can bat more freely
while setting a target rather than chasing given their record in the
past and recent form. Moreover, the South Africans have often shown
the tendency to lose their way while chasing in the past. If the
Indians can somehow pull off a 3-2 victory, it will not only be the
ideal start for Ganguly but also the much-needed tonic for the
gradually waning patience of the followers of the game.