Monstrous egos tilt it India's way

On the eve of this Test, an article in South Africa's version of The Times stated that "the Indian team is famous for being a collection of monstrous egos sloshing about in great vats of self-importance". It was a strange assertion to make, especially for a journalist that I've never met on a cricket tour. In fact, I'd be very surprised if he had ever come across Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman or Kumble, men whose humility and dedication to the game has kept them near the top for so very long.

There are a couple of prats in the younger brigade, but that's more a generational thing than anything else. The PlayStation crowd, whether they're Indian, English, Australian or South African, live their lives in a hype bubble and can't be expected  to behave with the dignity and grace that characterise many of their elders, who grew up at a time when sport was just that, and not the entertainment circus - the IPL and noon kick-offs in football being just two examples - that it has become in the 21st century.

The one-day game and Twenty20 are an appropriate arena for these brash young talents to express themselves, but as three of Indian cricket's greats showed today, Test cricket is still very much a game for men of substance. But for the contributions from Ganguly, Laxman and Dravid, India would have been miles adrift in this game, and it was perhaps no coincidence that the two worst shots of the day came from those who have yet to fully grasp the unique rhythms of Test-match cricket.

Both Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni batted with a fair bit of fluency on a difficult pitch, but then undid the good work with shots that can best be described as rash. Dhoni's was particularly atrocious and came at a time when India were poised to take a significant lead.

Contrast that with Dravid and Laxman, who batted with patience and poise during a tricky passage of play either side of lunch. Dravid was as solid as ever, and must wonder why he acts as some sort of magnet to the unplayable delivery. After Steyn in Ahmedabad, it was Morkel's turn here, with a brute of a ball that lifted off a length to crash into the glove.

Laxman too was undone by a super piece of bowling, one that swung in and then straightened off the pitch. Ganguly's dismissal wasn't in the same category, but by the time he had a heave at Steyn, the situation was such that he had no option but to push on.

But what an innings he played. The square-drives and beautifully timed pushes through cover have always been an integral part of his game, but these days, he also finesses the ball through midwicket, especially against the spinners. Paul Harris, who was aiming at the cracks from quite a height, was never easy to get away, but both Ganguly and Laxman played him with a measure of comfort that might worry Smith as the game heads into its climactic phase.

The result could well depend on how India's new-ball bowlers perform. Appalling in the first hour of the game, they will have to be at their best to make dents in a South African top three that has made runs for fun in India. With the cracks widening and plumes of dust coming off the pitch, Harbhajan and Piyush Chawla could be a real handful later on.

Ganguly, who called the 87 one of his best innings, suggested that India really didn't fancy a big run chase on the fourth day. Realistically, they won't want to chase anything more than 170, and the onus will be on Ishant Sharma and Sreesanth to set the game up with the new ball. Smith, McKenzie and Amla will be a formidable first barrier to get past.

Comments

[bunty]

actually if its an issue of seniors it may be mentioned that the series results may not have been worse if the indian team for these 3 tests had read- chopra, viru, gambhir, badrinath, kaif, raina, dhoni, yusuf pathan, p kumar, vrv singh/ ishant sharma, sreesanth first 2 tests due to ishants injury

[surinder]

The seios proved thei worth by performance. The Gen-X cricketers viz., Yuvraj and Dhoni showed rush of blood sometimes play on them he one day and T20 stuff has made many newgenrtion cricketers what should I call Blind Warriors or Gamblers by default. I wish they should understand the fabric of Test Match.

[Dsingh]

Dileep,
Thanks for addressing the ego issue. I was hoping some self-respecting desi journalist will have some thing to say in print in response. Unfortunately, I sense many desi journos would have had a quite giggle on the comment - a license to rake issues and controversies and thus earn some moolah at someone's expense.
Just a few weeks back this team played out of its skin against the best team in the world. And suddenly from nowhere this idiotic joke comes along.
As always, it has been a joy to read your blogs, even if I disagree with your views sometimes.

[bunty]

well played india congrats on the win dada should be m-o-m, steyn player of series; match turned i think with the last wicket stand this morning adding 46 and streching india's lead to 60; the pitch did detereiorate and played a bigger role than at ahmedabad in the result but at neither ahmedabad nor kanpur should the pitches be blamed beyond a point ; one can recall a number of test sides who wouldve performed better than india at ahmedabad or rsa at green park. present day batsmen are too used to featherbeds perhaps; relatively few batsmen at either venue actually got out to unplayable balls

[Lynx]

I agree with Homer, Alex Parker must have been describing the wrong team.

[Homer]

Alex Parker obviously confused the Indian team for the SACB. :)

Cheers