***Official*** India in Australia

[iamdavid]

so i guess Dravid can then open for India in the Australian series hence vacating a slot for Yuvraj.

Not a terrible idea imo, as pretty evidently Yuvraj is going to be more productive to the side than Gambhir, Patel, Karthik and likely Chopra. However it would unsettle a very settled and productive middle order, and they are likely to be hesitant to mess around with things at the start of an Australian tour.

However assuming Dravid were to open I think Laxman should bat 3, leaving us with -

Jaffer
Dravid
Laxman
Tendulkar
Ganguly
Yuvraj

Certainly some firepower there.

 

[NUFAN]

Not a terrible idea imo, as pretty evidently Yuvraj is going to be more productive to the side than Gambhir, Patel, Karthik and likely Chopra. However it would unsettle a very settled and productive middle order, and they are likely to be hesitant to mess around with things at the start of an Australian tour.

However assuming Dravid were to open I think Laxman should bat 3, leaving us with -

Jaffer
Dravid
Laxman
Tendulkar
Ganguly
Yuvraj

Certainly some firepower there.

Yeah I said the same thing a few pages back.

That's the top 6 I would go for.

India are favourites for mine..

 

[Arjun]

Now that you mention opening with Dravid, why not open with Tendulkar or Ganguly? Both are more accustomed to opening the innings, and would fit better there than yet another occasional, makeshift opener. Neither bat like the first-fifteen-overs-pinch-hitters of the 90's at the top- so that narrows down the perceived Test/ODI gap. Either that, or drop Laxman for Yuvraj, but such are the wonders of one Test innings- even Gambhir is out of favour now.

 

[Manee]

However assuming Dravid were to open I think Laxman should bat 3, leaving us with -

Jaffer
Dravid
Laxman
Tendulkar
Ganguly
Yuvraj

Certainly some firepower there.

To quote Homer Simpson: "I agree with you in theory. In theory, communism works. In theory...

Back to the real world and I disagree with that batting order. Sure, it will be good to open with Dravid because his job at three is similar to opening but you cannot disregard Dravid's poor stay as opener, Although Laxman has a good record at three, can you really sacrifice the performance of a star like Dravid to fit in Yuvraj who averages 17.63 away from Asia?

Now that you mention opening with Dravid, why not open with Tendulkar or Ganguly? Both are more accustomed to opening the innings, and would fit better there than yet another occasional, makeshift opener. Neither bat like the first-fifteen-overs-pinch-hitters of the 90's at the top- so that narrows down the perceived Test/ODI gap. Either that, or drop Laxman for Yuvraj, but such are the wonders of one Test innings- even Gambhir is out of favour now.

Why sacrifice years of experience to chuck people into their second Test opening the innings. Narrow or not, there is a gap between opening in Tests and ODIs and that gaps is the slips. Ganguly commonly flays the ball through the third or fourth slip in the beginning of ODIs and could easily be dismissed for next to nothing, often in Tests if he opened. I see no batting weakness issue with Tendulkar opening but why bat him out of place?

The fact is that you want to shift arguably the most successful Indian batting line up of the last three years to accomadate Yuvraj based on a hundred agaisnt a three man attack (and a poor one at that) on what became a flat pitch?

Jaffer
Karthik (Chopra* if Karthik fails in third Test to score at least a fifty)
Dravid
Tendulkar
Ganguly
Laxman
Dhoni

*Chopra > Gambhir.
India A double century + Superior domestic form > Superior domestic average by 7.10

Never done one of them before, hope to never do one again

Yuvraj's time will come in about two years when the first of Dravid/Tendulkar/Ganguly hangs up his gloves. Remember, Yuvraj, although experienced, is still four days off 26 years old. He is still a young man and has about ten years left in him.

 

[jeevan]

In this series with Pakistan the 4 times Dravid has come to bat, the scores have been
15/1 (6th over or so), 2/1 (1st over), 2/1 (second over 2nd ball), 8/1 (8th over).

He's practically been an opener except in name.

Of course the quality of attack is not the same, but Jaffer + Dravid partnerships have added 136,82,56,36, though Dravid himself averages something a bit under 40. On 3 of 4 occasions this partnership has been the foundation for the rest of the innings.

If Karthik makes way for Yuvraj, would make sense to open with Dravid.

 

[silentstriker]

Chopra baby. Chopra & Jaffer. I don't like Sehwag, but he should be in the 15-16 for Australia. He is versatile, and can bat in the middle order as well, if injuries hit.

I have a squad for the Australian tour:

Jaffer
Chopra
Sehwag
Dravid
Tendulkar
Ganguly
VVS Laxman
Yuvraj Singh
MS Dhoni
Dinesh Karthik
Anil Kumble
Harbhajan Singh or Murali Karthik (I personally like Karthik over Harbhajan)
Irfan Pathan
Munaf Patel or Sreesanth
Zaheer Khan
RP Singh

Maybe go without a batsman, and add an extra seamer if you think one hasn't completely recovered.

 

[viktor]

Agree totally with Manee.

 

[Jono]

Not a terrible idea imo, as pretty evidently Yuvraj is going to be more productive to the side than Gambhir, Patel, Karthik and likely Chopra. However it would unsettle a very settled and productive middle order, and they are likely to be hesitant to mess around with things at the start of an Australian tour.

However assuming Dravid were to open I think Laxman should bat 3, leaving us with -

Jaffer
Dravid
Laxman
Tendulkar
Ganguly
Yuvraj

Certainly some firepower there.

The reluctance of Dravid opening is simply mental. That's all it is. He has all the tools to be a great opener.

 

[irfan]

The reluctance of Dravid opening is simply mental. That's all it is. He has all the tools to be a great opener.

Seconded. I'm the biggest Dravid fan and have the utmost respect for the guy but I hate his reluctance to do anything outside batting at his coveted 3 spot. He's the type of character who seems to builds up pressure on himself and at the slightest hint of failure he seems unwilling to stick it out (whether it be as an Indian captain or as an opener.)

Sure having interest in the captaincy/opening roles is important but it reeks of selfishness (see Kallis) when you're unwilling to adapt for the greater good of the team.

 

[Richard]

And Dravid's never adapted... 100s of times... for the good of the team?

AFAIC if he doesn't like opening and has done the superlative job he's done in Tests at three, he's every right to be reluctant to move from there. Every right.

 

[archie mac]

Take THAT Sean!

The exception that proves the rule

 

[iamdavid]

Now that you mention opening with Dravid, why not open with Tendulkar or Ganguly? .

Because as it stands at the moment Tendulkar and Ganguly are being very productive in the middle order and to mess around with them would be foolish....if it aint broken dont fix it. Dravid on the other hand has experienced a pretty significant dip in form over the past 12 months, I would go as far as to say he is no longer India's kingpin with the bat, Tendulkar is once more. I dont think anybody in their right minds could argue Dravid is technically not upto opening in test cricket, his defensive game and judgement against the new ball are superior to the likes of Hayden, Jayasuria, Langer, Smith, Sehwag, Trescothick and others who have all been succesful opening the batting in test cricket over the past few years. It is clearly a mental preference and I'm sure a player with Dravid's proven adaptability would be capable of overcoming that and doing what is in the teams best interests, were he to be asked.

 

[honestbharani]

Seconded. I'm the biggest Dravid fan and have the utmost respect for the guy but I hate his reluctance to do anything outside batting at his coveted 3 spot. He's the type of character who seems to builds up pressure on himself and at the slightest hint of failure he seems unwilling to stick it out (whether it be as an Indian captain or as an opener.)

Sure having interest in the captaincy/opening roles is important but it reeks of selfishness (see Kallis) when you're unwilling to adapt for the greater good of the team.

The man moved down to 6 to make way for Laxman at 3. The only reason why Dravid went back up there was because he was batting better and Laxman was kinda found out at no.3... And Dravid did open when we went in with 5 middle order batters, including Yuvi and did so with a bit of success on a couple of flat tracks but then the going got difficult for him too...


Yes, it is just a mental thing with Dravid but it is the same for all players... If Dravid can open, why can't Sachin? I know that right now Sachin is in better form than Dravid, but back at a time when Dravid WAS our best player, he still volunteered to open when he could have so easily asked Sachin or Sourav to open. IN fact, it was widely reported that Sourav did want to open and there was an animated conversation between Sourav and Dravid with Greg Chappell in the middle that was flashed in all channels. The reason Dravid decided to open was that he felt, technically, he was better equipped for the role than Sourav and because, given that Sourav was staging a comeback, it was better for him to walk in at a position more suited and more comfortable to him... Dravid, being a certainty in the side, decided that he would take up that role instead.

 

[Jono]

The reason Dravid decided to open was that he felt, technically, he was better equipped for the role than Sourav and because, given that Sourav was staging a comeback, it was better for him to walk in at a position more suited and more comfortable to him... Dravid, being a certainty in the side, decided that he would take up that role instead.

That may very well be true, but why do you always put across these rumours and stories as though they are fact HB?

 

[jeevan]

Seconded. I'm the biggest Dravid fan and have the utmost respect for the guy but I hate his reluctance to do anything outside batting at his coveted 3 spot. He's the type of character who seems to builds up pressure on himself and at the slightest hint of failure he seems unwilling to stick it out (whether it be as an Indian captain or as an opener.)

Sure having interest in the captaincy/opening roles is important but it reeks of selfishness (see Kallis) when you're unwilling to adapt for the greater good of the team.

Say what?? In tests: As captain he put himself up to open on a tough tour of Pakistan. As player he averages better at #4 (which is a spot SRT is glued on to harder than anybody else to any other) but bats at #3. In a team with walking wickets for openers (Sehwag,Jaffer even in their good phases are single-digits-or-double-ton openers), the #3 is spot is but a crown of thorns. It's not like he's had Hayden-Langer or Greenidge-Haynes coming ahead of him.

As captain: he stayed on beyond the disastrous world cup and the recovery of the Indian team (ODI win against SA in Ireland, test win against Eng in Eng, even the ODI series in Eng) were in his tenure. Given the very large disappointement and outcry after the WC, required character to do that.

As to his adaptability, look to how his role in the ODI's has evolved. Everything from adding value as a wicketkeeper till Dhoni came along (he did OK) and playing anywhere from 3 to 6 and anything from anchoring, rotating,finishing and even slogging .

 

[Unattainableguy]

Symonds will have mixed feelings over Sreesanth’s absence in Australia

MUMBAI: Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds has no immediate plan to send any ‘get well soon’ messages to India’s pace-bowler S Sreesanth who is injured and is scheduled to miss out the forthcoming tour of Australia.

“Andrew has no personal grudge with Sreesanth, and respects his youthful exuberance for the game. Sreesanth is sometimes a little over the top with his behaviour and any player can take exception to this but it is merely a healthy rivalry on the field. Off the field there is nothing more to say”, Symonds’s manager Matt Fearon said from Sydney.

“I am sure that Andrew and the Aussie team will be disappointed that he is not coming as all the Australian players are looking forward to a tough and fiery series this summer”, he further added.

The outspoken Sreesanth, who fired Australian emotions in the Twenty20 World Cup and in the recent one-day series in India, has been struggling with his shoulder injury.

The Indians have pledged to be aggressive in word and deed this summer, and 25-year-old Sreesanth was to be the leader of the pack. He had even predicted an Indian 4-0 victory against Australia.

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1138136

 

[Dissector]

Haha the last statement is so ridiculous. I mean it's annoying enough when McGrath makes those kind of predictions but there at least it has some basis in fact. Predicting that India will win 4-0 in Australia is like predicting that Bermuda will win the next world cup.

 

[stephen]

Haha the last statement is so ridiculous. I mean it's annoying enough when McGrath makes those kind of predictions but there at least it has some basis in fact. Predicting that India will win 4-0 in Australia is like predicting that Bermuda will win the next world cup.

haha I think good on him.

He needs to work hard to make himself the best but there's nothing wrong with a bit of gamesmanship in my opinion. All teams should be playing to win their series 2-0, 3-0, 4-0 or 5-0 (depending on the number of tests).

I miss McGrath and his naming of targets.

 

[Laurrz]

I miss McGrath and his naming of targets.

I miss McGrath period.

 

[honestbharani]

That may very well be true, but why do you always put across these rumours and stories as though they are fact HB?

It was a fact because it was obvious that it was the only thing they could have had a discussion abt, given that the match was to start in an hour or so....


And if you look at other places, I never tried to pass off rumours as truth... Only thing I might have said is that certain rumours sound plausible... And please, don't think I was trying to paint a better picture of Dravid there... I think Ganguly is every bit a team man as Dravid, but juz pointed out to the other poster who seemed to think Dravid was a little too "precious" about his batting spot... Coz, quite honestly, that applies to Dravid as much as it applies to SAchin and Sourav etc...