*Official* India in Pakistan Thread

[Arjun]

Is CricInfo down? I can't get to their site!

 

[Arjun]

Can't these Indian fielders ever hit directly? They would win more matches if they did. What do they do in their fielding drills?

 

[Arjun]

They can't take wickets with such defensive fields, can they?

 

[scrumpy]

Is CricInfo down? I can't get to their site!

It is slow today ... but it must be getting millions of hits!

 

[SquidAU]

Pakistan win by 4 wickets. Good game though. Close, like the other ones.

 

[Jono]

After Pakistan were 4 down they shouldn't of got there, but Zaheer again was expensive and with Razzaq there with only 40 off 40 needed Pakistan were always going to win.

Ah well bring on game 4.

 

[Arjun]

Ganguly can't set fields to win matches...he should ask his bowlers for the right fields.

Zaheer Khan will never win matches the way he is bowling. Bring on Bhandari or Karthik or even Sachin and Yuvraj as strike bowlers. But not Ganguly- why he bowled himself for so long is a mystery.

What do the Indians do in the net sessions? Praise has been showered on Zaheer's bowling, but this is not net practice- he's failed again in the middle- where it matters most.

What about fielding? It's still not upto standards. Lack of direct hits are still a problem. Doesn't help when the captain can't field.

Perhaps 2 or 3 spinners in the next match will help. Shane Warne never had too many problems against Pakistan, nor should Powar, Karthik, Sachin and Sehwag.

As for the batting, they need to work on running between the wickets a little more and six-hitting a LOT more.

 

[NikhilN]

Dude...Tendulkar cannot bowl...he is a batsman not a bowler...India are running out of bowlers and he has to put him self in cause atleast he can bowl better then tendulkar

 

[Arjun]

Then what do they do? Play 4 or 5 bowlers like the opposition? Tendulkar has over 100 wickets in ODI's and these pitches are either flat, or slow. He would be more effective here. Given there is no Kumble, Srinath, Agarkar (in a way, luckily), Nehra (pathetic fielding notwithstanding) and ESPECIALLY Harbhajan, they have to go in with more bowlers. Not to mention these bowlers need support from the field and wicketkeeper, which they are not getting.

 

[NikhilN]

Why do you hate Harbhajan? Did you forget he was the only one to get the wickets in the world cup final while the rest couldnt do anything?

 

[Arjun]

Why do you hate Harbhajan? Did you forget he was the only one to get the wickets in the world cup final while the rest couldnt do anything?

I don't. I actually rate him very highly, for many reasons, that one you mentioned being one. What I meant was that with the main bowlers out, they have to go in with more bowlers in the XI.

 

[NikhilN]

I would say in the next match take out Balaji and put in Amit Bhandari

 

[Tony Blade]

Wrong lbw decision by the umpire [against] Inzi..a couple of other bad lbw decisions as well [in the Indian innings]..apalling..And did the ball really hit Balaji's hand, didnt see it properly.
......another thing. Shane Warne never had any trouble against Pakistan, but Murali did. :P

 

[Hussan]

Hi all

Having just read through this very long and entertaining thread just wanted to see what people thought of the series so far?

Plus i had to congratulate Pakistan on taking the lead in the series after being one down

Looking forward to Sunday - and hopefully Pakistan taking an unbeatable lead in the series.

Cheers,

Hus

 

[Hussan]

Wrong lbw decision by the umpire [against] Inzi..a couple of other bad lbw decisions as well [in the Indian innings]..apalling..And did the ball really hit Balaji's hand, didnt see it properly.
......another thing. Shane Warne never had any trouble against Pakistan, but Murali did. :P

V true - curious did anyone else think giving Younis Khan out was a tad dodgy? I mean how the Umpire managed to see Balaji touch that ball when it was struck at that speed? If anything he should have called for the 3rd Umpire it was a run out decision after all. Some seriously dodgy decisions today :!(

 

[Arjun]

Surprisingly, Yuvraj, the bowler in form, was not used at all, while Ganguly, well and truly out of form, got 6 overs- 6 too many. Could someone explain why?

As for Zaheer, he should stick to his best moves, as Navjot Singh Sidhu (today's Times of India, Mumbai) pointed out. He's at his best with a long run-up and a high jump, which were curtailed by this so-called expert advice. If he stuck to what made him a very effective bowler in mid-2002 and late 2002, he'd be getting a lot more wickets, which would help in more victories, since if Zaheer bowls well, the Indian team plays well.

 

[Arjun]

If the Indians don't win the series, there should be some changes in the ODI team. The captain may stay just to 'preserve the balance' of the team (is there any?), but that Rahul Dravid experiment has fallen flat time and again and it has to go. I would prefer a specialist wicketkeeper, while Sehwag, Powar, Irfan, Zaheer and Yuvraj are better all-rounders than Dravid, when it comes to balancing skills.

 

[marc71178]

I think 350 will be a good score on this ground

Considering the average on the ground is about 100 or so less than that, it would've been.

 

[Hussan]

Surprisingly, Yuvraj, the bowler in form, was not used at all, while Ganguly, well and truly out of form, got 6 overs- 6 too many. Could someone explain why?

As for Zaheer, he should stick to his best moves, as Navjot Singh Sidhu (today's Times of India, Mumbai) pointed out. He's at his best with a long run-up and a high jump, which were curtailed by this so-called expert advice. If he stuck to what made him a very effective bowler in mid-2002 and late 2002, he'd be getting a lot more wickets, which would help in more victories, since if Zaheer bowls well, the Indian team plays well.

Didnt Yuvraj bowl for one over...got hit for 9 and then got taken out again? Not much of a spell i know but he was used.

Plus Ganguly may not have actually made any breakthroughs but he did slow down the scoring rate and finished with a good eco rate iirc. Which is pretty much what you hope for from a part time bowler.

If i was supporting the Indo team i would be asking why he set such a defensive field when you had to take wickets? Letting people like Moin and Razzaq simply knock the ball into space and take singles played right into Pakistans hands.

Not that i am complaining mind

 

[marc71178]

If anything he should have called for the 3rd Umpire it was a run out decision after all.

But 3rd Umpire for Run Outs can only judge whether the player was in the crease or not.