***Official*** India in Pakistan

[luckyeddie]

What is the point of playing test matches on dead track????

Its clear that Pak has deliberately prepared dead track to drew matches and escape defeat at the hands of Indians.Looks to me like Pak were frightened at the prospect of facing Indian bowlers on responsive pitches and thus opted for a lifeless pitch.

Pak will score a big total in first innings and India will responde by piling up a huge total , the match will eventually end in a dull draw.

It's not necessarily a dead track - just a lifeless Indian attack.

It looks very much like the types of track the series against England was played on - and two of those ended in results (grrr).

 

[nehrafan]

LOL.

They can prepare landmines against English team, but when it comes to India, all they can come up is a dead track!!!

 

[adharcric]

They can prepare landmines against English team, but when it comes to India, all they can come up is a dead track!!!

k dude give it up, this might be a batting paradise, but ajit agarkar's pathetic bowling only makes matters worse. i'm so glad jones and holding are bashing him.

 

[Beleg]

Comparing the pitch with the tracks for the series with England:

Multan was slightly more helpful to the bowlers.
Faisalabad was about the same, if anything, easier to bat on, even on the last day.
Lahore provided more help to the bowlers initially but settled down to a road by the end of day 1.

This track, I believe, is already showing signs of variable bounce. Batting on day four and five certainly won't be a piece of cake, specially with the added psychological pressure of a big total hammering constantly in the back of your head.

 

[Dissector]

About Indian fast-bowling options I definitely agree that the likes of Sreesanth and VRV Singh need to be given a shot. Hopefully this tour will be the end of the selectors' bizzare infatuation with Agarkar. I also think that India needs to pay attention to what Imran has been saying about how you need pace in the air to succeed in the sub-continent. And for that you need good athletes. For instance I suspect that Sreesanth is too skinny to become a quality fast bowler in the long run. The board needs to focus on younger bowlers and improve fitness levels so that you have a pool of genuine athletes coming through.

 

[Beleg]

That's it for the day, folks.

To give an example of Pakistan's dominance today, they scored 106 runs for 20 overs in just 76 minutes in the fading light of the last session.

 

[adharcric]

About Indian fast-bowling options I definitely agree that the likes of Sreesanth and VRV Singh need to be given a shot. Hopefully this tour will be the end of the selectors' bizzare infatuation with Agarkar. I also think that India needs to pay attention to what Imran has been saying about how you need pace in the air to succeed in the sub-continent. And for that you need good athletes. For instance I suspect that Sreesanth is too skinny to become a quality fast bowler in the long run. The board needs to focus on younger bowlers and improve fitness levels so that you have a pool of genuine athletes coming through.

precisely. farewell agarkar.

 

[luckyeddie]

They can prepare landmines against English team, but when it comes to India, all they can come up is a dead track!!!

Do you honestly think it will be a dead track after tea tomorrow when India are asked to make 450 to save the follow-on?

I don't.

 

[Mecnun]

I am not really able to get myself enthused about this series, i must say.

hey comma, what's happening , watching your fav Moyo get some runs today?

 

[Prince EWS]

Another thing to consider. As an opener Ganguly is replacing Gambhir who to be fair hasn't really done a great deal as yet.

So if Ganguly opens and averages more than Gambhir, has he not done the job required of him?

His bowling is an added bonus, which was probably IMO the thing that tipped the balance towards selecting him - otherwise, who would've come on as first change?

Harbhajan Singh.

You seem completely closed minded to the fact that spinners can bowl first change.

 

[Fusion]

Good solid first day for Pakistan. Need to keep up the scoring pace tomorrow and build up a huge lead. Should be interesting to see how things proceed in the first 2 sessions tomorrow.

 

[luckyeddie]

Harbhajan Singh.

You seem completely closed minded to the fact that spinners can bowl first change.

Are India moving back to the 'good old days' when the purpose of the seamer was merely to sake the shine off the new ball?

 

[SJS]

....that spinners can bowl first change.

....when they are not actually opening the bowling that is

 

[SJS]

Dilip Premchandran writes in cricinfo :
Whether Ganguly is up to the challenge is open to debate, and we'll only find out when India eventually manage to bowl Pakistan out. If he doesn't open, however, it will open up an entirely new can of worms that the Indian team could well do without. Of the rest, Dravid is probably best equipped to handle the task of taking on a fired-up Shoaib, but it would be nothing short of insanity to risk the team's best batsman against the new ball. Would Australia do the same with Ricky Ponting, who has laid waste bowling attacks from the No.3 position?

Exactly. That is why it would be a test of Dravid's mettle as a captain to see if he takes the worse option camoflauged as 'sacrifice' or 'captain leading from the front'

It would be just as unfair to ask Yuvraj or Laxman to front up simply to accommodate Ganguly in the middle order.

Plus they are no more competent than Ganguly for the job.

Asking Irfan Pathan, who got such a working-over from Shoaib at Lahore on the last tour, would also be to venture into the realms of unacceptable risk.

And would be laughable considering this is a test match and not a fifty overs game.

Now that Pakistan seem headed for a monstrous total the folly of not having a regular opening pair is further compounded. God forbid but India may need as many as 350-400 runs to avoid the follow on. Can you imagine the pressure on the middle order if the top order cant stay a while - or worse still - if a 'sacrificial-lamb-leading-from-the-front' is unavailable to strengthen that middle order because he succumbed to pressure !

I do hope, Ganguly opens and for India's sake, scores a hundred but if that were not to happen and Dravid opens, I secretly hope he (Dravid goes for a blob and the middle order collapses for India to follow on 350 runs behind for the folly of having one billion selectors is clear to all.

But I suppose the media will not learn anything and will start another campaign on do you think Chappell and his experimentation has ruined Indian cricket ?

SMS YES to the following number....

 

[Arjun]

About Indian fast-bowling options I definitely agree that the likes of Sreesanth and VRV Singh need to be given a shot. Hopefully this tour will be the end of the selectors' bizzare infatuation with Agarkar. I also think that India needs to pay attention to what Imran has been saying about how you need pace in the air to succeed in the sub-continent. And for that you need good athletes. For instance I suspect that Sreesanth is too skinny to become a quality fast bowler in the long run. The board needs to focus on younger bowlers and improve fitness levels so that you have a pool of genuine athletes coming through.

Sreesanth shouldn't put on too much muscle, or he'll slow down. He's a good athlete, and you can see it in his fielding and run-up. Otherwise, we can all agree on that.

 

[Pratters]

I do hope, Ganguly opens and for India's sake, scores a hundred but if that were not to happen and Dravid opens, I secretly hope he (Dravid goes for a blob and the middle order collapses for India to follow on 350 runs behind for the folly of having one billion selectors is clear to all.

I wouldnt be as rigid and say Ganguly is the only option to open like D.Premachandran. A few aspects have to be taken into account -

1) The pitch is slow and it isnt a usual opening scenario. Yet it is difficult.
2) Ganguly isnt a traditional great player against bouncers and would face more difficulty at that position than any one of the other 4 specialist middle order batsmen.

What options do we have -

Laxman - shown to be averse to opening at the top and isnt an option.
Dravid - Adept at facing the new ball. An option but when some less competent player can handle the opening slot, why go for Dravid.
Tendulkar - Valuable enough not to risk opening. We do not know his strength vs new ball in tests and how comfortable he would be. So why risk him.
Ganguly - Weakness known. But may face the situation - the pitch isnt a bowler's paradise.
Pathan - would be brave enough to go for the slot do we want him to go at the top when he may not be as adept as a specialist batsman?

Yuvraj and Dhoni would seem better options. Yuvraj would be most suitable as far as I see it but certainly there are options.

 

[Jono]

How would Yuvraj be most suitable? Remember the last time he opened? It wasn't pretty. Granted Shaoib isn't Glenn McGrath, but he could still make Yuvraj look very silly.

I don't think Dravid opening would necessarily be a sacrifice. Yes he's our best batsman and its most beneficial to protect him from the new ball, but even if India went in with Gambhir and Sehwag as the opening pair and dropped Yuvraj for Ganguly, say one of them got out in the first or second over, who would come to the crease with the ball still new and hard? Dravid, not Ganguly. Dravid is clearly the better man for the job, but despite that for some reason deep down I want Ganguly to open. No I don't want him to fail, but I think he doesn't deserve a spot in the middle order, and whilst Dravid is clearly more suitable to the role technically, its obvious he doesn't want to do it. Him opening in a big time series against Pakistan as captain just because he HAS to to accomodate Ganguly is ridiculous. He's under enough pressure as it is, especially considering its likely Pak will score 500+.

 

[Pratters]

How would Yuvraj be most suitable? Remember the last time he opened? It wasn't pretty. Granted Shaoib isn't Glenn McGrath, but he could still make Yuvraj look very silly.

I don't think Dravid opening would necessarily be a sacrifice. Yes he's our best batsman and its most beneficial to protect him from the new ball, but even if India went in with Gambhir and Sehwag as the opening pair and dropped Yuvraj for Ganguly, say one of them got out in the first or second over, who would come to the crease with the ball still new and hard? Dravid, not Ganguly. Dravid is clearly the better man for the job, but despite that for some reason deep down I want Ganguly to open. No I don't want him to fail, but I think he doesn't deserve a spot in the middle order, and whilst Dravid is clearly more suitable to the role technically, its obvious he doesn't want to do it. Him opening in a big time series against Pakistan as captain just because he HAS to to accomodate Ganguly is ridiculous. He's under enough pressure as it is, especially considering its likely Pak will score 500+.

I agree behind the logic of Dravid being adept at opening. I have stated the same in the India-Sri Lanka thread. In this pitch though, there are other options. IF other options can do the job, why put Dravid at the spot.

Yuvraj would be a better option compared to Ganguly because he is better versus pace.

Dravid is the captain. If he thinks he is having to accomodate Ganguly despite him not liking it - he can make a statement, step down or talk it out with the board.

Regarding Ganguly not deserving a spot in the middle order - you seem to think its Ganguly's fault he is in the team! Why should he not want to be in the team!! And that he is in the XI, we should concentrate on what could make the XI stronger and make India compete better in the match rather than thinking player X doesnt desrve to be in the opening slot and player Y doesnt desrve to be in the middle order.

Frankly I do not understand this targetting of Ganguly by sections of the media. If we discuss what suits the team, its okay. But the way Ganguly has been painted as a villain in the media is inexplicable.

 

[Sanz]

The suggestion of Yuvraj opening is laughable at best. I dont wanna ruin his confidence by making him open. If Ganguly is in the team in place of Gambhir, he should open, which is what Gambhir used to do.

 

[Pratters]

Thinking who is the better option between two non specialist openers to see what would help the team cause isnt laughable despite what any one thinks.