***Official*** India in Pakistan

[pug]

off topic: I would add you but my msn isn't letting me...add me then [/QUOTE]

Off Topic: Its not a particularly great idea to post your email address online in a forum.

 

[GotSpin]

Off Topic: Its not a particularly great idea to post your email address online in a forum.

Thanks for quoting me then

 

[Jono]

I blame this series on the fact that England lost 2 test matches on these flat tracks. All that did was encourage the PCB to prepare pitches like these thinking that Shoaib and Kaneria could bowl Pakistan to victory no matter what the wicket was like. Clearly the Indian batsman haven't batted as badly.

In all seriousness, what an anti-climax this series has been.

 

[cricketboy29]

Frankly, i must say this a slap on the excitingness of the india-pakistan rivalry. We just had the ashes, quite frankly the greatest series that i have seen in my lifetime, and then we get this..... Greatest bore that ive seen in my lifetime, for the last three days of the test, i didnt even turn on the tv.

IF another flat pitch is prepared might as well go in with 6 bowlers, since we've seen what our lower order can do on these pitches.

 

[pug]

Thanks for quoting me then

Ur welcome.

 

[honestbharani]

off topic: I would add you but my msn isn't letting me...add me then xiw4life at hotmail dot com

done.

 

[TIF]

It has all come down to which bowling combination India takes at the moment -

Option 1 - 3 pacers + 1 spinner - This will have Harbhajan, sitting out and only Kumble playing, and Pathan, Zaheer and Agarkar(or RP Singh) will play. The 2nd spin option will be provided by Sehwag, Tendulkar and Yuvraj combined. Can be a useful option if the track is a one which assits pacers.

Option 2 - 2 pacers + 2 spinners - This is the combination with which India goes. Also, the pitches in Pakistan are very similar to those in India, even if a pitch is there which assists pacers, it will break down as the match progresses and the cracks will develop gradually on the pitch and it will start assisting spinners. In the sub-continent, a pace-freindly track can stay that way for only 2-3 days before finally giving away to spinners. So, India should go in with 2 pacers + 2 spinners with Ganguly providing the extra seam bowling option.

Also, dont at this suggestion - Even Dhoni has been known to bowl some medium-pace in the nets and if India might need an extra seam option, trying out Dhoni for 4-5 overs wont be a bad idea. We can have Dravid keeping for sometime. Taibu, recently did it for Zimbabwe almost 2 years ago against Sri Lanka with Utseya taking the gloves while Taibu bowled and Taibu kept when the other bowlers bowled.

Option 3 - 2 pacers + 2 spinners + 1 all-rounder(Irfan Pathan) - With the emergence of Irfan Pathan as a all-rounder and Dhoni also to provide runs at the lower-order with even Agarkar chipping in with some useful lower-order runs, this wont be a bad idea after all. We will go in with a strong bowling line-up and if this means only playing 5 regular batsmen, look at the batting to follow - Dhoni(He is a power-player), Pathan(He is an all-rounder), Agarkar(He has a test 100 at lords to his credit and has scored the fastest ODI 50 by an Indian), Zaheer(Highest test score by a no.11), Kumble(3 test 50s to his credit), Harbhajan(A useful 32-ball 44 against Sri Lanka way back in 2001), so these 6 players can fit in the batting of 3 regular batsmen. Ignoring Zaheer, Kumble and Harbhajan as they havent done too much with the bat, still we will have a batting line-up right down to no.8.

The teams in each of the 3 options will look like -

Option 1:
Sehwag
Gambhir/Jaffer
Dravid
Tendulkar
Laxman
Yuvraj
Dhoni(w)
Pathan
Agarkar/RP Singh
Zaheer
Kumble

Sehwag+Tendulkar+Yuvraj=2nd spinner

Option 2:
Sehwag
Gambhir/Jaffer
Dravid
Tendulkar
Laxman
Ganguly
Dhoni(w)
Pathan
Zaheer
Harbhajan
Kumble

Ganguly+MS Dhoni=3rd medium pacer

Option 3:
Sehwag
Gambhir/Jaffer
Dravid
Tendulkar
Laxman
Dhoni(w)
Pathan
Agarkar
Zaheer
Harbhajan
Kumble

Dhoni+Pathan+Agarkar=6th and 7th Batsman.

This was posted almost 15 days ago but them India has gone in with Options 2 and 3 in this series so far in the 2 tests. Now, do you think that India will try out Option 1 in the 3rd test.

As mentioned in this post, MS Dhoni was finally tried out as a part-time medium-pacer, but for just 1 over and bowled at decent pace around 120 kph. He still has to work on his bowling to be tried out as a part-time medium pacer if required. We do have part-time spinners in Sehwag, Tendulkar and Yuvraj, but we have always missed out on having part-time medium-pacers. Ganguly was one and now in MS Dhoni, we might just have another.

 

[TIF]

As for adding on MSN goes, anybody can feel free to add me on MSN.

Just in case you do not know my MSN, it is vvs_laxman281@hotmail.com

 

[Gotchya]

As deflating a series as you can get. I had my vacations all planned, and this is what they give me!!

 

[Sanz]

Checkout Amit Verma's bolg (Cricinfo's editor) http://indiauncut.blogspot.com/ for sxclusive tour report and pictures.. It is pretty interesting.

 

[SJS]

I would have thought they would have tried to make the Faisalabad pitch more bowler friendly after the intese criticism following the Lahore test match..
.

It may have been too late to do anything about Faisalabad. Once you remove the grass, you cant put it back. THAT needs time.

plus the last two tests in 2004 were played on lively pitches, where we had the same captain.
.

The 2004 wickets were prepared by an outsider.

Besides, as i said, this is speculation based on indicators, not 100% that its the case

 

[SJS]

However i must say that i'm surprised at Inzi/Woolmer's defensive tactics.This Pak team is much much stronger than the one that played India last time around, then why was there a need for such negative approach??

Oh yes. I agree.

My countrymen will be upset, but Pakistan did appear to have the stronger attack as far as the new ball and faster stuff was concerned. If Shoaib was a handful (and he was for short spells) even on these deader-than-dead tracks, he would have surely tasted success on helpful ones.

I dont have a great opinion of Sami but Naved wouldnt be carted around on a slightly helpful surface. He is a tricky bowler too.

Cricket/fans/sponsors may have all lost out in these two tests but India are sitting pretty I think and for that we have to thank the curator to some extent.

Not discounting great bating display for even on dead tracks when you are facing near 700 runs, you do have to score them. Even on dead tracks, mistakes will get you if bowlers wont and to avoid mistakes facing 680 runs for prolonged periods is to be appreciated.

 

[Tony Blade]

Great, now Shoaib is doubtful for the 3rd test.

 

[adharcric]

Cricket/fans/sponsors may have all lost out in these two tests but India are sitting pretty I think and for that we have to thank the curator to some extent.

Are you implying that India has been lucky to maintain a draw thus far, simply due to these dead tracks? Akhtar and Naved-ul-Hasan would certainly have received more assistance on lively tracks, but so would Pathan. Zaheer was generating prodigious swing and nothing needs to be said about RP Singh's bowling ... on a lively pitch they would've troubled the Pakistani batsmen as well. The biggest weapons in the bowling department were Kumble and Harbhajan, and they were negated by the pitch, so that really needs to be taken into account (they are by far more destructive than Kaneria). That said, I don't think there's a huge gap between these teams, India being slightly ahead as a test team and Pakistan slightly ahead as a one-day team (at the moment). As an Indian fan I'm inclined to say that the Indian one-day side is improving very rapidly and will be better than Pak soon, but for that we need to match Pakistan's two biggest assets: an abundance of all-round performers and a deadly tearaway pacer. Hopefully the Karachi pitch will have some life in it, even if it's close to a greentop it might be fine. This Indian team isn't incompetent against seam, swing and pace; at the same time, this Pakistani team is a professional unit that will give anyone a run for their money.

 

[onemangang]

. The biggest weapons in the bowling department were Kumble and Harbhajan, and they were negated by the pitch, so that really needs to be taken into account (they are by far more destructive than Kaneria). .

Whether Kumble is better than Kaneria is debatable, perhaps Kumble has the edge as he's experianced, however as far as Harbhajan is concerned, Kaneria is a far better bowler than Harbhajan!

 

[mayadevi]

Great, now Shoaib is doubtful for the 3rd test.

Great , now Akhtar joins the injury list, he's the third player that can miss the third test match with same old excuse!

If the Pakistan team is so frightened to play against India, then why the hell they even bother to host them??

 

[What-A-Player]

Great , now Akhtar joins the injury list, he's the third player that can miss the third test match with same old excuse!

If the Pakistan team is so frightened to play against India, then why the hell they even bother to host them??

Isnt that an excuse itself?

So tommorow if Sehwag says that his food poisning been is serious, you would have said that he is scared?

Infact, Shoaib ; not playing can be a blessing in disguise for Pakistan

 

[pug]

Infact, Shoaib ; not playing can be a blessing in disguise for Pakistan

How? He seems to be, for me, the main danger to the Indian batting.

 

[What-A-Player]

How? He seems to be, for me, the main danger to the Indian batting.

Sometimes danger is dealt with so much caution that one can get away with it

A newbie might be relax state for India and they can make mistakes

A LA Umar Gul

 

[pug]

Oh well, in that case, thats a good disguise.