3 September 2011.
The Indians might find themselves facing a bunch of capable young guns.
Doubtless Indian cricketers are keeping a close eye on events in Galle. Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his exhausted men arrive in Australia in December seeking their country’s first series victory down under. A month or so ago the prospects seemed bright. Now, like Waterloo, it might be a close run thing.
Anyone studying the Australian batting line-up will notice that it contains lots of familiar names but will observe that the bowling contains several unknowns. Batsmen are like camels; they can survive for years on next to nothing. Bowlers need to keep taking wickets or else they will be told to pack their bags.
Usman Khawaja (left) and Steve Smith.
Photo ©: www.davidmolloyphotography.com / Flickr.com
If the first innings was anything to go by the old batsmen are still worth their places. Ricky Ponting looked full of beans. He has always been fit and looked relaxed as he unfurled crisp drives. Maybe he was too relaxed because his downfall was abysmal, a lofted stroke that dropped into the hands of a deep fieldsman and another miscued pull. Ponting cannot keep ignoring Father Time.
Mike Hussey was full of guile and grit. It’s always tricky to know when a sportsman’s time has come. It’s easier with vegetables and fruits because they go rotten. Moreover all sportsmen endure bad patches, just that ageing players cannot survive them.
Veterans factor
Australia was right to keep Hussey and Ponting and to ditch Simon Katich. Certainly the seasoned opener could have scored a few more runs but a struggling team cannot keep playing three old batsmen. India has retained its veterans and soon could lose them all in one fell swoop.
Whether or not the younger blokes are up to the task is another matter. Technique has deteriorated. Owing to the demands of Twenty20, their games are based on all out attack. Most have more shots than a whiskey bottle. However, they are poorly placed to counter the moving ball or bat for long periods.
By the look of things, though, Phil Hughes has tightened his game. He has become a compact back foot player. Experience is a good teacher. Usman Khawaja remains an intelligent, alert batsman likely to outscore more gifted but less astute peers. Michael Clarke looks fit and fresh and is reinvigorating a team whose culture was heavily criticised in the recent independent review.
Bowling
If the batting is settled, the bowling is in a state of flux. Indians might not know much about Trent Copeland or Nathan Lyon. Most Australians are in the same boat. Both came from outside the system. Neither attended camps or were selected for elite squads. They are old fashioned country boys from good cricketing families who played together as 13-year-olds. Funny how things can change. In those days Copeland was a keeper and Lyon spent his time watching his brother bowl leggies!
Anyone watching these fellows wheeling away would have been impressed not so much with each delivery as the way overs and spells were put together. Copeland is tall, keeps his arm high, hits the spot and makes the ball wobble about. Lyon spins his offies, lands them on a length and curls them teasingly. Neither has a special ball, both rely on accuracy and other neglected customs. People keep saying the game has changed but mostly it stays the same.
More changes can be expected. Australia has several fine pace prospects on stand-by. Already three members of the Ashes “attack” have been dumped. Mitchell Johnson needs to watch out. The Indians might find themselves facing not the mercurial slinger but a bunch of hungry and capable young guns determined to uphold a great tradition.