Ishwar Pandey

Humiliating innings defeat completes the debacle at Old Trafford

Team India conceded the initiative  and the series lead once again. The Indian team capitulated in three days at Old Trafford. It could have been all over sooner if it was not for the twelfth man for the Indian side—the rain.

The signs were ominous from the start. Pankaj Singh retained the confidence of his skipper and his place in the side.

Varun Aaron came in at the expense of Mohammad Shami. I truly feel for the UP bowler; he has been bowled into the ground since his début and is not the bowler he was at the start of his exciting career.

Aaron did enough to justify his place in the side. The inclusion of Ishwar Pandey could have made things even more interesting. I would rather have an express bowler in the side than a medium pacer on these pacy wickets especially when the journeyman is not a Zaheer Khan, that is, he lacks variety.

But the real story was that our much-vaunted batting line-up failed once more; the senior bats were made to look like novices against the moving ball.

The attitude of the new batting stars should undergo a sea change. Instead of muttering that things will be different when the English come to India—it was not, they beat us 2-1—it might be better that Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli consider a stint in county cricket to build their technique in overcast, murky conditions. The question is how and when? Will their IPL and Team India commitments allow them to do so? Or are these fancies to be indulged in only by players on the fringe of national selection?

What can MS Dhoni do to stem the rot?

Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan failed to deliver when it mattered. It is time that the selectors selected in-form batsmen for crucial overseas tours and not hope that they strike form on tour—a strategy fraught with obvious dangers.

Dhoni can gamble and have Naman Ojha or Rohit Sharma open the batting. I would go with the latter.

There appears to be no option but to persist with Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli and hope that their twin  failures galvanise them to improve their performances and live up to the reputations of their predecessors—Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar.

Ravindra Jadeja is another perennial favourite with his skipper. It is time he sat out.

Why does one have a sneaky feeling that the Indian skipper prefers  either his Chennai Superkings teammates or players from the North?

Ishant Sharma makes his return to the side conditional on a full recovery from his ankle injury.

Pankaj Singh—at last—made the record books claiming two wickets in his second game. He is more suited for the shorter format of the game where containment is the name of the game.

My team choice for the Kensington Oval:

Rohit Sharma, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Varun Aaron, Mohammad Shami/Ishwar Pandey.

The Big Test: India fail at Southampton, options for Old Trafford

It was the same old story all over again. Ishant Sharma, the hero of the Lords test, looked on dejectedly, while his teammates squandered all his hard work and repaid him with a Sisyphean task for the final Test—if it comes to that.

Sharma injured his ankle and will be sitting out the fourth Test as well.

His replacement, Pankaj Singh, proved to be an inadequate replacement. His time is past though he is a game trier.  A few chances of this bowling went a begging  but if Dhoni was brave and honest with himself, he would have admitted that Varun Aaron or Ishwar Pandey were better bets. You do not replace your main strike bowler with a medium-pace trundler.

Rohit Sharma’s entry into the squad in place of Stuart Binny upset the balance of the squad. Just four main bowlers and two-three part-time spinners is hardly the recipe for a side looking to seal the series.

The Indian skipper does not have a lot of trust in his top order and preferred to either go in with an extra batsman or a couple of all-rounders. This decision seemed sound in the first two tests in retrospect; it was the lower order that saved the team blushes in the first three innings.

It is time MS Dhoni had a hard look at his resources and what he’s trying to do with them.

Gautam Gambhir should come in. Shikhar Dhawan exits.

Gambhir has the gumption and the patience to play long innings. Bring to mind his effort at Napier, New Zealand in 2009.

Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli stay. Class will tell.

Rohit Sharma goes out. The talented Mumbaikar has even his most ardent fans tearing their hair out in frustration; I am but one amongst them. Duncan Fletcher should have a quiet word with the young man and tell him  that if this continues he will be touring a lot more—with the India ‘A’ side.

Dhoni continues and should back himself to the hilt about being aggressive with the bat.

At the start of the series, Dhoni said:

“I’ve realised that I have to be far more aggressive in my batting because I play much better that way than when I try to play like a proper batsman. It’s important to back your instincts and not think too much about the situation. I shouldn’t look to bat out time because there are other batsmen who can do that. If the ball is in my slot – whether it’s the first or the last – I should go for it.”

Ajinkya Rahane and Murali Vijay have done more than enough to silence all debate.

They were not the most heralded of the Indian bats when the series began. But they have quietly become the mainstays of the line-up.

Ravindra Jadeja, bat and moustache twirled, sits out. Ravichandra Ashwin comes in.

(How the selectors could overlook Amit Mishra and Praghyan Ojha for such an important series is anybody’s guess. Among the back-ups, are two wicket-keepers who may probably never get a game. It is effectively a 15-member squad.)

Varun Aaron and Ishwar Pandey lend much-needed support to Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami.

My side for Old Trafford:

Gautam Gambhir, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, MS Dhoni, R Ashwin, B Kumar, M Shami, V Aaron and I Pandey.