The early exit from Sri Lanka suggests an ageing bunch that can’t cope with the shortest format’s compelling demands
The early exit from Sri Lanka suggests an ageing bunch that can’t cope with the shortest format’s compelling demands
India’s jaded cricket millionaires have once again exited early from a T20 World Cup. They haven’t been within sniffing distance of the trophy in three World Cups since winning the first in 2007, that led to the setting up of the revolutionary Indian Premier League.
The early exit from Sri Lanka suggests an ageing bunch that can’t cope with the shortest format’s compelling demands. Team India was led by a confused skipper, whose personalised style of fixing the playing XI left huge room for doubt. M.S. Dhoni’s tactical approach was ill-planned, symptomatic of a man whose bag of tricks is near empty. His omission of Virender Sehwag and inclusion of Piyush Chawla in one match were clear signs of strategic shortcomings.
To term the performance “satisfactory”, as Dhoni had the effrontery to do after the embarrassingly early exit, shows smugness in the Indian cricket setup that seems to measure success in money rather than on performance in a game considered the national sport by millions of fans.
There is no denying Dhoni’s accomplishment as a captain who won two World Cups (T20 and ODI) for India while presiding for 19 months over its Test fortunes after it ascended to be the world’s top side. But it appears he has to make way now in the shortest format if new thinking is to be injected. But so personality-driven is Indian cricket planning that it rarely considers such matters as important principles.
While wins over Afghanistan and England in the league were hardly par for the course, it would appear victories over Pakistan and South Africa in the Super Eights would be performance enough to suggest there was some ill luck in a format that is notoriously fickle. But Australia and Pakistan knew exactly what they had to do to qualify for the semi-finals, while India was more dependent on all the breaks going its way, though in all fairness it must be said India lost only one match (to Australia), but badly.
Considering the barren and slow surface at Colombo’s Premadasa Stadium (where India played all its matches) should have suited its cricket the most, its overall showing left far too much to be desired. New blood is the way to go as young fast bowlers with strong legs and heart are needed rather more than clever veterans; also fleet-footed fielders more than blasé and rich batsmen and spinners who will deliver in all conditions. Team India obviously has some way to go to recapture even its most recent glories.
