ALL ABOUT PEAKING!

When you lose 9 wickets for 29 runs there is no real excuse. A great bowling spell is only half the requirement for such a collapse but even the batting side has to contribute. How can a team collapse from a dominating position of 268 for 1 to 296 all out? A commentator on All India Radio put it most aptly calling it total surrender after complete domination.

Yesterday’s performance by the Indian batting line-up took me back to the 1990’s. Once Sachin Tendulkar got out, they collapsed like a sand castle. In fact, it was worst than the 1990’s as the Indian batting then never collapsed in such an unimaginable way. MS Dhoni has said that the batsmen were playing for the crowd and not the team and to some extent I agree with him. When the batting powerplay is on the crowd expect some big hits but these shots have to be played on the merit of the ball. After the dismissal of Sachin, the other batsman looked to go after everything sent down at them. They should have realized one thing that the surface wasn’t as good a batting track as Sehwag and Tendulkar made it look. Even though Gambhir got runs, he was struggling to pick the ball. The occasional ball would turn, and stop on the bounce. Hence more application was required. Ten to twenty more runs would have made a huge difference as they would have crossed the psychological barrier of 300.

The last two hundreds that Sachin Tendulkar has scored must be his least talked about tons due to the results and the performance of the other team members. This is good and bad. Bad because we all know that the team is not performing well and that such magnificent efforts went in vain. It is good because the fans are talking about the team and not the individual. There was a time when fans would be happy if he scored a hundred irrespective of the result of the game. Thus, the Indian fan is more sensible and team oriented today which is a big positive. However, this positive cannot eclipse all the negatives we see on the field.

Dhoni has always relied on instinct while making decisions. Majority of these decisions have worked and yesterday was one of those days when they did not work. When such gambles pay off we say what brilliant captaincy and when they don’t we criticize him. Thus, Dhoni alone cannot take the blame for the tactical errors. When a gamble doesn’t work it usually becomes a tactical error. Which is why one shouldn’t gamble too much as they only work if your luck is good on a given day. In crucial games you have to go with your tried and tested strength. Taking a gamble at such a stage is always risky.

One gamble that did not work yesterday was Yusuf Pathan at number four. It worked last year against the same opposition when Sachin got his ODI double but the results were completely different yesterday. Yesterday’s game was going on similar lines as the Tendulkar ODI double game till the point Sachin got out.

I also wouldn’t blame Dhoni for giving the last over to Nehra. This is because Nehra has been a very consistent bowler at the death and has successfully bowled the deciding last overs on quite a few occasions. Giving such a final over to a spinner is more risky as there are more chances of him being hit. Sometimes such moves work, sometimes they don’t.

Now comes the time when Dhoni has to make some crucial decisions regarding the playing eleven. Munaf Patel has been very inconsistent after the first game. He is bowling too many length deliveries at the back end of the innings when he is required to bowl the Yorkers. Ashwin has to come in to replace Munaf. If Dhoni knows that he has the temperament to play at any stage this is the time. The game at Chennai against the West Indies would be ideal for him to make his World Cup debut. In the England vs South Africa game at Chepauk we saw how the ball was turning. It is Ashwin’s homeground and with such turn on offer he is the ideal option to partner Harbhajan who bowled well last night. Ashwin hasn't been picked by batsmen. He can still be the mystery element and can spring a surprise or two. We have seen him bowl well in crucial games in the IPL and the Champions League T20 and now is the time we have to see him do it for India in the World Cup.

The South Africans looked completely rattled first up when Sehwag and Tendulkar blazed away. A team goes through a few days where nothing goes right and the champion Dale Steyn ensured that such a day was cut short. His bowling at the death was amazing as he looked to use the Indian intent to go after everything. Johan Botha is the unsung hero of the bowling. He was the one who really pulled things back after a blazing start by Sachin and Sehwag.

In hindsight, they paced their innings well but I don’t think they should go with the same approach in the coming games. Making a slow start while chasing always adds to the pressure later on. What if they wouldn’t have got to the target in the last over? We all would have blamed them for playing slow. It was good to see Du Plessis and Botha perform but I still believe Van Wyk is wasted down the order. Du Plessis and him should exchange spots and if that happens I think they would be in a better position to handle pressure situations. They have to ensure they do not leave too much work for the end while chasing.

The World Cup is all about peaking at the right time as Imran Khan said. In the year 1992, his team was almost about to go out in the first round but they peaked at the right time and won the contest. On the other hand, the runners-up England were beating all the teams but as the business end of the tournament came by they lost steam. In their last league game they lost to Zimbabwe and in the semi finals they just got out of jail against South Africa. Thus, in a World Cup the team has to peak at the right time. With one more league game to go, the Indian team would be looking to peak going into the quarter finals which they are almost assured of. Once you get past this stage it is a matter of three good days. Now is the time they have to make a few changes and try to peak. In this tournament, New Zealand have started to peak at the right time. The disastrous tours to the sub continent seem to have no effect on them as they have found their form after the fantastic win over Pakistan. Ross Taylor, you may have just changed the team's fortunes.

I have seen a lot of cricket and thus have witnessed many comebacks. There is a glimmer of hope for the ultimate and I will hold on to it and will not be afraid if it doesn’t live up to it. Hope defies logic at times but it is hope that sees the invisible, feels the intangible and achieves the impossible.