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ShareThe one-day team has been on a roll, first in Sri Lanka and now against England at home, without the services of Sachin Tendulkar. So MS Dhoni is likely to have mixed feelings about his return to the team in the 4th ODI in Bangalore on Sunday.
It's true Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina have got out to some loose shots in the first three ODIs, and Tendulkar may well add some stability to the batting. But still, on several counts, the return of the maestro could not have been worse timed.
The first disruption it will cause is in the opening combination of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, unless Tendulkar agrees to bat one down. The Sehwag-Gambhir combo is a vital component of the team that India is building to become the number one in all forms of the game.
They love to bat with each other, support one another, and have great understanding with non-verbal communication to work the quick singles. They also complement each other not only by virtue of being a left-right combination but in the different ways in which they attack the bowlers - Sehwag on the backfoot and Gambhir chipping down the track to upset the bowler's line and length.
The cornerstone of any team that has ambitions of dominating world cricket within the next year or so is the opening combination in both batting and bowling. That's why it's important from India's point of view not to split Sehwag and Gambhir, except due to injury or the need for rest. How much longer can Tendulkar continue in one-day cricket, anyway? If he must be accommodated, the middle order is more suitable as far as the team is concerned.
The second disruption on account of Tendulkar's return is obviously the fact that one of the three youngsters, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, or Yusuf Pathan, will have to be benched. Both Rohit and Raina have shown enough potential to deserve an extended run at the international level.
They need the time and space to grow into their roles and become consistent performers. As it is, Rohit has been floating in the order between number six and number four, which doesn't help him to get set.
On top of that, to have to sit out whenever Tendulkar chooses to play is certainly not the best way to groom these players who are expected to become the backbone of the Indian middle order in the years to come. Not playing either of them when India is 3-0 up in the series is the worst thing one could do from the point of view of building Team India.
Take for instance Yuvraj's peripatetic international career so far, which I believe has been primarily responsible for his inconsistency. Despite his hard-hitting, match-winning prowess with the bat, and excellence in the field, he never got into the Test team when he was at his peak (except for an odd game or two in odd batting positions).
That meant he had to go back down to a lower level of cricket even after such a memorable knock as the one he played at Lord's whose finale was the whirling of Sourav Ganguly's shirt. A Test series played over a couple of months is enough time to go out of rhythm, which meant basically that the likes of Yuvraj had to make a fresh comeback each time a one-day series was played.
That is why it is important to take players like Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina, or whoever the selectors think has the potential for the long run, and give them a steady stint in all forms of the game. There are very few players like Michael Bevan who are cut out for only one form of cricket.
Therefore it also doesn't make sense to have Badrinath in the Test team, and Rohit in the one-day team. These players are young and it's silly to think that their skills are so finely differentiated that one of them will excel only in Test cricket while the other will flourish only in limited overs. The danger of getting so differentiated is that neither of the two will get to play international cricket long enough to get established.
Just look at somebody as experienced as Mathew Hayden who has been struggling ever since coming back to the team after a layoff due to an injury he picked up at the IPL where he was one of the star performers.
If it takes Hayden so long to get back in nick, you can imagine how much harder it must be for people like Rohit and Raina who face Flintoff and Broad one day and go back to Ranji bowlers the next day. So, obviously, Tendulkar's return is the worst news for these upcoming players.
It would also be a loss if Yusuf Pathan were to be left out. The number seven batting slot in one-day cricket is both vital and difficult. The player should be able to improvise according to the situation in the game, slogging or working quick singles and twos, and also improvise with innovative strokeplay like the paddle over fine leg or the cultured edge past the keeper.
Kaif showed potential in this position until he was unfortunately bumped up to number four where he was a misfit. Yusuf has all the makings of a great number seven, and that's very important. Don't forget how important Bevan was in Steve Waugh's champion side.
Finally, Tendulkar's return has the the potential to disrupt the fielding, which has been one of the most remarkable aspects of Dhoni's team. Tendulkar is certainly not as agile as he used to be. His throwing arm has felt the strain and that's why he prefers to field close in these days.
But he's not going to be able to match the speed, flexibility and accuracy of Rohit and Raina. One of the reasons the English batting has been under pressure is the lightning quick fielding, like the runouts that Raina and Rohit have already effected in this series. I can't remember the last time I saw Tendulkar get a runout with a direct hit. Maybe in Bangalore...
