Some are special

There is always a chance that the exclusion of players with proven ability in a single dimension for the sake of ‘bits and pieces’ men could prove to be a false economy, writes Varun Zaiwalla

It is the worst nightmare of a team in limited overs cricket. Thirty runs needed from the last four overs, a wicket falls and a man walks to the crease who is so much of a bowler that he seems to be concentrating very hard just to remember to hold the bat by the thinner end. Equally, a captain who is seeing his frontline bowlers take a pounding hates nothing more than looking around the field and seeing nothing but specialist batsmen looking questioningly at him.

As has been said before, the solution lies in the practice of packing a team with a wealth of all rounders, who may have a specialty but can at least help out in other areas. The specialist’s sense that they represent a greater weight on the team than their colleagues who turn their arms over or knock a few quick runs will eventually begin to cause strain on their sense of their own place in the team, unless they perform spectacularly in their own chosen field.

This is why some of the most established players, particularly batsmen who would presumably not even have a try at bowling, have found themselves left behind from the trip to South Africa. This is increasingly the route taken by limited overs teams, but this does not mean that there is no longer a place for the genuine specialist.

There is always a chance that the exclusion of players with proven world class ability in a single dimension for the sake of ‘bits and pieces’ men could prove to be a false economy. There will be some players on show in the Championships who are decidedly one dimensional, and who yet stand a much greater chance of being the one who makes a difference than the vast majority of their better-rounded brethren.

Teams such as South Africa, Australia and Sri Lanka have squads from which it is easy to pick out the familiar names of specialist players.

India, Pakistan and England, on the other hand, have opted for far more names that will be unfamiliar to the international audience. As we are constantly reminded, the first ever Twenty20 World Championship will be an exercise in experimentation, and the success or failure of the specialist inclusion philosophy will be one of many informative results from this tournament.