Column

Cricketing contests between India and Australia, in recent times, have provided fascinating fare that has been eagerly lapped up by connoisseurs. And why not! With India fast bridging the gap and closing in on Australia in the ICC Test rankings, duels between the two have entertained spectators with nothing short of top quality cricket.

Not very long ago, India occupied the lowly seventh rung in the ICC ladder. But there’s no denying they’ve made rapid strides in recent years. And with the sheer weight of their performances, particularly in the last couple of seasons or so, the Indians deservedly find themselves firmly at No. 3.

Today, the disparity between the world’s two best teams, with all due respects to No.2-ranked South Africa, is not that much, and India would surely take the field as favourites to win the series. Mind you, I’d be the last one to stick my neck out and proclaim the winner at the very outset of the contest. But I have a gut feeling that India will give a better account of themselves, especially against an Australia that sorely misses Warne, McGrath and Gilchrist, not to mention some of their other batting stalwarts. It remains to be seen how Ponting, Hayden & Co manage to score runs and get the strongest batting line-up out twice to win a Test.

I’ve always believed that a team must play to their strength, and the Aussies have in their pace battery the likes of Brett Lee who will be a pretty tough cookie. Lee, over the years, has improved with giant strides, and since the retirement of McGrath has taken over the mantle of spearheading the attack. How well he shoulders the burden and delivers session after session, time alone will tell. He will, however, find it a Herculean task to come good on the tour of India and against the likes of Sehwag and Tendulkar, to name just two.

Anil Kumble and Harbhajan too must be eager to have a go at the visitors. They did not enjoy great success Down Under recently, and I’m sure they will want to make amends now in India.

I’m glad that the Board President’s XI chosen by my selection panel has done exceedingly well against a full-strength Aussie squad. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh and Piyush Chawla have all performed as per expectations. They are the future of Indian cricket and must be groomed properly.

Sourav Ganguly’s announcement of retiring from Test cricket did not come as a surprise to me. He has been a class act for India over the years, and has come up with some outstanding performances for the country. What’s more, Sourav has been India’s most successful captain, and we are all proud of him.

However, as they say, all good things must come to an end, and Sourav is no exception. For the last season or so, he’s been struggling with his fitness. Every player worth his salt takes great pride in his performance, and he just can’t bear to see it diminish.
Sourav is a dear friend, and I wish him one last great hurrah.