But the chief selector tells Vijay Tagore that Dhoni & Co are capable of beating South Africa in the forthcoming series.
Do you think India can win the series with the current side?
Why should we not? Injuries are part and parcel of the modern day game. We cannot help it. We will miss Rahul Dravid. There is no doubt about it. A player of Rahul’s calibre, experience and expertise will be missed by any team. Players like Yuvraj (Singh ) and Sreesanth are also not easy to replace. But I’m confident of a good show by the team.
Why do you say so? Could you please elaborate?
Because we still have a competent side. We have the most feared batsman in the world in Viru (Virender Sehwag), the best opening pair in the world in Viru and Gautam Gambhir, and then we have a great player like Sachin Tendulkar. They are followed by some very competent players like VVS Laxman, MS Dhoni, Murali Vijay…
You mean to say that you have confidence in the bench strength.
Yes, I do have. Vijay has done very well whenever he has got an opportunity. He is a player with a good technique, temperament and talent. Every time we made changes, the replacement players did well. Sreesanth came in for Zaheer and did very well. Amit Mishra delivered for us after Anil Kumble retired. Yuvraj and others did well after Sourav Ganguly bowed out. So I see no problems.
Who could be the key to India’s chances?
I’m not looking at one player or a group of players to deliver. I have confidence in the whole bunch. It is a balanced, competent and complete team.
There has been a lot of criticism about spinners. Is it not a worry?
I have no worries in this department either. They have done very well. I look at Amit Mishra as a match-winner. He is a very talented spinner and has done very well in the recent times.
Indian batsmen seem to be having a weakness against the rising ball. Even Bangladesh exploited this weakness. Will you sit with the captain and coach over this matter?
That is not a concern at all. Remember we beat Australia 2-0 at home in 2008. Australia had a good pace attack but still we won the series. They tried everything. I don’t think it is a big concern. The players can tackle this.
How do you look at the series — our spinners vs their pacers?
Absolutely not! I think our pace attack is as good. Don’t underestimate our pack attack. We cannot overlook a pacer like Ishant Sharma. He has been very impressive and we have a lot of faith in him. At the same time, we have good spinners as well. Ours is not a one-dimensional attack.
Your guesses on the final outcome.
I will not try to predict the final outcome of the series. I’m sure it will be keenly fought. Both are very good, balanced sides with all-round abilities. They are the two best sides in the world. South Africa have been playing well. Having said that, I can declare that we are capable of winning the series. I can’t say by what margin, though.
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