Found in transit

The year 2000, if you could jog a little down the memory lane, is when Sourav Ganguly and his bunch of youngsters graduated into world beaters. Prior to the Champions Trophy (it was then called ICC Knockout Trophy) that year, they were said to be a team trying to get a grip, but with emergence of younger talents like Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan, India signalled that their transition was complete.

In the ongoing final edition of the Champions Trophy, MS Dhoni, by making it to semifinal, is penning a similar script as his young team has emerged as the one to beat. However, it was not so long ago that the team needed to send out an SOS.

Two years ago, when the team was demoralised following a 0-4 drubbing at the hands of England in Tests, the selectors fell back on Rahul Dravid. The only Indian batsman to have played well in the Tests was recalled to the ODI fold after being ignored for nearly two years. This embarrassed Dravid so much that he announced retirement from ODIs after the series.

This summer has a different story to tell. Sachin Tendulkar has retired, Zaheer Khan is a shadow of his former self and is out with injury, Harbhajan Singh is not a regular fixture.

Add to that both Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir have been dropped, but the team is winning. Dhoni and his young team, in their wins in the first two matches, have appeared like they mean business and have a renewed vigour, a purpose to play as a team and stay focussed on the job at hand.

Former captain Anil Kumble said at the start of the tournament that India would miss Tendulkar in the Champions Trophy,  the first occasion in a long time that India would be without the master batsman in a major world event. Thankfully, it was not the case.

While the team exudes confidence there are some chinks in armour. “I think a couple of more players need to be added,” said former chief selector Kiran More.

“If you are looking at 2015 WC, I am a bit concerned about the fast bowling department. We have two good all-rounders in R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. They also take care of the spin department. We have a back-up spinner in Amit Mishra. We have back-up batsmen, back-up wicket-keeper but fast bowling is a concern.”

Former captain Dilip Vengsarkar said that the team, despite good show, is still in a transition phase. “I thought bowling would be the weak link but Ashwin and Jadeja have done well. Batting was inexperienced on paper but they adapted very well to the conditions.”

Former Test spinner Venkatapathi Raju said that the phase cannot be termed transition as the youngsters have been around for a while. “India has no problem in ODIs or T20s. All these youngsters have been around for some time. They have some international experience behind them,” he said.

The current side may have gone through the transition phase smoothly but tougher battles lie ahead. As Raju said: “Some of the guys who have been dropped must do really well to make a comeback. The tour of South Africa this year will be a testing time. If they do well there, they’ll get the confidence for 2015 World Cup.”

So, is it safe to say India’s Gen Next team has made the transition much like Ganguly’s team in 2000? “That time, Test cricket was a concern. It is the same now.  It will take a year or so to stabilise. The Virat Kohlis, Shikhar Dhawans, Rohit Sharmas and Ajinkya Rahanes will be the face of Indian Test cricket in the years to come,” More said.