Puzzling MS Dhoni

Another last over finish and Dhoni fails to do it again. It was the fourth instance in a T20 game when Dhoni remained N.O. and India failed to win. There will be a lot of debate about Does Dhoni want all the spotlight by himself? Otherwise, why won't you trust some batsman who has made 2 fifties in two games he was given chance in the ODI series. Is it over-confidence or too much self-belief? In cricket, there is a very thin line between bravery and foolishness. Dhoni loves to see the fear in the eyes of the bowler when he runs to deliver the ball in the final over. He has done it a lot of times in ODI cricket. But, In T20, his highest is still 48*, Not a single fifty in 50 games he has played for India. In tests, He is even worse.

Sometimes back in the past, I used to think Is MS Dhoni really the gifted one? He controlled the game like he has programmed it himself. Only He can find its bugs and for how much time it will run. Talking about test cricket, He is one of the most unimpressive captains in overseas test India ever got. He thinks test cricket on a different level than other greats. He gives easy singles. He waits for the batsmen to make mistakes. He frustates them by putting 7 fielders on leg side and bowling on middle and leg. He wants opposition to throw their wickets. These things are okay in limited over cricket, but In Test cricket, He gets exposed so badly.

There have been some magic incidents which make us believe that He is not ordinary. Take examples of Joginder sharma bowling the last over in 2007 T20 WC, Ishant Sharma over in ICC champions Trophy final, Ishant sharma again in Lord's test, A mid off and long off both for Pollard in 2011 IPL final etc. But Sometimes we got to look on the dark sides too. India have not won a single overseas test since ages. Only one win out of infinite chances given in last four years. He doesn't take it seriously. He smiles after defeat in press conferences. He always gains positives from the series. He has countless number of excuses. He has his own ways of explaining things. When India won the ODI series, it only showed how bad England are in this format. FYI: Sri Lanka recently beat England both in Test and ODI series.

India have never been a great team overseas. Even when it had greats like Sachin, Sourav, Dravid, Sehwag etc. in it. We never had quality bowlers like other teams do. I still remember when India needed 87 in 15 overs, He shook hands rather than going for win against West Indies as India were leading in the series. I can't imagine a single captain in the world who hates 2-0 victory more than 1-0. Exception: MS Dhoni. He may be a great captain in limited over cricket, IPL, T20, but he is nowhere close to great ones in test cricket. He believes in filling the gaps in the team. He fills all rounders. He picks batsmen who can bowl, bowlers who can bat. This may work in ODI and T20, but not in test cricket. Stuary Binny: I could never get any idea what was he ? A bowler, a batsman, a timekiller, a game saver, a confidence booster to others who want to play test cricket?

Dhoni has won all the titles possible in world cricket. IPL, CL, World cup both 50 and 20 overs, ICC champions trophy. This was unachievable by a single person before he arrived. He has some good tactics. He reads the limited cricket so well that he makes the opposition bend before him. But, in test cricket, I have hardly found him attacking. He unnecessarily puts leg slip everytime a spinner bowls. He hardly scores tons in tests. In limited overs, even if you make a mistake, it gets over by the end of day. But in tests, they haunt you. You are asked questions during your sleep. It continues for five days. Test cricket is no joke. It reflects how hard you have worked, where you are progressing as a unit. Even if one mistake is exposed in your team, you will continue to lose till you fill that void.

Yesterday, I saw his press conference. MS Dhoni calls it a good tour. He does not mind losing test series by 1-3. All the cricket world is laughing.

A Tale of Downfall

Captain Alastair Cook photo on my laptop is smiling. I have not got a single clue why? He talks in his familiar style after the match. The hopeful words keep coming out of his mouth. He honestly gives credit to Indian team for the special victory. After all, his team has performed  like what has become a habit. Whole England team is out there hanging their heads down. India did which they had not done over 1100 days, a test win at overseas. The question here is - What happened to three lions?

Before the series started, there were serious allegations about how MS Dhoni's men will take over England? India has the worst record on England soil and the recent past had not been kind for the men in blue. Yes, England were struggling. But, could they be beaten by India? Many said no. India lack depth in bowling. Experts said Indian bowlers have not got ability to take 20 wickets. blah. blah. blah...

England have never been so vulnerable at home. A winless streak of 10 tests out of which seven are losses. The loss of some of the the key players like Swann, Trott, KP added with the poor run of Cook, prior clearly shows the chaos this team is going under. They have become insecure and wobbly. It seems as if they have lost the self-belief to win a cricket match. Against the Aussies, They were horrible in all formats of the game. They lost both ODI and test series against Sri Lanka in their home conditions. And now they are 0-1 down against India.

There was a time, this team rose to number one rankings in test cricket with the nucleus of Cook, Strauss, Trott, KP, Bell, Broad, Anderson. Although, most of them are still out there, but what they are lacking is the winning instinct. They are just not showing any stomach for fight. They are failing to perform as a unit. There was a time, when Even Broad used to get daddy tons for them. On those days, If you had missed even a run out chance of Cook, you would have been punished with a double hundred. Gone are those days, Gone are those moments. After Flower retired, there was a hope that new coach, new environment will bring some change. Instead, it has brought two test losses out of four, he has been a part of. England look arrogant at this instant. Their batting, bowling and their fielding have just become rubbish.

They are backing the players who had got them to rank one even with the overwhelming evidence that they are no more the same as then. Talking about Lords' wicket, it was one the the greenest wicket ever in the history of the game. Having  the advantage of winning the toss and reducing India for 145 for 7, they let them come back in the game.  In the second Innings, they were once 156 for 4 and then managed to lost 6 wickets for 50 runs. A perfect end for being so imperfect. Something is not quite right with this team.

With three more tests to go, Cook's men have got to prove something, not to the critics, but to themselves. They need to search the self-belief inside their souls.They need to get inspiration from how they defeated India in India two years ago from one test down. Perhaps, one last chance for Cook and co.

Signing out. Thanks.

The Worst Defeat Ever?

Australia sealed only the third 5-0 whitewash in the Ashes' 130-year history on Sunday, winning the fifth test in Sydney by 281 runs with more than two days to spare. Geoff Boycott termed it as "one of the most depressing and humiliating days for English cricket". Before the series the scoreline of Australia winning by five to nil against England was as impossible as Bangladesh winning the world cup in one-day format. But, the beast called "Confidence" gave Australia the X-factor, let it be in the form of Mitch which they were certainly lacking in the recently concluded Ashes in 2012.

The Statistics were even poor: Cook, the top batsman of England batting lineup averaged less than number 8 Mitchell Johnson for Australia. Out of 10 occasions, they failed to cross 200 mark six times. Each defeat was crushing in its own sense. Each one was either more than 100 runs or 8 wickets. The third time Australia have beaten England 5-0 after 1920-21 and 2006-07.

The presentation ceremony after the Ashes went over was even more overwhleming. Cook and co. hung their heads as if the all the gravity of earth were concentrated there. The series left England without Greame Swann, Matt prior, Jonathan Trott: the pillars who sent England to Number 1 or contributed significantly. There was chaos in England's dressing room over Alastair cook and Andy Flower retention.

To me, the main reason England lost so significantly is the tiredness. Since, 2011, No player has faced as many test balls as Alastair Cook, No bowling unit has bowled as much as Anderson-Broad-Swann. They tried a lot here, but they were tired. Even in the last Ashes, everytime Australia looked to come back, One performance: either with the bat or ball saved England. This time, England has no plans. Trott left after first match. Swann took the retirement probably the worst/best timely retirement in the history. Batsmen were failing. They had no answer to the pace trio of Harris-Mitch-Siddle. They repeated the same mistakes again and again. In adeilade, when things could have gone their way, they shut the door on their face by dropping sitters. The worst part was the face that Australia won without their top 6 batsmen except of Rogers being in prime form. And Mitchell Johnson was in the form of his life. He looked like Batman with the power of Superman.

England at this moment is at rock bottom. But, I too like others feel that this is the worst phase of England cricket. Things will go better from here on. The only place where you can go from bottom is up. I still believe that England are a better side than they displayed themselves. They just need a winning habit, that's all. Hopefully, they get it soon.

As the law of truism goes, Nothing can go on forever. No force in cricket up to now has been so great which has dominated since the beginning. Let it be England.