India likely to experiment

Ashish Shukla

The heat will be on Sourav Ganguly and Zimbabwe as India go into their second match of the triangular series against the hosts in Bulawayo on Wednesday, looking to ensure a berth in the final.

Both the Indian captain and the home team are in a must-perform situation as another failure from them would spell disaster to their fortunes.

Though Ganguly's place in the team may not be in danger at least for the time being -- with the players and management solidly backing him -- the stylish left-hander knows he is fast losing his credibility and moral authority to lead the team.

The stakes are even higher for the home side, who have lost their first two matches in the series and are in a do-or-die situation. A loss on Wednesday would see them out of contention, and would also ensure the Indians a berth in the July 7 final.

So, as Ganguly and Zimbabwe stretch themselves to the limit, fans can look forward to an exciting game.

The Indians, buoyed by the emphatic nine-wicket victory in the first match, might be tempted to go in for experiment, like making changes in the batting order and giving some newcomers a chance.

It was the fast bowlers who did the trick in Harare, and they will once again be the major factor considering the similarity in pitch and weather conditions in Bulawayo. Ashish Nehra has brought his brilliant performance in the Tests into the one-dayers too and Ajit Agarkar bowled superbly in the first match.

With Zaheer Khan too being his consistent self, it would be interesting to see whether the team management sticks to the trio on Wednesday or gives the other two pace options, Debasish Mohanty and Harvinder Singh, a chance.

In the batting department too, the Indians have a wide range to choose from. Tamil Nadu left-hander Hemang Badani did an admirable job while coming in at number three in the previous match and is almost a certainty though not at the same slot with doubts over the injury of V V S Laxman having been cleared.

Ganguly has tried experimenting with his own batting slot earlier without much success and indications are that the captain will stick to openning along with Sachin Tendulkar.

Either Reetinder Singh Sodhi or Dinesh Mongia, both of whom joined the team for this tournament, might also be included in the final eleven though it is still not clear at whose expense.

Overall, the Indians look a far more balanced side than the hosts who seem to be struggling to cope with the absence of wicketkeeper batsman Andy Flower and the recent controversy surrounding captain Heath Streak.

On a high after winning the second Test to equalise the series against India, Zimbabwe saw a sudden drop in their fortunes with Andy Flower, their batting mainstay, being ruled out for the one-day series due to a finger injury.

His replacement 17-year-old Tetinda Taibu has been impres- sive behind the wickets but it is the batsman Andy Flower that Zimbabwe are missing the most.

In both their matches so far, they have struggled to put up a decent score. In the absence of a solid batsman of the calibre of Andy Flower to play the role of sheet anchor, the Zimbabweans have been unable to get a big partnership going.

But the loss is something the hosts will have to learn to live with and the senior players would have to take the respo- nsibility. Alistair Campbell, in the first match, and Dion Ebrahim, in the second, did try to stick around and build a partnership but lacked good support from others. That would be the major thrust area of the Zimbabweans in Wednesday's game.

Their bowling has been more or less accurate, with Streak leading the charge from the front. Andy Blignaut has bowled a fiery line both in the Test series and in the one-dayers and has developed into a dangerous new ball bowler. Travis Friend too improved substantially after being wayward in the first match against West Indies and Zimbabwe is likely to stick to these three seamers too.

Teams (from):
India: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Sachin Tendulkar, V V S Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Hemang Badani, Virendra Sehwag, Dinesh Mongia, Reetinder Singh Sodhi, Samir Dighe, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Debasish Mohanty, Ajit Agarkar, Ashish Nehra, Harvinder Singh.

Zimbabwe: Heath Streak (capt), Alistair Campbell, Dion Ebrahim, Stuart Carlisle, Guy Whittall, Grant Flower, Brian Murphy, Mluleki Nkala, Andy Blignaut, Tatenda Taibu, Dirk Viljoen, David Mutendera.

Mail Cricket Editor