Wanted: Horses for courses

I think he has done an extremely fantastic job so far and it is important he continues in the same fashion. The expectations are high since he has done well in a rather special manner, so all I can say is we should let him relax rather than put pressure on him," Sachin noted of Sehwag.

Sometimes it makes me wonder if these are pure words of wisdom or a 29-year-old 'veteran' hoping his colleague doesn't have to go through the same burden and pressure as himself. I would bet on the former.

The greatest gift of Sehwag is the "shade of similarities" in his batting style to that of Sachin. His natural gift of striking the ball will now always be compared to that of Sachin. What Sehwag should really capitalize on, is the other "time-given" gifts. He will not have the burden of the "one-man team" Sachin had -- till Dravid and Ganguly relieved that pressure and started playing match-saving and match-winning knocks.

Sachin almost always had the pressure of not getting out and in the process curbed his natural game. Sehwag can now play his natural game and continue his onslaught. He doesn't have to bother much about getting out. He will be followed by Laxman, Dravid, Tendulkar, Yuvaraj Singh and Mohd. Kaif. All of them pretty much at the peak of their form. This is a "gift" Sachin didn't have as a youngster. If Sehwag can make use of this opportunity and play some scintillating knocks, it would benefit his career and the Indian team immensely.

Much has been talked about Sehwag replacing Sachin as an opener. The obvious question to be asked is: on an average will India score more with Sachin as an opener and Sehwag in the middle or the other way round.

Sehwag says he doesn't look beyond 22 yards, then does it really make a difference if he bats as an opener or in the middle? He has his principles clear: if the ball is to be hit, he will.

Let's now take Sachin as an opener. If he gets going, there are no questions, he is undoubtedly destructive and a destroyer of the opposing bowler's confidence. What if he fails? The present Indian team seems to do good enough even when Sachin and Sehwag fail. So that is not a big issue. And Sachin is one of the most consistent among his peers. He doesn't have a big string of failures.

Also, Sachin and Ganguly have proved to be the best opening one-day pair. So, statistically, and logically opening with Sachin is the better option. The other dimension of cricket that has been discussed a lot these days is the "mind-game". The question that arises is what is more terrifying to the opponent -- Sachin gone, Sehwag to come or Sehwag gone, Sachin to come?

Maybe, we should not stick to one opening pair. Play both of them according to the situation. If chasing a "big" total, it would be a safer bet to rely on Sachin to go for the kill and score big. It should be noted the "big total" has been redefined for the batting packed Indian team. Sachin could also open against an ordinary bowling attack so that chances of losing his wicket is not high and he is really productive. The key is, Sachin's wicket is still precious, and hence the need to preserve it and use at the most needy times.

The ability to switch these players for the opening slot will also add a bit of suspense and keep the opponent guessing on the strategies.

"The true art of batting is achieved between 28-32 and I think Sachin is just there so look out!," said Allan Border.

In this media focus on Sachin, people seem to have forgotten two other Indian batsmen who are now between 28-32: Rahul Dravid and Sachin Ganguly. These two batsmen are peaking and could well be on the track of "achieving the true art of batting".

Sachin has always been the media focus, and Ganguly has also received much of the media attention as the Indian captain. Dravid, on the other hand, is silently performing and has played some invaluable knocks. His knocks don't receive much attention in the media, but as the English players realized, he played some of the finest innings of all times in the recent Test series in England. He has played the perfect supportive roles in ODIs.

Ganguly, with 19 ODI centuries, has been one of the main match-winners in the shorter version of the game. The fact that Dravid can keep the wickets or Ganguly can bowl should be viewed as an additional skill and not as regular keeper and a bowler.

Yuvraj Singh has matured and is playing more consistently these days. Mohd Kaif reminds me of Azhar in his early days. A thin, modest middle order batsman lending stability to the team and playing crucial, timely knocks. Physically, he might not appear to be very destructive, but plays with a commitment. He is like what Dean Jones was to Australia or Mahanama to Sri Lanka -- not a big entertainer, but definitely one of the most reliable and committed players.

With such a talent-packed batting order, what India truly lacks is a good keeper and an attacking bowling. Dravid has been moderately successful as a keeper. But it must be realized that that is not his forte.

Players often say, "If the team needs me to do it, then I will... ." I believe there is just half-truth in the statement. The statement should be read as, "If I have to be in the team, I have to... ." I am not saying that is true of Dravid or all other players. But it does appear in that sense when players take up whatever is assigned to them without thinking how much they would really be able to contribute.

What happened to Laxman, who was willing to open for the team's cause? We almost lost him, till he made a great comeback. Players should not be forced to take up additional responsibilities that effect their overall contribution. An injury to Dravid while keeping could prove disastrous, especially on South African wickets where he has the best batting record for an Indian.

Keeping will also make him tired and affect his contribution with the bat.

Ideally, India should have played Parthiv Patel in the ICC. He seems to be India's future as far as wicket-keeping is concerned. It would have given him right kind of exposure playing international cricket with all the top teams. He would have learnt to handle pressures, bat against top-quality bowlers and definitely hone his keeping skills. This tournament would have been a great learning experience for him. It would have helped him greatly and India would have had at least one regular talented wicket-keeper for the World Cup. The earlier and more chances he gets, the better it will help him. It would relieve the pressure on Dravid.

The Indian bowling definitely lacks the bite and consistency. Zaheer Khan bowls with a great heart and total commitment, but his bowling itself is not as dangerous or destructive as McGrath, Akram or other leading pace bowlers now. But occasionally he does bowl brilliantly and maybe he will develop into India's leading pace bowler. Harbhajan is India's most feared bowler. Nicknamed the "Turbanator", he is definitely the best bowling weapon, unless he decides to quit cricket and join as DSP in Punjab police.

Kumble's experience and flippers are still very handy. But apart from these three, the Indian bowling attack can't be relied upon. Each match we have to hope someone comes up with a magical bowling performance. As far as ODIs go, we can still win purely on batting as we have done in the recent past.

But a good bowling attack is definitely a bonus and a necessity for Tests. Kumble will also probably not stick along for a long time. We need to look for quality bowlers and, more importantly, train them. It should be an accepted fact that we don't produce naturally talented pace bowlers like Akhtar, Younis, Lee et al. But what we can do is train the potential bowlers to play. Some of the potential pace bowlers could be sent to South Africa or Australia to train and rise to the level of competition there.

From the recently concluded under-19 series in England, it can be noticed that leading Indian wicket-taker Irfan K. Pathan had some really impressive bowling figures. He could be one of India's future pace bowlers. T.K. Patel was also impressive with his leg-breaks and had some contributions with the bat too. These are the kind of people we need to watch for and train. Whether they actually hone their skills and develop into great players or forever remain promising like Agarkar with occasional brilliances can be told only through time.

The underlying point is not that India is now the best team and favorites to win the World Cup. Definitely Australia and South Africa would still be the favorites. But the Indian batting has definitely become a force to reckon with and is capable of pulling off some stunning victories. Also, it would be great if the Indian batting can prove itself on the pitches of South Africa or Australia against the likes of McGrath, Akram, Pollock, Donald et al.

The bowling department is where India lacks the bite and could give away all that is achieved through batting. If the selectors and the team concentrate on improving the bowling, this young Indian cricket team will remain one of the best teams for a few years, boosting its chances to win any championship henceforth.

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Mail Prasanna Desikan