The Indian team in South Africa are cheerless and spineless

Critics find much wrong with the defensive attitude of the Indian team in South Africa

CAPE TOWN: At the University of Cape Town, the Indian cricketers were shouting, screaming, hollering and yelling during their net session. Anywhere else, such conduct would have attracted censure. As hospitable hosts, the University authorities stayed quiet.

The Indian team, however, has not been not short on censure or criticism from other quarters.

After the Durban debacle, there has been a clamour for radical changes in the team’s strategy, thinking, batting order and, most importantly, batting approach. So much so that the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, Sharad Pawar, has asked former India captain and chief national selector Dilip Vengsarkar to rush to South Africa on a ‘morale-boosting’ campaign.

The team’s spineless batting on Wednesday, where it folded up for 91 - it’s lowest score against South Africa — has been condemned by experts. But more than batting, the team’s defensive mindset, many say, should change.

Maninder Singh reminds one that India has inexplicably gone back to the seven-batsman policy after reaping high rewards from having five bowlers. “Irfan Pathan is needed in these conditions. You can’t leave him out,” says the former India spinner.  “A lot of things are wrong with the Indian team.”

Dravid himself has repeatedly said that the team’s philosophy is to go with five bowlers.

The biggest problem the visitors face are the bouncy pitches of South Africa where the ball zooms up suddenly. The Indian batsmen, having played on the placid wickets back home, are finding it difficult to adjust to the rising ball. They seem to be short on the technical acumen to face it. “The problem with the Indian batsmen is that they are not going behind the line,” says Gary Kirsten, South Africa’s batting coach.

“They should remain on the backfoot and stay behind the line,” the former South African opener, who has virtually grown up on these wickets, says. Aamir Sohail, the former Pakistan opener, suggests that the batsmen should lift the bat before the ball is delivered.

Batting woes apart, the bowling too has come in for criticism. Pat Symcox, former South African spinner, feels that India should include five bowlers and Anil Kumble rather than Harbhajan Singh. “It is Kumble more than Harbhajan who will be able to trouble the Indian batsmen.”

He was also critical of the Indian bowling. “India should have restricted South Africa to less than 200 if not 175. They let South Africa flourish after getting early breakthroughs,” the former South Africa spinner says.

But coming into Durban match, India had many troubles that were not in their control. Since their arrival, they were chased by the rains and as a result they had very little time for practice. The match at the Wanderers, where the wicket is batsman friendly, was washed out depriving India of very valuable match experience. Besides, the injury to Virender Sehwag too has come at a wrong time. Sehwag, known to like the ball that comes on to him, could not play in the Durban game. India is missing the blazing start they expect the vice-captain will provide.

More importantly, they are missing the ‘can do’ attitude that saw them winning 17 ODIs (chasing) on the trot not so long ago.