Australia’s victory over the West Indies provided yet another indication of the fact that the six other teams in the fray have an ominous task ahead of them. How they are going to prevent Ponting’s side from completing a hat trick of World Cup wins, only they know. But then, it is not impossible.
The hosts were bound to find the going tough against the seasoned Australian bowling and fielding. Lara and Chanderpaul apart, the other members of the side are not very experienced, and they would felt the heat once Australia batted first and amassed a huge score.
The best thing about this Australian team is that it just doesn’t seem to be under any pressure, irrespective of the situation it is in. This attitude of the players ensures that they are rarely under pressure. They play as a team, and every player’s brief is pretty straightforward — he knows that he has to perform, period. The Aussies always pick their teams on merit, keeping mind the present and future. Anyone who believes in this line of thinking will end up winning eight or nine times out of ten.
The Australians do not select any player who is ‘incomplete’. It is only when they are convinced about his versatility that they consider him for selection. This is in sharp contrast to the Indian and Pakistan mentality. We will select a batsman who might be good, but unfortunately, we will take into account only his batting abilities. He may be a mediocre fielder, but that won’t stop us from pushing him into the team. The Australians will never do that.
They bowl steadily, field splendidly and bat brilliantly. I haven’t come across many batting sides who consciously try to put the bowlers under pressure. It’s usually the other way round. Their batsmen play every ball on merit. A fuller delivery is played off the front foot and a short one off the back foot. Their methods are thus quite basic. But no other side follows the basics as diligently as they do.
The South Africans are not too far behind the Australians, but they are not as effective at ‘reading’ the ball once it leaves the bowler’s hand. Lasith Malinga almost pulled off a miraculous win for Sri Lanka, but the Proteas wouldn’t have made it as difficult for themselves had they simply played straight. The batsmen surely knew that the bowler would have wanted to bowl fuller, and they should have accordingly played forward. When you come up against a bowler with an action as unusual as Malinga’s, your first priority should be to play out a few balls and assess him. That is what I used to do against a bowler like Jeff Thomson, who had a similar action. In fact, that is exactly what Langeveldt, South Africa’s no. 11, did. I have come to the conclusion that batsmen the world over are forgetting the art of ‘reading’ the bowler. Things were different previously. You would have never seen Sunil Gavaskar attempting to sweep a bouncer. But the batters of today are prone to trying anything and everything, and the results are mostly disastrous.
Are Australia beatable? My answer is ‘Yes.’ Most of the Australian batsmen are tentative when they are new to the wicket, and are therefore susceptible if the field is set to a plan and the bowling done accordingly. The Australians look to achieve a rate of five runs per over, regardless of whether they are playing in a Test or an ODI. They don’t like it when a bowling side tries their patience. Doing the little things right, like bowling on one side of the wicket, can yield rich dividends. There are times when you have to exploit your opponent’s weaknesses, but there are also times when you need to feed your opponent’s strengths. The Australian batters like to drive and cut, and they can be undone if you place the right men in the right positions and get your bowlers to maintain a disciplined line. An effective strategy, if executed well, can bring about a victory over Australia. Refer to the England and New Zealand teams for further details!
