India were quite simply the superior team in the just concluded one-day and Test series against Pakistan. This was not only the worst Pakistan team that has come over to India but also one which was seldom focused or determined as previous Pakistani teams have been. The earlier Pakistani teams had players who were ready for a fight and who never gave up till the very end. In this team there were perhaps just a handful of such players who had the attitude of fighting till the end. The earlier teams enjoyed themselves hugely off the field, since it was refreshingly different being in India but that never deterred them from the task on the field which was to play at their very best and beat India at home. That intensity was hardly seen in this team which seemed to cave in and give up the moment things started to go wrong for them.
The lack of form of their skipper Shoaib Malik meant that he wasn’t able to exert the kind of authority that a captain needs especially in a side that has some strong individual characters. To get them to click together becomes a Herculean task if the captain himself is not producing the goods. Shoaib Malik is a fine player and comes across as a likeable, soft-spoken individual. Teams in the subcontinent need a stern hand at the helm, one who is not afraid to speak his mind and crack the whip if need be. A captain can never be popular with all the players because only eleven can play and those left out will invariably hold a grievance, but if he can be frank and honest with his team then the players will know where they stand, whether they are playing or not. Imran Khan is one who comes straight to mind as one who spoke his mind and let the team know what was expected of them as individuals and as part of the team. Malik is young and he will learn as he goes along and let’s not forget that it’s his first year of captaincy, where there are bound to be comparisons with the previous skipper and also time to make mistakes. With Younis Khan being a reluctant skipper, Pakistan may well be looking at other options and because sportsmen in general don’t seem to finish school, there’s a tendency to think that the few educated ones or the ones with degrees are the logical ones to be captain. That again is a fallacy for if one looks around at the great captains in the history of the game, most of them probably didn’t finish their education.
India certainly gained more from the series than Pakistan. Their batting dominated the series despite a class player like Dravid hardly getting a fifty and that is a heartening sign, for it means that there are others capable of taking the burden and the pressure. This should allow Dravid and Tendulkar to bat in a much more freer vein than when they feel that unless they get the runs there won’t be enough on the board for India.
Jaffer batted splendidly as did Saurav Ganguly, who is in the form of his life and when Yuvraj got the chance he was craving for, he displayed not only some gorgeous shots but a temperament that looked beyond individual performance.
Irfan Pathan’s comeback with a century also helps add to the balance of the team, for he can be the all-rounder that the team is looking for. In the bowling department Anil Kumble was magnificent as always and he showed good leadership qualities as well.
Yes, maybe he should have gone for a win in the last Test, but in retrospect a series win is a win after all. Young Ishant Sharma too showed good attitude after an indifferent start and the tour to Australia will help him learn a lot more about his craft.
Beating Pakistan is always a special feeling and Kumble and his men have just savored it and in the process delighted Indian cricket supporters. Just imagine what it would be like if they carry on in the same vein and beat the world champs in their own den.
Yes Anil, remember the slogan of the clothing sponsor and just do it.
