I absolutely disagree with the author regarding the fact that 'Dravid needs a second chance'. Well why do we still need to sympathasize with Dravid and Chappel? It has been proved beyond doubt that what lacked totally in the Indian team was team spirit and motivation. India didn't play as a group. It's high time to rise to the occasion and totally change the team-spirit. Since it's now clear that the likes of Dravid and Sachin are NOT CAPTAIN MATERIAL, let us PLEASE stop our sympathy towards them and move forward by giving Sourav a chance to captain the team cause so far he has been the most successful leader and his leadership skills have been already proven. Why don't India realize that Sachin needs a break to practise hard and come back? Also, it is obvious now that Greg Chappel has well succeeded in spoiling and messing up with the team created by John Wright and Sourav in 2003. At least we reached the final, didn't we? But if we STILL continue under Dravid's and Chappel's leadership, then we'll be considered to be Minnows, that's for sure. And one more thing, Kiran More shouldn't interfere with selection. It now shows very well how he was also instrumental in spoiling Indian Cricket.
RE:Dravid is not a 'captain material'
by sanjay bhardwaj on Mar 26, 2007 12:02 PM Permalink
I agree why can we not change all the players & captain. We have such a big population ... surely we can have better players from with in us ... instead of using the jokers again
RE:Dravid is not a 'captain material'
by Sajith Menon on Mar 26, 2007 11:56 AM Permalink
U planning to support the move to bring Sachin as the captain is it? Its the team that failed..
RE:RE:Dravid is not a 'captain material'
by sanjay bhardwaj on Mar 26, 2007 12:03 PM Permalink
Lets just change all ... let the whole team building process start with new players
"Rahul Dravid's captaincy is looking to mirror his early days as a batsman, when he was not clear on his mode of play". Spot on here! However I would like to add that along with captaincy the batting style of Rahul dravid vs Srilanka has also resembled like it used to be in his early days -- you know not clear in his mind --
As far as I understood the following are standout errors in captaincy of Rahul Dravid in this tournament.
In match against Bangladesh when Munaf was bowling one of the best first spells I had seen recently by an Indian bowler, was taken off the attack after his sixth over, only for the ball to be given to agarker who very promplty with his erratic first over let all the pressure off the opposition. And guess what happens to when munaf returned for second spell, by that time the batsmen was very well set and the hoiked munaf to every corner of the ground
In Match against Srilanka Dravid has persisted with the part time bowlers for a little longer than needed --I dont understand this obsession of all Indian captains with tendulkar as a bowler, I think he is good for 4-5 over but not more than that -- I think if Zaheer was brought earlier(by 41st over), and with a license to kill, India would have folded Srilanka under 225, for sure.
The article is good and rightly stresses that we have to now bring back the youngsters and try them out for a longer duration, which the coach wanted when he took over..
However, why is the BCCI not taking share of the blamce ? Why are they not going for Green pitches in the domestic grounds ?
Guess they are scared that India will lose out of the advantage of having spinners who will atleast win matches on the Indian picthes !! But then isn't even a Monty Panesar considered a better spinner than any in India ?
Our domestic matches are won or lost at the Toss of the coin !! First innings lead decides the points ?!
How about having 2 picthes for each domestic match ? One fast green top and other spinning one ! Each innings to be played in one pitch and the team winning the toss can chose to 'bat or bowl' and the losing captain gets to decide which pitch they wud like to start with !
Its time for serious introspection and time to use this time to build a new bench strength and give more chances to Kaif, Raina, RP Singh, L Balaji, Uthappa, and may others...
Yuvraj can be groomed to be the future ODI captain, while Dravid continues with the test team..
Have a 3-man selection committee with members having experince of playing atleast 30 test matches and 100 ODIs. There can be an advisory committe comprising of lower experience players & regional coaches who can give their reports on the player performances...
Hope the BCCI will be able to think differently and logically...
Perfectly on dot...After a long time i am reading a crefully analysed and written article..!But one thing is clear "You give "n" chances to Rahul and best coaching facilities to Greg"..After "n" chances we will find our team finding it difficult even against China(Provided they start playing cricket)!!...We Introduce the game and Other MASTER it..
I donot understand why we hype our cricket team so much. I heard an ex Indian player who said that we can never be as good a team as Austraila. We can win matches here & there but cannot continue the winnning streak long. I totally agree with him.
After the WC debacle, many heads are bound to roll. First one seems to be of Guru Greg Chappell followed by Dravid. Last night I heard that BCCI is planning to make Sachin the new captain of Indian team.. What a waste!!! I think it is high time that he reconsiders his career & seriously contemplate RETIREMENT..He should look at his counterparts like Lara & Jaysuriya. They r not burden to team but still an assets. I think Sachin has become a burden on Indian Team & we should loose some dead weight.
Only hope for Indian team is to bring new guys with an Indian coach like Sandeep Patil & give these guys some time to build a team with target WC 2011
RE:Future of Indian Cricket
by Sanjeet Singh on Mar 26, 2007 02:11 PM Permalink
i wish i could have read the messages which have been falgged as abuse. i can just smile thinking what they might be.
on a serious note : indian team sucks. watch how south africa gave australia a fight, that cricket. indian would have fallen for under 1000 runs had they been chasing australia's 377.
RE:Future of Indian Cricket
by sanjay bhardwaj on Mar 26, 2007 11:46 AM Permalink
The God re-incarnated is only a burden & liability for the team. How many more world cups does BCCI want him to participate in. I think soon he will hold the world record for being a player who has participated maximum times in the world cup. If Tendulkar is not ready to retire gracefully ... kindly just sack him.....
RE:Future of Indian Cricket
by sandeep sharma on Mar 26, 2007 11:47 AM Permalink
who ever may be coach of india india will play like this.india need to follow australian theory who is playing good keep him in team and who is not playing keep him out.Dravid is still the best player in indian team but he is a leader of jokers. even Ponting cant lead indian team to WC win
RE:Future of Indian Cricket
by Ujjwal on Mar 26, 2007 12:03 PM Permalink
Sandeep, U r talking like a joker. It seems u r also a Dravid supporter. People like U r also somehow responsible for today the HIGHS Indian tema has reached from the last World Cup (hope U remember). So better U go and check your brain, so that U can see and analyse what is going on, and give your suggestions unbiasedly.
RE:Future of Indian Cricket
by Ravi Shankar Ramanathan on Mar 26, 2007 12:27 PM Permalink
Sandeep Bhai...good joke man....eve ponting cannot lead Indian Team...made me laugh...
Whenever a company fails to perform and accures losses year after year, the CHIEF EXCUTIVE OFFICER has to go. Dravid, notwithstanding his own good performance has failed to deliver as the C E O of the Indian team. He should submit his resignation before he is sacked as the captain. If he does not resign his captaincy and is shameless enough to hang on to the same, he deserves a SACK and a BOOT on his backside.
Let us stop blaming Greg Chappell for this debacle. Donkeys can neither run nor win the DERBY race no matter who coaches them. Donkeys, unfortunately, can never be turned into Race Horses
RE:Failure of Tactics and strategy
by Iyer on Mar 26, 2007 11:40 AM Permalink
Rajesh absolutely right..YOu can take a Horse near a Pond YOu can't make it drink !!
RE:Failure of Tactics and strategy
by sanjay bhardwaj on Mar 26, 2007 11:50 AM Permalink
You are right the coach may be important but we should all remember that in the end he was not the one playing. No matter how good the teacher, professor or educational institution is at the end of the day the final result depends on how hard the student studied. Same thing applies in cricket
RE:Failure of Tactics and strategy
by vikas k gupta on Mar 26, 2007 11:47 AM Permalink
RAjesh, Dravid was appointed Captain only till the WC !! Its up for grabs now ... I guess the BCCI will also indirectly blamce the Coach so as to protect its star players..
RE:Failure of Tactics and strategy
by sandeep sharma on Mar 26, 2007 11:52 AM Permalink
Dravid is best player and good captain but he is in wrong team .he is a leader of bunch of jokers.
RE:Failure of Tactics and strategy
by samsung on Mar 26, 2007 12:24 PM Permalink
Dravis ia a best player and good captain?? dont blame team. blame to captain and good player. i think Mr sandeep u have to go to Ranchi mental Hospital for recovery of ur brain.
RE:RE:Failure of Tactics and strategy
by Ujjwal on Mar 26, 2007 11:57 AM Permalink
Sandeep, it seems u r also a Dravid supporter. So better U go and check your brain, so that U can see and analyse what is going on, and give your suggestions unbiasedly.
We lost half the battle before it all started when Laxman was left out from the team. Had he been in the eleven the team structure would have changed in the first match and Sourav would have opened with someone else, maybe Sachin. Laxman's overseas record is better than most of the guys, yet Rahul ignored him.
RE:Failure of strategy
by Mahesha Murukanahalli on Mar 26, 2007 12:08 PM Permalink
O my god, VVS laxman? please dont hype outdated product here. Being bad at field and running between the wickets, its foolish to remember that chap here. We need start from the scratch now with young blood. Sack all these old donkeys and bring some fresh blood. Even if we loose 100 matches from young blood, its worth to bet on them, which would be fruitful in the future. Please dont trust these old donkeys, if they would have done anything to indian cricket they would have certainly done by this time.
RE:Failure of strategy
by shivani valluri on Mar 26, 2007 01:00 PM Permalink
Mahesha! did U ever hold a cricket bat in ur hand? Just wondering if u know any cricket at all.
For all those who watch cricket just like Ekta Kapoor's serials and Karan Johar and Rakesh Roshan's films----Lets not discuss the technicalities, let us speak the language u understand. wasnt Mr Amitabh Bachan written off after duds like lal Badshah etc? Now isnt he the best we have around.But he stil requires good support from script and supporting cast to make it a success.He cant pull it off on his own does he? So before U run down sensible chaps like Sandipan Gupta, understand that players like sachin happen only once in a lifetime, but even he needs cant do oi all alone now.Talkinf of age look at the age profile of the world's best team-Australia. Talking of handicaps,Mr Iyer, there is no player in the world who can Bat,bowl and field effectively, maybe with the exception of Andrew Symonds and even he has established himself in the Test squad! When U r looking for a specilaist batsman, U look for class, proven class, ability to deliver under pressure, ability to overcome sheer odds-thats where Laxman fits in, look at our test match record overseas in the recent times and look at the list of conributors- U wont see Yuvraj,Dhoni,Kaif,Raina there.Kumble has been India's greatest bowler ever, what about his fileding abilities? Munaf patel, our best seamer, waht about him as a fielder?Steve waugh, was he of the same standard as his counterparts in the team? Wa Mark Waugh any good outside the slip cordon?
I guess ur memories as short as those who watch the soap operas on TV, who need a recap of the previous episodes!
THE FACT REMAINS THAT GREG WAS NOT ALLOWED TO WEED OUT THE "SUPERSTARS" DURING HIS TENURE. HE BROUGHT IN SO MANY YOUNGSTERS INTO THE GAME, AS HE KNEW THEY HAD HUNGER IN THEIR STOMACHS AND STRENGTH IN THEIR FEET. BUT HE WAS "ADVISED" TO BACK OFF AT EVERY STAGE, AS IT DID NOT SUIT THE COTERIE OF "REGIONAL SELECTORS". LATER, EVEN VENGSARKAR HAD TO "TOE THE LINE" TO ALLOW "REGIONAL SELECTION". SO KAIF, RAINA, RP SINGH, GAMBHIR, VRV SINGH, PATHAN & SREESANTH WERE ALL NOT PLAYED. FINALLY WE TOOK THE "OLDEST TEAM" TO THE WORLD CUP AND JUST SEE HOW THE YOUNG TEAMS WALLOPED US.
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by Ramanath Babu on Mar 26, 2007 12:09 PM Permalink
Mr. Aggarwal, I totally agree with you. Having appointed him as our coach, we should have given him a free hand. When Chappel-Dravid duo took over, Indian team was on a roll winning each and every series convincingly, till the WEst Indies fiasco.
About Dravid as a caption. He started well in fact. When we played aginst England athome in Mohali, the test was petering into a dram, but Dravid and his men brought out a fantastic victory on the 5th day. Having tasted the blood India went to Mumbai with five bowlers, five batsmen and keeper. He rightly chose to bowl first with the idea of skittling out a depleted England side, perhaps under 200 and then knock up 400 or 450 so that India need not bat for a second time on 4th or 5th day. His decision was absolutely right, but for dropped catches. As many as eighteen catches were dropped and Englishmen flourished and turned the table against India. Dravid attrached a lot of criticism for his decision, but I fee with five bowlers at his command he did the right thing. Once bitten twice shy, Dravid was apprehensive about his all decisions from thereon. Most of the cricket fans think they know cricket better than the Dravids, Sachins and Gangulys. Such criticisms through media influence everybody,including the BCCI and the cricketers are forced to be on the backfoot and tread cautiously. We cannot expect a flameboyant attitude from our captaions as they are watched and criticised for every movement they make. And the sad part is that most of those criticise are just arm-chair critics with no cricketing background whatsoever and with little knowledge about the finer points of the game.
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by Krishnakumar Kannan on Mar 26, 2007 12:01 PM Permalink
Iam lost here. What exactly did ur youngsters with fire in their belly acheive??? Nonsense!!!
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by rajendra agrawal on Mar 26, 2007 01:10 PM Permalink
DEAR KANNAN, WHILE YOU DO HAVE A POINT, BEING A COLLECTIVE FAILURE, YOU WILL APPRECIATE THAT THERE WERE ONLY 3/4 YOUNGSTERS IN THE TEAM WHO WERE TOLD TO TOE THE LINE OF OTHERS. ALL THE SENIORS KEPT CHANGING & CHOPPING THEIR BATTING / BOWLING LINE UP AS WELL AS THEIR FIELDING POSITIONS, TO SUIT THEIR OWN "PETTY" GOALS/AMBITIONS/CAREERS, BECAUSE OF WHICH THESE YOUNGSTERS WERE TOTALLY AT SEA. IN ORDER TO FIX RESPONSIBILITY, IT HAS TO BE A SINGLE LINE OF COMMAND, AS IN A CORPORATE SETUP, AND THE COACH ALONE SHOULD ALSO BE THE ONLY NATIONAL SELECTOR, INSTEAD OF SO MANY REGIONAL SELECTORS, AND HE SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE TO THE BOARD PRESIDENT ONLY.
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by RAMESH GODAVARTI on Mar 26, 2007 12:09 PM Permalink
Referring to 'DIPLOMATIC FAILURES ' by Mr RAJENDRA AGARWAL, I would like to add that even if a young team is fielded tomorrow in place of the non performing and overrated veterans,our media and corporate world will lose no time projecting them as new super stars and Icons after just one or two good performences.These new super stars will then follow in the foot steps of their predecessors.I am told that in Australia cricketers are allowed to endorse products only after their retirement.One gets the feeling that Indian cricket will never rise to the top despite the huge following and will remain in mediocrity.
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by Rajash P Abraham on Mar 26, 2007 12:10 PM Permalink
friends, dont forget the way the youth icon dhoni played. 0 against bengladesh, 29 against bermuda (one of the weakest teams in the competition) and 0 against srilanka. average in 3 matches is 9.67. what a performace from this player who plays sixes pasting the gallery and stadium in advertisements and saying " Its easy na". ban all the products marketing by these cowards. then only marketing companies will realize the mistake of promoting dumb fellows as models and icons.
RE:[object]
by rajendra agrawal on Mar 26, 2007 01:12 PM Permalink
DEAR KANNAN, WHILE YOU DO HAVE A POINT, BEING A COLLECTIVE FAILURE, YOU WILL APPRECIATE THAT THERE WERE ONLY 3/4 YOUNGSTERS IN THE TEAM WHO WERE TOLD TO TOE THE LINE OF OTHERS. ALL THE SENIORS KEPT CHANGING & CHOPPING THEIR BATTING / BOWLING LINE UP AS WELL AS THEIR FIELDING POSITIONS, TO SUIT THEIR OWN "PETTY" GOALS/AMBITIONS/CAREERS, BECAUSE OF WHICH THESE YOUNGSTERS WERE TOTALLY AT SEA. IN ORDER TO FIX RESPONSIBILITY, IT HAS TO BE A SINGLE LINE OF COMMAND, AS IN A CORPORATE SETUP, AND THE COACH ALONE SHOULD ALSO BE THE ONLY NATIONAL SELECTOR, INSTEAD OF SO MANY REGIONAL SELECTORS, AND HE SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE TO THE BOARD PRESIDENT ONLY. A TIME HAS ALSO COME TO SPONSOR THE ENTIRE TEAM COLLECTIVELY, AND BAN INDIVIDUAL SPONSORSHIP. IF THE INDIVIDUAL WANTS AN INDIVIDUAL SPONSERSHIP, HE SHOULD TAKE A SABBATICAL FOR THAT CRICKETING SEASON.
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by ram singh on Mar 26, 2007 11:35 AM Permalink
It is fault of both Rahul Dravid & VENGSARKAR,they should be immediately remove from thier postion.
RE:DIPLOMATIC ANALYSIS OF OUR FAILURE!!
by sanjay bhardwaj on Mar 26, 2007 11:48 AM Permalink
Kindly add the name of Sachin Tendulkar also as one of the persons to be sacked / shown the door
