So, where now for India's Test team?

Up until the mid-to-late 1990s India pottered along as a side with a fine record on bunsen burners led by Bedi, Chandrasekhar and co. and a mixed record away from home, stopped from being truly dreadful in large part due to the exceptional talents of Gavaskar, Shastri and Kapil Dev and with the 1983 World Cup as by far the biggest highlight. Then, under Azharuddin, Tendulkar, Ganguly and Dravid a new steel was injected into the side as they began to compete on equal terms, if not always with series wins, on a more regular basis. However, it was only when MS Dhoni became captain in 2007 that India truly emerged as a top three side in any conditions and, for an 18 month period, reigned as the number 1 side in the world. But things have gone badly wrong this year and, after back-to-back 4-0 away defeats against a very good side in England and an in my opinion frankly less good side in Australia, appear to be back at square one.

With an ageing batting line-up and often toothless bowling attack, questions are being asked about just about every member of the sides that have played in England and Australia. In this post I will examine the question of what the future holds for India in the form of the game they were ranked first in less than six months ago.

The first thing to look at is the individual contributions of each of the players who took to the field during this embarrassing run of defeats:

Gautam Gambhir - Two shocking series really for an opener of his undoubted quality and supposedly sturdy technique. Averaging 17 in 3 Tests against England and 23 in 4 against Australia. At least things are getting better.

Abhinav Mukund - Discarded after being exposed against new ball in England. Average of 16 from 2 Tests from a man averaging 58 in FC cricket.

Rahul Dravid - Imperious in England (461 runs @ 77); woeful in Australia (194 runs @ 24 and bowled almost every time). Is being bowled so much a result of his age, and if so is he set to enter terminal decline?

Sachin Tendulkar - Some were surprised to see him not get the 100th ton in the World Cup final on his home ground, they were shocked that he couldn't manage it in England and astounded that 7 Tests later, including 3 against West Indies, he still hasn't got it. His returns are not the worst (ave. of 34 in England and 35 in Australia) but the hunt for the 100th 100 has left the Little Master short of his usual magic.

VVS Laxman - If we discount a brilliant 150 against West Indies between times, the worst (and quite possibly last) seven months of this Very Very Special player's career. Averaged 23 in England and 19 in Australia and was not able to get past 66.

Suresh Raina - Found out against the short ball for the second time in his brief Test career in England - averaged 13 and struggled not only against the tall pace bowlers but also against Swann's off-spin.

MS Dhoni - His defensive captaincy style of wracking up the runs and then sitting back and backing his legendary batting line-up to outbat the opposition has worked in the sub-continent but failed badly on both sides of the world away from home. Batting well below average as well and keeping disappointing in England though better in Australia.

Harbhajan Singh - 2 wickets in his 2 Tests in England. Once considered a potential breaker of Murali's records, now seemingly on the scrap heap.

Zaheer Khan - Hobbled out of the England series on the first morning. A minor miracle that he got through the series against Australia unscathed. He did OK but down on pace and a shadow of his former self.

Praveen Kumar - The best of the seamers in England with 15 wickets at under 30 whilst England piled on the runs. Rested against West Indies, then injured against Australia in the Tests since.

Ishant Sharma - Everybody says he is an 'unlucky' bowler but there must be more than just 'bad luck' to 16 wickets in 8 matches and an average of over 55 in both series.

Yuvraj Singh - Decent effort in single Test against England. Discarded after poor showing against West Indies and unavailable due to health issues since. The player of the 2011 World Cup remains an unfulfilled Test talent.

Sreesanth - Bowls good spells from time to time but nowhere near enough of the time. 8 wickets at 62 in his 3 Tests in England reflects much of his career unfortunately.

Virender Sehwag - Unfit in England, out of form in Australia. Should never have played in 2011 IPL and there is a case for him missing it this year too. Series averages of 10 and 25 far below his standards.

Amit Mishra - Ineffective in England and since axed.

RP Singh - His recall for The Oval was a surprising decision and didn't pay off at all as he went wicketless. Out of the frame again.

Virat Kohli - After a slow start improved throughout the tour of Australia. Topped the averages in the end, and with 8 ODI 100s already to his name, probably the most exciting 23 year old in the international game.

R. Ashwin - Found conditions weren't quite to his liking in Australia but didn't disgrace himself (163 runs and 9 wickets in 3 Tests). Man of the Series against West Indies at home and miles more threatening than Harbhajan and Mishra were in England.

Wriddhiman Saha - A decent game in Adelaide and a solid looking back-up keeper.

Umesh Yadav - Takes wickets (14 of them in Australia) but doesn't really swing it and often gets hammered round the park when he's having a bad day.

Vinay Kumar - Didn't look Test standard in his single Test at Perth.

India's next Test is likely to be in August or September against New Zealand at home. That 3 match series is followed by 4 match series against England and Australia in a big home summer as India look to take revenge on their recent opposition on home soil. As well as those listed above these players are likely to come up in selection meetings:

Ajinkya Rahane - Opening batsman with 4th highest average ever in first-class cricket (68). Yet to make a Test debut.

Rohit Sharma - Talented middle-order player who has had some success in one-day cricket. Averages 64 in FC cricket.

Cheteshwar Pujara - Match-winning innings on debut against Australia in 2010/11. Followed by persistent injury woes. Averages 54 in FC cricket.

Subramaniam Badrinath - Experienced player who averages 61 in FC cricket but has only played 2 Tests with mixed results.

Ravindra Jadeja - Seen as a one-day specialist but averages 46 with the bat and 28 with the ball in the FC game. A genuine all-rounder who could balance up the side.

Pragyan Ojha - Did well against West Indies and regular 2nd spinner in the sub-continent

Varun Aaron - Genuine quick who had a decent but unspectacular debut against West Indies.

Abhimanyu Mithun - Reserve seamer in Australia with a mediocre record in the few Tests he's played thus far.

So, what to do with the future make up of the side? Recent results mean that changes are necessary in both batting and bowling.

The first name on my teamsheet remains Tendulkar - he is an icon who the youngsters should not be denied the chance to watch until he retires and who can hardly be described as in horrendous knick. The 100th 100 will come eventually and he could well have another prolific year in him. He has made the No. 4 position his own and he stays there for me. Sehwag hasn't done well since the World Cup - his ODI world record excluded. However, that served notice that his incredible destructive powers have not gone completely missing. He'll return to form soon enough and stays at the top of the order. I am also extremely reluctant to leave out Dravid - he was the leading runscorer in a calendar year less than a month ago and one poor series shouldn't cause India to jettison him. Meanwhile, Kohli has established himself well after a slow start in Test cricket. In the long term his loose style of batting means that I view him as a number 5 and I think that is where he should bat in Tests from now on.

So that leaves two slots in the batting line-up - 2 and 6. Gambhir is an undoubted talent and likely future captain but he can't be made to feel untouchable at this point in his career. Therefore, Rahane, with his extraordinary FC stats must be in with a shout of a go at the top of the order. In the long term I think Gambhir could slot in at 3 when Dravid retires, with Rahane taking his place at the top of the order, so at this point I think Gambhir has to pay for two dreadful years and no hundred since 2010 in the long form of the game. Therefore, I would put Rahane in to open with Sehwag in India's next Test. Laxman is a difficult one and I have been a staunch supporter of his. However, it is hard to justify his staying in the team any longer when Dravid, Tendulkar and Sehwag with 400 Tests between them remain in the side anyway. Thus, I feel India need to search for somebody else at No. 6. Sharma, having been back up batsman for the last couple of series, seems deserving of an opportunity but I also like Badrinath (although he is 32 and not a No. 6), Pujara and Jadeja, because he could provide the much needed balance to the side particularly away from home. Sharma is next in waiting so to speak though and so it would be unfair to deny him a chance.

Dhoni's Test place is obviously not under threat and nor should be his captaincy. However, he needs to focus his tactics more towards winning matches than avoiding defeat - a policy which simply hasn't worked away from the sub-continent. His batting is what is and his stats have probably been badly affected by often having to come in at 150/5 rather than 450/5.

Ashwin's start to his Test career is strong enough to suggest that he can nail down the number eight place. In the sub-continent India will want to play two spinners, particularly as NZ, England and Australia, have all shown frailties against good slow bowlers. I believe Ojha is still a clear number two and, whilst he is never a future Hall of Famer, did well enough against the West Indies to suggest he has a future.

Amongst the seamers the wheat really needs to be sorted from the chaff. Of those listed above I would put them in the following categories:

Wheat - Zaheer, Praveen
Unsure - Ishant, Yadav, Aaron, Mithun
Chaff - Sreesanth, RP Singh, Vinay Kumar

In a 2 man attack I would have no hesitation in picking Zaheer and Praveen - even though that is severely lacking in pace I still think it is most likely to pose a threat to opponents next winter. My 3rd seamer away from home will probably have to remain Ishant, unless the pitch looks really fast when it will be Yadav although I would really hope that one of Aaron or Mithun, or somebody from left-field would kick on and pose a real sustained threat of the kind the English, South African and Australian seamers can.

Therefore, my first XI for the 1st Test against New Zealand is 1 Sehwag 2 Rahane 3 Dravid 4 Tendulkar 5 Kohli 6 Ro. Sharma 7 Dhoni 8 Ashwin 9 Zaheer 10 Praveen 11 Ojha with the possibility of Jadeja for Sharma and another seamer for Ojha to balance up the side.

My final squad is:

MS Dhoni (c), Virender Sehwag (v-c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Gautam Gambhir, Ravindra Jadeja, Wriddhiman Saha, R. Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Zaheer Khan, Praveen Kumar, Varun Aaron, Abhimanyu Mithun, Ishant Sharma.

However, even with these changes to the team Indian cricket needs to think about where it is heading. I'm not convinced that Duncan Fletcher is the right man for the coaching job but now he is in place I believe they have to stick with him until the transition is complete. That will probably involve finding somebody (Gambhir with Rahane opening for me) to bat at 3 and another at 4 (Sharma or Pujara in the long-term for me). But the toughest job will be instilling a winning feeling into Indian Test cricket again and effectively starting from scratch in finding an imposing seam attack - the lack of revolution in my side reflects a lack of seam-bowling talent. Fletcher stumbled across Harmison, Hoggard and Jones for England and he'll have to do something similar for India.

So India are in a very sticky period in Test cricket and in many ways now back to square one as they strive to be recognised as a top team in all conditions. Their adoring fans will be hoping they don't remain there for much longer.

Well done to anybody who reached the end of this post which probably ended up being quite rambling and incoherent

The current Indian selection panel will be replaced by the 1st April 2012.

Therefore, if rumors are to be believed, Dravid, Laxman and Tendulkar will be forced to retire or face the axe.

The current bias to players from the South will end as well. Certain players like Mukund, Vinay Kumar etc aren't International standard.

I'd expect Rohit, Rahane(he's a middle order player not opener), Pujara, Kohli to be the first set to be given an extended run. Seeing as Rahane has opened at One day level, he could open so India could play an all rounder.

Something like this would be a brave choice:
Virender Shewag
Ajinkya Rahane
Cheteswara Pujara
Rohit Sharma
Virat Kohli
Wriddhiman Saha
MS Dhoni
Irfan Pathan,
R Ashwin
Umesh Yadav
Varun Aaron
Pragyan Ojha
Zaheer Khan
Praveen Kumar
Rahul Sharma
Suryakumar Yadav

Guys like Harbhajan, Ishant and Gambhir back to domestic cricket.

There is one guy in India whom could become a gamebreaker, Suryakumar Yadav. From, Bombay, signed for Mumbai Indians after only 1 F/C match. In the current Indian F/C season he has smashed 800+ runs @ 74 and S/R of 87. In Bombay they are calling him the new Shewag, but with a proper technique. Hes also a decent seamer, a batsman who an bowl seam is gold dust.

Superb analysis. Will comment a bit more when I am more awake in the morning, but I agree with pretty much everything said in principle.

Perhaps India should consider not playing any more Test Matches for two to four years so that they can use this time to develop a younger team which contains no prima donna superstars but is based more on playing and fighting together as a team or group.

apparently dhoni may be removed from the captaincy, after a massive rift with sehwag after the 4th test.

cricketfan90 wrote:apparently dhoni may be removed from the captaincy, after a massive rift with sehwag after the 4th test.

When India next tour Australia or SA, they should send a very young team which contains no superstars such as Sehwag, Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman, Dhoni. India's selectors should be brave and follow England's example prior to their 1994 tour of the West Indies when Mike Atherton led out to the Carribean a youngish England team leaving out the likes of Gooch, Gatting and Gower to sit at home that Winter.

gboycottnut wrote:

cricketfan90 wrote:apparently dhoni may be removed from the captaincy, after a massive rift with sehwag after the 4th test.

When India next tour Australia or SA, they should send a very young team which contains no superstars such as Sehwag, Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman, Dhoni. India's selectors should be brave and follow England's example prior to their 1994 tour of the West Indies when Mike Atherton led out to the Carribean a youngish England team leaving out the likes of Gooch, Gatting and Gower to sit at home that Winter.

I personally think that type of selection is backward and more befitting of Pakistan under Ijaz Butt than a side striving to be number one in the world - which India still should be doing.

I can find very few sides who have achieved stability after ripping out the entire experienced core around the team, particularly in the modern era.

Radical overhauls won't help (they never do), what is needed is phased change.

Agree pretty much entirely with the original post, except perhaps with Dravid. It is a sure sign of the eyes going when you start dropping easy catches. Dravid missed a few in England and at least one in Australia. Once the eyes start going (as Ponting's have, and Tendulkar's did a while back not that anyone would have noticed) you have two options:
- retire
- re-invent your game and become more dogged, play yourself in more and cut out some of the flashy shots you used to be able to pull off. Tendulkar did this in around '07 with fantastic results. There are signs that Ponting is doing the same (although his ego being bigger than Tendulkar's it has taken him a while, and he still occasionally wants to play how he used to). It is hard to see how Dravid can achieve the same, mainly because he can't really bat slower than he actually does in the modern game.

Therefore regardless of how well Dravid played last year, I think it is probably time for him to go very shortly. And as you say Gambhir (or even Kohli who certainly has the technique for it) to move to number 3.

Certainly Laxman needs to go (he should have gone after Sydney if you ask me).

Rahane and Rohit Sharma are both quality players in the making. They deserve a chance.

Your article however doesn't touch on 2 of the main problems which face Indian cricket:

1) lack of professionalism: hard to understand these days, but how can Ashwin and Yadav, both very young, get away with being such a poor fielder say? How come after 4 years in the side Ishant Sharma is still unfit? How come no one has told Shewag and Gambhir that their ground fielding isn't good enough in international cricket? Seriously, of the 11 who played the final test at Adelaide (and the first two of the series) only Dhoni and Kohli are fit enough to play international cricket in today's environment. Harsh but honestly how I see things. Maybe Fletcher can sort this out with backing, but he is unlikely to get such backing partly because:

2) The individual cause seems to out-trump that of the team. This was IMO Kirsten and Dhoni's huge success was that they got the team all pulling in the same direction. But look at how talk of Tendulkar's 100th 100 has dominated all the pre-match build up. Look at how no one in the side has a go at Laxman/Tendulkar/Shewag when they fail to bend down to pick up a ball, or produce a soft chase allowing an easy 2. Compare with how they will have a go at Ashwin or Yadav for the same error. It seems to me that the stars of Indian cricket have become bigger than Indian cricket. Not necessarily through their own fault (Dravid for example is a lovely guy by all accounts), but they have. Hence no one feels they can tell them what to do, or where to go. And this it seems to me is having a devastating effect on the team.

i think jadeja can do a job batting 6 or 7 in the test side...

he averages nearly 50 with the bat in f/c cricket, and has a really good record with the ball.

Isnt it less than a year till England role around to their backyard? I imagine the old guard will want to hang around for that so they can get some easy wins in before retirement.

Till they get at least one seamer worth his place ( even khan is struggling for that now) they will continue struggle regardless of who the batsmen are. I dont see any of the current crop being a real force. Theres a few who can "do a job",like kumar in England, but others who arent a threat even when conditions suit them (Ishant). I doubt any of their bowlers would get in the current Pakistan side, and none of their seamers in Aus SA or Englands sides.

Yet all the focus seems to be on who the batsmen should be.

I cant believe anyone would want to be the one responsible for telling Tendulkar to retire, doubly so when the Indian press is still obsessed with his 100th hundred ( OK he could stay on in limited overs) The board could get really pragmatic about this and look at the lost revenue from sponsorship and tickets without him in the team for a home series. People would want to see his last test, I guess it would more likely be a case of " I will retire after this summer" than him being given a pistol and then leaving him alone in the room.

Sehwag shouldnt be opening outside the subcontinent.Been saying that for ages.

shankythebiggestengfan wrote:Sehwag shouldnt be opening outside the subcontinent.Been saying that for ages.

Yeah, just another flat track bully.

I remember how he bullied us a few times.

biltongbek wrote:

shankythebiggestengfan wrote:Sehwag shouldnt be opening outside the subcontinent.Been saying that for ages.

Yeah, just another flat track bully.

I remember how he bullied us a few times.

Not a FTB.He is great on turning pitches.But struggles against the moving ball.Wouldnt you say so?

Yeah, swing, a ball moving off the seem and lively bouncing wickets.

biltongbek wrote:Yeah, swing, a ball moving off the seem and lively bouncing wickets.

http://v2journal.com/where-now-for-india.html

Well, the era of transition should well and truly on.
First the captain. On a really frustrated moment, I wrote on these very forums that Mahendra Singh Dhoni should resign the captaincy. But after reflections, I think that was an over reactions. Among the rest of the lot, only Virat Kohli is really there to take over. Both Sehwag and Gambhir are not in the best of touch, and Sehwag's captaincy didn't show anything better in terms of style and thinking. At least Dhoni has a calm mind, and beneath the cool exterior a strong temprament. Even his tactic had some kind of cricketing logic, but it was just that when part of the plans didn't work, he didn't try to change things around. And well of course, he's the best wicket keeper, and best WK-batter in India, far ahead of Dinesh Karthik, Parthiv Patel, Naman Ojha, and even Writimaan Saha.
Openers.
I will give India's most successful opening partnership 1 more series to find form, or else it has to be time for domestic duty.
The Wall. Every good thing has to come to an end, and unfortunately, think Dravid has reached that pooint, and sadly, he'll have to go. Replacement? Ajinkya Rahane has opened early in his FC career, and then did consistently well at 3 or 4 for Mumbai. He averages in the late 60s in FC cricket. He has shown a bit of a tendency to throw fine starts in his international career so far, although admitedly, he did rather well for someone who was considered a misfit in the shorter formats, and test and ODs are very different.
Virat Kohli has slowly established himself in the test side, and has done well at 3 in ODI cricket. But Kohli has started doing well at 6, and his style of batting I believe will be more useful down the order.
There is S Badrinath, there is Wasim Jaffer. Don't quite think they both are players for all conditions, and age too isn't in their favor.
Among all the players, I'll give first chance to Pujara at 3. He has a solid technique to start with. He has been scoring lots of runs at the FC level. Has played some real big knocks, and showed he could adapt to the demands of the modern game. In playing that crucial innings against Australians in the 4th innings of the game, he showed a fine temprament, and ability to deal with pressure.
Sachin Tendulkar stays at 4 for me.
At 5, again like Dravid, unfortunately VVS will have to go. Replacements.
For me, first chance to Rohit Sharma. Then Rahane, who I have a feel will do well down the order. If the selectors go for new players, Manish Pandey first, then Ashok Menaria, and then young Suryakumar Yadav.
Kohli stays at 6, and Dhoni at 7.
R Ashwin should continue to be the first choice spinner. Then Zaheer Khan bats 9 because Pragyan Ojha and Umesh Yadav aren't any better, and Zak could hold a bat some time ago. Yadav has to be the 2nd seamer for me, mostly because he's a wicket taker. PK the 3rd choice seamer, and if Umesh isn't consistent, he comes into the mix, and also bats 9.
In the extended pool of players, Rahane, Menaria, pandey, Suryakumar, Saha, Jadeja, Varun Aaron and Ishat Sharma.

msp83 wrote:And well of course, he's the best wicket keeper, and best WK-batter in India, far ahead of Dinesh Karthik, Parthiv Patel, Naman Ojha, and even Writimaan Saha.
Openers.