Ok a Good Beginning - But Sehwag continues with the Cameos

Just checked out the report on India’s practice match in the Windies. Overall it seems like a good performance - dominating actually. The Jamaica side had a good number of current and former international players; and I believe a few aspiring ones. Also, more importantly they also fielded a reasonably good pace attack, including J Lawson. India’s batting performance, from the report, seems to have been good. I would say that Rahul Dravid opening surprised me. Why not Robin Uthapa? Is Dravid going to open in the one dayers? Maybe not a bad idea, given the depth in the one day batting that we have. Probably will allow another all rounder or more than a part time bowler to be worked in to the order. But, it is also worrying on other counts. What happens when Sachin returns? And if Sehwag continues to fail? Is Dravid setting himself up as a possible opener in the World Cup down the road? I am not sure that this is the right way to go though. Dravid lends tremendous solidity in the middle, almost at any position. Sacrificing him as an opener (though he might come good many times, given that he is quite technically equipped) might not be the right move. Look at the number of times he has anchored run chases in recent times in one dayers. Though with Dravid/Chappell brain trust, I am sure there is some deeper thought. Could it have been that, with this the first match, they probably did not want any panic at the top, given Sehwag’s predictable struggle for big innings. Defensive thinking or wise? As they say, when you apply a binary code of right/wrong to a decision based on a binary code Dravid Opens/Dravid should not open, we come to a pardox that is unresolvable! This brings me to Sehwag. Another cameo? The report did not say much about how he got out, though he seemed to have been comfortable while there. I hope the guy strikes form and soon. It is good to see Munaf Patel amongst the wickets. 3/30 in 9 is not bad, even if two wixkets were of the tail enders. Apparently he worked up some good pace. And that R.P. Singh got disconcerting bounce!!!!! Finally, we seem to have a pace attack on a trip to the Windies. I can never forget the cricket commentary on the radio during the final test (yes at Kingston, Jamaica) when Bedi had to declare with a few batsmen left and pretty much concede the test. That was the test when Holding and other Windies pace bowlers deliberately targetted the bodies of our batsmen. Gavaskar once wrote that he never saw Vishwanath run away from a ball, even on bad wickets against fast bowlers. But that day he had to. Was it Mohinder or Gaekwad who had to be carried off the field? Finally, we have an attack that cam probably give at least some back to their batsmen if their fast bowlers try to intimidate our batsmen. Finally. And how? The writer reports that one Indian bowler worked up good pace and the another Indian bowler got disconcerting bounce, with nothing about how the Jamaican fast bowlers working up pace or disconcerting bounce. That for me was an icing on a small cake right at the beginning of tout of the Windies.