Indian Cricket - Stagnant or Downhill?
In 1991/92, when the Indian team finished its Test and one-day international commitments (excluding the 1992 World Cup in Australia) they had won a tour game against Queensland, drawn the Sydney Test against Australia, lost 4-0 in the Test series (by
S Jagadish
01-Feb-2000
In 1991/92, when the Indian team finished its Test and one-day
international commitments (excluding the 1992 World Cup in Australia)
they had won a tour game against Queensland, drawn the Sydney Test
against Australia, lost 4-0 in the Test series (by margins of 10
wickets, 8 wickets, 38 runs and 300 runs), won three one-dayers in the
World Series Cup (1 against Australia and 2 against West Indies) and
tied one game against WI. They even qualified for the finals which
Australia won 2-0. India lost the second final by a narrow margin of
6 runs.
In 1999/2000, the Indian team won a tour game against New South Wales,
lost all 3 Test matches (by margins of 285 runs, 180 runs and an
innings & 141 runs), drew against Tasmania and won one game in the
Carlton & United Series against Pakistan. They did not qualify for the
finals.
It is tempting to think that this is just a normal performance by an
Indian team abroad. But if the results are put in perspective, it is
obvious that this team has performed worse than the team which visited
Australia eight years ago. The Indians were no competition at all in
the Test series. There was absolutely no hope for any result other
than a thumping Australian win. At least in 1991/92 there was a drawn
Test and a close defeat at Adelaide. In the one-day series, India tied
against West Indies at Perth, beat a strong Australian side at Perth
and beat West Indies at Melbourne.
Has Indian cricket gone downhill? Has Australia progressed in its
cricket? Is it a case of Indian cricket being stagnant while others
have progressed? I think Indian cricket has failed to catch up with
the world around it. The administrators and players have been in their
own world, completely oblivious to developments, specifically in
fielding and in the method of playing one-day cricket. The safest way
out is to blame the administration but I feel that the players are to
blame too. They are not able to take care of their injuries, they do
not bother to improve their fielding standards. The standard excuse
given is that Indian grounds do not facilitate diving, sliding
etc. That argument will not hold water as many Test centres and other
grounds have good outfields. How else do we find visiting teams diving
and sliding around with abandon? Does the ground's outfield change
when the Indians field?
There is also a distinct lack of self-confidence in Indian
players. Some term it the killer instinct, some would say "The will to
win". But it all boils down to self confidence. If Andrew Symonds, in
his 12th one-day international can walk in at 59/5 with 40 more runs
to win and hit six boundaries in a score of 28 to guide Australia
home, it conveys the enormous self-confidence he has. It is tough to
imagine an Indian No 7 batsman even thinking of doing this.
And now on to the administrators. For the last 2-3 years, there has
been talk of a cricket academy. I do not think a cricket academy is
the solution to all the problems of Indian cricket. There is no
accountability. A BCCI secretary can say all he wants about the Indian
cricket team and deny it a few days later and there are no questions
asked. However if the coach makes any comment about the schedule/team
selection, his views are shot down. Jadeja is asked to prove his
fitness and a Board official unanimously decides that Jadeja is unfit
and hence can't play in the C & U Series. The team management requests
for Jadeja's inclusion midway into the series and their request is
turned down. It couldnt have been for fitness reasons because Jadeja
has been playing in the Wills Trophy and the Deodhar Trophy.
If these, and many other problems are not solved and are just swept
under the carpet, it is evident that Indian cricket will remain
stagant, whatever the talent we produce and whatever our Under-19s do.