Who will succeed Rahul Dravid?

August 10, 2012

rahul

Indian cricket has very big shoes to fill.

When the selection committee sits down to pick a 15-member squad on Friday for the two-Test series against New Zealand at home, they will, for the first time in 16 years, be considering a replacement for someone irreplaceable.

Rahul Dravid, to the utter dismay of the game's wisest men, won't be around.

With that, the most coveted batting position he held throughout his career - the number three slot - will remain vacant, vulnerable against oppositions who will now look to breathe easy.

Not that there isn't a talent pool to pick from and nurture but those who've followed Indian cricket through the last decade have somehow always feared this day. K Srikkanth, even as chief selector, and his team -- with Mohinder Amarnath figuring in it -- will feel no different.

Despite a string of poor scores in England and Australia, on reputation alone, VVS Laxman may remain, even perhaps going on to claim Dravid's No. 3 batting slot which he yearned all through his career. A temporary fix though, till he too bows out sooner or later.

Then who among the fresh lot?

The name that instantly comes to mind is Cheteshwar Pujara, the number three batsman from Saurashtra, a prolific scorer in the domestic circuit and already with a Test cap to his credit.


He will certainly be back in the squad after missing out most of 2011, including the tour of Australia - Dravid's last series - because of injury.

Delhi boy Virat Kohli, the most successful of Indian batters Down Under and right now in raging form, will get in too.

Also getting the nod more easily than ever earlier could be Mumbai batsman Ajinkya Rahane who toured Australia but is yet to get a game.

However, among the three, it is Pujara alone -- by way of reputation to have an appetite for big scores -- heading the list to claim the No 3 slot.

The selection headache will worsen only when the names of Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina come up in the list of contenders and get endlessly discussed.

Raina did not tour Australia for the Test series and for some time now, his significance as a player for shorter formats in more friendly conditions has gained credibility over the likelihood of being recognised as a Test batsman, a format he debuted in 2010. It'll be a tough call for selectors and a litmus test of sorts for the batsman, if he's included.

The other bet is Rohit Sharma, who continues to flatter to deceive in one-day cricket despite having played at the highest level for five years now.

It is not easy for selectors to persist with a batsman whose scores in last 15 one-dayers read: 27, 21, 21, 10, 33, 15, 0, 4, 68, 5, 0, 0, 4 & 4. Test cricket is a different ballgame but for selection at any level, the figures have to somewhere show.

A Test debut can make things worse for the beleaguered Sharma, who is low on confidence and whose immediate priority now should be to return to domestic cricket and get some runs.

As for Raina, he alone can better his chances if he can do in tougher conditions and bigger formats what he's managed in inconsequential, batsman-friendly one-dayers and Twenty20s.

The rest of the squad automatically falls in place if the middle-order does. And in Dravid's absence, that's where the focus will have to be as things move forward. Big shoes to fill indeed and the time starts now.



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News Network
March 2,2020

Mar 2: Indian captain Virat Kohli was left frustrated and deflated as New Zealand won the second Test inside three days in Christchurch on Monday to sweep the series.

India started the day at 90 for six and were all out for 124, before New Zealand chased down the required 132 to win for the loss of three wickets in 36 overs.

It ended a disappointing tour for India and Kohli as New Zealand, who won the first Test by 10 wickets early on day four, wrapped up the series with ease.

New Zealand are now unbeaten in their last 13 home Tests, winning nine of them, and in the past decade their record as hosts is played 39, won 20, drawn 13 and lost five.

In the latest series, on traditional New Zealand green wickets, India managed scores of 165, 191, 242 and 124, reflecting the low contributions from Kohli of 2, 19, 3 and 14.

Kohli came to New Zealand as the world's top Test batsman and oozing charm as he described New Zealand as the “nice guys” of cricket.

But during the series he lost his top ranking to Australian Steve Smith and when Kane Williamson went for three in the first innings of the second Test the pressure showed when he gave the New Zealand skipper a very animated send-off.

There was further evidence of frustration when he was caught on camera yelling an obscenity at a group of New Zealand supporters on Sunday.

The end came quickly for India on day three as Tim Southee and Trent Boult tormented the batsmen with their variety of inswing and outswing deliveries targeting both sides of the stumps.

Hanuma Vihari was the first to fall, in Southee's second over, when he turned a legside delivery too fine and was caught by BJ Watling diving to his left.

Five balls later and with no addition to the score, India's other overnight batsman Rishabh Pant was caught behind off a Boult delivery that swung away.

Mohammed Shami was caught for five by Tom Blundell at deep mid-wicket and Jasprit Bumrah was run out when trying to give the strike to Ravindra Jadeja, who was unbeaten on 16.

Boult and Southee signed for most of the dismissals with Boult taking four for 28 and Southee three for 36. The swing pair accounted for 25 of the 40 Indian wickets in the series.

There was enough seam and swing available for India to keep the New Zealand batsmen guessing but Bumrah and Umesh Yadav were unable to apply consistent pressure and Mohammed Shami was troubled by a sore shoulder.

New Zealand coasted through a century opening stand by Tom Latham and Blundell before losing three quick wickets.

Latham notched his 18th half-century and second of the Test before he was caught behind off Yadav for 52, Kane Williamson had a short stay for five, and Blundell went for 55.

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News Network
May 15,2020

New Delhi, May 15: Former England skipper David Gower feels Sourav Ganguly has the right "political skills" to lead the ICC one day and he has already displayed that as BCCI president, which is a "far tougher job".

The elegant left-hander is very impressed with Ganguly's leadership abilities and believes that he has what it takes to head the global body in the future.

"One thing I have learnt over the years is that if you are going to run BCCI, you need to be many, many things. Having a reputation like he (Ganguly) has is a very good start, but you need to be a very deft politician.

"You need to have control of a million different things," Gower said ahead of "Q20", a unique chat show for the fans presented by 'GloFans'.

Gower reckons being president of the BCCI is the toughest job imaginable in world cricket.

"And of course, you need to be responsible for a game that is followed by, I mean, should we say a billion people here in India," he said.

"We all know about the immense following for cricket in India. So it is indeed a wonderful thing to behold. Sourav has the toughest task imaginable in charge of BCCI, but so far I would say the signs are very good.

"He has listened, given his own opinion and has pulled strings gently," he said.

Political skills are a must in administration and that's where Gower finds his fellow left-hander ticking all the boxes.

"He is a very, very good man and has those political skills. He has the right attitude and can keep things together and will do good job. And if you do a good job as BCCI chief in the future, who knows?

"But I would actually say the more important job, to be honest, is running BCCI. Being head of ICC is an honour, there is a lot that can be done by ICC, but actually look at the rankings, look at where the power is heading up. BCCI is definitely the bigger job," he said.

On the cricketing front, Gower believes World Test Championship has given the format much-needed context.

"The idea of this World Test Championship has come about for one very simple reason that people are worried about the survival of Tests. Back in the seventies, eighties, I don't think we needed context to be fair.

"Test cricket was very much more obviously the most important format and if there was anything to be judged by, it was the performances in Test matches both as an individual and as a team.

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News Network
May 11,2020

Mumbai, May 11: The French Open, which was postponed to September from May due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, could be held without fans, the organisers of the claycourt Grand Slam have said.

Roland Garros had been scheduled for May 24 to June 7 before the French tennis federation (FFT) pushed it back to Sept. 20-Oct 4 in a bid to save the tournament from falling victim to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last week the FFT said all tickets purchased for this year's French Open would be cancelled and reimbursed instead of being transferred.

"Organising it without fans would allow a part of the economy to keep turning, (like) television rights and partnerships. It's not to be overlooked," FFT President Bernard Giudicelli told French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche.

"We're not ruling any option out."

The tennis season was suspended in early March due to the pandemic and the hiatus will continue at least until mid-July with many countries in lockdown.

Wimbledon has been cancelled while the status of the U.S. Open, scheduled to take place in late August, is still unclear.

COVID-19 Pandemic Tracker: 15 countries with the highest number of coronavirus cases, deaths

The FFT was widely criticised when they announced in mid-March that the French Open would be switched, with players bemoaning a lack of communication as the new dates clashed with the hardcourt season.

Organisers said last week they had been in talks with the sport's governing bodies to fine tune the calendar amid media reports that the Grand Slam tournament would be delayed further by a week and start on Sept. 27.

The delayed start would give players a two-week window between the end of the U.S. Open, played on the hardcourts of New York, and the Paris tournament.

"The 20th or the 27th, that does not change much," Giudicelli said.

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