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Is Ajit Agarkar a liability in the Indian team?
Cricket is a game where just about anything is open to debate. As part of a
weekly feature, two sides of an argument are presented. The reader, as the
"Third Umpire", has the opportunity to hear the appeals made by
both the sides and give his/her decision. In our inaugural
issue, a case is made for Ajit Agarkar to be shown the door.
The Offside
When Ajit Agarkar made his one-day debut in 1998, he impressed with his
ability to generate pace & bounce off the placid Indian tracks. Six months
and 23 matches later, he had a world record to his name - the fastest to
50 wickets, breaking Dennis Lillee's record of 24 matches. Along the way,
he had given glimpses of batting ability better than any exhibited by Indian
fast bowlers for a while. All this was too heady for the pundits to stomach &
they heralded him as the future, as an all-rounder in the Kapil Dev mould.
His statistics since then are nothing short of depressing. His average,
economyrate and strike rate have shot up. In the 1999 World Cup in England,
in spite of helpful bowling conditions, Agarkar ended up taking wickets like
a miser and conceding runs like a king. In crucial games against South Africa
and Zimbabwe, he bowled horribly. Agarkar's record as a batsman in one-dayers
does not inspire confidence either, well not for someone who was touted as
an all-rounder.
Aside from being a proven one-day failure, his performances in tests are
equally bad. Agarkar has received enormous backing from successive selection
committees. But he has not repaid their faith. His performance with the bat
in tests has laid to rest any pretensions he could have as an all-rounder.
An average of 9 from 9 tests, a record equalling run of 5 ducks in 5
consecutive innings in Australia last season betrays a lack of self-belief or
ability, or both.
The most shocking aspect of his batting has been his reluctance to fight it
out when the odds are against him. In the first test of the recently concluded
series against Australia at Mumbai, he scored a pair, facing a total of 27
deliveries. He showed no inclination to place a value on his wicket. Batsmen,
at any level of cricket, try to avoid a duck (or two, in this case!) by
grabbing any opportunity for a run. Yet Agarkar turned down lots of singles in
his two innings at his home ground.
As if his inability with bat or ball and a shocking lack of will to slug it out
weren't enough, Agarkar has an uncanny knack of picking up injuries at crucial
junctures. Days before the Indians left for their tour of New Zealand in 1998,
he reported on the injury list with a stress fracture. During the recent
series against Australia, Agarkar withdrew from the second test at Kolkota
citing a viral infection. He played no further part in the tests.
With such a crowded cricket calendar, there is no point in risking a situation
where Agarkar pulls out of a crucial series citing some injury. There are
other able seamers waiting in the wings. Agarkar is thus no longer
indispensable. The writing on the wall is clear. The umpire must rule that
Agarkar is indeed a liability. He will continue to remain so until he improves
his batting & bowling and shows a marked change in his attitude.
The Onside
The history of cricket is full of examples of players who started off
without much distinction but yet went on to do very well. Don Bradman had
an unspectacular start to his test career and was dropped for the next test.
Graham Gooch made a pair on test debut. Sachin Tendulkar made ducks in his
first two one-dayers. Shane Warne had a nightmarish test debut against India.
To overtake Lillee's record at such a young age is no mean achievement and is
a clear indicator of ability. We must not forget that Agarkar is only 24 years
old and has a long career ahead of him. If we compare Agarkar and someone
like Srinath at similar stages in their careers, Srinath's performances were
worse than Agarkar's. This is in spite of Srinath having the opportunity to
go on tours to Australia & South Africa early on in his career.
There have been many instances when Agarkar's bowling has spelt doom for the
opposition. At Sharjah, in 1998 against New Zealand, he came up with a dream
spell when the Kiwis were cruising to victory. Later that year, in the Singer
Nidahas final, Agarkar turned the game on its head snaring Aravinda de Silva
and Ranatunga as Sri Lanka made a bold attempt to overhaul India's huge total.
On another occasion against Sri Lanka at Sharjah, with only 180 to defend, he
combined beautifully with Srinath to demolish the Lankans for only 98. During
India's trip to Australia in the 1999-2000 season, Agarkar was the only Indian
bowler who did well in the tests. He topped India's wicket-takers list in the
test series and bowled very consistently.
When Agarkar returned from the series in Australia, a cricketer with lesser
spirit would have given up. Against South Africa, he went out to bat on the
verge of a world record six consecutive ducks. He glided the first ball he
received to third man for a boundary, ensuring that he would be spared the
ignominy of being in the record books for the wrong reasons. Agarkar thus
proved that he could fight like a cornered tiger.
Ajit Agarkar's contribution with the bat has been very useful on a few
occasions. Who can forget his match-winning blitzkreig 26 in just 12
deliveries at Sharjah against Sri Lanka? Last year, he blasted the
Zimbabweans all around the park at Rajkot, making a fifty in just 21
deliveries.
To say that Agarkar lacks self confidence or the will to fight is ridiculous.
He is easily among India's most aggressive bowlers, never afraid to let rip
a few bouncers even at the risk of being on the receiving end himself. Before
the Aussies landed in India, he targetted Mark Waugh, saying that he would get
him out a few times. In fact he was the only Indian player to adopt tactics
similar to the Australians. That is enough proof about his mental strength.
I conclude, pleading that the umpire rule that Ajit Agarkar is not a liability
for the Indian team because he has the potential, the spirit and the
performances to prove his critics wrong.
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