Bangalore all set for high adrenaline clash
Anand Vasu - 24 March 2001
Flat wickets, coloured clothes, bright lights cutting into the night,
loads of runs, close finishes - that's the recipe for your average One
Day international game these days. The first limited overs encounter
between India and Australia, to be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium
at Bangalore promises to have all the above. An incredibly intense and
hard fought Test series concluded only two day back in Chennai.
A tired, disappointed but steady Steve Waugh said at the end of it, "We
are too tired mentally and physically to even contemplate them (One-
Dayers). But they're just around the corner and we'll have to lift
ourselves." When Steve Waugh says the Australians will be ready, you
better take his word for it. Sourav Ganguly in turn is coming off the
biggest victory in his career as captain. That will give him the kind
of confidence every captain needs.
Even with confidence there are pitfalls. Overconfidence being the most
dangerous of them all. The Indian team however is better than it has
been for a long time. VVS Laxman, who rejuvenated the team with one
single knock in Kolkata makes a comeback to the Indian team. The other
man who knocked the stuffing out of the all conquering Aussies,
Harbhajan Singh too gets a welcome call up for the shorter duration
games. Dinesh Mongia, who has scored runs by the bag-full in domestic
cricket gets his first ever India call up. India's first choice
mediumpacers Javagal Srinath and Ajit Agarkar are both back after
fitness problems. Hemang Badani, the southpaw from Tamil Nadu who has
already made a name for himself as a cricketer with a mature head on
his shoulders too will be in reckoning. All in all, the picture is a
rather bright one for the Indians.
Like it was for the Australians when they got to India, and indeed
after the first Test at Mumbai. However, the three Test series has
taken its toll. There's no doubting that. Ricky Ponting, one of the
most attacking batsmen in world cricket today has managed 17 runs at
an average of less than four an innings. Shane Warne's bowling average
in this series, like the last one, is above the half century mark.
Adam Gilchrist who began his tour of India with a bang has struggled
to get going.
Is that a sign that India have the upper hand? Nothing could be
further from the truth. In recent years, the Australians have
dominated world cricket not simply because they have the best eleven
cricketers in the world. They simply have the biggest pool of
cricketers who have the ability and the application to play at the
highest level. The players they have called up to play the One-Day
series, but missed out on the Tests, are cricketers who would have
walked in to most teams in the world. Darren Lehmann has proved
himself endlessly with the bat. Whenever he has had the slightest
opportunity Lehmann has made runs. Tim Tremlett, the Director of
Cricket at Hampshire, where Warne played for a season told this
reporter not one month ago that Lehmann, also playing county cricket
in England, played the legspinner as well as anyone else had.
Lehmann's ability to play spin will play a big part in this series.
Then there's Micheal Bevan to contend with Ian Harvey, Nathan Bracken
and of course India's nemesis in limited overs cricket Andrew Symonds.
Can Australia reverse the two match loss? There's no reason why not.
That's what makes limited overs cricket so popular among fans. Here in
Bangalore you can be sure the stands will be packed. And there'll be a
few disappointed fans queued up outside the ground looking for more
tickets.
In the case of the recent Test series the conditions played a big
part. The weather, the pitches, the crowds yelling and shouting. The
weather here at Bangalore is less oppressive than anywhere else. The
pitch here is a belter. Although there will be turn towards the middle
of the second innings, that is not something that will cause a great
deal of concern. The dew on the outfield under lights however is
something captains might want to think about.
To cut a long story short, this is a classic limited overs situation.
Very little that happened in the Test series will come into play.
Steve Waugh with variety and strength on his side will be keen to win
the One-Dayers. Although only a consolation prize, with the Test
series being lost, the limited over games still provide an ideal
opportunity to recover some lost ground.
Yet, there is no one who wants this victory more than the Indians.
They will do all they can to win this series for one reason. If they
fail here, there will be a large section of fans who will discount the
Test win as a fluke. India, under John Wright, are desperately seeking
consistency. To say that the team who wants the win most will walk
away victorious is overstating the obvious. And yet that is the simple
truth.
The teams: India (from): Sourav Ganguly (capt), Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Hemang Badani, Dinesh Mongia, Robin Singh, Vijay Dahiya (wk), Sunil Joshi, Harbhajan Singh, Ajit Agarkar, Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Virender Shewag.
Australia (from): Steve Waugh (capt), Adam Gilchrist, Mark Waugh, Mathew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Ian Harvey, Andrew Symonds, Darren Lehmann, Michael Bevan, Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Damien Martyn, Damien Fleming and Nathan Bracken.
Umpires: Devender Sharma (New Delhi) and SK Sharma (Mumbai). Third Umpire: TG Laxmi Narayan (Tamil Nadu).
© CricInfo
Teams
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Australia,
India.
|
Players/Umpires
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Sourav Ganguly,
Steve Waugh,
Javagal Srinath,
Hemang Badani,
Dinesh Mongia,
Harbhajan Singh,
Ajit Agarkar,
Shane Warne,
Adam Gilchrist,
Ricky Ponting,
Darren Lehmann,
Michael Bevan,
Nathan Bracken,
Ian Harvey,
Andy Symonds,
Zaheer Khan,
Virender Shewag.
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Tours
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Australia in India
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Grounds
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M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
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