Cricketman
ICC Chairman
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2005
- Location
- USA
There is nothing in the world like an India-Pakistan series. It's no longer a game of cricket, it's a war. The prize of victory is what the teams crave for, and they will stop at nothing to achieve it.
To prevail in such a chaotic battle, we must use the best weapons possible. In the case of cricket, the weapons are our players. Which eleven weapons will win us this important contest?
The Opening Pair
An integral part to any ODI innings is getting off to a 'flier'. What this means is to not only score runs at a good rate, but also keeping wickets in tact. The Openers must be solid in technique, have the ability to both hit to long ball and to see through tough periods. His goal must be to bat through to the end whilst scoring at a strike rate at about 85.
With five opening batsman in the wings, who is best suited for the job?
Sachin Tendulkar-34 & Sourav Ganguly-34
With over 25,000 runs between them, Tendulkar and Ganguly have the experience to face, well, anything. Recent form for the pair has been unmatchable. Dominance against anything marginally loose is shown by Tendulkar, while Ganguly thrives on his Cover-drives and footwork. The only point going against them is age. Ganguly is slow in between the wickets, but his partner is still going strong. The case is similar in the field as well. Ganguly seems to be the weak-link when not padded up, but Tendulkar still has that youthful exuberance and electric attitude to justify his spot in the side.
The Middle Order
Gautam Ghambir-26 After popping in and out of the side for four years, Ghambir has peaked. After accumulating the second highest runs in the ICC World Twenty20, Ghambir's career has rocketed. 70's and 80's before the twenty over mark seem to now be commonplace for him. His technique has improved and he mixes control with aggression. He plays both spin and pace equally well. He's alert in the field and has taken some truly spectacular catches in his 32-match career.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni+* -26 The Indian Captain averages a solid 83.80 coming in at number four. He bats at an awesome strike rate of 95, perfect for the ODI game. I always felt he batted too far down the order to make a real impact. Usually batting at around 6 or 7, he doesn't have time to really lay into the opposition as much as he could up higher in the line up.
He has a thing for Pakistan, too- averaging a whopping 60 against them.
Yuvraj Singh-25 Experienced and naturally gifted, Yuvraj is the meat of the middle order. Like many others in the Indian Team, Yuvraj is rising up to the top of his career. Averaging 53 in 2006 and 42 in 2007, he has come of age. Big scores backed up by consistent performances have really defined him as a cricketer. Hitting clean, long sixes has been his trademark off late, and his Six Sixes against England in the World T20 was the best example of that. Yuvraj is also India's prime fielder, securing the cover region with his diving stops. His bowling is pretty handy too- he's picked up 51 wickets with his loopy left-arm spin.
Robin Uthappa-21 One of the young generation members of the Indian side, Uthappa has already played some masterclass innings. He bats at a rate higher then a run-a-ball, and averages 52 batting at 6. He showed composure and resistance even when the odds were heavily stacked against him against Australia, batting with the tail. He, along with some luck, scripted a great win.
Another talented fielder, he puts his heart into stopping every single run he can.
Bowlers
Irfan Pathan-23 Irfan plays the allrounder's role.
After being dropped from the side due to a severe drop in pace, Pathan has bounced back quite well. A successfully World T20 has refueled the fire inside of him, and he will be hungry to rip into Pakistan.
He averages a handy 23 with the bat, hitting at almost 80 runs per hundred balls.
With the ball, Irfan averages 26 runs per wicket, at an economy of 5.
Irfan must bowl with the new ball, he averages 22 with it. When bowling anything else, he averages in excess of 44.
Harbhajan Singh- 27 Variations are the key to Harbhajan Singh. His off-break, arm ball, doosra, and the newly formed spinning Yorker. He too found his game once again. No longer does he fire every ball in the block-hole. He's prepared to toss it up, beat the batsman in flight. Ricky Ponting was clueless against him, and he'll hope he can carry his form over against Pakistan.
Murali Kartik-31 The Comeback King was on fire against the Aussies. After a brilliant county season, where he snapped up 51 wickets with his wily left arm spin, Kartik ripped into Australia with awesome figures of 6/27 at the Wankhade.
It was a tough decision between Kartik and Chawla, but on current form the offspinner won the battle.
Zaheer Khan-29 An experienced candidate of 140 ODI's, Zaheer spearheads the Indian attack. Zaheer uses pace and good control to pick his scalps. After an awesome tour of England, Zaheer has taken over the helm as the go-to guy for the captain to provide a wicket. A mediocre average against Pakistan (45) is something he would like to improve apon, but if he bowled like he did in England, his success is almost inevitable.
Shanthakumaran Sreesanth-24 Aggressive, fast, and hugely talented, Sreesanth provides the extra dimension to the Indian bowling attack. The different angle, and speed. He may not have the best ODI record (Average 33, Economy 5.81) but he's a wicket taker. He believes in himself and fights fire with fire. He has a good slower delivery a pacey bouncer, which make him a vital asset to the Indian XI.
It can also be viewed here
To prevail in such a chaotic battle, we must use the best weapons possible. In the case of cricket, the weapons are our players. Which eleven weapons will win us this important contest?
The Opening Pair
An integral part to any ODI innings is getting off to a 'flier'. What this means is to not only score runs at a good rate, but also keeping wickets in tact. The Openers must be solid in technique, have the ability to both hit to long ball and to see through tough periods. His goal must be to bat through to the end whilst scoring at a strike rate at about 85.
With five opening batsman in the wings, who is best suited for the job?
Sachin Tendulkar-34 & Sourav Ganguly-34
With over 25,000 runs between them, Tendulkar and Ganguly have the experience to face, well, anything. Recent form for the pair has been unmatchable. Dominance against anything marginally loose is shown by Tendulkar, while Ganguly thrives on his Cover-drives and footwork. The only point going against them is age. Ganguly is slow in between the wickets, but his partner is still going strong. The case is similar in the field as well. Ganguly seems to be the weak-link when not padded up, but Tendulkar still has that youthful exuberance and electric attitude to justify his spot in the side.
The Middle Order
Gautam Ghambir-26 After popping in and out of the side for four years, Ghambir has peaked. After accumulating the second highest runs in the ICC World Twenty20, Ghambir's career has rocketed. 70's and 80's before the twenty over mark seem to now be commonplace for him. His technique has improved and he mixes control with aggression. He plays both spin and pace equally well. He's alert in the field and has taken some truly spectacular catches in his 32-match career.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni+* -26 The Indian Captain averages a solid 83.80 coming in at number four. He bats at an awesome strike rate of 95, perfect for the ODI game. I always felt he batted too far down the order to make a real impact. Usually batting at around 6 or 7, he doesn't have time to really lay into the opposition as much as he could up higher in the line up.
He has a thing for Pakistan, too- averaging a whopping 60 against them.
Yuvraj Singh-25 Experienced and naturally gifted, Yuvraj is the meat of the middle order. Like many others in the Indian Team, Yuvraj is rising up to the top of his career. Averaging 53 in 2006 and 42 in 2007, he has come of age. Big scores backed up by consistent performances have really defined him as a cricketer. Hitting clean, long sixes has been his trademark off late, and his Six Sixes against England in the World T20 was the best example of that. Yuvraj is also India's prime fielder, securing the cover region with his diving stops. His bowling is pretty handy too- he's picked up 51 wickets with his loopy left-arm spin.
Robin Uthappa-21 One of the young generation members of the Indian side, Uthappa has already played some masterclass innings. He bats at a rate higher then a run-a-ball, and averages 52 batting at 6. He showed composure and resistance even when the odds were heavily stacked against him against Australia, batting with the tail. He, along with some luck, scripted a great win.
Another talented fielder, he puts his heart into stopping every single run he can.
Bowlers
Irfan Pathan-23 Irfan plays the allrounder's role.
After being dropped from the side due to a severe drop in pace, Pathan has bounced back quite well. A successfully World T20 has refueled the fire inside of him, and he will be hungry to rip into Pakistan.
He averages a handy 23 with the bat, hitting at almost 80 runs per hundred balls.
With the ball, Irfan averages 26 runs per wicket, at an economy of 5.
Irfan must bowl with the new ball, he averages 22 with it. When bowling anything else, he averages in excess of 44.
Harbhajan Singh- 27 Variations are the key to Harbhajan Singh. His off-break, arm ball, doosra, and the newly formed spinning Yorker. He too found his game once again. No longer does he fire every ball in the block-hole. He's prepared to toss it up, beat the batsman in flight. Ricky Ponting was clueless against him, and he'll hope he can carry his form over against Pakistan.
Murali Kartik-31 The Comeback King was on fire against the Aussies. After a brilliant county season, where he snapped up 51 wickets with his wily left arm spin, Kartik ripped into Australia with awesome figures of 6/27 at the Wankhade.
It was a tough decision between Kartik and Chawla, but on current form the offspinner won the battle.
Zaheer Khan-29 An experienced candidate of 140 ODI's, Zaheer spearheads the Indian attack. Zaheer uses pace and good control to pick his scalps. After an awesome tour of England, Zaheer has taken over the helm as the go-to guy for the captain to provide a wicket. A mediocre average against Pakistan (45) is something he would like to improve apon, but if he bowled like he did in England, his success is almost inevitable.
Shanthakumaran Sreesanth-24 Aggressive, fast, and hugely talented, Sreesanth provides the extra dimension to the Indian bowling attack. The different angle, and speed. He may not have the best ODI record (Average 33, Economy 5.81) but he's a wicket taker. He believes in himself and fights fire with fire. He has a good slower delivery a pacey bouncer, which make him a vital asset to the Indian XI.
It can also be viewed here
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Without Kumble in tests, it make no sense and damn weak in bowling.. and KKD Karthik/Jaffer are likely to open in Tests with their recent success in past and unless Sehwag does some magic.
