Viru and the World Cup
The news that Viru Sehwag has a busted shoulder has provoked some expected teeth gnashing - both over his absence and his replacement. Now, I love the thought of watching Sehwag bat, but I have to confess that when it came to the T20 WC I had not managed to generate the kinds of great expectations which would experience this news as harbinger of an apocalypse. Part of this display of sangfroid on my part finds its grounding in the knowledge that Sehwag does not do very well in one-day internationals or T20s (I'm hard pressed to think of a single significant innings), and yet another part in the related awareness that I don't associate him with a winning campaign in a tournament. (In this arena, at least, I would consider Dhoni's absence a far more significant blow).
I've slowly become convinced over the years that the problem with Sehwag in the limited versions of the game is that he prefers to be the one with the initiative, the one that imparts a jolt to the proceedings, and then, having pushed the opposition on to the pyschological defensive, is able to take over and dominate. It is a strategy that works in test cricket. It does not in limited-overs cricket, for there, bowlers and captains alike expect punishment and do not get fazed (or perhaps not as much as Viru would like them to). I have to admit though, that given the genius of this man, there is something slightly unsatisfactory about this explanation. Why is he unable to change, to adjust, to reconfigure, when he can do so in test cricket? Be that as it may, I cannot remember a single ODI or T20 innings by him, and indeed, cannot even a remember a moment from an ODI or a T20 which features Viru in his glory.
As for India's campaign in the T20 WC, more on that later. But I'm afraid the IPL does create the expectation that India should win. This isn't entirely a fair expectation given the brevity of the game but it is out there nonetheless. But the incumbents of the T20 team, in their appearances in the IPL, haven't exactly managed to bowl us over. (At least a few like Yusuf Pathan and Ishant Sharma have looked like duds). Heartbreak might still be around the corner.
If there is, we should be glad it will be over quickly. The T20 WC is compact and concise. It should serve as a model for the "other" World Cup.
I've slowly become convinced over the years that the problem with Sehwag in the limited versions of the game is that he prefers to be the one with the initiative, the one that imparts a jolt to the proceedings, and then, having pushed the opposition on to the pyschological defensive, is able to take over and dominate. It is a strategy that works in test cricket. It does not in limited-overs cricket, for there, bowlers and captains alike expect punishment and do not get fazed (or perhaps not as much as Viru would like them to). I have to admit though, that given the genius of this man, there is something slightly unsatisfactory about this explanation. Why is he unable to change, to adjust, to reconfigure, when he can do so in test cricket? Be that as it may, I cannot remember a single ODI or T20 innings by him, and indeed, cannot even a remember a moment from an ODI or a T20 which features Viru in his glory.
As for India's campaign in the T20 WC, more on that later. But I'm afraid the IPL does create the expectation that India should win. This isn't entirely a fair expectation given the brevity of the game but it is out there nonetheless. But the incumbents of the T20 team, in their appearances in the IPL, haven't exactly managed to bowl us over. (At least a few like Yusuf Pathan and Ishant Sharma have looked like duds). Heartbreak might still be around the corner.
If there is, we should be glad it will be over quickly. The T20 WC is compact and concise. It should serve as a model for the "other" World Cup.
Labels: ICC T20, India, IPL, Ishant Sharma, MS Dhoni, Virender Sehwag, Yusuf Pathan
posted by Samir Chopra at 8:22 AM
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