A passage to India

Of the 19 cricketers who have made their ODI debuts for India since the first season of the IPL,10 were picked largely on the basis of eye-catching displays in the aforementioned Twenty20 jamboree. Of those 10,only Yusuf Pathan and Ashwin were part of India’s victorious World Cup squad. Apart from these two and Ravindra Jadeja — who has figured in 35 ODIs — the other seven have,between them,made only 21 appearances for the one-day side. For one reason or the other,not one player among Manpreet Singh Gony,Abhishek Nayar,Sudeep Tyagi,Ashok Dinda,Umesh Yadav,Naman Ojha and Saurabh Tiwary retained selectorial confidence for longer than five matches.

To be fair to the selectors,most of these players were only given opportunities as part of squad rotation in the months leading up to the World Cup. But the fact that so few made a persuasive case for more chances perhaps showed the disparity in quality between the IPL and international cricket. It also challenged the wisdom of picking players for 50-over games based on their T20 displays. Keeping in mind their mixed fortunes,it isn’t clear how much emphasis the selectors will place on IPL performances this time around.

‘Eye on proceedings’

“The IPL gives young players an opportunity to showcase their talent in front of a large audience,” says Srikkanth. “They get used to performing under pressure. As far as the selectors are concerned,we are keeping an eye on the proceedings.”

During their meeting,the selectors will probably note how Sharma,despite playing for a team on a seemingly endless losing streak,managed to bowl seven straight dot balls to Ross Taylor and six in a row to Kieron Pollard. They may praise his accuracy,and talk about how difficult batsmen find it to judge his length,thanks to his awkward release and steep trajectory. They might also give him a few brownie points for his demeanour under pressure.

First-class power

But the one thing that might weigh entirely against Sharma,one that sealed Ashwin’s selection,is first-class experience. When Ashwin made his ODI debut,he already had over a hundred first-class wickets,and had bagged seven five-wicket hauls. Sharma,on the other hand,has played only nine first-class matches,and possesses a distinctly average record — 16 wickets at 43.12.

Ashwin says that the four seasons of domestic cricket that preceded his international selection were invaluable to his learning curve. “It really helps to have played first-class cricket. It throws up a lot of different situations,preparing you for international cricket,” he says.

And therefore,someone like Ambati Rayudu is likelier to get a look-in. At 25,Rayudu is already something of a veteran,having gone through the grind of playing 50-over and four-day games for junior India sides,captaining India at the 2004 Under-19 World Cup,and featuring in over 60 first-class games. Having nearly lost his international future forever after his move to the ICL,Rayudu has used the officially sanctioned Twenty20 tournament as his shot at redemption,while simultaneously scoring heavily for Baroda in the Ranji Trophy. The IPL,here,has served to garnish an already sumptuous resume rather than become its first entry. Unlike in the case of Manpreet Gony.

The Gony blunder

In the celebratory mood that followed the IPL’s inaugural edition,selectors were willing to ignore first-class inexperience,and gambled on Punjab seamer Gony,who took 17 wickets in the IPL but had only played one season of domestic cricket till then. Bhupinder Singh Sr,a member of that panel,now believes that picking Gony might have been a mistake.

“You cannot pick players straight from the IPL for a tour or even an ODI series,” says Bhupinder. “We picked Gony after the first IPL,but it didn’t work out. The selectors cannot depend solely on IPL. It is crucial that they do well consistently in domestic competitions.”

Former India left-arm spinner Venkatapathy Raju was another member of that panel. “After Gony,we selectors have realised that you would first want to try them in the Duleep Trophy or at the India A level.”

Kiran More,the chairman of the selection committee which preceded Dilip Vengsarkar’s,says that preference should be given to players who have performed over a number of domestic seasons,in all formats. “Let Valthaty score a Ranji hundred. He first needs to find and cement his place in the Mumbai team,” says More.

Raju also warns that Twenty20 performances might not be the best indicator of how a player might perform in the 50-over game. “In an ODI,a bowler might have to bowl with the new ball or at the death,or during the powerplays. You can’t tell how well someone will adapt by watching him perform in four-over spells.”

Ashwin too says that ODIs present challenges that don’t exist in T20 cricket. “A spinner attacks much more in ODIs,since you have to force the batsman into mistakes. In T20,it’s mostly about restricting them.”

But the IPL does aid in the development of young cricketers,giving them a taste of life on the big stage. “The IPL really helped in terms of my confidence,” says Ashwin. “It showed me that I could go out there and express myself.”

(With inputs from Shamik Chakrabarty and Siddhartha Sharma)

Flavour of Season 4
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Ambati Rayudu: Nearly a decade ago,Ambati Rayudu seemed destined for greatness in India colours. Either side of his 17th birthday,he smashed England’s under-19s for an unbeaten 114-ball 177 in a youth ODI and brought up his maiden first-class century,210 off 232 balls against Andhra. After a few unhappy seasons caught in the maelstrom of Hyderabad cricket politics and a stint in the ICL,international cricket seemed out of reach. But two seasons of heavy scoring for the Mumbai Indians and a happy Ranji campaign with Baroda have revived his career.

Rahul Sharma: The towering Punjab leg-spinner has taken 11 wickets in 9 IPL matches this season,and has an economy rate of 5.75. It’s extremely premature to make Anil Kumble comparisons at this stage,of course,with an average first-class record pointing to the need for more refinement in Sharma’s craft. But he possesses good numbers in the List A format,and the ability to clear the ground down the order.

Iqbal Abdulla: The 21-year-old Mumbai left-arm spinner has been instrumental in Kolkata Knight Riders’s strong showing in IPL IV. Known more as a spinner who bowls with a flatter trajectory,Abdulla has beaten a number of batsmen with his canny use of flight and turn this season. His 12 wickets at 17.58 with an economy rate of 6.39 have included big names such as Adam Gilchrist,Kumar Sangakkara and David Hussey. His stature in domestic cricket has risen rapidly over the last two seasons,and he finished with 18 wickets at 15.16 apiece in the List A one-dayers this year prior to his impressive IPL performance.

Paul Valthaty: Before his unbeaten 63-ball 120 against the Chennai Super Kings,Paul Valthaty was just one of the many faceless cricketers plying their trade in Mumbai’s club cricket scene. Valthaty’s effort was no flash in the pan as he recorded scores of 75 and 46 in his next two innings. But having played only a single List A match for Mumbai so far and not even a single first-class game,despite having been part of the India under-19 team for the World Cup in 2002,it is a spot in his state side that the Kings XI Punjab opener will be aiming to start with.