12 months, 12 Tests: Gains dime a dozen

Of the 12 Tests they played this year, India have lost three8212; two to Australia at home and one during the Pakistan tour 8212; and won ...

Of the 12 Tests they played this year, India have lost three8212; two to Australia at home and one during the Pakistan tour 8212; and won six. Along the way, as their one-day form dipped, India kept up the tempo in Tests, except for that one blip against the Australians. Chandresh Narayanan looks at the year for Team India and how the vital cogs in its wheel stand at this stage:

LEADING FROM THE FRONT
Skipper Sourav Ganguly had a mixed year with injuries forcing him to miss four of the 12 Tests. Yet he turned up and led the team to four of those six wins. In terms of his batting, Ganguly came close to scoring three hundreds, but missed out each time.

TWO PROBLEMS LESS
The Test opener: Starting off, Chopra was the right choice. But by the middle of the year Yuvraj Singh came up and complicated matters. For now Gambhir is in, and looks settled. But his main test will be against Akhtar 038; Co.

RECORD MAN
Anil Kumble sure is maturing with age as spinners are supposed to do. He picked 74 wickets from 12 Tests this year, which makes him the world8217;s highest wicket-taker for 2004. He is now India8217;s highest wicket-taker as well, having passed Kapil Dev8217;s mark of 434 in Dhaka.

MARATHON MAN
Rahul Dravid became the only man too have played 85 Tests without a single break and also the first man to score a ton in every Test-playing nation.

MASTER IN A STUTTER
Sachin Tendulkar started the year with a grand double at Sydney. Followed it up with an unbeaten 194. After that he was laid low by a tennis elbow condition and though he appears back in business now.

The 8217;keeper:
Parthiv Patel finally gave in and showed that he was a bit out of depth at the highest level. In came Dinesh Kaarthick and so far he has been safe without being outstanding.

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TWO NO-BALLS
8226; Balaji is still out injured. His abdominal strain forced him to miss the last eight Tests, just when Pathan and he had struck a nice partnership. Zaheer has taken the lead position, but Balaji8217;s consistency is missing in the middle.

8226; The sorry story of Ashish Nehra is still playing. His body still appears ill-equipped for the highest level; so much so, that he has played just two Tests this year and is not in the horizon in the immediate future.

BIG PLUSSES
Irfan Pathan has to be the biggest positive for Team India. He has now established himself as India8217;s first choice new ball bowler and seems to be improving with each game.

For Virender Sehwag too, this was a dream year where he moved from being a flamboyant entertainer to a batting force to be reckoned with. His triple the first by an Indian in Pakistan was the highest point, but outside of that too, he played a few breathtaking knocks during the year.