Crunchtime at Karachi

There8217;s a massive buzz surrounding this match and it8217;s not merely because this hyped-up series has come down to the wire. You can ...

There8217;s a massive buzz surrounding this match and it8217;s not merely because this hyped-up series has come down to the wire. You can take your pick from the issues currently under the scanner: Inzamam-ul Haq8217;s back problem, Shoaib Akhtar8217;s ankle injury, Sourav Ganguly8217;s very possible inclusion and the effect of Shoaib Malik8217;s definite absence.

Yet, when the umpires call play tomorrow, these will have largely been decided. In their place will be two issues likely to determine the outcome of this match: The pitch, and the performance of India8217;s bowlers.

First, the pitch, which even today was green all over. That8217;s certainly good news for Pakistan, especially if Shoaib plays.

8216;But it can be deceptive,8217;8217; says Asif Iqbal, a veteran in these parts. 8216;8216;This kind of grass is natural for the soil but the wicket here has recurrently been a good batting track.8217;8217;

It8217;s true; when Bangladesh were last here, they ran up 226/3 against Shoaib and Co.

Indeed, India themselves will remember their last outing here: The first ODI of the 2003-04 series, which they won 8212; after scoring 350 8212; and which set the trend for the matches to follow.

Pakistan should not be alarmed by that stat; they have others in their favour, not least the fact that they8217;ve lost just one of the 37 Tests played here. And good news for the neutral too: eight out of the last nine Test matches here have produced a result.

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The pitch probably means that both teams will look to bolstering their batting order. For India, that means, they will possibly play a spinner less8212;Harbhajan getting the axe 8212;and use Sourav Ganguly as an all-rounder. The 13 announced today included Ganguly and Ajit Agarkar and dropped the two specialist openers and Parthiv.

In any case, India will be looking to a much improved performance from their bowlers, who8217;ve had a torrid time this series. In 315 overs they8217;ve given away runs at a combined average of 60-plus, managing to take only 22 wickets. They will have to equal that wicket-haul here if they are to win this match.

Irfan Pathan and Harbhajan Singh have been the biggest disappointments with the ball while Zaheer Khan and RP Singh have only just managed to avoid the same severe punishment.

8216;8216;The pitches were bad and no bowler would have liked to bowl on the8217;8217;, said Michael Holding. 8216;8216;But the Indians were also guilty of not following a proper line.8217;8217;

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There8217;s been much talk over Pathan8217;s grip while bowling around the wicket, which may not be helping him generate the kind of pace required. It8217;s not made the bowler very happy and he is believed to have retorted that nobody had raised any doubts about his grip when he was getting wickets.

Interestingly, Pathan holds his thumb across the seam of the ball, which is the same grip that brought Wasim Akram all his wickets in his glorious career.

In Karachi, the bowlers can look forward to a lot more assistance from the conditions than what they got in Lahore and Faisalabad. The track is green and 8216;8216;conditions may provide swing some help,8217;8217; says Holding.

In such a scenario, Pathan could find his rhythm back, which in turn could be the best thing to happen to the Indians.

ODI squad today, no surprises likely

MUMBAI: The selectors sit on Monday to pick the team for the ODI series, and indications are that they will retain the squad that figured in the final game of the series against South Africa at Mumbai. This means there8217;s room for Suresh Raina, JP Yadav, Gautam Gambhir, S Sreesanth and Murali Kartik but not for Test-specialist seniors like Sourav Ganguly, Anil Kumble and Zaheer Khan. 8212; ENS