India can’t afford to play at half steam

It seems, after their win over the Pakistanis, that the Indians found it difficult to raise their game for the challenge thrown in by the rejuvenated Kenyans.

And, in one-day cricket, if a team is found complacent, they can only find themselves in the dock, for there is no second innings to come back into the match.

The Indians should have been kept on their toes, especially after their crunch match against the Pakistanis, for there was always a possibility to relax a bit, and that could have caught them off guard.

Kenya’s only chance was to catch the Indians napping. That they almost did showed that they prepared themselves mentally very well for the big game.

Win the toss, bat first, make sure to play all the 50 overs, put up a reasonable total on the board, and have the sleeping lions on the mat. They unfolded 80% of their plans successfully only to have their dreams shattered by India’s captain, Saurav Ganguly.

The Maharaj is back, and with a bang too. Woefully out of form and struggling even after scoring a ton against Namibia, Ganguly’s innings had the stamp of class.

He showed a lot of character and authority, and this innings must have given him immense satisfaction, for, from now on, he will be ‘in charge’ of the team.

The captain needs such an innings under his belt to call the shots. Mere winning a match without him performing doesn’t actually help. Runs do matter, and they alone matter a lot.

I am happy to see that, of late, young Yuvraj is taking the role of a match-winner quite seriously. He has abundant talent, his problem was always how to channelise it in the proper manner. He wasn’t happy with the batting order, for he prefers to play higher up.

However, he must not lose focus, but concentrate on the job on hand, and leave the rest to the Almighty. With his kind of talent, he won’t go wrong very often.

India, however, will have to put up a must better show while fielding henceforth. Especially their catching. They just cannot afford to drop the likes of Jayasuriya or Attapatu. For, if they do, they will pay dearly for the lapses.