Tags:
Journalism of Courage
BANGALORE, May 19: "We are not taking Kenya lightly," said India’s new skipper Ajay Jadeja on the eve of the triangular Coco Cola Cup cricket tournament tie.
Jadeja, probably, remembers the events of the Wills World Cup when Kenya the underdogs ambushed West Indies to register their first ever win. And the last thing Jadeja would want on his debut as skipper is to end up on the losing side only because he took the opposition for granted.
"We know their strengths. Eight of their players turned out against us when we toured Kenya. So we are prepared for them," he said.
India, of course, are in a no-win situation. They are, in any case, expected to win against an opposition like Kenya. And if they lose, well, they still don’t win!
It is this sort of a situation that best suits the underdog. With nothing to lose, Kenya can go for broke, a situation that did not exist in their previous match against Bangladesh where it became a battle of equals. Their skipper Asif Karim acknowledged as much. But he alsoadded that they could ill-afford to bowl like millionaires.
"We gave away 39 extras, including 24 wides and six no balls, against Bangladesh. We ought to bowl a lot tighter to give India a run for their money," he said.
The Kenyan skipper stated that he would field the same team that did duty against Bangladesh. "Tony Suji is fit and will open the bowling," he said.
The Indians, however, are undecided about the playing eleven.
However, one change is inevitable. Mohammed Azharuddin who led against Bangladesh is away in London to attend the ICC captains’ meeting. His place in the 14 is taken by VVS Laxman. Laxman, a seasoned cricketer, should play in the eleven.
The teams: India (from): Ajay Jadeja (captain), Saurav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, MSK Prasad (wicket-keeper), Robin Singh, Sairaj Bahutule, Ajit Agarkar, Debashish Mohanty, VVS Laxman, Rahul Sanghvi, Nikhil Haldipur, Harvinder Singh, Gagan Khoda.
Kenya (from): Asif Karim (captain), Maurice Odumbe, Steve Tikolo,Ravindu Shah, Lameck Onayango, Joseph Angara, Thomas Odoya, Kennedy Otieno, Tony Suji, Martin Suji, Mohammad Sheikh, Deepak Chudasama, Hitesh Modi, Alpesh Vadhera.
Umpires: Bhattacharjee (Calcutta), Devendra Sharma (New Delhi). Third umpire: Shavir Tarapore. Match referee: Ranjan Madugale (Sri Lanka).
