Any injury update? Thats a harmless end-of-press-conference question that most skippers face on Test-match eve. Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni,too,had encountered the query on Wednesday. He had shaken his head and smiled,but had added as an afterthought: Nothing so far. Later in the night,Dhoni developed back spasms and coach Gary Kirsten spoke to Virender Sehwag about the possibility that he would have to stand in as skipper. The ambiguity about leadership didnt clear on Thursday morning as Sehwag didnt come to the stadium with a blazer that captains wear for the toss. After an MRI scan in the morning,Dhoni pulled out and ended up lending the arm band and blazer to Sehwag. By the end of the day,as New Zealand were 351/4 after Daniel Vettori won the toss and India tossed away early advantage,it was clear that Dhonis blazer is neither a magic cloak nor a tuxedo with special powers. Dhonis famous luck didnt rub off on Sehwag and India encountered a rare forgettable day on the New Zealand tour. This isnt about Sehwag not being a good leader but about him not getting the rub of the green. Dhoni,the skipper,wasnt missed on the field as Sehwag clicked the right buttons,but a flat track and missed catches meant that the right constellation wasnt in place. Sachin Tendulkars finger injury in the last Test translated into Yuvraj Singh being forced into the role of a part-time slip fielder. Not quite used to the position,he dropped two catches. Speaking about Ross Taylor enjoying a charmed life,Sehwag said,Its a good track. We knew that someone will get a hundred. If we had taken Taylors catch,it would have been 25 for four. We missed our chances and he scored runs. Since Taylor was dropped off the bowling of Munaf Patel,one could see the Indian pacemans frustration between overs. Standing next to the dressing room,he drew a line on his forehead with his index fielder to convey that things were not going his or Indias way.
