India get another shot at top spot

The sight of Yuvraj Singh batting fluently — and also holding on to a few catches later on — and Sreesanth,despite a few sniffles,bowling two lengthy spells proved to be the most positive signs for the visitors,who start their campaign in the tri-series against Sri Lanka here on Tuesday. Skipper Dhoni surprisingly also rolled his arm over for a considerable length of time and even managed to trouble a couple of his teammates — much to his delight — with well-pitched outswingers.

Overwhelming favourites

Rarely have India started off a one-day tournament so overwhelmingly as favourites. While they have won their last three series against the now-familiar foes Sri Lanka very convincingly,Bangladesh have only managed two wins against them in 19 previous attempts. And where the Indians will be stronger — thanks to thre return of Yuvraj and Sreesanth — their opponents can hardly say the same.

The hosts are still without their leading fast bowler and regular captain Mashrafe Mortaza,while the Lankans,still hurting from various injuries that dotted their Indian campaign — have named an experimental side for this tournament.

With India’s reign at the top of the Test rankings now prolonged,with South Africa having lost a Test to England,the only real incentive for Dhoni and his men over the next 10 days remains the No 1 spot in the ODI format,which they can achieve by winning all five limited overs encounters in Bangaldesh.

National obsession

The Indian skipper — who funnily enough was unsure about his team’s exact schedule in the tri-series — as always underplayed any talk about the rankings,reiterating at every occasion that winning consistently would automatically take care of them. But for a country obsessed with statistics and placements — not just on the cricket field — the prospect of another jewel to their burgeoning crown will increase interest. In the recent Test series,India weren’t expected to be troubled too much by Sri Lanka — who had never won a Test on Indian soil — but the euphoria that followed the comfortable 2-0 series win was just an example of the country’s fixation with rankings.

The high number of dropped catches during the Lankan series certainly emerged as a serious concern for the Indians in addition to their death bowling issue over the last one year or so. And Dhoni had touched upon them during his first media briefing after landing in Bangladesh.

“We had some lapses in fielding and bowling at the death in the previous few matches. When it comes to fielding,dropping catches actually do not worry me because some of our best fielders dropped the catches and I am sure they will turn it around sooner rather than later. Bowling at the death is another area,and see,it is a process and we are working on it,” he had said.

On Monday,each member of the team was put through a strenuous catching routine in groups by Paddy Upton despite the chill in the air. Having seen the performance of the Sri Lankan bowlers against the hosts later in the day,the biggest worry for India would be to avoiding the lethargy that seems so much a part of this city.