India may have lost,but good teams dont become bad overnight

It wasnt that long ago,twenty seven months isnt that long,that we indulged in a familiar orgy of breast beating after crashing out of a World Cup.

It wasnt that long ago,twenty seven months isnt that long,that we indulged in a familiar orgy of breast beating after crashing out of a World Cup. Now that situation is upon us again and doubtlessly it will return in our lifetime. Sport is like that; reputations count for only a little and the better side on the day wins. West Indies and England were better than India at Lords and anybody would have been better at Nottingham.

So were India a good team that played below par or were they over-rated? It is easy to assume the latter but good teams dont become bad overnight. They might pick up bad habits,a disease somewhere,they might occasionally need a kick up the backside,some deficiencies might surface,but they do not become bad teams. As recently as in the warm-up game a colossal misnomer! against Pakistan two weeks ago,India looked in sizzling form.

It is interesting to look back at that game. Rohit Sharma seemed to belong at the top of the order,his shots took your breath away at times and it seemed that Sehwag may not be missed after all. His batting was one of the highlights of that game but the turning point came early in the Pakistan innings when they were finding every boundary on the ground. Suresh Raina hit the stumps directly and Pakistan never really recovered from there.

It happens all the time. Big wins are fashioned by little things done well and it was the little things India did in South Africa that helped win the title two years ago. Against the West Indies at Lords,it was catches by Simmons and Fletcher that stopped India,and against England,Stuart Broad timed his jump perfectly to ensure that Jadejas shot didnt sail over him for six.

By contrast,India were slow in the field. Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma look good,not world beaters but good,and there are at least four slow movers in the deep. But the most worrisome is Yuvraj Singh. Not long ago,he was electric at point,hit the stumps from anywhere and was among the best fielders in the world. I dont know if it is the knee injury that is hampering him but he is now a shadow of the fielder he was even as his frame grows larger.

Batting shocker

But in the end,as Dhoni pointed out,it was the batting that let India down. Anil Kumble,who was with us in the studio,believes 75 per cent of matches are won by the batsmen and indeed,batting has always been Indias stronger suit. It was one area that nobody believed India would have trouble in,especially after the IPL and after a couple of encouraging performances from Gambhir after that. But here,he wasnt the dominant batsman he can be and Dhoni has now evolved from a punisher into a nudger. Maybe it was by design initially,but it is now part of him,though I sense,based on what he said after Indias exit,that he will renew his search for the destroyer who still lurks within him.

The other major difference with the IPL that was overlooked by all of us,and which became increasingly apparent,was that at the World T20,teams have four or five quality bowlers. By contrast the Deccan Chargers played the second half of the event with no more than two good bowlers in RP Singh and Pragyan Ojha. The Royal Challengers had to slip in five or six overs somewhere and even the Chennai Super Kings had a couple of bowlers who were in no danger of playing for India. There is,therefore,always a bowler or two who can be targetted. At the World T20 the runs had to come off quality bowlers except maybe,in the game against the West Indies. Maybe batting is easier in the IPL.

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There is much talk of injuries but that is an essential part of playing at this level. The greats have always overcome injury to play for the country in a major event so the odd player carrying an injury is not unusual. But fatigue is. And that is something each player knows and cannot hide. Being on tour for long periods is part of the job now and players must rest and train to counter that. It is a personal responsibility and one that is non-negotiable. South Africa have been one of the best teams in this tournament,and one of the sharpest in the field,and they went into the IPL after draining back-to-back Test and one-day series against Australia. Most of their players were at the IPL too. If Indias players are fatigued they need to look within.

India still have a good captain and still have a good team. One tournament loss doesnt change that.