Raina passes the Test

Once wanting against bouncers,left-hander has proved that he belongs to the big league.

He had just witnessed a dumbfounded Virat Kohli being dismissed by a rising delivery that snaked into him sharply,one that took his glove before he could move a bone. So as he took guard to Ravi Rampaul on a spicy Kensington Oval track,it would have seemed obvious to Suresh Raina that he will be welcomed with a bouncer. It was as inevitable as it was expected. And the left-hander stayed back in his crease. It was a move which was as predetermined as it gets.

Rampauls delivery,however,didnt pitch too short but rose off a length,not very alarmingly or as high as Raina anticipated. He had already set himself to leave the ball,before adjusting at the very last moment to fend it off in ungainly fashion. There was not even a semblance of class associated with Rainas defence. It was effective,but wouldnt have managed to thwart his hardened critics from sniggering and passing snide remarks. Two balls later,Rampaul did bowl him a bouncer,but this time,Raina ducked under it at the last moment,whilst tucking his gloves safely under his body.

For long now,Raina has been considered the quintessential flat-track bully. Many have called him a batsman who has the ability to score plentiful runs in the one-day format,where bowlers cannot bowl too many bouncers and there arent too many slips staring him down from close quarters. Raina scored a century in his debut innings in the longer format,but on a deadpan Sinhalese Cricket Club SSC pitch,not too many were convinced.

A crucial 86 against the Australians followed at Mohali,but a poor run of scores against New Zealand at home,and a failure in the opening Test versus South Africa,meant that Rainas future in the traditional format looked to be in serious doubt once again.

Despite being the captain for the ODI leg of the tour in the Caribbean,Raina had a lot to play for in the Tests. While the likes of Abhinav Mukund and Kohli were keen to make a good first impression in their maiden outings in the white flanelled form,Raina was in desperate need of runs to show the selectors that he still deserved a place in the venerated middle-order.

Satisfying outings

And with an average of 58 and two half-centuries in four innings so far,the 24-year old from Uttar Pradesh has done just that. The manner in which the runs were achieved too,has been satisfying.

At Sabina Park,Raina walked in with the Indian innings in complete disarray and from a score of 85/6 Harbhajan Singh was on the counterattack from the other end and kept his nerve,stuck to his game-plan,and rescued the day for his team. Along the way,he played a number of exquisite strokes against both pace and spin. A second Test hundred wasnt to be but did enough to become a serious No.6 contender. It was a poor decision that robbed him of another half-century in the second innings.

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Fidel Edwards,who never tires of testing the bounce on any wicket,and Rampaul have kept pegging away with deliveries that has had Raina hopping and looking in slight discomfort. But in Rahul Dravids words,he has learnt to weather the storm. Or so it seems.

And after another shaky start at the Kensington Oval,Raina was back to his fluent best,driving and flicking for boundaries. Another half-century ensued,before for the second time in the series,he fell victim to a contentious decision. But by then,Raina had cleared any doubts that the national selectors still had about his stature as a Test batsman.

Now in Dominica,Raina will look to further that stance and help India win their second consecutive Test series in the Caribbean. Like many other islands in this part of the world,Dominica Latin for Sunday too was discovered by Christopher Columbus,who gave it its name based on the day he first laid eyes on it. And on his path of rediscovery,Raina too has found redemption in the West Indies.