T20 opener: A different ball game

For Bailey,it’s a wonderful life

Being captain of Australia,on debut,should be a rather strong indicator of that. Not since New Zealand’s Lee Germon walked out for the toss in 1995 has any player from a Test playing nation made his debut as the captain of his country in an international match.

Bailey,who was drafted in on selector John Inverarity’s suggestion in place of Cameron White with the World T20 in mind,will now have this unique opportunity in the game’s smallest format. But for 29-year old from Launceston,Tasmania,the honour is bigger than ever.

Picking coach Mickey Arthur’s brains right through their truncated practice session before D-Day,Bailey seemed fairly comfortable in his new skin and avatar. From being referred to as Hector,Georgie or Bails right through his career,he was getting used to being called ‘Skip’ by the boys. And even during the official press conference,Bailey did his best to maintain the image of a true leader.

“It’s my team and I’m trying to do things the way I like to do them,” he said,stressing on the words ‘my’ and ‘I’.

“What we’re trying to do is galvanise this group and let them know there’s a World Cup in six months. We’re the 14 that have the first crack at proving we should be there.”

Bailey’s opposite number in the India squad has of course been there and done that,but a lot more importantly,Mahendra Singh Dhoni knows all about Bailey from their IPL days together at the Chennai Super Kings. Bailey then tried to win the respect of captain Dhoni as a player,now he will try and do it as rival leader. “I have interacted with him a lot,and he’s a very interesting character,” said Dhoni on Monday.

“Bailey plays good cricket,but he also has a very sharp mind and is very intelligent. He understands the game very well,” he added,almost chuckling to himself.

Speaking about both Bailey and the new blood in the Indian squad for this series put a rare smile on Dhoni’s face. But the key,reckoned the captain,will be to find happiness in results by the end of this tour. “With the new boys coming in,the dressing room has become very noisy. Everybody is pulling each other’s leg,which helps lift the spirit and the team morale,” added Dhoni. “From listening to Kishore Kumar during the Test series,we’re now listening to Sean Paul.”

New blood

There’s new blood in the Australian side too,but it runs in the veins of a 40-year old veteran,Brad Hogg.

The last time India and Australia met for a T20 match on these shores (incidentally,also the only one) was in 2008,and Hogg had since adjusted himself well to the role of a television commentator. Four years after that match and five after playing his last T20 international,Hogg is back to the Aussie squad on the back of an exceptional Big Bash League.

With 13 wickets at an astounding economy rate of just 5.61,he took the Perth Scorchers all the way to the final. And with the national selectors keen on promoting both young and old,as long as they’re fresh,in their quest to win the elusive trophy,the left-arm spinner made it back into the Aussie training gear right on time.

Actually,just a couple of hours late.

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