Trying out the size 20 pyjamas

Well, it8217;s just been a month since the BCCI seemingly dragged itself to the international club of Twenty20, agreeing to play the World Cup next September, but there8217;s already a buzz, especially among the younger lot, of what this means to Team India. The ball, they know, has slowly started to roll with the second edition of the Bradman Cup in Bangalore. And BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah says there8217;s a full-fledged domestic tournament being planned sometime next April-May, where most of the matches will be played under floodlights with a 7-pm start.

There are concerns, of course, about what the frantic pace of the game will do to a player who may then go on to play a Test match the next week. And indications right now are that India will go for an extended test run in domestic cricket before any significant call is taken. 8220;It8217;s still sinking in, let8217;s wait and see how it turns out. Let8217;s get Twenty20 started in domestic cricket first. Let the state players get a feel of this before we start seriously at the highest level,8221; says Shah.

Team India captain Rahul Dravid, the senior-most member of this side after Sachin Tendulkar, is understandably cautious. 8220;Test cricket is considered as the real test of a batsman8217;s skill, at the end of the day a player is judged by his performance in Test cricket. We have to consider this as a chance to learn and explore. Probably a couple of years down the line, we will get to know the real picture8221; says Dravid who has played 8220;a couple8221; of Twenty20 games.

However, players like young Sreesanth, who realise that Twenty20 could become a significant part of their schedule in the future, are 8220;keen to get going8221;. 8220;You will soon see fast bowlers hitting sixes,8221; he says, adding that it will be a huge challenge for bowlers. 8220;But I am really confident and excited and as long as you know the areas where you need to bowl, I guess it will turn out OK,8221; he says.

But probably, the one player in this team best equipped to chart out the road ahead is Dinesh Mongia, who has played 21 games for Leicestershire so far since 2004 in the Twenty20 Cup, England8217;s domestic version that has been the first off the blocks.

Two years down the line, Mongia says the recipe is fairly simple and it8217;s not just about frantic hitting as it is being made out to be. 8220;From what I have learnt in England, the preparation that goes into a Twenty20 match is just as serious. What we do for one-dayers, the same factors are applicable here. Partnerships, long knocks, one batsman has to get in, stay there. It8217;s the same situation.8221;

There are a couple of other myths that he wants to junk: that a bowler can8217;t be creative or that you can8217;t bowl out 11 players in 20 overs. 8220;When I first started, I thought it would be tough on the spinners with all the hitting. Yes, it8217;s channel bowling, but gradually I also realised that just bowling flat or to one spot like a machine doesn8217;t work all the time. You see, it8217;s impossible to get six dot balls through. You have to get the batsman out, and you have to be creative to do that. Yes, there is scope to flight the ball. As for getting teams out, you just have to look at the scoresheets in England,8221; says Mongia.

There some interesting trends as well that the Punjab cricketer has picked up. 8220;For batsmen, it forces you to think on your feet. You have to play shots, because you have to make runs of every ball. You have to lose your inhibitions and understand that the ball is there to be hit. On the English wickets, the shots that get the maximum runs are played square off the wicket. What is interesting the high number of sweep shots that are played.

Australian players tell me that over there they try to hit more straight down the ground due to the bouncy pitches. But I think that would not be possible on Indian wickets,8221; he says.

For the fast bowlers, he says, it ultimately boils down to three balls: the yorker, the slower ball and the line-and-length delivery. 8220;The most important aspect here is varying your pace,8221; says Mongia.

The key ingredient, agree Mongia and Victoria8217;s Moss, is 8220;supreme8221; fitness. 8220;There8217;s a lot of running around to do in the field. As a batsman, you are thinking of stealing a run off every ball,8221; says Moss.

But Moss, who bowls medium pace, says the biggest challenge in Australia is to get the bowlers, especially the freshers, motivated till they hit the right stride. 8220;It8217;s great for the crowd, it8217;s great for the game, it8217;s great for the sponsors, but it8217;s not great for the bowlers. It doesn8217;t matter whether you are a Brett Lee or a Flintoff, you are there to be hit.

Not many want to bowl. But it8217;s a great challenge. You have to hone your skills, strive to put it on the spot. If you are slightly off the mark, you are gone,8221; says Moss.

But Dravid, like Mongia, is not completely convinced that it8217;s a batsman8217;s game. 8220;Obviously, batsmen have an upper hand as there is a lot of hitting going around. But they will also be under a lot of pressure and a couple of dot balls can add to that,8221; says the captain.

Mongia, meanwhile, comes up with another interesting observation. 8220;From what I have seen in England, teams prefer to set a target first. Nobody is keen on chasing. This was exactly what happened in one-day cricket till chasing became the trend. Now, India are one of the best chasers in the world,8221; he says.

But what they all agree to is this: the crowds are going to stream in. 8220;Personally, I have played a couple of Twenty20 matches and the atmosphere was good, a real crowd-puller,8221; says Dravid. 8220;Oh, it8217;s brilliant,8221; says Moss. 8220;The only time when English county cricket makes news,8221; says Mongia.

Forget the World Cup, that8217;s something Indian domestic cricket could really do with now 8212; for starters.

RULES TWENTY20

What is Twenty20?

They call it 8216;fast, furious and instant8217;. As if One-dayers weren8217;t furious enough. But one has to compete with soccer and other 90-odd minute pastimes these days.

ODIs were invented in Australia, purely for commercial purposes. Twenty20 was invented in Europe, also purely for commercial purposes, but there no person brash like Kerry Packer needed to drum it into administrative heads. Money talks.

It8217;s possibly a whole new ball game, or a step head of a whole-day occupation for cricketers, a potential pre-occupation for kids.

WHAT ARE THE PLAYING CONDITIONS?

Ground: Normal cricket grounds.

Rules: Traditional one-day rules.

Exceptions: Rules used for the first international game of 20/20 played in Australia, between Australia A and Pakistan 8212; January 13, 2005, Adelaide Oval.

8226; Twenty overs per side.

8226; Bowlers can bowl a maximum of 4 overs each.

8226; Fielding restrictions in the first six overs: Two fielders outside circle with a minimum of two stationary fielders.

8226; Fielding restrictions between seventh and twentieth over: Maximum five fielders outside circle.

8226; This one is great One no-ball called for foot-fault = 2 runs, plus batsman gets a free hit after a no-ball.

8226; As if 20 overs weren8217;t short enough, there is a time limit for each side to go through the 20 overs: Just 80 minutes.

8226; Teams get 15 minutes of limbering time or a drink time, maybe between innings.

8226; And in case you are REALLY lazy, and have failed to bowl all your 20 overs in those 80 minutes, you pay run penalties.

8226; Stay padded. A wicket falls means you run, the next batsman has 90 seconds after the fall of a wicket to get to the crease.

NOTE: These are early days, and the above rules are expected to undergo some stages of evolution by the time the World Cup is on us.