Two offies, two stars, one point to prove

These are just the first volleys across the bows of the ICC with the Asia Cup just around the corner. Mike Procter, as the senior ICC match tournament referee, declined to explain what brief the ICC had issued him and Roshan Mahanama when the tournament starts. Procter is in Dambulla where India and Sri Lanka meet on July 18 and gets a chance to check out Murali against the United Arab Emirates on Saturday, when Sri Lanka begins their quest. It can be assumed, though, that Procter will make careful note of Murali’s action during the series, especially in the Dambulla games where India and Sri Lanka are based in the Group B.

What is interesting is that Bhajji’s doosra delivery has not been questioned, although his action was early in his career and he had remedial action. Bhajji is more worried about his rehabilitation in the Indian squad than the need to ponder over the techniques required to bowl the off-spinner’s flipper. It has been a frustrating time for the graceful Punjab off-spinner, recently turned 24 and now recovered from tricky finger surgery.

Dambulla’s surface and the general conditions will at least give Bhajji a chance to test his skill if selected for the opening game on Friday against the UAE. Sourav Ganguly will also use the UAE outing to feel out the venue as they make their first appearance in the Sri Lanka heartland with its dusty, dry surrounds and far from Colombo’s monsoon-soaked streets and venues.

Ganguly has become more methodical in his approach to leadership and it shows as his career in charge of the side continues. He is a smart operator, working at times through intuition and — what Bhajji will be needing — a disciplined thought process.

For one thing, Bhajji’s style of attacking off-spin is different to that of Murali’s. He is more balanced in his approach and delivery and his body is as classic as you will find of any modern spinner, at times evoking memories of England’s John Emburey. His 104 limited-overs wickets have come at a higher cost than he would have liked while the run/overs rate of 4.16, though acceptable, does show he is an attacking spinner.

Murali is more competitive with an average below 24 and run/overs rate under 3.50; yet he is also a bowler who can be taken apart. There were times during last year’s World Cup when he looked very ordinary against top batsmen. One example was at the Wanderers, where he last bowled to Sachin Tendulkar — he looked unsettled despite the bounce from the pitch.

Although he took three wickets for 46 against India, Tendulkar gave a flawless display of technique and footwork only to fall three runs short of a century.

Dismissed for 109 in 23 overs, Harbhajan didn’t get a chance to bowl against the Sri Lankans. Maybe Dambulla will give him a chance and perhaps deliver the doosra as well.