Gameplan Rethink

The Indians imploded sooner, and in a worse manner, than anybody would have expected. There’s no need to panic just yet, though (contrary to what the heading for this post suggests). However, it’s clear that the Indians are going to have to maximize their resources to pull a rabbit out of the hat here. Here are a few thoughts.

Maximize the powerplays
Yes, that’s obvious, you say? What’s also obvious is that Kaif (and Dravid for that matter) is not the right personnel to do that. All’s fine with experimenting and such, but there’s gotta be some modicum of reasoning and sanity here. If the Indians wanted to surprise the South Africans, almost anybody (even Agarkar) would have been a better choice than Kaif. Both Kaif and Dravid also tend to be overly defensive when the chips are down, and at times fail to capitalize even on the bad balls. Pathan is showing the right attitude at the moment, and he’s already more successful than the two combined.

Hedge the supersubs
This will be very important in the D/N games because of the due factor. Basically, the Indians should name an extra batsman in the line-up and have a bowling supersub. I am surprised Dravid didn’t do that here as well. Looks like he’s midjudged the importance of the toss, expecting the pitch to assist batting throughout.

Know whom to attack
India need to be careful in their choice of powerplays. They shouldn’t be afraid to take the powerplays in the 20s or even the 30s. I think everybody throughout the world has been overly cautious with this. Also important is to identify the typically slower players in the opposition (Kallis comes to mind immediately) and use a powerplay when they come to the crease. The weaker bowlers (Botha, the new spinner) also need to be attacked. I am not saying that India’s not doing either of these: we haven’t reached that part of the game yet and the Indians very well might employ these strategies.

Know where to attack
When asked how they were going to counter Kemp, Dravid said that they were not targetting any individuals but were concentrating on the entire team and the process. This statement confused and unsettled me. How can you concentrate on the entire team without looking at any of the individuals? They’re not looking to find best ways to attack batsmen? Surely, knowing what a batsman’s zone of discomfort (or even comfort) is can only be helpful in determining where to bowl to him.

Win or lose, there’s always room for improvement and lessons to be learnt. The Indians need to stay on top of those. They shouldn’t go on the defensive because of this game, but remain positive. The rising Indian team has gotten the test we all wanted. The gauntlet is down, and the series is far from over. No matter what the results, the fans need to back this team.