It was a disastrous tour of South Africa. Whichever way you look at it. There is no escaping from this plain fact. A tour that was supposed to announce to the world that India is now the undisputed leader irrespective of the WTC final result, has ended in one disappointment after another. For every Indian fan, the ignominy of this tour will linger in the memory for years to come. South Africa has become the new Australia for India in that we are unable to win a series despite multiple attempts.
Were the expectations unreasonable?
India were expected to create history. India were expected to become only the 4th team to win atleast one series in every country where they have played over their entire cricketing history. England, Australia and South Africa remain the teams that have won across every condition and in every country. The ICC must mandate this as the first condition for a team to be ranked as numero uno. South Africa achieved that in just over 30 years is rather impressive. India were expected to join these teams with a win in South Africa. They went with the best possible combination save for a couple of first choice players and South Africa on the otherhand, were inexperienced and not much was expected from them. Before the series began, the discussion was whether India will win 2-0 or 3-0 but what transpired on the field was the exact opposite.
In hindsight, to win the first test and that too convincingly perhaps infused lot of complacency into the rank and file of the team. They must have felt that South Africa are ripe for the taking and that proved their undoing. India weren’t prepared for a South African onslaught. They weren’t prepared for a South African bowling rejuvenation and the batting of Keegan Pietersen.
Board, selectors and Rahul Dravid cannot escape blame
The selectors, the BCCI and the team management must all share equal responsibility for this disgrace. They placed their faith on players who weren’t able to raise their standards. Be that Pujara, Rahane and Mayank or be that in the choice of making Rahul a temporary captain. Deserving candidates like Vihari and S. Iyer were kept out to prolong the careers of Pujara and Rahane. Atleast in the case of Mayank it was understandable. He was coming off a successful series against New Zealand and he was expected to start the series. Kohli’s ego and inflexible attitude is another reason for the surrender. With another series squandered, Kohli’s legacy has taken a severe beating. He hasn’t won a single series in the SENA countries except for the 2018 one which doesn’t count for obvious reasons.
Towards the end of the series, Indians were left with the ghastly sight of 3 of their most experienced cricketers shouting at the stump mic. It summed up everything that went wrong. It really pays to play for the most powerful cricketing nation. Whatever you do, the ICC is spineless to take any action.
I have written enough about the tests and so I will stop here.
ODI series was another disaster
If the test series turned out to be disappointing, the ODI series turned out to be a disaster. 0-3 is not what you would expect. Especially, after winning so handsomely during the last series. It turned out to be a blessing that the T20 series was postponed. Otherwise, that would have been another 0-3. It is onething to plan for the next world cup and it is quite another to lose the current games. You are expected to win a majority of the game while planning for the world cup that is 2 years away.
One good thing to happen on this tour is that Rahul will or must not be considered as captain in any format anytime. His position in the team itself is quite tenuous. It was a mistake to have made him the vice-captain in the first place. He probably has the worst initiation to cricket captaincy. Losing all the 4 games. I have said this before and I will say this again. Rahul is not an international opener. Particularly in limited overs. He does not have a clue what to do if he is asked to open. He gets into a shell and refuses to come out. His ideal position is number 5 or 6 where he can express himself.
Another merry go around
Another mistake was sending Pant at number 4. It is hard to believe that even after 5 years, India has not been able to find a stable number 4. It could also be that those who were found, were not given consistent run. Sheyas Iyer played at that position from his first game and suddenly he finds himself demoted by one. Why would someone do that? Pant who was found to be disastrous in the 2019 WC, is now back at that position. His position is at 6. Indian management will do well to stick with Shreyas Iyer at number 4 till the end of the next world cup. Venkatesh Iyer, who has hardly played a handful of first class games is now a first choice player.
It seems IPL performance is the yardstick for players to be selected to play international tests and ODIs. This is ridiculous and must change. Players who have hardly played first class cricket will not know what pressure is and how to handle it. Agreed, Ranji pressure and the pressure at the highest level is vastly different but these players will not be able to handle even the slightest of pressure. V. Iyer looked all at sea against the South African bowlers. It seemed that he does not have the middle game of rotating the strike which he would have learned if he had played more than 75 FC & List A games.
Surya and Kohli
Surya Yadav who is in the form of his life was dropped in favour of V. Iyer. That was stupid. What feedback does that give him? Despite his form and despite his rich experience at the first class level, he is not good enough to be placed above someone who has hardly played any. Surya is not young and he does not have too many years of cricket. It is time Indian cricket makes proper use of him.
Kohli’s search for that elusive hundred has certainly placed enormous pressure on him. It is clear in the way he bats. He does start slowly but gradually increases the tempo and finishes with a flourish. All of that except for the first part was missing in this series. Lack of hundreds is weighing heavily on him. Dravid must ask him to forget about that and play freely. A free Kohli is a dangerous Kohli for the opponents. Will Rohit be able to do that?
Bowling is a worry
The experiment with Ashwin must stop. He is not good enough in limited overs. Kohli and Shastri identified that long ago and Rohit and Dravid must realise that now. He is 35 and does not have the time to improve. Kuldeep and Chahal who were the prime reason for India winning so many games just before the 2019 WC must be rejuvenated. The board and the selectors must make every effort for them to regain the form. Especially, Kuldeep who with his left-arm angle will always be a wicket taking bowler. Kuldeep must be trained to hit and ball and Chahal to hold the bat which will help in team balance.
Conclusion to disastrous tour of South Africa
This tour has ended but it must not be forgotten. Indian cricket must always been reminded how they let go off of a wonderful opportunity.