Indian cricket is at the crossroad. Far too many aged cricketers whom the Australians would love to call Dad’s Army and very few youngsters who will go onto have a productive career. Some of the seniors are clinging on just because of their past exploits. With the WTC cycle between 2021 – 2023 complete, it is time to blood youngsters who may carry the torch of some really good players. The new WTC cycle starts with a series against the West Indies. The pitches in the Caribbean are not expected to be quick and it could be the ideal starting ground for the youngsters. Towards the end of the current WTC cycle, more than half of the current cricketers who represented the team in the last finals, will be 35 and above and their agility is bound to decrease which will make them a liability. The future of Indian cricket.

Does the selectors even have a succession plan? That is the pertinent question that needs to be raised at the moment. The recall of Rahane for the finals and the recall of Pujara before the Edgbaston Test in 2022 signifies that the selectors are actually clueless. What was the point of bringing them back after they were dropped about 6 months ago? Most of the times, selectors have like there aren’t enough talented cricketers on this land.

The experienced seniors

For now, atleast, Rohit Sharma is hanging by the thread. He is the captain though who just lost the WTC without a semblance of a fight. He probably is the most consistent batsman in the Indian team. I have set the standards very low. Anyone with an average of close to 40 over the last 4 years is consistent because the rest, Pujara, Kohli, Rahane and Gill hardly scored any. He is injury personified and missed a large part of 2022. At the most, he has only about a year left in international cricket. It is difficult to see him appear for India beyond the South African tour. As for captainship, the ODI World Cup in October will be his last.

Pujara, for all his exploits in the English County Division 2, his days as an international cricketer are behind him. Let the selectors not be fooled because of the tons of runs he makes for Sussex because the standard of Division 2 is poor. At Edgbaston, he was hardly able to get the ball off the square despite amassing runs for Sussex just a few weeks before the Test. He should never have been selected. Instead start performers in Ranji Trophy could have been given the opportunity.

The non-existent middle order

Rahane came back into the squad based on his exploits for CSK in the IPL. It really is a pity that IPL has now become the yardstick to select players for Tests. It should never be the case. Performance in Ranji or Duleep Trophy, which are proper 5 day games, must be the criteria. Having said that, Rahane was in good form in those games but what was the point of bringing back a 34 year old? How long can he continue to contribute?

Kohli is clearly on borrowed time. 4 years of absolute lacklustre performance. The phenomenal 4 years between 2014 and 2018 is keeping things ticking for him. He is clearly struggling to get out of the rut. I have always been a supporter of Kohli being given an extended run despite his lean period. However, that has now grown thin following the miserable WTC game. When his contemporaries, Root, Smith, Williamson et al are scoring runs for fun, Kohli seems to be fighting his own self. He is clearly shot of confidence and is unsure where his next run is going to come from.

All the above seniors must be clearly told that their selection from now on, will be on case-by-case basis. They need performance to carry them and not their reputation.

Captaincy conundrum

Rohit Sharma with his lack of fitness is clearly not my choice for captain. Right after the game against Australia, Rohit must have been removed and instead, Ashwin must have been made the captain. Why? Ashwin is a certain starter in the West Indies. Not for nothing is he known as The Professor. He is a good, thinking cricketer who always strives to improve his game. After Kohli, Ashwin must have been made the captain. Ofcourse, there were question marks over his place in the eleven outside of the sub-continent but he would have offset that with his skills as captain. He can contribute for another couple of years. Something that cannot be said about either Rohit or Rahane. He will be the ideal transition captain. If left to go abegging, India will lose the services of Ashwin the captain just like Australia lost the services of Warne the captain.

As for the longer term, I do not think Gill or Pant or for that matter, even Bumrah is the choice. The selectors must invest on someone who is good captaincy credentials. Ofcourse, it is not possible to have someone just for his skills as captain.

The seamers

Bumrah has been out of action for almost a year. His back is finally giving up after years of toil. Yes, Bumrah has been treated with kid’s gloves and has he really repaid that faith? It is doubtful. He plays every game in the IPL but selectively for India. He has certainly frustrated as a bowler. Shami is 32 but is frustratingly inconsistent. He does not really run through the sides as his bowling should. Siraj is bowling well and will probably spearhead the bowling in the short future.

Who after Jadeja & Ashwin?

Ashwin and Jadeja have been India’s match winners in the sub-continent for a very longtime. They have knee problems and as such are not expected to be around for more than a couple of years. Axar Patel, though good with the bat, cannot be the ideal replacement. Are there any spinners in Indian cricket?

Wrapping up future of Indian Cricket

It is time almost all of the seniors are let go within the next couple of years and youngsters are selected to replace them.

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The Indian cricket pitches

Whenever, a side from one of England, Australia, New Zealand comes to India, the one talking point is about the pitches. There will be lot of editorials on their newspapers stating that a minefield is awaiting their teams during their visit. Every pitch in any Test series will be doctored to suit the Indian spinners or to stump the visitors because of their lack of ability against spin. However, none of them thinks about the poor technique displayed by the visitors against spin. Not the perfect one but a better technique would have ensured that they prevail. Having said that, the Indian cricket pitches will probably have to change. Defeating India in India is one of the most toughest in the cricketing world. Defeating Australia and defeating South Africa are the other tough propositions. I have not included England or New Zealand because both the teams have lost rather a few games more than that is allowed. Over the last 23 years, India have lost less than 10 Tests at home with only 2 series losses. That is an incredible record to boast about. The sheer dominance at home is something no other team could achieve. Accusation against the team Despite that, the talk invariably turns to the pitches. There were lot of accusations on the Indian team that they will not be able to win so many games if the pitches weren’t so spin friendly. A few years ago, in 2015, against South Africa, both the teams, India and South Africa were unable to cross 300 once because the pitches turned square from ball one. The Nagpur pitch for the 3rd Test was rated poor. It left Kohli fuming. “Well, there have been three scores of under 50 runs in South Africa but I haven’t seen any sort of articles on that. Teams have been bundled out under 100 for about six times in South Africa,” he said. “The situation in our country is highlighted a bit too much and that’s a fact. Because the only thing we talk about is the pitch and when we were in South Africa, the only thing we talked about was how badly we played. We are criticised for our techniques but when visitors don’t play well, it’s always the wicket.” It is true what Kohli had said. There are lot of games in Australia and South Africa that have not exceeded 3 days. Especially, in South Africa, the pitches are overly favourable to the fast bowlers. Since South Africa can churn out them by the dozen, they have always prepared pitches that has incredible pace and bounce. They have always maximised the home advantage and particularly against the Asian nations. WTC Points system is another reason Likewise, India is also justified in preparing pitches that does not suit the opposing batsmen. Here I say the opponent’s batsmen is because even the Indians are not that good against spinners any longer. Just look at the number of games the Indians were tied down by spinners in white ball cricket that has prevented them from scoring huge runs or chase down one. The situation is not that better in Tests either. Nowadays, spinning pitches are prepared not because it is comfortable for India but because it is uncomfortable for the opponents. One other factor that warrants results oriented pitches is the WTC points system. It awards 12 points for a win and only 4 for a draw. It places great importance in playing attacking aggressive brand of cricket. WTC points is a significant motivator. Teams need wins to be in contention to play the final. Where does the chances for winning most of the games lie? It is at home where you know the conditions and you know how the pitches will behave. Hence, the need to prepare pitches where you give your team the maximum chance to win. “There is a huge premium on results,” Dravid said before the fourth Test. “You draw a game like Kanpur against New Zealand, where you take nine wickets in the second innings, you draw that game and that sets you back, in a home game. “Every team is getting results at home or are putting in really good performances at home, so there is a premium on results. You get four points for a draw and you get 12 for a win, so there is a premium on that, there’s no question about it.” It is time to return The downside of all this is that the averages and the performances of the batsmen have dropped drastically and the spinners are having inflated strike rates and averages. One will only have to compare the statistics of both Ashwin and Jadeja with their away record. It will clearly establish the fact that these two spinners, ofcourse they are good, are not as great as they are made out to be. Perhaps, the time has come to return to the more batting pitches that helped the Indian batsmen outscore their opponents. The spinners will have to really use their guile and intelligence to pick up wickets rather than just drop the ball and leave the rest to the pitches. There was a period, against England in 2017, where both the teams amassed runs and yet, India won handsomely 4-0. Ashwin & Jadeja still emerged as the highest wicket takers but they had to move out of their comfort zone. The Indian fast bowlers too had long bowling sessions. This was in stark contrast to how Bumrah asked to be left out of the squad in 2020 against England because he hardly had to bowl. Wrapping up the Indian cricket pitches The problem is not the turn but the dust that comes out of the pitch everytime there is an activity. Sri Lankan pitches have also turned but the soil does not come out. India have had similar pitches and it is time to return to that. 2 and 3 day games will kill the game. Let the batsmen be able to bat confidently. For inspiration, India will only have to think about the pitches against England in 2017.

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