When Rahul Dravid's team won a Test series in the English summer of 2007, it was not the first time India had tamed the old enemy in their den.
When Rahul Dravid's team won a Test series in the English summer of 2007, it was not the first time India had tamed the old enemy in their den. But it was probably the first time that an England captain spoke in extraordinarily glowing terms about India's pace bowling.
Here's an extract of a report which appeared in MiD DAY on August 14 of that year: England have been left with no option but to applaud, appreciate and acknowledge victorious Team India's cutting edge. At the Brit Oval yesterday, where India drew the third and final Test to win the series by virtue of their victory in Trent Bridge, England skipper Michael Vaughan admitted that the left-arm swing of Zaheer Khan and Rudra Pratap Singh had them on the hop with their swing. "We've been asked different questions against the left-arm angles which we haven't seen before," the losing captain said of the southpaws. "It's important to learn from them."
Three years hence, S Sreesanth, who was part of that three-man pace attack, is out with a knee injury; Zaheer Khan's shoulder injury caused him to head to South Africa for treatment and R P Singh, who gave swing bowling such a good name, is out of favour following an injury. It's not rare for fast bowlers to break down.
However, the manner in which India are losing out on the fast bowling edge is worrying. It must boil down to overload considering modern-day cricketers have to play all three forms of the game. Yet, this problem can be checked through judicious selection and scheduling.
A classic example of mindless scheduling concerns the very country that India is touring at the moment. This is the second Test series India will play in Sri Lanka since 2008. That apart, they have participated in four one-day competitions in two years. How will India's cricketing stocks improve by playing in Sri Lanka so often is something only the administrators can understand.
A rotation policy has to be in place and adhered to consistently if India's cricketing treasures are to be preserved.
Greg Chappell, who coached the team from 2005 to 2007 was slammed in some insensitive sections of the media when he indulged in some judicious selection of the playing XI. At one of the Press briefings, Chappell retorted, "You call it rotation, we call it strategy."
There is no question of a rotation policy now with the quality bowlers on the injured list, but India need to take fresh guard. If a series loss in Sri Lanka is a price to pay,
so be it.
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