#DhoniDropped & the thankless job

MS Dhoni has been officially dropped from the Indian T20 team. For the first time ever, since his debut, Dhoni misses out on an international game because of being dropped, not rested, not injured, or in case of the longest format, simply retired. He has been dropped. Well, it was coming. A good IPL 2018 season could not cover the fact that Dhoni's power game was on the wane. He is still one of the best wicket-keepers around, but the batting has definitely been on the slide. So what next for Dhoni? No ODIs for quite some time now, and no limited overs domestic matches either. He doesn't play first-class cricket any longer. So turning up for Jharkhand in the Ranji Trophy is also ruled out. So can he play in Big Bash or other T20 leagues for game time? Will BCCI permit such a thing?

There will be hue and cry on the social media on this drastic step from the selectors. To be honest, when hasn't there been a hue and cry for selections? Being a selector is the most thankless job in the world. After all, in public opinion, the players not selected are often the best in the world. However, being an Indian selector must be an even more thankless job. We have the widest pool of players to choose from (37 first-class teams!). Then our teams are most in demand across the world. We move from one tour to another. And its not just the national team, even the A squad seems to be constant tour. And sometimes there is the Board's president XI or the B team also in action somewhere maybe in a different format! Right now we have India playing the West Indies in ODIs while Deodhar trophy is also underway. That's 4 Indian teams in action simultaneously!

Selectors have simultaneously picked up squads for T20 Internationals at home against West Indies, a T20 series away in Australia, Test series in Australia and "A" Tests against New Zealand! No wonder it is a full-time paid job now. But as usual selections have raised more than a fair share of questions.

How did we pick squads for Australian T20s when we still have West Indies T20 games pending? Given that for home ODIs, teams were first picked for 2 games and then the remaining three? 

Kedar Jadhav does a press conference to announce his fitness and cites lack of communication with the chief of selectors. He has played a Deodhar Trophy match to prove his fitness also. Next day he is added for the remaining matches as well!

Coming to the Test squad now, Murali Vijay, Rohit Sharma & Parthiv Patel are back. Mayank Agarwal is dropped. Meanwhile Karun Nair is deported to the India A squad. The chief reason cited has been that players with past experience in Aussie conditions have been picked. Lets take it case by case

• Vijay after being dropped opted to play for Essex in County cricket, and put together a string of good scores . So has got the runs. But is he now the lead opener or back-up to Rahul & Shaw?
• Rohit Sharma is an ODI legend and a Test misfit. Should have been an automatic choice for the longer formats, but just hasn't got the runs in Tests to justify selection. And hasn't played any first-class cricket either.
• Parthiv Patel is the back-up keeper. He was also the back-up keeper back in 2002, when an injury to Ajay Ratra got him his debut. He has kept in Australia and sledged Steve Waugh! SO has the experience. Can open also. But it is an intriguing selection
• Mayank Agarwal forced his way after an almost 3,000 run domestic season. He still hasn't stopped scoring. But now finds himself out of favour without getting even a chance to fail?
• Karun Nair's case gets curiouser and curiouser. He is dropped after being on the becnh for long time. Now is also not in the squad for the first India A Test against the Kiwis. Although he leads the team for the last two A Tests?  

And how do you prepare for Australia by playing a single 4-day game in New Zealand?

And that is why being a selector is the ultimate thankless job!

#ThankYouSachin

The final test is here. And inspite of myself, I am feeling a little low. In my opinion, the retirement has been quite delayed, but now that the event is impending, something still seems wrong. After all Sachin Tendulkar has been part of the Indian team since, well, as long as I can remember.

I for one wasn't elated when a hastily planned farewell series was announced. After all this meant that a mouth-watering feast of India-South Africa contest has been reduced to a level of high tea. And all the over-the-top (read normal) media coverage and the grand plans (199 kg of rose petals, paintings as farewell gifts etc.) made it all worse. But now that the last match is here, the occasion is tinged with sadness. After all its another reminder that another of my childhood heroes is leaving the stage.  

Here is a little run-down of how the final test went by and what I was upto at the same time. To borrow a line from 24, events happen in real time.

Nov 14 - Day 1

Early Morning - Should I have gone to Wankhede? Sould I have tried for the tickets? Having "grown up" now, the enthusiasm has reduced dramatically. But... maybe I should have...

Its newspaper reading time. Lots & lots of anecdotes. There is a full pull-out section. Loved the little Sachin holding a bat picture...the random stories... the changed times... Yes 24 years is a lot of time!!! Ohh...and its Children's Day today. A childhood hero beginning to leave the stage on the most festive day of school life. Somehow quite apt.

Toss Time - I am planted in front of the TV. Got a rumour that Sachin might come for the toss instead of Dhoni. Rumour quashed, Dhoni wins the toss and elects to bowl. First thought - given the quality of West Indies cricket in recent times, there is only one last innings for Sachin. But I have to head for office. 

Record Alert - With the toss done Sachin Tendulkar becomes the first man to appear in 200 Tests. [Aside - probably the last one too?]

West Indies lose Gayle early, try to consolidate a bit, lose their way and get shot out for 182. During this while Ashwin takes his 100th Test wicket in his 18th test, fastest by an Indian, fastest since World War II and 5th fastest overall [Record Alert]. Dhoni reaches 250 Test dismissals and Ojha takes a 5 wicket haul.Will HE come out to bat today itself?

Tea time. I finally read the Rohit Brijnath article that everyone has been raving about (Click here). More nostalgia. And while I am at it, I read one about my own cricketing God, Rahul Dravid (Click here). And while I am still at, an old Tendulkar blog post by yours truly (Click here for some shameless self-promotion - It was once the top entry on google search for "Sachin Tendulkar")

Post-Tea Session - Indian openers hurtling away. I am wondering if West Indies were worthy opponents for this occasion. Wouldn't giving Ireland Test status have been a more befitting memory. People who managed Day 4 & 5 tickets/passes would be extremely worried about the match lasting the distance.

Landmark Almost Forgotten - Its Shivnaraine Chanderpaul's 150th Test match. Good going Sir.[Aside - Shivnaraine & son Tagenaraine have appeared together for Guyana in first class cricket. Will they become the first father-son pair to play in the same Test match?]

Meanwhile Dhawan gets out. So the all important question - Will it to be Vijay or Pujara getting a standing ovation on getting out? ... And Murali Vijay it is whose wicket is celebrated by the crowd.

3:30 P.M. - HE has walked into bat... (maybe for the last time?) Why the hell I am in office at this time? Why didn't I try for the tickets? WHY? WHY?? WHY??? Runs scored... so the Bradman fate has been avoided. Only other alternative - go out with a century - like Greg Chappel or Azhar.  Which reminds me - Azhar was walking down Sachin on his first test (pic here), Manoj Prabhakar was the one alongside him for his first test century (pic), Nayan Mongia was giving him comapny in the great Chennai innings of 1999 and Ajay Jadeja was his last opposing captain in Ranji trophy (pic). Quite a comprehensive list of unsavory characters here :P

Back on the field - 1st boundary has gone like a tracer bullet (please excuse the side-effect of having listened to years of Ravi Shastri's commentary). Statutory Warning - This is going to be a long blog. Into double digits now. Pujara is also batting, not that anyone is looking at his or India's score... BUT HE BETTER NOT RUN OUT SACHIN.  HIS score crosses a "score" (couldn't resist the pun). If following online commentary is making me goosebumpy, can't even imagine the feelings of the chosen ones in the stands.

Day 1 ends with SRT at 38 not out. #DecisionTime - Should I bunk office tomorrow? And by the way, India trails by 25 runs with 8 wickets in hand.

Returns from office... Listening to FM Radio. Every song on every channel is interspersed with chants of Sachin... Sachiiiin. Well on FM at least one Godly quality is on full display - HIS omnipresence.

To Be Continued...

Arbit Statistics - 19: Shikhar Dhawan Debut Edition

India register their 3rd victory in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy this time managing to beat Time along with the Aussies. And along the way, help Arbit Statistics to get another post.

• Shikhar Dhawan scores the "fastest century by a debutant" off 85 balls.
• Shikhar Dhawan becomes the highest scoring Indian on Test debut.
• Shikhar Dhawan currently has the highest Test batting average of all time (185)
• Murali Vijay is the now the Tamil Nadu batsman with the most Test centuries (3).
• Mitchell Starc 1st no. 9 to score 99.
• Australia have now lost 6 consecutive Tests in India.

Totally useless statistics. But then this is what cricket is best known for. The last one is the most telling about the state of Aussie cricket.

P.S. Slipstream Cricket salutes SIR RAVINDRA JADEJA. May your Legend Rise Higher and Higher.

Arbit Statistics - 18

The Arbit Statistics return after a long hiatus. India's huge victory in the 2nd Test at Hyderabad have led to a list of some quirky statistics which deserve to be, umm... listed.

1. Australia have become the 1st team in Test history to have lost the match by an innings after declaring the 1st innings. A singularly unique achievement. 
2. The 2 Australian innings combined scored 368 runs which was 2 short of the Vijay-Pujara stand. To put further perspective to the value of the partnership, the rest 9 Indian wickets added 133 runs.
3. With this win (his 22nd as captain), MS Dhoni now climbs to the top of the leaderboard for the most Test wins by an Indian captain moving ahead of Saurav Ganguly.

Now, awaiting some more odd stats, as the series progresses.

IPL5 - Post 4 - Qualifier2 Thoughts

Hadn't planned on writing much during the IPL. And a single match review was certainly out of the question. But the way the events in the 2nd Qualifier between Delhi Daredevils & Chennai Super Kings unfolded have left quite a few uncomfortable questions in my mind.

Chennai played extremely well. After losing the toss and being asked to bat first, their entire batting line-up came good while Delhi's bowling failed. The score of 222 was highly unlikely to be chased down and Delhi imploded in the run chase. Nothing much to be read out in the way the game played out. A one-sided game in the knock-outs is nothing unusual and in itself shouldn't warrant any suspicion except in some nutcases. But there were quite a few events which lead to lets just say, doubts in the mind.

• Morne Morkel not in the playing XI. Why? No cricketing logic can explain the absence of the lead wicket-taker of the tournament in a knock-out game. And if he was injured then why aren't Delhi open about it.
• Shahbaz Nadeem had a good start to the tournament, winning 2 Man of the Match awards.. Then later on was dropped in favor of Pawan Negi (maybe because of Negi's better batting abilities). But still did not return for the eliminator. Instead a newcomer Sunny Gupta was handed an IPL debut. Logic of playing Sunny & omitting Nadeem, if any exist, are not easy to figure out.
• Murali Vijay, who was a bit out of form steps down the track to loft Sunny Gupta's first ball for a boundary. The confidence probably coming out of a sense of familiarity. After all, Sunny plays Ranji Trophy for Tamil Nadu. But why was he handed the first over. As a shock weapon?
• Some fielding mishaps. Happens. Not much should be read in here.
• Now for the chase. Sehwag, for the first time ever in IPL does not come out to open the innings. The logic looks quite dodgy given that he is the best bet to chase down the target.

So a series of strategic(???) decisions which Delhi took backfired badly on them. And CSK romped home in a pretty convincing fashion. But for the neutral viewer, all the events taken together make it look really fishy. Its hard not to jump on to the "scripted" conclusion. And N. Srinivasan's conflict of interests (BCCI & CSK head) makes the jump even easier. 

I hope the match was clean. But there has been a seed of doubt sown in the mind. (And not just mine, my facebook & twitter feed also has similar views).