The series has been won. Some of the problems that
appeared difficult to overcome in England seem to have been sorted out. India now has bowlers who can bowl fast and hurry batsmen up and also polish off the tail with raw pace. Ashwin and Ojha both look fresh and hungry and have shown variety and most importantly the will to fight whenever there has been a partnership. Finally, the batting unit is fully fit with the settled opening pair back in business. The look and feel of the team suggests India will be competitive Down Under.
With just one more Test to play before the Boxing Day Test, a month from now, it might not be a bad idea to test all three untested players, Varun Aaron, Rohit Sharma and Rahul Sharma in the final Test. Varun and Rohit more so than Rahul because chances are only two spinners will make the squad for the Test matches in Australia. With Virat a certainty in place of Yuvraj, it will be worthwhile to see how Rohit fares up at the international level. He has loads of talent and can be the answer to India?s number six woes in Australia.
In all likelihood, the selectors will pick a 17-member squad for Australia. It is fair to do so, given the rigour and high stakes involved. And based on performances against the West Indies, most of the players pick themselves. In batting it has to be the tried and tested five?Sehwag, Gambhir, Rahul, Sachin and Laxman?with both Virat and Rohit fighting for the number six spot. Rahane, based on his impressive performances against the English, will make the reserve opener. The two wicket-keepers pick themselves. With Dhoni leading the team and Wridhhiman scoring a hundred in the first Ranji Trophy game of the season, Parthiv, it seems, will have to wait for his turn to make a comeback to Test fold. Moving on to the bowling slots you need five fast men Down Under and assuming Zaheer is fit, it isn?t difficult to identify the five who will make the cut. Zaheer, Praveen and Ishant followed by Umesh and Varun Aaron. For the two spin slots Ashwin and Ojha pick themselves on the back of their performances in the current series. While it is hard on Rahul Sharma, it is likely he will have to give way for the first half of the tour.
The two big names, Yuvraj and Harbhajan, both look like missing out. Harbhajan hasn?t been in the best of form in the Ranji trophy and with Sehwag back to bowling, it is likely he will do the fifth bowler?s job when the opportunity arises. For Yuvraj the wait can be mentally tough to combat. He did his best to overcome a bad illness and with his captain backing him in the post-match press conference, he had every reason to believe Mumbai will be his final chance. The dismissal at Delhi with just a run left to win appears to have gone against him. This is the one selection that creates a dilemma.
If Virat fails in Mumbai it wouldn?t be fair to judge him on the basis of the one performance. And Rohit, too, is untested at this level. The number six position is the one the Australians will target.
Overall it looks a competitive side, which has the variety, flair and a much needed balance. One can only hope and pray there are no injuries in the lead up to and during the first few matches of the tour. India needs to do well Down Under to restore confidence and pride and also to make a firm statement. A successful Australian tour will prove that England was an aberration, with continuous injuries making it impossible for Dhoni to mount a real fight. It will also set things up beautifully. After all, Australia is India?s final frontier. India has never won a series Down Under and the closest they came to doing so was in 2003-4 under Saurav Ganguly when Steve Waugh played a match saving hand in Sydney in his farewell Test. Dhoni, who has all the records an Indian captain can dream of, will want this final one?beating Australia in Australia. And it will also have fulfilled Sachin Tendulkar?s final wish. Not without reason, it is a series with genuinely high stakes.
The writer is a sports historian