India vs South Africa Test Series - a Disaster or a Blessing in Disguise for India's young brigade

                                     

For I am a lover of cricket, at most times which is the only other thing I am interested in, apart from my family, friends and profession. Sometimes when I am shut down by failure, I look up to some cricket videos to wake me up and at times it keeps me in my bubble to combat the taxing demands of life and pressure at the office. I watched the India tour of South Africa - Test series 2013 with great interest as it had a lot to play and watch for.

India had the best ODI record in 2013 winning six out of seven series^# including the Champions Trophy in England. Their Test record was also not bad with six Test match wins in a row before this series, albeit all of them coming at home.  Importantly, the last two Test series away from home India lost eight in a row. The series was also clouded by administrative conflicts between the two boards and it made a lot of people angry – the SA supporters, players, and even journalists. When the Indian team arrived in South Africa, Dhoni was even asked what he would do if someone threw something into the field from the stands in anger. South African media was looking to put off the Indian side whatever the way possible, not to forget the broadcasters who had a video tape under the caption ‘Kohli softened up’ after he got some blows from bouncers in the ODI series. To add to the misery, India were beaten comprehensively 2-0 in ODI series and no one gave India a chance, not even the most optimists.

Indian batting was under the scanner, as for the first time none of the Fabulous Four (Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman and Ganguly) playing and no Sehwag, Gambhir too. Even the experienced seniors failed to rescue the team in the last eight defeats abroad. The most experienced batsman in the lineup was Kohli with 19 Test matches, among which only seven Test matches in abroad. It was a completely inexperienced batting lineup and there were question marks on their ability to cope up against the best bowling attack in the world.  Not  to forget that this South African team is no. 1 Test team in the world and have not been beaten in a series since March 2009. The world’s top two* bowlers are the Proteas fasts, bowling in the series along with Morne Morkel (ranked 12*). There were questions about Indians as flat track bullies and would have trouble against bouncing balls.

However, this young batting lineup stood firm and had answers for the South African bowling attack as they piled more than 400 runs in the second innings of the first Test, which is remarkable as it is only the fifth time a touring team had scored more than 400 in a Test innings in South Africa in the last four years.  India dominated the first four days of the first Test at Johannesburg and almost pushed South Africa to the brink. In the second Test, India was not out of the game until the last day. India probably lost the second Test and as a result the series because of a poor morning session on Day five. To have countered this South African team until the last session of the series with a victory is itself a big achievement considering how India entered the series.

If you are a reader of headlines, the end result is a loss 1-0 for India. One can bark aloud about the Indian team doing poorly in foreign conditions again. To have been beaten again is tough as it lingers not only in mind but also it goes in the records as another series loss away from home. But if you are a cricket lover and someone who looks beyond the results, statistics and headlines, then you have a lot to praise for this Indian team performance. Moreover, this defeat unlike the previous two series in England and Australia was not in surrender but was a battle that this young Indian brigade went toe to toe with the Saffers.

The batting of Pujara, Kohli and Rahane were highly impressive and they were the top three in the run-getters list in the series above all the South African players. They were not afraid to take on the bouncers and played the pulls very well and were severe on over pitched deliveries and made sure to dispatch them to the boundary. The most noticeable thing was their temperament to leave the balls outside off stump, and in my opinion these guys have even outscored their seniors of the previous era as well as their opponents. Murali Vijay whom many doubted about his spot in the Test side, did a fabulous job in blunting the new ball and making it easier for the rest of the batters.

The bowling attack did well in the first Test. But in the second Test it failed due to the negative strategy of bowling with the old ball to slow down the scoring rate. Ashwin who was the quickest to 100 wickets earlier this year did not acclimatize to the conditions and he must work on the speeds, length of his bowling. Jadeja or Ojha might be the way ahead in Tests abroad. Shami on his first tour abroad did an exceptional job with wickets throughout the series. But India lacked the ‘X-factor’ in the bowling. It would not be a bad idea if India look at Umesh Yadav as the pace option to hit the pitch hard and fast to make it difficult to score, a kind of job that Morne Morkel does for South Africa. India might need to sort out how they manage the work load of their quickies with only four specialist bowlers and no street-smart part time bowler in the lineup.

In nut shell, India can take loads of positives especially from this batting performance as they travel to New Zealand, England and Australia after this. One can hope that if this batting lineup bats like this in the tours to come, with help from the bowling attack, they can really post big challenges as a team.  Time will tell, if this Indian team and its batting line up have a legacy to make. As of now, India gave South Africa a run for their money in the concluded Test series, which the Indian team and their fans can hold their heads high and be proud, as not many teams have managed to do so.

Any comments and feed backs will be of appreciation and thanks for your time and efforts in reading this piece.

(*as on December 30, 2013; ^#those series started and concluded in 2013)