Cricket Xtra: Tendulkar's radical plan

Ajit Vijaykumar 06:36 05/12/2016
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  • Sachin Tendulkar has some radical suggestions for Indian cricket. And no they do not pertain to those proposed by the Supreme Court of the country regarding changes to the Indian board’s administrative structure.

    Rather they are about preparing batsmen and bowlers in the domestic circuit for greater challenges once they step up to the international level.

    The iconic India batsman hopes to see domestic four-day games being played in a totally different environment, with two separate balls – Indian-made SG and Australian Kookaburra – and with both innings on different surfaces – the first on a green top and the second on a dust bowl.

    According to Sachin, if teams play their first innings on a green surface against the Kookaburra ball, which is used everywhere else in the world apart from India and England in Tests, then batsmen and bowlers will get used to them in conditions that should be closer to those in, say, South Africa or New Zealand.

    Then in the second innings, the focus will shift to the second, dry pitch where the spinners will come to the fore with the SG ball.

    There are some practical issues like availability of two such pitches  at each ground all over the country. But if we look at just the idea, it is worth considering because it should, over a period of time, allow batsmen and bowlers to at least become accustomed to facing varying conditions.

    With such a set-up, Indian batsmen can, theoretically, become better players of seam and the spinners can also get used to the red Kookaburra and bowling on green surfaces in the first innings.

    However, such solutions also have a downside. The first that comes to mind is that players won’t get to play on flat surfaces. Batsmen need to know how to score big hundreds and bat for long periods to realise their potential and know how far they can go.

    Bowlers also need to go through the grind on unresponsive surfaces to develop their art and bring in new variations to keep batsmen guessing.

    Secondly, there could be a certain standardisation of conditions where players switch from one innings to the other without any sense of continuity. So, results will be achieved but on the back of a disjointed process.

    While having a set of players who can adapt to most conditions and deliver consistent results is a dream of every team, we must acknowledge existing set-ups allow players to develop in a particular environment and include its characteristic in their style of play.

    Tendulkar bats for two pitches in Ranji matches

    Tendulkar bats for two pitches in Ranji matches

    It is particularly true for batsmen as they tend to develop their back-lift and footwork depending on the kind of pitches they have grown up on.

    If we talk of India, batsmen from Mumbai tend to be excellent players of fast bowling and one of the major reasons are the wickets which traditionally have very good pace and carry.

    Sunil Gavaskar, Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane are excellent examples. Tradition and coaching style can not be overlooked but wickets play the biggest role.

    It is also one of the reasons why Yorkshire has produced so many quality batsmen for England. Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow are continuing a long list of excellent Yorkshire batsmen to represent the country.

    And it is the wicket at Headingley, which has assisted fast bowlers of all kind, that has played a role in forcing batsmen to improve their technique and temperament to reach the next stage.

    There is a certain style of batting and bowling that develops all across the globe. Subcontinental batsmen have excellent wrists because they work the ball around more. Australian batsmen are good on the pull because the wickets there are hard. Asian fast bowlers’ actions are a bit more round-arm as they need it to generate traditional and reverse swing.

    Spinners in England and Australia have to use their wrists more as wickets are less responsive while subcontinent spinners rely on their fingers as they have the liberty to play around with variations. Is it wrong to maintain that?

    If we have drastic conditions for all games, players might become good in a few areas but may not become truly excellent in one.

    THE NEXT BOND?

    Ever since Shane Bond retired in 2011, New Zealand have been searching for their next pace ace. Adam Milne provided a brief hope but injuries and lack of wickets have halted his career. But the Kiwis have a new hope.

    Lockie Ferguson cranked up the speed gun to over 150kmph against Australia in the first ODI, and also claimed the wicket of David Warner in the first over. While the 25-year-old ended up with figures of 1-73 from nine overs, his raw pace was Bond-esque.

    New Zealand must now take care of Ferguson because a genuine fast bowler is a rare commodity and more so in a country like New Zealand, that has a very small pool of players to choose from.

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