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Natural talent must flow

India have the ideal venue and timing for their opening one-day international against Pakistan on January 10. Brisbane is, I believe, the best cricket ground in Australia and in drawing the second game of a double-header there, India will have the best of the wicket.

In addition, of course, Pakistan will probably be a little weary from having played Australia the previous day. As this is also a day-night game, Pakistan may find it tougher to front up the next day for another evening encounter.

India's major problem this season has been handling the pace bowlers. However, the second day in Brisbane generally provides a wonderful one-day wicket and the Indians must make the most of it. They must cast off the negative shadow which clouded their tactics and judgment and give their natural talent full reign. VVS Laxman showed in the second innings of the third Test at Sydney that the Australian bowlers have to be handled with authority and mentally aggressive batting. His magnificent batting wasn't a slather and whack affair, but cool, precise and confident ball selection. The Indian batsmen have the talent to be competitive and the laws of one-day cricket will make their task easier. They will not be subjected to a barrage of short deliveries, nor will they have six or seven fieldsmen hovering around like vultures in close fielding positions.

However, they will need to show much more energy while batting if they are to succeed. Perhaps the most noticeable feature in the Tests was the difference in the running between the wickets of the two teams. India looked slow, slovenly and even uninterested while the Australians pushed hard and continually picked up the extra runs while India seldom got out of second gear. It may be okay to sit back and rely on the small Test grounds in India and concentrate on boundaries, but the big, slower and lusher grounds in Australia do not allow this. I would conservatively estimate that India lost 30 runs a day through faulty and lazy running between the wickets.

The new players added to the team for the one-day matches should inject a little more enthusiasm for they have not been subjected to the tough times of the Test. Robin Singh's enthusiastic presence on the field will specially lift the team and add energy and talent to the infield. I would also like to see captain Sachin Tendulkar remove himself from mid-on and get into the action positions. While it is okay to be in close proximity to your bowlers, Sachin, the best fielder in the team, needs to be in the thick of things to motivate and inspire his team.

Finally, the Indian bowlers suffered as much as the batsmen during the Test series and Agarkar was the best with 11 wickets at 31.91. The most worrying aspect, though, is that all the bowlers allowed over 3 runs per over. Kumble was the least expensive at 3.07 runs per over, while Srinath conceded 3.6. This is obviously not good enough and the bowlers must keep their cool and bowl to a game plan if India are to make a mark on the triangular series.

Gameplan

Bobby Simpson