Analyzing the debacle

Looking at Team India's disastrous performance against England, I believe that there were numerous reasons behind what transpired.

1) The BCCI

The Indian board have deservedly copped a good deal of flak for the spineless performances put up by Team India. As Ian Chappell put it, India with its sheer playing population coupled with the vast financial resources they possess should be at the top of the pile almost always. India have more cricketers than the rest of the cricketing world put together. Their financial clout is such that no decision in the cricketing world can be passed without the BCCI's say-so. Given this enviable situation that the Indians find themselves in, even if a fraction of these resources are used wisely, India should find themselves dominating world cricket more often than not. Unfortunately, the BCCI's sole intention seems to be to make as much money as possible and everything else comes a distant second.

The solutions are not complicated. The board must prioritize test cricket. Players that excel in the longer format of the game need to be rewarded better. Today, youngsters coming into the side have virtually no incentive in taking up test cricket. The disparity in earnings that exist between the IPL for instance and first class cricket is so vast that you often end up sympathizing with players even if they choose the former over the latter. For this mindset to change, better pay for first class cricket is mandatory.

The BCCI's scheduling is yet another issue that has in recent times attracted quite a lot of criticism. The players are not machines and cannot be expected to play every single day of the year. Adequate breaks need to be provided and enough time needs to be given to players to acclimatize before marquee test series'. It is not feasible to expect players, however good they may be, to just turn up and start firing. It does not work that way.

2) The IPL

Is the IPL responsible for all the ills plaguing Indian cricket at the moment? I don't think so. However, there is little or no doubt that the IPL needs to come under scrutiny if India are serious about improving as a test unit. The riches of the IPL are inducing more and more youngsters to play in a manner that stands them with literally no chance of success in test cricket. Batsman play two shots a ball knowing that even a quickfire 20 can be a match winning performance as far as T-20 is concerned. Bowlers are becoming increasingly defensive and the focus is on containing runs. Little wonder then that Indian fast bowlers (even the handful that did have the ability to bowl reasonably quick) are cutting down on pace.

The sheer duration of the IPL also means that players give themselves absolutely no time to rest. We must remember that even if a T-20 games lasts only for a couple of hours, the players still need to endure a grueling travel schedule in addition to nets and other practice routines. It is draining both physically and mentally and it is important that the organizers do something about this.

3) The decline of first class cricket

The BCCI & the IPL have directly and indirectly contributed to the demise of first class cricket in India. In fairness to the IPL, the decline of first class cricket started a couple of decades ago. The ever increasing popularity of ODI cricket started making the first class game increasingly irrelevant. Spectators had enough international cricket to watch all year around. This diminished their interest in the first class game. The substantial increase in the quantity of international cricket also meant that the big names started missing most of the first class games affecting viewer interest further. The BCCI realized that the first class game in the country was not going to fulfill their most important criteria, revenue generation, and therefore decided to do nothing to reverse the trend.

Today, not only does the domestic cricket schedule collide with international contests, it also has to make do with the likes of the IPL and the champions league. The BCCI's big money promotion of the IPL has meant that it is played in front of big crowds whilst the first class matches are more often than not played in front of the proverbial 2 men and a dog. For all the hype around the IPL, it does not teach cricketers the most important attribute required to attain success at the highest level; temperament.

4) The quality of Indian pitches

To achieve success away from home, it is imperative that India unearth talented quick bowlers and have in their ranks batsman who have the technique to deal with the moving / bouncing ball. Cricketers are also products of their environment. Indian batsman struggle to play the moving ball because they don't need to do so in India. Similarly, bowling fast in India is a thankless job as the pitch conditions provide bowlers with no assistance whatsoever.

Even wickets that have traditionally had something in them (the Chepauk wicket is a classic example) have today become impotent. Spin bowlers, a breed that has always prospered in India are not having everything go their way either. The unfairly derided 'dust bowls' have all but disappeared. The aim today, thanks to the advertising tycoons who want as much air time as possible, is not to prepare a wicket that allows for a good contest but to prepare a wicket that ensures that the match lasts for a full 5 days. Unless this changes, India will struggle to find bowlers that are willing to bowl fast, much like they will struggle to find batsman technically equipped to bat in difficult conditions.

5) The Selectors

Selecting teams is an unenviable job. It is a thankless task and every decision is likely to have its detractors. Nevertheless, Indian selection panels keep making so many unfathomable decisions that the criticism they so often come under is hardly surprising. I have never understood the reason behind the reluctance of the board to allow the selectors to explain their choices to the public. It is the public's love for the sport that have made the game so profitable in this country. Do the public then not deserve to know the reasoning behind selections?

An example for the mess created by the selectors is the revolving door policy adopted towards India's seam bowlers. India selected Abhimanyu Mithun for the tour to Sri Lanka last year. Injuries to the first choice fast men meant that Mithun debuted in that series and did not do badly. Fast forward a few months to the South African series and India unceremoniously dropped Mithun for Jaidev Unadkat and Umesh Yadav. Unadkat got one match and that was that whilst Umesh Yadav did not feature at all. They were both then axed for the series against the West Indies in which Mithun made a comeback. In England it was R.P. Singh, who had played no first class cricket since January, who was in-fact holidaying in the U.S.A at the time who got the call. This game of musical chairs needs to stop.

6) Attention to detail

In top level sport fitness is non-negotiable. Period. India's lackluster attitude towards fitness is hurting them big time. It also explains why Indian bowlers break down more often than bowlers from other parts of the world.

India's fielding in England was quite simply shocking. There can be absolutely no excuse for youngsters breaking into the side not fielding properly. The same problem exists with running between the wickets. Whilst other teams look to convert 1's into 2's, 2's into 3's and so on, India seem determined to do it the other way around. It is imperative that India ensure that certain criteria is satisfied before a player is selected into the national side and fielding sits at the top of that list.

The thrashing at the hands of England does not have to spell doom and gloom if lessons can be learnt from it. Unfortunately, the BCCI's single minded obsession with the financial aspects of the game is not likely to change. With India's great batsman well into the twilight of their careers, test cricket in India does not look in good health. Unless there is a complete change of heart in the upper echelons of the BCCI, the death knell may have just been sounded for test cricket. The future does not look hunky-dory.