Off Stump

As always, the Indian media has a tendency to go overboard after a big win, especially one against Australia. And this time journos from other countries are joining in too. So now on the back of one (admittedly very comprehensive) win, India are suddenly world-beaters and the Aussies are chumps headed for a drop like the West Indies in the mid-90s. Funny what people write nowadays to generate copy :-) Now, I was pretty chuffed at the way India played and the way they dominated the match right from the onset. I've never seen them play with so much steel and verve at the same time over five days, so yes if they keep playing like this, they will be the team to beat. But that's a big if. The last time they won two tests in a row in a series was back in 2005 against Sri Lanka (at home of course). And the last time they won two in a row against Australia was back in 2001 in that epic series. So, before writing obituaries of Australian dominance and anointing India as the next world c

So we're at the halfway point of the series and so far its been enthralling, even if the cricket hasn't always been. The most pleasing aspect has been that is has been so unpredictable and that most of the pre-series predictions have turned out to be totally wrong. I think this is what makes Test cricket so fascinating for me as a sport, something that the one-day and T20 formats (though they have their own thrills) are never quite able to showcase. The Indians have played far better and much more as a team than I expected them to. They usually start all series somewhat sluggishly (akin to how I start a week sometimes ;-)) so its good to see that they picked themselves up starting with Harbhajan and Zaheer's batting in the first innings in Bangalore and haven't looked back since. Zaheer, along with Ishant Sharma, has also been instrumental in knocking down the pre-series expectation that the Aussie pace attack would outshine the Indian duo. Its been great to see the two

The recent change of the selection committee brought to mind once again how under-rated Vengsarkar was as a batsman. To an extent, justifiably I suppose given that his record (overall and abroad particularly) definitely doesn't let one classify him as a great batsman. He probably wouldn't even make my Indian top 5 of all time. But he was a valuable player at a time when we didn't have that many batsmen to support Gavaskar and Vishwanath (given the shabby treatment that Mohinder Amarnath always received) and always did his utmost to rise above his limitations as a player. My memories of him will always be of a player who struggled in the West Indies and Australia but that is only because I happened to start watching cricket at a time when he was nearing the end of his career. More recently, he's been the best selector that India has had in some time and is greatly responsible for India's recovery as a one-day team and in India having a pool of pace bowlers to pick fr

So after all the many weeks of hype, the first Test between India and Australia starts in a week's time. Its been a while since I saw some quality cricket on TV so am definitely looking forward to it. In terms of the two teams, I think they are more evenly matched than ever in the recent past which makes picking a winner incredibly hard. And interestingly, the gap has been closed because the Indian bowling attack's stronger than its been in a while and the Aussie one has grown weaker at the same time. Brett Lee's form will probably be one of the deciding factors of the series as will Harbhajan's. To me they are the key bowlers on either side with the rest having to provide strong, steady support. As for the batting, the pressure will certainly be on the Indian veterans and I for one think that they'll be up to the task and surprise a few people. Dravid is my bet to perform the best amongst the four but I think they'll all come through ok. The key for India in th