MS Dhoni is looking to iron out Indian team's rough edges ahead of the World Cup.
A few calls, some text messages and a few Tweets are enough indication of the fact that the Indian cricket fan has started nibbling fingernails in the wake of the team's two defeats by Australia and England in the Carlton Mid tri-series. The gist of those messages is simple: Do the Indian cricketers inspire the confidence that they can defend the ICC Cricket World Cup?
The answer is not a simple yes or no. It lies in understanding that the World Cup is some distance away. It may not be easy but it makes sense for the Indian fan to be patient, conserve energies and passion for the World Cup itself rather than expend them in the stroll to the Big Tent with myriad questions while the team irons out the rough edges that are showing.
Quite obviously, there are areas of concern for the Indian team. Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni makes tacit admission of some of these areas, not the least being the bowling at either end of an innings, the batting woes of Shikhar Dhawan and fitness issues. But, viewed dispassionately, he is perhaps working his way around all of these. There seems to be a method to his approach.
Dhoni appears to have a solid game plan up his sleeve as he seeks to become only the third man after Clive Lloyd of the West Indies and Ricky Ponting of Australia to lead victorious teams in two successive World Cup campaigns. He does explain his decisions in the tri-series because he is aware of the larger goal.
For fans and critics used to treating each match in isolation, however, it may be hard to comprehend some of the team's tactics. But if you pause for a moment and reflect on the moves by the Indian side in the tri-series, you may find some hints that India are perhaps using the tournament as an extended warm-up ahead of the main event.
Dhoni's decision to bat first on winning the toss both at Melbourne against Australia and at Brisbane against England is a case in point. Normally, would he not have liked to chase a target? More so, since India have achieved quite a reputation for themselves as being smart chasers? Clearly, he has decided to give the team the chance to be in a different situation.
Some have cited Bhuvneshwar Kumar's bowling speeds since his return from injury to air their concern about India's best swing bowler since Zaheer Khan - and Praveen Kumar, one must add. But the Indian team has ensured that he would not be rustily short of match practice by playing him in the final Test at Sydney and in the two games so far in the tri-series.
Similarly, look at how young left-arm spinner Axar Patel has been afforded chances to get used to the conditions and the quality of competition so that he could step up the plate in case Ravindra Jadeja does not recover from his injury or is found wanting because he has not bowled in a competitive situation in a long time.
Talking of injuries, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami are in a race against time and with Umesh Yadav still finding his length with the new ball, India's fast-medium bowlers have all been left facing some issue or the other. There are at least a couple of games and a little over three weeks in which Dhoni must get his unit ready for the big games.
Until that happens, fans may find it useful to stop chipping away at their own fingernails.
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