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Journalism of Courage
NEW DELHI, Feb 3: Slowly, steadily, and dangerously for India, the jigsaw puzzle that the Pakistan cricket team was till a month back, is now falling into place. The match-fixing allegations have become just a faint buzz in the background; a temporary truce seems to have declared between some senior players and their quirky coach; and, they have the first Test in their kitbag.
Today, captain Wasim Akram was spotted at nets sharing more than a few jokes with Javed Miandad and, with a day to go for the second Test here, the team’s body language has been vibrant bordering on sheer exuberance.
Even a normally aloof cricketer like Salim Malik is now being actively involved in team motivational exercises; and, it is as if some of their senior cricketers havesuddenly realised that a series win in India is their magic ticket after the match-fixing’ probe report is released later. In short, the Pakistani camp is glued together like never before with one of them even indicating today that the second Test will go their way like the first. “We are tough to beat once we’re on top,” he said.
That’s bad news for the Indian team in more than one. Struggling as they are to pick themselves up from the floor — and Sachin Tendulkar’s injury in the back of their minds — it will require an extra-ordinary effort to level the balance in this series.
Hopefully, leading that charge will be skipper Azharuddin who was jeered by Chennai fans on that disappointing Sunday evening. The skipper is known to retaliate to such insults with his willow — as has been witnessed before — and the Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium might see some fireworks at his end. The captain’s manner in the middle will also come under more scrutiny after he chewed his nails through most of the crucialfifth-wicket stand between a brilliant Shahid Afridi and Malik last week.
Otherwise, for India, everything depends on the trio of Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. If they don’t click it will be unfair to then throw the ball to Anil Kumble, Srinath or Prasad and pray for a miracle; unlike South Africa or West Indies. The pressure will be all the more on Dravid as the young openers — especially left-hander Sadagopan Ramesh — looked very shaky against Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis.
Ganguly, to follow, will do well to leave that bad decision in the second innings behind him while the latest on Tendulkar’s back injury, according to coach Anshuman Gaekwad is: “He is the best judge… he is quite certain he can play.”
While that will be seen tomorrow morning, the Ferozeshah Kotla pitch would be the next item in any pre-match discussion. Simply because it was dug up by some mad men early last month. Curator Radheshyam has been on the job since then and this is how Gaekwad’s sees it now: “Thepitch looks good, nice and bland… It looks like a batting track.”
The Pakistanis also seem to think that the “pitch looks perfect” and as Miandad echoed, “a batting strip.” However, that element of uncertainty will always be there on a surface which was last hit by the iron rods of miscreants and not a cricket ball. As Miandad added, “everything will depend on how the wicket behaves, particularly as the pitch has been relaid.”
Anyway, it is not yet known how the state of the pitch will affect the composition of the Indian team, but the Pakistanis are almost certain to make one change from their Chennai XI. Contrary to expectations that leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed might return after a neck strain, it is now learnt that left-arm spinner Nadeem Khan will make way for either fast medium bowler Shoaib Akhtar or all-rounder Azhar Mehmood.
TEAMS
India (from): Mohammed Azharuddin (captain), Venkata Sai Laxman, Sadagopan Ramesh, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Saurav Ganguly, Nayan Mongia (wk),Sunil Joshi, Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Harbhajan Singh, Laxmi Ratan Shukla and Hrishikesh Kanitkar.
Pakistan (from): Wasim Akram (capt), Saeed Anwar, Shahid Afridi, Ijaz Ahmed, Yousuf Youhanna, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Salim Malik, Moin Khan (wk), Azhar Mehmood, Saqlain Mushtaq, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Mushtaq Ahmed, Wajahutllah Wasti, Mohammed Naved and Nadeem Khan.
Hours of play: 10 a.m to 12 noon; 12:40 p.m to 2:40 p.m; 3:00 p.m to 5:00 pm.
Umpires: Steve Bucknor (West Indies) and AV Jayaprakash (India). Third Umpire: Surendra Sharma (Mumbai). Match Referee: Cammie Smith (West Indies).
