India are completely down and out — both emotionally and physically — after losing the virtual semifinal match against England, which eliminated MS Dhoni’s men from the triangular series also involving the hosts Australia.
Before the England game, this team had made some solid preparations. Unfortunately, the batting unit failed to live up to its expectation. Now it’s emerging that India are also extremely jaded and equally concerned with the injury worries and niggles of a few important members.
With top players like Rohit Sharma and Ishant Sharma struggling to stay fit throughout and medium-pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar unable to find his rhythm back, the team management really has some headache.
Even the morale of the side isn’t high after a winless Australian tour, which got over with the England match. It’s a tough situation to be in where you tend to lose your path despite all the hard work.
But India have gone through this in the past and the players have turned it around in special occasions with memorable performances. Another worry could be the gap of nearly two weeks before the World Cup, which according to some of the experts are “not good enough” window to unwind before a big tournament. But the team is left with no option other than staying there. These are the professional hazards which the players would have to face when they are a part of an international team.
Just before the 1992 World Cup in Australia, India had faced a similar challenge. Then Indian team had played and lost both the Test and ODI series in Australia. By the time, the World Cup began, they couldn’t match their opponents. Their spirits were dampened by some of the tired legs. However, this Indian team management is optimistic that India could play like the defending champions when the tournament gets underway.
In any case, this is a very open World Cup. With so much cricket being played at the highest level, the differences between two international sides are so negligible that you can’t really predict the winner till the match is actually over. A team, which could look ordinary today on the field, may play like the best team in the competition in the very next opportunity.
In addition to that, almost all of the teams are playing non-stop cricket like India. The West Indies are touring South Africa, Pakistan are playing a series in New Zealand while Sri Lanka were also busy throughout the last two months. In reality, the top teams in the world are all busy playing cricket. So, the logic of playing too much cricket doesn’t apply.
Probably, if India would have won in Australia, all the talk about hectic international calendar and jaded players wouldn’t have been a point of discussion. But somewhere down the line, you will have to look at the positive side of these India defeats. At least, India are a hungry lot now. Who knows what this team can possibly start doing from February 15?
All they need is win to get back right on track and no other match would suit India than an India-Pakistan match. Incidentally, this is the first match the Men in Blue would be playing in the completion and as the myth goes, India can never lose a World Cup match to Pakistan. Even in 1992, the arch-rivals couldn’t rock the Indian boat, though they ended the showpiece event as world champions that year!
