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India struggling to find quality spinners - Laxman
Cricinfo staff
February 1, 2010
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VVS Laxman, the Indian batsman, has expressed concern over the lack of quality spinners on India's domestic circuit, a problem he feels will be a "worrying factor" for the Indian team. Speaking on Cricinfo's latest video show Opening Up, Laxman was more optimistic about India's batting reserves and was bullish on the survival of Test cricket.
However, his comments on India's spin talent pool will cause concern, given how large spinners loom in India's Test legend. Speaking on the gap between international and domestic cricket in India, Laxman said: "The Indian cricket team is struggling to find some quality spinners, apart from the guys who are playing. You will find that there is no bench strength as far as spinners are concerned. So definitely the quality of domestic cricket has come down in terms of the bowling department."
Later, speaking about young talent, Laxman repeated his concern. "I am really not happy with the bowlers I am seeing. I think the quality of bowlers, especially the spinners will definitely be a worrying factor for the Indian team."
Laxman was optimistic, however, about India's talent in batting, the likes of Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma, who've had international experience, and Ambati Rayudu of Hyderabad. But he emphasised the key to success lay in the ability to play long innings. "I think Rohit and Raina are very good. Ambati Rayadu from Hyderabad has got very good potential," he said. "It's good that he has come back now, after playing in the ICL. It's just a matter of time; if he plays to his potential then he will make it to the higher grade. Rahul Dravid keeps mentioning about some players from Bangalore who are very talented. So it is a good future for India, as far as batting is concerned.
"I think for any youngster, you have to practice right from the younger days to [play a] long innings. And that's something that I don't see nowadays in the Ranji Trophy. I don't see too many double-hundreds, too many big hundreds. When we started off, there were lot of double-hundreds, not only from the Test cricketers but also domestic cricketers. I would definitely advice them to play long innings in the four-day format. And once they have the temperament, they can adapt to any form of the game."
Amid the growing popularity of the Twenty20 format, Laxman said Test cricket still remained the most sought-after version in the eyes of the players and dismissed any threats over its future. He added that the current generation of cricketers still rated Tests as the best determinant of one's quality. Instead, he expressed doubt over the survival of the 50-over version with the advent of Twenty20 cricket.
"Test cricket is still a very important form of cricket for all cricketers," Laxman said. "Even though Tests are becoming fewer, all cricketers, even the present generation, want to play more Tests. Everyone knows Test cricket remains the real test of a player's character, skill and temperament.
"Irrespective of how many runs they get in Twenty20 or one-day cricket, everyone feels that only when they do well in Tests will they have a stature in the game. Everyone knows that their ultimate reputation is in Test cricket."
The dwindling interest in 50-over cricket among fans and players alike, Laxman said, was an issue of concern. "I think one-day cricket will be under threat, because people want to watch good quality of cricket," he said. "Over five days they will watch some quality players playing against each other, so definitely Test cricket will stay. But one-day cricket will be under pressure, especially after the advent of Twenty20. I am sure ICC will take necessary steps to make it more interesting."
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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VVS is special and it's joy to watch him bat. Apart from Rohit, Raina, Pujara, there are some real solid players like Badri and Kaif that need to be considered. Kaif and Badri are true baton holders of Laxman-Dravid generation. Agree with him that spinners is a concern. Compared to Zak & co., Bhajji has been a disappointment; so not sure what domestic talent is like. Keep on going VVS.
Posted byLaxman is just sayin dat coz he is crap at ODi or 20/20...... india's spinners aint dat bad but we need one of da pathans in da order.... i think Irfan shud b given another chance....
Posted by SatyajitM on (February 04 2010, 05:16 AM GMT)@Alexk400, I guess you are the whiner not Laxman. Most people in the forum accept him as a class act and a gentleman. As a player, nobody is perfect, neither is Laxman. But as a person he is pretty close to that. BTW, this is one of the rare interviews I have seen of Laxman. Thankfully CricInfo/Harsha do not consult you, who they want to interview.
Posted by mpcobra on (February 03 2010, 20:18 PM GMT)muthhu511 this is for you bro.. i do understand your concern about bcci and selectors.. but remember laxman is one of the few players like kumble who never comment until it is really required. laxman as kumble has least advertisements and endorsements even at his peak. Also saying this article has came at wrong timing yes but always remember ANY time to go against tide is good time . even if you are far away. i would definitely praise our current selectors with team structure. But laxs concern is more about spinners who are not in fringe for team india. Even in IPL you don't see genuine indian spinners performing where mostly indians are playing.. if you looks at those records also best performing spinners in ipl -> kumble,warne stand out even after there retirement IPL is regarded as showcase of indian talent do we find any youngster who performed better then these legends. t20 or test or ODI . class and mystery matters for spinners,other then bhajji,ohja,mishra,chawla is their hope?
Posted by radicalindianfan234 on (February 03 2010, 16:34 PM GMT)I disagree with Laxman and completely agree withTemur Yusuf. VVS has forgotten the dynamic duo from Baroda...Munaf and Irfan...think about it...they are already bowling in the low 120s...if they can drop down a notch(10-15 kmphs)...they could be in serious reckoning for the spinner's slot ...
Posted byLaxman is a good cricketing analyst, he is right with the comment. I believe india dont have the depth in bowling department. Statistics are the real determinant of quality yet we dont have even a single bowler with an average below 30.
Posted by East_West on (February 03 2010, 10:18 AM GMT)India lacks bench strength in every department! not only in Spin but also pace and batting. We are number 1 but we didn't even play like #1 against Bangla! We don't have a quality bowler like Mortaza and a spinner like Shakib and an allrounder like Shakib but we have billion+ population! We still bank on fab five or fake four ..! Although I am yet to see a decent/solid knock from VVS in the past 5 years, How long can we depend on Sachin, VVS and Rahul?? What about testing our bench strength in batting [i doubt if we have any!] when these seniors don't even retire gracefully? Oh! well, that is INDIA! mera Bharat mahan!
Posted by omkarkulkarni on (February 03 2010, 09:42 AM GMT)Ya,partly agreed with VVS.Unless Harbhajan faces competition,he will not perform better.Mishra & Ojha need some time to grow.None of the current spinners are fully attacking & terminating.
Posted by aadh_king on (February 03 2010, 04:28 AM GMT)I agree that batting is not a problem at all for India now. But the comment on lack of spinners bench strength is absolutely weird and out of syllabus. If he had said that we are lacking quality pacers, it would have been true..., but absolutely we are not short of spinners... Ojha, Mishra (Bench: Ashwin, Chawa, etc & many more). i think he made this statement to show his presence at least on papers.! friends don't needlessly riddle your brains with these irrelevant statements.
Posted by muthu511 on (February 03 2010, 03:55 AM GMT)I cannot accept Mr VVS statement. But Did u find one thing? He is saying these things at the time of his retirement. He very well knew that if he would have told the same thing couple of years back, he will not been in the team. That thing should not happen. Moreover, Indian batsmen and bowlers are really highly talented players. We are always over exaggerate them. Our indian players should concentrate more on cricket rather than acting in add films and so on. They should understand that their salary is more than a military man's salary who are giving their lifes for sake of us. Our players should play for country rather than for money and publicity and add films. Apart, i think our bowlers and batsmen are best. Without seeking politics, our board should give equal importance for talented players instead of looking into seniority...