The Surfer

Sehwag is a gamble. He is a big hitter who can score quickly and spread a field. He puts all his chips on 23 red, which is all well and good if it comes off. But if it doesn't, he is back home, penniless, before the sun goes down.

Nothing is happening, not even the sop of a review, which is the most alarming feature of all: the acceptance of England's mid-table mediocrity

After a fraught selection meeting in Sydney during the midst of New Zealand's disastrous twin tours of South Africa and Australia the talk was of possible changes, of a new beginning in the five-day game. Now it appears a few cheap one-day runs and wickets against over-matched minnows will be enough to retain a status quo. The selectors will decide that it would be a mistake to make wholesale changes. However, with a test team that is so obviously failing every time it comes up against decent opposition, the biggest mistake is surely to sit back and do nothing.

Dismissed as a lightweight 12 months ago, he has emerged as an amusing man capable of taking wickets and scoring runs in any company. Hardly a day goes by without a lively and intelligent contribution from Symonds. He is a genuine all-rounder. In short, he has found the confidence required to release himself on the field. He owes as much to his captain as Matthew Hayden did to Steve Waugh. Belief is the father of achievement.

Teams like Australia feed on their opposition’s frailties and they did just that by thoroughly exploiting India’s lack of athleticism. Every time the ball went to a relatively poor fielder, they would scamper for a single. It not only got a player off the strike and kept the board ticking, it also put extra pressure on the bowler.

There are players in the Indian side who appear as if they spent their lives telling others to pick things up for them. They see the ball approaching their ankles and like royalty look up as if to summon a servant to fetch the blasted thing. Alas, good help is hard to find in the middle of a cricket match and the moment has past by the time the servant has made his way up the stairs.

"I wonder if Bradman could have adjusted to 20-, 40-, 50-over cricket as well as Test matches? When you look at footage from the 1930s, there's no science about the field placings. They were the same when the batsman arrived at the crease as they were when he'd scored 300. Obviously Bradman was an exceptional talent, but I find it hard to comprehend anyone ever being better than Viv [Richards]."

Anil Kumble is an undiluted champion. Seldom have India needed his exceptional abilities more and seldom has he responded more impressively.