Warne controversy dilutes marquee clash
The marquee clash between Glenn McGrath and Sachin Tendulkar could be overshadowed by the controversy surrounding Shane Warne's comments on John Buchanan
Dileep Premachandran in Kuala Lumpur
15-Sep-2006
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A match that was billed as the clash of two returning legends has now been overshadowed by the words of another from across the seas. Sachin Tendulkar and Glenn McGrath are poised to renew acquaintance on Saturday afternoon, but the build-up to the match was dominated by Shane Warne's scathing comments
on coach John Buchanan.
"I'm a big believer that the coach is something you travel in to get to and from the game!" Warne said, and catchy line though it was, neither Ricky Ponting, who addressed the media ahead of the India game, nor Buchanan was amused. You can depend on Warne to cause a stir though. No other cricketer on the planet would have managed to steal the limelight from Tendulkar, that too less than a day after a stirring unbeaten 141 on his return to the big time.
Both teams struggled in the face of stunning assaults from West Indies in the Powerplay overs, but Australia held on to prevail, while India were denied the chance of a comeback by rain. And given the fact that they already have points on the board, Ponting hinted that Australia would keep
faith in the relatively inexperienced faces that triumphed over West Indies. One change could be at the top of the order, where Matthew Hayden - who averages a mighty 54.81 in 17 matches against India - should get the nod ahead of Simon Katich.
Though the redoubtable McGrath will ask stern questions of India's line-up, the likes of Nathan Bracken and Mitchell Johnson will be under immediate pressure against batsmen who certainly aren't shot-shy. Dan
Cullen, the offspinner from whom so much is expected, will also relish the
challenge of bowling to players who play spin perhaps better than anyone
else.
India are also likely to make just one change, with Yuvraj Singh coming in
for either Mohammad Kaif or Suresh Raina, who batted so well in the slog
overs against West Indies. "He came through a training and net session
very well yesterday, he had good practice," said Dravid, when asked about
Yuvraj. "Today, he did all the physical drills, and he is fully fit. I
think he should be there tomorrow."
Dravid also suggested that Virender Sehwag could continue in the middle
order as India look to fine-tune their strategy ahead of the Champions
Trophy. "It's all about how best to utilise the 50 overs," he said. "In
the middle overs, we need players with power and creativity on slow tracks
that we should find in India in the Champions Trophy and for the World
Cup. It's an area that we have suffered in; lots of teams don't have
players who can dominate the middle overs. We have Yuvraj and Dhoni, and
if it works with Sehwag, it will be great for us. One-day cricket is all
about flexibility and being able to adapt."
The five-man bowling attack is unlikely to be weakened given how easily
West Indies took them apart. But with Sreesanth and Ramesh Powar waiting
on the sidelines, Rudra Pratap Singh and Harbhajan Singh will need to show
some improvement to keep their places in the XI for the remaining matches.
India will take heart from numbers that suggest they play better against
Australia at neutral venues. Though the overall head-to-head record is
overwhelmingly in Australia's favour - 49 wins to 27 from 80 games - it
narrows down to 11 Aussie wins and 9 losses when the teams clash on
foreign soil.
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Come Saturday though, even the statistically minded will have eyes trained
on the tussle between two of the game's ultimate warriors. Tendulkar
averages an astonishing 49.02 in 44 matches against the world's best,
further evidence, if any was needed, as to why he's light years ahead of
anyone else as a one-day batsman. The fact that McGrath has just 32
wickets at 26.28 - his career average is 22.45 - in 22 games against India
offers further proof of just how effective Tendulkar has been at taking on
the shiny white ball. That said, McGrath won the contest that mattered, in
the 2003 World Cup final, something that still rankles with Tendulkar.
Expect some fireworks.
It will also be a big match for one man on the sidelines. Greg Chappell's
place in Australian cricket's pantheon is beyond dispute, and this will be
the first time that he leads his Indian wards in a contest against the
team that has set the standards for nearly a decade. As Ponting said at
his press conference, Chappell knows most of the Australian players as
well as anyone, and any little chinks that he remembers will be of immense
use to an Indian side that has to win to stay alive in the competition.
India (likely): 1 Sachin Tendulkar, 2 Rahul Dravid (capt), 3 Irfan
Pathan, 4 Virender Sehwag, 5 Yuvraj Singh, 6 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 7
Mohammad Kaif, 8 Ajit Agarkar, 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Rudra Pratap Singh,
11 Munaf Patel.
Australia (likely): 1 Matthew Hayden, 2 Phil Jaques, 3 Ricky
Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Clarke, 5 Mark Cosgrove, 6 Shane Watson, 7 Brad
Haddin (wk), 8 Mitchell Johnson, 9 Nathan Bracken, 10, Dan Cullen, 11
Glenn McGrath.
Dileep Premachandran is features editor of Cricinfo