A must-win game for India at Harare

It is crunch time for the Indian team, as they get ready to take on Zimbabwe at Harare in what must be a do-or-die game for them. They have not had an auspicious start to their World Cup, with the batsmen failing against the Dutch and Aussies. But I am confident that there must have been some sort of soul-searching in the Indian camp, as they try to re-launch their already faltering World Cup campaign.

The bowlers have always been the whipping boys of Indian cricket; they take a lot of blame for not making up for the batsmen's mistakes. But not anymore; if the batsmen can just stay in there and bat through the 50 overs, winning won't remain a distant dream.

The willow-wielders simply have no more chance of making any excuses. The wickets were damp in New Zealand, the track in Paarl was too slow... But then what about the one at Centurion? Truly, if the Indian batsmen are going to perform as they did against Australia at Centurion, then we might as well big good-bye to this World Cup.

The batsmen will have to show more application, spend time in the middle when the going gets tough and then wait for the loose deliveries to punish. Playing too many ambitious shots will not get them anywhere. They must understand that the margin for error against world-class bowlers at this level is too narrow, and the only mantra is to work hard for the runs.

I would like to see Ganguly drop down to the middle order where he has a far better chance of smacking the slower bowlers. Ganguly has had good success as an opener in the past, but then, World Cup is definitely not the stage to hope to rekindle your lost form. India cannot afford to experiment anymore, now that all their cards have been laid on the table - they have to go for broke.

There is no other batsman in the squad capable of making a strong claim for a spot. What India might do is to play Sanjay Bangar as an opening batsman, hoping that he will hold up one end as he did in England. Now that we hear Zimbabwe will go for a fast and seaming track at Harare, it is quite important that someone actually takes the pressure off the middle-order batsmen. Bangar's inclusion could also strengthen the seam-bowling department.

It must really hurt the Indian players that their performance has not been up to the mark until now. This crucial game against Zimbabwe, then, is one that they can't afford to lose. No matter whether it is green, damp, slow or fast at Harare, India will have to win this game. All it takes is some self-belief and one outstanding performance to lift the spirit of the team. They have the talent and ability to do the job, and I hope they don't let themselves down again.