African Safari: The tour diary

Connor Williams has now swung between two extremes in the little matter of a week. He appeared a child of destiny when just one, or let's say two knocks put him on the plane to South Africa. The script seemed to be running the expected course when his seniors encouraged him on the first two days of the nets and the word leaked he would be playing the first Test, despite the Chatsworth wash-out. Standing in a corner while Virender Sehwag and Rahul Dravid practiced in the middle on Friday, he indeed cut a sorry figure. Openers are a dying breed in India. There were never many in the first place. A senior member of the side was spot on when he said the young openers must be given an extended run. "From pop-gun attack of home, you are suddenly put in the firing line of the genuine quick bowlers. And then they get only a few Tests to play in a year."

"The rest of the time, it is Sourav and Sachin opening the innings in some 40-45 one-day internationals per season. How does a young guy gain in experience and confidence?"

Indeed, the Test openers in India get international matches in fits and starts only. Either you got to be patient with them or ask recordbreakers Ganguly and Tendulkar to make way for young openers in onedayers so they get more used to international fast bowlers. It is a malaise which befalls a lot of young Indian openers including once highly rated Wasim Jaffer of Mumbai. "He looked an extremely good opener to me at one stage," said legendary opener Sunil Gavaskar "But lately I am not too sure of that." Vinayak Mane is another youngster who has been shortlisted by those who matter as an opener with a future.

Wright has no doubt the success of openers will go a long way in determining India's performance in this series. A case in point is the Harare Test in Zimbabwe where Das had two partners in Hemang Badani and Sameer Dighe in the two innings and both came a cropper. The result - India couldn't chase even a score of 200-odd and lost the match.

It has fallen on Rahul Dravid's lot to shore up the sagging Indian ship as its helmsman for the first Test. He is a team - man but not too inclined on opening the innings. His dilemma is understandable - he is well and truly established in the middle order and if he succeeds, he might just be burdened with the job for many more Test matches to come. He must be asked to produce the goods within his capacity and every issue of the team must not be laid in front of his door.

So we have a situation where a South African team is announced a week in advance whereas the Indians are struggling to put their eleven literally going into toss on the morning of the match. The wash-out at the Chatsworth has been a body blow for the Indians. It was the only game they could have tried out the five new members flown especially for the Test series. The sad part is, everyone knew there was little possibility of play at least a day before the match was set to roll. But neither the Indians tried too hard nor the KwaZulu-Natal Union, the cricket body under which falls the purview of Chatsworth body as well, was keen to arrange a game for the visitors elsewhere in Durban. Indians did not protest aloud then and are now sulking in silence at the lost opportunity for some time in the middle.

Ganguly meanwhile has now received his new bats from a Meerut manufacturer and it weighs more than 10 grams less than his 150-gram plus stick of willow for the one-dayers. Quite possible the Indian captain realises he would be peppered with short stuff and he must have a light stick to move into position quickly in the Test series.