Azhar Prepares for Test 3 Against New Zealand (07 Nov 1995)

Azharuddin readies for Test battle

CUTTACK, India, Tuesday, - Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin, under fire for skipping domestic cricket, hopes to make amends by leading his team to victory in the final test against New Zealand starting here Wednesday.

Azharuddin was hauled up by the Board of Control for Cricket in India for flying abroad instead of playing in the important Wills Trophy one-day tournament which ended on Sunday.

The Board accepted Azharuddin's plea of pressing personal commitments, but critics, including former batting maestro Sunil Gavaskar, are not convinced.

Gavaskar asked in his syndicated coloumn whether the national selectors had the guts to drop the Indian captain for the third and final test for flouting Board rules which makes it mandatory for Test stars to play domestic cricket.

Many commentators wondered whether Azharuddin was shying away from a direct confrontation with his likely successor Sachin Tendulkar, who led the sponsor's team in the Wills tournament.

Tendulkar hit up centuries against depleted Hyderabad, the team Azharuddin plays for, and Madhya Pradesh, before defeating Bengal in the final to further enhance his growing reputation as a leader.

Azharuddin, India's most successful Test captain with 11 wins, and already named skipper till next September, remained unfazed by criticism.

"I have explained my position to the Board which has accepted it. Criticism does not worry me," he said, while training with his team at the Barabati Stadium here on Tuesday.

"My only concern is to see India win the Test and the series," Azharuddin added.

Azharuddin has played just six days of cricket since the season began on October 1, playing a three-day match against the Kiwis at Rajkot besides the first Test in Bangalore, which India won by eight wickets in under three days.

The second test in Madras was washed out by rain.

The tourists tuned up for the match with a drawn three-day tie against Indian juniors at Hyderabad last week, in which Martin Crowe, Roger Twose and Stephen Fleming hit centuries and spinner Matthew Hart grabbed six wickets.

Both Hart and fellow spinner Mark Haslam have been included in a short-list of 12 to exploit a barren wicket which New Zealand manager Glen Turner described as "rolled mud."

The wicket was relaid this season, but is unlikely to play any different because its preparation was hampered by the heavy monsoon downpour which ended 10 days ago.

Both camps expect the wicket to assist turn from the first day, giving India's three-man spin attack the advantage against a New Zealand line-up that crumbled in similar conditions at Bangalore. Teams: India (from): Mohammad Azharuddin (captain), Sachin Tendulkar, Navjot Sidhu, Manoj Prabhakar, Vinod Kambli, Ajay Jadeja, Sanjay Manjrekar, Nayan Mongia, Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble, Venkatapathy Raju, Ashish Kapoor, Narendra Hirwani, Ventakesh Prasad. New Zealand (from): Lee Germon (captain), Mark Greatbatch, Roger Twose, Martin Crowe, Stephen Fleming, Adam Parore, Chris Cairns, Shane Thomson, Dion Nash, Danny Morrison, Matthew Hart Mark Haslam. (AFP)

Source :: Lanka Internet Services