The success of smooth transitions

Something that always warms the heart on a cricket field is the sight of a new generation taking over from the old with minimum fuss. India’s greatest blessing in the recent series was this - the captaincy takeover was smooth, the spinner to replace statistically the greatest Indian bowler got down to it straightaway, and some of the batsmen who will replace the stalwarts scored runs in style. Australia’s transition has not been half as smooth, and in that lay the difference between the two sides.

In Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Amit Mishra, both Anil Kumble the captain and Anil Kumble the bowler have worthy successors. M Vijay showed he is ready for a long stint either as opener or No. 3. Gautam Gambhir might have finished as Man of the Series had it not been for the rush of blood which led to his suspension from the final Test. Ishant Sharma and Zaheer Khan are well-entrenched - but in any case, there is a bunch comprising Munaf Patel, RP Singh and Sreesanth which is at the ready. Harbhajan Singh has rediscovered the knack of picking up wickets.

Ganguly is gone (and he left in style), but Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman have returned to form, leaving only Rahul Dravid to get back his magic touch. Indian cricket has not been in such good health for a long time.

Contrast that with Australia. Brad Haddin apart (and he too, only as wicketkeeper), there has not been a worthy replacement for their recent retirements from Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and others. While the Indian fast men, especially Ishant Sharma rose above the conditions to trouble the batsmen, Brett Lee actually took a couple of steps backwards as the spearhead of the attack, and till Jason Krejza came along in the final match, there was no one who looked capable of taking wickets by the bagful.

Australia have not looked so rudderless for a long time. Ricky Ponting’s run-out in the final innings was the final straw on a woeful tour where a combination of a poor bowling attack and his own inept handling of it meant that his team seldom threatened.

The No. 1 team in the world did not look the part psychologically, and the captain must bear the major share of the blame. True, he lost three of the four tosses, but he was outwitted by a captain who had both the luck and the pluck to make use of that luck.

Victory is the final justification. And by winning, Dhoni ensured that some of his negative tactics, like bowling with eight on the off side on the third day, or slowing down the bowling rate on the final day, appeared like necessary strategy. Ponting’s decision to let India off the hook after tea on the fourth day when he didn’t bring his fast bowlers on now appears selfish and downright ridiculous. Dhoni gambled on dismissing Australia before the final hour in which case the over-rate would not become an issue to hang him on, while Ponting refused to gamble, erring on the side of excessive caution. In the end, Australia did not deserve to win if only because the No. 1team should be made of sterner stuff.

Despite the 2-0 result, this wasn’t the greatest series played by India. The home side were clearly superior despite their annoying habit of sometimes letting things drift on the field. But it has been a great start for Dhoni, the spiritual heir to India’s most successful captain, Ganguly.