Zimbabwe take on mighty-at-home India at Nagpur

On both past record and present form, Zimbabwe look to stand little chance of winning either the two-Test series or the fivematch one-day series on their short tour of India. Even granting the fact that India did not exactly cover themselves with glory in the recent matches against England, a side like Zimbabwe should not pose much of a problem for the Indian team with their enviable record at home.

Not that everything is hunky-dory as far as the Indian team is concerned. If Zimbabwe are lying ninth in the Test table, India are not very far ahead and, as both the Test and the one-dayers against England showed, there are chinks in the armour that can be exploited. However, it is doubtful whether Zimbabwe, with certain inherent weaknesses, will be able to pierce them.

At least the visitors are aware of the tough task ahead, and that is a healthy start. "It is a great challenge to play against India on their own soil, and we have to work very hard," said Zimbabwe coach Geoff Marsh shortly after arrival. The former Australian opening batsman has played in India many times and is no doubt aware of the tremendous record of the home team in familiar environs, as also the fact that Zimbabwe have lost two Tests and drawn one on the two previous tours of India.

© CricInfo

But the visitors do have a few things going for them. They arrive in India having been really match-hardened during the season. Since September, they have hosted South Africa and England and then toured Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The results have been mixed, but of particular relevance ­ and a probable pointer towards events in the coming weeks ­ is the fact they were whitewashed 3-0 on the recent Sri Lankan tour. They found Muttiah Muralitharan too hot too handle, and similar experiences are on the cards against Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh.

The Zimbabwe squad, at present, is as strong as it can be. The recall of Alistair Campbell will not only strengthen the batting but will also boost the team's confidence. On skill and experience, Campbell is still one of Zimbabwe's best players. A veteran of 56 Tests, he was dropped from the squad in October last year and, although his axing was officially put down to a lack of fitness and patchy form, he had earlier been accused of making racist comments in a British newspaper. Although the lefthander later apologised, he is still under the threat of a suspended four-match ban should he step out of line again.

Despite Campbell's presence, there is little doubt that the player garnering all the attention will be Andy Flower ­ and with good reason. For one thing, he is currently the number one batsman in some of the cricket ratings. Secondly, the pugnacious left-hander's marvelous run with the bat on the last tour of India in November 2000 should boost his confidence no end. In two Tests, Flower scored 540 runs at a phenomenal average of 270. His scores were 183 not out, 70, 55 and 232 not out. In all, he batted 1331 minutes and faced 1021 deliveries ­ surely one of the great endurance feats in cricket history, considering the fact that it was for a losing team. The only snag is that, not too long ago, Murali cut him to size, and Flower was reduced to scores of 42, 10, 8, 11, 6 and 3 in three Tests. Still, with a career average of 53.55 from 59 Tests, Flower remains Zimbabwe's number one batsman of all time.

Flower is also a former captain, but this tour will see him relieved of both keeping and leadership duties. The stump-work will be handled by teenager Tatenda Taibu, who made such a fine impression on his international debut in the one-day tri-series involving India, West Indies and hosts Zimbabwe last year. There are in fact four former captains in the side ­ Andy and Grant Flower, Heath Streak and Campbell ­ led now by middle-order batsman Stuart Carlisle.

© CricInfo

The bowling will again depend heavily on vice-captain Heath Streak, who was the captain when Zimbabwe last toured India. The pace spearhead, who will be playing in his 50th Test at Nagpur, is the only Zimbabwean to have completed the Test double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets. A notable absentee from the touring squad is erratic pace bowler Henry Olonga, who has been plagued by injuries. The batting will revolve around the Flower brothers ­ like his elder brother, Grant too has played 59 Tests ­ Carlisle, Campbell, opener Dion Ebrahim and Craig Wishart. Other well-known names include utility players Travis Friend, Trevor Gripper and Gavin Rennie.

But then, matches are won not only on the field but also off it, and Carlisle has not missed out on the psychological trick. Aware of the tough task his bowlers face, and perhaps in a bid to encourage them, the visiting captain has hinted that India's top three batsmen - Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid - have been "marked" by Zimbabwe.

In an interview during the opening match of the tour, Carlisle said that he and his team members had closely observed the batting techniques of the three players. "We studied their strengths and weaknesses with great care and have identified certain grey areas in each of these players," Carlisle is reported to have said. Predictably enough, the Zimbabwe captain did not spell out the 'grey areas,' but the visitors, like England before them, are obviously looking to capitalise on the tendency of the Indian batsmen to succumb to pressure tactics.

However, given the fact that a rookie like Gautam Gambhir took a double century off the Zimbabwe attack at Vijayawada, one can safely say that the bowlers are in for a hard time against Tendulkar and Co. As on their last visit, Zimbabwe's batting will have to come off if they are to fare well in both Tests and oneday internationals.

© AFP

If the Zimbabweans are need of inspiration, they need look no further than the performance of England on their recent tour, and that is the approach that the team's think-tank ­ Marsh, Carlisle and Streak - have been talking about on their arrival. They are of the view that, if they have a positive attitude, they have the potential to do well. Last time around, they lost the two-Test series 1-0 and went down 4-1 in the one-day series. Thanks chiefly to the efforts of Andy Flower, they were beaten but not disgraced. However, Zimbabwe will have to perform extraordinarily well if they want to give India a good run for their money. The underdog tag could be of some help in this regard.

The Indian team has innumerable factors in their favour, and if they only play up to potential they should have little difficulty in wrapping up both series. The retention of Ganguly as captain was expected. All the same, it is healthy that he is aware there are other contenders for the captaincy. It should spur him on to greater deeds, both as batsman and captain.

He has started off well by calling upon the youngsters to share more of the burden. A major factor in India failing to win the one-day series against England was the fact that the inexperienced middle order failed to build upon the electrifying starts given by Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Ganguly himself. As for his recent run drought in Tests, it is to be hoped that Ganguly makes the most of a gilt-edged opportunity against a generally stingless Zimbabwe attack to come back into prime form. He has been spending a lot of time at the nets trying to sort out his problems with fast, short-pitched deliveries, and as he optimistically asserted in a recent interview, "The Zimbabwe tour might see the end of my failures with the bat."

It goes without saying that Dravid's return will strengthen the already formidable middle order, and whatever worries the team management might have on certain aspects ­ the openers, the wicket-keeper and the inadequate bowling strength ­ should be unfounded against Zimbabwe. A batting line-up of Shiv Sunder Das, Tendulkar, Dravid, Ganguly, Sehwag and VVS Laxman, and a bowling attack of Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan, Tinu Yohannan, Harbhajan, Kumble and Sarandeep Singh, with Deep Dasgupta behind the stumps and the utility qualities of the promising Sanjay Bangar, should be strong enough to shrug off Zimbabwe's challenge. It only remains to be seen whether a contest between teams placed at numbers eight and nine in the rankings will rake in the crowds.