Sreesanth: The brave new face of Indian cricket

In a recent article, Shashi Tharoor – the UN Under Secretary General – described Sreesanth’s sensational six against Andre Nel in the memorable Johannesburg Test as being symbolic of the changing face of India – a new India that is courageous, one that is willing to take risks and is confident of coming up trumps. And the break dance that followed was a celebration of new India, according to Mr. Tharoor, who narrowly missed out on the UN top post. Yes, such has been the influence of Sreesanth’s performance and his impressive attitude during India’s tour of South Africa that he has won admirers throughout the country breaking across cricketing barriers.

India may have lost the Test series 2-1, a highly disappointing result after the way they started the series, but in S Sreesanth they found a cricketer who can not only be a match-winner on his day but also infuse fresh spirit in a team that seems to be losing motivation and the willingness to put up a fight. The innings of 29 he played in the Durban Test, when all the other batsmen bar Laxman struggled demonstrated that here was a man who wouldn’t give it up and had in him the confidence to face the stern Test he was up against. The altercation with Nel in the Johannesburg Test was only a pre-cursor. Durban saw Sreesanth’s talent as a batsman in full bloom. If only, he can stop thinking like a tailend batsman, the runs too will flow along with the wickets for sure.

Sreesanth’s African adventure

On the eve of the Johannesburg Test, few believed that India had a chance of winning the Test the way they did. After all, they were drubbed 4-0 in the ODI series and their only win till then had come in the Twenty20 game against a South African side that was nowhere near full strength. But as things panned out, the Johannesburg Test went on to be one of the most historic moments of Indian cricket. And no one played a bigger role in the win than Shanthakumaran Sreesanth. The medium pacer’s destructive spell of 5-40 saw the home side bundled out for a paltry 84 and it needed a miracle for India to lose the Test from there. Thankfully for Indian cricket, that miracle didn’t happen. Sreesanth’s impressive seam position and line and length drew praise from all quarters. Not least of all, bowling legends like Allan Donald and Wasim Akram were mighty impressed by the Kerala speedster.

But there was more to Sreesanth than just his great bowling prowess. The confrontation with Andre Nel, as mentioned in the beginning, may not have been defining in terms of the result of the game, but it definitely gave the Indian fans something to cheer about (laugh to be precise) after all the catastrophes in the shorter version. Sreesanth gave a fitting reply to Nel’s taunt that he did not have the heart to take on the fast bowler by smashing him straight over his head for six. What followed next is history. And it will remain as one of the most unforgettable moments in cricketing history – not Indian cricket alone.

The positive attitude and aggression he showed throughout the tour was refreshing to say the least. Even the great Wesley Hall who saw him bowl in West Indies, where Sreesanth was again instrumental in setting up the Test series win, was all for Sreesanth’s aggressive style of play. Coming from a legend like Hall, there cannot be too many better compliments for Sreesanth. True he did go overboard on a number of occasions during the South African tour. But he’s still a rookie and the quick learner that he has shown to be, one is sure he as time passes on he will realise where and when to draw the line. Alternately, it is important that his naturally aggressive style of play is not curbed or else it might affect his performance. Aggression is something that seems to keep Sreesanth going all the while even when the chips are down – a rare quality especially among Indian cricketers. So all that is needed is to refine the raw energy so that his resources are optimally utilized.

Confidence thy name is Sreesanth

Anyone who has taken 18 wickets in a 3-Test series would be mighty pleased at having done a good job. More so when it is someone as inexperienced as Sreesanth. Only Kumble and Srinath have achieved that feat against South Africa before. But such is the confidence of the man that he had set a goal of achieving 25 wickets in the series. It might seem a bit over optimistic and though he fell way short of the target in his mind, what is most encouraging is that here is someone who had no inhibitions about performing even in alien conditions. And perform he did!

However despite the splendid efforts, Sreesanth has his feet firmly on the ground. "My best is yet to come”, was how the 23-year-old, who began as a leg spinner before moving onto life in the fast lane, reacted to the deserving accolades he got after the African tour. Refusing to rest on his laurels, he instead felt that he should concentrate on his batting skills too so that he could contribute as an all-rounder in the future. That shouldn’t come as a big surprise after you realise that he grew up idolising Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar. And those who saw him play at Durban will surely feel he has the talent to perform consistently with the bat if he works on his game. Though India lost a series that it should have won, one thing was clear. Here was someone who had achieved great success but was only hungry for more. His unwillingness to leave the crease after getting a rough decision in Durban clearly indicated that he was still hopeful of putting up a fight.

Winning is very important in sport no doubt but what’s even more crucial is the motivation to fight till the end even when the situation may be out of hand. Sadly very few Indians, including the seniors, managed to replicate the exemplary fighting spirit of Sreesanth and hence the series that India should have pocketed was lost. The batsmen could not stick on the wicket for one day to save the Test at Durban (this included the rain interruptions.) And the batting just crumbled under pressure again in Cape Town, raising doubts about the attitude of the team. It was a meek surrender to say the least. The team can certainly learn a lot from the way Sreesanth performed on the tour. India needs more whole-hearted players like Sreesanth to perform better at the international level. Remember he bowled with a brisk pace even with an injury on the last day of the Cape Town Test. Though he did not have the figures to show for it, the effort was worth applauding nonetheless.

Pride of Kerala

By the time Sreesanth arrived back in India after the conclusion of the disastrous African tour, he had taken over the mantle of the new poster boy of Indian cricket. And so it was no surprise that the second player from Kerala to represent the national team (Tinu Yohannan was the first) got a hero’s welcome on his return home.

A grand procession was organised as schoolchildren chanted slogans to welcome their newly ordained hero. Sreesanth and Olympian Anju Bobby George were then felicitated by the Kerala Chief Minister V S Achutanandan for their marvellous efforts at the end of the procession. Sreesanth was visibly humbled. After all he was the first cricketer from his state to receive such an honour. Hopefully, Sreesanth’s rise will encourage more kids to take up the sport in the state where football is undoubtedly the numero uno sport.

StatSpeak

Thanks to Sreesanth’s fabulous work in South Africa, his Test stats are already beginning to look impressive - 37 wickets from 8 games at an excellent average of just under 26 and strike rate of 46. More importantly those 37 scalps include some big names in international cricket like Brian Lara and Jacques Kallis.

His ODI statistics are less impressive. Sreesanth has captured 29 wickets from 22 matches. The average of 34 and economy rate of nearly 6 aren’t great numbers which the quickie will himself admit. But the paceman should be able to sort out these aspects of his game in the shorter version as he gets more experience.

In Sreesanth, India have found a cricketer who has all the attributes to become the next big thing in Indian cricket - talent, aggression, commitment and confidence. If not troubled too much by injury, Sreesanth can be expected to spearhead the Indian attack for the next decade. But lets not look too far ahead. These are still early days in the fast bowler’s international career. To sum it up in Sreesanth’s own words, “I still have a long way to.”

Zaheer Khan: Back, Better, Fitter

Shantakumaran Sreesanth may have hogged all the limelight during India’s crushing win over South Africa in the Johannesburg Test, but his new ball opening partner and the more experienced left-armer Zaheer Khan definitely played a crucial part, with great support from all the other members too. In fact Zaheer was probably the only silver lining for India in the otherwise disastrous one-day series against the Proteas. Making a comeback after a long stint out of the side, Zaheer proved that he was back…better and fitter!!!

True, he was ragged at times too, especially in the slog overs but his overall performance definitely augurs well both for his future and that of Indian cricket. Graeme Smith for one would not like to be reminded of the name. After all, he looked all at sea against the left-armer throughout the one-dayers.

It has been a definite turnaround for someone who was rightly dropped eight months ago after a totally under-par showing against arch-rivals Pakistan. Not only his performance but his fitness and attitude were also questioned. Again there was ample proof that selectors took the right decision. His body weight had increased beyond what you expect from a quickie. It seemed another talent will find its way into the scrapbooks.

Thankfully, Zaheer did not fall by the way side. Like Sourav Ganguly, this protégé of his also decided to go back to the drawing board and start from scratch. As he himself admitted after making a successful comeback that he worked hard and analysed what was going wrong with him. Introspection is the key to improvement and Zaheer proved it with the way he made his comeback.

What he did in between the eight months without doubt has been the key to his success since his return to the international arena. In hindsight, it was a blessing the disguise for Zaheer Khan who would have only dented his confidence had he been in the Indian team despite repeated poor performances. So much international cricket is being played these days (more so by India) that it becomes almost impossible for players to asses their games even with all the modern technology available. At the end, it is all about how well you are doing when you step onto the field. And Zaheer definitely wasn’t doing anything well enough to keep place in the side. There is a hint in here for selectors as to what they should do with the current players in the team who are struggling – Virender Sehwag, Irfan Pathan and Sachin Tendulkar too. Zaheer and Sourav are perfect examples that dropping a player doesn’t signify the end of one’s career. Even age cannot be a factor if you are good enough to face the challenges of international cricket.

Zaheer’s successful stint with country side Worcestershire – he picked up 78 wickets - did not earn him an immediate recall but it meant that the selectors had a definite option in case of injury problems or lack of form of other bowlers. The debacle in Kaula Lampur, humiliating one day loss in West Indies and a catastrophic run in Champions Trophy meant the selectors had enough. The media too was constantly highlighting the fact that Zaheer deserved a comeback chance. And so, he was finally on the plane to South Africa. Though his presence could not stop India from yet another embarrassing the loss in the one day series, it did ensure that India had a chance if only the batsmen could get their act right. The batters were only partially successful in the Johannesburg Test, but it was enough for Zaheer and co to put India on the path to victory. In fact, Zaheer’s attitude while batting in the crucial second innings was refreshing to say the least. To bat patiently is not something we associate with Zaheer. But his stint away from the team definitely seems to have taught him to value his wicket more. We all know of his big-hitting prowess so the later part of his batting stint was no surprise at all.

Coming back to his bowling, it was also evident that he had worked hard on the fitness aspect, something for which he had been drawing a lot of flake when not performing well. In fact, many equated his pathetic showing to his bulging waist line! And here’s where the county stint would have definitely helped him. Not only did it help him regain confidence and bowling rhythm but also assisted him in getting back to shape physically.

Zaheer’s cricketing career has been a completely topsy turvy ride so far. He started off by giving up his engineering studies so that he could pursue a career in cricket. Then, he couldn’t find a spot in the Mumbai Ranji team and had to shift to Baroda, better known for producing wicket-keepers like Kiran More and Nayan Mongia. But his impressive performances meant he couldn’t be ignored and finally in 2000, he got his chance to don Indian colours in the Champions Trophy where he was an instant success. His yorker to get rid of Steve Waugh at a crucial stage of the game was one of the defining moments of the series. India went on to beat World Champions Australia. Of course it was Yuvraj Singh’s game, another youngster in his debut series who scored 84 and pulled off the incredible – running out one-day great Michael Bevan. But a fast-bowler starved nation was going ga-ga over the emergence of a possible future bowling star.

Zaheer showed he possessed all the attributes of a good fast bowler during his early days in international cricket. Capable of moving the ball both ways, he could also reverse it at a more than decent pace and soon became the pace spearhead in one-dayers. However, even while doing well in one-dayers, his Test performances weren’t always encouraging. Even so, he did lead India to a victory in the Kandy Test picking seven wickets in the game against Sri Lanka in 2001 but India went on to lose the series 2-1. The big turnaround for Zaheer in the longer version of the game came during the West Indies tour of 2002. India again went on to lose the series 2-1 but Zaheer’s big-hearted performance drew praise from all quarters. He carried on the good performances in England though this time round the batsmen stole all the limelight with some excellent display in alien conditions.

India’s tour of New Zealand prior to the World Cup was catastrophe to say the least. Here again Zaheer, along with Virender Sehwag, were the only one to succeed. Zaheer impressed bowling the right line and length in conditions where the ball was moving like a banana. He even pulled off a win with some intelligent batting in one of the one-dayers at Wellington.

Coming into the biggest competition, India weren’t in the greatest frame of mind. All the hard work of the previous season seemed to have gone down the drain. And it reflected in the first couple of games. But the whole team pulled their act together and Zaheer was consistent for most part of the series though not exceptional. Him sledging Matthew Hayden in the final however backfired big time as the tall, well-build batsman blasted him for 15 runs in the first over and India never managed to pull things back.

The worst phase in Zaheer’s career was yet to come though. A hamstring injury, which every fast bowler dreads but can rarely avoid, meant he was on the sidelines for most part of India’s historic achievements in Australia and Pakistan. And during this period, India found a more than capable replacement in Irfan Pathan. Zaheer did get his deserved comeback chances but struggled and was not quite the same as before. Left with no other option, the selectors felt it was time to shut the door on Zaheer. But, all credit to the man for the way he was fought his way back into the side.

Life has come a full circle for Zaheer Khan. When the Johannesburg team was announced, Zaheer was undoubtedly the first choice while Irfan Pathan was relegated to the benches.
Hopefully for Indian cricket there are no more ugly twists and turns in the Zaheer Khan tale.