Open letter: Sort out your woes first, Ricky!

Dear Ricky

In an SMH report titled "Curator's gift pitch perfect for Kumble", you are quoted playing India's super selector.

Is it Dhoni's team or is it Anil's team? I guess we'll see in the next Test.

Remember, before the series started, you were wondering about whether Ganguly would be in the squad after he had been left out for the Irani Trophy.

You now wonder about India's selection issues, after Dhoni's captaincy turned out to be one of the factors in the 320 run thrashing of your side. It is entirely likely that Australia will come back in the series, and even win it. But right now, all the problems are yours not India's.

One of your openers hasn't made any runs, and averages less than Mitchell Johnson. The other opener and the #3 batsman (incidentally you, the captain) haven't done anything since the first day at Bangalore. The #5 batsman scored a pyrrhic half-century at Mohali, after flopping in the earlier three innings, and had to be shielded from facing the last over on day 4.

Only one of your bowlers has 5+ wickets and a strike rate below 60 so far. Your rookie quick bowled much better than your 'senior' speedster, who has largely bowled tripe, and didn't bowl a lot on day four at Mohali for 'tactical' reasons. In cricket at league, street or school levels in India, an attempted booming cover drive that results in the ball going off the inside edge to fine-leg for four is termed an 'idea shot'. Is that the same manner in which your coach uses the phrase 'tactical reason'?

Your team's over rate is a concern. I'm not even going to write about the spin factor. As an indicator of how things have changed, the incumbents haven't performed, and the replacements are either worse, or injured. Your captaincy & tactics, including being ultra-defensive at the start of India's 2nd innings at Mohali, are being ripped apart by the Aussie media.

The 'new age' fielding suddenly disappeared at Mohali where India scored at nearly 5 an over for 65 overs, only 96 of those runs coming in boundaries. Your keeper leaked 39 byes at Bangalore, the highest by an Australian keeper, ever!

You have so many worries. And yet, you find time to worry about India's composition at the Kotla!

Cheers!

Labels: aus v ind 2008, ponting