Is Sehwag overrated?

Sehwag scored a hundred and the media was gaga about him. He broke Azharuddin's long standing record dating back to 1988. Can we really compare the two innings. I thought it would be a great idea to find out more about that 1988 match. Here is the link to the scorecard of that match and here are my reasons for considering the two innings comparable:

• Sehwag got his hundred in New Zealand where the grounds are really small and the attack is inexperienced
  
• Azharuddin batted at number six Sehwag opened the innings. This clearly means that Azhar batted his entire innings without any field restrictions while Sehwag batted under field restrictions for 15 of the 23 overs that he played. By that time the restrictions were over, he had already won the match.
  

One should remember that Sehwag has got a a lot of his hundreds while India is chasing. This is because whenever the team is chasing and Sehwag manages to stay for the first 15-20 overs, the required run rate invariably comes down. This forces the opposing captain to continue with aggressive field settings and thus effectively it does not matter whether or not the restrictions are over. On the contrary when India is batting first and Sehwag survives the initial overs, the opposing captain invariably goes defensive. This means fewer opportunities for Sehwag to hit boundaries. Now Sehwag is a boundary hitter and most of the times he gets dismissed in the 60's and 70's because he takes extra risks to get the boundaries. This is where Tendulkar is different because he makes sure that he stays till the end and in the process also ends up scoring hundreds.

On a flat pitch, Sehwag is unstoppable something he has shown in the past on sub-continent pitches and now in New Zealand. But when it came to a seaming pitch in the fifth ODI, he just didn't had the maturity to hang around. Once again, this is where Tendulkar would have played differently. He would have attacked the lesser bowlers of the opposition and would have played a long innings. Nevertheless, Sehwag has a special role in the side. He straightaway puts the opposition on the backfoot. He is effective even in Test matches. In Australia, he wasn't for the first two matches, but proved his worth in the next two. Against England in Chennai, India successfully chased 387 in the fourth innings. Now what is important to note that while Sehwag played a critical role, Tendulkar played an equally important role. With almost 400 runs, Peterson had given himself a chance to continously have an attacking field. What Sehwag did was to quickly knock-off 100 runs thus bringing the runrate down to a manageable 3 runs an over. Equally important was Tendulkars knock where he withstood some of most difficult spells from the English bowlers. Both knocks were complimentary and eually important.

A lot of India's recent success is not just because of the likes of Sehwag and Yuvraj going after the opposition. It is also because Gambhir, Tendulkar and Dhoni have played sensible cricket and invariably one of them anchors the innings. In the final ODI, Tendulkar wasn't playing while both Dhoni and Gambhir got out cheaply. Sehwag once again threw away a good start after Vettori withheld the powerplay. It just goes to show how critical a sheet anchor role is. In Australia, it was Tendulkar who won back to back man of the match awards in the best of three finals because of which India could win the VB Series. This Indian Team may be good but without Tendulkar, only Dhoni is the man who has shown remarkable consistency under different conditions.

It was good to see Dhoni promoting Rohit Sharma, but what about Yusuf Pathan. Yusuf got into the ODI side after his excellent performance in the IPL last year. But ever since getting into the side, Dhoni has been using him at number 7 in the power packed lineup. Moreover he has hardly been used as a bowling option with Dhoni preferring Yuvraj over him. Clearly, if Dhoni doesn't considers him as a bowling option, it means that he would prefer Rohit Sharma over Yusuf Pathan on a long term basis provided he gets some consistency. Yusuf hardly got any opportunity to either bat or bowl and when he did get to bat in the last ODI, he threw his wicket. He has shown what he can do in the IPL and also in the T20 against Sri Lanka recently. Unfortunately it seems that he is not in Dhoni's scheme of things in the long run.

Sehwag is here to stay. But he is now near the greatest batsman as some people in the media are suggesting. He can only play this way because there is a Tendulkar and Dhoni in the side.

Dhoni - is it luck or charisma behind his initial success?

Date:Nov 13,2008-Article was migrated
With Anil Kumble hanging his boots after poor series and serious injury, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was handed over the Test captaincy of India. He managed to win the Nagpur quite comprehensively in the end. Meanwhile Rahul Dravid failed miserably in the series managing just one half-century and there are calls that he is next in line for retirement. So is this a fair assessment, and does India no longer needs its fab-four? Does Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has a 100% record so far, deserves the captaincy?

'Statistics are like a bikini. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital.'

Media like everyone else, likes to salute the rising sun which in this case happens to Dhoni. Lets look at a few facts.
In the 2007-08 Test series in Australia, Anil Kumble led the side extremely well and had a good personal series. Dhoni averaged just 17 in four Test matches with no fifties while someone like Harbhajan Singh who didn't all four matches managed two fifties. Media as always has chosen to ignore this fact.

During the CB series in Feb-March 2008, Indian bowlers led by Ishant did an amazing job. India however continued to struggle as a team because their were unable to put up decent scores. Sachin Tendulkar who missed the early part of the tournament because of injury played a major role in reviving the team. In the two finals(best of three) he scored 117 and 90. Tendulkar bashers were no where to be seen.

However, what followed was the IPL. The focuss was lost and the more glamourous and young Indian lot captured all the attention. Dhoni missed the test series in Sri Lanka but he played well against Australia. What is important to note is that those runs came under home conditions. Despite sounding cynical, let me add that I am great admirer of Dhoni's leadership. However, it is too early for us comment. He is yet to prove himself at Test level abroad against quality opposition. More important, India may have fared well against Australia at home and may easily beat England but they still don't have enough depth and need the likes of Tendulkar and Dravid especially abroad.I really feel sorry for Jammy, I hope he scores plenty against England.

Also we must not forget that India won the toss three of the four times. In Bangalore where India lost the toss, they nearly lost the match and if it had not been a rescue by Bhajji and Zaheer, India could well have started the series 0-1 down. Anil Kumble too was extremely unlucky in Bangalore where a couple of decisions went against him and a crucial catch was dropped by none other than MS Dhoni.

As for Mahi, despite all the buzz I would like to wait to form an opinion. But its good for him that he is a wicket-keeper and manages to keep his place even if he has a poor series with a bat, a luxury that most Indian captains don't get.