At the mercy of...

Lo and behold.

The World Champions are being smashed all over. They have been battered, bruised and have been made to bite the dust. Whether it was England, Australia and now minnows Bangladesh, which have made a mockery of the World cup winning squad.

If I can re-collect correctly, the world champions, for example, West Indies, Australia, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, all did justice to their crown by dominating the game over their oponents atleast for a few years. World Cup is held every 4 years, and the above-mentioned world champs did rule the roost for a few years before loosing the sheen.

Indian victory in 2011 was celebrated across the nation as MSD did hand-over the most cherished prize to frenzy nation after a gap of 24 years. The victory was celebrated probably in the remotest village inIndia. Dhoni had become the messiah of the cricket followers in the nation. However, much to the dismay of every Indian fan, the hype and hooplah of being world champs, has been very very short-lived.

West Indies tour was an eyewash. We were playing against a decimated side which didn't have much to offer to themselves. They still managed to put up a good show in ODIs with a 2-3 loss. Suresh Raina got his first overseas win as a captain under his belt. England tour turned just forgettable and Oz tour was a disaster waiting to happen. Likes of Tendulkar, Dravid, Laxman all failed Down Under, in what was their last tour to the country.

ODI series in Australia was a up-down affair. Kohli came good. And India were at the mercy of SL, to reach the finals.

Asia cup. Sachin did score his 100th ton, though I still believe that maestro has been in poor form for over a year now. A century against Bangladesh in the sub-continent, doesn't prove his credentials. Infact, the new born hero is Kohli, who is having a roller-coster ride with every game being played. Unbelievable loss to Bangladesh, thanks to awful bowling, and we were still at the mercy of Bangladesh, to reach the finals.

Is this the same World Cup winning team led by Mahi which had outplayed every team, just a year back. The Indian cricket fan would be hugely disappointed, but to say that this would happen so soon, within a few months of the glorious victory, has been very very shameful.

IPL begins, only to add further woes to the remaining tours/ series this year. Injuries, fitness issues will surely crop-up post IPL.

And Indian team...will be...

At the mercy of...

Whitewash...

Humiliating defeats...India tamed by England and Australia 4-0, Pakistan hammer England 3-0. Just that Sri Lanka managed a win in South Africa, else that series would also have been a whitewash.

Are the ICC and other cricket ratings farce. Or the hosts are too clever for the visitors, thereby giving a thumbs down to the well-above ranked Test side.

Probably, the pitch and the conditions are becoming too much of a decisive factor. But then, what's the meaning of #1 or #2 Test side. Ideally, the #1 team should have championed the turn and bounce being offered by any pitch anywhere and their bowlers should be capable enough to outclass the opposition batting, whatsoever.

It seems that the golden era of a champion team a.k.a Steve Waugh's side, is almost over. That team had the true stalwarts, who could make the opposition look like minnows, irrespective of the venue, pitch, conditions.

It's proven that English side can be spinned out in Indian sub-continent, easily. There are chinks in Clarke's armour as well. Let's see what his side is capable of doing on a topsy-turvy track.

IPL is being blamed for India's debacle, and rightly so. Too much of stroke-play, not really meant for Test cricket. The longer format, instead would require a different and a tougher mindset altogether.

Time to be champions at home and to be tamed abroad.

Nasty cricket.

The Dirty Picture

Hmm.....Undoubtedly,Vidya Balan's histrionics haved wow-ed the audiences all over, the same isn't true for the bleaguered Indian cricket team. The team has performed horribly, and MSD's men are down and out. It's the same Indian team which had shot to No 1 slot in Test rankings sometime back. With the current series lost tamely, the team still edges out Oz side, just on paper. If records are anything to go by, Sachin, Dravid and VVS should have made the current OZ team, bite the dust. All seems to be going down the drain and it wouldn't be surprising if the result of series is 4-0. Australian side is oozing with confidence, are full of momentum. A couple of quick breaks in Indian top order in the 4th test, would certainly be a nail in the coffin. Alas, the tour could just have been a lot better for the Indian side.

It's very very difficult to say what's going wrong with the Indian side. To me, it just looks like a rough patch at the wrong time. VVS, Dravid, Sachin have been true champions of Test cricket. Their records speak for themselves and they have all proved time and again, just for current and the last English series. With the openers not able to perform well, it has just added to the woes. Probably, India's batting was being considered as the true strength and that has proved to be the Achilles' heel.

Australian's, on the other hand, have bowled a superb line and length. Irrespective of their batting, it's the bowling which has outclassed the Indian side. They have toppled the Indian side in all the 3 test matches and the same should hold true in Adelaide as well. Couple of quick fires from Warner, Clarke and Ponting have just been right in time for the Oz team.

With the triangular one-day series up next, it looks as though this just would be a forgettable tour of Australia. I don't see any miracles from the Indian side, even in one-days. They just might get over Sri Lankans, who are struggling again in South Africa.

Wish it was much brighter and sunnier for VVS, Dravid and Tendulkar. For sure, these three won't be touring Aus next time.

Time for a few members a.k.a. 'seniors' to go under the knife

Curtains. The Dirty Picture.

Down @ Down Under

Difficult for me to start this one. It's been a heart-breaking series so far. Much hyped, much frenzied...how can it go all wrong for the star-studded Indian team. Losing 2 matches on the trot, and within 4 days...all seems like a nightmare.

Millions of indian cricket fans...had expected this to be a lot better....infact this was THE mouth-watering, tantalizing series (post the English debacle). There were quite a lot of excuses for the England's tour, fitness and injuries being the major one (post the victorious World Cup). This tour should have been a lot different with Sehwag, Gambhir, Zaheer all fit and relaxed.

I strongly feel that this should be the last of Australia for the greats aka Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman. And the entire team should have put in their best so as to wish the above-mentioned a most rememberable farewell. Alas, the tour is proving to be a forgettable experience so far.

My analysis for the tour so far

1. Need other bowlers to support ZAK. He has been India's mainstay bowler for a long time. Someone has to fill-in his shoes. Youngster like Umesh Yadav looked very promising in the 1st test, but others need to take wickets as well. Australians managed to take 20 wickets in both the tests, all their bowlers performed quite well (same did hold true for the English team when they beat India 4-0). Australian bowling was being termed as weak and bleak, though Siddle, Pattison and Hilfenhaus have all done their job. Indians, on the other hand, have had bowlers Ishant, Ashwin, who toiled and still looked clueless.

2. A great team is infact a team. If couple of big guns don't fire, it really shouldn't matter. The rest of the team should stand up to the task. Indian batting have so much relied on Dravid, Tendulkar, VVS. They have put up a show, but mostly in patches. These guns need to score and score big. But most importantly, the rest including Sehwag, Gambhir, Kohli, MSD, need to perform.

If MCG and SCG were won within 4 days, WACA can assure the result in 3 days. The way Australians are bowling and the way Indian team is showing up with the bat, the result can be expected within 3 days, for sure. The chances look very very bleak for Indian team to make a comeback in the next 2 tests. It looks all over as of now.

Australian team should be oozing with confidence. For Michael Clarke, this is the best opportunity to seal the series and establish himself as a great captain for the next couple of years. Underfire Pointing, has for sure retained his place, with great performance in SCG.

Alarm bells for a couple of Indian players (Gambhir, Kohli, Ashwin, Laxman (though Oz has been his favorite hunting ground, until the last tour). If it's a whitewash, few of these mentioned players, can cool-off their heels for atleast a year or so.

As a true and ardent fan of Indian cricket, I still hold the faith of a strong comeback. Though, it looks Michael Clarke all the way.

Good luck, MSD.