ICC Champions Trophy 2013: India's top performance provides a break from the scandals

The ever-excellent Andy Zaltzman’s Twitter account threw at me this astonishing statistic which vigorously shook my head to put things into perspective. “Shikhar Dhawan‘s first 6 international innings: 74 for 6 off 134 balls. His last 3 international innings: 403 for 2 off 375 balls.”

Few months ago, when India’s squad to face Australia at home was announced, I was lamenting the fact that the selectors had chosen to ignore Wasim Jaffer and pick Shikhar Dhawan ahead of him. Dhawan did have a good season, but it paled in comparison to the enormous set of numbers Jaffer put up. A Test and two one day internationals later, “silenced” is not the appropriate word to describe how I feel. Astounded, maybe.

Dhawan’s rise to fame is nothing short of a fairytale. After failing to capitalize on the opportunities he had earlier, to get a second chance is rare, but to grab it by the horns and straddle it without dropping the hat is an even rarer phenomenon. It was only in January when India were facing a crisis which seemed irreparable, but a mere six months later they look like favourites to latch on to the trophy.

India strolled to a win against West Indies a day ago in what seemed to be the most perfect win they’ve had in years. The batting looked absolutely fantastic (though, in all fairness, the West Indies bowling attack looked hapless), the bowlers stuck to a line and a length that didn’t allow the batsman to think about freeing their arms (barring a wayward Umesh Yadav), and the fielding was world-class. Here was a team which was confident of its ability and prepared to tear the opposition into pieces, yet with an air of class surrounding them.

But while Dhawan rakes in the accolades, the supporting cast deserves honourable mentions. Ravindra Jadeja and Rohit Sharma, two players who have been simple targets for critics and jokers alike, have taken their games to levels we expected them to achieve a while ago.

Rohit Sharma’s ascension to the opening slot looked iffy at first, but he’s proved to be the sensible calm within the Dhawan storm, a la the Gautam Gambhir in the Gambhir-Sehwag partnership. It’s incredible how easily the two batsmen have faded from memory since the emergence of Dhawan and Sharma, and they would have to do something extraordinary to find themselves back into the national team.

Sharma’s class is finally bursting out of its prolonged stay in its cocoon and hopefully it is here to stay. He remains one of the talents who never realized his potential, but multiple (and questionable) chances later, he seems to have found his footing.

Similarly, Ravindra Jadeja is having a golden year. His batting average is in the mid-50s, his bowling average is well below 20 and that moustache of his could twirl the world around its ends. India have always struggled to find a place for a dependable all-rounder, and Jadeja could be that one player who changes that.

But it’s Team India who have struggled through adversity and a terrible patch of form to come out on top and place themselves in an enviable position in the Champions Trophy. Back home, their colleagues and associates face prosecution, and many players donning the blue jersey could face some heat once they return. But despite that, they’ve been professional on the field and displayed some excellent cricket for the world to see.

This is an extremely volatile time for Indian cricket. It remains to be seen if a good performance will erase the match-fixing scandal out of our heads. Recent developments in the political world have pushed the scandal to the less-explosive middle pages, and with public attention reducing by the hour, it won’t be a surprise if another Dhawan hundred puts Sreesanth and co. on to the back burner for a short while. Maybe it is good that for once, after a long gap, Indian cricket is in the news for the right reasons. But we must never forget, and definitely not forgive.