Time to make a judgement call

As expected, India dominated the series and defeated Sri Lanka by 4-1. The scoreline per se conveys the good performance of the Indians which assisted them in getting close to Australia in terms of points and attaining the second position in the ICC ODIs ranking. However, there still remain some concerns with the Indian team that need to be addressed, keeping apart their batting which enabled the team to compete for generations and has always been their strong point, the team seems to fail on every count.

Throughout the series, as a unit, the Indian side appeared unpredictable. As usual the fitness level was pitiable. Zaheer Khan was pathetic on the field and demonstrated sheer lethargy. Pragyan Ojha suffered an injury which compelled him to sit in the dressing room and be a spectator.

As far as the bowling is concerned, it still seems in a state of hugger-mugger. Zaheer Khan and Irfan Pathan did bowl some good spells but they were not good enough to win matches for the team. Dhoni preferred playing with Ashok Dinda who needs to make a number of amends to make some impression at international level. The part-timers played their role well. But the problem in handling death-overs still exists. The bowlers are still vying for deciphering that elusive length they need to bowl in death overs.

With the willow, the team performed relatively better, barring the performance in the second ODI where they were ripped apart by the Sri Lankans. Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli continued their love affair with the Sri Lankan bowling attack while Suresh Raina also played a few useful innings. But the big concern is Rohit Sharma managed to garner only 13 runs out of this five match series. The concern increases because Rohit Sharma is regarded as a talented player who needs chances to do justice to his talent and potential. But the question is how many chances will he get? How long would the selectors persist with Rohit Sharma?

A good five years have passed since Sharma made his debut in international cricket. Since the beginning of his international career, he has batted like a complete batsman. There are minor glitches in his technique but that apart his basics are quite good. He bats with astounding ease and command. He has the capability of finding gaps where others find fielders. But his technical prowess is of no use until that fetches runs for him and the team. He has been a complete failure in all the three formats if his past records are evaluated.

Beyond doubt, Rohit Sharma has the potential to be a good batsman who can serve India for a long time. But his incessant dismal performance has invited calls for his head. New Zealand will be visiting India to play two Test matches and the same number of T20 matches latter in this month. Selectors may be kind to him and render upon him more chances to make up for the failures. After all, his selection is made on the grounds of ‘investing in talent and potential’.

In the name of ‘investing in talent and potential’, selectors are persisting with Sharma while others are being ignored. This seems to be an injustice to Manoj Tiwary who has spent most of his days warming the benches, and also others who are waiting for opportunities to make a mark.

Nothing can be attributed about the future with certitude. Rohit Sharma may come up with some remarkable performance to shut his critics up. Or runs may continue to elude him. Who knows! How long does it take to judge a player’s overall performance for his team? How many chances does a player need to do justice to his talent?

The time is now ripe to answer all these questions. In fact, it’s time to make a judgement call.