da dobrowin： India looked a batsman short on a track on which they might not need the extra bowler, and the batsmen playing the match weren’t exactly up to scratch either

da roleta： Sidharth Monga in Mohali05-Nov-20152:26

Manjrekar: Dhawan’s technique as an opener worrying

Let’s make no mistake about it. To play five bowlers, as Virat Kohli explains it in theory, is a noble thought. Batsmen don’t win you the matches, bowlers do, by taking 20 wickets. You can win a match without scoring 1000 runs, but very rarely do you win without taking 20 wickets. What you lose by the way of a No. 6 is not as big as what you gain by the way of an extra fresh bowler when there is a partnership going and the batsmen are looking for quick runs. On a flat pitch, in oppressive heat, this is a sound strategy.In the last two Tests in Sri Lanka, it worked. In the first, it was not required, because the Galle pitch turned square, and spinners don’t tire that much. There an extra batsman in a tricky chase would have made a difference. India’s team director Ravi Shastri has been at pains to clarify that five bowlers is a policy not set in stone, and that in cool weather and on a pitch that you can do with four bowlers, they have no issues with playing the extra batsman.It all comes down to reading the pitch then, a pitch that has been made to India’s liking on their instructions. The middle part of the pitch is flat – the ball is hardly bouncing from there – and the business area for the spinners is scuffed up. The spinners will have to do a major chunk of the bowling, and these are spinners who have a reputation of bowling long, tireless spells. Ravindra Jadeja recently took 37 wickets in three Ranji Trophy matches, bowling unchanged in every innings.As a new leader, it is understandable you want to stamp your brand of cricket indelibly. There was a feeling that India had become used to going into big matches with safety foremost on their minds. It is possible Kohli wants to pullout of that mindset, especially with this being the first Test of a big series. But you also need to practically read a pitch.There is nothing absolutely wrong or right about playing five bowlers including two quicks, but the opportunity cost of having the extra bowler, who might not be called upon to bowl those tough overs to lift a flagging attack, might be much higher than it was at SSC or P Sara. It was an easier choice in Asia when MS Dhoni batted at No. 6, but with Wriddhiman Saha there you need to give it a second thought.Sanjay Bangar, India’s batting coach, said they played the extra quick because a low pitch also calls for reverse swing. “No, I think another aspect of playing on low and slow wickets is that the reverse swing comes into play very quickly,” Bangar said. “If you see, the reverse swing started in the 10th over or 12th over itself for both the sides. That is where the Indian team has an advantage, in that it has two bowlers who can create an impact with reverse swing as the game progresses.” Bangar didn’t talk about the opportunity cost of the move.Having made that choice, it was now extra pressure on the remaining five batsmen. Kohli has been saying the batsmen have been up for it, and indeed enjoy the challenge. On a difficult batting track, in the face of a surprise weapon, left-arm accurate spin of Dean Elgar, India needed that bit extra from their batsmen, but they were more lethargic than the crowed response in Mohali.Two of the top five batsmen fell to pace. One of those was a bad shot, by Shikhar Dhawan, in the second over of the morning. Kohli was done in part by the slowness of the surface and in part by the slight turning of the bat face as he waited for the ball to arrive. His wistful glare at the pitch had a sense of irony to it, for this was a pitch tailored for his team.India’s woes against opposition spinners continued as Dean Elgar finished with career-best figures of 4 for 22•BCCIIt was the wickets lost to spin that were particularly disappointing. This is something India have historically prided themselves on. Elgar and friends bowled few bad balls, but all three specialist batsmen that fell to spin did so because they were not to the pitch of the ball. M Vijay can be excused to an extent because he played superbly before that, manufacturing runs on a slow pitch that made both survival and run-scoring difficult.India batsmen repeatedly failed to get to the pitch of the ball, an attribute Bangar said was crucial on such tracks, along with confidence in defence and the use of the depth of the crease. Before Cheteshwar Pujara fell playing for spin to a length ball, which didn’t turn, he kept defending offbreaks from Simon Harmer without meeting them on the half-volley. By doing so he left himself open to the natural variation on what Elgar said was a fourth-day pitch. It eventually trapped him lbw.Ajinkya Rahane went further and drove without reaching the pitch of the ball, with his back foot sliding away, and the edge taken. Bangar said the 201 on board was worth much more than it looked, but admitted that his batsmen squandered the advantage of winning the toss and batting on this track when it was as its easiest. “I think yes, batsmen do commit errors, and it is our job to make them aware of it,” Bangar said. “I am pretty sure that once they come back and bat for the second dig, they will come over it.”It is still possible, looking at the pitch and that South Africa will most likely be batting last on it, and that India will emerge victorious in this match. But if they are going to play on such tracks, they need to look again at their strategy and team composition, and also play spin better. Second innings might be a good time to start the latter.