What lies ahead for India in Test cricket?

Time is running out for MS Dhoni, who has been stubborn enough to not change his approach

The last time India toured England to play a 5-Test match series was way back in 1959 when the Indians were thumped 5-0. Of course, that was long time when even our fathers were toddlers! However, the most recent tour to the country, where they were blanked 4-0, has not been any different either. To compound the misery, it was followed by another 4-0 thumping at the hands of Australia and a home series loss to England. It hurt even when India had won the World Cup only 2 months prior to the English tour to leave the fans in a state of exuberance.

I feel that the primary reason for the defeats was that the old warhorses, who had previously made India a force to reckon with in the last 10 years, had stopped performing. Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan and, dare I say, Sachin Tendulkar were in the team on the basis of their past performances. Sehwag’s hand-eye coordination was nowhere near what it used to be during his heydays. Gambhir fished too much outside the off-stump and invariably ended up getting caught behind. Harbhajan had become a ghost of his previous self whereas an overweight Zaheer Khan had to be hidden in the field.

From July 2011 to this date, India have lost 10 out of the 12 away Tests, with series losses in England, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. While the team was nothing less than abominable in England and Australia, their performances in the recently concluded tours to South Africa and New Zealand, in spite of their losses, showed a lot of positives for India. The young and inexperienced batting order showed a lot of resilience, tenacity and patience against the likes of Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn. There was a period of time during the SA Test when Steyn went wicket-less for 70 overs. They took blows on their bodies and survived a barrage of bouncers. All of the young batsmen were among the runs in both those tours.

It is the bowling department that remains to be a concern. In Johannesburg, South Africa came within 7 runs of chasing 458, while Brendon McCullum, with a magnificent triple hundred, denied India a certain victory in Wellington. It’s not as if the bowling was totally awful. There have been some brilliant spells, too: bowling SA out cheaply in the first innings of the Johannesburg Test or bundling out New Zealand for 105 in the second innings at Auckland to turn the match on its head. The strength of the opposition, in case of the Saffers, and the individual brilliance, in case of McCullum, however, was too good for them.

This is the million-dollar question now: Will India be able to reverse the tide in the upcoming tour of England?

The English, after the heavy Ashes defeat, must be licking their wounds. They are not the same side that beat India in 2011. Kevin Pietersen has been unceremoniously shown the door. Graeme Swann announced a surprise retirement. We do not know about Jonathan Trott’s future. India, on the other hand, are slowly building into a team that may well give them a run for their money. The batting order, more or less, seems to be settled with Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane and MS Dhoni. Barring Rohit Sharma to some extent, these guys have shown that they have the temperament and the patience to survive the rigours of Test cricket.

The bowlers, though, need to step up. The only way you can win is by taking 20 wickets, and the bowlers need to find the right combination and method to do that. The leaner and much fitter Zaheer Khan needs to mentor the likes of Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar before he takes his final bow. Ishant Sharma, whose record overseas is better than at home, needs to be more consistent with his line and length and be amongst the wickets, as well. He is India’s frontline pacer, but he neither exudes the fear factor nor has the same impact as that of Morne Morkel or Mitchell Johnson.

India may well experiment with someone like Umesh Yadav or Varun Aaron for the sheer pace they generate. Further, regardless of the nature of the pitch, India should play two spinners. India’s strength has always been spin bowling. If the spin-duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin does not produce results, then Pragyan Ojha should be given a chance, as he has always delivered in the limited opportunities given to him. The fact that Ojha can’t bat goes against him and weighs heavily in favour of Jadeja.

Lastly, Dhoni needs to put more trust in his bowlers and be more aggressive. Of late, Dhoni has been extremely defensive in his approach in away Tests. He refused to take the new ball in Durban till the umpires gave him no choice after 146 overs. In Wellington, he spread out the field too soon on the 4th day even when New Zealand were just about 20 runs ahead. His main priority seems to curtail runs rather than take wickets. This strategy has worked really well for him in limited overs cricket; however, in Test cricket, against quality oppositions, this strategy may not always work, as the opposition can grind the bowlers out.

The team is going through a transformation now, and exciting times lie ahead. 2014 will bring a slew of overseas Tests for India against quality oppositions. The team is young and have looked good; now they need to build upon the foundation that has already been laid and capitalize on their chances and start winning.