Cricket: India's Middle Order Muddle in ODIs

India’s middle order in ODI’s is in the midst of a revival. It has been ever since the selectors decided that Ganguly and Dravid were to no longer be a part of the ODI scheme of things.

The trouble is that not only have we been largely unsuccessful replacing those two, even the players who we thought had earned their place have disappointed since then. Robin Uthappa immediately crashed out of favour in 2008 with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli benefiting from his exclusion. Dinesh Karthik’s stints as opener were better compared only to his failures in the middle order.

Yusuf Pathan was another man tried out in the middle order, he was packed off after proving to be largely inconsequential for a long time but Ravindra Jadeja‘s tortured stay continues.

Suresh Raina has been one of the most consistent young players in the recent past

The bright side during this period of trial and error was the form Yuvraj hit in 2008-09 when he slayed the attacks of England, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka(yes, again). That’s an indication of how much we played against Sri Lanka, these extra fixtures, conjured up at the last moment soon led to injuries which forced him to miss the Champions Trophy in South Africa. This loss of momentum coupled with the gain of mass has led to one of his weakest periods in International Cricket. From perennially trying to break into the test team he now has to fight for his place in the ODI squad. His knock against Australia on Wednesday was scratchy at the best so it’s only hope from the selectors that he rediscovers his form that keeps him in the team.

Suresh Raina has meanwhile made the most of his chances in the middle order. In a flexible middle order, Raina has had to change his approach in every match and he’s done the best he could. His performances haven’t turned around matches and have been mostly supporting ones but now is the time he gets the promotions to bat up the order and play those big match-winning knocks. His fielding and his fitness standards haven’t fallen in the two years that he’s been a regular so that earns him a lot of points when compared to his contemporaries.

Rohit Sharma is a great prospect but he needs to step across the line now and be a lot more than just a prospect

Rohit Sharma is a beautiful player to watch when in full flow so it’s a shame that he so often does injustice to his own talent. Two half centuries and two centuries in two years is not the mark of a committed player. You wish the faults were only technical but you know there’s more than that behind his consistently poor display. His apparent apathy is magnified when you look at the two wonderful IPL seasons he’s had playing a pivotal role for the Deccan Chargers. If it’s responsibility he so desperately craves to perform well, he needs to realize the worth of every spot in the national team. Every spot carries the responsibility of a billion supporters. You earn the importance they give you.

Virat Kohli has been among the team for two years now. The lad doesn’t get regular matches but enjoys the confidence of his captain and that has showed in the good scores he’s notched up. He has been a lot more consistent and you get the feeling he does not understand why he is not a part of the starting XI already. His angry outburst after reaching his century showed how seriously he works for his place in the team and his faith in his own abilities as a batsman. It’s unfair now to keep Kohli uncertain of his position in the pecking order in the ODI team. It’s time he gets a go as a regular starter.

This post has been written by Crownish who believes ODI cricket is still it’s own unique test of a player’s skills. Crownish also blogs about cricket and fantasy cricket on www.fckingblog.wordpress.com. You can follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Crownish