South Africa vs India 2013: 1st Test, Day 3: 5 things India need to do to take control

2) Dhoni’s tactics & Ashwin’s line of attack :

Having the opposition 6/7 down but not being able to finish off the tail has been an age old problem for Indian cricket. We witnessed more of that last evening when SA put on an unbroken 67-run stand for the 7th wicket. This period saw R.Ashwin bowling the majority of his 6 overs & while going for 25 runs in those 6 overs was bad, the way in which he conceded those runs was even more disappointing.

It was a combination of unimaginative captaincy & bad bowling. Ashwin continuously bowled short on a middle-leg line allowing the batsmen to work him away off the back foot. Dhoni also did not help his bowler by setting defensive fields. Ashwin will have to up his game on Day 3 & at least hold one end up while the pacers are being rotated.