You don't become good or bad in just one series - Raina

“We are still no.2 in the world” – Raina

Amidst criticism coming in for the Indian team from all quarters, Suresh Raina stoutly stood by his team and his captain. He defended the team by saying that just because they lost one series, it does not imply that they are not a good team. After all, in the ODI format, they are still number 2 in the world.

There was a lot of speculation as to why India could not win against a team which they should have been able to defeat comfortably. Though there were various things that could have been better on the part of the Indian team, Raina’s statement does provide some food for thought.

The two teams ahead of India in the 2014-15 season are Australia and New Zealand. India has done reasonably well this year, bagging fourteen out of twenty ODI matches as victories. Raina was also quick to come to the defense of skipper MS Dhoni, providing this very reason. “You can't disrespect him and what he has achieved," Raina said. "He has won so many trophies for BCCI. At the same time he's a good human being, good honest man. One series can't make him bad. He's a good leader. Everyone loves him in the dressing room. There's still a lot of cricket left for him. So just wait for some time."

Dhoni has usually taken the place of the finisher, being the last beacon of hope for the fans when the scenario looked bleak, or to comfortably lead India to a win in case of a good play on the part of the team. Recently, however, he has climbed up the order, taking the place of the number four.

But little, it seems, has changed in the kind of responsibility that rests on the shoulders of the captain, as he is still expected to lead the team out of muddy waters when the going is rough. In the only win on this tour, Dhoni struck a good 69 off 77 balls, avoiding what would have otherwise been utter and complete humiliation for the team.

“The way he [Dhoni] has batted in the last two games has showed how important No. 4 is for him," Raina said. "He has taken a lot of responsibility over the years and he showed it today as well. He set the tone for us today with Shikhar [Dhawan]. Me and Stuey [Binny] had a good partnership after the 40th over, you can execute [big shots] later on. Look at the kind of players we have. Look at Ambati Rayudu, he batted really well with MS also. So If you have a partnership of 70-80, then you can easily accelerate later on.” What this means is that Dhoni’s erstwhile role of finisher now falls squarely on Raina’s shoulders. He helped raise 90 runs in the last ten overs, knocking 38 off 21 balls.

Rains also spoke about the importance of a positive mindset while batting lower in the order. If runs have not been scored upfront, the number 6 has to pair with whoever comes on, and has to concentrate on scoring runs with as much acceleration as possible.

He is performing fairly at his new position, and claims that he has no regrets moving down. “ I just want to win games for India. I can score a quick 40 or a quick 80. But still when we won the World Cup in 2011, I scored 35 not out against Australia and 37 not out against Pakistan. That's my best innings ever. I would love to bat up the order, but whatever the team needs me to do, I just have to take that responsibility."

Doing his part as a part time bowler too, Raina says that his experience as a batsman, combined with tips from R Ashwin as well as good old hard work is what helps him bowl well on difficult pitches like Mirpur, which is notoriously slow. “You know that five fielders are in and you have to contain, not let them rotate the strike. It's pressure on the batsmen too, chasing 300 and they know that five fielders are inside - that gives a chance to bowlers if you bowl a good line and length. I know how a batsman plays in that situation because when I'm batting, my mind also works like that. So I have some experience of bowling in those situations.”