Impact of IPL on our National Players

Winning and loosing is part of every game. Especially in the T20 format, even the best team could flop at times. Therefore, the failures in two ICC T20 world cup events in a row could be also swallowed in that perspective.

It is unfair to criticize the captain and the team every time there is failure. However, the most significant question is that how come that most of the team members ignored the basics of the game in the ICC WC T20 games, while playing for the country:-

1. Handling of short balls. Why is that our bowlers unable to throw short balls like most of other   intntl. team players do. Why are our ballers not taught how to ball right short balls and our batsmen how to defend them? Even a 10 year old lad playing gally cricket knows that 2 or 3 consecutive short pitched balls bouncing chest high could make most of our batsmen out. Have a look at the number of times H.S was caught thus. Is it that we are too gentlemanly not to indulge in rough game tactics. It will not be surprising if some pitch makers connive and prepare pitches with bouncing surface in the short and flat in the full length that suits them and troubles Indian team.

2. In T20, the game turner is the last 5 overs.

End-overs batting:- It is fundamental basics that while batting, especially in the crucial last overs, the out of form and lower order batsmen, instead of trying to blindly hit the ball hard resulting in dot balls or getting out, should always keep their cool and try to defend and quickly  hand over strike to his mate who is in better form to get runs, and to build a partnership. Look at the batting actions of many of our out-of-form and lower-order batsmen in the two super 8 matches in the end overs while highly effective batsmen S R in the match with Aus and MSD in the match with WI. Look how YP, Jadeja, HS, made those stable batsmen in full form had to just stand there and watch their mates batting mindlessly and go down one by one without taking any runs. 

End-overs balling:- In the end overs, the bowler should mostly try to restrict runs and aim to get maidens and not wickets, especially when the opponent batting team has over 4-5 wickets in hand. Often our ballers seems to be oblivious of this fact, by balling many full toss, wides and no balls giving away large number of runs in the last 2-3 overs. Look how many sixers Aus and WI made with the full tosses by some of our ballers in the end overs. If they cannot understand this themselves, they should be shown some replays of their games.

3. Fielding:- Most of our players are bad in 'Catching' down coming balls  from high altitudes because these balls gain high momentum almost equal to the  force applied on it at the impact of the bat. It requires special coaching and training. Look the way Jadeja went about to catch Chanderpaul with his fingers spread out like for catching in a girl's hand ball game.   Not even a "MY BALL"  or "I SHALL" is heard in the field and see what MSD and YP did and dropped Gayle.

Look how many opportunities we lost because of our guys were unable to collect the ball and stump it in time at bothe ends. Most of the time, the guys just  stand there watching, hoping for a direct hit, never bothering to place himself in the line of the ball to collect it and stump it, if the balls miss the stump. The way things are, I have serious doubts whether the Captain ever bother to discuss these with the team at all.

The list can go on and on. But I do not know whom to blame, the Captain, the Coaches or the players itself who have become lazy or unconcerned because of the easy money they get anyway.  Had our team members spent one-tenth the time they spend on making money in commercial ads, things would have been much better.

4. Nation's interests take back seat. Losing games is natural and it is only fair that the best team win. However, introspection shall be welcome by all. Somehow, I have a feeling that the team members are not bothered much the way we feel about their shortcomings in these matches. Cannot blame them also. Here we had a much fatigued team with so much of IPL games just over. It is written all over in their body language. IPL is great but the way in which it is conducted need some rethinking.  In that respect, it is true if someone said that the IPL philosophy and the money involved had only helped to kill our national team. I do not think that even BCC and Franchisees are really serious about the erosion of values in the nation team due to their IPL misadventures. Otherwise, someone would have come forward to make an IPL team with only Indian players. 

It adds my respect for Sachin in politely refusing to play ICC-T20-WC under these circumstances.