Rahul has to motivate team to victory
January 23, 2022 13:22
Welcome to the commentary for the 3rd ODI in Cape Town where India play hosts South Africa to avoid a clean-sweep and leave South African shores on a high on Sunday.
India's strategy looked completely out of sync with modern day white ball game as the batters failed to keep the momentum in the middle overs and more importantly the bowlers, save Jasprit Bumrah, looked club class and without ideas of getting breakthroughs.
In two matches, India have been only able to pick up seven wickets -- four in the first game when Proteas batted first and only three in the second.
Ravichandran Ashwin and especially Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the two senior-most bowlers looked far from threatening and the young Proteas batters like Rassie van der Dussen, Janneman Malan along with seniors like Quinton de Kock have feasted on the pedestrian stuff dished out by them.
With the two having flopped completely, it needs to be seen whether Rahul Dravid, the man who is currently calling all the shots as far as tactics is concerned, takes a dim view and at least try out Jayant Yadav and Deepak Chahar in the next game which would lend some freshness to the attack.
It is a foregone conclusion that once Rohit Sharma is back in action, Rahul will lose his spot at the top of the order with Shikhar Dhawan scoring runs and at a better clip compared to his younger partner.
Virat Kohli may have scored 51 in the first game but what is visible is his lack of energy on the field having been sacked from ODI captaincy.
He is doing his routines without getting too involved. While it is fair that he wants Rahul to grow into the job but somewhere the infectious energy that he brings into the field and which normally rubs off on other younger players has been missing in the two games.
Rahul would do well to imbibe some of it from his former captain.
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