India v http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 – Opportunity for a reversal in India’s Test fortunes – Part 1
Having dropped to number five on the International Cricket Council’s Test team rankings following a string of poor performances, India are in dire need of a victory in the extended-overs format of the game, and the upcoming 2-match Test series for which
they will be hosting New Zealand emerges as a prime opportunity to return to winning ways.
The Men in Blue enjoyed a considerably prolonged reign as the ICC’s top ranked Test team – a position to which they ascended in December 2009 after defeating http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 at home, 2-0. However, 2011 saw them losing their status as performances slipped.
Out of the last three Test series they have played abroad, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760
in June/July 2011. Although the Windies’ have long been counted among the weaker sides on the international circuit, the Indian team found it had to best their Caribbean hosts, eventually scraping a 1-0 (3) win devoid of glory.
The first Test saw the visitors winnings by 63 runs, but the last two Tests ended on a draw. The bowlers put up noteworthy performances, among them http://www.senore.com/Cricket/I-Sharma-c1566, who claimed 22 scalps during the 3-match series. However, the batsmen’s outings were exceedingly
disappointing (http://www.senore.com/Cricket/R-Dravid-c2229 remained the only batsman who managed to score a century), considering the fact that India were the top Test team, going up against a side which had been struggling for long.
The downward spiral reached an all-time low with the Pataudi Trophy last year, in July/August 2011 – a series of four Test matches during India’s tour of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013, which the Men in Blue lost, in a humiliating 0-4 defeat. The whitewash saw them losing their
cherished top Test team spot to the Poms after having retained it for nearly 20 months.
In addition to the series score, the margin of the defeats was considerable – the first Test was lost by 196 runs, the second by 319 runs, the third by an innings and 242 runs, and the fourth by an innings and 8 runs.
While the bowlers managed to hold their own, the batsmen struggled visibly, with Rahul Dravid once again featuring as the only batsman who managed to reach triple figures, having scored three centuries throughout the series. Renowned veterans such as Sachin
Tendulkar, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/G-Gambhir-c1447 failed to deliver, adding to the disappointment. The dismal performances of the seniors led the Men in Blue to briefly adopt a controversial rotation policy, which has since been shelved.
However, the Pataudi Trophy was hardly the lowest of lows for the team - the downward trend continued in shocking fashion for the Men in Blue, as they conceded yet another 0-4 defeat, this time in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy during their tour of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746
in December 2011/January 2012.
Once again, the margin of the losses was massive – the first Test was lost by 122 runs, the second by an innings and 68 runs, the third by an innings and 37 runs, while the last saw the visitors conceding a 298-run defeat.
The bowlers, yet again, managed respectable performances, but the batting order witnessed a complete collapse at certain stages of the series. The first innings of the second Test, for example, saw 4 batsmen, including opener Gambhir, dismissed on duck,
while the second innings of the third Test resulted in three batsmen sent packing on duck by the rampaging Aussie pacer http://www.senore.com/Cricket/BW-Hilfenhaus-c1204, among them veteran Laxman.
Individual scores failed to rise above double-digits, with youngster http://www.senore.com/Cricket/V-Kohli-c2737 remaining the only batsman who managed to score a century during the series.
Continued in Part 2 ...
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