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We should have a back up for Dhoni

With so many matches (International, IPL) being played today, India cannot afford to have a captain without any backup. Just think what would you do if Dhoni was injured and out of a year. Regardless of Dhoni’s performance of a captain, we have to groom the second tier of leaders in the Indian cricket team. So let us take the 2011 World Cup which, I presume, is what all Indians cricket fans are looking forward to. It is a watershed event because it will probably mark the end of the Tendulkar era. I don’t think Tendulkar, Dravid and some players in other teams (Murali, Ponting?) will continue beyond that.

We have roughly 18 months to go before that. So what is our Grand Unified Strategy?

What is our core team? Who are the players? What is the backup plan for each of these players in case of injury and lack of form? What are we doing to ensure adequate playing time for the players and their backups, without overburdening them?

Are we planning to launch any special tactics for the World Cup (ala NZ 1992, SL 1996, etc.)? Are we going to pilot them or keep them hidden until the last minute? Will there be special tactics for batting, bowling, fielding or taking advantage of ODI rules (such as Powerplay times)?

What if we cannot execute these tactics effectively or they don’t yield the predicted results? Do we have a conventional plan to fall back upon? This is the most critical part, because if we cannot win by playing conventionally, then we will be blown out of the water by strong teams such as Australia and South Africa. Innovative tactics has to be built upon a team that can still play well otherwise.

What has India done in the last 12 months that gives you the confidence as an Indian cricket fan that India can bring the goods in 2011? My confidence was high at the beginning of the year, but with each passing month, I feel that India is losing its way.

Once again, we have 18 months. Do you think Dhoni can do his job and get the strategy right? Or should we persist with him and then see India keep experimenting with showmanship tactics that do nothing to advance our campaign for the World Cup?

World Cup 2011 Groups

The groups for the 2011 World Cup have been decided. While the format has not been formally disclosed by the ICC, they have indicated that it will be a quarter-final format i.e. top 4 in each group play in the Quarter finals. The tournament is going to be shortened to 49 matches (from 51) and to around 5 weeks (from 6 weeks).

I personally not a fan of the Quarter final format. We have seen in the past that one bad match and you are out of the tournament. Just think of South Africa. But what the hell can I do about it. I think the recent Champions Trophy is a better format than the World Cup. My own ideal format for the World Cup is as follows: have 14 teams, of which 4 teams get byes into a Super-8 round (top 4 teams from ICC rankings) The 10 remaining teams are divided into two groups of 5 each, and play each other. Top two in each group join the other 4 in the Super-8. In the Super-8, everyone plays each other and top 4 go to the semis. It will be 51 matches (same as 2007), but with at least two matches a day, it can comfortably be completed in 5 weeks or less.

Anyways, I'm not the ICC chief so I can't decide the format. So, without further arguments, I present the 2011 World Cup groups:

Group A - Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Canada, Kenya.

Group B - India, South Africa, England, West Indies, Bangladesh, Ireland, Netherlands.

Champions Trophy ends in blazer of glory

As soon as news was out that Daniel Vettori was not fit to the play in the final, Australia became obvious choice to win final.

The Aussies were already overwhelming favorites and New Zealand, without their captain, simply couldn't match them with bat, ball or even with their fielding.

A total of 200-9 was always too few on a decent batting pitch and despite the fine efforts of Shane Bond and Kyle Mills with the new ball, Shane Watson showed that his match-winning, unbeaten century against England was no fluke.

Following consecutive ducks at the start of the tournament, Watson demonstrated his worth as versatile and hard hitting batsman-ship with 105 not out.

Australia have now won the last two Champions Trophies, as well as the last three World Cups and the only consolation for New Zealand was that they didn't have to wear the cream and gold blazers dished out to the champions by the ICC.