Required Run Rate is above 9. Six Wickets are gone. It is one of the matches, where chances of winning are 1 out of 100. It's a perfect adverse condition for batsmen who are remaining.
But, Heroes are born in adversities.
Ganguly took over the captaincy of the Indian cricket team, his main aim was to win Test matches overseas. He was keen to have a strong and solid opening combination, which was vital for success. Virender Sehwag was promoted to open against his will initially but he was backed by the team management and he went on to become one of the most feared opening batsmen of all time. Once Gautam Gambhir started partnering Sehwag, Indians looked as if they had found a duo they were searching for.
There were quite a few openers who were considered future prospects but failed to live up to expectations. None of those could cure the persistent headache of the captain or selectors. It was commendable that India managed to perform well in Test maches without a settled opening combination. It was difficult to fathom how these players despite their talent could not cement their places.
These are several batsmen who opened the batting for India after Ganguly took over the captaincy. Few partnered Sehwag too. Even Rahul Dravid opened the innings few times but he is widely regarded as one of the best one-down batsman India ever had.
Ganguly invested in Sehwag, Harbhajan to the extent that Sehwag's mother once said I wouldn't have played my son in the team (during his weak patch). On the 4th day of the third test in the India Australia series, Ganguly put his hand on Bhajji's shoulders and told Bhogle - Ye kal jitayega Apne ko match......
The 2001 Standard Bank Triangular Tournament was a One Day International (ODI) cricket tournament held in South Africa in October 2001. It was a tri-nation series between the national representative cricket teams of the South Africa, India and Kenya. The hosts South Africa won the tournament by defeating team India by 6 wickets in the final.
Sourav created a culture where players were pursued for their potential and meticulous efforts than merely the results. 'Dada' fought with selectors for Bhajji in 2001 for the home series against Australia, backed Dhoni ahead of Karthik for the 2005 home series against Pakistan and what happened next in is history.
From defeating the invincible Aussies in 2001 to the epic 2002 NatWest final win to reaching the 2003 World Cup final to almost winning the 2003/04 Test series Down Under to beating arch-rivals, Pakistan at their kingdom for the first time, Sourav’s leadership changed Indian cricket and its image all over.
Dhoni invested in Jadeja, Ashwin and even Rohit in ODIs during his weak patch.
The reason Ganguly and Dhoni built teams was once magically put in an interview - They know the pain of waking up one morning and realising you are not being picked for the match. You don't know whether you will play again or when you will play again. When you live in those insecurities, you understand how to deal with other players living in similar situations.
Of course, Dhawan was a blow. But picking Shankar suddenly and then Mayank Agarwal out of the blue, Jadeja and Karthik for the last 2 matches without any match practice and expecting them to perform shows why the greatest players are not the greatest captains.
Tendulkar and Kohli never woke up with any insecurity of being picked to play. It will take a lot more for Kohli to build a phenomenal "TEAM". Now, we are just a team of "FEW PHENOMENAL PLAYERS ".
Last ball before tea against Australia and Rohit Sharma advised Bumrah to bowl a slow Yorker and Shaun Marsh was out LBW.
Rohit Sharma deserves as much credit for Bumrah and Pandya's success as team India's selectors for having played them in MI and also gone to win IPL 4 times.
Kohli demonstrated the formula "great players make a great team" in 11 IPLs with himself, ABD, Gayle, McCullum, Watson etc in the team and almost always failed. Now the similar approach is being tried in the Indian team and when Anil Kumble tried to bring in some sense into this, he was shown the door to bring in the eternal alcoholic ...Yes Man...- Ravi Shastri.
One good thing about Tendulkar on the captaincy front was that he gave it up very soon when he realized he wasn't good at it. Ganguly and Dhoni could then take over and India definitely saw more success.
When Mayanti Langer asked Dada, "How do you handle players like Sehwag in dressing room?"
Dada said, "Once we wanted Viru to go big, instead he played a silly shot and came back to dressing room, changed, sat beside me and watched Rahul Dravid bat... After few minutes he started talking about the balls Dravid was leaving and how he would have smashed them to boundaries...I wanted to say just get lost from here but I simply kept listening... That's how you handle guys like Sehwag... Give them 10 games and tell them that they have to win 3 for the team"
Just like two good people don't make a good marriage, 11 good players don't make a good team. Kohli needs to adapt and now has 15 months if he's serious about carrying the hopes of a billion people on his shoulders. Yes, he is much better than what he was few years back. But, I still feel India would do better under Rohit and will still be my first contender for the 2020 T20 World Cup.
Generations in India will remember this World Cup for all the magnificent innings by Rohit, great bowling by Bumrah and this special inning by Jadeja.
Great disappointment, India needs to change lots of players, coach and most importantly "the" commentator.
Success has many fathers, failure is an orphan.
Dhoni along with that heavy bat and heavy heart departing from the pitch in tears was amongst the last sight an Indian Cricket fan wanted to witness in life.
But hey, Captain, my captain, you are not alone in this. You are not standing alone in this failure. All the wrongs and all the rights that transpired on that day, it is known without a slightest doubt that you tried your best. With all the criticism, the pressure, the body, the aspirations and the love you carried on your shoulders, it was never easy being you.
So, for that you, whom we could never pretend to understand, please don't feel alone right now. If this failure was imminent, it was on the team. If it was not you, and Sir Jadeja gave a pretty good fight.
One picture cannot do justice to the pain this man must have felt in not being able to take his team to the other side. A legend in my eyes, forever.
Emotions and underperformance aside, India never had a great combination of wicketkeeper, strategist, finisher, and captain like Dhoni in the past.
India might never have a great combination of wicketkeeper, strategist, finisher, and captain like Dhoni in the future. End of Discussion!
