Nagpur, Nov. 23: Another home series wrapped up in style but soon India will be up for a reality check in South Africa. In a country where the going has always been tough for the tourists, their number one ranking will be seriously questioned.
Of the many areas of concerns, Suresh Raina’s form tops the list. M.S. Dhoni lashed out at the selectors for not giving the left-hander the required rest to recuperate mentally.
The left-hander, who scored a hundred on debut, has managed 58 runs in his last six innings will find it hard to hang on to his spot.
“If Raina doesn’t get a break in the ODI series (after the first two games) then you have to replace him. One of the options was to give him a rest during the last Test match but we thought he was most likely to get a break in the ODIs so we played him here. So, it’s a bit tough on him. What he needs is a 10-15 day break,” said Dhoni.
The tour will be soon after the five match ODI series against New Zealand and the decision to send the senior players in advance is the way forward. The long tour will test all components of the best side in the world.
Kiwi skipper Daniel Vettori did not mince words. “I am not sure of the grounds they are going to be playing, that is bound to have a huge bearing. India are the No. 1 team in the world for a reason and they have started to play exceptionally well overseas and so South Africa seems a final frontier for them,” said the Kiwi skipper.
Both Rahul Dravid and Ishant Sharma have returned to form. Dhoni noted it was a good sign but asked not to place everything in relation to the series in South Africa.
The bowling to be spearheaded by Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh and the two senior bowlers have five caps between them against the Proteas away from home. Harbhajan has three wickets at 56, while Zaheer has 13 scalps at an average 38.61.
Indian batsman in South Africa
Batsman M Runs HS Avg
V. Sehwag 5 238 105 26.44
R. Dravid 8 504 148 33.60
S. Tendulkar 12 835 169 39.76
VVS Laxman 7 370 89 41.11
MS Dhoni 2 104 47 26.00