IPL3: The 'old' guys shining bright!

I have myself never bothered to think too much about the age factor at least when it comes to sports but it does seem that many of the players and coaches in international cricket do think that it is only youth that can survive the rawness with which T20 is played. I would like to point-out to these people that if the performances of IPL3 are closely watches, it seems that it is the older, more experienced guys who are excelling in performing consistently. Whether it is the sheer genius of the master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar or the prolific form of the very-consistent Kallis, it seems that experience does matter even when it comes to playing a game that many believe is all about batting like crazy and hit the living daylights out of the cricket ball. Yes, someone like Murali Vijay has been able to impress but what about the likes of Brave or Pollard or for that matter, the much talked-about, Rohit Sharma? These guys are supposed to be the force that is supposed to take T20 game forward, but they cannot seem to score some runs against the near, 40-yr old Kumble in a competition that isn't even being played with clear distinction in terms of representing your country.

Will Abhishek Nayyar follow Agarkar’s footsteps?

Most cricket followers may no longer recall the name of former Indian paceman, Ajit Agarkar. However, it is worth mentioning that he was once, the most promising of the Indian fast bowlers to have arisen from the famous Mumbai factory of cricketers. Often dubbed as the ‘perpetual underperformer’, Agarkar had promised a lot as a leading swing bowler and more so, as an all-rounder. His batting abilities never really surfaced during his decade-long career but most analysts and coaches from the Indian domestic circuit had believed that he was the one who would be able to replace the vacuum created by Kapil Dev’s retirement, to some extent, some day. That never happened and Agarkar never rose to the status that nearly everyone who had seen him blossom as a young performer believed was his for the taking. Now, another youngster from the same Mumbai team and one of Agarkar’s current bowling partner Abhishek Nayyar is being billed as the next big thing to arrive from the Mumbai stables and a complete all-rounder that the Indian team has been missing for some time. Yes, Irfan Pathan did promise a lot but he too has fallen by the side and no one really knows what he is doing at the Ranji circuit and whether his performances are being even watched by the selectors. Nayyar had been included in the Indian ODI squad after a string of decent performances in the first edition of the IPL but then, many observers say that he is being over-hyped simply because he is neither a very pacy bowler nor a very talented batsman in terms of being technically superb or a brilliant hitter of the ball. Many critics have gone on to say that the prime reason for the undertones regarding his selection are arising simply due to the desperation of the Mumbai supporters to get someone from their team in the Indian squad.

To be very honest, Delhi has left Mumbai way behind in terms of hogging the spots in the Indian team and besides Tendulkar there is literally no other player who is even in the scheme of thing — plz don’t raise the name of Rohit Sharma, we all know that he is just another bubble about to burst at any point. For me, even the comparison between Agarkar and Nayyar are misplaced, simply because Agarkar’s rise-to-fame and the huge expectations were because of his natural talent that was very evident in the very first ODI game he played. He had the ability to swing the ball on dead pitches and had the panache of a natural batsman — Nayyar on the other hand seems to be peddling on a wave of optimism regarding his capabilities rather than having actually delivered or showcased as much as Agarkar during his long but not-so-impressive career.

Not Knee-jerking this... why are Yusuf, Rohit Sharma backed so much?

Please understand that this is not a knee-jerk reaction to India’s defeat in the first T20 match against SL. This has been happening over the last two seasons. For some strange reason, the selectors and the likes of Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri seem to be very vocal about the abilities of Rohit Sharma and Yusuf Pathan.
The elder Pathan for one is touted as the missing all-rounder that the team needs though he has never done anything even close to substantial to justify this faith. Similar is the case with Rohit Sharma who despite a string of failures, now combined with injury-enforced breaks and an average domestic season is back in the reckoning though he has never actually delivered when it mattered the most — so why are these two players being imposed upon us as the ‘young’ stars of the team that ‘will’ win the 2011 World Cup for India? Ravi Shastri seems to have a blind faith in Pathan’s ability to score match-winning innings, though every time he comes out to bat, an average, ridiculous dismissal is always guaranteed and he isn't a spinner by any measure — when is the last time you saw Yusuf turn the ball in any imaginable way?? Even when playing for the Rajasthan Royals, Yusuf has not been the greatest of performers considering that that his team depends a lot on his batting, often looking up to to finish the matches, but he has done that very, very seldom.