Opening balance

Opening is difficult. Try telling this to that grand Greek dame and she might well turn in her grave. Is opening "something" really that difficult??

Pose the same question to Chandu Borde and he would just shrug his shoulders.

Welcome to the perennial Indian problem. Finding openers of caliber has never been easy. Not just in India but in most of the few countries that play this game. But the consistent inconsistency exhibited by Indian openers in solving this puzzle merits some thought. Just when Das seemed to getting the grip of it all, Ramesh decided to take a sabbatical and the momentum was lost. It's a separate debate as to how Ramesh can get himself regularly injured just on the eve of grueling foreign tours. Dasgupta came, fumbled, saw, fumbled and was banished. And now with Jaffer looking to provide the answer, Das seems to be on the downward spiral.

Has this all got to do with the psyche?? Once the opening partner begins to come good, pressure tends to mount on the senior one. And slowly, but surely the slide sets in again.

This fortunately seems to be the season for ad hoc solutions. The ball, which was magnetically repelled by Dasgupta's gloves, magically settles in Dravid's. And Sachin in the middle of things, is middling the ball like a beauty. So wouldn't this paint do good for the Test matches too?? And whose face shall we paint to get this team some much needed gloss?? Who else??

Dravid - the team man, of course. Dravid as opener, will solve a posse of problems. Number One, and most importantly, it will give the team an opener who is sure of his spot in the eleven, since a Test team sans Dravid is difficult to fathom. But the biggest obstacle in making him the opener is himself. He would obviously look at history and the fate of makeshift openers. And say a big "no", as in South Africa. But in a team where Sachin should not, Sourav cannot and Laxman will not open the batting, it's upto Dravid to live upto his billing. Remember!! TEAM MAN!!!

Those skeptics who question the wisdom of tenants for the opening spot would do well to take a cursory glance at current day cricket. Michael Vaughan, Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds and Justin Langer were not openers from Day One. Fate and their ability to mould it to their advantage made them successful openers. Their records speak for themselves. Especially the last said one.

Number three to opener, Langer has done remarkably well in such a short span of time. One should not forget that not long ago he was a very handy wicket-keeper too. Does this not resemble, the tale of the "Wall"???

This Indian team is not getting younger by the day. There will be a D-Day when the Fab Four would contemplate retirement together. We certainly will have to think beyond that day. Dravid's elevation to opener would manufacture a middle order spot. And this spot could be rightly claimed by Kaif, Mongia or Shewag. A young and new number six would also auger well for the confidence of the fringe players.

Pray, tell me, where is the motivation for the middle order batsmen in domestic cricket today. The Test team middle order, looks like the Hall of Fame of today's cricket. Walls and Blasters and Princes and Special people have cemented the chairs like never before. And the team looks super good, at least on paper.

Dravid as opener would do the present day and future Indian teams a world of good. But will the "Wall" relocate???

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Mail Anand Chandrashekar