Aus vs India, 2nd Test, Sydney, 2-6 Jan (I)

Your wish is my command Doremi.

Probably no changes for Australia.

Only one would be johnson for tait but i can't see that happening for sydney.

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India's best chance for sure.

Although for all the talk about spin it's mostly just been a batting paradise in recent years.

With a seemingly rejuvenated Perth track after i wouldn't be that worried by a draw at Sydney.

Just to put MY team out there; might not be that far away from a probable XI, too:


Sehwag/Jaffer
Karthik (Dhoni can't cut it in Test Cricket; Karthik's a better gloveman too)
Dravid
Sachin
Yuvraj
Saurav
Laxman
Kumble
Harbhajan/Irfan (depending on the wicket)
Zaheer
RP Singh

Our opening combo needs to be fixed pronto. Also, I wouldn't write Harbhajan off yet, he DID have some good deliveries when he flighted it; I'm sure some of the other seniors/Venky would have noticed that and will talk to him. If the pitch looks slow-ish, then he might be a good pick over Irfan.

Pathan
Karthik/Sehwag
Dravid
Tendulkar
Ganguly
Laxman
Dhoni
Kumble
Harbajhan
Zaheer
RP Singh


and I'd send for Kaif now

Sehwag
Jaffer
Laxman
Sachin
Sourav
Dravid
Dhoni
Kumble
Zak
RP
Ishant

I'd feel more comfortable with the extra seamer now that Sehwag's in the team, though I guess it depends on the pitch.

A little harsh to drop Yuvi after just ONE test in Australia. He's a talented player, and he can do just fine. I'm more surprised that you guys stick with Dhoni, whose batting clearly screams FTB. :!:

that's a good team but I think you still would need 5 bowlers, esp considering Harbhajan's ability in taking care of Ponting.

And personally I would chuck out RP, esp because he isn't running in.

In the first test he was just 'jogging in' and looked tired most of the time. He needs to be rested for a bit. He can come back in Adelaide in time to give Zak some rest.

drunk as a monk wrote:A little harsh to drop Yuvi after just ONE test in Australia. He's a talented player, and he can do just fine. I'm more surprised that you guys stick with Dhoni, whose batting clearly screams FTB. :!:

Dhoni needs to be replaced with Karthik esp since Karthik can also open.

India's bowling should stay the same, the fielding running and batting were all sub par and thats where they need to change and lift.

Tough call though on who to drop, how much cricket has sehwag had of late at first class level?

and has he done well?

As we watched with england last year it's dangerous to delude yourself and made decisions based upon the belief that what happened in a past series will repeat itself, how often does one series truly mirror another?

Sehwag was dropped because he was out of form and not fit, is he now fit and in form or are people simply assuming that history repeats itself?

drunk as a monk wrote:A little harsh to drop Yuvi after just ONE test in Australia. He's a talented player, and he can do just fine. I'm more surprised that you guys stick with Dhoni, whose batting clearly screams FTB. :!:

i certainly dont pick dhoni for his batting. i think he is the best keeper we have at the moment

It's a tough call. It'd be tough to drop Jaffer after just one bad test, after his phenomenal series v Pakistan. One of them probably has to go if Sehwag is to be accommodated. Given that Sehwag's form has also been pretty dreadful, I wonder about opening instead with Pathan (given a licence to hit), which also gives you the third seamer option.

People are so quick to write off Yuvraj as an ODI specialist. In full flight, he bats better than Jaffer, he bowls better than Jaffer, and he fields better than Jaffer. To sum it up- He is better than Jaffer.

please don't yell wrote:
Sehwag was dropped because he was out of form and not fit, is he now fit and in form or are people simply assuming that history repeats itself?

the good thing with Sehwag is that he just needs 3 balls hitting middle of the bat to get into form.

Someone has to be dropped out of Yuvi, Jaffer and Dravid, I'll keep Dravid and play Jaffer as he is an opener.

A little harsh you drop Dhoni after his only match of any kind in Australia. He's done well in England and decently in SA as well, don't see why he won't be able to click in the next few matches.

If that's all it took he wouldn't have been dropped in the first place.

In recent times Sehwag has forgotten how to hit the ball straight. He's trying to cut everything.

It isnt' all that harsh on Dhoni because it gives him time to procrastinate esp abroad, because whenever he and Yuvraj put some thought and intensity into their performances they are twice as deadly.

They build up their venom sitting in the reserves.

Henry wrote:People are so quick to write off Yuvraj as an ODI specialist. In full flight, he bats better than Jaffer, he bowls better than Jaffer, and he fields better than Jaffer. To sum it up- He is better than Jaffer.

in odis - yes

interesting option with pathan. though it would be a slap on the face of the selectors with sehwag in the side, and probably a morale-killer for him

pathan certainly has the technique and the guts to be a decent opener. problem is he is not going to give you anything above 50 and his bowling is not test class

Considering how close he came to captaining India on this tour, I doubt very much that they'll drop Dhoni after one match. He didn't do anything in the practice game, and he missed the last test against Pakistan. He is woefully short of cricket.

Surely India would have played sehwag in the warm up game if they had any thoughts of him getting a spot in the first two tests?

please don't yell wrote:If that's all it took he wouldn't have been dropped in the first place.

Well, it was the same people said about him before he visited Melbourne in 2003 and in Multan. He was out of form then too.


It's the nature of his game, he gets into form very quickly and can get 40 or 50 runs before you can breathe.

I actually think they will play the same team.

Which probably wouldn't be the worst thing to do, if this is the team they backed to beat Australia then not much point in changing it for a game that's starting in a few days time.

Dravid, Tendulkar, Laxman, Ganguly, Kumble, Harbajhan, Zaheer, and RP Singh should all be 'safe', ie undroppable, barring injury.

It would be rough to drop Dhoni as he kept well; realistically I think he's safe as well.

Jaffer played one bad shot in each innings and was dismissed both times. He did look equipped to handle Lee and Clark, but perhaps the lack of a practice game told (he hasn't played at all on Aussie wickets previously).

Yuvraj on the other hand looked all at sea in both innings, could have been dismissed on half a dozen occasions today, and his attitude while batting was poor. If I was going to make one change only, it'd be to replace him with either Sehwag or Pathan.