The HOME factor

(Note: This article was written a day after the England series got over. The facts might not be up-to-date) 

Let's me talk about the HOME factor. I have been following the team for sometime now and I just do not understand how does India look a completely different side at home and an another outfit when they go abroad. They are mostly the same men, but their body language is strikingly different when they go to some other country. I cannot understand stats, so I will not refer to them. The whole setup seems so different. Not only the recent England tour, but also, if you take a look at the tour of West Indies too you would know what I mean. We did struggle, even if a little, but we did.

The change is obtrusive enough to catch anybody's eye. The facial expressions of the men change, their attitude change and most of all the winning spirit gets blurred. I am sure other sides face something similar too, but with India it is more noticeable. If you look closely, that is precisely the reason why the selectors avoid testing new talents abroad.

The reasons for change may be many, but the most obvious one would be the change in pitches, In India, we have pitches that assist the spinners while in abroad they are more pace-friendly. England played the chin-music a little too loud for our liking and now, with the likes of Ashwin and Jadeja in prime form, the tables have 'turned'.

The home factor has worked for us most of the times in the past decade but we cannot bank upon it always. If there has to be a change in the lion-cat syndrome of the team (Lions at home, cats abroad), it has to be here and now

Surrender down-under

Termed as the 'Agneepath' series, the Border-Gavaskar series between India and Australia was nothing more than a heartbreak for us. Be it the famed Indian batting line-up or Mahi's composure, everything failed, and miserably at that. The series was a whitewash and we were hammered. But this series managed to put many critical questions before the great Indian test team, which not so long ago was the best in the world.

QUESTION 1
Is it time VVS Laxman calls it quits?
VVS Laxman was one of the biggest failures during the test series. With a average of less than 20 and a failing body language, the very very special Laxman looked anything but special. Being one of the stalwarts of the team, his failure to adapt to the Aussie batting condition drew him a lot of flack form the fans and the critics alike. Understandably his position in the team came under the scanner and the writing was on the wall "TIME TO CALL IT QUITS".
No, no body is questioning his greatness; after all he's been our crisis man for long now. But he's played his share of great knocks and now with age leaving his side, he should quit before the rubble of his bad innings completely overshadow the glory of his past records. If he does not quit he will be sacked, and that's something we don't want to watch. We want our very very special Laxman to bid a goodbye with his head held high.

QUESTION 2
Is it finally time to look ahead?

"The superstars are fading, the youngsters are a raggedy bunch. India's selectors need to take tough calls"- Sharada Ugra

So, have we finally decided to look beyond Laxman  and Dravid? This future looks bright but the epoch of the past and future, very messy. The idea is not to let the legends go just because they are aging, but to find young blood to fill in their great shoes.
Though the test had little to offer for the Indian fans, the gallant stunts of Umesh yadav stood out. He showed a lot of heart and potential trying to make most out of the unfavorable conditions, both on and off the pitch. He showed in him, a lot of promise and hope that there is indeed a future for the pace department of the Indian team.
Virat Kohli, the agressive Delhi-ite proved his mettle yet again. though his century contributed nothing to the cause, his will to play spoke a lot about his character. Though his off-field (and on-field) antics were  not well-received, he made sure that he gave the spectators something to talk about, beyond his middle finger.
With a clear indication that the seniors are perhaps closer to their end, it's time to look at the Kohlis and the Rohit Sharmas and groom them.

QUESTION 3
The curious case of Ishant Sharma.
One sentence: Not the same person!
Where is that fiery young lad from Delhi? It seems, with the mane, his aggression and skill have gone into the barber's bin as well. He was our star some years back and now he looks a pale shadow of his former self. He's lost pace and his lines have become as wiry and wayward as his hair used to be, before he decided to straighten it. Being hammered all across the park, he gave away far more runs than he was supposed to.
So where is the Ishant Sharma who made Ponting his favourite bunny? Nobody knows

QUESTION 4
Why so much kolaveri?
Talk about the need for aggression, we Indians were at it. Provoked by the notorious Aussies known for playing mind-games, the angry gestures from our team way too often. The middle-finger caught the eye more often than not, and Virat's finger got the lion's share of the spotlight. Ishant and Sehwag also had their tryst wit the media when they made their displeasure clear over all the comments and boos.
I only wish all that anger had found their call on the field, in terms of performance.

Though there were many more questions which arose, these were the ones that caught my eye. I really do not want to comment on the Dravid issue, as it's still unfolding.

Until next time
Happy voicing your opinion