Ishant should be celebrated for who he is and what he has done; Rahane’s future also uncertain
Ishant should be celebrated for who he is and what he has done; Rahane’s future also uncertain
The passing of a generation and the arrival of a new generation is a bitter-sweet experience. You miss the heroes you grew up with, but you also see where their replacements will take the team. As someone said, if the infection isn’t painful, you’re not making progress!
It doesn’t happen overnight. In a few years you realize that the team has a new feel, a different texture. The change that was in the future is happening now. It’s like watching a batsman do his job without hesitation – suddenly you look up and see he has scored 30 or 40 runs.
This happened when India’s famous middle-order and world-class bowlers got thrown out of the field. Sourav Ganguly and Anil Kumble bid farewell in 2008-09, followed by Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan, Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh.
generational change
This marked the end of a time known as the Golden Age or the Tendulkar era. Many of the next – the Dhoni-Kohli generation, if you will – had early careers that overlapped with the greats of the past; Thus the generational changes take place smoothly.
And now we seem to be at the starting point of the second. Sure, Dhoni’s premature retirement from Test cricket in the middle of a tour of Australia in 2014 may have been unnatural, but as India prepares to take on England in the final Test of their disrupted series in July, the contours of Indian cricket begin. has been take on a new shape.
Ishant Sharma, not yet 19 on debut, can only be 33 with over 300 Test wickets and over 100 in ODIs and has evolved from a young, energetic colt who has troubled the world’s leading batsmen at a fast pace. He has guided a new batch of young bowlers who are in the Senior Pro.
Will he play for India again? The country’s rich in fast bowling and some of Ishant’s young colleagues are unlikely to be promoted as mentors themselves.
Ishant Sharma deserves due respect for his big heart, which was as evident as his long hair and devious smile, even as he made his debut. file | photo credit: KR Deepak
The role of the fast bowler has ranged from Kapil Dev to Javagal Srinath to Zaheer Khan to Ishant to Jasprit Bumrah. Ishant should be celebrated for who he is and what he has done. Important serve is not always rewarded appropriately in the game.
well brought
Ishant deserves due respect for his big heart, which was as evident as his long hair and devious smile, even as he made his debut. In his second Test against Pakistan, he gave evidence of all three, bowling tirelessly to pick up five wickets in an innings.
playing a dual role
As is often the case in Indian cricket, the spearhead had to be a shock bowler as well as a stock bowler, roles Ishant performed well. In the Indian team that played in Ishant’s debut Test, only he and Dinesh Karthik are active in international cricket.
Another key player likely to be part of the transformation is Ajinkya Rahane, the batsman with charm and class, who has also served India well in 82 Tests. His century at Lord’s in 2014 helped India secure their first win at that venue in 28 years.
As a close fielder, he holds the world record for most catches in a match, and as Kohli’s replacement captain, he brilliantly led India to a series victory in Australia, when the team played the first Test. I was out for 36 runs. ,
Did Ajinkya make a mistake in playing the IPL when he himself made profit from the county season? , photo credit: KR Deepak
Along with Cheteshwar Pujara, Rahane was dropped from the Indian team after a poor series in South Africa. Pujara, without an IPL contract, decided to play for Sussex in the English county to rediscover his mojo. Centuries, including a double in the championship, meant they could not be ignored, especially since India were playing Tests in England.
Leave IPL for County?
Did Ajinkya make a mistake in playing the IPL when he himself made profit from the county season? Of course, there’s no guarantee he’ll set the Thames on fire, but at 33 his international future also looks uncertain. It’s an interesting age for an out-of-form batsman, though. You are young enough to make a comeback, but old enough not to cause a comment, you should not be reelected.
Ishant, Pujara and Rahane are not players by nature on whom the country should work.
They are all self-proclaimed professionals who do a fine job and leave the theatricality and media attention more flamboyant and flashy for others in the squad. This does not make them any less valuable or unworthy of the collective gratitude of a nation. Pujara, 34, would have extended his career to 95 Test matches, while the other two may still do so.
interesting time
These are interesting times. The next generation has been knocking on the doors of big cricket for some time now, and the voice is getting louder.