Cricket Archive

Men in Blue in deep trouble by CricketArchive staff reporter

Player:	RS Dravid, GS Chappell, IK Pathan, MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh
Event:	India in West Indies 2006

Trinidad: Rahul Dravid’s expression after India lost the third ODI against the West Indies said it all. There were worrying signs in the face of the Indian skipper. He would not have thought his team would be staring at a 2-1 deficit against a team, who are a far cry from the rampaging West Indies team of the 80s.

Greg Chappell too is at a crucial phase of his Indian stint. If India go on to lose the ODI series this weekend, there will be serious questions raised about his ability to inspire the Men in Blue in a foreign land.

More worryingly, India do not inspire confidence at the outset. Dravid may be a captain courageous for the way he embraces responsibility by opening the innings time and again. But there is a distinct lack of depth in the team sheet. Irfan Pathan’s batting has come unstuck in the Caribbean, while the dashig M.S. Dhoni has not reached the level he has been used to of late. Despite his superb effort in the last match Sehwag remains too inconsistent. If India come up with face saving wins in the last two ODIs, Dravid and Yuvraj would sure have chipped in with stellar efforts.