In the end, it is the difference between what it could have been and what it was. The difference between the ball beating the bat and finding its edge, between an almost wicket and an actual one, between a par score and a little above, between a good innings and a great one, between winning and losing- a match, a series and the skipper.
For the Indians, the recently concluded test series was a sequence of such differences, especially in the last two tests- only that the magnitude of the difference kept getting bigger to the point of affecting the final scoreline. It is of little doubt that the South Africans were the better team, showing remarkable resilience through defeat and the mettle to come from behind to take the series. Much must be spoken of their remarkable turnaround, given that it is a team that is still settling down after losing many accomplished players in the recent past.
Much must also be made of the way India lost steam after the first test. The batting was fully disrobed and put for public viewing by the Proteas attack, which itself wasn’t very consistent. That they managed to do it while blowing hot and cold makes India’s collapses meeker and its frailties hard-to-miss even for an unkeen eye. As has rarely been the case with Indian teams, it is the middle order that has become a liability, while the openers have, by and large done their job. It is almost as if some of the batters have forgotten the art of batting and the situational awareness that underpins innings of substance. While they did play an innings or two that seemed to have them primed for something significant, as is the case in the last couple of years, it wasn’t to be.
One can understand poor form or an odd instance of poor shot making- but the peculiarity about this failure has been how they have combined both, while playing some confident strokes in between. Two of them have caused most alarm. It is evident that Pujara and Rahane have not diagnosed what is causing them to stumble from how they have approached each innings. Each attempt at batting has been a forced change in mindset, preconceived and prepared- perhaps hoping that it would help them make a swift take-off. But batting at its best is a skillful response to the challenge posed by each delivery. It cannot be a recipe prepared indoors and served on the pitch. Perhaps it is time for the duo to dig into their memory, find themselves as batters and what it means to them, for at the moment, it seems an almighty struggle.
India also seemed to be callous in their shot selection and did not demonstrate the will to ‘stick around’. The lower order went back to their old and ungainly ways of wielding the willow, showing neither the will nor the wisdom to survive or score. Their energies were sapped by irrelevant ‘battles’ during their innings, which while adding drama to the coverage, did little else. Of what value is the fetish to attempt the hook shot ball after ball, while a more seasoned batter is at the other end, that too when all but one such attempts failed to add to the score? Here, in this quest of one-upmanship, the bigger picture was reduced to a by-product.
Perhaps these are the downsides of being a supreme team- bristling due its abilities and having achieved dizzying heights of success. But we must be quick to remind it, that this one team and not eleven individuals.
In the end, the difference matters.
The Longroom 