Dada will have to fire again if India is to stretch into the final week of the World Cup. The left-handed opener has shown superb form on his comeback trail, knocking up a handful of 50s. Importantly, he is at ease with himself—and the coach.
"This Cup belongs to India, for, no other country shows so much passion," Sunil Gavaskar said recently in Calcutta. "I wish Rahul Dravid and his team regain the Cup." If destiny can be moved by the cumulative weight of the passion of a billion fans—it's a notional billion, but it feels good to say it, just the same—then our recent ODI triumphs might herald something really big. For its part, the Indian team is all set to leverage its newly acquired sense of balance—and also work its butt off. Skipper Dravid is characteristically toned down. "We know we need to go out there and perform," he told Outlook matter-of-factly. At the last Cup India defied poor form and a slow start to breeze into the final with an incredible run of nine straight victories. It was a dream flight that crashlanded only when the team collided into a superbly mean Australia in the final.
The Backbone: Rahul Dravid
There are not too many players as flexible and pragmatic as the Indian captain. The ‘method actor’ of the game has worked hard in tandem with coach Greg Chappell to create a new ethos in the team.
India's chances have now taken wing, not just on the basis of prayer and hope, but on some sound logic—and not all of it has to do with Indian cricket alone. In the wake of some injuries towards the end of a long home season, Australia has perceptibly come down a rung and will have to drink deep of its reserves of strength to survive the challenges. South Africa has an exciting bunch but without a quality spinner, its bowlers may struggle just that bit on the slower tracks in the West Indies. Pakistan would have been a great deal more dangerous had not Abdul Razzaq, Mohammed Asif and Shoaib Akhtar been forced to miss the World Cup. New Zealand, bursting with all-round talent, has its task cut out as it bids to shed the eternal tag of being floaters. Sri Lanka looks an exciting team but some of its key batsmen have been fighting for form while England may have exposed Australia as a mortal side but may find the slower pitches in the Caribbean not quite to its liking.
Mumbo Jumbo: Anil Kumble
He only got to play three games in the last World Cup in Africa but the tracks in the Windies may favour him. At 36, he may well be the bowler who will plug the flow of runs—and get a few scalps in the middle overs.
Suddenly, despite the sluggish look that Team India sometimes presents with its outcricket, a lot of people are sitting up and, however reluctantly, taking note of its challenge. "This team is much better prepared than ours in 1983 because of the sheer volume of one-day cricket that it has played and against almost all the opponents," Gavaskar conceded. "It has flexibility in the opening combinations with five batsmen, including Dravid himself, who can do the job. And, like in 1983 when we had Madan Lal, Roger Binny and Jimmy (Mohinder) Amarnath, this team has Tendulkar, Sehwag and Yuvraj who can bat and bowl."
The Hurricane:M S Dhoni
He has become one of the most spectacular finishers in contemporary cricket. This lad from Ranchi has lent a flamboyant edge to India’s late-order batting attack. He is eager to make his presence felt as a top-notch wicket-keeper batsmen on the lines of Oz’s Gilchrist.
Other factors could work in India's favour. For what is essentially a batting side, one of the most interesting features has been Sourav Ganguly's return to the team and to the top of the order where he so obviously enjoys himself. He has presented a look of solidity that was sorely missing since India last went to the West Indies and that could well leave an out-of-depth Virender Sehwag free to rediscover his natural attacking game. Tendulkar's acceptance of a new role in the middle order, perhaps at the cost of additional centuries, has also come in very handy for the side. Initially, he looked to be struggling to come to terms with the new role but he got used to the idea after barely a couple of games. "It was a challenge for Sachin. It was also something the team needed," coach Greg Chappell points out. "We've used him in a different role and it has worked out really well for us. We need balance and experience in the middle order."
Lull Before the Storm :Sachin Tendulkar
The little big man of Indian cricket badly wants that World Cup medal on his mantelpiece. The master blaster, a bit under the weather with his form of late, will play a critical role with the willow of course but also with the ball. He is hoping to celebrate his 34th birthday on April 24 during the semi-finals. Hmm...
Dravid's decision to bat at No. 5 to provide stability or, alternatively thrust, is another key factor that can tilt the scales India's way. He can control the middle order and can play to his strengths if he has players like Yuvraj and Dhoni to hit the boundaries. Yuvraj and Dhoni have both added a great deal of maturity to their stature as champion finishers, being able to either play the waiting game or cane the rival bowling.
It is not as if India's arsenal is all in perfect shape. Dravid had to make a strong pitch for Sehwag's inclusion after the opening batsman kept searching for form through the whole season and found only sporadic scores. Irfan Pathan's bowling form was inversely proportional to his success with the bat when he was given the new challenge of batting at No. 3. India will also have to make a tricky choice between the two specialist spinners, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, and hope that the decision will not lead to fissures within the team.
Pace Face: Zaheer Khan
The left-arm fast-medium pacer has returned from the wilderness refreshed and hungry, leading the seam attack from the front. He will be eager to erase the ghost of the 2003 final when the Aussies set the tempo by belting his first over for 15 runs.
Happily for the side, the tournament's format is very kind. After playing Bangladesh and Bermuda, it takes on Sri Lanka in the crucial group league match. If it can extend that recent domination from home to Port-of-Spain, India can breathe somewhat easy in the Super Eights where it is slated to meet each of the six other qualifiers. If it can win three of those games, it will have a great chance of making it to the semi-finals. That is when the Caribbean party may acquire the overtones of a Russian roulette and the collective dream of millions may fade rather abruptly. Perhaps that's why Kapil Dev, India's 1983 World Cup-winning captain, has this to say: "The road ahead is very tough. My heart says we'll return with the Cup, but my head is not ready to listen to that yet."
Back home, as India gets ready for one big festival that is set to unfold itself in a series of nocturnal parties, dream merchants and peddlers of passion have found that the challenges posed by time and distance are of little relevance. Corporates have invested over Rs 1,000 crore on TV advertising alone and will spend at least Rs 500 crore on other promotions as they ride the euphoria that the World Cup generates. Not surprisingly, cricket fans are buying into the hype. Will hype end happily? Suspense is normally a quality of feeling that we do not like lingering around us, but this is one instance where won't wish it to end too quickly.
