At long last, Test cricket received a stimulus shot as India clinched the top spot in the ICC Test team rankings for the first time, following its series victory over the visiting Sri Lankan team. Overtaking South Africa, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team became the third team, since the Test championship was introduced in 2001, to occupy the coveted spot. This augurs well for the languishing Test Cricket arena. Hard graft, teamwork, balance and discipline are some of the labels attached to this team, which has only come to benefit under the youthful maturity that Dhoni has brought to the table with his serene captaincy.
India can boast one of the most balanced batting and bowling line-ups in today’s teams. The stability of the starts Gambhir and Sehwag construct does not diminish their freedom. Riding on their work, a massive middle order comes to surfeit. Dravid, Tendulkar and Laxman have made sure that Ganguly is not overly missed, with consistent contributions. Yuvraj and Dhoni have hung back at the end to provide the quick runs to take targets out of reach for the opposition.
Tendulkar, resident Grandsire of the Indian One-day outfit, finds time to exult over what must be a long-cherished dream. His Test career has spanned two decades, in which he has played among several Indian greats like Kapil Dev, Srikkanth, Shastri, Azharuddin, Ganguly, Amarnath and more. In all these years, the Indian team was subjected to the labeling of being a “home bully‘- “away bunny”. Finally, Tendulkar can be part of the team which, even though bereft of one of the Fab Four, touched the summit.
Dhoni too graciously acknowledged the entire gamut of contributions by the coach, personnel and whoever had been part of the side in the last 18 months. While this hard-earned achievement is to be celebrated at the moment, it could well be short-lived, as India will not have the chance to protect its new-found title in the coming months. It plays only two tests in the next six months. The next Test India is scheduled to play is against Bangladesh, beyond which there will be a dry spell. During that time, their fate as the top-dog would be vulnerable and defenceless. Dhoni, ever the optimist, decided to play this susceptibility down and asserted that this was a time to savour the remarkable achievement rather than worry about something they could not control. Maintaining this position would be an unsteady prospect, notwithstanding the lack of upcoming matches.
Harsha Bhogle brings attention to the fact that while this achievement is a remarkable one by Dhoni’s team, the cash prize awarded to the current set of players ignores the sizeable contribution that past teams and players have made to this end. Sourav Ganguly built India up to the point where they were no longer pushovers outside their backyard. Under Dravid’s captaincy, the team ended several winless droughts overseas – in West Indies and England. Anil Kumble generated the team discipline that won India the Perth Test in 2008. Therefore, it has been an honest ascent to the top for India, and not a patronized placement as many might like to believe.
Geoff Boycott never fails to strike the dissonant, albeit astute note. In his inimitable wont, he has pointed out that the Test ranking system bears flaws and is unreliable in instating a particular team at the top. He notes that unless there is an equitable distribution of matches with and against each team, a fair judgement cannot be made as regards the best team in the world. Perhaps his famed grandmom could come up with such a system, Haroon Lorgat might offer.
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