India Struggling as expected

The much wanted batting line up of India once again failed miserably in South Africa. That was pretty much expected because our number 1 test team decided to play a test match without any practice game. Put into bat at Centurion, India finished day 1 at 136/9. Awful performance by team that include batting greats like Sehwag, Sachin, Dravid and Laxman.

Dismissal of Sehwag cannot be criticized because he prefer to play in such a manner. But what surprises me the most was the dismissal of Rahul Dravid, misjudging a line and playing on a backfoot. I may sound a bit harsh but there was not much in the pitch after initial fifteen overs.

Looking at the prices in Betfair after Day 1, South Africa is trading at 1.29, India is trading at 17.5 and the draw is trading at 5.8. Laying South Africa is a wise option at current prices because first they need to score runs and then hope that India capitulate once again in the second inning. I expect a better performance from India in the second inning especially with pitch settling down. There is also some concern of weather as well. Laying draw is also not a bad thing but with weather involved, it is not advisable. India is a huge price but they have so much to do, therefore laying South Africa is a much better option.

Hope this performance is noted by the BCCI who has planned this tour poorly. They should learn from ECB who has planned this year tour of Australia very shrewdly with flurry of practice matches so that England can get accustomed to the condition and looking at their performance, it was a good move. Well done ECB!