Drawing similarities between Watson and Sehwag
@abhi_bangal (5524)
Ahmednagar, India
March 11, 2013 6:42am CST
We have been talking about Dhoni playing a part in sacking Sehwag (which in my opinion is false). But look at Shane Watson. He is the VC of the team and was under pressure to perform for the last 18 months or so. So, I feel it is the player whose performance matters to be in the team or not. Let's not blame Dhoni for Sehwag's ouster.
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7 responses
@anilhclites (844)
• India
11 Mar 13
What you have said is Ok but tell me how Sachin is able to grab his position in India team. He is one such player in India who has become bigger than cricket. You will agree that he should be axed based on performance, but his colossal stature saved him. Dhoni too survived an axe but Dhoni had survived the axe because there was no body to replace him currently. That I can understand but how Sachin is able to retain his position is beyond my knowledge.
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@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
12 Mar 13
I don't think there is no one to replace Dhoni. Why don't we think of players like Virat Kohli, who is already being tagged as the next captain of Team India. Yes, there certainly are players capable of leading the Indian team. If I am not wrong Graeme Smith was the captain of the SA team upfront. He had been made the captain even when he hadn't played even a single ODI.
BCCI could have rested Dhoni and given the mantles to Kohli for the time being. That could have worked too.
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@anilhclites (844)
• India
13 Mar 13
Graeme Smith is a born leader. Even Pataudi captained India when he was just 21 but it doesn't mean that Kohli should be given the mantle right away. After 2015 world cup, Kohli can be considered for the captain job, till than Dhoni is the right man. That's why he has survived the axe even after losing 8 matches on a trot. If Gambhir was performing, he may have taken the captainship from Dhoni but Dhoni was again lucky. Dhoni will remain captain of all the three formats till 2015 and that's for sure.
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@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
14 Mar 13
You have spoken out some thoughts that I also agree with. Let us wait until the 2015 World Cup and I am sure the captaincy will be given to Virat Kohli. Even Harbhajan Singh wanted to captain India, but Suresh Raina was made the captain for a ODI series, if I am not wrong. But he wasn't performing and so wasn't Gambhir as you said. So, I guess, Dhoni was the ideal man then.
But I would like to see Dhoni be relived from one captaincy so that he can concentrate on his batting too and allow someone else to lead the side. Of course, his inputs will always be there.
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@rahul_2689 (634)
• Hyderabad, India
12 Mar 13
With every passing day my belief of bias towards Dhoni by BCCI is growing. If they dropped the senior players citing poor performance and giving chances to youngsters, why was Dhoni not stripped of captaincy? Virat has given us enough indicators to believe that he is captaincy material. He may fail I agree but that's the risk every selection body takes when it includes youngsters in the team.
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@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
13 Mar 13
Yes, there is a point in what you are saying. I also believe that the mantles of the team should have been given to Virat Kohli, who I believe is a natural successor to Dhoni. But I doubt, after giving India two World Cups and being such a successful captain, he would have agreed to play under someone who is junior to him. I think, Dhoni should be relieved of some captaincy strain, probably the ODIs or the T20s. Virat is an attacking player and we need such players in the smaller versions of the game.
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@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
14 Mar 13
I think a player like Virat Kohli is naturally 'designed' for a format like T20. See his aggression on the field. He is too dedicated and looks like nothing less than a victory will do. We need such leaders who can blow life into a team. The competition is tough and if the captain is leading from the front, what more can we ask for.
I too feel that sooner than later, he will also lead India in Test cricket. But Tests don't require that much aggression. He still needs to develop on that front, as you rightly pointed that out.
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@anilhclites (844)
• India
13 Mar 13
Virat should be given the captainship of T20. Virat is a captain material and he will sure lead India in Test matches as well. But let him play two years of Test cricket for him to grow really well.
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@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
16 Mar 13
Sehwag and Watson are such players that you cannot keep them out of the team for a long time. Though Sehwag is not an all rounder, he is a good fielder to go along with his batting. Watson is a good bowler who can bat and a good batsman who can bowl. I am sure he will be in the team once again and that too very soon.
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@sajujohn (1005)
• India
14 Mar 13
Whatever may be the format, it is the performance that matters all. It's a team game and if one cannot perform well there is no point of keeping him in the team hoping that he will perform on some day. The only thing that can be done is pick him out from the team and give him time to realize where his fault is and let him try to improve in that field. After some time,I am sure if he had done the homeworks well he will be in the team again.
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@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
14 Mar 13
That's a pretty straightforward answer and I am sure players should follow this. It is also the duty of a coach to build a player. That is where a coach comes into play. Making a player work on his mistakes and improving them is the best thing to happen to a player in any game.
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@grvdubey11 (1879)
• India
20 Mar 13
Sehwag is a flat track bully and has always struggled on pitches which has something in it for bowlers.Watson being an all-rounder is a utility player.On;y similarity between Sehwag and Watson is that they both are naturally agressive,however both of them are still far behind from some great players with attacking approach like Hayden ,Gilchirst ,Pieterson and Viv Richards who made the mess of bowlers in all conditions.
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@ptrikha_2 (46917)
• India
25 Mar 13
I disagree a bit. I remember Sehwag's innings of 180+ in Melbourne, where the pitch is not totally batsman-friendly. He has played some more good innings in away series, and on not so batsmen-friendly pitches. So, he is not that much flat-wicket player, as can be said about say Suresh Raina.
Yet, he is behind Rahul Dravid and Laxman who played brilliantly at times on faster wickets.
@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
25 Mar 13
That said, there aren't really such innings that Sehwag has played like the one you mentioned. But that doesn't mean that the innings he played at Melbourne is belittled. But Indian players have generally not performed well on faster tracks. The short-pitched balls and the pull shots were the nemesis of many Indian players Down Under.
@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
20 Mar 13
I feel that Sehwag has to perform truly better in different conditions. He has played more than 100 Test matches and has scored two triple centuries. But still there is one thing that troubles people and fans like us. He is a naturally aggressive batsman and I guess that is why he might not been able to perform when it comes to pitches that help bowlers. Otherwise he has had some great knocks in world cricket in all formats of the game.
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@asokavaradhana (257)
• India
14 Mar 13
In case of Sehwag, I do not think Dhoni had any role.And it was wrong to potray by media about this and i agree you on this.Sehwag has been terrible for last 2 years.He scored 2 centuries and few fifties.But then his string of low scores have not helped him either.He has not been confidently middlying the ball.And has not tried to improve.Not sure, if he took his place in team for granted.I guess the only person to blame for his ouster, is he himself.He should have scored atleast a fifty against this weak aussie team in India.He did not apply himself but then he was unlucky in first test.I hope he can improve things and be back in team. Sehwag can be grat to have especially in the next world cup.But for that he needs to improve.He may want some tips of comeback from Yuvaraj and look into things.In case of Shane Watson, i guess it could have been attitude, though we do not have complete information.So performance and attitude on and off field does matter.The best example is shoaib akhtar and shoiab malik.Both attitude and performance are needed to perform at the highest level of cricket.Else,any star player would be shown the doors.Perhaps in any country.Thanks!
@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
14 Mar 13
I agree with what you say. I don't understand why even a person like Ganguly feels that Dhoni had a role in ousting Sehwag. If a player isn't performing, everyone knows it. Nothing is there to hide. He performs and he is in the team, he doesn't and he is out. Even if he was in the team and not performing, then people would have said that Dhoni is backing Sehwag and that's why he is in the team, which has made players like Dhawan and Rahane wait in the wings. I mean, however does one act, there is something for the people to say.
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@ptrikha_2 (46917)
• India
22 Mar 13
Well Sehwag was given enough chances. Still, if he was not making runs at the required rate, or in required quantity, it was better to give a chance to other players. One cannot afford to give players so many chances when one has so many competitors. Sehwag can regain his lost touch probably sooner rather than later and be in the thick of runs, enough for his coming back into the Indian team.
@abhi_bangal (5524)
• Ahmednagar, India
22 Mar 13
I think you are right. He has certainly got enough chances. But he was running out of luck which is for sure. The runs were not coming from of his bat and that was a big worry for all the Indians. It is better to take a break in such situations. I guess, he will certainly be back but before that he will have a great showing in the IPL.
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