Mind over technique

UMPIRE`S POST

Yuvraj Singh could fill Ganguly's slot. All he has to do is play well in Test matches.

It was not fair of chief selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth to declare Yuvraj Singh the front runner to fill Ganguly’s slot in the Test side. It may dishearten the other contenders. Perhaps the reason was Srikkanth’s stated belief that Yuvraj is a “confidence player”.

In return for this vote of confidence, Yuvraj should take the chief selector’s comment in the larger context. What prevents him from doing well in the Test arena is a mind thing.

Ever since he stroked a match-winning 84 on his international debut against Australia eight years ago in a one-day match, he has strung together an enviable ODI career spanning 219 games. However, he has not been able to find consistency, or a secure place in the side, for Test matches. Since his Test debut in 2003, he has played only 23 games, scoring 1,050 runs at a modest 32.81.

Everyone knows Yuvraj can hit the ball a long way, but everyone also knows that he does not have a sound defensive technique. That is why he is a demon on batting tracks, but not so on pitches that assist bowlers.

That should not be much of a problem. These days, most pitches around the world are prepared to suit batsmen. That is why low-scoring thrillers take place only in New Zealand these days. Besides, many batsmen have done well in Tests despite not being sound in defence.

To give himself the confidence he needs, Yuvraj needs to do two things. First, he must look within, and remind himself that his unenviable Test career does have its share of highlights. In spite of his supposedly limited technique, he scored a valiant century at Lahore in 2004, when Umar Gul, bowling the spell of his life, had taken out the other big names on a seaming pitch. It may not have helped that he hasn’t yet got an extended run in the Test side.

Secondly, he must look at two of his team mates: Virender Sehwag and M S Dhoni. Sehwag has suffered from the opposite affliction. He has always done well in Tests and scored at a strike rate that will be considered very good in ODIs. Yet, for a long time he could not translate that into ODI success. But he is doing that now, perhaps having told himself that he need not do anything extra, or special, in ODIs.

Dhoni deserves to be looked at because he will not be cited as an example in a discussion on good technique. In fact, his technique is entirely his own; he puts more forearm muscle and elbow in his shots than any other batsman, and nearly bullies the ball away.