India need a rehaul and the buck stops at Dhoni

For 20 minutes during tea on the third day of the Trent Bridge Test, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was the better man. For the rest of the tour, he has been a distant second. His batting has been awful, his captaincy poor and his teammates haven’t come to the party. Even lady luck seems to have deserted him and that’s left India up a creek, without a paddle and 0-2 down in a four-Test series. In the three years that he has been captain, Dhoni has never lost two Tests in a row. He has never lost a Test series either but there is always a first time for everything. Being the number one Test side in the world was a matter of great pride for the Indian team but England are marching to top ranking and making a lot of noise about it as well. [caption id=“attachment_52368” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Dravid (2L) has sadly been the only constant in the Indian batting line-up that has, at least on this tour, conjured up images of 1990s when the team would meekly capitulate while on an ‘away’ tour but do great at home. Alastair Grant/AP”] [/caption] “I didn’t have any tricks left,” said Dhoni after the 319-run defeat. “I tried everything I had left. They bat quite deep — James Anderson is the only one who doesn’t bat to some extent. They were eight down for 120 and were able to score 100 more runs (in the first innings). The bowlers tried what they could. We were not really successful and that happens in cricket.” But Test cricket doesn’t need petty tricks – Dhoni should know that. It needs tactics that have been worked on for a long time. It needs thought and execution and the determination to push yourself past your limits. And none of that seems to be coming forth from Dhoni. How else does one explain the manner in which he allowed the game to get away from India’s hands on day three? India conceded over 50 boundaries on a day that was dominated by the ‘Bell’ episode and not once did the Indian team try anything different. Dhoni has never been a proactive skipper, mostly reactive. But he never stops thinking about the game, the situation, and is always trying to turn it to his advantage. During the second Test, however, he lost control and didn’t even attempt to wrest it back. The shot that he played in India’s first innings to set off the collapse sealed India’s fate and disgusted Dravid at the other end. It makes one wonder, is his own batting form starting to cloud his judgement as captain? Outside Asia, Dhoni’s averages just 29 in Tests. Over the last one year, he has averaged a very ordinary 24.09 with the bat. Since the start of 2011, his batting average, in six Tests, is just 14.60. Those aren’t numbers that inspire confidence – not in himself, not in his teammates. The batting of the Indian team hasn’t clicked as a unit. Dravid has sadly been the only constant in a batting line-up that has, at least on this tour, conjured up images of 1990s when the team would meekly capitulate while on an ‘away’ tour but do great at home. Even more galling is the complete absence of a lower-order, which is again where Dhoni comes into the picture. England’s last five batsmen have put on 543 runs in this series – astounding by any average. India’s last five batsmen, on the other hand, have managed just 170 runs. The difference is clear. Dhoni’s place in the team is reliant upon his batting prowess. His keeping technique isn’t the finest in the world – never has been – but his batting had the ability to astound. So when he’s feeling down, it tends to filter down to the side and isn’t a pretty sight. Everyone has to be a leader in his own way. That’s what champion sides do. But Dhoni needs to set the example. He needs to lead; to take the first step and the others will follow. There is, of course, the matter of injuries. But that’s something every team has to deal with. The timings not right but as Dhoni and every cricketer on the planet would have us believe, ‘it’s part and parcel of the game.’ When asked about the possible reasons behind such a heavy defeat, Dhoni said: “I think we could have done slightly better.” That would be the Indian skipper at his understated best. What India need is a complete overhaul and the truth of the matter is that it needs to start with the skipper himself – that’s where the buck stops.