Bangar proved his worth

Surely, there is no country for which the home and away records are so disparate as India. The Test ratings place India at No 7 or No 8 but if the ratings were to be based purely on home results, there is little doubt that India would be in the top three. After all, it is taken for granted that the Indians make for really formidable opposition at home, borne out by the fact that only one team ­ the South Africans two years ago ­ have won a Test series here in the last 15 years.

Given this background, the general prediction was that it would be a breeze for India in their two Test series against Zimbabwe, and the home team has indeed started off well by winning the first Test by an innings and plenty early on the final morning. A victory is a victory and congratulations are in order for Sourav Ganguly and his men. But the proceedings were along such predictable lines that one should not lose perspective. True, the batsmen and bowlers did the job that was expected of them against an opposition with certain palpable weaknesses. But there were occasions when India's showing attracted some criticism.

The first was during the second wicket century partnership between Stuart Carlisle and Alistair Campbell on the opening day. For a time, the two batsmen made the bowling look pretty ordinary. The second was when the bowlers allowed the tail too many runs after scything through the middle order in the first innings. When will we see Indian bowlers run through the tail a la Glenn McGrath at Johannesburg on Sunday?

An adverse comment has to be directed at the batsmen too for dawdling along on the third day. Perhaps the final result would not have been very different but then there might have been a chance for the Indians to wrap up the game with a day to spare. Such a victory, besides giving the extra day off, can also work wonders for team morale. And finally, the fielding can do with improvement but then is there anything new in this?

The tardy batting approach was due to the fact that as many as three players ­ Rahul Dravid, Ganguly and VVS Laxman ­ were looking for a substantial knock in order to play themselves back into form.

In Dravid's case, he was making a comeback of sorts after treatment to an injured shoulder. Always one who takes his time to build an innings, the Indian vice captain had a good look at the bowling during his near four hour long innings but there is little doubt that his 65 will stand him in good stead in the tougher campaigns ahead.

Ganguly, woefully out of touch for a rather extended period now, took 2-1/2 hours over 38 but there were signs that he could be running into form sooner rather than later. Laxman took an hour to get 13 sketchy runs and was the only real batting disappointment. He is however too good a player to be in a rut for long.

Shiv Sundar Das, who is on course to overtaking Navjot Sidhu as the most prolific Indian opening batsman in the post Gavaskar period, displayed all the qualities already associated with his play ­ the intense concentration, technical brilliance both in attack and defence, the ability to play the sheet anchor role to perfection and a healthy appetite for runs.

A century by Sachin Tendulkar is almost taken for granted and his 28th Test hundred was again notable for both scintillating strokeplay and the manner in which he nursed the innings through on the third day during the crucial period when Dravid, Ganguly and Laxman were mostly struggling. The bowlers, as I said, did what was expected of them. Zaheer Khan was particularly impressive while Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh were deadly as the pitch broke up.

Deep Dasgupta had a moderate match and the second Test could well represent his last chance to prove why Ajay Ratra, in hot pursuit of the stumper's slot, should not be selected ahead of him.

I have saved till the last the single most positive aspect of India's victory ­ the batting of Sanjay Bangar ­ for I would like to emphasize its importance. Also, I would like to think that India have unearthed an exciting, long-term prospect. The Railways opening batsman was under tremendous pressure to perform as he was, in a manner of speaking, a rather unpopular choice, having been picked ahead of the in-form Virender Sehwag, who is already a favourite with the public at large.

He had to come off, and he did so in the most spectacular fashion possible. With Indian cricket badly in need of an all-rounder, Bangar was given the nod, largely on the basis of some excellent performances around the domestic circuit. He came good with the bat but given adequate opportunities, it is only a matter of time before he displays his skill with the ball too. It was a brave decision by the team management to play him instead of Sehwag and hopefully it will serve as an example that such a bold, adventurous outlook is what Indian cricket is in dire need of.