The summer so
far has given us a heavy dose of regional competitions of
international repute like Euro 2004 and Copa d’America. This month
is no different as 6 teams battle it out for the Asia Cup and there
is only ONE winner. Just a few hours left and things look all set
for the Asia cup in Sri Lanka. Can we expect the usual Asian masala
of natural flair, aggression from the teams ? Can Pakistan be
successful in its bid to defend its title it won in 2000 ? The next
15 days has all the answers. Cricketfundas.com gives you an
exclusive preview to the Asia Cup along with stats, squad analyses
(strengths/weaknesses).
India :
The Indians are for sure a more
confident lot of individuals after their recent successes in
Australia and Pakistan and on form are the most likely favorites to
bag the trophy. Over the past few months, Indian cricket has been
plagued with a series of injury woes and we hope the one month
lay-off must have given the doctor and the players some time to sort
out their problems. The Indians have traditionally been a bit rusty
when it comes to coming back after lay-offs, but the match schedule
(1st Match vs UAE) should get them going right from ball
one as there are important matches ahead (vs Sri Lanka and Phase 2
fixtures). So, if any Indian team has the chance to prove its worth
in the Asia Cup and compensate for the mistakes made earlier, it’s
Dada’s.
Squad Analysis :
The Indians must have acclimatized
very well to the murky and overcast conditions in Sri Lanka with
their conditioning camp in Chennai. Some players re-iterated the
fact that the camp had made them fitter and stronger, something
which will be an important component if India were to succeed in Sri
Lanka. The return of two of their mates
Zaheer Khan and
Harbhajan
Singh must be a big morale-booster for the dressing room, but having
returned from injury, only time will tell how good their performance
will be. Batting has always been India’s forte and a dream line-up
can only give the Sri Lankan crowd a taste of what class is all
about and why the Indian batting line-up is considered the best in
the world. Bowling is where India needs to improve with every match
they play. The first match against UAE can in a way be used for all
the experiments the bowlers want to try before the big games.
Fielding, is one area where India has been improving itself in every
match and it will be left for them to prove if they can indeed be
considered as Asia’s best fielding side. Its not only the Asia Cup
that is at stake for the Indians, but also the “official” number 2
spot on the ICC One Day International Ratings that the Kiwis had
just managed to take it away after their Natwest Series win in
England.
Stats :
India has a poor tournament success
rate of 36% while playing a tournament involving 3 teams or more in
Sri Lanka. The last time India won a tournament in Sri Lanka was the
Coca Cola Cup in 1998, where they beat Sri Lanka by 7 runs in the
finals.
Sri Lanka :
Sri Lanka’s endeavor of hosting an
Asia Cup has always resulted them with the success of the
tournament. They won it in 1986 for the first time under Duleep
Mendis and repeated the feat in 1997 under Arjuna Ranatunga after
tasting World Cup success. The key factor being that whenever the
Lankan lions have played at home, the end result is a tournament
success for them. Will Atapattu’s boys learn from their past
mistakes and keep up the good work that their predecessors did ??
Another thing that is in the Sri Lankan side of the court is that
they are the team with the maximum practice among the 6 teams that
is playing the tournament and coming out of a tough tour of
Australia will always do more good than harm for them.
Squad Analysis :
The current Sri Lankan side has a good
blend of youth and experience – a key combination for any successful
international team. They have played quite well under the leadership
of Marvan Atapattu, but it again comes down to a litmus test for the
boys, which if they pass will ensure them the 2nd
position in the ICC ODI table. The Australian tour has enabled Sri
Lankan cricket unearth a new sensation – Lasith Malinga. After doing
consistently well in Australia, the Sri Lankan public must be
waiting patiently for sure to see this young star perform. And add
the return of Murali to the line-up, it just doesn’t stop getting
stronger. The Lankan selectors have imposed faith in some newcomers
like Ferveez Maharoof and players like Avishka Gunawardena have been
given a chance to come-back into reckoning and hence it becomes a
doubly crucial tournament for them if they have to establish their
foothold in Sri Lankan cricket. The Asia Cup is also a stonger acid
test for coach John Dyson, who has recently come under intense
criticism for his coaching methods. It will be really interesting to
see if both mental and physical fatigue (after the tour of
Australia) will have any role to play in the success or failure of
the team.
Stats :
Sri Lanka win 85% of the Tournaments
involving 3 or more teams when they play at home.
Pakistan :
Will the defending champions give it a
go this time around too ?? Will the change in setup change the
mindset of the team totally ?? Is this the Pakistan team that we
have been waiting to see perform really well ?? The answers to these
questions lie in the chances of the Pakistani team in this Asia Cup.
As defending champions, they have to make sure that they don’t
meekly surrender the trophy but at least make an effort towards
defending it again. I guess one question every die-hard Pakistani
fan must be asking will be “Will Bob Woolmer’s stint with Pakistan
produce visible-results ??” The answer to it is “Only time and Allah
can say”. Pakistan, according to me start off as underdogs and
perhaps the DARK HORSES of this Asia Cup. Underestimate them at your
own cost!
Squad Analysis :
According to me, this squad consists
of the best players available in Pakistan today. If I could compare
this Pakistani team to a Euro 2004 team, its Holland. Extremely
talented, has the potential to do well, but this talent/potential is
dominated by infighting, discontent, frequent spats etc. This is one
aspect, where I feel the Pakistanis will let themselves down. There
is no proper communication channel in this team and being banned
from talking to the media doesn’t do them any good but is the only
way one can expect a Pakistani team with 14 egoists go ahead with
the job on hand. Apart from
Inzamam Ul-Haq and
Yousuf Youhanna and
Shoaib Akhtar, the team lacks experience and this is where they lost
the series against India. Their fielding is nothing special either,
when compared to India or Sri Lanka among the Asians. I guess the
Pakistanis must be thanking god for being placed in such an easy
group, where they face the Asian lightweights like Bangladesh and
Hong Kong. But if they go with a complacent attitude towards the
game on hand and the opponent, it’ll pay them dear in the later
stages of the tournament. I don’t expect Pakistan to win the
tournament, but expect them to perform well above the expectations,
seeing the decline in their form and commitment of the players to
play for their country.
Stats :
Pakistan has a success rate of 30%
when they are involved in a tournament with 3 or more teams in Sri
Lanka.
Bangladesh :
At last, they have announced
themselves in International cricket. After a pre-Whatmore arrival
disappointing run, the Whatmore effect has raised the confidence
level among the Bangladeshi boys to an extent where it never used to
dream of. Having shown tremendous improvement since Whatmore signed
in, the results are yet to be seen. They don’t have a promising
result list to back Whatmore’s ventures. There will be something for
the Bangladeshis to cheer for, as they could add yet another win
under their cap by probably beating Hong Kong.
Squad Analysis :
They have been ever-improving and
according to their coach, could be the potential Greeks of the Asia
Cup (although winning a tournament is still a long way ahead). The
Banglas have been playing as a unit under Dav Whatmore and Habibul
Bashar’s captaincy and having run the Windies close in the One-Dayers
will by itself give them a good amount of confidence, somewhere
close to what it takes to beat a stronger nation. Their strength is
disciplined bowling, good fielding and good planning. The only thing
that lets them down often is their batting. Not short on talent, but
only thing they are short on is temperament. If they can post good,
decent scores, there is no way that they can lose without putting up
a dogfight. We hope, that Bangladesh use this tournament as yet
another step in their graph of improvement and can take some
positives from this tournament, as they have been since Whatmore’s
arrival.
UAE and Hong Kong :
The two teams, UAE and Hong Kong are
essentially taking part to gain experience and make up the numbers.
Both of these teams have Indian coaches – Syed Abid Ali (UAE) and
Robin Singh (Hong Kong) and will be really interesting to see their
roles in the overall performance of their team. Both Hong Kong and UAE will basically be trying to compete against the Asian
heavyweights and gain useful experience and international exposure
ahead of the ICC Trophy in 2005 in Ireland. I guess, both these
teams should provide good watching and will certainly look forward
to taking some good memories from Sri Lanka.
