New Zealand are in a desperate race as they look to prevent India from running away from the India New Zealand ODI series in the third ODI at Baroda.
daniel vettori mark greatbatch brendon mccullum
Time is running out for the Kiwis in the ODI series which assumed a middle point and India are looking good to take the series, this despite the fact that they have at least five of their frontline players missing from the squad.
India's experimentation before the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 has benefitted from this outing against New Zealand but it is the latter that are losing ground with a little more than two months left for the big ICC tournament.
New Zealand have struggled to maintain pace and momentum and have proved to be poorer opponents in the ODI version as compared to the Test series. And injuries have blunted New Zealand severely as they try to redeem themselves from the disastrous 4-0 loss to Bangladesh prior to the Indian tour.
Jesse Ryder has already flown home. Daryl Tuffey was the latest casualty even as the New Zealand captain, Daniel Vettori, is fighting his way back from a back strain. But the prognosis on Brendon McCullum, New Zealand's explosive batsman and wicket keeper in ODIs, is most worrisome for them. Expected to bolster the team, McCullum's back strain is putting a strain on the rest of the team, trying to find their feet.
Team India seem to have fewer problems on that front with the experiments working out reasonably well, with youngsters such as Virat Kohli make themselves indispensable to the team. What the Indian selectors would like to see over the next three ODIs from the Indian team would be a more balanced bowling attack, batting contributions from all the top batsmen, including Yuvraj Singh, and an all round performance that will generally lift India's profile even without the seniors, causing a healthy competition for the team berths for the World Cup.
The Indian cricket fans, however, seem to have left the decision to the selectors as the ODI series has fared rather poorly in terms of generating interest thus far. And it will be a huge task if a sleepy Indian fan contingent, hibernating before India's tour of South Africa, is to be bothered by the ongoing affair with the Kiwis.
Related Stories
Ind NZ ODI 4 Preview: NZ Have an Uphill Climb, India Rejoice Being on a Roll
Don't let the smiles fool you. New Zealand know they have very little going for them while India are rejoicing bettering their own record. The situation is likely to be no different when India take on New Zealand in Bangalore tomorrow on a 3-0...
Ind NZ ODI 2 Preview: India Have it Going for Them, NZ Await McCullum, Vettori's Return
This Indian cricket team may not be at full strength. But considering their opposition, that may not prove to be too much of a hindrance for the second of the India New Zealand ODI series set to get underway at the Sawai Mansingh stadium in Jaipur..
Ind NZ ODI 1: Virat Kohli's Century Gives India Win over Visitors in Subdued Battle
Team India had their wobbled. But they prevailed when it mattered in the first ODI of the India New Zealand series at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Guwahati as they beat the Kiwis by forty runs after Virat Kohli showed the way with a ton. India...
Ind NZ ODI 2 Compaq Cup Full Time: NZ Head Home, India to Top
There was a euphemistic feeling about the Compaq Cup, although India gave a good exhibition of himself and it had nothing to do with the 9/11 anniversary of the unfortunate terro attack on the World Trade Center in the US. After India...
Virat Kohli And Co. Enjoy Bike Ride before Formula One Racing ( See Pics)
Is it not known that the Indian cricketers can also love demons of speed? Even as some of the Indian cricket team will fly to Noida for the first Formula One Indian Grand Prix, they did enjoy bike rides, although not on the circuit, with the keys firmly w
