The outrage is only to be expected. How can a team that is number two in the ICC Test rankings go down to a team wallowing at eighth (when the series began) on the table? How can a captain not win a Test match outside India in his last 14 attempts? Why the stars who earn millions in IPL can't bat, bowl and field? What are the coach and the support staff, who are being paid crores, doing?
To a great extent these are apt queries after India lost the two-Test series 1-0 to New Zealand. The loss has come close on the heels of a similar defeat in South Africa, and the ever demanding Indian cricket fan wants answers. And why shouldn't he for he is the one investing his emotions.
But maybe if he/she is ready to take a deep breath, gulp some water and count back from ten, the realisation that all is not lost might sink in. As someone tweeted after the draw at Wellington on Tuesday: It's Wellington, not Waterloo.
Here are three things we need to look at while passing a judgment on this Indian team's performance in South Africa and New Zealand. We lost all matches in England and Australia with a team that had Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman. Remember that this batting order crossed 300 just once in those eight Test matches.
In the current Indian team there are players such as Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane who have not played a single Test outside India before the South Africa series. The likes of M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli are still relatively inexperienced on foreign turfs. And look at their returns from these twin tours: Dhawan, Pujara, Kohli and Rahane each has a ton under his belt, and Vijay has a 90-plus score against Dale Steyn and Co.
Frankly, how many of us would have expected that Indian batsmen will score tons in South Africa or for that matter on grassy tracks in New Zealand? The glass is half-full and if any inference can be drawn from the two series on the batting unit it has to be that the core of the Indian batting is ready for the five-Test English summer. Yes, there is scope for improvement.
The glass is fully empty when it comes to bowling, and it's because of their show that Dhoni is seen in even worse light. What does it suggest about the bowling talent in the country when you go into an overseas Test with three bowlers and a Ravindra Jadeja? Bankruptcy.
How long can you hope that Ishant Sharma has woken up from the right side of the bed and will be among the wickets today? Can we afford a bowler, Jadeja, whose only job is to check the flow of runs? Is R Ashwin the best off-spinner in India or should we look back at Harbhajan Singh or look forward to Parvez Rasool? And is there anyone beyond R Vinay Kumar or Ashok Dinda? Can we expect a fit Varun Aaron or Umesh Yadav to mark their run-ups in England?
Scarily, there are no straight and definite answers to any of these questions. The good thing is that by bowling those 50-plus overs in the second innings at Wellington, Zaheer Khan has proved his fitness and one can look forward to him in England. And yes, please don't expect that with a Rs 100 note in the pocket you can buy a Merc.
And lastly, stop reading too much into the ICC rankings. Rankings matter when all have the chance to play similar number of matches.
It's not the case here. How else can a team that has lost 12 Tests in the last three years be number two in the world? No way. So, calm down and give this team some time.
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