Undoubtedly, they were a let down.
Dravid is patently unsuited for the Twenty20 format. His performance was labored as well as uninspiring.
Though he had a run of good scores, where he seems to be approaching his old form, Ganguly was at best determined.
Sachin was lucky to be injured for the large part of the tournament; otherwise, his stature would have diminished. He has done nothing spectacular as on date.
Overall, one can rate their performance as mediocre, unworthy of their 'iconic' status and indicative of their diminishing cricketing skills.
However, here are a set of old farts who still believe that the holy trinity of Indian cricket are not a spent force in international cricket.
18 comments:
Even Dhoni or Yuvaraj have not played the kind of blistering knocks that Ganguly or Dravid played.Abt sachin we cannot talk it is taboo.But they shd never be considered for the shorter version.Their iconic status is all the cause for criticism.We turn the other way when others grope in the dark. Just run ur mind thro all the matches u will find many listless performances by many youngsters.
The happiest thing of IPL is that the big 5 Sachin, Sourav, Rahul and Laxman, Kumble are failures. We can drop them from the one dayers and T20 without a guilty feeling.
As for tests, having all 5 of them in the test team is a big liability. All of them are pathetic fielders for sure. The best thing for Indian cricket is to get rid of them and move on.
IPL has given us at least 10-12 new consistent youngsters. Its time to groom them.
Anyone who still uses the word 'opined' in a story must be banished to the darkest corners of writing. That said, I still think Sachin has a role to play in Twenty20. And Dravid in Fifty50. I say this only because they're both still very good fielders.
On the basis of stats alone, only Gambhir and Rohit Sharma have done better than the seniors. I am going to classify Viru and Dhoni as middle aged now! People like Uttappa need to have less of the "bowing and talking" and focus more on the game. I feel that the time is fast approaching for the seniors to retire gracefully - so that they get their due instead of being forced out. However most of the juniors still have a long way to go before we can think of them in the same breath.
The last time India played a one day series (Australia) , Sachin scored a 100 and 93 in the two finals. If you consider his one day form right through the year (against England, Pakistan and Australia) , Sachin has been India's best batsmen. To even think that he should be dropped from the one day side is ridiculous.
Right through the year Ganguly, Lakshman and Dravid have made vital contributions for the Indian test match team. They remain the pillors on whom the test match team depends and this should not change.
And lets have some perspective here. It is one thing to slog a quick 20 on flat wickets in India, and another to bat on tracks like Perth. The last time an Indian 'young' team without Sachin, Sourav, Rahul and Lakshman played a 20-20 match (against Australia at the MCG) they were bowled out for 70.
For the price paid, none of the 'stars' have justified their standing. As ipl08 says, the Holy Trinity has done far better than many of the youngsters. And that, after having had to adapt to this format in very quick time!!
[Case in point: Dravid has hit less than 50 sixes in his whole ODI career (300+ matches) and he's got 11 in 14 IPL matches - now that's class!
Disclaimer: I'm a HUGE fan of Dravid.]
R,
You should not compare youngsters with icons. :)
Philip,
Going by the comments we seem to be a minority. :)
Uber,
I hate to disagree, their days are over.
ipl,
Only Gambhir and Rohit have featured in all the matches. The icons not only play up the order , but also play in all the matches.
So it is inevitable they outscore the newcomers.
apurv,
I agree with all your statistics, but diagree about the value of their contributions.
Give the youngsters as much chances as you give these oldies,they will outscore them. :)
Ambivalent,
It was sheer desperation,that made Dravid hit all those sixes. :)
Dravid can not be termed failure as player...
after 12 or 13 matches (saying from memory) dravid scored 330 and rohit scored around 337...
he hit just 7 runs more for the adulation he got...to be termed as the future of indian cricket...!!
there are more celebrity t20 failures like yuvraj, uthapa, dhoni amongst many others...
dont forget he was under constant pressre and media glare from every direction...still had focus and courage to do what he did...
Ottayan>> Ah, that's the irony of it all!
If the seniors do well, it is unfair to compare the youngsters, but if they do badly, damn them!!
Let's not forget - the 'icon' status has come after at least a dozen years of consistent - repeat, consistent - performance. It may have only been to provide the big 3 with a pre-retirement kitty - but that's the best way the BCCI can show its gratitude to the Trinity :)
Ottayan>> It's the other way around.... he had to stay around while all those 'youngsters' were doing their flash-in-the-pan acts, so he didn't get many chances to show his - this - stuff :(
How can a tournament strike rate of 137 (not to mention an innings of 75 in 36 balls) be anything less than inspirational? - had it been anyone other than Dravid (even Sachin, Sourav or VVS), they'd have been feted no end.
[I thought I was the 'R' you referred to, hence the previous response.... you'll agree my confusion is justified.... and 'R', apologies for usurping your response :D]
as icons they should be the best... they are not... clearly so many youngsters having a better record here suggests the inevitable.
Fourteen sixes in desperation that too when ur boss has been needling ur...,the first I am hearing abt such a six. But I repeat the icons shd not be considred for shorte versions.
I thought two of them didn't do too badly - Dravid and Ganguly. Sachin didn't have too many matches, but still was a let down, given the hype that always surrounds him (with due credit to his genius).
I would tip things in favor of Dravid, given the amount of pressure he was under (as sometimes-i-do, has pointed out). That's classic Dravid for you. In 14 matches he has over 330 runs, only 15 short of Dhoni. For me, any day, he has a place in the 50-over side.
@sometimes, nice to see a Dravid fan around. I cannot help but agree with you. Had the 36 ball 75 come from someone else, the news would have been all over the place.
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