India in Sri Lanka - ODI Series (2012)

I make India as the favorites, quite simply because they have been beating Sri Lanka left, right and center since quite some time now, Howeverm Sri Lanka have improved, if we look at their recent series against Pakistan as compared to their series against the same opposition last year or the Asia cup, there is a marked improvement.

India to win 3-1 with one game ending in no result. T20 is a lottery anyways.

SLN have lost Sanga to a hairline fracture, so for them winning this series has become doubly difficult now, come tuesday and India would fancy wrapping this up... one man who can get wrapped up though is Rohit Sharma, poor guy can't buy a run this year, and has an average of 17 in his last 13 innings! Nothing against Sharma, but I Can't believe the likes of Tiwary and Rahane have been kept out of the side, if someone is not in form sometimes it's good for him to get dropped, he can focus and come back stronger.

Irrespective of Rohit's problems, India look all set to win the series tomorrow.

extremely good player is Virat but I won't go as far as comparing him to Ricky Ponting as yet mystery, Ricky has proved himself over a long period of time, Virat will have to do that too, I think most of Virat's centuries have come against SLN, doesn't mean I'm taking away one bit from what he has achieved but he will have to score hundreds against stronger attacks like South Africa, England, Pakistan etc... more often to be called as a future great.

                     

            Now that they have started to focus on next World Cup in Austraia-NZ , slowly they are trying to think about bowling all rounder like Irfan who could be handy in those conditions. Moreover , Irfan has got his form/swing back only in last few months and rightly was awarded chance. Good that his hard work has been rewarded in this series. Bringing him sooner would have been disaster to him and to the team, Infact he himself in some interview had said that he was working on trying to get his swing back and add little pace. However Irfan should be careful , should not pick up wrong technique/action over extended season(like he did last time). Praveen and Vinay have always been standout performers even in domestic conditions, so they will also keep getting chances in rotation basis.

Zak will be around 36 by next world cup , god willing if he can keep his body fit he would be able to play, but it cannot be left for chance, there has to be an alternative. Either of Ishant, Umesh,Aaron have to take up the skills from him to fill that slot as strike bowler.  

            Rohit has had a series to forget, but I know that our Indian selectors are not fools to forget all his good performances last year. He should actually be getting his long due Test debut , but at a wrong time he has string of bad patch which makes it very difficult & tricky for selectors. Last year he was in a rich vein of form, he was not in the pecking order to get selected ( that was the only time our selectors did a blunder in selection).

Selectors should simply shut up the nonsense media who keep poking their nose and give Rohit a chance in Test matches, even Kohli took few tests to settle in zone. Now that RD has quit , either give option to Rohit or Pujara and give them 6 matches on a trot and then take a call. For sure Laxman's spot is also going to be vacated soon, I assume about a year at the max. Rohit and Pujara would fit in really well.

His scores in current series and CB series in Australia are as below:

4, 4, 0, 0, 5, 68, 4, DNB, 0, 15, 33, 10, 21 = 165 runs in 12 innings at an average of 13.75... as Spinny has rightly said, there is plenty of competition for places in Indian side, and with those scores it is difficult to have you in the side.

India rise to No.2 in the ranking, however I'm absolutely sure that within a day or two when the rankings will be revised, India or South Africa will become No.1 team in the world, Australia are absolutely certain to lose out on that No.1 spot.