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We?ve specific game plan to tackle North: Yadav
WATCHING NORTH Zone practicing here at the Usha Raje Cricket Centre on Monday reminds one of the kind of talent available in that part of the country. The names of Dinesh Mongia, Mitthun Manhas, Reetinder Singh Sodhi, Gagandeep Singh, Joginder Sharma and Amit Mishra, along with a few upcoming youngsters like Shikhar Dhawan and Abid Nabi, could make any opposition nervous on match eve.
WATCHING NORTH Zone practicing here at the Usha Raje Cricket Centre on Monday reminds one of the kind of talent available in that part of the country. The names of Dinesh Mongia, Mitthun Manhas, Reetinder Singh Sodhi, Gagandeep Singh, Joginder Sharma and Amit Mishra, along with a few upcoming youngsters like Shikhar Dhawan and Abid Nabi, could make any opposition nervous on match eve.
And with Gautam Gambhir also likely to join his team-mates later in the day, local cricket fans can expect a special treat as North open their Deodhar Trophy campaign against reigning champions Central Zone on Tuesday.
But there is a problem. Whenever it comes to a pressure situation––like now, after the hosts closely lost their first match to West Zone at Gwalior––the Central players have tended to lift their game to new heights.
Compared to North, the hosts may just be trailing in terms of India representation but skipper JP Yadav has every reason to feel confident in the company of his experienced campaigners, Murali Kartik, Gagan Khoda and Harvinder Singh.
“We’ve a specific gameplan to tackle the strong North batting line-up,” said Yadav on Monday. It would really be interesting to see how successful the Central bowlers would be when it comes to match situations. With the likes of Kaif and Piyush Chawla also missing, there would be even greater pressure on both Yadav and Kartik to perform with the ball.
North, however, have no such problem.
Skipper Mongia has made his presence felt throughout this season with some dazzling all-round performances. Before the start of the home season, he amassed over 1000 runs during his county stint in England. And then, this season, in various domestic games, he has over 900 runs and 25 wickets --- enough hint of his class. The Indian selectors though, were not impressed.
His last international was almost a year ago against Pakistan and now it's a question of controlling his nerves and cooling his heels awhile.
The same theory applies to deputy Manhas. Always termed “classy” by various cricketing pundits, his lack of consistency has stopped him from going places. Who knows, a couple of big knocks in the tournament may well change it all for him.
It would be a different scenario for Gambhir. His century in a warm-up game against England may have come a bit too late but his arrival could make a big difference in the ongoing tournament. It would be a test of character for the Central bowlers to contain the strong North batting line-up on a flat wicket here.
The match would be played on the same track used during the South vs East match two days ago. The toss would be vital in the sense that chasing a reasonable total would not be an easy task on a wicket that tends to keep low after a while.
