Same cast and similar script to 2007 World Cup, can Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma take right calls, avoid another debacle?

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An unsettled team, question marks over senior players and an ICC event round the corner. Rahul Dravid has walked this maze before – as captain before the 2007 World Cup – and does so again as coach of a team exploring options for the T20 World Cup in a few months’ time.

Back then, by many accounts, he was the reluctant enforcer of obdurate Aussie coach Greg Chappell’s ideas. Now, he is the mastermind working with mild-mannered captain Rohit Sharma. A change of role or era doesn’t make the life of a Team India dressing room decision-maker any easier.

Fate would surely have a sly smile on its face, for it has managed to waylay a man known to avoid controversy like Covid into a glasshouse of intrigue where he will once again be expected to take some unpopular decisions.

Last time round, Dravid didn’t come out shining. He made selection errors, and his team got knocked out of the 2007 World Cup early. His players faced scathing criticism, and their houses were stoned. Coach Chappell, and subsequently Dravid himself, had to quit.

Why bring it up now?

The obvious reason is to underline the cliche about the dangers of ignoring history. The other more interesting one is about the common cast of characters. Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, the lead actors from Indian cricket’s most-watched melodrama from the Chappell era, have a chance to learn from past mistakes.

To know what went wrong during the 2007 World Cup, a glance at the scorecard of the loss to Sri Lanka in their final pool game would suffice.

The batting order in that do-or-die tie went thus: Robin Uthappa, Sourav Ganguly, Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. In a team with too many opening batsmen, to the surprise of the world, it was Uthappa who got the Chappell-Dravid vote over two of India’s greatest-ever cricketers – Sehwag and Tendulkar.

Ganguly would score a 23-ball 6 at a strike rate of 30. In the previous game against Bermuda, he had scored a 114-ball 89 but still his tournament strike rate was just 60. He would face the wrath of fans, and also ridiculous allegations that his sponsors Puma were paying him according to the duration of his stay at the crease.

It’s yesterday once again in Indian cricket. Dravid-Rohit are dealing with the same pre-World Cup dilemma as Dravid-Chappell did in 2007. India are again top-heavy and there are more than one ‘slow coach’ seniors with strike rate issues.

Rohit, Ishan Kishan are bona fide openers, while in Royal Challengers Bangalore colours, Virat Kohli becomes a wannabe opener. After his Test match heroics that came after the IPL slump, cricket pundits feel that Rishabh Pant should ideally walk out first. Then there’s Sanju Samson, the murderous pinch-hitter capable of diluting tall chases or providing a head start in the Powerplay.

All through the IPL, Rohit, Rahul and Kohli were repeatedly trolled for playing T20s at ODI pace. But still they are expected to be India’s 1, 2 and 3 at the T20 World Cup – a safe choice, but not sound.

The current confusion and a team in a flux is reminiscent of 2007, however Coach Dravid enjoys far more leverage to take bold calls. With 28 players tried in 18 T20Is, the team doesn’t seem settled.

Top-heavy approach

Statistics and common cricketing logic agree that the three (Rohit, Rahul, Kohli) bunched together at the top are a liability for any team. These pages have repeatedly mentioned that no franchise in their right minds would prefer the Big 3 in the playing XI even if they were available at some bargain buy sale.