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Kaif has blossomed into a fine finisher

Erapalli Prasanna

September 15, 2002

Andy Flower is a true hero. There aren't many cricketers like him in world cricket today. I, for one, cannot help admiring the man's dedication to the game. No wonder, then, that he is such a towering influence as far as Zimbabwean cricket is concerned.

On Saturday, under extremely demanding circumstances, the elder Flower played an innings of great character, single-handedly ensuring that Zimbabwe made a good fist of chasing an imposing Indian total. It must surely have hurt this great player when his supreme effort in one-day internationals failed to secure a Zimbabwean win. Looking back, he must feel that the match was probably lost when his brother, Grant, was tragically run out thanks to a superlative effort by Yuvraj Singh, fielding at point.

When play began in the afternoon, I thought that the Indian batsmen would be highly positive, coming as they did into this Champions Trophy after a very successful English summer. To my utter disbelief, all that they displayed, though, was rank complacency.

Douglas Hondo is a very deceptive bowler; he bowls a good line and also has the knack of bowling the heavy ball now and then. Batsmen have to be very alert while playing such bowlers but this fact seemed lost upon the top order Indian batsmen.

Hondo bowled the perfect delivery to Ganguly, getting the Indian skipper to nick it into the waiting hands of second slip. He, then, snared Mongia soon after before going on to snaffle the prize wicket of Sachin Tendulkar.

Talking of Tendulkar's dismissal, I am sure that the wily Zimbabwean coach Geoff Marsh had a hand in plotting it. They definitely seemed to have hit upon the fact that Tendulkar has the habit of moving into the line of the ball just before it is delivered. Hondo bowled a beauty on or about the 4th or 5th stump line, and the extra pace also was a factor in bringing about the downfall of the master batsman.

Fortunately for India, Rahul Dravid is in the form of his life; on Saturday, he carried on from where he left off in England. The composure with which he played, and the sagacity with which he guided Mohammad Kaif, helped India get out of jail. The 117-run partnership between the duo also witnessed some fine running between the wickets. Ironical, then, that Dravid was dismissed because of an error in judging a single.

Kaif by then was ready to shoulder the responsibility of shepherding the Indian innings through the final overs; he made the right moves and played the right shots to ensure that his team ended up with a formidable total. The young man, who is blessed with the temperament needed to succeed at this level, has now blossomed into a very good finisher in one-day internationals. Mark me when I say that he will play a definite role in India's success in the World Cup 2003.

Moving on to the bowling, I must admit that the Indian spin bowlers bowled atrociously. I fail to understand why they haven't learnt the lessons that the English tour taught them. On the day, Sachin Tendulkar bowled better spin than the frontline spinners.

Despite the poor showing of Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, India were saved by the fact that they had a large total to bank upon. All credit, though, to the Zimbabweans and Andy Flower, for they fought the good fight before surrendering. I am now looking forward to Wednesday's encounter between Zimbabwe and England. If Saturday's showing is anything to go by, Zimbabwe might end up pulling the rug from under England's feet.