The AGM of the Board of Control for Cricket in India has alwaysattracted considerable attention all over the country. Weeks before themeeting, the battle lines are drawn and strategies and counterstrategies are planned in a manner that would be the envy of an armygeneral.

A lot of glamour has always been associated with the plum posts, giventhe power and prestige the game enjoys in the country and that is whysome of the leading politicians have contested for the post of thepresident. Why, in the last two decades, we have had such prominentpersonalities from this field as SK Wankhede, NKP Salve and MadhavraoScindia as board chiefs.But even given this background, the interest in the weekend’s meeting ofthe BCCI at Chennai was perhaps at an all time high. Chief attentioncentered around the high profile contest between the incumbent ACMuthiah and the challenger Jagmohan Dalmiya, a former president of theInternational Cricket Council, who interestingly had served earlier asthe BCCI secretary. Muthiah had been elected to the post in 1999 and wasexpected to win a third term, given his impressive record in tacklingamong other problems, the match fixing issue. But Dalmiya, a shrewdadministrator with a strong base, pulled off an upset by winning theelection by 17 votes to 13. Muthiah thus joined two others in recenttimes, Wankhede and BN Dutt who could not complete three years inoffice.There will be more than a few tears shed for Muthiah. His was adifficult two year period but he weathered the storm in his calm,assured, even dynamic manner, bringing to the post some of his businessacumen as a Chennai based industrialist. He had the image of a players’president and some of the projects like the graded payments scheme, thestarting of the National Cricket Academy, the rotation policy of hostinginternational matches, the appointment of a professional coach andphysio, the enhanced fee for players, and increased match fees and prizemoney for domestic tournaments were certainly positive developments. Inhis own inimitable manner, he emulated his father MA Chidambaram, whowas a popular president from 1960 to 1963.While there is cause to feel bad about Muthiah’s defeat, the positiveaspect is that the top post is now held by a person who has the image ofa dynamic, action oriented administrator.Dalmiya, a Kolkata based businessman, has already proved his skill invarious important posts during the conduct of the Reliance Cup in 1987,the Wills World Cup in 1996 and the Hero Cup in 1993. Perhaps hisbiggest contribution has been the aggressive manner in which the gamehas been marketed. He has been instrumental in selling TV rights andgetting sponsorship fees hiked many times over. Given the fact that thegame had been woefully undersold for years, Dalmiya’s bold approach waswidely welcomed and he brought into administration a refreshinglycontemporary air. The fact that he has been the ICC president is boundto have a positive impact on India’s image internationally.A well known figure in cricketing circles for over two decades now,Dalmiya, like Muthiah, is a suave gentleman who is media savvy and hasthe ability to get things done. He has certainly started his tenure onan encouraging note if his comments at the press conference at theconclusion of the meeting are any indication. One particularly liked theway he described match fixing as the “most heinous crime against one’scountry” while making it clear that there was no question of anyrelaxation of the ban on ‘guilty’ players.There will be few tears shed however for Jaywant Lele’s departure. Knownfor putting his foot in the mouth all too often, Lele lost out narrowlyon getting a fifth term as secretary. But the problem here is that hissuccessor Niranjan Shah was aligned with Muthiah and was none too happywith the latter’s defeat. But as Shah himself said “I will sit with thenew president and work in a cordial atmosphere.” That is the waydemocracy functions and it is good to see the board observe certaindemocratic norms. The picture of a smiling Muthiah congratulatingDalmiya said it all and one only hopes it points to encouraging timesahead for Indian cricket.

The Air Force Station ground in Delhi witnessed a slow day of cricket from Delhi and Services, with Delhi reaching a score of 242/2 by the close of play.Delhi, winning the toss, opted to bat; they did not regret the decision as openers Akash Chopra and Gautam Gambhir put on 111 runs for the first wicket. Gambhir was dismissed for 75, made off 118 balls.Radhey Shyam Gupta and Chopra then collaborated on a 61-run stand before Gupta got out, having made 29. That was Services’ last wicket of the day; Chopra and Delhi skipper Mithun Manhas were unbeaten at the close of play, the former, having completed his century, had made a slow 106 off 274 balls.

As murder on a cricket field goes, this was as grisly and macabre as it gets. Tasmania was torn asunder here in Hobart today, as Darren Lehmann and Greg Blewett indulged in a record-breaking feast of runmaking that helped South Australia into a dominant position by stumps on the third day of the teams’ Pura Cup match.Principally, it was the South Australian captain Lehmann (246) who was responsible for the carnage that reigned as the Redbacks clattered their way to a total of 5/589 in response to Tasmania’s 7/382. If he doesn’t have the best eye in Australian cricket, it would represent a near-impossible quest to determine who has a better one. For 295 rollicking minutes, his was batting at its most clinical and invincible.From an evenly-balanced position overnight, the brilliant left hander joined with fellow former international Blewett (163) in a 386-run association for the second wicket that caused serial shredding of pre-existing South Australian partnership records.Most notable among them was the previous all-time best for the state for the second wicket, formerly owned by no less a duo than Ian Chappell and Barry Richards courtesy of their 308-run liaison against Western Australia in Perth in 1970-71.As he hooked, cut, drove and glanced with brutality, Lehmann struck his 56th first-class century; his seventh double hundred; and his eighth against Tasmania. Phenomenally, not even the production of a score of 163 at the other end elevated Blewett beyond the status of a junior partner.Lehmann played every shot in the book, and characteristically even invented plenty more besides. A total of 100 runs came off his own bat in the first session, and another 115 after lunch. He simply bullied, biffed and battered his opposing bowlers and fielders into submission. Though he made about as many runs as there were spectators at the ground, it’s doubtful that anyone who saw this blend of deft finesse, raw power and daring improvisation will ever forget it.And all on a pitch still offering genuine assistance to the bowlers.”I’d said to my wife last night that, if I could get a hundred here, I’d probably put it up there as one of my best ever (innings),” avowed Lehmann after play.”It was a tough wicket and to get 200 … well, I just had one of those days. Everything went the way you would want it to go as a batter; everything I hit went into the gaps and, even if it went in the air, it fell into the gaps anyway.”The breaking of records represents just a pat on the back when it comes by, I suppose. But we weren’t really conscious of that at all and, when it comes along later, you think that’s nice. Nothing more than that, really.”His domination was so complete that a manifest air of anti-climax prevailed once he was caught on the third man boundary improvising with an uppercut at Damien Wright (2/98) shortly before tea. Play thereafter almost resembled an act of mopping up in the wake of a cyclone.This was despite the fact that Blewett and Ben Higgins (69*) kept the momentum flowing to ensure that the Redbacks smashed their way to a total of 481 runs for the day.Lehmann was within just ten runs of his highest first-class score by the end of a stunning exhibition that was laced with 39 shots into the boundary and another four over it. He had also surged to within just 43 runs of surpassing Jamie Siddons to become the greatest-ever scorer in the history of this 109-year old competition.Typically, though, his mind by then had moved far beyond any immediate individual concerns and instead to the timing and size of the lead that he should use to assist his side to bowl out Tasmania tomorrow.The home side, meanwhile, was not only left to lament the general lack of variation in the look of its attack but also its inability to create difficulties even when different options were tried. The Tigers not only used seven bowlers, but they also opted for both spin and pace and bowled everything ranging from yorkers to towering bouncers.But nothing could shift Lehmann nor, perhaps more importantly, even subdue him.Certainty, leadership and strength has been a catch cry used elsewhere in Australia in recent weeks. And its full resonance will be tested later tonight.But, on a cricket field, there couldn’t have been any better demonstration of the three qualities than what was on offer today.

The Gabba wicket left Queensland and Tasmania battered today but no one complained after the first day of an eventful Pura Cup match.Queensland emerged with first innings points from the batting carnage, making 132 in reply to Tasmania’s 100.The Tigers were 0-6 in their second innings after facing one over before stumps on a day which seemed it would never end for the batsmen.They had to cope with a Gabba greentop but Queensland skipper Stuart Law and Tasmanian wrecker Shane Jurgensen defended the pitch.Law put some of the wickets down to lazy shots while Jurgensen, who claimed 4-16 from 10 overs for the Tigers, couldn’t comprehend the constant procession tothe pavilion.Throw in Joe Dawes’ 3-4 from nine overs and Andrew Bichel’s 4-54 for Queensland, and you would think the batsmen were dancing around a minefield.”It’s not as juiced up or grassy as it has been here in previous years – some people just don’t like playing at the Gabba,” Law said.”I remember when you could hear a slurp when you marked your guard here in years gone by but there was nothing like that today.”At the start of the day, I wouldn’t have worried too much if we had to bat.”Law has seen the Gabba more than any other player – today becoming Queensland’s most capped player with 134 first-class matches.He won the toss and the wicket certainly wasn’t an issue when the Tigers scooted to 2-45 in 43 minutes.But Dawes, Bichel and Michael Kasprowicz (2-34), who became the state’s second highest wicket-taker with 350, tied a parachute to the visitors.Tasmania only scraped into triple figures thanks to Michael Di Venuto (28), Jamie Cox (20) and Damien Wright (18), and they were staring at a certain outright loss against the competition’s most ruthless team.Queensland even reached 1-52 before Jurgensen began the best day of his short career with his Brisbane-based parents in the stands.The 25-year-old lived in Brisbane until five years ago but he showed no remorse towards the team he once wanted to play for.His first two wickets came in successive balls – Martin Love (10) and Clinton Perren (zero) – but the hat-trick ball was a shocker.The 25-year-old rebounded with the wickets of Bichel, who slapped 23 from 19 balls, and Nathan Hauritz (four).He would have taken five wickets if he was awarded a certain LBW against Dawes, but Jurgensen was still smiling at stumps.”I really couldn’t sleep last night, even after I had a couple of beers to settle the nerves,” Jurgensen said.”I was jittery this morning because Queensland have such good batters and it really is tough to get out blokes of that quality.”The first session tomorrow could determine the path of this match, with Queensland’s quicks hoping the wicket regains some spice after a night under the covers.The drama of the day almost made Queensland forget about the late losses of batsman Jerry Cassell (virus) and Ashes quick Ashley Noffke (bruised heel).If Noffke had played, Dawes would probably have carried the drinks, while Brendan Nash made a promising 19 replacing Cassell.

Nashua Dolphins Squad selected to play in the Discovery Knockout ChallengeThe team for the Discovery Knockout Challenge to be played at Newlands on 2nd January will be chosen from the following squad:-
THE TEAM WILL BE CHOSEN FROM THE FOLLOWING SQUAD:-
1. Doug Watson
2. Ashraf Mall
3. Ahmed Amla
4. Jonty Rhodes
5. Dale Benkenstein (Capt)
6. Jon Kent
7. Errol Stewart
8. Gulam Bodi
9. Nixon McLean
10. Andrew Tweedie
11. Jon Bastow
12. Rivash Gobind
13. Kyle Bender
COACH: E. BAPTISTE
MANAGER: D. CARLSTEIN
FITNESS TRAINER: A. SHEDLOCK
UMPIRES: R. KOERTZEN + B. JERLING
T.V. UMPIRE: W. DIEDRICKS
4TH UMPIRE: L. MATROOS
MATCH 1 (09H00) NASHUA DOLPHINS vs NASHUA TITANS
MATCH 2 (12H30) NASHUA WESTERN PROVINCE vs HIGHVELD STRIKERS

Local league resumed in Bulawayo and to start the new year a few shocks were evident. Queens, who has provided the bulk of the Logan Cup squad, lost to underdogs Bulawayo Sports Club by 10 runs. Although both sides were missing key players, Queens Mbangwa and Nkala and BSC Mahachi and Dabengwa, there should be sufficient depth to cover. The standard of cricket and the result were somewhat disappointing.Macdonald Club, who did so well last season, are struggling this season and lost to Crescents by 82 runs, while at BAC the home side beat the young Bulawayo Development side by three wickets in a match that was marred by some unsporting tactics by the Development captain Chris Phiri, which is a sad side of the game when a young side develops these habits. It will no doubt lead to disciplinary action by the MCA.Meanwhile the Logan Cup squad for the forthcoming Logan Cup has been announced and the squad contains no real surprises. Queens players dominate the 16-man squad which is as follows:Pommie Mbangwa, Mluleki Nkala, Ryan King, Greg Strydom, Neil van Rensburg, Gavin Ewing, Matthew Townshend, Warren Gilmour (all Queens), Keith Dabengwa, Clement Mahachi, Dash Vaghmaria, Mecury Kenny (all BSC), Jason Hitz, N. Mkondiwa, C. Williams (all BAC) and Wisdom Siziba (Macdonald Club).Ian Engelbrecht, who was the leading wicket-taker last year, was not considered as he is leaving shortly for the UK where he intends furthering his cricket career.

Zimbabwe cricket was reduced to anarchy for 15 minutes last Sunday at Mutare Sports Club by cricketers from the Harare team Takashinga. In a day of infamy a batsman refused to leave the crease on being given out – swore viciously at an umpire, accused him of cheating – then kicked and bat-swiped a set of stumps to the ground.This national first league decider was always going to be a fiery encounter, but few would have predicted farce on such scale. As the visitors bristled onto the ground to inspect the pitch shortly after arrival that morning, they were allegedly heard by ground staff to say, "Don’t greet anyone; umpire Barbour is going to cheat us today."25 overs into the match the powder keg blew when umpire Alan Walsh adjudged Gift Makoni LBW after stepping across his stumps. As the Manicaland players retreated to one side of the pitch to sit and wait for order, the inconsolable Makoni stamped, raged and circled the pitch for seven minutes. From the verandah Takashinga manager Mr Elvis swore and shouted at the umpires, "We didn’t drive all this way to be cheated." Test umpire Kevan Barbour’s attempted reasoning enraged Makoni further, ending with him scooping up the remaining stumps and removing them from the field.Protracted discussions and the prospect of forfeiture finally saw Takashinga resume their innings. It could be argued that in a normal society the game had long since been conceded. Any refusal to play constitutes a concession. The umpires have sent a report to the Zimbabwe Cricket Union disciplinary committee and cricket followers await their findings with interest.What cannot be denied is that Takashinga greatly embarrassed all spectators – including uniformed school kids from Dangamvura and Mutare Boys High – who arrived in numbers to watch the biggest match of the season. Spectators had driven from as far as Odzi and Nyazura – enduring an hour-long delay at the Christmas-pass roadblock for a chance to watch Test stars Flower, Campbell and Whittall turn out for Mutare. In the end the spectators were disappointed as Mutare crushed the opposition by nine wickets without needing the big names. Justin Lewis (10-2-46-5) destroyed the top order and again proved how useful he would have been at the Under-19 World Cup.Doubly embarrassing for the ZCU is that most of the Takashinga side have come through the system under its patronage. Makoni is a member of the Mashonaland Cricket Association whilst three other players are Academy-trained coaches. Most of the rest have received scholarships to cricket schools like Churchill -including captain Rangarirai Manyande.There have been warning signs for years that Churchill’s cricketers are out of control. They intimidate umpires, refuse to walk and generally run circles around their hapless teacher-coaches. Unlike their counterparts who play mostly for fun, Churchill’s kids play for future contracts. The fault lies with the ZCU for leaving them on their own to miraculously learn 150 years of cricket civilization. The future of ZCU-choreographed cricket was on display at Mutare Sports Club and despair was everywhere.A step in the right direction might be to employ a high profile role model – perhaps a West Indian – to play and cultivate acceptable standards at Takashinga. Andy Flower reports that in three years of intermittent captaincy he never experienced bad behaviour at the club. These days all sides dread playing them – a string of unpunished reports mark their files – whilst official paralysis increasingly emboldens them.

Matabeleland seem to have given away their Logan Cup match against Midlands as they were hit by another batting nightmare on the second day of play at Bulawayo Athletic Club. The home side lost five quick wickets to end on 80 for five at the close of play, still needing 81 runs to make the visitors take a second innings.This was after Midlands scored 353 all out in 99 overs in their first innings in reply to the 192 scored by the home side on the first day. Midlands resumed at their overnight score of 107 with Terrence Duffin and Sean Ervine resisting the pace in the early overs of the day. However the two did not last as the Matabeleland bowlers fought back.Ervine was the first to leave the field of play when he edged a Norman Mukondiwa delivery weakly to second slip where an alert Tawanda Mupariwa took a diving catch to send him back for 20 runs, meaning that the Zimbabwean international added only one run to his overnight score of 19. Duffin followed in the next over when he was dismissed by Gregory Strydom, caught at leg gully by Mike McKillop for 74, which included 13 fours.Midlands lost captain Dirk Viljoen for 55 when he was given out leg before wicket to spinner Mecury Kenny, and they went to lunch on 241 for five. After lunch the Matabeleland bowlers tightened the noose and that worked well for them as they manage to restrain most of the Midlands batsmen. Right-arm spinner Gavin Ewing grabbed the wicket of Kornford, bowling the middle-order batsman for 49. John Vaughan-Davies fell to McKillop a few overs after lunch, trapped leg before wicket for 10 runs.Ewing finished off the Midlands batting line-up when he grabbed two wickets.He removed Paul Reilly leg before wicket for a duck and went on to bowl Campbell McMillan for 59 to finish off the visitors. Ewing proved to be thetoast of the disappointing Matabeleland bowling attack, with the spinner taking five for 80 in his 28-over spell, with seven maidens. Pace bowler Strydom took two for 72 with one maiden in 19 overs, while Mukondiwa, Kenny and McKillop took a wicket apiece.In their second innings Matabeleland changed their batting line-up, with Wisdom Siziba, who scored 103 in the first innings, opening with Keith Dabengwa. That ploy however did not yield any results as Dabengwa could score only 13 runs before he was bowled by Viljoen. Kenny was trapped leg before wicket by McMillan for only two runs, with Siziba failing to regain his terrific form of the first innings, scoring only 28 runs before being bowled by Vaughn-Davies.Gregory Strydom had managed only five runs when he skied a ball from Kornford and saw McMillan take a brilliant catch at third man. Norman Mukondiwa, who was also brought up the order, could not stand the pressure piled on by the Midlands attack, and was trapped leg before wicket by McMillan for a duck. King and McKillop were left unbeaten with 19 and 0 respectively.Matabeleland manager Derrick Townshend admitted that his boys were having abad time but said the match was far from over. He was disappointed with thebowlers who he said should have restricted the visitors to a score of lessthan 300.

Rawalpindi were on top in their Quaid-i-Azam Trophy Group-IV match against Karachi Blues on Sunday with an overall lead of 303 runs at the close of third day’s play at the Pindi Stadium.After having dismissed Karachi Blues in their first innings for 161 to gain a 120-run lead, the home side finished the day at 183 for six in their second innings. Off-spinner Ali Mohammad took four of those wickets by giving away 67 runs off the 15 over he bowled. Babar Naeem who top-scored for Pindi with a 72-ball 63, was one of his victims.Earlier, when Karachi Blues resumed at 33 for three, they were rocked by paceman Mohammad Fayyaz who snared five for 48 with Junaid Zia, another Pindi pacer claiming three wickets. Jaffar Qureshi led the list of run-scorers with a fine 52.Meanwhile, KRL continued their domination against Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL), setting their rivals a stiff target of 380 runs with a full day’s play remaining on Monday.KRL, 32 for one overnight, put on a massive 303 for five declared, an overall advantage of 379. Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq struck an unbeaten 101 while Intikhab Alam chipped in with 83.By the close of play, ZTBL had scored 28 without loss, needing another 352 for victory.PIA scored an emphatic innings and 167-run victory over Peshawar inside three days at Arbab Niaz Stadium.Pacer Umar Gul captured five for 75 as the hosts were bundled out for 163 in their second innings with opener Zeeshan Mohsin making his second half century of the game.Earlier, Mahmood Hamid completed a century as PIA carried their overnight tally of 359 for six to 474 all out.ScoreboardRAWALPINDI (1st Innings) 281 (Nauman Aman 142, Shiraz Khalid 73;Imranullah 6-51).KARACHI BLUES (1st Innings, overnight 33-3):Khalid Latif c Wasim b Fayyaz 39Zahid Ghauri c Nadeem b Fayyaz 2Khurram Mansoor run out 7Tariq Haroon lbw b Fayyaz 8Anis Shaikh c Nadeem b Junaid 18Faraz Patel c Akram b Junaid 2Sajid Hanif c Shiraz b Junaid 1Jaffar Qureshi b Fayyaz 52Imranullah c Yasir b Fayyaz 5Ali Mohammad lbw b Akram 0Sharif Asadullah not out 2EXTRAS (B-1, LB-10, W-5, NB-9) 25TOTAL (all out, 51.2 overs) 161FALL OF WKTS: 1-6, 2-17, 3-26, 4-91, 5-93, 6-98, 7-107, 8-134, 9-141.BOWLING: Mohammad Akram 16-4-37-1; Mohammad Fayyaz 17.2-4-48-5;Yasir Ashfaq 5-2-19-0; Junaid Zia 12-1-42-3; Babar Naeem 1-0-4-0RAWALPINDI (2nd Innings):Wasim Ahmad c Sajid b Ali 31Babar Naeem c Sajid b Ali 63Mujahid Hameed run out 27Shiraz Khalid b Ali 30Nauman Aman b Jaffar 4Pervez Aziz not out 13Nadeem Abbasi st Sajid b Ali 7Junaid Zia not out 1EXTRAS (B-1, LB-5, NB-1) 7TOTAL (for six wkts, 44 overs) 183FALL OF WKTS: 1-78, 2-97, 3-144, 4-155, 5-164, 6-177.BOWLING (to-date): Imranullah 3-0-4-0; Sharif Asadullah 7-0-38-0; Tariq Haroon 5-1-16-0; Ali Mohammad 15-1-67-4; Zahid Ghauri 4-1-23-0; Jaffar Qureshi 10-2-29-1.Summarised scores of other Group-IV matches:*At KRL Stadium, Rawalpindi:KRL 307 (Saeed bin Nasir 93, Saeed Anwar Jr 60; Rao Iftikhar 3-83, Fahad Masood 2-58, Faisal Naved 2-38) and 303-5 dec (Misbah-ul-Haq 101 not out, Intikhab Alam 83; Fahad Masood 2-38); ZTBL 231 (Faisal Naved 47, Zahoor Elahi 41; Yasir Arafat 5-78, Ali Naqvi 3-37) and 28-0.*At Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar:PIA beat Peshawar by an innings and 167 runs.PESHAWAR 144 (Zeeshan Mohsin 64 not out; Shoaib Malik 5-27, Umar Gul 3-65, Aizaz bin Ilyas 2-9) and 163 (Zeeshan Mohsin 51, Fakhar-e-Alam 32; Umar Gul 5-75, Shoaib Malik 3-22, Najaf Shah 2-32);PIA 474 (Ghulam Ali 138, Mahmood Hamid 108, Asif Mujtaba 51; Nauman Habib 4-153, Mohammad Siddique 3-109, Asif Khan 3-127).

Do New Zealand cricket fans like winners?That is the question that will be answered as the National Bank One-Day International Series is played out with New Zealand having already taken an unbeatable 4-0 lead.Three day/night matches remain to be played in Wellington on Wednesday, in Auckland on Saturday and in Hamilton on Tuesday next week.This should have been the bonus time for New Zealand Cricket in terms of gate-takings for this shortened international summer.Beforehand, it would have been reasonable to presume that the series would still be alive by this stage.However, the lack of fire from India’s batsman has made the series a non-event. Or has it?New Zealand cricket fans have been long suffering in following the fortunes of their side over the years. It has been an activity designed to test the loyalty of fans.Yet the true cricket lover will follow the game through thick and thin because even if there is not your own side to support you could always appreciate the skills of the opposition.New Zealand now is in rare territory – four wins in a row and a series already wrapped up.They have not been fully tested and they haven’t even been required to show their best form to achieve the wins.That is of serious concern and it can only be wondered how the New Zealand public would be reacting if the TelstraClear Black Caps were performing as miserably as the Indians.New Zealanders like to think that, even if their side is being hopelessly out-classed, the players would still be trying their hardest.The hope has to be that New Zealand can turn the situation to their advantage. The top-order batsmen have been out of form but with the pressure off winning the series they can now use that situation to their own benefit.That is about all there remains to play for in the series.Equally, the bowlers can’t afford to let their hold over the Indian batsmen decline and that becomes a genuine test for them.It is an interesting comparison to the Australian attitude to sport.Australia might have been 4-0 up going into the last Test against England for the Ashes, but that didn’t stop the crowd turning up in massive numbers for the first three days.For their rewards they got a great match.What will New Zealanders do by comparison?Indications are that the series has become a turn-off.New Zealand still have everything to play for. Success in limited overs cricket has not been one of the most common achievements since the 1992 World Cup. But winning is a habit and the more they can get before the World Cup the better.India would dearly love to regain the habit and the hope has to be that if Sachin Tendulkar can finally make it onto the field that he may be able to spark a revival. India can’t afford to go to the World Cup with their tails between their legs.There may yet be some life left in this series.