En route to the winning formula

A surprising series of incidents commenced on Saturday with the defeat of the Left in Bengal after more than 30 years. Then, Sunday witnessed a fit Rafael Nadal lose a match on clay after over a year. And on Monday, the Kolkata Knight Riders, won for a change. It was beyond the wildest imagination of even the best political analysts to predict a Left defeat in Bengal. Also, popular notion is that Nadal cannot lose on clay. The events of Saturday and Sunday showed a positive continuous curve take a sudden negative slope. But on Monday, the Knights gave the continuous negative curve a push in the opposite direction. We hope the direction does not change.

It required two great innings from Brendon McCullum and Brad Hodge to overcome a huge target set by the Chennai Super Kings. McCullum single-handedly took the Super Kings attack to the cleaners. When he left, Hodge stepped into his shoes superbly. This victory should give a boost to the sagging spirits of a team that seemed to desperately need divine intervention to end to their misery.

Although the Knights have managed a win after a long while, there’s still a long way to go before they can claim to perform consistently. If the last match is analysed, the Knights’ win was solely due to two individual performances. Overall, the team performed woefully. Their bowling was wayward and lacked discipline. Their fielding has been worse than club level, and has contributed tellingly in their defeats. In the last match, they gave away a minimum of 20 runs due to their sloppy fielding. If a team has to perform consistently in a tournament like the IPL, each of the eleven players must contribute. This Knight Riders team is heavily dependent on individual stars. If they fail, the team falls like nine pins.

The T-20 format offers heavy constraints, giving players virtually no time to settle down. An ideal T-20 team should include players who can play a game similar to the “total football” technique, as practised by the great Dutch team of the 70’s. In total football, every player’s position is replaced by another while the team moves forward. Similarly, in a T-20 team, each player should be a virtual back-up of the other. So when a wicket falls, the new man in can take on the role of the earlier one. Only then can the momentum be maintained.

This is time for the Knights to seriously introspect. They have lost almost every match this season. But on the bright side, they have found winning ways again and need just another win to cement their confidence level. The real work will begin in the off season. The team management has a tough job ahead if the Knights are to avoid a repeat performance next year. Most important, they have to choose a team where each of the eleven is a force to reckon with. Apart from the foreign players, drastic changes are needed in the domestic line-up. Good domestic players are crucial to a team’s good performance. Also, Shahrukh Khan must become pro-active like Dr. Vijay Mallaya in choosing a stable captain and coach for his team. Then hopefully, by next season, the Knights will give us a taste of cricket glory at Eden Gardens again.