Go Go Ganguly !

Okay. Bengal these days, just needs an issue to simmer. A day after the Singur issue was supposedly "resolved" through compromise, another issue involving a citizen of that state has emerged. Sourav Ganguly's imminent axing from the Rest of India squad for the Irani Trophy has taken everyone by storm. Not really. Facts are simple. Like his previous ejection from the Indian set up, when the Greg Chappell episode brewed up, it was on merit (or the lack of it in this case) and of course non-performance.

With a meager average of 16 and 29 against Sri Lanka and Australia respectively, Ganguly's case at the hands of the selectors became weaker. Not to forget, Dilip Vengsarkar, the Chairman of Selectors' made a statement of intent (not what Mark Hughes said about Manchester City and its takeover) when he announced that some of the one-day starlets were ready for Test cricket. But, I shudder to ask myself this question over and over again. Why don't Indian cricketers know by themselves that their time's up ? I mean this is just not restricted to Ganguly for that matter, Rahul Dravid had an opportunity to let himself go, when he  denounced his Indian captaincy in England last year. Why ? Why do our players want to be perennially playing cricket ? Why don't they realize that enough is enough ? Or is it just the I-am-not-retiring-Kick-me-out-if-you-want phenomenon ?

For all that I am sitting and writing here about Ganguly, I think he's given Indian cricket fans everything to cheer about. His batsmanship is something anyone would pay to watch, but when the bat and the pad doesn't come close enough, is there a message ? When the bat just does enough to knick a delivery you would leave otherwise, is there a message ? Perhaps there is. That was the message Niranjan Shah read out today.

What this in effect does, is puts the other veterans into the observation center. Sachin Tendulkar's regular presence in the sick-bay is doing no good to the Indian team, nor is it doing anything to himself. For that matter, whenever he is struggling for form, he tries to conjure up an injury just to shy away from the action - this again is not undermining his contribution to Indian cricket, whatever it has been - but just an attempt to bring it out. Why is Tendulkar not under the microscope ? Why should he be exempted from examination or scrutiny ? He shouldn't. But thats the case with darlings of the establishment. They're often admonished of all sins, granted all immunity from observation, there is ! Why ? If Indian cricket needed a recent example, Michael Vaughan's one is there for everyone to see. His statement of "If I am not scoring runs for the team, I have no business to stay in there", tells something, doesn't it ? The gap between the bat and the pad which Dale Steyn exploited. The same shots that he played early on, which a free-flowing Vaughan otherwise resisted from chasing, led to events after the third Test there. Thats the model we need to follow.

Thats England, the same old argument, and this is Indian cricket. But if Indian cricket needs to evolve from its own rotten cocoon, it better take some hard decisions. Else, lets say doomsday approaches soon !