Teams scrap for first points

Match facts

Monday, April 11
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	Kolkata will look to get over their choke in the opening game © AFP Enlarge
Related Links Players/Officials: Gautam Gambhir | Pragyan Ojha Matches: Kolkata Knight Riders v Deccan Chargers at Kolkata Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: Deccan Chargers | India | Kolkata Knight Riders

Big picture

Both batting line-ups faltered in their opening games; Deccan Chargers never got going, and Kolkata Knight Riders choked. Kolkata definitely have more class and power in their batting, but until Brett Lee and Shakib Al Hasan return from national duty, their bowling looks thin. In their absence though, Kolkata's bowling held up decently against Chennai Super Kings, but it was the star-studded batting line-up that failed to get them home in a modest chase, blowing away a winning position.

Deccan have a world-class bowling attack, but it was given too few runs to defend by a misfiring batting unit. They tried hard, but Pragyan Ojha had an off day. Their bowling relies on Dale Steyn for making maximum impact, and the way he was played out by Rajasthan Royals after they had conceded two wickets to him, could be one approach teams would look to use against Deccan. The rest of the bowlers will be targeted, but there is no reason why they cannot step up, given their pedigree.

Team talk

Gambhir said that he had come lower down the order against Chennai in order to hold the line-up together, as Jacques Kallis had got off to a good start. The move of sending Yusuf Pathan at No. 3 and demoting himself to No. 6 did not work, and Kolkata would look at rejigging the order.

In the spotlight

Gautam Gambhir has acquired a reputation for some brain fades of late, getting run-out, stumped and bowled after a blind charge in the three World Cup knockout games. He followed that up with another run-out in the IPL opener. He has been in fine touch otherwise, but will have to stay in the middle long enough to make the runs. And would also need to bat at his natural position, in the top order.

Rajasthan targeted Pragyan Ojha who went for 44 in 23 deliveries, blunting a bowling performance that had otherwise been largely on target in defending a small total. Ojha, the top wicket-taker in the previous IPL, will have to complement Steyn's efforts with the ball.

Prime numbers

• Kolkata's 67 against Mumbai Indians in 2008 is the second-lowest total in the IPL
• The longest losing streak in the IPL is eight matches by Kolkata in 2009

The chatter

"These things happen. If they did not happen, we wouldn't call cricket an unpredictable game."
Gautam Gambhir is not too worried over his run-outs

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Pune Warriors flatten listless Punjab

	Ryan McLaren's half-century was in vain © AFP Enlarge
Related Links Players/Officials: Ryan McLaren | Yuvraj Singh Matches: Pune Warriors v Kings XI Punjab at Mumbai Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: India | Kings XI Punjab | Pune Warriors

Subroto Roy, owner of the tournament's most expensive franchise Pune Warriors, watched his team's debut seated amid a group of models, who had plenty to cheer as Pune outclassed Kings XI Punjab at the DY Patil Stadium. Punjab were the cellar-dwellers of the previous season, and despite completely overhauling the squad, they turned in a performance that would have been expected from the deadbeats of 2010.

Even triple digits looked a long way away from Punjab, after the top six had failed on a track with plenty of bounce, before South African allrounder Ryan McLaren pulled off some big hits towards the end of the innings to ensure it wasn't entirely one-way traffic. That target, though, proved too tiny to trouble Pune's line-up of heavy-hitters.

Pune made an outstanding start to their IPL journey, taking wickets in each of the first four overs to leave Punjab gasping at 9 for 4. South African fast bowler Alfonso Thomas will be little known to Pune fans, but he removed the biggest name in the Punjab line-up in the first over - Adam Gilchrist walking after edging a short ball to the keeper. Thomas' new-ball partner Shrikant Wagh, a similarly low-profile bowler, also delivered, removing the second most dangerous Punjab batsman - Shaun Marsh whipping the ball to short fine leg.

After Dinesh Karthik holed out to third man, Punjab started a slow recovery before some amateurish cricket ended the stand between Sunny Singh and Abhishek Nayar. Both batsmen were ball-watching after Sunny punched the ball to wide mid-on, and he was more than halfway down the track before having to turn back. Instead of attempting to make his ground, he decided to berate Nayar instead, and though the fielder's throw was way off target, Pune still had plenty of time to run out Sunny.

Punjab were soon 45 for 6 before McLaren intervened. He was cautious early on as he re-built the innings with Piyush Chawla, with only 25 runs coming in a nine-over spell, and even at the end of the 18th over, the run-rate wasn't even five. It was only in the last two overs that McLaren showed his hard-hitting abilities, clubbing the ball over midwicket and glancing to fine leg as he plundered 22 to reach his half-century and slightly dent the party mood among Pune fans.

The first-ball dismissal of Graeme Smith also perked up Punjab. Mithun Manhas and Jesse Ryder, though, made sure there was going to be any dramatic turnaround. They put on 60 rapid runs, crashing at least one boundary in each over that they were together. Both fell in the space of five balls, but even that didn't throw Punjab off course as their most expensive batsmen, Yuvraj Singh and Robin Uthappa, came together. Some schoolboy fielding gave both Yuvraj and Uthappa a life each, and they clubbed three sixes in five deliveries to hasten the finish.

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Dhoni's among the great modern captains

	Dhoni: up there with the Imrans and Taylors © Associated Press Enlarge
Related Links Players/Officials: MS Dhoni Series/Tournaments: ICC Cricket World Cup Teams: India

India's emphatic victory in the World Cup has proved beyond doubt they are currently the best all-round cricket team. In the process, Mahendra Singh Dhoni's polished performance as skipper, where he pushed, prodded and cajoled his side into peaking at the right time, has shown he's not only the best leader in the game but also one of the finest of the last 30 years. His performance ranks him with the other top-class leaders of the period: Imran Khan, Mark Taylor and Arjuna Ranatunga.

Unlike their predecessors as the No. 1-ranked team, West Indies and Australia, India do not have a dominant bowling attack. Considering bowlers win matches, this makes Dhoni's captaincy performance even more meritorious. In that regard he's emulated Ranatunga in conjuring up a World Cup victory with a moderate attack. As there's no indication India are on the verge of unearthing a couple of world-class bowlers, and three of their best Test batsmen are closer to retirement than to the pinnacle of their careers, Dhoni has a serious challenge on his hands to keep India at the top of the rankings in the longer game. However, he can take comfort from the fact that none of the stronger teams look likely to surge past India in the race to be No. 1.

This is one of the reasons why the 2011 World Cup was such a fascinating tournament: all the teams were flawed. Consequently it was an extremely open World Cup. It's far more interesting when there are a number of good sides rather than one really strong one bullying a string of moderate teams. The previous three World Cup finals were dominated by Australia and the tournament badly needed the upsets and strong finale that 2011 provided.

In addition to having the best captain at World Cup 2011, India were also the most capable batting side against spinners. There's a worrying trend, which the World Cup exposed, of batsmen whose footwork is inadequate against spin bowling. This is even more of a concern when you consider that, of the three great spinners of recent times, Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble, only the Sri Lankan was in attendance, and by the end of the tournament he was virtually on one leg. There seems to be a train of thought amongst batsmen from some countries that it's less dangerous to employ all manner of zany, premeditated shots than it is to counter spin bowling with sharp footwork. This kind of warped thinking is either a product of poor coaching or lazy batting, or more likely a combination of both. I'm referring here to coaching received at a young age, not once the player reaches international level. It's too late to drastically change a player's footwork once he's old enough to be competing at the highest level.

The only major flaw in the 2011 World Cup - apart from the constant confusion over the DRS - was the length of time it took to decide a winner. Consequently it's welcome news that the 2015 tournament will be shorter. However, the automatic choice of all 10 Test-playing nations as the only qualifiers for 2015 is a short-sighted decision. The World Cup is a prestigious tournament and teams should only be competing on merit. Currently neither Bangladesh nor Zimbabwe deserve automatic entry, and even West Indies need to improve dramatically to escape the ignominy of slipping into that category. At least two of those teams should have to qualify by playing in a stringent promotion/demotion tournament with the stronger Associate countries.

Whilst this was a successful (and for the most part entertaining) World Cup, the ICC should always be looking for ways to improve the tournament. The introduction of a qualifying tournament, and the distribution of a paper by Indian coaches on how young batsmen can improve their footwork against spin bowling, would be a step in the right direction.

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Test cricket is the 'pinnacle' - Bopara

	Ravi Bopara is hoping a strong showing for Essex will put him in contention for an England Test spot © Getty Images Enlarge
Related Links News : Bopara cleared of side injury Players/Officials: Ravi Bopara Series/Tournaments: England Domestic Season Teams: England | Essex

England batsman Ravi Bopara has insisted that Test cricket is "the pinnacle" after putting his county ahead of a lucrative IPL contract in order to strengthen his claims for an England Test spot. Bopara, who made a low-key start to the County Championship for Essex against Kent at Chelmsford, was one of a host of players left unsold during the IPL auction in January.

Rajasthan Royals, on the lookout for a replacement for Paul Collingwood, whose knee surgery ruled him out of the Twenty20 tournament, subsequently contacted Bopara with a £100,000 offer but he turned them down in order to focus on his return to the Test side.

"It was a tough decision [to turn down IPL offer], but my ambition as a youngster has always been to play Test cricket and to play for my country," Bopara told ecb.co.uk. "Not everything's about money. I've got to make sure I fulfil my ambitions and my talent as a cricketer. Although Twenty20 is a very important part of the game, Test cricket is always going to be the pinnacle."

Bopara, whose last Test was against Australia at Headingley in 2009, consulted Ronnie Irani and Graham Gooch prior to making his decision. "It's important for me to get back into that Test side," he said. "I recognise this is a great opportunity with a spot available, so I spoke to Graham Gooch and Ronnie Irani and they thought the best decision was for me to stay and perform for Essex and push for selection."

"Nothing's going to get me in that side apart from numbers. Wickets, runs, anything I can contribute to Essex will make a difference in me being selected. Every season is a big season, but this is my opportunity to get back into that team. There are spots available now, and somebody's got to take it."

The first Test of the English summer is on May 26, against Sri Lanka, and there is a vacancy to be filled in the middle order following Collingwood's retirement. Eoin Morgan is generally regarded as the favourite for the position having been the spare batsman in Australia, but he will spend the next five weeks at the IPL so a strong start from Bopara in the Championship will keep the selectors interested.

Bopara also comes with the advantage of being able to offer some useful overs which would replace the part-time medium pace of Collingwood and supplement a likely four-man attack from England.

Gooch, batting coach for England and Essex, agreed that Bopara could only force a return through good returns in the Championship. "I think he has made the right decision," he said. "He is very motivated to achieve and if he wants to make his mark on the Test side he will only do that with championship runs. He can't further his cause in the IPL, however many runs he gets."

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