My 75-year-old mother-in-law, who spends half the year in India and the rest in the US, is crazy enough about cricket to watch the Ranji Trophy if there is no international cricket on TV. My wife and her two brothers flew her to Lord's to watch a match as a gift once.

We also have this superstition: If I am out of the house when Indian batsmen are playing well, they don't like me coming home during the innings, believing that wickets will fall if I do. If I'm watching the match at home and India is doing well, I am encouraged to stay on and not leave the house! We're one sports-crazy family!

It was highly unfortunate that Praveen Kumar got injured and could not be part of the Indian World Cup team. Looking at our bowling now? how do we describe Sreesanth? Mercurial would be an understatement.

The one debatable thing in the Indian team composition right now is the choice of Piyush Chawla over R Ashwin. There is nothing in Chawla's record over the last 12-18 months to support his selection over Ashwin. M. S. Dhoni is known to stand by his players, but he's given Chawla such a long rope that Chawla is close to the edge right now.

I support Dhoni's decision to go with Nehra at the death, because Nehra has done well on many other occasions. Remember his six-wicket haul in South Africa?

Dhoni was taking a chance ? much like the many rational chances he's taken in the past. The difference is that the previous chances he took worked, and this didn't!

It is far easier for a tail-ender to slog a spinner, who's not turning the ball out, of the ground. And Bhaji wasn't turning much, was he?

Everyone is also talking about the collapse of our batsmen against England, losing nine wickets for less than 30 runs, but I think the batsmen will pull up.

That was an aberration. It's the bowling that needs to really improve.

(as told to Business Line )

The author is India Country Chair, Vivaki (Publicis Groupe)

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