I'll tell you how!

I hardly covered the series here on Well Pitched as I was giving my two-bits over at the BCC!, where you will find opinions from the other Bored Members as well.

At the same time, there were a number of other blogs giving their views and facts on the series and I just resorted to commenting on them.

The Australians JRod and Nestaquin did daily updates including previews and reviews of each day of each test.

I reckon that if any of you have not watched this series, just hop on to Cricket with Balls and 99.94 and you'll feel like you didn't miss a single delivery.

On the Indian front, besides the BCC!, the usual suspects continued with their expert voices throughout the series.

Homer, Ottayan, Soulberry, Straight Points, Som, Victoria, Scorpicity, Trideep, John, Naked Cricket, Samir, Poshin, and Srinivasarao were the ones that I mostly followed.

There were tributes for Ganguly, tributes for Kumble, praise for Dhoni, criticism for Dravid, elation over India's victories, pot shots at Ponting, discussion over Australia's fall and India's rise, debates over slow over rates, Australia's spin options, India's future and a whole lot more.

The series promised to be an entertainer, and it was just that, although the Aussie fans may differ with that opinion.

For some of them it was a first to see their team be dominated in this manner. For others, it was a reminder of the 80s.

Nevertheless, whether the guard has changed or not, whether Australia's dominance is over or not, Whether Dhoni is India's best captain ever or not, the fact that India vs Australia provides the most intense battle on the cricket field was definitely proven over the last month.

For me, it was all the more entertaining as I witnessed my rise to the top of the "Cricket with Balls Cricket League" over at Cricinfo, which was managed by JRod throughout the series.

I was hovering somewhere around number 7 or 8 after the 3rd test, but managed to end the series at the first position.

Gambhir's ban and Kumble's retirement forced me to substitute before the 4th test.

Since I wanted both Dhoni and Sehwag in the team, I was forced to include Krejza as it didn't leave me enough money for Lee or bhajji.

At the end of it, it all worked out perfectly for me as every player contributed during the 4th test.

Sachin hit a 100, Sehwag, Ganguly, and Dhoni hit half centuries, Krejza picked up an astonishing 8 wickets, Katich hit a 100, Hussey hit 90, Mishra picked up 2 wickets, Sehwag hit 90 odd, Dhoni another half century, and Krejza picked up 4 more wickets.

I didn't think Krejza would give me any points, and he ended up giving me more than anyone else!

And I was on top of the world!

Mishra's 3 wickets today just helped consolidate my position.

I feel like I've won the trophy!

It make me proud to get ahead of experts such as Nestaquin, Aashrey, Vijendra, Moses, JRod, Miriam, and others.

It has been a pleasure fellow fantasy players.

Thank you JRod, thank you all.

My day started normally. I woke up after a hectic weekend, not wanting to go to work. Yes for us poor souls in the Middle East, Sunday is a working day.

I got to work on time, called in for some garam chai, and logged on to my laptop.

As I sipped through the tea I watched the laptop take its sweet time logging on and then Windows taking its even sweeter time trying to start some programs and block some start-up programs.

Even the tea wasn't that sweet!

As all the icons came into place and the network told me it was up, I clicked onto the explorer and got on to Cricinfo for some live ball-by-ball of the final day at the Kotla.

A draw was the only result in my mind but I wanted another Gambhir 100 and some Johnson wickets for cheap fantasy points.

Niether happened and the day went on as I juggled between work, gmail, cricinfo, facebook, and the blogs.

Somewhere during the day I lost interest in the match and got engrossed in some animated gmail exchanges on several mailing lists.

That is when an email from Gaurav Sethi popped up. The subject was "who retired first" and in the mail was a link saying Anil or Saurav?.

I wondered what imaginary post NC had written this time when suddenly it occurred to me - Had Kumble announced his retirement?

NO! How could that be I thought. I looked at the watch and thought that the match had not ended surely and it was only days ago that Kumble was blasting the media on speculating about his retirement.

With all these thoughts in my mind I shifted to my Cricinfo window, which was now showing "network server error". I clicked on refresh and as the browser opened I read comments on the ball-by-ball from readers paying their tributes to Kumble who had announced his retirement during the tea interval.

I had said on numerous occasions that this would be Kumble's last test series but I never expected the announcement to come like this. Actually I didn't expect it at all with the way Kumble answered the media throughout the last month.

Then I read NC's post and I left a comment saying the same.

Who would have thought Kumble would be the first one to go out of the 5 seniors?

As the day went on, tributes kept coming in. I read them all.

I followed the ball-by-ball seeing Kumble take the new ball hoping he gets a wicket in his final spell. That would also give me some fantasy points.

Then it occurred to me that I had to substitute him before the next test now.

The match ended and I read about the hand shakes, the doffing of the hat, the hugs, the carrying on the shoulders, and the lap of honour.

A champion was leaving the game and I still wondered why. Why so sudden? Why out of the blue? Why during a test? Why not get a farewell test if not a series like Saurav?

The answer to all those is because he is Anil Kumble.

A man who never put himself before the team, a man who never chased the spotlight, a man who always remained in the shadows.

For Kumble, the team came first, always. He wanted the emphasis on the test series, not his retirement, which I eventually found out wasn't all that out of the blue after all.

During his press conference Kumble said "...Anyway I had more or less decided this would be my last series." [Read in full here]

That is when it hit me that ofcourse he had decided. He must have before the series began. Maybe even during the summer. He would never have continued to play on knowing that he was past his best.

He just didn't want the focus to be on him.

It was India vs Australia, and he wanted it to be just that and not "Kumble's last test series".

He knew he was going even before Saurav did. So what if he didn't say it?

As he said he "would have ideally liked to have finished in Nagpur". But fate was cruel to him. The injury to his hand denied him what he had wanted.

Yet he got the most rousing farewell from his team mates on his favorite ground - maybe that's what fate wanted for him.

He deserved no less.

As my Sunday comes to an end, so does the career of one of the best bowlers to have played this game.

Definitely not out of the blue!

"It has been said that good captaincy is like pornography - it's hard to define but you know it when you see it."

That is Ian Chappell talking about how good MS Dhoni is as the captain of India.

Really Ian, pornography?

He even worded his article that way making various inferences to the X-Rated stuff.

Read the title: "Give it to the Keeper".

He even presents video evidence, which he describes as: "....the period in the game when Anil Kumble was off the field and stand-in captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni led a vibrant India...."

And he goes on "....a team that looked far superior to the one that performed in pedestrian mode a few hours later ....".

Later on he talks about why Kumble was given charge initially saying "He was the ideal person to fill in for a short period until Dhoni was ready to do the job..."

He then talk about grooming and the animal stuff - "Anybody who watched .... and still thinks Dhoni needs more grooming has attended too many dog shows"

The best part though comes when Ian starts to describe how Dhoni made his partners feel.

He starts with "Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir set off aggressively .... but Dhoni did plenty to assist his own and the team's cause".

From there he moves on to the kind of atmosphere that was created because of Dhoni's aggression - "Most importantly he created an atmosphere where the players enjoyed the contest"

He then cites some examples:

"Sehwag was a classic example. He had a smile from start to finish, enjoying his team-mates’ success ...".

"Zaheer Khan was like a man possessed, heavily involved ..."

"...Sachin Tendulkar behaved like an exuberant 18-year-old..."

From there he talks about the opposing partners and then concludes with "It has been said that good captaincy is like pornography - it's hard to define but you know it when you see it."

A question I would like to ask all Australians as they surely haven't seen anything like what happened in Mohali for almost 2 decades.

The more younger ones wouldn't have seen their team being outplayed like this in their lifetime.

So how does it feel like to be on the other side?

I love leg spinners.

I may not be as passionate about them as JRod but I still love them.

They make the game exciting to watch.

Those subtle few steps to the crease, the twirl of the arm, the rip of the fingers, the flight of the ball, and that bamboozled batsman who sees the ball spin across him and past the off stump - very few sights beat this one in cricket.

Since Shane Warne retired last year, I have been waiting for a leg spinner to emerge who would make cricket as exciting to watch as Warne did.

The Aussies took Beau Casson to the Windies and I remember tuning into the test late one night just to watch a new leg spinner bowl.

Considering he was Warne's apparent long term replacement, my anticipation was high despite warnings from JRod that he wasn't all that.

Casson hardly impressed.

The IPL provided a lot of excitement as there were a lot of leggies in action.

I watched Warne all over again, along with Piyush Chawla and Amit Mishra, and the Warne understudy at the Rajasthan Royals - Dinesh Salunkhe!

But the IPL provided only 4 overs each from them. At the most. That wasn't enough for either of these bowlers to show what they were all about.

A leg spinner needs a stage to perform and that stage is Test cricket.

I was still looking for that 1 leg spinner to emerge.

Ajantha Mendis provided a lot of excitement in the India - Sri Lanka test series over the summer, but he's not a leg spinner.

Exciting yes, but in a different way. Its his mystery element that makes him exciting. There's no rip, no twirling of the arms, no oohs or aahs.

Great bowler that Mendis, but not the leg spinner I had been waiting for.

When the Australian test squad for the ongoing India - Australia test series was announced, there was one name there that I had seen do the rounds of Cricket with Balls for the last year.

That name was Bryce McGain.

He was a leg spinner. He was from the same state as Shane Warne. He had had a successful domestic season in Australia.

And he was to debut at Bangalore.

JRod had gone on about him for over a year so I was sure that he was something to look forward to.

That leg spinner whom I had been waiting for was finally here.

Almost!

A shoulder injury booked McGain a flight back to Australia.

Cameron White, the Victoria captain and also a leg spinner, was sent to India to replace him.

I had first heard of White a long time back when in one article it was mentioned that he was the next blonde leg spinner that would take Australia by storm.

That was a long long time ago as since then White had become more of a batsman and only a part time leg spinner.

Watching White bowl in the 1st test at Bangalore was fun. He brought a lot of passion into the game as was evident when he took that wicket of Sachin Tendulkar. His first.

But that excitement, that rip, that wrong one, the one that pitches on leg and goes past off, the oohs, the aahs were all missing.

It was never expected to be there to begin with.

The wait for that leggie had to continue I thought.

When news regarding Kumble's fitness did the rounds before the Mohali Test, I thought India would go in with 3 seamers and Bhajji.

Which is why on Friday morning, I was surprised to see Amit Mishra in the XI.

That led the blood cells racing again. Another leg spinner to debut.

I had first seen Mishra in the IPL and had been impressed by him.

Bak then, I had also wondered why Piyush Chawla was playing internationals and not Mishra.

When Mishra took the ball in his hand yesterday, I glued myself to the TV.

Yet another leg spinner was going to bowl his first ball in test cricket. I wondered if he was the leg spinner I had been waiting for all this time.

His first over told me he could be.

His third over, where he bowled Katich off an inside edge, got me thinking that he was definitely the one who would make test cricket as exciting as Warne did.

His 9th and the day's last over, where he trapped Clarke plumb in front with a googly, made me realise that Mishra was it.

Finally I got what I had been waiting for.

Finally test cricket had unleashed another leg spinner who will make it exciting to watch.

Finally the world will see another bowler take a few steps, twirl that arm, rip those fingers, flight that ball, pitch it on leg, and spin it across the batsmen.

Occassionally, the world will also see the wrong ones, and the flippers, and we will all ooh and aah in anticipation of a wicket.

He is playing this test due to an injury to Kumble. Mishra's future probably depends on Kumble's fitness but I hope India can find ways to keep him in the XI despite Kumble's presence.

Because to do otherwise will be gross injustice to the talent this man possesses.

I have been waiting for you Mishra.

And I don't want to wait anymore.

No ageing star should need to announce his retirement for you to make that spot in the XI your very own.

Saurav Ganguly, who is pushed into retirement, who has a miserable record against the Aussies, who was Brad Hogg's bunny in the series prior to this one, who till yesterday had 1 century in 20 odd tests against Australia, top scores with 102 to guide India to a significant total.

And you still want him retired?

Shakib-Ul-Hasan, a 21 year old left arm spinner, who declined an ICL offer, who till yesterday had a mere 3 wickets in 6 tests with a best of 2/44, demolishes the New Zealand batting line up with 6-31!

And you still think Bangladesh are minnows?

Just when one thought that leg spin was a dieing art form after Shane Warne, we first saw Cameron White make an impressive debut against India, then we saw the same White triple his wicket tally by getting India's top 2 scorers out today, and then we saw Amit Mishra bowl his 1st delivery in test cricket, pick a wicket up with his 18th, and another with his 53rd!

And you thought you would never see a leg spinner who gives it a rip?

All this in one day and you thought test cricket was boring?

8:08 am GMT

That Sachin Tendulkar becomes the highest run scorer in test cricket?

The whole of India, and probably the whole world, has been waiting for this to happen for atleast 5 years now.

It is one of those things that people have known would happen one day, but when exactly, no one really knew.

So with 28 runs to go to equal Brian Lara and 29 to surpass him and with 40 odd overs left in the days play...

Will Sachin do it?

Is today the day that over a billion people have been waiting for?

8:15 am GMT

26 runs to equal and 27 to become the record holder.

Will he do it today?

8:33 am GMT

18 runs to equal and 19 to get past Brian Lara!

Will he? Won't he?

8:39 am GMT

17 left to get the record.

9:20 am GMT

Holed out to short cover for 49, 1 short of a half century and 15 short of the world record.

I guess 13th October 2008 will not go down in history then.

What a pity!

For all those who thought:

1. Australia were the weak side going into the 1st test against India

2. Ricky Ponting cannot score in India to save his life

3. The ICL had killed Bangladesh cricket for good

4. The Sri Lankans would not bend over to please the BCCI

5. Harbhajan would maul the Aussies

Think Again!

I feel sorry for the New Zealanders. But Bangladesh has suddenly excited me!

I also feel sorry for the Indians - Ponting is back in form. Maybe he'll get to Lara's record before Sachin does!

Retirement deal or not, who cares.

The best of them have to go one day and some of them don't realise when the time is right. In times like these the board intervenes and makes sure they get a good farewell.

This has happened in Australia for a long time now and I'm glad that India and Pakistan are starting to do the same.

Its no secret that Inzamam went under a retirement deal last year. At the end, it didn't matter whether he chose to retire or was forced to. His time was up and he got a resounding farewell.

I'm sure Saurav Ganguly will as well. For he sure deserves it.

Its only apt that his farewell series is against Australia, just like Steve Waugh's was against India.

I wish the BCCI flies Steve Waugh down for the 4th test to present Ganguly with some sort of memento for his service to Indian cricket.

What a wonderful moment that would be!

I have always been a Ganguly fan, but not many in Pakistan like him. He is arrogant, mean, rude, in your face, and has that ability to get under your skin.

These qualities coupled with him being a thorn in Pakistan's flesh are reasons enough to hate him and boy do the Pakistanis hate him. They hate him with a passion.

I, on the other hand, have always admired his attitude. If he got under the skin of the Pakistanis, he did so under the Aussies too. And that too at a time when the Australians were unshakeable.

Steve Waugh was ruthless and the cricketing world faced his wrath. But he faced Ganguly's.

That series against Australia in 2001 is what changed my opinion of Ganguly. I became an avid fan then and remain one to date.

As his career comes to an end, here are my 10 favorite Ganguly moments. Ones that will remain in mind forever.

10. Love on First Sight

I remember that India was having problems finding a suitable partner for Sachin at the top of the order in ODIs when in a match against South Africa during the Titan Cup in 1996, out walked Ganguly to open the innings with the little master.

Ganguly's 54 in that match and his partnership of 126 with Sachin was the beginning of not only India's, but the world's best ever opening combination in ODIs. The 2 went on to add another 6,000 odd runs at the top of the order.

9. Dream Debut

I was following India's tour to England in 1996 with keen interest as Pakistan's tour was to follow. England easily won the 1st test of the 3 match series against India, which resulted in India making some changes to its line up for the 2nd test at Lord's.

Out went Sanjay Manjerekar and Sunil Joshi and in came debutants Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid.

Ganguly walked out to bat at the fall of the 1st wicket and on debut he knocked his maiden test 100 scoring 131 and helping India to a total of over 400. Dravid was unlucky to miss out on a debut 100, but he along with Ganguly went on to become half of India's Big 4, who will now be playing their last test series together.

8. Home Coming

Ganguly had scored 13 test 100s in 90 odd tests matches but that 1 century on his home ground (Eden Gardens, Kolkata) and a double 100 had eluded him throughout his career. He managed both feats against Pakistan in the space of 2 test matches at the end of last year (2007).

He scored 102 in the 2nd test of the 3 test series in Kolkata and he followed that up with a career best 239 in the 3rd test of the same series. I still remember watching those innings and they had Ganguly written all over them. The patented strokes through the offside, the dancing down the wicket, and the fisted pump celebrations. It didn't matter that they were scored on flat tracks against mediocre bowling. They were scored nonetheless.

Considering that he played those knocks less than a year ago, it is hard to believe that he is no longer considered a force in India's middle order.

7. Threatening the Record Books

I distinctly remember hoping for Ganguly's dismissal near the end of India's innings as he smashed the Lankans to all parts of the ground during their match in the 1999 World Cup.

He finally got dismissed in the final over of India's innings, having smashed an astounding 183 off 158 deliveries, and all of us heaved a sigh of relief as Saeed Anwar's record remained intact.

He shared a 2nd wicket partnership of 318 with Dravid as India piled on 373-6 in 50 overs. I believe these were records at that time for either the best ever of 2nd best ever partnerhip and score.

6. Comeback Kid

Ganguly's career seemed over after his fall out with coach Greg Chappell and his axing from both the ODI and test squads at the beginning of 2006. He sat the whole year out but returned to the fold as India's batsmen struggled on the tour of South Africa at the end of 2006.

First he saved India with a top score in a side game against one of the first class sides and then followed that up with an unbeaten 51 in the 1st innings of the 1st test. That 51 was the highest score on India's side and went a long way in ensuring that India took a 1-0 lead in the test matc series against South Africa.

Quite a comeback Ganguly had made and it was all through determination and hardwork, which he had showed the selectors during India's domestic season.

5. Decimating Pakistan

Ganguly the batsman had arrived a year ago and now it was time for Ganguly the bowler to rise.

In the late 90s, Pakistan and India played an annual series of 5 ODIs in Toronto in what was called the Sahara Cup. The one held in 1997 had Ganguly written all over it. He played some fine knocks during the tournament but it was his bowling that left Pakistan in tatters on more than one occasion.

In the 3rd ODI of the 1997 Sahara Cup, Pakistan had bowled India out for 180 odd and looked set to chase down the total easily. I remember watching Saeed Anwar and Shahid Afridi punish the Indian bowling and 180 didn't look daunting at all.

But then came on Ganguly who utilized the swing conditions to perfection and his frustrating medium pace got him figures of 5-16 in 10 overs as Pakistan were bowled out for less than 150!

Those figures remain his best bowling figures to date.

4. Spoiling Waugh's Swansong

When Dravid and Sachin score 1 run between them, it doesn't augur too well for the rest of the Indian batsmen. Reeling at 62-3 against Australia at Brisbane in Steve Waugh's farewell series, I remember watching a determined Ganguly walking out to the middle.

By the end of the 4th day of that 1st test, Ganguly had scored an impressive 144 off only 196 deliveries to help India past Australia's total that saved them the test match. It was a brilliant knock by Ganguly who had been pinpointed as the weak link in India's batting line up prior to the test series.

3. Turning the Tide

Throughout the 90s Pakistan held a psychological edge over India, but all of that changed one dark evening in Dhaka in 1998.

It was the final of the Silver Jubilee Cup and Pakistan had set India a target of 315. If history was anything to go by, India's innings would have folded for 200 odd that night, but Ganguly had different plans.

He smashed 124 while opening the innings as India inched close to the target. India won the match in the last over in fading light and that day all the psychological holds Pakistan held over India were wiped out.

2. The Final Frontier

It was Steve Waugh's final frontier and Ganguly denied him. Though it can be argued that Laxman and Harbhajan denied Australia, Ganguly was at the forefront of it all.

The celebration that Ganguly broke out into as Sameer Dighe hit the winning runs is still etched in my memory. I remember being a part of the crowd at our college cafeteria watching the closing moments of one of the most entertaining test series ever.

I remember McGrath bowling to Dighe and Ganguly sitting in the dressing room all tense and nervous. Dighe got India home and Ganguly ran on to the field. I can never forget Ganguly's look after winning the series against Australia.

Magic it was. And I'll tell you Indians a secret. All of Pakistan was behind you then!

1. The Gangulian Wave

I think this moment is the most appropriate Ganguly moment. It is something that defines him and describes the kind of competitor he was / is.

Many ridiculed him because of this and suggested that such acts are not deemed suitable to a captain of an international side.

But in my mind this was one moment that had Ganguly stamped all over it and I sure enjoyed it. I am sure it was also enjoyed by all of India and many others as India pulled off the most unlikeliest of run chases in the Natwest Trophy Final against England in 2002.

This is probably the one single moment that will remain in people's memories as the years go by and Ganguly's legacy is remembered and told to generations that follow.

He was India's best captain ever and his captaincy record will remain untouched for some time to come.

Those who hail Dhoni today and regard him as one of the finest leaders should remember that it was Ganguly who started what Dhoni is continuing today.

Tomorrow is the beginning of the end for Ganguly and I hope that in this series he is able to produce some more memorable moments that can eclipse a few of the ones listed above.

I tuned into one of the Indian news channels on the 3rd day of the match between Australia and the Board President's XI.

Those who watch these news channels would know how dramatic these reporters are. The way they describe an event or a person it seems like a Bollywood movie is playing and the reporter is narrating the drama unfolding in the background.

One such reporter was doing just that when he started about how Australia was playing mind games with India.

And what was the mind game?

Playing below their best against the BP XI.

The reporter suggested that it was the Australians way of making the Indians over confident.

He questioned the Australians' below par performance and spoke of how the Aussies were doing it deliberately to make Kumble & Co. over confident before the 1st test.

He seemed so serious in his accusations that it looked like he was sitting in Australia's dressing room the night before.

The news report kept playing clips of Rohit and Kohli smashing Krejza to all parts of the park and continuously showed Chawla break through Ponting's defences. They even showed Chawla trapping Clarke in front.

The reporter questioned Ponting's and Clarke's technique and wondered why Krejza was given so many overs.

Now for my questions to this Indian reporter.

Do you have no faith in India's cricketing talent and ability?

Do you not think that Piyush Chawla has a tremendous future as India's leggie?

Do you not think that this is the weakest Australian side to tour India in over a decade?

Do you not think that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have it in them to play for India for the next 15 years?

Do you really think Kumble & Co. will be over confident going into the 1st test?

Do you really?

Ramadan and the Eid break are over and life has finally returned to some normalcy after 2 months of vacationing, fasting, and feasts.

Cricket is coming back to life gradually as well with the India vs Australia series about to kick off.

There has been a lot of speculation regarding the Indian seniors and their future and the lack of experience in the Australian ranks but come Thursday and everyone will be glued to watch the mother of all test series.

Whether the series will be bigger and better than the previous ones between these 2 sides, I don't know but I think it will be very closely fought.

Both, India and Australia, are weaker than they have been in the past. India's middle order is not as powerful as it once was, while Australia's bowling lacks the potency it once had.

Keeping this in mind, it should be an interesing contest.

I feel bad for Bryce McGain, who has had to go back without playing for Australia, and I feel worse for this man who has been rooting McGain's case for a year now - how close!

The fact that a Victorian replaced McGain might be some justice for the JRod but McGain missing out on a test debut in India is probably too big a let down.

Even for me it is and I have only read about him!

The spinner is going to be a big problem for Australia.

From what I saw of Krejza in the match against the Board President's XI, it doesn't look like he'll be playing much test cricket in India.

Cameron White, from what I hear, has become more of a batsman then a leg spinner, so I doubt he would pose a threat to the Indian batting line up.

But then, no Aussie spinner has ever troubled the Indians, not even the best spinner in the world, so I guess it doesn't really matter then does it?

Lee, Clarke, and Johnson / Siddle don't look like troubling the Indian batsmen either. No matter how old they're getting.

The Aussies will have to bat out of their skins I feel because the bowling doesn't look like taking 20 Indian wickets.

If Kumble and Bhajji are in their stride, the Aussies will find it tough.

India look more settled going into the 1st test.

The change of guard at the board level hasn't changed much in the team, and despite a loss to Sri Lanka over the summer, India has done very well at the test level under Kumble.

One question though to the Indian readers - why was Rohit Sharma dropped?

I have read about Badrinath in almost all of the Indian blogs doing the rounds and everyone has a good thing or two to say about him.

But wasn't Rohit in the test squad that went to Sri Lanka? He didn't get a test match there and now he finds himself dropped without getting a chance.

Why?

The way he batted for his 105 against the Aussies made me think that India's new selectors made a mistake.

Badrinath maybe a domestic champion but Rohit Sharma is India's middle order's future.

And Virat Kohli - I think we will hear this name for a long time to come.

As for Sachin, Saurav, Rahul, VVS - Good luck. Stretch those ageing legs as far as you can because if you fail India this time it will be very hard to keep the Sharmas, Yuvrajs, Kohlis, Badris, Kaifs, and Rainas on the bench.

International cricket is back and I can't wait for the action to begin.