ICC World Twenty 20 2016: Old ghost returns to haunt Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina pulverises oppositions, banishes them into oblivion, but these are rarely top-class bowling attacks. Those pacers bereft of pace, those tweakers sans guile, or purely the ability spin the bowl, and those that couldn't buy a wicket at Kolkata's new market, where everyone buys something. He has done that since his Under-19 days, perhaps earlier, it could be inherent. He possesses the gift of timing but not the technique to survive tough periods.
His only One-Day International (ODI) hundred outside the sub-continent came against an English side that failed to surpass the group stage of the 2015 World Cup. His Indian Premier League (IPL) numbers suggest that the shortest format is his comfort zone. A glimpse of his Twenty20 International (T20I) record quickly thwarts that idea.
Over a career spanning nearly a decade, Raina is yet to infuse confidence, a man of his experience should, unconditionally. That does not entail that success is guaranteed every time, only that expectations are of a different kind.
If adversity begets opportunity, then once against South Africa in Cuttack, another time against Sri Lanka in Pune, at least twice during the Asia Cup and thrice at the World Twenty20, the chance to mend a dented reputation and take part in India's backdoor wins, all but sat in his drawing room, with its legs crossed, waiting for Raina to take notice. Instead, Raina was seen drowning in his own preoccupations, as technical deficiencies of the yore revisited time and again.
The virtual quarter-final against Australia could have been his moment of reckoning, after failing to score a T20I fifty for nearly six years, after repeated recalls to the side, despite no increment in domestic numbers, or any discernible change in approach to counter oppositions, who haven't had to deviate from their plans against him for years.
However, what transpired was another anti-climactic end to the short ball. Espousers, who sought refuge in the theory, that he at least handles the bouncer well in the sub-continent, must revisit not only his dismissal but his nine-ball vigil at the crease, during which his feet vehemently refused to move, against the amiable pace of James Faulkner and Shane Watson.
They say once a batsman zooms past his formative years, habits developed during this critical phase, good or bad, are hard to dispel. What's nurtured becomes natural. Raina's struggles in international cricket epitomise the adage.
Except, MS Dhoni refuses to acknowledge any of this, coming to the defence of Raina every time the question is raised. Sometimes without provocation. According to the Indian skipper, Raina's the best number four available.
It is entirely possible, if Dhoni had his way and Virat Kohli opted for an alternative career, he'd perhaps have Raina bat at three, like he did so successfully for Chennai Superkings. Raina has been marketed as a finisher, sometimes a floater, roles have also been magically conjured to suit Raina, allowing him to remain relevant, with as much success as Raina's own battle with the bouncer.