Suresh Raina and the short-ball conundrum

Suresh Raina

The question that is before all of us today is: Has Suresh Raina reached his nadir? His glaring inability to confront the short balls has been exposed mercilessly by bowlers around the world. For a batsman who bats at a crucial number 5 position in one-dayers, it has become too big a  headache for the team management. It is now a routine for opposition captains to pamper Raina with short deliveries as soon as he arrives to the crease.

The criticality of batting at number 5 cannot be underestimated by any means. The main job of a number 5 is to steer the innings in the middle overs before exploding in the final stages. Rotating the strike is a key factor in the shorter format. It becomes even more vital in the middle overs when the field spreads out; a phase during which a team does not want a one-dimensional batsman to be at the crease.

There will be times when the team might lose early wickets and the number 5 is expected to spend more time than normal at the wicket. In those times, every team would want someone who can be trusted with taking the team out of such precarious positions. Unfortunately, Raina fails to instil the confidence coming into bat with the score at something like 50-3.

It is even more baffling as Raina is now a veteran of close to 200 matches and not a new kid on the block. One can always anticipate a fast bowler bowling right into the rib cage of Raina, and against such hostile stuff, the south-paw is a sitting duck.

Teams usually trust their most accomplished players with the number 5 spot. If we look at the list of the best batsmen at number 5 over the years, players like Arjun Ranatunga, Steve Waugh and Inzamam-ul-Haq, who have all been the best in the business, come out on top.

PLAYER	MATCHES	INNINGS	NOTOUT	RUNS	HS	AVERAGE	S/R	100	50
A.Ranatunga	164	153	32	4675	102*	38.63	79.71	2	33
S.Waugh	143	135	25	4117	120*	37.42	76.60	2	25
Inzamam-ul-Haq	113	105	22	3473	85	41.84	76.21	0	27
A. Symonds	106	96	18	3473	156	44.52	91.87	5	23
S.Raina	66	60	10	1728	101	34.56	91.57	1	11

Shakib Al Hasan, Eoin Morgan, Misbah-ul-Haq and JP Duminy are among the contemporaries doing the job with aplomb for their respective teams and are well above Raina who is currently at the 23rd spot in the list. Not so long ago a certain Michael Hussey used to bat at number 5 too.

Raina is a proven performer in shorter formats. He played a couple of extremely crucial knocks in the quarter-final and semi-final matches of the 2011 World Cup. Even in 2012 and 2013 seasons, he was playing extremely well. He was the ‘Man of the Series’ when England played in India in early 2013. So, why has he suddenly forgotten to score runs and is falling prey to short-stuff?

It all started during the Champions Trophy tournament in England where he failed to score runs in bowler-friendly conditions. Later his incompetence against the short-ball was further exposed by the tear-away pacer Mitchell Johnson. The fact that Raina couldn’t handle the pace and bounce of Johnson on the flat Indian pitches showed it all. He struggled in South Africa and is showing no signs of improvement in the ongoing New Zealand tour.

The short-pitch stuff is certainly playing on his mind. While facing the fast bowlers on the pitch, Raina expects every delivery to be targeted into his body. He goes on the back foot even before the bowl is bowled and prepares himself to hit the bowl towards the leg-side. In doing so, he is getting into awkward positions even when the ball is outside the off-stump.

It also hampers his chances to hit the balls that are bowled on the up.

Recently, Sunil Gavaskar made a valid point during his commentary stint that Raina is not looking at the ball when it is bowled into his body. If he follows the ball till it reaches him, he would be able to decide whether to leave or play it. Virat Kohli has spoken about the importance of looking at the short-balls as scoring opportunities.

Raina’s failure at number 5 is hampering India’s prospects big time. He is putting undue pressure on Dhoni, who follows him at number 6. Dhoni is the best finisher in the world, but it will be too harsh to expect him to do the job every single time.

With the World Cup 2015 only a year away, India seriously needs to reconsider what is in the best interests of the team. I see two solutions to this problem.

First solution would be to drop Raina straightaway and try Ambati Rayudu in his place. The Baroda middle-order batsman can rotate the strike and send the ball over the cow-corner with equal ease.

However, looking at the support that Raina enjoys at his disposal, first one may not happen soon. In this case, India can move Dhoni to number 5 and drop Raina back to number 6. Dhoni would be the perfect man for the requirements of a typical number 5.

Over the years, Dhoni has developed a method to bat in ODIs, and he has been immensely successful at doing it. He can soak in the pressure, rebuild the innings, keep the scoreboard ticking and hit a few lusty blows without any fuss.

Facing Pakistan towards the end of 2012, Dhoni played a masterful knock of 113* to lift India from 29-5 to 226-6. Later in 2013, Dhoni was at it again, this time against Australia, and scored a century to take India from 76-4. More than anything, Dhoni’s presence in the middle gives the much needed assurance to his team-mates and fans alike.

Raina has been a crucial player for India and has successfully taken India home on many occasions. Given below is a statistic which proves how useful he has been before being conquered by the short-ball troubles. Only players who have played at least 20 innings for India have been taken into account, and the south-paw is at the third spot, behind only to Dhoni and Kohli.

PLAYER	MATCHES	INNINGS	NOTOUT	RUNS	HS	AVERAGE	S/R	100	50
Dhoni	76	57	36	2163	183*	103.00	90.20	2	14
Kohli	48	46	14	2701	183	84.40	95.98	11	13
Raina	68	49	24	1644	116*	65.76	101.35	1	13

With their bowling showing no signs of improvement, India cannot afford to have even a minor chink in their batting department. It is high time for the team management to make some tough calls.

For a man who was once hailed as India’s answer to Brian Lara, it would be a pity if Raina’s career succumbs to short bowling.