Letter of the Day

Ajay Ratra now joins the ranks of the legion of keepers having donned gloves for the country. So many have kept in the last few years that it's become difficult to "keep" track of them. Just check the list: Nayan Mongia, Saba Kareem, Sameer Dighe, MSK Prasad, Vijay Yadav, Deep Dasgupta and now Ratra.

I really don't see much difference between these poor guys. Mongia is the only one who has had an extended stint. He has been acknowledged by many as the best keeper of the lot, but failed to contribute consistently with the bat and more importantly failed to garner the support of his teammates.

As for the rest, your guess is as good as mine with regard to their abilities. some were good with the bat, while others were good at keeping. None were good at both. Now, we have to come up with a concrete plan whether we need 'a good keeper who can also bat' OR 'a good batsman who can also keep'! Then, we must let the poor chap have some sense of security. We can't play musical chairs with them and expect them to perform with any sense of confidence.

It is not the easiest of tasks to keep to the Kumbles and the Harbhajans. Let one of them have an extended run and I bet he'll perform. A Syed Kirmani or an Adam Gilchrist or an Andy Flower cannot be found by these methods. They have to be nurtured, they don't grow on trees ripe for the plucking!

B.S Keshav