Puddles of boredom form at East London

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The Indian players are literally bored to death. They are waiting in vain for the four-day match against South Africa 'A' to start after the first two days were washed down the drain by the incessant rain. Captain Sourav Ganguly is probably ruing the fact that he did not go to Kolkata to be with his wife and new-born daughter after all, while Connor Williams and Harbhajan Singh cannot wait to see some action. Wicket-keeper Deep Dasgupta has borrowed a book on Edmund Hillary from Rahul Dravid; by the looks of it, it must be inspiring stuff.

The Indians still routinely go to the ground, partly to have a feel of the surroundings and partly to avail themselves of the lunch, which, thoughtfully, is Indian in every sense of the word. The visiting journalists too do not mind helping themselves to dishes that they are so used to back home.

Even though there is no activity, the Indians are a bit edgy about the three back-to-back Tests that they are being asked to play in the next three weeks. After the two remaining Tests of the current tour, at Port Elizabeth and Centurion Park, they will be heading straight for Mohali in Chandigarh, where the first Test against England is scheduled for December 3.

The team's genial manager, MK Bhargava, has his hands full with the issue of sorting out travel arrangements for the players. It appears that the Indians cannot get a flight back home before November 29, two days after the Centurion Test ends. Thus, literally, the team will be arriving at Mohali just hours before the first Test against England gets underway. Even if he can book tickets on an Emirates flight for some of the players hailing from the north, they will still reach home only on the morning of the 30th because of the timing of the connecting flight from Dubai to Delhi.

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Bhargava's problems, thus, are echoed by the gloomy conditions at East London. The rain-ruined game, which has kept the Indians hostage in their hotel, is a missed opportunity for many of the players, in more sense than one. Sachin Tendulkar, who has been joined by his wife and two lovely kids, Javagal Srinath and Anil Kumble were in any case going to sit out this four-day match. But Williams, Harbhajan and the medium-pacers would have loved to stake their claims for Test berths, while vice-captain Rahul Dravid could have obtained some valuable practice at the very top of the order.

There seems to be little doubt at the moment that Dravid will be opening the innings for the remaining Test matches. The middle-order is overflowing with talent at this stage, and one of them has to move up the order. Hence the choice of Dravid to shoulder the burden of an opener.

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The real mystery could lie in the choice of bowlers for the next Test. If the wicket is grassy and seemingly quick, the Indians could be forced to make a choice between the two regular spinners on this tour - Harbhajan or Kumble. Kumble bowled for long hours - 50 overs in all - during South Africa's mammoth first innings in the Bloemfontein Test, but his returns were not quite encouraging. He did break through with Gary Kirsten's wicket, but, by then, the hosts had already scored almost 200 runs. Kumble's next success came in the form of Neil McKenzie's wicket, when the score was well past 300.

It will, then, not be an easy choice for the Indians. To drop Kumble when the bowling resources of the visitors are already paper-thin might appear a blasphemy. But then, stranger things have happened in Indian cricket. It is a situation that will be watched keenly by those who are following the fortunes of this beleaguered team.

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