Sreesanth . . . Back with a bang!

Its so heartwarming to see a bowler, a fast bowler at that, get the Man of the Match award in a Test match in India. That too, after the run feast that ensued at Ahmedabad which must have left a bad taste in the mouth for the bowlers.

At the outset, credit must go to the team management for having the guts to play Sreesanth in what was his first Test in over one and a half years. Yes, it could have backfired, Sreesanth could have been only so much hot air as usual, he had been given a 'final' warning by the BCCI recently, but kudos to Dhoni and co. for giving the man a chance. He wasn't a natural selection anyways. Admitted that Ishant Sharma has been steadily going downhill this year. He has lost considerably in pace and is just not able to exert a decent amount of control on the batsmen. Too often, he has wasted the new ball, spraying it all around. And when batsmen of the calibre of Mahela Jayawardena know that all you are going to do with the new ball is just bring it in off a good length from off stump so that it ends up almost on leg stump, you are a sitting duck. However, in Sreesanth, the replacement for Ishant, Dhoni had an altogether different dimension to handle - its no secret that the guy is not popular in the Indian dressing room - and the last thing you want before a Test match is going in with a new ball bowler whom the fielders will love not to support. Its an extreme thought but more diabolical things have happened in Indian cricket. Given this, Sreesanth and Bhajji seemed to make all the brotherly noises when celebrating the downfall of the Lankan wickets. Here's hoping it wasn't just for the cameras.

Coming back to Sreesanth the bowler. Way too often has Sreesanth the maverick ridden roughshod over the Sreesanth the bowler. Dhoni called him one of the best reverse swing bowlers in India today. With Sreesanth, when he's in rhythm, he's almost the bowling equivalent of Virender Sehwag. He'll continue to work the magic so long as he desires. The surroundings just stop to matter. Delivery after delivery, he was right on target, making the ball talk as if he was bowling in English conditions. Purists have always drooled over his perfect seam position. That and more was on display at Kanpur. What was interesting was his deliberate attempt not to overcelebrate a wicket. In fact, I believe he carried it too far but then when you have received a 'final' warning from your employers, I guess you are bound to be a bit overrcautious. Not all comebacks are fairytale ones. But if Sree can continue to exhibit even a fraction of the control that he commands over the ball, over himself , this might well be the dawn of a new Sreesanth, one that prefers the 'seam position' to 'screaming at the opposition'