Abscurse

There are lessons for the Indian cricket team from the World Cup football final. France underlined one of the rules of batsmanship that the basis of attack is defence. This is the essence of red ball cricket where without a polished defensive technique, it is difficult if not impossible to build a long innings, or indeed a career. Coaches traditionally emphasized this, but somewhere between the first ball bowled in One-Day Internationals and the most recent bowled in T20 cricket, that lesson has been mislaid. But the more important lesson came from Croatia, which is not surprising since you often learn more from losing teams. The lesson is this: Make form count. When the advantage is on your side however briefly ensure that goals or runs are scored or wickets taken. A good run does not last forever. Croatia, especially in the first half, and then sporadically through the match, enjoyed periods of ascendancy. Successful teams recognise when the moment is theirs, and grab it by