Indian cricket slipping from cheers to jeers

India lost two consecutive one-dayers to Australia in the current series and the euphoria over their win in the Twenty20 World Cup has all but nearly been wiped out.

While Australia look determined to prove that India's win was a fluke, the Indians, unfortunately, surrendered meekly to prove them right.

Australia can be beaten only if they are put under pressure and that requires some meticulous planning. What is most surprising is the Indian cricket board's decision to take on the Australians without even a team coach!

Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an inexperienced captain who needs the backing of an experienced coach to identify the flaws in his game plan, especially when fielding coach Robin Singh, bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and manager Lalchand Rajput have not been given the powers to interfere in deciding strategy.

Instead, Dilip Veng-sarkar, as chief selector, has continued to influence the team's strategy without being a part of the planning process. It is this remote-control approach that had irritated Rahul Dravid and forced him to throw away the captaincy.

Twenty20 and one-day cricket are clearly two different forms of the game. One-day cricket demands discipline and better team co-ordination. Unfortunately, the Indian players are still busy attending felicitation functions. With so much of cash being showered on them, they have been badly distracted.

Australia grabbed this opportunity completely, intimidated them whenever possible and are now all out to hurt their pride in front of the home crowd. Only a determined Indian approach can change the course of the series now.

Sreesanth's approach of staring back at the Australians cannot win matches for his side. India will have to lift their game to the challenges of the occasion.

It will do one well to remember that it does not take much for the same Indian fan who cheered them all the way to boo them out too.