A Chelsea fan, Ashish Nehra turned out in blues, created a few chances in the midfield and even converted a couple of them as his team defeated the ‘Reds’.

While Indian cricket team’s football was fairly competitive, other mini-competitions in the training schedule — direct-hit, slip catching, soft-hand display and ground fielding — lacked the same intensity. The squad has ample firepower in the batting and bowling departments but fielding brilliance depends on Suresh Raina or Yuvraj Singh’s delicate knee.

With names like Nehra, Amit Mishra, RP Singh, Ishant Sharma and Praveen Kumar, it remains to be seen how much of an impact fielding coach Robin Singh’s drills will make on the side. And a bumpy pre-season turf at the Chinnaswamy Stadium isn’t helping the cause.

The 15-member squad does boast of athletic legs such as Dinesh Karthik and Abhishek Nayar, but they aren’t expected to make the XI. And even Raina might join them on the bench if the team management decides to go in with five specialist bowlers.

Problems galore

India’s problems remain both inside the circle and in the outfield. They have only Raina, Gautam Gambhir, Yusuf Pathan and Yuvraj to stop drives and cuts, and with Dravid’s reflexes under scrutiny — he spent more time in the evening, working on slip and reflex catching off the pads — Dhoni will have to conjure up his options to man the in-field.

Fielding has been India’s Achilles heel for long, but the exuberance of youth made the difference in the recent past. The team’s rising fielding standards were one of the reasons for their surge up the rankings. But a few losses and changes in the squad have necessitated the need to explore other possibilities.