Glass half empty

Ishant has shown flashes of brilliance on the tour,but not sustained excellence.

Ishant Sharma missed more than he hit while throwing the ball at the stumps from a stationary position. All alone in a corner of the field,while the rest of the Indian cricketers played football,he looked more like an idler playing skipping stones than like someone sharpening his fielding skills. Unless it was a conscious attempt to save himself for the final Test,Sharma at the optional net session cut a forlorn figure.

After conceding an insurmountable lead in the series and the top position on the Test rankings,India,like all beaten sides,have to bank on that vague and unfathomable playing for pride motivational crutch when they walk out at The Oval on Thursday. As for Sharma,his reasons to be inspired are more compelling. In the final Test of a series in which Indias pace bowling has been depleted by injuries,the 22-year-old has a chance to prove himself as the backbone around which future bowling attacks can be assembled in the post-Zaheer Khan era a period that seems to be just around the corner.

After taking 22 wickets in three Tests in the West Indies,with a Man-of-the-Match award to boot,Sharma came to England as someone who seemed sharp enough to be the spearhead. And since the rich haul was in a Zaheer-less series,it seemed the gawky youngster was finally emerging from the shadow of the senior pacer.

In 2007,when India travelled to England,Sharma was a teenager on a study tour. He didnt play a single game as second stringers such as Ranadeb Bose were preferred over him in the tour game. He spent hours with the then bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad,who in turn never missed a chance to speak highly of the ward. The respect was mutual as Sharma,even today,when asked about the men who have made him,speaks about Prasad after he has profusely thanked Zaheer.

Since then Sharma has toured every Test-playing nation,spent time with the games greats,learned new skills,signed astronomical IPL contracts,built a palatial house and bought swanky cars. While juggling fame and fortune,he has seen the lows of dealing with injuries and technical complications.

Landing at Heathrow last month,Sharma wouldnt have known that he would need all that experience while in England. On the first day at Lords,he found himself in the hot seat. Zaheer walked off with a stiff hamstring just after the first tea break and with a session,four days and three Tests to go,the helpless Indian team was looking at Sharma to rescue them.

A brief purple patch

He did exactly that on the fourth day of the Test with three wickets in the space of 16 balls. During that dream spell no two wicket-taking balls were the same. Kevin Pietersen,Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott were out off a surprise short ball,one that straightened and his stock in-coming delivery,respectively. Soon after the vital blows,it was lunch. Dhoni didnt continue with Sharma after the break and the bowler would later say that he was tired. This was surprising,from a bowler who in his early days in international cricket was known for bowling long spells. The famous Virender Sehwag words Ek aur dalega,thakta nahi hai to a reluctant skipper Anil Kumble during the Perth Test in Australia are part of Indian crickets folklore. Based on Sehwags recommendation,Kumble gave Sharma his eighth straight over,in which he got his most talked about wicket that of Ricky Ponting. Maybe a couple of more overs at Lords would have made a difference. Maybe,if Sehwag was around,he would have pushed for an extended spell.

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But then its been that kind of series. After that spark at Lords,Sharma hasnt come across as a bowler who could run through the England side. He definitely is the only Indian bowler to display the hostility that the home pacers have dished out,but the wickets havent come. Sharma has shown that he has the skills but the three Tests have also exposed his inability to adapt to the varied pitches. He has beaten the bat with the inswinger but he hasnt plotted well to come up with the ball that holds its line or even the yorker at the right time. Against the left-handers,he has bowled wide outside the off stump,making it easy for the batsmen the leave the ball.

At the Oval,chances are that Sharma might not have Praveen Kumar for company. It will be a tall ask for the young pacer to shepherd the bowling attack. On second thoughts,Sharma aimlessly throwing the ball at stumps wasnt like an idler tossing stones into a pond,but a dreamer flicking a coin into a wishing well.