Raina - standing up to the short ball in style

The vicious short-pitched delivery was angled into the left-hander and the alert batsman swayed away from the line. Crucially, Suresh Raina kept his eyes on the ball.

It was a reassuring sight.

Not too long ago, Raina would have been opened up by such a well-directed lifter. Now, he was all poise and confidence when the fiery slinger Fidel Edwards let it rip on the bouncy track at Kensington Oval. Ahead of the high profile Test series in England, it does appear that Raina has turned the corner against the short-pitched delivery. Both mentally and technically, he seems to have made the switch.

Raina was among the Indian success stories in the bowler-dominated three-Test series in the Caribbean with 232 runs in three Tests at 46.40. Both Sabina Park and Kensington Oval, the venues for the first two Tests, offered considerable bounce for the pacemen, but the determined southpaw was not found wanting.

Raina's fighting 82 in the first Test at Kingston and his precious 53 in Bridgetown were made in adverse situations. Importantly, he was getting into better side-on positions against the short- pitched deliveries.

With 605 runs in 11 Tests at 37.81, Raina's numbers are creditable, but he needs to raise the bar. As a left-hander and a natural stroke-maker, he adds so much to the pack in the Indian middle-order.

The southpaw from Uttar Pradesh, certain to figure in the eleven when India meets England in the first Test at Lord's on July 21, stares into what could well prove career-defining days.

Working on techniques

Vasu Paranjpe, the master technician, says, “While playing short-pitched bowling from good fast bowlers, it is not enough to only venture into the back and across movement with one foot, your back foot. Your front foot too has to travel back and across so that you would at a sort of stance position near the off-stump. You need to use both your feet. If you use only one of them, you will be opened up.”

Mr. Paranjpe adds, “And when you decide to hook or pull, you must be able to get on top of the ball. On the few occasions that Raina pulled, he got on top of the ball. He is a selfless cricketer and a team-man. I like his attitude.”

The-24-year-old Raina has won a lot of supporters lately with his still head, decisive footwork and pleasingly side-on methods. On those occasions when Edwards, in particular, got the ball to climb into his chest, Raina, rising on his toes, managed to keep the delivery down with soft hands.

During a batsman's trigger movement, his chin should be within the toe-line to maintain the centre of gravity. If it goes beyond, a batsman would be falling over.

Raina had this problem early on; he was not taking a full step forward down the track. When he shuffled, his head was not still. Now, we are seeing a different Raina.

In sharp contrast, Virat Kohli, with the short-legs, the silly point and the gully lurking, jabbed hard at the ball to keep the close catchers busy.

While Kohli's bat-speed is an asset during the Twenty20 matches, the same attribute becomes a chink while coping with mean short-pitched deliveries from the quicks in Tests. Here, a batsman needs to take all the weight off the bat and the gloves and hold the willow with soft hands.

Gaekwad's views

Anshuman Gaekwad, a brave opening batsman for India in the 70s and 80s, feels Raina is coping much better with the lifters. “Earlier, he used to jump with the ball, which proved suicidal. Now, he is still and watches the ball. He is more side-on, which is good. And he gets inside the line, when he wants to hook or pull. The difference between Raina and Kohli is that Kohli is so much chest-on. So, Kohli is likely to pop up catches against the rising deliveries.”

The chances are that the new and improved Raina will have a successful campaign in England.