After having won the ICC Champions Trophy 2013 convincingly without conceding any defeat, India came into the Celkon Mobile Cup Tri-series as the favourite to win. But interestingly, they are now at the peril of being knocked out of the series following back-to-back defeats.
One thing that will surely hurt millions of Indian cricket fans is the way manner in which Sri Lanka thrashed India in their previous match.
India lost to West Indies by one wicket in a thriller before facing a humiliating defeat against Sri Lanka, who put up a mammoth 348 total on the board, helped by centuries from Upul Tharanga and Mahela Jayawardene. India's famous batting line-up collapsed barely after crossing the half-way mark.
Many might be wondering what has gone wrong with team India that won the Champions Trophy 2013 so convincingly.
Complacency could be one reason for the sudden debacle. Three Indian batsmen - Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli - featured in the top five run scorers in the Champions Trophy with Dhawan topping the list. The team that played so well just a week ago looks ordinary in the Caribbean. Has success gone into their head?
Or maybe the boys in Blue are suffering from "cricket overload". They have been working hard of late, not having much time to rest. They headed to England for ICC Champions Trophy after playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for almost two months. They then left for the Tri-series in West Indies just a few days after returning home from England. Maybe too much cricket is taking a toll on the team.
Maybe the absence of skipper MS Dhoni, who has been ruled out of the Tri-series due to a hamstring injury, affected the team in the previous match. But looking at the current squad, India have a bunch of young and talented players, that people don't feel the absence of the senior players anymore. So, Dhoni's absence can't be the sole reason for the failure of the team.
Inexperience could be one of the reasons for the team's performance. Most of the youngsters are playing in the Caribbean for the first time, which means they are not used to the pitch. The fact that experienced Sri Lankan players - Upul Tharanga and Mahela Jayawardene - played with ease, scoring centuries each, while young Indian players struggled speaks volumes.
One still can't rule out India from the series despite the defeats. They can bounce back anytime.
