India in SL

India's Test batsmen will have a far better chance of solving the Ajantha Mendis mystery than their ODI counterparts.

By Arvind Iyengar

Eight overs, one maiden, six for thirteen. Ajantha Mendis was a revelation at the Asia Cup, picking up 17 wickets and ripping through the Indian middle order in the final. A lot has been made of the Mystery Man Mendis and whether or not he will be able to inflict the same damage in the upcoming Test series?

A look at the numbers, and the immediate answer to that question is a No. When Indian batsmen are compared in their performance against spin and "non-spin", the Indian Test side stands well ahead of their One-Day International counterparts.

The analysis here considers performance against all bowlers who have dismissed a batsman at least once in his career. A Spin Proficiency Factor (SPF) has been defined, as the ratio of a batsman's average against spin bowlers to his average against other bowlers- which is an indicator of how comfortable a batsman is against spin versus other forms of bowling. The higher the number, the better you are at handling the turning ball.

The Fab Four

The Wall, Rahul Dravid, is right on top averaging 52.6 against spinners. Danish Kaneria, Monty Panesar and Daniel Vettori have felt his wrath, with a combined average of close to 70 against him. Shane Warne hasn't fared to well either! Compared with his average of 42.4 against non-spin bowlers who have dismissed him at least once, Dravid's batting against spin stands out with a SPF of 1.24.

Sachin Tendulkar's mastery of the Wizard of Oz Warne has been talked about, but the master blaster averages a stunning 61 against Muralitharan and an overall 52.5 against spinners with an SPF of 1.25.

No surprise that the Prince of Kolkata is extremely comfortable handling the turning ball. An average of close to 47 against spinners and an SPF of 1.35, the highest among the Fab Four.

The elegant VVS Laxman has a pretty good SPF score too, a solid 1.27 with an average of 43.1 against spinners. And he's a pretty good time against the Aussie spinners in particular!

The New Kids on the Block

It would be a bit harsh to classify Yuvraj Singh as a "newbie". He has an SPF of 1.03 in his 23 Tests, and 0.97 in his 212 ODIs. Clearly not at the same level as the more experienced Indian test middle-order when it comes to playing spin.

Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma were Mendis' other two big name victims in the Asia Cup Final. Since they haven't played any test matches, their one-day records are considered. Raina has a score of 0.62 with an average of 17.8 against spinners who have dismissed him at least once, while Rohit Sharma's corresponding numbers are 0.71 and 16.6!

Further, of all the times the Fab four have been dismissed, 29% of the time it has been of a spinner. For the one-day specialists, it is 38%. All this means that the Indian Test line-up is much happier playing the offies and leggies.

The spin twins, Mendis and Muttiah Muralitharan could pose a real threat in the Tests. The Mystery Man has confounded batsmen with his mixture of googlies, offbreaks, top-spinners, flippers and legbreaks. What is not a mystery however is which Indian side, the Test or the ODI one, is better equipped to handle the turning ball.

India may have been in dire straits during the Asia Cup Final, but with the Sultans of Spin back in the Test match walk of life, Ajantha Mendis will not be getting wickets for nothing.