It was May of 2010, and for the first time since taking over, coach Gary Kirsten had

lost his cool. India had lost all their Super Eight matches and crashed out of the World T20 in the Caribbean. None of the seniors were part of the side, though Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman were very much in prime form. Kirsten couldn t fathom the fact tha t yet, the so-called young T20 team, was short of fitness level. There were no e xcuses and the former South Africa batsman minced no words in his team talk. He told the group: I am ashamed that there are 6-7 players present in the room, who are overweight. Lack of fitness More than anything it was the lack of motivation that upset Kirsten. At the hear t of all great accomplishments is a burning desire to succeed and the coach coul dn t find it in his players. I had no trainer in my entire career, I was my own tra iner. Why can t you guys work on the fitness on your own unless a trainer drags yo u out? fumed Kirsten, one of the fittest guys during his playing days. This is the story behind India s lacklustre showing at WT20 post-IPL. The 2010 edi tion was played immediately after the IPL. After nearly two months of non-stop c ricket, there can be fatigue issues with the players nursing sore limbs and ment al staleness. Being overweight only highlighted the poor attitude of Dhoni s team towards the event. There was no surprise over the lack of results. Off the field That their mind was not fully in the job was also highlighted that they got repe atedly distracted by controversies. Amid talk of disharmony in England (2009), s kipper Dhoni walked into a media conference with the team in tow. In St Lucia (2010), players got involved in an incident at a hotel with fans. So me of the players were issued showcause notices by the BCCI over the controversy . A deep hunger for success was the key behind the team s stunning show in the inaug ural event in 2007. It sparked the T20 revolution. Since then, their appetite sa tiated by the IPL, they have arrived at the World T20 as listless warriors, cont ent to go through the motions. The extra edge is lacking. The adulation received in the glamour league at home seems to have extinguished the fire. In the minds of the players, World T20, seems to have been relegated to just another tournam ent. Not on their toes While the nucleus of the side has been the same for all the next four editions, surprisingly, they have not been the same force again. Their forays at the 2009, 2010, 2012 events have all been lacklustre, failing to advance beyond the Super Eight in all three. For the inconsistent unit, poor batting and low fitness lev els have resulted in failed campaigns. Most opponents have successfully targeted the batsmen with the short stuff and t here have been some odd captaincy moves by MS Dhoni, which misfired. Having the right players for the right format is key. In T20 young players are im portant, it s a format you have to be on your toes all the time. The team needs to show an aggressive body language. Good fielding means 20 runs more to the total . The first T20 batch was an outstanding fielding unit, says Rajput, who was mana ger-coach in 2007. Historically, India teams have done well when they have played to prove a point, individually as well as a team. A recent example was the 2013 Champions Trophy,

where they had a fixing cloud hanging over the IPL. India played like men posse ssed to dominate everyone in conditions where they were expected to struggle. What clicked The players were equally charged in the inaugural event. Everyone was pumped up to prove a point, says Rajput. The seniors were out of favour in the longer vers ion of the game and were desperate for a comeback, the juniors were determined t o stake their claims. Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan were all looking t o prove a point and were very hungry. The fresh faces like Rohit Sharma, Yusuf P athan and Joginder Sharma were keen to make an impact to get noticed. It s about t he right combination and playing fearless cricket, said Rajput. It is the desire which Fletcher, yet untouched and blinded by the IPL glitz, has to stoke. If he can, then the team can shine through at the event for condition s in Bangladesh will be to their liking.