No Test match could have a greater bearing on the present and future of Indian cricket than the third Test beginning at Edgbaston, August 10. Mahendra Singh Dhoni would need not only a cape and a magician's wand but also the guts to bet his last chip on a big spin of the wheel of fortune if he wishes not to leave England's shores with a hangdog look a la Ricky Ponting. Regardless of who makes the final XI or not, India has necessarily to throw caution to the winds and play for a turnaround victory.

It is sad things have come to such a pass that Team India was grossly under prepared for a tour of this magnitude. Now, it is easy to blame the BCCI for all the ills. A major share of the blame may, however, go to the board for the thoughtlessness with which it draws up its international cricket programme around the IPL. Specifically, the tour of the Caribbean within a week of the conclusion of the IPL is an example of pure greed driving the schedule.But, is the BCCI alone to blame? An emphatic no to that please. The players are equally to blame for being quite cavalier about the tour of England for a series whose importance can never be under stated. Let us take a look at some individuals and in what way their attitude had a bearing on how the series played out much to Team India's horror at Lord's and Trent Bridge, two venues of quintessential English conditions of swing and seam.

Let us take the opening batsmen first. Virender Sehwag may have changed the rules of batting with his awesome aggression. He was, however, guilty of placing the interests of his Delhi Daredevils above that of Team India. The timing of his shoulder surgery was so skewed as to betray where his interest really lay. He waited to see if the Daredevils would make it to the last four before he decided to jet off to England to tend to his shoulder.Had Sehwag been keen to propel India in a crucial series with his daredevil approach to opening the innings he would have sacrificed the IPL, advanced his surgery and prepared in earnest for the tour of England. How did the selectors come to believe he would be fit for the first Test so as to include him in the original squad? Team India suffered enough when Sehwag went to the T-20 world championship in England with doubtful fitness and skewered the whole campaign with just the uncertainty of his availability.

There is no denying IPL has done wonders for players' confidence, their financial stability and independence. But players seem so fascinated by the league as to give everything else lesser priority. Sehwag's colleague in arguably the best opening pair for India ever, Gautam Gambhir, has been pronounced as guilty in putting club over country. He was so keen on performing for his employers Kolkata Knight Riders in return for a record fee in excess of $2 million per season that he was willing to risk aggravating an injury rather than tending to it in time to serve Team India. By the time the IPl got over, Gambhir discovered his injury got so bad he could not tour the Caribbean and prepare properly for the England tour.Zaheer Khan seemed to place such a priority on IPL that he was prepared to forgo the Caribbean tour. Of course, he is not to be blamed for this. The simple logic is if Sachin Tendulkar needs 'family time' every now and then so too are others eligible, either for 'family time' or simply 'time off'. The difference is Sachin travelled early to England to acclimatise while Zaheer seemed bent on preserving his career more than getting fighting fit for Team India.

By being ginger about his comeback to the Test arena, Zaheer was actually a walking disaster zone ready to explode. You can't prepare for a Test series by not bowling, which is what Zaheer was trying to do with such few overs in Taunton before the first Test and then just three overs in Northmapton after doing his hamstring at Lord's. The route taken to find fitness suggested less emphasis on the team cause. If a bowler declares himself fit, he must give his team 100 per cent. Otherwise his place is best reserved in the surgeon's theatre.The attitude of three top players to fitness problems suggests they are not as keen on the Test circuit as they are about the World Cup and the IPL. The focus has shifted so much in the modern game to the shorter formats players are also looking at the easy options. The Board has not helped because it keeps piling on the international series so as to satisfy the television rights holders. This is a vicious cycle from which there is going to be no relief. The blame game has really begun now.