Indore: Tuesday was an inconsequential game for India, even if it was just one last outing before the 2022 T20 World Cup. Resting both Virat Kohli and KL Rahul signified as much. So did the plethora of changes, especially playing a batsman short.
In that light, why would you change the basic line-up and composition with one game to go? Experimentation is all very fine, but there are some lines that need to be drawn in the sand. Sure, there is a positive argument for this. Both Axar Patel and R Ashwin needed game time, as there is a rising discourse to play three spinners with Jasprit Bumrah out injured.
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At the same time, India are still auditioning for Bumrah’s replacement with both Mohammed Siraj and Umesh Yadav awaiting news on Mohammed Shami’s fitness. Harshal Patel needs to find his rhythm and Deepak Chahar just had to play with Arshdeep Singh rested owing to a minor back niggle. In essence, India played their strongest-possible bowling attack in six games (including three T20Is vs Australia) at Indore, and still managed to concede 227 runs in 20 overs.
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That is a major concern. Going into the World Cup preparatory camp, India still don’t know their best bowling combination. Further, they allowed another South African batsman to score a hundred – that’s two on the bounce, just prior to the big tournament. And of course, India conceded 58 runs in the last five overs in keeping with their poor form at the death.
The bowling report card doesn’t make for happy reading. And to an extent, Tuesday’s batting line-up posed some questions as well. For starters, what is Rishabh Pant’s real role herein? With Rahul-Kohli absent, is he now the back-up fourth choice opening option? Is he a back-up middle order option? Or both? It is kind of gobsmacking that India are heading to the World Cup whilst not utilising Pant in a first-team role.
Part of that stems from Dinesh Karthik’s accession into the team once again. In picking him for the World Cup, India had to let go of not only Pant as a middle-order bet, but also Ishan Kishan as back-up opener. Back in May, they realised as much and thus the experimentation with Pant/Deepak Hooda/Suryakumar Yadav (SKY) as opening back-ups began. At the Asia Cup, they realised Pant and DK couldn’t fit into the same playing eleven. We know the end-result of that.
From his individual perspective, Karthik has adapted to the team’s requirements very well. It isn’t easy sitting on the sidelines and coming in with one purpose – smash the ball out of the park. In that, he has shown a Zen-like attitude, irrespective of the match situation. On average, 6/10 times you would expect such a move to work out, and DK has delivered as per the situation. Four out of six times that DK has faced 10-plus deliveries for India this year, he has excelled in the finishing role. The strike-rate goes higher when he faces five or more deliveries at the death.
Such is the requirement of this role. It doesn’t allow room for manoeuvring needing you to improvise at all times. The spotlight is on you, for there is a very specific job to be done. And all you may get is 5-7 balls to face, and to deliver the goods. From that perspective alone, Karthik has done nothing wrong. It is up to the team management to decide how they want to use the resources at disposal, and it seems they have made up their mind.
Moving Pant as opener and DK to number four on Tuesday was the final straw. It explained that DK is now firmly in the first-choice role ahead of Pant. His promotion, even ahead of SKY in Indore, was a reminder that the management wanted him to face more deliveries whilst not changing his role too much. And with 46 off 21 balls, DK duly delivered again, showcasing that he is ever ready for this upcoming T20 World Cup. Arguably, from an individual standpoint, no other player seems more eager and bounding with energy.
Perhaps that is his natural demeanour, but just look at Pant on the other hand. He looks a tad downbeat, knowing his place in the first-eleven is not confirmed. Making such sweeping changes one game before the World Cup made little sense, but it gave everyone a look into the management’s thinking. For now, Pant will have to be the quintessential team player and perform this role.
DK’s knock, meanwhile, and India’s overall run-rate of nearly 10/over through the major part of the run-chase was a keen reminder of how things have shaped up. Going into the World Cup, amidst worries regarding bowling, batting remains the key strength for the Men in Blue.
There is unison in mindset and a go-getter attitude at run scoring. Never mind the rest, Rahul and Kohli left in good form. Rohit Sharma is more or less thereabouts. With SKY, Hardik Pandya and DK in the middle, the momentum seems to be flowing seamlessly from the top to the middle order, and beyond. After a long time, the entire Indian batting line-up seemed to be clicking as one unit against both Australia and South Africa.
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