India’s batting versus Pakistan’s bowling. That is how one traveling Pakistan journalist described Sunday’s big clash to skipper Rohit Sharma, and asked him who would come out on top.
Rohit laughed, of course, for he is no fortune-teller. And more so, what possibly could he have said about the game’s result? After thinking for a few moments, he did gather enough words to respond. “Pakistan bowling is good. Our batting is experienced and strong. It is a matter of who plays well and comes out on top,” he said.
His answer was along expected lines. For those who see T20 cricket as a summation of pint-sized match-ups, it doesn’t get any better than this. Pakistan has always been a bowling strong house, in particular the pace department. India has traditionally held fort in the batting department. It is akin to being the most certain of battles when the two teams collide.
Why does it need more attention than, say, other aspects of this upcoming game? Well, for one, consider last year’s tournament wherein Shaheen Afridi finished the game within the powerplay. Down 6-2 in 2.1 overs, India never really recovered. Afridi had exploited Indian top order’s weakness against qualify left-arm pace bowling to the hilt, and nothing mattered thereafter. Pakistan chasing down 151 without loss was further proof this isn’t about its batting versus Indian bowling.
And it could be seen in the mannerism of India’s preparation for the Pakistan game two days in a row at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. On Friday, Rohit Sharma practiced long against left-arm pacers using the new ball. Dinesh Karthik asked for short-pitched throwdowns to work on his pull shots. On Saturday, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli copied the Rohit-playbook, while Hardik Pandya worked similarly to Karthik. It has been a concentrated effort, but not just over two days, but rather 12 months.
So, what has changed for India since the last World Cup? Are they bringing a renewed batting order to this 2022 edition? Well, no, they aren’t.
India enters this World Cup with much the same batting line-up it fielded 12 months ago. Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav form the same top-order. Dinesh Karthik and Deepak Hooda are the only changes from a batting perspective. Karthik’s inclusion is important herein, because he relegates Rishabh Pant to the bench. Add Hardik Pandya to the mix, and India has retained five of its six frontline batsmen from the UAE tournament.
Not if you listen to the Indian skipper. “It was important to change the mindset. We wanted to listen to the players, what issues they faced last year and how we can give them more freedom to perform their roles this time around. How we could bring about a change in mindset,” he said, looking back at India’s preparatory process.
Rohit Sharma has been talking about this quite a bit off late. He firmly believes that this Indian top-order has turned a corner, especially in terms of strike-rate. And that aggressive intent has permeated throughout the entire batting line-up, as particularly seen in the home series against Australia and South Africa. Perhaps for the first time since the last T20 World Cup, the top-order clicked as one cohesive, aggressive unit. And then, of course, there is Suryakumar Yadav.
SKY is the big changeover for Indian batting traversing from the UAE to Australia. When India had entered the 2021 tournament, everyone still expected Rohit, Rahul and Kohli to do the trick. These were the names to win you that elusive World Cup, only it didn’t happen. This time around, yes these names continue to be there and their collective form will be crucial to how things work out for India. But, if Rohit is to lift that trophy on November 13, then Yadav will need to have a major say.
Give him 20 balls and he will give you 40 runs. SKY attacks the ball at 200 strike-rate, and it is a wonder how he has managed to keep this going for more than 12 months now. Even if India loses two of the top-three relatively early, there is always the danger of SKY arriving at the crease and eventually exploding after tiding over the hiccup. This has breathed new life into the Indian batting, and the SKY factor allows the top-order to do its own thing.
Arguably the most vigorous example of this came when Kohli batted with SKY during the Asia Cup. Back in the UAE, an out-of-touch Kohli was able to take his time and work his way into form, whilst SKY was keenly hitting the ball all over the park. It was much the same in the ensuing home series as well. SKY takes on the bowling in a manner rarely seen before, and it is an awe-inspiring sight.
It puts into focus India’s overall move towards a more aggressive approach. There were calls to modify the top-order and move SKY to number three, but India has persisted with Kohli. It is an odd choice of words for one of the best batsmen this format has seen. And yet, it augurs for the current situation where SKY is a class apart in the shortest format.
Batting at four, the mercurial batsman has a tendency to pull the entire line-up with him. Whether it is the top-order, or even Pandya and/or Karthik to follow, the attacking ploy is now one singular piece of motion through the Indian batting line-up. That India can afford to leave Pant on the bench speaks volumes, both of its batting might and strategic punt.
The question to ask at this juncture is, if it can resist the Pakistan bowling attack on Sunday and make a mark on this tournament.