35 ODIS FROM CONQUERING ASIA TO THE WORLD

- By Atul Agarwal

Powerhouse of batting, toe grinders, swing monarchs, ultra-potent wrist turners, lusty fielders – you name it, and we have it all. Such is the shape of the Indian One Day International cricket team today. For someone remotely inclined towards Indian cricket, this is by far the best ODI side the country has ever had. Kissing the World Cup for the third time should seem like a walk in the park.

However, reality is far from the truth, as we notice that in order to make a triumphant return in the sport’s grandest stage, the Indian team has more than one question to answer.

THE NUMBER FOUR CONUNDRUM

One of the most grotesque puzzles that still remain unsolved is the middle order quandary, led by the number four conundrum. While the nation boasts of the most compelling top order batsmen in the globe, led by the skipper Virat Kohli, the men following him in the batting order have shown little or no signs of tenacity, much to our dismay. The revolving door policy for the number four position, in which as many as eleven people have been tried since the 2015 World Cup, hasn’t really helped India.

With Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Kedar Jadhav, KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer, Dinesh Karthik and Ambati Rayudu, all with ordinary averages and run of inconsistent scores, competing for that vital spot, it is time the management backs MS Dhoni, who averages over 55 at number four, to try that position at least for a series or two.

“Most of the time I find it tough to hit the ball straightaway and so I need to bat a few overs. I would like to bat at no.4, but spots are all taken. So, I will continue to bat lower down and it will continue to be my responsibility,” said Dhoni, in a rare moment of revelation.

With Kedar Jadhav and Hardik Pandya expected to complete one quota of ten overs, as the fifth and sixth bowling options, their places look almost certain.

If Dhoni takes the number four spot, India will have to scout for a proper batsman to take the number five spot. They have 24 ODIs before the commencement of the World Cup to address that mystery. Let’s hope the team is able to bridge that gap during the ongoing Asia Cup.

THE JADEJA PUNT, OR THE SPIN TWIN STRIKE

With Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav running riots in Sri Lanka, South Africa, England, and obviously India, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja have been conspicuously and understandably absent from the limited over games. Ever since chinaman, which is the most difficult form of spin for the batsmen to read, gained popularity among the Indian leadership group, the finger spinners have vanished cold turkey.

However, statistics speak for Jadeja to be included in the World Cup squad. The man of the match in the Champions Trophy 2013 final held in England was also the golden ball winner, picking up 12 wickets in the process. Given that the World Cup 2019 will be held in England, playing him in place of either Kuldeep Yadav or Yuzvendra Chahal will be a good tactical move. The fact that he is a handy lower order batsman and the best fielder in the side makes a strong case for why he should be considered. 

With 7 wickets with the ball and 86 runs with the bat against England at The Oval, and 4 wickets for 29 runs in his comeback game against Bangladesh in the ongoing Asia Cup, he certainly has opened the doors for himself to be included for the next few games, or perhaps, the next few series. If he continues this form against the West Indies, Australia and New Zealand over the course of the next few months, there is no way he is not boarding the flight to England.

“I think Ravindra Jadeja merits his place because I believe he is a better bowler, batsman and fielder but what the selection committee thinks, we will see in the next few months,” said Sunil Gavaskar after his match winning spell in the Asia Cup game against Bangladesh.  

With 24 ODIs remaining before the World Cup, and 35 ODIs to bring it home, for the Indian ODI Team to be invincible, the management has to address these two enigmas as soon as possible, or they will lose one of the best chances of conquering the World.