5 early lessons ahead of the 2019 World Cup

There are lessons to be learnt from India’s recent showings ahead of the World Cup

With the Champions Trophy done and dusted for some time now, and bilateral series between teams having started again, the countdown to the 2019 World Cup has begun. All the teams will now try to address their areas of weakness and build their teams for the big event.

This is not a bad time, therefore, to look back at the Champions Trophy and point out some key takeaway points which will be important for us going forward. What were the trends witnessed, lessons learnt?

Here are five early lessons for the 2019 World Cup.

#1 Openers remain absolutely crucial

The Indians truly know the value of a prolific pair at the top of the order

The importance of good openers in limited overs cricket has been well understood for some time now. If anything else, the just-concluded Champions Trophy all but re-asserted the importance of having good, stable openers at the top of the order.

A quick look at statistics for the tournament will reveal that the success of teams that went the distance depended heavily on their openers. If India had Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, Pakistan had Fakhar Zaman while Bangladesh relied on Tamim Iqbal up front.

Interestingly, the openers provided contrasting styles as Dhawan and Sharma relied more on building the innings to set up a platform, while Iqbal and Zaman were ruthless up front, trying to utilise the powerplay overs.

The key to big totals in the Champions Trophy was very often a good opening partnership which set up the game beautifully for the batting team. Looking forward at the 2019 World Cup, the importance of good openers who can give the team fast, solid starts can never be underestimated.