5 Indian bowlers who can form the ideal bowling combination for the T20 World Cup
After struggling in the last T20 World Cup, the Indian team has made a concerted effort to revamp the way it approaches this format. The results were evident in the recent T20I series against England.
While the batters took an aggressive approach and played attacking cricket, the bowlers bowled a tight line and length to chip in with wickets at regular intervals.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar was adjudged the Player of the Series, finishing with four wickets. He was exceptional with the new ball in the second T20I and finished with figures of 3/15 to put a dent in England's chase.
Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel too were disciplined in the middle and death overs, while Yuzvendra Chahal has found his mojo and is back to taking wickets.
With the T20 World Cup knocking on the door, Team India would like to get their bowling combination right in the coming months. On that note, here are five bowlers who could form the ideal bowling combination for India in the T20 World Cup.
#5 Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya is fit and his presence in the Indian team strikes plenty of balance. Pandya has been bowling at an impressive pace in the last two series and has been used in the powerplay overs as well. With his experience and new-found confidence, he is also well-equipped to get the job done in the middle overs.
Given his all-round abilities, India can also play the extra bowler if need be and have Pandya play as the sixth batter.
#4 Harshal Patel
Harshal Patel has established himself as a reliable bowler in the middle and death overs. In Australia, where the bounce will be true and the boundaries fairly big, Patel, with his assortment of variations, can be a real trump card for India.
Although he leaked runs against England in the recently-concluded T20I series, there were enough instances that showed the value he brings to the table. All he needs to work on right now is bowling an ideal length ball that could make his slower deliveries even more potent.
#3 Yuzvendra Chahal
Since being left out for the last T20 World Cup, Yuzvendra Chahal has made a roaring comeback and is one of the sure contenders to take up the role of the lead spinner in Australia.
He has picked up 11 wickets since the series against South Africa and was especially superb against England's stroke-makers in the recent series. Furthermore, he had an excellent IPL 2022 and finished as the leading wicket-taker with 27 scalps in 17 matches.
#2 Jasprit Bumrah
India's leading seamer across all formats, Jasprit Bumrah, will be the second seamer in the T20 World Cup. He played just one game against England, but had a decent IPL.
The Australian pitches will offer him a lot of pace and bounce, which could make him a match-winner for Rohit Sharma. Apart from being extremely potent with the new ball, he is just as good in the death overs with his variety of yorkers and slower balls.
#1 Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Bhuvneshwar Kumar is perhaps back to his best. His pace is up and he is getting the ball to seam and swing in the first six overs.
Kumar proved to be quite a handful in England. He featured in the first two T20Is and finished with four wickets while giving away only 25 runs.
This came on the back of an arguably decent performance against South Africa, where he picked up five wickets in four games. Although he went for runs in the first and third T20Is, he was exceptional in the second match, picking up four wickets for 13 runs.