ICC World Cup 2019: 4 Problems India need to solve before the 2019 World Cup
India had a reality check 12 months before the World Cup as they lost the ODI series to England 2-1. This put an end to a nine series winning streak for India and this was the first loss in a bilateral ODI series under Kohli’s captaincy. India defeated England comfortably in the first ODI but were completely outplayed in the last two.
India failed to show fight in the last two ODIs as they were thrashed by England, who showed why they are the No.1 ODI team, especially in home conditions. England’s spinners bowled better than India’s at times in the series. Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali troubled the Indian batsmen time and again in the three match series.
When India came to England it looked like India had a settled unit but as we have seen in the ODI series, there are a few questions which are still answered. India play 15-16 ODI matches before the World Cup begins, and they will be hoping that they can find the answers before it gets underway. So, let’s have a look at four problems which India need to solve before the 2019 World Cup.
#4 Backup Fast Bowlers
India’s leading white-ball fast bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, was already ruled out of the ODI series, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar missed the first two ODIs due to a back injury. He looked as if he wasn’t 100% fit in the third ODI as well. The unavailability of these two fast bowlers raises the question of India’s back-up fast bowlers.
India tried three more fast bowlers in the series but most of them were pretty much ineffective. Umesh Yadav, with all the experience, couldn’t do much and the inexperienced Siddarth Kaul failed to impress the Indian captain as he was dropped for the 3rd ODI.
Shardul Thakur got only one game and wasn’t at his best in that one. Other than these three and Shami, India don’t have many bowlers who have played ODIs. India will have to turn to even more inexperienced bowlers like Deepak Chahar and Mohammad Siraj after these four bowlers. Fast bowlers, due to their heavy workload, have a tendency to pick up injuries, and so it is important for India that they find their backup fast bowlers pretty quickly.