Is Team India ready for the World T20?
World T20 is around the corner and all of us are eagerly waiting for our Team to repeat the wonders of 2007. But then the million dollar question arises! Is our team ready?
India have played only a handful of international T20s in the past two years, leaving aside the IPL games its bit of a worry. And from the bashing India took from South Africa in the last concluded home series, things are looking pretty gloomy for the Men in Blue.
If we look at the team, match practice is an obvious concern but is it the primary concern?
The team composition and the T20I form of the current squad raise many eyebrows. The problems start right from the top. Shikhar Dhawan doesn’t inspire much when it comes to opening in T20Is.
He is just a mere shadow of himself when it’s time for T20. He just goes into a shell sometimes, trying to hit the ball too hard rather than trusting his gifted timing. Even though he has just stepped into the international T20 arena, his numbers are pretty ordinary (average close to 14 and a strike rate of 100) for his standards.
The only ray of hope for India at the top is the form of “Hitman” Rohit Sharma. In one day formats, Rohit and Virat Kohli has been the backbone of Indian batting in the recent years. But Dhawan’s unsurely approach and tentativeness could make the situations worse for these two. They need to lay the foundation often rather than going out and expressing themselves.
When it comes to the middle order things don’t look pretty either. Raina and Rahane are blowing hot and cold in the shortest version, the unpredictability factor is creeping up in the middle order that eventually builds loads of pressure on captain Dhoni, who sometimes look like a warrior who has forgotten his skills.
Lower order batting has names that look good on paper like Ashwin and Jadeja. Both are coming after a highly successful home test series with the ball, but a real hitter who packs a punch like Pollard or Afridi is missing.
On the bowling front, Ashwin’s and Jadeja’s 8 overs will be like gold dust for Dhoni, but remaining overs has some serious concern. Fast bowling looks very weak with Dhoni’s stubborn support for military medium pace. Neither of Dhoni’s so-called ‘steady bowlers’ like Bhuvi, Aravind, Mohit and Binny look like a wicket taking bowler.