"Our bowling definitely lacked heat" - Former Indian cricketer on issues in India's bowling attack
Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan highlighted the reasons for India's poor performances in the last two editions of the T20 World Cup. He believes the bowling department is one of their biggest causes for concern.
The Men in Blue failed to take a single wicket in their group-stage match against Pakistan in the 2021 T20 World Cup. The same transpired once again against England in the semifinals of the 2022 edition of the tournament.
Pathan feels the Men in Blue had a bowling attack that depended a lot on the conditions and the help they got from the pitch. He reasoned that this could be why their bowling was ineffective on flat pitches in the aforementioned games.
Speaking to Star Sports, here's what Irfan Pathan had to say about India's bowling:
“It is very important to plan what combination we should be playing and which bowlers should get a chance, depending on how they make the most of the pitches.
"The biggest problem here, is that the pitches are flat and our bowling is not up to the mark and that's what we have seen in the last two T20 World Cups against Pakistan as well as against England in the semi-finals.
"Our bowling definitely lacked heat."
India have two bowlers who do not require special pitches: Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan didn't drop names, but believes India have two options in their bowling attack who do not need conditions to make an impact. He spoke about pace and variation, which some viewed as the former all-rounder's way of referencing Umran Malik and Kuldeep Yadav respectively.
Umran Malik not just spitting fire but also improving his line and length 👏
On this, Pathan stated:
"I personally want to see this going forward, that we have two bowlers who do not require the special pitches that we expect.
"They have their respective skills either by pace or the variation and I think that the team management and the selectors and everyone, even the captain Rohit Sharma are going in the right direction."
Rohit Sharma and Co. will look to put their disappointment from the last two T20 World Cups behind them when they host the ODI World Cup later this year.
Will the hosts of the 2023 World Cup finally end their trophy drought in ICC tournaments? Let us know in the comments.