State of the Union - Indian ODI Team

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – JANUARY 25: MS Dhoni of India gives orders to his team during the One Day International match between New Zealand and India at Eden Park on January 25, 2014 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images)

Ladies and gentlemen,

The State of the Union is not strong.

I am of course talking about the Indian One Day International side. Currently swinging between number 1 and 2 on the ICC rankings, there really shouldn’t be much of a concern for Indian cricket fans; but scratch the surface, and MS Dhoni has a lot to ponder about before the 2015 World Cup rolls in soon.

How does a team filled with dashing stroke-makers, a decent bowling side (on paper!), an energetic fielding unit and a canny skipper not inspire much confidence these days? In recent times, Dhoni’s men barely clinched a high scoring home series against the Aussies, lost convincingly to the South Africans in a shortened contest and are just about afloat in the ongoing exchanges with New Zealand.

Only Virat Kohli and Dhoni are scoring the runs consistently overseas and Mohammed Shami is perhaps the only bowler who can walk into the side without questions overs his place. Considering the fact that the World Cup will be played in Australia and New Zealand, India are running out of time to find a trusty and stable combination to defend their title.

So, without further ado, here is my two pence on what could constitute a World Cup title contending side next year.

The openers

CARDIFF, WALES – JUNE 06: Rohit Sharma (R) and Shikhar Dhawan (L) of India are watched over by a spidercam during a drinks breakduring the Group B ICC Champions Trophy match between India and South Africa at the SWALEC Stadium on June 6, 2013 in Cardiff, Wales. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Until as recently as the series against Australia, “Dhawarma” seemed to have become one of the best opening pairs in the limited over formats in a short span of time; but starting with the following series against West Indies, the opening combo have hit a snag, delivering fitful starts.

Rohit’s bad habits have returned – either he plays too slow without rotating the strike and robbing the team innings of any momentum, or he sets off like a bullet train with a blaze of strokes before perishing prematurely. Dhawan has no issues with pacing his knock, but it is the duration of the knock which is frustrating. Both openers haven’t really looked out of sorts, but they are not converting their starts either, and it is starting to put pressure on the likes of Kohli and Dhoni to make up for it.

Still, Dhawan and Rohit are the best options for Dhoni, at the moment. Sehwag isn’t exactly lighting up the domestic circuits and Gambhir is still not in the good books of the team management; and it is too late to try out fresh faces in the likes of Vijay Zol and Unmukt Chand just before the World Cup.

The best bet would be to back Dhawan and Rohit to come good soon. There is no doubt that these two are classy players and it is a matter of time before they return to their best. For someone like Dhawan, this is a good opportunity to get more experience playing overseas and for Rohit, it is a good reminder that he can’t live the rest of his career on the back of an ODI double century.

The middle order

For a team which boasts some of the most exciting and dependable batsmen in the limited over formats, there is a bit of an identity crisis at the moment. In Kohli and Dhoni, India have two of the finest ODI batsmen in international cricket; but the rest of the middle order don’t stand up to scrutiny.

Rahane and Raina have flattered to deceive in recent opportunities and their repeated failures leaves too much for the rest of the batting to compensate. While Rahane can complain that he hasn’t received his chances in Test cricket, the same can’t be said for ODIs. Despite multiple chances, he averages in the 20s and it looks like he will go the way of Murali Vijay and be labeled a Test match specialist.

NAPIER, NEW ZEALAND – JANUARY 19: Suresh Raina of India bats during the first One Day International match between New Zealand and India at McLean Park on January 19, 2014 in Napier, New Zealand. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images)

The case of Suresh Raina is even more perplexing. Being the seasoned campaigner that he is, Raina has been off-colour for too long now. His overseas record is perhaps the poorest among the specialist batsmen and given the World Cup being in Australia and New Zealand, the selectors will be tempted to look beyond one of India’s ODI mainstays in recent years.

It brings us to the replacements. Dhoni needs a reliable batsmen who can bat one down and allow Kohli to come in at number 4 and score freely. He also needs to move himself up one slot and let another aggressive batsman take the number 6 spot and give finishing touches to the innings while setting it up or chasing a total down. Enter Cheteshwar Pujara and Ambati Rayadu.

JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – DECEMBER 21: Cheteshwar Pujara of India walks off after being dismissed for 153 runs during day 4 of the 1st Test match between South Africa and India at Bidvest Wanderers Stadium on December 21, 2013 in Johannesburg, South Africa. (Photo by Duif du Toit/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

It is a travesty that Pujara still can’t figure in India’s ODI plans given the failures of the recently tried and tested. He is easily India’s best Test batsman and has an impressive List A record. While there are understandable concerns given his fitness in general, it is high time that the management bite the bullet and draft Pujara in at number 3. Now, imagine Pujara, Kohli and Dhoni batting together in an ODI.

Similarly, Rayadu has paid his dues by warming the bench for enough time. Slot him in at 6 and expect him to perform a role similar to that of Raina before his horror run began. Given the failures of Yuvraj and Raina in recent times, Rayudu is the best man standing.

The spinners

Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin might have been the stars of the third ODI against New Zealand, but Dhoni will want more of their bowling skills to be on display. The spinners have long been India’s trump card given the relative weakness of the fast bowlers; but with the conditions in Australia-New Zealand and the latest ODI rules in play, this seems to have been neutralized.

Jadeja is still largely disciplined but is prone to expensive spells now and then. Ashwin has had an even worse time in ODIs, having taken a solitary wicket in recent times. Amit Mishra and Pragyan Ojha are in the wings, but given their track record in ODIs, there doesn’t seem to be many options for the team management.

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – JANUARY 25: Ravindra Jadeja of India celebrates with teammates after taking the wicket of Martin Guptill of New Zealand during the One Day International match between New Zealand and India at Eden Park on January 25, 2014 in Auckland, New Zealand. (Photo by Anthony Au-Yeung/Getty Images)

Ultimately, the third ODI serves as reminder why Dhoni would rather have Ashwin and Jadeja in the playing XI. It doesn’t look like spin is going to have a major say during the World cup; might as well have two spinners who can bat a bit and save India from situations like the one they faced yesterday. So, for now, India might just have to accept that Ashwin and Jadeja are the frontline spinners for the near future.

The pace bowlers

Easily, the weakest link of the Indian team. Opposition batsmen seem to be licking their lips when it’s their turn to pad up against the Indian pacers, and why not? Ishant Sharma is possibly the worst “spearhead” in International cricket and the likes of Shami, Bhuvneshar and Mohit Sharma are all one-dimensional.

India does have speedsters in Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav, but their profligacy in conceding runs removes them as a credible threat. Shami has done well in recent times, but is not averse to a bad day every other game. Bhuvneshwar is possibly the next best, but given his decline in consistency, that’s not very reassuring either. This leaves Dhoni with a big headache and the team in need of at least one experienced seamer in the side.

COLOMBO, SRI LANKA – SEPTEMBER 28: Zaheer Khan of India bowls during the super eight match between Australia and India held at R. Premadasa Stadium on September 28, 2012 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. (Photo by Pal Pillai/Getty Images)

Zaheer Khan has not figured in India’s ODI plans recently, but now is a good time as any for a comeback. The leaner, fitter Zaheer was on display during the Test series in South Africa, and while he didn’t really have the wickets to show for it, there is no doubt that he is still India’s best pace bowler currently.

Keeping the World Cup in mind, India could use Zak selectively and wisely like South Africa do with Dale Steyn. He could be the perfect mentor for the likes of Shami, Bhuvi and Aaron and help to form a decent bowling attack, which I’m sure the Indian batsmen will be grateful for.

So ideally, my best India XI, in batting oder, from here till the big tournament next year would be:

S Dhawan, R Sharma, C Pujara, V Kohli, MS Dhoni, A Rayadu, R Jadeja, R Ashwin, B Kumar, Z Khan, M Shami