Team India – Inconsistency can be injurious to the health of fans

The likes of Suresh Raina (L) and Rohit Sharma have to be more consistent

An amazing performance by Team India against Sri Lanka in the virtual semi-final.  Hats off to Bhuvneshwar Kumar, UmeshYadav, Ishant Sharma, and Ravi Ashwin for saving our face!

The expectations are sky-high right now. The feel good factor is spreading in the air like an epidemic. And why not? Our young and shining brigade of bowlers have once again repeated the miraculous performance after the Champions Trophy, which is really praiseworthy.

But wait, let us face the bitter ground realities. Every time luck is not going to favour team India. Sometimes we may snatch a victory on the basis of brilliant performances from the bowlers, but history defines it very clearly that it is a concrete batting line-up which usually lays foundation of a long lasting record of victories.

So, let us have a blunt look at the quality of batting being exhibited by our capable batsmen so far. To begin with the stylish Shikhar Dhawan is most suitable. As soon as it appears that he is going to play a big innings, he throws away his wicket cheaply. Even the commentators get surprised, the way he suddenly plays one shot in almost a naive manner.

Rohit Sharma, prior to his sparkling contributions in the IPL, was drawing a lot of criticism for not being consistent and for the countless chances given to him. But the way he led Mumbai Indians in the absence of Ricky Ponting was amazing. Therefore, most fans expect a lot more quick runs coming from his bat, which hasn’t happened. But still he can be considered dependable, provided he learns to play the short ball patiently and gets little faster in terms of strike rate.

Any follower of the game knows that Virat Kohli has got so much attention of the media and public alike that any veteran would be jealous. Honestly he deserves that and every Indian feels proud of his wonderful achievements. Now, this sudden responsibility of being the captain of team India is perhaps taking its toll. He has got an amazing level of confidence, but now apparently he seems to have come under pressure, which is clearly visible to many. No one dares to doubt his tremendous skills in the slightest, but the cause of concern is the inbuilt stress which comes with a package of being captain. I just want to highlight the case of veteran Sachin Tendulkar who couldn’t be a great captain.

Dinesh Karthik’s contributions have been very limited in this series. Even Sir Jadeja has not proved himself with the bat. Suresh Raina has been decent, but not good enough to lend consistency to the middle order.

To be a great team, as the Australians were for such a long time, a lot of things have to change for team India. We really need to handle pressure better, build a strong bench, and also be a little more focused when it comes to batting. Once the batting issues are sorted, I believe that there will be no looking back.

Bowling seems to be pretty good, led by Bhuvneshwar and Ashwin. Also, Yadav and Ishant have decent pace to sustain in the long run. In Jadeja, we also have a decent all-rounder. The need of the hour is to be more consistent with the bat in varied conditions. But right now, looking at the capabilities of Sri Lanka, the final seems a tougher match up than most people think. Anyway, best wishes for the final.