Tag: Rohit Sharma

Cricket World Cup: Here’s why India are strong contenders for a third title

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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It’s not often that India begin a tournament as genuine contenders. However, when the Indian team begin their quest for a third Cricket World Cup with their opening match against South Africa on 5 June, the anticipation among the fans to see Virat Kohli with the winners’ trophy at Lord’s will be genuine.

Thirty-six years since a beaming Kapil Dev held the trophy aloft on the Lord’s balcony to spark a nation’s imagination and eight years after Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men reclaimed the crown at home, India goes into the tournament as strong favourites to complete the troika.

Since their semi-final exit four years ago, India has assembled a formidable side that is adept at chasing down the most daunting of totals as well as restricting the most vaunted line-ups under manageable targets.

While batting has been India’s traditional strength, this year they possess the best bowling attack of any team in the tournament. Quite a rarity for Indian cricket. Led by the strapping Jasprit Bumrah, Indian bowling has the depth and variety to cause severe damage to any batting order.

While the quality of the personnel is not in doubt, it will all boil down the team’s ability to handle the pressure. India will enjoy an atmosphere akin to their home grounds thanks to the sizeable Indian expatriate population on the English Isle, and they will hope the fans provide motivation when the going gets tough and not weigh them down with expectations.

Depth in batting

The onus of getting the runs on the board will be on the top-three of Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Kohli. Dhawan enjoys a good ODI record in England and India will hope for his opening act with Sharma to lay a solid platform for the rest of the batsmen to follow. Kohli at number 3 is a sight most teams would want to avoid. The world number 1 batsman across Test and ODI formats, has amassed a stunning 21 hundreds in successful run chases and will be expected to continue his peerless consistency in England.

Kohli downwards, India’s lack of a fixed option at number 4 has been well documented. However, a timely hundred in the warm up game against Bangladesh on Tuesday appears to have sealed the spot in favour of KL Rahul.

The middle order will be marshalled by the imperious Dhoni. The veteran wicket-keeper batsman averages an astonishing 105 in successful chases. He was in great nick in the Indian Premier League (IPL), scoring 416 runs at an average above 83 and has continued in the same vein in the practice games in England. Apart from his nonpareil work behind the stumps, Dhoni remains the bulwark of Indian batting if the top-order fails.

On the evidence of the recent ODI series against Australia and New Zealand, Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav can be depended upon to keep the scoreboard ticking and remain nerveless even in the most difficult of run chases.

Imperious bowling attack

Bumrah, perhaps the most innocuous fast bowler to grace Indian cricket, has been sensational over the last couple of years. After his initial struggles, the pacer has cemented his place in the Indian white-ball side and is an ace up captain Kohli’s sleeve. Bumrah has the ability to swing it both ways at a deceptive pace and his unconventional action makes him even harder for the batsmen to pick.

Bumrah’s opening act with Bhuvneshwar Kumar should be a treat for the fans. Kumar, albeit slower than India’s pace spearhead, has the consistency and the ability to swing the ball that will make him difficult to play in English conditions. Mohammed Shami as the third pacer will not allow the batsmen any room for letting their guard down consistently touching the 90 miles per hour mark. If his form on the tours of Australia and New Zealand is any indication, Shami will be a real handful.

The spinner’s slot in the side will go to one of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal, both of whom have the ability to keep it tight in the middle overs and provide valuable breakthroughs.

The key man

Hardik Pandya, who was dropped from the team after his uncharitable comments about women on national television earlier this year, has returned to cricket with a vengeance. His form — both with the bat and the bowl — was a big reason for Mumbai Indians’ successful IPL run.

Pandya will be expected to provide the late fireworks and add 20-30 extra runs to the team total. His form bodes well for a side that lacks the six-hitting firepower in the middle that teams like the West Indies, England and Australia have in plenty.

The team will likely opt for four specialist bowlers, meaning Pandya will be expected to come good with the ball as well.

Realistic expectations

The tournament format ensures that a one-off upset won’t account for much and the strongest four sides will reach the business end of the quadrennial event. India will fancy their chances of making the semis, however, exiting at that stage will be considered a disappointing outcome. For the passionate fans at home, nothing short of being at Lord’s on 14 July will do.

The squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain) Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni (wicket-keeper), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Cricket World Cup: From India to West Indies — here’s how the contenders stack up (Part I)

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The 2019 Cricket World Cup has been truncated to just ten teams, leading to criticism from some fans who fear the lack of aspiring cricketing nations is not good for the reach of the gentleman’s game.

On the other hand, with just the ten strongest teams in the fray, all matches are expected to be tightly contested. This year the format will see each team play the other in a round-robin format before the top four qualify for the semis. The revamped format will eliminate the impact of one-off upsets and ensure the strongest teams will be there at the business end of the tournament.

In this first of the two-part analysis, we look at how India, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and West Indies stack up.

India — Genuine contenders for a third title

The two-time world champions are strong contenders to add a third world title in England. Virat Kohli is at the helm of a well-balanced side with few chinks in the armour. In Rohit Sharma, India have a batsman with a flair for scoring big hundreds at a scorching pace while his opening partner Shikhar Dhawan enjoys a great record in England. Kohli has been the biggest batting star in the game for quite some time and will be the bulwark of a stellar batting line-up.

Finisher par excellence Mahendra Singh Dhoni has come into his own after a brief slump last year and will look to go out on a high with a third world title in his glittering career. The all-round abilities of Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja and Kedar Jadhav will give the team management the liberty to add an extra bowler or batsman depending upon the conditions.

India possess the most versatile bowling attack of the tournament. Jasprit Bumrah has established himself as the premium fast bowler in the world with his variations, pace and toe-crushing yorkers, all-powerful weapons that have held him in good stead in the death overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar swings it both ways and Mohammed Shami brings scorching pace and bowling nous. Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav’s ability to keep it tight while being wicket-taking threats adds another dimension to the Indian unit.

On pitches that could pass as highways and stadiums packed with expatriate population, India will feel at home in England. This has the making of an Indian summer.

South Africa — Not the strongest Proteas side

South Africa, the perennial underachievers of the cricketing world, have endured more heartbreaks than the Stark family without any of the coronations. Four years ago they suffered another crushing exit after New Zealand chased down a record total with some late heroics from Grant Eliott in their semi-final. The captain Faf du Plessis won’t lead the strongest South Africa squad at a World Cup but on their day they can beat anyone.

The veteran Hashim Amla hasn’t been his former self, showing signs of slowing down. One of the modern greats, Amla will open the batting with Quinton de Kock, a marauding batsman who will enjoy batting on the flat English pitches. Du Plessis will have to shoulder the responsibility of steadying the ship in the middle order while David Miller, Chris Morris and Andile Phehlukwayo will need to push the total beyond the reach of their opponents.

Like Amla, Dale Steyn is also getting on a bit. The most dangerous bowler at the peak of his powers, Steyn has struggled for fitness. However, Kagiso Rabada’s progress has ensured raw pace will not be in short supply despite Steyn’s struggles, while Imran Tahir will bring the goods with his wily spin.

Sri Lanka — A team in flux

Sri Lanka remain a team in transition. They haven’t found their feet since the retirement of stalwarts like Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, and Tillakaratne Dilshan after the last World Cup. However, they showed some signs of reversal when Dimuth Karunaratne led the team to a historic Test series win in South Africa earlier this year before their challenge in the five ODIs came a cropper as they were whitewashed 5-0 by the Proteas.

Karunaratne will look to provide stability at the top of the order and will hope for the likes of Isuru Udana, Thisara Perera, and Angelo Mathews to capitalise in the middle. On the bowling front, Lasith Malinga remains their biggest star. The 35-year-old no longer retains the pace of his best days but his guile is intact. His ability to mix them up still outfox the best of batsmen but Sri Lanka’s fortunes will depend on the quality of his support act.

The 1996 world champions will realistically hope to defeat some of the big names but reaching the semi-finals in the tournament’s current avatar will likely prove a step too far.

Bangladesh — There to change perceptions

Bangladesh had their best World Cup showing in 2015 when they reached the quarter-finals in Australia, progressing ahead of England in their group. Two years later, they went a step further and reached the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy. However, despite their tendency of punching above their weight, they are still seen as relative lightweights.

Their cricketing prowess, however, has improved rapidly. For years being the whipping boys they have registered some big bilateral wins at home, including scalping India, Pakistan and South Africa in the period since the last World Cup. Shakib Al Hasan is among the best all-rounders in the game, while Mushfiqur Rahim, Tamim Iqbal, and Mahmudullah are all quality batsmen.

On the bowling front, Mustafizur Rahman and Rubel Hossain will lead the attack while the team’s most successful bowlers, Shakib and Mashrafe Mortaza, are vastly experienced campaigners.

Nevertheless, they are not expected to get very far in the tournament. Their affable skipper Mortaza captured the wider sentiment well when he said no one will pick them as favourites. “If you ask all the experts, analysts and former players about their favourites for this World Cup, none of them will pick us. I think we can change some perceptions if we can do something this time, more than how much it changed in the past. It is a great opportunity for us”, the captain told reporters in England.

Changing perceptions will be Bangladesh’s realistic target.

West Indies — Hard hitters aplenty

Once the royalty of cricket, the West Indies are showing signs of regeneration after years on the sidelines. The winners of the first two World Cups, they will go into the tournament on the back of encouraging displays at home against England. They smashed the English 2-1 in the Test series before holding the best ODI side in the world to a 2-2 draw in the 50-over series.

The return of Chris Gayle to the side has given their chances a big boost, while Andre Russell, the bludgeoner extraordinaire, burnished his reputation further with some lusty hitting in the last edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). In addition to these two, the Caribbean outfit has some very exciting youngsters in Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, and Oshane Thomas.

In the captain Jason Holder, West Indies have one of the most likeable characters in the game and no one will begrudge them if he ends up holding the coveted trophy on 14 July.

You can read Part II of the article here

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

The Triumph of Strategy: Mumbai Indians’ 2019 IPL victory shows how shrewd planning can sharpen competitiveness

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Mumbai Indians’ fourth IPL victory on Sunday was not a usual one. Captain Rohit Sharma’s side is generally considered slow-starters before gaining pace in the latter half of the tournament, but this season was rather different. They won four of their first six matches without even playing their best cricket.

But victory doesn’t happen by accident – not in world-class cricket. It requires the deliberate targeting of one’s areas of greatest strength; the shrewd selection of players; and the continuous upgrading of talent and skills.

Mumbai Indians’ victory was instead a triumph of strategy. Sound strategy cultivated a deep and broad pool of stars. And sound strategy forged them into a team with a mission and a plan. Sharma reminds us of the importance of planning and strategizing “to try something different.”

“We made a lot of such strategies through the tournament, and they helped us a lot,” the 32-year old captain told Mumbai Mirror in an interview published on Tuesday.

But building a strategy doesn’t occur in a day. It requires years of planning and study of rival teams.

“It started in 2013 when I became the captain after Ricky Ponting left the captaincy,” said Sharma.

“Ricky Ponting was a firm believer in it. He has won two Cups with Australia, and has been one of the most successful captains in the history of cricket. So he told me ‘that is what I used to do and it really worked for me.’ He said ‘try and see if you want to do this, or else whatever you want, we can do that.’ Slowly I started getting involved,” Sharma added.

When it comes to planning, one needs to focus on both the strengths and weaknesses of rival teams and how your team fares against the others. “I was sure that you cannot go into the game without planning; you need to know something about the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition, you need to know what happened when you played certain opposition. Some of the things you can pick up while you are planning are quite revealing,” Sharma explained.

The mission-to become IPL champion was certainly clear enough and big enough. But it was hardly unique. It motivated all teams, or at the very least the ones with a realistic shot, to plan before the matches.

“The way we plan for other batsmen, the same way others plan against us too … for me it was also about understanding the game. I have learnt so much in these past six years through planning. It has helped my game immensely,” said Sharma.

But captain Sharma’s advice to his fellow players was a simple one: to smile. “Whether we lose, whether we win, we have to smile,” the prolific opening batsman said.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow