Spin to be key to success for India

Another big plus has been the return to form of Rohit Sharma

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2 MIN READ

India open their campaign to regain the ICC World T20 Cup on Ganesh Chaturthi, the Hindu festival, against Afghanistan today (Weds). How auspicious that is, only time will tell. They begin with the game against minnows Afghanistan, but they know that in this format, anybody can spring a surprise.

The format of the game is also such that no team will try too many experiments. The margin between teams is very slim, so don’t expect too many changes.

India’s biggest plus will be in the spin department. This is why the selection committee has brought back Harbhajan Singh. He may not get a look in with Ashwin being the main bowler in the team now, but it is an option the skipper has.

The warm-up matches and the loss to Pakistan revealed the deficiencies in the attack. India have invariably gone for plenty in the final overs because there is no variety in the bowling. Trying slower deliveries is never easy and requires much practice, and this is where India seem one-dimensional.

The big plus has been the return to form of Rohit Sharma. Here is a player who has shots all round the dial, but whose shot selection has let him down at times. Sometimes it is better to have a limited range of shots so that the player focuses on those.

Being an elegant batsman with time to spare to play strokes is a curse, especially when a player is going through horrors. To the outsider, it could seem that he is not putting in enough work. This is far from true because nobody likes to fail, especially when playing for the country.

Virat Kohli continues to be in good form and he is smart enough to know that form is a fickle mistress and can desert a player any time. So he is making the most of his time and not throwing it away.

The ICC One-Day player of the year award will no doubt galvanise and make him strive to live up to that billing.

The openers are the main worry at the moment for India, but both Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir are big-match players and relish the contest against top opponents. If they bat for 10 overs, India could well be on the way to a near 200 score.

India will be looking to win big because that will also send a signal to the rest that the original champions are back and they mean business.

 

 

 

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