Against World No. 9 West Indies, who had to go through the qualifiers for 2019 World Cup, World No. 1 India begin their final round of preparation for next year’s showpiece event hoping to fix whatever anomalies there may be. The two play the first of the five ODIs at the Bhupen Hazarika Stadium on Sunday. According to skipper Virat Kohli, things are hunky dory with just the No. 4 batting spot a point of bother. Perhaps an equal cause of worry is the lack of a strong finisher.
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Kohli eyes new milestone
Indian captain Virat Kohli is back at the helm for the ODI team. After the break he received in the Asia Cup, he will now lead India as the hosts take on the West Indies in a five-match ODI series. It will be business as usual for the Indian captain, for when he walks out to bat, he will be on the cusp of breaking several records. He is now 187 runs away from becoming the leading run-scorer for India against West Indies in ODIs. Currently, Sachin Tendulkar holds the record with 1573 runs. Kohli also needs 221 runs to complete 10000 ODI runs. If he does breach the number, he will join Sachin Tendulkar (18426 runs), Sourav Ganguly (11363 runs), Rahul Dravid (10889 runs) and MS Dhoni (10123 runs) in the elite list.
Middle-order puzzle
India’s middle order is a problem, it has been a problem, and if the same hymn is sung, it will continue to be a problem. Since the start of 2018, India have tried 11 batsmen between 4-7 batting positions in ODIs, and yet the positions are as vulnerable as they were before the start of the year. In 15 matches this year, India’s middle order has been, quite simply put, the worst. They have laboured to 796 runs at an average of 25.67 and with a strike rate of 79. Only one batsman has managed to post a score in excess of 50 runs, and he is Ajinkya Rahane. Yes, he is not part of India’s ODI ambitions at the moment! The team has been successful in coloured clothing primarily because the top order has plundered away 64.15% of the total runs since 2017. And now, lets scroll down. The batsman waddling out from number 4 to number 7 have contributed 22.37% to the team runs in ODIs in 2018. Such is the wide gulf in the contribution that is amazing the team management has not rejigged the entire order.
Kohli impressed by Khaleel
India skipper Virat Kohli spoke about young left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed, who has been named as the 12th man for Sunday’s match, and said it’s good to see someone coming up the ranks after a long time since the retirement of Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra. “We don’t want to leave any bases uncovered. We thought bringing a left-arm pacer into the mix will give us enough variety. He has the ability to swing both ways and get good bounce as well. He also bowls at a decent pace,” he said. Kohli said his front-line pace duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah will feed off on the variety provided by Khaleel. “It’s always an added luxury to have him (Ahmed) in the team. Definitely he makes the job easier for Bhuvi and Bumrah,” Kohli said.
Pant ready for action
After impressing in Test cricket, young wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant could well be handed a debut in the first match of the ODI series against West Indies in Guwahati. Pant, who has been prolific with the bat in the last three Test innings, took to Twitter and posted a message which is a great hint about him getting the ODI cap in the first match. “Always ready to give my 100 per cent on a cricket field. Cannot wait to take on the West Indies in the first ODI on Sunday! #IndiaVsWestIndies #comingup,” he wrote on Twitter.
Middle-order woes
India captain Virat Kohli on Saturday said his side’s middle-order puzzle will be solved if Ambati Rayudu cements his place at the crucial No. 4 position in the matches ahead of next year’s World Cup. Kohli said the challenge was only to find someone for the No. 4 slot and with Rayudu stepping up for that position in recent times, the batting order was more or less settled. “The only position we were trying to figure out was number four for a long time. We tried many players who unfortunately could not capitalise or cement their places in a way we wanted,” Kohli said ahead of the first one-dayer against the West Indies on Sunday. “With Rayudu coming in and playing well in the Asia Cup, it’s about giving him enough game time till the World Cup so that the particular slot will be sorted for us,” he added.
Hello and welcome
A formidable India will hope to get more answers for their unresolved middle-order puzzle when they take on a reeling West Indies in the five-match ODI series starting on Sunday, ticking off the home team’s countdown to the 2019 World Cup. The World Cup in England is less than eight months away and India have 18-odd games left to decide their middle order, mainly the number four position where many have been tried but with little success. The series will also mark captain Virat Kohli’s return to white-ball cricket as he had taken a much needed break during the team’s triumphant campaign in Asia Cup. Kohli is expected try out a new combination in the middle order that will see Rishabh Pant make his ODI debut, following his exploits in the longest format. The focus once again will be on MS Dhoni, whose batting ability is on the wane and with limited playing time in the middle, the job gets only tougher for the legendary cricketer. However, chief selector MSK Prasad has time and again said that Dhoni remains the first choice wicketkeeper at least till the World Cup.
Source: HindustanTimes