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Australia Series Leaves India With More Questions Than Answers

All the questions India started the Aus series with are still unanswered. Only now, there are a few new ones.

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Within a week, the Indian cricket team has gone from being favourites for the World Cup to being a side that looks unsettled and unbalanced.

The last series before the World Cup for Virat Kohli’s boys was meant to be one where existing issues were resolved, spots sealed and faults rectified. Instead, as the side succumbed to a 3-2 loss after being 2-0 up against Australia, a Pandora’s Box has been forced open, which leaves the Men in Blue with more questions than answers ahead of the biennial event.

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India’s first home series loss since 2015 can be excused as the five games were merely a dress-rehearsal for the tournament in England. They admittedly did not play their best eleven in order to accommodate the reserve players and to give them as many chances before the selectors got down to picking the final 15. However, issues have only been confounded further with no clear solution to either their middle order woes or the best possible combination.

The dependence on the top three has been accentuated, an all-rounder’s slot is still up for grabs and the management’s reading of the ground and pitch conditions have been questionable as well.

Though Shikhar Dhawan’s return to form during the course of the series cut back the list, the fact of the matter is that Virat Kohli’s men will be landing in England well aware that unless they are on top of their game throughout, they might be prone to mediocrity.

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Pant, Rayudu Failed to Seal Number 4 Slot

With Dinesh Karthik overlooked for the series, the toss-up between number 4 was between Ambati Rayudu and Rishabh Pant. The former is the most consistent player for India at the position in the last 24 months – playing 15 matches at 4 whilst scoring 431 runs at an average of 42.18. However, a below-par start to the series where he managed only 33 runs in three matches saw him being replaced by Lokesh Rahul in Mohali.

The wicket-keeper batsman, though vastly talented, has the knack of blowing away his chances, which is exactly what he did, scoring 26 runs off 31 deliveries after the openers had handed India a fine start.

Though Pant, coming in to bat at 5 at Mohali and at 4 at Delhi, did fare reasonably well, scoring a 24-ball 36 at Mohali and following it up with a run-a-ball 16 at Delhi, his inability to mould his innings according to the situation was on display, which might just see him missing the flight to England.

If that is the case and Karthik edges him in the final 15, either Karthik or Rayudu look the best possible bet at 4, followed by MS Dhoni. However, it is not necessarily a threatening combination, and rival bowlers will be eager to send back India’s top three early before they make inroads in the middle order.

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Team India might even be tempted to push Vijay Shankar up the order, given his recent exploits with the bat in the series. However, stacking up specialists is always recommended, and one of the reasons for India’s failure in the ODIs against Australia was their eagerness to field as many as three all-rounders in the 11, with just four specialist batters at Delhi. After the top 4 was out dismissed with the scorecard reading 91 for 3, India missed the expertise of a proper batsmen who could pace the innings accordingly. At best then, there might be a toss-up between Shankar and Hardik Pandya, with Ravindra Jadeja, who is not the batsman he once was, making way.

All the questions India started the Aus series with are still unanswered. Only now, there are a few new ones.
Indian cricketers celebrate Mohammed Shami’s wicket during the 5th ODI against Australia.
(Photo: AP)

Positives Despite Defeat

However, with the concerns, there were a number of positives as well, with the emergence of India’s pace bowling unit being the highlight. Jasprit Bumrah is currently the world’s best, and once he gets together with Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami, India will have a varied pace attack that can wreak havoc in conditions in England. The return of form of India’s openers and the assured presence of Kedar Jadhav in the team should also inspire confidence and it is now up to the management to choose the best 11 around these star performers.

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However, the Indian camp should be wary of the mistakes they have committed with regards to reading the pitch and the conditions. At the Lord’s Test last year, Team India fielded Kuldeep Yadav along with Ravichandran Ashwin when the home side opted for an all-seam attack. It proved to be a massive blunder as India were shot down twice to concede an innings defeat. Even in the recent series against Australia, India failed to read the conditions at Ranchi and Mohali, which proved to be their downfall. With a number of permutations available, it then will be crucial to get a feel of the track – to decipher whether a four seam attack with Pandya or Shankar will be the best way forward or whether Chahal should come in to strengthen the spin attack.

What the final 15 will be is not yet clear, and with Kohli stating that the side still has question marks over a spot, the Australia series has not quite managed to do what Team India had expected it to. However, this side is one of the most successful units in the last few years, winning despite these gnawing issues. Very often, the team that holds its nerves in crucial junctures is the one that emerges victorious, and Team India would hope that they can do just that in England.

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(Sarah Waris is a postgraduate in English Literature has taken on the tough task of limiting the mystic world of cricket to a few hundred words. She spends her hours gorging on food and blabbering nineteen to the dozen while awaiting the next Indian sporting triumph.)

(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)

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