India succumbed a T20I series defeat against West Indies, following an eight-wicket loss in the final match, which was played on Sunday, 13 August. The defeat has raised questions over India’s preparation for the upcoming 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup, although, head coach Rahul Dravid clarified they will field a 'different' squad for that competition.
“The squad that we had here, it didn't allow us the flexibility to have the combination to allow us to make the changes. Our (World Cup) squad will be a little different to what we have here," Dravid said after the game.
Meanwhile, he also rued the lack of batting depth in the team, with the likes of Arshdeep Singh and Kuldeep Yadav being India's options for number eight during this series.
“Finding depth in our batting is an area that we are trying to address and do as best as we possibly can. But that's certainly an area that we need to look at, how we can not weaken our bowling attack but have a certain depth in our batting that can go deeper,” said Dravid.
While many experienced players were underwhelming in the series, promising debutants emerged as the silver lining for the team, with the likes of Tilak Varma and Mukesh Kumar making a name for themselves.
Speaking about the debutants, Dravid said “You get into any series wanting to win it, that's the first thing that we wanted to do. We didn't tick that off. We didn't win the series, that was a disappointment. Other than that, there were some young guys we wanted to try out, wanted to give them opportunities in the series,” he said.
“We gave a few debuts in the series. There were other people as well that we trialled out in different combinations. From that perspective, there were some positives, some tick marks from some of the players,” he further added.
India will now be competing in a three-match T20I series against Ireland, which will be starting on 18 August. The team will be led by Jasprit Bumrah, who is making a comeback after a prolonged injury layoff, with Sitanshu Kotak handling coaching duties.
(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.)