To say India’s build-up to this 2022 T20 World Cup has been interesting would be an understatement. This is team India we are talking about – the Men in Blue are always the centre of attention in whichever part of the world they might be playing. And this is a World Cup, a trophy India hasn’t won in quite some time.
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It is much the same story in Australia this time too. As India prepares for an all-important tournament opener against Pakistan in Melbourne, fans have descended from all parts of the world – within Australia, from India, from USA, and so on. You name any part of this globe and chance is you will find a fan-visitor from there. Hell, even Dutch tourists here are aware the World Cup is starting this weekend with Melbourne hosting a mega India-Pakistan clash on Sunday.
Of course, the interest peaked across the past few weeks when India suffered a dual injury blow. Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah both were ruled out across September and October, leaving India’s preparations in a lurch. In came Axar Patel, and Mohammed Shami, with major spotlight on the latter. So much so, he has been the focal point of India’s build-up to this T20 World Cup in the past couple weeks.
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“When Bumrah got injured, we always wanted someone experienced in the squad, and Shami was the right choice for us,” said skipper Rohit Sharma, on the eve of battle against Pakistan.
In some manner, it is a hard pill to swallow. Shami hasn’t played any T20Is since the last World Cup, and for good reason. After that embarrassment in the UAE, the Indian think-tank did move on. They tried many possibilities, ranging from T Natarajan to Avesh Khan, and Shami was not called up. He was always available, and indeed proved to be successful in the 2022 IPL as well.
20 wickets in 16 matches at average 24.40 for the Gujarat Titans, Shami equalled his best IPL outing previously. And this is where the weird bit comes in – the selectors and/or team management didn’t consider playing Bumrah/Shami together? It makes for some wonderment because the Australian conditions – with hard and bouncy pitches – are more suited to Shami than Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
With Shami’s prowess with the new ball, imagine him opening the bowling and Bumrah operating at the death. That would have arguably made for a more rounded attack than the options India exercised in the past 5-6 months. Fate though can have a laugh at times, and some how it has conspired to bring Shami to Australia. Only, Bumrah is missing and now India needs a revamp of its bowling plans.
We saw a hint of those plans as Shami bowled the last over against Australia in the first warm-up at Brisbane. Four wickets, and he set the mood alight. Yes, Shami’s yorkers are a thing and he can put them to good effect. But most of his white-ball success has been achieved with the new ball, or in the powerplays. Putting him in charge of the death overs is admittedly – by Rohit himself – a new ploy and it will take some getting used to.
So, the big question to ask ahead of India’s tournament opener against Pakistan is simply, if Shami will play? He is under-cooked, recovered late from Covid-19, arrived late in Australia, and hasn’t played a lot of T20 cricket recently. He bowled quite a bit in the optional nets on Friday but was absent on Saturday as the entire squad hit their straps in a four-hour session. If you want any pertinent hints, there were none.
Shami’s inclusion – or not – could have implications for the entire Indian attack. If he does play, you don’t need a spinner to bowl in the powerplay, thus allowing R Ashwin into the side. If he doesn’t play, then you might need Axar Patel to bowl in the powerplay. It is a heady situation, wherein match-ups take a back seat. Pakistan could field as many as three left-handed batsmen. Is Ashwin the best bet to take them on?
Patel’s inclusion, after Jadeja was ruled out, has mostly gone under the radar. In a way, that’s a good thing. His success against Australia and South Africa was important. Axar performed a multitude of roles in those three games, including picking up wickets consistently and bowling in the powerplay. From a bowling perspective alone, he brings more to the table. But when you consider batting, and fielding of course, Patel lags far behind.
Forget fielding, for the entire team is struggling in that regard at the moment and not just Patel. It is the batting bit that concerns Patel’s selection as well. Without him, there is not a single left-hander in the line-up, assuming Rishabh Pant doesn’t play on Sunday. If you do believe in match-ups as Rohit does often, then that is another shocking oversight from the think-tank. Then again, if Axar does play, how much can he influence any particular game? Surely not as much as Jadeja could!
On Saturday, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya and Harshal Patel had a rigourous workout in the MCG nets. It was on par with what Shami and Arshdeep Singh did on Friday, as the duo took the day off. Dinesh Karthik and Axar Patel, who were also in Friday optional practice, were absent as well. Rohit Sharma was present, but he didn’t pick the bat in anger, having batted mainly on Friday.
“All of our players have been told to be ready, whether we consider particular matchups or not. If we have to make changes, we won’t shy away from changing those 1-2 players in the eleven,” said Rohit.
With 24 hours to go, it is really those one or two spots that India needs to decide on.
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