The Indian team has reached Australia and is currently playing practice matches in order to acclimatise to the conditions. Having not won a single International world event since the 2013 Champions League win, India has travelled to the Australian shores to bring about a change in their fortunes.
The Rohit Sharma-led side would be hoping to forget the Asia Cup 2022 loss and come up with a memorable performance in the country down under. Former India head coach Ravi Shastri’s comments about India’s batting lineup could go a long way in solidifying the team’s confidence.
During an event at the Mumbai Press Club, Shahtri lauded India’s batting as the best he has ever seen in T20I cricket. “I have been part of the system for the last six-seven years, first as a coach and now I am watching from the outside, and I think this is as good a line-up as India has ever had in T20 cricket,” the former India head coach said.
He laid emphasis on the importance of India’s middle order in allowing top-order batters to play freely. “With Surya (Yadav) at No.4, Hardik (Pandya) at No.5 and Rishabh Pant or Dinesh Karthik at No.6 it makes a massive difference as it allows the top order to play the way they are playing, “said the 60-year-old.
Uninspiring bowling and substandard fielding
Shastri was however critical of India’s fielding efforts. “One area India will have to pick up and start right from the beginning is fielding,” said Shastri, who coached India to the top of Test rankings. “Those 15-20 runs you save will make all the difference because otherwise every time you go out to bat, you will have to get those extra run,” Ravi Shastri feared.
While India’s batting looks settled, it is the bowling department that continues to get major setbacks. Earlier Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja were ruled out due to respective injuries. Later Deepak Chahar was also excluded from the squad due to a back injury. With Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Harshal Patel not in form and Mohammad Shami having not played a T20I match for a long time, there are dark clouds over India’s bowling lineup.
India begins their world cup campaign with their first game against Pakistan on 23rd October at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
