2019 World Cup: 3 reasons why India should play both Kuldeep and Chahal in the XI

India rewrote quite a few records on the tour Down Under which started with their first-ever Test series triumph and ended on a high when they clinched maiden bilateral ODI series victory against Australia in their own backyard.

After losing the first match at Sydney Cricket Ground, Kohli’s men bounced back strongly to win the next two at Adelaide Oval and Melbourne Cricket Ground respectively, thus becoming only the second team in the last 30 years to win both Test and ODI series in the same tour of Australia.

With only a few months away from the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, India look well-oiled and prepared and have ticked most of the boxes going into the mega event in England and Wales.

While India were hampered with the non-availability of few players due to off-field controversies, most of the other contenders who might be a part of the squad for the World Cup were given few games to prove themselves in the 3-match ODI series.

Let's focus on one such option who was tried only in the final ODI at MCG which was a bit surprising to quite a few experts considering Australia's weakness against leg spin. Yes, I am talking about Yuzvendra Chahal, who replaced left-arm chinaman Kuldeep Yadav.

Talk of making the most of every opportunity, the wiry bowler grabbed it with both hands as he bamboozled the Aussie batsmen with flight and guile. His 6-wicket haul was not only match-winning but also good enough to win him the man of the match award.

While the balance of the side is important in ODIs, India should look to accommodate both the wrist spinning option in the XI during the World Cup. Here are the three key reasons why this could prove the difference for men in blue.

#1 Wickets in the middle overs will be the key

Over the last couple of years, pitches used for ODIs in England have been unbelievably in favour of the batsmen in which 350 has almost become a par score and hence we could be in for a very high scoring World Cup.

The two new balls which are used in ODIs these days will only swing for the first few overs, after which it becomes easy for the batsmen to hit through the line.

The teams which do well with the ball during the middle overs (overs 11-40), the second powerplay that allows the fielding captain to have a maximum of only 4 fielders outside the 30-yard circle, will certainly have an upper hand in most of the games.

The teams which goes defensive during this period will be on the backfoot because picking up wickets is the only way to keep the opposition’s run rate down and this is where India is blessed to have two quality wrist spin bowling options who are generally wicket takers on any kind of surfaces.

#2 Applies pressure from both ends

Partnerships are key for not only batsmen but also plays a crucial role for the bowlers as well. Over the years, the likes of Ambrose-Walsh, Wasim-Waqar and McGrath-Warne, to name a few have hunted in pairs to be successful in all forms of the game.

Its very important to keep the runs down from both the ends, which will only result in batsmen playing a rash stroke while trying to up the scoring rate. This gives golden opportunity to pick wickets because a wrist spinner becomes doubly dangerous when the batsmen are looking to play attacking shots.

India can apply pressure from either end if both Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav play in the XI and bowl in tandem. The middle overs could be very challenging to force the pace for the opposition especially teams like Australia and South Africa who have a clear weakness against wrist spin even in good batting conditions.

#3. Both tend to do well when they play together

After India lost the Champions Trophy final against Pakistan in 2017, India decided to move away from finger spinners in white ball cricket, who are known for restricting the run-scoring rather than picking wickets.

The likes of Ashwin and Jadeja, who are very successful in Test cricket were not preferred anymore and in came the wrist spinners, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal. Immediately, the team started to reap benefits as both started picking key wickets in the middle to stem the momentum of batting sides.

Kuldeep has played in 12 ODIs without Chahal in the XI and his return has been 18 wickets at 25.27 at an economy rate of 4.50. The numbers get even more impressive while he is playing alongside Chahal; 51 wickets from 23 matches at 19.80 and an economy rate of 4.97. Its the same with Chahal as his numbers too are impressive when he plays alongside Kuldeep Yadav.

The spin duo has played in 23 games so far and have picked up 87 wickets at an impressive average of 22.69 and a mind-boggling economy of only 4.88 which is like gold dust for any captain in this day and age.

These numbers clearly suggest that both Kuldeep and Chahal should play together in the XI to cause headaches to batting sides at the World Cup.