ICC Champions Trophy 2017: Virat Kohli needs to stick to what's worked for him, believes Rahul Dravid

What’s the story

Former India skipper and all-time great, Rahul Dravid has advised India captain Virat Kohli to avoid making changes ahead of India’s Champions Trophy final clash with Pakistan. He recommends sticking to what has worked for India in the past.

Dravid listed chasing as a strong option, given India’s strength in hunting down big scores. The India U19 coach went on to talk batting strategy, Pakistan’s bowling attack, and warned the Indian captain of a much improved Pakistani lineup on Sunday, saying that they’ve learned from the last time they played India.

"I think Virat has to stick to what's worked well for him. India loves chasing, we saw that today. They have got some really experienced players who have played in big pressure games, they know how to handle these kind of situations and I think this is a tactic that works for them," Dravid said.

The Context

India outplayed Pakistan at Edgbaston on the 4th of June this year, winning by 124 runs (DLS Method). India batted first in that game and piled on 319 in 48 overs before Pakistan collapsed for just 164 runs.

However, since then, Pakistan took down no.1 ranked team South Africa in a rain-affected match at The Oval, beat Sri Lanka in a nailbiter in Cardiff, and thumped tournament favourites England by 8 wickets in the semi-final, which was also at Cardiff.

India, after their trouncing of Pakistan, lost to Sri Lanka convincingly, before bouncing back with thorough wins over South Africa and Bangladesh in somewhat similar fashions. In all of India’s games, their opening pair has started slowly, before increasing the run rate gradually, often ending with hard hitting at the back end of the innings.

Their bowlers have been key, and the only game they conceded more than 270, India lost. Pakistan’s comeback has rested on the tournament’s highest wicket-taker, Hasan Ali, as well as some neat performances with the bat from their middle and top order.

The heart of the matter

Dravid defended India’s slow start in the powerplay by saying that we had plenty of firepower in the middle order in Hardik, MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh and Kedar Jadhav, all of whom have contributed this tournament, or in the warm-ups. He also said that India must play spin well in the middle overs, and keep wickets intact.

He also said that anything above 280 would be difficult to chase for India’s northerly neighbours. For Pakistan, he said that the experienced members of the team, Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez, would have to perform if they were to succeed.

About Pakistan’s new-found talent he attributed Hasan Ali’s success to the lines and lengths he bowled, encouraging batsmen to drive, which got him wickets in English conditions.

What’s next

India are unlikely to make changes ahead of the final. Their general strategy has been to stick with their team and it should not be any different for the encounter with Pakistan. The bowling combination, of two seamers, two spinners and a seam-bowling allrounder has worked for them in the past two matches and there is little to indicate that India will change that.

Dravid’s advice too, will carry heavy credence in the Indian dressing room, given the respect the team has for the former captain.

Authors take

Dravid’s advice to India is spot on. They need not make any unexpected changes and go along with what has brought them this far. However, playing two spinners on a very true pitch may not be a good call, especially as Pakistan are good players of spin.

Hardik Pandya, while he may go for runs, will be invaluable with the bat on such a pitch, especially with a strong Pakistani bowling attack.