ICC Cricket World Cup 2019- What is the one chink in India's armor?

India is a formidable side, who go into the World Cup as one of the favorites. With a leader like Virat Kohli and the influence of MS Dhoni, they can certainly go all the way in the big event. Having toured England only a few months ago, the Indians are familiar with the conditions. In the run-up to the World Cup, most areas in the squad are checked or are still being tested. However, there is still one issue that can give sleepless nights to the team management.

The team's batting department is more or less settled. Though some spots have not been cemented, it looks like those should be decided in the ongoing series against Australia. There are still some question marks on Kedar Jadhav, Vijay Shankar, and Ambati Rayudu's spot. In the wicketkeeping department, there is a toss-up between Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant to deputize for MS Dhoni. The latter definitely has the better chance as Karthik is not part of the ODI team against Australia.

This leaves only the bowling unit to be determined. While, There is no doubt that the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar will make it to the squad. It is also certain that the duo of Yuvzendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav will lead the spin department. But there is still trouble for Virat Kohli here.

Umesh Yadav has looked out of sorts in limited overs cricket

The team's real concern is if any of them are out of form or get injured, who would be their replacement. Unfortunately, there is no definite answer visible to this question. India has tried out Khaleel Ahmed and Mohammed Siraj in the last few months but both have failed to impress or produce an eye-catching performance. Even Umesh Yadav has looked out of sorts in the shorter formats off late as his final over in the first T20 against Australia showed. The bench-strength in the fast bowling unit is definitely weak and a big concern.

With the World Cup in England, where the pitches may not take too much of turn and whether Kuldeep and Chahal can play together is also a question mark. Due to this, there will be a lot of pressure on the pace trio. If the team needs all three to play to play together, they need to have an option to rotate them with. One does not see a reliable personnel for that role at the moment. The men in blue will have to find answers to this and with only five ODI's left before the WC, this is definitely a chink in India's armor