The road ahead for India in ODIs

Wholesale changes are not required

A long and exhausting season has just gotten over for the Indian cricket team. It is fair to say that their work schedule (considering the pressure involved as well) is second only to that of lathe machines. While the latest result in Bangladesh might have given something for the connoisseurs to talk about, it will not be appropriate to go on a witch hunt as this was pretty much the same team that exceeded our expectations in the World Cup.

Moreover, their World Cup performance notwithstanding, they have been performing quite well over the past two years in the shorter formats of the game. Their Champions Trophy triumph, reaching the finals of the World T20 and winning the bilateral ODI series against England at their own backyard stand testimony to this fact apart from their ODI victories at home.

However, their series whitewash to South Africa and New Zealand can be seen as a major blip with several individuals underperforming. If one would have to sum up this team’s performance over these two years in a nutshell, their wins have been exceedingly good and their losses have been exceedingly bad.

Back in 2013, the selectors identified a group of players who’d form the core of the ODI team and they have largely stood by these players, for they are all young and talented and they have won matches singlehandedly on several occasions. It is quite appreciable from the players’ perspective as they would realize they have been valued and trusted with and from the fans’ perspective, it is always pleasing to see a settled unit with minimal chop and changes. But that is not to say there are no glitches going forward. Visibly, there are a few areas of concern that the team management might want to look into.

Issues to be addressed

Now that the season is over and there are three more months before India play their next ODI (considering the Zimbabwe tour is doubtful and even if it is on, selectors are likely to pick a second-string squad), the selectors and the captain might want to look at the few areas that are clouding their passage forward. An entire overhaul need not be the mandate, but a few smart changes would fill up the fissures.

To begin with, the selectors need to take a call on Ajinkya Rahane and his place in the side. His place seems to be a surety in the squad of 15, but a player of his stature deserves more than bench warming. However, MS Dhoni is clearly not in favor of his selection in the starting XI. While his comments about Rahane’s inability to rotate the strike might have come as a shocker for a few, it is also true that Rahane’s performances in the middle order have not been up to the mark.

What does the future hold for Rahane in ODIs?

His meteoric rise in Test cricket (where he plays at no.5) led to the stabilization of his position in ODIs as well after Yuvraj Singh fell off the radar. With the solitary slot available, he was left with the only option of remodeling his play to suit the middle order. Being a specialist opener, he has since struggled to rotate the strike coming in at no.4. With Rohit Sharma firming up his position as an opener with a few good performances, Rahane’s position in the side has now become turbulent.

To be honest, Rahane is too good a player to be left out of the side. His skills as an opener need to be embellished and he cannot be made scapegoat owing to unavailability of an opening slot. Rohit Sharma, while being adequate as an opener, has not been prolific. He was found out in trying conditions against better oppositions and is not a natural opener. He was asked to open at a time when no one else was in the fray and he lapped it up.

Interchange positions

Now that Rahane is in the wings, it might not be a bad idea for Rohit Sharma to drop down the order and play at no.4. After all, the overall efficiency of the team is more important than the preferences of an individual. He won’t be struggling to rotate the strike with the old ball as he is a predominant middle order batsman, at the same time, Rahane can play his natural cricket at the top. Not only will India have found two natural stroke makers at the top, they would also have a stable no.4 that possesses a repertoire of shots with the ability to find the gaps during the middle overs.

Automatically, Dhoni gets to play at no.5 and quite frankly, he has the ability to float up and down the order and play the part with Suresh Raina coming in at no.6 as the finisher.

With the first choice batting order filled up, the reserve batsman Ambati Rayudu, in my opinion, has never looked the part. He has, at times, come in and scrapped himself to a few fifties. His technique has been perennially questionable and with quite a number of young talents coming through the ranks, the selectors might want to decide on his position in the squad. Robin Uthappa would be a good option as he can also double up as a keeper if such a necessity arises. The likes of Sanju Samson, Manoj Tiwary are all worthy contenders for the future.

The debate continues over the choice for the no.7 slot. Jadeja has been that man so far with Axar Patel slowly peeping through. It does not make sense to have both of them in the squad as they are very similar. One of these two has been batting at the crucial no.7, but both of them have not done justice as the bowling all-rounder.

India needs a perfect number 7

Jadeja has been an effective bowler over these two years, but he has looked off-colour after his shoulder injury. His batting has always looked pedestrian though. Axar Patel is relatively new and in the few matches we have seen him in, his bowling has been sporadically good and his batting never took off. It is still early days though. It might not be a bad call to give Pawan Negi a go if they are looking for power hitting at no.7. His IPL-8 endeavor has shown that he is capable of consistent hitting in the death overs.

Can India try Pawan Negi at number 7?

India did surprise a lot of us with their fast bowling during the World Cup. But the problem arises when they do not fire consistently. They were appalling against Bangladesh. While they do have the reserves to pick from in case of nonperformance, none of them have fired consistently.

They have tried Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, B.Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, Varun Aaron and Ishant Sharma over these two years and only Mohammed Shami has proved to be a consistent performer backed up by B.Kumar to an extent. The bowling coach faces a herculean task to hone their consistency as these are the bowlers who are going to be around for the next few years.

Keeping aside the primary squad, it is time the selectors start identifying the next set of resources as back-up. With the aggressive brand of cricket that every side around has started to play, it is imperative that India don’t rely on the same group of players facing a dearth of options.

We have the luxury of IPL which produces maximum match winners and the talents have to be identified and developed to be able to readily perform at the international level. With a world T20 next year, champions trophy the year after and the world cup in 2019, it would be invaluable to have potent individuals as reserves in case the first choice players aren’t performing. But where do they go for an all-rounder at the moment? That seems to be a worrying factor.