India got a shot in the arm in the T20 series against Australia. To beat the current world champions – after losing the first match – was splendid recovery which should give a fillip to the team’s confidence for the T20 WC. India’s first match in the tournament – against Pakistan — comes up in four weeks.
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Beating Australia was timely and important. After the flop show in the Asia Cup, the Indian players – as well as team management — the were under duress. Questions were being asked whether protracted experimentation by coach Rahul Dravid and captain Rohit Sharma hadn’t prevented the team from settling down.
Such concern got enhanced when Australia won the first match in a thrilling run chase that finished n the final over. This was a serious setback in the backdrop of last over defeats in the Asia Cup too because of which India had failed to reach the final.
One more match surrendered from a winning position heightened the perception that while the Indian team was high on talent, it was short on confidence and mental toughness and with a tendency to lose nerve in tight situations. All discouraging signs with the World Cup just round the corner.
The next couple of matches, however, alleviated several misgivings. The second and third games also saw last over finishes, but in both India finished winners, marking a turnaround in focus, intent and ambition. The second was an 8-overs-a-side affair because of rain. In such situations, the match becomes a lottery of sorts. Yet, this win was significant match in the context of the series. A defeat would have meant losing the rubber. A win, chasing at 12 runs an over, showed that the India had not lost the stomach for a fight.
The third win was even better, India excelling with ball and bat. in the third. This was another thrilling last over finish, but which saw
Australia had a rousing start through big-made Cameron Green who belted the ball to all parts of the ground, frequently over the ropes. A score in excess of 200 looked on the cards, but India’s bowlers fought back extremely well to keep the target to 187. In this format, against strong opponents, even 5-7 runs can make a crucial difference, and so it proved as India eked out a win in the last over.
The notable feature of this run chase was the 104 runs partnership between Surya Kumar Yadav, whose incandescent strokeplay lit up the ground, and a solid, mature half-century by Virat Kohli. In my opinion, this was Kohli’s best T2- knock in the past couple of years. He kept one end going, allowing Yadav to give full expression to his talent and current form, never trying to win brownie points for himself.
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Hardik and Surya Yadav enhanced their stature as matchwinners in the series, but the biggest success for India was Axar Patel. Bowling in the front, middle or end overs, Axar showed fine control and variations in pace and angle and an uncanny ability to pick up wickets. He is not a big spinner of the ball, but that hardly matters given his splendid economy and strike rates.
With Jadeja out because of injury, there was some apprehension about India finding the right balance and combination. But Axar has filled that that breach marvellously. He is still to match Jadeja’s batting ability, and is certainly not in the same class as a fielder. But he is not short on gumption, ambition and match intelligence, which is a boon for the team.
Not everything worked perfectly for India in the series. In batting, more runs from Rohit and Rahul were expected. In bowling, Bhuvaneshwar had a poor series, being carted for plenty in the slog overs. By their own high standards, Bumrah and Harshal fell short too.
latter two were, of course, returning from injury and looked a trifle ginger. But these three will clearly form the pace attack in the World Cup (with Pandya in support), and it was good to see Rohit back them up strongly despite their tepid form in the series.
The big worry for India is the fielding. Several easy catches, three of them in the first match itself, were dropped, and the ground fielding was also below par. Only Kohli and Hardik look world class in the field, and even the latter was guilty of blunders. In the World Cup, such mistakes could cost India dear.
True, the Aussies were not at full strength. David Warner, Mitchel Starc, Mitch Marsh and Marcus Stoinis, all important contributors in their World Cup win last year in the UAE, were missing because of injury or were rested. Nonetheless, the players who came on this tour were no pushovers so India’s series win can’t be undermined.
How the team fares against South Africa, in the three-match series beginning on Wednesday – now becomes as important.
The Proteas are no pushovers in this format. In fact, no side is, if recent T20 results across the cricket globe are any indication. Sri Lanka, remember, won the Asia Cup, putting India and Pakistan in the shade. The ongoing see-saw series between England and Pakistan and India and Australia only accentuates the unpredictability factor.
The T20 format is notoriously topsy-turvy so Rohit Sharma and Co can hardly rest on their laurels if they want to go into the World Cup with winning momentum.
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