Summary Host begins its campaign in the home World Cup against familiar foe Australia
(Web Desk) - Team India begins its campaign in the home World Cup against familiar foes Australia on Sunday (today).
In 2011, Rohit Sharma was desperately unlucky not to make it to the Indian squad for the 50-over World Cup, a disappointment that stayed with him for a long time.
Twelve years on, the Mumbaikar finds himself in the unique position of being able to emulate Kapil Dev and Mahendra Singh Dhoni by steering the team to a third World Cup title.
Rohit has been in the saddle for a little under two years, during which time India have had mixed fortunes. They lost in the semifinal of the T20 World Cup in Australia last year and in the final of the World Test Championship to Australia in June, but coming into the World Cup, they are ranked No. 1 in all three international formats.
Their ranking will be on the line over the next six weeks as they traverse the length and breadth of the country seeking the elusive trophy. The first stop in that journey has taken them to Chennai and the MA Chidambaram Stadium, with familiar foes Australia as their first opponents.
India and Australia have played each other so often in recent years that there is little they don’t know about each other. This year alone, they have faced off in six ODIs – three in March, as many in September – in India, but the World Cup is an entirely different cup of tea even if the basic battle between bat and ball will remain the same.
Chepauk has witnessed several stirring India-Australia contests over the years – the ‘tied’ Test in 1986, a World Cup league fixture the following year which Australia won by one run, and a subsequent string of fascinating Test matches that have swung wildly but eventually ended in India’s favour. Whether Sunday will be any different remains to be seen.
Except for the unwell Shubman Gill, India are at full strength and armed with greater knowledge of the conditions on offer. Traditionally, the surface offers a little more to the spinners, and with Rohit indicating that India aren’t averse to playing three spinners, the chances of R Ashwin making an unexpected return to World Cup action are realistic.
Ashwin has grown up playing cricket at Chepauk, and therefore will be an invaluable asset if India opt for three spinners. Jettisoned from the 50-over scheme of things after the 2017 Champions Trophy and having played just ODIs in nearly six years before the Australia series last month, his return to the side was facilitated by the injury to Axar Patel.
Ashwin has played a World Cup game in the city of his birth previously, against West Indies in 2011; he will be quite a handful for the Aussies even if they have only two left-handers in the top seven in David Warner and Alex Carey.
India will be hamstrung by the potential unavailability of Gill, still in the sick bay after contracting dengue. As Rohit pointed out, the 24-year-old is a fit young man which should speed up his recovery, but barring the extraordinary, he won’t turn up on the morrow. That will be a huge blow; Gill is the highest scorer in ODIs in the world this year and has forged a terrific opening association with his captain. In his last two innings, both against Australia, he made 104 and 74. His absence will create a massive but not unfillable lacuna. Ishan Kishan is set to step into the breach so that others don’t bat out of position and the little left-hander himself has been in terrific touch.
Hardik Pandya provides the balance India have so badly sought, his bowling having gone up a notch or two in the last 12 months. More than just a third seamer, Pandya has evolved into a multi-dimensional bowler who is comfortable with the new ball and old. As a batter, he has shown himself capable of batting per the needs of the situation, and the vice-captaincy is a reward both for the leadership role he has embraced and the maturity that has come to characterise his cricket.
For this bunch to emulate the Class of 2011 in what is almost certain to be the final World Cup for Rohit and Virat Kohli, among others, Pandya must invoke the spirit of Yuvraj Singh, India’s driving force a dozen years back when not even ill health could slow him down.
