Losses show India far from settled
POSTMORTEM In Dhoni’s absence, confusion sparked by a counter-attacking Australia has exposed the hosts’ chinks
NEWDELHI: On a high after One-day International series wins in Australia and New Zealand, Virat Kohli was confident the current set of home games would be the final audition for players to claim their World Cup spots. The intervening Indian Premier League (IPL) stretches from March 23 to May 12 — India’s first Cup tie is on June 5 — but the skipper was confident the T20 tournament would have no bearing on the squad the title contenders would pick.
However, slipping in two games in a row has left India less of a finished article and more of a side that needs to plug holes and address team dynamics. Defeat in Sunday’s fourth ODI in Mohali despite scoring 358 — India’s third highest total against Australia — puts pressure on the hosts as the decider in New Delhi on Wednesday is the last competitive game for the national team before the World Cup in the UK.
Though doubts were repeatedly raised earlier, there is absolute clarity now about one spot — MS Dhoni. His losing the enforcer’s powers with the bat has been the focus, but in his absence the confusion that unfolded in Indian ranks on Sunday as Ashton Turner, and before him Peter Handscomb and Usman Khawaja, chased down the total, will worry the team management.
SECOND CAPTAIN
With Dhoni rested for the last two ODIS, Kohli struggled to control things. It has been the former skipper’s role to communicate with the bowlers, especially Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal, and he has been a natural leader even after giving up captaincy. That has allowed Kohli, a top fielder, to stay on the boundary in the slog overs.
Pant, given a run, struggled to read the variations of Kuldeep and Chahal and his missed chances proved costly. He moved left and let go a straighter one from Chahal that beat the bat on the off-side. The 44th over bowled by Chahal showed Pant has plenty to catch up on behind the stumps. He missed a leg-side stumping and a failed an under-arm flick, leaving Kohli frustrated.
I t was o ne o f t he f o r c e d changes that prevented India from fielding their best 11. Resting Dhoni negated the advantage of playing Kuldeep and Chahal together. KL Rahul at No 3 could not impress on a good pitch as a