Review: Opening and bowling worries for India despite win

Tags: England tour of India 2016 -17, India, England

Published on: Jan 23, 2017

India may have won the three-match series against England, but the victory wasn't all that comprehensive in the end. In fact, they ended up losing the final game at Kolkata, failing to chase what is a gettable total by today's standards.

India may have won the three-match series against England, but the victory wasn't all that comprehensive in the end. In fact, they ended up losing the final game at Kolkata, failing to chase what is a gettable total by today's standards. And, while it will be too harsh to point out many faults in the team's efforts, there are definitely areas which need significant improvements. With the Champions Trophy coming up, India must ensure they have their best team ready for the mega event. But, as the England series reaffirmed, there are still issues with the batting as well as the bowling department.

Opening is one major worry for India. The hosts did not get a single good start in the series, and had to depend on the middle order to bail them out each time. Returning from injury, it was imperative for Shikhar Dhawan to do well, especially since he has run out of favour in the Tests and T20 formats. But, he was just not in rhythm and had to be dropped for the final one-dayer. Ajinkya Rahane, who was brought in for the final match, also continued to flounder. He has just not been able to find his feet in the format somehow. Lokesh Rahul also registered three failures. India will be desperate for Rohit Sharma to come back into the mix.

India's bowling was also extremely disappointing over the course of the series. Rather surprisingly, Hardik Pandya was the only one to make an impression. But, Jasprit Bumrah, who before this series, had been highly impressive with his yorkers and wicket-taking ability, was way off the mark. Bhuvneshwar Kumar too was good only in phases. The biggest disappointment was Ravichandran Ashwin. While he got some wickets, he was nowhere near as threatening as in the Tests. In fact, he was taken for runs with ease. Ravindra Jadeja was decent with his left-arm spin, but he could clearly have done better.

In spite of all the worries though, India should be pleased with their effort as they did end up winning the series 2-1. They chased down 350 plus in the first match, and posted 381 in the second, which translates to very healthy batting efforts. There were hundreds galore in the series. Virat Kohli yet again proved what a champion chaser he is with the mature ton at Pune. But, it was undoubtedly Kedar Jadhav who stood out with splendid knocks. His hundred in the opening ODI at home was extraordinary, a knock which overshadowed Kohli's hundred. And, on Sunday, he almost pulled off another great chase. Jadhav has been around the Indian team for a while, but it was in this series that he came into his own.

In a sense, this was also a series for the veterans. Yuvraj Singh was making yet another comeback into the team while MS Dhoni was under greater pressure to contribute with the bat having relinquished the captaincy. Both came into their own in the second ODI at Cuttack as India fought back from a disastrous start. There were question marks over Yuvraj as he is 35 now. But, he clearly didn't let age get the better of him, and looked rather fit out in the middle. As for Dhoni, he only reiterated that he is not done yet as a limited overs batsman. Having both in form makes India's middle-order formidable. A word of praise must also be reserved for Pandya, who rose in stakes as an all-rounder.

--By A Cricket Analyst

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