Experimentation Hurting Indian Cricket

Several experiments with the team have spelt doom for the Indian cricket team in the recently held Asia Cup competition. On the premise of choosing the best possible eleven for the forthcoming T-20 Cricket World Cup to be held in Australia, the team management has made a number of changes without providing newcomers enough time to settle into the international arena. In the present scenario, no cricketer is sure about retaining his place in the playing eleven in the next match even after performing brilliantly in the previous match. As a result, barely a month before the commencement of the World Cup, ‘Team India’ looks ill-prepared to face the toughest cricketing opponents on the hard and bouncy pitches of Australia. Further, injuries to a number of key players like bowling ace Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja have created a void in the team, which will be difficult to fill.

In the euphoria over defeating Pakistan in the Asia Cup opener, we had deliberately glossed over a few facts about the team combination. Since selectors decided not to use the services of veteran opener Shikhar Dhawan, a number of batsmen, including Deepak Hooda and Rishabh Pant, were given a chance to fill the position. Naturally, it was expected that one of them would be accompanying Rohit Sharma to open the Indian innings. But quite surprisingly, Lokesh Rahul was chosen for the job, although he was making a comeback from an injury. The team management willfully forgot the golden rule of not experimenting in important tournaments where the country’s pride is at stake. In absence of an in-form pair, India never got a good start while batting. Similarly, in the bowling department two inexperienced fast bowlers were chosen to partner Bhuvneshwar Kumar which considerably weakened the opening bowling attack. It will forever remain a mystery why experienced fast bowlers like Mohammed Shami or Umesh Yadav were not called for national duty in the absence of bowling ace Jasprit Bumrah as a result of an injury. Again, it is evident from the exclusion of Rishabh Pant from the team in the match against Pakistan, who seemed to be an automatic choice for the job at least in the shorter version of the game, it appears that the management is still undecided about the wicketkeeper.

It is time for the team management to realise that the class and temperament of a cricketer should be scrutinised carefully before inducting him in the national team. International cricket is challenging enough and puts the cricketers under tremendous pressure by making it mandatory to perform every time they enter the field. So, a good performance in IPL cannot be the sole yardstick to don national colours. The youngsters are failing in the international matches as they have not spent enough time in the domestic circuit to learn the art of handling pressure. It is hoped that the selectors and team management will stop experimenting with the team and choose cricketers who have already proven their mettle in international cricket.