Too many experiments with team formation was a major contributor to the failure of the star-studded Indian cricket team in the ICC T20 World Cup. For the last two years, numerous cricketers were picked, only to be dropped after a game or two. As a result, the much-touted ‘Team India’ never looked like a settled and balanced side in the World Cup. The basic condition to form a strong side was deliberately ignored. No cricketer had been given adequate time to prove his talent as multiple changes and chopping of players did not allow them to settle down. Even statisticians have lost count of how many opening pairs India tried during the last two years. Apart from the regular openers, even Rishabh Pant and Deepak Hooda, known for the exhibits in the middle-order, were sent to open the batting. Quite strangely, while experimenting with the opening pair, the selectors in their own wisdom did not give a chance to Shikhar Dhawan, arguably one of the most successful Indian batters in ICC tournaments. Similarly, no thought was given to strengthen the bowling in the absence of an injured Jasprit Bumra, the mainstay of Indian bowling as his place was filled by Mohammad Shami, who didn’t play a single T-20 game for the last two years, ignoring the likes of Umran Malik, N. Natarajan among others, who have shown promise in the little scope they were given. Moreover, young Rishabh Pant, who is being nursed to fill the void left by M. S. Dhoni, both behind the wickets and also as a hard-hitting batter, quite strangely, has lost his place in the team in the World Cup. In his place, veteran cricketer Dinesh Karthik was included despite being at the twilight of his cricketing career. All these selection blunders only proved that players were not selected on merit.
Such a situation could well be averted if our cricket administrators along with selectors showed some sense of understanding about the game, instead of being engaged in boardroom politics. It is only due to the internal politics of cricketing board players that K. L. Rahul found a regular place in the team despite an injury and not being in good form. His supporters may argue that he had a couple of half-centuries to justify his inclusion in the side, the fact remains that these runs had come against weaker opponents, while the cricketer in question failed to provide a good start against stronger sides like Pakistan, South Africa or England. In bowling, Bhuvneshwar Kumar was a pale shadow of his prime and gifted the semifinal match to England by conceding three fours in the very first over, according to Indian captain Rohit Sharma. India could do well by omitting the injured and out of form cricketers from the team. But as politics has always played a major role in Indian cricket in ignorance of the form of cricketers, India is once again returning home empty-handed from a world stage.
