Three consecutive T20 wins against Australia in their den is a great feat not just for the Indian team but also for Mahendra Singh Dhoni. In what was near perfect preparation ahead of the World T20 at home, India ticked many boxes and also got to know of a few problem areas without compromising on the results.
If you include the win in the final match of the preceding ODI series, the Indians have now won four games against the Aussies. That has put Dhoni’s boys in the perfect frame of mind going into the three-match T20 series against Sri Lanka, the Asia Cup and the World T20.
India made excellent use of the tour Down Under. Unlike Australia, who grew increasingly listless regarding team composition and strategy as the tour went on, India had a clear-cut plan as to who the players of the future are and they gave them the opportunity at the right moment to make their mark. However, the ODI series was a rude awakening for the Indians as far as bowling was concerned.
Thankfully for them, the top order plundered runs without failure and it showed in the series stats with Rohit Sharma (441 runs) and Virat Kohli (381) topping the list in the five match series. The Australians prevailed 4-1 but it could very well have been 3-2 had the Indians not imploded in the fourth game after being on course for a straightforward win while chasing 349.
But as the ODI series went along, the Indians started to learn from their mistakes. Their victory in the fifth match, making no mistake while chasing 331, set them up for the T20 series and what helped their cause was the disarray in the Aussie camp, with Shane Watson and stand in coach Michael Di Venuto admitting they are not sure what the side for the World T20 will look like.
Their batting more or less sorted, India concentrated on getting their bowling right. And here the credit goes to the team management for taking a brave call and backing bowlers who otherwise would not have featured so close to a world event.
In the 37-year-old Ashish Nehra, young quick Jasprit Bumrah and potential all-rounder Hardik Pandya, the Indians have found three more than decent options who can provide support to their main bowlers – spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. Nehra had kept himself fit and ready for a comeback despite being sidelined for nearly five years. His performance in last year’s IPL combined with the lack of bowling options made his return straightforward.
Nehra was always an accurate limited overs bowler and the fact that he still bowls at 140kmph at this age made him the perfect candidate who could give it his all one final time. But the other two youngsters were unknown commodities.
Bumrah and Pandya stayed in the news for their decent IPL exploits but far too many Indian players have been given a break in the national team on their IPL performances, only to disappoint. But they did their bit superbly, and that too on tough Aussie wickets.
Bumrah ended up as the leading wicket taker with six scalps. What was heartening to see was his ability to bowl yorkers at will and that too at high pace. Pandya, on the other hand, had three scalps from as many games and though his economy rate of more than 10 an over needs work, he has the ingredients of a potential seam-bowling all rounder.
A resurgent bowling attack, coupled with the stellar batting of Sharma, Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan should give India a lot of fillip. But they also know there are a few weaknesses that need to be taken care of soon.
Yuvraj Singh hit a six and a four in the final over of the third T20 but up until that time, it looked like the southpaw had ruined India’s hopes almost single handedly, reminiscent of his 21-ball 11 in the 2014 World T20 final against Sri Lanka.
While Suresh Raina held his cool to pull off the win of the final ball on Sunday, it could have easily gone wrong and the blame would have been put on Yuvraj.
Then there is the batting of Dhoni. The big shots are not coming with the same frequency as earlier and in T20 games, it sticks out like a sore thumb. While the top order is firing on all cylinders, Dhoni would like to get one big knock under his belt soon. India must decide if they want to continue with Yuvraj or give someone like Ajinkya Rahane or Manish Pandey a go because India lack in lower order hitting power.
Nehra has done enough to warrant another chance and if Yuvraj too is the mix, that would make it three players in the field who are well over 30. While it worked against Australia, fitter and full-strength teams will make India pay heavily for those slowing legs.
Even so, India can take a lot of positives from the series win and Dhoni can look forward to some peaceful times when his captaincy is not questioned.
