India’s 2023 World Cup preparations remain inconsistent and unclear

CHENNAI: The World Cup cycle is at that point. The time leading up to the big event when a team’s every move, technique, and stratagem are hidden from view and every game is an opportunity to work out any kinks in the player combinations and pool. That was also what was anticipated of the Rohit Sharma-led Indian team when they arrived in the Caribbean.

It appears like they have made no progress at all after two games in the three-match series (they won the first game but lost the second). It nearly seems as though they have rolled the clock back to 2019. When India lost to New Zealand in the semifinals, Virat Kohli, the captain at the time, stated it was difficult to accept that “45 minutes of bad cricket put us out of the World Cup.”

There was, however, more to it. The mismanagement of the No. 4 position in the batting order was the most significant of all. Before departing the batsman who had played there the most (Ambati Rayudu) for the World Cup, they have used 12 players in the position since 2017.

Here is a stat for you right now. Among the 10 nations competing in the 2023 World Cup, India, the Netherlands, and Sri Lanka have used the most players (9) at No. 4 since January 2021. With six batters in 11 games, they also top the list during the current World Cup season. And even that is not the worst of it. All of it has failed. India has the lowest average among the top 10 teams, at 16.20. The Indian management certainly hasn’t helped itself in how they have been attempting to give opportunities to players, as injuries to KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Shreyas Iyer — the three who were supposed to slot in the middle-order followed by all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja — have shown.

Ishan Kishan, who is presumably Rahul’s backup keeper, has been forced to open in the current Windies tour, suggesting that he could be the backup opener. Suryakumar Yadav, who is having trouble adjusting to the ODI format, batted at No. 3 in game one before switching to No. 6. Sanju Samson, who didn’t play in the first ODI, was forced to bat at number three while Kohli and Sharma were off the pitch. Should he be selected for the World Cup, he won’t be able to bat at that position. Axar Patel was sent in with a left-right combination in middle order at 4, which is actually helpful to take on spinners, but no one is sure how long that experiment will endure either.