1523 days since the 2019 final, and the wait is over. The ODI world cup is set to return in action. We are just 4 days away from what is going to be the biggest event for the next 45 days.
“Dhoni finishes off in style. A magnificent strike into the crowd! India lift the World Cup after 28 years!” This was the last time Indian fans went gung-ho after India lifted the World Cup and 12 years later, the nemesis comes back. Will the Indian team tackle the nemesis of taking another ICC trophy to it’s cabinet? Time would only say.
India announced their finalized 15-man squad on 28th September for the World cup which is going to be hosted by the home team. Hosts are heading into this world cup having won the Asia cup and recently concluded ODI series between India and Australia. They are surely one of the favorites if not the favorites. Because they have been that good, haven't they?
India 15-men squad for the world cup:
Batsmen: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan (WK), KL Rahul (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav.
Bowlers: Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.
All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Shardul Thakur, Ravichandran Ashwin.
Update: Axar Patel has been ruled out of the world cup squad after getting injured in the Asia cup against Sri Lanka, thus Ravichandran Ashwin who wasn’t even a part of one-day squad for last 4 or 5 years has now been roped into the squad as his replacement.
Team India: Indian team fans haven’t forgotten the run-out of MS Dhoni yet. Since 2014, India has always faltered in the knockout stages. However, after all these heartbreaks, this will be the genuine chance for India to end the ICC trophy drought as they will be playing on home soil (favorable conditions). India played 66 ODI’s post the 2019 world cup in which they won 40, lost 22 and 4 ended up being no result. Team India is currently at number 1 position in all 3 formats of ICC rankings under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy. They certainly have the best combination of this tournament.
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Players to watch out for:
- Rohit Sharma: Skipper Rohit Sharma who was invincible in the last ODI world cup has terrific record in ICC events. In ODI world cups in particular, he has amassed 978 runs at an average of 65.20 and a strike rate of 95.98. In his 17 ODI world cup innings he has scored more centuries (6) than fifties (3). He has also completed his 10k ODI runs (second fastest) recently. This will be his third ODI world cup and could be the last as well.
- Shubman Gill: Shubman is the fulcrum of India’s batting. The 24-year-old lad is currently the number 2 ODI batsman. Shubman has played 35 ODI matches so far. He has scored 1917 runs at an average of 66 with terrific 102.84 strike rate. Shubman has already scored 6 tons and one double-hundred along with 9 fifties. Shubman has had terrific 18 months; he is in the form of his life and thus he will be pivotal for India to give them the start upfront. Star Sports conducted a poll on who is going to be the leading scorer in this world cup, and Shubman was everyone’s choice; 72% people voted him whereas India’s best batsman Virat Kohli was second picked by only 17% while Pakistan’s Babar Azam was the third to for his 5%. This is going to be Shubman’s first ever ODI world cup and all eyes will be on him.
- Virat Kohli: This will be the fourth-consecutive world cup for King Kohli. He is the top scorer for India in the ODI format as well as in the world cup events among all the active players. He has smashed 1030 runs in just 26 innings at an average of 46.82. Since the 2019 world cup, he has scored 1797 runs at an average of 47.28. He has had a good time with the bat recently and has got his rhythm back. He is the man who revels on the big stages and hence he will be the vital cog yet again.
- KL Rahul: Lokesh Rahul is India’s another star who has been playing in the middle-order since 2021. He has performed exceptionally well and performed when it mattered. Ever since he has been asked to bat at number 5, he has scored 807 runs in just 20 innings at an average of 50.44 with a decent strike rate of 98.29. Ever since India started playing KL at the number 5 position, they have had massive success. He is someone who can play the sheer anchor's role and attack when needed. However, will he be the finisher that India is hoping for? He looks promising, he is another key component who can hurt opponents, just like he did to Pakistan.
- Kuldeep Yadav: Since his comeback in 2022, he has been in red-hot form. Since then, he has picked the highest number of wickets for India in the white ball format. Scalping 45 wickets in his last 25 ODI matches at an average of 19.15 and economy of 4.81, he left solid impression towards selectors for the automatic selection. A poll conducted by Bouncer Avenue team on who is going to be the key player for India is won by Kuldeep. Our readers think that Kuldeep will be the one to watch out for and is going to be the highest wicket taker of this world cup as well. Kuldeep Yadav has been impressive, consistent and a match winner for this team in the last 6 months. He is their trump card and surely going to be a massive headache for all the opponents.
Strengths: India’s top-five has been in sublime form and that’s their biggest strength. Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer; all these players have scored plenty of runs in the last 18 months. Each one of these has scored runs over an average of 40, adding to it, their strike rate is above 100, except for Shreyas Iyer who has scored runs with the not-so-bad (95.92) strike rate. Dravid and management were perturbed before the Asia cup, but they certainly have found their answers with KL Rahul scoring a lot of runs in the middle-order and Hardik bowling offering support in the pace department bowling over 140 KPH picking up few crucial wickets as well. Bumrah’s come back was a hot topic few months back. Since his comeback, the bowling attack looks galvanized. The bowling attack, spearheaded by Mohmmad Siraj who is currently the number 1 ODI bowler while Kuldeep Yadav at 10th ranking has played a massive role in India’s success in recent times. Though Jadeja hasn’t been among the wickets as he would have liked, he has been economically bowling well. Ravi Ashwin could hold the key in the spin-friendly condition. So, the bowling line-up looks well settled, nevertheless to say that India possesses the best bowling attack in this tournament.
Weaknesses: The biggest concern for India will be the batting depth. The team is highly reliant on their top and middle order. The lower order hasn't fired as much as the think-tank would have hoped for. Jadeja hasn’t been amongst the runs, Ashwin has just been roped into the side almost after 5 years, Shardul hasn’t contributed with the bat at all. There were few pictures circulating recently on social media where Ashwin, Kuldeep, Siraj were seen practicing with the bat in the nets. It’s a clear sign that Rohit Sharma & Co is aware of this fact, and they want to be prepared for it. With that said, Shardul Thakur can bat; however, he is going to be missed out on few games with Ravi Ashwin on sluggish pitches. Both Shardul and Ashwin will have to be ready for this challenge with the bat.
Fixtures:
- India vs Australia at Chennai – 8th October 2023
- India vs Afghanistan at Delhi- 11th October 2023
- India vs Pakistan at Ahmedabad- 14th October 2023
- India vs Bangladesh at Pune- 19th October 2023
- India vs New Zealand at Dharamsala- 22nd October 2023
- India vs England at Lucknow- 29th October 2023
- India vs Sri Lanka at Mumbai- 2nd November 2023
- India vs South Africa at Kolkata- 5th November 2023
- India vs Netherlands at Bengaluru- 12th November 2023
Interesting facts:
1. Rohit Sharma needs 1 more century to have most centuries in the WC record (7)
2. Rohit Sharma has 4th highest Batting Average (65.20) in World Cup after Klusener (124.00), Symonds (103.00) and Stokes (66.42). (Minimum 10 innings)
3. Rohit needs 22 Runs to become just 4th Indian (22nd Overall) to score 1000 World Cup Runs after Tendulkar, Ganguly and Kohli.
4. Virat Kohli has 2 WC centuries, both came in the opening match of the edition (2011 & 2015)
5. Kuldeep has played 90 ODIs. If India reaches SF, That would his 100th ODI.
6. India has 3rd Highest No. of Wins in WCs (53) after New Zealand (54) and Australia (69). They have a chance to overtake NZ and take the 2nd position.
7. Mohammed Shami (31) needs just 1 wicket to become 2nd Highest Wicket Taker from India. Top position is jointly held by Zaheer Khan and Srinath (44).
