India squad for T20 WC

[oitoitoi]

That squad is batting thin... Badri or uthappa should have been there...

Would have liked to see Badri in ahead of Jadeja, but one performance shouldn't be enough to get Uthappa a place. As long as there are no injuries and they don't play too many bowlers I think the batting is very strong.

 

[gvenkat]

Would have liked to see Badri in ahead of Jadeja, but one performance shouldn't be enough to get Uthappa a place. As long as there are no injuries and they don't play too many bowlers I think the batting is very strong.

Badri is so unlucky... He shud have been there....

 

[aussie]

damn, no Tendulkar. Good signs for Australia...

 

[gvenkat]

damn, no Tendulkar. Good signs for Australia...

 

[Arjun]

Where do the squad members stand right now?

Sehwag: Struggling to convert an explosive start. Missed a match. Can do better.

Gambhir: Struggling to get going. May lose his place in the Delhi team. Not good.

Raina: Sitting pretty at three or four. In the running for an Orange Cap. In good touch.

Dhoni: Struggled at six and seven, coming in below Morkel and Oram. Promoted himself to three and scored a decisive 58. Needs more action higher up. Very reliable behind the stumps.

Yuvraj: Batted way too low, coming in after Katich/Bopara, Sangakkara and Mahela. With little time left to bat, he was a non-factor. Did well in his only opening chance. Not too good.

Rohit Sharma: Overshadowed by the illustrious Gilchrist, Gibbs and Dwayne Smith. He had one good innings at four but did little of note. Not good.

Yusuf Pathan: By far the best batsman on form. While Indian batsmen have struggled to even get one over 50, he's got two, and even in difficult conditions in South Africa, he's maintained that massive strike rate. His captain, Warne, has also shown a lot of confidence in his bowling, and though wickets were few (as also chances), he's maintained a good economy rate. Will be a huge factor with bat and ball. Dhoni should take note of this.

Irfan Pathan: Leading the Kings attack with Abdulla, and he hasn't done too bad, bar the odd match on a belter. He's been very smart with the bat, not trying to hog the limelight, but getting the job done. Form is still an issue. He's in decent form, but when he loses it, he's still a worry. Quite good, so far.

Harbhajan Singh: He's the only spinner for his team, and has had too much to do. Struggling to take wickets, his only contribution has been economy. He's been half-decent as a striker, not too much, and not enough to do it alone. Average.

Zaheer Khan: Decent job leading the Mumbai attack, though the limelight has been hogged by Malinga. Very good on the field, but not too useful with the bat, but enough for a bowler. Looking good.

RP Singh: Purple cap contender. Very good.

Ishant Sharma: Doing well for a problem-ridden team. In good touch.

Praveen Kumar: He's been patchy with the ball, and has rarely got to bat. Not good enough to force a place in the team.

Pragyan Ojha: Took wickets at regular intervals and kept the runs down, but not run through too many. May be suspect on flat pitches, but good so far.

Ravindra Jadeja: He's looked patchy with the bat and got next to no opportunity to bowl. Not one to pick in the starting XI. May be this team's Joginder Sharma.

 

[biased indian]

why this is still in CC while the SA thread has been moved to T20 WC thread????

 

[Maximus0723]

This just shows importance of slowing the pace down. We don't know what's going to work in England. Conditions in England usually favors the fast bowlers but so does in SA. But look who is performing better? It's the spinners.

This must have played big role in picking the squad.

 

[Arjun]

Far too much is being made of the lack of a backup wicketkeeper. Look at other teams, notably Australia. They've never had a backup for Gilchrist, and don't have a backup for Haddin. The Kiwis have gone ahead nicely with McCullum alone, and don't pick a backup for him, barring the home series against the Indians. The West Indians stick to a single wicketkeeper, and so do the South Africans. The Indians should look at carrying on without a backup for Dhoni, especially in a tournament that doesn't run long.

 

[Arjun]

This just shows importance of slowing the pace down. We don't know what's going to work in England. Conditions in England usually favors the fast bowlers but so does in SA. But look who is performing better? It's the spinners.

This must have played big role in picking the squad.

The spinners haven't done that well. In every team, it's the pacers who've been ahead. Even in the Purple Cap list, we find pace bowlers in the top five. The spinners and seam-up bowlers have only kept the runs down, while wickets have been taken by the pacers largely.

This squad has four spinners already, though two can also score runs. They've still missed a trick by leaving out Mishra.

 

[Shri]

Ravindra Jadeja looked in good touch in yesterday's game against CSK. He can support the big hitters in the side by taking singles when he plays for India and he can hit a few big hits in the slog overs if he is well set. Will be a huge asset to the Indian side with his batting in the middle overs in my opinion.

Yusuf Pathan is still striking the ball well but RR's over dependence on him is having it's toll onhis batting. Should perform better for India when he plays with the other big players who can take the pressure off him.

My side would be something like this:

Gautham Gambhir - He can make sure that wickets dont fall in his end for atleast 8 or 9 overs. Will get the odd boundary but his main job would most likely be to give the strike to the big hitters. Can hit the spinners out of the ground with his great footwork. Dont expect him to go bang bang.

Virender Sehwag - If its his day, its his day. The ball will swing a bit in England and there is a chance that he would'nt be able to get more than those quick 20s or 30s. Will be the most important batsman for India in the Powerplay overs.

Suresh Raina - He has been in top form for the past year or so ever since he made his comeback. Can make sure that the run rate stays at around 9 or 10 an over when he bats with Gambhir or Sehwag. Can also anchor the innings and slog it out in the later stages of the innings. Ideal T20 player.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni [C / Wk] - Needs time to get set and go for the big shots. Will just make a 20 ball 25 down the order. Better to have him get set during the middle overs and go for the slog in the death overs.

Yuvraj Singh - Clean hitter of the ball. Can bat anywhere from 1 - 7 in the batting order. Might fancy hitting the old ball when there is less swing and when the ball comes on to the bat better.

Yusuf Pathan - The trump card for this T20 side. Can give his side an extra 30 runs to defend in express time. Can also keep the scoring down with his handy off spinners.

Irfan Pathan / Ravindra Jadeja - Pace and spin all-round option for Dhoni. Pathan the better bowler. Jadeja the better batsman.

Harbhajan Singh - Can bowl flat and can hit the block hole consistently. Can keep the scoring down and can make the batsmen play a bad shot and get out to the other bowlers.

Zaheer Khan - Has a lot of experience and can lead the attack with his control and swing. Can also speak to the other pace bowlers and help them with their bowling.

RP Singh - Was looking dangerous with his swing the last time he toured England.

Ishant Sharma - Only bowler who can bowl 140+ in the squad. Bowls a lot of balls on good length and he is likely to go for a few hits if the ball does'nt swing. Expect him and Praveen Kumar to be in and out of the side.

12th man
Praveen Kumar - Can swing the new ball well and can get early break throughs. Better swing bowler than Ishant Sharma with the white ball.

Amazingly, I can't fit Rohit Sharma in the side who has been doing amazingly well in the IPL. If we let the part time bowlers take the roll of the 5th bowler, Ishant Sharma can go out and Rohit Sharma can get in.

 

[Arjun]

My side would be something like this:

Thin on the batting. Drop a bowler or Yusuf for Rohit Sharma.

 

[Shri]

Thin on the batting. Drop a bowler or Yusuf for Rohit Sharma.

I said that in my post myself in the last part.

It would be crazy to drop Yusuf when he is in such good form with the bat and ball.

 

[Maximus0723]

Nah batting is fine in that lineup.

Up to Zaheer.

 

[Arjun]

I said that in my post myself in the last part.

It would be crazy to drop Yusuf when he is in such good form with the bat and ball.

Nah batting is fine in that lineup.

Up to Zaheer.

Yusuf Pathan is way too unsafe to play as a top six batsman. The way he bats, he won't last long enough to put up big scores consistently. His off-breaks, however, are under-rated, and he stands a chance of playing as a full bowler.

The performance of the top six isn't looking good this IPL- they're playing a stereotypical T20 innings, and missing out on big scores.

 

[Athlai]

Yusuf Pathan is way too unsafe to play as a top six batsman. The way he bats, he won't last long enough to put up big scores consistently. His off-breaks, however, are under-rated, and he stands a chance of playing as a full bowler.

The performance of the top six isn't looking good this IPL- they're playing a stereotypical T20 innings, and missing out on big scores.

You shouldn't need a number 6 batsman to score big in T20.
T20I batting average scores by position read as follows (Top 8 only)

Position: runs @ av, % of innings batted to match, HS, % of scores 50+ in all Innings

Openers: 5409 @ 26.00 100% HS 117 15%
No. 3: 1797 @ 17.79 98% HS 76 6%
No. 4: 2396 @ 27.22 95% HS 98* 13%
No. 5: 1789 @ 21.04 94% HS 79 6%
No. 6: 1514 @ 20.18 87% HS 66* 4%
No. 7: 1227 @ 21.15 79% HS 66 2%
No. 8: 631 @ 14.67 64% HS 43*
No. 9 : 413 @ 11.90 55% HS 33*
No. 10: 146 @ 8.11 35% HS 21
No. 11: 38 @ 5.42 21% HS 5

The number 6 position on average doesn't have to bat in 1 in every 6 games. They also only score 50+ runs in 1 in 25 of those instances. The position is more crafted to a later innings explosion than any grating of large score. Large scores appear reserved for the openers or number 4's who have more than 5 overs to bat per match.

No. 6: 1514 @ 20.18
In wins the No. 6 has 761 @ 31.70 HS 66* 3 50's 39 Innings (15 NO)
In losses the No.6 has 616 @ 13.68 HS 43 51 Innings (6 NO)

Comparatively
No. 4 2396 @ 27.22
In wins the No. 4 has 1323 @ 42.67 HS 98* 9 50's 47 innings (15NO)
In losses the No. 4 has 1018 @ 19.96 HS 86* 5 50's 52 Innings (1NO)

 

[Shri]

Yusuf Pathan is way too unsafe to play as a top six batsman. The way he bats, he won't last long enough to put up big scores consistently. His off-breaks, however, are under-rated, and he stands a chance of playing as a full bowler.

The performance of the top six isn't looking good this IPL- they're playing a stereotypical T20 innings, and missing out on big scores.

No one is going to play a big innings at any position in every match consistently in T20 cricket. You just need 1 or 2 anchors and 4 or 5 big hitters in your batting line up to win a T20 game. Players like Dhoni, R Jadeja, Gambhir etc are anchors and players like Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan, Yuvraj Singh, Sehwag, Irfan Pathan are big hitters. No one expects the no.6 to score a 100 in T20 anyway. The quickfire 30 off 10 balls and innings of the like are expected of them and Yusuf Pathan is the only guy for India at no.6 who can do it at the moment consistently.

 

[Arjun]

You shouldn't need a number 6 batsman to score big in T20.
T20I batting average scores by position read as follows (Top 8 only)They don't have a very steady top five, so they need six full-fledged batsmen who can accumulate lots of runs.

That's a very useful analysis, except that we need to look at when it was done. When we look at T20 now, we find that the best batsmen are those who play a proper innings, while the hit-and-giggle variety don't last long enough to make an impact. The Indian team needs batsmen like Hayden, Gilchrist, Mahela, Dilshan, Mike Hussey and Symonds. They're not grafters in the true sense (maybe Mahela is), but they can play an explosive innings lasting long enough. Yusuf Pathan, on the other hand, tries to hit every ball for six, and gets out after four or five balls. That will expose the bottom five, who haven't done too well themselves.

No one is going to play a big innings at any position in every match consistently in T20 cricket. You just need 1 or 2 anchors and 4 or 5 big hitters in your batting line up to win a T20 game. Players like Dhoni, R Jadeja, Gambhir etc are anchors and players like Suresh Raina, Yusuf Pathan, Yuvraj Singh, Sehwag, Irfan Pathan are big hitters. No one expects the no.6 to score a 100 in T20 anyway. The quickfire 30 off 10 balls and innings of the like are expected of them and Yusuf Pathan is the only guy for India at no.6 who can do it at the moment consistently.

Too many of those 'big-hitters' in that list (notably Sehwag and Yuvraj) are needed to play for fifties and the odd hundred (when have we seen an Indian score a century anywhere in T20?) and are not cut out for that role. In the form guide for this team, only Dhoni, Yuvraj, Raina and Rohit have got healthy averages over 30. We see several averages over 40 of non-Indian batsmen. Moreover, the most fifties scored by an Indian this IPL is only two- as against four scored by JP Duminy, or four by Matthew Hayden. Worse, the best of the bottom five of the Indian team is out of form, not lasting long enough at the crease. Nobody expects a century at six, but the least we expect is half of that. Yusuf doesn't look like getting even that, with sixes being more important than scoring big. That's something we can expect from a bottom five batsman.

 

[Shri]

Too many of those 'big-hitters' in that list (notably Sehwag and Yuvraj) are needed to play for fifties and the odd hundred (when have we seen an Indian score a century anywhere in T20?) and are not cut out for that role. In the form guide for this team, only Dhoni, Yuvraj, Raina and Rohit have got healthy averages over 30. We see several averages over 40 of non-Indian batsmen. Moreover, the most fifties scored by an Indian this IPL is only two- as against four scored by JP Duminy, or four by Matthew Hayden. Worse, the best of the bottom five of the Indian team is out of form, not lasting long enough at the crease. Nobody expects a century at six, but the least we expect is half of that. Yusuf doesn't look like getting even that, with sixes being more important than scoring big. That's something we can expect from a bottom five batsman.

Why do we need a T20 hundred from one the players in the first place? A steady innings of 60 odd filled with lots of 1s, 2s and some 4s is just as effective as a 100 in a T20. If a player scores at more than a run a ball and makes sure that wickets dont fall at his end, the big hitters are going to come good more often than not due to the absence of heavy pressure. Then a couple of quick 40+ scores from big hitters is enough with the others chipping in with 15 - 20 runs each in the batsmen's list(the top 6). Remeber how India played in the last T20 WC? Gambhir or Dhoni would anchor the innings and Yuvraj, Rohit Sharma and the others will slog it out.

 

[anoop4real]

Unfortunately we are gonna miss some actions with out our action hero "Sreesanth" .... may be we should find some role for him similar to that of cheerleaders ...Btw...... who will take the winning catch for India this time

With this strong batting line up I can see any reason for India loosing the No1 position.

-

 

[Arjun]

Why do we need a T20 hundred from one the players in the first place? A steady innings of 60 odd filled with lots of 1s, 2s and some 4s is just as effective as a 100 in a T20. If a player scores at more than a run a ball and makes sure that wickets dont fall at his end, the big hitters are going to come good more often than not due to the absence of heavy pressure. Then a couple of quick 40+ scores from big hitters is enough with the others chipping in with 15 - 20 runs each in the batsmen's list(the top 6). Remeber how India played in the last T20 WC? Gambhir or Dhoni would anchor the innings and Yuvraj, Rohit Sharma and the others will slog it out.

Centuries win matches. Or maybe something as close, which looks steady yet explosive. The perfect innings would be something like what we've seen of the batsmen I've mentioned- they dominate the bowling, without trying to be extravagant. Indian batsmen are either extravagant and perish early, or go slow without trying to attack. I'd say the perfect T20 innings would be AB de Villiers' century, or Matthew Hayden's 89*, or any of the Gilchrist 50s, or from an Indian perspective, the 70+ scores by Yuvraj (against Australia) and Gambhir (final) and Rohit Sharma's 50 in the final. Indian batsmen, unfortunately, now treat T20 as hit-and-giggle stuff and get out for tens and fifteens very often.