Archive for the ‘World cup 2019’ Category
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Pakistan and West Indies are actually two peas in one pod. Both the teams can be highly entertaining and unbeatable on their day but can be highly frustrating otherwise to watch for their respective fans. West Indies have had mixed results coming into the World Cup, they lost the tri-series finals to Bangladesh recently but again they were missing lots of their first choice players. Pakistan on the other hand have had a horror run over the last 6 months losing 10 games in a row coming into the tournament and also losing their only warm-up game to Afghanistan last week.
Pakistan would like to shrug off their bad form and get back to winning ways when they take of West Indies in their opening game.
The biggest positive for Pakistan has been their batting. Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman and Babar Azam have been in great form and as a batting unit they crossed 300+ in 3 of their 4 games against England earlier this month. Their bowling though is a different story. Pakistan have announced their 12 for the game against West Indies already and when we look at their line-up, the bowling does not inspire any confidence. Mohammad Amir who was initially dropped from the provisional squad and re inducted into the World Cup squad has been struggling for wickets over the last 18 months. He averages 92.6 in 15 games with just 5 wickets to his name. Hasan Ali who was Pakistan’s star in their Champions Trophy 2017 campaign has taken 24 wickets at an average of 42.49. Wahab Riaz who was Pakistan’s stand out performer in their only warm up against Afghanistan hasn’t played any ODI since the first Champions Trophy game for Pakistan in 2017.
Shadab Khan their lone specialist spinner is their best bet against West Indies as he has a decent record over that time and averages 29.28 with 28 wickets. Pakistan’s bowling has been struggling over the last 18 months and their best bowler over that time Shaheen Shah Afridi is sitting out this game. West Indies on the other had are flying high with confidence after their amazing win against New Zealand in the practice game early this week. Their batting seems extremely dangerous and with Chris Gayle back at the top, they look a formidable unit. The addition of Andre Russell in the middle order also gives them the edge as he can really hit the long ball and also bowl really quick when needed.
West Indies will want to build on their impressive win against New Zealand when they take on Pakistan at Trent Bridge.
Shai Hope has been in brilliant form with the bat and with Darren Bravo at number 4, they have a very good top 4. The bowling attack can blow hot or cold similar to their batting but with Oshane Thomas providing the X-Factor, they can really test the Pakistan batting if they get it right. The major weakness for West Indies will be their spin option. Even though Ashley Nurse is a decent spinner, he isn’t someone who the opposition will be worried too much about.
Head to Head:
In terms of head to head in the World Cups, West Indies are way ahead of Pakistan. They are 7-3 in all time World Cup encounters. They also lead Pakistan 70-60 in the overall record. As we know we cannot make too much out of this stats as West Indies dominated world cricket in 70’s and 80’s and most of the stats reflects that domination.
Key Players:
Shadab Khan (Pakistan) – He has been Pakistan’s best bowler over the last 18 months. Even though he hasn’t done much with the bat, his bowling where he has picked up 28 wickets will be crucial for Pakistan in this world cup. Despite having the left-arm spin of Imad Wasim, Shadab is possibly their only specialist spinner in the 12. Considering West Indies’s struggles against good spin bowling, he will form the most important part of their strategy.
Babar Azam (Pakistan) – Even though Pakistan has 2 players at the top averaging 50, Babar Azam is their best bat in this format. With 9 hundreds in 64 games, he is their main stay in batting. The other Pakistan batters would need to bat around him and the onus will be on Mohammad Hafeez and Sarfaraz Ahmed to guide this young team through this tournament.
Shai Hope (West Indies) – Hope is probably the best West Indies batter in the ODI format in a long time. He averages over 50 in this format and has done incredibly well over the last 18 months. He is the calm in otherwise explosive batting line up. He along with Darren Bravo will be crucial for West Indies campaign in this tournament.
Jason Holder (West Indies) – The West Indies captain is the talisman around which the team has recently had a resurgence. He bats well and bowls well but his leadership skills is what which will be important managing a mercurial bunch of cricketers. He has been brilliant doing that over the last couple of years and he would like to continue the same in this tournament.
What they said?
“One thing I like coming into this tournament is that every player is in a good frame of mind,” Holder said. “Everybody is playing with a smile on their face, and that’s how we play our best cricket. We’re fearless, we enjoy what we’re doing and we enjoy one another’s company. I can safely say within the group we’ve got that. We’ve got the energy going into this tournament that we would want to have
“It’s good to be unpredictable. All teams are scared of Pakistan because on our day we are dangerous. It’s good that we’re unpredictable before the World Cup” Safaraz Ahmed said in a presser ahead of their opening encounter against West Indies
Probable XI (Pakistan) – Imam-ul-Haq, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Sarfaraz Ahmed (WK & C), Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Mohammad Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali
Probable XI (West Indies) – Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope (Wkt), Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder (C), Nicholas Pooran, Andre Russell, Kemar Roach, Oshane Thomas, Ashley Nurse.
I wouldn’t want to be a betting man tonight for this game against this two sides. This game probably is one of the most difficult one to predict. Probably couple years ago the obvious choice would have been Pakistan but things have changed a lot. Both teams will start on an even keel and the team who bowls well and fields well will emerge victories. Knowing how unpredictable these two teams are, it is hard to say who that will be.
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Faf and Morgan will be aware that a good start to the campaign is crucial in a tournament like the World Cup.
Cricket World Cup 2019 begins today with a cracker of a game between hosts England and South Africa at The Oval later today. Both the teams haven’t won a World Cup yet and England coming into the tournament as the best team in the world have their best chance of creating history this time around. For South Africa though this is a chance to shed their “Chokers” tag and go that one step further which they haven’t been able to do since their return to world cricket in 1991.
England though have a very strong squad this time and with an explosive batting line up, they are the team to beat in this World Cup. The opening combination of Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow has been in explosive form followed by the calmness of Joe Root and Eoin Morgan. Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes complete arguably the best top 6 in world cricket right now. England bowling attack also received a boost with the addition of Jofra Archer to the squad. Chris Woakes who showed great form in the series against Pakistan will be a key member of the bowling attack as well.
Adil Rashid as the lone specialist spinner has done incredibly well for England over the last few years and he in combination with Moeen Ali has been crucial for England’s limited overs success. When we look at the England squad it is hard to find a weakness but again they haven’t had it all rosy in recent times. The series against West Indies showed that if the wicket has something in it for the pacers, they can struggle a bit.
South Africa though also come into this tournament with a good frame of mind. They defeated Pakistan at home recently and also had a series win in Australia towards to end of 2018. Hashim Amla who was completely out of form over the last couple of years looked to be getting back into some sort of touch in the warm up games. Captain Faf Du Plessis who will be crucial for South Africa in the middle order will be hoping that the experienced Quinton De Kock, David Miller and Jean-Paul Duminy will step up to the counted. South African bowling attack received a massive set back when Dale Steyn was ruled out from the opening encounter. Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi will be crucial with the new ball for the Proteas. Imran Tahir in all probability will be their lone spinner and his form in the recently concluded IPL was brilliant for CSK.
Head to Head:
Both teams have been pretty much even through the history in ODIs. South Africa have a slight edge in the overall head to head with 29-26 in 59 games but in terms of the World Cup they are a even 3-3.
Key Players:
Kagiso Rabada (South Africa) – South Africa have had a rotten luck with their bowlers coming into the world cup. Anrich Nortje was ruled out just a few weeks before the main event and Dale Steyn was ruled out from the opening encounter against England just few days before. Rabada who is arguably the best fast bowler in the world will be crucial with the new ball. Dismissing the English openers soon will be crucial and he along with Lungi Ngidi will be key components of South African strategy against the hosts.
Faf du Plessis (South Africa) – The South African captain is their best batter and in a batting line-up which has struggled for consistency over the last year or so he is a vital cog in their limited overs team. He averaged 60.36 in ODIs since the last World Cup and will once again be a crucial member of the batting side along with De Kock and Amla.
Jofra Archer (England) – We have seen the hype and now it is time for some action from the talented pacer from the Caribbean. England have gone out of their limbs to draft him into their ODI side for the world cup and all eyes will be on him to perform. He is extremely pacy and accurate and even though he has played only 2 ODIs before this one for England, he will be a crucial member of the English pace attack.
Joe Root (England) – In a star studded batting line up like the one England have, he is the calm they need to neutralise all the madness. Root is England’s best overall player and his record in ODIs hasn’t been that shabby either. He has scored 3498 runs since the last World Cup at an average of 58.3. He will be the anchor the England team needs to bat around all the power hitters they have.
What they said?
“In my head, there is still a lot more to do because we will get beaten by teams. We will get knocked down and have to come back. And if we’re showing blind belief and not reacting to what is in front of us then that is no good.” – Eoin Morgan
“We have a tremendous attack which is one of the best in the world,” du Plessis said. “We can bowl teams out for anything. Look at Pakistan [at the 2017 Champions Trophy]. On paper they had maybe the worst batting line-up but their bowlers kept winning them games. We’ll be employing a similar strategy and have confidence that we’ll be setting scores we can defend and chasing totals within our reach.”
Even though England have been brilliant over the last 4 years in the limited overs format, the South African bowling attack means that they cannot be written off completely. This will be an evenly contested game with England having a slight edge.
South Africa probable XI: Hashim Amla, Aiden Markham, Faf du Plessis (c), Quinton de Kock (WK) Jean-Paul Duminy, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir, Lungi Ngidi
England Probable XI: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (C), Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Jofra Archer.
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Here is the part two of the continued review of India’s world cup opponents and how India have fared against them since the last World Cup. The first part saw the reviews of South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Let’s dive into the next 3.
Considering the recent track record India does hold the edge over Pakistan when they take them on at the Old Trafford on the 16th.
June 16, 2019 – India vs Pakistan, Old Trafford, Manchester
This is a biggie and the most anticipated clash in this World Cup. The fact that India & Pakistan do not play that often makes these encounters more special. Both teams have had a poor run into the tournament. Even though India are the number 2 side in the world, they did enter the tournament with 3 straight losses. They also lost the game against New Zealand in the warm up encounter as well. Pakistan have had it worse over the past year or so and are currently in 11 match losing streak. Even though past stats and form does not factor into India-Pakistan games, the fact is that India does hold a slight edge over their arch rivals. To top that India have never lost to Pakistan in a World Cup encounter in their history. In the last 4 years, despite that crushing loss in the Champions Trophy finals, India have a 3-1 advantage over Pakistan.
Verdict: Even though form and past results don’t matter in this historic match up, India does have a slight edge over their arch rivals and are expected to win this encounter.
June 22 – India vs Afghanistan, The Rose Bown, Southampton
Technically when you look at this match up you should back India to comfortably put it past Afghanistan but reality is far from it. Afghanistan have just beaten Pakistan in their warm up game leading up to the tournament and the only game they have played against India over the last 4 years or so has resulted in a tie in Sharjah. Afghanistan are a much improved team and they are not a push over by any imagination. The Rose Bowl will provide great help for their spin attack and their batters will allow the pitch at Southampton. For India though this might end up being a crucial game and all said and done they are still expected to beat Afghanistan in this encounter.
Verdict: This will not be an easy game and Afghanistan is more than capable of toppling their senior Asian gurus. India though with the experience and skill in major tournament like the World Cup should be able to get it past the newbies though while it might be a banana peel game as well.
June 27 – West Indies vs India, Old Trafford, Manchester
This is yet another game which can be tricky for team India. Even though India have a 6-2 win-loss record against the Island nation, the latter have always been a tough opponent for India in the past. The West Indies team have been able to beat India in crucial games especially in T20Is recently. West Indies have their stars return to their side, Chris Gayle is back and looks in tremendous form. Andre Russell who had an amazing IPL is back in the XI as well for them. Their bowling attack with has some good pacers is something which can trouble Indian batters if the conditions are right. This will be an amazing game against an experienced team like India and a team who can be unpredictable in the way they play on a given day.
Verdict: Once again when you look at the strengths of the team you would expect India to easily go past West Indies, this will be yet another tough game for India. India in all probability should be able to put it past West Indies but again it is not going to be easy.
That ends part two of this series and with just 3 games to go, past 3 will cover the rest of the opponents. As we have seen this format of the tournament is thankless and there are no easy games. The team which sticks to their guns and does not give into the pressure will be the ones who will triumph and reach the final four.
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In this three part series we will be looking the teams India will be facing in this World Cup in the order they will play them. We will look at how India have fared against these opponents over the last 4 years since the 2015 World Cup.
Kuldeep Yadav & Yuzvendra Chahal had wood over protean batters during India’s tour to South Africa in 2018
June 5,2019 – India vs South Africa, The Rose Bowl, Southampton
India kick off the World Cup campaign with a tough game against South Africa at the The Rose Bowl. South Africa have been a difficult team for India to beat in the World Cup in the past. In fact the 2015 victory was India’s first against Proteas in a World Cup match. Even though the historical head to head record between the two sides is firmly in South Africa’s favour the last 4 years have been a little different. Both teams have met 12 times since the 2015 WC and India have a 8-4 advantage. This includes India’s crushing series win in South Africa last year. Both teams have good bowling attack but India definitely have the edge in batting. In the absence of AB De Villiers and inexperienced South African batting rely heavily on Faf Du Plessis and Hashim Amla to provide them with the stability they need. With the game being played at the Rose Bowl, the spinners with come into play. India with Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal will be favourites in this contest.
Verdict: Even though this will be a tough game, India probably hold the edge over an injury stricken SA side. They are still awaiting confirmation on the availability of Kagiso Rabada and Dale Steyn.
June 9, 2019 – India vs Australia, Kennington Oval, London
Like South Africa, Australia have been one of the most difficult opponents to face in the World Cup for India in the past. Even though India triumphed against them in the 2011 World Cup quarter-finals, en route to the title, they were beaten by Australia in 2015 World Cup in the Semi-Finals. Both teams have met 18 times over the last 4 years with the honours even at 9-9. This is one match up which is difficult to call. The Australia team though will be buoyed by the return of Steven Smith and David Warner to the ODI side and with Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins making a comeback as well they look a strong side this time as well. Their recent form has been brilliant as well as they won 8 games in a row against India & Pakistan in the sub continent over the last couple of months. The battle obviously will be between the two batting sides and how the Australian batters play the Indian spinners. In the last 4 years this has been a high scoring ground with team batting second winning 6 of the last 11 games.
Verdict: This is a tough one to call and I would probably give Australia a slight edge on this one due to their recent form and historical dominance over India in the World Cups.
June 13, 2019 – India vs New Zealand, Trent Bridge, Nottingham
India will be taking on last year’s finalists in their third game of the tournament. India will start as favourites in this contest as historically India have a good record against the Blackcaps. The recent record between the two also alludes to the same conclusion as India have won 9 out of their last 13 games against New Zealand. New Zealand are a good side and have a good bowling attack and an aggressive batting attack. They did struggle a bit against the Indian spinners in the recently concluded series between the two sides. Indian spinners will once again be crucial in this contest. The blackcaps will have Tim Southee and Trent Boult with the new ball and Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi to manage the spin department. The batting will be led by captain Kane Williamson with the experience of Ross Taylor and Martin Guptill. The Indian batters did struggle against Boult’s swing in New Zealand but again we may not see such conditions in the world cup in a dry summer in the UK. The Indian bowling attack were all over New Zealand in the recent series and it will be interesting to see if they continue to do so in the World Cup.
Verdict: India definitely hold the edge over New Zealand in this contest. This will be close game but gain India is expected to win this game against the blackcaps.
That concludes part 1 of this series and the review will continue with the next three games in Part 2.
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The shot in the picture is what Vijay Shankar needs to play more when he takes guard for India in the World Cup
Pic Courtesy Deccan Chronicle
Hoick towards the mid-wicket seems to be the “Get Out of Jail” shot for Vijay Shankar in ODIs. It does not matter if he is playing pace or spin, when he has few dots, he tries to play that stroke. Even though he has had some success with that shot the problem is when you overdo something you are going to get caught out.
Vijay Shankar hasn’t played too many games for India and in this short span we have seen him caught at the boundary going for a big hit right after hitting one to the stands the previous ball. This from what I can remember happened twice against Australia in the recent series and at least once in the T20I series against New Zealand earlier this year. Vijay is not a slogger, he is far from it. You can see that he has a good technique when he plays the quick bowlers and hits straight. His innings of 45 against New Zealand was one of the best fighting innings from an Indian young player overseas in tough conditions. He does look million dollars when playing straight as he showed in the innings of 46 against Australia in the recently concluded series, a knock which seemed to have totally impressed the captain Virat Kohli.
Vijay also has a good first class record and averages 47 in that format. He is a good all-round cricketer who bowls a decent ball and is an excellent fielder. He is a naturally aggressive player whose strike rates are in the high 90’s in the limited overs formats. Even though playing positively is crucial these days, sometimes playing smart is crucial as well. Repeating a shot which just got you a six in a premeditated way is mostly a recipe for disaster and the risk of you skying the ball is high. Vijay has been selected in the Indian ODI team for the World Cup 2019 to bat at number 4 in the order. A position which is crucial for any team in the ODIs.
Any one playing in that position needs to be able to consolidate or bat aggressive according to the demands of the team. Vijay Shankar can make the position his own if he bats with little restraint. Every player has that one release shot, they normally keep that shot when they are under pressure but again you need to know when to use it and be smart about it.
In 18 innings so far Vijay has played for India his highest score is 45, he has gotten off to starts in few games but has lost his wicket to a restless nervous shot to lose his wicket at crucial times in the innings. The 5th ODI against Australia proves the case in point when all he needed to do was bat positively and build a partnership, he went for the glory shot against Nathan Lyon after hitting his previous ball for a six. These are small moments in the game which might be a turning point for a player as well as the team in a major tournament like the World Cup.
Cricket is majority of the times the skill but also there is a mental aspect to it. Lots of players have amazing skills but lose out because they lack the temperament to play in the pressure situation. Vijay Shankar will be thoroughly tested in the World Cup and how he responds to the various situations he finds himself in such a tournament will determine if he continues to play at number 4 for India in the ODIs. He can either lock down that spot or lose it completely by the end of the marquee tournament and lets just hope it is the former.
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Ajinkya Rahane’s hundred at Lord’s was one of the best innings played by an overseas batter on a difficult wicket
pic Courtesy indiatimes.com
The year 2013 saw a young Indian team under MS Dhoni embark upon a overseas tour leg with their first stop in South Africa for a 2 Test series. The Indian team was touring for the first time with you the legendary trio of Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman in the squad after a really long time. A young Virat Kohli along with Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara were the considered the lynch pins of the Indian batting on those tours.
India did not win any of the series on those tours but two players clearly emerged as the leader of Indian batting unit and Ajinkya Rahane was one of them. Rahane had a brilliant season with the bat. He scored hundreds in England, Australia and New Zealand and was brilliant in South Africa as well. In just over a year or so he had become India’s most crucial batter in the X1 along with Virat Kohli and was rightly made as the latter’s deputy when MS Dhoni called it a day midway through the Australian series.
Rahane was brilliant and with his technique against quick bowling and his naturally attacking style of play it was a joy to watch him bat on those tours. His 100 in Lord’s was one of the best batting you will see on a spiteful pitch and was a purists delight and his 147 in Melbourne against Mitchell Johnson was one finest attacking knocks you will see by an Indian batter against quick bowling overseas. Even during initial phase of his career Rahane was always a nervous starter with a slight weakness against spin. He did struggle to score runs at home and was always comfortable playing on hard fast wickets overseas. After the overseas leg was done, he had an average close to 50 and was considered one of the leading bats in the world at that time in 2015.
Fast forward to 2018, now an experienced Indian team led by Virat Kohli began yet another overseas leg. In the 3 years between the two sets of tours Ajinkya Rahane went from one of the 2 best batters in the side to being dropped for Rohit Sharma in the first two Tests of the South Africa tour. He did make a come back into the team and played few crucial knocks on all the tours but he was a pale shadow of the confident batter we saw in the 2013-15 season.
Rahane did not score a single hundred in 19 innings he played overseas since 2018 and his average of 27.94 showed the inconsistency that had crept into his batting. He struggled to convert starts and got out playing some uncharacteristic shots during that time. His Test average had dropped from something in high 40’s to just about 40 at the start of 2019. It is very hard to decipher as to how a brilliant player can regress so much in a short span of time. He wasn’t his usual self in this IPL for Rajasthan Royals as well which cost him his captaincy this season.
Ajinkya though who wasn’t picked for the World Cup in England has signed up to play for a first division county side Hampshire this season. A decision which might be god send for him in the current state of his career. Playing endless international cricket when you are not doing well cannot be good for your psyche and have some time away from the Indian team is probably what he needs right now. A good season with Hampshire away from the razzmatazz of the World Cup and media attention will be good for him to try and rediscover his magic with the bat. The responsibility of being a senior member and an overseas player for his county side is probably what is needs to get his career back on track.
Rahane is a crucial member of the Indian Test side and with the ICC Test Championship set to begin after the world cup, him being in form is crucial for the team’s success. I hope that he has a great county season. The runs he scores is not as important as the confidence he gains by playing away against some good competition and some very good bowlers. Players in the past have benefited a lot by playing in England and if he uses this chance well, he can also do so and return as the confident player he once was for India in Tests. India begin the Test Championship in August with a 2 Test series in West Indies and he along with Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara will be once again the batting leaders guiding the young players around them.
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Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri will shift their focus to the world cup as the IPL has now come to an end.
Mumbai Indians beat Chennai Super Kings in the IPL finals to clinch the title for the fourth time and the result meant that an incredible close competition came to an end with a huge drama. This also means that with the IPL coming to an end, the focus of the fans and the cricket team squarely back on the World Cup 2019 to be held in England early next month.
India will be hoping that Kedar Jadhav will recover in time for the World Cup as his replacement isn’t straightforward
The Indian squad had been already announced and it was nice to see that most of the players picked had a reasonably good IPL. The players also looked fit except for few niggles and were in good form by the end of the tournament. The only concern for India right now will be the fitness of Kedar Jadhav. Jadhav is part of Indian World Cup squad and has been a regular fixture in the Indian team over the last few years.
There hasn’t been much news about how his injury is progressing even though it does seem like the management is confident that he will be fit for the marquee tournament. If India are to look for a replacement, the front runners are obviously Rishabh Pant and Ambati Rayudu. Both the players who were left out of the initial 15 announced by the selectors last month. While Ambati Rayudu has played a lot of games for India over the past year the cries for inclusion of Rishabh Pant has never been louder after the youngster once again had a good IPL this season. The biggest problem for India is that neither of these two players provide India with a bowling option which Kedar does in ODIs.
The selection committee will have to weigh in the options and need to make the right decision if at all it comes down to finding a replacement for Kedar Jadhav. It will be unfortunate for Jadhav if he had to miss out due to injury as this may be his final chance to represent India in a 50 over World Cup. The rest of the squad though looked in prime fitness and also looked in good form.
Shikhar Dhawan who was having an indifferent 2019 had a very good IPL for Delhi Capitals. Rohit Sharma once again had a 400+ season, even though he could have been more consistent for his title winning side. Even though Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore once again failed to make the play-offs, he had a good season with the bat with 464 runs. MS Dhoni had a brilliant season behind the stumps and with the bat for Chennai Super Kings.
Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling form will be a concern for India but again IPL format is different and he is India’s best ODI spinner
The bowlers except for Kuldeep Yadav had a fantastic IPL. Yuzvendra Chahal was brilliant for RCB and Ravindra Jadeja did his bit for CSK with both bat and ball. Jasprit Bumrah was once again in his elements for MI with wickets as well as his economy rate and once again proved why he is India’s spearhead in all formats. The two bowlers India will be concerned about is Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Kuldeep Yadav. Both of them did not have a good tournament this time around and struggled to pick wickets. Even though there is no doubting their skill, India will be hoping that the change of format might help them gain their form back. Mohammad Shami was fantastic for Kings X1 Punjab and looked fit through the season.
Hardik Pandya was brilliant for Mumbai Indians in this IPL
The biggest gain for India in this IPL was the form of Hardik Pandya. Pandya had been missing in action for India due to non-cricketing reasons earlier this year and he showed why India need him in the team for the world cup. He was brilliant with the bat for Mumbai Indians at crucial times in this season and was good with the ball as well picking 14 wickets. He will be the crucial cog for India in this world cup and will provide us with the X-Factor in the X1.
The selectors will be keeping a close eye on Kedar Jadhav and will have to announce a replacement soon as India will be playing their first warm up game against New Zealand on the 25th at the Kennington Oval, London which is just over 10 days away.
India’s World Cup Schedule:
May 25 – India vs New Zealand (Warm Up)
May 28 – India vs Bangladesh (Warm Up)
Jun 05 – South Africa vs India
Jun 09 – India vs Australia
Jun 13 – India vs New Zealand
Jun 16 – India vs Pakistan
Jun 22 – India vs Afghanistan
Jun 27 – Windies vs India
Jun 30 – England vs India
Jul 02 – Bangladesh Vs India
Jul 06 – Sri Lanka vs India
I will be doing a two part blog later going over India’s opponents and how India have done against them since the last world cup.
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