This might be a hypothetical question in relation to India’s current T20I set-up – ‘Do they have a complete side at the moment?’ To a large extent, the verdict could be a ‘Yes’. However, there appears to be one small chink, which somewhere down the line could bother the national side against one of the top teams. That is the lack of power-hitting lower down the order.
In a T20 game, more often not, those batting at 7 and 8 are set to play a few deliveries at the back end of the innings. In such circumstances, those taking lower-order positions have to make the maximum impact. It could be a quick-fire 20 off 8-10 deliveries, which in turn might propel the side to a safe score. Just a mere glance at the 15-member squad, and it wouldn’t take long to gauge the fact that Axar Patel is more or less set to take over the No.7 slot.
The bigger question mark surrounds the No.8 position. Washington Sundar, who showed some hitting ability in The Oval Test, hasn’t been included in the squad. In T20Is, Sundar’s performances have been a mixed bag – He has a strike rate of 151.28 in 27 matches at 8, but it is just 92.3 in 18 matches at 7.
With Sundar not in the reckoning for the Asia Cup, India could look at fielding four bowling specialists – Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakaravarthy. The other route is to use Harshit Rana at 8 and leave out Arshdeep. One of the reasons for India picking Harshit ahead of Prasidh Krishna is because the former can land a few more shots. In fact, among the two, Prasidh was clearly the better bowler in the 2025 IPL. Incidentally, Harshit has smashed close to 30 sixes in first-class cricket.
It would be grossly unfair on Arshdeep, as the left-arm pace bowler is the top wicket-taker for the country in the shortest format with 99 scalps. He also provides the side the variety with his left-arm angle. Having said that, one can’t underestimate the importance of having a hitter at 8. To add a little more intrigue to the vexing question, Gautam Gambhir, the present head coach of the Indian team, prefers batting depth across formats, including in Test cricket.
There is one more alternative for the Indian think-tank and that is to trust the all-rounder Shivam Dube. But will the think-tank trust Dube’s bowling skills? At his very best, Dube can bowl at around 80mph. Despite being 6’4” tall, he isn’t exactly known for extracting extra bounce either.
With due respect to other sides in the Asia Cup, India perhaps have the required arsenal in the bowling line-up to chisel out a way in the tournament. In that backdrop, India can still look to select specialists. But tougher assignments lie ahead, including the T20 World Cup next year. At some point, not having firepower down the order could hurt India.
For latest sports updates: Follow RevSportz