Atreyo Mukhopadhyay
The international cricket calendar forbids breathing space. Merely three days after a Test series, India and Australia are going to cross swords again, in the three-match ODI series from Friday. It’s a crucial engagement too, considering that this is a platform for both teams to check resources before the 50-over World Cup to be played in India later this year.
It’s a different Australian squad where ODI specialists have replaced Test players. Back in the mix are Glenn Maxwell, Mitch Marsh, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa and others. Back home are the likes of Usman Khawaja and the spin trio of Nathan Lyon Todd Murphy and Matt Kuhnemann. Khawaja was Player of the Series in ODIs when Australia beat India 3-2 in India before the 2019 World Cup. He was in good nick in the just concluded Test series as well. Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood are not around either, for different reasons although.
Selection and availability headaches are perhaps more acute in the Indian camp. With not too many ODIs to play before the World Cup, there are pieces missing in the puzzle and it’s imperative for the think tank to find those. No Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer — the first in serious doubt for the World Cup, the second presumably out for longer and the third out for no one knows how long — this is time that the team management homed in on replacements.
Bumrah cannot be replaced, no matter what. And this is something India will have to get used to. They have Mohammed Shami, Mohamed Siraj, Jaydev Unadkat, Shardul Thakur and Umran Malik to choose from. Plus, there is Hardik Pandya, captain for the first match in Mumbai which Rohit Sharma will skip. According to many, Malik can be the X factor Bumrah was and they feel he should be part of the XI instead of being another member of the 18-member squad.
Will Umran Malik be tried out
In eight ODIs so far, Malik has made heads turn and also had some ordinary moments. On pitches not offering bounce naturally, he has made batters hurry and forced them into awkward positions. He has the ability to cause damage irrespective of the period of the innings he is bowling in. Raw pace is an asset in any form of the game if used with accuracy and intelligence. This combination, however, is not very common and Malik needs guidance to make best use of his talent.
In eight ODIs since debut in November 2022, the Jammu & Kashmir speed specialist has taken 13 wickets and looked like getting more. Even of flat pitches made for limited-over games in India, he can ask tough questions. No comparison with Bumrah obviously, but he has the potential to become that unconventional weapon, which is difficult to get used to and therefore, come to terms with. And if the bounce is uneven, he can be lethal.
But Malik’s economy rate is 6.45 in ODIs and his tendency to bowl fast involves an element of risk. He has gone for runs and may be that is why the team has used him sparingly. He has featured in three of the six ODIs India has played in 2023. And since debut, Malik has made the XI in eight of the 12 games the Men in Blue took part in. His team lost four of those. Having said that, this is the time to assess if he can become a force to reckon with later this year.
Will it be Rahul or Ishan Kishan
This team has actually had time to deal with its realities. It was known that Pant wouldn’t be around for the World Cup and KL Rahul has been deemed the suitable boy as wicketkeeper by the captain and coach. Left out of the Test squad after a run of low scores, Rahul’s role as a batter in ODIs will be handling the No 5 position in normal case scenarios. But he averages 32.81 in 13 matches in this format since the beginning of 2022 and there is Ishan Kishan awaiting his chance.
Given a choice, Rahul and Kishan would certainly have opted for opening slots which are occupied by Rohit and Shubman Gill at the moment. So their next alternative is No 5 and Rahul has been preferred over Kishan of late, even after the latter hitting a double century as opener in a dead rubber against Bangladesh last year. But as mentioned, Rahul has not had a lot of success and authorities will look at someone else if he does not turn things around pretty soon.
Will SKY fit the bill
Replacing Iyer is a more straight forward matter. After being left out of the ODI XI despite his T20 exploits, Surya Kumar will be the man. But he will have to tread cautiously, given that his ODI record is not as impressive. He averages 28.86 in 20 games since debut in July 2021. Iyer’s record — average of 51.12 from the beginning of 2022 in 20 ODIs — explains why he had been preferred over SKY, who now has to a lot to prove and play for.
The rest, as far the Indian team is concerned, is about giving opportunities to players they think are capable and rotate them if need be to find out the best possible alternatives. There is a problem of plenty in the spin department and the team management will have a tough time in picking two or three. After a Test series dominated by pitch talk and spin, the ODIs will hopefully be played on traditional limited-over surfaces offering loads of runs. It’s time to find out who are the ones better at scoring them, restricting them and saving them, other than taking wickets.