A top-of-the-table clash in the group stage is always a mouth-watering contest, without the pressure of being ousted from the tournament. The psychological edge going into the playoffs, and the bragging rights of staying undefeated, are up for grabs. But once the knockout games begin, none of this will have any bearing. It will be down to who handles the pressure better while executing their full skillset.
In the past, some have succumbed to this. Suddenly, the body gets tighter and the brain fuzzier. This is where the been-there-and-done-it players generally come out on top, for they are more used to the pressure. If such a player fails, he is more likely to be pardoned just because of the weight of performances in the past.
Virat Kohli will always be Virat Kohli. Apart from the greatness we witness on any cricket ground that he sets foot on, what is so baffling is how he can summon the same passion and intensity game after game. Strong opposition or weak, tough conditions or easy, home and away, day game or under lights, red ball or white, India or RCB. Anyone who saw him take that last catch in the New Zealand innings and thump his chest saw his passion. You might have thought India had won the game, but it was only the end of the first innings. That is what makes him so special, and drives him to be the best that he can be. The flex and fluidity of limb, the accord of mind and muscle. He competes with himself and always comes out on top.
But India won primarily because of the bowlers. Upfront, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami were on the money on a deck which was slightly on the drier side. The bounce we usually associate with the Dharamshala pitch wasn’t there. The difference in the way the two teams started, or were allowed to start, was the difference. India’s fast bowlers outdid the Kiwi pacers, and Trent Boult had a rare off day.
The pitch, with the dew falling, also firmed up as the game went on and that helped the Indian batters. Rohit Sharma has looked a million bucks and will be disappointed at not converting such starts. Shubman Gill was looking fluent but fell after getting his eye in. The usual template is for one of the top three to get a hundred and for others to bat around him. With Kohli doing that with unerring consistency, India also needs to be ready for the day when he has a rare failure.
That will be the day India has to find another way to get across the line. The dependability that KL Rahul has brought to the middle order is refreshing and, more importantly, reassuring. There were lots of opinions flying around about Rahul, mine excluded, and he has put all those to bed for good. The cream always rises to the top, and that is why such players are given a longer rope. Kudos to the selectors and team management for seeing a champion player through from a rocky road onto the highway.
Shreyas Iyer, as gifted as he is, needs to learn from Kohli how not to throw it away after getting in. With Rohit getting India off to flyers in the power play and making life easier for the batters coming in, the middle order cannot give it away. Suryakumar Yadav also ran down the pitch after hitting it a couple of yards to the side of the fielder. With these Kiwis, you cannot do that. They are just too good on the field – great hands, athleticism and supreme fitness. At that juncture, when the going was tough, the ‘wait’ call would have been the wiser one. Also, the fact that India were playing with a batter less meant those in the line-up had to take on more responsibility.
Ravindra Jadeja looked solid. He needed to be because the next man in was Bumrah. In one of my earlier articles, I had expressed my concerns about the No. 8. I am sure I am not in a minority when I say that, after Sunday’s game, it’s even more apparent now. It was 191-5 when Jadeja came in, which meant India needed another 83 for the win with Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Shami and Siraj left in the hut.
Playing with Jadeja and four specialist bowlers could be a risk, especially if someone has an off day as Kuldeep did. Unlike batters, who cool their heels in the hut after a bad outing, a bowler has to somehow plough through the quota of over. No Hardik Pandya in the XI was a huge blow, and it looked at times like India were playing with 10 men. That’s the impact that proper all-rounders have. With no like-for-like seam-bowling all-rounders available, Hardik is almost irreplaceable.
Finally, a word on someone I have seen from very close quarters since his junior cricket days. How good was Shami? The first Indian to take two five-wicket hauls in the World Cup, and he isn’t even a guaranteed starter. A wicket with his first ball set the tone for a spell where the seam position was immaculate as always. For Rohit and Rahul Dravid, It’s a good selection headache to have.