Does India stand a chance at the ICC World T20?

A lot of water has passed underneath since India’s triumph in the first edition of the ICC World T20 in 2007 and enumerating the same could run into reams of pages. Yet, the one huge change that germinated from that victory has been the application of the ‘favourites’ tag across the Indian team; something that would happen previously as well, but without too much conviction in the heart.

So, does India really stand a chance, or is it more of a language of hope and veiled patriotism on the part of sponsors and media-men alike, who are in the perfect cognizance of the fact that their opportunity to earn that extra buck lies in the hands of India’s progress to the later rounds of the tournament; the idea situation being the eventuality of India getting to the finals.

Tendulkar and Kirstein’s purported prophecy: And it is in the form of the worrying signs that were on display during the IPL; a tired and jaded Indian team out there. Captain M.S.Dhoni seemed like he had just had run a mile with a million pounds of dumb-bells around his body, during every game, and as a captain, it may not augur too well for the rest of the players. Oh and yes, Dhoni will not only lead the side, but, in the absence of any back-up wicket-keeper – either full-time or a part-time option – will most definitely do his round of sit-ups behind the wickets for the entire duration of the tournament. Add that to the fact that Dhoni could bat anywhere in the top-order, and we could have a deader than the Dead Sea Indian captain.

Not a good omen!

Openers open to failure? Till about a couple of months back, Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag were the toast of the nation, and the apparent heirs to the best opening pair award. Today, there is a conspicuous worry about their form, and in Sehwag’s case, the fitness too. Sehwag’s is the age old adage of ‘those who live by the sword, also die by it’, and one can only hope that going into the tournament which will consist of most games that are twenty overs long, he will not wish to finish off his batting sessions in five.

Gambhir’s may be a case of either law of the averages striking him after a run that has lasted almost a couple of seasons. Or, it could well be the fact that opposition bowlers world over have found out his weakness; a penchant to glide the ball down to the third-man, with a result that he is susceptible to guiding the cherry to the close-in fielders.

Or it could be a very potent combination of both!

Either ways, it does not seem too nice for the Indians!

Will R.P. fit in Zaheer’s shoes? No, I am in no mood to write an obituary for Zaheer Khan, despite knowing that his shoulder injury may prevent him from attaining full fitness, but the fact of the matter is that most of Team India’s success has depended on the opening quick bowling attack; namely in the form of Zaheer and Ishant Sharma. Without meaning to sound it too harsh, there have been enough murmurs about Ishant’s lack of wickets to show for his efforts as well, which means that the purple cap holder, R.P.Singh may get more than his share of a game or two. And it will do him and the team no harm if he is able to replicate an IPL-like form for his team!

Will the real Yuvraj Singh, please stand up? Playing Jekyll and Hyde seems second nature to Yuvraj Singh, but over the years, Yuvi’s aversion for any kind of delivery that deviates from its path – either in the form of spin or swing – causes enough issues and more for the southpaw. This, despite the fact that Yuvraj’s talent is an unquestionable bundle! Yuvraj has won many a games for the country almost singlehandedly, and so, India’s chances to retain the trophy will depend a lot on how Yuvi shapes up on tracks that are bound to support swing and seam bowlers.

The Young Turks: Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh are young enough, but I am alluding to the likes of the Yusuf Pathans and Ravindra Jadejas, both of whom had practically no role to play in the previous triumph. India’s best chance to retain its previous glory is to have at least one of these youngsters surprise the opposition with some excellent all-round cricket and win the games for India.

Suneer Chowdhary
Suneer is a freelance cricket writer and can be reached at suneerchowdhary (at) gmail dot com