India will take on Australia in the second One-Day International (ODI) at Melbourne on Sunday. After a tepid display in the Test series, India would be keen to get back on track in their favourite format. Shiamak Unwalla feels that the only question facing India is who will bat at what position.
After Australia beat England in the first One-Day International (ODI) at Sydney, all eyes will focus on their encounter with the Men in Blue in the second match of the series. Australia managed to pip England thanks to their bowling and a dominating performance by David Warner. India will have watched the match very carefully, and would have seen the way Mitchell Starc bowled with the new ball.
India’s batting line-up is far superior to that of England in one-day cricket; of that there is no question. In fact, the major problems India face is that of plenty. Given that Ajinkya Rahane and Shikhar Dhawan had a productive time opening the innings together in 2014, a case could be made for them to continue opening together. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma has two double centuries while opening; certainly something the captain and coach will keep in mind. Off the three, Rahane is the best player of swing bowling, though that alone might not be the criteria India will consider.
The most obvious answer would be to play any two of Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit, and Rahane at the top, and have the third coming in at No. 3, followed by Virat Kohli. This was the strategy adopted by India whilst playing Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, and Gautam Gambhir together. Kohli batted at No. 4 for most of the ICC World Cup 2011.
Suresh Raina has all but cemented his spot at No. 5 with some tremendous performances over the last couple of years. One feels that he and MS Dhoni could keep swapping between batting at No. 5 and 6 depending on the match situation. Both men are comfortable as finishers, though if a slew of wickets fall, Dhoni might be better suited to playing a long innings.
Given that Ravindra Jadeja might not be fit to play the first couple of games, it is likely that India will start with Akshar Patel, though Stuart Binny’s presence in the side suggests that he could make the cut as well. While it is not likely that both all-rounders will play together, India might want to experiment by doing just that. If so, it would be interesting to see who bats ahead of whom. If even Ravichandran Ashwin is playing, he could well bat ahead of either, given the faith Dhoni has in him.
On the whole, India have a golden opportunity to experiment with players as well as try to find their batting order for the ICC World Cup 2015. While having a problem of plenty is a good thing, finding the right men at the right positions should be India’s top priority.
(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek and cricket fanatic. You can follow him on Twitter @ShiamakUnwalla)
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