India vs West Indies 2014: Does it make sense for India to pick a wrist-spinner with an eye on ICC World Cup 2015?
Should India pick wrist-spinner ahead of World Cup?
The ICC World Cup 2015 is slowly drawing near. With an eye on the final squad, India have made an interesting selection ahead of the One-Day International (ODI) series against West Indies. India have rested the finger-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and gone in with two wrist spinners in Amit Mishra and Kuldeep Yadav for the first three ODIs. Shiamak Unwalla ponders over the significance of wrist spin Down Under.
India’s designated spinners For the first three matches of the ongoing five-ODI series against West Indies are Ravindra Jadeja, Amit Mishra, and Kuldeep Yadav. Ravichandran Ashwin has been rested, but is expected to be picked for the last two matches.
India’s squad for the ICC World Cup 2015 is still a long way from being selected (though there is a maximum of nine ODIs they can play before the tournament), but if the current signs are anything to go by, then it is likely that India will pick three frontline spinners in their squad. While Jadeja and Ashwin are all but assured of a spot, the inclusion of Mishra and Kuldeep in the current squad raises some interesting questions.
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When India triumphed in the World Championship of Cricket in 1985, the then-17 year old Laxman Sivaramakrishnan had been the trump card who helped India to the trophy. His spell of three for 35 in the final had helped India restrict Pakistan to just 176 for nine.
Sunil Gavaskar had also included Ravi Shastri in the squad, much against the judgement of critics. Slow bowlers are more difficult to hit boundaries against on the humongous Australian grounds, ran his logic. However, to base expectations of Indian wrist-spinners based on that performance alone would be foolhardy. Indeed, Indian spinners haven’t fared particularly well in the Australian continent.
Given below is the 14 leading ODI spinners in Australia and New Zealand. Just two Indians feature in the list, with both coming in after No 10:
| Name | Type | Period | M | Wickets | Ave | Econ | SR |
| Shane Warne | Wrist | 1993-2005 | 96 | 152 | 24.15 | 4.12 | 35.1 |
| Daniel Vettori | Finger | 1997-2011 | 153 | 148 | 33.42 | 4.13 | 48.5 |
| Muttiah Muralitharan | Finger | 1995-2010 | 60 | 85 | 28.16 | 4.38 | 38.5 |
| Peter Taylor | Finger | 1987-1992 | 67 | 83 | 26.59 | 4.03 | 39.5 |
| Brad Hogg | Wrist | 2002-2008 | 52 | 63 | 31.26 | 4.72 | 39.6 |
| Carl Hooper | Finger | 1987-1997 | 56 | 46 | 33.06 | 4.03 | 49.2 |
| Shahid Afridi | Wrist | 1996-2011 | 43 | 45 | 32.24 | 4.51 | 42.8 |
| Greg Matthews | Finger | 1984-1993 | 39 | 40 | 31.07 | 4.18 | 44.5 |
| Mushtaq Ahmed | Wrist | 1990-1997 | 33 | 40 | 30.32 | 4.3 | 42.3 |
| Allan Border | Finger | 1979-1994 | 192 | 39 | 29.97 | 4.57 | 39.2 |
| John Emburey | Finger | 1980-1988 | 23 | 34 | 27.94 | 4.46 | 37.5 |
| Anil Kumble | Wrist | 1994-2005 | 27 | 33 | 32.09 | 4.51 | 42.6 |
| Saqlain Mushtaq | Finger | 1996-2001 | 23 | 31 | 25.9 | 4.02 | 38.6 |
| Ravi Shastri | Finger | 1985-1992 | 28 | 29 | 29.41 | 3.61 | 48.7 |
If one splits up the wrist-spinners from the finger-spinners in ODIs in Australia, the results become more comprehensible. First, the wrist-spinners:
| Bowler | M | W | Ave | Runs | SR | Balls | Econ |
| Shane Warne | 96 | 152 | 24.15 | 3671 | 35.1 | 5335 | 4.13 |
| Brad Hogg | 52 | 63 | 31.26 | 1969 | 39.6 | 2495 | 4.74 |
| Shahid Afridi | 43 | 45 | 32.24 | 1451 | 42.8 | 1926 | 4.52 |
| Mushtaq Ahmed | 33 | 40 | 30.32 | 1213 | 42.3 | 1692 | 4.30 |
| Anil Kumble | 27 | 33 | 32.09 | 1059 | 42.6 | 1406 | 4.52 |
| Total | 251 | 333 | 28.12 | 9363 | 38.6 | 12854 | 4.37 |
And then the finger-spinners:
| Bowler | M | W | Ave | Runs | SR | Balls | Econ |
| Daniel Vettori | 153 | 148 | 33.42 | 4946 | 48.5 | 7178 | 4.13 |
| Muttiah Muralitharan | 60 | 85 | 28.16 | 2394 | 38.5 | 3273 | 4.39 |
| Peter Taylor | 67 | 83 | 26.59 | 2207 | 39.5 | 3279 | 4.04 |
| Carl Hooper | 56 | 46 | 33.06 | 1521 | 39.6 | 1822 | 5.01 |
| Greg Matthews | 39 | 40 | 31.07 | 1243 | 44.5 | 1780 | 4.19 |
| Allan Border | 192 | 39 | 29.97 | 1169 | 39.2 | 1529 | 4.59 |
| John Emburey | 23 | 34 | 27.94 | 950 | 37.5 | 1275 | 4.47 |
| Saqlain Mushtaq | 23 | 31 | 25.90 | 803 | 38.6 | 1197 | 4.03 |
| Ravi Shastri | 28 | 29 | 29.41 | 853 | 48.7 | 1412 | 3.62 |
| Total | 641 | 535 | 30.07 | 16085 | 42.5 | 22743 | 4.24 |
As seen above, there is no evidence to suggest which form of spin — whether wrist or finger — is more successful in Australia. While it is evident that wrist-spinners take wickets more frequently (and at cheaper rates), finger-spinners have had better economy rates.
In fact, with just five-wrist spinners in the top 14, it would seem that finger-spinners are more successful. However, given that at least three of the above-mentioned finger-spinners (Hooper, Border, and Shastri) were batting all-rounders who happened to play a lot of matches in Australia, there is not a whole lot to go by.
The inclusion of Kuldeep and Mishra is encouraging, but one must keep in mind that in a squad of 15, every spot is vital. It would be more prudent to select players who have an excellent chance of playing matches, rather than take a back-up spinner who probably will not feature at all.
Complete coverage of West Indies tour of India 2014
(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek and Cricket fanatic. You can follow him on Twitter @ShiamakUnwalla)