Published: Nov 07, 2022, 04:59 PM (IST)
Edited: Nov 07, 2022, 04:59 PM (IST)
Melbourne: Team India finished the super 12 stage of T20 World Cup 2022 as the table-topper of group 2 with a dominant victory over Craig Ervine’s Zimbabwe. They are the only team to have secured four wins and 8 points in the super 12. Rohit Sharma-led Indian side qualified for the semi-finals with Netherlands’ upset victory over South Africa.
The Men in Blue has performed astonishingly well with the bat. Both Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav are among the top 3 run scorers in the tournament. However, Team India’s bowling has been exponentially well. This was one forte that had all the Indian cricket fans worried. Their bowling before the tournament was really struggling but it has been a total turnaround in the tournament.
India’s star bowlers Yuzi Chahal and Harshal Patel only have been bench warmers and are yet to play a single match in the tournament. Team Management has preferred the veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin over Chahal. Ashwin has used the opportunity well and grabbed 6 wickets in the super 12 matched and has been economical.
Ashwin grabbed 3 wickets in the match against Zimbabwe and played a major role in restricting Craig Ervine’s side on 115 runs. However, Ashwin has failed to impress India’s first World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev. The Indian Legend believes that the veteran spinner is underconfident despite getting wickets and it is easily visible in his body language.
“Until now, Ashwin hasn’t given me the confidence. He picked up wickets today but it didn’t look as if he got them. In fact, batsmen iss tarah out huye ki unhe khud bhi 1-2 wickets lete huye sharam aa rahi thi (Some of the batsmen got out in a way that Ashwin himself couldn’t believe it). He was hiding his face. Picking up wickets obviously gives you that confidence but the Ashwin we know, we haven’t seen him show the same rhythm” Kapil Dev said on ABP News
He even talked about involving Chahal in the tournament to surprise the opponents and said “It depends on the team management. If they have the confidence on Ashwin, it’s good. He has played the entire tournament so he can adjust if need be. But if you want to surprise the opposition, they can always turn to the wrist-spinner (Chahal). Whoever wins the confidence of the management and captain, will play,”
