CHENNAI: Irrespective of the outcome, there was plenty to cheer for India. Nothing has infuriated their fans and the former players than the patient start they have employed with the bat. Of course, the times have changed and over the past 10 months, India have made a course correction. But…
...this is the first series in that period where their top three Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli are all playing together. And after two in different outings in the group stages against Pakistan and especially against Hong Kong — their failure to get off the blocks quickly — had brought the magnifying lens back on the top three, especially Rahul and Kohli. Injuries, rest and rotation meant the two in question had played a grand total of just six T20Is since the last World Cup, a period in which the rest of India’s batters adopted a different approach.
So, for all the talk and the noise from outside, it was perfectly fitting that the top three set the tone for India in their Super 4 contest at Dubai on Sunday.
There were 11 dot deliveries in the powerplay, but there were four sixes and as many boundaries to go with the wicket of Rohit as India scored 62 in the period.
It doesn’t even fit in the top 15 in terms of most runs they have scored in the powerplay, but the intent they showed on Sunday was more than encouraging.
They were not hesitant to walk down the pitch. They didn’t think twice before freeing their arms to deliveries that were pitched anywhere around the full-length area. And yes, they even tried to rotate the strike as and where possible.
To cut it short, they kept taking the game forward. And even in their dismissals, there was the intent.
Rohit top-edged while going for a big hit; Rahul was holed out at long-on; Suryakumar Yadav was caught at square-leg; Rishabh Pant was caught while going for a reverse-sweep.
Of course, losing all four of those wickets and that of Hardik Pandya by the 15th over meant Kohli and Deepak Hooda were forced to take the pedal off the feet, as, in the absence of Ravindra Jadeja and Harshal Patel, they were lacking the depth on the batting front.
Amidst all of this, they seemed to have got back Kohli of the old. His place has been under scrutiny in the format.
And despite being included in the squad, there were still doubts if he could fit into this approach, especially when, in Rohit and Rahul, India have two anchors in the XI.
But the Indian team management has been clear in one aspect – Kohli will be needed Down Under, especially on pitches where there is zip.
And the former India captain, repaid the faith, scoring a second successive half-century as India posted 181/7 in 20 overs. Given the start India had, it seemed they left at least 15-20 runs on the field.
And it showed with the ball where India’s attack, coupled with some lacklustre fielding in parts, failed to defend the total.
After Mohammad Rizwan played his role to perfection (71 off 51), Mohammad Nawaz (42 off 20) gave the much-needed push in the middle as Pakistan reached home with one ball to spare.
With Pandya having a forgettable outing with the ball, much was expected from Bhuvneshwar Kumar. But with the seamer too going for runs, there was no stopping Pakistan.
Brief scores: India 181/7 in 20 ovs (Kohli 60, Rohit 28; Shadab 2/31) lost to Pakistan 182/5 in 19.5 ovs (Rizwan 71, Nawaz 42).