Former Indian wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel feels that the Indian team will face the challenge of finding the right combination ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA. The Men in Blue will take on South Africa in a three-match T20 series starting on December 10th.
The Indian team for the forthcoming T20I series against South Africa is substantially unchanged from the one that defeated Australia 4-1 earlier this month.
Meanwhile, senior Indian players, including Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah, will miss yet another T20I series leading up to the T20 World Cup next year.
Speaking on Cricbuzz, Parthiv Patel believes that India will struggle to find the right combination because the Men in Blue don’t have enough T20 games leading up to the tournament. He believes that senior Indian players will play a three-match T20 series against Afghanistan and that the IPL will play a key role in the selection of the upcoming marquee event.
“India’s biggest challenge to me has always been finding that right combination, especially in the T20 format. And we don’t have games. Now we are talking about just three Afghanistan games if at all Virat or Rohit or Bumrah play in that. So I think it is something which India will have to take into account,” Parthiv Patel said.
“Or else, they will have to go with whoever does well in the IPL. But then you will have to announce the team about halfway through the IPL as well.
“So, it is a challenge. I am sure that before announcing the team they must have thought of who is in line for the World Cup and whether we want to get them for the Afghanistan series. It is a tricky situation,” Parthiv Patel added.
Team India has shifted their focus to the 2024 T20 World Cup, which will be contested in the United States and the West Indies from June 4 to June 30. The Men in Blue will only play a few T20I matches before the big competition, while the majority of Indian players will compete in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, vying spot in the team for the mega event.
There Is No Lack Supply Of Talent In India – Parthiv Patel
Parthiv Patel believes that the Indian team will go with a younger squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup. He feels that India has a lot of talent and wants the team management to find the right combination going into the marquee event and added that India was tactically outplayed in recent ICC events.
“I think they are looking at more options by going with this young squad. There is no lack of supply of talent in India. A problem of plenty is still a problem and we have to find the right combination.
“In whatever tournaments they have played, India were not out-skilled. They were tactically outplayed. Whether it was the 2023 final, the 2021 T20 World Cup where India was playing that outdated T20 game, in 2019 there was a problem of No.4,” Parthiv Patel concluded.
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah are likely to return to the team during the forthcoming series in Afghanistan series. The form and fitness of the Indian players in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League will be crucial going into the marquee event in the West Indies and the USA.
