India V New Zealand 2017: SWOT Analysis of Team India

Oct 18, 2017 at 2:47 PM

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India V New Zealand 2017: SWOT Analysis of Team India

After comfortably beating the Australians by a 4-1 margin in the ODI series, the Indian cricket team is all set to face the Blacks Caps in a three-match ODI series starting from 22nd October. Without a doubt, the Men in Blue will be the frontrunners in the series, but the Kiwis have some talented players on their side, and like the last time around, they can give a good fight to the hosts. Previously when the Kiwis had toured India last year, it was a hard fought series which went in favor of India by a 3-2 margin.

The Men in Blue have been thoroughly dominant in all three departments of the game, and the omission of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for the 2nd successive series proves that the limited overs team has settled down well and the team management doesn’t want to disturb the combination. Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal, the two wrist spinners have been pretty efficient in their short career so far and has kept Ashwin and Jadeja out of the team.

Strengths

The current team doesn’t have an apparent weakness especially after Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Jasprit Bumrah has come good for the team. The bowling department used to be the weak link for India even a couple of years back, but now the team has arguably the best-limited overs new ball pair with Bumrah and Bhuvi.

The hosts boast of a sensational top 3 who on their day can decimate any bowling attack. The return of Shikhar Dhawan will undoubtedly bolster India, but unfortunately, the Man in form Ajinkya Rahane might have to miss out. Rahane had scored four centuries in the series so far. Captain Virat Kohli has been a champion limited overs player over the years, and his consistency has been the benchmark in his relatively short career so far.

The X-factor for the team has been none other than Hardik Pandya who has been tested a few times at the No.4 position. Captain Virat Kohli had earlier said that Pandya could become India’s permanent No.4 in the limited overs format. His six hitting ability is special, and he can be a nightmare for any bowler. The way he can effortlessly strike sixes after sixes reminds me of the young, flamboyant MS Dhoni who used to clear ropes with utmost ease and with exceptional consistency.

Jasprit Bumrah. Image Courtesy: Getty Images

Weakness

There is no apparent weakness in the current India team. The only area where the Kiwis might cash in is the indifferent form of Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav. They have shown their glimpses during the series against the Aussies but weren’t able to convert their starts into big ones. While Kuldeep and Chahal have been immensely impressive, the leg-spinning option might also backfire at times given the fact that leg-spinners tend to leak runs despite being a wicket-taking bowler.

There have been a few fielding lapses during the series against Australia, and the hosts should pull up their socks if they harbour any chance of becoming the Australia of the yesteryears when they won 3 consecutive World Cups in 1999, 2003 and 2007. The team is in good shape now, and the weakness might get overlooked once the series gets underway on 22nd.

India Vs Australia, Hardik Pandya, Match Winner, Sourav Ganguly, Men in Blue
Pandya made his international debut against Australia at Adelaide in January 2016. Photo Credit: AFP.

Opportunities

The team management might be tempted to rest a few of the regular guys and test the bench strength, especially against a lower ranked team. Shardul Thakur who made his international debut in Sri Lanka was recalled back while Ashwin and Jadeja still get overlooked. It will be a big opportunity for Shardul to come good if he gets a game. If India seals the series in the 2nd match itself, then the team management might look for other options for the final encounter.

Dinesh Karthik is also on the team, and unless there is an injury to MS Dhoni, he might be warming the bench throughout the series. Both Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar will look to cement their dominance more in this format while the top order will look to continue their exceptional run.

Shardul Thakur makes a comeback.

Threats

Rain might be a factor in the series which was the case when Australia was playing the three-match T20 series. While India won the 1st rain-truncated match, Australia defeated India in the 2nd T20I quite comprehensively by eight wickets while the final match scheduled in Hyderabad was called off without a ball being bowled.

KL Rahul who despite not playing a single ODI against Australia was in the squad but this time around he has been ignored. He needs to pull his socks up and make a comeback in the T20I series and their next limited overs assignment. The leg-spinners might leak runs if the pitch doesn’t

Here is the Full Indian Squad for the ODI Series against New Zealand

Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni (wk), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya

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