T20 World Cup: What could be India’s Plan B against Shaheen and Amir in New York showdown?
What could India’s Plan B be against Shaheen and Amir in T20 World Cup?
As the Nassau County Cricket Stadium in New York is ready to play host to the marquee India vs Pakistan match in the 2024 T20 World Cup, all eyes will be on the head-to-head battle between stars Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli versus Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Amir. Those who followed this development over the years know how much of a mouth-watering clash this is. So what should India do to curb their effect early on with the new ball?
India opened with Rohit and Virat in the first game against Ireland in New York but theexperiment failedbig time as Kohli departed on a rare one inside the third over.
Though another experiment of playing Rishabh Pant at number three, which helps accommodate all-rounder Shivam Dube in the playing XI, worked wonders as he scored an unbeaten 36, India must find a solid and long-term solution to having a fixed top three.
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Considering both stalwarts have had trouble facing the left-arm seamers earlier, with the inswinging delivery working as a catalyst for the bowlers, the team management must take a brave call on deciding the batting order. While India walks into this contest as a batting-heavy side, their arch-rivals will have their chin upknowing the four-man seam attackguardtheir pride every time.
From Shaheen and Naseem Shah - good with the new ball, to Amir and Haris Rauf - better choices for the first and second-change seamers, Pakistan have their bases covered against India. Although their latest result against the USA (where they lost in the super-over) doesn’t help the cause, looking back at their performances in the past two editions might boost their confidence.
What should India’s Plan B be?
India might actually go ahead with Rohit and Virat at the top without bothering much about Pakistan’s bowling order. Alternatively, they can make a few amends to their XI to avoid facing any hiccups earlier, just in case.
Now that Pakistan is sure of playing at least three seamers if not four, against India and going ahead with Shadab Khan as the lone spinner, the Indian Team can drop Dube for this tie (who is known to spin well), bringing in Yashasvi Jaiswal instead, dropping Kohli to his usual number three position, with Pant playing at five.
Although this calls for too many changes in the XI, the Men in Blue can at least try bringing more balance to the side to ensure they have better chances.
