Indian Team's Journey in 2019 Cricket World Cup.. Game 5..India Vs Afghanistan

Riding high on a splendid win over arch rival Pakistan, India came into this match against Afghanistan thinking it as a cake walk at Southampton.Little, did they knew what is in store for them.

Virat won the toss and chose to Bat on a pitch which he described as hard & conducive to bat; even his Afghan counterpart said he wanted to bat first. India made one change in the playing eleven with Mohd.Shami taking the place of injured Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Afghanistan opened their bowling attack with the lanky finger spinner Mujeeb –the youngest player of the tournament at 18 years. He proved the Skipper’s decision right when he clean bowled the Indian opener run machine Rohit Sharma in just his 3^rd Over .Hit Man Rohit played inside the line of the ball which pitched and turned just a bit to miss Rohit’s bat and clip the off stump.Rohit barely managed to opened his account this time. India 7 for 1.

Rahul too was scratchy during his stay in the middle .He managed to edge one pass the keeper & 1^st slip of Aftab when he was on 15.India immediately understood that they read the pitch wrong as this pitch had spongy bounce and stroke making would not have been easy on it as the ball was gripping the surface right from the start and Afghanistan had an army of Spinners in their lineup.

Kohli ,who came in to replace Rohit made a statement with an exquisite Cover Drive for 4 of Gulbadin .India 41 for 1 in 10 overs.Rahul could not handle the pressure Afghanistan were building up and tried to reverse sweep Nabi only to be caught by Zazai in the 15^th over. He was on 15.India 64 for 2.

Meanwhile Virat Kohli was going great guns on the other end. He even welcomed the star bowler Rashid Khan with a crisp extra cover drive for 4 when the latter came into bowl for the first time in this match in the 20^th over after the trauma English team has endured on him. India 86 for 2 in 20 overs.

Vijay Shankar recovering quickly of a toe crusher Yorker from Bumrah in the practice nets, came in after the fall of Rahul’s wicket. He survived a leg before decision of Rashid Khan’s wrong one in the bowler’s very first over.

Virat went on to make his 3^rd consecutive fifty in this tournament of 48 balls in the 22 nd over. India 94 for 2. In the 27^th over, Vijay Shankar got out LBW on 29(41 balls) by part time spinner Rehmat.This lead Dhoni to the middle.

Kohli was on 67(63balls) in the 31^st over, when he was caught by Rehmat of the bowling of  Nabi.India 135 for 4.This lead Kedar Jadhav in, who proved once again why at no 6 his place in the team is so vital. 

Jadhav went on to make his 6th fifty in ODI Cricket in just 66 balls.

The ever cool Dhoni looked flustered today and was unable to rotate strike. He even almost got Jadhav run out  in the quest of ever elusive single .Eventually, 2 balls later the pressure of scoring quick runs got to him and he tried an expensive heave over the bowler’s head and found his stumps castled by the keeper Ikram of Rashid Khan. India 192 for 5 in 45^th over. Dhoni scored just 28 of 52 balls.

Afghanistan bowling and catching was good but their outfield fielding was pathetic with lots of fumble and dirty gathering.

Pandaya came in next and went for a meager score of 7 of 9 balls in the 49^th over.Kedar Jadhav got out in the 50^th over just after adding 2 runs to his fifty.

At the end India managed to score just 224 for 8 in their stipulated 50 overs.  

Afghanistan came out to reply had to face the vindictive Mohd.Shami who as if was trying to prove a point , bowled with lot of  venom .He was playing his very first match of the tournament & was constantly clocking 90 mph or above. Who knew he had a big surprise at the end.

Bumrah, Chahal and Pandaya bowled well and took 2 wickets a piece. From the Afghan side only experienced Nabi could present some spine with 52 runs of 55 balls. He stood like a lone warrior between India and win until Shami cleaned him up. Others too got start but could not carry on against the experienced Indian bowling lineup. They surely gave a scare to the much experienced Indian team who mistakenly took the match easy. At the end ,Afghanistan could manage only 213 but won lots of heart by giving India a much needed scare.

Indians cannot take this win with their head high and need to take home few learning from this match. The only highlight of the match was a brilliant Hat trick of Mohd.Shami at the fag end of Afghan inning.

MY ANALYSIS:     

1. What ever they said in the media on the eve of the match against Afghanistan, the Indians never took Afghanistan seriously which was proved during the match. They lacked the intensity and the application they showed against other bigger countries. Whereas Afghanistan on the other hand played much above their standards and managed to scare India .Their strength lies in their bowling and with purchase from the track, they were lethal.

2.Captain Kohli and the Indian think tank read the pitch absolutely wrong when they won the toss and elected to bat ,knowing well that Afghan side has a battery of spinners to milk the condition, which they conveyed well by opening their bowling attack with Mujib.

3. Both the openers, Rohit & Rahul quickly sensed that the pitch is not what they have thought of but were unable to adjust and were found indecisive – a point proved by the way Rohit got out of mujib.

4. Rahul needs to learn fast that after you get your eye in, one need to show restrain under difficult condition and not attempt a foolish shot to throw away your precious wicket. Or is it the relaxation of knowing that his place at the top is secure now after Dhawan ruled out of the WC??

5. Dhoni is a big player and an asset to the team, his forte is quick running between the wicket and keeping the score board ticking (As for finisher tag-he is well past that prime now!). He was found wanting on both today. Never ever in the past we saw Dhoni flustered and unable to rotate strike even in more trying conditions and against better attack. His succumbing to pressure and trying a big heave over the bowler’s head and getting stumped as a result is too astonishing as well, considering it was just the 2^nd time when he got stumped.

6. Kedar Jadhav’s utility in the team is proved in such crunch situations .He plays with a cool head and has a range of street smart strokes in his kitty. He should be retained in the team for long, not forgetting he is a utility bowler with a strange bowling action as well!!When “Kulcha” is thriving on wickets, he can maintain the pressure from the other end making life difficult for the batsman. He can also play the role of the 5th bowler when Pandaya has an off day or any of the lead bowler is getting the stick. He is the type of player in the team who can make Virat’s life a bit easier by providing a superb option.

7. Keeping a lead bowler out of action for so long was in a way a big blessing for Team india.It resulted in, Mohd.Shami coming out firing on all cylinders. He really bowled with lot of venom today clocking over 140kph constantly .He is a brilliant seam up bowler and with Bumrah into the team, I believe the competition is up as to who will bowl the most accurate Yorkers.Shami’s 2 brilliantly accurate toe crushers earned him a memorable Hat Trick today in the final over of the Afghan Innings.

Shami became only the 2^nd Indian Bowler after Chetan Sharma to take a WC Hat Trick.

8. Bumrah continued to prove that he is the Go-to Bowler for India whenever the team is in trouble. Today also he was brought back by Kohli when Afghan Batsman were swiftly taking the game out of India. He proved the captain’s decision right by scalping two quick successive wickets in 3 consecutive balls to bring the match back into the Indian fold.     

          

 9.All in all, not at all a comfortable win for Team India. Lots and lots of take homes from this match. You will not get a belter of a wicket everytime.Where ever the pitch is doing a bit, our batsman need to quickly adjust and play accordingly rather than getting frustrated and throwing their wicket. India were lucky this time as Afghan Batting was not that strong (still they were able to scare India) and Indian Bowlers picked up crucial wickets at important intervals but with bigger and better teams things will be different.

Bye for now!! Till we meet again, after the India-West Indies match on 27^th June…HAPPY READING!!