Asia Cup 2023: The most successful Asian team India is gearing up for the upcoming ODI Asia Cup 2023 in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The six-time ODI champions of Asia will be looking to hit back at their best as they have now received some major boosts with the return of key players like KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer and Jasprit Bumrah. The team will be facing arch-rivals Pakistan in their first game of the tournament on September 2, a clash which is always a show-stopper in any format of the game.
Rohit Sharma's team is currently in Alur, Bengaluru in a six-day training camp to get in the best shape ahead of the continental tournament. While the Asia Cup will be the first thing ahead, the ODI World Cup is the ultimate frontier that needs to be reconquered for Sharma and Co. As we stand less than two days short of the Asian rivalries to begin, we look at the SWOT analysis of the Indian team.
Strengths - Batting and bowling find their teeth
The Indian batting was struggling to find a piece to fill in the middle order when Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul were absent from the team. The team tried 13 players at number 4 and 5 since 2020 and eight in 2023 itself but none other than Iyer and Rahul looked the most assuring out of them all. Since 2020, the KKR star Iyer scored 675 runs at No.4, whereas the LSG captain Rahul made 735 at No.5. It is a big boost for the Indian team that the two have returned as it provides the much-needed power in the middle order. While there is a little concern over Rahul's fitness, he is showing signs of a quick return to the training camp in Alur. Meanwhile, Iyer is passed fully fit.
Notably, the joy has returned back in the bowling department as well. Jasprit Bumrah's return was one of the most awaited things in Indian cricket. Bumrah made a thumping comeback into the International circuit in the Ireland series, as he was the joint-highest wicket-taker in the three-match series, which eventually witnessed two games due to rain in the third one. He will be bending his back along with Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami and Prasidh Krishna in the upcoming competition and that makes India's attack robust yet again.
Weakness - The Ishan Kishan adjustment and no part-time bowlers
There are some issues still left uncovered and the team might not want to waste any time to find those answers. One big issue is how to adjust Ishan Kishan. Shubman Gill has proven himself at the top order and Sharma is a decade-long opener. Kishan has impressed in the recently concluded West Indies ODIs at the top order but he has looked toothless in the middle order. There is a weakness in how the team will adjust Gill, Kishan and Sharma in the same Playing XI. Also, if KL Rahul will miss the opening game, where will Kishan play?
One weakness that the Indian team has is that there are only two batters who can bowl in the top seven and they are Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja. While the Indian captain jokingly said in the Asia Cup squad announcement that the likes of Sharma and Kohli can roll their arms over, it remains to be seen whether they do that or not. And if they do then what impact they leave? In the 2011 World Cup, the one that was played in spin-friendly Asian conditions, there were many more bowling options at that time. Yuvraj Singh, Yusuf Pathan, Suresh Raina and Sachin Tendulkar played in the top seven and bowled a total of 116 overs in the 2011 World Cup. Notably, along with brilliant performances with the bat, Yuvraj scalped as many as 15 wickets and was the player of the tournament.
Opportunity - Axar Patel, Tilak Varma, Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur
There are opportunities for many players in the squad. The fight for an opening spot between Kishan and Gill is one among them. Meanwhile keeping in mind the ODI World Cup, there are big opportunities for the likes of Axar Patel, Tilak Varma and Prasidh Krishna. India captain Rohit Sharma confirmed that the team did not pick Yuzvendra Chahal in the squad along with Kuldeep Yadav as they wanted to have a batting option at No.8 and No.9. This throws Patel and Thakur into the picture and moreover the former has a chance to keep a bowler like Chahal out if he performs. The Indian team has no wrist spinner due to this batting issue at lower down the order.
Agarkar claimed Tilak Varma showed 'some real promise' to the national selectors and the team management during the T20I series against West Indies. The batter played with aggression and temperament, which made him earn an Asia Cup call without even making a debut in ODIs. Prasidh Krishna also has a case to prove. Like Bumrah, he has also made a comeback into the team during the Ireland series and impressed with his pace and bounce. If he performs well, the tall and lanky bowler can keep the likes of Shami on his toes.
Threat - Hardly any backups in batting
There are threats over player backups in the team. The middle order was exposed when KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer were not present in the team. Suryakumar Yadav has not cracked the ODI code and Sanju Samson looks like a backup to Ishan Kishan. If either of Rahul or Iyer misses a few games, it will open the middle-order issue apart. Adjusting Kishan is also an issue as mentioned above.
The team will be looking to put its best foot forward. The team will fly to Sri Lanka on August 30, the date when the tournament kicks off. India will play their opening match on September 2 first. Now they have all the pieces of a jigsaw with them. They only need to ease them in smoothly while keeping in mind the World Cup.
