If anything, the campaign has been far from ideal, but India will enter Sunday’s Asia Cup final against Pakistan unbeaten. The distance between them and a final product is highlighted.
In what was essentially a dead rubber against Sri Lanka, Arshdeep Singh‘s exceptional Super Over was necessary to win the match. It wasn’t surprising that India prevailed; they know how to handle pressure and have now won six of their last six tied games, including a bowl-out. It was unexpected that they didn’t appear to be interested in protecting the total for the majority of the second innings.
India’s bowling coach, Morne Morkel, put it simply. “We, by no means, are the finished article, and we know that,” he stated. Fortunately, though, we’ve prevailed, sometimes in a tactless manner, but we’ll accept that. Additionally, as a group, always take what you’ve learnt, try to get better, and take it on Sunday.
“I don’t believe we’ve played the entire game in this tournament yet. There must be conversations on our areas of improvement and progress following each game.
That was the evening’s central subject. India triumphed once more, although they experienced periods of uncontrollability, similar to their victories against Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Oman. The worry for a squad that has a home World Cup coming up is not so much about making it through Dubai as it is about whether they can play a whole game when it counts.
One aspect of that is the batting. Although the circumstances have been difficult for middle-order hitters starting against the old ball, India is aware that they have left runs on the pitch. Another concern is the form of Suryakumar Yadav. Despite a 717-run IPL season, the captain has had a terrible year in T20Is (10 innings, 99 runs, an average of 12.37, a strike rate of 110). And that’s even if his position at number three has been relatively stable in a middle order that has witnessed a lot of upheaval.
“If we start with the batting, can we in tough conditions rotate strike a little bit better, get our two runs, running between the wickets, our twos, can we get that up?” “Morkel said.” “Can we protect partnerships a little bit, because new batter walking in here is quite tough for those guys to start, but still have that aggressive mindset.”
India has had trouble with the ball, particularly since Bumrah finished his three overs in ahead of the other batsman. At the end, when runs have flown, it has left them light.
“From a bowling point of view, let’s talk specifically about the first six or the first 10 overs, how we can improve with our lengths, with our accuracy, with our thinking, with ball in hand,” Morkel stated. “We kind of over-sequenced in that middle part, possibly bringing in an unusual yorker.
“I believe that the trend has been for batsmen to line up with the wicket since it is a little slower. Therefore, we just need to improve our ability to think more clearly under pressure.
The field has been the other obvious issue. Of all the teams in this competition, India has dropped the most catches—12. Four of those have come from Varun Chakaravarthy’s bowling, while eight of those have come in the last two games alone.
“And then in the field, obviously catching, and we’ve worked hard on our catching under the lights, so maybe it’s just a little bit of a confidence thing,” Morkel said. “Just give the people in the field a squeeze. Therefore, there is work to be done in every field.
Positives were also present. Abhishek Sharma scored another half-century, Tilak Varma continued to finish the innings, and Samson eventually found fluid runs. The legspinners were outstanding; on the tournament’s flattest pitch, their 62 runs in eight overs was the difference between losing and forcing a Super Over.
And Arshdeep was able to handle pressure when it came up.
“I constantly push the players to desire the ball in difficult circumstances, and it’s fantastic that Arshdeep took the ball here today, bowled that Super Over, and performed brilliantly. This group will advance the more we can encounter difficult circumstances, perform effectively, and learn from them.”
India has yet to lose. They have figured out how to avoid trouble. However, they have yet to play a flawless game. They will hope that their honed skills and seasoned nerves will be more important on Sunday than the catches they have missed thus far against Pakistan.
India
