India vs New Zealand, T20 World Cup: Beyond picking the best combination for the match, there is also the psychological pressure to tackle. Both teams are on the precipice of ouster.
The first week of the T20 World Cup has been a mixed bag. Some terribly one-sided or tepid matches, albeit punctuated by a few scintillating individual efforts, had set a disappointing pattern. There had been no major upset, though West Indies being bowled out for 55 by England and India being thrashed by 10 wickets by Pakistan were unexpected results.
But two last-over thrillers on Friday – between West Indies and Bangladesh and Pakistan and Afghanistan – gave the high-profile tournament just the fillip it needed. The next week holds out rich promise, what with teams in both groups seeking a place in the knock-out phase.
The India-Pakistan match obviously hogged most attention in the opening week. But while the build-up was expectedly high-octane, the contest itself didn’t reach the dizzying heights anticipated. Pakistan rated as underdogs, put up a sterling all-round show to leave the Indian team totally outclassed in every department.
Shahin Shah Afridi’s sizzling opening spell in which he sent Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul back to the dugout in his first couple of overs was a massive psychological blow from which India failed to recover, despite a hard-fought, skilful half-century by Virat Kohli.
India’s modest score was overhauled with panache and style by Babar Azam and Mohamed Rizwan, whose splendid opening partnership reduced all Indian bowlers to haplessness. The last couple of India-Pakistan matches hadn’t been close (e.g. the 2019 ODI World Cup and 2017 Champions Trophy final), and this one followed a similar route.
The intense pressure on players from passionate fans – and the media — in both countries is probably taking its toll. Happily, the match was played in excellent spirit. Players from both teams showed mutual respect and fraternal feelings for each other, exemplified by Kohli being the first to congratulate Babar and Rizwan when they had completed the run chase.
Unfortunately, outside of the playing field, there were some unedifying developments. Vicious, communal trolls in India got on Mohamed Shami’s case for leaking runs. Shami’s excellent record otherwise, or the fact that all bowlers had been walloped by Babar and Rizwan didn’t seem to matter to these misanthropic keyboard warriors who flooded social media with anti-Shami sentiments.
This undesirable behaviour wasn’t restricted to India or online, anonymous trolls. A minister from the Pakistan government popped up with statements calling Pakistan’s victory as one of Islam. While it is expected (though not condonable) for politicians to try and exploit every situation to whip up such issues, former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis coming up with a blatantly provocative and communal statement on TV was astounding.
Younis is a legendary figure in the game, has played in numerous matches against and in India, has also been a commentator for Indian broadcasters for several years. He’s played all over the world. If anybody understands how sport can remove divides, build bridges between countries and communities, it should be him.
Waqar was quick to recant, issuing a public apology, but the bad taste of his statement still lingers. I’ve dwelt on this matter at some length to drive home the point that Indo-Pak cricket, which has such fantastic potential to be the biggest rivalry in the sport — far bigger than the Ashes – is also very fragile.
While patriotic passion is of the essence, foul jingoism and communalism can only be destructive, more so in these climes where instant transfer of information on social and other media, often fake, can make matters spiral out of control.
Coming back to the prospects of the major teams, Pakistan and England have looked the best side in the tournament yet. Both have shown all-round strength and depth, aptitude and desire, flair and chutzpah. I’d put Pakistan a nose ahead, not because they’ve won three matches on the trot, but also because they’ve been able to lift their performance when the going got tough.
While the victory against India was emphatic, against New Zealand and Afghanistan, there was a stage when Pakistan came under pressure, but both times found the player(s) to take them out of trouble. In Babar, they have the best batsman, in Babar-Rizwan the best opening pair, in Shahin Afridi the most dangerous pace bowler, in Asif Ali the best finisher. This makes them the team to beat.
England’s prowess in white-ball cricket in the last 5-6 years – engineered by the ECB with Eoin Morgan as captain — is now universally acknowledged. They won the ODI World Cup in 2019 and are currently ranked no. 1 in T20 cricket. With good reasons.
The absence of Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer has hardly been felt as England vanquished West Indies and Sri Lanka with consummate ease. The top order, pace bowlers and spinners are all firing for England. The only doubt is whether Morgan’s batting form, woeful in the IPL, has improved or not.
After an uninspiring, laboured win against South Africa, Australia were in roaring form against Sri Lanka. On paper, the Aussies look most formidable with great heft and experience in batting and bowling but had somehow been struggling to be a cohesive unit in T20 cricket.
David Warner’s return to form was just the spark the Aussies needed to raise the bar. On sluggish pitches, opening partnerships have become even more crucial, and if Finch and Warner show the form they did in the previous game, the middle order can flourish. A World Cup title still eludes the Aussies, but if they play like they did against the Lankans, other teams beware.
Among teams with at least one win, Afghanistan have been the most impressive, West Indies the least. After thrashing Scotland, the Afghans were wonderful against Pakistan, losing narrowly. The batting and fast bowling are just about modestly good, but in the troika of Rashid Khan, Mujeeb ur Rehman and Mohamed Nabi, the team has wonderful match-winning resources. They may have failed to beat Pakistan, but Afghanistan have the capacity to upset any team.
Defending champions West Indies have barely managed to keep themselves afloat by beating Bangladesh in a tantalizing finish. Had Bangladesh shown some more spunk, West Indies would have been out of the running for a place in the semis already. The batting’s not firing, the bowling’s lacking teeth. To get into the last 4, West Indies have to win their remaining matches with handsome margins to improve their Net Run Rate, which was badly dented when they were skittled for a demeaning 55 against England.
South Africa and Sri Lanka are also alive in the tournament, but can they sustain form and momentum over the next few games is the question. The Lankans seemed to be flagging against Australia. In contrast, the Proteas actually did well to beat West Indies despite Quinton de Kock being left out of the game for refusing to take the knee in support of Black Lives Matter.
The controversy has been resolved for the present with de Kock agreeing to take the knee. His return to the side strengthens the batting considerably, which should help give South Africa’s strong bowling runs to defend. What remains to be seen is whether de Kock’s recalcitrance has strained relations within the team.
This brings us to India and New Zealand who play a crucial tie on Sunday. Both teams have lost their first match, and another defeat could push them towards ouster. In the group, Pakistan are assured of a place in the last 4. Ratification of this is only a technicality.
Afghanistan, Scotland and Namibia are the other teams in this cluster. India and New Zealand are expected to win these three matches (though Afghanistan can’t be taken lightly), which means the outcome of Sunday’s match could decide which other team makes it to the semi-finals.
Both India and New Zealand have issues about getting their best side on the park. Lockie Ferguson not being part of the squad because of injury has robbed the Kiwis of their best bowler in this format, and the injury sustained by Martin Guptill may prevent him from playing on Sunday. This could hurt badly for Guptill’s dashing approach at the top can set the team up for victory.
India too have their problems. Hardik Pandya hasn’t bowled as yet and has disappointed with the bat. Should he be replaced by Ishan Kishan? And what of Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, whose bowling has lacked the late swing which made him such a threat? Is it time to bring in Shardul Thakur, or a spinner, Ashwin/Rahul Chahar?
The Indian contingent has maintained a cool and confident demeanour, but I understand there has been a lot of activity, some overt (like Hardik bowling at the nets) some covert, like confabulations between the team management (Kohli, Shastri, Rohit, Dhoni), and the selectors. I dare say, something similar would going on in the Kiwis camp too.
Beyond picking the best combination for the match, there is also the psychological pressure to tackle. Both teams are on the precipice of ouster. More than just skill, this will be a battle of will.
