Some may see this three-match ODI series between India and South Africa as an inconsequential series, but I believe it should be seen as an opportunity for several players who will be competing for a spot in the T20 World Cup which is in six months’ time. In the next few months all the white-ball games, whether ODIs or T20Is, have got relevance because of the T20 World Cup. The advantage that 50 over cricket provides is it gives more players longer time to impress than T20s. All the Sides are currently looking at various options. Hence, ODI cricket can be useful for them at this time.
There are some young players in both the squads who would want to prove themselves in this series. If you are a young Indian or South African player, this is a terrific opportunity to be counted. India paceman Arshdeep Singh grabbed his chance in the first ODI with a five-wicket haul in the first match. Those of you who have read my previous articles know that I am a huge fan of his. I think Arshdeep will be in India’s T20 World Cup squad. He is giving himself every chance to step up even in the ODIs, underlining the fact that ODIs are also important if you want to impress the selectors. By taking five wickets and causing problems to the top order, he is giving himself a good chance to get picked in the final 15.
It is tough to become better than Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Mohammed Shami so quickly but by being among wickets in ODIs, he is not doing any harm to himself. Plus, he provides a point of difference to the attack being a left-arm pacer. Likewise, for Avesh Khan. It might be tougher for him to get in being a right-arm pacer, but he is ensuring that performances keep coming. Sai Sudharsan is another Indian player who used his first opportunity with the India so well by hitting a match-winning unbeaten fifty. Almost every Indian player, at the international stage, is making effort to get noticed, which is always a good sign for any team.
When I look at India now, I find similarities with the Australian team of the 90s and early 2000s. They are a team with such a large talent pool that their top XI can compete with their next best XI and it will be a close match. India 1 vs India 2 will be a good game in white-ball cricket. It all boils down to the bench strength. The management has worked out plans so well that in almost every series, one or two youngsters are tried out. This has been the trend for the last couple of years at least. What this does is create a list of players who are ready for the international stage whenever required.
India have been excellent in giving opportunities to the young players whenever they can. This is another series where the same thing happens. Suryakumar Yadav, interestingly, is not on the ODI side. It is the right thing to do as he is certainly playing in the T20 World Cup and selectors have decided to try the likes of Tilak Varma and Sudharsan to see how they fare with the bat. The World Cup starts in June and because India are not playing as many T20Is as they would have liked, they are using series like this to give youngsters chances in every white ball game they play.
Tilak needs some runs. He is someone who scores runs when others don’t. But currently, he is short of runs himself. It is getting very competitive to get into the final XI now and he needs to raise his game. If he gets a start, he will want to convert it into a big one.
I would want to make Rinku play as many white-ball matches as possible. For me, he is already knocking hard on the door as far as T20 World Cup squad is concerned. I know he is not in the ODI side, but I would want to give him as much international cricket as possible. Get him exposed to international cricket as much as possible.
Another point to look at is how many of the players in the Indian top-order can bowl. That’s one area India need to work upon. They need to finetune the balance of their T20 side. Maybe they need to make Hardik Pandya bat higher up in the order at number 3, create more all-rounders in the middle order.
These are exciting times for India in terms of all the options they have at the helm. As far as South Africa are concerned, they are in a bit of a slump now. They too are looking at some new players. Their bowling lineup is short of regular players and you can say the same for their top order. But their middle order looks very strong. That is a good test for India bowlers.
They might have been outplayed in the 1st ODI in all departments, but I am expecting a better show in the remaining ODIs from the home side. They will be hurting a bit. Two dominant performances from India on this tour must have shaken them. SA are a better side than how they have performed in these losses.
