Time for India to show their steel

CHENNAI: The way things have unravelled in the 50-over format for India over the last two months or so, they might as well adopt the lyrics of Chumbawamba’s Tubthumping as their mantra for the year.
After a comprehensive series victory  against Australia in the previous month, the script was reversed with the Black Caps. Tom Latham and Ross Taylor swept — literally so — the Men in Blue off their feet in Mumbai. The latter then clawed their way back in Pune, and in the process, October 29 in Kanpur metamorphosed into their “I get knocked down, but I get up again” day.

It had to be, especially considering that the pot of gold at the end of this rainbow was a seventh straight bilateral series triumph in this format. Riding on the heroics of skipper Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah, the hosts just about managed to squeak past this metaphorical leprechaun.

With all this taken into consideration, Sunday in Visakhapatnam has the makings of this same template. A comprehensive loss against Sri Lanka in Dharamsala was followed up by an even more comprehensive reversal in Mohali. That the latter happened sans one of their willow-wielding fulcrums — Kohli — and the fact that a man known for making a mockery of ODI statistics once in a while — Rohit — did so again adds even more sheen to this bounce-back.

What will be more heartening for India is their record at the ACA VDCA Stadium: five won, one rained out, and one lost. Not to mention the fact that one of those five — on October 29 last year against New Zealand, to be precise — was yet another decider which served as a point of consolidation for India’s aforementioned streak. Their opponents on the other hand, are an unpredictable bunch, but are still on the cusp of history: a first ODI series win against India in India.

If Suranga Lakmal in the first clash was the hot knife that cut through the Indian batting line-up like they were a block of butter, Rohit’s obliteration in the second turned said block of diary product into a slab of concrete and blunted the pacer — and pretty much everyone who wore dark blue on that day and dared to venture a run-up with the ball — into oblivion. From 4/13 in 10 overs in Dharamsala to 0/71 in 8 in Mohali sums up the story perfectly.

Not that India haven’t had their fair share of internal niggles. In the last few years, their hunt for an apt No 4 has made as much of progress as Scotland’s search for the Loch Ness Monster. That perhaps is a consequence of the frequent experimentation that the middle-order has being going through, especially after coming back from England mid-June.

That apart, making inroads with the ball seems to be a problem every now and then. The second ODI in itself was a case in point, considering that Sri Lanka lumbered on to 251/8 despite being reduced to 3/62.
Former India spinner Maninder Singh opined that these wouldn’t hinder India from turning seven to eight. “There’s quite a difference between New Zealand and Sri Lanka. The former had a strong ODI side. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, don’t have the firepower to run through a team’s batting line-up in conditions that don’t favour them. We have a good side. Barring Dharamsala, our batsmen have found runs every now and then. Guys like Shreyas (Iyer) and Washington (Sundar) have impressed in the opportunities they’ve been given. I’d back India to come out victorious.”

rahul@newindianexpress.com