One of the complaints about Team India has been that they are too rigid with their strategies. However, in recent months, the management has experimented with a lot of combinations. To win a World Cup, sometimes, the team will have to surprise the opponents with wise tactics. India has the resources to do that. On that note, here, we take a look at three unorthodox strategies India could try in the ICC 2022 T20 World Cup.
1) Axar Patel in the middle order
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Advertisement— BCCI (@BCCI) October 5, 2022
With Ravindra Jadeja absent, India will have a few problems in the batting line-up. Rishabh Pant is unlikely to play in the strongest XI and hence, India’s Top 6 will not have a left-hander. Against sides with quality left-arm spinners and leggies, India could struggle.
Axar Patel has improved his batting performance in recent months. However, there is no complete confidence in him to come good in the middle order. That said, considering Axar is decent against spin, India could try him in the middle order, depending on the situation. This will give balance and add variety to the batting unit.
2) Harshal Patel as a floater in the batting line-up
Using Harshal Patel further in the batting line-up is one of the unorthodox strategies India could try in the ICC 2022 T20 World Cup. In Jasprit Bumrah’s absence, India will have to make amends with a longer batting line-up. This is why Harshal Patel is certain to be in the XI despite his recent mediocre form.
Harshal is actually an all-rounder in domestic cricket and even opens the batting for his state. India could use him as a floater, especially if some early wickets fall or when there is a necessity to increase the run rate. He will put less value on his wicket and if he comes good, India will be in a strong position.
3) Hardik Pandya as Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s new-ball partner
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— hardik pandya (@hardikpandya7) October 6, 2022
Jasprit Bumrah will not be a part of the T20 World Cup. Hence, India will have to rework its bowling strategy. At the moment, it looks like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel and Arshdeep Singh will be the pace attack along with Hardik Pandya.
Arshdeep Singh is the only pacer who is doing well in the death overs now. Since Harshal Patel cannot be used as a new-ball bowler, consuming Arshdeep’s overs at the start may not be an effective strategy. Hence, making use of Hardik Pandya as the new-ball bowler could be an option. He actually did that for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2022. If he does well, India will have insurance at the death and if he fails, Arshdeep can anyways bowl in the powerplay.
