T20 World Cup 2021: Team India should find answer to these questions ahead of New Zealand clash

Dubai, Oct 25: Team India's complete annihilation against arch-nemesis Pakistan in their ICC T20 World Cup 2021 opener has pushed the team on the backfoot.

India lost to Pakistan by 10 wickets and it was the first occasion when the Men In Blue lost to the Men In Green in a World Cup in nearly three decades. It wasn't the defeat that would be hurting the team but the margin of defeat and the way the Babar Azam-led side outplayed Team India in all the departments.

Virat Kohli and his band's next match is against New Zealand, a side that has a hundred per cent win record over India in the T20 World Cups. However, a six-day gap before the big game would give the Indians a chance to introspect and re-strategise.

'Lucky 13': Babar Azam lords in style as India lose to Pakistan for first time in World Cup 'Lucky 13': Babar Azam lords in style as India lose to Pakistan for first time in World Cup

"I think it works really well for us from all point of view. Knowing that we have played a full-fledged season already, we played the IPL, which is very high octane by itself in testing conditions here in the UAE, and then we come into the World Cup," Kohli said at the post-match press conference.

"So for us, these big breaks are definitely something that's going to help us as a team to be in the prime physical condition that we need to be to play this high-intensity tournament," the skipper said.

The break will give the Men In Blue enough time to re-strategise and also focus on the perfect execution of plans before the Kane Williamson-led side comes calling.

Against New Zealand, Team India will have their tasks cut out i.e. win the game and bring themselves back on track. However, there are quite a few challenges they need to overcome before they take on Blackcaps at the very same venue where they suffered their worst-ever defeat in the shortest format.

Here are the areas Team India would need to address ahead of the match against New Zealand:

Slow batting in middle overs, a concern for India

After losing the top three cheaply in the powerplay against Pakistan, Indians weren't allowed to score freely in the middle overs. The strike rotation was also a concern for India in that period.

Rishabh Pant batted well and played some audacious shots against a quality Pakistan bowling attack but he didn't rotate the strike even though had captain Kohli at the other end. Strike rotation was key for the teams in the middle overs during the second half of IPL 2021, which was also staged in the UAE. Pant and the rest of the batters will have to rotate the strike more frequently.

Also, aggressive batting from one end in the middle overs could do wonders for the side for it would help them push the opposition on the backfoot. Against Blackcaps, the left-handed batsman Ishan Kishan will be an ideal choice for captain Kohli for the Jharkhand dasher can provide the team with an impetus in between overs 7 to 15.

Does Hardik Pandya fit in as a pure batter?

The all-rounder from Baroda was picked as a genuine batsman in the tie against Pakistan and given his reputation of clearing the ball in the death overs made his selection obvious. However, playing Hardik purely as a batsman definitely hurts the team composition as Kohli is forced to play with just five bowlers. The captain is rendered helpless in a situation where one of his bowlers has an off day.

Before the start of the match against Pakistan, Hardik claimed that he will be playing as a batsman in the Super 12 stage for India. He will, however, pick up the ball in the knockout stages.

Kohli will be needing an all-rounder in his line-up against New Zealand for that will give more teeth to India's bowling.

Shardul Thakur can be the fast bowling all-rounder and Hardik's replacement against New Zealand. His knack of picking up wickets at crucial stages will augur well for India against a strong New Zealand side.

Bhuvneshwar's form, Shami's struggle with length

Kohli showed faith in pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the tournament opener but the right-arm quick looked a mere shadow of his former self against Pakistan. Bhuvneshwar seemed toothless with the new ball as well as in the middle overs. His performance against Pakistan was pretty ordinary as he along with his bowling partner Mohammed Shami.

Shami, who was on a roll in the IPL 2021 for Punjab Kings, was included in the T20I squad for picking up wickets with the new ball. Against Pakistan, Shami too looked ineffective as he hardly attempted bowling hard lengths to Pakistani openers.

Both Bhuvneshwar and Shami will have to make quick amends in their line and lengths to trouble New Zealand batters. They could neither attempt perfect yorkers nor trouble Pakistani openers with their inswingers.

Choking the flow of runs upfront should be the strategy for the senior bowlers for that will also force the batters to play some aerial shots and that might bring in wickets.

If team management would deem it fit, then senior off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin could replace Bhuvneshwar. Ashwin is capable of bowling aggressively with the new ball as well as in the middle stages of the game and that might just help India on the Dubai tracks.