ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: Why India might not win the World Cup this year

ICC Cricket World Cup 2019: The Sportsrush presents before you the reasons why Indian might not be able to lift the 2019 World Cup in UK

The 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup is just a week away. The warm-up games will commence from May 24, 2019 with India set to clash against New Zealand just a day after.

India and England are touted as favourites for pulling-off the all-important silverware this year by fans and experts of the game. India have had the best success rate (in terms of winning the matches) among all teams in the 50-over format,  post the 2015 World Cup.

Nevertheless, there’s a saying, “Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst”. Although everyone is expecting India to perform the way they have been in the recent past, there are some issues and statistics which do not seem to be singing the Indian song, and might well be a sign of worry in relation to India’s chances in the upcoming World Cup.

Reasons why India might lose the upcoming World Cup

India’s Middle-order

Since the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017 till the Asia Cup in 2018, India played a total of 41 One-Dayers. The middle-order batsmen (from positions 4-7) scored their runs at an average of 32.54.

But, the disturbing number is ‘0’. Yes! India’s middle-order could not score even a single century in the 41 matches they played during this period.

Although India was ranked fourth amongst all the teams because of a decent enough average, they were still placed below Bangladesh- whose batsmen had struck 4 hundreds during this phase, and with a better average of 33.01. At an average of 47.11, MS Dhoni was the pick of the batsmen for India in these 41 matches, but the cause of concern was his strike rate- at 77.o9, which is still a sign of worry for India.

Post the 2018 Asia Cup, India’s middle-order performed much better, scoring at an average of 37.58 in 18 matches. But, many teams had gone past India in terms of their average during this phase.

MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav have been the pick of the batsmen in the 18 matches in this phase, with averages of 53.85 and 51.00 respectively.

The cause of concern yet again is Kedar Jadhav’s injury and recent form. We still have no clue about his injury status which he sustained during the IPL, forcing him to crash out of the remaining past of the league. Moreover, he only managed to score 162 runs in the 14 matches that he played at a paltry average of 18.00 in the IPL.

His absence might be a huge dent for India as he has also been the ‘wicket-taker’ for them, at any point in the game, with the knack of breaking partnerships with his unusual bowling style. On the other hand, even if he is available, his recent form doesn’t inspire much confidence, at least from the outside, with concerns whether he will be able to deliver his 100% for the side in the nearly 50- day long tournament.

Too much of a reliance on Pandya

Although in peach form during the recently concluded IPL, Hardik Pandya’s recent numbers in Indian colours doesn’t speak much of him. Between the ICC Champions Trophy and the 2018 Asia Cup, Pandya played a total of 35 innings and scored only 510 runs at an average as low as 25.50. He was able to score only 3 half-centuries during this period.

Post the Asia Cup, he has featured in only 2 games owing to injuries and the controversies surrounding him.

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MS Dhoni, on the other hand requires some time and some deliveries before he gets going. Thus, at the positions in which both Pandya and Dhoni are more likely to come in, there won’t be much deliveries left to chew up. The entire onus in such a scenario, would fall upon Pandya to hit the leather right from the word go, and provide that extra leverage of 15-20 runs that can turn a game around.

Is that too much of a reliance on Hardik Pandya? Perhaps yes. And that might cost India big time especially looking at the way scores of even 350 are being scored by teams easily on the English wickets.

India’s no.4 conundrum

After ‘Who will be India’s next Prime Minister’, this is perhaps the most discussed, debated topic in India presently- ‘Who will bat for India at number 4?’ The debate doesn’t seem to end at all!

Striking at an average of 42.18 post the 2018 Asia Cup, Ambati Rayadu had nearly sealed that spot. But having scored only 1 half-century in his last 10 ODI innings, the management didn’t feel it necessary to give him a longer rope, thereby dropping him from the 15-member squad that would fly to England.

It was all-rounder Vijay Shankar who was picked by the MSK Prasad-led selection committee, as he was according to him, a three-dimensional player. But, having scored 244 runs at an average of only 20.33 in 15 matches, even he has put everyone in a state of conundrum. Having bowled only 48 deliveries in the IPL this year, even his bowling doesn’t speak much of himself.

The other option India have is KL Rahul, who has been picked in 15-member India squad. He was the second-highest run scorer in this year’s IPL, but he scored all of his 593 runs as an opener- the slot where he has batted in most of his innings.

India have not tested him enough at no.4, and to trying him out all of  sudden at that spot during the World Cup, is too risky a gamble for sure.

Thus, considering the middle-order woes India has, as discussed above, the no.4 slot becomes really vital if the famous ‘Top 3’ Indian batsman fail to deliver, especially in a big match.

Although the Indian think-tank seem to have all of it sorted, things don’t really seem so, apparently. And the ‘no.4 problem’ is not a good problem to have and might well crop up as a big reason for India’s downfall (if at all it happens) in the upcoming World Cup.