New Delhi, Sep 14 (IANS) An age-old adage in cricket says that a successful and fearsome outfit features good bowlers who hunt in pairs. On Sunday, as India kicked off their T20I series in front of a buzzing Arun Jaitley Stadium as the ‘visitors’, that line played out to perfection.
In what was also India’s first T20I game in India since the T20 World Cup win in March, Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakaravarthy made successful returns from injury-enforced layoffs, and were well-supported by Arshdeep Singh and Axar Patel to leave Afghanistan’s batting in ruins.
Later, Abhishek Sharma blazed his way to 82 and ensured a 157-run target was completed in just 13.4 overs, ensuring the track ‘India Waale’ from Happy New Year movie echoed loudly – right from Bumrah taking out Rahmanullah Gurbaz – for the T20 World Cup holders.
In the aftermath of their T20 World Cup triumph at home, India had found themselves grappling with an unfamiliar slump – a shock defeat to Ireland was followed by loss in England. Though they managed to get the series win in Zimbabwe, the spin bowling department, a bedrock of their domination via Chakaravarthy and Axar, with Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav chipping in, had temporarily lost its edge.
But Sunday’s outing showed signs of a reassuring return of the spinners to their best self. A frugal stump-to-stump leash from Axar and Chakaravarthy, who picked a scalp each, meant India looked and delivered like a team operating in a different realm.
On a pitch which looked good to bat, the Indian spinners hit the 4–6m band for 60.7 percent of their deliveries to have combined figures of 2-26 at an economy rate of 4.59. Afghanistan’s spinners – Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohammad Nabi – managed to hit that band for just 53.1 percent balls and returned with 1-48, at an economy rate of 8.47.
In the post-match press conference, Chakaravarthy explained how precise planning on length dictated their strategy. “We are used to playing on such pitches and we know the dimensions very well. It is not a big ground. So, there are certain lengths that we have to get and we were initially given the stats that these lengths work in this ground and these lengths do not work in this ground. So, we stuck to our plans and worked with it.”
After Vande Mataram’s maiden bow in an international cricket game, Bumrah took just two legal deliveries to announce his return – forcing Rahmanullah Gurbaz to misjudge the bounce and register his 11th T20I duck. Though Afghanistan briefly rallied, Axar’s entry initiated a slide for the designated hosts.
A mix-up led to run-out of skipper Ibrahim Zadran, and five balls later Sediqullah Atal departed off Arshdeep. At 39/3 after five overs, Afghanistan needed relief – instead, Axar and Chakaravarthy conceded just 11 runs across the next four overs while removing Gulbadin Naib (with a slower ball wide of off-stump) and Darwish Rasooli (with a quicker delivery that came in sharply). Together, the spin duo returned 2-43 from eight overs at an economy rate of 5.37, while Arshdeep starred with 3 for 19.
“Generally, my pace is within a certain range only. So, I don’t change my pace much, but it is the same. It is just the lengths, I think, which matter in this wicket which are written. It is not very full or very short. It is just right in between that sweet spot which you have to hit, that works in this wicket,” added Chakaravarthy.
Reflecting on his outing after having a tough time in England, before a hamstring injury sent him to rehab and recovery, Chakaravarthy stated that the tour did teach him a few good things. “It is just good, because the England tour was also good for me. Just because we didn’t win, it doesn’t mean that it has gone for waste.
“You get to learn a lot if you do the right thing. So, there is nothing that goes to waste. As I said, even if things wouldn’t have gone our way, we would have had the same mindset as to learn something. So, every match is a learning and the results sometimes come our way, and sometimes it doesn’t.
“Injuries are very common for all the sports people and it just shows that we are working, and we are giving our best. Sometimes, we push beyond our limits and that’s when the body gives in. So, that’s when we have to take a step back and work better and come back stronger.”
Chakaravarthy expanded further on how he insulates himself from the emotional highs and lows of wicket-taking life. “It is the same. So, what you are referring to is results. I cannot go by results. If I go by results, I will start reacting to each and everything. If it goes my way, I will start being very happy.
“If it doesn’t go my way, I will become very sad and I cannot go that way. So, the best way for me is to see the process. If it is a good ball and if it still differs, I will always take it. But if it is a bad ball and it is a wicket, I have to go and work on it again. So, that’s how it works.”
“You told it’s all about wickets. But it’s not about wickets. It is about if I am bowling in the right place or not. Whatever happens after that, it’s not in my control. So, what’s in my control is till I pitch the ball. After the ball pitches, if the ball can turn or cannot turn, it’s not in my control. I’ll see till that point. If it is still that, if it is fine, yeah, I’ll take it. I don’t go by results.”
Though Azmatullah Omarzai’s unbeaten 64 off 44 balls dragged Afghanistan to 157, as he and Mohammad Nabi made merry out of India’s wafer-thin fifth bowling options, the total proved completely defenceless once Abhishek, who made only 11 runs in the series win in Zimbabwe, smashed a 32-ball 82 and hammered boundaries in quick fashion.
Watching the chase unfold from the pavilion, Chakaravarthy admitted he could only feel sympathy for the opposition spinners bowling to Abhishek and Ishan Kishan, who made 42. “While sitting on top of the dressing room, I was just telling someone that against our team’s batting line-up, you can’t bowl spin.
“So, if you bowl spin against our batting line-up, they are just going to smack it left, right and centre. They are just so used to playing spinners. One of the best batting line-ups we have are in our top eight batters – anyone can take on any spinner in this world. I have personally bowled against them, while playing against them. I know how hard it is and I feel for their spinners.”
In the end, Sunday wasn’t just about India taking a 1-0 lead in the series – it was also about them rediscovering the relentless efficiency that defines them, especially with the ball. With the spinners back in their rhythm, the pacers firing early, and Abhishek dismantling opposition bowlers with disdain, India looked every bit like their old, fearsome selves, once again.
–IANS
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