CT 2017, Match 8 IND v SL : India Predicted XI

Stable, strong and eventually sensational – this is how Team India progressed in phases against arch-rivals Pakistan in their opening fixture of the ICC Champions Trophy. The Indian top order fired in unison to propel India to an enormous total of 319. Considering the fact that it was a 48-over game, Pakistan grew weaker in the knees looking at the daunting target.India

India were in a commanding position at the halfway mark, while Pakistan’s chase lacked initiative and aggression. All in all, it was a game that required an autopsy by the Pakistan camp, while India rejoiced having handed a thumping defeat to their neighbours in yet another ICC event.

The defending champions were on song, starting with the top four batsmen who all got to their fifties. The pick of the lot – Yuvraj Singh, who played a T20 like knock to accelerate India’s latter half of the innings. Virat Kohli found the meat of the bat soon after Yuvraj departed, and the captain ensured that his team was well clear of the 300-run mark.

Up against Team India will be a worn out Sri Lankan team, who, despite getting off to a flying start against South Africa, blotched their chase. Sri Lanka suffered a defeat at the hands of eventual champions India in the semi-final of the previous edition of the tournament. The humiliating defeat will certainly play on the minds of the Sri Lankans on this occasion as well.

The Lankans will also be without their stand-in skipper Upul Tharanga, who was banned by the ICC for two games following a disastrous over-rate. That India will come into the game on the back of an emphatic victory will certainly give them the upper hand over the Islanders.

Here’s a look at India’s predicted XI for their Group B clash against Sri Lanka on Thursday at The Oval.

Openers (Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan)

There were many eyebrows raised when the BCCI went with the two senior openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, despite the IPL showcasing some promising young batsmen capable of opening. Rohit Sharma’s inclusion was certainly a matter of concern, especially after he failed to make a lasting impression with the bat in the IPL. Dhawan, on the other hand, played his part in carrying the Sunrisers Hyderabad to the Playoffs, having ably supported his skipper David Warner at the top.

All said and done, the duo proved their worth on the big stage. Rohit and Dhawan stitched a brilliant partnership of 136 for the opening wicket, and in turn considerably tired the Pakistani seamers. Dhawan’s fifty witnessed his typical drives and pulls, while Rohit fell in the 90s having toiled for runs to a certain extent. Nevertheless, the duo provided a solid start for the likes of Yuvraj and Kohli to cut loose. Both will look to replicate their stability at the crease come Thursday.

Middle order (Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni)

The fact is that Team India banks on Kohli to anchor the innings, and most often, batsmen play around him. Since Dhawan and Rohit had laid such a steady platform, it gave Kohli that slight margin at the beginning to take things relatively easy. Virat Kohli’s innings began with a strange struggle for runs. However, he transformed as soon as he got to his fifty. The sixes and fours were back to the forefront, and Kohli was his dominant self once again.

There’s nothing more pleasing to the cricketing eye than to watch a left-hander smash ball after ball towards the stands. And when that left-hander is Yuvraj Singh, it’s nothing short of a treat to the senses. Yuvraj took no time to settle in. His onslaught left the Pakistan pacemen clueless as to how they could tackle him.

Yuvraj is known to take some time in the middle before he gets going, and his recent performances in the IPL brought out this trait of his. However, Yuvraj was in no mood for any feelers against Pakistan. His sparkling form will be a great asset for Team India as they go into the business end of the tournament.

Although Kedar Jadhav didn’t have a particularly great IPL, he certainly deserves a chance considering the fact that he played a wonderful knock in the first ODI against England earlier this year. Jadhav can also chip in with a few overs of spin, in case the team needs to go with some variation in the bowling department.

MS Dhoni is obviously the pillar of the Indian Cricket Team, but this pillar suddenly turns into the swiftest of men as soon as he takes his position behind the stumps. Perhaps India might not need his services as a batsman too much, but he is simply irreplaceable as a gloveman.

All-rounders (Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja)

Hardik Pandya’s promotion over Dhoni indeed came as a surprise. But his three clean strikes against Imad Wasim in the final over of the innings summed up his ability as a batsman. No matter how thin he might look, Hardik Pandya can pack a punch and send the ball a good twenty rows back into the stands.

Ravindra Jadeja is the best all-rounder India has produced for some time now, and by an all-rounder, I mean a cricketer who excels in every aspect of the game. Jadeja the bowler is well-known, especially at the Test level. Jadeja the fielder is someone you shouldn’t mess with – ask Shoaib Malik. And Jadeja the batsmen can very well add valuable runs lower down the order.

Bowlers (Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah)

Team India are certainly equipped with one of the best pace line-ups in the Champions Trophy. Firstly, there are two death overs specialists in Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah. The Mumbai Indians’ success in the business end of the IPL can partly be accorded to their near-perfect execution in the death overs. The recently concluded edition of the IPL particularly exhibited an improved Jasprit Bumrah. Tailing yorkers, slower yorkers, yorkers wide of off stump – you name them, and Bumrah has them all up his sleeve.

On the other hand, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has extended his dominance in the IPL after bagging his second consecutive Purple Cap. While Bhuvi doesn’t rely on pace, his discipline gives almost nothing away. His variations have also helped him en route a wicket-fest in 2017. The slips are always in business when Bhuvi has the new ball in hand.

A name which is synonymous to sheer pace in the current Indian team is Umesh Yadav. The speedster rattled a sturdy Australian batting line-up with express pace and sharp bounce on wickets that behaved erratically. Umesh can consistently deliver the ball in excess of 140kmph. His effort ball is both accurate and vicious as it breezes past the grill, keeping batsmen always on their toes. He was the pick of the bowlers against Pakistan in their opening game of the Champions Trophy, bagging 3 wickets and giving away just 30 runs.

Given the way the Indian players have shaped up recently, they should have no issues defeating Sri Lanka. However, our predictions can only do that much to the result of the game – an interesting encounter awaits us at The Oval on Thursday.