Team India must go for transition rather than persisting with old guards post ODI World Cup

India have paid the heavy price in the recently-concluded ODI World Cup by allowing too many one dimensional players in the team. The batters of the team can’t bowl and the bowlers of the team can’t bat either. It has severely affected the balance of the team. It didn’t allow the batters to play fearless cricket especially in the final of the ODI World Cup. 

Moreover, the lack of the sixth bowler pegged the team severely against Australia. When star all-rounder Hardik Pandya was injured amid the mega event, Team India’s balance was severely affected. Though it was not quite felt due to the sizzling form of speedster Mohammed Shami during the league stage and semifinal, it was clearly evident in the all-important final when it mattered the most.

Hence, the team management must learn important lessons from the mega event and groom all-round players for the future. Taking the modern day cricket into account, many one dimensional players could be proved outdated in near future.

Moreover, senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli may not be around for the next world Cup. The team must have noticed the growth of KL Rahul when they groomed him as an all-round player. As a wicket-keeper batsman, Rahul has been proved to be an asset for the team.

The team management must find out all-round talents and nurture them diligently for the future of Indian cricket. The selectors have also given enough indication about it by selecting utility all-round players like Jitesh Sharma (wk), Washington Sundar, Axar Patel and Shivam Dubey in the 15-member Indian team for the five-match Twenty20 International series against Australia starting in Visakhapatnam on November 23.

The young and aspiring cricketers must be aware about the requirement of Indian cricket and their worth as well.