Cricket World Cup 2023 | Consistent India has set it up nicely for tougher battles on the road ahead

India travel across India to chase World Cup glory. Three emphatic wins have put them in a good space, with a strong batting core and efficient bowlers. The team is confident, but must remain ready for any match crisis that may arise.

Traversing India’s geographical diversity is inevitable for the Men in Blue while they chase World Cup glory. Be it the humid Coromandel Coast, northern hinterland, Gujarat’s dusty plains or now the leap across the Western Ghats just in time for Thursday’s clash against Bangladesh here at the MCA Stadium close to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway, Rohit Sharma’s men have been busy travellers.

In the weeks ahead more air miles await as the host is bound to leave footprints far and wide, be it the Himalayas, Gangetic Plains, the coasts (west and east) and the Deccan Plateau. Hopefully, the final destination will be Ahmedabad, the venue for the summit clash on November 19. But it is a milestone that is a month away and the Indian team would rather ‘focus on the process’.

Three emphatic wins over Australia, Afghanistan and Pakistan has left India in a good space. The margin of triumphs, all secured while chasing — by six wickets, eight wickets and seven wickets — reveal a top and middle-order that have delivered despite the ghastly two for three in that initial phase against the Aussies.

The return of Shubman Gill augurs well while the old guard of skipper Rohit and his predecessor Virat Kohli have clicked. K.L. Rahul and Shreyas Iyer too have been among the runs.

Tougher battles on the road ahead seem unavoidable but the batting is in good nick and the bowlers, led by Jasprit Bumrah, have delivered. Mohammed Siraj, after a middling outing against Afghanistan, belatedly found his rhythm against Pakistan. As a bowling unit, India has controlled the middle overs, its batting core has sparkled and the fielding has been adequate and efficient, and all these constitute a recipe for success.

But there could be some vulnerable spots. India’s batting has not been fully tested. Hardik Pandya got one hit, while the rest, from Ravindra Jadeja to the tail, are yet to stride towards the batting crease. In cricketing utopia, especially in ODIs, it is best if just the main batters do the job.

However, reality could spring a nasty surprise as it did during the 2019 World Cup semifinal against New Zealand at Manchester. Rohit, Rahul and Virat scored a solitary run each and despite the resistance lower down the order from Hardik, M.S. Dhoni and Jadeja, India lost the game by 19 runs.