Shayan Ahmad Khan
India’s squad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 has largely been along expected lines, except the surprise exclusion of Rinku Singh. However, he is also a part of the four travelling reserves.
India have gone with four seam bowling options and four spinners in the team. This includes three all-rounders – Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel. Among the batters, Shivam Dube is the only option who can roll his arm over. Although he has not bowled a single over in the last two IPL seasons, he did bowl 15 overs in eight T20Is for India since the start of 2023.
We take a look at the bowling options who made the cut, and the ones who missed out. The stats are from IPL 2023 and 2024, and are updated till the Kolkata Knight Riders v Delhi Capitals match on April 29.
Pacers: Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Hardik Pandya
Not only is Jasprit Bumrah arguably the best all-format cricketer at the moment, but he is also the best all-phase T20 pacer in the world. In a season where 200+ scores have been the norm, the Mumbai Indians seamer has taken 14 wickets at an economy rate of 6.64 and an average of 17.07. He has the best economy rate of any bowler with at least 10 overs in the season.
He has been an excellent all-phase option this season, so he can be used with enough flexibility depending upon the rest of the team combination. It makes the most sense to use him in the powerplay and the death overs, with spinners operating through the bulk of the overs from 7-16. If need be, he could also be used to break partnerships between overs 7-16, where he has picked up three wickets at an average of 26.33 and an economy of 7.18.
With a defensive attacking bowler like him in the lineup, it allows India to be flexible with the rest of their picks. However, the other side of this could be the fact that teams will look to play him out and take on the rest of the bowlers.
Mohammed Siraj has been one of India’s mainstays in Tests and ODIs in the last couple of years. However, he featured in only four T20Is for India after the T20 World Cup in 2022. In IPL 2024, Siraj has taken six wickets in nine matches at an economy of 9.50 and an average of 34, although the economy has been 7.83 in the last three matches despite bowling a third of his overs at the death.
However, he had a very good season last time. In the last two seasons, he has bowled 56% of his overs in the powerplay and has had good returns. If he is in the playing XI, it makes sense for him to bowl him for at least two overs with the new ball. He has also fared well at the death. In fact, his best phase this season has been in the final four overs.
The biggest concern with someone like him could be that he’s a bowler who thrives on rhythm. He could have a string of good or bad performances based on his current form. On his day, he could break open games with early wickets. But when he’s having an off day, he could go for plenty. He is essentially a very high-ceiling, low-floor bowler in T20s.
Arshdeep Singh has played the most matches (25 out of 28) by any player for India in T20Is since the last T20 World Cup. The left-arm seamer has also been among the wickets for Punjab Kings this year, taking 12 wickets at an average of 15.67 but at a slightly higher economy of 9.67.
Since the last IPL, he has been a wicket-taker in both the powerplay and death overs. However, he has gone for a few runs in the first six overs, despite taking wickets. An economy of 10.27 in the final four overs may not look that impressive either, but you have to consider the fact that the last two seasons have been pretty high-scoring. According to true stats, he concedes 0.47 runs per over less than the average bowler would have in overs 17-20.
He will be competing for the second pacer’s spot with Siraj, The two have similar profiles, so it makes sense to field only one of them. Also, both of them have had their struggles against left-hand batters. However, if conditions allow, India may even field all three.
India need Hardik Pandya to bowl (and bat) much better for the team to have a lot more balance. In IPL 2024, the allrounder has picked up only four wickets at an economy of 11.95 and an average of 56.75. He has been the second-most expensive bowler of the season (minimum 100 balls bowled) after Anrich Nortje (13.36 econ in 22 overs).
His numbers haven’t been too great since 2023 either. The only phase of the innings where he hasn’t gone for at least 10 runs per over is from overs 12-16, where has taken one wicket in seven overs at an economy of 8.
Can India risk benching him for Shivam Dube if his struggles continue? We know that on talent Hardik can be a solid fifth or sixth bowling option in the T20 format. Plus the fact that he can also crank it up at times and bowl smartly has been well documented in ODIs and T20s (before 2023). He is also the vice-captain of the team, so it is very unlikely that Dube plays ahead of him.
Spinners: Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja
Kuldeep Yadav has been one of the best Indian bowlers across formats since the start of 2022. It matters because for a three year period in the middle, he was struggling in all three formats and was even dropped. However, this season he has been one of the best spinners in the league with 12 wickets at an average of 15.50 and an economy rate of 8.45.
The left-arm wrist-spinner is at his best in the middle overs. He has taken wickets consistently and also kept the flow of runs in check. The most impressive aspect of his game in the last couple of years has been that he has also improved a lot as a defensive bowler. Moreover, he’s been equally effective against right-hand batters as well as left-hand ones. He has taken nine wickets at an average of 28.7 and an economy of 7.86 against left-handers, and 13 wickets at 28.1/7.74 against right-handers.
If India field an attacking bowling unit, we could witness the ‘KulCha’ duo once again. They could be a consistent wicket-taking threat throughout the middle overs. However, if something had to be nitpicked in Kuldeep’s record, he has bowled only one over in the powerplay in the last two seasons. This shouldn’t really be an issue, but if India’s first-choice new-ball options are hit out of the attack, he could be dealing with a scenario he hasn’t in the IPL in recent times.
Speaking of Yuzvendra Chahal, his selection in the 15-person squad meant that India have gone with two specialist spin bowling options. The legspinner has taken 13 wickets this season at an average of 23.54 and an economy of 9.
Chahal bowls the bulk of his overs in between overs 7-16. He, however, has a much better record against right-handers, which may not be ideal from a team combination point of view.
Chahal gives India another strike bowling option, but the fact that he does not add much with the bat or in the field may end up going against him as compared to someone like Axar Patel.
The Delhi Capitals left-arm finger spinner has also had a good season with the ball in IPL 2024, picking up nine wickets at an average of 29.78 and an economy of only 7.24. Although he has not been at his best as a batter (149 runs at 25/124), he has been one of the best spinners in the league.
He is at his best in the middle overs, where he takes wickets and also doesn’t let the opposition score a lot of runs. He is also a much superior bowler against right-handers than left-handers. His economy is not bad against the latter, but he prefers bowling to the former.
Axar also gives the side a new ball bowling option. However, he has been more of a containing bowler than a wicket-taking one in the first six overs since the start of 2023. His figures read 2 for 100 in 12 overs. But if he slots in at No.8, it could have a bigger impact on how India approach their batting. The potential downside of playing both him and Jadeja is the fact that India will not be a strike-bowling team as a whole.
Ravindra Jadeja has done his job as a defensive bowler, taking five wickets at an average of 46.8 but an economy of 7.55. Most teams would pick a player like that in such a high-scoring IPL season. He has gotten out only twice this season, but he has scored his 157 runs at a strike rate of just 132.
Jadeja has the profile of a classic left-arm finger spinner; he is a much better option against right-handers. His numbers in the middle overs are also very impressive.
Unlike Axar, his usage is largely restricted to bowling in the middle overs. So if Chahal starts in the playing XI, it might come down to who is in better form with the bat for the number seven position.
Reserves: Khaleel Ahmed, Avesh Khan
Khaleel Ahmed makes it to the travelling reserves because of his ability to move it around with the new ball. In the last two IPL seasons, he has picked up 21 wickets at an average of 32.4 and an economy of 9.32. He has bowled 45 out of 73 overs in the first six, and averaged 40.3 at an economy of 8.07. His best season was in 2022, where he took 16 wickets at an average under 20.
Avesh Khan has taken 17 wickets at an average of 36.3 and an economy of 9.64 in the same time period. Notably, 15 of those wickets have come in overs 12-20, averaging 22.9 at an economy rate of 9.53. However, his powerplay numbers have not made for good reading (2 for 206 in 21 overs).
The ones who missed out: T Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma
T Natarajan is a high-usage death overs option, bowling 30 out of his 73 overs in the last four overs of the innings. He has taken 16 wickets at an average of 18.6 and an economy of 9.93 in this phase. He can also take the new ball – he has five wickets at an average of 34.8 and an economy of 8.29.
Sandeep Sharma was unsold in the IPL auction of 2023, joining Rajasthan Royals as a replacement for the injured Prasidh Krishna just before the start of IPL 2023. He has been brilliant this season – taking eight wickets in four matches at an average of 13.1. The fact that he did not play all matches this season, sitting out with injury, may have gone against him.
The team management has three strategies they can adopt. They can bat deep and play a defensive spinner in Axar at number eight, go for strike bowling and play a wicket-taking spinner in Chahal, or play three specialist seamers. These should be horses-for-courses picks based on the opposition and pitch conditions. The three most likely combinations for India are:
If they bat deep:
(6) Hardik, (7) Jadeja, (8) Axar, (9) Kuldeep, (10) Bumrah, (11) Siraj/Arshdeep (based on form)
Strike bowling attack:
(6) Hardik, (7) Jadeja/Axar, (8) Chahal, (9) Kuldeep, (10) Bumrah, (11) Siraj/Arshdeep
Pace heavy attack:
(6) Hardik, (7) Jadeja/Axar, (8) Kuldeep, (9) Bumrah, (10) Arshdeep, (11) Siraj
India does have a good bowling attack on paper. Bumrah and Kuldeep are two high-quality bowlers, while Axar is also one of the best defensive bowlers in the IPL. If there is grip and turn in the Caribbean, Jadeja might also prove to be a threat for opposition teams. Finally, the number eight position could end up deciding how their batters approach the innings, especially while batting first.
Stats from Cricmetric and Howstat. True stats by Varun Alvakonda
