30 October,2021 07:47 AM IST | Dubai | Santosh Suri
Virat Kohli
As India prepare to take on New Zealand in the T20 World Cup on Sunday, their supporters are praying for two things - that Virat Kohli wins the toss, and Hardik Pandya is fit enough to bowl in the must-win game.
Of the first 10 Super-12 games till Thursday, nine were won by teams chasing - the only aberration being Afghanistan's huge 130-run win over Scotland in Sharjah. So, dew is definitely making it difficult to stop batsmen in the second half of the match. And unless we can buck this trend, the tournament could become lopsided as teams will rely more on winning the toss than on skills.
One hopes that India and NZ can find a way to tackle this dew. India seem to be moving swiftly in that direction and are trying to get Pandya fit to bowl at least a couple of overs to take the pressure off their mainline bowlers besides providing an additional bowling option. Right from the beginning, the Indian think-tank has been facing questions about the inclusion of an unfit Pandya, first in the 15 and then in the XI. Naysayers feel if he's unable to bowl, he's a liability to the side.
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Others argue that he's the most reliable and ruthless finisher and India's trump card, especially during a chase. A fit-again Pandya is a vital cog in skipper Kohli's plans. And the good thing about Kohli is that he's not someone who will press the panic button after just one defeat and make wholesale changes to the XI.
Presently, it is difficult to know the exact status of Pandya's fitness and most reports are speculative as with strict Covid-19 restrictions and the team in a bio-bubble, there is no media interaction with the players or the support staff. The media is not even allowed to watch net sessions, barring the one on match eve.
The only media interaction is online and on match eve. In fact, the BCCI's media managers themselves are in the bio-bubble with the team, hence there is no information forthcoming. A picture or two or a video clip of a practice session is released by BCCI online and that becomes the lifeline for the media to interpret the team's strategy for an upcoming match.
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