The Indian bowling attack picked for the Champions Trophy looks rich in experience with the presence of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Ravindra Jadeja. But whether it is well-balanced is a matter of debate.
The Indian bowling group for the ICC event comprises three specialist quicks with Arshdeep Singh being the third pacer. There's also seamer all-rounder Hardik Pandya. The spin department has the all-rounder trio of Jadeja, Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, along with left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav.
In Dubai, where India will be playing all their Champions Trophy games, the pitch tends to be on the flatter side and aids spinners to an extent. From the spin perspective, India are well covered.
But, will just three specialist quicks be enough, especially when Bumrah is not yet officially announced fit after sustaining the back problem? Also, there are still two days to go before Shami makes his India comeback in the first T20I against England on Wednesday at Eden Gardens. In terms of fitness, both Bumrah and Shami are still a suspect.
Besides, dew will most likely be a factor in Dubai, which implies the task may get doubly difficult for the spinners under lights.
So would it have been wiser to include another fast bowler in the squad? Yes, Mohammed Siraj hasn’t had a good time on the field lately, but 50-overs cricket being a different format, wouldn't Siraj’s presence have lent a little bit more balance to the squad?
“There are other quicks too who could have come into the squad. For Siraj though, it’s not that he has been dropped. It’s more like someone else has been preferred in this competition,” said a BCCI official.
"It's a tricky call," agreed former national selector Devang Gandhi. "Shami is playing (international cricket) after a long time, although he has played a fair amount of domestic cricket since recovery. And then, going into a tournament of this magnitude, you needed some experience, which Siraj has.
"Also, what if Bumrah doesn't go on to play? Who comes in then? If that does turn out to be the case, Siraj should be the one to come in," Devang said.
"Yes, Harshit Rana is included as a cover for Bumrah for the England ODIs. No doubt Harshit has the ability and he's talented. But he has done well only in the IPL, where he had to bowl just four overs in a game, which is different to bowling 10 overs in an ODI."
Devang believes Siraj should have been in the squad instead of one of the left-arm spinners. "That's one difficult matter as to whom you should choose between the two left-arm spinner all-rounders — Jadeja or Axar. Siraj should have been in the squad in place of one of them.
"Probably the only reason to pick as many as four spinners is because Kuldeep is coming after a long layoff. Kuldeep is always a wicket-taking option and his skill requires a lot of game time and practice," Devang explained.