When reflecting on the key contributors who helped India secure the Border-Gavaskar Trophy with a 2-1 victory, it is likely that the first three names that come to mind are Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Axar Patel, with captain Rohit Sharma also a strong contender. The exceptional performances delivered by India’s spin-bowling all-rounders over the course of the four Tests against Australia were a critical factor in the hard-fought series.
Ashwin ended up as the highest wicket-taker with 25 scalps while Jadeja and Nathan Lyon were the joint seconds with 22 wickets. Axar did not bowl that much and picked up only three wickets in the series but if it wasn’t for his lower-order contributions with the bat then the series could well have seen a different outcome. Axar scored 264 runs in five innings at an average of 88. He was the only Indian batter to register three fifty-plus scores in the four Tests. Jadeja too made an important 70 in the first innings in Nagpur.
But now with the focus shifting to the WTC final against Australia set to be played at The Oval on June 7, India will have to come up with a different plan. They will have to find other heroes. It is certain that Axar won’t feature in the XI. He in fact, would be lucky if he finds himself a part of the WTC final squad. Veteran India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik believes seam-bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur will most likely take his place in the Indian XI for the WTC final.
“To be brutally honest if everybody is fit, especially if Ashwin and Jadeja are fit, you will have to say that Axar will miss out. I think Shardul will take his place,” Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
Karthik stated that it might even be difficult for Ashwin and Jadeja to play together considering the conditions. Karthik said if the pitch on offer is more suited to the pacers and the conditions are overcast at that point in time, which is most likely to be the case, then India captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid should not shy away from picking only among Ashwin and Jadeja.
“Absolutely (India might play either Ashwin or Jadeja). To be honest, that’s where the Indian team made a mistake last time playing both spinners and they didn’t bowl them much. It’s a one-off game. You can’t look at it in the bigger scheme of things. It’s a year-end match for a lot of the players in many ways as after that there will be a fresh cycle. So you have to go into the match thinking ‘what is my best XI to win that game?’ If that means leaving Ashwin or Jadeja out, so be it. We’ve always seen Jadeja get the nod ahead because he can bat better,” Karthik added.
In the WTC final against New Zealand, India announced their playing XI featuring both Ashwin and Jadeja a day before the match and did not change the team despite the rain and overcast conditions at The Oval. The decision did not pan out well as the match was dominated by seamers with Ashwin and Jadeja having little to do.
Karthik also added that wicketkeeper-batter KS Bharat will be under the scanner following a below-par series at home against Australia with the bat and the gloves. “Don’t forget that KS Bharat has had a tough series with the gloves so he will be under the scanner as well,” he said.
