n reality, it's Zaheer that the team will miss most. In that tournament, he topped the wicket-taking charts along with Shahid Afridi, and there were several games where his interventions proved crucial. Despite scoring 338, India might not even have salvaged a tie against England but for Zaheer's inspired second spell. And the prognosis was similarly bleak against West Indies in Chennai when Zaheer produced a superb knuckle-ball to castle the well-set Devon Smith.
{ | Things were little different in 2011, when only one bowler – Zaheer Khan – had even half-decent claims to greatness. |
With him no longer in the picture, it's Ishant Sharma that will be the experienced hand in India's attack. The same Ishant who wasn't considered a good fit for the ODI side in 2011, who has conceded 57 runs on average in the 75 matches that he's played. Bhuvneshwar Kumar could be a tidy early-overs option, but if he's not fully fit and bowling at around 130 km/hr, he will cop a hammering. Mohammed Shami takes wickets, but also goes for plenty, while Stuart Binny, like his father Roger, needs swing-friendly conditions to be effective. It's unlikely that he'll find them mid-innings in Australia.
The bigger Australian grounds will hopefully encourage the spinners to attack as well as contain, though huge question marks remain over Ravindra Jadeja's fitness. Axar Patel will get these Tri Series games to press his case in case Jadeja doesn't recover, and there is certainly incentive for Dhawal Kulkarni and Mohit Sharma – not part of the World Cup XV – as well. Should Jadeja be ruled out, the smart option would be to pick another pace bowler, not that there's a Malcolm Marshall waiting back home in domestic cricket.
The onus, as it was in 2011, will be on the batsmen to pile on the runs and chase big targets. Few in the history of the game have chased better than MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, but the line-up around them is nothing like as settled as it was in 2011. Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane are in a three-way scrap for the two opening places, and it remains to be seen whether Ambati Rayudu will be persisted with at No.3, the position from which Kohli has established himself as a modern-day legend.
Suresh Raina, after his nightmarish Test return in Sydney, will be a different proposition in coloured clothes, and whichever six batsmen India pick alongside Dhoni, bowling line-ups won't be looking forward to the prospect. On the flip side, opposition batsmen could positively relish the chance of going up against Ishant and company. The Tri Series should provide enough clues as to how much of a handicap the absence of a Kapil or Zaheer is likely to be.