The two warm-up matches between India A and England were both won by the side that was chasing but therein is where the similarity ends, as far as both matches were concerned. If the first match was all about Dhoni rediscovering his big-hitting ways at the end of the innings, the second was all about another England collapse in India.
While the first match was about one side (India A) looking in control for large portions of the match before losing out in the end on a good pitch where the total just wasn't enough, the second was dominated by one side (India A) after a collapse that saw England go from 115/1 to 211/9 before they relied on their batting depth to come close to playing out their quota of overs.
Here are some takeaways from the two warm-up matches ahead of the ODI and T20I series:
Yuvraj-Dhoni offer a glimpse into the past
Nostalgia is often a wonder thing. Not only does it give us the opportunity to look back on a time when everything was rosy but also sometimes taints the memory of the past and lures us into believing that nothing was ever wrong back then.
The form that Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni showed in the first warm-up match is certainly good signs for India ahead of the series and with a Champions Trophy looming in the background. But while both players are still good enough at the highest level, they are 35 and shouldn't be relied upon for far too long and things could all go pear-shaped.
Despite the fifty that he scored, Yuvraj still didn't look too comfortable against the short ball and in a crunch scenario, that could be used to work him over. While Dhoni did score 23 off the last over, he took some time to get going and him batting any lower than No.4 might mean India are losing out on a vital aspect of his batting, i.e., forming partnerships.
Should both players perform to their potential, India will look a force in the middle-order once again but they should take care to not rely too much on them too early.
England's spin woes persist
While many thought that the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin will be rested for the limited-overs leg of the series against India, the selectors made the right call in including them. Not only because the pair haven't played an ODI for a year but also because as was evident in both warm-up matches.
Although the pitch wasn't exactly conducive to spin bowling, the fact that 11 of the 17 England wickets to fall across both matches fell to India's largely second and third string spin attack speaks volumes about their ability to play spin. Although Jadeja and Ashwin have largely been bowling in Tests since the end of the IPL, a similar tactic to the one they employed in Tests wouldn't go astray.
The current England line-up looked at sea against the likes of Kuldeep Yadav and Shahbaz Nadeem, neither of whom have played for India, so it will be interesting to see how they handle Ashwin, Jadeja and possibly Mishra, who picked up a five-wicket haul in his last ODI. So India must ensure that the spinners are used to attack or break partnerships at all opportunities.
It should be opening or bust for Rahane
Anil Kumble himself admitted that despite the embarrassment of riches currently at India's disposal in the middle-order, Rahane will bat at the top of the order for India during the upcoming ODI series. That is a good move not just on the basis of Rahane's match-winning 83-ball 91 as an opener in the second warm-up match but also his prior track record.
Of the 72 ODIs that Rahane has played, 42 of them has been as an opener. While the emergence of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan as an established opening pair since the last Champions Trophy has meant he has batted in the middle-order largely barring injuries. But the management should ensure that it is opening or nothing as far as Rahane is concerned in the ODIs.
His proven IPL track record not only strengthen this claim, but the presence of Manish Pandey, Yuvraj Singh, Kedar Jadhav and even KL Rahul, all fighting for two spots in the middle-order alongside Dhoni mean India have big-hitters who can do the job at the end. And With Rahul capable of opening the batting as well, poor performances should mean that Rahane loses out on a spot in the XI.
England's spinners will have to earn their wickets
Adil Rashid picked up 29 ODI wickets in 2016, which was just one shy of Adam Zampa, who ended the calendar year as the leading ODI wicket-taker. The leg spinner also picked up 23 wickets in the five-match Test series against despite not picking up a single five-wicket haul.
So he was certainly in good form going into the warm-up matches and if his 15-0-100-1 is anything to go by, it is that he will have to work a lot harder for his wickets in the upcoming series. And it is not just him, but England's spinners on the whole, will have to toil hard for their wickets.
After conceding 115 runs without a wicket in 20 overs in the first match, the visiting spinners fared better in the second picking up two wickets but even that didn't stop them from conceding plenty of runs. With most Indian batsmen adept at the art of hitting spinners out of the park in limited-overs, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid have a tough task to ensure that England's pacers not only get some relief but also some support in the wickets column.
India should take a punt on Pant
The best time to play someone is when they are in form. And while Rishabh Pant may only be 19, it wouldn't be unfair to say that he is in the form of his life. It is true that India already have a keeper and plenty of competition for the opening slot in the T20I squad but if ever there was a need to take a punt it is now.
After all, Pant is coming off a first-class season in which he scored 972 runs in just 8 matches at an average of 81, including four centuries. If those numbers aren't incredible on their own, the fact that he scored those runs at a strike rate of 107 merely highlights the fact that Pant is seeing the cricket ball like a beach ball.
If that wasn't enough, his blitzkrieg in the second warm-up match against an almost full-strength England bowling line-up where he scored 59 off 36 balls at a strike rate of 163.8, came on the back of two club matches in which he tore the bowling apart. Playing in the DY Patil T20 Cup for Reliance 1, Pant scored a 14-ball 43 and a 34-ball 84 in his last two matches prior to the warm-up match in which the U-19 star showed he is ready to make the step up.
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