What strategy should the Indian bowlers use in the WTC Final?

WTC Final: Should India bowl more bouncers?

Modified Jun 17, 2021 20:07 IST

India can use bounce liberally, says former cricketer Aakash Chopra

The India vs New Zealand World Test Championship (WTC) final skirmish is just around the corner and the bowling line-ups of both sides have come into focus before they meet in Southampton on June 18 (Friday).

The bowling attack of either team has the ability to swing the ball both ways. They also have the capacity to hit the deck fast, repeatedly. It will be an interesting contest with both sides boasting some world-class bowlers in their line ups.

Another effective method for India, in particular, will be to bowl more bouncers to peg back the Kiwi batsmen on the backfoot in the all-important WTC final.

Quite simply, bouncers to new batsmen would make their life difficult as they try to read the pitch and adapt. It could be an effective strategy for Kohli to win the final.

Expert opinion: Bouncers unsettle batsmen

Former cricketer and analyst Aakash Chopra also opined that Indian bowlers need to use bouncers liberally to cramp the batsmen and prevent them from going on the front foot.

According to Cricinfo, he explained that bowling short would be a good idea to prevent the batsmen playing on the front foot or close to the body in the WTC clash.

"When you encounter a batting side like New Zealand, it's important to rattle their cage every now and then. While most sides would bowl bouncers to the likes of Ross Taylor and Colin de Grandhomme, the Indian fast bowlers must use them against Henry Nicholls, Devon Conway and Tom Latham too."

Chopra feels the new batsmen at the crease are unsettled by bouncers.

He added: "Whenever a batter is new at the crease, there's always a little window of opportunity before he finds his feet, so bouncers are helpful in unsettling them."

Does that mean India needs more pace in the WTC final?

Ideally, yes. Indian skipper Virat Kohli has favored using the quicks in the longer format and that will help if they have plans to continually bombard the batsman with short deliveries.

The most obvious ploy would be to use and rotate pace from one end while Ravichandran Ashwin would operate at the other. India have plenty of pace options at their disposal, and they are all capable of banging it in and hitting the deck hard repeatedly.

What are your thoughts on India using more of the short deliveries in the WTC final?

Catch live updates during the WTC final by clicking here.