Two perennial problems that were solved for India in the 4th ODI

India won the fourth one-day match against the West Indies by a huge margin of 224 runs. More than the manner and the margin of victory, the team management would be glad that could find a solution for two perennial problems which have been haunting the team so long.

#1 Ambati Rayudu the solution for the No.4 conundrum

Ambati Rayadu - The much awaited No 4 for Team India

In Mumbai, India stumbled upon Ambati Rayudu to be the solution for their No.4 conundrum. Rayudu came to the crease after the unexpected dismissal of Virat Kohli and put on 211 runs with Rohit Sharma.

In the process, Rayudu completed his 3rd ODI hundred off 81 balls with 8 fours and 4 sixes. Rayadu was slow to start with while Rohit was scoring all the runs at the other end reaching his 50. There was no pressure on Rayadu to score runs quickly.

He survived a stumping appeal when on 15. He reached his 18 off 29 balls before he lofted Allen over extra cover. That got him going. Rayudu stepped down the wicket to lift Nurse for a six over the bowler’s head. He reached his 50 off 51 balls and finally went on to score his third one-day century.

Rayudu turned out to be the first Indian batsman to score a century outside the top 3 since January 2017. The team management must be deeply relieved by his effort, This has solved one of their biggest headaches ahead of the World Cup.

With Ambati Rayudu at No 4, in-form Dhoni at 5, the versatile Kedar Jadhav at 6 and the all-rounder either Jadeja or Hardik Pandya at No 7, India’s middle-order looks solid, at least on paper.

Virat Kohli was spot on with his observations when he identified Rayudu as the solution to India’s No 4 problem even before the current series started. What the captain knows which the press and the experts do not know is the confidence of a particular player and how well he strikes the ball in the nets.

Rayudu had the backing of his captain and now he has proved his significance to the team.

#3 Khaleel Ahmed as the backup seamer for Bhuvi and Bumrah

Khaleel Ahmed - The new find for Team Idia

Khaleel Ahmed has been impressive since his debut in Asia Cup. Khaleel impressed one and all with his pace, angle and subtle pace variation. He is a left-arm fast bowler who is a rare commodity in the present Indian team. He could offer a different variety and his angle could create problems for the batsmen.

At Mumbai, Khaleel came into the attack in the tenth over of the innings. His first ball took the edge of Hetmyer’s bat but didn’t carry to Dhoni. Khaleel had been bowling to Hetymer since his under 19 days. His third ball to Hetmyer was a length ball which hit him on the back leg. The umpire’s finger went up and even the review couldn’t save Hetmyer. Wicket number 1 for Khaleel.

Khaleel’s second ball to new batsman Powell cut him into half and almost clipped off-stump. Powell, in his brief stay at the crease, was susceptible to Khaleel. In his second over Khaleel knocked off Powell’s stumps to claim his 2nd wicket. Holder survived an LBW appeal off the very first ball he faced from Khaleel.

At the other end, Samuels was facing spin and was most of the times off strike for Khaleel. Khaleel struck in his third over getting rid of Samuels through a good catch by Rohit Sharma in the slips. Khaleel had taken 3 wickets in 16 balls and ripped through the Windies middle-order.

After bowling 4 overs, Khaleel was taken out of the attack perhaps not to over-expose him to the West Indies batsmen ahead of the 5th ODI. The team management would be pleased with the performance of Khaleel Ahmed. He could develop into an able support seamer for Bhuvi and Bumrah. He would be a valuable addition to this Indian bowling line-up with his variations.

Apart from the above two main solutions, there were some other positives too for Team India in the fourth ODI.

There should no doubt in any one's mind that Dhoni is the No 1 keeper in the World

# Kedar Jadhav came out to bat in the 48th over of the innings and smashed 16 off just 7 balls with 3 fours.

# For the first time in the series, Dhoni showed a semblance of batting form when he scored 23 off 15 balls.

# The Indians were brilliant on the field. Kuldeep Yadav made his presence felt with a direct hit to dismiss the in-form Shai Hope. Kohli got ride off Powell with a reverse-flick. Rohit Sharma took three wonderful catches in the slips. Dhoni effected a lightning stumping to get rid of Paul.

# Rohit Sharma played a responsible innings after Kohli’s cheap dismissal. He took off after completing his 21st ODI hundred and reached 162.

The fourth ODI at Mumbai not only brought back India into the series but also provided solutions to some of their age-old problems. After Rayudu’s success at No 4, the only concern for Team India would be how to accommodate K.L. Rahul into the Indian scheme of things.