India vs New Zealand 2019: 3 positives and 2 negatives for India from their ODI series win

India outplayed New Zealand in the ODI series 4-1 to register their first series win in the country since 2009. This was India's last away assignment before World Cup 2019 and with just one more ODI series to play before the tournament, it would have done their confidence a world of good.

However, a win doesn't guarantee that everything went according to plan. So, here are the biggest positives and some negatives for India from this series.

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Positive #1: The resurgence of Mohammed Shami

Shami turned out to be the star Indian bowler in this series

When Mohammed Shami first burst onto the international scene, he caught everyone's eye due to his ability to take wickets with the new ball and at the death in limited-overs cricket. He was quite rightly the leader of the Indian pace attack for the 2015 World Cup.

However, a horrific knee injury suffered during that time kept him out of the Indian team for over a year. Consequently, he fell down the pecking order following the emergence of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah.

But India's search for backup fast bowlers heading into the 2019 World Cup meant that he was given another go at white-ball cricket in the series against Australia. He grabbed the opportunity, sending down decent spells in India's first bilateral ODI series win in the country.

He was at his absolute best in this series though, ending up with nine wickets from four matches and walked away with the Man of the Series award. He also became the quickest Indian bowler to 100 ODI wickets, a feat in itself.

His form and experience bode well for the Indian team heading into the World Cup and he can be a useful ally to Bhuvi and Bumrah if required. His performance has also forced Khaleel Ahmed, who had assumed the role of the third fast bowler, to the bench.

Negative #1: The Khaleel Ahmed situation

Khaleel has fallen down the pecking order

It is tough to be Khaleel Ahmed. A promising youngster who fought his way up through the ranks, and impressed one and all with his wicket-taking ability on pitches that are not conducive for fast bowling. Add to this his left-arm angle, a rare prospect in Indian cricket since the retirement of Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra.

All seemed to be going well for him until the first ODI against Australia where he conceded 55 runs in eight overs in a game which India lost. It was more a result of not bowling according to the conditions on offer and he was promptly dropped from the team for the next two matches of the series. He was not a part of the playing XI in the first three matches of the New Zealand series as well, and Mohammed Shami made the spot his own with his match-winning performances.

In the penultimate match of the series, he only got to bowl three overs as India lost the match due to a disappointing display from their batters. It might be too harsh to criticize him and write him off so early, however, with Shami having more or less sealed the slot of the third fast bowler for himself, the pressure is now on Khaleel to deliver performances and earn his ticket to the 2019 World Cup.

India are likely to take four fast bowlers along with Pandya for the event, and Khaleel has the likes of Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, Deepak Chahar and Siddharth Kaul breathing down his neck. However, Khaleel being a left-armer gives this Indian attack more variety and that keeps him ahead in the race for the fourth pacer's slot, but he would want to seal his place further with strong performances.

A good 2019 IPL might well help him in that.

Positive #2: The Pandya Factor

Hardik Pandya showed glimpses of his match-winning ability right through this series

Hardik Pandya has had a tough few days off the field due to his controversial comments on a talk show and might well see tougher days ahead as his verdict is still on hold.

Amidst all this, he was hastily called up to join the Indian team and the pressure was on him to forget all that has happened and focus on his game. And boy, did he respond well!

He immediately made a mark with the ball in hand in the third ODI, taking a couple of wickets, as well as taking a stunner to dismiss Kane Williamson.

He hit a quickfire 22-ball 45 in the final ODI to take India to an above-par score and also took a couple of wickets with the ball to further prove why he is so important for the balance of the playing XI.

There is no doubt about his talent and with him having shown glimpses of his match-winning ability in the 2017 Champions Trophy. The team would want him to carry on with his current run of form because Hardik Pandya at his best is very crucial to India’s chances in the World Cup.

Negative #2: Batting performances in swinging conditions

Indian batsmen looked all at sea in the 4th ODI

Back to the early days of the 21st century, India were always seen as a team that played spin really well but struggled in swinging and seaming conditions abroad. That was seen as the main reason why the team lost so many matches when touring overseas.

These days, they win quite a lot in foreign conditions but does that mean they can now handle swing better? Not quite. It is more due to small grounds and flat pitches which often have nothing in them for the bowlers.

The same was the story in the first three matches of the series. The New Zealand batsmen succumbed to the genius of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal, and their fast bowlers found no swing at all, resulting in the Indian batsmen carting them to all parts of the ground.

But as soon New Zealand found conditions helpful to their bowlers, Indian batsmen started dancing to their tunes in the fourth ODI. Trent Boult ran through the Indian batting line-up to skittle them for their 7th lowest ODI total ever, and Rohit Sharma publicly acknowledged that it was one of their worst batting performances in a long, long time.

The same was the case in the final ODI until Ambati Rayudu and Vijay Shankar bailed the team out of trouble.

India are unlikely to counter such conditions for the majority of the 2019 World Cup. But if they do come across typical English conditions, this series has raised alarm bells regarding the ability of their batsmen, more so their top order, to face it.

Positive #3: The performance of Ambati Rayudu

Ambati Rayudu helped India post a match-winning score in the last ODI

The pressure was on Ambati Rayudu to deliver the goods following his dismal performances in the ODI series against Australia. Some people were also of the opinion to move MS Dhoni permanently to number four, following his heroics in the Australian series.

However, Virat Kohli has publicly acknowledged Rayudu’s ability to perform in the middle order in the past, and Rayudu himself didn’t do any harm to his chances with his performances in this series.

He ended up with 190 runs in 5 matches at an average of 63.33, but it was his performance in the final match of the series that may have silenced all his critics. He helped India recover from 18-4, with a knock that had a bit of everything; taking his time in the beginning, rotating the strike in the middle phase of his innings, and unleashing his big hits towards the end.

He has taken India out of wobbly situations before, such as the Asia Cup game against Pakistan in 2014 and the 1st ODI against Zimbabwe in 2015, but performing in conditions where the ball was swinging against the likes of Trent Boult and Matt Henry is a big feat in itself. That has pretty much sealed his spot in the batting order, if it wasn’t already.

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