A SWOT analysis of India's Test batting line-up for the home season

Sachin Tendulkar - the last of the famous fab four - retired in November 2013 and many were left wondering if India would ever again boast of a quality batting line-up. Such was the standard of India's batting line-up, when the Fab Four were in their prime, that it was hailed the best, in an era where the Aussies dominated world cricket.

The emergence of Virat Kohli, Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane have somewhat covered for the loss of these superstars. With able allies, the trio have set about rebuilding the Indian Test batting line-up. Failures abroad, against England, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa did not do justice to the talent in this batting line-up.

There was always something special about Virat Kohli. Ajinkya Rahane has such a strong technique that him scoring runs over the years was a given. Vijay looked as solid an opener as you could ask for. In Pujara, they have a batsman in the mould of Rahul Dravid, able to play the waiting game.

The big question after a series of losses abroad was if this line-up had it in them to withstand the rigours of Test cricket? The answer became more and more evident with each tour as they started mounting up huge totals to help their bowlers.

The early signs for this fantastic batting line-up are good - they have attacking options, defensive walls, lower order batsmen and good tail enders. Whether they can withstand the Kiwi and England bowling attacks, that look good on paper, is another question only time will answer. If the first Test against New Zealand is anything to go by, the signs are ominous.

A SWOT (Strength-Weakness-Opportunity-Threat) analysis of this batting line-up ahead of a home season follows:

Strengths

Strong openers:

It has to be said that replacing Shikhar Dhawan with Lokesh Rahul has been Kohli's biggest move as a captain. He has instilled some confidence in Rahul that is evident for all to see. His batting complements Murali Vijay's and both are exceptional leavers, a trait compulsory for opening batsmen. With Rahul easily capable of switching gears between attack and defence, India have two reliable forces upfront.

A dream middle order:

In Cheteshwar Pujara they have the perfect no.3. He had faced criticism initially for slowing down the innings but after returning to this line-up, he has looked solid and positive, while also scoring important runs.

Virat Kohli complements him well at no.4 and is the kind of player who can take a Test match away in a session. Such is his commitment to the cause that you can be assured he rarely fails without a fight.

Ajinkya Rahane is the right man to walk in below Pujara and Kohli. He is a calm and composed batsman with a solid technique apt for Test cricket. He flows when in fine nick and has the temperament to perform on any surface, against any kind of attack.

Rohit Sharma, Ravichandran Ashwin and Wriddhiman Saha complete a strong lower middle order. Rohit is probably a question mark considering his recent form, but there is no doubt about the talent.

Ashwin has rediscovered his batting skills that looked dead after he came onto the International scene. His centuries in the Caribbean are proof that he is more than a capable no.7.

Infact, Kohli trusts him so much that he plays five bowlers with Ashwin as the all-rounder at no.6. Saha does have a solid record. His exploits in the domestic arena are well known and he has lately been a good lower order batsman for India in Tests.

Strong Tail:

Ravindra Jadeja, who has three triple hundreds in domestic cricket, came in to bat at no.9 in the recent Test against New Zealand in Nagpur. Do I need to tell more about this batting line-up? The tail is as strong as ever, with Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Umesh Yadav more than capable with the willow.

Weaknesses

The Indian batsmen still play in T20 mode, even in Tests

With such a strong batting line-up, you would expect them to pile on huge scores time and again. But the fact is that this batting line-up has failed many times in recent times.

Temperament:

This has been something amiss in this stellar line-up. While Rahane and Vijay, to a large extent, have looked ominous, the rest of the line-up has had issues with controlling their natural instincts in Tests.

Someone like Rohit Sharma has forever played in ODI mode even in the longest format of the game. Kohli too has had his issues of switching to Test mode.

Spinners:

There was a time the world considered bowling spin to India a waste. The Indian batsmen had so much power in their wrists coupled with strong technique that they could counter any spinner with ease. Gone is that time, as Dean Elgar proved when South Africa toured India last year. The famed top order could not deal with a part-time left-arm spinner. They need to go back to basics against the spinners and take a page out of Mohammad Azharuddin's book of batting against spin.

Bounce:

Pace and bounce have forever troubled Indian batting line-up's and this one is no different. While Kohli, Vijay, Rahane and Rohit possess the right technique for short balls, none of them have been good enough against the short stuff recently.

Wagner dismissing Kohli in Nagpur last week was evidence that India think they can take on the short ball in Tests, but are yet to master the art.

Opportunities

India's next assignments are at home and this offers them an ideally opportunity to get into the groove. In New Zealand and England, they have strong opponents with skilled bowlers. It will be the right time for many of the middle order batsmen to get into Test mode.

An advantage for them is that none of the spinners in the touring squad look very threatening This will offer the likes of Kohli, Pujara and Rahane to understand the mistakes they are making against spin and to correct them.

It is also the ideal time to try out a new player with back to back home series' coming up. Some India A stars like Manish Pandey and Karun Nair have been knocking on the selector's door for a long time. With Rohit Sharma looking out of sorts, it will present an ideal opportunity for one of these youngsters to blend into the team in home conditions before tougher tours abroad.

Threats

Pace bowlers like Boult, Wagner, Anderson and Broad are exceptional in generating reverse swing. While the spinners have been India's nemesis in recent times at home, the role of reverse swing on sub-continental pitches cannot be highlighted enough.

Dale Steyn exposed India's weakness against reverse swing in Nagpur in 2010 and the England and Kiwi bowlers would love to do the same. They have the right bowlers to exploit the conditions and given the Indian batting line-up's tendency to attack, the threat of reverse swing is ever-present.

Moeen Ali for England and Mitchell Santner for New Zealand are two hugely underestimated spin bowlers. Santner showed he has the right deliveries for these pitches during the World T20 this year and Ali had bamboozled India's batsmen on green tops in England.

Verdict

Since India's next few Tests are at home, the batting line-up may not be tested to a point where their weaknesses are exposed. However, taking a cue from Nagpur, this line-up has more strengths than weaknesses. That India managed to pile up good scores without huge contributions from Rahane and Kohli, their mainstay batsmen in Tests, is testimony to the fact that the batting line-up is going in the right direction.