World Cup 2019: 3 takeaways for India from their win against Afghanistan 

The 28th match of the 2019 World Cup turned out to be probably the best of the tournament so far. Contrary to pre-match expectations, India and Afghanistan played a nail-biting thriller with the Men in Blue winning by 11 runs.

Virat Kohli won the toss and chose to bat but to everyone's surprise, India could only a post score of 224/8 in their 50 overs as the Aghani spinners stifled the middle order. In response, Gulbadin Naib's men put in a gutsy effort but ultimately fell 11 runs short. The brilliance of Jasprit Bumrah and a hat-trick by Mohammed Shami ensured a victory for India despite Mohammed Nabi giving a strong fight till the end.

While India got the two points at the end of the day, Afghanistan can be extremely proud of the fight they put in. Despite having a poor run in the tournament so far, one has to comment the heart and fighting spirit they showed to give the tournament favourites a massive scare.

While Virat Kohli will take pride in the fact that India is still unbeaten, this game is a wakeup call and given India a lot to ponder about. Here are a few things India learned from the encounter at Southampton.

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#3 Kohli's team is not perfect but have resilience

Virat Kohli will be happy to see India grind out a win

India dominated the first three games of their campaign from start to finish and it was starting to look like that the Men in Blue were invincible. Yesterday's encounter removed any such feeling as a lot of faults in the team started to appear. As India struggled to defeat Afghanistan, every team in the competition would have taken notice and told themselves that beating India is more than possible.

The manner of the victory should remove any complacency in the Indian camp. While they remain favourites to lift the trophy, this match is a clear signal to the team that they cannot take anything for granted in their pursuit of ultimate glory. As Kohli will know better anyone, the team cannot any slip-ups at all.

On the other hand, it was not a bad time for India to get a wake-up call. With a place in the semi-final almost guaranteed, a tough encounter at this stage of the tournament is a blessing in disguise. Despite not being anywhere close to their best, the fact that India could grind out a win is something that is extremely pleasing especially seeing pre-tournament favourites England failing to do so.

#2 Middle order issues remain

IMs Dhoni scored only 28 runs despite facing 52 balls

India's overdependence on the top three and the struggle to put on big scores in the first innings was something was largely spoken about in the build-up to the tournament. While against Australia and Pakistan, the openers and Virat Kohli did the bulk of the scoring, the same did not happen against Afghanistan. With the pressure on the middle order, they failed to impress and take the team to a safe total.

Each of Vijay Shankar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and Kedar Jadhav batted at extremely disappointing strike rates which left the team in a lot of trouble. Each of them could not accelerate against the spinners which led to the team never getting a final push as Hardik Pandya walked into bat with only five overs left. No Indian batsman except Virat Kohli finished with a strike rate more than 80.

While it's worth noting that the Rose Bowl pitch was extremely slow with the opposition spinners among the best in the world, there are definite causes of concern for the Indian team. It is an issue for the team management to ponder upon as it could come back to haunt them on a bigger occasion. Whether a change in approach, personal, or batting order, there is something that definitely needs to be worked on.

#1 Rishabh Pant has to play

India needs to bring Rishabh Pant in the playing XI

Shikhar Dhawan's unfortunate injury saw Rishabh Pant being drafted into India's 15-man squad. The game against Afghanistan was a clear example of the need to draft the 21-year-old into the playing XI. Firstly, the absence of Dhawan has left the team without a left-hander in the top seven. This makes it easier for teams to attack the Men in Blue with wrist spinners and leaves a lack of versatility in the batting unit.

Further, without Dhawan, India really lacks a player who can accelerate from the start and maintain a steady strike rate throughout the innings except for Hardik Pandya. With Pant coming into the equation, that will change. The youngster will add more explosiveness to the middle order and make it tougher for opposition captains to contain the Indian batting unit. This will also reduce the pressure on Pandya to hit the big shots and allow him to play with more freedom.