Training Sessions and Team Dynamics
India and the West Indies were in contrasting moods on Sunday as they prepared for their crucial quarter-final match in the T20 World Cup. The West Indies, coming off a defeat against South Africa, opted for a light training session at Eden Gardens. The focus was on Sherfane Rutherford, who trained alone at the center of the ground on Saturday. He took some throwdowns and practiced against Roston Chase before wrapping up his session.
In addition to Rutherford’s training, Akeal Hosein and Romario Shepherd also trained at the ground, working on their skills with ball and bat respectively. It was difficult to sense the significance of the upcoming knockout match from the West Indies camp.
In stark contrast, most Indian players attended an optional training session led by Ryan ten Doeschate. The Indian team occupied nearly half of the ground, training in five separate nets ahead of the game.
The first net, located at long-off, was dedicated to Axar Patel, who batted against Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav. Net two, adjacent to the matchday pitch at cover, saw Jasprit Bumrah delivering his usual pace. No batter was present at the nets, which is part of Bumrah’s usual process to sharpen his rhythm and release.
The third net, situated at short mid-wicket, was the most lively area. This was where the chaos unfolded. The Indian team management had been concerned after being defeated by South Africa and Zimbabwe scoring highly. As a result, head coach Gautam Gambhir measured specific lengths for the bowlers using an inch tape. Four markers were placed for Varun Chakravarthy to target. With precision, he bowled deliveries that hit the marked areas on the net.
After Varun completed his session, bowling coach Morne Morkel asked Axar Patel to use his intuition to hit the top of the off stump. A baseball glove was positioned behind the off stump, and Morkel went through several repetitions with Axar, aiming to transfer that length into his muscle memory.
Why Length Matters
Eden Gardens is known for its relatively small dimensions. Combined with the curator billing the surface as a batting wicket, it suggests a high-scoring encounter. While the West Indies may not have the same bowling depth as India, they possess enough firepower to match India on their day.
Precise lengths are essential to keep the ball out of the hitting arcs of the batters. Defensive variations might be what the team resorts to if their initial plan of attack fails.
Abhishek Sharma’s Performance
Now, let’s discuss how the India batters looked in their individual sessions. Ishan Kishan stood out as the most fluent batter on the day. He batted twice — once in Net 4 with Tilak Varma and once in Net 5 after Abhishek Sharma switched to take throwdowns on Net 2 (Bumrah’s training area). Kishan struck the ball with such power that its sound echoed through the empty stands of Eden.
In contrast, Abhishek Sharma looked rushed against the pacers. His feet often failed to move towards the ball, but he did not force a shot after being beaten. Instead, he tapped the ball down, possibly visualizing a single in his mind. However, he looked in brilliant touch against the spinners, attacking the right-arm off-spinner arranged by the CAB and striking clean blows.
Shivam Dube’s Bowling Concerns
Shivam Dube has been a topic of discussion over the last week. He struggled in Chennai against Zimbabwe, but the Indian management deserves credit for giving him enough overs instead of throwing him into another tough situation.
Dube bowled against Kishan and Tilak early in the nets, but this did not inspire confidence among the reporters. His focus was on bowling wide yorkers and bouncers to the batters.
Rinku Singh’s Absence
Rinku Singh did not train with India on Saturday. He joined the team later in the evening on February 28. Ryan ten Doeschate expressed condolences on behalf of the team, stating that the team would support Rinku during this difficult time.
“From everyone within the team, our condolences go out to Rinku and his family. It’s obviously a very sad time when something like this happens. He hasn’t joined the team yet, but he will continue to get love and support from everyone in the group. He’s planned to join us later this evening, and we just need to get around him and help him through this very difficult time,” the Indian assistant coach said.
As things stand, there are unlikely to be any changes in the Indian team for their clash against the West Indies. The two-time champions meet each other in a rematch of the 2016 tournament. In that edition, Daren Sammy’s men staged a famous win over India, knocking out the home favourites.
From the intensity of the training today, it surely felt like India is not in the mood to let that happen again.
