The month of T20 World Cup 2024 has started and with this once again Indian fans have started supporting Team India with the hopes of the title. Team India’s real journey in the World Cup will start from June 5, but before that it has to play a practice match on Saturday. This match between India and Bangladesh is to be held at Naso County Cricket Stadium in New York, so this match will test the preparations of the Indian team as well as give it a good experience for the main matches of the tournament. In this match, Team India will have to deal with 5 important challenges.
playing together
For the success of any team, it is important for them to play together. These things are being said about the Indian team for two reasons. First, Team India has not played any T20 match since January. All the players played IPL for 2 months but with different teams. Then there are some players in the team who have not been regular, so their coordination with the rest of the team will be important.
Second, there is a strained equation between captain Rohit Sharma and vice-captain Hardik Pandya. In the IPL, Mumbai Indians removed Rohit from the captaincy and handed over the command to Hardik. Since then, news of rift between the two kept coming throughout the tournament and indifference was seen in their relationship on the field as well. Now Rohit is the captain here, so it is very important for both of them to be united.
Understanding the pitch and conditions
For the first time a cricket tournament is being held in America, especially in New York. The temporary stadium built in Naso County will be a puzzle for Team India in every way. This will be a new experience for Bangladesh as well, but Team India has to play its 3 group stage matches here. In such a situation, it will be most important to understand the pitch here. Drop-in pitches have been installed here and Team India does not have much experience of playing on such pitches. Also, it will be necessary to know how big the boundaries of the ground are and how much effect the weather will have on batting first or later.
Wicketkeeper selection
After this, the selection of the playing eleven is a big challenge for Team India. Virat Kohli is not expected to play in this match, so Yashasvi Jaiswal will open with captain Rohit. In such a situation, the question of wicketkeeper arises. Should Rishabh Pant get this role or Sanju Samson? Pant gives the option of a left-handed batsman, while Samson can be fielded from the top of the batting order to a finisher role. It will be most important to find a solution to this before the tournament starts.
Who will be the spinner?
This time four spinners were given a chance in Team India, in which Ravindra Jadeja and Akshar Patel are left arm spin all-rounders, while Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav are wrist spinners. The selectors took this step keeping in mind the Super-8, semi-final and final to be held in West Indies. But will the spinners be effective in New York as well? Even if they are, what kind of spinners? This will also be known from the practice match. Therefore, how many spinners will the team field is a big question. Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav seem certain to play, but will there be anyone else apart from them? This remains to be seen.
Who will be the pacer alongside Bumrah?
Team India has only three main fast bowlers, in which Jasprit Bumrah is sure to play but who will support him? Arshdeep Singh gives the option of a left arm pacer, while Mohammad Siraj has good experience. Anyway, Team India has the option of another seamer in the form of Hardik Pandya, so will there be only 2 main fast bowlers or will all three get a chance?
