India must manage workload of their key fast bowlers with intelligence and foresight as World Cup beckons

Forewarned is forearmed. Cricket circles are well aware that India’s enviable pace bowling strength could be a thing of the past if a couple of key players succumb to injury, fatigue or burn out before the forthcoming World Cup in May.

That the threat is real was borne out by selectors providing much-needed rest to fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami during the exhausting twin tour of Australia and New Zealand.

Unlike some other team and individual sports that have downtime or off-season that provide players sufficient opportunity to rest and recuperate, India’s top cricketers enjoy no such clear-cut breaks.

The IPL, a very important component of the schedule, has eaten into the off-season and thus demanded that players be at peak performance levels throughout the year —something humanly impossible.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli was smart to not only take regular breaks, but also ensure that some of his main players were similarly rested to avoid being weary or jaded.

Not surprisingly, IPL is the elephant in the room that none of the players, selectors, officials or administrators wants to address.

The constant travel, nets, and matches in sweltering summer heat take a toll on even the fittest players. Coming on top of a long season, it will challenge Indian fast bowlers’ ability to stay fresh and fit for the World Cup in England. But which franchise will voluntarily allow its best fast bowlers to sit out a few matches so that they can be in peak condition for the World Cup? Virtually none.

Last season, concerned about Shami’s fitness for the Australian tour, BCCI threw in an impractical restriction: that he’d be allowed to bowl only 15 overs in the Ranji Trophy match against Kerala. Bengal got into a pickle and their skipper was forced to make his best bowler send down 26 overs! Would franchises be any more considerate with their assets? Unlikely.

Realising this, the team management rested some key players during the tour of New Zealand.

India’s main concern is its pacers. While some claim that the second and third seamers slots have been frozen, the reality is that whosoever is fit, in form and in the right frame of mind after the IPL would be on that flight to England come May.

England’s ground and climatic conditions make fast bowling a critical component of a team. A couple of years ago, in the Champions Trophy final against Pakistan at Lord’s, India banked on three spinners (Ravichandran Ashwin 10-0-70-0, Ravindra Jadeja 8-0-67-0 and Kedar Jadhav 3-0-27-1) who frittered away all the good work of pacer Bhuvaneshwar Kumar.

The spinners looked lost on the day and India would hardly want a repeat. Even if it is conceded that wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal are a better bet (they are not as restricted as finger spinners in gripping the ball), the team still needs three top-notch fast bowlers in the playing eleven.

Grounds in England are relatively small and marked by other vagaries like slope which can be disconcerting to someone unused to bowling uphill and against the wind. Additionally, fielding restriction in modern ODI cricket where only four fielders are allowed outside the circle till the 40th over discourages the concept of bits-and-pieces cricketers. Specialist fast bowlers would be crucial for success.

The names being bandied about are probably the best in the business. But the selectors would study others and gauge their ability to stand up to the pressures of international cricket.

The T20 games in New Zealand and the white-ball series against Australia at home would be the last run of matches before IPL. They would also be the last opportunity to have a look at contenders should things go awry between now and late May.

Obviously, Bumrah, Shami, Bhuvi and Hardik Pandya should be a shoo-in provided they remain fit. But the squad would also need at least one more fast bowler, if not two, to ensure that there is a good rotation and cover for the main bowlers.

There are questions marks over young Khaleel Ahmed and Siraj Ahmed’s temperament under pressure. Both could do with more exposure before being thrown into mega tournaments.

The best among others must inevitably be Jaydev Unadkat. He has years of experience and is a good short-term prospect. His left-arm wares should put him ahead of even the experienced Umesh Yadav as it would add another dimension to the attack. The fact that IPL franchises with savvy talent scouts have continued splurging crores of rupees on him is a testimony to his ability.

Two others worth watching are Siddarth Kaul, a canny medium-pacer and Deepak Chahar, probably the best swing bowler around. Both have impressed cricket pundits, with many heaping praises on the hard work put in by Chahar on his white-ball bowling.

Vijay Shankar is more batsman than bowler, and may not fit in this analysis. But others who played in India A teams, Shardul Thakur, Prasidh Krishna and Sivam Mavi might just get a look-in.

Mavi could turn out to be a good all-rounder, though some insist that he needs to regularly pitch the ball up to make a real mark.

The tall, pacy Prasidh Krishna is a serious talent and did pretty well for Kolkata Knight Riders in his debut IPL season last year. He impressed with India A too. He is fast, swings the ball and knows how to construct an over.

Thakur, too, is in contention and his experience could be a plus point.

Finally, injuries and managing them are a part and parcel of an international sportsman’s career. But even as the fitness of India’s main fast bowlers is a worry, the presence of worthwhile substitutes should make these next three months a riveting one.