Former England captain Nasser Hussain reckons India will get exposed in the knockout stages if they don’t have a plan B to turn to.
India has been consistently making it to the knockout stages in the major ICC events but hasn’t been able to go all the way in the competition.
India was looking in sublime form in the ICC T20 World Cup 2019 but they were knocked out by New Zealand in the semifinal. Similarly, India lost the final of the 2014 T20 World Cup, the semifinal of the 2016 T20 World Cup, and the final of the 2017 Champions Trophy.
Meanwhile, Hussain reckons India’s top three batters – Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli – will hold the key for the team but they can find themselves on the ropes if they are lose quick wickets in the initial stages.
Hussain added that India is favorite to go all the way but they are not clear favorites as things are unpredictable in the shortest format of the game.
“When they get to a stage you look at the last World Cup against New Zealand and suddenly it’s a low-scoring game and they don’t have a Plan B. They got rolled over a very good New Zealand side. So that’s going to be an issue for them,” Hussain said on ‘Sky Cricket.’
“The other problem with India is that they are so good at the top with Rohit Sharma , Virat Kohli and KL Rahul boss games and the middle order hasn’t had much of a hit. “You get to a knockout or final and suddenly they are at 30 for 3 because the standard has gone up and the middle order hasn’t had a hit and you go now you need to do it,” he added. “They are favorites. I wouldn’t say clear favorites simply because of the format. The shorter the game, things can happen,” Hussain said.
“… an individual brilliance of 70 or 80 or three deliveries suddenly changes the other away around. So anyone could upset India in any knockout game,” he added.
Meanwhile, India last won an ICC trophy back in 2013 when MS Dhoni lead the team to a Champions Trophy triumph. But since then Indian team hasn’t been able to bring their best in the knockout matches.
“Their record of late in the ICC tournaments is not good and that’s something they are going to have to deal with with the weight of expectations of the Indian audience and fans heavy on their shoulders when they get to a knockout game, all of a sudden you cannot afford a mistake and that’s going to be a thing for them,” he said.
