The Indian cricket team have struggled in some major ICC events like the World Cup but the one common factor that has haunted them in ODIs is top order collapses.
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The ICC World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand saw heartbreak for Virat Kohli. This was India’s third straight loss in an ICC event in the knock-out stages. As captain, Kohli had to face a hat-trick of heartbreaks. India lost in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy and in the semi-final of the 2019 ICC World Cup previously. If one expands the size to the time of MS Dhoni’s captaincy, India lost in the knockout stages in three consecutive ICC events from 2014 to 2016.
The 2014 ICC World T20 loss was the first in this sequence of six. India lost to a determined Australia in the 2015 ICC World Cup semi-final in Sydney while they were beaten at home in the same stage against the West Indies in the ICC World T20 in 2016. In all these losses, there has been a common trend. The failure of the top order has been the main reason for India’s poor show in ICC events be it ODIs or Tests. This has not been an impediment for them in T20s.
If one has to take away the last six years, India have traditionally had batting collapses in major events right from the very beginning. In 1983, India made the final for the first time and their batsmen were blown away for 183. India had lost five wickets for 40 runs as the West Indies bowlers showed their might. In hindsight, 183 was a below-par score but the Indian bowlers kept the mighty Windies batsmen quiet.
However, the first cracks in the final stages of the tournament began appearing in 1987. India had reached the semi-final and were playing England at the Wankhede stadium. Graham Gooch’s 115 got England to 254/6. India suffered two collapses in response. After being reduced to 73/3, India lost six wickets for 51 runs to be bowled out for 219. The Indian tail could not stand up to England.
In that time, barring 1987 in which the middle order were blown apart, India’s top order has been woeful in major ICC events. When India reached the final of the World Cup 20 years later in 2003, they were already deflated by Australia with Ricky Ponting’s 140 taking them to 359/2. India lost Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Mohammad Kaif cheaply to put them on the backfoot. India never recovered from being three down for just 59 in the chase of 360.
Whenever India have won the ICC tournaments, one batsmen stayed till the end to guide them. The 2007 ICC World T20 and 2011 World Cup are classic examples. In Johannesburg against Pakistan in 2007, it was Gautam Gambhir who hit 75. Take out Gambhir’s score and the next highest is 30. Wickets were tumbling at one end, but at least Gambhir was there.
In 2011, it was Gambhir who got India towards the end with 97 in the final against Sri Lanka. However, India were boosted by the presence of two finishers as MS Dhoni’s 91 ensured India would not collapse despite losing Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag cheaply.
In the big pressure situation of the semi-final, India’s batting just does not seem to work. During the second semi-final of the 2015 ICC World Cup in Sydney against Australia, India had made 76 in chasing 329. However, India lost three wickets for 15 runs to stutter. In the end, the tail failed to contribute as they lost four wickets for two runs. These two collapses ensured India was eliminated.
The trend in the modern era is that the head and feet simply collapse. The chest seems to be doing all the work. The classic case is 2017, 2019 and the ICC World Test Championship in 2021. In the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, India’s top five collapsed to 54/5 in pursuit of 339. Hardik Pandya kept the game alive but once he fell, the tail just crumbled.
The 2019 ICC World Cup semi-final was the same. India collapsed to 24/4 in their chase of 240 against New Zealand. Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja all kept India afloat but the tail did not wag again. India lost by 18 runs to be eliminated. Once again, the top and the tail failed.
The hat-trick was achieved in the 2021 ICC World Test Championship. Not a single fifty was hit in the Indian batting. The last four wickets collapsed for just 12 runs. New Zealand’s last three gave them 57 runs. In the second innings, India folded for 170 and New Zealand won the match.
When the tail and top order do not contribute, big losses will happen. For India, it has been happening not just in the last 10 years but in the last 20 years.
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