Ishan Kishan sparkled on debut with a brilliant fifty as India leveled the series against England, showing immense depth in their side.
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In a factory, there is an assembly line when it comes to production. In case of a defective part, the line ensures that quality is in control. The current Indian cricket team has an assembly line of talent. This talent is just waiting for international exposure. Ishan Kishan, who smashed a fifty on his T20I debut vs England, is part of the assembly line. This is the continuation of the depth ton show since the Australia series.
The number of injuries piled up in the aftermath of the Australia tour was staggering. Mohammed Shami was out, in came Mohammed Siraj. Umesh Yadav was replaced by Navdeep Saini in Sydney. Hanuma Vihari, Ravichandran Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah were not fit for Brisbane Test. In came Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar and T Natarajan. In the current T20Is, Suryakumar Yadav and Kishan are now in the deep pool of India’s cricketing talent.
Yadav and Kishan were instrumental in Mumbai Indians’ fifth IPL title. Kishan’s Under-19 brilliance was on par with Rishabh Pant in 2016 but the Delhi keeper surged ahead. After years of setbacks, Kishan now finally looks the part.
When one sees Natarajan, Thakur, Saini and Umesh are recovering, the bench strength of the current team is staggering. In fact, two Indian teams can play international matches simultaneously. The current Indian team set-up is very similar to the Australian side of the late 90s. In that, the Australia A side had superstars on par with the national side.
Now, if one leaves out Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, this team can still do wonders. The current bench strength of the side can see players rotated frequently. The fact that the horses for courses approach can also misfire. The downward spiral of Ambati Rayudu, Vijay Shankar, and Kedar Jadhav is proof.
However, the depth of talent in the system has been possible because of the IPL. If India rest Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma for the Asia Cup, the new crop can still win.
Kishan, Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Saini, Sundar, Natarajan, Siraj, and Yuzvendra Chahal are nine out of the 11 players. In addition to the experience of KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya, India have a lethal combination. The fact that Axar Patel, the star of the Test series did not get games is a problem of plenty.
Kishan’s brilliance for Mumbai Indians has translated into big-time success. For a strong Indian cricket team, the continued success of IPL teams is necessary. Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings are the engines for India’s growth
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