Asia Cup: Firming up India's T20 pace support cast

Hindustan Times

13 hours ago

Kolkata: As the envelope gets pushed every year by six hitters, the need for bowlers who can stop teams from running away with the games is getting more acute. And since the next T20 World Cup will be staged in India where the imbalance between bat and ball can be the most drastic, it's safe to assume taking 10 wickets won't get the biggest priority from the sides. How can India hope to tackle this challenge, especially the fast bowlers? India's Jasprit Bumrah hasn't featured in a T20I since the T20 World Cup final and there remains a doubt about his fitness. (PTI)
We will start with cues from the 2024 T20 World Cup final that was played on a similarly slow and unresponsive surface at Bridgetown, where India got nine overs from their slow left-arm bowlers Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja. Three spinners bowling 12 overs is par for Indian surfaces, meaning any one of Varun Chakravarthy, Washington Sundar and Ravi Bishnoi (all right-arm bowlers, by the way) could be considered to take Jadeja's place in the team during next month's Asia Cup in the UAE or in the World Cup. That leaves very little — nevertheless important — space for pacers.
Again, taking a cue from the 2024 final, India have no reason to tinker with the pacers as well. Jasprit Bumrah hasn't featured in a T20I since the T20 World Cup final, but if fit to play, he is an institution in this format. Not to forget he had returned an economy of 6.67 across 284 balls in the 2025 IPL, the highest for any fast bowler with at least 100 balls in the tournament. Arshdeep Singh had an economy of five in that 2024 final, and there is no reason to believe he can't replicate that performance. He bowls left-arm, complements Gautam Gambhir's left-right theory, can swing the ball away from the right-hander and can land the yorker pretty effortlessly in the death overs.
If there is anything, Gambhir would like to explore more options for the second bowler's slot. Mohammed Siraj was in raging form in England. And given how he has slowly shaped up to be the go-to bowler, Siraj can be a left-field choice if India need options when Bumrah might need a bit of rest. Prasidh Krishna however has had a better economy in recent times, especially in IPL where he had an economy of 8.27 in nearly 60 overs. Deepak Chahar has had a good return from injury as well, but his economy shot past the nine mark this IPL. Siraj has a similar drawback, given that he returned an economy of 9.24 this IPL.
None of the three has played T20Is in the last one year, so it remains to be seen whether the selectors are comfortable finding two inexpensive alternatives to Bumrah from this lot or will stick to those who have been tested till date. Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed and Mukesh Kumar have been given considerable game time and if they are persisted with, India could at least benefit from the continuity.
What can't be forgotten amidst all this is that India will keep trying to squeeze as many runs as possible from their bowlers as well. That could be an overarching theme for the selection of spinners, where barring Chakravarthy and Kuldeep, all other probables have good strike rates with the bat. Bumrah can swing the bat as well but won't be criticised if he fails. The same however can't be said of the other fast bowling options if India need to bat till at least No.8. That makes Hardik Pandya's role pivotal.
Throughout the last year, Pandya has been India's middle-order anchor, but more importantly also the new-ball bowler. But his role has often been limited to only bowling a couple of overs before the spinners take charge. In the home series against England early this year for example, Pandya opened the bowling in all five matches but completed his quota in just two of them. His economy was 8.84, not glaringly bad but also not very good. In the 2025 IPL as well, Pandya's economy was 9.77.
Assuming that India get Bumrah and Arshdeep or any of their replacements to bowl their full quota, Pandya may not be needed at all. But a sixth bowler has never been entirely ruled out of India's T20 consciousness. Which is why Pandya's recent returns can be a jarring read even though he has often served as a key partnership breaker. As the format continues to lean further towards batters, bowlers who wield better control are more in demand. If Pandya can help cut down a few runs, India stand to gain all the more.