Key learnings from India's 2022 T20 World Cup campaign
The 2024 Men's ICC T20 World Cup scheduled in the West Indies and USA will be underway on June 1. India, the inaugural T20 WC champions, would want to end their quest for an ICC trophy. They crashed out of 2022 event Down Under following a 10-wicket loss to eventual champions England in the semi-final. Here are the key learnings from India's 2022 campaign.
Overdependence on Kohli and SKY
India's batting line-up majorly revolved around Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav. Kohli once again topped the runs chart, scoring 296 runs at 98.66. However, his strike rate of 136.40 was under the scanner. Meanwhile, Suryakumar smashed 239 runs at an astonishing strike rate of 189.68. Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul were the next-best Indian batters with 128 runs each.
Openers failed to exploit fielding restrictions
Indian openers Rohit Sharma and Rahul couldn't play the field in the Powerplay. In the first six overs, India scored at just 6.02. They lost nine wickets in this phase, smashing only 7 sixes. Skipper Rohit tallied a mere 116 runs at a stirke rate of 106.42, while Rahul recorded scores of 4,9,9, and 5 against Pakistan, Netherlands, South Africa, and England, respectively.
Conservative batting approach
India's conservative batting approach cost them another ICC trophy. Each of their three 170+ totals came against Zimbabwe, Bangladesh, and Netherlands. India had scores of 168/6, 160/6, and 133/9 against England, Pakistan, and South Africa, respectively.
India's T20 wicket-taker Chahal wasn't tried
Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who bagged the Purple Cap in IPL 2022, warmed the bench throughout the T20 World Cup. India's decision of keeping Ravichandran Ashwin ahead in the pecking order drew flak. The former took just six wickets, out of which three came against Zimbabwe. Notably, the highest wicket-taker of the 2022 T20 WC was a wrist-spinner - Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga (15).
A look at other key learnings
India's pace battery struggled big time in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the tournament due to injury. While Arshdeep Singh showed promise by taking 10 wickets, the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami were ineffective. Besides, India were bolstered by Hardik's all-round show. He took eight wickets and scored 128 runs, including a 33-ball 63 in the semi-final.
