Sunil Gavaskar column: Can India tackle the dangerous Kiwi swing bowlers today?

It will be interesting to see if India opt to chase because the conditions favour the swing bowlers in the evening at Dharamshala

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India's captain Rohit Sharma during a practice session at HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala. — PTI

By Sunil Gavaskar

Published: Sun 22 Oct 2023, 8:30 AM

With Australia making a dash for the semifinals and doing it the typical aggressive Aussie way, the qualifying scenario has begun to look very interesting indeed. All eyes though will be on the clash between the table toppers New Zealand and India at Dharamshala.

The thin mountain air could help even the white ball to swing especially once the sun sets and so it will be interesting to see if India, who have opted to field first and chased down totals successfully, will be able to do so against what is arguably the tournament’s best new ball attack.

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The battle between Trent Boult and Natt Henry’s swing and seam, and Ferguson's pace against Rohit Sharma, Subhaman Gill and Virat Kohli is a mouth-watering prospect.

New Zealand, like India, have a good mix of new ball and spin bowlers and with great support from the fielders are able to exert pressure on the opposition. Kane Williamsons' unlucky injury opened the doors for two players and both Will Young and Rachin Ravindra have grabbed the chance eagerly and have done exactly what was expected of them. How they cope with Bumrah and Siraj at the start and then the spin of Kuldeep and Jadeja could well decide if New Zealand set the platform for Mitchell and company to launch the later attack. There's Devon Conway too who has experience of playing in India and had batted really well in the IPL.

Hardik Pandya’s injury may open the door for Suryakumar Yadav though with India’s top three firing well and both Iyer and Rahul settling into their jobs they may go in for the pace of Shami for the Dharamsala pitch.

Dharamsala is probably the loveliest cricketing ground in the world and fans will be hoping that the cricket between the top two teams will also be as pretty to watch. (Professional Management Group)

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Sunil Gavaskar

Published: Sun 22 Oct 2023, 8:30 AM

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