The most impressive aspect of India’s win in the T20 series against Australia was the chutzpah shown by the players, individually and collectively. When the desire to win is strong, the skill quotient and energy automatically get enhanced.
Of course, the shortest format is a lottery, as everybody knows. T20 cricket is notorious for unpredictable and upset results. The best teams can come a cropper against even minnows, as past experience has shown.
How quirky this format can be is highlighted by the fact that India, now the top-ranked Test team by the ICC, actually limp in at number 8 in the shortest format. On the other hand, West Indies, ranked 8 in Tests, are number 1 in T20!
It must also be acknowledged that Australia’s selectors were in an experimental mode, keeping in mind, no doubt, the World Championships in March. Players were in and out leaving the side kind of unsettled.
For instance, why Usman Khawaja, the best batsman on the Aussie circuit, including a fabulous season in the Big Bash League, is something that left most experts and aficionados bewildered.
But that’s a different story and does not take away a whit from India’s superb performance. Beating Australia in Australia — in any format and whatever the composition of the home side — is a commendable achievement.
In their own conditions, the Aussies are ogres, but the Indian team was not dispirited despite the 1-4 drubbing in the ODIs. The body language was strong, the mood positive. The momentum from winning the last ODI was carried forward emphatically.
In a sense this also shows how close the ODI series was despite the unflattering scoreline. If there is any regret that M S Dhoni and Co would have, it is that they could not find the intensity to win in the 50-over format too, despite the opportunities.
In my opinion, Dhoni was the most influential player in the T20 series. With his captaincy under pressure, he was able to rally his troops splendidly in the T20. His batting also showed some old flair though he did not have a substantial score to his name.
His handling of situations — from picking the side, the astute bowling changes (especially spinners) and the field placements — was quite superb. He looked to be in total command at all times.
This is the format Dhoni enjoys most: where he has to live by his wits instead of theory and dogma that is intrinsic to the five-day format. Having chosen to retire from Tests, he had made this preference clear.
But that necessarily imposes the onus on Dhoni to win more regularly in the formats he plays in to keep his credentials and career relevant. Fans and critics alike can be terribly demanding, and there is only one way to mollify them.
The spearhead of India’s win was obviously Virat Kohli who has enjoyed a fabulous tour. He played some stunning knocks in the ODIs as well as the T20s to show a happy predilection for Australian pitches and bowlers.
Last season, he revelled in the Tests Down Under, this time he reiterated his prowess in limited overs cricket. Given the recent slump in A B de Villiers’s form, it is a moot question whether Kohli is not the best batsman in the world across formats.
I can hear some protests from votaries of Joe Root, Steve Smith, David Warner, Kane Wlliamson and his own teammate Rohit Sharma (finally coming into his own) for this accolade. But that only heightens the richness of contemporary batsmanship and not dilute Kohli’s stature.
However, to my mind the bigger challenge ahead for Kohli is as captain of the Test team. India are now ranked number 1, in some part through the fine wins over Sri Lanka and South Africa this season, but in some part also by default as the Proteas hit a trough.
There is not much now separating the top six Test teams and this year could see frequent upheavals in rankings unless players show greater resolve and ambition than they have done in the past to protect this coveted status.
India does not play Test cricket for another six months. The immediate priority is obviously winning the World T20. But Kohli must be alert to the responsibility — and in many ways the more gratifying honour — that lies beyond.
