Why did India select four spinners for T20 World Cup 2024?
Two things were noticeable when India announced their T20 World Cup 2024 squad. Firstly, the Rinku Singh omission, and second, the inclusion of four spinners over an extra seamer. Generally, the teams opt for three spinners and take backups in the pace department, but India preferred to go with only three specialist pacers.
In a press conference following the squad announcement, the Indian captain, Rohit Sharma, revealed he wanted four spinners in the squad. When asked the reason, Rohit decided not to spill the beans since the opposition would be listening.
“I don't want to go too much into detail on it. I'm sure opposition captains are listening to this. I definitely wanted four spinners. We've played a lot of cricket there [Caribbean]. We know what the conditions are like. With morning starts at 10-10.30 am, there's a little bit of technical aspect involved in this.”
While Rohit didn’t reveal the exact reasons, his statement proves the team expects conditions to be on the slower side in the West Indies. India will play all four group-stage games in the USA, with three of them in New York, where no international games have been played. Not to degrade any side, but three of those four games are against Ireland, United States and Canada, with India expected to win all of them comprehensively.
The main event starts in the Super Eight phase when the two best sides of each group will play each other to qualify for the semifinal. This Super Eight phase and the knockout games will be played across different countries of the West Indies. So, India have focused on selecting players based on the conditions in these venues.
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The trends in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and international games across these grounds show that spinners have dominated the proceedings more often than pacers. Further, India will play all their matches during the day, and spinners will come more into play under the sun. The pitches will slow down due to the sunlight, offering some turn and grip to the tweakers.
Nobody does it better 🤩 Narine’s CPL wickets is a must watch 🍿🤩🇹🇹 #CPL24 #CricketPlayedLouder #BiggestPartyInSport pic.twitter.com/eG91tJq9Ue
— CPL T20 (@CPL) April 21, 2024
In the CPL since 2022, spinners have snared 42.4% of wickets at an average of 23.81 compared to 25.19 by pacers. While spinners have an economy rate of 7.24, pacers have conceded 8.70 runs every over in this phase.
Even in international cricket, 40.19% of wickets have gone to spinners at 23.38 runs apiece, conceding 7.46 every over in the West Indies since 2022. That average surges to 28.98 for pacers, leaking 9.18 runs per over. Only the venues in Sri Lanka have seen a higher % of wickets (41) by spinners in this period.
Since India will play only day games, we check the data from day games in the West Indies. The data of day games further confirms the domination of slow bowlers across the West Indies.
Spinners average 24.86 and have an economy rate of 7.32, while pacers take 29.39 balls for every wicket and concede 9.12 runs per over in day games in T20Is since 2022. Another thing to note is spinners have bowled 40.43% of overs in this timeframe. Only spinners in Bangladesh, which assists slow bowlers exceedingly, have bowled more % of overs (44.75).
Below is the comparison of pacers and spinners across every venue where the matches are scheduled. Spinners have better averages than pacers in three grounds, and the difference in the remaining ones is minimal. The slow bowlers have a better economy rate than speedsters at every stadium.
Spinners have bowled more than 45% of overs and taken more than 40% of wickets in all but one venue. The numbers suggest India were prudent with their selection and did the right thing by roping in an additional tweaker. All of the selected players are capable of troubling batters in helpful conditions.
They enjoyed ample success in the IPL 2024 and have previous experience playing in the West Indies. Yuzvendra Chahal was the second-leading wicket-taker (18) among spinners, while Kuldeep Yadav (16) sits fourth on the list. Axar Patel (11) and Ravindra Jadeja (8) also played their role well.
Wrist spinners are genuine wicket-takers, while finger spinners have great defensive skills. In fact, Ravindra Jadeja has been more threatening than ever in white-ball cricket. Add Jadeja and Axar’s batting value, and India become a potent all-round side in the competition.
Rohit Sharma and co. have had numerous tours to the West Indies. They must have gauged the conditions and noticed the proceedings in other matches here. It’s up to the individuals to step up and bring the cup home now.
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