The wind is a major factor for cricket at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua and on Saturday, the westerly breeze was blowing from the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea, swept across the picturesque ground making its presence strongly felt by everyone around the stadium. The Indians perfectly made adjustments and blew Bangladesh away in the game. It was an all-round, complete, and clinical performance, with Kuldeep Yadav and Hardik Pandya standing out. So forceful was the Indian performance, that the force of nature did not matter in the end. They are now one and half steps into the semifinal, as the commentators would keep saying on air.
India were too strong to resist after Bangladesh sidestepped from the usual bat-first strategy at the ground. Following a solid start, with Virat Kohli (37 off 28 balls) playing a part, Pandya propelled the Indian team to an almost insurmountable total. “We were thinking about restricting India to 160-170 when we put them into bat,” said Najmul Hossain Shanto, the Bangladesh captain. India got about 30 more runs.
There is never a doubt about Pandya’s big match temperament and ability to deliver in crucial stages. That goes with the tremendous self-belief he has and more often than not he rises to the challenges at international cricket. “I have been fortunate to play for the country, it was a freak injury I had, I wanted to come back but God had other plans (during the 2023 World Cup). I was talking to Rahul [Dravid] sir the other day, and he said: ‘Luck comes to people who work hard and that has stuck with me for a long time,'” he said of his commitment to the national team.
Pandya’s batting approach also carries shades of MS Dhoni (during his international career). He begins slowly, aiming to prolong his innings. On Saturday, he took the match into the final over and finished emphatically with a flourish – three boundaries off Mustafizur Rahman, propelling India to a total of 196 for five. His scoring showed a clear strategy – boundaries against the pacers and sixes off the spinners. It’s not to say he was not targeting the pacers for big hits – he demonstrated that by smashing six off Tanzim Hasan Sakib in the 19th over. He takes on the spinners early on and saves his assault on the pacers for later part of the innings. Mehdi Hasan and Rishad Hossain bore the brunt of his attack, dispatched for sixes over extra cover and long-on.
Then he came back to provide the breakthrough for the Indian team by taking opener Litton Das after Bangladesh had got off to a good start. He finished with1/32 in three overs, invaluable for the team’s balance. “I did realise the batters wanted to use the breeze, I made sure I did not give them a chance where the wind was blowing, it was about being one step ahead as a batter,” he said of his bowling. He would later be declared the Player of the Match. “Hardik batting well puts us in a good stead. We want to finish well after the top 5, 6, Hardik being Hardik we know what he is capable of. He is a very important player for us, if he can keep doing that, it will put us in a good position,” said skipper Rohit of the star all-rounder’s value to the team.
If Pandya’s contribution was invaluable, Kuldeep’s was equally crucial. His figures of 3/19 in four overs ensured that Bangladesh could not capitalise on their strong start. Kuldeep focused on maintaining an impeccable length, leaving the batters unsure about which way the ball would spin. Opener Tanzid Hasan, well-set after facing 30 deliveries, misread a delivery and was trapped LBW. Similarly, Towhid Hridoy also misjudged the delivery and suffered the same fate. Shakib al Hasan, Bangladesh’s most experienced player, hit him for a six over his head but was dismissed the next ball after failing to connect well.
Kuldeep Yadav came away with figures of 3/19 ©AFP
Kuldeep has been honing his bowling skills consistently well for a considerable period now, and playing in Delhi has significantly influenced his development and confidence. Similar to the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, the Delhi ground is small in size, putting spinners under perennial pressure. Having tasted success there, Kuldeep is high on confidence.
While there may be odd days when he concedes runs, his ability to take wickets remains consistent. The support of captain Rohit Sharma is crucial to Kuldeep, and he has certainly earned that backing. “Obviously reading the batter what they are expecting from me, just being one step ahead, what they are thinking (was important). So I just kept that in mind and changed the line and length,” Kuldeep said.
What stands out for Kuleep is his ability to bowl the ball that goes up above the eyeline and still dips on a perfect length. To do that one needs to use one’s body well with the separation between the bottom and top half, creating the torque required to spin the ball. And at the ground on Friday, he even had to contend with the breeze.
But he concentrated on length rather than the wind. “I was bowling from this end, the wind was like crossing this way. It was difficult from this end — as a spinner because my rhythm is like, not like a running rhythm, It’s more like a one step and then aggressive. I didn’t think about the wind, (focussed) on the length. They were targeting the wind side and just reacting to what they were doing,” the wrist spinner said of his strategy which was spot on.
Kuldeep’s performance was lauded by the opposition. “In the last 5-7 years what we have seen is spinners have more effect on this format, especially the leg spinner or the Chinaman, they have a lot more effect than the finger spinners,” Shakib Al Hasan said. “Kuldeep, he’s been performing really well. When I saw his stats today, when he was about to bowl his first ball. I think 61 or 62 wickets he gets in 36 or 35 matches. So that shows how good a bowler he is and he can only grow from here. And at this moment he is a confident bowler. Captain has given him that confidence and he’s bowling beautifully for India.”
